First Day, Redux

Three issues:

If the handout I gave you was improperly copied—with the print too large and thus not fitting on the paper—let me know. I have good copies available. (I only found one copy like that, but I assume there were others.) Those handouts concern some of the earliest films made and the reactions to them. We won't get to those films next class, I realize, so read them for Friday's class rather than Wednesday's.

Secondly, I'm sorry to the students who didn't have chairs. We may be in a different (larger, more-chaired) room next time, but even if not, I'll get chairs. Obviously, you could have fetched some for yourselves—and I should have gone in search of some—but everyone seemed so comfortable . . .

Lastly, I just realized that I may have misspoken when a student asked if we're "annotating" the Ebert book. I said no, but that's because I think of "annotating" in a more formal sense. You should take notes, somehow, on Ebert's key points in those two essays. Also, be sure to mark any terms or ideas you find unfamiliar. Ebert does write for a "general audience," but that doesn't mean you'll get all of his filmic references.

Thanks for an enjoyable conversation today. We'll get to Star Wars next time, right at the top of the class.