Larger Than Life: The Bette Davis Story

This is my entry for the Bette Davis Contest at Film Classics. After entering a couple of months ago, I think many of you are pretty well aware of how the contest works, but I will be posting more details anyway later on. This time I won't ramble forever and just get on with the show. Enjoy?! :)

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"I have been uncompromising, peppery, intractable, monomaniacal, tactless, volatile, and ofttimes disagreeable... I suppose I'm larger than life."

- Bette Davis

MY INTEREST IN BETTE DAVIS did not begin that long ago. It began with a character named Baby Jane; my father watched the film "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?" in the spring of this year, and upon learning what it was about, I was excited more than ever to give it a watch (yes, all its morbidity in tow). By June, school was out and summer had begun and "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?" was right at my fingertips, ready for me to watch.

Before this, I had only seen a couple of Bette films. I knew what a legend she was (who doesn't?), but for some reason it just hadn't happened all that much. That night I sat down to watch that movie, and experienced my first true Bette Davis performance.

It was Baby Jane who did it first. She was crafted in my mind as the hyperbola of the character that is so creepy, she is somewhat hilarious. The makeup caked on her face, the curls in her hair and that little turn of the lips that turned into a smile, a smile smeared with lipstick across her "wrinkles" as she'd asked a begrudging victim, "Do you know who I am? I am Baby Jane Hudson."  

"Who the hell is Baby Jane Hudson?"

She'd written a letter to daddy, made life a living Hell for Joan Crawford (or the tormented sister, Blanche) and had disappeared into the kingdom of "has-beens" after being a bratty child star on the vaudeville circuit. Still upholding her dreams for stardom based on her father's memory, the answer to the title of the movie truly is: "She takes care of her sister Blanche now." But not for long.

In the role that made me a Bette fan

I loved Bette Davis in this film so much. I wanted to rewind and watch that scene again or this scene. I was shocked at the emotions she pulled raw from me as Baby Jane - one moment hating her for tormenting Blanche, the next wanting to weep for her because you could see that at her core she was just a troubled person who really, really wanted to sing and dance for the world. Chew scenery, maybe, but I enjoyed watching Bette chew the scenery.

Of course, as perfect as she may have been as Baby Jane, there isn't much that the actress and the character had in common. Bette herself may have argued that the two of them were both driven in several deep faults (as she has claimed in her "larger than life" quote) - but truthfully, have you ever heard someone say "Whatever happened to Bette Davis?" 

Playing Baby Jane proves something so true about Bette Davis - a quality that every good actress must exude and not be afraid of: to drop the glamour and tear yourself down to a character that might not always appear as beautiful (Baby Jane certainly wasn't) or appealing.

Bette Davis was never afraid of this. In fact, for her role as Baby Jane she was said to have come up with the Baby Jane mask herself: to put layer upon layer of makeup on until she appeared, quite simply put, as a disastrous hag.

This is not to say that Bette herself was not beautiful. Though she is probably not considered the "traditional beauty" (and for that matter, neither was a famous beauty like Audrey Hepburn - who had, as the critics would describe, "colt like" features), she was, in her own way, quite gorgeous.

It just wasn't the glamour or the beauty, it was the confidence and resilience she could withhold in her characters. Take Charlotte Vale in another favorite Bette film of mine, "Now, Voyager." In the beginning of the film, Bette's Charlotte Vale is unattractive, beige, nervous, and owns a severe pair of caterpillar eyebrows. But with some plucking, lipstick, and a better wardrobe, she turns into the new Charlotte Vale: glamorous, sophisticated, beautiful. The beauty is a combination of Bette's own particular prettiness and a shining confidence.

Bette Davis commanded the screen. Sometimes she chewed the scenery to get there, but most of the time it was just one look at her face. Her face held many facets, expressions. It was almost as if you could turn a dial and get an expression, like that of a comedienne (yes, I'll draw a comparison to Lucy here). In "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?" it was the tilt of the head and a nearly innocent smile. "But don't you know who I am? I am Baby Jane!" In "Now, Voyager" it was a smile of confidence, kindness. In "Essex and Elizabeth", a domineering, smug look that demanded the screen to herself.

Every character she played would become immortalized into film history on its own. Margo Channing, Charlotte Vale, Baby Jane: just to name a few. True, these characters were, well, quite characters themselves ("Fasten your seatbelts: It's going to be a bumpy night!" - extra emphasis on the bumpy!), but Bette made them come alive. She took these characters who were just leaping off the script with excitement and made them leap off the screen and into our theaters and living rooms.

Bette Davis off screen was a personality that no movie screen, however big, could actually project. (She was, after all, larger than life, which most certainly makes her larger than a movie screen). 

There were so many things that made her memorable to movie audiences, simply in addition to this aura of Bette that defined her as a movie star. 

The fact remains that the personality Bette made so famous was truly her. It was anything but a put on and if one would like to trace Bette's life back to her bassinet, you'd discover she had forever exhibited her superstar personality.

She was born Ruth Elizabeth Davis in Lowell, Massachusetts on April 5th, 1908. Called Betty, she was a headstrong spirit from the start. A sister named Bobby was born the following year and started to occupy the crib that was once Bette's - according to Ed Sikov's Dark Victory, the young Miss Davis was not pleased by this and decided to reclaim the crib she thought was hers. Plucking her baby sister from the crib and depositing her on the couch, Bette crawled into the crib.

When she was in her teens she played Santa Claus in a school Christmas pageant. The tree on stage had real lit candles, and Bette in her Santa Claus costume wandered too close. Her beard caught on fire and she was wrapped up in a rug to calm the fires. Her face was burnt and she kept her eyes closed (the eyes that would be come so famous later) in fear that she had been blinded.

When she first arrived in Hollywood, she would tell Dick Cavett years later, the studio didn't exactly know what to do with her so one of her first jobs was to be a "kiss mat" for males trying to make it into the business.

I won't add a picture of Joan, because for
some reason I don't think Bette'd be crazy about it!

But Bette would always hold her own, and that was what would make her the very posterchild for the 1940's movie star. If anything, Bette's performances would come across with a lot of overacting or chewed scenery, but she was always sure to put effort into her performances and entertain the viewers. You could never call Bette Davis faded, dull, one dimensional or flat - and for this, she gained a reputation in Hollywood. A force to be reckoned with.

There was her mutual hatred for another one of Hollywood's biggest stars, Joan Crawford. It began when Joan Crawford "stole" Bette's off screen romance interest, Franchot Tone, and ever since things would not get better. Once Bette remarked, with great gusto, "She [Joan Crawford] has slept with every male star at MGM but Lassie!" Their hatred for one another became public and well known, and on the set of "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?" the reporters would not leave them alone. However, for the sake of the film the two remained professional - "We're getting along fine!" - and the hatred would come in handy for the film. Though when they were all set to do a similar film called "Hush, Hush Sweet Charlotte" a few years later, Joan bailed out due to "illness," but mostly because the two stars could not get along. (See a closer analysis of these two films here).

Joan and Bette would both suffer through a case of betrayal from their adopted children, however. (Though Joan's would occur after her death, the impact of the book was great and even turned into a film starring Faye Dunaway). Anticipating her mother would die soon, her daughter, "B.D" wrote a harmful book about her mother entitled "My Mother's Keeper". Bette was not dead yet (as disgusting as that sounds) and the publishers insisted upon publishing the book, so B.D had to go ahead with the book. (I guess she didn't have the luck of Christina Crawford).

"My Mother's Keeper" - and we Bette fans would like to think of it all as lies - painted an unappealing picture of Bette: as spoiled, egotistical, an alcoholic. Bette was just recovering from her stroke at the time of the book's publication, and many (celebrities) came to her defense. Bette had spoiled her daughter, had always been kind to her and loving. Bette disinherited B.D - a strong step, perhaps, but Bette was a strong person.

Bette would always be strong, the pinnacle of a personality that was larger than life itself as we knew it. In reality, she was tiny: five feet, three inches. But on screen she always seemed to be ten feet tall. Not just because the characters she played were always large - take Margo Channing, for example, so confident at first but all those insecurities lying under the surface - though most of them were. Bette just commanded the screen: with her face, her voice, and her indeniable talent as an actress. She was much, much more than an icon.

"She's got Bette Davis eyes."

           
Part of her command was her eyes. Movie goers probably always recognized it, but they would become forever famous when revolutionized in the popular 1981 song "Bette Davis Eyes" by Kim Carnes. Bette was flattered and delighted: "You made me cool again!" Oh, Bette, like you ever weren't cool.

I think I'll leave you with some lyrics from that song:

"Her hair is Harlow gold,

Her lips a sweet surprise,

Her hands are never cold -

She's got Bette Davis eyes.

She'll take a tumble on you,

Roll you like you were dice until you come up blue,

She's got Bette Davis eyes."

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Thanks for reading!

Also: Breakfast at Tiffany's turns 50 years old today. I plan on doing a blog on it after the Carole Lombard blogathon tomorrow - I read the original short story written by Truman Copate for the 50th anniversary, and I think I may do a blog contrasting the story and movie! :) You can read some more about it here: Breakfast at Tiffany's Turns 50, The Washington Post. 

Little Ricky was the cutest TV kid ever.

Hello friends,

Firstly: HAPPY FALL! I wore tights under my uniform today instead of socks, and I was so happy because I usually don't make that transition until next month. And the leaves are turning red and I've already broken in my fall jacket. I'll stop here because I already blog way too much about the weather on this blog, don't I? But... SO HAPPY. :) (You know, like that scene in "Roman Holiday" when Audrey is all sleepy from the injection Dr. Bonaporte gave her, and she's mumbling to Gregory Peck that she's so happy?)

In anticipation of the 60th anniversary of "I Love Lucy," I'm going to be trying to sprinkle a series of posts about the show in the days leading up to the 15th. Yes, I will be blogging about other things as well.... so it won't exactly be like last August when I blogged solely for Lucy for about a week. But I do have posts planned. ;)

Also, I am thrilled to pieces because the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C is holding an "I Love Lucy" expo for the 60th anniversary! Though the expo will be running into January, I can hardly wait to see it and want to as soon as I can. :)

This week I will also be participating in the Caroletenniel(+3) blogathon at Carole and Co. and I should have my post for the Bette Davis contest at Film Classics up here tomorrow. (I'm such a procrastinator - holding out until the last moment, and all!)

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Today I'll be talking about an often neglected member of the "I Love Lucy" family:

Little Ricky!

I was surfing the IMdb "I Love Lucy" message boards a few weeks back, and I was surprised to find a whole thread condemning the "Little Ricky" character on the show. Though they brought a few valid points, I found the whole thing to be ridiculous. Nonsense about how Lucy was not a "good mother" (please, it wasn't the Dr. Spock Show!), how Mrs. Trumbell babysat him all the time, and how any of the episodes surrounding Little Ricky later into the series were "crap."

I would care to differ.

Let's be fair: Little Ricky was never exactly meant to be a part of the show. In reality, there would be no Little Ricky if Lucy (Ball) hadn't gotten pregnant. But I think Little Ricky added so much to the show (we'll get into how adorable he was in a little bit). For example, had there been no Little Ricky, we wouldn't have any of those precious pregnancy episodes.

It was because of Little Ricky the boundaries were broken about showing pregnant women on TV, if you want to look at it from a historical point of view. But back to what I was saying before: Little Ricky's birth provoked some of the most awesome, sweet moments in the whole show and some of my personal favorites. I know I've posted this clip before, but here we go again because it is one of my favorite moments on the show because I think it was the only time Lucy and Desi broke character. (The tears in this scene are unscripted and due to their real, raw emotions about being pregnant for the second time after suffering so many miscarriages).

And "Little Ricky" caused a lot of commotion. Already "I Love Lucy" had become America's favorite TV show, but I remember reading that people were taking bets on whether Little Ricky would be a boy or a girl and when Little Ricky was born it was announced on the radio in Japan. Random, but just goes to show you. Yeah, there were some people who nodded their disapproving heads at the "scandal" of showing a pregnancy on TV -- but they just added to the mayhem and excitement surrounding his birth.

And lest us not forget that "Lucy Goes to the Hospital" sparked some 70 percent of television viewers that night, when Ike Eisenhower's election only brought in 68% the next morning. Americans liked Ike - but they loved Lucy.

The first issue of TV Guide?

That is, of course, Desi., Jr and not an actor playing Little Ricky -- but this was all because of Little Ricky's television birth.

It is true that in often episodes Little Ricky was left with Mrs. Trumbell but you'd be a hypocrite to then argue that the episodes that did prominently featured Little Ricky were "stale".

"Little Ricky" was born in January 1953, but by the end of the series - 1957 - Little Ricky was getting to star in his own episodes and was shown to be a five or six year old boy (and then some). Television children can be as young or as old as you want them to for however long (though you'll get the message when enough is enough and your 17 year old actor can't fix into the sandbox!) and that became the case with Little Ricky as he sprouted a few years in age so episodes could be centered around him.

Why, Superman only got to appear on "I Love Lucy" because Little Ricky was having his fifth birthday party:

Another favorite episode of mine is a little earlier, when Little Ricky must get his tonsils out and Lucy sneaks into the hospital with his bear to be with him. So sweet!

Or what about when Little Ricky gets a drum and won't stop his noisy playing, which results in an all out war between the Ricardos and Mertzes?

Or "Little Ricky's School Pageant"? (Pictured below). 

But when it comes down to it: Little Ricky is never given much credit in the kingdom of TV children. He just wasn't given enough credit. He delivered some hilarious lines on the show- and he pulled them off just right, despite being a little kid. In the episode in which Lucy and Ricky are arguing over whether Little Ricky should be a drummer or a doctor, Little Ricky in a little doctor's outfit approaches Ricky and says, "Are you sick Daddy? Come to my office tomorrow!" He had some even cleverer lines but to me everything he just said seemed adorable without being sickeningly sweet like other TV kids.

That's another thing. Other shows put way too much emphasis on TV children just for the sake on getting viewers based on the cuteness factor. "I Love Lucy" did not do that, all while properly utilizing him.

Also: when it comes down to it. Little Ricky was just cute. He was tiny and adorable.

"Mommy, this will make a perfect bowl for my turtles!"

Carrying his dog, Fred, over the threshold. 

When Fred MERTZ objected to the dog back in the NY apartment, Little Ricky saves the day by saying:

"I named my dog Fred because I always name my pets after people I like!"

And, of course, some of my favorite moments in the show was when he played the drums.

Baby Babalu!

So next time you catch an episode of "I Love Lucy," be sure and appreciate a little Little Ricky in it. He, after all, (in my words): the cutest TV kid ever!

Anyone else have a favorite Little Ricky moment?

***

I'd like to leave you today with some Ingrid Bergman. A really short clip (about a minute, I think) from the 1958 movie "Indiscreet" which she did with Cary Grant. If you didn't already think Ingrid was awesome, well, then...

Till later!

Sunday Movie Review: "Born Yesterday" (1950)

Bonjour!

I made some minor tweaks to my blog. I pulled the search bar just beneath the tab bars and I turned the blogathon banners into a moving sidebar - I'm not sure how I feel about the latter, though. I did it to make my sidebar less crowded and give it a neater feel, but the pictures are really tiny and you have to squint to see which blog is hosting what blogathon, and on which dates, and etc. Input on this, dear readers is encouraged. :]

It is finally October! It's nice and cold here ♥ in fact, yesterday it dropped into the forties and I spent the day in a leg warmers and a sweater. (You summer lovers must be shaking your head in disdain and wonder. Yeah, my mother can't figure out my affection for the cold weather, either.)

My goodness, I ♥ October. Halloween is one of my favorite holidays - it used to be my favorite when I was a little kid, the excitement of trick or treating and dressing up. I've decided my favorite holiday must be Christmas now, because I just adore that time of the year and I don't think you can really grow out of loving Christmas like you can grow out of trick or treating. But ANYWAY, I still really love Halloween and dressing up. And the spookiness. Yess, the more I will start talking about Halloween the more my heart will swell with love and affection for the holiday :]


So since it's October, I think I'm going to try and do some horror movie talk on Frankly, My Dear. I think horror movies are fun but believe it or not, I haven't seen that many. I truthfully don't know why. But now it's just the time of the year to do so, so keep a look out for those sort of films in the following Sundays of October.


Besides that, Frankly, My Dear will turn three months old on the sixteenth of this month! This is exciting and important because then we'll be eligible to join the LAMB (or Large Association of Movie Blogs). Of course, I can imagine it will be quite a while - perhaps a few months or so until we are officially accepted. Still. I was all revved up to join the CMBA (Classic Movie Blog Association), and then I discovered they aren't taking new members for the remainder of the year and I'll have to wait until 2012. :( You see, I'm not a very patient girl.


Anyway, October promises to be an exciting month here (the 60th annviersary of I Love Lucy is coming up, as well... *squeal*!), and I'm keeping my fingers crossed for new followers. Because you followers are lovely people and if I could I think I'd personally thank each of you. Yes. I would. :)


With all this talk of holidays, it's perfectly appropriate that I have a Judy Holliday movie to  review for you today.

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Boorish business tycoon Harry Brock (Broderick Crawford) fears that ditsy fiancée Billie Dawn (Judy Holliday) will prove an embarrassment in the presence of politicos he wants to influence, so he hires a reporter (William Holden) to tutor the ostensibly brainless blonde in the political and social graces. Brock gets more than he bargained for, however, when the journalist transforms Billie into the backroom dealmaker's most formidable foe. [summary from Netflix]

The cast has:

• Judy Holliday as Billie Dawn
• William Holden as Paul Verrall
• Broderick Crawford as Harry Brock.

And, it is directed by the always fabulous George Cukor. (Really. I was always annoyed that Selznick fired him off "Gone With the Wind" -- I mean, I'm not going to criticize Victor Fleming because my dear Ingrid Bergman liked him a WHOLE lot, but Cukor is awesome).

I am going to tell you straight off, I really loved this movie.

It's kind of like a screwball take on "Pygmalion" (like "My Fair Lady" was the musical, British twist on that). Actually, calling this "screwball" may be out of context. When I say "screwball", I usually think of something based on a misunderstanding with a series of pratfalls and physical comedy following it; there wasn't much of that in "Born Yesterday". 

But anyway, I don't care what you call it, just adored this movie. Let's talk Judy Holliday.

This is probably her best known film as it is the one that won her the Oscar. The only other movie I have seen her in is "Adam's Rib", and that was a while ago. So believe it or not, when she opened her mouth and that Lina Lamount voice came out, I was surprised and actually leaned over to ask my father if that was Judy's real voice. Yeah, I'm pretty stupid.

But anyway, her voice was just perfect for this character. And everything she did with the character was lovely and sharp and witty - her comedic timing was perfect. And this is coming from a person who uses Lucy as her standard of perfect comedy, and Judy really was at the Lucy standard here.

Because you see, she plays the character to perfection. She demonstrates quite exactly all the emotions we should feel for her character. I mean, I really loved her character. She was just funny and you wanted everything to land up okay for her in the end and she really was the perfect "dumb blonde" who was "born yesterday", except she wasn't annoying. Lina Lamount esque. (Except Lina came afterwards. So...)

Judy carries the whole movie. William Holden and Broderick Crawford are good, too, but it is her movie. She totally deserves the Oscar. Take this scene, for example, in which she is playing cards with Broderick Crawford. Not a word she says, albeit my father and I were laughing throughout the whole scene. 

She has really good chemistry with William Holden was well. You just want them to get together the whole movie through.

That brings me to Bill Holden. Like I said before, he is good, handsome, and helps Judy carry the movie. He doesn't exactly steal scenes or anything, but for his character and this particular movie that's okay.

Broderick Crawford is really good as Judy's boisterous boyfriend as well. I hated his character, but that was exactly what the role called for. Once again, he doesn't carry the movie off or anything but that is entirely appropriate because you want this to be Judy's movie completely.

In all fairness, it did start off kind of slow but it gets so much better. This review is entirely short, but there isn't much more that I can say, really, besides I loved it!

I'm going to give it a four and a half out of five stars. I encourage you to go and watch this movie right away, and you can do it this instant. It's right here on Youtube:

Just watch it. It's lovely, really.

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I'm leaving you with this photo I found of Joan Bennett, from the movie "Scarlet Street", I believe. I LOVE it. It's film noir and spooky-esque, which is perfect for Halloween. I wish I would have found it while researching for my Anatomy of a Film Noir article. 

Au revior!! ♥ 

(Yes, I am in a French mood. And I'm in the mood for hearts, too.)

Darling Deborah || Happy Birthday, Deborah Kerr!

This is my contribution to Waitin on A Sunny Day's Darling Deborah Blogathon in celebration of Deborah Kerr's 90th birthday. Be sure and go on over to check out all the wonderful posts!

She was born Deborah Jane Kerr-Trimmer in Helensburg, Scotland, UK ninety years ago, on this day. Her father was a former soldier who had been gassed in the Great War. Deborah as a child was said to have been quiet and shy, but acting was an outlet for her - as was the case with many actresses. Her aunt, a radio actress, got her some work as a teenager. She was discovered by a British producer and from then on, a brilliant career took off.

5 Things for Deborah

(or five items pertaining to the both of us!):

5. I remember when she died. This is rare, but I do. It was at the end of the national news and they played a clip of Deborah - the famous kissing scene from "From Here to Eternity." I was just getting into classic film but was yet to know who Deborah was; both of my parents recognized her.

4. I was excited when Lucy appeared on "What's My Line?" as a mystery guest the same day Deborah was on the panel. They did not get around for Deborah to guess, but Arelene [Francis] leaned over when she had just figured it out, and said, "Miss Kerr, do you know who this is?" To which the fellow redhead said, "It must be Lucy!"

3. I get annoyed when someone says Deborah Kurrh instead of Deborah Car, like it should really be pronounced.

2.  My favorite Deborah movie is "An Affair to Remember."

1. I bonded with one of my teachers over the latter film -- it is is her favorite, and that launched a conversation about classic film that got our minds off math. For a little while, anyway.

I liked "The Grass is Greener", with Deborah and Cary (as well as Jean Simmons and Robert Mitchum) too - but not as much. I just found it impossible that someone would cheat on Cary Grant. And since they were so wonderful and romantic in "An Affair to Remember", I wanted them to be that way again! ("Dream Wife" was fun, too).

So stylish!

"The English Rose"

The Deborah films I most want to see are "The Night of the Iguana" (Ava Gardner, and Deborah - will make up for Richard Burton's presence in the film) and "Black Narcissus."

Here is Deborah's own appearance on "What's My Line?". I think she's quite adorable in this, don't you?

Thank you, Sophie, for hosting this! Blogathons are always fun. I wish I could have written something more original for Deborah and I know she's deserving of something better - but I hope it will do. 

Be sure and go over to Sophie's blog to see the other participating posters. Happy 90th birthday, Deborah! 

Photo of the Day || Greer Garson

Happy Birthday, Greer!

Not a very original photo, but I thought she looked chic and lovely in this.

Today is Greer Garson's birthday. Not knowing enough about her to write a full birthday post (and, like I said, I thought I did too much of that this month, in addition to the Deborah Kerr birthday blog I'll be writing for a blogathon), I wanted to talk about her a little anyway. ;) Greer would be a 107. You want to hear something shameful? I haven't even seen a Greer film in completion! Yes... not even "Mrs. Miniver." (I know, I hang my head in shame). Well, actually, I came quite close - a couple of months ago "Mrs. Miniver" was on On Demand (a service to watch movies on instantly) for free, and I jumped right into but wasn't more than twenty minutes in when I had to stop it. Of course, it's in my Netflix queue and I'll be watching it quite soon. And then last week on Walter Pidgeon's birthday (how ironic that their birthdays are about  a week apart!) they were showing a Greer/Walter film on TCM called "Scandal at Scurrie." I watched it from someplace in the middle and onwards to the end, and I loved Greer in it and when I discovered her birthday was today, well, I had to write about her.

 So something I promise to do in the next weeks or so is to watch a Greer Garson movie (most importantly, or firstly, "Mrs. Miniver" and "Goodbye, Mr. Chips"). And then hey, I'll come and review it! Also, I shared one of my favorite Greer stories (that has to do with Lucy and Claudette Colbert, as well) in Claudette Colbert's birthday post earlier this month. You can read it here.

That's all for today. By the way, I'm thinking of doing what would be a ten part series called "I Just Want to Write About ---". It would be ten posts, and each individual post would focus solely on one of my top ten favorite actresses. I guess I would just write about what I like about her and what makes her a special actress, etc. - I'll try not to be repetitive... I just think it would be a nice tribute; also, the ten posts would be spread out over a period of time, not ten days in a row and there would be a variety of posts in between.

I also need to write my post for the Bette Davis Contest hosted at Film Classics - since Bette is in my top ten, perhaps I could enter my "I Just Want to Write About---" post about her into the contest! Perhaps. We'll see. ;)

That's it. Happy birthday, Greer, and I'll see everyone tomorrow at the Darling Deborah Blogathon (Waitin' On a Sunny Day)... =)