Michael Patrick King, Sex & The City (Director/Writer/Producer) (1954- )

Scranton native Michael Patrick King, center, is the Director/Writer/Executive Producer of the highly anticipated summer movie Sex & the City: The Movie. The film stars (from left) Kim Cattrall, Sarah Jessica Parker, Kristin Davis and Cynthia Nixon. Sex & the City: The Movie opens nationwide May 30th.

This reference is from my longtime friend and colleague Evelyn Gibbons, who called me tonight all excited to give me this info:

Check out the Summer Movies (MT) section of this past Sunday's (May 4, 2008) New York Times and, on page 4, you will find a lengthy profile of the upcoming Sex and the City: The Movie. The article features both a profile of and an extensive interview with the movie's director/writer/producer Michael Patrick King, a native of Scranton.

Michael Patrick King was born in Scranton, Pennsylvania on September 14th, 1954. In the 1980s he moved to New York City, where he worked as a playwright and stand-up comedian.

King's impressive career in television spans over two decades. He first worked as executive producer of a 1989 show called The Sweet Life, which featured host Rachel Sweet introducing short clips of movie comedies. Of interesting note is that The Sweet Life aired on a new and fledgling network called The Comedy Channel, which only years later morphed into Comedy Central.

In the early 1990s, King served as writer for the hit sitcom Murphy Brown. He went on to write and executive produce several episodes of Will & Grace. He also served as writer/director/executive producer of the short-lived HBO show The Comeback starring Lisa Kudrow.

King is best known for his work on the smash HBO series Sex & the City, which he served as writer/director/executive producer from 1999 to 2004. He was won a Best Director Emmy Award for the episode The Reel Me in 2002.

Sex & the City: The Movie, one of the most highly-anticipated movies of the Summer 2008 movie season, opens nationwide Friday, May 30th, 2008.

The New York Times article, written by Ginia Bellafante, is titled Back to the City, for More Than Just Sex. To read the article, click here.

Also of note is that the bottom of the first page of the Summer Movies section reads:

4

HIS OWN VELVET ROPE

How Michael Patrick King got

himself from Scranton

to "Sex and

the City."

Seasons 1-6 of Sex & The City are available to borrow from libraries throughout the Lackawanna County Library System.

Muchos gracias to the phenomenally groovy Evelyn Gibbons for this reference.

UPDATED May 10th: Someone Meeboed me a question regarding Mr. King:

" I just found your blog after reading the NY Times article about Sex and the City. Do you know which "small college in Pennsylvania" Michael Patrick went to?"

After a little digging, I discovered that Michael Patrick King attended Mercyhurst College in Erie, PA, according to GoErie.com

Baby Mama (2008)

UPDATE SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 13th, 2008

My colleague Michele L. was soooooooo excited coming to work tonight because she was anxious to tell me that she saw the movie Baby Mama this weekend and it included a reference to Scranton.

Baby Mama tells the story of Kate Holbrook (Tina Fey), a single and successful businesswoman who badly wants to be a mother. When she discovers she's infertile, Kate hires trashy Angie Ostrowiski (Amy Poehler) to be her surrogate, whose crazy antics turns her life upside down.

About halfway through the movie, Kate and Angie are discussing their past relationships. Angie mentions her relationship with a guy before she met her current husband Carl. The previous boyfriend dumped Angie to attend the University of Scranton.

Michele L. told me the audience collectively gasped at that line of dialogue.

Thanks again to Michele L. for this reference.

www.babymamamovie.net

UPDATE: Baby Mama is now available on DVD. To place a hold, click here.

UPDATE SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 13th, 2008: I bought Baby Mama on Blu-Ray this past week and absolutely loved it. Below is the exact Scranton reference in the film, which takes place as Kate (Tina Fey) and Angie (Amy Poehler) are walking and eating ice cream after Lamaze class:

Angie

I had one good boyfriend before Carl.

Kate

Really?

Angie

Uh huh. Donny Landis. We used to work at Blimpie together when we were sixteen. We'd sit and eat pickles in the back. He waited a whole month before he touched my boobs. Then he went to the University of Scranton and I never saw him again. He was my Justin Timberlake.

Charm! A Novel by Kendall Hart (2008)

This particular surprise reference was a find of my mother's, Mary C. Mary is a life-long fan of the ABC soaps, particularly All My Children. Mary is also new to the internet and has proudly placed her second order from Amazon.com this past week. Her selection, you ask? A novel written by a fictitious character on All My Children which has crossed over into a general release for soap fans. When the novel, Charm! by Kendall Hart (Erica Kane's illegitimate daughter on the show, originated by Buffy the Vampire Player star Sarah Michelle Gellar and now played by Alisha Minshew), arrived in the mail yesterday, I glanced through it out of curiosity. Randomly opening to page 25, I was quite surprised to see the words Wilkes-Barre. Exploring further, I happily discovered that Wilkes-Barre appears a total of 12 times (on eleven pages) in the novel.

Charm! tells the story of Avery Wilkins, a young Wilkes-Barre native who moves to New York City in the hopes of creating her own perfume line, chasing her dreams while running away from her past:

p. 15
"'It's perfect---elegant yet modern. You're a class act, kid,' Justin said.
A class act. Avery loved hearing those words. In that dingy little house at 9 Mayflower Street in Wilkes-Barre, taste, tact, and black cocktail dresses were in short supply."

p. 25
"Her mother suffered from alcohol-related Alzheimer's disease, lived in a group home in Wilkes-Barre, and was incapable of using a telephone."

p. 41 (Avery is asked to tell her boyfriend Brad about her childhood)
"'Oh, my childhood was pretty uneventful. Middle-class, Wilkes-Barre, PA, usual milestones: ice skating, braces, boys.' There were no ice skates, no braces, no boys."

p. 63 (Avery meets her long-lost sister Lucy)
"She has a famous mother and a sister who went to private schools. She was more than just a girl from the wrong side of the tracks in Wilkes-Barre."

p. 67
"'Where did you grow up? Any siblings?'
'I grew up in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania...very middle-class, ordinary, no siblings.'"

p. 94 (with her boyfriend Brad at the Hotel de Crillon in Paris)
"It was all so lovely and romantic, but Avery felt out of place, as if a mistake had been made and someone was going to knock on the door and tell her the girls from Wilkes-Barre weren't welcome at the Crillon."

p. 122 (meeting Lucy's mother)
"'I'm serious. I want your answer to that question. if I was just some housewife living in Wilkes-Barre, would you have bothered?'"

p. 179
"She reached the outskirts of Wilkes-Barre...As a child, Avery couldn't wait to get out of Wilkes-Barre, but today she was glad to be back."

p. 183 (visiting her mother at the Rhinehart Home)
"But like all of Wilkes-Barre, it had seen better days."

p. 186 (talking to her mother)
"'And that day you told me to get out of Wilkes-Barre. Do you remember that day?'"

p. 215 (Avery wants to move her mother closer to NYC)
"Avery stood on the lovely landscaped lawn, took out her cell phone, and called the Rhinehart Home in Wilkes-Barre."

Charm! by Kendall Hart is available to borrow from the Lackawanna County Library System. Click here to place a reserve; click here to place a reserve on the Large Print Edition.

Much thanks to my mom Mary C. for this reference.

Wet Hot American Summer (2002)

Me with four-time Emmy Winner (for his role as Niles on Frasier) and the 2007 Tony Winner for Best Actor in a Musical David Hyde Pierce after a performance of Curtains in New York City this past Saturday (April 19th, 2008). Pierce also starred in 2001's Wet Hot American Summer, which was filmed on location at Camp Towanda in Honesdale, PA.

In May and June of 2000, Hollywood came to Honesdale, PA, where an impressive cast set up camp (no pun intended) at Camp Towanda to film the comedy Wet Hot American Summer.

The film stars David Hyde Pierce (4x Emmy Winner for his role as Niles on Frasier, and a 2007 Tony Winner for Curtains), Janeane Garofalo (Reality Bites, The Truth About Cats & Dogs), Saturday Night Live alums Molly Shannon and Amy Poehler (from the upcoming comedy Baby Mama), Christopher Meloni (Law and Order: Special Victims Unit), Paul Rudd and Bradley Cooper--who, in 2006, starred together with Julia Roberts in Broadway's Three Days of Rain, which featured set designs by Wilkes-Barre native Santo Loquasto.

Wet Hot American Summer is set on the last day of Camp Firewood's 1981 season. It follows a group of counselors who are each trying to complete their unfinished business before the day ends, and it's everyone's last chance for romance, self-realization, and of course the Big Talent show.

Wet Hot American Summer was first shown at 4 sold-out screenings at the 2001 Sundance Film Festival. After playing at various film festivals throughout the US, the film was released theatrically on July 27, 2001. The film was also a hit on the midnight movie circuit in 2003 and 2004.

Click here to reserve the DVD of Wet Hot American Summer,

www.wethotamericansummer.com

IM Me from the Scranton/W-B in Entertainment Blog

I recently added Meebo to the blog. This will allow anyone who logs on and checks out the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in Entertainment blog to IM me right from this blog---feel free to let me know about a Wilkes-Barre or Scranton reference I missed, or tell me about your own connection to the area, or to just say hi.

If it says splrefdept is online, I'm here. If it says splrefdept is offline, you can also leave a message.

The Meebo IM chat box in on the left hand side of the blog, right underneath the archives.

http://www.meebo.com/

Lady of Burlesque (1943)

UPDATED NOVEMBER 13, 2008

I am a HUGE fan of Barbara Stanwyck. Her performances throughout her incredible career in classic films from the Golden Age of Hollywood are unforgettable--from the self-sacrificing mother in 1937's Stella Dallas, to the femme fatale Phyllis Dietrichson in the film noir Double Indemnity, to the petty thief Lee Leander who finds love on her way en route "to Scranton or Pittsburgh" in 1940's Remember The Night, to her notorious performance as a backstreet girl who literally sleeps her way to the top of a New York City bank (floor-by-floor) with zero remorse in 1933's Baby Face (the catalyst that most critics agree was the film that was single-handedly responsible for the creation of 1934's Production Code). I was surprised by the Scranton reference (by another actor) in Remember the Night, but I was was absolutely shocked (and embarrassingly giddy) to hear Barbara Stanwyck herself say the words "Wilkes-Barre" in the 1943 classic tale of strippers and murder, Lady of Burlesque.

Based on the novel The G-String Murders by Gypsy Rose Lee, and directed by William A. Wellman (who also directed Stanwyck in 1931's pre-Code shocker Night Nurse; he also directed 1927's Wings, the first film to win the Academy Award for Best Picture), Lady of Burlesque tells the story of The Old Opera House, a 1920s era theater transformed into a successful house of burlesque (and a target of the fuzz). Amidst the bum comics and cheap strippers that work at The Old Opera House is Dixie Daisy (Barbara Stanwyck), the reigning queen of burlesque. However, life takes a turn for the worst as strippers start turning up dead, strangled by their own G-strings.

Eleven minutes into the film, an unnamed burlesque dancer enters the shared dressing room of the strippers and complains of the bathroom facilities at The Old Opera House:

Stripper:

That settles it! We GOTTA have a new one!

Dixie:

New what?

Stripper:

(gestures towards the off-stage ladies' room)

Dixie:

Oh, the museum piece. I haven't seen one like that

since the Wilkes-Barre Regal.

The Lackawanna County Library System does not presently include Lady of Burlesque in our collection; even more unfortunate is the fact that Lady of Burlesque is a film in the public domain, meaning that inferior and unremastered copies of the film are widely available on a number of DVD releasing companies (for as little as $4.98); to purchase a copy from Amazon.com, click here. Hopefully, the film will be available sometime in the future from MyLibraryDV, an awesome library service that includes other public doman films for free online viewing.

But you can still catch some essential Barbara Stanwyck in a number of films on DVD circulating throughout the Lackawanna County Library System--click on any title to place a hold on Double Indemnity, Stella Dallas, Sorry Wrong Number, or the "so-notorious-it-has-to-be-seen-to-be-believed" Baby Face (part of the excellent pre-Code collection Forbidden Hollywood).

UPDATED NOVEMBER 13, 2008 - Because it is in the public domain, the entire film of Lady of Burlesque is available online at YouTube. At the two-minute mark in the clip below, you will find the Wilkes-Barre reference made by Barbara Stanwyck in the film.

Entertainment Weekly (April 11, 2008, Issue #986)

If you happen to catch a glimpse at this week's Entertainment Weekly (the one with Ellen DeGeneres on the cover) check out the cover story, The Ultimate TV Trivia Quiz. Jump to question number 12:

12. Kevin from The Office's Police tribute band is called...

a. King of Penn(sylvania)

b. Scrantonicity

c. Pennyatta Mondatta

d. Roxanne Roll

To take the full EW quiz online, click here; to jump right to the Scrantonicity question, click here.

Don't forget The Office returns with brand new, post-strike episodes THIS THURSDAY, April 10th at 9 PM.

Marion Lorne, Actress (1883-1968)

West Pittston native Marion Lorne appears as Aunt Clara opposite Elizabeth Montgomery and Dick York in an episode of the classic 1960s sitcom Bewitched. Lorne won a posthumous Emmy Award for her role 10 days after her death in 1968.

She was a gifted and lovable star of the Broadway stage, the "brand new box" called television, and the silver screen. She was directed by Hitchcock in her film debut. She was the aunt of a loveable witch on one of TV's best-loved sitcoms. And to top it all off, she was a friend of that infamous cougar Mrs. Robinson in a film classic. She is Marion Lorne and she's a native of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton area.

Marion Lorne MacDougall was born in West Pittston on August 12, 1883.

After studying at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York, she made her Broadway debut as Marion Lorne in 1905's Mrs. Temple's Telegram. She appeared in many other plays in the early days of Broadway.

She married playwright Walter Hackett (Captain Applejack; The White Sister) and moved to London, where they founded the Whitehall Theater. Following Hackett's death in 1944, she returned to the US and starred as Vera in the original Broadway production of Harvey.

Lorne's film debut came at the young age of 68 in 1951's Strangers On A Train, directed by legendary Master of Suspense Alfred Hitchcock; her character was Mrs. Anthony. Following the film's success, she turned to television in the recurring role as the lovable-but-hopelessly-confused Mrs. Gurney on the sitcom Mister Peepers from 1952 to 1953. She also appeared in the 1955 Rosiland Russell vehicle The Girl Rush, also starring Fernando Lamas.

Follwoing a number of guest appearances on various television shows, Lorne was cast as the doorknob-obsessed, lovable witch Aunt Clara on the wildly popular 1960s sitcom Bewitched, co-starring Elizabeth Montgomery and Dick York. The show was a phenomenal success and helped Lorne reach a whole new audience.

In 1967, Lorne appeared as Miss Dewitte, a friend and party guest of Mrs. Robinson's in Mike Nichols's 1967 film debut The Graduate, starring Anne Bancroft and Dustin Hoffman. The film was a huge hit and ushered in the "film school generation" of directors.

Sadly, during the fourth season of Bewitched, Marion Lorne suffered a heart attack and passed away in New York City on May 9, 1968 . She was 84 years old. Ten days after her death, Lorne was posthumously awarded the Emmy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role on Bewitched--her friend and colleague Elizabeth Montgomery accected the award for the late actress.

Several items featuring Marion Lorne are available to borrow from the Lackawanna County Library System--including the first 3 seasons of Bewitched, the VHS or DVD of The Graduate, and the VHS or DVD of Strangers on a Train. Click on any of these links to place a reserve.

Much thanks to the savvy Michele L. for this reference. And thanks to Erin from Childrens for the correction :-) I originally incorrectly identified Elizabeth Montgomery as Barbara Montgomery :-(

Allan Jones, Actor and Singer (1907-1992)

John Fortuna, one of our library's patrons and a true movie aficionado of the lives of movie stars, recently inquired about an actor from the Golden Age of Hollywood named Allan Jones. To my surprise, I discovered that Allan Jones was not only a prolific actor and tenor, but he was also an Old Forge and Scranton native.

Allan Jones was born Ocotber 14, 1907 in Old Forge, Pennsylvania, the son of a coal miner. He grew up in Scranton, PA.

After moving to Hollywood in the 1930s, Jones starred in several Hollywood films now regarded as classics. His credits include the Marx Brothers comedies A Night at the Opera in 1935 (as Ricardo, he was the tenor in the performance of Il Trovatore which was the film's centerpeice opera referred to in the title) and 1937's A Day at the Races (where he played a race horse owner); 1937's The Firefly with Jeanette MacDonald (which introduced his tremendously popular rendition of the song Donkey Serenade); and 1940's The Boy From Syracuse with Martha Raye and Irene Hervey (who was his wife from 1936 to 1957).

Perhaps Jones's best and well-known performance was as gambler Gaylord Ravenal opposite Irene Dunne in the 1936 musical film Show Boat. In 1942 he co-starred with Scranton native Gloria Jean in When Johnny Comes Marching Home.

Jones continued to act and sing in films until 1970.

His son Jack Jones was also a popular singer in the 1960's, whose hits included Friends & Lovers.

Jones died of lung cancer in New York City on June 30, 1992.

Several films featuring Allan Jones are circulating throughout the Lackawanna County Library System: reserves may be placed on the VHS or DVD of A Day at the Races; the DVD of A Night at the Opera; and The Marx Brother Collection (featuring both A Day at the Races and A Night at the Opera) on DVD.

The Reference Department also includes Local History Newspaper Clippings Files on both Allan Jones and his son Jack Jones.

Thanks again to John Fortuna for this reference.

Local Resident Filmed for Upcoming "Daily Show" Interview

Producers from Comedy Central's The Daily Show With John Stewart recently visted Scranton and interviewed 82 year-old Hazel Price, who watched Presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton grow up as a child.

Click here to read Scranton Times-Tribune writer Charles Schillinger's article "Price's Next Interview is on Comedy Central," which was published in this past Sunday's (April 23, 2008) Times.

No date has been announced for when the interview with Hazel Price will air.

Thanks to Evelyn Gibbons for this reference.

James Thomas Martin III (1985 - )

Yesterday's Citizens' Voice published an article about James Thomas Martin III, a Forty Fort native who recently appeared in the hit film Step Up 2 the Streets.

Martin was also featured in Flo Rida's music video for Low.

Click here to read the full article.

The video for Low is below via YouTube.

Dallas, PA Resident Wins $27,000 on NBC's Deal Or No Deal (March 5, 2008)

Congratulations to Dallas, PA resident Chris Higdon, who won $27,000 on Wednesday's episode of NBC's Deal Or No Deal.

To read the article from Citizens' Voice, click here.

Raye Hollitt, Actress and Bodybuilding Champion (1964 - )

I'd like to give a HUGE Thank You to Raye Hollitt for generously giving me permission to include photos from her awesome official website (www.rayehollitt.com) in our blog.

Everyone is entitled to be a little bit envious of Raye Hollitt. She's gorgeous, she's a champion bodybuilder, she was an original American Gladiator, and she continues a successful acting career in Hollywood that began 20 years ago. What's even more incredible is that Raye Hollitt is a native of the Wilkes-Barre area.

Raye Hollitt was born in Wilkes-Barre on April 17, 1964. She grew up in the Harvey's Lake area of Northeastern Pennsylvania.

In 1982, at the age of 18, Hollitt moved to Los Angeles, where she became a competitive weighlifter and bodybuilder, competing in and winning numerous bodybuilding titles in Los Angeles, California and Reno, Nevada. Among her titles are 1988 Ms. Los Angeles Weightlifting and the 1989 Women's Extravaganza Strength title winner. She has also appeared on the cover of 14 national bodybuilding magazines throughout her career.

In 1987, Hollitt began her acting career in the action film Penitentiary III, playing a female boxer.

Hollitt gained worldwide recognition for her role as Lonnie Jones, a bodybuilder with a lust for womanizer John Ritter in Blake Edwards' 1989 comedy Skin Deep. Another interesting note: out of a cast of nine women who play girlfriends and ex-girlfriends of hard drinking, womanizing writer Zach Hutton (John Ritter), Hollitt was the only cast member besides Ritter featured in the trailer for the film's release. In the film's most famous scene, Zach strips and crawls into bed, waiting anxiously for his date Lonnie Jones to emerge from the bathroom. As Lonnie emerges, she states that she has worked 5 years to develop her body, "but for one night, it's...all...yours." Then Lonnie proceeds to flex and pose her incredible physique, asking Zach, "How do you feel about THAT?" Zach's response: "Like Mrs. Arnold Schwarzenegger."

Following Hollitt's success in Skin Deep, she continued to act in several Hollywood films (including 1991's The Last Hour, 1993's Hot Shots: Part Deux, and 1994's Cyborg III) and guest-starring on several popular television shows (from JAG to Baywatch to Manhunt--and even an episode of Muppets Tonight).

In 1989, Hollitt gained an extra massive fan following as Zap in the hugely successful show American Gladiators, in which professional athletes competed with average people in stamina-testing challenges such as Power Ball, Assault, The Wall and Hang Tough. Hollitt starred in the series from 1989 through 1994 and competed in almost 100 episodes of American Gladiators. The show remains a mainstay in popular culture and was even recently revived this past year on NBC.

During her time with American Galdiators, Hollitt became the official spokesperson for Ye Olde Clock & Gift Shoppe in Dallas, PA, and her commercials continue to air on local television stations to this day.

Hollitt contines to act in Hollywood, and she will next been seen in Nilanjan Neil Lahiri's upcoming drama The Ode.

Hollitt also continues her successful bodybuilding career in Los Angeles. She also operates her official website, http://www.rayehollitt.com/ and her MySpace page.

Skin Deep is available to borrow on DVD from the Lackawanna County Library System. To place a hold, click here.

Thank you again to the amazing Raye Hollitt for letting me use photos from her official website for this reference.

www.rayehollitt.com

www.myspace.com/Raye_Hollitt

"Timothy" by The Buoys (1971)

Thomas Coley from Parson recently sent me the following email:

"I came across the blog while searching for a music group from Wilkes-Barre who were a one hit wonder in the late 60's early 70's.


"I went through the blog archives and did not see any reference to The Buoys who had a controversial hit with Timothy in 1971. I remembered them, as they used to practice some times a block from my home in Parsons, and always liked the song."

The Buoys was a progressive rock band from the early 1970s. Based in Wilkes-Barre, band members included Bill Kelly (later of the 1990s group Dakota), Fran Brozena, Jerry Hludzik, Carl Siracuse, Chris Hanlon, and Sally Rosoff. Many of their songs (including their major hit Timothy), were written by and featured piano by Rupert Holmes, best known for the 1979 hit Escape (The Pina Colada Song) and the Tony-winning musicals The Mystery Of Edwin Drood and Curtains.

The Buoys are primarily know as a one-hit wonder for their 1971 hit Timothy, which reached number 17 on the Billboard charts. Set against a groovy beat, Timothy tells the story of three men stuck in a mine after a cave-in. At the conclusion of the song, only two men leave the mine alive--with full stomachs--and Timothy is never heard from again.

When released in 1971, those listeners who thought Timothy was just a song with a good beat were quite shocked when they discovered the theme of cannibalism in the lyrics.

To read the complete lyrics of Timothy, click here.

There is a certain enigma and mystery about Timothy, due to several rumors--from Rupert Holmes being inspired to write the song after reading about a mine cave-in in Sheppton, to Holmes's primary intention in writing the song was specifically to get it banned from radio. Information about the history and theories of Timothy can be found by clicking here.

Though The Bouys also had a huge hit in Europe with their song Give Up Your Guns, The Buoys are primarily known in the US as a one-hit wonder for Timothy; The Buoys broke up in the early 1970s.

Timothy was released on a CD compilation titled Have A Nice Day: Volume 6. To place a hold on the CD, click here.

I could find very little published information on The Buoys; so anyone has any other facts or information about the group or their song Timothy, please email me.

A great big Thank You again to Thomas Coley for this Wilkes-Barre reference.

Andy Buckley from NBC'S The Office To Appear in Scranton St. Patrick's Day Parade Saturday, March 15th

My colleague (and Angela look-alike winner at last fall's Office Convention in Scranton) Amy Buntz has told me that actor Andy Buckley, who plays Dunder Mifflin CFO David Wallace on NBC's The Office will be appearing in the Scranton St. Patrick's Day Parade on Saturday, March 15th.

http://www.stpatparade.com/

MORE GOOD NEWS: New episodes of The Office

will begin airing Thursday, April 10th!

The Irish In Us (1935)

The fantastic Barb Williams from Memphis, Tennessee, a regular contributor to the movie blog, emailed me yesterday about a Scranton reference in a James Cagney boxing movie from the 1930s:

"While I was home with the flu last month, Turner Classic Movies showed The Irish in Us with James Cagney. Scranton was mentioned two times while Cagney's boxing protege was being prepped for a bout. The opposition's handlers, as I recall in my flu-dazed state, were telling Cagney's fighter (named Carbarn Hammerschlog) that the guy he is slated to fight killed his opponent during a boxing match in Scranton."

The Irish In Us features an impressive cast including James Cagney, Olivia de Havilland, Frank McHugh and Pat O'Brien; it was directed by Lloyd Bacon (42nd Street, The Fuller Brush Girl starring Lucille Ball).

The Irish In Us tells the story of three Irish brothers--policeman Pat (Pat O'Brien), fireman Mike (Frank McHugh) and boxing promoter Danny (James Cagney)--who live with their Ma. Though his brothers try to convince Danny to settle down with a secure job, Danny believes his boxing ingenue Carbarn (Allen Jenkins) will soon bring him fame and fortune. To complicate matters, Pat's fiance Lucille (Olivia de Havilland) starts falling for Danny. Also of note is The Irish In Us is said to feature an abundance of New York Irish stereotypes.

Though the film has never been officially released on VHS or DVD, an independent company (www.freemoviesondvd.com/) that sells copies of out-of-print and hard-to-find classic films does offer copies of The Irish In Us for sale on DVD. To purchase a copy, click here.

Much thanks again to Barb Williams for this Scranton reference. Barb, I hope you've fully recovered from your recent bout with the flu! Keep em' comin'!

Dance, Fools, Dance (1931)

I'm not sure if this film would qualify as an authentic Scranton reference, but 1931's Dance, Fools, Dance includes a character named Bert Scranton, played by Cliff Edwards.

Fearing her brother Roddy (William Bakewell) has become part of a bootleg gang, cub reporter Bonnie Jordan (Joan Crawford) volunteers to cover the follow-up story to the murder of the paper's star reporter, Bert Scranton (Cliff Edwards), while he is investigating a Prohibition-era massacre.

Bonnie is a former socialite who, after her father lost all his money in the stock market crash, has to find work.

Posing as a professional dancer, she infiltrates the gang of Jake Luva (Clark Gable), working in one of his speakeasies. Flirting with Luva, she finds out to her horror that her brother was not only involved in the gangland massacre, but was the one who murdered Scranton. Luva finds out who she really is, and he orders her killed. Luva, however, is killed after she shoots her brother.

Bonnie, rather than hiding her brother in the newspaper story she writes, tells the whole truth. In so doing, she wins the respect, admiration, and love of Bob (Lester Vail), the man who previously rejected her as a silly flapper in the days when she was wealthy and didn't make any contribution to life.

Though not available on DVD, Dance, Fools Dance, was released for a brief time on VHS as part of MGM's Forbidden Hollywood Collection. To purchase a copy of the video, click here.

Also, Don McKeon recently emailed me and told me he caught Dance, Fools, Dance on Turner Classic Movies (TCM) and Scranton is said many, MANY times.

The clip below features a passing character saying, "Hello, Scranton!"

Love Overboard by Janet Evanovich (2005); Originally Published as Ivan Takes A Wife (1989)

My Judilicious colleague Judi K., who is a HUGE fan of mystery author Janet Evanovich, was so excited to tell me that Evanovich included a reference to Scranton in one of her earlier books-- a romance novel titled Love Overboard.

Originally published in 1989 under the title Ivan Takes A Wife, Love Overboard was the second of a series of 12 romance novels Evanovich penned before gaining fame with her numbered mystery series featuring Trenton bounty hunter Stephanie Plum.

Love Overboard also features a Stephanie as its main protagonist--Stephanie Lowe, a woman who agrees to help out on a voyage of Ivan Rasmussen's Maine coastal cruise, and she goes from considering him "Ivan the Terrible" to falling for his looks, touch, and heart.

The Scranton reference occurs on page 104 of the paperback version. Stephanie tries to hide the fact that she is upset that another woman, Melody, is on board the boat with Ivan.

"'Does it bother you to have Melody on board? I can make more of an effort to get rid of her--'

'No. She really wants to finish the cruise. She lied to Ace about her age. She's only eighteen. Graduated from high school in June. But she was telling the truth about the band. She's from Scranton, and I don't think she saw too many options open to her.'"

Love Overboard is available to borrow in many formats from the Lackawanna County Library System. To place a hold on the paperback, click here. To place a hold on the large print edition, click here. You can also get Love Overboard as an audio book on CD, audiotape, or as a download from Overdrive.

Much thanks again to the eternally-lovely Judi K. for this reference.

Poem: "The Crow-Mother Tells All" from "The Art of Subtraction: New and Selected Poems" by Jay Parini (2005)

UPDATED JUNE 3, 2008

I received an email today from Peter Metrinko, a regular contributor to our blog, about a poem written by a Pittson native that was published in the Washington Post -- the poem featured a notable reference to Scranton in the second line:

"I came across a reference to Scranton in the Washington Post today, which published a poem by noted writer Jay Parini, born in Pittston and raised in Scranton. (Parini even has a Wikipedia page.)

The poem is titled "The Crow-Mother Tells All" and was originally published in Parini's 1998 collection "House of Days." It begin:

"The empty oil drums rattled in the yard
that day in Scranton, and the ham-red hills
would shudder in the distance, thunder-chilled. "

Jay Parini was born in 1948 in Pittston, Pennsylvania and raised in Scranton. After graduating from LaFayette College in 1970 and earing his doctorate from University of St. Andrews in Scotland in 1975, Parini taught at both Dartmouth College in New Hampshire and Middlebury College in Vermont; he has been a professor at Middlebury since 1982.

During that time, he began his professional career as a published and critically acclaimed poet. In addition to four volumes of poetry, Parini has also published six novels, two books of literary criticism, and biographies of John Steinbeck, William Faulkner, and Robert Frost. In 1976, he also co-founded the journal New England Review. In addtion, Parini was appointed literary executive for legendary author Gore Vidal.


"The Crow-Mother Tells All" is in two volumes of poetry that can be borrowed from the Lackawanna County Library System. To place a hold on 1998's Best of Days, click here; to place a hold on 2005's The Art of Subtraction, click here.

To read "The Crow-Mother Tells All" in the Washington Post article published January 27, 2008, click here.

Much thanks again to Peter Metrinko for this great Scranton reference.

UPDATED JUNE 3, 2008 Peter emailed me today with an update on this entry. According to an article on CNN.com, Jay Parini (a professor at Middlebury College in Vermont) has been given a unique assignment. When more than two dozen young adults vandelized Robert Frost's former home, their sentence was to take a two-day course on the poems of Robert Frost--which Panini is teaching. To read the full article, click here.

"Journeys: 36 Hours / Scranton, PA" from The New York Times (Friday, November 1, 2002)

Yes, Scranton even made the New York Times!

A few years before The Office made certain local landmarks famous, the New York Times profiled Scranton in their Journeys column in the Travel section on Friday, November 1, 2002. The article, titled "36 Hours / Scranton, Pa., profiles a weekend visit to Scranton (Friday night through Sunday morning) and highlights local landmarks and restaurants.

To read the full article from the New York Times website, click here.