Archive for February 9, 2009

For Mets Fans Only: Joni, Too

February 9, 2009 / / 2 comments

Two more aerial photos of Shea Stadium from Chopper 880, taken by Tom Kaminski. Why is this so fascinating to me? I feel like a crow circling a cadaver. Don’t get me wrong: I’m happy about the new stadium. Shea was a dump. But it was always, always there. And now it’s gone. Disorienting.

Hat tip to Steve Keane of the Eddie Kranepool Society for the lyrical suggestion, Joni Mitchell’s “Big Yellow Taxi.”

If you are ever looking for something a little oddball (and who isn’t?), you should track down Bob Dylan’s cover of this tune. The story behind that: When Dylan decided not to  renew his Columbia contract, in 1973, the label released a bunch of poor outtakes for the album, “Dylan.” “Big Yellow Taxi” is on that appropriately maligned disk.

They paved paradise
And put up a parking lot
With a pink hotel, a boutique
And a swinging hot spot
Don’t it always seem to go
That you don’t know what you’ve got
Till its gone
They paved paradise
And put up a parking lot

Here’s a newer version, the Counting Crows with Vanessa Carlton, featuring some nice shots of Coney Island and NYC. Though I think the Vanessa Carlton walking-around-aimlessly-with-scarf shots are beyond lame.

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Category: Music, New York Mets / Tags: , , , , , , , ,

The Mom Song

February 6, 2009 / / No comments

This song, written by Anita Renfroe, has pretty much gone viral, so maybe you already know it. I like how the momentum builds. Just when you start to think, “Okay, I get it, that’s fine,” it gets funnier and keeps you hooked.

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For more backstory and an interview with Anita, you might enjoy this Early Show feature.

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Category: Fun Clips / Tags: , , ,

Fan Mail Wednesday #29 (Thursday Edition)

February 5, 2009 / / No comments

BOO-YA, HUZZA-HUZZA-HUZZA! It’s Fan Mail Wednesday, a day late for sure, but still unstoppable, perpetual, interminable . . .

Dear Mr. Preller,

My name is Meredith and I am in second grade.  I am writing to you to let you know just how much I enjoy reading your books.

I like reading your books because I enjoy mysteries, and these are great mysteries for me to read.  I have read 23 of your books since December 13, that was the day that I took The Case of Hermie the Missing Hamster out of my school library.  Out of all of the books I have read so far, my favorite has been The Case of the Golden Key.  This is my favorite because the setting was very interesting to me, and it was fun to figure out everything in the house.

Thank you for writing such fun books to read.  I will keep reading them as long as you keep writing them.

An Avid Reader,
Meredith
Age 7

PS. This is my Daddy’s email.  I told him what to write,  and he typed this message for me.

Here’s my reply:

Dear Meredith.

Thanks for your lovely letter. As you may know, I have a daughter, Maggie, who is also in the second grade. However, I don’t think she’s read 23 of my books! (Note to Self: Punish Maggie.) Lately she’s been devouring Patricia Reilly Giff’s fabulous “Polk Street” books; if you don’t know them, I recommend you check them out (after, it goes without saying, you read EVERYTHING I’VE EVER WRITTEN).

Wow, twenty-three books. That’s amazing, especially since you started on December 13th. Do you do anything else besides reading? I mean, like, do you eat . . . sleep . . . take baths? I’m a little worried about you.

Like you, I am especially fond of The Case of the Golden Key. I think it’s one of the better books in the series. That’s the first time I introduced the character, Reginald Pinkerton Armitage III, the richest kid in town. I’ve put  Reginald in several more books since, because I like writing about him so much; he’s featured in The Case of the Double-Trouble Detectives. (I love the cover that R.W. Alley did for this one.)

Thanks for your letter — and thank you, Dad, for all the typing!

An Avid Reader Too,
James Preller
Age 48

P.S. Meridith, I wish your dad was my dad. I had to type this whole thing myself. So unfair! Rats and snails!

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Category: Fan Mail, Jigsaw Jones / Tags: , , , , ,

Jigsaw Jones Cover: Part 6, Final Art

February 2, 2009 / / No comments

I’m thrilled with the final piece of art that R.W. Alley just sent to me. Actually, it’s two scans of the same art — separated by four hours worth of work. An amazing glimpse behind the scenes, don’t you think? Thank you, Bob.

To recap:

In October, for Part One, I talked about the “cover concept” with Scholastic editor Matt Ringler. For Parts Two and Three, we learned about cover illustrator R.W. Alley’s creative process, concluding with an interview with R.W. himself. The rough sketches arrived for Part Four, with a variety of different ideas explored. In late December, Part Five, I chatted with art director Jennifer Rinaldi about her role in the process. And here we are in early February, almost four months after this whole shooting match began.

Bob Alley included a note with the scans:

1. A scan of the finished drawing before it was finished.  I’ve included the extra area around the drawing that the printer needs so the art can run off the trimmed edges of the book.

2. A scan of the finished drawing cropped to the final size.

Please note that they are the same drawing.  I think readers would be interested that these two scans show the same piece of paper, only in different points in time.  Like about 4 hours apart.

Same piece of art, four hours later . . .

It might be helpful to see them smaller, side by side. Let’s see if I can figure out how to do this:

Here’s the rough sketch that Bob handed in back in November (remember, you can click on it to make it larger).

.

If you remember, Jennifer decided to flip it for dastardly art director type reasons. At the time, Jen hadn’t settled on the colors. I guess that will be our last step.

———

NOTE: Here’s a link to the final post in this seven-part series: Seven. Read them all and experience the awe and wonder of the creative, collaborative process!

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Category: Jigsaw Jones, the writing process / Tags: , , , , , , , ,
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