more edward gorey — in book form

Elegant Enigmas: The Art of Edward Gorey is the catalogue accompanying the show currently on display at the Norton Museum of Art is the perfect companion piece to the detailed and whimsical world of Gorey. According to the essay by curator and critic Karen Wilkin, Gorey thought of himself as a writer first. Or, he stated on occasion, a person. But artist, no matter the evidence on display at the Norton and in this catalogue, of his terrific talents, was never the first word he used to describe himself.

Untitled, no date. there's a lot going on in this picture ...

The fabulous drawings, full of intricate cross-hatching certainly belie this. The stylized people of a bygone era — its never exactly clear exactly what time zone they inhabit — are always frozen in the midst of something about to happen, or that has just happened, usually conveniently, and possibly violently, just out of the picture. Little details that inhabit the background of a landscape or the shadows of a drawing room are frequently mysterious, but always compelling. The exhibition at the Norton provided magnifying glasses at appropriate intervals, and one would also come in handy while studying the reproductions in the catalogue, as one can spot frequently a small object like a card on the floor, or a face outside a window that demands closer inspection.

Gorey would start with the words first, and the images would come later. He would sometimes use reams of paper to get the words just right, and the catalogue showcases examples of his variations on text and accompanying doodles for many of his books, including The Osbick Bird, which he called alternately a "woshbosh" "jub jub" "scramble" and "fibbul" bird before deciding on "osbick." Gorey adored wordplay and anagrams and even published some of his books using anagrams of his name: Ogdred Wery, Mrs. Regera Dowdy, and Wardore Edgy, to name a few.

Apart from describing Gorey's love of cats and his omnivorous interest in books and popular culture, there isn't too much in the accompanying essay about Gorey the man, or his daily life. He loved ballet with a passion and lived in Massachusetts. His love of Buster Keaton and silent films informs his enigmatic black and white drawings and his intertitle-like text. He may or may not have intended his work to be enjoyed by children. Perhaps appropriately, Gorey the person comes off as ambiguous and cryptic as his drawings.

The man and (some of) his cats

"After it had passed, Lord Wherewithal was found crushed beneath a statue blown down from the parapet."
The Secrets: Volume One, The Other Statue, 1968.

For anyone who is unable to see the touring show, which started at the Brandywine Museum in Pennsylvania and has been making its way across the country, this book is a wonderful introduction to his work. But once one has been introduced to Mr. Earbrass or any of the unfortunate tykes featured in The Gashlycrumb Tinies it will become necessary to check out more of Edward Gorey's work. He did much more than just the clever animation that appears at the beginning of PBS's Mystery series. This book is a good place to start.

the artist — silence is indeed golden

The Artist is delightful, delectable, delicious, delovely. It's also a mish-mash of Singin' In the Rain, A Song is Born and every Fred and Ginger movie ever made. Somehow it shines up its tropes and old Hollywood plot cliches in such a way that, although not new, come off as fresh and enjoyable.

Valentin meets his #1 fan Peppy

The movie, directed by Michel Hazanavicius, begins in 1927 and spans the crash and burn of the country's assets and the transition of Hollywood from silent to talking films. George Valentin (Jean Dujardin) is a silent film superstar. He can do it all — romance, adventure, drama. At his screenings he also exhibits a flair for comedy with his constant companion, his little Jack Russell terrier Jack (Uggie). Valentin jump-starts the career of his biggest fan and screen hopeful Peppy Miller (Bérénice Bejo) when he poses with her outside of a screening and the newspapers play it up with headlines asking, "Who's That Girl?" He later also helps her get a small part in his latest film, and gives her some career advice, via an eyebrow pencil and a well-placed mole and a title card, "If you want to be an actress, you need to have something others don't." The two are very attracted to one another, but Valentin is (unhappily) married, so they don't pursue a romance.

There has been some rumbling about the use of Bernard Hermann's well-known theme from Vertigo in the last quarter of the film. It may be a bit distracting for the movie buffs who recognized it, but the film also used another recognizable song that has been heavily used in other films, too — Pennies from Heaven. This is all just part of The Artist being a movie about movies.

A man's best friend is his Uggie

The Artist follows Peppy's rise as talkies are introduced and "fresh, young talent" is what the studios want, and Valentin's fall as his career, finances, and marriage hit the skids. Valentin just can't seem to make the adjustment from silence. He begins to hate his life and even his own reflection in  the mirror, "Look at what you've become. You've become proud! You've become stupid!" But the familiar plot isn't really what the movie is about. The Artist takes pure delight in both film and nostalgia. Its reflexive nature is what makes The Artist so much fun to watch. The dog Uggie completely steals every scene he is in, but it is clear that he was encouraged and the filmmakers expected him to do exactly that. This sense of good humor permeates every scene, even through the more melodramatic turns of the plot.

There are nice cameos by James Cromwell as Valentin's faithful chauffeur Clifton, Penelope Ann Miller as Valentin's bored wife who enjoys defacing all of his publicity images, and John Goodman as nervous movie mogul Zimmer. The script calls for everyone to be amazed by Bejo and her rise to the top (and she is appealing), but it is Dujardin's movie from start to finish. He has true movie star charisma. When we do get to hear him speak one line at the end of the film (with a très très French accent) it makes us want to see him do many more films.

Two stars are born

I'm not sure The Artist will ever be more than a gimmick — silent films aren't exactly "back." But it might get folks to pay a little more attention to other silent classics. My daughter has been enjoying Buster Keaton and Fatty Arbuckle movies that TCM has been showing recently, so she wasn't put off by the silence or the B&W. I grew up watching Chaplin and Keaton and even Garbo silent movies with my dad, so I quickly settled in and enjoyed it immensely. What The Artist does prove is that a movie, no matter what the format, if it's good, is going to make a hit with the audience. Vive L'Artiste.

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• Watch The 'Silently Funny' THE ARTIST Blooper Reel (thepeoplesmovies.com)