Tea Exhibits My Tongue - Most Beautiful

It’s always interesting seeing where John’s name pops up. This time it was at the end of a discussion of tea, specifically mentioning lapsang souchong:

A Dream and Fruitless Vision

Here’s something we though somewhat appropriate for today, the supposed end of analog television here in the United States. On February 17, 1958, Pope Pius XII declared Saint Clare of Assisi (1193-1253) the patron saint of television.

M. R. James and That Which Creep Like Shadows...

An interesting study of the works of M.R. James from the Guardian:

The "ominous thing" in James's stories, written between the 1890s and 1930s, might be a sheeted ghost (Oh, Whistle, And I'll Come to You, My Lad), a corpse crawling from its grave (The Mezzotint), or something grotesque and tentacular (The Treasure of Abbot Thomas). Whichever form it takes it will be malevolent and capable of killing. There are no Caspers to be found here.

The August Derleth Centenary

The Sauk Prairie (Wisconsin) Eagle reports that on February 2, Governor Jim Doyle signed a proclamation declaring February 24 August Derleth Day in honor of what would've been the prolific author's 100th birthday."We approached the Governor and asked if we could have this declared and he said absolutely," said Kay Price, Executive Secretary of the August Derleth Society. "It's quite an honor."

Photographic Memories: Marshall Library

Deltiology, anyone? Here’s an interesting site showcasing library postcards from decades past. Recently the site highlighted the former Marshall Public Library.

Extreme Purple Pride

A picture of this house in Marshall passed through our inbox and we knew we had to share. We're not sure of its location - we don't think it's next door to the Cronin House - but we doubt Mrs. Zimmermann lives there. But it would be fun to think so.

Memoriam: John Updike

American author John Updike (1932-2009) has died; he was 76. His well-known works included the Harry "Rabbit" Angstrom series (Rabbit Run, 1960), Bech, a Book (1970), The Witches of Eastwick (1984), Terrorist (2006), and the Pulitzer Prize winners Rabbit Is Rich (1981) and Rabbit at Rest (1991). He also contributed well over 800 pieces of writing to The New Yorker magazine. A native of Pennsylvania, Updike later lived and wrote in his adopted Massachusetts.

Report the Features of the Octagon House

We received word a few weeks ago the Winterborn House in Marshall is for sale. Actually, it’s the Pendleton-Alexander House and here’s the scoop:

Goth-y Gorey Goodness

by Soozcat (Jan. 10, 2009)
(originally published at laundryfaerie.blogspot.com)

Enquirer: Input Sought for Marketing Marshall

We linked to a recent story about a possible historic district in Marshall; today, a story from the Enquirer about ways to better market Marshall:

Review: Figure "Sending Shivers Down My Spine"

Book review: The Figure in the Shadows

Whoever Removes These Things Does So at Her Own Peril....

Jenny had “heard some good things about John Bellairs” but when she tried one of his books, she didn’t finish it because she wasn’t in love with it. But now, as Jenny says, “if you like John Bellairs, you may profit from my guilt.”

Haverhill And The Squirrel's Hoard

The ComicBookResources site featured Comic Book Legends Revealed #188 recently and included this bit of about another of Haverhill's inspirations involving a shirt emblazoned with an S:

Comic Legend: There is no explanation for the S that Jughead wears on his shirt.

The Metal From the Stars

Some fans are writing some fan fiction, including this piece by David Hines called The Metal From the Stars:

Gotham Book Mart Holdings Are Given to Penn

The Gotham Book Mart was a famous midtown Manhattan bookstore and cultural landmark that operated from 1920 to 2007.  News of its priceless artifacts was noted by Sewell Chan in the January 2 New York Times: