The film was shot on Mackinac Island and the Grand Hotel played a big part in the movie. For this week’s Friday Photo Flashback, here are a few photos from a trip to Fort Mackinac on Mackinac Island.
I love that the date is stamped on this photo – July 1981. Here is my brother and I, locked in the stocks with my mother standing behind us with a huge smile! It is one of my favorite pictures of my mom.
The stocks were obviously a big part of this fort, as my brother and I were locked in yet another set of them.
What is up with my socks in that picture!?!? And I am not sure where my glasses went.
Because Fort Mackinac is on Mackinac Island, we had to take a boat over. There is only one photo from the boat trip that I have and it was taken by my mom.
We must have went to the island two days in a row, as my brother and I are dressed in different clothes. I love the fact that my dad is looking very “Burt Reynolds/Bandit” in this picture!
The last time I was anywhere near Mackinaw was over 20 years ago. The day I was there, it was extremely windy and rainy and they were not running the boat to the island. The last time I was at the fort was 40 years ago.
My wife and I are hoping to get up there very soon. It’s been too long.
When you talk time travel movies, there is almost always some sort of time machine and Sci-fi aspect to it. (Back to the Future, The Terminator, Star Trek IV, Hot Tub Time Machine, Etc…). I guess to a degree the topic of today’s blog is less Sci-fi than any of them.
A friend on Facebook reminded me of a movie that has been a favorite for a long time, and one that was shot on location here in Michigan.
42 years ago today (October 3rd), Universal released SOMEWHERE IN TIME, then unceremoniously pulled it from domestic (USA) distribution a scant three (that’s right, 3) weeks later. However, it did show continuously in SE Asia and Japan for over 18 months. The movie was discovered by the masses less than a decade later when it began appearing on cable television.
To say it has become a cult (not a great word) classic is an understatement. It has the most therapeutic soundtrack ever composed. It truly is just beautiful.
It starts Christopher Reeve, Jane Seymour and Christopher Plummer. Basic plotline: In 1972, playwright Richard Collier (Christopher Reeve) becomes fascinated by a photo of Elise McKenna (Jane Seymour), a turn-of-the-century stage actress, while staying at the Grand Hotel in Mackinac Island, Michigan. As Richard’s obsession grows, he learns from a friend that time travel may actually be possible through hypnosis. Richard travels in time to meet Elise, and the two appear destined to be together. However, Elise’s jealous manager (Christopher Plummer) attempts to keep them apart.
I don’t recall what grade I was in at the time, but there used to be this Weekly Reader that we would get in class. It was made of that “newspapery” material and featured news stories, articles, and occasionally a play.
The play was written out as a script. Our teacher would assign students to a role and we would read the play out loud in class. I will never forget reading this because I was the one reading the Christopher Reeve part.
There was a narrator who would describe action that was going on while characters didn’t have speaking lines. I remember thinking how cool this story was because the guy goes back in time. However, I will also never forget feeling embarrassed when the narrator read that I had to kiss Jane Seymour’s character. (Funny that I don’t recall the classmate who was reading her part.).
If you have never seen the film, I recommend it. It’s a great love story, with fantastic shots on Mackinaw Island, and (as stated before), an amazing soundtrack.
For thirty-one years there has been a reunion of the cast, crew, and fans of the movie every October at the Grand Hotel where much of it was filmed. I’ve never been there for this, but I’d certainly love to go.
Many of its most ardent fans are unaware of the book Bill Shepard wrote about the making of the movie 30 years ago. It is a must read. You can find it here:
She wants to know about our favorite things while adolescents. She says: Pick any period of your adolescence and think back to all your favorite things. Feel free to elaborate as much as you want.
This week’s prompt is: Favorite Things
Pick any period of your adolescence and think back to all your favorite things. Feel free to elaborate as much as you want.
I am going to go with a time when I was in elementary school.
Who was your favorite relative? Not to play favorites, but who was the person you connected with more than others? Aunt, uncle, cousin, grandparent, or parent? Why were you closest to them?
I hate the thought of picking a favorite relative. I would say that I probably connected most with my dad’s dad. When my mom’s dad passed away, it was the first time I had ever lost someone to death. I realized that he wouldn’t be around forever, so I began recording his voice so I’d remember what he sounded like. The loss of one grandparent caused me to be closer with all my other grandparents.
What was your favorite TV show? Share a clip if you can find one.
I remember being in front of the TV to watch the Dukes of Hazzard.
What was your favorite book or favorite family story?
In fourth grade, I remember liking Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume. The little brother, Fudges reminded me of my brother.
What was your favorite, song, record, or album. Feel free to share a YouTube video of it.
I never listened to what my friends listened to. Very rarely was I listening to new music. I was always listening to oldies or stuff my dad was playing for me. I listened to a lot of Beatles music.
Who was your favorite teacher at that age? What grade were you in and what subject did they teach?
Mrs. Gallop was my fourth grade teacher. She taught all the subjects that year. She was a lot of fun.
What was your favorite subject (not teacher) in school?
In elementary school? It was probably reading. I loved to read.
Who was your favorite (aka best) friend? What things did you do together?
Jeff. He still is my best friend. We spent a lot of time causing trouble. We made a lot of silly recordings on cassette, played video games, played with Star Wars figures, walked around the neighborhood, ate at Wendy’s, etc. It seemed like we were always together.
What was your favorite way to pass the time?
Reading or listening to music
What was your favorite holiday? How did you celebrate?
Christmas. We’d spend Christmas Eve at my dad’s folks and Christmas Day with my mom’s family.
What was your favorite toy or possession? Doll, camera, radio, bicycle?
I had a silver metal cap gun. It looked like a real cowboy gun. I used it when we played cops and robbers.
Bonus: What was your favorite adventure? Family trip, amusement park, field trip, or vacation perhaps.
I loved going to Caseville with our family, but our trips to Mackinaw and Kings Island stand out too.
My Facebook feed has been full of pictures of the “last day of school.” Many of those photos are of high school seniors who are celebrating their FINAL “last” day of school, while others are of students in kindergarten through 11th grade who are just excited for summer break!
The theme song to the cartoon Phineas and Ferb (created by Dan Povenmire and Jeff “Swampy” Marsh) states:
“There’s 104 days of summer vacation till school comes along just to end it. So the annual problem for our generation is finding a good way to spend it.“
The song then goes on to list things that they are going to do. If you are unfamiliar with this cartoon (which is as entertaining for adults as it is for children), it is about two step brothers who make the most out of every day of their summer vacation. Phineas is often heard to say, “Ferb! I know what we’re going to do today!” They then proceed to work on their big idea while their sister tries to get them in trouble.
Some of the big ideas they had include: building a rollercoaster, building a beach in their back yard, becoming a “one hit wonder” band, become movie directors, carve their sister’s face into Mount Rushmore, build robots, go on a cattle drive, create a new season, become secret agents, build the world’s biggest ice cream maker, create a hot new toy, turn their car into a monster truck, build a shrinking submarine, fix a time machine – and time travel, reunite a rock band, build the ultimate treehouse, transform a dinghy into a pirate ship, have a chariot race through their town, build a Ferris wheel, build a roller derby rink, discover a caveman, hold a medieval tournament, build an escalator to the moon, created the biggest bowling game, build a miniature golf course, build a real working teleporter after seeing one in a movie, build a haunted house, paint the unpainted desert, make a cartoon about themselves and their friends, created a rainbow-inator because their friend has never seen one, build a rocket and go to space, build a flying car, AND create a portal to the planet Mars. THAT is all from the first season!!
Let me say that I NEVER had a summer quite like Phineas and Ferb, but I certainly looked forward to summer vacation. As I have mentioned in the past, many of my summer days were spent playing baseball with the guys from my neighborhood. When we weren’t playing ball, we were usually riding bikes, playing cops and robbers, running through the sprinkler, or playing with Star Wars figures.
I believe that kids today are missing out. They are glued to their phones, tablets and video games. I know trying to get my older son outside to do anything is a chore. My daughter loves to be outside! I hope she always stays that way! There are SO many things to do outside. This summer, I plan to spend lots of time outside.
During our summer breaks as kids, one thing my brother and I always looked forward to was a weekend or two up in Caseville. When my grandparents bought their place up there, we went often. Many times we’d be their with my aunt and uncle and my grandparents, too. On those weekends, it wasn’t odd to have a tent pitched outside because there were so many of us.
Highlights of Caseville included fishing at the back lake, swimming at the beach, horseback rides from the folks at the end of our street, and tooling around on the mini-bike. In town, we could stop at the IGA for groceries, play Putt Putt Golf, or shop at many of the souvenir shops. Occasionally, we’d drive over to Port Austin or drive down to Pigeon to walk around.
The only other real trip I remember was when I was 11. We went up to Mackinac for a week. I remember we visited the Grand Hotel (where the movie Somewhere in Time was filmed) and because we were in shorts and tank tops, we didn’t stay long. I remember posing next to a cannon and I was wearing a cowboy hat and those awful tube socks! We also got to go on the boat ride over to Mackinac Island. There were no cars on the island and there were many horses. We visited the Fort, which was full of wonderful artifacts. One of my favorite pictures is of my mother standing over my brother and I while we are locked in the stocks.
As summer vacation approaches, I hope that we will be able to do something nice with the kids. They are both still very young and may not remember it all, but I really want to take them somewhere. I just need to sit down with my wife and talk things over. The two of us will “find a good way to spend” time together as a family!
Various Ramblings of a Nostalgic Italian 