Hoodoo in Fiction Books Movies Film TV Television Shows Stage Plays

Unread post by **mamaambota2003** » Wed Jan 07, 2004 3:42 pm

I thought Eve's Bayou was an excellent movie! You can rent it from Netflix
online. For those of you who like to rent movies, I recommend
Netflix. $20 per month flat fee, no mailing costs.. they mail the
movies to you, you watch them and pop them in the postage paid
envelope and mail them back. They give you 3 at a time. The only
problem I've had is sometimes the DVDs are dirty and skip if I don't
wipe them off before I play them.

Unread post by **Valentina Burton** » Wed Feb 25, 2004 11:49 am

Hooray! How terrific that the director of "Skeleton Key" would care enough to actually consult with someone who knows what she's talking about! It sounds like this might really be fun. Speaking for myself, I feel that you (Cat) do so much for Hoodoo and for your students, you shouldn't feel pressured by us. That's an ungraceful way of saying that I'm so grateful to get these lessons, you do whatever is comfortable for you. Get the lessons to me on whatever schedule you please. I'm ALWAYS anxious to get the next one, but that's my own impatience. I LOVE this stuff, so I'm greedy!

Holly the Hoodoo showgal

Unread post by **catherineyronwode** » Fri May 14, 2004 12:44 am

As most of you in the 2003 class and many of you in the 2004 class
know, i was recently hired to be a "Hoodoo Technical Consultant" for a
horror film called Skeleton Key, starring Kate Hudson.

In addition to my consulting on the script, i and the entire shop staff
have been working overtime to fill the set decorator's request for what
amounts to a complete hoodoo shop (for a scene lasting less than two
minutes, probably!). The shop set will contain a sampling of everything
we make and sell here at Lucky Mojo.

I apologize to all my students, but the amount of work i am doing for
the film -- including designing 48 new different vigil candle labels
and redesigning all our other labels so that they are slightly larger
than they were and also contain the company name -- has cut into my
ability to keep up my work in other areas. We have been filling the
Skeleton key order for about a month now, sending out dozens of boxes
of goods weighing hundreds of pounds -- and everything except the
amulets and talismans has, of course, been hand made or assembled by
hand. We have even hired a new full-time employee, Diana Elder, to keep
us on deadline.

I am behind on sending out lessons, reading messages, and forwarding
them to the course elists, which i deeply regret. The production of the
goods for the movie set should be completed by May 17 at the very
latest, and i will then catch up on all my other tasks, of which the
most pressing is the course.

Please be patient with your poor, overworked teacher,

cat yronwode

Unread post by **Quimbisero** » Sat May 15, 2004 12:45 am

Shame, shame, shame, Cat! We are soooo horrified that you have forgotten us.

Well, I propose that your pennance be, when you are done, that you write a long missal telling us all about it.

I think that I speak for everyone in saying I'm pleased about this and are patiently awaiting you to get your head above water again. It is a wonderful opportunity and is something really good for the tradition as a whole.

Keep up the good work.

Eoghan

(Eoghan, i wish it were truly good work. From the moment the set designer contacted me, i was stuck -- if i didn't sign on and work to correct some of the factual errors in the film, i would have felt that i was letting the community down -- but since the whole point of the story was to show the conjure doctors as evil monsters trying to take the life of sweet, young, blonde Kate Hudson, i could not salvage anything decent about rootwork per se, and i could not change the racially divisive paradigm upon which the entire plot premise is based. I managed to make a few changes in the script and a great many changes in set design, but the premise was inviolate -- and it was conceived using old racial and religious stereoptypes in the service of horror and shock. All i was able to do was to provide some authenticity in terms of word usage (crossed instead of hexed, etc.), practical herbology (telling them that no herbalist would keep her roots hanging out on her porch in the rain (!!!), and set dressing (creating a replication for them of of a real hoodoo shop, rather than the Mexican botanica set they had envisioned). Yes, we are getting well paid for our work, but the director said to me, straight-out, "This is not an ethnographic study; this is a horror film," and so it is. And the lynching scene ... i could not mitigate that at all. Like the man said, it's a horror film. --cat)

Unread post by **Quimbisero** » Sat May 22, 2004 1:18 am

Cat,

I guess I was felled by a moment of wild hope. oh well. Hollywood will be Hollywood. At
least somebody actually involved with the tradition will make a dime from it. That is better
than usual.

Those who line up to make use of many of these traditions (not just Hoodoo) for fiction
without regards to the facts are myriad. And somehow, people think that can know what it
is without setting foot in this world. I've recently been contacted by one would be fiction
hack who thinks he can make a buck writing a novel about Paleros in 19th century
Carolina. He got upset with me when I told him that there were none. His response was
"Well, there could have been."

Oh well.

Looking forward to having you back.

Eoghan

Unread post by **Holly Greenwood** » Mon May 24, 2004 3:22 am

hi, sister. hey, it's the same principal i mentioned to a friend of mine
who was disgusted with some poor leadership at work: if you drop out of the
game, you have NO voice and no means of correcting wrongs. Better to be in
the game and protest than to keep quiet, where the protest doesn't register
at all.

holly greenwood

(HOLLY! Hi, sister! Thanks for the support. Hey, i have been thinking of you lately because there are now two SCA members working in the shop, Carin Huber and Diana Edler, both very craft-proficient women. I told them about you and the Crafter's Guild. Kiss Kiss! Hugs! --cat)

(Note to the curious -- Holly Greenwood is indeed actually my step-sister. --cat)

-----Original Message-----
From: Quimbisero [mailto:eballard@sas.upenn.edu]
Sent: Friday, May 14, 2004 6:21 PM

I think that I speak for everyone in saying I'm pleased about this and are
patiently awaiting you to get your head above water again. It is a wonderful
opportunity and is something really good for the tradition as a whole.

Keep up the good work.

Eoghan

(Eoghan, i wish it were truly good work. From the moment the set designer
contacted me, i was stuck -- if i didn't sign on and work to correct some of
the factual errors in the film, i would have felt that i was letting the
community down -- but since the whole point of the story was to show the
conjure doctors as evil monsters trying to take the life of sweet, young,
blonde Kate Hudson, i could not salvage anything decent about rootwork per
se, and i could not change the racially divisive paradigm upon which the
entire plot premise is based. Yes, we are getting well paid for our work,
but the director said to me, straight-out, "This is not an ethnographic
study; this is a horror film," and so it is. And the lynching scene ... i
could not mitigate that at all. Like the man said, it's a horror
film. --cat)

Unread post by **Michelle bush** » Mon May 24, 2004 3:22 am

I think it's really cool!!!!!
I can't wait to see Lucky Mojo on the big screen!!!!!

I for one am in no hurry, i'm actually sad that the
class wil be over eventually.

I suppose i could look at it like "the class" in the
broader sense, for us, will NEVER be over. That makes
me feel alittle better but I will miss getting the
lessons... Honestly I'd also like to point out that
for me personally, even though a lesson is read, it's
not nessessarily Learned yet. i've read all the
lessons but haven't learned them all yet by any
stretch of the word.
~Patiently
Michelle Presseau

__________________________________
Do you Yahoo!?
SBC Yahoo! - Internet access at a great low price.
http://promo.yahoo.com/sbc/

Unread post by **rasashastra** » Mon May 24, 2004 3:37 am

> but the amount of work i am doing for
> the film -- including designing 48
> new different vigil candle labels
> and redesigning all our other labels
> so that they are slightly larger
> than they were and also contain the
> company name -- has cut into my
> ability to keep up my work in other
> areas. We have been filling the
> Skeleton key order for about a month
> now, sending out dozens of boxes
> of goods weighing hundreds of pounds
> -- and everything except the
> amulets and talismans has, of course,
> been hand made or assembled by hand.

<< What is to eventually become of all these "props"? >>

(That is a good question to which i do not have an answer. There has been some talk of holding a party on the set and giving them away to guests, of selling them to a "prop house" for resale to the public, or of sending them out to entertainment media journalists and movie industry folks along with press releases about the film. The store scene for which these items were made will occuply less than two minutes of screen time, i am guessing. Crazy, huh? --cat)

Hasana Monique · Unread post by **Hasana Monique** » Fri Sep 24, 2004 1:53 pm

Greeting Beloved Hoodoo Family,

I saw a very interesting movie the other day on the crossroads and
blues singers. The movie is called, "The Crossroads"

Just wanted to share

Blessings and Light

Unread post by **rootwork** » Sat Feb 26, 2005 10:45 pm

Dear all,

Just to let you know, there is a new DVD out on hoodoo called The
Root Doctor. It was produced by Emily Edwards collaborating with
Piedmont Community College and the University of North Carolina at
Greensboro. I haven't watched it all yet, but what I did see was
interesting. It is part dramatic narrative, telling a story of a
visit to a rootworker, and part documentary.

By the way, Cat, I suggested that the producer contact you. She
never did tell me whether she did or not, though.

Sincerely,
Jeff Anderson

(Thanks for the news on this project. I look foward to seeing a review by you and ordering information if it is worthwhile! And no, they producer did not contact me. --cat)

W Brewer · Unread post by **W Brewer** » Sun Feb 27, 2005 10:38 pm

hoodoodoctor3 <jeffnlynn@earthlink.net> wrote:

> > Just to let you know, there is
> a new DVD out on hoodoo called The
> Root Doctor. It was produced by
> Emily Edwards collaborating with
> Piedmont Community College and the
> University of North Carolina at
> Greensboro.

I am in North Carolina, where did you get the CD? I do remember last year, someone on this list mentioned that they were doing a project that involed a Univeristy in North Carolina. But I think it was a male but can't remember the person's name.

Paulette28205

Unread post by **rootwork** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 5:19 pm

I got a copy in the mail from the producer because she interviewed
me for the documentary and asked me a few questions for the
narrative part. I am not sure the proper way to order, but I will
send the producer an e-mail momentarily to ask.

Also, the person who mentioned working on it earlier may have been
James McClenon (I may have misspelled the last name). I believe he
was a member of the 2003 class. I know that he appears in the
documentary several times.

Jeff Anderson

Unread post by **James McClenon** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 11:28 pm

Yes, Emily Edwards finished her DVD - and had a premier showing at the
University of North Carolina, Greensboro a few weeks ago. It was not just
good -- it was VERY GOOD.

She is planning on getting major distribution for this work -- but so far
she has not signed a contract. I have talked with her about our group and
Cat's store -- and I suspect that "The Root Doctor" will eventually be made
available to us -- but first she must talk with major distributors.

The DVD has a non-fiction documentary part and also a fictional drama part
-- both are excellent. I was very impressed with her work. The drama is
particularly good - emotionally powerful. It tells a story of some women who
visit a root doctor to "solve" the problem of an abusive mate.

Jim

Unread post by **super_na2ral** » Wed Mar 23, 2005 10:02 am

Good morning everyone...

Just wanted to let everyone, especially Cat, to know that this past
Saturday I saw the preview for Skeleton Key when we went to watch
Ring 2 (ok movie - not worth seeing again). It was great and
exciting. It won't be out until June 6th over here in my area but I
can't wait. I am so excited about this movie that my bf already
knows that Cat helped with the movie and he has already committed on
watching it with me (except I'm not sure if I want that - I don't
want him to know of my little "tricks", hmmmm...). But anyway, Cat
congratulations again and again did I mention that I'm very excited
to see this movie... I am, I am.

(I am looking forward to it as well. I have no idea if it will be a good movie, but i did my poart, that's all i can say. Meanwhile, next Tuesday, the 29th of March, a video crew is coming out from New York to film us in the shop for a cable TV show called "Weird USA." Sounds a little crazy, but they seem like nice enough people. I am hoping for the best, but if it turns out bas, well, it's just a few minutes in a cable TV show, right? --cat)

Also on a different subject before I forget. Saturday evening I had
a dream and the only thing I remember is that my bf and I was in
front of my dresser/chest (my temporary altar) and we were about to
light a candle. When I was about to light the candle I realized it
had a plastic cup over it - so I had to remove it. And my dreams
are pretty weird sometimes (i'm sure everyone's is every once in
awhile) but anyway as I was taking off the cup eerie music started
playing in the background kind of like in a scary comedy or
something like that and then when I got the cup off - the music
became loud to accommodate the secret candle being revealed. Then I
turned to my bf and he looked at me with a nonsurprised look, I look
at the candle again, looked at my bf again and both said "oh it's
Santisima Muerte" I started giggling and saying yeay and lit the
candle. Then I woke up. Any take on this. The whole entire day
was spent by me trying to figure out why.

(Since Santisima Muerte is a spirit used to capture men for life, i would assume that you are serious about this boyfriend and that he feels the same way about you -- or you would like him to. --cat)

Here I go againg writing a book... Sorry - I get so caught up on
trying to give every detail.

always,
Monette

Unread post by **red-lamp1** » Wed Mar 23, 2005 6:54 pm

For those interested you can check out the movie trailer here
http://www.theskeletonkeymovie.com/

Lisa

(Thanks! --cat)

Unread post by **super_na2ral** » Sun Mar 27, 2005 2:17 am

cat wrote:

> > (next Tuesday, the 29th of March, a video crew is coming out from New
> York to film us in the shop for a cable TV show called "Weird USA."
> Sounds a little crazy, but they seem like nice enough people. I am
> hoping for the best, but if it turns out bas, well, it's just a few
> minutes in a cable TV show, right? --cat)

Cat- what tv network is it in and do you know when and the time they
are going to show it? I would like to watch it. I've not heard of
the show before

Plus I hardly watch tv.

(I don;t know. I will let you all know when i find out. --cat)

> > Also on a different subject before I forg et. Saturday evening I
> had a dream and the only thing I remember is that my bf and I was in
> front of my dresser/chest (my temporary altar) and we were about
> to light a candle. [...] I look
> at the candle again, looked at my bf ag ain and both said "oh it's
> Santisima Muerte" I started giggling and saying yeay and lit the
> candle. Then I woke up. Any take on this?
>
> (Since Santisima Muerte is a spirit use d to capture men for life,
> i would assume that you are serious about this boyfriend and that he
> feels the same way about you -- or you would like him to. --cat)

About the dream - thanks for the info. Should I light a candle in
honor of Santisima Muerte or not? I don't know much about her, does
she have a specific color designated for her? I will go do a search
also to find out.

Thank you again... Monette

(I would definitely light a candle for her, since you dramed of doing so. Some folks use red, some use white, some use black for her candles -- most use black. --cat)

o

Unread post by **Tanisia Mooney** » Wed Mar 30, 2005 1:24 am

--- In hrcourse@yahoogroups.com, "Lisa" <lisa@t...> wrote:
> >
> For those interested you can check out the movie trailer here
> http://www.theskeletonkeymovie.com/
>
> Lisa
>
> (Thanks! --cat)

Scott and I just watched the trailer. His reaction: "Yikes!"

My reaction: "That's the Crucifix candle from the shop!! *Squee!*"
Also: "They got the door track knowledge right! **More Squee!*"

Conclusion: planning on seeing it--even though thrillers aren't
normally my cup of tea. Of course, it looks like they'll go over the
deep end and all 'oogie boogie', but that's Hollywood.

Well done!

Unread post by **Marisa Young** » Sun May 08, 2005 11:59 pm

Hi everyone;

I wanted to ask you all if you had any favorite examples of respectful,
non-sensational depictions of hoodoo/rootwork in art and fiction, namely film and novels. The two that come to mind for me are "Mama Day" by Gloria Naylor, and the film "Eve's Bayou". Any other favorites?

There was a thread about this a year or two back. I don't know the message numbers, but i think they are in our archives. Here are two off the top of my head: "Apprentice to Murder" with Donald Sutherland (about Pow Wow magic, but it contains an authentic hoodoo scene as well, when the white magician consults with a black colleague). "Harlem Nights" with Eddie Murphy (one scene only: Redd Foxx describes a typical underwear knot spell to tie a man's nature.) And while you are researching the archives, check out the posts about the upcoming movie "Skeleton Key" with Kate Hudson. I cannot vouch for its authenticity, but i tried to help the screenwriter keep it real as best i could and i've got my fingers crossed, hoping for a miracle. --cat)

Vajra and I are planning a road trip down to Forestville sometime soon
(we're in Portland, OR)! Can't wait!

(We'd love to see you! --cat)

Blessings,
Marisa~

--
SURGEON GENERALS WARNING: Books may introduce unfamiliar or confusing
ideas. In the event of uncomfortable self-reflection, heat to 451°
Fahrenheit and seek television immediately.

Radio Bastet: All vintage belly dance music, all the time!
http://www.radiobastet.com
WitchRoots: Where there's a Way, there's a Witch...
http://www.witchroots.com

Marisa · Unread post by **Marisa** » Mon May 09, 2005 6:02 pm

cat wrote:
(There was a thread about this a year or two back. I don't know the
message numbers, but i think they are in our archives...<snip> And
while you are researching the archives, check out the posts about the
upcoming movie "Skeleton Key" with Kate Hudson. I cannot vouch for its
authenticity, but i tried to help the screenwriter keep it real as
best i could and i've got my fingers crossed, hoping for a miracle. --cat)

Ooh, very good! (The archives - duh!! :slaps forehead: ) Thanks,
cat - I've got fingers *and* toes crossed!

Hope to see you sometime soon!
Marisa~

--
SURGEON GENERAL'S WARNING: Books may introduce unfamiliar or confusing
ideas. In the event of uncomfortable self-reflection, heat to 451°
Fahrenheit and seek television immediately.

Radio Bastet: All vintage belly dance music, all the time!
http://www.radiobastet.com
WitchRoots: Where there's a Way, there's a Witch...
http://www.witchroots.com

Unread post by **red-lamp1** » Mon May 09, 2005 6:15 pm

--- In hrcourse@yahoogroups.com, Marisa Young <webmaven@r...> wrote:
> >cat wrote:
> There was a thread about this a year or two back.

I am interested in seeing some Hoodoo-y movies too so I looked in the
archives. The posts that I found are 641, 642, 644 and 647.

Lisa

(THANKS! --cat)

Unread post by **shyla_w1** » Sat Jun 25, 2005 2:52 am

Just rented "Ray", the movie.

Did anyone else notice the wonderful reference to Hoodoo in the movie,
not just once, but repeatedly?

When Ray flashes back to his youth, or has visions of his mother and
his childhood, he remembers a tree, hung with different size and
shape bottles. Dangling beautifully from all the branches of the
tree, in front of the family home. Ray grew up in Northern Florida,
in a poor sort of "shantytown".

Am I right in noticing that this bottle tree is indeed a hoodoo
reference?

(Yes, indeed. It is a classic hooodoo bottle tree. The images of the sparkling bottles were very nicely presented, too, in terms of the theme of his gradual loss of sight. --cat)

Unread post by **red-lamp1** » Sun Jul 17, 2005 3:36 pm

For those interested in the movie, the website has been updated with
some folklore and info about Hoodoo and Voodoo.

http://theskeletonkeymovie.com

There is also a graphic on the site with some bottles of oils and
stuff that look a lot like Lucky Mojo bottles.

The movie comes out August 12th.

Lisa

(Thanks for posting this. This morning i received email from a publicist for the movie offering me the use of "assets" for the movie -- in other words, i can use specified images and text to publicize the movie and even host an authorized free ticket giveaway. Universal Studios has also invited me to a free screening (in Los Angeles). I think i am too busy to do these things, but it was nice of them to offer me a chance to play with their stuff like that. I will put a temporary link to the movie site somewhere on my site -- probably on the main catalogue page -- but since i don't do the whole shockwave/flash thing, i can't even read their pages on folklore, much less do the whole batch of programming they'd need me to do for me to get more deeply involved. Anyway, i'm still a little apprehensive about how much of what i contributed as a consultant to the production got mangled or re-written for "damatic effect," so i am going to breathe slowly and carefully on the sidelines and probably just go see it in a theater like everyone else. Maybe we can organize a Lucky Mojo crew mass-viewing. I'd feel happier that way, seeing it among friends, if it turned out to be just too terrible for words. --cautious cat)

Unread post by **RedWill0w** » Sun Jul 17, 2005 9:54 pm

Cat Yronwode writes:

> > >if it turned out to be just too terrible for words. --cautious cat

If it turned out to be just too terrible for words, we all would know
that it was not your fault at all, and that everything you said, did, and
suggested was accurate and authentic. Here's hoping for a good movie!
Dara

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Unread post by **Quimbisero** » Tue Jul 19, 2005 1:52 am

--- In hrcourse@yahoogroups.com, RedWill0w@a... wrote:
> > Cat Yronwode writes:
>
> > >if it turned out to be just too terrible for words. --cautious cat

Oh hell, Cat. It's Hollywood! Two things you can't do in relation to
Hollywood - expect too much, or allow yourself to get upset. It isn't
going to be worse than some of the things that have come out before.
At least you have served to provide SOME measure of accuracy. That's
more from the outset than usually happens. So it's all good! hat's off
to you.

Eoghan

Unread post by **Carin Huber** » Tue Jul 19, 2005 1:57 am

Cat, you should try to get online at a friend's house where you can
see the Flash stuff. The "Create Your Own Conjure" is a very amusing
toy.

Carin

(Well, you know me, Carin, i never much leave my own place to go anywhere. And the reason i don't have Flash installed is 'cause i don't like what it does to my migraines, simple as that. So .... can you describe it? --cat)

Unread post by **ocsana13** » Tue Jul 19, 2005 2:05 am

Greetings all - I am re-opening "Shadows and Light" on the same night as
"The Skeleton Key" and doing local cross promotions with our local theatre . . .
I'll be putting up a movie poster and the name of the theatre. They'll be
giving out Red Brick Dust with a little card saying compliments of Shadows and
Light. [Uhm it helps that my best friend is the assistant manager of the
last 8 years - LOL!!]
I opened the shoppe in July 1999 but have been closed for 18 months
due to my health, but hopefully . . . I'm back in the saddle again!! My
store HAD always been Pagan oriented, but my beloved Hoodoo/New Orleans
Voodoo/Santeria room was my pride and joy . . . I've re-opened with only conjure
products: herbs, roots, oils, jar candles, speciality waters, baths, incense,
resins, etc. It jives with me personally so much better and I hope that will
reflect in my health as well.
I did a promotional with all the swords for Lord of the Rings:
Return of the King a couple of Christmas' ago. I found that it worked out really
well to bring in local folks into my shoppe who had been "afraid" of my
"magickal den of sin" for 4 years and then found out that I carried some "nice
and lovely things."
Oh well - business with minimal compromise is always a touchy thing,
huh?

*Hearts & Rose
*Nancy*
Shadows and Light - Decatur, AL
Dedicated to the Pink Lady

(http://www.delinquent-records.com/)

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Unread post by **MissMichaele** » Tue Jul 19, 2005 10:32 pm

"Carin M. Huber" <Carin@jhuger.com> wrote:
> >
> Cat, you should try to get online at a friend's house where you can
> see the Flash stuff. The "Create Your Own Conjure" is a very amusing
> toy.
>
> Carin
>
> (Well, you know me, Carin, i never much leave my own place to go anywhere.
> And the reason i don't have Flash installed is 'cause i don't like what it
> does to my migraines, simple as that. So .... can you describe it? --cat)

It is amusing for about five minutes.

On a background that looks like a page from a much-used antique book,
there's a brief introduction to the uses of herbs & things in conjure work,
and these directions:

"1) Choose three elements to place inside the circle.
2) Your choices will determine your conjure.
3) Send your conjure to a friend."

So you click on "Begin" and up pops another antique-book page. Sticking out
from the side of it are nice 3-D renderings of six objects: a jar of brick
dust, a bear claw, a "tooth of wisdom" (NOT a human wisdom tooth!), a
chicken foot, an angelica root (smaller than the chicken foot, but maybe
these aren't supposed to be to scale), and a lock of hair. On the page
itself is a set of concentric circles. The center one contains a humanoid
stick-figure quartered by a cross, each of whose arms end in an eye. The
second circle contains silhouettes of the objects already described. You
choose three more or less at random and drag them onto their silhouettes.
They swirl toward the center, and the page bursts into flame, revealing a
sepiatone photo of (some scene from the movie?) and the legend, "You have
created the Conjure of (Such-and-Such)."

It's actually fairly risible. Cat, do you know of any magical uses for
chicken feet (the ones that actually come from chickens), bears' claws, and
wisdom teeth (which are fangy-looking, probably nonhuman origin according to
the picture)?

Further more, if you choose the same set of ingredients *but vary the
order,* you get a different "conjure" result each time.

Chicken foot + bear claw + wisdom tooth = "Conjure of Protection"
Bear claw + wisdom tooth + chicken foot = "Conjure of Healing"
Wisdom tooth + chicken foot + bear claw = "Conjure of Attraction"

... Just goes to show that AI isn't advanced enough to work conjure, yet.

It's pretty, but it could *also* have been educational. It is to laugh. I
guess.

Michaele

(Thanks very much for the description. It sounds stupid as shit, pardon my language. Chicken feet appear in hoodoo in crossroads rituals. See
http://www.luckymojo.com/crossroads.html
--grateful cat)

Unread post by **Etudiant Ancetres** » Wed Jul 20, 2005 9:22 pm

( Chicken feet appear in hoodoo in crossroads rituals. See
http://www.luckymojo.com/crossroads.html
--cat)

Just like chickens scratch up conjure, chicken feet are used to protect from conjure and evil. To make a protective charm, tie 3 knots with red ribbon around a chicken foot and carry that foot with you. Another way to protect yourself from hoodoo is to staple or tape a chicken foot over your front door

--Marc

Unread post by **Quimbisero** » Fri Jul 22, 2005 12:19 am

Chicken feet also appear frequently outside of Hoodoo practice in
soup.

Eoghan

Unread post by **Anthony** » Sat Jul 30, 2005 12:27 am

Hey everyone,

Cat, I was wondering about skeleton keys themselves. I
have seen amulets for protection made from crossing skeleton keys
before. Do they have any other applications is Hoodoo? Are skeleton
keys of different metals used for different things? Incidently I just
found a whole box of them at this lovely local antique shop... I cant
wait to buy them all up.

Thanks................

Anthony

(The use of keys in magic is esentially European, and carrries with it all such symbolism such notions (both occult and religious) it acquired from that source. Catholics identify crossed keys with Saint Peter and hence the papacy -- but the European folklore of kys is equally secular in nature. The chiefest example of the skeleton key in hoodoo is found in the widespread popularity and adoption of L. W. DeLaurence's book, "The Master Key" among African American practitioners beginning in the early 20th century. This book, with its accompanying skeleton key image, gave rise to metal Master Key talismans, miniature Master Key charms for charm bracelets, and (in a copyrght-skirting artisic variation) the logo for a line of Master Key hoodoo supplies manufactured and trademarked by Valmor / King Novelty from the 1930s - 1960s and, when their trademark later lapsed, adapted for use as a trademark of Lucky Mojo. The crossed skeleton keys made a splash in hoodoo during the 1940s through the popularity of two entirely different patterns of crucifix candle embossed with an open book, outstretched hands, and dangling crossed keys above a base of leaping flames. (Incidentally, these crossed-key crucifix candles candles are not the only type of crucifix candles; there are in addition at least two other types -- rose wreath and four-leaf clover.) --cat)

Unread post by **Barbara Griffith** » Sun Jul 31, 2005 12:59 pm

> I was wondering about skeleton keys
> themselves. I have seen amulets for
> protection made from crossing skeleton keys
> before. Do they have any other applications is Hoodoo?

I carry an old-fashioned skeleton key on my keyring for luck in opening doors and getting past obstacles.

Unread post by **luckyhoodoo** » Mon Aug 08, 2005 8:26 pm

Awesome Segment Cat!

The only thing is I wish they would focused more time on your shop!!!

Did you fix the guys up a mojo?

Love how you were able to sneak the Mojo Car in!

-Jason

(I haven't seen it (no cable TV for me) and i don't know if
anyone is taping it fopr me. As to your questions: They did not want a mojo, just some dressed candles. The idea for using the Mojo Car was cooked up mostly by the director, the cameraman, and yours truly. --cat)

Unread post by **luckyhoodoo** » Mon Aug 08, 2005 9:46 pm

cat wrote:

(I haven't seen ["Weird US"] (no cable TV for me) and i don't know if
anyone is taping it fopr me. [...]. --cat)

I'd be honored to tape it for you. Good thing is that that the show is actualy airing twice tonight. Guess what, your hair is not in your face during the interview!!! Unfortunately we don't get to see Shiva except for the back of his head.

-Jason (LuckyH.)

(Thanks. Jason. I'd like that, even though i wish my hair HAD been in my face during the interview.

Siva asked that his face not be shown, so they were rpetty cool about that. They are nice folks. --cat)

Unread post by **Rebecca** » Mon Aug 08, 2005 10:14 pm

<Awesome Segment Cat!

The only thing is I wish they would focused more time on your shop!!!

Did you fix the guys up a mojo?

Love how you were able to sneak the Mojo Car in!

-Jason

(I haven't seen it (no cable TV for me) and i don't know if
anyone is taping it fopr me. As to your questions: They did not want a mojo, just some dressed candles. The idea for using the Mojo Car was cooked up mostly by the director, the cameraman, and yours <truly. --cat)

Dad gum it!!! How did I miss it? I have been watching for it and even saw a couple of episodes. Maybe reruns.

Rebecca

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Unread post by **Rebecca** » Mon Aug 08, 2005 10:14 pm

snip....Good thing is that that the show is actualy airing twice tonight. Guess what, your hair is not in your face during the interview!!! Unfortunately we don't get to see Shiva except for the back of his head.

-Jason (LuckyH.)

Woo Hoo! thanks for letting us know it's on again. I get to watch it now. Just changed the channel. THanks!

Rebecca

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Unread post by **luckyhoodoo** » Thu Aug 11, 2005 1:53 am

In a message dated 8/8/2005 11:47:10 PM Central Standard Time,
luckyhoodoo@aol.com writes:

(Thanks. Jason. I'd like that, even though i wish my hair HAD been in my
face during the interview.

Siva asked that his face not be shown, so they
were rpetty cool about that. They are nice folks. --cat)

Cat, you're not Medusa! I think everybody has a problem with how they look
on camera.
I personaly cringe everytime I hear a recording of my voice.

I'll put the tape in the mail today.

-Jason (LuckyH.)

(Thanks, Jason! I'll send you some goodies in return. --cat)

Unread post by **Auntie Sindy Todo** » Thu Aug 11, 2005 2:10 am

I thought your portion of the show
was the most right on... They didn't act
too silly or make fun, but instead
showed real interest and appreciation for
your work. My husband Jerry really
enjoyed seeing who this woman is that I
so admire and then he glanced up and
saw the 3 petition candles I have set
up for some clients and says, "Wow, this
is really amazing that you are can
to do this too!" DUH!!! hahaha. We both
LOVED the car!! Good job all the way
around.

-xx, Sindy

Unread post by **Cyd** » Thu Aug 11, 2005 2:19 am

The "Weird USA" Segment For Lucky Mojo Was Awesome -- loved it!!

Unread post by **Rebecca** » Thu Aug 11, 2005 11:39 pm

<I thought your portion of the show was the most right on... They didn't act too silly or make fun, but instead showed real interest and appreciation for your work. snip...
<-xx, Sindy

I agree Sindy. They seemed to be truely interested. They had gotten a mojo when they were in New Orleans and didn't seem to take that nearly as seriously as they did Cat's candles. I loved seeing the Mojo Car too!

Oh, and I finally know how to pronounce your last name Cat! lol

Rebecca

(Yay! I finally got to see a copy of the "Weird US" show, thanks to Diana Edler. I was very pleasantly surprised. Except for one oddity -- saying that hoodoo "hearkens back to the 1960s" or some such (i think they got this from me saying that the 1960s was when i bagan my studies of the subject), everything else they said was very good, respectful, interested, and positive. I enjoyed it a lot. Amd tomorrow -- "The Skeleton Key" opens in theaters all across the country. So far one person has called who saw the Hollywood premiere of the show last night, and he was quoting dialogue from it to me that i know i wrote into the screenplay, which made me feel good, and he said it was an exciting film, so i feel okay about that too. Fingers still crossed... --cat)

Unread post by **catherineyronwode** » Sat Aug 13, 2005 4:15 pm

NO SPOILERS, feel free to read if you have not seen the
movie

Well, Siva, our niece Ariel, Suzanne Flecker (of the
hrcourse and this yahoo group) and her husband Rick went
out last night and saw The Skeleton Key. As y'all know,
i am not a big horror film fan, so that was a little
strange for me, but i did want to see how far they had
taken my consultations as to set decoration and
dialogue, and how many Lucky Mojo products could be
seen in the film.

First off, man! I really did it -- i got them to buy a
LIFE-SIZED St. Expedite statue and put it in the
hallway! My man!!!! They really did it, and that was my
promise to him, to magnify his name and fame and there
he was, BIG AS LIFE. Also i got them to add an oil
painting of Saint Martha Dominator because the story is
all about servants dominating employers, and she's the
go-to gal for that condition. So that all worked out as
i had planned.

Next, the dialogue about hoodoo got "fixed" and worked
out pretty well. All that cliche horror movie stuff
about "it doesn't work if you don;t believe in it"
was, of course, an immutable part of the film's
original premise and i could not tinker with that, but
the rest of it -- including the use of proper terms
like crossed, uncrossed, condition, fixed, conjuration,
and so forth -- in place of the original script's
"hexed" and "cursed" -- is all my writing.

I also had fun with the gardening scene, because in the
original, Gena Rowlands (Violet) asks for her seeds for
Jack in the Pulpit, which is not a garden flower and
not used in hoodoo -- and i substituted having her ask
for Trillium, and then, as a sort of subtle reveal of
the plot, had her call it Dixie John later. (I am not
giving any spoilers here, but that is a give-away of
sorts, for those of you who are familiar with the
botanical nomenclature and common name usage.)

The conjure shop scene showed a lot of Lucky Mojo items
-- mostly too small and too far from the camera to be
identifiable as such. For some reason, they gave a lot
of screen space to our Virgin Mary Holy Water bottles
and our acrylic transparent Buddhas! And the raccoon
penis bones were EVERYWHERE -- that was a trip. The
original screenplay had called for chicken wishbones,
but i explained as how coon dongs were much more a part
of hoodoo, and so they bought about 100 of 'em and they
sure did put them all over the set -- in the gas
station, on Papa Justify, everywhere.

The spell that i wrote for them -- a revision of what
the screenwriter Ehren Kruger had originally written,
with his floating tea-light candle and wrung-out wash
cloth -- went pretty well. It is not traditional, of
course, but they needed it to include both a candle and
a bowl of water for visual echoing of the storm outside
and so the bowl would drop when the thunder crashed and
the water would splash out of it ... and, given those
constraints, i think it came off all right. Since the
scene had to include both a candle and a bowl of water,
and i wanted that floating tea-light out of the way, i
rewrote the spell to reflect the typical Spiritual
Church practice of placing a crucifix in a glass of
water, using a crucifix candle. For those who might
wonder more about this spell, the original screenplay
had indicated a scene where Caroline boiled the herbs
in water in the kitchen (and found more spooky stuff in
the kitchen) and i left that intact in my reworking of
the spell, but that kitchen scene was cut completely by
the director after the last revision, and so we see her
simply sprinkle the herbs into what appears to be cold
water, which is okay, but would be a bit puzzling to
actual conjure practitioners, of course. I also added
the business of her pouring oil from a small bottle of
Uncrossing Oil into the water, to be along with the
herbs, but they deemed the 1/2 oz. bottle too small to
read on camera and substituted one of our larger square
Chinese Wash bottles, filled with oil, which looked
pretty good, actually.

Another area that was problematic in the first draft of
the script and that i feel came across fairly well
after my input was the use of the Solomonic talismans
that are seen in the attic, on the old conjuration
record sleeves, and elsewhere. The original screenplay
called for "a Wheel of Fortune with Runic Symbols"
(whatever THAT was supposed to mean), so i explained
that the wheel of fortune is either a game wheel or a
tarot card (neither being hoodoo) and that runes are
Germanic (and not used in hoodoo either). I then sent
along a copy of an old curio company catalogue cover --
one that was used by several curio companies during the
1940s and is still in use by us at Lucky Mojo -- which
depicts a pair of candles on either side of a zodiacal
wheel, and i told them that the 1st pentacle of
Jupiter, from the Clavicula Solomonis (Greater Key of
Solomon) would have been known to hoodoo practitioners
in the USA via the L. W. DeLaurence reprint of McGregor
Mathers' English translation circa World War One, and
that this talisman was appropriate because it is used
to ensure possession of a house or other premises. They
took my photocopies and sketches of this and had a
calligrapher run with it and the result is unique, but
not all that out of line -- and certainly a darned
sight more accurate than "Runic symbols."

Well, i could write more, but that about covers it,
except for one final note: I was amazed to see that
despite the very clear distinction made between Voodoo
and hoodoo, spoken in the film dialogue by the
character Jill, a certain percentage of the newspaper
movie reviewers online STILL said the movie was about
Voodoo. Are they idiots or what? I would not trust such
a reviewer with any factual articles because the
difference between Voodoo and hoodoo was SO clearly
explained in the film, and they STILL got it wrong. If
anyone has the energy to write to them and gently
educate them and poke a little hole in them for their
hot air to escape, it might help "the cause," if you
know what i mean.

catherine yronwode

Unread post by **luckyhoodoo** » Sun Aug 14, 2005 12:28 am

Very minor SPOILER below.

cat@luckymojo.com writes:

[...]

> > Also i got them to add an oil
> painting of Saint Martha Dominator because the story is
> all about servants dominating employers, and she's the
> go-to gal for that condition. So that all worked out as
> i had planned.

Thanks Cat, you outed me. I took my roomates with me
to see the film and they recognized St. Martha from
the one I have hanging on my wall!

[...]

> And the raccoon
> penis bones were EVERYWHERE -- that was a trip. The
> original screenplay had called for chicken wishbones,
> but i explained as how coon dongs were much more a part
> of hoodoo, and so they bought about 100 of 'em and they
> sure did put them all over the set -- in the gas
> station, on Papa Justify, everywhere. - cat

I loved the "mobille" hanging at the gas station. Now
how many non-practioners knew those were pecker bones?

[...]

Cat, I would like to know if any root-workers made records
as in the film?

Unread post by **RedWill0w** » Sun Aug 14, 2005 12:31 am

Well, the Dallas contingent went to see Skeleton Key
yesterday, too.

I actually actively dislike horror movies, and would
never go to one without good reason. Which means that
I never go to them, cause what could possibly
constitute a good reason? Friends who wanted to see
Miss Cat's Hollywood consulting made flesh. It took a
little prodding to get me out, but get out I did,
figuring that anything rated PG-13 was probably
something I could handle. Plus, we went to a matinee,
so it was daylight. This from someone who comfortably
visits graveyards as an integral part of her work! Go
figure.

We all enjoyed it and laughed at the ubiquitous racoon
penis bones and enjoyed the conjure shop, attic, etc.
At least when I didn't have my hand over my eyes, I
enjoyed the attic. I blame it on all that eerie music
ramping up the suspense scenes.

The language was good ("Someone put roots on you,
girl!") and it was thoroughly atmospheric.

I didn't know Trilliums would grow down there in the
swamp, as I've only encountered these in different
habitats -- some wet but not that extreme -- but find
that there are some which do. In fact, I didn't
realize there were so many different Trillium
relatives. Swamp-lovin' Trillium foetida and others.
Who knew? So, I learned something, too.

We all agreed that you did a fine job, Cat!

Dara

(Thanks. And, yes, i did my Trillium homework.

--cat)

Unread post by **catherineyronwode** » Sun Aug 14, 2005 12:33 am

luckyhoodoo,

Harry Hyatt did make recordings of ALL the 1600 rootworkers he interviewed. See

http://www.luckymojo.com/hyattinformants.html

However, wax cylinders of the type that Hyatt utilized were re-usable if you made a transcription (which he paid someone to do) and then sent the cylinders back to be re-coated in wax and sent back to you. So they were all re-used that way and none survive as audio, only as typed transcripts. However, later on, Hyatt made a few 78 rpm records, around 1940, i believe -- that's not 1922 as in the film, but still, it's close enough to reality to pass. He made tapes later, in the 1970s, but that's another story, of course.

Also, related to conjure recordings are the many, many, many sermons recorded on 78 rpm records during the 1920s. There is a CD collection called "Goodbye Babylon" on the Dust to Digital label that collects a bunch of these sermons, as well as a lot of gospel singing. It is well worth the price.

Unread post by **sstoddard58** » Sun Aug 14, 2005 12:34 am

Cat, I went yesterday for the
first showing of Skeleton Key
and was very impressed. I
noticed a lot of your products.
You really did a great job as
always. I'm proud to be one of
you students.

Sylvia Stoddard
(Zachary, Louisiana)

(Thanks. --cat)

Unread post by **luckyhoodoo** » Sun Aug 14, 2005 1:02 am

So I just got back from watching the movie "The
Skeleton Key", and for those who may not be aware, our
beloved and most wonderful "Cat" has not only consulted
for the movie but also has lent various items from her
shop to be used in the film as well. Anybody who is
familiar with Cat and her unique style can easily pick
up on her influence in the film. This said, it's time
for some opinions on the movie...

For those with an interest in Hoodoo or the Occult in
general, you will not be disappointed with the film.
The mood and settings are completely awesome.

I am not for sure but the setting seems to be "The
Myrtles Plantation", which in itself has it's own
history of the paranormal.

(The exteriors were all shot on location in Louisiana;
the interiors were shot on a Hollywood sound stage.
--cat)

The main character, played by Kate Hudson, is thrust
into a world she never knew existed after taking a job
as caretaker to a stroke victim. In time the viewer
learns that the a stroke had nothing to do with his
condition and that her charge is a victim of a
"Crossing". Through her efforts to understand the
dark secrets of the house and of the motivations of the
culprit responsible for this, she gradually falls into
a "downward spiral" of confusion, disbelief, and
eventually Belief in the phenomena of "Hoodoo". Of
course the movie has a interesting and unforeseeable
ending which is always a plus in my book.

This said, it's time to discuss the problems with the movie
itself.

The first one being the length. Most of the film is
filled with useless information which I assume the
director felt was necessary to include in order for
audiences to identify with the main character.
Unfortunately this is incorrect as it only serves to
make Hudson's character seem "privileged" and would
have had a much more stronger emotional impact if the
director would have focused instead on simple, random
acts of kindness toward the men and women in her care.

(Speaking as a person who has edited about 1,500 comic
book stories, and is pretty hip to how to pace a
dramatic story within a time-constrained framework, i
agree that the pacing of this movie was waaaaay slow.
Part of the slowness consisted of elements of symbolism
or character reveals that did not tie up. Why was she
reading "Treasure Island" by Robert Louis Stevenson -- in
an antique edition, no less -- to the patient at the
opening of the film? You figure it's going to be a clue
to her personality or past or Dad, but no, it's just a
throwaway. On the other hand, the patient's key ring
charm, which she ends up getting, *IS* an important
tie-in. Go figure. --cat)

The Second thing wrong with the film is that the
*baddies* lack any development. The audience is only
given a very brief "back-story" and almost nothing new
is learned. Coming from a person who enjoys horror
movies, I can assure you that *Baddies* are often the
characters that need the most development in the film,
and it must be a gradual one at that. This does not
happen at all.

(I agree again. The flashbacks did not reveal anything
about them, just the injustice of the era. Only the
Bayou woman had a word of description about them, and
that was too brief. I actually wrote a wordless
sequence that would have revealed a LOT more about them
and drawn more sympathy to them, but it was not used.
It consisted of a "story-telling" sequence in the old
photos that Caroline finds in the album
in the attic). It was nothing specially fancy, but just
basic storytelling, a time lapse of Justify and Cecile,
young and in their servant uniforms, side by side, then
one of Cecile holding the first white child as a little
baby, with Justify behind. Then Cecile holding the next
white baby, as the older white child is now a toddler
at her knee, and Justify is behind. Then, finally, the
two children shown at near the age they were at the
party. The implication would be that Justify and
Cecile, as servants were basically not "allowed" to
have their own children, but had to raise the Thorpe
children. But they nixed that, as it would take too
long on screen, i guess. I dunno -- writing it out now,
i still think it was a stronger developmental sequence
than what they had. --cat)

The third thing wrong with the film, in my opinion,
was the over-reliance on RED BRICK DUST.

(Yeah, i know. I tried to add two other touches but
they were shot down. (1) The conjure shop lady scene:
Caroline asks about the brick dust at the door and is
told, no, that is mixed with Cinnamon and Sugar to draw
customers, but i can sell it to you straight to use as
protection and (2) the scene with the other nurse,
Hallie: she could have noted that Graveyard dirt is
protective as well, if it comes from your ancestors,
and Caroline could think about her Dad (building
another leg on that angle of the story) but sadly say,
"My Dad was cremated and his ashes were scattered in
the ocean." That would have taken some of the pressure
off the Brick Dust as the be-all-and-end-all of
protective dusts. But they said -- and i had to agree
-- "This isn't an anthropology lesson; it's a horror
film." So those were out. --cat)

The Fourth and final thing I took issue with in the
film was that it of course left viewers with the belief
that "Hoodoo" was evil. I hate this but
we all know we are dealing with Hollywood here.

(Again i agree. The only good aspect to hoodoo was
shown in the brief scene in the conjure shop, where it
appears that the proprietor is helping a woman to gain
protection from her abusive husband. They didn't focus
on it quite enough, but it was there, if you listened
carefully. --cat)

Enough of my complaints, let me end with saying that
on a scale of 1-10, I am giving the movie a *9* because
it succeeded in preventing me from figuring out the
ending, and of course for the influence of the divine
Cat Yronwode and of her shop, Lucky Mojo.

(Thanks. I think it will always be worth mentioning as
the first movie to seriously use hoodoo as a thematic
element ... --cat)

-Jason (LuckyH.)

Unread post by **MissEziliFreda** » Sun Aug 14, 2005 1:07 am

Greetings!!

Just home from the private midnight "off the
recording" viewing of the movie "The Skeleton Key." I
have to say the movie is pretty accurate and I am
surprised by the screen writer's obvious actual
research and statement of terms: Vodun, Vodou, or
however you choose to spell it and define it - IS NOT
HOODOO!!

This movie was really about Hoodoo coupled with
Necromancy, by performing a ritual that would allow a
walk-in. However, it's gonna flop . . . The
suspense is slow, so with a PG-13 rating, all the ADHD
Mall Rats are gonna be lost and bored.

Personally, splashes of how they use sigils for Hoodoo
work were right out of my own altar space, *Kudos* for
the use of the Seals of Solomon, the mentioning of
trillium seeds. And they did use the term "trick" ...
Save the Hollywood "barrier wall" power of the red
brick dust, I think this movie should at least be a
launching point to a seeker to the practice.

The locals pagans have watched me use that silly chalk
daily since 2000, with an 18 month hiatus, "marking up
my sidewalk" as I open the shoppe. Complete with other
statements "that's so unprofessional looking" and "who
are you trying to impress?"

Maybe after seeing the movie, some Neo-Pagans will get
a clue -- some will dismiss it as superstition and use
it [to] fuel the credibility fire between [what they
call] "real Neo-Pagan" magick and [what they call] that
"wannabe witch stuff" that [they claim] some Christians
try to pull off with all those saints.

The average movie goer is gonna say -- "uhm yeah right,
like I'm supposed to believe that you can get magickal
results from an oil, a symbol that makes no sense, a
non-taper candle? with a bunch of dirt, plants, roots,
and bricks?? That's just out there -- but that's
Hollywood for ya!" EEEK!! (What is wrong with this
picture?)

*Hearts & Roses*
*Gypsy*Nancy* - Shadows & Light

Dedicated to the Pink Lady - Miss Ezili

Unread post by **Rebecca** » Sun Aug 14, 2005 1:07 am

<"The Skeleton Key" opens in theaters all across the country. So far one person has called who saw the Hollywood premiere of the show last night, and he was quoting dialogue from it to me that i know i wrote into the screenplay, which made me feel good, and he said it was an exciting film, so i feel okay about that too. Fingers still <crossed... --cat)

The trailers look fantastic! It sounds like they listened to what you told them and used what you said. That's Great!! I can't wait to see it.

Rebecca

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Unread post by **cmazz1** » Mon Aug 15, 2005 12:14 am

Cat,

Just got home from the movie. I agree that they did not develop the Justify
and Cecile characters. I enjoyed it and looked for your touches throughout the
movie.
One thing, I actually sat through the credits at the end looking for your
name as a technical advisor. A friend was with me and I had her watching for
your name too.
We both missed it or it wasn't there.

I also watched "Weird US". Great to see you. Love this course.

Thank you.

CMazz

(My name was not in the credits. I was told that i would be listed by my full name as "hoodoo consultant" but later the producer, Clayton Townsend -- whom i consider to be a dishonest man because of this -- wiggled out of that verbal agreement, saying that showcasing our products would be a "credit offset" because Lucky Mojo would be promoted. Of course none of the products were shown in close-ups or with legible type, as is normal in a product placement for credit exchange, so i got neither the personal credit line as a consultant nor the visual product placement i was told would replace the personal credit. That's Hollywood, though, and i've been burned by craftier and more daring Hollywood folks that these bozos -- remind me to tell you about the time Warner Brothers hired siva and me for a personal appearance, then secretly plagiarized my web site and secretly published an unauthorized 42 page book of my web writings with no credit to me and bearing the Warner copyright and trademark -- for distribution at the event where i appeared. It took me a year to get an official apology and the monetary recompense i deserved for that little bit of Hollywood arrogance. This one is just small potatoes compared to that. --cat)

Unread post by **Laura Gail** » Mon Aug 15, 2005 12:19 am

oh boy--we just got back from seeing this, and it was a lot of fun. And the only part I hated were the previews....ya go to a "horror movie" and they're gonna show horror movie previews. sigh.

My husband kept LOUDLY commenting (actually, saying hello) every time
the Saint Expedite statue was on the screen--and then he wanted to know
what they did with the statue when the movie was done. (I think he
wants one now.....)

(Clayton Townsend, the producer, took it. --cat)

We also stayed to the very very end of the credits
looking for SOMETHING, ANYTHING in the credits about Cat or Lucky Mojo,
but we didn't see anything. what up with that?

(I just explained this in a previous post. Basically, they did not honour their agreement with me -- and this is par for Hollywiood, in my experience. --cat)

We both liked the spell you wrote cat--there was a nice rhythm to it.

(Well, the rhythm was Ehren Kruger's not mine. He likes those jingle-jangle Anglo rhyming things. What i did was rewrite it for language and completely re-made and re-blocked out all of the action to fit traditional conjure practices as best i could, given the constraints of the water-imagery that was at the center of the scene. --cat)

Now we're looking forward to when the dvd comes out with all the extras!

blessings
laura gail

Unread post by **luckyhoodoo** » Mon Aug 15, 2005 12:34 am

luckyhoodoo@aol.com writes:

> > I am not for sure but the setting seems to be "The
> Myrtles Plantation", which in itself has it's own
> history of the paranormal.
>
> (The exteriors were all shot on location in Louisiana --cat)

Cat, I don't know if you can check on this or not but it would be so cool if this actually was "The Myrtles Plantation" because it would also tie in with Hoodoo.

(I have copies of the weekly shooting schedules for the film (there was talk of flying me down there if needed, so i was on the schedule recipients' list) and i just checked to be sure: the location was not The Myrtles Plantation in St. Francisville, Louisiana (near Baton Rouge) -- it was Felicite Plantation in Vacherie, St. James Parish, Louisiana, about 50 miles (an hour's drive) from NOLA. --cat)

The Myrtles Plantation is supposedly haunted by the spirit of the Master's Mistress no less. Her name was Chloe and she had her ear cut off after she was caught eavesdropping at her Master's Study Door. After this incident Chloe became fearful that she would loose favor permanently with her Master and be sent to work in the fields. Chloe concocted a plan which she felt would put her back in the Graces of the Family. She baked a chocolate cake with water boiled with a few Oleander leaves thinking that it would make the family sick and she would then nurse them back to Health, thereby earning their eternal
gratitude. Unfortunately she underestimated the deadliness of the plant and ended up killing both daughters and the Master's Wife. Fellow house servants ratted her out and Chloe fled to the slave quarters for protection. This was the worst thing she could have done. Her own family fearing repercussions decided to take matters into their own hand and personally lynched her themselves out of fear that the Master would put the entire family to death.

After the gruesome ordeal they sent word to the Master saying the guilty party had been appropriately punished and that he could come view the body still hanging from a tree if he required proof. To this day the spirits of both Chloe, the Master's Wife, and two little girls are often reported by guests and visitors. Interestingly, Chloe's spirit is said to be only seen *outside* as if she is still hiding from her Master. Here is a link with a famous photograph of what many to be the ghost of "Chloe" with her head wrapped to disguise the scars left from the severing of her ear.

_http://www.throwpots.com/chloe.htm_ (http://www.throwpots.com/chloe.htm)
(Note: "Chloe" appears on the very last photo on the page.)

Regarding the Medicinal aspects of Hoodoo, Cat do you know of any herbal remedy she may have used to help nurse the family back to health?

-Jason (LuckyH.)

(Not really -- Oleander is fairly deadly. If the dose is low, folks would have recovered on their own; if not, they would die. I used to raise goats and mine were smart enough to avoid Oleander, but a friend's goat ate it and died very rapidly in the truck on the way to the vet's. --cat)

Unread post by **hereticsaint** » Mon Aug 15, 2005 12:52 am

cat-

nice work on skeleton key- in fact i was standing in line directing people to your website:)

(Thanks! --cat)

a quick question: did the blind lady have a bigger scene that was cut? in the first preview i saw i remember a quick shot of her mouth spraying during some ritual.

the scene wasn't in the version i saw (which granted, was a "sneak preview, so maybe not the final cut?)

i was speculating perhaps this ritual happen at the gas station, and would have lent a little more "good" to the good/evil balence...

cate

(The deleted scene was the Blackhawk service in NOLA. In the original screenplay The Bayou Woman (that's her name in the script) appears three times -- on the road walking with the young girl leading her as Caroline approaches the bayou, in NOLA when Caroline goes to the church service with Jill (the deleted scene), and at her own home, when Caroline and Luke visit her to find out more about the mysterious conjure recordings. (Note that in the first draft, the church in NOLA was not a Spiritual Church; it was a fantasy Voodoo temple with "no crosses or crucifixes" in it -- jsut a weird, spooky ooga-booga cult headquarters. I argued for more authentic NOLA trappings and thus the Blackhawk service was substituted -- but was later cut out. Also, in the final cut, the 2nd gas station scene (when you hear the record playing) is grossly truncated from its original form -- in the early version, Caroline goes in and finds the husband and wife performing a ceremony over their child, who is sick. She thinks they are harming the child, but is infomed that the baby has chicken pox and the ceremony is a curing service. She sees the record they are playing -- and it is another one like the one she stole from the attic, with Papa Justify's name and that rubber-stamped symbol on it. She asks where they got the record and they tell her they borrowed it from The Bayou Woman. She and Luke then go to the Bayou Woman's house and confront her about the records. As filmed, however, the curing ceremony is compeltey deleted and the Bayou Woman is shown inside the gas station, holding the baby, bu you don;t see the record or learn that The Bayou Woman owns many more such recordings of Papa Justify. By inserting The Bayou Woman into the 2nd gas station scene, the final version still gives her three appearances, but they are far less clear to the viewer, because she is merely a strange old woman walking along the road, holding a baby, acting dotty in her home, while as originally conceived, she is the inheritor of Papa Justify's recordings -- all except the Conjuration of Sacfrice, which she desperately wants to find -- and she is also a spiritual leader to a group of practitioners as far away as New Orleans. The character lost a lot of development between the screenplay and the filmed release. The restoration of the deleted church scene will be of interest, i am sure. --cat)

Unread post by **Quimbisero** » Mon Aug 15, 2005 12:53 am

--- In hrcourse@yahoogroups.com, MissEziliFreda@a... wrote:
> >

> This movie was really about Hoodoo coupled with
> Necromancy, by performing a ritual that would allow a
> walk-in. However, it's gonna flop . . . The
> suspense is slow, so with a PG-13 rating, all the ADHD
> Mall Rats are gonna be lost and bored.
>

And you don't think there is enough of an odor of sepulcher to draw
the goth crowd?

Eoghan

Jennifer Spencer · Unread post by **Jennifer Spencer** » Mon Aug 15, 2005 12:55 am

> Maybe after seeing the movie, some Neo-Pagans will
> get
> a clue -- some will dismiss it as superstition and
> use
> it [to] fuel the credibility fire between [what they
> call] "real Neo-Pagan" magick and [what they call]
> that
> "wannabe witch stuff" that [they claim] some
> Christians
> try to pull off with all those saints.

Well, it is like that but mostly only in the community
that you speak of. I used to be a pagan in that EXACT
community and they can speak of wannabes all they like
as most of them had no talent whatsoever. I forget all
of that stuff until reading one of your posts. I have
told others about my experiences in Alabama but they
think I am exaggerating. It truly is the Twilight
Zone! My rootworking, hilariously superstitious great
aunt lives in Montgomery and it is far removed from
the nonsense of that one small area.
(Tuscaloosa/Pickens/Boboland) If you manage to get
sense into the skulls of any of them then you have
done something great. Congratulations!

Going to see the movie myself today along with my
fiance', my daughter and her beau.

Jennifer

Unread post by **Amalthea** » Tue Aug 16, 2005 6:14 pm

>cat wrote:
>My name was not in the credits...<snip>

That's really rotten, is there an appropriate
venue/angle for me to complain about that somewhere?
Or is it better left alone.

I went to the movie Sunday, really enjoyed it for the
most part, especially St. Expedite. Thanks for all the
tip-offs about things to look for that you had a hand
in, it really made the experience.

-Amy S.

(From my experience (which is a bit more extentsive than you might know), folks in the money / production end of Hollywood culture consider it of no moral consequence to tell lies to people, but they expect that folks who are not a part of the business (folks such as myself) will not care enough to protest being lied to, unless monetary damages are involved -- and for the most part, that is correct. I got paid and that's all that matters in their form of moral accountancy. And truly -- i expected the promise of a credit line would be "forgotten" and i did not care. The movie will be in theaters for a moment or two and a credit line is a blip in consciousness -- but my books and web sites live on, ya know, and they get 14,000 unique visitors per day, day in and day out, year after year. That's more than enough fame for a writer such as myself. --cat)

Unread post by **Inominandum** » Thu Aug 18, 2005 8:06 pm

I saw Skeleton Key last night. Cat, your influence shows. I cant wait
for the DVD so I can see the blackhawk ceremony.

I really got a kick out of the Conjure shop in Algiers being hidden
behind a Laundomat. The first conjure shop I ever visited when I was a
kid was hidden behind an African Fashions/Cosmetics store.

Jason

Unread post by **Quimbisero** » Thu Aug 18, 2005 8:07 pm

According to the productions notes of the website for the Skeleton key
Cat is the New Orleans author who wrote Hoodoo in Theory and Practice.
They go on to say they went over the script scene by scene with her,
responding by doing things such as painting the underside of the roof
of the Devereaux house blue.

I am pleased to see that they have given you some credit somewhere,
Cat! Dealing with them alone was a real feat, I've no doubt.

Eoghan

(So now i am a New Orleans author. Hoo boy. Well, there you have it, in a nutshell. Thanks for the notice, Eoghan. --cat)

Unread post by **Cyd** » Thu Aug 18, 2005 8:09 pm

Cat .

You probley are geting sick of people posting
about The Skeleton Key But Here in tracy the Line
was huge Opening day and i saw it today it was Great
i injoyed it .

chris

Unread post by **Auntie Sindy Todo** » Thu Aug 18, 2005 8:11 pm

----- Original Message -----
From: "Amalthea" <amalthea_in_ga@yahoo.com>
To: <hrcourse@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Monday, August 15, 2005 7:20 PM
Subject: [hrc] Skeleton Key (name not in credits)

> >cat wrote:
> >My name was not in the credits...<snip>
>
> (From my experience (which is a bit more extentsive than you might know),
> folks in the money / production end of Hollywood culture consider it of no
> moral consequence to tell lies to people, but they expect that folks who
> are not a part of the business (folks such as myself) will not care enough
> to protest being lied to, unless monetary damages are involved -- and for
> the most part, that is correct. I got paid and that's all that matters in
> their form of moral accountancy. And truly -- i expected the promise of a
> credit line would be "forgotten" and i did not care. The movie will be in
> theaters for a moment or two and a credit line is a blip in
> consciousness -- but my books and web sites live on, ya know, and they get
> 14,000 unique visitors per day, day in and day out, year after year.
> That's more than enough fame for a writer such as myself. --cat)

I too Cat thought this was a shitty deal and my first thought was what to do
about the injustice of it all! However, I am smilin' now as you once again
confirm what an extraordinary woman you are! One who just deals with these
guys on a much higher dimension of consciousness and you make us all proud!
Way to go, girl...
xx, Sindy

Unread post by **Marisa Young** » Thu Aug 18, 2005 10:49 pm

Hi all! I wanted to share with you a review of
The Skeleton Key as it appeared in a recent issue
of the Portland Mercury, our local alternative
snarky weekly, and my letter to the editor
regarding same. Here's the review (prepare to cringe):

Last Stop to Scaresville

Skeleton Key Doesnt Do Voodoo Well

BY WM. STEVEN HUMPHREY

The Skeleton Key is clearly a tribute to awesome
psychological/mystical thrillers such as The
Omen, Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte, and
Rosemary's Babybut why should I give a crap? If
I wanted to see a great example of this genre,
I'd just stay home and watch The Omen, Hush...
Hush, Sweet Charlotte, or Rosemary's Baby. The
reasons these films worked is because they
exploited the fears of the times in which they
were madeall The Skeleton Key exploits is my wallet.

Kate Hudson stars in this unnecessary tribute to
the Southern gothic horror film, as Caroline
Ellis, a New Orleans hospice worker who is hired
to help tend to an invalid (a frightfully unused
John Hurt) in a creepy, decrepit mansion. The
invalid's old crone wife (the always reliable
Gena Rowlands) presents Caroline with the
mansion's titular skeleton key, which is supposed
to open every door in the houseexcept for the
one with all the murder-y, ghost-y voodoo stuff
in it. Unsurprisingly, the former dead residents
are behind all the creaking, door-slamming
hubbub, and soon Caroline finds herself running
faster than her cheap drug-store mascara.

To director Iain Softley's credit, the first hour
of the film is sufficiently oppressive and
claustrophobicwhich would lead one to believe
the story is building to a horrifying conclusion.
Unfortunately, the plot hinges on Caroline's
belief in voodoowhich for today's audience is
only taken a bit more seriously than
Scientologyand so the film falls apart in the
final reel just like 80 percent of the other crap
movies you've seen this year.

I'd wager only one crackpot in a million still
believes in voodoo, and therefore this movie is
all but irrelevant. But to the filmmakers, this
seems to be an ancillary point. In their
coked-out Hollywood fantasy world, they want us
to be scared by a representation of films that
used to scare them (those previously mentioned
great films of psychology and mysticism).
Unfortunately, The Skeleton Key doesn't have
anything even remotely frightening for a modern
audience. But if they replaced voodoo with
Islamic fanaticism? Now we're talking scary!

*************

And here's my reply:

Dear folks,

Normally, Wm. Steven Humphrey can do no wrong in
my book. But there are a couple of points in his
review of The Skeleton Key that must be addressed
(OK, so I just now got around to reading it - bite me).

First of all, as clearly stated in the film, The
Skeleton Key is not about "voodoo." It is about
hoodoo (admittedly, they are easily
confused). Also known as rootwork and conjure,
hoodoo is a form of African-American folk magic
practiced mostly in the Southern United
States. It is based on West African magical
practices brought to this country by the slaves,
admixed with generous helpings of European
Ceremonial magic, Spiritualism, Kabbala, and
Native American herb lore. There are no
religious underpinnings to hoodoo. One can be of
any religion or no religion and still practice it
successfully. The vast majority of rootworkers,
however, have historically been
Christian. Voodoo (or more properly, Voudon) is
a Haitian religion, also rooted in West African
folk magic.

The best website around for
information on hoodoo is Lucky Mojo:
http://www.luckymojo.com Its proprietor,
Cat Yronwode, was a consultant on The Skeleton
Key and is largely responsible for the degree of
authenticity of the rootwork practices portrayed
in the film. Her in-depth knowledge of the
history and practice of hoodoo is mind-boggling.
Check it out!

Secondly, I cringed at this statement: "I'd
wager only one crackpot in a million still
believes in voodoo, and therefore this movie is
all but irrelevant." Uh-huh. Tell that to the
millions of people around the world who still
practice Voudon; in Haiti it's practically the
state religion. And, again - this film is about
hoodoo/rootwork/conjure, not Voudon.

I hate to sound like the cavemen in the GEICO ad,
but - next time do a little research, eh?

Keep up the otherwise superlatively snarky work!

Conjuratingly yours,
Marisa Young, Student Rootworker
Portland

***************

And I haven't even seen the film yet! Vajra and
I should be seeing it very soon. I'm personally
looking forward to the DVD release and the
Blackhawk ceremony! Way to go, cat! Screw
Hollywood - you'll always get credit from us...

Blessings,
Marisa~

Radio Bastet: All vintage belly dance music, all the time!
http://www.radiobastet.com
WitchRoots: Where there's a Way, there's a Witch...
http://www.witchroots.com

Unread post by **luckyhoodoo** » Thu Aug 18, 2005 10:56 pm

In Skeleton Key, did anybody notice meaning behind the fact that mirrors weren't allowed in the house?

-LuckyH.