Selznick, portrait of jennie is much closer in spirit to his cycle of hitchcock films like rebecca than his famous grandiose epics like gone with the wind or duel in the sun, the latter starring his lover and eventual wife, jennifer jones. Buy portrait of jennie by robert nathan online at alibris. Portrait of jennie is an uplifting story of a beatdown artist named eban adams joseph cotten who finds his muse in a young girl jennifer jones he happens to meet playing in the snow. Portrait of jennie by robert nathan, 1940 online research. When i talk about trouble, i am not talking about cold and hunger. Robert nathan was the author of over fifty volumes of novels, poetry, and plays, and from this body of distinguished work he acquired a reputation as a master of satiric fantasy. The voice of jennie is heard that the portrait will be seen by people from all over the world. Children admire the painting and wonder if she was real. The film was directed by william dieterle and produced by david o. Eben adams is a talented but struggling artist in depression era new york who has never been able to find inspiration for a painting.
Im sure this love story was breakthrough for the time when it was published. Portrait of jennie tells the story of a struggling depressionera painter whose muse is a young girl from the past, a girl who grows into womanhood at a rate in defiance of all laws of time and space each time he encounters her. This book is a comprehensive map for complete spiritual empowerment. According to wikipedia, it was exposed in the home of davide o. This book is a comprehensive map for developing spiritual empowerment. Selznick and jones reteamed more respectably with this film, a delicate new york ghost story produced.
Robert nathan the story of a young artist who meets a girl named jenny who changes his life. Todays book is a recommendation for the greatest surreal movie of 1948 i have yet to find one that beats this movie, portrait of jennie. Inside his room at a boardinghouse, eben opens the package, which contains jennies silk scarf. As portrait of jennie was a fantasy, selznick insisted on filming on actual massachusetts the graves light and new york city locations central park, the cloisters, and the metropolitan museum of art as opposed to studio sets, which dramatically increased the films production costs. It is fraught with glaring errors that ruin the flow of the book. Robert nathan an artist meets a schoolgirl in central park named jennie. At the 21st academy awards, it won an oscar for best special effects paul eagler, joseph mcmillan johnson, russell shearman and clarence slifer. There is such a thing as hunger for more than food, and that was the hunger i fed on.
Portrait of jennie is a good book, along the lines of the movie same name but of course there are certain things in the book that werent in the film. His work has thus far left influential art dealers unimpressed. The book has its moments where its beautifully written, but its also boring for someone like me whos younger and wants explanations. Portrait of jennie ebook by robert nathan rakuten kobo. Her apparition reappears to eben periodically, each time a little older and a little more plausible as a romantic partner. Over the years, however, i completely forgot about it until i saw it pop up on my goodreads feed a little while back. Portrait of jennie synopsis favorite theater button. Portrait of jennie is a fantasy that depicts romantic love as a source of artistic inspiration. Anchor bay has followed its deluxe dvds of duel in the sun and the spiral staircase with an exceptionally goodlooking dvd of one of david o. So you can imagine how i felt when i was reading the kindle edition and totally absorbed in the climax of the book, when there appeared a series of ludicrous typos that made nonsense of the story. Portrait of jennie by robert nathan favorite books, music. As is so often the case, the movie is no substitute for the book. Find portrait of jennie by nathan, robert at biblio.
The portrait of jennie jennifer jones used in the film was painted by artist robert brackman and is. While painting in central park one morning, eben makes the acquaintance of a schoolgirl named jennie jennifer jones, who prattles on. Eben doesnt realize that jennie is a ghost, but as he encounters her and falls in love with her, his life is changed irrevocably. One cold winter evening in central park, he meets an enigmatic, oldfashioned little girl, jennie appleton jennifer jones, who captures his fancy when she asks him to wait for her to grow up. Portrait of jennie by robert nathan fiction 3 stars. Portrait of jennie by robert nathan favorite books. Amazon really needs to hire a proofreader for its kindle books. Then eben happens upon a young schoolgirl named jennie in central park. I read this book several times when i was a teenager. Jennie is good entertainment portrait of jennie is an uplifting story of a beatdown artist named eban adams joseph cotten who finds his muse in a young girl jennifer jones he happens to meet playing in the snow. I first read this in 7th grade, and since then robert nathan has become my most favorite writer and portrait of jennie has become my most beloved book of all time. William dieterles 1948 masterpiece portrait of jennie is not only an unabashedly romantic melodrama but also a fascinating ghost story.
Portrait of jennie by william dieterle joseph cotten. He begins to sketch a portrait of the young girl, and the drawing turns out to be the. A book about eben adams refers to his great portrait of jennie. Where is the portrait that robert brackman did for david. Eben adams is a young painter in depressionera new york just looking to make a living. Its mood lingers in the heart and its planes challenge the mind. Intrigued by her mystical quality and her knowledge of things that happened. Jan 08, 2018 classic movie dilemma with portrait of jennie. Buy portrait of jennie book online at low prices in india. The portrait of jennie jennifer jones was painted by artist robert brackman.
Miss spinney buys a painting but tells him that hell never be a great artist unless he finds something to inspire him. This story combines romance, fantasy, mystery, and the supernatural. Jennie stars another legend, joseph cotton, one more character actor than romantic lead. When he turns back a moment later, however, jennie is gone.
Questia read the fulltext online edition of portrait of jennie 1940. Portrait of jennie is probably his most famous book, owing to a very highprofile motion picture made of it from the selznick studios. This fantasy depicts a painter who needs inspiration for his work to excel. Portrait of jennie will perhaps most vividly recall balderstons berkeley square, for, like that, it is a love story that transcends the boundaries of time. This is one of the most wonderful love stories ever written. Portrait of jennie is a novel by american writer robert nathan, first published in 1940.
Starving artist eben adams joseph cotton has a chance encounter in central park with jennie jennifer jones, a ghostly girl. One day, after he finally finds someone to buy a painting from him, a pretty but odd young girl named jennie appleton appears and strikes up an unusual friendship with eben. I think the cover portrait of jennie a darkish blue and looked like a storm on it. Eben takes out the scarf to show gus and notices an advertisement for jennies parents act on the newspaper, which is dated 1910. Jones, who captures his fancy when she asks him to wait for her to grow up. The only problem is that the girl seems to age very quickly and goes from 14 or so to a grown woman in a matter of months.
If you like time travel wherein the character finds that one perfect person, this is the book for you. Soon after, eben sells a sketch of jennie to kindly art dealer miss spinny ethel barrymore and, as he meets the oddly mutable jennie in fleeting moments, begins to realize they share a special destiny. An exceedingly fine copy virtually no wear to the fragile woven cloth in a fresh near fine to fine priced dust jacket which has only trifling wear and retains the full red color of the lettering on both the spine panel and. Portrait of jennie comes to life when eben talks about art, and the scenes describing a hurricane are so vivid that i felt as though i were there.
The portrait of jennie by robert nathan was originally published in 1940. Eben then begins his portrait of jennie, and the next day, while dining at a restaurant, tells his taxi driver friend, gus otoole, about her. I first read robert nathans portrait of jennie as impressionable young man of sixteen or seventeen. One of a small number of publishers prepublication copies with a special printed flyleaf usually blank this first edition of the portrait of jennie by robert nathan which appeared serially in fall 1939 issues is presented to you with the compliments of redbook magazine. There is such a thing as hunger for more than food, and that. There is a paranormal aspect to the story because jennie is actually a spirit, but those scenes are so fleeting that i scarcely noticed them. Selznicks better films, 1948s portrait of jennie this superior fantasy was one of selznicks productions designed around his wife, jennifer jones.
While painting in central park one morning, eben makes the acquaintance of a schoolgirl named jennie jennifer jones, who prattles on about things that happened years ago. There are supernatural romances and then theres portrait of jennie an unassailable work of visionary delirium and towering claptrap that is easily the strangest film ever recalled fondly by your tcmloving aunt. Portrait of jennie reaches back to silent cinema to find its most expressive and idiosyncratic effects, but the arty allusions and tempestuous ballyhoo are pure distillations of producer david o. Portrait of jennie is a 1948 fantasy film based on the novella by robert nathan. When he happens upon a young schoolgirl named jennie in central park, he is intrigued by her mystical quality and her knowledge of things that happened well before her time.
Predating somewhere in time and slaughterhousefive, and perhaps inspired by the enchanted cottage, portrait of jennie is a favorite romantic fantasy. In depressionera new york, painter eben adams joseph cotten despairs at his lack of success. With jennifer jones, joseph cotten, ethel barrymore, lillian gish. Portrait of jennie is a ghost story and a love story, perhaps the best of its kind. I made a rule never to see a film inspired by a book id read because the movies so often mangle the intent of a book, abbreviating for time it takes much longer to read a story than passively watch one translating content from literal to visual to meet demands of the medium. In portrait of jennie, joseph cotten plays an artist, eben adams, who is unable to bring any true feeling to his work. Over 14 million journal, magazine, and newspaper articles. A later version starring denzel washington was disappointing. The aforementioned portrait of jennie and the bishop s wife, as well as one more spring, wake up and dream from the novel the enchanted voyage and color of evening. Eben takes out the scarf to show gus and notices an advertisement for jennie s parents act on the newspaper, which is dated 1910. There is a mystical quality about jennie, and she intrigues him with the way she chats on about things that happened years ago. Artist eben adams has never been able to impress influential art dealer henry matthews with his work until he sketches a. This is only the second true first issue copy weve ever seen. Uncommonly good collectible and rare books from uncommonly good booksellers.
Dec 12, 2016 todays book is a recommendation for the greatest surreal movie of 1948 i have yet to find one that beats this movie, portrait of jennie. Portrait of jennie by robert nathan, 1940 online research library. Starving painter eben adams is freezing through a depressionera new york winter when miss spinney, an elderly art dealer ethel barrymore buys one of his uninspired drawings. Portrait of jennie by robert nathan and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. How you feel about seeing a movie after youve read the book its based on. The portrait was a property of the producer, as it was painted as a prop to the movie. Do you feel the agony and ecstasy carried within peoples hearts. The most successful of nathans books, it is considered a modern masterpiece of fantasy fiction.
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