Who The Hell Told You That

In the middle of the journey of our life Dante finds himself lost in a dark wood but then he founds a whole lot of literary movements and arguably modernity itself with his Divine Comedy that, nonetheless, inexplicably, didn't make God laugh. This serious absence caused God's non-divine counterparts, humans, to wonder: "Why are we in hell?" "Why is it so funny?" "And why can't I laugh?"

What to Expect When You’re Not Expected to Expect Anything Anymore Did you see the title and flame-filled cover of this book, and did your weary, sweaty, confused, and exasperated soul scream, That one! That is the book for me!!? If so, I’d first like to extend my deepest sympathies, an ice pack, and some of these very helpful edibles. If it’s three in the morning as you’re reading this, as it may well be, you likely want those more than a book. But since I can’t really give you the other stuff, I can at least offer you this book. . . . Perimenopause and menopause experiences are as unique as all of us who move through them. While there’s no one-size-fits-all, Heather Corinna tells you what can happen and what you can do to take care of yourself, all the while busting pernicious myths, offering real self-care tips—the kind that won’t break the bank or your soul—and running the gamut from hot flashes to hormone therapy. With big-tent, practical, clear information and support, and inclusive of so many who have long been left out of the discussion—people with disabilities; queer, transgender, nonbinary, and other gender-diverse people; BIPOC; working class and other folks—What Fresh Hell Is This? is the cooling pillow and empathetic best friend to help you through the fire.

Peter Bogdanovich, known primarily as a director, film historian and critic, has been working with professional actors all his life. He started out as an actor (he debuted on the stage in his sixth-grade production of Finian’s Rainbow); he watched actors work (he went to the theater every week from the age of thirteen and saw every important show on, or off, Broadway for the next decade); he studied acting, starting at sixteen, with Stella Adler (his work with her became the foundation for all he would ever do as an actor and a director). Now, in his new book, Who the Hell’s in It, Bogdanovich draws upon a lifetime of experience, observation and understanding of the art to write about the actors he came to know along the way; actors he admired from afar; actors he worked with, directed, befriended. Among them: Lauren Bacall, Humphrey Bogart, James Cagney, John Cassavetes, Charlie Chaplin, Montgomery Clift, Marlene Dietrich, Henry Fonda, Ben Gazzara, Audrey Hepburn, Boris Karloff, Dean Martin, Marilyn Monroe, River Phoenix, Sidney Poitier, Frank Sinatra, and James Stewart. Bogdanovich captures—in their words and his—their work, their individual styles, what made them who they were, what gave them their appeal and why they’ve continued to be America’s iconic actors. On Lillian Gish: “the first virgin hearth goddess of the screen . . . a valiant and courageous symbol of fortitude and love through all distress.” On Marlon Brando: “He challenged himself never to be the same from picture to picture, refusing to become the kind of film star the studio system had invented and thrived upon—the recognizable human commodity each new film was built around . . . The funny thing is that Brando’s charismatic screen persona was vividly apparent despite the multiplicity of his guises . . . Brando always remains recognizable, a star-actor in spite of himself. ” Jerry Lewis to Bogdanovich on the first laugh Lewis ever got onstage: “I was five years old. My mom and dad had a tux made—I worked in the borscht circuit with them—and I came out and I sang, ‘Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?’ the big hit at the time . . . It was 1931, and I stopped the show—naturally—a five-year-old in a tuxedo is not going to stop the show? And I took a bow and my foot slipped and hit one of the floodlights and it exploded and the smoke and the sound scared me so I started to cry. The audience laughed—they were hysterical . . . So I knew I had to get the rest of my laughs the rest of my life, breaking, sitting, falling, spinning.” John Wayne to Bogdanovich, on the early years of Wayne’s career when he was working as a prop man: “Well, I’ve naturally studied John Ford professionally as well as loving the man. Ever since the first time I walked down his set as a goose-herder in 1927. They needed somebody from the prop department to keep the geese from getting under a fake hill they had for Mother Machree at Fox. I’d been hired because Tom Mix wanted a box seat for the USC football games, and so they promised jobs to Don Williams and myself and a couple of the players. They buried us over in the properties department, and Mr. Ford’s need for a goose-herder just seemed to fit my pistol.” These twenty-six portraits and conversations are unsurpassed in their evocation of a certain kind of great movie star that has vanished. Bogdanovich’s book is a celebration and a farewell.

"Who the hell is Ralphy?" Have you ever had a night out with a yowie? Have you ever worn a homemade kangaroo skin coat into your local pub or maybe had a near-death experience with a wild boar? How about been kicked in the head by a horse? Or ridden home on your four-wheeler knowing an Eastern Brown snake's on board with you. Did you ever stand in the middle of a paddock with a mad cow charging you? Ever flown double in a one seater? You ever played three football grand finals in a week? I have. This is a book of tales about my life: a country boy who once set fire to his parents' hay shed; a young lad on the up of his professional football career; a man producing world-class ultra-fine merino wool for the fashion industry; and the ongoing struggle to maintain relationships through stress, drought and distance. Each life-stage filled with fun, mischief, mistakes and heartbreaks. I am telling these stories before they are forgotten because they reflect so many values, skills and ways of life which are eroding or already lost. I hope to inform those of other walks of life of something different and close the gap of time while making you laugh about a few amusing yarns and the occasional joke. However, not all is beer and skittles, with a history of family murders, bushrangers and rebellions. Not to mention ancestors riding with William Lawson the explorer, and others working with Governor Macquarie. This is my story of life, love and loss told through a bit of laughter (and the occasional whinge). Who the Hell is Ralphy? is a book of true anecdotes and short stories reflecting an existence some might never see or experience. The book provides a funny and entertaining insight into Australian life on the land over the lifespan of one lucky(?) man: Ralphy. So, who the hell is he? Come join me and find out... I was not born to the land but spent many happy years as a child and then a teenager living on its fringe in a small country town I call home, Mudgee. Ralph cover grew up in this district and his book takes me back to the sweet smell of freshly cut lucerne hay, rain on a parched paddock, woolsheds, utes, amazing men and women of the land, larrikins with big hearts and a generosity of spirit I treasure. Ralph the son of a grazing family with a rich colourful heritage, captures the very essence of a beautiful life on the land, its humour ups and downs, in a life well-lived. Ken Sutcliffe.