A Small Tribute to a Great Lady

 RHYS: I had a post all set up and planned for today and then the news broke, a few hours after we landed in London. Of course we are not surprised. 96 is a venerable age and we knew the queen's health had been failing recently. But on Tuesday she was up and about and greeted the new prime minister, so it must have been some sudden health event that caused the whole family to rush to her bedside.

I don't think I have fully taken it in yet. The queen was on the throne for almost my whole life. I watched the coronation from our elementary school classroom, as most of us didn't have TVs yet. And she was so young--not much older than my granddaughter, the queen's namesake, who just graduated from college and is still very much a young girl in many ways.  And Elizabeth was handed the responsibility for a whole world-wide commonwealth, always to appear gracious and smiling, never to say the wrong thing, always to appear interested when facing a boring speech. And in all those years she never put a foot wrong.

I have always felt a personal connection to the queen. When I was a child my father ran a paper factory and exhibited at the British Industries Fair every year. ON the day before it opened to the public members of the royal family visited and chatted with the exhibitors. We met most of the royals .

When I was a young woman I had the tremendous privilege of having tea with the queen. I was a student when the queen came to open the new science building at my college and six of us were invited to join the queen for tea. Just six of us and the queen, alone in a room. She put us at our ease immediately, chuckled, told us stories and made us feel at ease. She had the most radiant smile!

And what a hard working woman! Those who say the royal family are spongers who live off pubic money should take a look at her schedule. Until recently she made about 300 official visits a year. That's almost one a day. Now I go on book tours. A week or two flying around the country, meeting readers. At the end of this I'm exhausted. Two weeks. She did. this kind of personal appearance every day, every year.

I suppose writing about her fictional relative and including her real relatives in my stories has made me feel some kind of connection even today.

I can't believe she's gone. So we are in London at a historic time. I will be reporting in from my Facebook page if you are interested.

I have been asked if I am sad. Yes, I am sad for us. But for her in a way I'm glad that she passed away peacefully with no lingering illness, no growing dementia, no pain. With her loved ones at her side. At a place she loved. Let us hope she is now reunited with her beloved Phillip.

I didn't think I'd cry, but I am. I think most people in the country are also. God speed, your Majesty.

The "A" Word

INGRID THOFT

I was recently searching for a birthday card for my college best friend and one of my sisters.  I found one I thought would work for both (hope you’re not reading this, Kirsten!) and it features card producers’ favorite topic: aging.

A huge percentage of birthday cards focus on aging and the physical failures that come with it, but outside of the card aisle and the beauty aisle, there doesn’t seem to be much discussion about a process we will all experience (hopefully).

We all know that we’ll age and die eventually, but I’ve found over the past couple of years that knowing and knowing are two different things.  My own back surgery and chronic back issues, and the recent major surgery of a loved one, has forced aging to the forefront of my brain.  There’s no shortage of advice for staying and looking young, but what about best practices for accepting the aging process?

A friend suggested I read “Being Mortal” by Atul Gawande, M.D., a book that takes an unfiltered look at aging.  According to Gawande, the average life expectancy during the Roman Empire was thirty-years-old, a far cry from the 81.6 years now predicted for American women by the World Health Organization. Gawande argues that the medical community fails elderly patients because doctors are trained to fix problems, and there’s no fix for aging.  Instead, he thinks that the medical community, and the rest of us, should reframe aging as a natural process to be managed, not ignored or discounted.

In our age- and appearance-obsessed society, who do we look to for lessons in aging?

Before her death in 2014, Maya Angelou was a stellar example of someone embracing aging and celebrating the wisdom that comes with a long life.  She was a woman who seemed to get better with age!

Helen Mirren seems to embrace her current age and continue to blaze her own trail, whether in the roles she plays or her choice to rock a bikini at aged sixty-two.

And the queen of aging well? That would be the Queen, herself, in my estimation.   Queen Elizabeth II is 91-years-old and has held a most demanding job for 65 years.  Yes, she has lots of help (someone has to shop for those matching hats and outfits,) but she maintains a tough schedule and has to be “on” more than most people.

So, what are your thoughts on aging? How do you deal with the inevitable? Who do you think is aging well?

You're Invited To a Jungle Reds Cocktail Party!

When the Hank first asked me to join Jungle Reds, my first thought was, "Oh, I'm sure this is some sort of mix-up…"

 

My second was, "Holy cats!"

But my third was, "Oooh, I want to create a great — and red — signature cocktail for the Jungle Red Writers!"

I'm an amateur bartender (although I do have one cocktail book to my name), and I do admit I find looking up vintage cocktails, and creating new ones, lots and lots of fun.

And so, I'm offering up a number of red libations for the other Reds — and you — to vote on. They're perfect for the holiday season.

Here we go….

The Sensation

The Sensation, also known as Brandied Port, was

first published in Esquire's June 1939 "Potables" column. As David Wonderich says in Esquire Drinks: An Opinionated and Irreverent Guide to Drinking, "Clearly, this drink could only have sprung from the fertile genius of Sir Winston Churchill — those two tipples being the principal fuel for his bulldog temper (plus, of course, liberal injections of Johnny Walker, Pol Roger, Pouilly Fumé, etc, ad libitum).

2 parts ruby port

1 part brandy

Dash of freshly squeezed orange juice (optional)

Shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a twist of lemon peel, or, if you use the orange juice, orange peel.

The Blenheim

  

The Blenheim (pronounced "Blen-im"), also known as the Four

Score and Ten, was created in honor of Winston Churchill's ninetieth birthday. Created by Joe Gilmore of the American Bar at the Savoy, it was named after Churchill's birthplace, the English Baroque-style Blenheim Palace.

3 parts brandy

2 parts Yellow Chartreuse

1 part Lillet blanc

1 part freshly squeezed orange juice

1 part Dubonnet rouge

Shake ingredients together with ice, and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Dubonnet Rouge Cocktail (Her Majesty's Favorite Cocktail)

Queen Elizabeth has called this red gin-based cocktail as her

favorite, as did her mother, the Queen Mum. If it's good enough for two Queens, surely it's good enough for us.

2 parts Dubonnet rouge

1 part Gordon's Gin (that's what the Queen prefers, but I like Hendrick's or Plymouth)

1 slice lemon

1 large ice cube (plus more for shaker)

Shake ingredients together with ice, and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with lemon slice.

Red Negroni with Caramelized Oranges (a la Jon Stucky)

Our friend Jon Stucky, an "outsider artist," came up with this

recipe and never fails to make a batch, or two) when he's over. The caramelized orange add a rich depth of flavor to the classic Negroni and Prosecco adds sparkle.

1 part Campari

1 part sweet vermouth

1 part gin (Jon and I like Hendrick's or Plymouth)

1 part sparkling wine

juice from caramelized oranges and the oranges themselves

Shake Campari, gin, and sweet vermouth together with ice, and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Squeeze in the juice of a caramelized orange. Top with sparkling wine. We usually serve with the orange slices and lots of ice.

Here are Jon's instructions to prepare the oranges:

Scrub oranges and cut. Soak orange slices or wedges in the vermouth overnight — strain off excess vermouth and save for use in the drinks.

Caramelize on a hot grill in the summertime or use a brulee torch in the winter. (You want some char to add flavor.)

"Reds" Wine

Simply pour and enjoy. (Love the label and the wine’s pretty good, too!)

  

The Jungle Reds

I came up with this one in honor of the Reds, a variation on the holiday classic the Poinsettia (traditionally made with cranberry juice). It’s Miss Edna approved!

1 part pomegranate juice

½ part orange liqueur (I like the spiciness of Creole Shrubb)

3 parts sparkling wine (or ginger ale)

Garnish with a lemon twist. (I used pomegranate seeds and raspberries.)

Do you have an entry for the Jungle Reds cocktail, alcoholic or not? Do you have a favorite red holiday libation? Any favorites among the above? Tell us!

Cheers!

Oh, and I'm delighted to announce the winners of Kim Fay's A MAP OF LOST MEMORIES:

Joan Emerson

Libby Dodd

Virginia P

Congratulations! Email Kim at slendermeans@yahoo.com and she will send you your book!

Images of Jon Stucky's paintings reprinted with permission of the artist.

Jubilee Thoughts.

RHYS BOWEN: I've lived in America for many years. My children were born here. I'm a baseball fan (go Giants). A football fan. And yet last week I had a orgy of Britishness. For four days I was glued to the telly, standing with tears in my eyes to join in Land of Hope and Glory as those boats went down the Thames.

Since there is so much that drives me crazy about my native land these days it was wonderful to be flooded with British pride. And one thing it demonstrated was that England certainly knows how to throw a party. So many parts of the celebration impressed me: the vast crowd walking in orderly fashion down the Mall toward Buckingham Palace, nobody pushing ro shoving, no policeman having to turn around and use force to control them. All those people standing out in that rain, not only uncomplaining, but looks of joy on their faces as they waved flags--especially the young women singing on top of a barge in a deluge.

And above all I was overwhelmed with pride for the queen herself (and Prince Phillip) She's in her eighties and he is ninety and yet they stood for several hours on that barge, never once using the chairs provided for them. She had a packed schedule of church service, carriage procession, rock concert, balcony appearances while worrying about her husband who had  been rushed off to hospital. She remained gracious throughout a concert full of music she doesn't like. She was visibly moved by her son's speech (and didn't you love it when he called her 'Mummy'?

My husband reads the Daily Telegraph online every morning and one nameless creature had the gall to mock "Phil the Greek" and say "it would be a good job if he croaked."  I'd like to use some of my skills I have picked up as a mystery writer and murder him with no trace if I met him. Does this worm not realize what a huge asset they are to the country--how many tourist dollars they bring in, the tradition and dignity that makes Britain unique. And their schedule is one that not many of us could imitate.

I do a book tour for a couple of weeks each year. I am met by an escort and essentially I am ON all day. I collapse into bed exhausted each night and at the end of two weeks I am whacked. The queen does this schedule every day, all year and has done it for over sixty years. Always gracious, always smiling and with a terrific sense of humor.

One of the highlights of my life was when I had tea with her when I was eighteen. Just a few young women and myself alone with the queen, and after a few minutes we were all laughing together. She has that wonderful quality of making everyone feel comfortable with her. And she was stunningly pretty as a younger woman. And Phillip--well, he was a hunk, wasn't he?

And now there were William, Harry and Kate ready to back up their grandma, giving us wonderful hope for the future. Would I trade them for a president? Would you?

Do share your thoughts on the Jubilee Celebrations.Did you love it as much as I did?

Thoughts on Fame

RHYS:
I've been thinking recently about fame, because it's a strange characteristic, not linked to human survival. Why do some people have a need to be famous? Why do other people go ga-ga over a person because he or she is famous? What, exactly, is the point of fame?

What got me thinking about this was observing my grandchildren. I have Meghan and Lizzie, equally talented. Meghan enjoys showing off her singing and Irish dance skills. Lizzie hates to perform or be noticed. And then I have Mary Clare, who is a born star. She comes into a room and she's the immediate center of attention. . She interacts with strangers everywhere she goes. She gets the lead in the kindergarten play. Is this just a case of introvert versus extrovert or is there really some kind of fame gene? Haven't we all been to plays and there is one person on stage we can't stop looking at? Not always the most handsome person or the best actor but they just have something that fascinates us.

I was a movie buff as a child. I remember standing for hours in a crowd in London for a chance to glimpse Joan Crawford. She was an awful old woman in those days with make-up caked like a mask and false eyelashes a mile long, but I was so thrilled that I really saw her--it was almost a religious experience, as if she was a reincarnation of the Buddha or something.

I have to confess that when I was a child, I dreamed of being a movie star. I loved to perform. I still enjoy speaking in front of a crowd. So that fame gene has to be there, doesn't it? On the other hand, I am intensely embarrassed when fans come up to me and stammer and gush over me. I never know what to say. So I don't want fame to be adored. That's obvious. So what do I want? Why do I keep plugging away at my writing, hoping for the bestseller one day? It's not the money--although a few million would be nice. Is to know that I'm good at what I do? That I'm close to the top of my chosen profession? that I've achieved my goal in life?

Why do people like us keep striving while others are content to accept a paycheck and desire nothing more than no stress, a quiet life, a few beers and a godo retirement at the end?

The whole fan culture is strange to me. Some musicians whip fans into a frenzy and yet they are not as good technically as lesser known musicians. Some of the best actors never make it to the top. So what defines star quality?

I'd appreciate any enlightenment on this subject. Also I'd be curious to know: who is the most famous person you have met? With me it's a toss between the Queen, The Pope and the Beatles.


HALLIE: What I've observed is that when people get really famous, then they become a lightning rod for sneers. Others take great glee in knocking them down a peg. That famous I don't need to be.

Most famous person I ever met? Gotta be Marilyn Monroe. My parents were screenwriters and six-year-old me got to go on the set at 20th Century Fox while they were shooting the Heatwave number ("We're havin' a heatwave, a tropical heatwave. The temperature's risin', it isn't surprisin', she certainly can can-can") for NO BUSINESS LIKE SHOW BUSINESS. Marilyn danced and sang -- you can see the amazing results on YouTube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qe-45dj-aGo

Afterward Marilyn came out looking like nobody wearing black pedal-pushers, a white blouse, sunglasses, and a scarf tied around her head. I also met Danny Kaye (my parents wrote a movie he was in called On the Riviera), Katharine Hepburn (Desk Set), and Fred Astaire (Daddy Long Legs). Groucho Marx once came from the house and smoked a cigar. I got the very strong impression that he didn't like kids. And I once answered the front door and there was Ray Bolger singing "Once in Love with Amy" to me (my sister's name is Amy.)

RHYS: Hallie, you definitely have an unfair advantage! I would have been in heaven if I'd met Danny Kaye or Fred Astaire.

HANK: Rhys, you met the Queen, The Pope and The Beatles?? And people stammer and gush over you? Yikes. You win. :-) But Hallie, you're in another name-dropping league altogether.

I interviewed Prince Charles. (Very cute. And truly charming.) And I did long interviews with President Carter, and Warren Beatty and Cybill Shepherd and Dustin Hofffman and Ansel Adams, and I worked closely with (and toured with) Hunter Thompson and Richard Avedon.

Fame. Yeah, I sometimes wonder it's what happens to kids when their parents don't praise them enough. Or when the kids think they don't. If they say--"watch me dive!" and the parents don't.

RHYS: This is no measly list either, Hank. Do you find that being a TV personality makes you visible when you're out in public? Do people treat you differently because "you're on TV?" Does it interfere with your normal life?

JAN: I met Patty Duke once. She'd been famous since childhood and you could tell. There was this protective shell around her. It was as if there were a couple of feet of celebrity shield between her and the humanity around her. Not that I blame her, but I think it would be a burden. I think when I was young, I dreamed of being famous. But to tell you the truth, I don't think I could live that way. It even makes uncomfortable when people think its a big deal I'm a mystery writer. I keep wanting to set them straight.

ROBERTA: I was going to say that Hallie was the most famous person I've met:) but my husband reminded me that George W, George Sr, and Jeb Bush once played through us on the golf course. While we waited for them to finish the hole, Barbara Bush came up to watch. I introduced myself and my mother-in-law to her and offered condolences about Millie the dog. I said we'd recently lost a beloved guinea pig so we understood the loss. She was gracious but not certain at all that a rodent could be compared to her Millie.

RO: I would hate to be famous. I can't imagine people going through my garbage or staking out my home hoping to catch me in an unguarded or unmadeup moment.

Famous people I've met...I've bumped into a number of famous people at parties and events..no great meeting of the minds - and no one's ever sung to me (like Ray Bolger...very cool.)Okay, included with the soap opera, classic movie stars, athletes, wrestling and porn stars I knew in the video business there were three first ladies, two presidents, and one olympic gold medalist, Brian Boitano, whose thighs were as big as Emmett Smith's. William Hurt, Christopher Walken, Ron Jeremy and Governor Hugh Carey all, um, chatted me up (in my younger days)and I sat in the back of a limo with Frank Gifford who let me try on his Hall of Fame ring. I did shake hands with the Mick - Mantle, not Jagger. But no one made my heart beat faster than Bryan Brown, who must have thought I was a complete stalker when I met him at a party at the Australian consulate.

I haven't mentioned any women by name..that's terrible. I did meet Jeanne Moreau once. She was extremely cool.

RHYS: Hey, between us we've pretty much covered famous people in the latter half of the Twentieth Century, haven't we? My observation has always been that the really famous people, those who have made it to the top, are extremely nice, but those who have just brushed with fame--new stars, new wannabe stars, are objectionable. But of course we six Jungle Red babes have remained humble and loveable.
And nobody has enlightened me on why we crave fame. Is it as the song says, "I want to live forever?" Are our books just a quest for immortality?

Her Royal Newness

"There is a reason Rhys Bowen gets nominated for so many awards. She's just damn good."

—Crimespree Magazine

You've noticed the new photo at the top, of course. (Here's a nice big one.)

Please join us in welcoming a brilliant (we're brushing up our Brit-speak) addition to Jungle Red Writers: Rhys Bowen.

She's the author of the Molly Murphy mysteries featuring an Irish immigrant woman in 1900s New York City, also the Constable Evans mysteries set in North Wales.

Her mysteries have been nominated for every major mystery award, including the Edgar for best novel, and she has won eight of them.

Not one who sits on her laurels, in 2007 she stunned readers and reviewers with HER ROYAL SPYNESS, the first of a new series about the British royal family in the 1930s. Called Bridget Jones meets Maisie Dobbs with a touch of royal flair, it's great fun. It became an Independent Mystery Bookseller's #1 bestseller and was nominated for the Dilys, Agatha, Romantic Times and Macavity awards. Then in 2008 she followed that up with a sequel, A ROYAL PAIN.

She lives in San Francisco...arrived there by way of Wales and Australia and lots of wonderful places. She's worked for the BBC and Australian Broadcasting. We're eager to hear all about her life and adventures and writing and not-writing. But there's plenty of time for that here at the blog.
Welcome to Jungle Red!

RHYS: I was thrilled to be invited. Jungle Red sounds sexy and dangerous and I've had enough of being labeled cozy and safe! So thank you all for your warm welcome.

HANK: Well, dangerous or not, you may be the only one of us who knows how to give an actual tea party. Where did you learn that? And what are the secrets?

RHYS: The teatime ritual is part of British tradition, even though everyone has less time for tea these days. I have always thought it is the perfect meal--delectable little nibbles, warm scones, clotted cream and jam, tiny sandwiches and soothing tea. Also it was always a time to step back from the chaos of the day and relax. I still love to give tea parties and talk about tea parties. And I have to confess that my heroine's tea with Queen Mary is based on my own tea party experience with the current queen!

HANK: Oh, wait. I'm interrupting. Can you tell us more?

RHYS: I should probably explain that I'm not in the habit of dining with royalty. I'm not 34th in line to the throne, nor even 35th! The Queen Mother was patron of my college and was supposed to be coming to open a new science wing. She wasn't feeling well so the queen came instead. Six of us (i was the vice president of student council) were invited to tea. A lovely tea table, the queen and six girls. She was so nice, warm, funny and made us at ease. The food looked fabulous--BUT--we were instructed that protocol demanded we only eat what Her Maj eats... and she ate one piece of brown bread. We had to stare at all those tiny eclairs, strawberry tarts etc with longing in our eyes.

ROBERTA: Oh drat, leave it to Hank to steal the tea party question before the rest of us could get to it! I'd like to know how you have the energy to write two books a year, plus short stories, plus tour like crazy. How do you manage all that?

RHYS: Put it down to insanity and a masochistic temperament.
I ask myself the same question quite frequently. I'm just the original girl who can't say no. When someone asks me to come and speak, to write a short story, I hear myself saying yes, because I'm scared if I say no they'll never ask me again.
And as for the two books a year. I keep coming up with new ideas and want to tackle them right away. I also enjoy the short stories because they let me tackle stories with more diversity and darkness than my books.

JAN: I recently read your short story, DO HAVE A CUP OF TEA, in Strand Magazine, a delightful tale about reviewer revenge. Was that inspired by any real event, a culmination of the years, or was that just to entertain all the writers in the audience? (Because I, for one, got a HUGE kick out it.)

(Here's a photo of Rhys with Andrew Gulli, the editor of Strand Magazine.)

RHYS: I've only ever had one bad review and that was from a small North Wales newspaper. The reviewer said that I didn't know what I was talking about and the book was so bad that he couldn't put it down. Of course I used that quote whenever I could: "Couldn't put it down!" North Wales Daily Post. But he annoyed me so much that I wrote this story and dedicated it to him. It felt great!

HALLIE: I do think your invention of Lady Georgina, Her Royal Spyness, is a stroke of genius. Did you "feel" like that book was going to be the big success that it was? Where did Georgie come from??

RHYS: Lady Georgie was either an act of defiance or desperation. My publisher kept telling me they could only break me out if I wrote a big dark stand-alone. I kept thinking of serial killers, child molesters and decided that I didn't want to spend six months with these people.
So I thought of the most unlikely sleuth and came up with Georgie--she's royal with all the expectations of royalty but she's flat broke. And of course

I love the Thirties, such a great era of contrasts and Noel Coward and really interesting people.

I didn't know how anyone would take it but when my agent called to say she loved it, and one of the publishers it went to wrote "I loved this. Loved it. loved it loved it" I thought I might be onto something.

It has been so gratifying to see it doing well and appealing to a wide variety of people.

HANK: So does part of you live in the present, and part of you in the Thirties? Are you in constant time travel mode? Or when you're writing, do you just--stay there?

RHYS: When I'm actually writing I'm very much in the moment and inside Molly's or Georgie's head. But as to being in the Thirties--one really doesn't have to go back in time to experience Georgie's life. I have relatives who still live in manor houses and hold sherry parties and talk as if the world hasn't changed since 1930. But I adore the Thirties clothes and style. I found a fabulous art deco bracelet at a stall on the Portobello Road in London this summer. I literally wrestled it away from another woman.

HANK: So, you're going to Hawaii as Guest of Honor at Left Coast Crime. Lovely. Tell all. (And will you bring us presents?)

RHYS: I was so excited when the Gottfrieds asked me to be guest of honor at Left Coast Crime next year. That in itself was amazing, but when I found out that the convention is going to be in Hawaii, in March, AND that my co-guest of honor is the cute and adorable and macho Barry Eisler. I mean, what more could one want. By the way, fares are coming down rapidly so it may be affordable, even from the East Coast.

JRW: Hallie's going. The rest of us are still lusting, at this point. But you never know. When's the next book? And what is it? And what should we know about it? And we should give away a couple when the time comes, right?

Tomorrow: Rhys' debut column! Come chat...and make her feel welcome. (Her JRW sisters know what she's going to say...and we bet you'll be surprised!) And hey--we have two lovely copies of Her Royal Spyness to give away! Leave a comment...and we'll draw a winner at random. Right after a spot of tea....