Character Exercise; Theater Vocabulary; Jane Martin's Talking With

This morning, let's start off with a little character writing exercise. Use your journal/notebook for these morning exercises.

Throughout this course, I will be using specific language related to the field of playwriting and/or writing in general. These terms are important for you to know/learn. They look nice on quizzes and tests. Always take notes on key information in this class. Practicing note-taking is also important for any student or writer.

Theatre vocabulary to know:

• Monologue: an extended speech delivered by one person/character.
• Dramatic Monologue: a long or extended speech delivered by one character addressing another character or group of characters.
• Interior Monologue: In fiction or prose, the description or speech (in 1st person POV, for example) where a character exhibits (shows/tells) the thoughts, feelings, and associations passing through a character's mind.
• Soliloquy: an extended speech by one person/character addressed directly to the audience. Usually the character is alone on stage.
• Monologue Play (one-person show; monodrama): A solo performance, featuring an actor, comedian, or entertainer.
• Premise: the basic concept or idea of the play. Usually the premise can be stated clearly in 1 sentence. This is a play about...

TALKING WITH:

Please read the handout about Jane Martin this morning. Follow up your reading with a 10 minute period of reading. Select one of the monologues in the collection and read it closely. Analyze how:

• the character hooks her audience, 
• how the character communicates meaning (what's the purpose/point of speaking?)
• how details and background description and details are presented to the audience, 
• how story and plot are interwoven into the monologue, 
• how language or diction is used to create visual imagery (metaphor, allusion, personification, symbol, simile, etc.), sound imagery (onomatopoeia, rhyme, rhythm, alliteration, assonance, consonance, etc.), and
• how props or costumes are used (if any) help establish setting or character.

TASK: After reading silently (alone) for 10 minutes, let's take a look at a few performances from the play. As you watch, consider how PERFORMANCE (the ability of the performer) changes or affects your experience or understanding of the play/scene:

Fifteen Minutes (monologue, page 7-10)
Rodeo (monologue, page 31-34)
Twirler (part; not complete monologue; page 37-40)
Marks (monologue, page 67-69)

TASK: After viewing, let's conduct a class discussion. Your response can include answers to any or all of these questions:

• What did you think about the play as a whole? Did it surprise you or please you or frustrate you? Explain why you reacted to the play in this way.
• What is the premise of "Talking With"? In a sentence or two, explain what you think is the premise or main idea/theme of the play. Is this premise interesting? Do you think people would pay to see this play?
• The "audience" for each character changes as the play continues. How does the author help a viewer or reader understand who the character in question is "talking with..."? Overall, by the end of the play, who do you think the playwright Jane Martin is "Talking with...?" Support your opinion.
• What challenges and stage requirements are necessary to produce this play? How has Jane Martin anticipated a low-budget, black box theater being able to produce her play? What did you learn about staging from the monologues you read and watched?
• Why are the monologues in the order that Martin puts them? What is the reason to start and end the play with the monologues she does?
• After reading about Jane Martin, what amuses or interests you in her as a writer? How might the idea of "Theatricality" (artificial life involving conflict) infuse the script and the whole experience of seeing this play on stage?

After our discussion, let's move to the lab to conduct the following activities. Both activities will also be homework if you do not complete them in the lab:

Lab Task 1: Watch the following pairs of performances. Compare/contrast the quality or effectiveness of the performer and write your analysis or critique of the monologue in a paragraph response (to be turned in as homework participation Thursday, September 10). There are 3 pairings.

To assist your answers: As you watch these scenes from Talking With, pay attention to how the playwright engages the audience and tells an interesting story that develops the single speaking character. Notice how the actor portrays this character. Are the author's words more effective or is the performance more compelling to you as an audience? What does this suggest about the nature of performance? Which performance was stronger than the other? Why? What might be some things you want to remember about writing plays for performers?

Clear Glass Marbles (monologue, page 19-22)
Clear Glass Marbles (monologue, page 19-22) 

Audition. (monologue, page 25-27)
Audition 

French Fries (monologue, page 61-63)
French Fries

Lab Task 2: Using your character exercise from this morning, write a monologue from the perspective of your created character.

Next class we will begin in the lab and continue working on monologues and monologue writing.

If you missed it, read about Jane Martin here.

HOMEWORK: If you did not complete your reading of Talking With, please do so. Complete the lab assignments (1 & 2) for homework if you did not complete them during class. For advanced students who are ready for the next reading assignment, please begin reading the monologue play The Vagina Monologues by Eve Ensler.

Welcome, Class of 2017!

Welcome back, class of 2017! I hope you all had a restful and enjoyable summer.

Here we are again. This year is partly devoted to writing scripts (both theatrical and for the screen). What you learn here can help you improve your fiction "dialogue" skills, examine the use of conflict in your plots, play and experiment with language and poetry, as well as make you a better psychologist (dealing with people in crisis), all the while honing your writer's craft and developing your writer's voice.

Today, after reviewing the course criteria, we will get started with a required writing activity, read a bit, and start on a couple assignments to begin this course. At the end of class today, we'll get our locker assignments.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION:

Check this blog each class period for agendas, deadlines, educational information, advice, and a whole lot of links to enhance your education. All you have to do is read and click. You are responsible for reading and interacting with the material I post on the blog. It is a useful resource for the course (since we don't have a specific textbook)--so please use it.

If you're absent or missed something in class, please check the blog to get caught up. As indicated above, each new class period usually includes a new post. If you have a question about an assignment and are too embarrassed to speak to me in public (or you have a question that you think you will forget to ask), feel free to use the comment section.

On our link page you will also find some useful tools for this course. During the course I will direct your attention to these tools for your use in this class and for use in Contemporary Writers.

Today, after reading about the course and answering any questions, let's begin playwriting with a baseline writing exercise. You will need a notebook, the essay paper/booklet provided, and a writing utensil.

• The task is simple. Write a complete scene (with a definite beginning, middle, and end) in script format. 

• Limit your cast of characters to no more than four (4). Two or three (2-3) works best. Setting, writing style, and theme is completely up to you. 

• Be creative. Focus on the task of writing. Let your words flow from you without a lot of editing or over thinking this exercise. Trust your instincts as an artist and writer! 

•  If you need a prompt, choose one of the following starters: 
•  A policeman, a newlywed, a certified letter 

•  A recently new widow, her half-sister, and a secret 

•  One character walks in to a familiar place but meets someone unexpected

• You will have 25-30 minutes to write.

If you happen to finish early and the rest of the class is still writing, please begin reading "Talking With" by Jane Martin. After we write our baseline, we'll get started reading Talking With in small groups.

HOMEWORK: Complete Talking With by Jane Martin. As you read the monologues, pay close attention to how language and conflict within the stories helps to develop character. Bring the play script with you to our next class. Please share the course criteria sheet with your parents/guardians. Have a nice Labor Day Weekend!

Exam Review

Exam review

The Movies Learn to Speak (article)
The Jazz Singer (1927) & Don Juan (1926), Al Jolson, Vitaphone, etc.
The Benefits and Problems concerning SOUND IN FILM
1930's Golden Age of Film: (April 13 post)
Hal Roach, Laurel & Hardy, "The Music Box" (1931), The Little Rascals
Universal Horror films and stars (April 15 post)
Screwball comedies & style
Frank Capra films
Genre films: Gangster, War, Westerns, Musicals, Animation, Adventure
Famous actors/personalities in 1930's & 1940's films
RKO, King Kong (1933), Fay Wray--the scream queen, Max Steiner, Ray Harryhausen
The Marx Brothers: A Night At the Opera (1935)
Influence of the Great Depression on film, Cary Grant, Katherine Hepburn, Jimmy Stewart
Narratology, style of film, narrative techniques, avant garde films (see April 21 post)
Technicolor (April 29 post & Walt Disney article)
Walt Disney, Snow White (1937) (article & blog posts)
How to write a treatment, 3-act structure (May post)
Film Noir (May post & article "Murder, Greed, & Betrayal: The Dark Streets of Film Noir")
The characteristics of Film Noir, how German Expressionism influenced Film Noir, etc.
Citizen Kane (1941) & Orson Welles and his influence on film
Mise-en-scene & deep focus shots, auteur, diegetic & non diegetic sound, styles of film, mise-en-shot, montage, continuity editing, editing, producing, etc. (various posts)
Angles, shot types, 180 degree rule, how to direct, produce, and write a film, etc.
Alfred Hitchcock, Rope (1947), Rear Window (1954), Psycho (1960) (May 26-June 10)
The Emergence of Television
Samuel Goldwyn (MGM), influence of television on the film industry ("The Emergence of Television" article)
HUAC and the Communist Witch Hunt, McCarthy Era, Fatty Arbuckle scandal, Ring Lardner, blacklisting (HUAC article)
Drive-in Theaters (June 1 post)
AIP & Samuel Z. Arkoff (American International Pictures: A Blueprint for Success" article)
Ed Wood & Roger Corman (June 1 post)
William Castle (June post)
1950's Science Fiction films, The Cold War (June 1 post)
MPPA relaxing its restrictions (article)
Jack Valenti, Mike Nichols, "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf" (1966) ("Relaxing Restrictions: MPAA Ratings System article)
Ratings system: G, M, R, X and what the letter stands for--later G, PG, R, NC17
1960's film trends (June 7 post)
The New Hollywood: America's New Wave (article), (June 8 post)
Dennis Hopper, Easy Rider (American New Wave, blog)
Steven Spielberg & George Lucas; Star Wars (1977): blockbusters & their influence in film
Blaxploitation
CGI, Toy Story (1995) (article)
Producers, directors, writers, foley artist, grip, cinematographers, and film occupations

Our final exam covers a lot here. Please study and use your notes you took in class (there was a reason you should have taken notes) to study from.

Psycho; American New Wave

Our final exam will be Friday, June 12.

HOMEWORK: Read the articles on the American New Wave Directors: Please watch at least 3 clips from any films by at least one of these directors (search on youtube.com for example). Titles of some appropriate films are listed in your article and from your reading.

• Woody Allen
• Robert Altman
• Hal Ashby
• Peter Bogdanovich
• John Cassavetes
• Francis Ford Coppola
• Brian De Palma
• William Friedkin
• Dennis Hopper
• George Lucas
• Mike Nichols
• Bob Rafelson
• Martin Scorsese
• Steven Spielberg

1960's: MPAA, & The American New Wave

If you have created a short film of 10 minutes or less, you may submit your work to the Rochester Teen Film Festival sponsored by Nazareth College. Winning awards like this may be your ticket to a scholarship to a college program for film. If you'd like to submit something, please do so by Friday: Submissions are completely FREE and are all done on the following website: https://www2.naz.edu/teen-film-festival

We will conclude Rear Window today and move on to our last screening: Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho (1960).

1960's Film Trends:
With the change in restrictions based on the rating system from the MPAA, content in films gets grittier, more violent, more sexual, and more...well...Hollywood. View a few clips of famous films and film categories developed in the 1960's.

1960's Epic/Costume Drama Films:
Spartacus (1960) Kirk Douglas, Laurence Olivier, Charleton Heston, Peter Ustinov
El Cid (1961) Charleton Heston
Cleopatra (1963) Elizabeth Taylor & Richard Burton
Becket (1964) Richard Burton & Peter O'Toole
The Sound of Music (1965) Julie Andrews & Christopher Plumber
Doctor Zhivago (1965)
The Lion in Winter (1968) Peter O'Toole & Katherine Hepburn

Angry Young Man Films:
Look Back in Anger (1959)
The Loneliness of the Longdistance Runner (1962)
The Caretaker (1963)
The Leather Boys (1963)
If (1968)
Easy Rider (1969)

Beatles' Films
A Hard Day's Night (1964)
Help! (1965)
The Magical Mystery Tour (1967)
Yellow Submarine (1968)

Famous/Influential Directors:
Stanley Kubrick: Lolita (1962), Dr. Strangelove (1964)
John Ford: The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)
George Pal: The Time Machine (1960), Jason & the Argonauts (1963), One Million Years BC (1966)
John Frankenheimer: The Young Savages (1961), The Manchurian Candidate (1962)
Arthur Penn: The Miracle Worker (1962), Bonny & Clyde (1967), Alice's Restaurant (1969)
Alfred Hitchcock: Psycho (1960), The Birds (1963), Marnie (1964), Torn Curtain (1966)
James Bond Films: Dr. No (1962), Goldfinger (1964)

African American Films:
Sidney Poitier: A Raisin in the Sun (1961), Lilies of the Field (1963), To Sir With Love (1967), Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967)

HOMEWORK: Please complete the graphic organizer on 1960's film trends and complete the articles on the MPAA and The American New Wave.

Samuel Z. Arkoff; William Castle; & More Rear Window

Samuel Z. Arkoff and American International Pictures. The material below will help you understand this period of history as we move into the strange 1950's. Please take notes of key ideas and information.

From IMDB.com:

"By the early 1950's, Samuel Z. Arkoff was a brash lawyer scratching out a living by representing his in-laws and the Hollywood fringe, which included many of now-infamous director/angora-clad transvestite Edward D. Wood Jr.'s social circle. Arkoff was physically imposing and capable of scaring anyone who opposed him. One of his clients was Alex Gordon, a screenwriter who had submitted an unsolicited script to Realart Pictures, an outfit that was profitably re-releasing 20-year old movies, often under new titles conjured up by it's owner, Jack Broder.

One such film, Man Made Monster (1941), had just been re-issued as The Atomic Monster, coincidentally the same title of Gordon's screenplay. Zarkoff paid Mr. Broder a $500 settlement. Broder's sales manager, James H. Nicholson was dumbfounded by Zarkoff's ability to extract a dime out of his tightfisted boss and proposed a partnership. American Releasing Corporation was founded in 1954 and their first release was a low-budget feature by 29-year old producer Roger Corman (see previous post). Made for less than $50,000, it netted $850,000 and Corman was brought into the fold as a silent partner.

By 1955 the company was renamed American International Pictures, or simply AIP within the industry. Initially focusing on westerns on the premise that locations came cheap, and although profitable, Arkoff was unhappy with the returns and solicited theater owners for advice on what types of films filled seats. By the mid-1950's, thanks to television, the audience numbers had dwindled considerably with the key demographic now teenagers and young adults, who craved horror movies and drive-ins. AIP jumped into the horror genre with both feet and made a fortune. Under Nicholson and Arkoff, the company survived in a constricting industry by catering to the whims of the teenage trade and adapting to trends.

AIP's long (350-plus) roster of kitsch classics, running the gamut from horror to rock'n'roll, from juvenile delinquency to Italian musclemen, and from Edgar Allan Poe to Annette Funicello, have formed their own unique niche in film history. His company became infamous for clever advertising schemes that were often more entertaining than AIP's movies.  Arkoff never tolerated egos and his films were more often than not, profitable, thanks to tight budgets and a sharp understanding of the target market. After Nicholson's 1972 resignation, Arkoff assumed full control of the company and remained in charge until the 1979 merger with Filmways prompted his own departure. He then became the head of Arkoff International Pictures."

• I was a Teenage Werewolf (1957)
• Attack of the Puppet People (1958)
• Teenage Caveman (1958)
• War of the Colossal Beast (1958)
• High School Hellcats (1958)
• Two of my personal favorite Vincent Price films (which never really were horrifying, but fun, nonetheless): The Abominable Dr. Phibes (1971) and the Abominable Dr. Phibes Rises Again. 
• Them (1954)

William Castle: The Wonderful World of William Castle

Competing with a growing television audience, filmmakers in the 1950's had to entice viewers into seeing their films. Trailers were the ticket! The worse the film, the greater need for an effective trailer. Of the best promoters of his directing and producing work, William Castle looms over all others.

"William Schloss was born in New York City. Schloss means "castle" in German, and William Castle probably chose to translate his surname into English to avoid the discrimination often encountered by Jewish entertainers of his time. He spent most of his teenage years working on Broadway in a number of jobs. He left for Hollywood at the age of 23, going on to direct his first film when he was 29. He also worked an as assistant to Orson Welles, doing much of the location work for Welles' noir film, The Lady from Shanghai."

Castle was famous for directing low budget B-films with many overly promoted gimmicks. Five of these were scripted by adventure novelist Robb White.

After a long career, William Castle died of a heart attack in Los Angeles in 1977.

His films include:

Macabre (1958): A certificate for a $1,000 life insurance policy from Lloyd's of London was given to each customer in case he/she should die of fright during the film. Showings also had fake nurses stationed in the lobbies and hearses parked outside the theater.

Utube clip: Macabre:

House on Haunted Hill (1959): Filmed in "Emergo". An inflatable glow in the dark skeleton attached to a wire floated over the audience during the final moments of some showings of the film to parallel the action on the screen when a skeleton arose from a vat of acid and pursued the villainous wife of Vincent Price. The gimmick did not always instill fright; sometimes the skeleton became a target for some audience members who hurled candy boxes, soda cups or any other objects at hand at the skeleton.

The Tingler (1959): Filmed in "Percepto". Some seats in theatres showing the Tingler were equipped with larger versions of the hand-held joy buzzers attached to the underside of the seats. When the Tingler in the film attacked the audience the buzzers were activated as a voice encouraged the real audience to "Scream - scream for your lives."

13 Ghosts (1960): Filmed in "Illusion-O". A hand held ghost viewer/remover with strips of red and blue cellophane was given out to use during certain segments of the film. By looking through either the red or blue cellophane the audience was able to either see or remove the ghosts if they were too frightening. 13 Ghosts.

Homicidal (1961): This film contained a "Fright break" with a 45 second timer overlaid over the film's climax as the heroine approached a house harboring a sadistic killer. A voiceover advised the audience of the time remaining in which they could leave the theatre and receive a full refund if they were too frightened to see the remainder of the film. About 1% demanded refunds, but were subjected to demasculation and called "cowards". Homicidal clip.

Mr. Sardonicus (1961): The audiences were allowed to vote in a "punishment poll" during the climax of the film - Castle appears on screen to explain to the audience their options. Each member of the audience was given a card with a glow in the dark thumb they could hold either up or down to decide if Mr. Sardonicus would be cured or die during the end of the film. Supposedly, no audience ever offered mercy so the alternate ending was never screened.

Zotz! (1962): Each patron was given a "Magic" (gold colored plastic) coin which looked nice, but did absolutely nothing.

Strait-Jacket (1964): Castle had cardboard axes made and handed out to patrons. This film, by the way, starred Oscar winner (not for this film) Joan Crawford - Mommy Dearest herself.

I Saw What You Did (1965): Seat belts were installed to keep patrons from being jolted from their chairs in fright.

Other film trailers from William Castle:

The Old Dark House (designed by Charles Addams: the illustrator/writer who created "The Addams Family")
The Night Walker
Let's Kill Uncle
Thirteen Frightened Girls

William Castle acted as producer to Roman Polanski's direction of: Rosemary's Baby The film remains one of the most artistic Castle productions ever made.

Rear Window; Television; Drive-In Movies: Welcome to the 50's!

• How does 40’s TV compare or contrast with our current television shows?
• Does television reflect what society looks like? 
• Compare TV then of TV now.

VintageTV Commercials

· Write down some things that were interesting to you from the video.

· What do you think of the commercials and what was most interesting to you?

 The History of Television (particularly important to those of you planning on studying communications, media journalism, and/or broadcasting) is quite interesting. How much do you really know about that flat screen you have hanging on your wall? Read the article and link.

Drive-In Theatres: A little history.

Richard Hollingshead, a young sales manager at his dad's Whiz Auto Products, invented something that combined his two interests: cars and movies.

Richard Hollingshead's vision was an open-air movie theater where moviegoers could watch from their own cars. He experimented in his own driveway in New Jersey. Hollingshead mounted a 1928 Kodak projector on the hood of his car, projected onto a screen he had nailed to trees in his backyard, and used a radio placed behind the screen for sound. Clever!

The inventor subjected his beta drive-in to vigorous testing: for sound quality, for different weather conditions (Hollingshead used a lawn sprinkler to imitate rain) and for figuring out how to park the patrons' cars. He lined up the cars in his driveway, which created a problem with line of sight. By spacing cars at various distances and placing blocks and ramps under the front wheels of cars, Richard Hollingshead created the perfect parking arrangement for the drive-in movie theater experience.

The first patent for the Drive-In Theater (United States Patent# 1,909,537) was issued on May 16, 1933. With an investment of $30,000, Richard opened the first drive-in on June 6, 1933 at a location in Camden, New Jersey. The price of admission was 25 cents for the car and 25 cents per person.

The design did not include the in-car speaker system we know today. The inventor contacted a company by the name of RCA Victor to provide the sound system, called "Directional Sound." Three main speakers were mounted next to the screen that provided sound. The sound quality was not good for cars in the rear of the theater or for the surrounding neighbors.

The largest drive-in theater in patron capacity was the All-Weather Drive-In of Copiague, New York. All-Weather had parking space for 2,500 cars, an indoor 1,200 seat viewing area, kid's playground, a full service restaurant and a shuttle train that took customers from their cars and around the 28-acre theater lot.

Please take a look at these clips. Drive in down memory lane...

Clip A.
Clip B.

Science Fiction (or sci-fi)

The Cold War and the fear of nuclear annihilation by the communists is reflected in the many b-films made in the 1950's. Here's a sampling. Enjoy!

Forbidden Planet (1956) (starring Leslie Neilson, this is based on Shakespeare's The Tempest)
The Blob (1958) (starring Steve McQueen)
Invasion of the Saucer Men (1957)
Plan 9 From Outer Space (1959) Ed Wood’s terrible film masterpiece!
Attack of the 50 Foot Woman (1958)
Attack of the Giant Gila Monster (1959)
Attack of the Giant Leeches (1959)  


Ed Wood (Jr.) (10 October 1924 – 10 December 1978) was an American screenwriter, director, producer, actor, author, and editor, who often performed many of these functions simultaneously. In the 1950s, Wood made a run of cheap and poorly produced genre films, now humorously celebrated for their technical errors, unsophisticated special effects, large amounts of ill-fitting stock footage, idiosyncratic dialogue, eccentric casts and outlandish plot elements, although his flair for showmanship gave his projects at least a modicum of critical success.

Wood's popularity waned soon after his biggest 'name' star, Béla Lugosi, died. He was able to salvage a saleable feature from Lugosi's last moments on film, but his career declined thereafter. Toward the end of his life, Wood made pornographic movies and wrote pulp crime, horror, and sex novels. His posthumous fame began two years after his death, when he was awarded a Golden Turkey Award as Worst Director of All Time. The lack of conventional film making ability in his work has earned Wood and his films a considerable cult following.

• Glen or Glenda (1953)
• Jail Bait (1954)
• Bride of the Monster(1955)
• Plan Nine from Outer Space (1956) Written and shot in 5 days! (and it shows!)

Roger William Corman (born April 5, 1926), sometimes nicknamed "King of the Bs" for his output of B-movies, is a prolific American producer and director of low-budget movies, some of which have an established critical reputation: many of his films derived from the tales of Edgar Allan Poe.

Corman has apprenticed many now-famous directors, stressing the importance of budgeting and resourcefulness; Corman once joked he could make a film about the fall of the Roman Empire with two extras and a sagebush.

It Conquered the World (1956)

We will begin screening one of Hitchcock's masterpieces, Rear Window (1954) starring James Stewart and Grace Kelly.

From IMDB: Cast

	James Stewart	...	L.B. 'Jeff' Jefferies
	Grace Kelly	...	Lisa Carol Fremont
	Wendell Corey	...	Det. Lt. Thomas J. Doyle
	Thelma Ritter	...	Stella
	Raymond Burr	...	Lars Thorwald
	Judith Evelyn	...	Miss Lonelyhearts
	Ross Bagdasarian	...	Songwriter
	Georgine Darcy	...	Miss Torso
	Sara Berner	...	Woman on Fire Escape
	Frank Cady	...	Man on Fire Escape
	Jesslyn Fax	...	Miss Hearing Aid
	Rand Harper	...	Newlywed
	Irene Winston	...	Mrs. Emma Thorwald
	Havis Davenport	...	Newlywed

HOMEWORK: Please read about Samuel Z. Arkoff & the Blueprint for Success. If you did not read about the emergence of television, please do so! Your test is coming up, next week June 12.