Saturday, November 21, 2009

Cartoons and Tweety Bird


From the Road Runner, Chip 'N Dale, Foghorn Leghorn, Snagglepuss, Quick Draw McGraw, Sylvester and Tweety Bird (Who can forget Granny?), Rocky & Bulwinkle foiling Boris and Natasha at every turn, to Underdog. Who doesn't love the old Saturday Morning Cartoons?

Use your imagination when reading these famous Foghorn Leghorn phrases:

"Fortunately I always carry a spare set of feathers." or the famous, "Now looka I say looka here." "Go, I say go away boy, you bother me." Can't you just hear him? I never got tired of hearing his western twang.

But, as much as I loved Chip 'N Dale, Bulwinkle and Underdog, my alltime favorite cartoon character was Tweety - aka, Tweety Bird, Tweety Pie - who appeared in 48 cartoons in the Golden Age of Cartoons.

Tweety is, for the most part, a good-natured character happily spending life in his cage or a nest. That is until Sylvester starts slinking around, threatening him, he can become downright devious. And, if Tweety fails to stop his arch-enemy, then it's Granny to the rescue - the little old, bun and bustle-wearing spinster whose weapon-of-choice is an umbrella.

In doing research for this blog post, I tried to pull up current favorite Saturday cartoons and couldn't find any! Are there good cartoons out there? Please, somebody clue me in. Who is the new Tweety Bird, or Mighty Mouse, or Underdog?

Leave a comment with your favorite! Meanwhile, enjoy this stroll down memory lane.

Meanwhile, check out Saturday Morning Cartoons DVD from the 1960s on Amazon

Mary Cunningham is the author of the award-winning, 'Tween series, "Cynthia's Attic," co-author of the women's humor/lifestyle book, "WOOF: Women Only Over Fifty," and has several published short stories, including Ghost Light available on Kindle, and new release, Cynthia's Attic: Christmas Daisy. Pre-order - Echelon Press

All books available on Amazon
Directly from the publisher Echelon Press
Download on Fictionwise
or visit my website: Mary Cunningham Books


Saturday, November 7, 2009

Cynthia's Attic: The Magician's Castle



This is a video I'm working on for the release of "Cynthia's Attic: The Magician's Castle, coming soon!

Would appreciate feedback. Does this video say enough about the book to make you want to read it? If not, what would you like to see?

Buy Cynthia's Attic Series on Amazon

Also, coming soon the new Cynthia's Attic short story, Christmas Daisy!

Mary Cunningham Books

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Kerry Madden's Harper Lee (Up Close)


When I discovered that Kerry Madden was writing a biography about Harper Lee, I knew I had to read it. After all, it would be about my absolute favorite author and my all-time favorite book. Without fail, I devour every single word spoken by narrator, Scout, each time (I've lost count) I read To Kill A Mockingbird. Add one of the most talented and delightful authors, Kerry Madden, to the mix and it's a sure winner.

The young adult author of Gentle's Holler, Jesse's Mountain, and Louisiana Song, the Maggie Valley Trilogy set in 1960s North Carolina, has written the story of Nelle (pronounced Nail in her South Alabama hometown, Monroeville) Harper Lee with loving warmth. I have an idea how much the "Mockingbird" author means to Madden because detailed research and interviews leave no stone unturned.

Nelle, was as much a tomboy as narrator, Scout. This is probably one of the reasons I so identify with the book. Jane Hybart, a childhood friend writes that, during a softball game, she intercepted a ground ball hit by Nelle and was set to tag her out at first base. Instead of letting that happen, Nelle plowed right over Jane, knocking her flat. "Like a freight train," Jane recalled. Nelle was also wild about football, and played center on her hometown 4th grade football team and had no problem. My kinda gal!

I found Harper Lee's insecurity about her writing, refreshing. Reading through the early years of her life, it was easy to see the huge influence played by her supportive father; even if he did think giving up law school to move to New York to write, was an "unpractical profession." He thought she'd be much happier staying in Alabama writing for the Monroeville Journal. Had it not been for the encouragement of an old friend, Truman Capote, perhaps she would've backed out and the world might never have read, "He would be there all night, and he would be there when Jem waked up in the morning."

I hesitate to give away anymore tidbits about the life of Nelle Harper Lee, her family and friends, because you need to read and savor this bio for yourself. Although she was turned down by Ms. Lee to be interviewed for the book, as has everyone else wanting to chronicle her life, Madden barely misses a beat in Harper Lee (Up Close).



Kerry Madden's Website
Harper Lee: Up Close Amazon


I'm proud to announce the release of Book Four in the award-winning series, "Cynthia's Attic" will be released by Quake (Echelon Imprint) DEC 1, 2009! Buy the first three books on Amazon and pre-order "The Magician's Castle." Echelon Press