Marlene Wagman-Geller

"As far back as I can remember, it was always on my bucket list, even before the term bucket list was coined,
to be a writer. It was a natural progression to want to go from reading books to writing one."
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No Regrets

No Regrets
Dec 19, 2023 by Marlene Wagman-Geller

 

“Every damn thing you do in this life, you have to pay for.” – Édith Piaf

 

The Musée Édith Piaf (opened 1977)

Paris, France

            The blind poet, John Milton, illustrated insight into the human condition with his statement, “The anguish of the singer makes the sweetness of the strain.” A chanteuse who proved his words was an alchemist whose songs dwelled on the permanence of love, the impermanence of lovers. To step into her world- whose dragon at the gate is a break-the-mold docent- enter the Musée Édith Piaf.

I Did What I Could (1985)

I Did What I Could (1985)
Dec 14, 2023 by Marlene Wagman-Geller
   Crazy Horse, Sitting Bull, Geronimo. The names conjure the legendary Native Americans of yesteryear, the era when the buffalo and the teepee dotted the landscape. In 1985, Wilma Mankiller joined the trio as the first principal female chief of the Cherokee Nation.

Rainbow (1860)

Rainbow (1860)
Dec 13, 2023 by Marlene Wagman-Geller
  Whether Ms. Moses found the sobriquet “Grandma” a term of endearment or an unwelcome reminder of the onslaught of time is a matter of conjecture, but it is a name with which she was inextricably bound. Her life, one supposed to be exempt from Warhol’s 15 minutes of fame, was as fanciful as her canvasses. Her biography serves as a testament that one can receive a late-night knock at the door from the hand of fate.  

Loved By Others

Loved By Others
Nov 28, 2023 by Marlene Wagman-Geller

“I believe in the idea of the rainbow. And I’ve spent my entire life trying to get over it.” 

Judy Garland Museum (opened 1996)

Grand Rapids, Minnesota

      In Frank L. Baum’s novel, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, Dorothy told the Scarecrow, “There is no place like home.” For Judy Garland, the star of the book’s movie adaptation, home was in the picturesquely named city of Grand Rapids. To pay tribute to the actress and to the childhood classic, one can follow the yellow brick road to the Judy Garland Museum.

Mariposas

Mariposas
Nov 25, 2023 by Marlene Wagman-Geller

“When injustice becomes law, rebellion becomes duty.” Minerva Mirabal

Casa Museo Hermanas Mirabal (opened 1994)

Tenares, The Dominican Republic

     A Hans Christian Anderson story proved prescient in the lives of the Mirabal sisters. In his fairy tale a butterfly stated, “Just living is not enough. One must have sunshine, freedom, and a little flower.” The sibling’s childhood home, the Casa Museo Hermanas Mirabel, resonates their courage. 

God's in. His Heaven

God's in. His Heaven
Nov 14, 2023 by Marlene Wagman-Geller

“I like imagining better than remembering.” L. M. Montgomery  

The Anne of Green Gables Museum (opened 1972 )

Prince Edward Island, Canada

    There must be something about a gabled house that sets the literary juices flowing. Nathaniel Hawthorne, inspired by one in Salem, Massachusetts, wrote The House of the Seven Gables, a residence haunted by the injustice of the witch trials. Lucy Maud Montgomery’s cherished residence in Maritime Canada gave birth to Anne of Green Gables, the tale of the triumphs and tribulations of an orphaned girl. For the legions who love the Montgomery series, The Anne of Green Gables Museum makes for an irresistible mecca.

Hell on Wheels (1908)

Hell on Wheels (1908)
Nov 05, 2023 by Marlene Wagman-Geller

“Travel is compost for the mind.”

      A song by the Swedish pop group, ABBA, revolves around lovers; their time together made more poignant by the fight for freedom raging under a star-lit sky set against the roar of canons, the retorts of gunfire. The non-fictional “Fernando” was an eminent American journalist covering a civil war with the woman who shared his bottle and bed.

Do Not Pass Go (1904)

Do Not Pass Go (1904)
Nov 05, 2023 by Marlene Wagman-Geller
    Nostalgia comes to call with the opening of a box filled with silver trinkets, brightly colored cards, plastic pieces of real estate. It offers a flight of fancy where, for a time, one could be lord of many manors. If unlucky, we would end up behind bars; if savvy, we would become as wealthy as Rich Uncle Pennybags.

Mary Lincoln House

Mary Lincoln House
Nov 04, 2023 by Marlene Wagman-Geller

 Eternal

“I am bound to the earth with sorrow.” Mary Todd Lincoln after the assassination

Mary Todd Lincoln House (opened 1977)

Lexington, Kentucky

       Stephen Foster’s signature song, “My Old Kentucky Home,” expresses a slave’s longing to be reunited with his family in his far away blue grass state. Trapped in the eye of the Civil War storm, Mary Todd Lincoln also pined for her old Kentucky home. To walk the same halls as Mary and President Lincoln, one can tour the Mary Todd Lincoln House.

The Betsy Ross House

The Betsy Ross House
Nov 04, 2023 by Marlene Wagman-Geller

Chapter # 2: Minerva    D

The Betsy Ross House (opened 1937 )

 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

“I am not certain if I can. At least I’ll gladly try.” Betsy Ross

 

       Within the stripes of the American flag lies a treasure trove of history, mystery, and controversy. “Old Glory” appears in fifty states and on the moon; thousands have died fighting for or against it. The Marines raised the Stars and Stripes to commemorate the victory in the Pacific; the draft-dodgers burned it in protest of the military in Southeast Asia. As the Twin Towers crumbled, three New York City firefighters rigged a makeshift flagpole and hoisted the symbol of resilience. Millions visit the Betsy Ross Home to pay homage to the universal icon.

   

“Quand Même”            (1844)

“Quand Même”            (1844)
Oct 22, 2023 by Marlene Wagman-Geller

“Slow down? Rest? With all eternity before me?”

     Used a letter holder named Sophie made from a human skull? Check. Accessorized with a stuffed bat? Check. Slept in a coffin? Check. And the woman who could answer in the affirmative to these questions was also the possessor of the honorific “Divine.”

     

Warmed the World (Val- Kil Cottage Museum opened in 1984)

Warmed    the World (Val- Kil Cottage Museum opened in 1984)
Oct 11, 2023 by Marlene Wagman-Geller
When the World’s First Lady-the honorific President Harry S. Truman bestowed upon Eleanor Roosevelt- needed a refuge “far from the maddening crowd” of Washington, D.C., she escaped to Val-Kill, her Hudson Valley hideaway. Of her beloved home she stated, “Val-Kill is where I used to find myself. At Val-Kill, I emerged as an individual.”

Hike! (1936)

Hike! (1936)
Oct 07, 2023 by Marlene Wagman-Geller

    The poet, A. E. Housman wrote, “In the spring a young man’s fancy lightly turns to thoughts of love.” In the world of football, a young man’s fancy turns to thoughts of the Heisman Trophy, the most prestigious in college sports. But what even the most fanatic of fans may not know is the namesake of the award: Coach John Heisman, (nicknamed Doc.)
 

This Little Light of Mine (1917)

This Little Light of Mine (1917)
Oct 06, 2023 by Marlene Wagman-Geller

    As Susan B. Anthony lay dying, she spoke to her fellow suffragettes, “With women such as you, failure is impossible.” A year after her passing, in 1920, women were allowed into the polling station, an act that had oncce led to Anthony’s arrest. However, in the Deep South, despite the 15th Amendment, Jim Crow prevented the disenfranchised from voting, determined to keep poor blacks in their place-the bottom of the social hierarchy.

Pick Up Your Feet (1955)

Pick Up Your Feet (1955)
Oct 02, 2023 by Marlene Wagman-Geller
    Geoffrey Chaucer’s 14th century The Canterbury Tales revolves around a motley crew of pilgrims who share salacious stories to pass the time on their pilgrimage. One of their number, the Wife of Bath, had outlived five husbands though she had managed to elude motherhood. Emma “Grandma” Gatewood served as her diametric opposite: the only commonality is that she was also a pilgrim on a journey that made her the first woman to conquer-unaccompanied- the Appalachian Trail.

Lobster (1994)

Lobster (1994)
Sep 22, 2023 by Marlene Wagman-Geller

“Oh, I’m sorry. Did my back hurt your knife?”

      The 18th century Tivoli Fountain in Rome is forever associated with the image of Anita Ekberg frolicking in its water in a scene from Federico Fellini’s La Dolce Vita. A far different, but equally iconic fountain appears in the opening credits of the television series Friends in which six Manhattan Musketeers sport in the water to the backdrop of the lyric, “I’ll be there for you.”

After All (1970)

After All (1970)
Sep 19, 2023 by Marlene Wagman-Geller
In 1967, Mary Tyler Moore starred in the movie Thoroughly Modern Millie. Her television series, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, could similarly have had the title Thoroughly Modern Mary, as its eponymous heroine threw off the shackles that kept 1970s women imprisoned in a shag-carpeted cage.

Mr. Bojangles (1928)

Mr. Bojangles (1928)
Sep 19, 2023 by Marlene Wagman-Geller
F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote, “There are no second acts in American lives.” His words proved a self-fulfilling prophecy when the hand that penned The Great Gatsby shook so much from alcoholic tremors he could no longer hold a pen. In contrast, other artists have reinvented themselves in their later years, a fact manifested by a woman who proved there was life post The Good Ship Lollipop.

Viva La Causa (1930)

Viva La Causa (1930)
Sep 14, 2023 by Marlene Wagman-Geller
   Ironically, the World War II poster of Rosie the Riveter and its caption, “We can do it!” was the brainchild of a man though it became a symbol of female empowerment. In contrast, the slogan of the United Farm Workers, attributed to Cesar Chavez, was authored by a woman-one who history regulated to a footnote due to an amalgam of sexism and ageism.

I Will What I Want (2015)

I Will What I Want (2015)
Sep 10, 2023 by Marlene Wagman-Geller
Dance Moms, a Lifetime Network Chanel television show, features stage moms on steroids, endlessly exhorting their rhinestone-clad daughters to lift the barre on their competitors. In contrast to the dancing divas is Misty Copeland, the first African-American woman to be named a principal dancer at the prestigious American Ballet Theatre (ABT).