February 6, 2008 - Judge allows a former employee to gather his possessions and a plan to be presented on how to reopen the park.
"A judge on Wednesday ordered attorneys to escort a former Grand View Memorial Park employee onto the cemetery grounds today so he can collect personal belongings that have been locked up at the site for more than a year.
Burbank resident Richard Beaudoin had been storing a collection of personal items at the site, including his 1963 Chevrolet Corvair convertible, when former cemetery owner Marsha Lee Howard died in November 2006. An evidence-preservation order related to lawsuits now targeting the cemetery has since barred Beaudoin from retrieving his belongings, which he said also include his general equivalency diploma, tools and pictures of his children.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Anthony Mohr ordered attorneys for Howard’s brother Thomas Trimble, who is the administrator of her estate, to escort Beaudoin onto the premises today to collect his possessions.
“Now we’re getting somewhere,” Beaudoin said...
Baum is scheduled to present a plan for how Goldsman could reopen the park for monthly public visitations in court on March 10." - Glendale News
The full article is available for free at the Glendale News site 14 days from February 6, 2008.
Thursday, February 07, 2008
Tuesday, February 05, 2008
Silent -"The Hour We Knew Nothing of Each Other"
"The play features 27 actors portraying 450 characters -- including Charlie Chaplin, Tarzan and the Biblical Abraham and Moses -- wandering through a city square." - US World News
Little research project for you...
Today, many people own iPods or other devices to listen to music while traveling. Well, when Edna Purviance traveled, she also had away of listening to her favorite music.
How do you think Edna listened to her favorite music while traveling?
I will come back to this on February 29, 2008.
How do you think Edna listened to her favorite music while traveling?
I will come back to this on February 29, 2008.
Sunday, February 03, 2008
More Work Needed at Grand View
February 1, 2008 - Glendale News - "NORTHWEST GLENDALE — City fire and legal officials who toured Grand View Memorial Park on Thursday to inspect fire safety conditions said more maintenance work needs to be done before the city can drop a pending lawsuit against the cemetery.
Cemetery co-owner and operator Moshe Goldsman has been busy implementing a $105,400 makeover of the troubled park since late December, installing an aboveground irrigation system, pruning or removing brittle trees and shaving the site’s broad, overgrown grass lawns.
Most of the work is completed, but after the inspection Thursday, the cemetery has a few more items on its maintenance to-do list, Goldsman’s attorney David Baum said.
“At this point, we’re satisfied with the project’s improvement, but we’re not there yet,” said Vasken Demirjian, the Glendale Fire Department environmental management coordinator. “There’s a lot of pending issues and problems. Most of the dead trees and branches have been cut, but there’s still a few trees that need to be pruned or cut.”
At least four abandoned vehicles, including an old, weathered hearse that’s parked outside a dilapidated chapel, are considered fire or safety hazards and need to be removed from the site, Demirjian said. "You know, it's a work on progress," he said.
Recent heavy rains delayed the cleanup work, which was previously expected to be completed this week, Baum said.
“We also have to secure the buildings on the premises so that they can’t be accessed without authorization, and then we’re going to probably go back and mow one more time and do final cleanup and be done,” Baum said. “In three or four weeks, all of this stuff should be handled.”
Baum is expected to give a status report Wednesday on the cleanup work at a court hearing." - Glendale News
See full article at Glendale News. Page available to see for free 14 days from the date Feb. 1st - more>
Cemetery co-owner and operator Moshe Goldsman has been busy implementing a $105,400 makeover of the troubled park since late December, installing an aboveground irrigation system, pruning or removing brittle trees and shaving the site’s broad, overgrown grass lawns.
Most of the work is completed, but after the inspection Thursday, the cemetery has a few more items on its maintenance to-do list, Goldsman’s attorney David Baum said.
“At this point, we’re satisfied with the project’s improvement, but we’re not there yet,” said Vasken Demirjian, the Glendale Fire Department environmental management coordinator. “There’s a lot of pending issues and problems. Most of the dead trees and branches have been cut, but there’s still a few trees that need to be pruned or cut.”
At least four abandoned vehicles, including an old, weathered hearse that’s parked outside a dilapidated chapel, are considered fire or safety hazards and need to be removed from the site, Demirjian said. "You know, it's a work on progress," he said.
Recent heavy rains delayed the cleanup work, which was previously expected to be completed this week, Baum said.
“We also have to secure the buildings on the premises so that they can’t be accessed without authorization, and then we’re going to probably go back and mow one more time and do final cleanup and be done,” Baum said. “In three or four weeks, all of this stuff should be handled.”
Baum is expected to give a status report Wednesday on the cleanup work at a court hearing." - Glendale News
See full article at Glendale News. Page available to see for free 14 days from the date Feb. 1st - more>
Friday, February 01, 2008
The World of Shipping...
While one of Edna's fans got their book today, their other package mailed earlier might not had fared so well. We are tracking it, but interesting what a package might have to go through. It was their home post office that was hit... Foreign packages were favored by the robbers. (Let's just say, I am learning a lot in this process...)
"Large parts of Sweden's second-biggest city were thrown into chaos Tuesday when armed robbers who raided its main post office set fire to cars, scattered spikes on roads and left suspected bombs to cover their escape.
"We have never before experienced anything as spectacular, where they have tried to hinder the police and create public confusion," Goteborg's police commissioner, Krister Jacobsson, was quoted as saying by the TT news agency.
Other shipping news, I found out United States Postal Services (USPS) uses United Parcel Services (UPS) for their shipping. So if you have a Media Mail package it is actually shipped through UPS, not the USPS. They do the shipping together, with UPS doing the bulk of it. Something the post office doesn't mention. You hand it off to the post office, they use UPS, and post office does the final delivery. Here is a link to check such USPS and UPS packages.
___________________
Feb. 22, 2008 - Well, the package I was tracking (a poster to be exact) finally showed up!!! Just in the wrong country! At my mail box! After a series of phone calls, I found out the local post office sold me the wrong size poster tube for international shipping. This was after a longtime chatting with the post office staff, and they assuring me this was the proper tube for mailing overseas. I called that same post office to tell them what happened, and they admitted their staff people were wrong and they wanted to help make it right. I still have the international sells of posters pulled off the market, but since the local post office admitted to their mistake on this one, they are going to help a bit in correcting it. So it wasn't caught up in a robbery, just the US postal system...
At least, no books have had any problems in delivery, and going exactly as it should. Again, thanks to everyone who have written back.
"Large parts of Sweden's second-biggest city were thrown into chaos Tuesday when armed robbers who raided its main post office set fire to cars, scattered spikes on roads and left suspected bombs to cover their escape.
"We have never before experienced anything as spectacular, where they have tried to hinder the police and create public confusion," Goteborg's police commissioner, Krister Jacobsson, was quoted as saying by the TT news agency.
"Right now we have five or six burned-out cars, five suspicious objects in bags and one armed robbery," Fuxborg said. "It's all being connected. This has been very well planned." - The Associated Press, International Herald Tribune
___________________Other shipping news, I found out United States Postal Services (USPS) uses United Parcel Services (UPS) for their shipping. So if you have a Media Mail package it is actually shipped through UPS, not the USPS. They do the shipping together, with UPS doing the bulk of it. Something the post office doesn't mention. You hand it off to the post office, they use UPS, and post office does the final delivery. Here is a link to check such USPS and UPS packages.
___________________
Feb. 22, 2008 - Well, the package I was tracking (a poster to be exact) finally showed up!!! Just in the wrong country! At my mail box! After a series of phone calls, I found out the local post office sold me the wrong size poster tube for international shipping. This was after a longtime chatting with the post office staff, and they assuring me this was the proper tube for mailing overseas. I called that same post office to tell them what happened, and they admitted their staff people were wrong and they wanted to help make it right. I still have the international sells of posters pulled off the market, but since the local post office admitted to their mistake on this one, they are going to help a bit in correcting it. So it wasn't caught up in a robbery, just the US postal system...
At least, no books have had any problems in delivery, and going exactly as it should. Again, thanks to everyone who have written back.
Remembering Grand View
Glendale News: January 31, 2008 - by Katherine Yamada
Verdugo Views - Remembering Grand View
"When Grand View Cemetery was established in the mid-1880s, it was one of the few burial grounds in the area. (Forest Lawn opened in 1906.) However, there aren’t too many tombstones dating back to those early years. Its heyday began in the 1920s, when Len C. Davis purchased it and set the tiny country graveyard on an expansion course.
Davis renamed it Grand View Memorial Park and added a 40-foot entrance arch, complete with electric lights, which spanned the entrance on what is now Glenwood Road. Made of stucco, the arch was painted in the same rose colors that decorated the interior of the new office building. Davis also took out plans for a residence and a chapel.
But his most impressive accomplishment was the landscaping. Most of the evergreen cypress trees that had originally been planted were taken out, and the bare land was formed into an amphitheater where 1,000-plus plots were laid out. More than 800 camphor and 200 bottle trees were planted to shade the graves.
Shortly before Memorial Day 1921, a Glendale Evening News article predicted that the holiday would bring many visitors to the cemetery. The expected visitors included relatives and friends of victims of World War I and those who still remembered the many Grand Army men buried there. (The Grand Army of the Republic, founded in 1866, was an organization of veterans of the United States Army, Navy and Marine Corps who served in the Civil War.)
In 1922, A. Budwig, former pilot for L.C. Brand and by then with the Rogers Airport at the La Brea oil fields, took several photos of the maturing plantings from the company airplane. One was published in the Glendale Daily Press in September 1922.
Davis took out permits in 1924 to build a huge mausoleum, said to be the largest in the world at the time, and estimated to cost $400,000." - Glendale News
Full article available for 14 days from January 31, 2008 - more>
Verdugo Views - Remembering Grand View
"When Grand View Cemetery was established in the mid-1880s, it was one of the few burial grounds in the area. (Forest Lawn opened in 1906.) However, there aren’t too many tombstones dating back to those early years. Its heyday began in the 1920s, when Len C. Davis purchased it and set the tiny country graveyard on an expansion course.
Davis renamed it Grand View Memorial Park and added a 40-foot entrance arch, complete with electric lights, which spanned the entrance on what is now Glenwood Road. Made of stucco, the arch was painted in the same rose colors that decorated the interior of the new office building. Davis also took out plans for a residence and a chapel.
But his most impressive accomplishment was the landscaping. Most of the evergreen cypress trees that had originally been planted were taken out, and the bare land was formed into an amphitheater where 1,000-plus plots were laid out. More than 800 camphor and 200 bottle trees were planted to shade the graves.
Shortly before Memorial Day 1921, a Glendale Evening News article predicted that the holiday would bring many visitors to the cemetery. The expected visitors included relatives and friends of victims of World War I and those who still remembered the many Grand Army men buried there. (The Grand Army of the Republic, founded in 1866, was an organization of veterans of the United States Army, Navy and Marine Corps who served in the Civil War.)
In 1922, A. Budwig, former pilot for L.C. Brand and by then with the Rogers Airport at the La Brea oil fields, took several photos of the maturing plantings from the company airplane. One was published in the Glendale Daily Press in September 1922.
Davis took out permits in 1924 to build a huge mausoleum, said to be the largest in the world at the time, and estimated to cost $400,000." - Glendale News
Full article available for 14 days from January 31, 2008 - more>
Thursday, January 31, 2008
The Sea Gull at ednapurviance.com
Some Reviews and Comments"THE SEA GULL is an important contribution to film history, and worth buying for the stills alone. The look of the film, revealed in these marvellous photographs, makes it all the more tragic that it was destroyed.
This book provides the nearest experience we will have to seeing it. Thank you for all the hard work. It is much appreciated."
Kevin Brownlow - Silent Film Historian - London, England
"It is beautiful, informative and edifying all at once.
All your hard work has resulted in a marvelous achievement.
It's a great work and beautifully presented."
David W. Toll - Nevada Writer - Nevada
"I congratulate you on a very interesting and attractive book...
I really hope it may lead to the discovery of other material about The Seagull."
Kate Guyonvarch - Association Chaplin - Paris, France
"Let me first congratulate you on the fruition of your years of research and dedication to Chaplin's leading lady Edna Purviance.
I'm sure that Chaplin and Edna fans alike appreciate your efforts and commitments.
This ground breaking work has greatly enriched our understanding of Edna's life and works, and uncovered much of the mystery around "A Woman of the Sea," Chaplin's lost film.
Not for your dedication and perseverance, we might never even have a glimpse of the film.
I like the design of the book in particular. It looks very clean and classy. The stills from "The Sea Gull - A Woman of the Sea" with the reconstructed story line are no doubt the brightest spots of the book.
They not only help us better understand the film but also offer us an opportunity to appreciate the photography, the set, the decoration, the costume and of course the actors.
So "The Sea Gull - A Woman of the Sea" is not completely lost after all.
The book makes pleasant reading, with so many eye-catching still photos and a well-balanced story of Edna's private and professional life.
I hope you'll give us a fuller account of Edna's life and career before and after "The Sea Gull - A Woman of the Sea" in future editions."
Ted Lu - Discover Chaplin - Montreal, Canada
Some Comments from Fans
"Almost Speechless! ...the book is PHENOMENAL! ... is even better than I imagined! I am so impressed. This is such a great contribution to Chaplin/Edna scholarship, and I applaud your hard work and dedication." - PC
"Received "The Sea Gull" book this afternoon. What an outstanding treasure trove of outstanding pictures and research. Thank goodness Edna fans (and Edna herself) have someone like you to create such a wonderful book!!" - MM
"...it blew me away, it's amazing, better than I could have imagined." - GCE
"The book is beautiful!" - DH
"Reading it was a real pleasure. It's very well conceived, with images illustrating perfectly the story. The progression towards the shooting of the film is very clear for every star involved (Edna, Charlie, Von Sternberg...). It's one of the most enjoyable books I've read about Chaplin. One point strucks me when seeing the pictures of Edna in A Woman of the Sea: She's so fresh and beautiful in these pictures!" - DD
"I received my book!!!!! It is wonderful. I enjoy to see pictures of Edna I never seen before." - FB
"I think it looks smashing. The photos are so interesting, Ellie had a treasure of images for sure. Really you guys did a wonderful job and Lita was so pleased. What you left for her certainly helped her to pass from this world knowing Edna's story would go on forever." - BT
"Great book!" - BK
"How beautiful, great book this is! Your matchless ultimate work help us to make unknown facts clear about the lost film and Edna." - SO
"I can't tell you how exquisite the Sea Gull book is!!! We were looking through it last night, ooohing and aaahing. The layout, the photos, the writing, the paper, the printing--everything is just perfect." - MM
"Beautiful book!" - JM
"You have done a really magnificent job! The book is beautiful and the photos are so crisp & clear. I have read almost all of it already and am sure I will be re-looking and re-reading for some time to come - at least until the bio comes out!" - MC
"It's beautifully produced, the page quality and picture clarity are exceptionally good, the 8X10 (the front cover still) of Edna was a fine choice, and nicely protected. All of your careful personal touches - the handwritten card, especially - were thoughtful, and appreciated. The scholarship in it also was important, just the basic outline you provided in it on Edna's personal history alone was more than most of us have been able to learn about her before..." - HM
See ednapurviance.com for more...
Monday, January 21, 2008
Lita Hill has died...
Lita Hill, Edna Purviance's grand niece, passed away on Monday morning, January 21, 2008. She was surrounded by her family and friends. She will be greatly missed by all of us who knew her.
- January 22, 2008
(I will have a special page dedicated to Lita in the near future.)
Update January 2010
Video Links
Lita's first job
Lita with a good friend
Behind the scenes with Lita
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Latest Post Listings
• Grand View Money Problems more>
• Latest Thierry G. Mathieu's Chaplin at Keystone magazine
• Cult Prints: Limited edition museum-quality print of Charlie Chaplin
• Dominique's collection: Chaplin et Les Memmes, by Nadia Meflah
• Also check out The Festival of Lost Films at The Bioscope
• Jan. 20th: Actress Suzanne Pleshette has died. She was 70.
Also, I am still thinking about Lita's special page. Just will take sometime to create, but it is the hardest page I ever had to create.
• Latest Thierry G. Mathieu's Chaplin at Keystone magazine
• Cult Prints: Limited edition museum-quality print of Charlie Chaplin
• Dominique's collection: Chaplin et Les Memmes, by Nadia Meflah
• Also check out The Festival of Lost Films at The Bioscope
• Jan. 20th: Actress Suzanne Pleshette has died. She was 70.
Also, I am still thinking about Lita's special page. Just will take sometime to create, but it is the hardest page I ever had to create.
Sunday, January 13, 2008
The Sea Gull is RELEASED!!!!
Shop is open with books in stock.
Fifty years ago today, we lost Edna to our world. And while Edna was forgotten by the masses, she was not forgotten by her fans. She remains a significant figure in silent film lore, and is fondly remembered by Chaplin fans.
Today, on this 50th anniversary of her passing, we have reason to celebrate! The event is the first book ever published about Edna, an effort we hope will help awaken Edna's memory among film fans worldwide.
Edna Purviance was one of Hollywood's most private film stars, and as a result, even during her film years, little was ever disclosed about her as a person. Today marks a new chapter in learning about the woman who was Chaplin's most endearing and enduring leading lady.
The Sea Gull - "A Woman of the Sea" – is the first-ever publication to feature Edna Purviance. This book is about her lost 1926 film, directed by Josef von Sternberg, who would later create "The Blue Angel" starring Marlene Dietrich. This would be the only film produced by Charlie Chaplin that did not feature Chaplin as director or actor. The film would never be seen by the public, and the story behind its creation and demise is fascinating. The book features over 50 recently discovered, and never-before-published production still photos from the film.
Noted director and film historian Kevin Brownlow has viewed the book, and he notes:" the film revealed in these marvelous photographs, makes it all the more tragic that it was destroyed... This book provides the nearest experience we will have to seeing it."
So for about the price of an evening for four at the movies, you can order a seat for your own special viewing. Help us create a shining star for the leading lady you have enjoyed so much.
Link to the Home of The Sea Gull, ednapurviance.com
The morning after, many thanks everyone...
Special Post today, from a longtime Edna fan...
I spotted a very nice post today, from a longtime Edna fan and supporter. If you visit Edna's site at all, you will see the name Garen Ewing. Garen is a very talented artist whose work I have been following for years. I have credited Garen for getting me on the web in the first place, when I sent him my very first Edna site link, long before it was ednapurviance.org.
Garen created and ran the popular Chaplin UK, as well as worked with the Chaplin Society. I use to visit his sites all the time, but never wrote in, being too shy to do so, but loved his work. I met Garen and Dominique (our Chaplin Library founder) in the spring of 2001. They have been great supporters ever since. So thank you Garen, for the very nice post in remembering Edna today. She would have been pleased...
Special Thanks to Bioscope
And another special thanks to Luke and the excellent team at Bioscope! Always a great read for everything silent. And watch them as they start their special Bioscope Festival of Lost Films. Thanks Luke!
UPDATE APRIL 12, 2008 - I have learned that Il Cinema Ritrovato in Bologna, Italy will be holding a major presentation about Josef von Sternberg at their festival, June 28-July 5, 2008. The information from Italy also mentions a presentation on The Sea Gull is planned. I don't know anymore about this event at this time.
UPDATE MAY 2009: After over a year, we are in the process of ending our First Edition of The Sea Gull. If you like First Edition books, do get your orders in soon, as supplies are getting low. Thanks to everyone (worldwide) for making the First Edition a greater success, than we hoped.
Saturday, January 12, 2008
Discover Chaplin updating their web site
January 31, 2008 - If you noticed that the Discover Chaplin web site has been down, you are right. Ted Lu informed me they were updating their web site. I have left their link on Edna's sites awaiting their return to the web.
Grand View Money Problems
January 16, 2008 - Owners are trying to find solutions to help repair and reopen Grand View:
"As workers continue to clean up Grand View Memorial Park, stakeholders in the beleaguered cemetery are searching for a financial solution to cover the costs of reopening the facility to public visits." - Glendale News
more> Article is available online for free only 14 days after release.
"As workers continue to clean up Grand View Memorial Park, stakeholders in the beleaguered cemetery are searching for a financial solution to cover the costs of reopening the facility to public visits." - Glendale News
more> Article is available online for free only 14 days after release.
Chaplin et Les Femmes by Nadia Meflah
Always nice to see any of Chaplin's leading ladies sharing the cover with Charlie.Dominique Dugro shares with us from his Chaplin collection: Nadia Meflah latest book which has Edna sharing the cover with Charlie in Meflah's newly released book: Chaplin et les Femmes.
Nadia Meflah is the main contributor at charliechaplin.net. (French web site.) Image is from The Bond.
Limited Edition Charlie Chaplin Print Available
Cult Prints is offering a rare museum-quality limited edition print of Charlie Chaplin available for your collection.
"Overseen by the Worlds Leading Chaplin Expert: This print is made even more special by the fact that its production has been overseen by the BFI's "guiding light" on all Chaplin projects, David Robinson. David is a film critic, historian and lifelong Chaplin researcher who authored the definitive Chaplin biography, Chaplin: His Life and Art. He also worked as the historical consultant on Lord Attenborough's BAFTA-winning film about the actor's life. We are thrilled to have worked alongside the world's leading Chaplin expert on this unique and discerning print for fans of Charlie Chaplin everywhere. We are also pleased to confirm that the first 100 prints ordered will be accompanied by a hand-signed letter from David Robinson." - Cult Prints
There are 495, hand-numbered prints. Size 35mm x 40mm. Licensed by Bubbles Incorporated, it is available for £99.99 (over $200 at current exchange rates).
Learn more at Cult Prints >
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