Month: September 2022

Valerie Bertinelli and Tom Vitale have reached a settlement in their divorce,according to court documents obtained by PEOPLE.

The Food Network star filed for divorce in May, six months after filing forlegal separation in November 2021. Per the documents, proceedings were settledby a private judge, Hank Goldberg. This includes the Spousal Support andAttorney Fees issue, along with the bifurcated Validity of PremaritalAgreement proceeding. Neither Bertinelli or Vitale appeared in court.

Bertinelli did not respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

After the Golden Globe winner filed for divorce from Vitale, he asked in Juneto be awarded spousal support, per documents filed in the Los Angeles SuperiorCourt, which were obtained by PEOPLE at the time.

According to the documents, Vitale also sought to block Bertinelli fromrequesting spousal support, in addition to challenging the validity of theirprenuptial agreement.

In July, Bertinelli responded to her ex’s challenge of their premaritalagreement by filing a 13-page request to bifurcate her marital status fromfinancial issues in her and Tom Vitale’s divorce, according to court recordsobtained by PEOPLE. The court documents noted that Bertinelli was looking for”an early and separate trial on the issue of validity of PremaritalAgreement.”

RELATED: Valerie Bertinelli ‘s Estranged Husband Tom Vitale Asks for SpousalSupport After Divorce Filing

Ultimately, Bertinelli’s request meant a separate trial from any otheroutstanding issues regarding the divorce — a move she made after Vitale askedto be awarded $50,000 per month in spousal support and $200,000 in legal feesin early July, according to the records.

Bertinelli’s request that their premarital agreement, signed in 2010 beforethe two got married, contains a “waiver of temporary and permanent spousalsupport.”

Tom Vitale (L) and actress Valerie Bertinelli attend Power of Pink 2014Benefiting the Cancer Prevention Program at Saint John’s Health Center atHouse of Blues Sunset Strip on October 23, 2014 in West Hollywood, California

Rich Polk/Getty

​​In court documents from the initial divorce filing, Bertinelli cited”irreconcilable differences” as the reason for the dissolution of theirmarriage.

Story continues

In June, the actress appeared on the Today show with Hoda Kotb and gotemotional when asked if she ever wanted to look for love again, responding,”Oh, God no.”

RELATED: Valerie Bertinelli Requests Separate Trial to Validate Prenup inDivorce from Tom Vitale

“Because of the challenges that I’m going through right now, because divorcesucks. I can’t imagine ever trusting anyone again to let into my life. So Ihave some trust issues that I’m sure I’m going to have to get past,”Bertinelli added.

the Hot in Cleveland star married Vitale in 2011 during a New Year’s Dayceremony at their cliff-side Malibu home after several years of dating. Theywere introduced by her brother Patrick.

Bertinelli recently parted ways with the shoes she wore on their wedding day.

“Dropped a few things off with @therealreal,” Bertinelli, 62, captioned aseries of photos that included sleek brown Jimmy Choo strappy heels completewith diamond studs. In the snap, Bertinelli also held what appeared to be twowedding bands in front of a classic Tiffany & Co. box.

“A couple of Tiffany rings that have some bad memories attached and a pair ofshoes I wore to a wedding in January 2011 😉,” she said of her items, adding:”They should be up in a couple of weeks! ✨💖. “

Good news for all Efteling fans. After three years, the oldest building in thepark has been rebuilt and with it the resident returns: Vrouw Holle. Extraspecial for designer Robert-Jaap Jansen and his 88-year-old mother Ella, whoonce modeled for the snow lady.

Written by

Sven de Laet

It was a bit of a swallow for many enthusiasts, when the iconic, but outdatedhouse was demolished at the end of 2019 for safety reasons. After all, thatwas already there around 1940, years before the Efteling existed. It wasoriginally built as a wooden log cabin for the scouting scouts. Later, afamily even lived there, who could no longer stay in their own destroyed housedue to war bombing.

The cottage was originally a log cabin for the scouts (photo: Eftelingarchive).

When the Well of Vrouw Holle was added to the Fairytale Forest in 1952, theadjacent house was also given a makeover by Anton Pieck. After that it was,among other things, a souvenir shop and a fairytale museum, but it was notuntil 2006 that it actually became the house of Vrouw Holle.

All this thanks to designer Robert-Jaap Jansen, who got the idea during a walkthrough the Fairytale Forest. “How funny would it be if Mrs. Holle appearedevery so often in that nice little house to really make it snow?”

“Then came the question if anyone knew a nice Woman Holle.”

The management of Efteling also agreed with this plan. “The nice thing wasthat there was a beautiful drawing by Anton Pieck in the archive, on whichVrouw Holle shakes out a pillow.”

A nice starting point, but to bring the fairy tale to life, something extrawas needed. “Someone had to model so we could see how the doll had to move.Then the question came if anyone knew a nice Woman Holle. Well, I couldsometimes poll my mother.”

On the left the sketch by Anton Pieck, on the right Ella Jansen as a model.

Mother Ella herself didn’t hesitate for a second: “I’m up for all kinds ofcrazy things.” She remembers everything about that day in the park. “I had toput on a long dress and a big hat. Well, that was sweltering hot.” Robert-Jaaplaughing: “We let her walk up and down again and again. There is a photo,where she is completely exhausted.”

Still, it was all worth it, according to the proud son. “At one point shejokingly said, ‘Shall I make it snow?’ That turned out to be so nice that westill use that phrase in the fairy tale.”

Since then, Ella feels forever connected to Lady Holle. “When we come to thepark, I always go and see her. The story may not be as well known as LittleRed Riding Hood or the Wolf and the Seven Goats, but for me it is extraspecial.”

In fact, Ella is a bit like Vrouw Holle these days. “In the nursing home whereI live, people think that’s my real name. For many people I’m one and thesame.” Still, there’s one question that Ella hasn’t solved after all theseyears. “I always think: don’t those kids ever wonder where Mr. Holle is?”

“I also see it as a tribute to my mother.”

After almost three years, Ella’s favorite fairytale character is now back inher place. Although the reconstruction of the house was not a matter ofstacking some stones and putting a roof on it.

“Before demolition, the house was scanned to the millimeter with lasers,” saysRobert-Jaap. “That was used as a new building plan. It looks exactly the sameand some parts have even been reused. It’s honestly as if it never went away.”

Fortunately, because the designer himself also has a special and emotionalbond with the house. “I also see it as a tribute to my mother. Hopefully itwill now be back for eternity.”

CelebritiesAfter a lot of weight fluctuations, Jessica Simpson (42) managed tolose no less than 45 kg. In an interview with ‘Extra’ she reveals her secretand confesses that she is finally feeling good about herself again. “I feellike my old self before I had children,” it sounds.

Earlier this year, Jessica Simpson wrote on social media that she neverthought she’d be able to flaunt her figure again. “Finally I’m wearing abikini again,” it sounded then. Her secret? “Hard work, determination andself-love.” But in a new interview with ‘Extra’ she reveals even more detailsto hostess Terri Seymour and confesses what really helped her lose weight.

“I went to a nutritionist and had to get my eating habits right.” When Terriasks her if she also feels healthy and good about herself right now, theanswer is crystal clear: “I feel absolutely healthy. I feel like my old selfagain, before I had kids and all the hormones went haywire.” She goes on tosay that she even feels a lot younger. “I have much more energy and feelyounger. I can wear all the clothes I kept in storage for my daughters Maxwelland Birdie.”

Forever ‘Daisy Duke’

Terri wonders why people are so obsessed with her weight and the way she looksand if she ever gets used to it. “Oh, not at all. But I don’t think with anywoman. I’ve been criticized and that hurt, but I’ve also been proud of it. Idecided for myself that everyone will always talk about my weight, so I bettermake money off it and make a business of selling clothes.” In the actingworld, she could count on the advice of actress Lynda Carter, better known as’Wonder Woman’. She saved her from criticism. “She warned me on the set of’Dukes of Hazzard’. She told me that she will always be Wonder Woman and willforever be compared to that and that I will be too with my role as DaisyDuke.”

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Jessica Simpson: ‘I was abused as a child’

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Prime Video revealed quite a few new movies that would be added to the offerin October. We put it all together for you.

AJAX: PEARLS OF AMSTERDAM | Release date : October 7

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Ajax is the most successful club in the Netherlands. The people of Amsterdamhave also been known in the world for decades for their much-vaunted youthacademy. The three players who play the lead role in the documentary allreceived their football training at Ajax. Shortly after each other, they brokethrough in Ajax 1. The documentary on Prime Video gives a special insight intotheir lives. Gravenberch, Timber and Rensch reach Ajax 1 at different times,but then have to become a supporting force in the A-selection. Unique behind-the-scenes images show what it takes to gain your place in the first team ofAjax as a young player and then continue to develop and become successful asan Ajax player. The documentary is a story full of expectations, doubts,moments of success and setbacks. TikTok, Boom. (2022)

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Direction : Shalini Kantayya | cast : Richard Cannon III | Releasedate : October 7

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Now that TikTok is the world’s most downloaded app, these are the personalstories of a cultural phenomenon, told through the eyes of a Gen-Z cast,journalists and experts.

Catherine Called Birdy (2022)

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Direction: Lena Dunham | cast : Bella Ramsey, Andrew Scott, Joe Alwyn, SophieOkonedo | Release date : October 7

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In the year 1290, Lady Catherine, nicknamed Birdy, grows up in England. Shelives with her parents Lord Rollo and Lady Aislinn in Stonebridge Manor, whichhas seen better days. To get out of financial trouble, her father wants tomarry her off to a wealthy man. But that’s not counting Birdy, who isn’t readyto give up her independent life just yet. She cleverly keeps her worshipers ata distance.

Jackass Forever (2022)

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Direction: Jeff Tremaine | cast : Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O, Chris Pontius, MachineGun Kelly | Release date : 14 October

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After more than ten years, the remaining Jackass members come together onelast time to pull off a movie full of crazy stunts. Johnny and his team go onestep further than before. They celebrate their joy of being back together,which leads to hilarious, absurd and sometimes dangerous situations. Theyexperiment with cannons, spiders, snakes, parachutes, electric chairs and muchmore.

IF YOU CAN HEAR US | Release date : October 16

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On October 20, 1996, hundreds of thousands of people marched through Brusselsin the White March. The Belgian population then massively showed itsdissatisfaction, indignation, even anger at the way in which our countryhandled the file of the then disappeared and murdered girls. Exactly a quarterof a century later, we look back at these historical events in the four-partseries If you can hear us.

Licorice Pizza (2021)

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Direction: Paul Thomas Anderson | cast : Alana Haim, Alana Haim, Sean Penn, TomWaits | Release date : October 17

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‘Licorice Pizza’ follows the lives of Alana Kane and Gary Valentine. Both growup in the San Fernando Valley during the 1970s and fall in love. Gary is alsoworking on building an acting career.

Argentina, 1985 (2022)

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Direction: Santiago Miter | cast : Ricardo Darin, Peter Lanzani, Francisco Bertin,Norman Briski | Release date : 21st of October

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In 1985, prosecutors Julio Strassera and Luis Moreno Ocampo open aninvestigation into Argentina’s bloodiest military dictatorship. Despite thearmy’s still great influence within the new fragile democracy, the men bravelycontinue their investigation and are surrounded by a young legal team. Evenwhen they are threatened with their families.

Run Sweetheart Run (2020)

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Direction: Shana Feste | cast : Shohreh Aghdashloo, Clark Gregg, Betsy Brandt, EllaBalinska | Release date : October 28

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A woman goes on a blind date with a man. As the evening progresses, the mandisplays violent behavior. The woman is terrified and runs away. However, herdate does not want to let her go and gives chase.

Each month, we round up some of the most notable new titles you can expectto find on today ‘s biggest streaming services: Netflix, HBO Max, Disney+ andPrime Video. So today that overview, unfortunately without titles from HBO Maxbecause that streaming service has not yet revealed when films will be addedin October. Insidious (2010)

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Direction : James Wan | cast : Patrick Wilson, Rose Byrne, TySimpkins, Lin Shaye | Release date : October 1 on NETFLIX

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Insidious means something like ‘treacherous’, which is exactly what JamesWan’s latest film is all about. The film revolves around Josh and Renai, whohave been happily married for years and have three children. When they move,however, their happy life is disrupted: one of the children falls into a coma,and then strange things happen that no one seems to be able to explain. Slowlythings get darker and they realize that they are dealing with more thanordinary matters here. Their son is possessed by a demon.

Halloween (2018)

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Direction: David Gordon Green | cast : Jamie Lee Curtis, Judy Greer, Andi Matichak,James Jude Courtney | Release date : October 4 on NETFLIX

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Laurie Strode returns to face Michael Myers, the masked figure who nearlykilled her four decades ago. But what she doesn’t know is that Michael isready for it too.

Rosaline (2022)

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Direction: Karen Maine | cast : Kaitlyn Dever, Bradley Whitford, Isabela Moner,Minnie Driver | Release date : October 14 on DISNEY+

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The love story of Romeo and Juliet seen through the eyes of Juliet’s cousinRosaline. Coincidentally, she was in a relationship with Romeo, which he brokeoff after meeting Juliet. Rosaline is left heartbroken, but hatches a plan tothwart the new romance and win Romeo back. Jackass Forever (2022)

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Direction: Jeff Tremaine | cast : Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O, Chris Pontius, MachineGun Kelly | Release date : October 14 on PRIME VIDEO

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After more than ten years, the remaining Jackass members come together onelast time to pull off a movie full of crazy stunts. Johnny and his team go onestep further than before. They celebrate their joy of being back together,which leads to hilarious, absurd and sometimes dangerous situations. Theyexperiment with cannons, spiders, snakes, parachutes, electric chairs and muchmore.

Licorice Pizza (2021)

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Direction: Paul Thomas Anderson | cast : Alana Haim, Alana Haim, Sean Penn, TomWaits | Release date : October 17 on PRIME VIDEO

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‘Licorice Pizza’ follows the lives of Alana Kane and Gary Valentine. Both growup in the San Fernando Valley during the 1970s and fall in love. Gary is alsoworking on building an acting career.

The School for Good and Evil (2022)

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Direction: Paul Feig | cast : Cate Blanchett, Charlize Theron, Michelle Yeoh,Rachel Bloom | Release date : October 19 on NETFLIX

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Every four years, on the evening of the eleventh day of the eleventh month,two 12-year-old children are kidnapped from the village of Gavaldon and takento the School of Good and Evil. Sophie, blond and beautiful, dreams of goingthere and living happily ever after as a princess with a loving prince. Herbest friend, Agatha, on the other hand, is the opposite: ugly with dark hairand living in a graveyard. Both are perfect candidates for the school, but onthe fateful night of the kidnapping, they are sent to the ‘wrong’ school totheir horror. Sophie must become evil and Agatha a heroine.

All Quiet on the Western Front (2022)

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Direction: Edward Berger | cast : Daniel Brühl, Albrecht Schuch, Sebastian Hulk,Edin Hasanovic | Release date : October 28 on NETFLIX

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Paul Baumer joins the German army with his friends Albert and Mullervoluntarily. Their patriotic fervor melts like snow in the sun when confrontedwith the brutal reality at the front. Paul must adjust his preconceivednotions about the enemy and the entire conflict. However, he has no choice butto fight to the bitter end.

Who oh who knows where the teenage star Lola from Breda has gone? That is thepressing question that music lover Germaine Rook has. Germaine wants to getforgotten teen idols from the fifties, sixties and seventies back on stage fora concert. To find singer Lola, she even hired a private detective.Unfortunately still without result and so she hopes for the golden tip.

“Lola was a cute teenage singer who generally sang Dutch songs,” says GermaineRook. “Her biggest hit was ‘Lente in September’ from 1968. That was not piratemusic, but quality. She could also sing really well and was even allowed to goto a song festival in Knokke with Ben Cramer and Sandra Reemer as a reserve.have not really broken through, but her single on vinyl is now sold for 1600euros.”

Waiting for privacy settings…

“Lola intrigues me,” continues the 25-year-old. “That beautiful voice and hermysterious character. And she was really a sight to see. Call it a penchantfor nostalgia, but for me Lola is the ultimate artist of a genre that is indanger of being lost. Although as a singer she is also a She made the album inEnglish, she mainly sang the better Dutch song.”

Germaine is now looking for Lola with three friends. The foursome previouslyalso tracked down other forgotten singers. For example, they came into contactwith the musical quartet Atlantic from Geldrop, Trio’67 from Bergen op Zoom,the Rianta’s from Waalwijk and The Young Sisters from Breda. “The real topperscome from Brabant,” says Germaine Rook. “They did something really goodthere.”

“A detective agency has found out that she comes from Breda.”

The ultimate dream of the group is to get the teenage stars of the past backon stage. On 3 June there will be a concert in Sint Jansklooster, under thetitle ‘The forgotten black gold’, referring to the black singles made ofvinyl.

Germaine hopes Lola will be there too. If she’s still alive, that is, becausethe search is difficult and the information is rather meager. Still hoping forthe golden tip. “A detective agency has found out that she comes from Bredaand has a Spanish mother,” says Rook about what is known. “Her real name wasMarie del Rosario. But because it sounded too Spanish, her stage name becameLola.”

“We hope that people will come up with the golden tip.”

“The area where we have to search is quite large,” she continues. “We know,for example, that Lola worked in the circus in Ghent and also traveled throughGermany with her parents. But the starting point is and remains Breda. Mostpeople must still be there who know her. We very much hope for the golden tip.would be fantastic.”

So not much is known about Lola. That would have been different if she hadreally broken through in those sixties or seventies. “She was part of theelite club with Ben Cramer, Sandra Reemer and Floortje Klomp. But they saythey don’t know her either. The fact that she has not become nationally knowncan have all kinds of reasons. You had to be lucky, because the recordcompanies and the media was quite corrupt. Too bad, because she had thequalities.”

Do you have a tip about Marie del Rosario aka Lola? Then mail to [email

“Arnold and I are living proof that you can completely reverse hate in onegeneration.” They are both of Austrian origin. And both made their fortunes inthe US. One as an actor, bodybuilder and governor of California. The other asCEO of a large brewery and producer of musicals. But Arnold Schwarzenegger andSimon Bergson’s visit to the Polish concentration camp Auschwitz was more thana trip among friends.

(read more below the photo)

Arnold Schwarzenegger visited Auschwitz with his compatriot and brewer SimonBergson. — © AP

In World War II, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Arnold’s father, fought on the side ofthe Nazis. Bergsons is the son of Jewish parents who were imprisoned inAuschwitz, and survived the horror. In all, 1.1 million people were killed inthe camp. By visiting the site and the museum side by side, Schwarzenegger andBergson wanted to send a message.

“Let’s fight prejudice together and get rid of it for good,” said the actor.To then refer to one of his most famous roles in the Terminatormovies. “Let’sterminate hate and prejudice.”

Wrong word choice

Schwarzenegger also met Holocaust survivor Lidia Maksymowicz, who, as a3-year-old, became a victim of Nazi doctor Josef Mengele’s experiments. “Herstory needs to be remembered. So that we all say that something like thisshould never happen again.”

(read more below the photo)

Schwarzenegger embraces Holocaust survivor Lidia Maksymowicz. — © AP

A clear statement with the best intentions. But still, Schwarzenegger takescriticism after his visit. Afterwards, the museum shared a photo of theinscription left by the ‘Governator’ in the guestbook. He also referred toTerminator with the famous quote: “I’ll be back.”

Inappropriate, many Twitter users think. They make a link with the films,where Schwarzenegger’s character is not sparing with violence and leaves atrail of victims. “This is not the right choice of words,” it sounds. And: “Ifmy father was a Nazi, I would have thought twice before writing something likethat.” Those who believe that Schwarzenegger meant no harm also point to theunfortunate use of language.

(read more below the tweet)

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The museum itself sees no point in it, and came up with further explanationsto defend Schwarzenegger. “His visit was relatively short. The message wasintended as a promise to return later for a more in-depth visit.”

‘Nazi gang’

Schwarzenegger has always been open about his family history. When theAmerican press discovered in the 1990s that his father had fought for theNazis, the actor himself started an investigation. This showed that his fatherwas indeed active in the Second World War, as a member of the SA – a ‘Nazigang’.

The man was sent to France, Poland, the Soviet Union and our country, amongother places. He had nothing to do with war crimes, such as in Auschwitz. In1943, Schwarzenegger’s father was sent home after being injured in Leningrad.

(read more below the photo)

Arnold Schwarzenegger never made a secret of his family history. — © REUTERS

Last March, after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Arnold Schwarzeneggerexplicitly referred to his father in a video message to the Russian people. Init he spoke out against the war.

“When my father arrived in Leningrad, he also believed all the lies hisgovernment told him. And when he left, he was broken. Physically and mentally.He has been in pain for the rest of his life from a broken back, from theshrapnel and from his guilt.” To add, “I don’t want the Russian people to bebroken like my father.”

READ ALSO. Arnold Schwarzenegger addresses Russian people: “Dear friends, youare being lied to”

I quickly checked whether my screen might have been set too dark. But no,Sinan Can’s new docuseries Fault lines showed unfiltered the gray reality ofeveryday life in Europe’s drains. There were also stars twinkling in thefirmament, but there were not many.

Four nights in a row this week, Can took us to neighborhoods in Paris, London,Stockholm and Brussels where he spent a lot of time over the past year. Inpress releases, BNNVARA describes these areas as vulnerable. Battered topieces often seemed a better formulation for the poor neighborhoods whereunemployment, radicalization and crime go hand in hand. The episode aboutdilapidated flats in the Parisian Clichy-sous-Bois was especially depressing.The mess in the stairwells, the sluggishness of young Algerian residents (‘wehave to steal’), the gang violence. They buzzed an unanswered question: Whyhasn’t Paris long since expropriated and demolishing these privately ownedbuildings?

shabby little flats

But Sinan Can didn’t walk around as a know-it-all, nothing like that annoyingparent or girlfriend who always knows how to tell you exactly how to tackleyour problems. No, Can came, saw and reported. He lived in shabby littleflats, made contact with local residents, learned in-depth stories andlistened. Himself a migrant child, Muslim and familiar with threats fromextremists, he had little trouble finding the pain points of life in oldneighborhoods where the original inhabitants and structures give way toIslamic newcomers.

As calm as his approach was, Can became very irritated on two occasions. Onetime during a conversation with the former chairman of the Great Mosque ofPantin, who distributed the incendiary video that led to the beheading ofteacher Samuel Paty. And it still finds defensible that he posted that video.Can also seemed to explode at a misogynistic hate preacher who can spew hisanti-democratic poison unhindered in London. Shocking, how many sharia courtsoperate there and how many men-brothers oppress their wives in this way. Forthis episode you would like the series too concrete rot can say: how can ademocratic country allow these kinds of opposing forces?

Looking for the light

I already wrote it: my screen looked dark. What if I close my eyes and lookfor the light in the series? Then I remember patrolling mothers in the Swedishevening cold. See the first black policewoman in Stockholm’s Rinkeby districtand hope she’s proud of herself. Ditto for those girls playing soccer inMolenbeek in Brussels, where a Belgian in a neighborhood pub said that he hadbeen happy with his Moroccan wife for thirty years. And where the CEO ofGoogle handed a big check to Ibrahim Ouassari for his successful tech trainingcompany MolenGeek.

This Ibrahim had as a boy next door Ibrahim Abdeslam, in 2015 one of theattackers in Paris.

Talk about life twists.

Because societies are never finished and static, an essential comment fromFather Dominican, professor and youth worker Johan Leman in Brussels, remains.In his Belgian modesty, he carefully raised the question: “Are politiciansreally committed to these very concrete people?” Sinan Can certainly seems to.

_Renate van der Bas and Maaike Bos write columns about television five times a

It is the largest acquisition by Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen in decades, andit is ‘a key piece’ in the museum’s extensive and qualitatively solidcollection of surrealists: the painting Peinture-poème (Musique, Seine,Michel, Bataille et moi) (1927) by the Spanish painter Joan Miró willofficially belong to the collection of the Rotterdam museum from Thursday,which has been closed for renovation and expansion for a few years.

Earlier this month, State Secretary Gunay Uslu of culture herself signed thefinancial contribution from the state that ultimately made the purchasepossible from the Museale Aankopen fund – the maximum state contribution fromthe Mondriaan fund was not sufficient. However, a significant part of thepurchase price of 8.1 million euros (8 million Swiss francs) was not raisedwith public money, but from private funds. The Rembrandt Association, inparticular, has supported the acquisition of this work from the start with aninitial pledge of 3 million euros and a later addition.

Also read this report: The Universe of Joan Miró

The museum has a collection of surrealist visual art, books and magazines thathave been among the best in Europe since the then chief curator of modern art,Renilde Hammacher, began collecting in the late 1970s. The museum had beenlooking for a so-called dream painting by Miró for a long time, because itsteered surrealism in the direction of more abstract work, says SandraKisters, head of collection and research. “People often think of thefigurative surrealism of dream symbolism, such as the works of Dalí andMagritte that evoke an alienating world. Miró represents the other branch, anabstract tendency.” This makes his work a bridge to painters such as Picabia,who went much further in abstract surrealism. “So it’s not alone; why a Miró,but why such a Miró. We would find his later work much less interesting.”

Circles in the water

The Surrealists, initially mainly a literary movement of ‘automatic writing’,wanted to circumvent rationality and thus allow the subconscious to speakdirectly. Which didn’t come naturally. Miró, for example, starved himself totemper his conscious mind. This work, peinture-poème , he made after a walkalong the Seine with, among others, the philosopher Bataille, where theylooked at the circles in the water of the river. Miró later wrote about it inhis diary. It produces a dark work, brown with red. “You see that in thesurrealist movement there is still discussion about what you see in thesubconscious,” says departing museum director Sjarel Ex. “When you close youreyes, dream, do you see pictures, or are you dealing with spheres or streamsof thought, or do you see something atmospheric? This painting offers theopening to see everything. You end up in a not very attractive muddy state atfirst, which is fantastic of course. It is a painting that challenges you, andthat does not immediately lie at your feet like a purring cat. That is oftenthe case with Dalí, you find it beautiful and after that it starts to wearout. Dalí is a bit of an early artist, to whom the taste develops, but Miró issomeone you think of when you meet him: Ho. This also exists.”

Outgoing director of the Rembrandt Association: ‘Liberals and culturalpolicy do not go together’

For a long time there was little hope that they would be able to acquire sucha work, says Ex, who will be stepping down as director on Friday. “They arerare, and many of the dream paintings have already found their finaldestination in collections or museums. After his retirement in 1978, formerdirector Coert Ebbinge Wubben said that the museum should have had a Miró, butthat it was too late, that it would never come again.” So, says Ex, “We werehereditary as a museum.” According to him, the surrealist collection is ofgreat importance for the entire collection of the museum. “We are also alwayslooking for the surreal tendencies in art. We often end up with choicesdictated by this squadron – surrealism is a concertmaster for us.”

Extremely transparent

A few years ago, the museum already tried to buy a painting from Miró’s dreamperiod, one of his blue works. But the museum eventually abandoned it, eventhough it was almost financially closed. “He had later painted a layer overit, which made it of lesser quality than this work. This is painted extremelytransparent, it was set up in one go. This makes it his direct translation ofthat subconscious period.”

The work was not sold at an auction late last year, Ex says. Museum BoijmansVan Beuningen then contacted the owner through Christie’s auction house. Thepainting was now on loan from the Swiss Kunst Museum Winterthur, and then cameto Rotterdam to view its condition and see how it fitted into the collection.

A large part of the visual works by the surrealists from the Europeanimportant collection of Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen is part of a travelingexhibition, which was previously shown in New Zealand and now hangs in MexicoCity. The exhibition will return home in mid-October, Kisters says, and willbe on display in one of the rooms of the Depot for a few months before itleaves again, this time to Denmark. Is the collection home in honor of theMiró’s purchase? “No, that’s a coincidence.”

She has just had a nervous breakdown and is lying on the bed crying; cheekswet, eyes swollen. But then there’s makeup artist Whitey, who leads her to thedressing table. “Please come,” Norma Jeane whispers hoarsely, “don’t leaveme.” Whitey reassures her as he powders her face: “She’ll come. She’s almostthere.’

And suddenly her reflection transforms, like a ghost. Radiant mother-of-pearlcomplexion, eyebrows raised, seductive smile on her coral red mouth. Sureenough, there she is: pop cultural phenomenon, sex symbol, icon. She throwsher head back and smiles broadly. A kiss in the air and the transformation iscomplete. There she is, there’s Marilyn Monroe.

It’s one of the few scenes in the movie blonde (2022) in which actress Anade Armas plays the icon ‘Marilyn Monroe’, the sex bomb as we think we know it.The woman who The Seven Year Itch her white dress flutters sensually abovethe subway grille. Her contours are thus etched into our pop-cultural memory.White blond hair, puffy halter dress. Mickey’s ears, Che’s beret, Marilyn’slegs.

Successful pose

In essence blonde a movie about dissociation. In the film adaptation ofJoyce Carol Oates’s 2000 book, Norma Jeane Baker (born Norma Jeane Mortenson)experiences so much sorrowful misery that she splits herself in two. ‘MarilynMonroe’ here is not only a part of Norma Jeane, that one very successful pose,she is also an armor, the hairdo is a silver helmet. ‘Marilyn’ as a survivalmechanism.

But in blonde we usually see Norma Jeane, a fragile and vulnerable girl whois constantly harassed and hunted. Ana de Armas plays her with nervousgestures, a haunted frown and large, startled eyes, trying to give the ‘icon’her humanity back.

Who is Ana de Armas?

The new Marilyn Monroe is Cuban-Spanish actress Ana de Armas (34). Herbreakthrough role in Cuba was in Una rosa de Francia (2006). She thenstarred in Spain in six seasons of the popular teen TV drama El Internado.In the US she broke through with the crime comedy Knives Out (2019); afterthat she was allowed to give shape to Bond girl Paloma in No Time to Die(2021).

Because how do you play her, how do you play ‘Marilyn Monroe’ (the quotes arethere deliberately)? It seems an almost impossible task to give depth andcredibility to a woman who became a kind of cartoon character in thecollective memory. How do you give such a jigsaw archetype a beating heart?

Theresa Russell in ‘Insignificance’ (1985).Image Getty

It has been done about twenty times in recent film history. From Misty Rowe inthe biopic Goodbye, Norma Jean (1976) to Ana de Armas in blonde with inbetween, among others, Theresa Russell in Insignificance (1985), MiraSorvino in Norma Jean and Marilyn (1996), Poppy Montgomery in blonde(2001, an earlier film adaptation of Oates’ novel) and Michelle Williams in_My Week with Marilyn_ (2011). They played her stupid, sexy, seductive,diabolical, tragic, manipulative or unstable.

Record holder for Marilyn roles is lookalike Susan Griffiths, now 62, whoplayed the blonde sex bomb thirteen times between 1990 and 2007, including in_Quantum Leap_ and Pulp Fiction. But that is mainly a matter of the rightcolor hair dye and an hourglass figure in a cellophane-tight dress.

Karina Smulders in ‘After the Fall’ by Toneelgroep Amsterdam (2012).Image JanVersweyveld

Still, a certain amount of outward imitation is inevitable in a convincingMarilyn rendition. It helps, says actress Karina Smulders (42), who played herat Toneelgroep Amsterdam in After the Fall (2012), a play by Monroe’s exArthur Miller. ‘It’s never a matter of just imitating, of course; as an actoryou always relate to the text. But such a dress, that wig, the red lips, theydo something, they help you on your way. Sometimes I had the feeling that Iwas halfway there with those attachments.’

It is precisely the travesty that exposes the tragedy of ‘Marilyn’, because itis so necessary. Smulders: ‘I was also wearing a dress in which I couldn’t doanything except fall over. That also helps.’

Mira Sorvino in ‘Norma Jean and Marilyn’ (1996).Image Imageselect

Whoever plays ‘Marilyn Monroe’ plays Norma Jeane and Marilyn, inside andoutside world, person and persona. In the TV movie Norma Jean and Marilyn(1996) this idea of ​​two different women was even taken literally. In it,Ashley Judd plays Norma Jeane, the girl with the disturbed mother and thedifficult childhood. That girl is discovered as a fashion model and pin-up,but when a high-ranking studio boss judges that she “has no appreciable chin”and a nose like a potato, she goes under the knife. And lo, there’s MarilynMonroe, now played by Mira Sorvino. When Monroe doesn’t feel like it anymore,Norma Jeane admonishes her through the mirror.

Striking about the vital portrayal of Sorvino – she was nominated for a GoldenGlobe – is her high-pitched Minnie Mouse voice. Monroe’s striking voice is animportant entry point for actresses, it turns out. Not just as acharacteristic gimmick, but because it says something about her state of mind,her insecurity and her ambition. How she uses her voice reveals something ofher inner world.

For example, Monroe emphatically modeled her voice according to the wishes ofher various acting coaches. In the 1950s she developed the recognizable hoarsegirl whisper; later her use of voice became more natural. Ana de Armaslistened to all the different Marilyns for a year and rehearsed for two hoursdaily with her voice coach. It produces a sound that fits her tormented role:small, thin and hoarse, each syllable a sigh.

Michelle Williams in ‘My Week with Marilyn’ (2011).

Marilyn spoke with a lot of breath under her voice, and that quality isespecially well matched by Michelle Williams: in My Week with Marilyn shespeaks alternately in a girlish whisper or champagne bubbles. Williams won aGolden Globe for her portrayal and was nominated for an Oscar.

Her Marilyn is layered and refined, with searching eyes in a mobile face, onwhich every emotion is immediately apparent. She always feels the face of theother, looking for appreciation, admiration, recognition. Beneath hersensuality there is always a hint of childlike anticipation.

And also in this film there is such a moment of transformation. “Shall I beher?” Williams asks a flirt. Promptly, one hip sinks crookedly and oneshoulder is exposed. Head in the neck, hand pillow in the air. There she is.

Chameleonic

Monroe was chameleonic, says Karina Smulders. ‘She always adapted to otherpeople’s expectations. So I played her as a child woman and as a femme fatale,and everything in between, as someone who changes color all the time.’

What Smulders remembers well from her rendition was the specific walk. ‘Shehas remarkable motor skills, is always a bit unsteady, in a classic ‘save me’pose. I created that by wearing impossibly high heels that I could barely walkin.’

The real Monroe seemed to have a heel chafed, which naturally gave her awobbly step, a sprain in her hips; a walk with a wink.

Misty Rowe in ‘Goodbye Norma Jean’ (1976).Image Getty

Whoever sees images of Monroe now notices that she has a different pace thanthe rest, as if she were moving in slow motion. That may have been seen asseductive at the time, a kind of sexy bedroom languor, but it could also havebeen a result of her pill addiction. Williams shows this duality beautifully,dozing lazily like a cat on the chaise longue, but with a drowsy look and acloudy voice. Her Marilyn can enjoy, but also suffer, always.

With Ana de Armas, that suffering predominates. ‘Marilyn’ has been played inmany ways, but never as fragile as it is now.

Revolutionary interpretation

Where her predecessors always played something of fun, of the fun ofseduction, De Armas completely omits that in the direction of Andrew Dominik.That makes her interpretation in blonde revolutionary, a Marilyn for the#MeToo era. Because wasn’t that “pleasure” of sex bomb Monroe something theworld liked to project on her? After all, if the sex symbol itself enjoys it,the outside world is not to blame.

The Armas wants to give Marilyn back her vulnerability. But in the end that isof course also an interpretation, just as every interpreter projects somethingdifferent onto her in a certain period of time.

That is the most characteristic of ‘Marilyn Monroe’, says Smulders, and alsoher greatest tragedy: she is a woman caught in someone else’s reality. She wasduring her life, and she still is today.