Red Badge: Movies Good & Bad

Since this blog is named after the master's most famous work, we should return now and again to Red Badge things. Let's put down the books and turn on the u-tube, so we can take a peek at some Red Badge of Courage movies!

First, the best of the bad. It seems a lot of english literature teachers are inspiring their students to re-enact scenes from the Red Badge on camera. Now, that would be great if the students actually read the book instead of the Cliff Notes (which are nearly as long as the novel itself), or worse if the kids just watch the 1951 movie instead of reading the book or the notes. It would be better still if modern youth weren't on so many drugs that their cinematic efforts wouldn't be so...yeah well perhaps you should just take a peek for yourself, bearing in mind that these are truly the BEST of the bad.

This one is an overview of the action scenes, and in a clever twist shows Henry Fleming initially taking flight when he is spooked by a comrade's whiz in the woods: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gwwt7wVTwlI

The next video clip, from a different bunch of teens, shows the death of Jim Conklin. In this version Jim runs quite a distance, pauses to scratch a cat's back, then listens appreciatively to some dude playing guitar, before he finally dies. The tattered soldier gives an inspired performance in this one as well, and it has a groovy soundtrack: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojnba2TQLbk

So now that we've seen the kids' take on Red Badge, let's see what Hollywood has to offer. John Huston's 1951 film is a true gem worthy of the book, and some noble privateer has uploaded the entire film to u-tube for us. Watch it here in 7, ten-minute segments, starting with "A," http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gL-ElEYfdVY&feature=PlayList&p=3039187F892627ED&index=0&playnext=1

The interesting thing to note about the Huston film is that the two baby-faced actors playing Fleming and Wilson, were actually World War II heroes. Henry Fleming is played by Audie Murphy, the most decorated soldier of WWII. Read his unbelievable war record here, and understand that Murphy did all this before turning 21. A few years after the war ended he was invited to try his hand at acting, and had a reasonably successful career. Murphy was also a country music songwriter, but we'll forgive him for that. His struggle with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder brought early attention to a consequence of war that wasn't fully understood at the time. Murphy died in a plane crash at the age of 46.

Red Badge character Tom Wilson is played by Bill Mauldin, who was a WWII soldier and cartoonist for the military paper Stars & Stripes. He won a Pulitzer Prize for his artistic efforts during the war, which inspired millions of US troops. Mauldin had a long & successful career in journalism following the war, and only dabbled in acting. Despite that i'd say he gives the best performance of any Red Badge actor. Check out Mauldin's bio here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Mauldin

Enter the Lanthorn

Hello Stephen Crane fans! This week on the Stephen Crane blog we're taking a peek into the eerie world of a truly rare Stephen Crane related work, The Lanthorn Book! And if you notice how i drop the name of Stephen Crane more frequently than usual, it's because i am attempting to increase this blog's ranking on "Stephen Crane" Google searches. But that's a topic for another post!

Oh, The Lanthorn Book! What the heck is it? Stephen Crane and a few of his literary buddies formed a club in New York City. They'd write things to amuse eachother, get together, and drink lots of booze and smoke. In 1898 they cobbled together the funds to publish a "Lanthorn Book, Being A Small Collection of Tales and Verses and Read At The Sign O' the Lanthorn."

It contains the following, according to Williams & Starrett: "The Wise Men" by Stephen Crane, "The Answer of the Sea" by John Langdon Heaton, "The Night of a Thousand Years" by Irving Bacheller, illustrated by G.Y. Kauffman, "Larry and the Squg" by Willis Brooks Hawkins, illustrated by the author, "The Wheel" by Post Wheeler, illustrated by F.H. King, "It Came To Pass" by Charles B. Lewis (M. Quad), "Veiled Gods" by Charles Kelsey Gaines.

125 copies were printed and signed by some of the contributors. A quick online search turned up four copies of the Lanthorn Book. Copy #38 is being offered for sale by University Archives of Connecticut, for $5,000...not so much considering how rare it is & that it's signed by Crane. Click here to see the listing, and also an excellent description of the book & (praise John Reznikoff!) great photos of the front and back cover, plus the Crane signed page. Hurrah, i'll buy it if any of you want to loan me $5,000.

Another one is currently for sale, copy #9, for $6,000, by James Cummins Booksellers of New York City (click here to see the listing, if you're rich enough to buy it).

In 2006 copy #59 was offered for sale by Nate Sanders Auction of Los Angeles. Click here to see that listing and a good photo of the Lanthorn cover, title page, and signatures. In 2007 copy #30 was put to sale by Heritage Auction Galleries of Dallas (click here to see the listing & a photo of the book cover).

So with those copies floating around in recent years, and two still up for sale, i suppose The Lanthorn Book is surprisingly obtainable! Unlike the aptly titled (lost) Crane Brede Place collaboration, The Ghost! Still for us poor folk, a reprint edition of The Lanthorn would be nice to see... however since i'm not holding my breath for that i've taken the initiative to locate three of the tales from Lanthorn and placed links to them below.

The Wise Men by Stephen Crane

The Night of a Thousand Years by Irving Bacheller

Larry and the Squg by Willis Brooks Hawkins

And by the way in case anyone hasn't figured out what a "lanthorn" is, check it out. Super kewl!

University of Virginia Works!

I recently added something wonderful to my Crane collection: the University of Virginia edition of Stephen Crane's WORKS, edited by Fredson Bowers. Money is tight these days so i can't buy as much Crane stuff as i'd like, but i figured this was well worth it and an essential part of my collection.

Here is the information about the set:

The Works of Stephen Crane
The University of Virginia Press, 1969-1975

Ten Volume Set. Fredson Bowers, Editor. Yellow Cloth, Hardcover. No dust jackets.

Vol. I. Bowery Tales: Maggie and George's Mother; ISBN: 978-0813902586

Vol. II. The Red Badge of Courage; 978-0813905143

Vol. III. The Third Violet and Active Service; 978-0813906669

Vol. IV. The O'Ruddy; 978-0813903415

Vol. V. Tales of Adventure; 978-0813903026

Vol. VI. Tales of War; 978-0813902944

Vol. VII. Tales of Whilomville; 978-0813902593

Vol. VIII. Tales, Sketches, and Reports; 978-0813904054

Vol. IX. Reports of War; 978-0813903422

Vol. X. Poems and Literary Remains; 978-0813906102

I managed to purchase all volumes except #5 from Alibris for $117 shipped, on 1-23-2009. I cross referenced Amazon and Alibris using the ISBN numbers, looking for the books in best condition and at the best price. In many cases booksellers list on both sites. I bought the majority of books from a single seller in Indiana, and in that way saved a few bucks on shipping. All of my books are in very good condition, or better. A couple just have the prior owner's signature, one is an ex-library book, and one was even brand new and shrink wrapped.

If you want the whole set, go for it. I doubt you will match my el cheapo skillz and get it for $117, but i would expect you to be able to manage under $200. If you aren't a hardcore Crane collector, i wouldn't suggest you buy the entire set, as most of it is just the text of his books & famous stories that can be purchased elsewhere. I would focus on volumes 8, 9 and 10, which contain the more obscure stuff.

Volume five is in red in my list above because i don't have it, and i imagine it will torment me for many years to come. You see, this volume is the rarest of them all and i was unable to find it for sale anywhere! I don't know why, as it is a slim and unremarkable book that was published in 1970. I suppose there has to be one pain in the poop in every group! My working theory is that volume five was the most popular book of the set, given its title and content as Tales of Adventure. I'm guessing a lot of professors assigned their students to read this book, and as a result most of the copies got sucked up into academia land, never to return. Those copies that do exist are now long forgotten in dusty boxes in basements and attics, or hidden in mom and pop bookstores that don't list inventory on the internet. I am really not sure if my theory is correct, so if anyone one knows, or praise Jesus if anyone has a copy to sell me, please leave a comment below!!

The best price i found for the entire set (including volume 5) was $500. If you can spend that type of money, i don't think $500 is an unreasonable price tag, considering all the trouble you'll save hunting down each volume. I do want to stress that this is a TEN volume set. I saw a couple listings that said they were selling #1-1o of a 12 volume set. No, there were only ten. Perhaps people were thinking of Bowers' two-volume facsimile of Crane's Red Badge of Courage manuscript, but that wasn't part of the University of Virginia set. Or maybe they were thinking of the 1925 Knopf 12-volume set? Or the mysterious, expensive, and hard-to-find 12-volume set of Crane's works published in the 1990's by Reprint Services Corp. In any case, the sellers were just confused.

The aesthetics of the books get mixed reviews from me. The mustardy yellow color is unique, and i rather like it despite (or because) it has the academic library aura all over it! The titles on the spine are also in gold, and i find them very hard to read due to the lack of contrast. I do like that the books are hardcover & cloth, and that they don't have dust jackets. The paper is bright and high quality, and the font is large and easy to read. My biggest complaint about the books is Volume VIII....this beast is over 1173 pages long! What were the publishers thinking!? This book is way too bulky to balance on your chest while lying in bed, and rather awkward to crack open on a desk or table for the long periods it would take to read it. Too bad because the subject matter, Tales, Sketches & Reports, would be most interesting to read. The obvious solution would have been to cut the book in half and made the set 11 volumes instead of 10, but i imagine somehow printing costs prevented that. By comparison, the next biggest volume is IX, Reports of War, and that weighs in at a substantial but manageable 678 pages. The slimmest volume is the first, Bowery Tales, a mere 184 pages. So the set is all over the place when it comes to size.

I have not read the set yet, but when i do i will read it all the way through as Bowers has arranged it. Fredson Bowers was quite a remarkable literary man, and he published several sets of works like this and many painstakingly researched bibliographies. This University of Virginia Works set is considered the most comprehensive of the Crane canon. There has been some criticism of the reliability of the text for a couple of the books, such as with Red Badge there may be some variations or errors. I've read most of what's in here under separate covers, except i haven't read all of Crane's war dispatches, so that will be fun. I'm not looking forward to reading The O'Ruddy, Crane's last written book, which was finished after his death by Robert Barr. Not sure if i can bring myself to read that sad end of Crane's work. Bowers has it rather early, as volume 4, so maybe i'll skip 4 and oh yeah...skip the impossible to find volume 5, and hope my chest doesn't get crushed while reading gargantuan volume 8. Oh yeah, what fun!

Word from the Cowboy

The Blue Hotel play in Harrisonburg Virginia ended its two-week run last Sunday. Scroll down or visit the February 2009 archives to read two other posts about the play. By way of wrapping-up, the man who played the Cowboy sent us along a nice summary & insights on how things went...

"My name is Paul Somers, I played the Cowboy. I have a Master's in English, but have never done any theater. So this was an especially rewarding thing for me to be a part of, as it gave me such a fresh and new perspective on literature. I studied a lot of oral literatures throughout my education so I was especially pleased when I found that Trocchia had included elements of Crane's other stories in the form of stories told by the characters. It also attracted me b/c the tone of the play seems so distinctively American and tragic. I found the play, as did many in our audience, to be very pertinent to the times we are immediately living in. There is also something mysterious in this story. The way the parts move there is no major resolution for me that sums up the meaning, it seems to me at least, that it lies much deeper than that. Something deep in me responded to this story and grew more complex in tone and feeling as we rehearsed and performed the play. It is definitely literature meant to be experienced above all, and thanks to the medium it was.

The music too, wow, the music blew me away the first time I heard it and made me feel like I had to really work hard on doing what I had to do, the best way I could do it. Everyone involved in the play did such a good job at what they did. My wife did the photography for The Shakes album cover and also took excellent photographs of the cast, which you can view. Definitely check those out. Then there's Mike, who conceived all of this somehow. I was inspired by how serious he was about spreading this play as far and wide as he could. The art show was another intriguing aspect. We got some really beautiful pieces.

Mike's motive seemed mostly to get people back into Crane. He has spoken to me several times, and I agree, about how Crane is often looked over. What incredible poetry too. I really can't say enough about all of this, but for me the most significant aspect of doing this was that feeling I got deep down in my own humanity, from where all of my human flaws are destined to infiltrate my own actions. I could feel the play down there. This mythic quality of the play satisfied something that seldom gets satisfied. I could have written essay after essay on the story, or Crane himself and would have never gotten to that feeling, and rather have possibly only gotten further from such a feeling."

Mark Lane of The Shakes also checked in during the plays run with this: "The Blue Hotel is going well. The Shakes performed to a house of 148 last Saturday evening before the start of the play."

Here's an online article about the play, with a dress rehearsal photo.

Info and samples of The Shakes Blue Hotel cd can be found on this page. And this is the ordering link where you can purchase it for $10.

From the perspective of a Stephen Crane fan, this project was a truly excellent one. It helps to keep alive one of Crane's great stories in a modern way. Most encouraging is that this project received the full efforts of a lot of talented people. And it was also supported by an arts grant, which although not essential, can expand the scope of a project and magnify its impact, while helping the artists involved.

Thanks to those who provided info and comments to fuel these three blog posts.

Experience The Shakes!

This week we hear from The Shakes, an acoustic band out of Keezletown Virginia, and the musical injection to The Blue Hotel play which art in its second and final week. For full info on the play and an exchange with the director, Michael Trocchia, please wander down to the post below this one...

The Blue Hotel play performance schedule:

Wed, Feb. 25-Sat, Feb. 28 8pm & Sun, Mar. 1 - 3pm
Catch The Shakes live for pre-show music on Feb. 28 7:30-8pm

Court Square Theater, 311 South Main Street, Harrisonburg, Virginia

The Shakes are: Mark Lane, Dan Easley, and Crystal Shrewsbury

And their main website: http://www.towndowner.com/

According to The Shakes myspace page...

"Mark writes the songs, sings them, and plays guitar. Classic rock, country, folk, and blues all make their appearance. His lyrics ask epistemological questions in a style of which Strunk, White, Waylon and Johnny might've approved.

Dan adds support and color to the tunes with an array of instruments and vocal stylings. He has devoted much of his life to the study of popular music from the 1600's to today in an attempt to amass a great big bunch of old tricks up his sleeve.

Crystal plays a strong and steady upright bass. In a past life (and still, from time to time) a bass clarinetist, her string bass experience is in traditional Appalachian old-time music. She provides a solid grounding and careful eye (and ear) to the whole circus.

Dead sober as they may be, their music often sounds a bit drunk. Blame the intoxicating splendor of life itself. Ain't we got fun?"

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Yes we do, and here at the world's greatest Stephen Crane blog we also have comments from Dan Easley and Mark Lane of The Shakes. When reading please bear in mind that both men responded separately and at different times, to the questions below. The third Shakes member, Crystal, apparently had the good fortune not to get involved, as often happens when we of the Red Blog of Courage approach unfamiliar women.

Pat: I found out about this event through an email from the theatre. How do you think myspace and the internet has worked to promote the event so far? What other forms of advertisement are being used?

Dan: I've used the internet in promoting my own work since 1995 or so; so, it's natural that we'd use myspace and other internet services to help promote our band and works. We've had a fair share of interest from local traditional media, especially the local papers, but the internet certainly helps break geographical boundaries with awareness.

Mark: I think it has worked pretty well. Michael has done a great job of getting people to become friends of the play on Myspace, and a Facebook event was created as well. I know I passed it on to the Shakes' mailing list. Just getting the event name in front of people, a lot, is probably important. Vern Zehr created a wonderful poster and flier that was heavily distributed all over the surrounding area in restaurants and businesses as well.

Pat: Who is/are the primary mover/s of the Blue Hotel play, concert & art events and how did they come to approach you and commission the music for the play?

Dan: Michael Trocchia, the writer and director of the play, has been a considerable force. It was his idea to adapt the play, and his idea to have us compose original music for it. I'm under the impression that his wife and the theatre company have both been very supportive - I'm not sure how one man alone could accomplish what he has in the last few months.

Mark: Well, namely Michael Trocchia is the prime mover of the Blue Hotel play and the events surrounding it, though once the ball got rolling there has been a tremendous amount of involvement from the community in the various coordinating events surrounding the play. Michael began talking to me about potentially writing some music for an adaptation of the Blue Hotel he was working on back in the spring of 2008 or so. I can't remember when it was that the arts grant came through, but we had agreed to the project before that time, as it appealed to us anyway.

Pat: Did you and the other band members know about Stephen Crane and/or The Blue Hotel story prior to being approached to do the music?

Dan: I suspect Mark did, as he's rather literary. My tastes tend towards the "Beat Generation" writers, as well as German and Russian literature. Since we've done the music I've grown an interest in Twain, Crane, and their ilk.

Mark: I hadn't read "The Blue Hotel" but I had read some other work by Crane in high school and college. I was an English major in college.

Pat: Can you describe the creative process The Shakes went through when coming up with the Blue Hotel songs?

Dan: Mark and I wrote most of the lyrics individually. The music was an even collaboration between he and I and Crystal, our bassist and bass clarinetist. My aim, and I believe Mark would say the same of his approach, was to try to express the same moods and situations as were in the story, without making too many concrete references to plot, character, or location.

We wanted something that would both enhance the playgoers' experience - reiterate in a musical way the themes presented in the play - while also something that would stand on its own, with or without a familiarity with the story. I'm afraid I'm too close to all three works - Crane's, Trocchia's, and our own - to know if we succeeded. I've heard a few compliments so far, but the great public unveiling won't be for a few more days.

Mark: I read "The Blue Hotel" a couple times when Michael first approached me about writing some music for his adaptation. About half of my writing comes from the Crane story initially and then when Mike was able to give me a draft of his script I read that and began writing songs from that as well. I wrote "Johnnie's Theme" first. The line, "Johnnie, you're a dumb son of a bitch" just wouldn't get out of my head for about a week.

I played that for Dan and Crystal, they jumped on board with the project, and the whole thing really started to work itself out. The Blue Hotel marked a real growth for us in the studio and in our writing as we all shared in responsibilities that normally are left to one person or another. About half of the songs on the CD are character-driven, and the other half attempt to reflect the emotions and atmosphere in the story/play, such as the winter storm and the Swede's slow march through the harsh night to the bar. Also, the song order on the CD is loosely intended to follow the structural narrative of the play.

Pat: How many Blue Hotel songs were recorded and which is your favorite?

Dan: We recorded 14 tunes; nearly half of them instrumentals. My favorite is "The Winter Winds". Within the story, it plays as the Swede is walking from the scene of the fight on to the bar. We tried to make it both a triumphant jaunt and a march to the death. Mark's brief lyrics for it can apply to just about anyone anywhere. We spent a lot of time on the arrangement because the theatre's going to be dark when it's played. I think the three of us really worked as a whole on that tune.

Pat: Aside from the free tracks on myspace, can someone purchase a cd or download an mp3 of these songs?

Dan: Absolutely - in fact, we encourage it! We always release our records as free downloads at http://towndowner.com/. We also offer them for sale via CDBaby http://cdbaby.com/cd/shakes2 , iTunes, and at our live performances. It's important to us to have them available for free - I believe music is a cultural treasure too valuable to be threatened by capitalism. It's also important that people support us financially, whether it's via buying a CD, or just throwing some money in the hat. I quit my job and began living on meagre savings a month or two into this project. I live in a tiny shack on someone else's land. So does our bass player. We're really serious about our music.

Pat: Are you satisfied with the way your music was integrated into the play, or do you know yet?

Dan: Well, I'll see a rehearsal in about a week. From the plans I've heard, I'm satisfied. Early on in the process I was worried there'd be too much music used - outside of Brecht & Weill's work I'm not a big fan of musicals. I think the director's been very tasteful in his application.

Mark: I have seen a dress rehearsal of the play and I am positively thrilled at the way Michael has incorporated our music. He has been a tireless supporter of The Shakes and for that I thank him. The seamless integration of the music with the action on the stage is at times filmic and grand. I think this is going to be a unique theatre going experience, at least in Harrisonburg, and it is a real pleasure to witness Michael's long-held vision coming to fruition. That The Shakes have been able to take part is icing on the cake.

Pat: How would you like to dedicate the rest of your musical career to exclusively producing and performing Stephen Crane inspired tunes?

Dan: I wouldn't. I suspect Stephen Crane would've similarly answered any similarly-worded question. It was an extremely satisfying project, and I'm really happy to have gotten to work on it with Mark and Crystal and Michael. They've been a joy to work with. If I were to again write tunes inspired by another artist, I'd prefer, for my own amusement, that it were a very different person - perhaps Marcel Duchamp.

Mark: I can't say that I'd care to. I will say that I think "The Monster" would make a terrific film.

Pat: What else should people know about all this?

Dan: This is what we do. Very rarely do people out of the blue respond. In ten years of promoting music I've been a part of on a website, yours is the third email from a stranger I've ever received. If someone hears what we've done, I'd love to get an email. Doesn't have to be long, or even complimentary. A simple "I know you exist." would suffice.

All that said, if someone lets us in their ears for a little while, that's a kindness, and an opportunity to have some (hopefully positive) affect on their life. So, we owe them a thank you.

Mark: This is being put on by a community theater. Power to the people.

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Next week on this blog, we'll run post 3 of 3 on The Blue Hotel play...in which PERSONS show and tell us how things went down. In other words, the as yet undiscovered PUNCHLINE, and in this cunning age of ENLIGHTENMENT, who could dare miss it?

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The Blue Hotel: Play & Events Now through March 1

Over the next two weeks (Feb. 18 to March 1, 2009), Stephen Crane fans in Harrisonburg Virginia will be treated to a feast of Crane festivities! A new musical play version of The Blue Hotel opens on the 18th, and will stage ten performances. Saturday the 21st and 28th, talented musical group The Shakes, who provided the score for the play, will perform prior to the opening curtain. And throughout all this, The Blue Hotel inspired artworks shall be displayed in downtown Harrisonburg's The Artful Dodger. And now to the specifics...

Stephen Crane's The Blue Hotel (a new play adapted & directed by Michael Trocchia)

Info site:

http://courtsquaretheater.com/artman/publish/article_255.shtml

Location:

Court Square Theater, 311 South Main Street, Harrisonburg, Virginia

Performance schedule:
Wed, Feb. 18-Sat, Feb. 21* 8pm & Sun, Feb. 22 - 3pm

Wed, Feb. 25-Sat, Feb. 28* 8pm & Sun, Mar. 1 - 3pm
*Catch The Shakes live for pre-show music on Feb. 21 & 28 7:30-8pm

Musical preview site (myspace):

www.myspace.com/thebluehotelplay

Tickets: $10; $8 for groups of ten or more.

Coinciding with the play: "The Blue Hotel" Art Exhibit, artworks inspired by Crane's original story, will be held at THE ARTFUL DODGER in downtown Harrisonburg VA (47 Court Square). The exhibit will open February 13th and run through March 1st 2009, along side of the performance run. This project is made possible, in part, through a grant from the Arts Council of the Valley.

Needless to say, we of the Crane Crusaders and this blog are extremely jealous that we live nowhere near Harrisonburg Virginia. However, location should be no bar to enjoyment of these glorious events. We've tracked down The Shakes and anticipate release of their Blue Hotel cd to be somewhat swifter than Axl's schedule for Chinese Democracy. Shakesman Dan Easley has been skillfully interviewed and his comments will be posted to this blog next week.

But first we'll see comments from Michael Trocchia, director of The Blue Hotel play, in this exchange with your faithful Crane blogger:

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Pat: How did your Blue Hotel project come together and at which point did you know it would be partly funded by an arts grant?

Michael: I read "The Blue Hotel" for the first time in early Fall 2007. I was immediately struck by its dramatic qualities. As I read it over and over, the visual components for staging it fell into place. I took my cues from Crane. The biggest challenge was of course the storm. How to be true to its force in the story? That is when I figured the music must provide that force; it would serve as an emotional equivalent to the storm. But why stop there? Why not find a way to bring out the painterly qualities of Crane's work? And that is when I thought of mounting a coinciding art exhibit of works inspired by the story. I was awarded a grant to fund the music and the art exhibit late October 2008. But I had been making preparations with the musicians and getting things rolling for the exhibit before I knew officially about the funds.

Pat: How and why did you choose the Shakes to do the music for this play?

Michael: I was a big fan of The Shakes beforehand, and a good friend of Mark Lane's. He is a terrific songwriter, and he and the rest of The Shakes know how to get at the heart of the matter in their songs. That is what I wanted. Later summer 2008, I sat down with Mark and we went through a draft of the script. He, Dan Easley, and Crystal Shrewsbury ran with it. The process was thrilling to watch, and in the end they made a beautiful album.

Pat: Have you seen any performances of The Blue Hotel on film or stage before and if so, what did you think of them?

Michael: As I was considering adapting the story, I searched for existing adaptations. I came across Kadar's 1977 film version. I enjoyed the humor he brings out in the Swede, but found the film lacking in the tension Crane renders in the story. I wanted to SEE the scene in the saloon. I wanted to see the gambler and the barkeeper and the Swede together.

I read somewhere too that James Agee wrote a film script of the story but I never got my hands on it, and I read a little of a stage adaptation by Arthur Reel, but wished to do it differently from him.

Pat: I see that you are an instructor at James Madison University in Virginia. Have you ever met Paul Sorrentino of Virginia Tech and the Stephen Crane Society?

Michael: Yes, I teach part-time in the philosophy department at JMU. I've never met Mr. Sorrentino, though I am aware of his work on Crane. My only contact with the Crane Society has been to announce the show. The Society is a wonderful resource. I learned there that Crane was thought to have based Fort Romper on Kearney, NE. That sent me down a path into the history of the town around that time, and some of that history ends up in my adaptation.

Pat: How would you rank The Blue Hotel in comparison to Crane's other stories?

Michael: I'm no good at that kind of thing (i.e. ranking). I will say, though, as I was adapting "The Blue Hotel," I was reading many of his other stories and sketches with the intention to weave pieces of them into the adaptation. Elements, for instance, of "A Dark-Brown Dog," "Billie Atkins Went to Omaha," and, perhaps more obviously, "Nebraska's Bitter Fight for Life" find expression in my adaptation.

Pat: What was the biggest challenge you encountered in adapting The Blue Hotel story for stage performance?

Michael: Besides re-creating the storm, I wanted to keep what I could of Crane's narrative, especially at the opening of the story and the piece about the Gambler. So the character of Barkeeper delivers these two bits to us in the play. While he then serves as our window into the town and its social make-up, he himself is also very much part of it.

Pat: The Shakes have made several of their Blue Hotel tracks available online. Will "internet folk" be able to see any of the Crane artwork or video of the play?

Michael: I hope to get some of the artwork up on the internet, though this may not happen until after the run of the show.

Pat: What would you say is the primary goal of The Blue Hotel performances and exhibits you've coordinated?

Michael: The goal of the project is to bring the work of Stephen Crane, one of America's great literary figures, to the community in a way which deepens an understanding and appreciation of his artistic talents and vision.

The project provides an opportunity for local artists and musicians to cut across artistic boundaries and contribute to a single creative endeavor. By bringing together a variety of artistic talents in the region, the project will reflect the multi-dimensional qualities of Stephen Crane's literary work, broadening the community's understanding and appreciation of this influential author.

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Coming to this blog next week....In which we hear from The Shakes, musical contributor to these Blue Hotel events....In the person of DAN EASLEY, of the group. And, perhaps more!

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I'm Busy Reading Stephen Crane's Letters!

That's right! And, working 14,000 hours per week. But it's so relaxing at the end of the day to crawl into bed with The Correspondence of Stephen Crane Volumes I and II. I just finished Volume I and have put a dent in II. Perhaps i shall review them after i've finished both, as i intend to post reviews of every Crane-related book on this blog, eventually. Right now i will give you my first impressions of Correspondence and the basic info in case you'd like to read along!

Published in 1988 by Columbia University Press, and edited by Paul Sorrentino and Stanley Wertheim, The Correspondence of Stephen Crane Volumes I and II totals 772 pages of every known (in 1988) letter by Stephen Crane and many written to him and to/by Cora. Sorrentino has updated the letters in various volumes of Stephen Crane Studies.

Crane's letter writing is just as good as his story-telling, and i don't think many Crane fans would be disappointed by the man revealed through these letters. His sense of humour is especially sharp. Sometimes he is shady, for instance writing love letters to multiple women at once...but jeez what young man of brilliance and vigor hasn't been there?! It was rather pathetic when Crane runs off to Cuba and doesn't write his debt and panic stricken honey Cora for months (or anyone else in his family). But in Crane's defense he was sickly and overworked and broke at the time too, so extremely distracted. During this period he writes mainly to his agent, Paul Revere Reynolds, badgering him for cash and urging sales of his stories. Crane seems to be dodging bankruptcy from month to month, flinging publication rights into the mouth of the financial beast at his heels, while constantly seeking loans and advances. The poor man!

The Correspondence gives a good insight into Crane's relationships with publishers, agents, and fellow literary men alike, in addition to his family and school chums, which i personally found less interesting. Crane has good rapport with outlandish literary promoter Elbert Hubbard, his lit godfather Willie Dean Howells, and writer co-exile Joseph Conrad, to name a few. He shows fairly good business sense in some of his letters to agents Reynolds and James Pinker, but demonstrates rather poor relations with his publishers, such as S.S. McClure, and doesn't hold back when talking about some editors.

Cora Crane, his common law wife, makes a good showing for herself in the letters she's written. She seems very intelligent, warm-hearted, and devoted entirely to Stephen and his career. We will be discussing much more of Cora in the months to come, including a review of the biography by Lillian Gilkes.

If you'd like to pick up a copy of the Correspondence, i would suggest you do it soon as the book is already 20 years old. Look to Amazon and Alibris for the most affordable/in best condition copy, as if you insist on buying a new copy you will spend $100 to $200 if you are able to find one at all. I was able to buy two sets for $15 for each set, I don't know if you will be that lucky but certainly you could find a set for $35 plus shipping on Amazon. The ISBN numbers are as follows...Volume One: 978-0231066525, Volume Two: 978-0231066549, the set of Vols I & II, somewhat pointless since it's two books no matter what, but easy to look up: 978-0231060028.

Below & above are scans of the dust jackets...