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I have, over the years, gotten the opportunity from time to time to interview people who were from or whose work was related to the Golden Era, and I'm sure I'm not the only Lounger who finds him- or herself in that situation now and again.
So this thread is intended to allow those of us who do get to conduct such interviews to hear from the rest of you what questions you'd like to ask of our interview subjects.
First up -- Lesley M. M. Blume. The following is from her web site:
It's Blume's book Let's Bring Back: An Encyclopedia of Forgotten-Yet-Delightful, Chic, Useful, Curious, and Otherwise Commendable Things from Times Gone By that I'll be focusing on in our upcoming interview. It's a compilation of her Huffington Post columns, with contributions from such luminaries as Kate Spade, Nora Ephron, James L. Brooks, Arianna Huffington, Ted Koppel, Daniel Boulud, Jonathan Adler, Letitia Baldrige, and Mad Men costume designer Janie Bryant.
As described on her web site, Let's Bring Back is "a sophisticated, stylish cultural encyclopedia of nostalgia, Let’s Bring Back celebrates forgotten objects, curiosities, pastimes, fashions, words, landmarks, and personae from bygone eras. "
I chatted with Blume last week at one of her book events, and found her delightful. She's a kindred spirit, no doubt, and I think will make for a very engaging and interesting interview. I've got several questions at the ready, but I'd love to hear what my fellow Loungers would like to ask her, too. I can't promise that all submitted questions will make the cut, but I'll do my best.
So ask away!
So this thread is intended to allow those of us who do get to conduct such interviews to hear from the rest of you what questions you'd like to ask of our interview subjects.
First up -- Lesley M. M. Blume. The following is from her web site:
Lesley M. M. Blume is an author, journalist, columnist, and cultural observer based in New York City, where she was born. She did her undergraduate work at Williams College and Oxford University, and took her graduate degree in history from Cambridge University, where she was a Herchel Smith fellow.
Ms. Blume has authored three critically-acclaimed children’s novels for Knopf. Upon the release of her third novel, Tennyson, reviewers and critics placed her in the same class as writers Flannery O’Connor, Eudora Welty, and Truman Capote (“Brilliant, unusual writing.”—The Chicago Tribune). Ms. Blume’s first collection of short stories, Modern Fairies, Dwarves, Goblins, and Other Nasties, was published on September 14, 2010.
As a journalist, Ms. Blume began her career at The Jordan Times in Amman and Cronkite Productions in New York City. She later became an off-air reporter for ABC News Nightline with Ted Koppel in Washington, D.C., where she helped cover the historic presidential election in 2000, the 9/11 attacks, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and countless other events and topics.
Now writing full-time, Ms. Blume has covered culture, media, politics, and fashion (and sometimes the thorny politics of fashion) for many publications, from Vogue to Slate; she covered the business side of the fashion industry for The Big Money, and is also The Huffington Post‘s contributing style editor. In November 2010, Chronicle Books will release a book by Ms. Blume based on her popular Let’s Bring Back column for The Huffington Post.
Ms. Blume was recently hand-picked by Vogue as a founding member of the Vogue 100, an organization of “influential decision makers and opinion leaders known for their distinctive taste in fashion and culture, [and who] personify the rising influence of women over the past several decades.” Her individualistic personal style has been showcased in many magazines, including Vogue, Vanity Fair, Elle, and Women’s Wear Daily.
She lives in Greenwich Village with her husband and their French bulldog, who was a featured character in Ms. Blume’s bestselling book, Cornelia and the Audacious Escapades of the Somerset Sisters.
Sadly, most of her heroes and heroines are dead or fictional. They include but are not restricted to: Diana Vreeland, Marlene Dietrich, Isak Dinesen, Katharine Graham, Zero Mostel, Royal Tenenbaum, the Marchesa Casati, Oscar Wilde, Elsa Schiaparelli, Anthony Blanche, Flora Post, Eleanor Roosevelt, Lee Miller, Edith Wharton, and Collette.
Ms. Blume has authored three critically-acclaimed children’s novels for Knopf. Upon the release of her third novel, Tennyson, reviewers and critics placed her in the same class as writers Flannery O’Connor, Eudora Welty, and Truman Capote (“Brilliant, unusual writing.”—The Chicago Tribune). Ms. Blume’s first collection of short stories, Modern Fairies, Dwarves, Goblins, and Other Nasties, was published on September 14, 2010.
As a journalist, Ms. Blume began her career at The Jordan Times in Amman and Cronkite Productions in New York City. She later became an off-air reporter for ABC News Nightline with Ted Koppel in Washington, D.C., where she helped cover the historic presidential election in 2000, the 9/11 attacks, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and countless other events and topics.
Now writing full-time, Ms. Blume has covered culture, media, politics, and fashion (and sometimes the thorny politics of fashion) for many publications, from Vogue to Slate; she covered the business side of the fashion industry for The Big Money, and is also The Huffington Post‘s contributing style editor. In November 2010, Chronicle Books will release a book by Ms. Blume based on her popular Let’s Bring Back column for The Huffington Post.
Ms. Blume was recently hand-picked by Vogue as a founding member of the Vogue 100, an organization of “influential decision makers and opinion leaders known for their distinctive taste in fashion and culture, [and who] personify the rising influence of women over the past several decades.” Her individualistic personal style has been showcased in many magazines, including Vogue, Vanity Fair, Elle, and Women’s Wear Daily.
She lives in Greenwich Village with her husband and their French bulldog, who was a featured character in Ms. Blume’s bestselling book, Cornelia and the Audacious Escapades of the Somerset Sisters.
Sadly, most of her heroes and heroines are dead or fictional. They include but are not restricted to: Diana Vreeland, Marlene Dietrich, Isak Dinesen, Katharine Graham, Zero Mostel, Royal Tenenbaum, the Marchesa Casati, Oscar Wilde, Elsa Schiaparelli, Anthony Blanche, Flora Post, Eleanor Roosevelt, Lee Miller, Edith Wharton, and Collette.
It's Blume's book Let's Bring Back: An Encyclopedia of Forgotten-Yet-Delightful, Chic, Useful, Curious, and Otherwise Commendable Things from Times Gone By that I'll be focusing on in our upcoming interview. It's a compilation of her Huffington Post columns, with contributions from such luminaries as Kate Spade, Nora Ephron, James L. Brooks, Arianna Huffington, Ted Koppel, Daniel Boulud, Jonathan Adler, Letitia Baldrige, and Mad Men costume designer Janie Bryant.
As described on her web site, Let's Bring Back is "a sophisticated, stylish cultural encyclopedia of nostalgia, Let’s Bring Back celebrates forgotten objects, curiosities, pastimes, fashions, words, landmarks, and personae from bygone eras. "
I chatted with Blume last week at one of her book events, and found her delightful. She's a kindred spirit, no doubt, and I think will make for a very engaging and interesting interview. I've got several questions at the ready, but I'd love to hear what my fellow Loungers would like to ask her, too. I can't promise that all submitted questions will make the cut, but I'll do my best.
So ask away!