ecial for Grandparents' Day' - Local History Archives

September 10, 1992
Grosse Pointe News Entertainment 98
Much ado
about the
Bard
From McLean, Va . Durmg
hIS 25 years of life, our son
has made three major moves _
from the plush enclaves of
Grosse Pomte to the rugged
splendors of Greenbush and
now to Foggy Bottom m Washmgton,
DC.
For three weeks he has
bravely survIved hfe m an un.
furmshed apartment After
much frUitless dIckermg With
our local movmg firms, we finally
receIved the message _
no commItment avaIlable _
and we decided to seIZe the di
lemma by Its horns.
Consequently, a Ryder van
became our clumsy charlOt for
two long days and a night, over
the tWIsting hIlls and dales of
southern MichIgan, mto OhlO,
Pennsylvania, Maryland, Wash
mgton, DC, and at last, VIrgIma
Not only was our despall'lng
son and hell' relieved
to see us, but he also was very
happy to receIve his belongIngs:
furmture, kitchen utenSils, and
SIXhuge boxes of books.
After the tedious busmess of
unpackmg and putting away
agreed to give hIS "bookaholIc"
mother a real treat the next
mother a real treat the next
day m the form of a visit to
The Folger Shakespeare LIbrary
right in the heart of
Washmgton The Folger, a
strikmg white marble edifice, is
situated across the street from
the Jefferson Building, the oldest
part of the Library of Congress.
Mr. and Mrs Henry Clay
Folger gave theIr Shakespearean
collection to the American
people 60 years ago In 1932 in
this GrecIan-style bUIldIng.
WhIle a young student at Amherst
College, Folger was fortUItously
inspired by a Ralph
Waldo Emerson lecture to buy
an inexpensive set of Shakespeare's
works. This simple
purchase marked the beginning
of a great collection, amazing
m Its range and variety, which
now consists of approximately
280,000 books and manuscripts,
plus paintings, drawings, engravings
and prmts. Also, there
are many mUSIcal instruments,
costumes, and films whIch reflect
that golden Renaissance
era InCIdentally, this incomparable
treasure is admInistered
by the trustees of Amherst College,
Folger's alma mater.
Typical of their thoughtful
concern, Mrs Folger insisted
the frieze, a horizontal band of
carvmgs around a wall, be
placed at eye-level rather than
at the usual spot near the top
of the buIldIng. As a result,
BIBLIO;-FILE Autumn color display
expected on schedule
By Elizabeth P. Walker
bhnd people as well as children
can feel the sculptured figures
The GeorgIan-style facade IS
decorated with nme bas-rehefs
depICtIng scenes from Shakespeare's
plays
Outdoors there IS a small,
charmmg garden featurmg
herbs and flowers of the kInd
grown durIng the Bard's tIme
The east lawn also has several
comfortable benches under
spreading trees which prOVIde
shade and a retreat for qUIet
meditation At the west end
there IS a statue of Puck preSid-
Ing over a pool and a fountain
InsIde there IS a wee ElIZabethan
theater complete with
three-tiered gallery, carved oak
columns, and topped with a
canopIed celhng - all remInIScent
of an Innyard theater of
Shakespeare's age
Displayed in all ItS glory m
the magnificent Great Hall IS
the excellent exhibit of fine and
hlstonc bookbindmgs from The
Folger. Heading the exhibIt, as
a magnIficent centerpIece, IS
the FIrst Folio, the 1623 collection
of Shakespeare's work. It
was a thrilling mtroduction to
what was to follow - 15th century
bindings on Incunabula,
bindmgs from the reign of
Queen Ehzabeth I, bmdings
from the Restoration, vellum
bmdIngs of the 16th and 17th
centunes, lovely embroidered
and velvet bindings, fore-edge
paintIngs, various clasps and
ties from the 15th-18th centunes,
and bIndings from the
reign of Queen Anne to King
George III.
To see all these books m so
many types of bindings makes
one admire the unsung crafts
men who created such artistic
and protective covers. We
noted{ of course, that all of
the~ gorgeous tDtIfacts were
owned by royalty, noblemen,
and other personages of wealth
and influence. ObVIously, books
were cherished iteIns to be
guarded and adorned.
From a "bookaholic's" pomt
of view, I believe that we
should take good care of those
books we have and WIsh to
keep far Into the future. It was
mspll'lng for me to visit The
Folger and to see how Mr. and
Mrs. Folger made It pOSSIblefor
generations of Amencans to
share and enjoy the richness of
the Shakespearean legacy.
ELIZabeth Walker's Biblio-fi/e
column runs every other week
In thIS sectmn
Day trips can perk up fall
Make your reservatIOns now
for the new line up of day tnps
offered this fall through the
Grosse Pomte War Memorial.
The followmg eight tnps are offered
m the September/October
brochure.
• VISIt the Shipshewana Flea
Market on Tuesday, Sept. 15,
from 8 a m to 11:30 p.m. The
cost IS $53 a person and mcludes
motorcoach, box lunch
and dmner.
• Hear the music of Andrew
Lloyd Webber with speCIal
guest star MIchael Crawford at
the Fox Theatre on Saturday,
Sept 19, from 1 to 430 pm.
Included are great songs and
theater music from: ''The Phantom
of the Opera," "Cats," "Ev-
Ita," "Jesus ChrIst Superstar,"
"StarlIght Express," "Joseph
and the Amazmg Techmcolor
Dreamcoat," "Song and
Dance," "Requiem," and "Aspects
of Love." The cost IS $42
a person and mcludes motorcoach
and main floor seatmg.
rRAVEL TRENDS
By Cynthia Baal Janssens
Will return next week.
-PROUDLY
j/~~£ T
1 MICROGRAPHIC & ELECTRONIC IMAGE CONVERSION
SERVICES • SYSTEMS. CONSULTATION
• See "All Night Strut" on
Wednesday, Sept 23, from 5:30
to 10 p m. The evemng mcludes
a light dinner at the War Memonal,
theater ticket (seating IS
main floor, cabaret style), and
motorcoach transportation. The
cost IS $39 a person.
• Try something different on
Thursday, Oct 1, from 9 am
to 6 p.m Begin with a visit to
the George P. MacNichol Home
for a tour of this stately VICtonan
house Then, sit back
and enjoy a short tnp through
rural Lenawee County aboard
the Bhssfield Railroad's restored
1930s and 1940s vintage
passenger coaches There's even
tIme for antIqumg m Salme
and sampling the luncheon buffet
at the Hathaway House.
The cost is $36 a person and
mcludes motorcoach, house
tour, train nde and buffet
luncheon.
Cool weather may have
dampened plans of Michiganders
who thnve on summer,
but fall color buffs should enJoy
a spectacular vlewmg season,
accordmg to AAA MIChIgan
"People ale already gettmg
excited because of reports that
Upper PenInsula trees were
changIng color In early August,"
said AAA MichIgan
member servICes dIrector Peter
Enckson. "WhIle that may be
true m Isolated areas, the tradl
tIonal fall color season is still
on target to begIn m mId-Sep
tember
"Weather conditions m early
September largely determIne
the success of the fall color display,"
he saId "If we have
bl'lght sunny days and cool
mghts, we can expect a good
show. Daylight length IS also
slgmficant. Shorter days cause
leaves to stop producmg chlorophyll
and they lose theIr green
color"
MichIgan's rainy summer
helped growing conditIOns,
whIch means that tree leaves
will be bIgger and healthIer
Historical
Society to
offer tours
Tours of Monroe's histonc
churches, Dearborn's Ford Historic
Homes Development, Mt.
EllIott Cemetery, and the Van
Dyke Place wIll be featured
durIng the Detroit Histoncal
Society's (DHS) September pubhc
prograIns.
St Mary, Immaculate Heart
of Mary, TrInity Lutheran,
Tnmty EpIscopal. and St MIchael
are the Monroe area
churches featured during the
Sept. 14 tour. The tour, aboard
the Historymobile, will begm at
10 a.m. departing from the DetrOIt
HIstorIcal Museum's parkmg
lot and returmng at 3'15
p m Luncheon IS included Payment
IS by mall only - $11 for
non-members and $9 for DHS
members.
The Ford Histonc Homes
Development, built in 1919-
1920 in Dearborn for Ford Motor
Co. employees, will be featured
dunng the Sept 13
Sunday Stroll. On Sept 20, Mt.
Elliott Cemetery WIll be featured
- the final resting place
for many of DetrOIt's early
bankers, farmers, architects,
merchants, judges, raIlroad,
lumber and real estate barons
Both strolls WIll begin at 2 p.m.
(ram or shine) and last two to
three hours. TIckets are avaIlable
by mall only, $5 for nonmembers
and $4 for DHS members.
On Sept 23 the "DHS Pubs,
Clubs & Private Dinmg: VarlOUSVenues
& Victuals" will
VIsit the Van Dyke Place BUIlt
m 1900 by clothmg manufacturer
Wilham Muir Finck, the
French.mspIred townhouse was
described as "the perfect type
of pure French House," in a
1912 Issue of Town & Country
magazme Current owner Ron
Fox will show a home mOVIeof
the Dodge famIly. The program
wIll begin at 6:30 p.m and prepaid
tIckets are $50 for nonmembers
and $45 for DHS
members
For more mformation on
these and other DHS programs
call Jo O'Neill at (313) 833-
7934. The DHS maihng address
IS 5401 Woodward, DetrOIt,
MIch. 48202
LIDO ON THE LAKE
,
ANNOUNCES-
Private ban~uet facilities available
for weddmgs, anniversaries,
Christmas parties, communions,
banquets and all your
private }'{irtyneeds.
CALL
773.7770
when they turn to autumn
shades
VISItors to Ml