Her Again: Becoming Meryl Streep by Michael Schulman: book review

Her Again: Becoming Meryl Streep (2016) is the biography of American actress Meryl Streep in the early years, from 1966 in the Bernards High School’s theatrical productions to 1980 and her first Best Supporting Actress Oscar for the film Kramer vs. Kramer (1979).

Each of the seven chapters is headed with the name of a character portrayed by Streep: Mary, Julie, Constance, Isabella, Fredo, Linda (The Deer Hunter), and Joanna (Kramer vs. Kramer). The exception is Fredo, the character played by her partner John Cazale in The Deer Hunter.

Born Mary Louis Streep in 1949, Meryl attended Bernards High School and Vasser College (1969-1971) before being accepted into the Yale School of Drama (1972-1975). Schulman blends Streep’s involvement in amateur drama productions with current events – Vietnam war, Vassar transitioning from an all-girls college to co-ed – and information on the books she read and the people who influence her.

The move to New York at the age of 26, and her relationship from 1975-1978 with actor John Gazale until his death from cancer, and her marriage to sculptor Don Gummer in 1978 are well-documented. But it is her transition from theatrical roles in Broadway and off-Broadway plays to film that are interesting, especially her years in the Yale School of Drama. Her interpretations for improvisations and how she prepares for character roles give an insight into the way she appears on screen.

Her first American screen role, second to her brief scene in Julia (1977), was as Linda, the checkout girl ‘between two guys’ in The Deer Hunter (1978), starring Robert de Niro and Christopher Walken. It was her role as Joanna, fighting for custody of her son Billy, starring opposite Dustin Hoffman in Kramer vs. Kramer that was the springboard to a long career in acting.

Schulman describes Streep as an idiosyncratic beauty, a chameleon, versatile, the ‘accent queen’ and ‘beyond bold’ in her acting techniques. Although the biography is based on extensive and exhaustive documents and interviews with people who worked with Streep, he never interviewed her. So this is a compilation of secondary information. However, he does provide a full list of footnotes and some photographs.

Nominated for 19 Academy Awards (Oscars), she has had more nominations than any actor, and has won three Oscars: Best Supporting Actress in Kramer vs. Kramer (1979), Best Actress for Sophie’s Choice (1982), and Best Actress in The Iron Lady (2011) portraying British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.

Schulman does cover the early years comprehensively and tries to bring to light Streep’s development as an actor: her style, techniques, choices, influences, benefactors, props, rehearsals, and delivery, such that the title is quite appropriate – Becoming Meryl Streep. But for those who want more, Schulman deliberately does not venture into Streep’s long career, and stops at 1980 – 36 years short of the continual evolution of Meryl Streep.

MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of:- The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).

The acacia thorn trees of Kenya

There are nearly 800 species of acacia trees in the world, and most don’t have thorns. The famous "whistling thorn tree" and the Umbrella Thorn tree of Kenya are species of acacia that do have thorns, or spines. Giraffes and other herbivores normally eat thorny acacia foliage, but leave the whistling thorn alone. Usually spines are no deterrent to giraffes. Their long tongues are adapted to strip the leaves from the branches despite the thorns. The thorny acacia like dry and hot conditions. The thorns typically occur in pairs and are 5-8 centimetres (2-3 inches) long. Spines can be straight or curved depending on the species. MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of:- Similar But Different in the Animal Kingdom (2017), The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Suda...

Hop on hop off bus tourism comes to Tbilisi, Georgia

City Sightseeing buses have arrived in Tbilisi. The iconic red double-decker buses, a feature of many cities around the world since the company was established in Seville, Spain in 1999, is now in six continents and almost 100 cities. The company established its Tbilisi business in November 2013, with its operations commencing in February 2014. The 90-minute tour stops at 11 major locations in Tbilisi (with 2 to 5 minute waiting times at each location): the Old City (where it commences), Freedom Square, Rose Revolution Square, Marjanishvili Square, the Dry Bridge, Konka, Avlabari, Metekhi, Akhundov Museum, the Sulfur Baths, and European Square. Passengers can hop off at any stop and see the sights, hopping back onto the next bus at any time. Alternatively, passengers can remain on the bus for the whole tour and take photographs when the bus stops at each location. There are one day (24-hour) passes (for 35 lari – about $20) and 48-hour passes for 55 lari, with family d...

The Knight in the Panther Skin by Shota Rustaveli (2015 translation): book review

The Knight in the Panther Skin (12th century, this edition 2015) is a recent translation by American poet and author, Lyn Coffin. The author, Shota Rustaveli, is Georgia’s most loved poet. This poem is mammoth, a magnum opus – it is 1,656 verses long, separated by chapters. But readers, don’t give up, because every verse is worth reading. It is akin to 1001 Arabian Knights, Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales, or Shakespearean poetry. King Rostevan of Arabia has a daughter, Tinatin. She loves the knight Avtandil and he loves her. Verse 368 from Avtandil: ‘The doctor’s could do nothing. A dark twilight on my heart now pressed, I was on fire because of love, but nobody knew or guessed. They blamed my blood. The king decided bleeding my arm would be best; I let it be done to hide the suffering I had not confessed.’ But a knight in panther skin is seen weeping, and subsequently kills the king’s soldiers, sparing the king. Before Tinatin weds Avtandil she r...

FEAST OR FAMINE

Search This Blog