Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Sookie Stackhouse book's dedications, acknowledgments and prologues ( bk 1 & 2)

Here are the dedications and prologues from Dead Until Dark and Living Dead in Dallas.

Dead Until Dark
My thanks and appreciation go to the people who thought this book was a good idea-Dean James, Toni L. P. Kelner and Gary and Susan Nowlin

Living Dead in Dallas
This book is dedicated to all the people who told me they enjoyed Dead Until Dark.
Thanks for the encouragement.

My thanks go to Patsy Asher of Remember the Alibi in San Antonio, Texas; Chloe Green of Dallas; and the helpful cyber-friends I've made on Dorothy L, who answered all my questions promptly and enthusiastically. I have the greatest job in the world.

Introducing the all-new Southern vampire mystery series.

Sookie Stackhouse is just a small-time cocktail waitress in small-time Louisiana. Until the vampire of her dreams walks into her life-and one of her coworkers checks out . . .

Maybe having a vampire for a boyfriend isn't such a bright idea.

Sing us a song you're the piano man..

Bill Compton's Living Room: Episode 12

Bill's piano playing is interrupted when vampires Eric and Pam open his front door and walk into his living room with Jessica, the vampire he was forced to make (and who he subsequently gave to Eric because she was a nuisance).

Jessica: Hi, Daddy. (Sits on the couch)
Bill (to Eric): What is this?
Eric: There are favors. And there are... favors.
Pam: She is extremely annoying.
Bill: You can't do this. We had a deal.
Yeah, well now the terms have changed. She's yours. Unless you want to give me Sookie.
(Bill stands and bears fangs)
(Eric also bears fangs and laughs)
Eric: It's just a suggestion. Though, a few nights with this one might change your mind.
Pam: Good luck.
Eric: (In Swedish ) Åh, du ljuva frihet! (oops sorry , it means 'Ah, sweet(lovely) freedom !' in English )
(Eric and Pam leave)
Jessica: So... Who's good to eat around here? (laughs and bares fangs)

Does anyone know the song he plays ?

You know you've watched too much True Blood when...

You gave Shreveport, LA a place mark on Google Earth. ( map)

You prefer to watch TB alone because that way you can keep rewinding all the Bill and Sookie scenes and not feel like a total obsessive weirdo.

You find yourself desperately searching for any acting SM did previously, get excited because they are showing "The Starter Wife" on tv this weekend and then get your hopes dashed when you realize it's season 2, not season 1.
I have some "Sam heavy " episodes of Starter Wife here and here

You can recite some full scene dialogue to people including each characters lines complete with their individual accent, disposition, quirks and foibles, mannerisms, etc.

...in conversations, you do the the "Lafayette dip" when you say something sassy or are trying to make a point.

you dream of what TB season 4 might be like....

True Blood 's Mayor Norris: the quite amazing William Schallert.

I have been thinking about the actor who played Mayor Norris this past season in True Blood.
We see him most notably in episode 5 at the Descendants of the Glorious Dead meeting, the night that Bill Compton speaks to the group. I have been trying to remember in what movie that actor also played a mayor in another famous role.

Well, as you may know Mayor Norris is played by the amazing William Schallert who also played Mayor Webb Schubert in the 1967 movie, In the Heat of the Night. From his many famous film roles to an amazing television career it is just fascinating to look through Mr Schallert's body of work that has now spanned over 60 years.

From playing the young gas station attendant in 1947 in the film Mighty Joe Young, to starring in such television classics as: Commando Cody, Wonderful World of Disney, Wagon Train, Dobie Gillis, Gunsmoke, Patty Duke ,Get Smart and of course , he even was Nilz Baris in the Star Trek episode the Trouble with Tribbles.

How much fun it is to look through William Schallert's wonderful career, it's like strolling through the history of television.

You can see it here
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0769974/

More info here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Schallert

He is also the son of Edwin Schallert, drama editor of the "Los Angeles Times" and served as President of Screen Actors Guild (SAG) from 1979-1981

You can see William in one of his True Blood scenes below :

Flesh and Blood : True Blood in Australia

Written by David Knox for SX News

Everything Alan Ball touches turn to gold: American Beauty, Six Feet Under and now True Blood - his television follow up. Produced for HBO, it's already got street cred and industry awards. This here is the hot new thang.

Set just a few years into the future there are vampires amongst us. But since the widespread availability of synthetic blood, they no longer need to devour humans. Instead they fight for respectability and advocate acceptance. Vampires suffer prejudice, simply for being different. Are you getting the metaphors here?

Based on the book The Sookie Stackhouse by Charlaine Harris, the setting is the small town of Bon Temps in deepest, darkest Louisiana. Visually, this small town is a southern sister to David Lynch's Twin Peaks. Small road diners, dilapidated shacks, savannah trees and night critters abound. The 'indie' opening credits feature everything from Baptist revival meetings to the Ku Klux Klan with a rockin' bluegrass theme. Ball's world is gothic working class - raw and steamy.

Front and centre of the story is Sookie (Anna Paquin), a cafe waitress who has telepathic abilities. Serving unfriendly customers who are always longing to grope her is a daily chore. Working alongside her are bartender Tara (Rutina Wesley) and Lafayette (Nelsan Ellis), a gay cook who turns tricks for money.

When Sookie meets Bill (Stephen Moyer), a handsome 173-year-old vampire, she is drawn to his magnetism and intrigued by the fact she cannot hear his thoughts. These two misfits are a match made outside heaven. "You can never find a human man you can be yourself with," he insists.

Australian Ryan Kwanten (Home & Away, Summerland) plays Sookie's brother Jason, a road worker and horny bad boy who finds himself as the number one suspect in a murder case. Someone is killing young women and they're usually his recent conquests. With a ripped bod and rabid naked scenes, Kwanten is sex on a stick.

Ball marks his territory slowly in True Blood. This is a grand melodrama built on character, concepts and tone. Bubbling beneath the surface is a sexual energy and an unsettling feeling that horror lurks around every corner. The performances are superb, with Paquin shifting from strong and sexy to vulnerable with consummate ease.

Previously, Alan Ball has proven he is prepared to defy conventions with his storytelling. Methinks he's just warming up here.

True Blood premieres 8:30pm Tuesday February 10 on Showcase

http://sxnews.e-p.net.au/television-guide/flesh-and-blood-4887.html

True Blood Season 2 : Chris Oliver Food Stylist


Another great True Blood blurb on her blog and yet another wonderful Cajun recipe from my favorite Food Stylist !

For those of you True Blood fans like me the filming of the first episode of the second season has begun. I'm so excited to be back on the show . To let you guys know I Chris Oliver have been the food stylist for the first season and to clear up any confusion there was a typo. Congratulations to Anna Paquin 2008 golden globe winner and Alan Ball creator/executive producer for bringing his adaption of the Stackhouse Novels written by Charlaine Harris to the small screen for yet another wonderful season of True blood on HBO. This supernatural series focuses on a small town in Louisiana where vampires now coexist with humans as fellow citizens. It follows Sookie Stackhouse a telepathic waitress and her open mindedness of vampire integration . Enjoy the new season and be sure to watch for plenty of southern flared cuisine.


LOUISIANA GUMBO
2 lbs chicken
2 lbs breakfast sausage (Hot)
3 lbs shrimp (peeled and deveined)
1 lb craw fish tail (peeled)
1 lb okra
8 ounces clam juice
4 bell peppers
2 chili peppers (Cayenne)
3 tablespoons ground sage
3 tablespoons chicken boulien
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon gumbo file
1/2 cup flour

Directions
In a large (I mean large) stockpot boil chicken (completely covered by 2 inches of water), chopped okra, sage, bouillon, oregano, black pepper until chicken is done. Remove chicken and set aside to cool, leave the stock in the pot. When cool debone the chicken and shred the meat. Set aside for now.
Crumble sausage and fry in a skillet. Remove sausage and set aside. Reserve 1/2 cup of the drippings. Add flour and make a very dark roux (dark brown). Add the sausage and roux to the chicken broth and let simmer 10 minutes.
Chop bell peppers and cayennes at this time. Add to pot and let simmer 10 minutes.
Add shrimp, clam juice, crawfish tails to the pot and let simmer 15 minutes.
Add the chicken and gumbo file to the pot and bring to a boil.
I like to let this gumbo rest for a few hours and then reheat it before serving. Serve over rice with crackers and Louisiana hot sauce.
This gumbo only gets better the next day. It freezes well to make a quick simple meal anytime.~

Check out her woderful blog : http://starfoodstylist.blogspot.com/2009/02/true-blood-season-2.html

True Blood Music Video of the Day



Forever in blue jeans by Neil Diamond LYRICS