Rosemary wrote her first book when she was ten years old – for her little brother. She also illustrated it herself. It was later rejected by Random House!
She has been writing ever since.
The author of Best Sellers Hollywood Then and Now and Los Angeles Then and Now, English born Rosemary Lord has lived in Hollywood for over 25 years. An actress, a former journalist (interviewing Cary Grant, James Stewart, Tony Hopkins, John Huston amongst others) and a Senior Publicist at Columbia Pictures, she lectures on Hollywood history. Rosemary is currently writing the second in a series of murder mysteries set in the 1920s Jazz Age Hollywood featuring Lottie Topaz, an extra in silent movies.
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“…The days dwindle down to a precious few…” Sound familiar? These are the lyrics to Kurt Weill’s 1938 heart-wrenching, “September Song.”
“- and the days grow short when you reach September,” Frank Sinatra sang. And then –
“- One hasn’t got time for the waiting game…”
In Hollywood, the days have at last cooled down after sweltering heat, where the nights were filled with the cacophony of neighboring air-conditioners at full tilt. And it reminds me that another summer has passed and – in Kurt Weill’s poignant words – I really don’t have time for the waiting game, any more.
I think of all the unexpected things that happened this summer, the new friends I made, things I learned, expectations I met and sometimes exceeded. And yet all the things I did not get around to, come to mind: Painting my bedroom chest-of-drawers blue, selling that big travel-trunk, attending those Booty-Barre classes, visiting friends in Arizona.
I failed to make it down to the beach this summer. I did, however, go on a watermelon-diet (easier to do during those hot, dry days) and lost a few pounds: the pounds I had gained when devouring English comfort-food such as buttered toast, treacle-pudding with hot custard, roast-potatoes, crumpets. I could go on…
In the summer of 2017, I did not find that perfect literary agent for my mystery novel about Lottie Topaz. Neither did I finish the next Lottie Topaz novel, Seven For A Secret… The days were just not long enough.
But I did finish the updated version of Los Angeles Then and Now and I wrote a 1,200-word article on the Woman’s Club of Hollywood, for the upcoming issue of Discover Hollywood. All was not lost. I was also putting in long, long hours, 6-7 days a week helping to revive and restore the Woman’s Club of Hollywood.
And this summer was not too bad in my cozy apartment. Surrounded by fans (the whirring kind, not the screaming ones), I battled my temperamental old lap-top, wishing I had the time to learn how to use a MAC, in the belief that would solve all my computer problems – like the cursor that jumps all over the place and deletes lines and paragraphs, so I have to keep re-typing, or my Windows Live email program that eats emails and only sends out select emails, seemingly on a whim.
But now that early mornings feel fresher, almost brisk at times and, as Kurt Weil wrote, “When the autumn weather turns the leaves to flame…” and cooler days beckon, I no longer have to spend evenings in front of the open fridge seeking an icy-blast or two. My heat-dulled brain unable to write even the simplest sentence.
As we say goodbye to another summer and Fall approaches, I find my focus improves and once again my mind is tripping over itself to write all those books and articles emerging from my memory and imagination.
‘This time it will be different’ is my mantra, as I make fresh To Do lists of writing projects to be finished and new ones to start.. These “precious days” from September to December I will spend doing…. what, I wonder?
“…These precious days I’ll spend – ” doing all the things I intended to do during the summer.
And how did you spend your summer of 2017?
The Writers in Residence 
What a lovely post, framed by one of my favorite songs! And an eloquent reminder that it’s time to take stock of what I accomplished (and failed to accomplish) this summer. My list is not as interesting as yours, but I did check a couple of things off my own bucket list, and autumn’s cool nights are a welcome respite from the hot, humid days we’ve experienced. I hope we both whittle down that to-do list before the holidays!
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Thanks, Bonnie. I know just how busy you have been this summer. But it’s good to sometimes reflect on where we’ve been before we rush into the next season. I want to hear about your bucket list!
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It is really amazing what we accomplish when we think we should be going in one direction and life takes us in another. But if we still hold those goals, eventually we check off a few along with all the other things we end up doing. There is no road map to life. We forge ahead and that IS life.
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I think this is what makes life interesting, when we think we know the road to take – but Life takes us in another direction. You’re right, Gayle, Life is what happens to us as we keep moving forward.
Thanks.
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Your post made me smile. The seasons do affect me, especially now that I live somewhere with distinct differences between the seasons. The shorter days stimulate my appetite and my desire to do things – take a walk in the woods, travel, or do a thorough semi-annual cleaning. And hopefully hunker down and write more.
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Where you now live, Miko, I imagine you have real seasons, compared to when you lived in L.A. What a lovely idea – to hunker down and write more….
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Precious days, indeed, Rosemary.
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Indeed, Mad. Don’t those lyrics remind us of how precious our time is.
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Scrambled. That’s the answer to what I did this Summer. Your list is much more interesting. 🙂
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It really was a strange ‘scrambled’ summer, wasn’t it, Jacqui?
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After a busy world traveling spring my summer was “squashed” at home between taking Hubby to the doctor and limping along on my sore knee. BUT… autumn did bring a splurge of writing. I wrote and entered a contest with my short story “Autumn Gold.” I have no illusions of winning among 300-400 entrants, but it was good exercise. And I’ve gotten out my old “Sister Secrets” 2/3-done novel to see if there is still life in it. Let’s push each other along these last months in 2017 and get some stuff DONE!!
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Amen.
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Amen, indeed!
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I am so impressed with all your world travelling – and you still find time to take care of hubby, write things and take and post all those photos. And thanks for pushing me with my Lottie books.
Fingers crossed for “Autumn Gold.”….
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Hard to believe that summer is ending and fall is beginning–and it’s even harder to believe in Southern California than it used to be in Pittsburgh, where I grew up, when the leaves changed color a lot more than around here. But it is a good time to reflect on what I’ve accomplished so far this year. Enjoyable post!
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Thanks, Linda. You’re right – the change of seasons is a good time to take stock of what we’re doing.
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