Mike Leigh

Acknowledgments

Acknowledgments Mike Leigh has been an ideal subject as both filmmaker and fellow— from his warm response to my first letter of inquiry to the many hours he donated to talk about cinema, art, and the world. I am deeply indebted to him for all his contributions to the welfare of this study. Helen Grearson and Abbie Browne at Thin Man Films offered unceasingly helpful and cheerful logistical assistance. James Naremore’s sharp-eyed editorial suggestions and his vast patience were vital to this project. Joan Catapano and the staff at the University of Illinois Press have been a pleasure to work with in shaping the manuscript into a book. My colleagues and friends at Clemson and Ohio State offered the best kind of advice—sympathetic and direct—as my arguments developed . I never would have embarked on this study without the initial invitation of Barton Palmer. Jared Gardner helped bring me to the department that is my invigorating home, and his brightness and technical legerdemain have proven invaluable. Lorraine Cashman offered her generous perspective on revisions, and Ray Cashman staged a transatlantic rescue. Two eminent figures provided timely jolts, at either end of the process. Murray Pomerance’s active intervention kept the book on course, and D. A. Miller’s exhortation made the final section of the essay possible. Stanley Cavell’s Pursuits of Happiness was the book that first showed me just how much there is to see, hear, and indeed pursue in the movies. I am delighted that he served as one of the manuscript’s initial readers, and I can only hope that some of his senses of viewing the world find influential effects in these pages. i-xii_1-196_O'Sul.indd 9 6/24/11 8:33 AM Alex Woloch’s warm convictions always provided bracing encouragement , from the most casual of conversations to his active endorsement in teaching sections of the essay. Christian Keathley is the fellow newcomer we dream of having when we begin our lives as faculty members: smart, purposeful, and astoundingly present at all times. My deepest thanks to both these gentlemen of letters and images. Gwen O’Sullivan Romagnoli transcribed the many hours of interviews , proofread industriously, and served as beneficent counselor throughout. A writer is truly blessed to have a mother so able in all the tasks she volunteers to perform. I owe Hannah Eigerman so much for her sustained heroics, as we shared the making of this book. Given the centrality of pregnancy in Mike Leigh’s films, it is fitting that Hannah was expecting our first child when I embarked on this venture. Now Rory, and the sequel Eve, are here to see it in covers. I love them all dearly (even more than chairs and stuff). The first two sections of the essay contain excerpts from my interviews with Mike Leigh—excerpts separate from the interview that follows the essay. All quotations are taken from interviews conducted in July and October of 2004. x | Acknowledgments i-xii_1-196_O'Sul.indd 10 6/24/11 8:33 AM Mike Leigh i-xii_1-196_O'Sul.indd 11 6/24/11 8:33 AM i-xii_1-196_O'Sul.indd 12 6/24/11 8:33 AM ...