Historical Drama with The Boston Sisters

In this podcast episode we’re talking with Reinaldo Marcus Green who directed Paramount’s BOB MARLEY: ONE LOVE, starring Kingsley Ben-Adir as the Jamaican Reggae icon Bob Marley and Lashana Lynch as his wife, Rita Marley. BOB MARLEY: ONE LOVE premiered February 14 and debuted #1 at the box office. BOB MARLEY: ONE LOVE celebrates the life and music of Bob Marley who inspired generations through his message of love and unity. The film chronicles the reggae icon’s powerful story of overcoming adversity and the journey behind his revolutionary music. 

Reinaldo Marcus Green is a writer, director and producer. He is best known for directing the critically acclaimed Warner Bros. film KING RICHARD starring Will Smith. The film received six Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, and earned Will Smith his first Oscar win for Best Performance by an Actor in a Lead Role.

Reinaldo’s first feature, MONSTERS AND MEN premiered at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival and received a Special Jury Prize for Outstanding First Feature. Reinaldo’s other credits include: director and co-executive producer on the Netflix series, TOP BOY, executive produced by Drake and SpringHill Entertainment; director of (his sophomore) feature film JOE BELL, starring Mark Wahlberg, distributed by Amazon and Roadside Attractions; and director and co-producer for HBO’s limited series, WE OWN THIS CITY, written by George Pelecanos and David Simon.

It’s been 50 years since the release of the 1974 film adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, THE GREAT GATSBY. Highlighting the 50th anniversary of the 1974 version of THE GREAT GATSBY is another opportunity to talk with author and professor of English Emily Bernard about this 1920s novel adapted for film and the themes that continue to resonate with our own times. Our conversation with Emily about the film adaptation of Nella Larsen’s 1929 novel PASSING in episode 2 of the podcast, remains one of our most popular listens.

Directed by Jack Clayton, and featuring Robert Redford as Jay Gatsby, Mia Farrow as Daisy Buchanan, and Sam Waterston as Nick Carraway, the film is a window into the roaring 1920s or the "Jazz Age," as Fitzgerald is credited for coining the phrase. The story is also a mirror on American social constructs for wealth, class, and illusion, as well as the destructive power to recapture the past.

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Notes: "Negro" is used in its proper historical context in this conversation.

*Spoiler alert* for persons who've never seen any film or television adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald's book "The Great Gatsby," or read the book.

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In episode 48 of the podcast we talk about the film KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON with Dr. Moira RedCorn and her brother Yancey Red Corn, members of the Osage Nation. Yancey Red Corn appears in the Martin Scorsese film as Osage Chief Arthur Bonnicastle and Moira Red Corn was an extra in the film’s opening scene. 

Yancy and Moira’s father, the late Charles H. Red Corn authored the novel, “A Pipe for February,” published by the University of Oklahoma Press over 10 years before David Grann’s book “Killers of the Flower Moon.” Both books were optioned and adapted for KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON. Moira and Yancey talk about how they witnessed their father’s book come to life in the film.

KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON is nominated for 10 Academy Awards™ including Best Actress for Golden Globe winner Lily Gladstone, Best Costume Design (Jacqueline West), Best Editing (Thelma Schoonmaker), Best Original Song (Scott George), Best Director (Martin Scorsese), and Best Picture. 

Colman Domingo is nominated for an Academy Award™ for his portrayal of civil rights activist and strategist Bayard Rustin in the biopic RUSTIN. This film and Bayard Rustin's life are the inspiration for our conversation with Robert Raben around organizing for justice and freedom, and reclaiming the hidden history of the foot soldiers of the movement.

Robert Raben, who grew up in the South, is founder of the March on Washington Film Festival, and the Raben Group, a strategic communications firm based in Washington, DC.

Directed by George C. Wolfe, RUSTIN tells the story of activist and organizer Bayard Rustin, the architect of 1963’s momentous March on Washington. Bayard Rustin  challenged authority, never apologized for who he was, what he believed, or whom he desired. He clashed with his contemporaries and inner circle leaders of the civil rights movement, and energized youth to get involved in making change in America. 

LANGUAGE Content: The word "horseshit" occurs at approximately 50:41

We’re moving this month’s 4th Tues podcast to  a LIVE podcast Wed, January 24th 7 pm ET with our reactions and predictions for historical drama Oscar® nominees.

We include a list of eligible historical drama films (1:24 timestamp) from 2023 in this video. Did we miss anything?

In episode 46 we talk with ERIC WINTERLING, founder and creative director for Eric Winterling, Inc. about making costumes for two popular series set in New York City in widely different time periods. THE GILDED AGE (HBO) and THE MARVELOUS MRS. MAISEL (Amazon Studios) have dazzled historical drama watchers and series fans with their show-stopper fashions.  Eric’s New York City costume studio is where the period garments are constructed from designs by Kasia Walicka-Maimone for THE GILDED AGE; and Donna Zakowska, Emmy award winning designer for THE MARVELOUS MRS. MAISEL. Eric's dog, Bumpers also joins us for the first half of the conversation.
PLEASE NOTE: TRANSCRIPTS ARE GENERATED USING A COMBINATION OF SPEECH RECOGNITION SOFTWARE AND HUMAN TRANSCRIBERS, AND MAY CONTAIN ERRORS.

1:18 "That dress is going in the wrong direction"

1:41 Costuming 1880s and 1950s New York -- THE GILDED AGE and THE MARVELOUS MRS. MAISEL

3:08 Eric Winterling's costuming journey from gingham dog and Houston Grand Opera to Eric Winterling, Inc.

12:29 First Big Project: SHOGUN, The Musical and Broadway

15:23 Costuming Stage vs. Costuming Film -- "It really has to come down to the closures"

19:20 Clients: working with THE GILDED AGE and THE MARVELOUS MRS. MAISEL costume designers

27:05 Costume Construction Techniques and Fabrics

33:37 Podcast Generic Break

34:37 Corsets, "Under Structures" and Period Silhouettes

39:26 Sourcing and stocking the "right fabrics"

45:34 Showstopper Costumes: Enid Winterton's new social status and Midge Maisel's black dress in the Smithsonian

48:39 Midge Maisel's multiple costumes

52:14 Costume Design awards 

54:33 What happens to costumes after a show ends

58:29 Lightning Round

STAY ENGAGED with HISTORICAL DRAMA WITH THE BOSTON SISTERS

December 25, 2023 is the 50th anniversary of THE STING’s theatrical release. In episode 45, we talk about THE STING and real-life cons, big and small, with veteran casino operator GENO MUNARI. Geno brings behind-the-scenes connections to the film and stories from his work in the gambling and hospitality business, including 8 years at The Dunes Hotel and Country Club in Las Vegas. Geno Munari is author of The Dunes Hotel and Casino: The Mob, the Connections, the Stories; and Scams, Swindlers & Cheats: What Every Gambler & Casino Operator Should Know, where he reveals the secrets of the gambling underworld.

Winner of 7 Academy Awards including Best Picture, and Best Director for George Roy Hill, THE STING features Paul Newman and Robert Redford as two con men who team up to avenge the murder of a mutual friend by pulling off the ultimate big con to swindle a ruthless crime boss.

JULIA, based on the life of the "French Chef" television star and cookbook author Julia Child, is back for a 2nd season on Max. This is our 2nd JULIA podcast conversation with wine expert and culinary strategist JANET CAM. Janet Cam was the co-founder of Washington, DC's storied Le Pavillon restaurant, the first nouvelle cuisine restaurant of its kind in the U.S. In the podcast we talk about the challenges for Julia and her aspirational fans in obtaining the best ingredients to recreate classic French dishes, women in the culinary industry, and Julia and Janet's journeys and adventures through wine and food in the U.S. and abroad.

Episode 42 features THE GREAT “by request” by podcast subscriber MARSHA WEINER and a conversation with SAM DIXON, food stylist for THE GREAT’s 2nd and 3rd seasons for a behind-the-scenes look at food in the satirical comic series about the rise of Catherine the Great.

THE GREAT was created by Tony McNamara and features Elle Fanning as the idealistic future ruler of Russia, Catherine the Great; and Nicholas Hoult as her offensive yet charming foodie husband, Peter III.  THE GREAT ran for 3 seasons and is available on Hulu.

We welcome back Susanne Simpson, Executive Producer of the PBS drama series MASTERPIECE and MASTERPIECE MYSTERY! for a preview of new and continuing dramas with a special focus on WORLD ON FIRE, now in its second season on PBS MASTERPIECE.  

Created by Peter Bowker, WORLD ON FIRE is an adrenalized, emotionally gripping, and resonant World War II drama that follows the intertwining fates of ordinary people in multiple countries as they grapple with the effects of war on their everyday lives. Season 2 picks up in late 1940, taking viewers from the war-torn streets of Britain deep into Nazi Germany, the resistance within occupied France, and the brutal sands of the North African desert—where troops struggle to adapt to a very different kind of combat.

0:08 Historical Drama with The Boston Sisters

1:12 - WORLD ON FIRE Synopsis

5:02 - Susanne Simpson MASTERPIECE season 2023-2024 highlights

6:49 - NOLLY w/Helena Bonham Carter

8:56 - Telling the story of World War 2 through individual lives

15:09 - WORLD ON FIRE production, writer and scholar

18:51 - Producing a global multilingual series

22:58 - Strong and Interesting Women in WORLD ON FIRE

27:12 - Marga's Story and Nazi Germany's Lebensborn Program

35:35 - Watch and Stream WORLD ON FIRE

35:56 - Like, Share, Subscribe this podcast

37:30 - Disclaimer

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Episode 40 features a conversation with ROBERT HOFLER, author of "The Way They Were: How Epic Battles and Bruised Egos Brought a Classic Hollywood Love Story to the Screen" (Citadel Press, 2023) about the behind-the-scenes stories about the inspiration and making of the iconic 1973 film THE WAY WE WERE (Columbia Pictures) directed by Sydney Pollack featuring Barbra Streisand and Robert Redford, and based on the novel by Arthur Laurents.

Our conversation with Robert Hofler coincides with the 50th anniversary of the film’s release, and focuses on its relevance today.

Podcast notes: (1) There are SPOILERS in this conversation - a warning for persons who’ve never seen THE WAY WE WERE. (2) Robert Hofler quotes Barbra Streisand who used the Yiddish word, “schtuped” (twice approx. 1:02:06) — a word some consider vulgar — to describe a love scene in the film. (3) After our recording, we learned that the deleted scenes from THE WAY WE WERE mentioned in this podcast will be available in a special 4K Blu-Ray 50th Anniversary package from Sony Pictures Entertainment.

TIMESTAMPS

0:08 Historical Drama with The Boston Sisters

1:21 “The Way They Were” Book Synopsis

2:27 “The Way We Were” film's impact

4:37 Intro to Robert Hofler, author

5:34 “The Way We Were,” a controversial film

9:45 Arthur Laurents, “The Way We Were” creator

23:32 Impact of “The Way We Were” on Romance Genre

35:24 Break

36:02 Challenges and Changes Making “The Way We Were”

43:34 Window to Hollywood Blacklists/Mirror of 1970s

48:12 Film and Politics

59:36 “The Way We Were” Relevance Today

1:09:06 Time Travel

1:11:05 Watching “The Way We Were”

1:11:42 Where to purchase “The Way They Were” book

1:12:59 Disclaimer

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In episode 39, we talk with Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and journalist Kai Bird about the Christopher Nolan film OPPENHEIMER, based on the 2005 biography "American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer" co-authored by Kai Bird and the late Martin J. Sherwin. The conversation focuses on the theoretical physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer's formation and struggles before, during and after the top-secret Manhattan Project. In 1943, Oppenheimer assembled the greatest scientific minds of the time in Los Alamos, New Mexico to create the first atomic bomb. The Manhattan Project achieved that goal with the successful detonation of the atomic bomb, known as the Trinity Test. That success would change the course of history and humanity for all time.

CONTENT NOTE (LANGUAGE): at 53:15, the speaker quotes from President Harry Truman's 1945 handwritten diary (discovered by historians in the 1970s) where Truman writes about a cable from the "Jap Emperor."

TIME STAMPS

0:08 Podcast Intro

1:18 Oppenheimer Film and American Prometheus Biography

4:38 Kia Bird Biography and Books

6:15 Kia Bird reacts to OPPENHEIMER

8:28 A film faithful to the book

12:16 OPPENHEIMER as boost to American Prometheus

14:04 Bird and Sherwin Writing American Prometheus: A Great Collaboration 

23:28 Synthesizing Quantum Physics OR Oppenheimer, "Not A Nerdy Scientist"

28:45 BREAK

29:22 Ethical Culture School: Philosophy and Science

32:53 Ethics of atomic bomb development for WW2

42:57 Decision to drop atomic bomb on Japan

50:20 Atomic bomb impacts on Los Alamos communities

52:36 Women, Science, and Oppenheimer

57:25 Oppenheimer as Mirror of the Present: Nuclear Weapons, McCarthyism, Arguing History

1:02:00 Lightning Round: Figuring Out My Own Time

1:05:16 Where to find OPPENHEIMER film and American Prometheus

1:06: 38 Subscribe, Share, Like Historical Drama w/The Boston Sisters

1:107:10 Disclaimer

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In Episode 39 we talk about the impact of fandom with JULIET CREESE and MONI SENGUPTA from the Sanditon Sisterhood Strategy Group. SANDITON was supposed to be gone for good when ITV in the U.K. canceled the series in its first season and before its U.S. premiere on PBS MASTERPIECE in 2020. But the Sanditon Sisterhood Strategy Group with the fandom were determined not to let this series, inspired by Jane Austen’s unfinished novel, come to a sad ending. The Sanditon Sisterhood #SaveSanditon campaign helped restore SANDITON for two additional seasons. The 3rd season brought the story to its conclusion. Did SANDITON fans get the Jane Austen-ending they were hoping for?

TIME STAMPS

34:25 Taking Fans Behind the Scenes of SANDITON

45:10 Learning Lessons/Making Friends

48:34 Breach Beach Sand Art Campaign

50:22 Series Endings (Spoiler Alert)

58:04 Working Class Stories in Austen

59:37 Sanditon Sisterhood Charities

1:01:36 Continuing Friendships

1:05:15 Sanditon Sisterhood Social Media

1:07:46 What Jane Austen Novel Would You Be a Character In?

1:11:34 Which 3 items would you put in a Time Capsule?

1:15:55 Watching SANDITON & Pocast Credits

1:16:27 Disclaimer

“If you could travel back in time, where would you go and why?” 

This is our 2nd TIME TRAVEL Bonus episode. We picked 5 guest responses to our time travel question from the 2nd season of the podcast. Go back in time with: 

• NAHIR OTAÑO GRACIA, Medievalist and scholar who joined us for a conversation about the Netflix series VIKINGS VALHALLA;

• PEARL MACKIE who appears in the PBS MASTERPIECE series’s reimagining of British author Henry Fielding’s 18th century comic novel, TOM JONES;

• JULIAN LEDFORD, a french literature and language professor who shared his thoughts on the film CHEVALIER and the real-life composer Joseph Bologne the Chevalier de Saint George;

• GAYLE WALD, English professor and biographer of Sister Rosetta Tharpe, one of the rock and roll trailblazers of the 20th century depicted in the biopic ELVIS;

• and JOHN VALADEZ, a Peabody Award-winning filmmaker whose 2007 documentary THE  HEAD OF JOAQUIN MURIETA just happens to be the same title and topic of the 2023 western drama series on Amazon Prime about the legendary Mexican outlaw Joaquin Murieta.

Time Stamps

0:08 Intro

0:49 Time Travel Lightning Round

2:34 Nahir Ortaño Gracia/Middle Ages, A Time of Possibility

6:50 Pearl Mackie/Civil Rights Movement, A Time of Power

9:20 Julien Ledford/18th Century Musicologist

11:24 Gayle Wald/To See the Blues Queens On Stage For Real

13:57 John Valadez/Going Into the Great Unknown

19:03 Audience/Tell Us Where You Would Time Travel

19:38 How to Contact

20:46 Disclaimer

In Episode 37, the Boston Sisters (Michon and Taquiena) wrap up their second podcast season with 5 great Book/Film recommendations for Summer reading and watch lists. Film and series adaptations premiere this fall through 2024, with a few titles available for streaming now!

• DAISY JONES & THE SIX (streaming on Amazon)

• PACHINKO (part 1 is streaming on Apple TV+, part 2 in 2024)

• KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON (coming to theaters in October)

• THE COLOR PURPLE movie musical (coming to theaters in December)

• A GENTLEMAN IN MOSCOW (in production, anticipated to stream in 2024)

Scroll to the end of this podcast description for the transcript link.

0:08 Intro to Historical Drama with The Boston Sisters

0:47 Page to Screen Podcast Synopsis

2:38 “Daisy Jones & the Six” by Taylor Jenkins Reid

13:11 “Pachinko” by Min Jin Lee

23:45 Page vs Screen

25:08 “Killers of the Flower” Moon by David Grann

31:40 “The Color Purple” musical adapted from novel by Alice Walker

39:33 Representation Controversies in “The Color Purple”

41:58 “A Gentleman in Moscow” by Amor Towles

Professor of French and French Studies (University of the South) JULIAN LEDFORD brings to life the historical Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-George who is dramatized in the film CHEVALIER by Kelvin Harrison Junior in the title role. CHEVALIER highlights Joseph Bologne’s improbable rise in French society as a celebrated violinist-composer, horseman, and fencer. Saint-George is bestowed the title of Chevalier by the French Royal Court and is a favorite of Marie Antoinette Ledford shines the light on the many accomplishments and provides the social and cultural context in which Chevalier de Saint-George was acclaimed, including his transcendence of France’s racial codes in the 18th century.

Julian Ledford, Assistant Professor of French and French Studies at the University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee. Professor Ledford specializes in early-modern French and Francophone literature with a particular focus on Joseph Bologne, the Chevalier de Saint-George, and 18th-century women writers' contributions to discussions on masculinities. 

Professor Ledford’s additional research interests include ethnic, racial, and sexual alterity in the early 18th century; French Baroque opera; and second language teaching and learning. Professor Ledford’s article  “Joseph Boulogne, the Chevalier de Saint-George and the Problem With Black Mozart” appeared in the Journal of Black Studies in 2019.  

In episode 35 we’re talking with actor PEARL MACKIE (THE DIPLOMAT, DOCTOR WHO) about the PBS MASTERPIECE mini series TOM JONES. Pearl Mackie plays Honour Newton, the worldly-wise trusted lady’s maid of Sophia Western (Sophie Wilde) in a 4-part reimagining of Henry Fielding’s comic novel, "The History of Tom Jones, A Foundling," published in 1749. We discuss the dynamics of Honour and Sophia’s relationship, the challenge of riding a horse while wearing a corset, and living as two Black women from different social standings in mid-18th century England.

In episode 34 Peabody award-winning documentary filmmaker JOHN VALADEZ joins us for a conversation about THE HEAD OF JOAQUÍN MURRIETA, the Amazon Prime Western action drama series that shares the same title as Valadez’s 2017 PBS documentary. In his film Valadez believes he has the actual head of Joaquín Murrieta, the legendary Mexican outlaw who blazed a trail of revenge across California until he was caught and decapitated in 1853. Valadez talks about the violent untold stories of the Gold Rush years after the U.S. Mexico war which serves as the backdrop for the 8-part drama featuring Juan Manuel Bernal as a mischievous Joaquín Murrieta. Viewer Note: The Amazon Prime 8-part series, THE HEAD OF JOAQUIN MURRIETA, is rated 18+ for violence, language, nudity. The series is in Spanish (original language) with subtitles (set for language). English track is available

In Part 2 of our SANDITON Wrap-Up!, we talk about Georgiana Lambe, the heiress from Antigua who, in season 3, must defend and secure her inheritance as well as her reputation. Joining us in this conversation is SHARON D. JOHNSON, depth psychologist and story consultant to SANDITON. 

Georgiana has been on a dedicated search for her mother, who was an enslaved African woman sold away by Georgiana’s father, a white wealthy sugar planter separating mother and daughter. The heiress’s search comes to an end in season 3, and Georgiana’s longings for her mother shed new light on where her true love resides. 

The Boston Sisters welcome back SHARON D. JOHNSON, script and story consultant for MASTERPIECE and SANDITON. In part 1 of a 2-part conversation, we focus on the themes of Marriage, Love, and Friendship between new and familiar characters over the past 3 seasons of the series based on Jane Austen’s unfinished novel written a few months before her death in 1817. SANDITON is the story of independent-minded women making their way in a world where a woman’s social and economic status centers on making a good match in marriage. The series is available on PBS MASTERPIECE.

In Episode 31 our conversation about VIKINGS VALHALLA continues with NAHIR OTAÑO GRACIA, a medieval scholar whose “Global North Atlantic” extends the Viking story from the North Sea to the Iberian Peninsula, Mediterranean, and the tip of North Africa. We talk about how the Vikings’s travels and encounters changed their culture and destinies as seen in VIKINGS: VALHALLA.

Ep. 30 gives you a “watchers guide” to Viking dramas available for streaming starting with VIKINGS: VALHALLA now in its second season on Netflix. Alex Chisnall, host of the popular business podcast Screw It Just Do It, is our guest and guide. We met Alex via the Clubhouse social media app where he gave podcasters like us the incentive, courage, and a road map to just do it and launch Historical Drama with The Boston Sisters. Alex, who is close to Viking history in the UK and shares our enthusiasm for history, got us curious about VIKINGS: VALHALLA, and other Viking-themed dramas (see below) currently available on streaming services.

Alex Chisnall started his audio career with BBC Radio in the 1990s before deciding to travel the world working for Virgin Atlantic Airlines. He founded his podcast agency, Podpreneur, after the success of his own podcast literally changed his life. Alex Chisnall's podcast Screw It Just Do It is a #1 rated business show downloaded in over 180+ countries from the UK to Uganda. (Recorded 2/20/23)

In Ep, 29 we talk about the Baz Luhrmann film ELVIS with GAYLE WALD, George Washington University professor of American Studies and author of Shout, Sister, Shout! The Untold Story of Rock-and-Roll Trailblazer Sister Rosetta Tharpe. Our conversation extends to Black musicians and music traditions that shaped Elvis Presley’s music and how that aspect of Elvis’s story is dramatized in this 2022 biopic.

Episode 28 features a conversation with CARLA L. PETERSON, author of the 2011 book “Black Gotham: A Family History of African Americans in Nineteenth-Century New York City.” Professor Peterson’s book served as a resource for the creation of the characters, story, and the Black community in HBO’s THE GILDED AGE.

Part detective tale, part social and cultural narrative, "Black Gotham" is Carla Peterson's riveting account of her quest to reconstruct the lives of her nineteenth-century ancestors. As she shares their stories and those of their friends, neighbors, and business associates, she illuminates the greater history of African-American elites in New York City. (Source: Yale University Press)

Carla L. Peterson is professor emerita in the Department of English at the University of Maryland, College Park, and a specialist in nineteenth-century African American literary and cultural studies. In addition to "Black Gotham: A Family History of African Americans in Nineteenth-Century New York City" (published in 2011) she has published numerous essays and a second book "Doers of the Word: African-American Women Speakers and Writers in the North, 1830-1880" (1995). Carla Peterson is currently at work on a new project, "Urbanity and Taste: The Making of African American Modernity in Antebellum New York and Philadelphia."

Recorded 1/13/23

Episode 27 features a conversation with BEN VANSTONE, showrunner and writer for ALL CREATURES GREAT AND SMALL, about the making of the series currently in its 3rd season on the PBS drama series MASTERPIECE.

ALL CREATURES GREAT & SMALL is the recent adaptation of the books written by veterinarian James Alfred Wight (who wrote under the pen name James Herriot) about a trio of veterinarian surgeons in the Yorkshire Dales in the late 1930s. The series features Nicholas Ralph as James Herriot, Samuel West as Siegfried Farnon, Anna Madeley as Mrs. Hall, Callum Woodhouse as Tristan Farnon, and Rachel Shenton as Helen Alderson.

In episode 25 The Boston Sisters feature Amma Asante’s feature film BELLE by listener request from JOANNE FORT, an attorney living in Atlanta, Georgia. Joanne shares why she wanted the podcast to feature BELLE. We invited London-based figurative painter GLORY SAMJOLLY, to talk about the film and the story behind the portrait of the real-life Dido Elizabeth Belle (with her cousin Elizabeth). As founder of the social media platform Black Aristocrat Art, Glory brings her insights on depictions of Black women and men of the aristocracy in historical European art.

BELLE is based on the true story of Dido Elizabeth Belle Lindsay (Gugu Mbatha-Raw), a mixed-race daughter of Admiral Sir John Lindsay (Matthew Goode) and an enslaved African woman who is raised by her aristocratic great-uncle Lord Mansfield (Tom Wilkinson) and his wife (Emily Watson) in 18th century England. Belle’s lineage affords her certain privileges, yet her status prevents her from receiving the benefits of noble social standing. Note: BELLE was released in the UK in 2013; in the U.S. in 2014.

TIMESTAMPS 

1:19 Intro to BELLE by Request

1:56 Belle Film Synopsis

3:11 Listener Joanne Fort - what makes Belle special

5:34 Glory Samjolly, Black Aristocrat Art

6:44 Glory's introduction to Dido Elizabeth Belle film and portrait

9:16 Black presence in European portraiture

13:40 Interpreting Belle's portrait

20:03 Joanne Fort's Turban Question for Glory Samjolly

21:32 Exoticizing the Black Image in European Portraiture

29:06 Break

30:00 Interpreting the Mysteries of Black Portraiture

37:15 Learning Black History in the UK

41:23 Glory's Dream: A Black Aristocrat Portrait Gallery

45:10 Special Commission: Painting A History Globe

49:15 Art to Change the Psychology of Black History

52:02 Lightning Round: Bourgeoisie fashion in 18th Century France, Headphones, Paint Brush, Turpentine

57:05 Where to Find Amma Asante's “Belle” (2014) Film

58:05 Historical Drama with The Boston Sisters Contact Info

Note: BELLE was released in the UK in 2013, and in the U.S. in 2014.

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STAY ENGAGED with HISTORICAL DRAMA WITH THE BOSTON SISTERS

The Boston Sisters talk with REV. DR. TERASA COOLEY, author of "Transforming Conflict," about leadership portrayals of Queen Elizabeth II, Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, and Princess Diana in the NETFLIX drama series THE CROWN now in its 5th season.THE CROWN is a fictional drama inspired by real events during the reign of Queen Elizabeth II (1926 - 2022) in the last half of the 20th century. The series is created by Peter Morgan based on his play, "The Audience." Morgan also wrote the screenplay for THE QUEEN directed by Stephen Frears.

Ep. 24 TIME STAMPS

0:08  (boilerplate) Podcast Open

1:45 Rev. Dr. Terasa Cooley Intro

2:21 The Crown Recap Seasons 1 - 4

4:38 The Crown Season 5 Description

6:10 American Fascination with British Aristocracy

7:16 Duty and Adaptive Leadership

11:05 The Queen, PM Thatcher and Princess Diana

17:17. Symbolic Leadership

22:19 Change, Loss, and Leading

23:15 Commonwealth as Family

27:01 Foxtrot Diplomacy

30:28 Break

31:58 Transforming Conflict

35:23 Cooking for the Cabinet

38:47 Class Conflict and Parlor Games

47:17 Celebrity and Leadership

51:17 Why We Deify and Demonize Leaders

53:34 Lightning Round: World War I, Winston Churchill, Time Capsule

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STAY ENGAGED with HISTORICAL DRAMA WITH THE BOSTON SISTERS

Orchard House (in Concord, MA) is most notable as the home where Louisa May Alcott wrote and set her iconic novel Little Women in 1868. In this podcast we talk with JAN TURNQUIST, executive director of Orchard House where visitors can go back in time to the world of the Alcott family as well as Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy March. Recreations of Orchard House can be seen in recent adaptations of Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women the 2017 BBC PBS MASTERPIECE limited series, directed by Vanessa Caswill, and the 2019 film directed by Greta Gerwig.

1:18 - Jan Turnquist, Executive Director of Orchard House (bio)

3:41 - Orchard House History

7:45 - Discovering "Little Women"

8:57 - Enduring Appeal of "Little Women"

13:50 - The Alcotts and The March Family

15:19 - Civil War Backdrop of "Little Women"

17:00 - "Little Women" Adaptations (Page to Screen)

18:22 - Recreating New England in Ireland (BBC/PBS 2017)

22:08 - Recreating Orchard House and Concord MA (Greta Gerwig 2019)

26:03 - Fidelity to Novel vs Retaining the Heart of the Story

29:48 - Podcast Break

30:20 - Revolution, Literary Movement & Transcendentalists in Concord MA

36:27 - Louisa May Alcott's Feminism

37:19 - What is an American?

38:13 - International Appeal of Little Women

40:48 - Quintessential American

41:09 - Abba May "Marmee" Alcott -- Pragmatic and Progressive Parent

45:53 - Reenacting Louisa May Alcott (Jan Turnquist)

51:23 - Sharing Orchard House

52:26 - Orchard House Legacy and Impact

58:09 - Lightning Round

1:06 - Wrap Up

STAY ENGAGED with HISTORICAL DRAMA WITH THE BOSTON SISTERS

SUSANNE SIMPSON, executive producer of the award-winning PBS drama series MASTERPIECE joins us for a conversation about the second season of Miss Scarlet and the Duke and other women of MYSTERY! along with a preview of MASTERPIECE’s 2022-23 season.

Miss Scarlet and the Duke features Kate Phillips as Eliza Scarlet, the headstrong, first-ever female detective in Victorian London, who won’t let any naysayers stop her from keeping her father’s business running. Stuart Martin stars as her childhood friend, professional colleague, and potential love interest, Scotland Yard Detective Inspector William Wellington, a.k.a., The Duke. The series is created by Rachel New.

TIME STAMPS

2:58 "Miss Scarlet and the Duke" Series  Popularity

4:48 Eliza Scarlet and Today's Women

8:52 Female Detective in a Male-Dominated Profession

11:46 Rachel New, "Miss Scarlet and the Duke’s" Creator and Writer

13:42 Broadening Moses's Background Story

14:25 From Miss Marple to Mystery's Contemporary Women Detectives

16:47 Lesley Manville Kudos as editor turned detective in “Magpie Murders”

19:03 Inspirational Women in “Miss Scarlet and the Duke”

20:57 Characters Moses, Clementine and the Role of Outsiders in “Miss Scarlet and the Duke”

29:07 Language, Accessibility and “The Downton Abbey” Accent

34:03 Podcast Break

34:35 History: Questions and Reimagining

44:07 MASTERPIECE and Lifelong Learning

49:06 More Season 2022-23 Previews

53:16 Last Words: Eliza Scarlet's BFF

56:09 Where to Watch MASTERPIECE and MASTERPIECE MYSTERY!

In episode 20, we "chat up" the Amazon Prime series A LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN with author and poet Toni Asante Lightfoot about the character Max Chapman, her family including her trans uncle Bertie, best friend Clance, and Rockford's African American community as depicted in the series.

In the 1992 "A League of Their Own" feature film on which this series is based, you see the grit and romance of the game with the Rockford Peaches and women baseball teams that were part of the All American Professional Girls Baseball League during WWII. What was not prominent in the 1992 movie (more subtext) are untold stories of African American, Latina, and queer women baseball players and the lives they lived in the 1940s and 50s. These stories are highlighted in the Amazon Prime series.

A LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN (the 2022 series) is co-created by Abbi Jacobson (who plays Rockford Peaches player Carson Shaw) and Will Graham.

This episode of Historical Drama with The Boston Sisters is devoted to fashion – past and present – inspired by the film Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris. The conversation covers luxury fashion and couture as a global phenomenon influenced by contemporary concerns about sustainability of people and planet, as well as how clothes help us recall special memories and can represent life changing adventures.

In each episode of Historical Drama with The Boston Sisters we wrap up our conversations with guests where we ask our LIGHTNING ROUND questions related to the podcast themes.

One of the questions is “If you could travel back in time, where would you go and why?”

We picked 5 guest responses to our time travel question from the 18 past podcasts for this BONUS episode.

In addition to our Boston Sisters answers to the time travel question, we have recorded answers from

• JANET CAM, wine, food, and restaurant consultant, speaking in Episode 12, What We Love About Julia (HBO Max)
• CRYSTAL CLARKE, actor in Masterpiece’s Sanditon adaptation of Jane Austen’s unfinished novel, Episode 11, Becoming Georgiana Lambe
• SHARON D. JOHNSON, PH.D. (story and script consultant for Masterpiece), Episode 13, Regency Fiction and Racial History
• Writer/Director PSALMAYENE 24, Episode 7 Chadwick Boseman: History X Purpose = Destiny
• Unitarian minister REV. DR. ROB HARDIES, Episode 18, Endeavor’s Hidden Grief (Masterpiece Mystery)

TIME STAMPS

General Intro 0:08

Episode Intro 0:46

Time Travel segments

BRIDESHEAD REVISITED was the DOWNTON ABBEY of its time. The miniseries premiered in the UK in 1981 and the U.S. in 1982 on PBS “Great Performances.”

This bonus podcast, “Brideshead [Re] Revisited,” features the recording from a Clubhouse conversation on January 21, 2022 where friends gathered to talk about Brideshead Revisited and why it resonates 40 years later. In the recording you’ll hear:

Created by Russell Lewis, ENDEAVOUR is the prequel to the INSPECTOR MORSE television series inspired by characters in Colin Dexter’s detective novels. In season 8, the year is 1971. We see the impact of events from season 7 where Endeavour Morse (Shaun Evans) suffered a major loss that sets off a grieving process triggering self-doubt, alcohol abuse, and a cynic’s perspective that puts him at odds with his mentor, Fred Thursday.

In this podcast we talk with preacher, teacher, counselor and activist REV. DR. ROB HARDIES about the challenges of becoming an adult through Endeavour Morse's experiences with:

• His mentor/mentee relationship with DCI Fred Thursday (Roger Allam)
• Grief, loss, and self-doubt
• Balancing justice and compassion

The award-winning K-drama MR. SUNSHINE was released in 2018 and became the 6th highest ranking drama in South Korean cable history, and is still trending on Netflix in the United States and around the globe.

• What makes MR. SUNSHINE a binge-worthy epic?
• Why are audiences outside South Korea connecting with this  historical drama of love, revenge, and revolution?
• How does MR. SUNSHINE inspire curiosity to learn more about the history behind the story, and at the same time mirrors our present-day realities?

K-Drama blogger KAT TURNER shares some insights on MR. SUNSHINE and today’s K-Drama phenomenon in episode 17 of the Historical Drama with The Boston Sisters podcast.

EP. 17 Timestamps

1:26 MR. SUNSHINE Series Recap

3:49 Kat Turner, K-Drama blogger introduction

5:38 Kat's introduction to K-Drama

9:59 Asian Representation

12:24 KDramatics Club/Clubhouse

13:03 MR. SUNSHINE Conversation

20:31 K-Drama Storytelling and Character Development

29:06 Break (MUSIC)

29:31 Identification and Representation

30:31 K-Drama Acting Ensemble

35:27 Lee Byung-hun (Choi Yu-jin/Eugene Choi)

37:33 Lee Byung-hun American acting experience

39:16 (Revealing) Pre-1950s U.S. and Korean History

46:25 Social Hierarchy in K-Drama

53:21 K-Drama Romance & Love Triangle in MR. SUNSHINE

1:03:26 Lightning Round

When a murder occurs of an American tycoon on the luxurious Orient Express train on which he’s traveling, detective Hercule Poirot is recruited to solve the case. But does solving the murder really close the case, especially for Poirot’s conscience? It’s been said that murder mysteries satisfy our need to feel that there is justice in the world and a moral order, which is expressed in the character of Agatha Christie’s genius detective Hercule Poirot.

In episode 16 we talk about three film/tv movie adaptations and themes of Agatha Christie’s 1934 novel MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS:

• The 1974 film, directed by Sidney Lumet, as a story of revenge and vigilante justice.
• The 2010 film (for the Poirot television series directed by Philip Martin), a story of a murder perpetrated by persons who feel that the rule of law and even God have failed to deliver justice.
• Kenneth Branagh’s 2017 film where Hercule Poirot describes the crime of murder as an act carried out by “wounded souls,” and concludes that the scales of justice cannot always be evenly weighed.

Spoiler Alert: Some of the suspects and conclusions are revealed.

Time Stamps

:58 Intro to Episode

3:35 MOTOE film recap

6:40 Crime Novels -- Psychological Truth and Moral Ambiguity

8:40 Agatha Christie Novel -- fact informs fiction (Christie, Lindberg Baby Kidnapping, Orient Express)

12:55 Morality, Conscience and Justice

14:33 1974 Revenge Story (Albert Finney/Sidney Lumet) version

21:09 Setting and costume

22:43 Albert Finney monologue

26:56 2010 Moral Ambiguity in Poirot (David Suchet/Philip Martin) version

32:33 2017 Broken Lives and Wounded Souls (Kenneth Branagh) version

49:26 Wrap up

50:40 Let Historical Drama with The Boston Sisters Know Your Thoughts

In part 2 (Episode 15) of our BRIDGERTON deep dive, Cornell University history professor Durba Ghosh (author of Sex and the Family in Colonial India: The Making of Empire) and The Boston Sisters look at the questions:

• Where does the Bridgerton family's wealth come from? 


• How does money influence the Sharmas's choices in marriage?


• What is the role of colonial capitalism in the fortunes of Bridgerton's Regency?


Plus our RECAP of Bridgerton Season 2 at the top (Spoiler alert if you haven't watched the series)

And finally our️ LIGHTNING ROUND ️with Durba Ghosh

Shondaland's Bridgerton (Netflix) presents a Regency Britain where people of diverse colors, races, and cultural backgrounds meet and mate through choreographed matchmaking in grand ballrooms and frolicking country estates of "the ton." 

Time Stamps (approx.):

• 1:34 Intro
• 2:00 Bridgerton Season 2 Plot (or Story) Recap
• 8:25 The What If World of Bridgerton
• 10:07 Follow the Money: British Wealth and Colonial Economy
• 19:39 Women's Sexual Knowledge (British/Indian) in Bridgerton
• 25:52 British Father/Indian Mother -- Anthony & Kate's Children
• 32:22 Mr. Sharma, the Indian Clerk: Class, Race, and the Sheffields
• 38:21 Lightning Round 4 Questions
• 45:15 Historical Drama as Mirror of the Present

Shondaland's BRIDGERTON (Netflix), inspired by Julia Quinn’s novels, presents a Regency Britain where people of diverse colors, races, and cultural backgrounds meet and mate through choreographed matchmaking in grand ballrooms and frolicking country estates of "the ton." In this 2-part podcast DURBA GHOSH, Cornell professor of history and author of “Sex and Family in Colonial India: The Making of Empire,” talks with The Boston Sisters about how the entrance of the Sharma Family, an Indian family from Bombay, into the ton's marriage season brings South Asian words, rituals, costuming elements, and Bollywood into the "What If" world of BRIDGERTON (Season 2).

Episode 14 (part 1) looks at casting and culture in Season 2 of the series. Professor Ghosh gives cultural insights into South Asian audiences' reception of Indian characters in Bridgerton, particularly casting darker-skinned women as Kate Sharma (Ashley Simpson) and Edwina Sharma (Charithra Chandron), and speculates on how these casting choices could influence Indian film and television narratives.

Time Stamps

1:31 Professor Ghosh/speaker background

06:06 East India Company History

9:32 Bridgerton, Sharma Family, and British Colonial History

14:06 Marriage Plot (Bridgerton, Regency Fantasy and Historical Accuracy)

19:37 Bracelets Motif -- Indian Rituals and Cultural References in Bridgerton

28:06 Significance of Casting Dark-skinned Actresses as Sharmas

33:17 Music break point

34:52 U.S. and India Relations (and Globalization)

37:48 Globalization in Bridgerton

39:58 Love, Marriage and Social Status

46:42 Kate Sharma -- competitive woman

50:33 Bridgerton's Impact on Bombay Filmmaking

55:31 Preview: Episode 15/Part 2 BRIDGERTON 2 and the Sharmas

Part 2/2 of our SANDITON “deep dive” features a conversation with SHARON D. JOHNSON, Ph.D. script and story consultant to PBS MASTERPIECE. Dr. Johnson describes how her experiences as cultural historian, screenwriter, and academic with background in depth psychology contributes to bringing authenticity to the presence and stories of Georgiana Lambe (Sanditon) and other people of color in historical drama. The podcast explores:

1. Racial representation and authenticity in historical drama

2. Facing uncomfortable truths in period adaptations

3. The collaborative process of inclusive storytelling

AUDIO NOTE: There are some audio blips on the guest speaker’s track due to a weak WiFi connection. There’s also soft jingling sounds (jewelry). There’s still much of our fascinating conversation with Dr. Johnson included in the podcast for the enjoyment of our listeners.

TIME STAMPS:

:58 Recap of SANDITON Seasons 1 and 2

2:30 Sharon Johnson, Ph.D. bio

3:52 MASTERPIECE -- combining literature, film, depth psychology culture, race

5:34 Diversity and Representation in MASTERPIECE (historical drama)

6:46 Georgiana Lambe (and the Slave Trade) -- Keeping the Story Honest

8:11 Cowrie Shells, Sons of Africa, Abolition (Cultural Authenticity)

12:00 Psychology and Storytelling

12:48 Diversity and Uncomfortable Truths

15:42 Jane Austen, Abolitionism, and Georgiana Lambe

19:35 Sugar Boycott

21:23 Impact and Authenticity (Working with MASTERPIECE executive producer Susanne Simpson)

25:14 Black Women's Hair and Historical Drama

28:00 Music

28:34 Regency England, Race, Womanhood, Wealth and Society

33:50 Sugar Boycott and Sons of Africa

44:03 Lightning Round

HBO Max's Julia is inspired by Julia Child's extraordinary life and her long running public television series, The French Chef, which pioneered the modern cooking show.

In this podcast, The Boston Sisters (Michon and Taquiena) riff on impressions of the HBO Max series and Julia Child's impact on American cooks, public television, and our own palates with restaurant consultant and wine expert, Janet Cam (a co-founder of Le Pavillon, the first nouvelle cuisine restaurant in America). This podcast explores food, culture, and identity as examples of the "joie de vivre" that Julia Child inspired through her cooking shows and cook books as well as how her life demonstrates that it's never too late to become who you are meant to be.

1:10  Episode Introduction (Julia description)

3:44   Introducing Janet Cam

5:00   First Impressions of Julia, HBO Max Series

9:56   Personal Julie Child Stories

26:25  What Julia Teaches About Persevering

34:08  Coq Au Vin and Classical French Cooking (Or Coq Au Vin and Julia's French Cooking Influences)

46:45  Julia's Passion and Reinvention (Or Julia Child on Being Relevant)

54:14  Julia Succeeding in a Man's World

1:00:54 Sharing Food and Joie de Vivre

1:09:20 Lightning Round Questions

In January HBO premiered The Gilded Age, a series set in 1882 New York City created and written by Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes.

In this bonus edition of Historical Drama with the Boston Sisters, Michon and Taquiena look at the series through the lens of women and power -- recapping the series and imagining what Season Two could look like in the battle between "Old New York," new money families, and the striving professional and immigrant classes.

This two-part conversation covers how women in the series take control of their lives and destinies at a time when women were not allowed to vote, Jim Crow laws and practices were impeding progress for Black Americans, immigrant labor got exploited, and the gap between rich and poor widened.

Part 2 - Bonus episode

How women exercise power through...

• Professional Work (Peggy Scott, Mabel Ainsley);
• Causes (Clara Barton);
• Creating spaces for creativity (Sylvia Chamberlain);
• Domestic service, a tiny door to the inside (Mrs. Bruce, Mrs. Bauer);
• Physical appearance and seduction (Turner);

What The Gilded Age women would be in our social circle? What The Boston Sisters would like to see in Season 2 of The Gilded Age

In January HBO premiered The Gilded Age, a series set in 1882 New York City created and written by Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes.

In this bonus edition of Historical Drama with the Boston Sisters, Michon and Taquiena look at the series through the lens of women and power -- recapping the series and imagining what Season Two could look like in the battle between "Old New York," new money families, and the striving professional and immigrant classes.

This two-part conversation covers how women in the series take control of their lives and destinies at a time when women were not allowed to vote, Jim Crow laws and practices were impeding progress for Black Americans, immigrant labor got exploited, and the gap between rich and poor widened.

Part 1 - Bonus episode

Recap of Season 1

How women exercise power through...

• Marriage (Bertha Russell, Agnes van Rhijn and others);
• Social power (Mrs. Astor);
• Women wanting to claim/find their power (Marian Brook, Gladys Russell);
• Children and Children who use their power with parents (Carrie Astor).