Starting tomorrow, the "ASOTV" Showcase featuring literary characters will
be devoting the month of August to characters from "James Michener's
Centennial". Sadly, three of those days will be Hat Squad tributes to a trio of
actors from the production whom we lost in the last two months.
But for this last day of July, now that I'm back home at Toobworld Central
and the Ludlum tributes are finished, here is a showcase which is also a Hat
Squad tribute to a very beautiful actress.....
DEMELZA CARNE POLDARK
From Wikipedia:
Taken home from Redruth Fair by Ross, 13-year-old miner's daughter Demelza and her dog Garrick have an unpromising start. However, she soon develops into a charming, amusing, and lovely young woman, eventually winning the love and affection of Ross. Dark and earthy, she is the total opposite of the fragile Elizabeth, and the two women heartily dislike each other.
Demelza has courage and is fiercely loyal to Ross. However, she is somewhat impulsive, which causes trouble for both her and Ross.
Demelza is never less than sure about her feelings for Ross, even when his actions test her loyalties to the limit. She develops feelings for another man later in the 7th novel, and this relationship almost destroys what she has with Ross. Verity and Andrew are brought together by Demelza after a long separation. Ross must pay dearly for that happy ending. [The theme of enduring love is a recurrent one throughout the novels.]
CREATED BY:
Winston Graham
PORTRAYED BY:
Angharad Rees
AS SEEN IN:
'Poldark'
TV STATUS:
Original
TV DIMENSION:
Earth Prime-Time
From Wikipedia:
"The Poldark Novels" are a historical fictional sequence by Winston
Graham.
The main character, Ross Poldark, a British Army officer, returns to his home in Cornwall from the American Revolutionary War only to find that his fiancée, Elizabeth Chynoweth, having believed him dead, is about to marry his cousin, Francis Poldark. Ross attempts to restore his own fortunes by reopening one of the family's tin mines. After several years he marries Demelza Carne, a servant girl, and is gradually reconciled to the loss of Elizabeth's love. By then, Elizabeth has become a widow and marries George Warleggan, Ross's arch-enemy.
There are a total of twelve novels. The first seven novels are set in the 18th century, until Christmas 1799. The remaining five are concerned with the early years of the 19th century and the lives of the children of the main characters of the previous novels.
Winston Graham wrote the first four Poldark books during the 1940s and 1950s. Following a long hiatus, he decided to resume the series, and "The Black Moon" was published in 1972. The first seven books formed the basis of the BBC television series 'Poldark' (1975–77).
'Poldark' is a BBC television series based on the novels written by Winston Graham which was first transmitted in the UK between 1975 and 1977.
The romantic saga follows Ross Poldark (Robin Ellis) as he loses his fiancée, the well-bred beauty, Elizabeth (Jill Townsend), to his cousin Francis (Clive Francis). Ross ends up marrying his servant, the unlikely-looking Demelza (Angharad Rees), but his passion for Elizabeth simmers on for years. Set in late 18th century Cornwall, the plot follows Ross Poldark's attempts to make his derelict tin mines a success. Life is hard, smuggling is rife and Ross Poldark finds himself taking the side of the underclass against the ruthless behavior of his enemies, the greedy Warleggan clan including George Warleggan (Ralph Bates).
The main character, Ross Poldark, a British Army officer, returns to his home in Cornwall from the American Revolutionary War only to find that his fiancée, Elizabeth Chynoweth, having believed him dead, is about to marry his cousin, Francis Poldark. Ross attempts to restore his own fortunes by reopening one of the family's tin mines. After several years he marries Demelza Carne, a servant girl, and is gradually reconciled to the loss of Elizabeth's love. By then, Elizabeth has become a widow and marries George Warleggan, Ross's arch-enemy.
There are a total of twelve novels. The first seven novels are set in the 18th century, until Christmas 1799. The remaining five are concerned with the early years of the 19th century and the lives of the children of the main characters of the previous novels.
Winston Graham wrote the first four Poldark books during the 1940s and 1950s. Following a long hiatus, he decided to resume the series, and "The Black Moon" was published in 1972. The first seven books formed the basis of the BBC television series 'Poldark' (1975–77).
'Poldark' is a BBC television series based on the novels written by Winston Graham which was first transmitted in the UK between 1975 and 1977.
The romantic saga follows Ross Poldark (Robin Ellis) as he loses his fiancée, the well-bred beauty, Elizabeth (Jill Townsend), to his cousin Francis (Clive Francis). Ross ends up marrying his servant, the unlikely-looking Demelza (Angharad Rees), but his passion for Elizabeth simmers on for years. Set in late 18th century Cornwall, the plot follows Ross Poldark's attempts to make his derelict tin mines a success. Life is hard, smuggling is rife and Ross Poldark finds himself taking the side of the underclass against the ruthless behavior of his enemies, the greedy Warleggan clan including George Warleggan (Ralph Bates).
Graham mentions in his
autobiography, "Memoirs of a Private Man", that the character of Demelza, at
least in part, was based on his wife, Jean, a Cornishwoman.
Graham states in "Poldark's Cornwall", that the first human child named
Demelza (after his character) was the daughter of British writer Denys Val
Baker.
DEMELZA POLDARK
CREATED BY:
Winston Graham
PORTRAYED BY:
Mel Martin
AS SEEN IN:
"The Stranger From The Sea"
TV STATUS:
Recastaway
TV DIMENSION:
The Land Of Remakes
From Wikipedia:
In 1996 an adaptation of "The Stranger From the Sea" in a controversial production by HTV, used a completely new cast featuring John Bowe as Ross Poldark and Mel Martin as Demelza. Fans protested and over 50 members of the Poldark Appreciation Society picketed HTV's headquarters in Bristol wearing 18th century costumes. The pilot was not a success and no further episodes were made.
In 1996 an adaptation of "The Stranger From the Sea" in a controversial production by HTV, used a completely new cast featuring John Bowe as Ross Poldark and Mel Martin as Demelza. Fans protested and over 50 members of the Poldark Appreciation Society picketed HTV's headquarters in Bristol wearing 18th century costumes. The pilot was not a success and no further episodes were made.
I never saw that version and I have no desire to see it. I've been
immersed too long in the Toobworld concept to have much interest in remakes and
alternate TV dimensions. But aside from that, Angharad Rees stole my heart in
her portrayal of Demelza (not a hard thing to do for many actresses - except
maybe for Maria Ouspenskaya) and I could see no other to play her.
BCnU......
Angharad Rees' co-star in Poldark, Robin Ellis, has written two tributes to her on his blog which have elicited many touching responses from fans: http://robin-ellis.net
ReplyDeleteThanks for the link, Meredith......
ReplyDeleteI've seen the 1996 television movie. It's quite decent. Most of the people who complained about it had never seen it, because the original stars who portrayed Ross and Demelza weren't in it.
ReplyDeleteGraham mentions in his autobiography, "Memoirs of a Private Man", that the character of Demelza, at least in part, was based on his wife, Jean, a Cornishwoman.
Which is probably why Demelza proved to be something of a Mary Sue.