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Diane de Poitiers

(see under "By Era" for French Revolution fiction)
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Laura
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Post by Laura » Thu July 16th, 2009, 6:41 pm

[quote=""Misfit""]My, I watched the movie La Reine Margot. Heavens all those shirts open to there and the hair flying free. Interesting.

I have finished Volume I of the Two Dianas and well into Volume II (Laura's reading it as well). Review coming this weekend when I'm finished but I have to say this is damn good stuff and why in the h*** it's languishing in the literary dustbins is beyond us. It's also very readable and would be an excellent intro for anyone new to Dumas.

Just a very brief rundown. MC's are Diana de Castro (daughter of Diana de Poitiers and Henri II) and Gabriel de Montgommery. They both grew up not knowing their real identities, now in love but there's a deep dark secret that only a prisoner who has been locked up for years at the order of Montmorency and de Poitiers knows. This dreaded secret stands in the way of true love and our hero tries to win Henri's promise to free him. Dumas has also thrown in Martin Guerre and his lookalike (ROFL at those misunderstandings).

I am dying to see how Dumas plays out Gabriel's story with the Nostradamus prediction and knowing what we know about the real Gabriel's history. I suspect I'll not get much done this weekend until I'm finished. ;) :) [/quote]

As I said before at GR, it must have some reason for this lack of general knowledge on this book. I will try to find out in some public French library or perhaps some French writer could help us in this research.

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Laura
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Post by Laura » Thu July 16th, 2009, 7:28 pm

I just found it!!! Misfit, take a look at: http://www.cadytech.com/dumas/work.php?key=107

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Misfit
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Post by Misfit » Thu July 16th, 2009, 8:05 pm

[quote=""Laura""]I just found it!!! Misfit, take a look at: http://www.cadytech.com/dumas/work.php?key=107[/quote]

Good job. I had no idea other people were writing for Dumas. Might have to take this back to the Dumas Pere' Group at GR.
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Misfit
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Post by Misfit » Thu July 16th, 2009, 8:07 pm

[quote=""cw gortner""]The summer of the massacre was record-hot: we're talking, sweltering. All the chroniclers of the time commented on it. So, I love the fact that in the film of La Reine Margot they acknowledge this and show you people who are wearing as little as they possibly can at court because it's so bloody hot. And the wood paneled rooms within the Louvre is another wonderful detail; in fact, at the time, Catherine de Medici was renovating most of the Louvre palace.

We sometimes forget that court portraits are formal stylizations intended to convey image; in reality, everybody didn't walk around all day dressed like their painting.

And me, too; I especially like that divine blue damask gown laced directly over her bare breasts, and the black mask along with the hooded taffeta cloak, which she wears when she goes hunting for an anonymous lover and finds la Mole. Scrumptious.[/quote]

Thank you, interesting stuff. That dress though - the picture doesn't even do it justice ;)
At home with a good book and the cat...
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Misfit
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Post by Misfit » Mon July 20th, 2009, 12:03 pm

Apparently a movie was made of Diane's story in 1956 starring Lana Turner and Roger Moore. There are videos for sale but they look a bit on the spendy side.

Image

Image
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cw gortner
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Post by cw gortner » Tue July 21st, 2009, 11:45 pm

I love those posters! Look at Lana; she's the perfect Diane: she'd as soon eat you as look at you. :p I betcha the movies are just gloriously awful.
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annis
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Post by annis » Wed July 22nd, 2009, 11:57 am

Posted by Misfit
Good job. I had no idea other people were writing for Dumas. Might have to take this back to the Dumas Pere' Group at GR.
Ha- a Dumas franchise :)

I was intrigued when checking out Robin Hood stories after reading Adam Thorpe's excellent novel "Hodd", that Dumas ( or maybe one of his franchisees?) wrote a couple of RH novels which I'd never come across before :
"Robin, Prince des Voleurs "(Robin, Prince of Thieves) and "Robin, le Proscrit" (Robin the Oulaw) apparently translated in the 1960s as "Robin, Prince of Outlaws" Have any Dumas fans read this?

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Misfit
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Post by Misfit » Wed July 22nd, 2009, 1:37 pm

[quote=""annis""]Posted by Misfit


Ha- a Dumas franchise :)

I was intrigued when checking out Robin Hood stories after reading Adam Thorpe's excellent novel "Hodd", that Dumas ( or maybe one of his franchisees?) wrote a couple of RH novels which I'd never come across before :
"Robin, Prince des Voleurs "(Robin, Prince of Thieves) and "Robin, le Proscrit" (Robin the Oulaw) apparently translated in the 1960s as "Robin, Prince of Outlaws" Have any Dumas fans read this?[/quote]

I have not. I might have to start us a Dumas thread. I have to go work now, but since you're so good at this stuff see if you can find anything here.

At the very end of The Two Dianas the author made note that he had told Mary (Q of S) in another book.
At home with a good book and the cat...
...is the only place I want to be

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