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Showing posts from July, 2008

Chicago, Au Revoir

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Today marked my last day, at least for now, working with the Pelikans in the Sachs/Fultz collection. The pens were great and the companionship better yet. It was a long day as all three of us scrambled to get at least half the work done that will be necessary to catalogue and interpret close to four hundred Pelikan pens and pieces of various ephemera. But I did get a chance to get some images, mostly of Keith and Catherine. And one of our non-pen colleagues took a snap of the three of us. Hope you have enjoyed my account of the trip even a quarter as much as I enjoyed the week. Keith and Catherine have a working relationship that the rest of us can only envy. This is a pose most characteristic of Keith. Although she is not part of the hobby, after almost a year, Catherine knows as much about pens as many long time collectors. Here she studies the fine points of a Pelikan 100. Pelikans, at least some of them, and the three of us.

Chicago and Pens

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I arrived in Chicago mid-day Tuesday, the 23rd. The purpose of the trip was to work with Pelikan pens that were recently added to the Sachs/Fultz collection, which stands as the greatest known collection of fountain pens. It’s a testiment to my schedule that only today, Sunday the 27th have I gotten time to post here. But the hard work has been lightened by the time spent with Greg Sachs, owner of the collection, Keith Zaransky, the curator of collections, and the delightful Catherine Morris, archivist and collection manager. Personally, it seems fitting to be here, twenty four years after I met my first pen collecting friends and attended my first pen show while living and working in Chicago. Many of you know Keith, who has collected and dealt in pens (as well as other antiquities) for more than twenty years. Keith is also a lifelong friend of Greg Sachs, and when Greg decided several years ago to revive his youthful passion for pens, he turned, naturally to Keith, who facilitated

A Farewell to Ashland

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Yesterday, sadly, was our last day in Ashland, and the last for a couple of years, as next summer we will be in Europe. We closed out with another Cold Reading, this of The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window by Lorraine Hansbury, her last play. These readings, initiated by the new Artistic Director, Bill Rausch, were a real revelation and a highlight of the trip. In the past we have made sidetrips while visiting Ashland. Partly because of our schedule and partly because of some allergic reactions that Sharon had to some insect bites, we did not this year. Yesterday we got out for the first and last time, a quick stroll through Jacksonville, one of those charming historic village/tourist traps. Found some good gelato, however. Just what we need. At any rate, below are some random shots of the town that, I think, speak for themselves. Our last play, last night, was The Further Adventures of Hedda Gabler, by Jeff Whitty, who also was responsible for the book for Avenue Q . I’m not sur
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We are now midway, more or less, in our Ashland journey, having seen four plays, Breakfast Lunch and Dinner by Luis Alvaro, as well as A Comedy of Errors and Coriolanus with two to go and two additional readings. Last night we saw Othello . The acting from the principal characters, Othello, Desdemona, Iago and America, was superbly balanced and most powerful. As always, the level of production, from sets to direction to acting has been incomparable. You will not see any better theater anywhere. The OSF has a new atristic director, Bill Rausch, and what we have noticed this year is a striking improvement of casting and/or direction. What is most noticeable is how balanced the acting is. Yesterday morning, after my early morning walk in Lithia Park, a delightful urban park, and breakfast, Sharon and I wandered the town taking some photos for your enjoyment. In truth, the theater complex is architecturally undistinguished, below you see the outdoor Elizabethan theater that proclai

Ahhh, Ashland

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The city of Ashland and its Oregon Shakespeare Festival is pretty much Disneyland for intellectuals, summer camp for theater fans. For more on the festival, http://www.osfashland.org/index.aspx The town, itself, is a delight of tasteful shops, comfortable hotels and B&Bs and wonderful restaurants. Eat, sleep, go to the theater, repeat. In between, go shopping or eat ice cream (every second shop seems to be a gelateria). We got into town mid-afternoon yesterday after leaving Portland at about 9:30. It’s blisteringly hot, as so often it can be, with temps in the upper 90s. We are staying at the McCall house, where we have been for the past several years. Today, we see two plays, Comedy of Errors and Coriolanus .

Portland Wrap-up

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Well, this was far and away the best Portland show, from every standpoint. Had a great time seeing everyone, sold some great pens, got some great pens, ate well--too well. In fact I gained two pounds, which I had avoided thus far on the trip. But the razor clams at Higgins on Saturday night were terrific and the paella at Lauro on Sunday was as good. On Sunday, the show was a bit more relaxed and there was less of a public presence, but I was able to do a bit more buying and selling to cap off the weekend. No images from Sunday, but I do have to show off one of my several acquisitions, the Visconti Skeleton in titanium. If you haven't been to Portland, you have missed five great pen shows. If you haven't been to Portland, you need to make plans for next year. Carla Mortensen, supported by the Portland Pen Club has done a superb job of creating one of the finest pen shows in existence, one that just keeps getting better and better. For us, next stop, Ashland.