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Small Talk: We'll Be Right Back


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2 hours ago, Prevailing Wind said:

Also on Acorn, "Hamish Macbeth" - based on the books by the same woman who created Agatha Raisin.  I think you'll like Acorn better than Britbox.  (You definitely need closed captioning with Hamish Macbeth. Those highland Scots are impossible to understand by aging ears.)

I love Hamish! I've read most of MC Beaton's works, I'm missing a few of both Agatha and Hamish. I followed Marion on FB until her death and she hand selected another author and worked with him to continue both series. I've read a couple of the post Marion Agatha books, they follow her standard closely. Haven't read any of the new Hamish books yet. Snakes and bastards, I'd best get on with it. But if I read, it's hard to watch tv. 

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2 hours ago, Prevailing Wind said:

Macbeth doesn't follow the books very well, so I've read. Allegedly Beaton thought Hamish was mis-cast because the actor's a Lowland Scot, not a Highlander.  LOL.

Not to mention that Robert Carlyle at supposedly 5'8" with dark brown hair doesn't resemble Hamish Macbeth, the very tall fiery-red haired lad of the books.

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(edited)

But Marion approved of the actress, Ashley Jensen who plays Agatha even though the actress is quite blonde, but in every book she describes her shiny brown hair, one of her best features. She talked about it in one of her FB posts, she said she had reservations because the actress was blonde but after she, Marion, visited the set during the filming for the first episode, she thought the actress was good as Agatha.

Edited by friendperidot
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6 hours ago, friendperidot said:

But Marion approved of the actress, Ashley Jensen who plays Agatha even though the actress is quite blonde, but in every book she describes her shiny brown hair, one of her best features.

I admit I only read one of the Agatha books (and may not have even finished it)- but was the Agatha of the books "eccentrically fashionable" the way the show's Agatha is? I got she the impression she was not quite so glamorous in the book.

I just read something along this topic on a new adaptation of the Lord of the Rings, for any Tolkien fans. Apparently there are a couple of new characters, an elf and something else, played by black actors, which some people are bent about, since the elves in the book were presumably white.  Additionally some people think that the books themselves are racist since they see all the evil ones as black or Asian. I have not seen any of the films but love the books, and I think these people are bats*** crazy. Elves or hobbits aren't human beings, and two of the human men, white, did bad things.  Sauron had no form, the wraiths wore black cloaks, they weren't black, and the Orcs were not Asian in any way, they weren't even human. Why do some people spend so much time making stuff up to be mad about? What bugs me though is why some writers often take an established work/classic and make it be what they want it to be instead of creating something original that is what they want it to be. I'd like to know what anyone else thinks on any of this.

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1 hour ago, susannah said:

I just read something along this topic on a new adaptation of the Lord of the Rings, for any Tolkien fans. Apparently there are a couple of new characters, an elf and something else, played by black actors, which some people are bent about, since the elves in the book were presumably white.  Additionally some people think that the books themselves are racist since they see all the evil ones as black or Asian. I have not seen any of the films but love the books, and I think these people are bats*** crazy. Elves or hobbits aren't human beings, and two of the human men, white, did bad things.  Sauron had no form, the wraiths wore black cloaks, they weren't black, and the Orcs were not Asian in any way, they weren't even human. Why do some people spend so much time making stuff up to be mad about? What bugs me though is why some writers often take an established work/classic and make it be what they want it to be instead of creating something original that is what they want it to be. I'd like to know what anyone else thinks on any of this.

The books are problematic in that way.  Tolkien made no doubt of his fact that Elves were Nordic in appearance and culture, while the evil (human) Sothroners and Easterlings were swarthy.  Their description as being nonwhite is clear.  Was he a racist?  Who knows?  Was he a product of growing up in the English countryside in the early 20th c?  More likely.  (Incidentally, Tolkien spent his earliest years in South Africa.)  Would he approve of the show having people of color portray his characters?  Probably not.  Personally I think it's a good thing to have a diverse cast.  If God (Eru) made humans in all shades, why not Elves?

(Sauron did once have a form and will likely appear in the show at some point.)  

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3 hours ago, dleighg said:

admit I only read one of the Agatha books (and may not have even finished it)- but was the Agatha of the books "eccentrically fashionable" the way the show's Agatha is? I got she the impression she was not quite so glamorous in the book.

Agatha is described as being quite fashion conscious and well dressed, most of the time. She spends a lot of money on clothing and likes good labels and designers.

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1 hour ago, Haleth said:

The books are problematic in that way.  Tolkien made no doubt of his fact that Elves were Nordic in appearance and culture, while the evil (human) Sothroners and Easterlings were swarthy.  Their description as being nonwhite is clear.  Was he a racist?  Who knows?  Was he a product of growing up in the English countryside in the early 20th c?  More likely.  (Incidentally, Tolkien spent his earliest years in South Africa.)  Would he approve of the show having people of color portray his characters?  Probably not.  Personally I think it's a good thing to have a diverse cast.  If God (Eru) made humans in all shades, why not Elves?

(Sauron did once have a form and will likely appear in the show at some point.)  

As I said, I have not seen the films. I believe the definition of racism is to make false and generalized statements about an ethnic group, and nowhere did I read in the Hobbit or trilogy that it was thought that every character who wasn't "white" was bad, including non human beings.  Sauron did NOT have a form in the books.  Nor were Elves in general discussed, but only the specific ones the group knew, and I don't recall their appearance being mentioned, other than their clothes, and Bombur's weight. Boromir and Denethor were white men who were not good. Gollum, Grima, Lotho and Lobelia Sackville Baggins were all bad characters, and not described as black or Asian. Again, why can't writers come up with original work to be as they like it instead of changing other people's.

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41 minutes ago, Haleth said:

I’m talking about a deep dive into The Silmarillion, The Books of Lost Tales, the published letters, and the 20 volume History of Middle Earth. Yes, I’ve read them all. Your questions are addressed in the more scholarly works. 

I applaud you for making it through them as they are seriously heavy going & make even the full versions of LOTR look like a short story.

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3 hours ago, friendperidot said:

Agatha is described as being quite fashion conscious and well dressed, most of the time. She spends a lot of money on clothing and likes good labels and designers

because I was really wondering whether I had misremembered how she was portrayed in the first book, I checked the ebook out of the library. This is on something like the second page: 

Quote

 

Agatha was aged fifty-three, with plain brown hair and a plain square face and a stocky figure.

Beaton, M. C.. The Quiche of Death: The First Agatha Raisin Mystery (Agatha Raisin Mysteries Book 1) (p. 2). St. Martin's Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. 

 

So I don't think that's very close to the TV Agatha (beyond the blond hair!) So while I believe she may have a similar penchant for nice clothes, she's really upped her game in the appearance department :) 

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54 minutes ago, dleighg said:

So I don't think that's very close to the TV Agatha (beyond the blond hair!) So while I believe she may have a similar penchant for nice clothes, she's really upped her game in the appearance department :) 

In later books, I think Marion changed the character to a more glamorous, while she kept the rather stocky figure, she had great legs and great hair and became less plain and had her own kind of beauty and she really liked to spend money on clothes. I've read most of the books, I haven't read the last one or two.

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4 hours ago, Haleth said:

I’m talking about a deep dive into The Silmarillion, The Books of Lost Tales, the published letters, and the 10 volume History of Middle Earth. Yes, I’ve read them all. Your questions are addressed in the more scholarly works.

Oops, typo. The HoME is 10 volumes, not 20. Sheesh. 

I'm not talking about any of those books, as I was referring to an adaptation of the Lord of the Rings. The Hobbit and the Trilogy are the books I have read.

5 hours ago, friendperidot said:

In later books, I think Marion changed the character to a more glamorous, while she kept the rather stocky figure, she had great legs and great hair and became less plain and had her own kind of beauty and she really liked to spend money on clothes. I've read most of the books, I haven't read the last one or two.

The thing about Agatha Raisin in the books is that she has brown, bear-like eyes.  The TV series actress has big blue eyes and appears to be younger than the book Agatha.  Agatha in the books is always bemoaning the aging process and is very keen on keeping a youthful appearance.

I've not seen the TV series yet because it turns me off that young, blue-eyed blonde Agatha doesn't resemble the real Agatha.  I know that sounds shallow.  I may get around to trying to watch someday.

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2 hours ago, CrystalBlue said:

The thing about Agatha Raisin in the books is that she has brown, bear-like eyes.  The TV series actress has big blue eyes and appears to be younger than the book Agatha.  Agatha in the books is always bemoaning the aging process and is very keen on keeping a youthful appearance.

I've not seen the TV series yet because it turns me off that young, blue-eyed blonde Agatha doesn't resemble the real Agatha.  I know that sounds shallow.  I may get around to trying to watch someday.

There are way too many differences between the book Agatha and the TV Agatha for me to want to watch it, though I tried a couple of times. I adored book Agatha for most of the series until the later ones where she seemed to have reverted back to being the bitchy, jealous, insecure person she started out as instead of the combination of shrewd businesswoman and good villager living in Carsley slowly turned her into. I stopped reading the books before the last two or three because they were making me sad.

And I wonder how self-referential her Hamish MacBeth book Death of a Screenwriter was considering 

Spoiler

IIRC the murderer was the author of the books being used as the basis for the series being filmed because the production was making too many stupid changes to the source material, and she couldn't stop them because the contract she signed allowed it.

 

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3 minutes ago, CoderLady said:

There are way too many differences between the book Agatha and the TV Agatha for me to want to watch it, though I tried a couple of times. I adored book Agatha for most of the series until the later ones where she seemed to have reverted back to being the bitchy, jealous, insecure person she started out as instead of the combination of shrewd businesswoman and good villager living in Carsley slowly turned her into. I stopped reading the books before the last two or three because they were making me sad.

And I wonder how self-referential her Hamish MacBeth book Death of a Screenwriter was considering 

  Hide contents

IIRC the murderer was the author of the books being used as the basis for the series being filmed because the production was making too many stupid changes to the source material, and she couldn't stop them because the contract she signed allowed it.

 

I agree with you and thanks for the info under the spoiler.  I did read that book already and appreciate your input.

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19 hours ago, susannah said:

I just read something along this topic on a new adaptation of the Lord of the Rings, for any Tolkien fans. Apparently there are a couple of new characters, an elf and something else, played by black actors, which some people are bent about, since the elves in the book were presumably white.  Additionally some people think that the books themselves are racist since they see all the evil ones as black or Asian. I have not seen any of the films but love the books, and I think these people are bats*** crazy. Elves or hobbits aren't human beings, and two of the human men, white, did bad things.  Sauron had no form, the wraiths wore black cloaks, they weren't black, and the Orcs were not Asian in any way, they weren't even human. Why do some people spend so much time making stuff up to be mad about? What bugs me though is why some writers often take an established work/classic and make it be what they want it to be instead of creating something original that is what they want it to be. I'd like to know what anyone else thinks on any of this.

I've been paying attention a bit to the series. Black actors do not take me out of the story and it's not something I would get bent about. I never saw the books as black vs white. I hope this old trope has nothing to do with skin color. White hats vs Black hats, nothing to do with skin.

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1 hour ago, nokat said:

I've been paying attention a bit to the series. Black actors do not take me out of the story and it's not something I would get bent about. I never saw the books as black vs white. I hope this old trope has nothing to do with skin color. White hats vs Black hats, nothing to do with skin.

I agree that evil vs good has nothing to do with skin color, but as mentioned, only one VERY small group of characters in the books were even human beings. Ethnicity and racial bias applied to non human creatures as every single one of the rest of them were is just beyond ridiculous.

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1 hour ago, susannah said:

I agree that evil vs good has nothing to do with skin color, but as mentioned, only one VERY small group of characters in the books were even human beings. Ethnicity and racial bias applied to non human creatures as every single one of the rest of them were is just beyond ridiculous.

You make a good point. There are racial divides as in not human.

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On 3/12/2022 at 7:38 AM, chessiegal said:

Occasionally I watch The Rockford Files on GetTV. It has started to feel like an hour-long Car Shield commercial with a few minutes of the show sprinkled in here and there. 😠

 

On 3/12/2022 at 10:18 AM, Prevailing Wind said:

Good tie-in with all those obligatory car chase scenes. EVERY damn episode had a car chase.

It's one of those useless bits of trivia my brain can't let go of, but James Garner had those chases put into the show because he loved driving so much. Between that and Jim getting beaten up all the time, his insurance premiums must have been crazy. 😄

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10 hours ago, Cobalt Stargazer said:

 

It's one of those useless bits of trivia my brain can't let go of, but James Garner had those chases put into the show because he loved driving so much. Between that and Jim getting beaten up all the time, his insurance premiums must have been crazy. 😄

James was a crazy good driver. He did most of the driving in the movie Grand Prix. The professional drivers said he could have made it on the circuit.

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Quote

I do not ever remember seeing anyone applaud at the end of a movie. 🤔

The only time I ever experienced applause at a movie was Hidden Figures, and it wasn't at the end.

The only time I've experienced (for lack of a better way to put it) laughter and exclamations beyond just a normal laugh was at I am Legend. It embarrassingly took me several minutes to figure out what everyone was laughing about.  And since nobody else will know, someone said there was a group of survivors in Vermont.  Immediate outburst from audience.  Me wondering why.  Me remembering I live in Vermont (and have all my life so this was not new information) and therefore everyone in the theater was currently in Vermont and probably also lived there.

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8 hours ago, Katy M said:

The only time I ever experienced applause at a movie was Hidden Figures, and it wasn't at the end.

The only time I've experienced (for lack of a better way to put it) laughter and exclamations beyond just a normal laugh was at I am Legend. It embarrassingly took me several minutes to figure out what everyone was laughing about.  And since nobody else will know, someone said there was a group of survivors in Vermont.  Immediate outburst from audience.  Me wondering why.  Me remembering I live in Vermont (and have all my life so this was not new information) and therefore everyone in the theater was currently in Vermont and probably also lived there.

Applause was not terribly unusual in the late 50s and early 60s at first-run theaters for "blockbuster" movies.  I think there was applause at the end when I saw "Star Wars."

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And here's another thing that bugs me about Domino's 3 dollar tip promotion. In my life, I've been with people and let's say we're drinking and maybe smoking some choice Longbotttom leaf. We get hungry and we decide to get some pizza. We do not want to drive anywhere. We're wasted. And later in life, when I've had a long day at work and all I want to do is go home, get in my jammies and fling my bra across the room, I am not going out to pick up pizza. If I'm going to get myself together enough to go pick up take out, then it sure as hell ain't gonna be pizza. It's going to be Mexican or Chinese or some nice seafood. I don't think Domino's knows their demographic as well as they think they do. And yes, I know there's a labor shortage for shitty assed, low paying jobs. Maybe if the corporate masters could forego getting a bigger yacht for a couple years, they could afford to pay people a decent wage.

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@peacheslatour, preach! There's a Domino's just a stone's throw away from where I work and I refuse to get carry out from there because their pizzas are awful. I'd rather pick up a Red Baron frozen pizza on my way home. Sometimes they're 3 for $10 at Food Lion. I stock up! I usually add some fresh mozzarella cheese because I'm not sure if the stuff on the pizza is actually cheese. I love to cook, but some days I'm just too tired. Hell, it's a little after one o'clock now and I'm already thinking about getting into my pajamas, curling up on the sofa and watching reruns of "Modern Family."

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On 3/8/2022 at 3:13 AM, dleighg said:

I admit I only read one of the Agatha books (and may not have even finished it)- but was the Agatha of the books "eccentrically fashionable" the way the show's Agatha is? I got she the impression she was not quite so glamorous in the book.

If you like regency books, M.C. Beaton wrote a number of hysterical regency books under the name of Marion Chesney.  They are in series of 6 books each and are most definitely NOT the typical regency bodice rippers.  They are incredibly funny.  My favorites are the School for Manners series with 2 eccentric old sisters preparing difficult girls for their first social season.

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Re reactions to movies in a theater. When my oldest niece was about 3, (she's a grandmother of 2 now), her mother and I took her to see 101 Dalmatians. She was a little young and I didn't think she was paying much attention. Until the chase scene, when she stood on her seat and started yelling, "C'mon, hurry, you can do it, hurry!" I laughed. The theater was full of young children, it wasn't too horribly misbehaving of her.

Editing so I don't double post. Re fried butter, recently A&E had a special about Texas State Fair foods and the vendors. It was pretty interesting, but I don't know if I missed the ending episode or they just stopped it. One of the vendors sold fried butter. I had heard of it, and thought it sounded weird and impossible. I've never had it, but after seeing it on one of those episodes, I wouldn't mind trying it. They take a small ball of bread dough, then form that ball around a pat of butter then deep fry it. So it's sort of like a small fried dinner roll with the butter melted inside. Probably as it cooks, the butter gets all through the dough. 

Edited by friendperidot
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2 hours ago, friendperidot said:

Re reactions to movies in a theater. When my oldest niece was about 3, (she's a grandmother of 2 now), her mother and I took her to see 101 Dalmatians. She was a little young and I didn't think she was paying much attention. Until the chase scene, when she stood on her seat and started yelling, "C'mon, hurry, you can do it, hurry!" I laughed. The theater was full of young children, it wasn't too horribly misbehaving of her.

Editing so I don't double post. Re fried butter, recently A&E had a special about Texas State Fair foods and the vendors. It was pretty interesting, but I don't know if I missed the ending episode or they just stopped it. One of the vendors sold fried butter. I had heard of it, and thought it sounded weird and impossible. I've never had it, but after seeing it on one of those episodes, I wouldn't mind trying it. They take a small ball of bread dough, then form that ball around a pat of butter then deep fry it. So it's sort of like a small fried dinner roll with the butter melted inside. Probably as it cooks, the butter gets all through the dough. 

Did they freeze the butter first?

4 hours ago, friendperidot said:

The theater was full of young children, it wasn't too horribly misbehaving of her.

I'd consider that appropriate behavior for a small child at a children's movie!! When they get a little older, say 5 or 6, you can explain about being quiet in the movie theater.  But then,  I never had kids so wtf do I know?  

When I went to see "An Officer and a Gentleman," the entire theater (all adults) erupted in applause at the end.  Why I don't know. 

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9 hours ago, Colleenna said:

I'd consider that appropriate behavior for a small child at a children's movie!! When they get a little older, say 5 or 6, you can explain about being quiet in the movie theater.  But then,  I never had kids so wtf do I know?  

When I went to see "An Officer and a Gentleman," the entire theater (all adults) erupted in applause at the end.  Why I don't know. 

Because they liked the ending?

19 hours ago, friendperidot said:

 

Editing so I don't double post. Re fried butter, recently A&E had a special about Texas State Fair foods and the vendors. It was pretty interesting, but I don't know if I missed the ending episode or they just stopped it. One of the vendors sold fried butter. I had heard of it, and thought it sounded weird and impossible. I've never had it, but after seeing it on one of those episodes, I wouldn't mind trying it. They take a small ball of bread dough, then form that ball around a pat of butter then deep fry it. So it's sort of like a small fried dinner roll with the butter melted inside. Probably as it cooks, the butter gets all through the dough. 

Now that you mention it I enjoyed as well that so I looked it up & it was moved from Tuesday evening to Saturday afternoons & is on tomorrow. No idea why.

It's called deep fried dynasty.

I also checked A&E on D+ and there's no sign of it but it is available on the A&E standalone app.

Edited by Welshman in Ca
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14 hours ago, friendperidot said:

Thanks, Welshman, I enjoyed the show, a lot more than I ever thought I would and wouldn't mind seeing the rest. I don't go to fairs, I have my reasons, but I've heard of various fair foods and wondered about them, so it was informative.

Fair food. Turkey legs, funnel cakes and roasted corn on the cob. Mackinac Island fudge.

For those who have never been to Mackinac Island (in lake Huron), they don't allow cars so it's horse and carriage. You need to take a ferry there. I rode a bike (that you can rent) around the island. The fudge is delicious and the island is definitely a tourist trap. 

Edited by nokat
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14 minutes ago, nokat said:

For those who have never been to Mackinac Island (in lake Huron), they don't allow cars so it's horse and carriage. You need to take a ferry there. I rode a bike (that you can rent) around the island. The fudge is delicious and the island is definitely a tourist trap. 

Mackinac is a bucket list item for me.  It looks beautiful.

Regarding the Progressive commercials with the guy trying to prevent new homeowners from turning into their parents:

I can think of one time at the movies when visiting the ladies room before the show would have been a good thing.

My best friend and I went to see Titanic one night soon after its initial release. We decided to have dinner before the movie and we each had a couple of beers with our dinner. When we got to the theater, we each ordered Dr Peppers at the concession stand to sip on while we watched the movie.

Well, by the time the ship struck the iceberg and started to take on water, we realized we had taken on a lot of water ourselves and we were about to burst! I never had to pee so bad in my whole life, except maybe the time when my high school band visited Niagara Falls.

So, yeah. Even if you think you don't have to go to the bathroom before a movie, maybe go anyway. Especially if the film you're about to see is about a large boat that sinks in the ocean.

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I'm an old woman. My motto is "Never pass up a chance to pee."  Even when I have BOTH cats on my lap... if I say, "I gotta pee," they both jump off my lap. They KNOW.

I once had a neighbor who would go to the movies with me. She had had kidney problems as a kid, so as soon as she felt the urge, she'd get up & go.  That didn't annoy me. It was when she got back and wanted to know what she missed that really ticked me off - because I know she wasn't peeing that whole time - she was smokin' in the girls' room.

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On 4/23/2022 at 6:47 AM, nokat said:

It is very relaxing and beautiful.

 

mackinac.jpg

Mike Rowe had a Dirty Jobs episode of painting on the bridge.   Since I'm terrified of heights, I looked away for a lot of those scenes.       

The fudge from Mackinac is legendary too. 

It's such a peaceful, beautiful place. 

Edited by CrazyInAlabama
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