Countdown to Christmas 7- Fruitcake Lady

from Facebook Page /The Fruitcake Lady

There are not many people who can say they showed Mel Gibson and Tom Cruise how to make fruitcake on TV. Marie Rudisill (1911-2006), known as the Fruitcake Lady was an author, a celebrated cook and a minor TV personality. She was well known on US television as a 90+year old who appeared regularly on "The Tonight Show" hosting an" agony aunt" segment, giving advice on all kinds of life's issues. Her forthright answers and wicked sense of humour endeared her to audiences although she was outspokenly intolerant and irrationally biased.

The Fruitcake Lady's other claim to fame was that she was the aunt of Truman Capote, highly acclaimed author, and this connection was used in her own writing. Her published works included:

Truman Capote , The Story of His Bizarre and Exotic Childhood by an Aunt Who Helped to Raise Him (1983)
Sook's Cookbook : Memories and Traditional Recipes from the Deep South (1989)
Critters, Cafes and Frog Tea: Tales and Treats from the Emerald River (1994)
Fruitcake :Memories of Trumna Capote & Sook (2000)
The Southern Haunting of Truman Capote (2000)
Ask the Fruitcake Lady Everything You Would Already Know If You had Any Sense (2006)

from Wikipedia.

Marie Rudisill became the Fruitcake Lady after she appeared on the Jay Leno show , showing Jay and Mel Gibson how to make a fruitcake in 2000. The family's connection with fruitcake is recalled by Marie in her description of Truman Capote and his older cousin Sook. Together each Christmas, they would bake fruitcakes and send them to various people on their list - not family or close friends, but people they admired, for example Franklin D. Roosevelt.
"I tell you the most fantastic thing about Sook's cooking was her fruitcakes. Really I am not kidding! I mean really!"

from http://bittersoutherner.com/sweet-as-sugar-rude-as-hell/#.VnOHQRV97IU

However, her recollections about Truman Capote's life were not without controversy. Even Harper Lee questioned the veracity of her accounts of their hometown, Monroeville in Alabama. Capote was not so much upset by Rudisill's revelations about his life, but the cruel treatment of his mother, her older sister, in her books. Described as "Sweet as Sugar and Rude as Hell" , the Fruitcake Lady's finest legacy is probably Sook's Cookbook as a contribution to the history of Deep South and its food traditions. Yet her family continued to dominate her writing and thinking .... Rudisill said: "Somebody said to me one time: "Has being Truman Capote's aunt affected your life?'"My God, it sapped my life.

"It's a weird family, I kid you not. But it's a fabulous family. We took care of our own, there's no question about that." And I think this quote just about sums up the wit of the Fruitcake Lady...

PS: I found a funny coincidence when researching this story. Marie Rudisill's trusted co writing companion was a Jim Simmons ( my husband's name!) he co wrote at least 2 of her books.

Tomorrow - we are going on a trip with fruitcake.

Too Precious to Waste

Stitched tea bags/ old doily "tea lights" - Wilma Simmons More than a year ago, a decision was made. The annual exhibition of NCEATA ( Newcastle Creative Embroiderers and Textile Artists) 2015-2016 will have the theme "Mottainai". Mottainai in Japanese refers to more than just physical waste (resources). It is even used to refer to thought patterns that give rise to wasteful action. Grammatically, it can be used in Japanese as an exclamation ("mottainai!") or as an adjective phrase ("it feels mottainai"). There is no plural form. The collection of mottainai things could be called mottainai koto ( もったいない事 ? ). As an exclamation ("mottainai!") it means roughly "what a waste!" or "Don't waste." [2] A simple English equivalent is the saying "waste not, want not." A more elaborate meaning conveys a sense of value and worthiness and may be translated as "do not destroy (or lay waste to) that

Fish and Sticks : Art Dolls

This week I've been working on fish and sticks .... The sticks are the message stick art dolls which were very popular, attracting some attention and a few orders at the Wise Women exhibition. Each of the message stick dolls are from the Wise Women series, each with her own personality and message of wisdom, handwritten on a handmade timber tag. I gather the sticks during my walks around my neighbourhood and the tags are made from special bits of timber, some collected by me or my husband or from off cuts gifted to us from another doll making friend whose husband makes bagpipes. These dolls start off very simply with a wrap around a stick, in the general shape of a body. 'Naked" message stick dolls - strips of wadding wrapped around found sticks. Then I usually wrap other layers of fabric, wool, and/or fibres, over which I do some simple embroidery. I sculpt or mould small face masks for these dolls. I really like using "sari ribbon" as wrapping str

Wednesday's Child /2

Work in Progress - 3 of the 193 for "Stitched Up"- Wilma Simmons The work for the "Stitched Up " Project continues. See the previous "Wednesday Child" post for the background to this art project celebrating the 150th anniversary of the Newcastle Industrial School. I have been documenting the progress of my work, so I thought it might be interesting to share some of the early stages of the "stick dolls" ... Here are some of the beginning steps.. Sticks collected while walking the bushland in my neighbourhood Drying and getting rid of any insects - oven heat 75 degreesC for approx 1-2 hours. Trimmed and cut if necessary Ends sealed with matte sealing solution. Drying - solution goes on white but dries clear. First wrapping - foil to create a body shape Second wrapping - stretch fabric. Third wrapping - fabric strips Some stitching - more stitching and embellishment to come. Follow thi

Empress Wu Designs with Wilma

Search This Blog