Now Available to Pre-Order

What a pleasant surprise! The other day I got an email from an old friend at one of the libraries in Prince Edward County where I used to work, congratulating me. Why, I wondered?

Apparently, my upcoming book is listed in the spring 2011 catalogue of books the Library Services Centre is calling Solid Sellers. Not just listed inside, but pictured on the front cover for everyone to see. Needless to say, that "made my day!" I'm hoping that solid seller moniker is prophetic.

Mary Pickford: The First and the Best

Anyone researching and writing the life of Mary Pickford, as I am, can't help but be struck by the number of FIRSTS she accomplished:

She is called the first star of American cinema,
the First Lady of the movies.
She was the first actress to make $1 million and
the first actor to have her name on a theatre marquee.
Mary was the first female movie star to fly in a plane in a movie,
the first female star to head her own independent movie company, and the first actor to achieve international fame and recognition among millions in the world.
She was truly the world's first Super Star.

So much about Mary's film career is mentioned in SUPERLATIVES:
She was the highest paid woman in the world in her time, making more money than the US president.

 She was the most powerful woman in the history of motion pictures,
the biggest box-office draw in the world, and the most famous woman in the world in her time.

She was the most popular and financially successful woman in screen history.

I hope you'll enjoy meeting her in Mary Pickford: Canada's Silent Siren, America's Sweetheart.

Watch for it in September!

Happy Valentine's Day

I keep a little, hardbound book where I save bits of poetry and prose that speak to me. Because today is Valentine's Day, I'd like to share this poem that I clipped some years ago. Unfortunately, I no longer have the author's name to pass on with it. It's not my work, but I'll call it Love Poem

Whiskers in the sink?
Why complain? It would be silly.
They belong to my guy.
Soggy towels on the floor?
I pick them up and say nothing.
Socks and shorts that didn't quite make the hamper?
I quietly put them where they belong.
Crumbs in the bed? Hey, where's my pillow?
Newspapers strewn all over the place
As he sits and watches hockey and baseball on TV.
But what do I care?
I am not alone --
That messy guy belongs to me.
He bought our house.
He loves our kids.
He zips me up and pats my behind.
He keeps me warm and smiles a lot.
He's faithful,
And he loves me.

To My Own, Special, Smiley-Eyed Guy.

A Mary Pickford Silent Movie: "The New York Hat," 1912.

This is the last picture Mary Pickford made with director D.W. Griffith at the Biograph Company in 1912. She was 20 years old. A silent movie, I think it's a clear illustration of Mary's remarkable ability to express emotion without using exaggerated gestures. Her career was just beginning.
Enjoy!