ITEMS OF INTEREST March 15, 2010 Issue

ITEMS OF INTEREST

with contributions from Sentinel Staff, Priscilla Wood

THE HALLS WERE BUZZING at The Mary Baker Eddy Library in Boston on February 11, as actor Val Kilmer took the stage. Library Program Director Jonathon Eder opened the evening with, "We have a superstar in the house!" And to the audience's surprise, Kilmer began the program in character as Mark Twain—complete with wig, mustache, and Twain's signature white suit.

This was the second in a series of events the Library is hosting, called "Strength of Spirit—Engaging with Mary Baker Eddy 100 Years Later," in which writers, artists, and others examine the significance of Mary Baker Eddy's story in her time and ours. Kilmer's talk focused on his upcoming film project, which will portray the intersecting lives of Mark Twain and Mary Baker Eddy. Library Executive Manager and President Lesley Pitts confirmed this was the best-attended evening event the Library has held since its opening in September 2002.

The audience—180 in the main hall and 60 in the overflow seating—experienced a full half hour of Kilmer playing Twain, bantering in his Southern drawl with the audience, and occasionally directing his comments to the supersized image of Mary Baker Eddy projected on the wall behind him. The script, taken mostly from Twain's writings, included many references to Mrs. Eddy: "She's the most interesting woman who's ever lived—and the most extraordinary." He went on to quip about her, "Few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example!" The audience laughted, sometimes prompted by Twain's beckoning hand calling for more applause—a vain mannerism Kilmer later explained was all part of Twain's stage persona.

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