Heathcliff as a woman

The forthcoming Wuthering Heights-inspired Napa is still being commented on. From the New York Daily News Page Views:

If you’re getting a little sick of all the Victorian book-to-movie adaptations flying around, well, the studios don’t really care. Emily Brontë’s“Wuthering Heights” is about to get another makeover — on TV. [...]
And of course, what’s a good Victorian romance without some dirty gossip and sex? We’ll be expecting a lot of xoxo’s and wine-induced brawls, thanks to the web of love tangles that Brontë wrote up. Plus, “Gossip Girl” writer Sara Goodman will be writing the script with Berlanti.
Spotted: H and K taking a study break under each other in the shade of the grape vines. But nothing stays hidden for long — and E isn’t going to be very happy about it. (Jenny Che)

And the New York Observer:

Somehow, someway, a studio exec over at NBC approved of a concept that will almost certainly involve Katherine [sic] screaming “Heathcliff!” while running through a sunny vineyard. And yes, someone from Gossip Girl was involved in the creation of this Bront-rosity. (Drew Grant)

Then they go on to suggest a theme song, preferably the Puppini Sisters' cover of Wuthering Heights, but other takes on the song are listed as well.

Anthem Magazine interviews Andrea Arnold, whose Wuthering Heights arrives in the US next Friday.

Could you talk about your first encounter with the novel? I can’t recall exactly how old I was, but it was maybe when I was 18 or 19 years old. I think I was expecting it to be this classic love story. I remember reading it and feeling that it was far more stranger than that. It left me feeling uncomfortable. If I remember correctly, I felt unsettled after reading it. I was almost disturbed by it without really knowing why. It had a really strange affect on me and that always intrigued me. There was something about it—for people who like the book, at least—this fascination where you can’t quite get to the bottom of it. It’s a very strange book.
Why is this book so timeless? It retains this power that’s sort of its own that no one can ever ever work out. People keep trying to make sense of it, but I don’t think anyone ever can. So much is written about it. I read a lot of different things about it, but you can interpret it in so many different ways. I think it’s its own beast that no can really fathom and that intrigues people. It’s like they’re trying to tame it or something, but no one ever can. We should probably just give up to be honest. [Laughs] No one will ever win this battle. It’s intriguing and fascinating, but I don’t think people will really understand it. Even for me, after making this film, I don’t really understand it myself. It can work on so many different levels. I started off with one idea, but as I was working on it, I came up with other ideas all the time. It kept morphing because I was always looking at it differently. Now, I think, if I made the film again, I would’ve cast Heathcliff as a woman. That would rock the boat, wouldn’t it? [Laughs] (Kee Chang) (Read more)

Business Life looks at the market value of first editions.

If you are looking to make a profit, keep your eye out for the classics of English literature. Apart from the obvious money makers, such as first editions of Chaucer and Shakespeare, Ford singles out Jane Austen, the Brontës, Dickens and their contemporaries as perennial favourites. “In the modern era, TS Eliot, James Joyce, Virginia Woolf, Harper Lee and F Scott Fitzgerald are examples of collectible authors, but even within their oeuvre, some works will be much more valuable than others,” [Meg Ford, Head of Christie’s Books and Manuscripts department] explains. (Sharon Gethings)

While Reuters comments on the 'marketing mania' sparked by Fifty Shades of Grey.

Other publishers, such as those of racier versions of literary classics such as "Jane Eyre", and "Sherlock Holmes", say the link is less transparent.
A new version of "Wuthering Heights" will be released in October featuring Catherine and Heathcliff engaging in bondage.
The books publisher, Total-E-Bound founder Claire Siemaszkiewicz, said James' series made it easier for sexed-up books to gain a market foothold, but dismissed criticism that the classics have been sullied, saying they have been brought "to a new generation of reader." (Andrea Burzynski)

Now for a couple of actual Brontëites. Pulitzer Prize-winning author Alice Walker is featured on WTOP:

Walker turned to classic literature at a young age to escape the racial and social restrictions of living in 1950's Georgia. She counts "Jane Eyre" and "Wuthering Heights" among some of her favorites. (Alicia Lozano)

Publishers Weekly's Beyond Her Book interviews 16-year-old writer Amanda Barratt:

BV:  Who are your favorite authors and books?
AB:  Jane Austin [sic], the Brontës and I love Downton Abby [sic]. (Barbara Vey)

Something wrong there though as Downton Abbey is a TV-series.

ABC (Australia) looks at the state of the Anglican Church and religion with a reference to the Brontë sisters:

Indeed, it is important to remember that Methodism derived from the work of a High Churchman - John Wesley - to whom is largely traceable the spirit behind evangelicalism. This movement - despite unfortunate Calvinistic regressions - sometimes also sustained a radical Toryism critical of industrial exploitation, and a romantic celebration of the imagination as revealing the truth of nature and participating in the creative mind of God. (One thinks here especially of the Brontë sisters.) (John Milbank)

Patrick Brontë was definitely Low Church, though, and Aunt Branwell's Methodist/Calvinistic views seem to have been largely exaggerated over the years.

Now for a couple of funny mentions. The Vancouver Sun reviews the film Hotel Transylvania where

Way back in the past, when Dracula lived a meterosexual-meets-Heathcliff lifestyle, he fell in love. (Katherine Monk)

And Marie Claire (Italy) looks at the 'equestrian chic' look.

Massimiliano Giornetti per Salvatore Ferragamo immagina cavallerizze che rubano l’uniforme a romantici maschi tipo Heathcliff di Cime tempestose. (Antonio Mancinelli) (Translation)

Alhaurín de la Torre (Spain) reports on local book clubs, which this season put the emphasis on classics such as Wuthering Heights. And an alert for today from the Larkspur-CorteMaderaPatch:

• Let The Halloween Party Start: If you like The Twilight Saga, Mary Shelley, or Jane Eyre you'll enjoy Marta Acosta's Dark Companion. Acosta will visit Book Passage in Corte Madera on Friday at 7 p.m. to introduce her new supernatural goth drama ... just in time for Halloween. Acosta is the author of the Casa Dracula series.

Zombie Parent's Guide posts about Jane Eyre and Nishikata Film Review writes about the 2011 adaptation of the novel. The World is so Full of Colours posts briefly about Wuthering Heights. The green bean grape where i live writes in Romanian about Agnes Grey. My Jane Austen Book Club looks at what Charlotte Brontë and Jane Austen did have in common, which is quite a new, original approach.