Goreyana Turns Ten

Ten years ago, on October 5, 2008, I began this collecting blog with the following statement:

Welcome to my Edward Gorey blog. In this blog, I will share pieces from my Edward Gorey collection which includes books, ephemera and original artwork. I welcome comments, questions and enthusiastic observers! I plan to keep things informal and hope that anyone who visits my blog might learn something they didn’t know about Edward Gorey and his work.

 I really appreciate all the interesting people I have communicated with and gotten to know over the past ten years through this blog. I look forward to sharing more stories, interesting facts, and the wonderful artwork of Edward Gorey in the coming months and years!

Irwin Terry
goreyana.blogspot.com
ampootozote@aol.com

A Tour Of The Edward Gorey House

Here is a great tour of the Edward Gorey House with curator Gregory Hischak.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fSiImfSD258&feature=share

Gorey Inspired Set Decoration

The 1973 book The House With A Clock In Its Walls by John Bellairs was illustrated by Edward Gorey. For the new movie based on the book, director Eli Roth studied these illustrations along with the collected works of Edward Gorey to give the movie a Gorey-inspired look. Mr. Roth is a long time fan and collector of the works of Edward Gorey. For an in-depth New York Post interview in which Mr. Roth discusses his Gorey inspirations for the settings, creatures, and even the actor's mannerisms, go HERE.

What is Life?

"We only bought it for the articles."

Since it inception in 1953, this was the (often true) explanation for picking up a copy of Playboy Magazine. Over the years, the enticing mix of titillation, culture, and intellectual writing kept the population entertained and informed. The magazine also provided an influential outlet for artists and illustrators to earn their living. From 1963 to 1988, Mr. Gorey illustrated a number of stories in Playboy. What is Life? a work of fiction by Robert Sheckely appeared in the December 1979 issue.

While out for a ramble in the foothills of the Himalayan mountains, a man named Mortonson is asked the intriguing question by a disembodied voice. Edward Gorey's humorous illustration shows the protagonist pondering the meaning of it all.

As a humorous aside, Mr. Sheckley's 1968 novel Dimension of Miracles has been cited as an inspiration for Douglas Adams' 1978 novel The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Adams claimed in interviews to have not read Dimensions until after Hitchhiker's was published, even though the books are described as "disturbingly similar". In Hitchhiker's, the answer to the question Mortonson is contemplating in What is Life? is 42.

Back To School

Devilish Teacher by Edward Gorey. This unpublished drawing was included in the 1996 exhibition Gorey World at the Cartoon Art Museum in San Francisco and graces the cover of the catalog from the exhibition. The catalog was produced in a limited edition of 500 numbered and 26 lettered copies, each signed by Edward Gorey.

Dracula Exhibition

Arts Brookfield in Houston Texas will be hosting Dracula!, an exhibition featuring production materials, artwork, sets pieces and costumes from the Alley Theater's 2014 production of Edward Gorey's Dracula. The exhibition will run from September 13 through November 9. For more information about the exhibition, go HERE.

Mark Baker

Actor Mark Baker, who was nominated for a Tony Award for his 1973 title role in director Hal Prince's Candide has passed. Mr. Baker was also well received in the international tour of Grand Hotel in which he played the role of Otto Kringelein.

Fans of Edward Gorey's theatrical endeavors fondly remember Mr. Baker as one of the talented company of players in Amphigorey, A Musicale. The 1994 Off Broadway production ran at the Perry Street Theater in New York City. Mr. Baker was 71.