Tuesday, June 05, 2007

Nancy Drew Movie: Food

Getting closer...the movie has a grand Hollywood premiere on June 9th! As in the books, food plays a role in the new Nancy Drew movie. Hannah Gruen sends Nancy some delicious treats--and she even uses them to help sleuth and uncover clues!

Here's my recipe for lemon bars--my Mom's--and it's good! "Not good for a diet though," moans Bess Marvin! It's no wonder Nancy Drew always remained forever slim and attractive, she had the benefit of sleuthercise! Chasing down crooks in dark alleys and climbing lots of ladders and stairs in her signature heels--where can we sign up for that exercise class? Sign me up, I'm there!

"Movie Star Lemon Bars"

The best Lemon Bars—great for calming cranky crooks!

Crust:

1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar
2 cups flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup butter, softened

For large cake pan or two smaller 8 x 8 pans. Mix dry ingredients and cut in butter. Press into cake pan and bake 15 minutes at 350°.

Filling:

2 cups white sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
4 eggs, slightly beaten
4 TBSP lemon juice
1 TBSP lemon rind

Mix ingredients, pour into pan. Bake 20 minutes at 350°.

Glaze:

4 TBSP lemon juice
1 1/2 cups confectioner’s sugar
2 TBSP butter
Vanilla extract--1/2 tsp or to taste

(Sleuthing Tip: You can use milk instead of lemon juice, adding a little bit at a time.)

Mix ingredients and spread on cooled lemon squares. These can be frozen.

Jenn:)

Sunday, June 03, 2007

June 2nd: Don't Judge a Movie By Its Trailer!


Hi Sleuthers,

2 weeks until Sleuth Day!

I'm always amused when people freak out about stuff related to Nancy Drew:) I also think younger people tend to be a little more dramatic, since things to them seem to be "the world" and anything wrong is "the end of the world"--due to lack of perspective that comes with maturity and aging.

Not that I need to defend this movie--or my involvement with it--as I think it speaks nicely for itself, but here's a few thoughts. As with any collector/reader genre, there's always the naysayers (or shall we call them the Tophams?), the everythings, and the well it depends folks. I have been amused at some of the e-mails about the movie and the trailer I've received recently now that the movie is about to be released. Yes, the trailer focuses on Nancy vs. the LA mean girls. But, yes, the trailer also focuses on the movie as a mystery--you know, that little something that always intrigued Nancy in the books...

The movie is not a parody of Nancy Drew. Don't confuse humor with parody--they're not necessarily the same, and certainly not in this case. And to the same, don't confuse humor with comedy. A movie can have some humor without being a total comedy.

In the movie, Nancy is Nancy, classic like in the classics. She's nice, polite, knowledgeable, good at what she does, and likes to help others--and solve mysteries. She's not about trying to impress others or change for others, she's just herself and does what she loves to do--sleuth!

The movie is a mystery, set in LA, with a subplot of Nancy being this small town girl/"fish out of water" who is different from the LA teens she deals with, but in the end she wins them over. She's serious minded like in the books, intent on solving the mystery. There is some comic relief in her sidekick, Corky and then Corky and Ned's banter. In the end, naturally, she solves the mystery and heads back to River Heights.

Most of the trailer's scenes at the school take place near the beginning of the movie. The rest of the movie is Nancy's sleuthing to get to the bottom of the mystery of what happened to actress Dehlia Draycott.

Sure she's 16 in the movie and she was 18 for a long time in the books. True Nancy Drew fans know that she was 16 from 1930 until the late 1950s when she was aged to 18 due to driving laws in states. Since when is being 16 a whole lot different from 18? Believe me, I'm 33, whether you're 16 or 18, you're a kid plain and simple. Being 18 doesn't make you magically adult and sophisticated:)

Honestly, I haven't been given a valid complaint by anyone who has just seen the trailer, and my challenge/answer is to see the movie, you'll find yourself liking it more than you think! You can't really have an informed opinion on the movie, if you haven't seen it. And that's a fact!

Most people I know are very excited about the movie and Nancy being on the big screen after nearly 70 years! Those who have seen it that I've talked with, love it. They find it cute, endearing and so reminiscent of the classic Nancy Drew books in the spooky setting and house, the sleuthing, and Nancy's determination to get to the bottom of the case.

The greatest thing about this movie, is that they kept her classic. They didn't modernize her in a way as to change her character or personality. That would have been a disaster. Kudos to Jerry Weintraub and Andrew Fleming for a job well done--as well as cast and crew!

For fun, here are my 10 favorite Nancy Drew movie things:

1. Jeffrey Kurland's costumes

2. Hannah Gruen's lemon bars to calm cranky crooks

3. Blue convertible (not a hybrid!)

4. Opener with vintage books (some are mine) and line drawing images

5. Spooky old house with all the mystery trappings

6. Nancy Drew's old-fashioned birthday party

7. Nancy's Sleuth Kit

8. Nancy's magnifying glass pin with her initials

9. Corky's line: "I think the ability to sleuth is an attractive quality in a woman."
10. Leshing--the creepy caretaker

Jenn:)

Saturday, June 02, 2007

Movie Sleuthing Countdown!

Well fellow sleuths, just a couple of weeks now until the Nancy Drew movie hits theaters (June 15) and the Nancy Drew Sleuths converge on Pasadena, CA for our annual convention! With our snappy blue roadsters and magnifying glasses of course;)

I'm going to attempt in all the craziness of these last two weeks to update this blog with happenings and news each night (also known as the wee hours)!

Convention planning is at a whirlwind but things are finally coming together as they always do at the last. We will most likely have our biggest turn out thus far, this year! If you're in the LA/Pasadena area, come and join us! www.ndsleuths.com/ndsconventions.html

If you're lucky enough, your area mall may just have Emma Roberts stop by for a visit--she's making a small number of appearances to promote the Nancy Drew film all around the country. The other day she was in DC and got to meet the First Lady, Laura Bush--they both read to kids from The Secret of the Old Clock. Trivia tidbit: Nancy Drew got to have lunch with the First Lady in the original text of The Mystery of the Ivory Charm.

I've been interviewed for a lot of articles on Nancy Drew and the movie in the last week, so will update when articles start appearing. I'm hoping that the movie will inspire more Nancy Drew readers from today's generation and also inspire older fans to rediscover the books.

I saw Nancy Drew displays in the bookstores today, so she's getting more of a push these days!

More tomorrow!

Jenn:)