LISTEN to today's conversation with featured guest Mary Sheeran.
Mary Sheeran’s latest book Banished From Memory (May 14, 2019, Aquafire Solis) reaches back into Hollywood’s past, commenting on an era of film history frequently overlooked--the years of the Hollywood blacklist.
The daughter of two award-winning actors, 16-year-old Dianna Fletcher fears her inability to live up to her family legacy. Unable to keep up with the rapidly changing roles for women in the industry, Dianna is thrilled to land a role. When she is placed alongside one of Hollywood’s notorious womanizers, Bill Royce, Dianna begins to discover secrets long buried in her family’s past which could destroy their prestige and power.
In her latest novel, Mary Sheeran weaves together disparate strands—a young woman’s coming of age, a changing film industry, the sexual pitfalls of Hollywood still resonating today in the #MeToo movement, a secret spanning three generations, and her relationship with a brooding, brilliant actor—to create a story about the effects of the Hollywood blacklist on two families. In Banished From Memory (Aquafire Sulis, May 14, 2019), Sheeran explores female agency and sheds light on the pitfalls of sexism, nationalism, and beloved American icons.
Sheeran’s novel focuses on 16-year-old Dianna Fletcher, famous for her high-status as the daughter of two award-winning actors. During her coming-of-age, Dianna realizes that the bright lights of 1960’s Hollywood are starting to cast shadows on the secrets of her family’s past.
Dianna fears that she is losing her talent and failing to live up to her family’s legacy. When she does land a part, she finds an unexpected enemy in brilliant actor and womanizer Bill Royce, who not only attacks her confidence but holds a deep grudge against her family. Dianna comes to believe that Bill’s resentment is related to a secret linked to the Hollywood blacklist.
Banished From Memory highlights the conflicted relationship between two legacies of the blacklist, the sunset period of classic Hollywood, the challenges and gifts of acting, and a determination on the part of one generation to exhume the truth of another’s. But at what cost?
MARY SHEERAN has acted in plays, sung in operas, and created and performed in recitals and cabaret shows, all in New York City. She is the author of two novels, Who Have the Power (2006), an exploration of cultural conflict, feminism, and Native American history, and Quest of the Sleeping Princess (2012), set in the midst of George Balanchine’s ballets. She has written theater and dance reviews for show business trade publications and for the blog Life Upon the Sacred Stage. Mary lives in the Bronx, where in conjunction with earning a Master of Divinity degree from New York Theological Seminary, she can also be found giving sermons in Manhattan churches.
In an interview, Mary Sheeran can discuss:
How the Hollywood Blacklist affected families and individuals in the ‘50s- ‘60s
How acting roles for women changed in the 1960s and the larger effect of Hollywood sexualization
How she understands the #MeToo Movement as it relates to Hollywood in the 60s and now
Changes in the production of movies before and after the Blacklist went into effect that most people wouldn’t notice
The thorough research she completed in order to accurately reflect Hollywood’s past
How her background in acting and singing opera has influenced her fiction
MIDWEST BOOK REVIEW: Banished From Memory is an example of 20th century historical fiction at its strongest, and revolves around the relationships and politics of 1960 Hollywood's entertainment industry during an era when blacklisting ran rampant.
Mary Sheeran’s latest book Banished From Memory (May 14, 2019, Aquafire Solis) reaches back into Hollywood’s past, commenting on an era of film history frequently overlooked--the years of the Hollywood blacklist.
The daughter of two award-winning actors, 16-year-old Dianna Fletcher fears her inability to live up to her family legacy. Unable to keep up with the rapidly changing roles for women in the industry, Dianna is thrilled to land a role. When she is placed alongside one of Hollywood’s notorious womanizers, Bill Royce, Dianna begins to discover secrets long buried in her family’s past which could destroy their prestige and power.
In her latest novel, Mary Sheeran weaves together disparate strands—a young woman’s coming of age, a changing film industry, the sexual pitfalls of Hollywood still resonating today in the #MeToo movement, a secret spanning three generations, and her relationship with a brooding, brilliant actor—to create a story about the effects of the Hollywood blacklist on two families. In Banished From Memory (Aquafire Sulis, May 14, 2019), Sheeran explores female agency and sheds light on the pitfalls of sexism, nationalism, and beloved American icons.
Sheeran’s novel focuses on 16-year-old Dianna Fletcher, famous for her high-status as the daughter of two award-winning actors. During her coming-of-age, Dianna realizes that the bright lights of 1960’s Hollywood are starting to cast shadows on the secrets of her family’s past.
Dianna fears that she is losing her talent and failing to live up to her family’s legacy. When she does land a part, she finds an unexpected enemy in brilliant actor and womanizer Bill Royce, who not only attacks her confidence but holds a deep grudge against her family. Dianna comes to believe that Bill’s resentment is related to a secret linked to the Hollywood blacklist.
Banished From Memory highlights the conflicted relationship between two legacies of the blacklist, the sunset period of classic Hollywood, the challenges and gifts of acting, and a determination on the part of one generation to exhume the truth of another’s. But at what cost?
MARY SHEERAN has acted in plays, sung in operas, and created and performed in recitals and cabaret shows, all in New York City. She is the author of two novels, Who Have the Power (2006), an exploration of cultural conflict, feminism, and Native American history, and Quest of the Sleeping Princess (2012), set in the midst of George Balanchine’s ballets. She has written theater and dance reviews for show business trade publications and for the blog Life Upon the Sacred Stage. Mary lives in the Bronx, where in conjunction with earning a Master of Divinity degree from New York Theological Seminary, she can also be found giving sermons in Manhattan churches.
In an interview, Mary Sheeran can discuss:
How the Hollywood Blacklist affected families and individuals in the ‘50s- ‘60s
How acting roles for women changed in the 1960s and the larger effect of Hollywood sexualization
How she understands the #MeToo Movement as it relates to Hollywood in the 60s and now
Changes in the production of movies before and after the Blacklist went into effect that most people wouldn’t notice
The thorough research she completed in order to accurately reflect Hollywood’s past
How her background in acting and singing opera has influenced her fiction
MIDWEST BOOK REVIEW: Banished From Memory is an example of 20th century historical fiction at its strongest, and revolves around the relationships and politics of 1960 Hollywood's entertainment industry during an era when blacklisting ran rampant.
