Haha! I like to fact check my assumptions, so I Googled military hairstyles in the Korean War and this was one of the first ones that popped up...pretty sure Bob Dylan wasn't in the Korean War.
Meanwhile...so imagine my utter joy and delight when Downton Abbey appeared on the scene some five years ago. The castle alone is magnificent, a true homage to the Edwardian lifestyle. And then there are the clothes. I get misty eyed just thinking about those beautifully beaded gowns, the richness of the hats, gloves and dreamy, drapy necklaces. And the palpable upstairs/downstairs dichotomy. It's a spot-on period piece. I can't get enough of it.
And because I can't get enough of it, you'll probably end of feeling like you've gotten too much of it as well. But that's just how I roll.
Having watched all four seasons, now on season five, I've developed an affinity for these characters and thought you might be chomping at the bit to read my thoughts on this very proper British family and the folks in their service. This might take awhile, but I'll try to make it entertaining, without too many spoilers who haven't caught up with this season or, heaven forbid, haven't even watched one episode. (Tsk, tsk ala Cousin Violet.)
Lord Grantham - A blue blood if ever I saw one. Born into money and raised with the singular responsibility to keep the land in the family name No.Matter.What. Apparently, being filthy rich doesn't always include an MBA from Wharton, because the earldom had obviously mismanaged for a spell when we learned that the Earl had to "buy a bride" to bring some American cash into the estate coffers. (FYI, Winston Churchill's mother, Jenny Jerome, was also shipped from across the pond to shore up the Malborough estate.)
When the heir to the throne perishes in the Titanic disaster, the first thought is not "Oh, we've lost a dearly beloved relative." It's "Who's gettin' the money?" And remember, it's really, technically, though really not, Cora's money.
Once Matthew is found, all seems right in Lord Grantham's world. There's just that business of getting Mary to like him so that the money can REALLY stay in the family.
Lord Grantham is a likable fellow, more than a little stuck in his ways, and prefers his daughters to be seen and not heard. While he is keen to embrace modern conveniences like electricity, he'd rather not hear how the lower class is beginning to make some noise about equal rights.
Lady Grantham (Cora) - Raised in America, Cora didn't really have a say in who was to become her husband. Although with a mother like Shirley McLaine, I'm kind of surprised that Cora is as subservient as she is. I guess all those years of having breakfast in bed and being dressed and undressed five times a day by her ladies' maid have kind of sapped whatever American sauciness she might have possessed.
Her days are filled with menus, garden shows, sparring with her mother-in-law and trying to figure out what's wrong with "poor Edith." She does have the all-important task of directing the conversation at dinner and by directing, I mean literally directing. She turns to her right and starts a topic, and all other guests follow her lead. Then, after what is deemed a suitable length of time, she turns and engages the guest to her left. As do the rest of the entourage. They even have a term for it: turning. I know that because I watched "The Manners of Downton Abbey." Really fascinating. And exhausting.
I'm so, so grateful that I can watch this wonderful story unfold in my pj's, stretched out the couch with a bowl of popcorn and bottled water.
That would simply not do in Edwardian England.
Next time...The Grantham Girls
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