The result of over forty years of passionate research, Montcalm and Wolfe is the epic story of Europe's struggle for dominance of the New World. Centuries of rivalry and greed between the great imperial powers culminated in five brutal years of war; resulted in the death of both generals, Louis de Montcalm and James Wolfe; and ultimately sowed the seeds of the American Revolution, fought a scant seventeen years later. A brilliant work of scholarship as well as a riveting read, Montcalm and Wolfe was thought by many, including the author, to be Parkman's greatest work. It is an essential part of any military history collection. The books in the Modern Library War series have been chosen by series
editor Caleb Carr according to the significance of their subject matter, their contribution to the field of military history, and their literary merit.
Francis Parkman's journal-written more than 150 years ago in 1846-provides an eye-witness account of one of the grandest adventures in American history. At age twenty-three, the Harvard-educated Bostonian traveled the Rocky Mountains, living among the Dakota Sioux. In his journal, he captured the color, spirit, and perspective of his era, as well as the exuberant confidence that was the mark of his time. Frank Muller's dramatic reading brings this captivating record to life.
Booth One welcomes Mary Jo DuPrey, who recently visited Chicago from Los Angeles for some meetings about possible directing projects.
Mary Jo trained as an actress at Vassar. She then worked with her sister Katie Agresta, a legendary vocal coach, managing her “rock & roll vocal studio” on the upper west side, where she also learned how to teach singing with Katie’s amazingly effective approach and exercises. Check out this list of notable students!
Mary Jo then moved to L.A. where she had a successful acting career. She also taught acting and singing in UCLA’s musical theatre program, and tells us about how she came to be such a sought-after vocal coach for spoken and singing voices.
She tells great stories about working with her clients, including how she got connected with Daveed Diggs through their mutual friend and collaborator, composer and sound designer Jonathan Snipes. Mary Jo worked closely with Daveed while Hamilton was being developed. Read his description of working with her here. Don’t miss her spellbinding story about being invited by Alex Lacamoire to Hamilton’s first music stand read! She made two bold predictions that day that came true.
Mary Jo gives Gary a short voice lesson and offers to work with him via Skype! She is a master at her craft and approaches the voice in a totally holistic manner. Interested in scheduling some lessons? Contact her here. Mary Jo is the only certified West Coast teacher of the Katie Agresta Vocal Technique. She cites Patsy Rodenberg, Head of Voice for the Royal National Theatre as another major influence.
Mary Jo recently got an MFA in Directing at UCLA and is loving directing there and at professional theaters in L.A., such as the beautiful outdoor repertory theater in Topanga Canyon, the Theatricum Botanicum. She directed our friend and recurring guest co-host Paul Stroili in August: Osage County and he thinks the world of her. We are looking forward to her first Chicago-based project and will let you know when that happens.
Barbara Cook – Legendary actress, cabaret and concert star receives a final musical tribute on her deathbed from some of the great entertainers she worked with during a 7-decade career. Read about Ms. Cook’s final days.
“So much is gone, and little is new” could refer to me kitbashing second hand toy trains to make my models but the cygnet reference is actually just a follow on from yesterday’s blog entry.
I’ve decided to use the cab from the Christmas train on #9 instead of #57. In addition to which #9 will also receive the smoke stack and steam dome from the Christmas train, giving it a much better appearance even before they’re properly fitted. If I make the running boards a bit wider to match the cab the engine will look like quite a respectable On30 model and, with its dual power (from loco and tender), it should be able to tackle the FCPyF’s gradients with ease.
The small cab removed from #9 will be used on #57 where it will allow better access to the controls for the clockwork mechanism. A carrying axle has been added to try and offset the front-heavy look of the loco but it’s not functional and may be removed if it interferes with the loco’s running.
I think there’s a fussy, slightly comical, typically British narrow gauge air to this loco now, and maybe more than a hint of the Craig and Mertonford in #57’s appearance. The historic Scottish railway is a world apart from the Pampas and Fernandez but it is still, after all these years since I first read about it in the 1960s, one of the primary reasons I model narrow gauge.
After tea I dug out the soldering iron then disassembled #9 and added jumper wires between the engine’s motor and that in the tender. With the two motors wired in parallel they can now both pick up current via the loco and tender wheels for added reliability. The loco’s boiler has a heavy lump of metal in it and extra lead weights in the tender mean there’s plenty of traction on all the powered wheels.
The tender that was originally used with #9 has been dismantled. Its (bogie) chassis will be used under #2’s tender, meaning that the 2-4-2 will have Kadees at either end instead of Kadee on the front and tension lock on the rear.
The 6 wheeled chassis displaced from #2’s tender is a perfect match for the Christmas train’s present wagon, which is being converted into a boxcar.
The body from #9’s original tender is a fair match in size for an Underground Ernie EMU chassis, which could result in another powered tender. If this comes about it will be used as a booster for #5, though without being electrically connected to the loco so the ordinary tender can still be used when the extra pulling power is not required. However, if #9’s original tender is not motorised I have a suitable four wheeled chassis in stock so it may be converted into a snowplough.
This was what happened to a lot of redundant tenders in real life and a mountaineering railway like the P&F could certainly find a use for one.