Tag Archives: Biography

ISSUE SIX-[R]evolving Research: The 103-Year-Old Singing Groups

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This week brought our first real snow of the season, more reading (lots of it), and a new tidbit about J’s husband that should open the floodgates to a considerable amount of fresh information. All in all, it’s been a relaxing and productive period.

RESEARCH NOTES WEEK 8:

  • VICTORY: Reading at a pace that actually satisfies me.
  • HAPPY DISCOVERY: I discovered not one, but two “new” musical groups that J’s husband, R, produced. Both pretty prominent in their day.
  • FRUSTRATION: Directly contradicting point one: not being able to read 24/7.
  • CURRENTLY READING: Babbits & Bohemians: The American 1920s by Elizabeth Stevenson (see here).
  • HOURS SPENT ON RESEARCH: 10

Until next time!

ISSUE FIVE-[R]evolving Research: A Flurry of Reading

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Some weeks involve direct research about J or her family; other weeks are devoted to general history reading. I’m currently in a flurry of the latter activity. I learn a lot during these times, just not about J. It’s all necessary and enjoyable work. Time well spent.

After I’ve finished my current book (see below) the pendulum will likely swing back the other way. I love history, but I might just love J even more. That is saying something.

RESEARCH NOTES WEEK 7:

  • VICTORY: Waking up every day and doing the thing regardless of what the days threw at me.
  • HAPPY DISCOVERY: None. I’m okay with that because I learned tremendous amounts of historical information.
  • FRUSTRATION: Also none. That’s a win.
  • CURRENTLY READING: A Square Meal: A Culinary History of the Great Depression by Jane Ziegelman and Andrew Coe
  • HOURS SPENT ON RESEARCH: 7

Until next time!

ISSUE FOUR-[R]evolving Research: The 110-Year-Old Magazine Spread

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Researching J also means researching her husband, R, and his career. Being twenty-one years older, his advent as an entertainer and theatrical manager nearly coincided with his future wife’s birth. Later, their showbiz careers were inextricably connected for the two decades preceding his death.

Going down all of these necessary by-roads and highways is one of the reasons I expect my research to take around five years.

RESEARCH NOTES WEEK 6:

  • VICTORY: Once again carving out “enough” time for my research.
  • HAPPY DISCOVERY: A three-page spread about R and his various theatrical and musical companies, in a 1910 issue of Lyceumite & Talent.
  • FRUSTRATION: Not being able to read all the things all at once.
  • CURRENTLY READING: Frommer’s Nashville & Memphis
  • HOURS SPENT ON RESEARCH: 7

Until next time!

ISSUE THREE-[R]evolving Research: The 98-Year-Old Notice

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This last week was extremely busy for non-research reasons. After years of hard work, my mom’s little tea/coffee shop/bookstore/art gallery/bar finally opened. It has been all hands on deck since last Wednesday. I couldn’t dedicate as much time as normal to my bio subject, J, managing about 30 minutes each day. That is the absolute minimum time that I’m happy with, preferring to dedicate at least 10 hours per week to this project. As busy as I’ve been, though, I’ll consider this a victory.

I’m still doing tons of reading. Books and periodicals. Once I get through this week, it’ll be back to regular morning “office hours” up in my studio. I’ve found that’s the best way to plow through big information searches/dumps. It’s tiring, at first, for this night owl but, hey, that is what a big cuppa is for.

RESEARCH NOTES WEEK 5:

  • VICTORY: Not falling asleep whilst reading late at night, haha.
  • HAPPY DISCOVERY: Finding a brief notice of J in a 1922 issue of The Music News.
  • FRUSTRATION: So tired. Overworked. Not doing all the things.
  • CURRENTLY READING: The August 1910 issue of Lyceumite & Talent
  • HOURS SPENT ON RESEARCH: 3 1/2

Until next time!

ISSUE TWO-[R]evolving Research: The 102-Year-Old Diploma

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“We have to continually be jumping off cliffs and developing our wings on the way down.”-Kurt Vonnegut, If This Isn’t Nice, What Is?: Advice for the Young

How many lists can a person make about writing lists? I’m not sure, but I believe this project is going to test existing limits for me. And I say this as someone who is a lifelong list producer. 

Of the many lists I worked on this past week, one is head and shoulders above the rest as the most epic and time-consuming. It’s still a work-in-progress and will require near-constant updating for, well, years. This list contains pages and pages of books I’d like to track down and read, in any format I can get my hands on. Books about Memphis and its history, books about the 1920s-1940s, books about the early 20th century, books about 100-year-old stage musicals…just for starters. I might have to transfer this list into a separate journal. Sigh.

Incidentally, this was also the week that I more or less gave up on the very idea of reading for pleasure. Fortunately, I honestly love all of the subjects I need to research whilst bringing J and her world to life. It’s not a problem, exactly; but, rather, a temporary pivot to a new and differently fulfilling mindset.

RESEARCH NOTES WEEK 4:

  • VICTORY: I’ve not missed a day of research in the first month of work.
  • HAPPY DISCOVERY: I found J’s high school diploma for sale on eBay. For real. From 1918!
  • FRUSTRATION: I have yet to purchase the above diploma due to weird COVID-era finances. Sob.
  • CURRENTLY READING: The American Plague: The Untold Story of Yellow Fever, The Epidemic That Shaped Our History by Molly Caldwell Crosby
  • HOURS SPENT ON RESEARCH: 7

School photo. From my collection.

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Until next time!

ISSUE ONE-[R]evolving Research: The 98-Year-Old Dog

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“The difference between doing something and not doing something is doing something.”-James Corden, May I Have Your Attention, Please?

As some of you know, I am in the early (and I do mean early) stages of researching material for a biography. The best-case scenario has me completing said research in about three years. Say, the end of 2023. It is the biggest, grandest, scariest, and most exhilarating project I’ve ever contemplated. A few weeks in, and I am having a helluva good time. Let me explain.

Since learning to read–way back when at age three–I’ve adored reference materials and all related paraphernalia. Dictionaries, almanacs, encyclopedias. Dates, facts, figures. All marvelous. Sigh. Good thing, that. Why?

Because I could not imagine trying to tackle the life of an obscure musical theater performer (whose career started 100 years ago) without this weird native penchant for unearthing mundane or evasive details. This project is hard, y’all. Daunting. Elephantine. 

And all the more rewarding when I discover a tiny puzzle piece, such as her purebred dog’s birth date and parentage, 98 years after the fact. He was an Airedale, in case you were wondering. Black and tan. I imagine he looked like this:

Not really her doggo. This is a 21st-century good boy. Public Domain.

Maybe I will eventually find a photo of her actual good boy. I’m already in possession of some of her archives (an origin story for another post). Anything is possible in the world of biography, right?

Speaking of those puzzle pieces, dozens are already in place. Those mostly belong to the outer edge. Inside? One here, a couple there. Largely unconnected but waiting to be joined to the rest. An exciting concept. Can’t wait. Only approximately 9,957 pieces to fit in place. Or more. Who knows? I certainly don’t.

I spent the first couple of weeks poring over dry historical records: census, birth, death, marriage. Obituaries, burial info. All helpful in forging connections, resulting in several spontaneous aha moments! I know I’ve not seen the back end of those. Not yet. Not for a while. Weeks? Months? Years? Who knows? I certainly don’t. 

Going forward? Archives are about to be this girl’s best friend. My subject, J, performed in 45 states, lived in a couple. Traveled for pleasure. There’s so much to learn.

I plan on sharing a tightly curated version of my research journey here. What does that mean? A weekly post will go up every Tuesday, with the periodic stand-alone piece appearing as needed. Should be fun.

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RESEARCH NOTES WEEKS 1-3:

  • VICTORIES: I plotted out her family tree and know (almost) everyone’s vital statistics.
  • HAPPY DISCOVERIES: J’s dog’s pedigree; her son’s college yearbook; a ship’s manifest from 1931; a newspaper blurb from 1930 about her recovery from a “serious” surgery.
  • FRUSTRATIONS: Her children are largely enigmas.
  • CURRENTLY READING: The Lyceumite & Talent issues from 1910.

“I get intrigued by a puzzle, and writing a book is the best way to solve it.”–Anthony Storr

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Until next time!

A Bookstore is Gone, Long Live the Books! Part 6-Eugene O’Neill: Beyond Mourning and Tragedy

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A local used bookstore recently closed after 25 years. They had a fantastic going-out-of-business sale. While part of me feels “guilty” for taking advantage of their sad circumstances, the rest (and logical) part of me knows that they needed to sell as many books as possible. Through these books, a bit of their entrepreneurial and intellectual spirit will live on. With that idea in mind, I’m doing a limited-run series where I’ll spotlight each of the volumes I “adopted” from this sweet little shop. Shine on, you bookish gems!

Today’s selection? Eugene O’Neill: Beyond Mourning and Tragedy.

Eugene O’Neill: Beyond Mourning and Tragedy

DETAILS:

  • TITLE: EUGENE O’NEILL: BEYOND MOURNING AND TRAGEDY
  • AUTHOR: STEPHEN A. BLACK
  • YEAR PUBLISHED: 1999
  • YALE UNIVERSITY PRESS

WHY I BOUGHT IT:

I collect books about dead writers. And Eugene O’Neill was, well, Eugene O’Neill. ‘Nuff said.

Thanks for reading! I hope you like the new series. Let me know your thoughts in the comments.