The Cozy Mystery List Blog

Cozy Mystery (and Other Favorite) Books, Movies, and TV

John Adams Miniseries : Happy Fourth of July!

John Adams (DVD) I feel particularly patriotic this Fourth of July! We just finished the last episode of the HBO miniseries entitled John Adams…. and ¡¡¡WOW!!!

Let me first mention that we don’t subscribe to HBO… And, that we have tried some other HBO miniseries/episodic shows, and that some of them are just a tad out of my particular comfort zone. Yes… It’s true… I get a little uncomfortable with gratuitous sex and violence. Call me a “square” or “old-fashioned” but those are just the facts, ma’am.

A very good friend of mine told me about the miniseries… and since Cora is a cozy-mystery reader… I knew that she would not be recommending something that was going to be … let’s just say… adult-situation-graphic! (Don’t I sound like a prude!?!)

My husband had already read “John Adams,” David McCullough’s bestselling novel, and had really enjoyed it. And, since this miniseries is based on McCullough’s novel… which is presumably accurate, we knew that the miniseries would not take some of the “liberties” that a lot of other miniseries take… tweaking more “juicy tidbits” into the plots so that they are more readily appreciated by the masses. Of course, my husband did notice some changes that were made in the miniseries for dramatic purposes, although they didn’t detract from the overall spirit of accuracy.

The cast does a wonderful job portraying the characters who we all (in the USA) grew up learning and hearing about… Cast: Paul Giamatti (as John Adams) and Laura Linney (as his wife, Abigail) are superb in their parts. Tom Wilkinson (as Benjamin Franklin), Stephen Dillane (as Thomas Jefferson), David Morse (as George Wahington), Sarah Polley (as the Adams’ daughter), well… the list goes on! We found the acting, the sets, the director’s view ALL exceptionally good. (Of course, if you are looking for a sanitized version… where you don’t see and almost feel what it must have been like… where you don’t see how excruciating it was to be sick back in those times… when blood-letting seemed to be a very common practice… where there is a lack of buzzing flies, then this very realistic (and, again, to use an adjective I use to show the superlative), phenomenal miniseries is not for you…

HBO’s John Adams miniseries did not disappoint! It truly is worth watching… And, it gives a true meaning of why we, in the USA celebrate the Fourth of July… We have these very heroic men, such as John Adams, to thank for the liberty we now know and enjoy!

♦If you would like to see more TV & Movie  suggestions, click here.♦

That Girl TV Show…

That Girl - Season One Here is yet another TV & Movies blog on the Cozy Mystery site that has absolutely nothing to do with mysteries. The reason I chose to write about That Girl is because it is one of the shows from the late 1960s/early 1970s that I hope isn’t lost amongst the huge array of shows available now.

We moved into our house fifteen years ago— and I remember that That Girl was one of the shows my daughter and I watched together when Nickelodeon offered it (I think that they aired it during the Nick at Night time block… even before there was a TV Land channel!)

That Girl starred Marlo Thomas as Ann Marie, an aspiring, “struggling” actress. The use of quotation marks on the word “struggling” refers to the fact that Ann Marie’s apartment was absolutely phenomenal… large enough for a family of four in New York City, and her clothes were even more “absolutely phenomenal” than her apartment. BUT remember that this is a TV show, and just accept the fact that in the world of make-believe>>>Who Cares!?!

That fact is that despite a few little glitches, the show really is a good show to share with your daughters, nieces, granddaughters, or just you alone! (As I am doing now that my daughter doesn’t live with us…)

Ann’s personality is bubbly, fun, positive, in short… refreshing. Her boyfriend (Donald…played perfectly by Ted Bessell) is her anchor”’ but not her protector. Ann doesn’t need a protector,. She”s a strong, independent woman.

That Girl- Season One (1966-1967) included thirty episodes, in which we get introduced to the recurring characters. Ann’s father (Lou) was played by the wonderful Lew Parker… He is every young daughter’s father: over-protective and loving at the same time. Rosemary DeCamp exudes patience in her roll as Ann’s mother Helen Marie… She is Ann’s champion and runs interference between her leaving-the-nest Ann and her you-should-stay-at-home father.

For those of you like me who enjoyed the show when it first aired, you’ll be familiar with some of the great guest stars the show managed to get: Ethel Merman, Merle Milton, Danny Thomas, and some very young guest stars who went on to become big names: Sally Kellerman, Dabney Coleman, George Carlin.

If you’re worried about “adult situations,” let me just tell you that inn the episode “Rain, Snow and Rice,” Donald and Ann are snowed in with their friends in a hotel— the girls end up sharing one room and the boys share the other room… and the other couple is on their honeymoon!

Season Two (1967/1968) also had thirty episodes. (Unbelievable by today’s standard!) My daughter and I enjoyed watching these a year or two ago… and I am guessing that at 22, she would still enjoy Ann Marie’s antics. (I will pass on my DVDs when I am finished with them…)

Season Three (1968/1969) had 26 episodes and one of them had (almost!) the entire Thomas family. “My Sister’s Keeper” had guest appearances by Marlo’s dad (Danny), Sister (Terre), and brother Tony. What’s not to like?!?

I have yet to watch (or should I say “re-watch”?) any of Season Four (1969/1970) or Season Five (1970/1971) but I am looking forward to them. So here is the way.

If you would like to see more TV and Movies suggestions, click here.

I'm Just Venting…..AGAIN!

Good grief! I know that I am going to sound VERY OLD here… but am I the only one who is getting tired of “improvements”?!?!?

I finally had to chuck my AOL… I remember way back… when I first started using the computer, about 15 years ago>>> I was the last hold-out in my household to join the modern world! Back then, my relationship with my computer seemed a whole lot easier. I could save pictures to put on my emails, I could make folders that kept all of my correspondence, I could get off of the computer without “it” keeping files hidden in my computer which would then mess up my computer… Computer life was sweet! (As my daughter would say… “Sweet” is the new “delicious”— which a lot of us used to use to describe something that was totally super!)

But, some good things actually do come to pass. AOL kept putting out new versions… which they touted as “improved” (or some such adjective.) I would usually try to put off “upgrading” to the new improved system. And, when I finally acquiesced and let my husband upgrade my AOL (since I was the only one in the family who used AOL) I would immediately find fault with the “improvements.” (That’s right… “let my husband” do the work>>> Wasn’t I a good sport!?!)

Well, this last “upgrade” has finally persuaded me that after fifteen years of using AOL, I am ready to “go solo.” Yes, I have finally gotten fed up with all of the improvements… It seemed like this last upgrade meant that my husband had to keep fixing my computer when it “crashed.” And, I have enough computer questions for my husband… questions about how to save pictures of cozy mystery books, covers, how to make a new category on the site, how to “go behind the scenes” of my pages and make changes, how to…. well you get my drift.

So, adieu to AOL… You were “delicious” when I was learning my ins and outs of the computer… but your improvements just aren’t that “sweet” for me!

Four New Mystery Authors You All Have Recommended for the Site:

It’s that time again…. I have completed four new (to the site… but not actually "new") authors who I first heard about from you all. I have yet to read any of their works, but they do look interesting:

Garrison Allen: Allen writes the Big Mike Mystery Series which features the owner of a mystery bookstore, along with Big Mike… a huge Abyssinian cat who happens to love his Lima beans…

Lori Andrews: Although not a Cozy Mystery author, I included Andrews on the site because her books look really interesting, as well as… "smart mysteries"…  Andrews is a professor of law in Chicago and an expert in genetics. She writes the Dr. Alexandra Blake Mystery Series…

Christy Barritt: What better way to do your amateur sleuthing than to own a crime scene cleaning business, and have access to all of the freshly strewn evidence!  Barritt writes the Squeaky Clean Mystery Series which features the owner of that  very unusual business…

Patricia Batta: Batta has worked as an elementary school teacher, as well as a (document) librarian. She writes the Marge Christensen Mystery Series…

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