Archive for January, 2008

Bad News for the Plaza Theatre, Maybe

Just when I thought I might catch the new-old-new version of Blade Runner at the Plaza Theater at my leisure, the gals at Pecanne Log throw some truly depressing news at us.

Can’t y’all hold out until Urban Outfitters opens up conveniently next door?

If the rumors propagated by Pecanne Log are true–and lets face it, that’s a reliable source if I’ve ever seen one–all of the Wren’s Nest blog-faithful are cordially invited to watch Blade Runner: the Final Cut tomorrow night at 9:30.

The entire staff of the Wren’s Nest under the age of 50 will be there, popcorn in hand.

Previously:

Hot Fuzz: Historic Preservation or Bust

Update: As per the comments below, the sleuths at Creative Loafing have spoken with the one of the owners, who says this, more or less: “we’re not closing.” The staff of the Wren’s Nest is undeterred from seeing Blade Runner, however. See y’all there.

Is Uncle Remus Racist?

I’d like to know what you think. Your gut reaction is important.

Feel free to leave a comment, and keep in mind, there’s no right or wrong answer here!

“Uncle Remus has been banned in the United States because it is racist,” one woman said.

Incidentally, the white mothers were the ones who had a problem with the kind of exposure the Wren’s Nest would give their children.

Previously:

Confusion of Joel Chandler Harris and Song of the South

New York Times: Rehabilitating Uncle Remus

There Will Be Blood and Wren’s Nest Seating

Amelia and I saw There Will Be Blood last night with the Asian Cajuns. It was intense.

(Approximately as intense as Daniel Day-Lewis’ mustache)

It’s also a phenomenal retelling of the rise and fall of a distinctly American patriarch. Citizen Kane comparisons have been bandied about quite a bit, and it’s hard to disagree.

Aside from celebrating adaptations of ancient stories and sharing roughly the same time period, There Will Be Blood and the Wren’s Nest have a few other things in common. Namely, our chairs.

(Clearly, I am happy to be part of the show.)

If you find yourself at Tara watching the film, look closely during the scene in the fancy restaurant and try not to blurt out: “OMG those are the chairs in the storytelling room at the Wren’s Nest!!!”

You can find the same chairs in the chapel in Alfred Hitchcock’s second The Man Who Knew Too Much.

Speaking of retelling stories, it’s amazing that Hitchcock was able to make the same movie twice. It’s also amazing that the trailer is more or less simply Jimmy Stewart talking out of character.

The Wren’s Nest is Good at Reading, Writing, and Possibly Arithmetic

Because you spend hours perusing the Wren’s Nest website, you know I was a Comparative Literature major (aka the best major) in college. This theoretically makes me qualified to edit oodles of documents that, basically, make or break our budget here. Scary.

(Me, on a typical Saturday afternoon, brushing up on my comparing.)

You also know that Lain was but an English major. Good, sure, but no Comp. Lit.

So while Lain’s familial pedigree got him his cushy gig at the Wren’s Nest, it is my actual skill (pretend with me) that allows me to do important things like edit what Lain writes and then disparage him in blog form.

And while Lain and I will be the first to (obnoxiously, no doubt) endorse the benefits of a liberal arts education, our combined abilities to read and write (well-ish) have proven to be our best assets in positions for which we have no formal training.

Neat! Great! Doing well! Or so we thought.

I regret to inform you that Lain and I both missed a typo. In an end-of-the-year newsletter. That went out to important people with important money.

We are not proud.

Note: this typo was incurred in a sentence about not having a clue how to write a proper newsletter. Seems fitting. Sigh.

The Wren’s Nest’s New, Slightly Off-Putting Voicemail Message

We do not hate voicemail here at the Wren’s Nest. But based on the level of neglect we show it, our disdain for having to check it, and the fact that we frequently forget it exists, it would be fair to say we’re not exactly fond of it.

(Voicemail retrieval re-enactment, courtesy of our PBR-loving Executive Director.)

Email, however, we dig.

But people love leaving us voice messages, messages that then go unchecked for several days. We needed a solution.

I give you the New Wren’s Nest Voicemail Message, to be recorded in the next 11 minutes:

Thank you for calling The Wren’s Nest, Atlanta’s Oldest (and most exciting) House Museum and home of Joel Chandler Harris.

We are open Tuesday through Saturday, 10am to 2:30pm, and are closed Sunday and Monday. We offer storytelling every Saturday at 1pm and by appointment.

Entrance fees are $8 for adults, $7 for seniors and students, and $5 for children. For additional information, please visit our website at wrensnestonline.com .

If you have questions for the staff of the Wren’s Nest that cannot be answered by the website, please email us at amelia@wrensnestonline.com.

Email is the most effective and, more importantly, efficient way of reaching the staff of the Wren’s Nest. Feel free to leave a message here, but please keep in mind it may take us several days to get back to you. It’s not you, it’s us. We know our strengths, and voicemail isn’t one of them. Emailing is really the way to go. Seriously.

Thanks!

Publishing Royalties Increase: Is the Wren’s Nest to Blame?

Here’s what I know about the royalty check that the Wren’s Nest receives:

1. It comes once a year in January or February
2. It is some portion of a larger whole
3. It’s a check given to family members by the publisher(s) of Joel Chandler Harris’ works that are still in print.

After that, I just cash the check and don’t ask questions.

This year’s check, however, is much larger than last year’s. And so I’m asking questions.

Let’s say I got a check for $4,950 this year, which is about a 40% increase from last year (note: awesome). Does that mean that more people are buying Joel Chandler Harris’ books? I can only assume so, unless the price of those books has gone up significantly.

And if that’s the case, how much credit can the Wren’s Nest take for inspiring more purchases? As with all other endeavors I’m a part of, I’m inclined to say that at least 100% of the credit would be a fair estimate.

And if that’s the way it’s going to be, perhaps I should give a shout out and a premature “you’re welcome” to the family members I don’t know, whose wallets just got a little fatter than usual.

I’m just sayin’.

Wren’s Nest Bloggers Are On Vacation

We’ll be back on January 7th.

In the meantime, check out the Georgia Blog Carnival at Marketing Through the Clutter to see what’s going on around the state. Sure we might be a little late on this one, but go easy on us–it’s been a busy holiday.

Adios!

The Wren’s Nest Is Officially Part of the Southern Literary Trail

It’s official. We’re in.

Yup, the rumors were true.  Maybe we can help out with their website, too.