EMILY D. STILL ALIVE AND WELL IN HOLLYWOOD

I did end up watching the PBS show the other night about Emily Dickinson. It was a weird documentary that included interviews with scholars and - the weird part - a host of actresses auditioning for the role of Emily Dickinson in some unnamed future project. There were also snippets of Emily's poems covering images of Amherst, and Emily's house and family.

In the end, the project seemed to me to help any future feature project on the poet. It really came down to the assertion that Emily was a mystery, a rebel, a singular individual with an extraordinary mind, and that her poetry is a compelling collection of puzzles and insights. There was no real answer in the program as to why Emily became a white dress wearing recluse, and whether she was crazy or the only sane person in Western, MA in the late 19th Century.

My movie answers these questions. So, I feel good today that there is still room in the universe for Select Society in Hollywood.

I knew you'd all be concerned...

Success is counted sweetest
By those who ne'r succeed.
To comprehend a nectar
Requires sorest need.