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Ami McKay’s The Virgin CureAmi McKay’s debut novel The Birth House was inspired by the former midwife’s home she and her husband bought in Nova ‘Scotia near the Bay of Fundy. Her 2011 novel The Virgin Cure also has a real-life inspiration — McKay’s great-great grandmother was a woman doctor who ministered to the poor in the 1870s in New York’s Lower East Side. Dr. Sarah Fonda MacKintosh was in the first graduating class of the medical school founded by Emily and Elizabeth Blackwell, the first women ever to practise medicine in the U.S. ![]() Nova Scotia writer Amy McKay says she is always looking for women’s stories from the past. (Ian McKay) Her graduating thesis was on syphilis in young girls and she moved directly into residency at the Blackwell sisters’ infirmary for the poor in Manhattan. The Blackwells’ infirmary was the only hospital that would accept a woman doctor at the time — the medical field considered too crude for ladies. At the time, that part of Manhattan was home to waves of immigrants and destitute people of all backgrounds, and the hospital would have dealt with waves of diphtheria and cholera that killed the very young as well as venereal diseases that blighted the lives of those not much older. McKay models her character Dr. Sadie on the women doctors of the New York Infirmary for Women and Children, but the crusading doctor doesn’t make an appearance until half-way through her new novel. The Virgin Cure is essentially a young girl’s story — of what it was like to grow up poor in a Manhattan teeming with homeless children. McKay told CBC she tried writing about this time, just after the Civil War, from the point of view of her great-great-grandmother. But the voice that emerged was not of an educated woman with a mission among the poor, but an almost illiterate girl who has grown up without love or care. “I tried writing from a first- or third-person perspective and even from her point of view primarily, and it just … wasn’t hanging together the way I really wanted,” McKay said in an interview in Toronto. “I thought about her role in all of this and how selfless she must have been and then, when I started to think about what role would she want to take in telling this story, I realized the stories she was chasing after in her own life were of these children.” ‘We hear that and it’s in sub-Saharan Africa and it’s around AIDS and we think it’s far from ourselves — it’s easy to dismiss it. But I found it’s part of our history as well.’ —Ami McKay, author of The Virgin Cure The protagonist is Moth, who is sold into domestic service by her mother the year she turns 12. Cruelly treated by her mistress, she is warned by the kindly butler Nestor to leave the house before the return of the master, who has a taste for young girls. Nestor helps her steal and fence some jewelry, but once the money from that has run out, she is wholly desperate. McKay gives a vivid picture of life on the Lower East Side — the packed tenements, the filth on the streets, the gangs of toughs hanging out together and the complete lack of options for abandoned children. Moth — her name is from Shakespeare’s Love’s Labour’s Lost — is used to being hungry, to fending for herself and to innovating in the face of want. But she’s also a child, prone to daydreaming of a better life, charmed by pretty things or fascinated by a dime museum of freaks and oddities. She knows she will eventually have to barter her body, though she’s far from sexual maturity, but is content to live in the present, postponing that day as long as she can. Her bleak predicament is offset with short selections from ladies’ magazines and etiquette guides, highlighting the fashions of the day and expected demeanour of young ladies. The picture of the all-American girl created by these excerpts contrasts with the paucity of Moth’s life. Selling young bodies big business She falls into the hands of an “infant school,” a brothel specializing in selling off the virginity of young girls. The madam invests both time and money in feeding her, dressing her and teaching her comportment and it is a reputable house, where the gentlemen are checked for disease before they are allowed access to the girls. Moth meets other young girls in training, though she doesn’t seem to make close friends as one would expect with a child so starved for affection. As loathsome as the business seems to modern readers, it was in fact spelled out in great detail in travel guidebooks of the period, which McKay found in New York archives. “It was a big machine in the city at the time. Everyone worked to keep it going — the age of consent was 10, that is astounding to me — that doesn’t change for another decade,” she said. The Virgin Cure by Ami McKay is the story of a girl raised in poverty in 1870s Manhattan. The Virgin Cure by Ami McKay is the story of a girl raised in poverty in 1870s Manhattan. Which brings us to the virgin cure — the title of the book refers to the belief, prevalent at the time, that intercourse with a virgin could cure syphilis or gonorrhea. Moth is aware of the bodies of young girls found in poorer parts of the city, raped and killed. Belief in the virgin cure leads to one of the climactic scenes of the book, and helps set the course of Moth’s life. It’s a sordid and wrenching subject, and not even Moth’s matter-of-fact point of view makes the scene easy to read. McKay is forcing readers to face an unpalatable fact of 19th-century life that she herself discovered by combing through archives of the period. The parallel with the myth, circulating in the developing world today, that sex with a virgin can cure AIDS, is one of the touchstones of McKay’s story. “We hear that and it’s in sub-Saharan Africa and it’s around AIDS and we think it’s far from ourselves — it’s easy to dismiss it,” McKay said. “But I found it’s part of our history as well.” McKay said she herself refused to believe the practice was so prevalent in the 1870s, until a doctor at the downtown hospital that replaced the Blackwells’ infirmary pointed out the significance of the title of her own great-great-grandmother’s thesis. McKay has no diaries or letters from Dr. Sarah Fonda MacKintosh, nor does she have the thesis itself, only the title. If the crusading doctor had been writing about congenital syphilis, she would have studied both boys and girls, and if she had been talking about prostitutes, her title would have been syphilis in young women. But Dr. MacKintosh wrote about syphilis in young girls — girls used and discarded and faced with a bleak, unhealthy future because there was no cure. Pot-boiler of a read As in The Birth House, McKay uses spritely storytelling to draw readers into this world. Her dialogue is true to the period and her description enough to quickly paint scenes without an excess word. The Birth House became a best-seller by word of mouth — passed from mothers to daughters to grandmothers and snapped up by book clubs. The author says that success bought her time to write this book. Despite its gruesome subject, The Virgin Cure is a quick pot-boiler of a read and will appeal to the same audience — people interested in the real world of women 140 years ago. McKay said she is fascinated with women’s stories from history. “There are so many accounts of men’s lives, men’s work. There are accounts or diaries and you can find them easily. Whereas with women’s lives, I felt a real sense of having to track them down and then I found there are a lot of missing pieces. That’s where fiction came in, filling in those gaps,” she said. Links: Find-A-Grave
Blane Fonda – 10.03.11Interviewed by: Jenny Tate (10/11/11) Blane Fonda (Questions answered by Matthew Witt)
1. How did you get your band name? 2. How did this band get started? 3. What bands are you influenced by?
5. Best food to eat on tour? 6. Why should people listen to your band? 8. If you won a Grammy, who would you thank? 9. If you could change something about the music industry, what would it be? 10. Memorable tour experience? 11. What does AP.net mean to you? AP.net means a lot to bands like Blane Fonda who are DIY. You give us a opportunity to get our name and songs out to people who would have ever heard us. In today’s music scene, it’s hard to get credible acknowledgment if you don’t have professional representation. AP.net definitely helps out the DIY scene. 12. What is your favorite song to play? 13. What is your vacation spot of choice? 14. What music reminds you of your childhood? 15. If you could have any super power, what would it be? Why? 16. Any pre-show superstitions or rituals? 17. What is something that most fans don’t know about you? 18. What is your assessment of the current state of radio? Do you think it’s a place where your band could flourish? 19. What do you like to do in your spare time? 20. What kind of hidden talents do you have?
Recycling is Fun…Posted on October 12, 2011 by BagsRevolt I had the immense pleasure to meet the founder of Recycling is Fun, Sara Fonda, who has been actively spreading this important message for thirty eight years now. I was obviously interested in visiting their shop, since I was warned it had more than 3000 samples of creative projects to get inspired with.
They work with councils and community groups through out Victoria. One of their projects is the “Home-bound” ready made kits which include materials, patterns, projects and instructions for a wide variety of crafts, tailored to the abilities of the person. It gives the opportunity for a social worker, carer, relative or friend to bring dignity and meaning to people who are unable to or do not want to leave their homes.
This visit has helped me broaden my view on the importance of Recycling. I had previously concentrated mainly on the environmental aspect of it and not so much on the social side of it. From an individual point of view, making something with your hands, expressing yourself in new ways, creatively, while recycling, gives enormous satisfaction. I have been experiencing this in my life for some time now. What is completely new to me is realizing that crafting is a powerful tool to connect with others as well as to make someone´s life a bit more happy!
Recycling is fun for everyone, even men!
PCA’s ‘The Miracle Worker’ communicates Helen Keller’s amazing storyBy Scott Orr, The Daily Courier – 10/11/2011 PRESCOTT – To see “The Miracle Worker” performed live at the Prescott Center for the Performing Arts is to simultaneously suspend disbelief and realize what an effort it is to stage this very physical play effectively. And it is effective. For anyone who has never seen the film or the play, “The Miracle Worker” tells the true story of Helen Keller, a young deaf and blind girl, and her teacher, Annie Sullivan. The story is set in the period immediately following the Civil War, when such children were sometimes believed to be uncontrollable and placed in asylums. ![]() Annie (Joanne Robertson, right) and Helen (Carly Fonda, left) have a breakthrough in communication with the help of a doll. Helen, played by 10-year-old Carly Fonda, is indeed uncontrollable as the play opens. Fonda, acting in a role that has no dialogue, yet sees her on stage for nearly all of the show’s two hours, gives a nuanced performance. “I have learned that you can (convey) words through your facial expressions,” she said. The role requires violent behavior: Helen slaps, kicks and bites people, throws silverware, breaks dishes, and wreaks all manner of other destruction whenever she fails to get her way. Annie (Joanne Robertson) gives as good as she gets, although Robertson said playing the part required a little extra help. “It’s very physical,” she said. “I’m wearing kneepads and I have bruises all over.” Supporting actor Justus Burkitt as Helen’s half-brother, James, steals nearly every scene he’s in, cracking pointed jokes and delivering sarcastic comments to Annie and his father, Captain Keller (Kevin Nissen). He acts as the comic relief in an otherwise very intense show, but his appearances never seem forced or extraneous. ![]() Helen (Carly Fonda) acts up at the breakfast table while Annie (Joanne Robertson) assesses the situation in the Prescott Center for the Arts' production of "The Miracle Worker." Callaghan Howard, Kevin Nissen, Karla Burkitt, Lois Fazio and Justus Burkitt co-star. The show is directed by Catherine Miller Hahn; this is her 60th production. She said it was not easy to stage. “This one is very difficult. There’s lots of pieces to it, lots of scenes, lots of places,” she said. Because of the nature of the theatre (it is a converted church), plays like this one, with multiple sets, require some unusual techniques and staging. “In our theater, we don’t have flies (cables to a tall ceiling) to take things up or down, so you have to figure out a way to move and weave it all,” Hahn said. The set design takes advantage of the open space above the stage, allowing the upstairs spare bedroom in which Annie writes her diary entries to literally be upstairs, above the rest of the house. As usual for this theater, there are unavoidable viewblocks presented by the structural pillars of the church which stand at the front of the stage. It is surprising how frequently these relatively small obstructions block parts of the action at times. If you know the story or have seen the film, you know how it ends. This production also includes a touching “extra” after the end of the play itself.
Here are some photos of the family of James Robert Fonda (1816-1891), born in West Troy, Rensselaer Co., NY in 1816, who settled in Wyoming, Lee Co., IL prior to 1870. He was reportedly an orphan at 9 years old, although the burial record of father is in 1837, so he could have been adopted. He became a blacksmith and married Alzina Bacon of Fulton, Oswego Co., NY in December 1837. She died in 1852, leaving him with six children. He then married Jane E. Hendricks, the daughter of John Hendricks of Wayne Co., NY and had five more children. They moved to Wyoming, Illinois after the Civil War, with the four youngest children, founding a Methodist Episcopal Church in about 1870. One son, Fitch Fenton Fonda (1840-1864), born in Fulton, Oswego Co., NY, served in the Civil War for the New York 59th Infantry (Private) in the Battles of Wilderness and Weldon Railroad. He was taken prisoner on June 22, 1864 and died of disease at Andersonville Confederate Prison on October 2, 1864. He is buried at the Andersonville National Cemetery. Another son, Erwin Roselle Fonda (1844-1919), born in Fulton, Oswego Co., NY, also served in the Civil War for the New York 147th Infantry (Corporal) in the Battles of Wilderness, Chancellorsville and Hatcher’s Run. He caught Typhoid Fever and was slightly wounded as well. He was discharged, went home to Illinois, then returned to the war as a Secretary to a Quartermaster. Later he became an Engineer with the Union Pacific and was headquartered in Omaha, NE as of 1881. A notable descendant of this family is Albert Neir Brown (1905-2011), great grandson of James Robert Fonda, born in North Platte, NE and raised in Council Bluffs, IA, where he excelled in sports and became involved in the ROTC. He married his high school sweetheart, Helen Johnson in 1925, attended Creighton University School of Dentistry, established a dental practice, started a family and became a licensed pilot. He had continued in the ROTC in college and afterwards in the reserves at the rank of First Lieutenant. He was called to active duty in October 1940 (Capt. in Dental Corps) and when war broke out he was stationed at Clark Air Force Base in the Philippines, which was attacked and overrun by the Japanese just hours after Pearl Harbor in December 1941. He was captured and survived the infamous Bataan Death March and over three years as a Japanese prisoner of war. Upon his release, he was treated for three years at Fitzsimons Hospital in Denver. He then moved to Hollywood, Calif. where his sister and brother-in-law were involved in show business. He worked in the real estate business, became an active member of the Hollywood YMCA and an avid handball player. In 1993 Albert moved to Pinckneyville, Ill. where he made his home with his daughter. He died in a nursing home in Nashville, Illinois, on August 14, 2011, at the age of 105. At the time of his death he was the oldest living survivor of the Bataan Death March. He was also listed as the oldest living WWII veteran. He had been awarded the Purple Heart, the Philippine Defense Ribbon with one star, the Presidential Unit Citation, the American Defense Ribbon with one star, the American Theater Ribbon, the Asiatic-Pacific Ribbon and the WWII Victory Medal. [link] [link] [link] [link] |