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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 3m

there is a scene in the postwar South where Ashley Wilkes protests his objection to making men labor against their will (white convicts) and I laughed out loud - and then Scarlett called him on it! (he says we treated the slaves better than this)

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 2h

saying "I swear I can stop drinking" while currently guzzling the gin we reek of might well be true but people should not believe it until other sorts of behavior happen

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 2h

While I am an optimist on this issue, the time for a conversation about how "this time we're sober for sure and for good" is once we are no longer stinking drunk in the gutter.

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 3h

Stephen King as a fever (well, maybe cocaine) dream of 70s-80s Maine, with Edmund Muskie and Olympia Snowe on TV talking about the kid who set her school on fire with her mind while a clown-demon watches from the sewers.

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 3h

especially since her family's poor and her mother is deeply bigoted

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 13h

It is exceedingly unlikely that gentleman is anybody's brother in Christ. well I suppose he might be depending on one's perspective on Christian universalism.

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 14h

I was already cautiously pro-Kamala and I'm definitely not less now.

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 14h

a thought popped into my head the other day that I'd love to see Robert Pattinson play him in a biopic. (too handsome but that's a recurring problem)

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 14h

I feel bad about this one because Stewart's WW2 service and its aftermath are a legitimately interesting subject for a biopic and KJ Apa has charisma but it feels like he's playing Stewart in a movie-length SNL sketch.

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 15h

Clark Gable flatly told Selznick that they could end segregation among cast and crew during filming or they could find another Rhett Butler - and so they ended it. He only attended the segregated premeire because Hattie McDaniel asked him to, and they were friends for the rest of his life.

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 15h

It made me think of Chris Pine and Paul Wesley playing Kirk and how they both steered very far from trying to sound like Shatner.

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 15h

well he's not going to do anything perverse like marry a divorcee.

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 15h

www.youtube.com/watch?v=4nrB... I found this almost upsetting to watch because everything else works so good until he does that and he does it throughout.

youtube.com

JIMMY – Official Trailer 2

YouTube video by Burns & Co.

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 16h

KJ Apa is a pretty good physical likeness and has some good physical charisma. But his voice sounds like he was told to play the role while doing his best Jimmy Stewart impersonation and oh man, it does not work in a dramatic biopic at all.

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 16h

oh man, I just remembered the worst thing I saw in the theater today. They're doing a Jimmy Stewart biopic this year. Big Hollywood star decides he needs to actually fight in the war that has started, suffers for it, and puts himself back together by making a Christmas movie. Good story!

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 16h

anyway, the National Hotel Disease of 1857 is one of those moments in history when a little bit of severe dysentery might have radically altered the future to come. not the first or last time that would have happened... end thread

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 16h

IIRC one possible plan would have involved maintaining the blockade of Southern ports and thus beginning the war as a naval conflict over customs enforcement - but that would have its own dangers...

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 16h

This is going to present Lincoln with a v. thorny problem. "De-recognition" and attempting to retake forts already handed over is going to be an entirely different set of problems than defending what the federal government already holds.

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 16h

This may provoke a serious crisis but if the Upper South stays in Congress they'll be able to block - or at least much delay - impeachment. An attempt on his life seems possible too but let's skip that for a moment.

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 16h

he may even recognize Confederate independence and accept an ambassador from the CSA (there were efforts to get Buchanan to do this but that was a little much, even for Buchanan) after all, the Constitution gives him that power!

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 16h

This is where Breckenridge abruptly swings in the other direction. President Breckenridge will urge the Lower South to stay in the Union (as he did in OTL) but once secession starts happening, I think he will order federal property in seceded states (like Ft. Sumter) to be handed over.

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 16h

But there will still certainly be many divisions in the wake of Dred Scott, the fight over Lecompton, etc, so it's entirely possible that the Dems will split as per OTL - or that Lincoln (or some other Republican) will win anyway.

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 16h

(Indeed, some historians argue that Breckenridge didn't really want to run for POTUS In 1860 and would have withdrawn from the race had Douglas stepped aside for a compromise candidate)

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 16h

but while Buchanan wanted to read Douglas out of the party for his treachery, Breckenridge thought that Douglas was obviously better to have in the Senate than a Republican. So I think under Breckenridge the Dems will be considerably more united from 1857-1861.

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 16h

In particular Breckenridge supported Stephen Douglas's re-election campaign in 1858, decidedly unlike President Buchanan. Like Buchanan, Breckenridge supported the en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lecompt... which would have made Kansas a slave state and was only defeated by Douglas's vigorous lobbying.

en.wikipedia.org

Lecompton Constitution - Wikipedia

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 16h

In some ways Breckenridge would have been a more effective, even more unifying, POTUS than Buchanan. While he was a Southerner (and of course would eventually become a Confederate) he wasn't particularly radical despite his Southern fireeater support in 1860.

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 16h

Breckenridge BTW was James Buchanan's VP, serving from 1857-1861, having become VP at the age of 36 - making him still the youngest such in American history. It's easy enough to kill Buchanan early in his Presidency - just have him die of en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nationa... (he got sick as it was)

en.wikipedia.org

National Hotel disease - Wikipedia

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 16h

Though JD Vance and Spiro Agnew have had some moments, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_C.... is the Vice-President who did the most damage to the United States - no other VP became a general in an army that fought the US government and killed Americans. So what if he had become POTUS? thread

en.wikipedia.org

John C. Breckinridge - Wikipedia

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 17h

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cassie_... Canadian con artist Cassie Chadwick, aka Elizabeth Bigley (!) was born today in Appin. She will in Milton's lifetime pull off one of the biggest cons in American history up to that time by passing herself off as Carnegie's illegitimate daughter. #wrightposting

en.wikipedia.org

Cassie Chadwick - Wikipedia

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 17h

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_... across the country, another man from a famous family will die today. striking to me that this man plausibly would have been King of America if the US had become a constitutional monarchy. probably for the best we dodged that. #wrightposting

en.wikipedia.org

George Washington Parke Custis - Wikipedia

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 17h

Milton Wright October 10, 1857 I felt rather feeble. I remained at Harritt's, reading. #wrightposting

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 17h

oh, Angela Lansbury commented on this at the time - it was one reason she took the role in the first place.

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 17h

I've shared the famous story of Milton discouraging Orville and Wilbur from flying together because of his fear of them both dying - always interesting how that's usually told as "Milton forbade the boys from flying together" while leaving out they were in their forties at the time!

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 17h

i.e., the main character is bought out of slavery by a mysterious rich person who anonymously gives him startup $$$, and he thinks how deeply weird this is, because the whole point is that the cliens is loyal to the patronus, but how can he do that if he doesn't know who it is?

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 17h

this got me going back and re-reading the Leonidas the Gladiator novels, which show their research in interesting ways.

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 17h

and at the end of the day, the party should never say "no we're good, just keep your money"

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 17h

deliberately so! Enos Canutt found it expedient to go by Yakima on the rodeo circuit as a young man

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 18h

in scenes where a guy falls off a horse and dies I am pretty sure that's just Yakima Canutt doing his thing. hot damn.

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 18h

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leslie_... a grim irony that of course he was killed in the real war that followed. really that was my biggest "hm!" in watching the movie - the opening scene filmed in late 1939 where the American characters discuss how the war is coming, however you feel about that.

en.wikipedia.org

Leslie Howard - Wikipedia

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 18h

I was impressed at how much Hattie McDaniel gets away with - in some ways her role was almost modern! but that speaks more to what progress could still be made there.

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 18h

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cammie_... who plays an older child is not.

en.wikipedia.org

Cammie King - Wikipedia

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 18h

It seems that the same actor - the still living Greg Giese - played both babies in the movie. I was sure that was the same baby! www.avclub.com/controversy-... but there is some baby controversy.

avclub.com

Controversy over how many babies were in Gone With The Wind is tearing Hollywood apart

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 18h

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olivia_... technically a Japanese-American star, if you want to be misleading about a technical truth and sometimes I do. amazing that she was born in Milton Wright's lifetime and lived into my son's.

en.wikipedia.org

Olivia de Havilland - Wikipedia

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 18h

Poor Butterfly McQueen said later she didn't mind being typecast as a maid - it was being typecast as a _stupid_ maid that was frustrating. (Prissy had been redeemed in many works of fan/foe-fiction and that's nice.)

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 18h

I was impressed at how frank they could be in this movie about sex without breaking the Code - a couple of times, no less. I could see why it was too much for some audiences.

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 18h

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victor_... does not come up a lot in lists of great directors (at least that I've seen) but he did this and The Wizard of Oz in the same year! (also he was allegedly a Nazi sympathizer, not great Victor!)

en.wikipedia.org

Victor Fleming - Wikipedia

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 18h

I told my wife coming home that I wanted to have more thoughts than "very artistically good, obviously problematic in some areas to modern sensibilities" re: Gone With The Wind. So here are some thoughts (about a movie I'd never seen before: thread

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Dr. M.A. Davis @mikedavis.bsky.social · 19h

at the very least, it was almost certainly about a suicidal man - and this makes it even worse. (and the suicidal part might well still be true)

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