Robin, you know what's weird, about the leftover Jeeps? They featured fairly prominently in the prologue to my fourth series books, as well. All this research for about four lines and a mental image...

I wonder what movies on location actually cost back in the when old days?

Did you get a piercing? Or is it ears?

Erin, I've had my belly pierced for ten years, but I took it out about 5 years ago because "it kept getting infected". What I later found out was really happening was a wicked nickel allergy...I knew I had this issue with earrings, but I thought surgical steel was nickel-free. Turns out nsm.

I just got it re-tapered and am now in search of pretty new ones.

African Queen had a 1.5 mil budget. Impressive for those days, but 2 big stars.

I'd love to get my hands on that thng about Rita Hayworth and Aly Khan, that Erin found

Deb, I think I've seen Champagne Safari at Le Video. Only takes a phone call to check. Also, I know I've seen home movies shot during the making of The African Queen. Maybe on a Biography special on John Huston or Kate Hepburn? Maybe on a special edition of AQ?

A step further out, there's also the movie White Hunter, Black Heart which is a fictionalized account of the movie shoot for The African Queen.

deb, I found this: [link]

"The most notable incident in the history of the park was the season that Hollywood moved into Momella Lodge to make the movie Hatari! [link]

So it might be worthwhile to look for making-the-movie memoirs by the producer/director Howard Hawks.

The time frame is only off a little bit: [link]
Sadleir, Randal
Tanzania, Journey to Republic 1999 [link]
Page Number: 204a Extract Date: 1957 Hatari 1957
"Also in the main street were Arusha's two famous hotels. The New Arusha displayed a board announcing that it was exactly midway between Cape Town and Cairo, and the Safari Hotel boasted an unusual copper topped bar to which a baby elephant had been led in for a drink in a recent Hollywood film Hatari (Danger). Mount Meru overlooked the pretty garden town beyond the golf course and the main road to Nairobi to the north."

(marking posts like a mad thing) And I am so going to rent that Hayworth Khan thing. Perfect for what I need in the way of visuals.

White Hunter, Black Heart

I loved that damned thing with a passion. Had forgotten it existed. And I do remember some of the documentary things about making the African Queen - which sits in my alltime top five most loved movies, three of which happen to have Kate Hepburn in them - and for some reason, what always sticks in my head is Bogart's breakdown rant about how cool and calm and professional and goodhumoured and unflappable Hepburn is. "GODDAMN that woman! She's got tsetse flies in her hair and ants in her underwear and LOOK AT HER!" or something along those lines.

$1.5 million. Just about enough to buy Tom Cruise's cigars.

Ugh. A little advice please?

A story I probably shouldn't tell, and a letter I probably shouldn't post to follow. My sister is going through a rough patch and I need to call her, and I don't have the faintest idea what to say. I'm going to whitefont just because:

My sister recently reconnected with the love of her life, F. They were together for about three years, but a lot of that long distance, and he eventually bailed largely for that reason. They've both seen other people since then.

She's never really gotten over him, and they recently started emailing after no contact for more than a year. Awkward, at first, but recently she says they've really started connecting again and they've both been discussing whether they need to give it another try, since they've both been kind of lost since they broke up.

[FTR, I know and like F, though I think he can be a bit immature at times. To continue:]

So today, she receives this email:

Hi [sister], my name is [J]. You probably don't know about me but I'm the girl that had a "short" relationship with [F].. Actually, short means for almost two years.

I met F in january 2003. I moved in to his last apartment (saarisvägen) in may 2003. After that we moved to a bigger apartment in february 2004. He told me that he had no contact with you whatsoever and I also know that he never told you about me since he did'nt want to hurt your feelings.

Anyhow, november last year I started to get tired of our relationship, I was tired of beeing the one with a decent job,life and money. So I told him that I wanted to have a break or something. I moved in with a friend of mine for two weeks, and that helped a lot. Everything was great after that, he told me that he couldn't do without me and wanted to try again since he loved me. I loved him too so we tried again. Then I read the mail that he sent you and I realized that he wasn't honest with either of us. I threw him out of the apartmenat and he moved in to a friend of him. After that he found a room to live in. Last time we slept together was like 2 weeks ago...

I don't want to be mean, i just want you to know the truth. He's a tricky bastard, don't deserve either me or you.

Best regards, J

What the fuck does she do with that? More to the point, what the hell do I say to her? I need to call her back in a few.

Well, he wasn't dating your sister when he was seeing this girl, right? And that letter sounds like every "back off sister, I'm a psycho" ex-gf letter I've ever seen.

She's NOT writing your sis from purely philanthropic reasons.

Oh, CHRIST, brenda. That's a honker.

I honestly can't think of a damned thing you could say by way of you instigating the conversation. Immediate gut take is that you swallow your desire to beat this guy to death with a ball peen hammer and just let her lead the conversation for a bit.

edit: Erin has a good point, too - but I'm curious about how this woman got your sister's email.

Brenda, there are almost no words, but I have a few anyway. They may not help you (and by extension your sister) at all, but this is what I would do.

Mostly listen, because she's going to be justifiably devastated. There is no wrong emotional reaction. Screaming, crying, throwing things-anything short of harming herself or someone else is fair game.

Don't tell her what to do. No matter how much you might want to. (Personally, I hate following this advice myself, but ultimately we do all have to make our own choices.)

If this is true (and I mean she shouldn't take either of their word for it at this point) he's probably not the man she thought he was. He may still, however, be the man she loves. If she does decide to continue (and he gets no fuckin' vote on that if she decides not to) I hope she proceeds slowly, and does not allow this person to move in or be supported financially.

This woman did her a favor, little as it may feel like it right now. I say that, even if it's a lie, because how he reacts will tell a lot about whether this is a good time to rekindle the old flame.

I'm gonna let this go to post, because I know time on you. I hope it helps a little.