Kahlil Gibran

The life of my ancestor, Kahlil Gibran, is being turned into a movie. Wow.

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Boston ties ‘Gibran’ screenwriters to revered poet

By Tenley Woodman  |   Thursday, October 25, 2012  |  http://www.bostonherald.com  |  Movie News

As a movie about Lebanese poet and artist Kahlil Gibran gets under way, the Bay State has a starring role.
Gibran’s “The Prophet” has been on college students’ dorm bookshelves for generations, helping to make the 1923 collection of poetic essays a classic. Canton-raised siblings Rob Shalhoub and Grace Shalhoub Yazbek wrote the screenplay for “Gibran,” a feature-length biopic scheduled to begin filming in 2014.
“I spent 25 years in Boston and never really knew one of the most famous artists I revered traveled the same footsteps,” said Shalhoub, 34.
Born in Northern Lebanon, Gibran and his family moved to Boston’s South End when he was 12. The city became a home base for much of his adult life.
“We’ve spent so much time in the actual places he spent time in, Chinatown and West Roxbury,” Shalhoub said. “It was so familiar to me going back and seeing these places. This is a story that needs to be told,” Shalhoub told the Herald during a phone interview from Los Angeles. As Lebanese-Americans, Shalhoub Yazbek said Gibran’s teachings and stories were a staple.
“The subject has always been very inspiring. We grew up hearing stories about him,” said Shalhoub Yazbek, 40, from her home in Beirut. “We could identify with him living between two worlds.”
Independent film producer William Nix (“Return to Afghanistan”) snapped up the script after it was nominated for best original screenplay at the European Independent Film Festival this year. Filming locations are being scouted, and Boston tops the list.
Nix said the duo are the right people to tell the story. “They have a lot of Gibran’s perspective,” Nix said.
Helping guide the team is Jean Gibran, wife of the poet’s cousin, the late Boston sculptor Kahlil Gibran. She and her husband co-authored a biography of the elder Gibran, “Kahlil Gibran: His Life and World.”
The project also fulfills a personal mission for Shalhoub and Shalhoub Yazbek.
“We made a pact with each other that we would steer our careers toward film. We had to make films with Arab or Arab American heroes to foster a bridge between East and West,” Shalhoub said.
Both said there is no better emissary than Gibran.
“(His) main message through his art and writing is unity and diversity. If there is ever a time we feel the world needs to feel more unified or celebrate each others’ differences it would be now. Everything just feels so polarizing,” Shalhoub said.

Summer in September

Once again calling on family for inspiration, I assembled today's church outfit in honor of my uncle Philip. Though he wintered in Coral Gables and spent summers here in Charleston, he shared a single wardrobe with both locales. That wardrobe was one of impeccable fit, vibrant colors and preppy styling. Living somewhere it's always summer has its sartorial benefits. For my uncle Philip, this meant bespoke linen and silk jackets of spring green, coral and lavender, crisp white linen trousers and equally crisp, monogrammed pocket squares. And though I now own those jackets and trousers, today's outfit is influenced by Uncle Philip but is all my own, pocket square (accidentally) not included.

Blazer - Paul Fredrick (very) lightweight wool/cashmere blend - paulfredrick.com, $75

Shirt - vintage Polo 120s broadcloth - ralphlauren.com, $36

Tie - Ralph Lauren Purple Label - eBay, $16

Trouser - Polo cotton chino (as mentioned here) - ralphlauren.com, $52

Socks (not pictured) - Club Room light blue (matches blazer) - $1.50

*Shoes - Allen Emonds - eBay, $22

*These are my favorite shoes - the most comfortable, (nearly) most beat up, most patinated, most burnished shoes I own - and I wouldn't have them any other way.

Color and Love Know No Season

Although I can't wait for snow, this unseasonably warm east coast winter has me longing to breakout my summer wardrobe again. This photo comes from the Brooks Brothers spring collection and features my favorite color combination. There's nothing like pink and green to say GTH.  

This look also reminds me of a dear relative and mentor I lost this year. My uncle Philip was an incredible gentleman who dressed better than any blogger, any model, any celebrity I've seen. He had a knack for bold style which matched his grand personality. Each Sunday at church he'd be the first you spot in his natty outfit, something like this pink blazer and green chinos, accompanied by a monogrammed pocket square, a bright paisley tie and perhaps sunny yellow socks. My connection to him extends beyond my stupid love of style, as I'll forever be a better man because of his generosity, wisdom and kindness. 

Let's forget about commercialism for a moment and remember what this season truly means.

Friday Family Feast

A cousin of mine is in town for the week, so another cousin and I decided to celebrate by joining our families together for an evening of food and music. My cousins and I spent the evening preparing our favorite Lebanese dishes for our guests. So getting away from all this nonsensical clothing talk, I'd like to share a couple photos from my Friday evening.

We started with some hors d'oeuvres, such as this spinach and pepper tray and a hummus platter.

 

 Next up we prepared falafel and slivers of zucchini in olive oil.

The main course came in the form of kabobs with onion, mushroom and pepper. Not sure how I missed getting a photo of the final product.

 

After dinner, we indulged in a round of argileh, more commonly known as hookah. And no, it's simply tobacco in the pipe. Seen below the argileh, and in the photo up top is one of my favorite things in the world - Turkish coffee. We wrapped the night with a drum circle on our dourbekis (Middle Eastern hand drums also known as doumbek or tabla).

May you all be so fortunate to have such wonderful families and friends!

What We Will Still Learn

I wanted to write sooner, but family business has kept me busy.

Happy Father's Day!

Hope you enjoy the reissue of one of my first posts, and a slight expansion of thought below.

 What We Will Learn

I was blessed to go through an incredible line of public schools. My high school is admired for its academic and athletic accolades but has long been infamous for its snobbishness. The resentment is unfortunate, but I admit, some of it has been earned. We were always the rich and preppy kids, the true tale of the Preppy Handbook (though I hadn't heard if it at the time). If you've read my first post, you'll know I wasn't among the collar-popping masses.

I tried to be as time went on, but I never quite felt like them. I had no car, no trust fund, no membership at the country club and no lodge at the ski resort. My father always had that classic, traditional substance without the accompanying bank account. I learned it all from him and have continued to grow.

My friends, the ones I was formerly so envious of, have stopped growing. They play it safe. They stick to the daily - a Ralph Lauren polo and chinos/jeans and boat shoes. These guys haven't heard of Brooks Brothers, and they certainly haven't heard of Paul Stuart, Gant or J.Press. Their days consist of some school and a lot of sleeping and drinking.

Obviously, I'm a fan of Ralph but I go beyond that. And obviously life isn't about style, it's about substance - the substance that resonates from my father. From my father I learned what true class is.



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This is a photo from Christmas of 1993. Practically everything in my life has changed since that time. I've gained and lost many, many things. However, one thing to remain constant is my unceasing admiration for my father. The old post initially focuses on style, but of course there's so much more to life than that. With the passing of my great aunt and the occurrence of Father's Day, I'm reminded that the love and dedication of family comes before all else. And with such things come respect, loyalty, dignity, bravery, pride. Such things are the substance, the class emanating  from my father.

Again, happy Father's Day!

Sincerely,
Scott Alexander

A Short Break

Very early this morning, my great aunt passed away. My posts are likely to be limited over the next week or so, as various arrangements are made and time is spent with the family. I truly value all of you who come here for my daft musings, and I ask your patience and prayers until things get back up to speed.


Then again, I find writing to be an excellent outlet for grief and my posts might reach an all-time high. I'm lost at the moment, so we'll see what happens.


Most humbly,
Scott Alexander