REDFIELD STUDIO FIRE FUND--I'M ASKING FOR HELP

I need your help.

We have set up a temporary fund drive to raise the out-of-pocket expenses as a result of the fire we had at our studios in Baltimore, on Sunday, NOVEMBER 17, 2014.

I'm asking that you give what you can -- $25, $50, $100 or whatever you can help with. We need the money to take care of things like the dumpster/trash removal, temporary space rental until the building is repaired, and to help cover all the other unforeseen cash details that will crop up, before the insurance can help.

Any amount that you give will be greatly appreciated. I will send you an email to thank you. For donations over $25 I'll send you a copy of my magazine “Monsterpalooza”  that actually survived the fire! (It might smell a little smoky, but I want to say “thank you” in some way for your help.)

The link below is where you can make a donation--

CLICK HERE FOR THE LINK

THE FIRE
I got a call from the landlord of the buildings I rent that we (my brother Eric and I) use for our props and sets work. The landlord called Sunday morning, November 17, 2014 at 7:45am.

He said that there had been a fire, and I had better get over there.

I got to the site at about 8:30am, passing two big fire trucks on my way.

When I got there, I met Tony, my landlord, and a fellow called Ted, who lived nearby. They, along with arson detectives, fire investigators and police, filled me in on what happened and what they knew at that point.

ARSON
It seems that, just before dawn, an individual was setting several fires in the neighborhood, primarily in business dumpsters. The fire he set next to my building was in a thicket of bamboo and a wooden fence. A fence that separates the alley from a residential property. The fire the arsonist set in the bamboo quickly spread toward the yard of the residential property, and engulfed and destroyed two classic cars. The fire then began to spread to my building. The folks who own the classic cars woke to the sound of the fire snapping and crackling the bamboo, and call the fire department. They put the fire out by 7am.

One of the businesses whose dumpster was set on fire, captured video of the arsonist. A clear description is with the police.

REPAIRS AND YOUR HELP
We estimate that we have lost about $20,000 in sets and scenery and things. Nothing irreplaceable and the insurance should help us. But that will take time, and that's why we're asking for a little help now.

We need help now in covering the immediate, out-of-pocket expenses of clean up, and to find temporary space for storage for the winter months, and other incidentals related to clean-up and repair, as we await the insurance, both ours and the landlord’s (to repair the roof and other building damages).

THANK YOU!
So if you can, contribute $25, $50, $100—whatever you can to help, and although I can't repay you, I can send you a copy of the magazine that survived the fire. Over $25 please include your mailing address in the message.

If it isn't one thing, it's another…Luckily, no one was hurt, and we weren't in the middle of building a job for a client and had it destroyed by fire. There is always a silver-lining.

Thank you for helping.
Sincerely,
Mark Redfield

If you'd like to get in-touch with me, please email info@poeforevermore.com or call 443-240-7527.

You can also help buy purchasing one of my paintings if you wish. I'll use every penny on this transition period with the studio.

Here's the link to my ETSY GALLERY

POE FOREVERMORE RADIO THEATER WINS RONDO AWARD!

 Poe Forevermore Radio Theater won the 12th Annual Rondo Award for "Best Multimedia or Podcast".

Thanks to all of you who voted for us!
The complete list of Rondo Award winners is here:
www.rondoaward.com

Thanks to all of the actors, writers, directors, musicians. technicians and graphic artists who have made the launch of Poe Forevermore Radio Theater successful.

Current titles are found here: http://www.poeforevermore.com/poe-radio.html

Building a library of audio plays and books at
www.poeforevermore.com
Tales of Mystery & Imagination

Happy Mother's Day, Sunday, May 11th, 2014

Sonnet — To My Mother.
BY EDGAR A. POE.

Because I feel that, in the heavens above,
The angels, whispering to one another,
Can find, among their burning terms of love,
None so devotional as that of 'mother' —
Therefore by that sweet name I long have called you —
You, who are more than mother unto me,
And fill my heart of hearts, where Death installed you,
In setting my Virginia's spirit free.
My mother — my own mother — who died early —
Was but the mother of myself; but you
Are mother to the one I loved so dearly,
And thus are dearer than the mother I knew;
By that infinity with which my wife
Was dearer to my soul than its soul-life.

In today's short poem, Poe addresses his aunt, Maria Clemm Poe, his beloved "Muddy", who became something of the mother he never had...
Happy Mother's Day!

-Mark Redfield
11 May, 2014





All original text and art © Mark Redfield. All Right Reserved.

SHAKESPEARE SATURDAYS: Caliban in THE TEMPEST "This island's mine!"

SHAKESPEARE SATURDAYS at An Actor's Notebook.

In this brief moment from Shakespeare's magical THE TEMPEST, we are introduced to Caliban, the child-creature of the island, summoned by Prospero...


I'll read both Prospero and Caliban in this scene.

REDFIELD'S CARTOONARAMA: "EM N EM" (2014) by Mark Redfield

 

EM N EM (2014) by Mark Redfield. Acrylic on canvas. 16x20.

A tasty treat? A popular musician and performer? 

All I know is--this "Em n Em" is a candy-coated chocolate that's a slim shady...

-Mark Redfield
9 May, 2014



All original text and art © Mark Redfield. All Right Reserved.

CASTING CALL FOR THE AUDIO DRAMA--"ALONE: THE LIFE OF POE"

Just a heads up to all of my actor friends: I'm beginning to assemble the company of voice actors for the Edgar Allan Poe biography ALONE: THE LIFE OF POE.

The audio drama is incredibly extensive and has dozens of characters. The biography covers the 40 years of Poe's life, and episodes before his birth and after his death. The length of the audio drama is 10 hours, or 20, thirty-minute chapters. Fully dramatized with music and sound effects. The audioplay will be recorded in Maryland.

I'm primarily looking for very realistic regional accents, (men and women). Regional accents include characters who are convincing in their Irish, British (various dialects), American Southern (Virginia), New England (Boston) accents and dialects.

If you're interested in being considered for a role (or roles, if you can do multiple voices and/or accents) please send an MP3 demo to:
info@poeforevemore.com
(Subject line: Poe drama)

The play will begin recording in mid-to-late July, 2014, for an October, 2014, debut. Positions are compensated. Travel negotiated.

Thanks! Pass the word along to your actor friends!
-Mark Redfield 
8 May, 2014

REDFIELD'S CARTOONARAMA: HITCHCOCK IS NOT AMUSED by Mark Redfield (2014)

"Hitchcock is not amused" (2014) by Mark Redfield. Acrylic on canvas, 11"x14"

"Television is like the invention of indoor plumbing. 

It didn't change people’s habits. 

It just kept them inside the house." 

- Alfred Hitchcock

New York Journal-American 25 August 1965

More Redfield art available HERE.

Original Art and Text  ©Mark Redfield. All rights Reserved. 

SHAKESPEARE SATURDAYS The First Theatrical "knock-knock" joke? The Porter scene from MACBETH

 Is this the first "knock-knock" joke?

This scene, from Shakespeare's horror-show MACBETH, takes place right after the murder of Duncan. It's usually cut form productions, mostly because directors don't quite know what to do with it and it's apparent change of tone. But it is very useful, and it's meaning is easy for an audience to grasp, so I think that it should be kept.

In this recording I'll read the part of The Porter, who is a bit (no, he's very) drunk, and Malcolm, who has been a-knocking...

Hope you like it!

-Mark Redfield
3 May, 2014

Shakespeare Saturdays: Chorus opening speech from HENRY V, performed by Mark Redfield

SHAKESPEARE SATURDAYS...


Today we begin our "Shakespeare Saturdays" series; monologues and scenes posted every Saturday for the fun of it, the hell of it, the vocal exercise of it,  and to celebrate William Shakespeare's 450th through-out the year...

I thought it's be fun to begin with Chorus's opening speech from HENRY V, asking the listeners to kindly use their imaginations to enhance a poor theater's production values...

I hope you enjoy these little sips of Shakespeare.

-Mark Redfield
26 April, 2014

ps--although we really don't know the date of Shakespeare's birth, we DO know he was baptized on this day--April 26th. 

HOUSE OF CARDS SEASON THREE TO SHOOT IN MARYLAND

Here's the PRESS RELEASE:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

GOVERNOR MARTIN O’MALLEY AND MEDIA RIGHTS CAPITAL ANNOUNCE HOUSE OF CARDS WILL FILM SEASON THREE IN MARYLAND

ANNAPOLIS, MD (April 25, 2014) – Governor Martin O’Malley and Media Rights Capital announced today that they have reached an agreement that will keep the hit television show House of Cards filming its third season in Maryland.

“Spoiler alert: we’re going to keep the 3700 jobs and more than 100 million dollars of economic activity and investment that House of Cards generates right here in Maryland,” Governor O’Malley said. “Media Rights Capital has been a great supporter of the people and entertainment community in Maryland and we couldn't be happier to continue our partnership.”

The Maryland General Assembly first passed the Film Production Tax Credit in 2011, providing $26 million in tax credits in the show’s first two seasons. With the growth of the production, House of Cards will receive a total of $11.5 million in 2014, through a combination of both the 2014 Film Production Tax Credit program and a General Assembly authorization of $7.5 million in grants in the FY15 budget. Governor O'Malley led negotiations with MRC to finalize the agreement, which provides less than the production qualified for, but enough to keep the hit franchise in Maryland.

“House of Cards is the gift that keeps on giving, having injected hundreds of millions of dollars into the local economy, while also helping to provide thousands of jobs to our Maryland community,” commented Asif Satchu, co-CEO of MRC. “We are very grateful to both Governor O’Malley for his tireless efforts to help keep jobs in Maryland and the leadership of the General Assembly for their continued advocacy and support.”

The producers of the show expect to begin production on Season 3 over the next several months.

 Kevin Spacey in Netfix' HOUSE OF CARDS

Poe Forevermore Radio Theater nominated "Best Multi Media Horror" in RONDO AWARDS! Please vote for us!

I'm very happy that the audio plays and books I'm producing under the banner POE FOREVERMORE RADIO THEATER has been nominated this year for a Rondo Award in the "Best Multi Media Horror" category!

Please take a moment and vote for Poe Forevermore Radio Theater. Basic rules and instructions ar ebelow, and voting only takes a few minutes.

There is just a week left to vote in  the TWELFTH ANNUAL RONDO HATTON CLASSIC HORROR AWARDS.
 

Balloting ends at midnight the night of Sunday, MAY 5, 2014. (If you have already voted this year, feel free to forward the ballot to a friend).

  — TO VOTE:  Simply ballot the ballot from the Rondo website HERE. or cut-and-paste works fine; or type a list, and send an e-mail with your picks to, David Colton, at taraco@aol.com by Sunday night at midnight, May 5, 2014.

  -- Every e-mail must include your name to be counted.  All votes are kept strictly confidential. No e-mail addresses or personal information will ever be shared with anyone. And no, you do not have to vote in every category.

 So, please take a moment and vote for POE FOREVERMORE RADIO THEATER today, in category # 23 BEST MULTIMEDIA HORROR The ballot is here: www.rondoaward.com

Check out POE FOREVERMORE RADIO THEATER frequently as we add new titles of audio plays and audio books weekly. Poe Forevermore Radio Theater is HERE.

Thank you for taking the time to vote for us and support our work!
-Mark Redfield
25 April, 2014

National Poetry Month, April 2014 THE RAVEN by Poe, recited by Mark Redfield

 April, 2014 has been National Poetry Month, and as I've been working on the script and the pre-production chores of the audioplay biography of Edgar Allan Poe called ALONE: THE LIFE OF POE, I've been posting daily recordings of the poet's poems.

I should have been posting them here as well, but, well, I haven't. So, along with other entries in the coming months, I'll be posting a Poe poem here once-a-week.
 
Here's Poe's famous poem THE RAVEN, which made him something of a rock star when it was published in his lifetime, in 1845.

Enjoy the doom and gloom!

-Mark Redfield
24, April, 2014

THE BIRTH AND DEATH OF WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE We Celebrate 450 Years: April 1564-April 201

Historians believe that the great playwright and poet was born on this day in 1564. He also died on this date, April 23rd, in 1616. There some who insist that his birth be celebrated on the 26th, because there is a baptismal certificate for that day, although there is no birth record. Regardless, today we honor the great William Shakespeare, for his words and characters live on.

William Shakespeare

To celebrate and honor Shakespeare, I'm going to post a newly recorded monologue or scene each Saturday here at AN ACTOR'S NOTEBOOK. Look for posts headlined SHAKESPEARE SATURDAYS for my recordings, and for articles and stories about The Bard, along with each recording..

I think Shakespeare is best when you can HEAR him performed (and even better to see AND hear!), so I've selected a wide ranging and eclectic series of speeches that I've recorded, and I hope you like them.

They were fun to record, and allowed me to think about characters and plays I hadn't performed in years, or look at old favorites anew, and play some characters I missed earlier in my career.

To start things off, here is Prospero's epilogue, spoken at the end of THE TEMPEST. One of Shakespeare's last plays, this monologue is rather fitting to hear on the anniversary of The Bard's death, as Prospero is surely giving up his magic and creativity and letting his every "third thought" be of his own death...This monologue, in many ways, is about endings then, and about beginnings, much like the play THE TEMPEST itself.

For your indulgence and pleasure, I submit most humbly,

-Mark Redfield
23 April, 2014

THE CHAPLIN CENTENNIAL: A CHAPLIN NOVELLA AND MODERN TIMES

THE CHAPLIN CENTENNIAL: A CHAPLIN NOVELLA AND MODERN TIMES

5 February, 2014

This is a special and exciting week for fans of Chaplin and classic cinema. And if you’re a fan of either, you’re a fan of both.

This week we celebrate and mark the historic occasions when Chaplin made his film debut (“Making a Living”, Keystone, released 2 February, 1914), and his character The Little Tramp made his debut (“Kid Auto Races at Venice”, Keystone, released 7 February, 1914).
  

And today, as we mark the debut of Modern Times, which opened on February 5^th, 1936 and was the last screen appearance of Chaplin’s Little Tramp character, it was announced that a novella written by Chaplin will be published. 

Chaplin’s only known work of fiction (he had also written and published his biography in his lifetime in 1964, and a photobook called “My Life in Pictures” in 1974, “Footlights” is a novella that is the precursor to the screenplay and film LIMELIGHT. 

CHAPLIN’S NOVELLA “FOOTLIGHTS”
“Footlights” was written in 1948, and was reconstructed by Chaplin biographer and film historian David Robinson, and researchers at the Cineteca di Bolongna, an Italian film restoration institute. Multiple drafts of the manuscript to “Footlights” were found in the Chaplin archives in Switzerland, and the Chaplin Estate gave the parties permission to reconstruct the literary work. The novella essentially tells the story told in Chaplin’s film LIMELIGHT, but has a more somber, sadder edge to it.

The novella can be ordered from Amazon or from Cineteca HERE. It goes on sale at The British Film Institute on Tuesday.

Here is a charming scene with Chaplin and Claire Bloom:

MODERN TIMES

 Chaplin’s last film to use his immortal character of The Little Tramp opened on 5 February, 1936. Chaplin’s Jewish Barber in THE GREAT DICTATOR, although bearing a great resemblance to the tramp, was quite a different little fellow.

Here is the classic factory scene from MODERN TIMES:

Original Images and Text © Mark Redfield 2014

CHAPLIN CENTENNIAL: THE GREAT ACTOR DEBUTS IN CINEMA 100 YEARS AGO ON 2 FEBRUARY ,1914

MAKING A LIVING debuted 100 year ago today...

Charlie Chaplin's first appearance in a motion picture by the public was in the Keystone comedy Making a Living, released on 2 February, 1914.

The familiar and beloved Little Tramp character is not to be found in this knock-about farce from Mack Sennett's comedy factory. Chaplin plays a very different type in his motion picture debut.

Making a Living was directed by Henry "Pathe" Lehrman (nicked named "Pathe" by D.W. Griffith himself, for Lehman lied about working with the French company Pathe in order to be hired whe he started with Griffith and Biograph in New York years before...).

 Chaplin (left) and Henry "Pathe" Lehrman (right).

Making a Living features Chaplin as a sharp swindler "Edgar English", Virginia Kirtley as the daughter, Alice Davenport as the Mother, Henry Lehrman as the Reporter, Minta Durfee as the Woman and Chester Conklin as the Policeman (and as a bum). The infamous Keystone Cops also make an appearance and help give chase at the end.

Here is a print of the film:

CELEBRATING CHAPLIN'S CENTENNIAL 1914-2014

This year I'll be posting a great deal about one of my favorite actors and filmmakers--Charles Chaplin.

Having spent chunks of my life studying his work and his life, I find myself compelled once again to look at his work closely in the hopes of learning, and enjoying, so much more.

Here's to Charlie--the master poet of the cinema!

-Mark Redfield
1 February, 2014

"Charlie" (2009) by Mark Redfield
Acrylic on canvas. 18x24

Original Images and Text © Mark Redfield 2014