2023
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January 2024
Hope all is great with you. Happy new year. Here is my annual newsletter for 2023. It's time for the annual review and once again I was surprised at how much I did. The highlight of 2023 was being cast as the star of "In My Brothers Footstep", a short twenty-minute film which was shot over several weekends in the spring by Aidan Alcala (a senior at McCallum H.S.). The film was great and even concluded with a drone shot on the Ann Richards Bridge. Pictures are at . I hope eventually to have a version online. In 2022 there was a massive statewide power failure during which my power was off most of one day. In 2023 there was a smaller failure in Austin, but I was without power for 85 HOURS in February. I was very grateful that I don't rely on electricity for heating. Some neighbors stayed elsewhere during that week. In May the city trimmed branches on the power lines on my block, which should reduce the odds of a future power failure. I had a lot of repair work done on my home. In March, I found a repairman, Juan Medrano, (just a bit older than me) who does great work. My side porch roof needed replacement and he also fixed my front door, kitchen sink problems and my bathtub drain. In May my bedroom ceiling was repaired by a crew Juan supplied. In November he installed a new toilet. After a three-year pause, starting with the Covid shutdown, "Overheard with Evan Smith" finally resumed in April with Kathy Valentine. There were only four more tapings during the year with Jake Tapper and Martin Baron being especially great. Hopefully there will be a full season's worth in 2024. In March I saw a very good talk by John Avlon and Chris Whipple, about their books: "The Fight of His Life: Inside Joe Biden's White House" and "Lincoln and the Fight for Peace". In April I saw a great talk by Natasha Lance Rogoff about her fascinating book "Muppets in Moscow: The Unexpected Crazy True Story of Making Sesame Street in Russia." I also attended a lecture by Susan Ford Bales (President Ford's daughter) and Richard Norton Smith. In June I saw a great lecture: "Designs on Film: The History of Production Design in the Cinema" at the Ransom Center. The host, Steve Wilson, had just retired after working there many years. I met him decades ago when he helped manage the great Varsity Theater, where I saw many movies. In October I attended a great lecture on democracy by Heather Cox Richardson. That month I was astonished to see about a dozen vultures in my backyard and discovered they were feasting on a large dead rat. In November Robert M. Gates, former Secretary of Defense and CIA Director, gave a great talk at the LBJ. My health was good. In August I got my third Covid booster. As usual I walked a lot and logged 6,203 miles (the most ever), an average of 17.00 miles a day. I had twenty-one twenty-mile days. I walked at least twelve miles every day except one (only eleven that day). I only drove my car thirty-five days and needed to fill up the tank only once. In March my large left toenail went black after I apparently banged it into something. In May the nail finally fell off, but it was only the end of the year when it finally completely grew back. The last few days of the year I had a serious case of the flu. I saw only six plays; two of them were great. "It's Only a Play" by Terence McNally was great fun as was "Miss Lulu Betts" which had the added feature of a very dear friend, Bethany Harbaugh, as the title character. As always it was a delight to see some of my former students and I saw an amazing twenty-six during the year. I got to visit with Iris Carson (at an open house), Dria Davis (helping with the financials at the garage I pass by most days), Angela Jordan (at an HEB), and Stacey Johnson (at her new workplace). Shametra McGregor (as a cashier at Target), Travis Johnson (delivered part of my new toilet). Mario Aleman grew up on my block and I found that he'd moved back home. At the funeral of three former students' step-mom, I saw Stephanie, Letitia & Heather Olson. At a memorial service for Colin Myers, I saw his sister Miranda & their uncle Michael Goins. Tammy Watkins came up from San Antonio for her aunt's funeral. At Maribel Camarillo's funeral, I saw Teua & Idalia Ramirez, Maria Torres, Henry Camarillo, & Linda Herrera (part of the best-attended funeral I've ever been at). I saw Desmond Cofer at his mom's funeral. James Crouch (who edited the feature film "The Long Game") was at a screening of that wonderful film. On walks I saw Brandon Williams and Carventtia Cathey as well as Glenn Ross and Shane Martinets (who both live a few blocks away). And Erick Robinson (on a bus). For several years I've been trying to find more Dobie Middle School yearbooks to post on the Facebook page I created. I was able to get three more this year. When the principal who had helped me was suddenly replaced, the supply from the school was stopped. I now have posted 31 books, about three/fifths of the total. Two books were from Mary Alice Hatchett, who was the math chair while I was there and the other from a woman in Leander; I now have the first 23 yearbooks (1974-96). Sadly, though the new librarian promised to help, she claimed that she can find no books at all. This seems questionable, since I previously borrowed about a dozen of their books. I got a unique apology letter from someone who was among the assholes who bullied me when I was a tiny eighth grader at Southwest High School in Kansas City. I discovered that he had signed my yearbook "to a little bald-headed guy who can't play the French horn at all." (If you're on Facebook, you can see the entire book at ) At SXSW in addition to the many films I saw, I got to visit with Don Ruisinger, one of my favorite colleagues on the Lamar faculty for many years. Shortly after SXSW I got a unique email, "Hi Dan, my name is Katy Vine and I’m a staff writer at Texas Monthly. I was at a party during SXSW and a few folks were talking about your regular attendance at all kinds of events around town - and more than that, that you’re a fascinating guy. Everything they told me piqued my interest. Do you have a few minutes to talk?" We scheduled to talk the next day as I walked to AFS Cinema, but then got an email saying something had come up and she had to postpone. There has never been a follow-up, so it looks like it won't happen after all. In connection with this, Will Wallace sent this to Katy, "I remember casting Dan Eggleston in a film I directed called 'Red Wing'. We shot in a small, delightful town called Whitewright, TX. I cast him as a feed store clerk and within mere seconds, it seemed as though he had been a permanent fixture in the store. If I remember correctly, another actor named Glen Powell, who was cast in the role opposite Dan, asked if I was using the actual employee." Two big purchases this year: a new iMac computer and a new toilet. I got to see sixteen bands from around Texas at the annual UIL wind ensemble festival. At the end of the year, I had an unusual job: for eight days looking after a neighbor's two dogs & cat. I discovered Emile Waldteufel's wonderful music and added an eleven-volume collection of it. Likewise, the great John Field, adding several albums of his music. I've been a member of the Austin Film Society for many years and have now seen 1323 films at AFS Cinema. This year I saw 294 (including a few shorts collections); more than ever before. I was at AFS 212 days. The only theater where I had seen more movies was the Arbor, which sadly, closed in 2022; I saw1210 movies there. As always, I saw many movies. Often the best of them were at AFS Cinema Among the best feature movies I loved are "Radical", "All Quiet on the Western Front", "No Bears", "Children Who Chase Lost Voices", "Tori and Lokita", "Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani", "Anatomy of a Fall", "Landscape with Invisible Hand", "For When You Get Lost" "The Holdovers", "Together" and "Love According to Dalva". Four great features at SXSW: "Upon Entry", "The Long Game", "Subject", and "Kinderland". Some of the best older features I saw again were "North by Northwest", "Chocolat", "Adam's Rib", "Bells are Ringing", "Ikiru", "Raising Arizona", "Carmen Jones", "A Matter of Life & Death", "Ciao Professore", "Close-up" and "Hudsucker Proxy." The best new documentaries: "First We Bombed New Mexico", "Turn Every Page", "Judy Blume Forever", and "Joan Baez: I Am a Noise." And older documentaries: "Phantom India" (1969), "My Architect: A Son's Journey" (2003)", and "Lillian Gish" (1984). New excellent docs at SXSW: "Confessions of a Good Samaritan", " Is There Anybody Out There?", "The Lady Bird Diaries", "Revival 69: The Concert That Rocked the World", "Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret", and "Food & Country." As always, I read 365 books this year. About fifty-seven were books I found at Little Free Libraries and thirteen were ebooks. Some of those are in the list below. It was a real treat to discover some new authors and find the books they've already written. Non-Fiction. Autobiography One of the best autobiographies I've ever read was Catherine Gildiner's trilogy: "Too Close to the Falls", "After the Falls", and "Coming Ashore." This was followed recently by an incredible book about five of her patients in her practice as a clinical psychologist: "Good Morning, Monster: A Therapist Shares Five Heroic Stories of Emotional Recovery". I contacted her through her website and got a delightful and surprising reply. "Glad to meet someone who has been in the teaching trenches. (Same war different cities!) When people ask me if doing a PhD on Darwin and Freud was onerous, I say not compared to teaching in a ghetto. It is interesting that your name is Eggleston. That was my grandmother’s maiden name. Any relation? She was born in the 1800’s to an Irish Catholic family (full of nuns and priests). Her father was an Indian agent for the Salamanca Indians in Salamanca, New York. She taught math and moved to Buffalo. Probably just a coincidence but you never know." I realized that there could well be a connection, since my parents both grew up in Buffalo, I sent her an1870s photo of my great-grandfather with his nine children, but her granny wasn't there. It seems likely that there's some kind of family connection. More autobiographies: "Know My Name" (Chanel Miller), "Dinners with Ruth: A Memoir on the Power of Friendships" (Nina Totenberg), "Alicia: My Story" (Alicia Appleman-Jurman), "Muppets in Moscow: The Unexpected Crazy True Story of Making Sesame Street in Russia" (Natasha Lance Rogoff – got to meet her), "In Pursuit of Disobedient Women: A Memoir of Love, Rebellion, and Family, Far Away" (Dionne Searcey), "Sometimes Brilliant: The Impossible Adventure of a Spiritual Seeker and Visionary Physician Who Helped Conquer the Worst Disease in History" (Larry Brilliant), "The Impossible First: From Fire to Ice - Crossing Antarctica Alone" (Colin O'Brady) Biographies "G-Man: J. Edgar Hoover and the Making of the American Century" (Beverly Gage), "As Thousands Cheer: The Life of Irving Berlin" (Laurence Bergreen), "Norma Shearer" (Gavin Lambert), " Marlene Dietrich" (Maria Riva), "American Pharaoh: Mayor Richard J. Daley - His Battle for Chicago and the Nation" (Adam Cohen), "Madame President: The Extraordinary Journey of Ellen Johnson Sirleaf" (Helene Cooper), "The Politics of Rage: George Wallace, the Origins of the New Conservatism, and the Transformation of American Politics" (Dan Carter) History Five books by Adam Hochschild: "American Midnight: Democracy's Forgotten Crisis, 1917-1921", "To End All Wars: A Story of Loyalty and Rebellion, 1914-1918", " Half the Way Home: A Memoir of Father and Son", "Bury the Chains", and "The Unquiet Ghost: Russians Remember Stalin", "The Fight of His Life: Inside Joe Biden's White House" (Chris Whipple), "The Fleet That Had to Die" (Richard Hough), "Flyboys: A True Story of Courage" (James Bradley), "A Death in Malta: An Assassination and a Family's Quest for Justice" (Paul Galizia), "First Ladies: The Saga of the Presidents' Wives and Their Power, 1789-1961" (Carl Anthony), " The Divider: Trump in the White House, 2017-2021" (Peter Baker & Susan Glasser), "Over the Edge of the World: Magellan's Terrifying Circumnavigation of the Globe" (Laurence Bergreen), "Weapons of Mass Delusion: How the Republican Party Became an Apocalyptic Cult and Brought America to the Brink" (Robert Draper), "Lincoln on the Verge: Thirteen Days to Washington" (Ted Widmer) "Fame and Obscurity: A Book About New York, a Bridge, and Celebrities on the Edge" and "Unto the Sons" (Gay Talese – his latest came out in 2023 – at age 91), "True Crimes and Misdemeanors: The Investigation of Donald Trump" (Jeffrey Toobin), "The Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America’s Shining Women" (Kate Moore), "You Have to Be Prepared to Die Before You Can Begin to Live: Ten Weeks in Birmingham That Changed America" (Paul Kix), "Manifesto for a Moral Revolution: Practices to Build a Better World" and "Blue Sweater: Bridging the Gap Between Rich and Poor in an Interconnected World" (Jacqueline Novogratz), "Supreme Inequality: The Supreme Court's Fifty-Year Battle for a More Unjust America" (Adam Cohen) and "Hollywood: The Oral History" (Jeanine Basinger & Sam Wasson) Fiction YA fiction Several books by Stuart Gibbs: "Panda-monium", "Lion Down", "Tyrannosaurus Wrecks", "Bear Bottom", " Spy School Project X", "Whale Done", "Charlie Thorne and the Last Equation", "Charlie Thorne and the Lost City", "Charlie Thorne and the Curse of Cleopatra". Nine by Jennifer Nielsen: "Words on Fire", the Ascendance series: ("The False Prince", "The Runaway King", "The Shadow Throne", "The Captive Kingdom", "The Shattered Castle") and the Mark of the Thief series ("Mark of the Thief", "Rise of the Wolf", and "Wrath of the Storm"). Four Neal Shusterman books: The Arc of a Scythe series ("Scythe", "Thunderhead", "The Toll", and "Gleanings: Stories from the Arc of a Scythe") Six Liesl Shurtliff books: the Time Castaways trilogy ("The Mona Lisa Key"," The Obsidian Compass" and "The Forbidden Lock"), "Grump: The (Fairly) True Tale of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves", "Rump: The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin" and "Red: The True Story of Red Riding Hood" And "The Fight for Midnight" (Dan Solomon), "The Secret Garden" (Frances Burnett), and "Stellarlune" (Shannon Messenger) Crime: "Murder Book", "The Bomb Maker", "A Small Town", and "The Left-Handed Twin" (Thomas Perry), "No Plan B" (Lee Child), "I Will Find You" (Harlan Coben), Razorblade Tears" and "My Darkest Prayer" (S A Cosby), "Legacies" (F Paul Wilson), "The Lions of Lucerne" (Brad Thor), "Judas 62" (Charles Cumming), and "Death in the East" (Abir Mukherjee) And four by C J Box: "Wolf Pack", "Long Range", "Storm Watch", "Bitterroots", and "Treasure State" Novels "This Tender Land" (William Krueger) Cartoon art "Dick Deadeye: Character drawings from the film 'Dick Deadeye or Duty Undone" by Bill Melendez Productions" (Ronald Searle) (), "Ronald Searle in Le Monde" (Ronald Searle) and "Emett's Domain: Trains, Trams, and Englishmen; the Best of Rowland Emett" (Rowland Emett) Science Fiction "Hatch" (Kenneth Oppel) and "Master of Djinn" (P Ejeli Clark) Historical "North & South" (John Jakes) I added some new BBC shows to my collection. I've greatly enjoyed listening to these shows and have many more hours of them to listen to. I continued listening to "Quote Unquote", "I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue", "Just a Minute", "The Now Show", "Composer of the Week" and "Dead Ringers". I completed (after several years), to Alistair Cooke's "Letters from America" and I loved listening again to the incredible BBC version of Douglas Adams' great "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy". I also discovered a wonderful show which includes John Cleese (of Monty Python) from the 1960s "I'm Sorry I'll Read That Again". Some of these shows can be downloaded at RadioEchoes is home to a wide selection of Old Time Radio (OTR) shows. We offer you 21 Genres of shows, 4,253 Series, for a total of 118,114 Episodes Hoping that 2024 is a great one. All previous newsletters are at /g/DanEgglestonChristmasNewsletter They date back to 1939, which is before my folks had their 3 sons You can subscribe if you want to get this in the future. |
