I know my father served from almost the start of World War II until 1946 when it was all over. He was nineteen and studying pre-med when he enlisted. He told me that the carnage he witnessed during the war caused him to study something else, entirely, when he came…
Category: Architecture
I have a thing about how Los Angeles is portrayed on film and in books. An author who makes me laugh, perhaps because of his dour satiric streak, is Evelyn Waugh. He visited Hollywood in 1947 to discuss a film adaptation of Brideshead Revisited, loathed the place, and ended up…
I’m greeting the New Year with the cold that spans the world right now, so thanks to Mr. Benny and Ms. Crawford we have some comfort food for cold weather. And by “cold weather” I mean something like this: Now, in my house meatloaf is variously known as “oh, that!”…
Joan Crawford looking very festive. Her recipe for Broiled Steak with Roquefort Cheese — a-okay for a carnivore’s Christmas — is below. Serve with crispy roast potatoes and a green salad and you’ve got a meal to celebrate. The way you get quartered potatoes to crisp up when you roast…
Mama Gabriella’s Sicilian Christmas Pie (Lemon Ricotta Torte) Lighter than a cannoli, kind of like a Southern Chess Pie but more delicious… You can use your favorite flaky pie dough recipe, or make a sweet dough that’s more like a cookie under a custard ricotta filling (sweet dough recipe will…
I look at images like this and I remember my grandmother’s house. The teenagers in my life get the same glazed look they exhibit whenever I turn the channel to TCM. “It’s old-timey!” Which, of course, is why we (the Royal We) love it. And then they wander off to…
I’ve been reading the fascinating memoirs of Carmel Snow, and I’ve noticed she does what every good writer does — she takes a core truth and fiddles with the details so they enhance the point like a smile lights up a face. In other words, she lies beautifully and to…