Thursday

Jul. 10, 1997

Empires

by Charles Simic

THURSDAY 7/10

Today's Reading:"Empires" by Charles Simic from A WEDDING IN HELL, published by Harcourt Brace & Co. (1994).

In 1943 the U.S. 7th Army, commanded by General George Patton, began its invasion of Sicily.

It was on this day in 1940 that the German Luftwaffe sent 70 planes to raid targets in southern Wales, beginning The Battle of Britain.

It's the birthday of songwriter Jerry Herman (HELLO, DOLLY!; MAME; LA CAGE AUX FOLLES), born in New York City on this day in 1933.

It's the birthday of short-story writer and novelist Alice Munro (OPEN SECRETS; LIVES OF GIRLS AND WOMEN; FRIEND OF MY YOUTH), born in Wingham, Canada, in 1931.

It's the birthday of broadcaster David Brinkley, born in Wilmington, North Carolina, in 1920.

Jazz singer Ivie Anderson, who sang with Duke Ellington for eleven years, was born on this day in Gilroy, California, in 1905.

Wyoming became the 44th state on this day in 1890.

Educator Mary McLeod Bethune, was born on this day in Mayesville, South Carolina, in 1875.

It's the birthday of novelist Marcel Proust, born in Paris on this day in 1871. After his mother's death when he was 35, he secluded himself in his apartment and devoted the rest of his life to writing A LA RECHERCHE DU TEMPS PERDU (REMEMBRANCE OF THINGS PAST).

It's the birthday of American-born painter James McNeill Whistler ("Arrangement in Grey and Black, Number 1: The Artist's Mother," popularly known as "Whistler's Mother"), born in Lowell, Massachusetts, in 1834.

French painter Camille Pissarro, was born on this day in St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands in 1830.

It's the birthday of Protestant reformer John Calvin, born in Noyon, Piccardy, France, in 1509.

Be well, do good work, and keep in touch.®

 

«

»

  • “Writers end up writing stories—or rather, stories' shadows—and they're grateful if they can, but it is not enough. Nothing the writer can do is ever enough” —Joy Williams
  • “I want to live other lives. I've never quite believed that one chance is all I get. Writing is my way of making other chances.” —Anne Tyler
  • “Writing is a performance, like singing an aria or dancing a jig” —Stephen Greenblatt
  • “All good writing is swimming under water and holding your breath.” —F. Scott Fitzgerald
  • “Good writing is always about things that are important to you, things that are scary to you, things that eat you up.” —John Edgar Wideman
  • “In certain ways writing is a form of prayer.” —Denise Levertov
  • “Writing is a socially acceptable form of schizophrenia.” —E.L. Doctorow
  • “Writing is like driving at night in the fog. You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.” —E.L. Doctorow
  • “Let's face it, writing is hell.” —William Styron
  • “A writer is someone for whom writing is more difficult than it is for other people.” —Thomas Mann
  • “Writing is 90 percent procrastination: reading magazines, eating cereal out of the box, watching infomercials.” —Paul Rudnick
  • “Writing is a failure. Writing is not only useless, it's spoiled paper.” —Padget Powell
  • “Writing is very hard work and knowing what you're doing the whole time.” —Shelby Foote
  • “I think all writing is a disease. You can't stop it.” —William Carlos Williams
  • “Writing is like getting married. One should never commit oneself until one is amazed at one's luck.” —Iris Murdoch
  • “The less conscious one is of being ‘a writer,’ the better the writing.” —Pico Iyer
  • “Writing is…that oddest of anomalies: an intimate letter to a stranger.” —Pico Iyer
  • “Writing is my dharma.” —Raja Rao
  • “Writing is a combination of intangible creative fantasy and appallingly hard work.” —Anthony Powell
  • “I think writing is, by definition, an optimistic act.” —Michael Cunningham
Current Faves - Learn more about poets featured frequently on the show