"Downton Abbey" Season 4 Trailer Is Here!

oh how we have missed you!

now i just have to avoid the spoilers that will inevitably fly across the pond before january.
but how to stop them?

'Love Is Hard to Rearrange'

just because i'm in withdrawal and here in the states i have a bit less than 6 months to go before season 4 airs. damn lucky brits get it in septmber.

some 'downton' moments

and who could forget

'every breathe you take'

the end of their story

Tony Memories: And the Winners Are...

the tony's are given sunday night so let's make some memories
some of my favorite actresses wins are:

bebe neuwirth  lead actress musical in 'chicago' 1997

 angela lansbury musical lead for 'dear world' 1969, 'gypsy' lead 1975, 'sweeney todd' lead 1979 and 'blithe spirit' featured actress drama 2009.

maureen stapleton lead drama 1971

rita moreno supporting 1974 'the ritz'

christine baranski featured actress 'the real thing' 1984

maggie smith lead actress for 'lettice and lovage' 1990

mary-louise parker lead actress drams 'proof' 2001

audra mcdonald featured actress musical for 'ragtime' 1998

chita rivera lead actress musical 1993 'kiss of the spider woman' and 1984 'the rink'

donna murphy l996 lead musical actress for 'the king and i'

kelly bishop featured actress musical 1976 for'a chorus line'

patti lupone best actress musical 2008 for 'gypsy'

audra mcdonald lead actress musical 'porgy and bess' 2012

karen olivio featured musical actress 2009 for 'west side story'

(tomorrow some of my favorite performances at the tony awards)

If You Missed It: Maggie Smith on '60 Minutes' and More

i love dame maggie and have not given this two time oscar winner her due.
in a just world she would be honored every day

 

'60 minutes'

 

some favorite dowager countess violet grantham moments

and then some

always blunt but always right and always brilliant

those looks: that bell!

'Downton Abbey' Season 3 Tonight at Last

finally season 3 crosses the pond. check your local pbs listings for times tonight. welcome back to the best cast on tv and a masterpiece classic that deserves that title.

michelle and jessica interview

sneak peak at the divine dame maggie

'Downton Abbey' Season 3 Tonight at Last

finally season 3 crosses the pond. check your local pbs listings for times tonight. welcome back to the best cast on tv and a masterpiece classic that deserves that title.

michelle and jessica interview

sneak peak at the divine dame maggie

'Downton Abbey' Season 3 Tonight at Last

finally season 3 crosses the pond. check your local pbs listings for times tonight. welcome back to the best cast on tv and a masterpiece classic that deserves that title.

michelle and jessica interview

sneak peak at the divine dame maggie

'The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel' ***1/2

the first grownup film of the year. at last. and the dames maggie smith and judi dench. bill nighy, tom wilkinson and penelope wilton. a good script, good direction. what more can i say. oh yeah...go see it...now!

'The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel' Opens Tomorrow Nationwide

what a cast! it's made $70 million worldwide so far. not to shabby.

''Downton'' Collages

i made them. you see them. my current obsession simple!

''Downton Abbey'' Brilliant!

So what was it that drew the largest audience PBS has seen in years to ''Downton Abbey''? Well let's just say EXCELLENCE. It really is that simple. Excellent production, writing, direction, musical scoring and acting. Julian Fellowes conceived and wrote the best thing television has seen in years and has treated us to two seasons thus far. And lucky for us both of these seasons are available on DVD and Blu Ray. Season three will bow in January 2013 here in America and I'm not quite sure how I can wait that long.

The first two seasons covered the years of 1912 through the end of World War 1. It was a crucial time for British Aristocracy as it was unexpectedly turned upside down. As written by Mr. Fellowes we see the tides turn from inside Downton Abbey the home of the Earl and Countess of Grantham and their three daughters the Ladies Crawley. It is the through the eyes and actions of the Ladies Mary, Edith and Sybil that we see the world change for the landed gentry as well as the ''common folk'' who attended their needs. It was not an easy time for Earl and the Countess Crawley or the Dowager Countess Grantham. As portrayed by Hugh Bonneville, Elizabeth McGovern and the Grande Dame of them all Maggie Smith we see their small and insular world change about them. And as their lives change ''upstairs'' the world of their ''downstairs'' employees no longer stands still in service as their lives and visions also expand.

As happens in most periods of history change begins with the younger generations. Such is the case at Downton. Lady Sybil the youngest daughter is the first to let the winds of change sweep her up as she looks toward modernity for herself, for her servants and for all women. She is a precursor to the suffragette wonderfully portrayed by Jessica Brown Findlay. Lady Edith as portrayed by Laura Carmichael stands to be the daughter who may hold up the old guard. Last but by no means least is Lady Mary Crawley the eldest daughter on whose shoulders the Grantham Estate rests. Good thing she has broad shoulders. As portrayed by a dazzling Michelle Dockery we may rest assured that the Estate will survive and thrive. Ms. Dockery is a wonder whose mix of talent and beauty bequile episode by episode. She is most complimented by Dan Stevens as third cousin Matthew Crawley heir apparent to Grantham.

The cast is large and there is not a weak link in the mix. Most notable amongst the downstairs staff are Jim Carter, Brendan Coyle, Joanne Froggatt, Elsie Hughes.

The aforementioned Hugh Bonneville and Elizabeth McCovern shine as the Earl and Countess Crawley But it is the always wonderful Maggie Smith who damn near steals every scene she is in tossing one liners in her own irresistible style. She remains an international treasure.

Season three begins January 2013. Your have the rest of this year to catch up with the goings on at Downton Abbey. I will go out on a limb and say these two seasons are better than any film released in 2011. I add EXCEPTIONAL as well as excellence to define this piece which by no coincidence is shown on Masterpiece Theater. A masterpiece it is.

Ranking the Best Actress Wins So Far

#1 katharine hepburn in 'the lion in winter'

#2 sophia loren in 'two women'

#3 glenda jackson in 'women in love'

#4 maggie smith in 'the prime of miss jean brodie'

#5 barbra streisand in 'funny girl'

#6 helen hunt in 'as good as it gets'

#7 julie andrews in 'mary poppins'

#8 marie dressler in 'min and bill'

#9 greer garson in 'mrs miniver'

#10 helen hayes in 'coquete'

#11 janet gaynor in 'seventh heaven'

#12 mary pickford in 'sins of madelon claudet'

#14 norma shearer in 'the divorcee'

#15 katharine hepburn in 'morning glory'

#16 elizabeth taylor in 'butterfield 8'