Frances Glessner Lee's earliest miniatures

Miniature model of CSO on display 100 years later

Before murder, there were musicians.  

The Nutshell Studies of Unexplained Death - Unpapered Bedroom

Unpapered Bedroom

True, no one is ever going to give you the solutions to The Nutshell Studies of Unexplained Death. (they are a well-guarded secret) Also true, you will likely never see them in person. (they are not open to the general public)

But are you going to let that stand in your way? Launch your own investigation with this short video we put together of one of the Nutshells, Unpapered Bedroom. The Nutshells were created by Frances Glessner Lee and her carpenters Ralph and Alton Mosher.

Unpapered Bedroom is unique because it has a moving part – a string on the outside of the diorama that lifts up the pillow.

John Waters narration from Of Dolls and Murder:

She died in a room where no one had bothered to change the calendar in 5 years.

The room was registered the previous evening under the names Mr. and Mrs. John Smith.

Mr. Smith left the next morning, specifically requesting that the staff not disturb his wife.

At 3:00 p.m. the rooming house maid tried several times to wake the woman, but Mrs. Smith wouldn’t be checking out at all.

Barn (unique perspective), a Nutshell Studies of Unexplained Death from documentary film, Of Dolls & Murder. Photo by Susan Marks

You can find us on facebook here and here.

You can buy the DVD (and necklaces) here.

Holiday Shopping with Of Dolls & Murder

For everyone on your naughty list.

Inside the Speakeasy Dollhouse

Here's a Kickstarter update about our next film, Inside the Speakeasy Dollhouse!


Greetings!

We were in the edit suite all day and want you to know that we entered an exciting new phase of this project!  First off, the new title for our documentary is: Inside the Speakeasy Dollhouse and we are almost done with a rough cut! That means we have a beginning, middle and end...and somehow it all make sense.

Next, we start the process of reviewing, making a few changes, and then the finishing touches. We will keep you updated on our progress.

Inside the Speakeasy Dollhouse shaped up beautifully thanks to the additional camera work of Damian Kolodity and the amazing photography of Margee Challa.

Part of the editing process means that we watch the same footage over and over again. And no matter how often we watch the footage from the Speakeasy Dollhouse play, we are constantly impressed by the performances of the "Dolls", especially actors Russell Farhang (as Frank Spano) and Silent James (as John Guerrieri). But don't take our word for it, check out their performances for yourself. 

We're thinking back to almost a year ago when we met Cynthia von Buhler and started this Kickstarter campaign. Not only do we feel so fortunate to have stepped into Cynthia's Speakeasy Dollhouse world, but we are so grateful to the many people who have supported us. We truly appreciate it.

Meanwhile, if you haven't already, check out the New York Times article on Cynthia! If you want more dolls and murder, follow our facebook page. We update quite often. In fact, we just updated about some mysterious Speakeasy doll doors springing up all over NYC.
And if you haven't yet watched Of Dolls & Murder,  go to our website, Netflix streaming, iTunes, or Amazon.

Yours in Dolls, Murder & Speakeasies,
Filmmakers Susan Marks & John Kurtis Dehn

PS Check out our photos from the edit suite below.

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More Of Dolls and Murder

We are happy to announce that the Of Dolls and Murder filmmakers received a grant from the Jerome Foundation to help us make the new documentary: MURDER IN A NUTSHELL: THE FRANCES GLESSNER LEE STORY!

RIP Suzy Greenberg

As many of you know, we lost our executive producer, Suzy Greenberg, suddenly and unexpectedly on August 16, 2012. We are devastated and heartbroken, along with the rest of the Minneapolis/St. Paul arts community and all her friend and family.

Read more about Suzy and her many accomplishments here.


The mayor of Minneapolis proclaimed September 10, 2012, Suzy Greenberg Day.
I wrote a little bit about Suzy for an online memorial:

The loss of Suzy Greenberg is indescribable and will be felt for years to come. She meant so much to so many people - in and out of the arts community. And as much devastation as I feel over this indescribable loss, I feel equally lucky to have been a close friend and colleague of Suzy's.

She was the real deal and the smartest person in any room. Suzy's generosity was boundless and she inspired and motivated her fellow artists to try, just a little harder. She had great respect for artists and their work, especially young artists who were finding their way.

Suzy and I worked on several big projects together, including a documentary film about dollhouse crime scenes. She loved the film when it was just a giddy idea that she helped nurture along. We also workshopped concepts together and it was always enlightening and exciting. I would often find myself marveling at her new, brilliant ideas.

I think the best way we can honor Suzy's memory is by following her lead in generosity, creativity, and support, and by trying, just a little harder.