Oscar Winning Screenwriter, Dustin Lance Black, and Milk Movie

Sunday night at the Academy Award show a most moving and powerful acceptance speech was given by thirty-four year old screenwriter, Dustin Lance Black, who won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay Milk, based on the life of openly gay San Francisco politician, Harvey Milk. On November 27, 1978, Supervisor Harvey Milk and San Francisco Mayor George Moscone were assassinated at City Hall by Dan White, another city supervisor who had recently resigned and wanted his job back.

At the time, California Senator, Dianne Feinstein was President of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors and was in City Hall as the shootings occurred. A short while later, at a press conference originally scheduled by Mayor Moscone to announce White's successor, Feinstein announced the assassinations to a stunned public, stating: "As president of the board of supervisors, it's my duty to make this announcement. Both Mayor Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk have been shot and killed…and the suspect is Supervisor Dan White.”

Screenwriter Dustin Lance Black, I just discovered, has co-produced and written several episodes of my favorite TV program, HBO’s Big Love. Tom Hanks is one of the Executive Producers of Big Love.

Director Gus Van Sant directed Milk., starring Sean Penn., who won the Oscar last night for Best Actor. A couple of Van Sant's other works include Good Will Hunting and Finding Forrester, both excellent films. He happens to be openly gay.

Here is a video of Dustin Lance Black’s powerful acceptance speech.

The second and third videos below is an interview with Cleve Jones, AIDS activist, and co-founder of the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, and in 1987 created the AIDS Memorial Quilt. He worked as a student intern in Milk’s office while attending college.

Part One of Cleve Jones Interview



Part Two of Cleve Jones Interview

I want to see this movie. I remember the Milk, Moscone shootings of thirty years ago, I know the HIV-AIDS work of Cleve Jones, and I’ve seen the AIDS Memorial Quilt, and my husband, Don Pendleton and I, watched a candle-light San Francisco Gay Parade in about 1985 from a San Francisco hotel window. Now in 2009, 25 to 30 years later, it is time for tolerance, equality for all, including marriage if so desired, not only in California but everywhere in this country. We need to make up for wasted time—it is a time for change. We should insist on it. As Oscar winner Sean Penn said in his acceptance speech, "We've got to have equal rights for everyone."

~Linda

Novel Writing, Character Flow

After completing my latest nonfiction ebook , How Thin the Veil! 150 Years of Spiritualism and the gift ebooks that go along with it, most in celebration of Lincoln’s bicentennial birthday this month, I began a new novel. I had intended to do some writing today but did not. Sunday evening is one night that I watch certain programs, my favorite being “Big Love” on HBO. The acting is tremendous on that show. Although the story line is unique, and may not seem to be approved of by many, you really learn immediately to overlook that with the incredible acting, not just by one or two of the characters but by every one on that show. My other favorite is “Brothers and Sisters.” And of course it is hard to let a Sunday night go by without watching what is happening on Wisteria Lane with those Housewives.

So tonight thanks to my DVR I was able to see the Grammy Awards and the three programs.

So, no writing tonight. I stopped late last night at page 98. I write at night for the most part as my days are too busy. I’m usually still going strong at 1:00 am or later. It seems with the writing of this story I have been getting into a character flow...where the character or characters take over the story and “write” it. As usual, I do not know where my story is going. I have this vague idea of the overall story, but that is about it. After all it is their story to tell, so hopefully it will continue to unfold at an even pace. I hope I can keep up this momentum with the manuscript. I go to bed thinking about it, have even dreamed about it. I usually listen to the radio, Coast to Coast AM, George Noory, which is on until 4:00 am. Often I fall asleep soon after going to bed, but when Coast to Coast goes off at 4, I almost always wake up about 4:10, when the infomercials are on.... special vitamins, herbal products, and there is something so irritating with the voices of the “doctor” and interviewer, and announcer for the 800 numbers. I turn the radio off and then about that time I hear the train whistle blowing.... and then I again think about my characters in my book and what they are doing next.... and sometimes have to talk myself out of getting up and going to the computer for more story telling.

So now instead of writing page 99 and more, late tonight, I decided to write this blog....and then go listen to the radio...and the rain.

~Linda