A toast to the man who changed how America drinks …
Enduring an unspeakable nightmare and a family secret that he guarded at all costs, Ernest Gallo overcame unimaginable odds to achieve the American dream.
Ernest Gallo (the “E” of E & J Gallo) may have been haunted by tragedy, but that didn’t deter him from his mission: putting a bottle of wine on every American table.
Gallo grew his legacy from the musty Modesto, California dirt. From fallow acres he practically willed the wine industry into being out of faith and tenacity as he overcame physical and emotional abuse, illness, and the near destruction of the family he was determined to save.
To highlight the wonderful yet largely forgotten work of a collection of female screenwriters from the early years of Hollywood (and as a companion to the book, When Women Wrote Hollywood) we will be posting quick bits about the many films they wrote along with links to further information and clips from their works which are still accessible online. Take a few moments once or twice a week to become familiar with their names and their stories. I think you’ll be surprised at how much bold material these writers tackled at the birth of this new medium. — Rosanne Welch
The Little Foxes (1941) is an American drama film directed by William Wyler. The screenplay by Lillian Hellman is based on her 1939 play The Little Foxes. Hellman’s ex-husband Arthur Kober, Dorothy Parker and her husband Alan Campbell contributed additional scenes and dialogue.[2]
The title comes from Chapter 2, Verse 15 in the Song of Solomon in the King James version of the Bible, which reads, “Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines: for our vines have tender grapes.”[3] The same passage also inspired the title of an unrelated film, Our Vines Have Tender Grapes.
Southern aristocrat Regina Hubbard Giddens (Bette Davis) struggles for wealth and freedom within the confines of an early 20th-century society where a father considered only sons as legal heirs. As a result, her avaricious brothers, Benjamin (Charles Dingle) and Oscar (Carl Benton Reid), are independently wealthy, while she must rely for financial support upon her sickly husband Horace (Herbert Marshall), who has been away undergoing treatment for a severe heart condition. — Wikipedia
* A portion of each sale from Amazon.com directly supports our blogs ** Many of these books may be available from your local library. Check it out! † Available from the LA Public Library
As the first century approached, a sickly boy was born while the Roman Republic was nearing its ultimate demise. The boy’s life and the country both hung in the balance.
But the strong and determined young man grew to be the Republic’s fiercest defender. With his dogged determination and towering intellect, Marcus Tullius Cicero became a famed statesman, celebrated orator, and an esteemed philosopher.
Surviving civil wars, political intrigues, and assassination attempts, Cicero pushed against the grain, standing steadfastly in support of the Republic, even when it threatened his career—or his life.
Renowned artist Leonardo da Vinci was the greatest genius to ever conquer the worlds of art, science, and philosophy. Writing backwards to protect his knowledge, da Vinci epitomized creativity and eccentricity.
Despite being plagued with frustrations and failures, da Vinci was spurred to create, invent, research, and write no matter the cost. By exploring his sorrows and joys, da Vinci’s world is uncovered. And with it a five-hundred-year-old secret is released: the hidden truth of Leonardo da Vinci.
To highlight the wonderful yet largely forgotten work of a collection of female screenwriters from the early years of Hollywood (and as a companion to the book, When Women Wrote Hollywood) we will be posting quick bits about the many films they wrote along with links to further information and clips from their works which are still accessible online. Take a few moments once or twice a week to become familiar with their names and their stories. I think you’ll be surprised at how much bold material these writers tackled at the birth of this new medium. — Rosanne Welch
Lillian Florence Hellman (June 20, 1905 – June 30, 1984) was an American dramatist and screenwriter known for her success as a playwright on Broadway, as well as her left-wing sympathies and political activism. She was blacklisted after her appearance before the House Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC) at the height of the anti-communist campaigns of 1947–52. Although she continued to work on Broadway in the 1950s, her blacklisting by the American film industry caused a drop in her income. Many praised Hellman for refusing to answer questions by HUAC, but others believed, despite her denial, that she had belonged to the Communist Party.
As a playwright, Hellman had many successes on Broadway, including Watch on the Rhine, The Autumn Garden, Toys in the Attic, Another Part of the Forest, The Children’s Hour and The Little Foxes. She adapted her semi-autobiographical play The Little Foxes into a screenplay, which starred Bette Davis and received an Academy Award nomination in 1942.
Hellman was romantically involved with fellow writer and political activist Dashiell Hammett, author of the classic detective novels The Maltese Falcon and The Thin Man, who also was blacklisted for 10 years until his death in 1961. The couple never married — Wikipedia
* A portion of each sale from Amazon.com directly supports our blogs ** Many of these books may be available from your local library. Check it out! † Available from the LA Public Library
Children were her life, and God’s messenger Mother Frances X. Cabrini dedicated her entire life to caring for poor Italian immigrants who sought refuge in the slums of New York City in the early 1890s.
A devout champion of education and proper health care for the poverty-stricken, Cabrini forged a path of survival for young children by building schools, orphanages, and hospitals—not only in the United States, but also throughout Europe and Central and South America. With an acumen for business and a desire to help, Mother Cabrini chiseled away at a problem others refused to see.
Years after her death, Mother Cabrini was named Patron Saint of Immigrants because of her unwavering work for those who needed her.
For her 5th Doctor Who lecture to the CPP community, Dr. Rosanne Welch discusses how society – and the show’s writing staff – prepared the audience for a major change in this 50-year franchise – the creation of the first Lady Doctor!
Transcript:
We also had this young gentleman who was in both the Baker and the Davison Era who was Adric, who was a math genius and he was a young kid so he had more access to his emotions. We don’t let young boys have their emotions. We tell them not to cry. That’s stupid. Humans cry. There’s no such thing as not cryng, right, but we do that. So, it was nice to have Adric as an example back in the day. And until I was putting this together I never had read that fun fact. That’s where they got his name from — an actual Nobel-winning guy. I thought it was pretty cool. I love that — again — writers playing and giving us more information. I just learned something a guy I had never heard of, right? A little research.
Rosanne Welch PhD teaches the History of Screenwriting and One-Hour Drama for the Stephens College MFA in Screenwriting.
Writing/producing credits include Beverly Hills 90210, Picket Fences, ABCNEWS: Nightline and Touched by an Angel. In 2016 she published the book Why The Monkees Matter: Teenagers, Television and American Pop; co-edited Women in American History: A Social, Political, and Cultural Encyclopedia; and placed “Transmitting Culture Transnationally Via the Characterization of Parents in Police Procedurals” in the New Review of Film and Television Studies. Essays appear in Torchwood Declassified: Investigating Mainstream Cult Television and Doctor Who and Race: An Anthology. Welch serves as Book Reviews editor for Journal of Screenwriting and on the Editorial Advisory Board for Written By magazine, the magazine of the Writers Guild.
His greatest accomplishment came after his greatest disappointment.
One of the founding fathers of the Renaissance, Filippo Brunelleschi was more than an Italian designer. Brunelleschi made his mark in architecture and construction.
In his early years, sculpting was Brunelleschi’s passion. But after being passed over for a major commission, he set his sights on architecture, and changed the landscape of Italy as it is known today.
Brunelleschi’s most prominent contribution, the dome of Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, was the first of its kind, paving the way for bigger and more elaborate domes to come. His invention of machines to facilitate the construction of the dome allowed future structures to not only be imagined, but to be erected as well.
With his imagination, understanding of linear perspective, focus on geometric principles, and intellect for mathematics, Brunelleschi influenced the rise of modern science and architecture worldwide.
Date: Thursday, October 25, 2018 Time: 12:00pm – 1:00pm Location: Special Events Room 4829, Cal State Fullerton Pollack Library, 800 N State College Blvd, Fullerton, CA 92831 Campus: Building 15
In her talk screenwriter and professor Rosanne Welch will discuss everything Star Wars from George Lucas to Leigh Brackett to Lawrence Kasdan. From Luke Skywalker to Han Solo to Lando Calrissian (both original and prequel versions) to Poe. From Leia Organa to Rey to Jyn Erso. From Jaws to the whole Star Wars franchise to Raiders of the Lost Ark in a look at how Star Wars changed films and fandom forever.
As the son of an Italian count, Cavalry Colonel Louis Palma di Cesnola had more military experience than most of the leading officers in the Civil War. Objecting to his general’s orders, di Cesnola led his men into battle, earning himself a Medal of Honor.
When di Cesnola was captured and thrown into the notorious Libby Prison, he was forced to examine his life decisions. Upon release, di Cesnola was torn between his desire to return to war or to his wife and daughter—a battle of his heart and his duty.
Once the war ended, di Cesnola became America’s consul for archaeological excavators, and eventually became the first director of the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art. With every step of success, di Cesnola was forced to prove himself in a country that emphatically disapproved of immigrants. His plight forged a path of national acceptance of Italian-Americans throughout the entire country.
![31 Adric from Gender Diversity in the Who-niverse [Video] (0:38)](https://rosannewelch.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/gender-dw-31-adric.jpeg)
