The Zone’s indefatigable book club moderators, Liz and DeppintheHeartofTexas, invite everyone to stop by the ONBC forum during March and April for a lively look at one of the great novels of the 20th century, J. P. Donleavy’s brash tour de force, THE GINGER MAN. Liz and DITHOT will offer tidbits to enhance your reading pleasure during March, beginning on March 20th–kindly leaving time to recover from your St. Patrick’s Day celebration–and the Zone discussion begins on April 3rd. THE GINGER MAN is of special interest to Johnny Depp fans because of recent news reports that Johnny will play Sebastian Dangerfield in a film of THE GINGER MAN to be directed by Laurence Dunmore. The film will be the first ever made of the 50-year-old novel.

THE GINGER MAN defies description, in that way all great novels do; its essence cannot really be boiled down to a few pat phrases. It is hilarious, shocking, intense, heart-wrenching, and an instant cure for a sheltered life (readers under age 18 should check the ONBC forum to see if they will be comfortable with the material). Joe Keohane, in a recent article in the BOSTON GLOBE, wrote: “The book has never been out of print, having sold an estimated 45 million copies in hundreds of editions. Especially beloved in Ireland, where it was banned for its first 20 years, it recently clawed its way into the 99th spot on the Modern Library’s list of the 100 best 20th-century novels in English. [. . .] And indeed, it’s an intoxicating read, quintessentially Irish in its cobbling of joy and sadness, sentimentality and violence. For more than five decades, young readers have had whole literary vistas opened by it, among them the late Hunter S. Thompson, who obsessed over the book as a struggling young writer in New York. Alive in a way few books are, its combination of gorgeous writing, brilliant comedy, pathos, and unrelenting amorality has made it a cult classic, a rite of passage, practically a literary religion.” Thanks to neophyte for posting Keohane’s article, which is quite a display of gorgeous writing itself. You can read the full article on the ONBC forum or HERE. And thanks to Liz and DITHOT for hosting the discussion!

The extensive location shooting in the Bahamas for Disney’s PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN sequels, starring Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow, is ending at last, reports Michael Singer, press liaison officer for the production. “We are finishing mid-week, and this completes our location photography in the Caribbean region,” Mr. Singer told THE BAHAMA JOURNAL on Monday, February 27th. PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: DEAD MAN’S CHEST, the second part of the saga, completed photography earlier in February, and is due in theaters on July 7th. Although the Caribbean phase of PIRATES 3 is concluding, Mr. Singer said production continues on the third film; it is not yet complete. “We will be doing more filming on PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN 3 beginning again in late summer,” Singer confirmed. “That will be mostly local production in the Los Angeles area.”

The PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN sequels have now been in production for a full year; filming began in Los Angeles on February 28, 2005, followed by stints last spring in St. Vincent, where much of the first movie was filmed, Dominica, and the Exumas. After a summer hiatus, production resumed on Grand Bahama Island in September. Bahamanian officials say the filming of POTC 2 and 3 will provide a $30 million boost to the local economy–thus defying the theory that pirates “take what they can and give nothing back.” The Zone thanks emma for posting the story on our News & Views forum.