#1....Good news arrived for the LGBT front this week:
In a pair of major victories for the gay rights movement, the Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled that married same-sex couples were entitled to federal benefits and, by declining to decide a case from California, effectively allowed same-sex marriages there................(SEE HERE)
Lots of articles and commentary have flooded the net on this topic already, so I'm limiting my own contribution to links to previous postings touching on the Gay rights issue (most have some comments attached):
#2..ZODIAC TYPES in FICTION (Gone With the Wind, Little Women, Ally McBeal.)
I wonder how often authors of novels, or screen writers for film and television consider astrology, or more likely, simplified Sun Sign astrology, when describing characteristics of the individuals who bring to life their books and dramas? I've thought about this several times in the past - there are posts on this very topic relating to Gone With the Wind (HERE) and Little Women (HERE) with suggestions in the posts and in several comments beneath them as to astrological matches to characters in the novels.
Another instance of what I'll call ZIF (Zodiac in Fiction) came up for me recently. We're years late catching up with what used to be a hugely popular TV series in the USA from 1997 to 2002: Ally McBeal.
My husband, out on some errand by himself spotted a garage sale in the neighbourhood and came home clutching a big white box, still cellophane wrapped. It was the entire 5-season series of Ally McBeal on DVD, and he paid only $3 for it plus another, single DVD (can't even recall the film). Such sets cost a lot more than $3 on the net. We suspect this set might have been produced for the Chinese market, a clue: choice of subtitles = Cantonese, Korean, Mandarin - and English. We're almost to the end of Season 2 now, and greatly enjoying the series.
Ally McBeal was created and mostly written by David E. Kelley whose series are always A-grade (LA Law, Boston Legal, The Practice, Picket Fences, Harry's Law to name the best known).
More on Kelley, and his natal chart in an archived post HERE.
The Ally McBeal series had a super cast, good musical interludes with vocalist Vonda Shepard, well-written characters, humour, romance, whimsy, fantasy and frequently interesting courtroom dramas.
Ally McBeal, played by Calista Flockhart, and one of the senior partners of the law firm for which she works, John Cage, played by Peter MacNicol, share a birthday we were told in the course of Season 2. This revelation immediately had me surmising on a Sun sign for them. It had already become obvious the two had similar characteristics: a definite quirkiness, romantic awkwardness, mild eccentricity and frequent dips into whimsy, while both remained talented in their professional life as courtroom lawyers. A quick Google search sent me to a site where commenters were betting on Scorpio as Ally's likely Sun sign - mainly because it's Calista Flockhart's, who plays Ally. That could not possibly be correct, here's why.
Each season devotes an episode to Thanksgiving and an episode to Christmas, presumably to be screened during November and December. Characters are always muffled in scarves, gloves and hats for outdoor scenes, it's often snowing in Boston,where the series was set, in these episodes. In season 2, in an episode following fairly quickly after the Christmas one, there was a combined birthday celebration for Ally and John - so it could not possibly have taken place in Scorpio time. More likely, and I had already suspected, Ally and John, and their shared whimsy, fantasy, and eccentricities alongside otherwise very astute legal minds, must surely have Neptune/Pisces and/or Aquarius/Neptune/Pisces prominent, with likely some Capricorn in there too, strong link to the law.
It's all just fiction, of course. I doubt that David E. Kelley gives two hoots about astrology, though perhaps one of his assistants might have offered hints.
If any passing reader has an instance of ZIF, a pet fictional character or situation, from well-known novels, TV or films, with likely matching Sun Sign - do let me know !
A long-time friend of my husband died a few weeks ago. During their last conversation friend - "Zee" - urged us to watch some episodes of Boston Legal. We'd heard of the series, which ran from 2004 to 2008, but hadn't seen any of it. We caught a couple of repeats then these, too, disappeared.
My husband decided to buy a DVD set of the full series, I suspect in memory of his friend. We've now watched Season One and are into Season Two and are finding that, as Zee promised, it's fun and over-the-top, but also intelligent, adult, enlightening and encouraging on several levels.
Having spent a good part of my working life among members of the legal profession in the UK, I easily recognise the "types" portrayed, some scarily similar to lawyers and judges I knew, back in the day. Lawyers in Boston, Britain or Bombay are, I reckon, cut from the same cloth.
The series was created and mainly written by David E. Kelley as a spin-off of an earlier series The Practice. Kelley also created and wrote LA Law - which I watched regularly back in the UK and enjoyed a lot. It's no surprise to find that David Kelley started out as a lawyer himself, he writes with wry humour, occasional farce and a certain understanding of the background atmosphere which would be difficult to do without inside knowledge.
James Spader portrays offbeat and unpredictable lawyer, Alan Shore with aplomb - well, he would, wouldn't he? Born 7 February 1960 in Boston Massachusetts at 8:02 PM (Astrodatabank). He was made for the part of Alan Shore !
Sun and Mercury in mentally oriented Aquarius, with Aquarius's modern ruler Uranus the eccentric and unpredictable planet in direct opposition from Leo to Sun. Capricorn and Aquarius are both traditionally ruled by Saturn, planet of laws, and here Saturn is found in one of its home signs, its traits likely to come through very clearly. Taking into consideration the stellium of planets in Capricorn the opposition seems to be indicating an ongoing fight or tension between what is staid, traditional, and law-abiding and that which is "out there where the buses don't run". (Accidentally there I've described the essence of Boston Legal itself in a few words.)
I have no means of knowing whether James Spader is in any way similar to the character he protrays, but he has said, in interview:
I guess I've always been drawn to anything eccentric. I'm drawn to that in friends and in life.
"I really like this guy," Mr. Spader said, sitting in a hotel room during a recent visit to New York, his words following the slightly off-meter rhythm he has employed to great effect in his characterizations.
Indeed, much of what Mr. Spader has shown on the screen is apparent in person: unexpected movements and gestures; a languidness that changes without warning to passion, marked by sudden rises in the volume of his voice. Though his hair has thinned and he has lost some of the dangerous handsomeness of his youth, he remains an actor who always seems to be trying to tweak convention.
That's certainly true of Alan Shore, a man who ignores virtually every stricture of the legal profession, but almost always in a noble cause - at least one he sees as noble. His misrepresentation in the airline case, for example, saved a colleague from being disbarred. "I think he's endearing and appalling at the same time, at the same moment, really," Mr. Spader said. "I like him best when he's inappropriate with his appropriateness. He's the best friend you could have in the world, but he'll make your life hell at times."
I'm deliberately ignoring the rest of the cast in this post to keep it blogworthily brief. All add to the brilliance of the series: William Shatner at his farcical best; Candice Bergen and Mark Valley playing straightmen in a lunatic asylum;, Rhona Mitra, Lake Bell and assorted other attractions, not forgetting the ever wonderful Betty White. For me though, and I suspect for many others, James Spader is the show's anchor, holding it secure, safe from drifting too far into La-la Land - or to be consistent La-la Seas. But Spader and the rest of the crew couldn't have given us the performances they did without David Kelley's brilliant writing and sharp insights.
David Kelley, creator of Boston Legal, was born on 4 April 1956 in Waterville Massachusetts (no time known).
Moon and Mercury in Aries in sextile to Spader's Sun - so there's potential for a good working relationship here. Kelley has Mars and possibly Moon in Capricorn - though if born after 2pm Moon would have moved into Aquarius. Either would blend well with his link to the law and to James Spader's chart. Interesting to note that wherever Kelley's natal Moon lay, Uranus from late Cancer would be in opposition - a kind of echo of Spader's Sun-Uranus opposition.
I think this show probably, I guess, is a reflection of me a little bit, has a scream in its belly and sometimes it just feels it needs to scream.
We enjoy the subtle and not so subtle humour in Boston Legal, but I especially admire the messages and social commentary which come through with some regularity, among all the whacky irreverence and innuendo, to hit the viewer right between the eyes. Serious issues are tackled frequently: the death penalty, torture by police, mental health, gun control, destruction of the environment. Both sides of these issues are always covered, though the author's left-leaning preference is crystal clear.
The season we've just watched comes from the days of G.W. Bush's presidency, and though some of the barbed comments do relate directly to that time, the episodes do not feel dated at all, for little has really changed since then. Has it?
Most videos of clips from the show at YouTube have been removed due to "copyright claims by Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation". This one has survived thus far, probably due to the way it's compiled, using material from real life to compliment a small-size screen view. This closing speech by Alan Shore is a gem, well worth watching - and saving :
I'm eagerly looking forward to watching the rest of the series now. Thanks Zee - your name is mentioned regularly by Himself as we watch: "Ah - it's easy to see why he loved this series so much, the humor is an exact match for his!!"
