Behind most good movies is a great book. Such is the case for the legendary films "From Here to Eternity" and "The Thin Red Line."
The man behind the books behind the movies is the late James Jones, and his daughter and others close to him will be in Memphis this weekend to celebrate his life and work.
The University of Memphis English Department is co-sponsoring The James Jones Literary Society's national symposium which will be held Oct. 7-9 in conjunction the River City Writers Series.
The weekend's activities kick off with a reading by Jones' daughter, Kaylie Jones, of her novel "A Soldier's Daughter Never Cries." The reading will be held today at 2 p.m. in Patterson Hall Room 456.
The subject of this year's symposium is Jones' final novel, "Whistle."
The book chronicles Jones' stay at the former Kennedy Hospital, which is now part of The U of M's south campus. The Society chose Memphis to host the event due to the city's close ties to the book and to the author.
Stephen Tabachnick, a professor of English who chairs his department, said all students will learn from the events.
"It just opens your eyes to what Memphis was like at this time," Tabachnick said.
Tabachnick expects the reading to be heavily attended.
"There will mostly be MFA (Master of Fine Arts) students and literary students, but other students and faculty are encouraged to attend all of the events," he said.
Although no U of M students will be presenting, Paul White, a doctoral student in The U of M history department, will be leading a tour of Kennedy Hospital. He is completing his dissertation on the hospital's role following World War II. During that time, Kennedy was the largest military hospital in America, according to Tabachnick.
A small contingency from Oxford, Miss. is expected to attend to represent another author, Willie Morris.
"James Jones died before he finished 'Whistle,' so Willie Morris finished it," Tabachnick said. "He was good friends with Jones, so it was fitting that he finish the novel."
"Whistle" is the third part of a trilogy of novels about Jones' experiences in WWII. The other two novels are "From Here to Eternity" and "The Thin Red Line," which have both been adapted to become highly acclaimed films.
The symposium will officially begin Friday, Oct. 8 at the Continental Ballroom at the Peabody Hotel.
The day will start at 9 a.m. with the annual business meeting. A formal program will begin at 10 a.m. where Kaylie Jones will present an overview of her father's life and his career as a writer.
At 11 a.m., Judith Everson, professor emeritus at the University of Illinois at Springfield, will present a review of "Whistle."
At 1:15 p.m. the 2005 James Jones Literary Society First Novel Fellowship will be awarded.
Over 600 entries have been received for this year's competition, one of which will win $10,000 and a good chance of having their novel published. In fact, 10 of the last 13 winning novels have been published.
Following the award presentation, Michael Lennon, retired Vice President of Wilkes University, will deliver an interpretation of the James Jones trilogy.
From 2-3:30 there will be a panel discussion of "The Return of Wounded Soldiers Portrayed in Literature." Following that, all of the authors attending the symposium will have a book signing.
Paul White's tour of Kennedy Hospital will be on Sunday at 11:30 a.m.
All of this weekend's events are free and open to the public.
