Today Is A Special Day!

Today is Fredric March's birthday!

Last year, coinciding with TCM programming and my own personal collection, I featured a full month of Fredric March. It was fantastic and draining. My friends thought I was a bit nutty! But I LOVE Fredric March! I got to read the one and only biographical book there is on him, listened and read interviews he gave, looked into his history on the stage and watched a varied collection of his work (not all- I like to spread him out!). I meant to start up a site dedicated solely to him, unfortunately, real life seems to always get in the way.

That being said, I will not be dedicating a full month to him this time around but instead encourage you to click on his mug over here- that will take you to Matthew C. Hoffman's FB page dedicated to him (you will be quite impressed with the photo collection!)

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OR click on the March tag at the bottom of this entry to see all there is I have to provide on this wonderful, seriously underrated classic film god star!

ENJOY!!

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Happy Birthday Joan Blondell!

A celebration of Joan Blondell's birthday on the set of Adventure (didn't like that film!) with Clark Gable, Greer Garson, Lina Romay and director Victor Fleming

Thanks to A Certain Cinema whose website is AWESOME!

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Before and After: Agnes Moorehead

Agnes Moorehead.

1900-1974

I adore the young picture of her, she was simply stunning! I first became aware of her through the popular TV series Betwitched. She enchanted me then and I was pleasantly surprised to see her in classic film. A wonderful character actress, I simply must see more of her work!

Tonight on TCM!

Howard Keel! Here's my chance Agnes- Showboat!

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Kona Coast (1968)

Tough man Captain Sam Moran (Richard Boone), who charters boats in Honolulu for a living, receives an odd phone call from his estranged teenaged daughter, Dee (Gloria Nakea), whom he reported missing four days prior. When she found dead on the beach, Sam doesn’t believe it’s an accident. Well known in Honolulu by both the police captain and townspeople, Sam begins making inquiries to track down the murderer.

Kryder (Steve Ihnat) is a rich playboy who takes pleasure in getting girls hooked on narcotics and discarding them when they grow tiresome, Dee is his latest victim. He sends his henchmen after Sam when he learns of his investigation. After they beat him they burn his boat causing Sam's good friend Charlie Lightfoot (Chips Rafferty) to be severely burned trying to save it.

Sam takes the dying Lightfoot back to his Kona home where he meets Kittibelle (Joan Blondell), Lightfoot’s sister who tries to enlist Sam into taking over her brother’s boat because she needs the extra funds to support her run-down resort she uses to rehabilitate alcoholics. Despite hers and Akamai’s (Kent Smith) best efforts, Sam’s only mission is to get back on the case after Lightfoot’s funeral but Kryder has different plans.

While Sam is busy reuniting with former girlfriend marine biologist Melissa Hyde (Vera Miles), Kryder orders a big luau prepared at Kittibelle's resort with the plan to kill Sam at the party for the fun of it.

However, when Sam’s friend Kimo (Sam Kapu Jr.) realizes that Kryder’s henchmen are on Sam’s trail, he and Lightfoot’s boat crew capture them and force them to confess about Dee's murder. Sam then pursues Kryder at the luau.

It’s one thing to see unprepared drivel such as Kona Coast with its underdeveloped plot line, character backgrounds, and horribly delivered melodrama. It’s quite another when good actors like Joan Blondell and Kent Smith are put into the mix.  I really hope that boredom or perhaps a free trip to Hawaii is what compelled them to partake in what I will not-so-affectionately call a long, bad Magnum P.I. episode. Sorry Tom Selleck, no reflection on the show, it’s all about location here.

Tonight on TCM!

Anne Francis!

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An Earthquake and Hurricane in the same week? I think it's time to discuss The Rains Came (1939)

Tom Ransome (George Brent),  a nonchalant philanderer has spent years in India watching the people and the rains come and go. He has an ardent admirer in Fern Simon (Brenda Joyce), the daughter of American missionaries who is fascinated by Tom and his reputation. However, Tom regards her as a child. When he runs into an old flame who is now Lady Edwina Esketh (Myrna Loy), having married the wealthy and uncouth Lord Esketh (Nigel Bruce), Tom is alarmed by her behavior. Worse yet, he realizes he has built his reputation on behaving just like her.  

Edwina, bored with her marriage, carelessly tries making a conquest of Tom's friend, Major Rama Safti (Tyrone Power). However, the major is too preoccupied with his work as a doctor to pay her any attention. Meanwhile, as the rains fall, Tom finds himself falling in love with Fern. Then disaster strikes when an earthquake destroys the dams and releases flood waters into Ranchipur, killing Lord Esketh and the Maharajah (H. B. Warner). When the Maharani (Maria Ouspenskaya) asks Tom to help her people, Fern joins him. Plague sweeps the city and as the major fights to contain it, Edwina volunteers to help in the hospital despite the risks. The major, touched by her selflessness, finally falls in love with her. However, in the most harrowing scene Edwina accidentally drinks from a contaminated glass and falls victim to the plague. The major is unable to save her. Tom and Fern get married and the major, successfully contains the plague to become the Maharajah.

The Rains Came isn't quick entertainment, it has its slow moments but it also has a few heavy hitters. Besides some pretty good special effects, Brent, Power, Ouspenskaya, and Joyce play their parts wonderfully. The real star however, is Loy. An unusual part for her as evidenced in her future work, she nonetheless shows her dramatic chops and is most touching in her deathbed scene. Definitely worth seeing just once.


Tonight on TCM- if the power stays on...
Linda Darnell! Oh, A Letter to Three Wives sounds fun!

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Thirty Thirties!

I watch a lot of classic film. A lot. Maybe not as much as Cin-Eater (I mean, a girl needs her beauty sleep) but it's still a lot in comparison to anyone I know and see on a daily basis. It's to the point where I simply bubble over if anyone, ANYONE mentions a classic movie or movie star or um...speaks to me, period. Sigh. I have sooooooo much to share! Sometimes the conversation simply ends with them staring blankly at me while slowly backing away. I've gotten used to it.

Anyway, when I started out with this blog, I thought I would stick to the films of the thirties. They're my favorite era of film and I want to see them all. As any of you who are enthusiastic about the classics knows, this is entirely impossible. Especially when you depend mostly on TCM to give you your fix and you simply HAVE to see everything Fredric March (insert your favorite star here) made. However, I have seen quite a few films from the thirties (with lots of wonderful films from other eras tucked in) and simply don't have the time to blog about them all. And admittedly, some aren't really worth all the fuss. So, I have decided to do this type of blog entry (sort of a twist on my Many Mini Review entries) that gives my opinion, etc. of the film without doing a complete synopsis. It will also help me track whether they are worth another view or not. Enjoy!

This is the Night (1932)
Cary Grant’s first full-length feature. It’s a precursor to screwball but more a farce. Interesting opening of the film. Best scene is Young and Ruggles in a state of complete intoxication. Delightful!

Not So Dumb(1930)
Marion Davies as Dulcy proves that distorted adages, tactlessness, flagrant chatter, and downright scatterbrainery aside, she isn’t so dumb not get what she set out to get- even if it is by accident. And I love a butler who doesn’t know how to buttle!

Merrily We Go To Hell (1931)
Besides it being my not-so-new- now drinking toast, it has Fredric March in it…enough said. Seriously though, he and Sylvia Sydney are spectacular as they flounder around in their “open” relationship. Skeets Gallagher and Esther Howard provide comic relief as a pair of drunks. There is a Cary Grant cameo as well!
Best line: “I’m afraid as a rule I prefer the company of men… Particularly if they’re bartenders.”

The Guardsman (1931)
This was my first Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne film, it was also their first talkie. As an avid reader of classic star’s biographies and autobiographies, their names have been bandied about by many stars who revered them as premiere stage actors. Neither disappoint in this hilarious film that also features Roland Young and Zasu Pitts.

Chance at Heaven (1933)
Standard thirties fare featuring two beauties, Ginger Rogers and Marian Nixon (who like another Marion- retired from pictures early). Sometimes I have a hard time swallowing the noble stepping aside they had women do when their men, in this case, Joel McCrea, go nutso for another dame. I like the women who fight.

Easy Living (1937)
One minute you’re breaking your piggy bank, the next a fur coat falls on your head. Jean Arthur is about to be treated to all her dreams, but first... a little chaos.

Dinner at Eight (1933)
A superb movie with melodrama, wit, humor, and a few bittersweet moments, Dinner at Eight is a thirties staple and a must see. Great cast including the Barrymore brothers, Marie Dressler, Jean Harlow, Lee Tracy and Billie Burke.

Remember? (1939)
Though it didn’t get great reviews at the time, I really enjoyed this film. A little nonsensical with the potion to help the couple forget, but the plot line gets better because of it. Love Billie Burke and her daffiness!

Freaks (1932)
Pre-code horror film involving real life circus performers and their shortcomings. It is still creepy today. When they decide to attack at the end of the film- I literally shivered. Freaks is definitely a must see!

Payment Deferred (1932)
I believe this was one of my first Laughton films and luckily, his stellar performance as the horrible but pitiful William Marble didn’t ruin me for all the other movies I have seen him in. Watch him descend into madness as he tries to keep a terrible secret.

The Traveling Saleslady (1935)
Joan Blondell proves her meddle as a capable working woman who sells cocktail toothpaste. That’s right, toothpaste made to taste like a variety of cocktails. I love the 30’s and I love Joan Blondell!

The Bride Wore Red (1937)
Not a favorite. Joan Crawford plays a working girl who strikes lucky when a drunken count gives her an opportunity to see how the other half lives. She’s torn between her love for Franchot Tone and the security of Robert Young (neither of which I find attractive). And yet another example of a woman stepping aside so the one she truly loves can be happy. Snore.

Three Loves Has Nancy (1938)
I am not a huge fan of Janet Gaynor or Franchot Tone. However, combined with Robert Montgomery who sparkled enough for all three of them, this movie was quite tolerable and even funny at moments. Worth watching for the sleepwalking scene!

Another Language (1933)
No charming Robert Montgomery in this film. Frankly, he's a real jerk. Playing a mamma’s boy he keeps Helen Hayes jumping until she’s fed up. Unfortunately, I was fed up well before she got around to it.

Westward Passage (1932)
Speaking of jerks, Laurence Olivier is no stranger to acting like one thanks to Westward Passage. Ann Harding seems to play two separate people in this film. First she is a milksop who tries to keep her husband’s life running smoothly. But once she and Olivier are divorced and she is remarried- she becomes quite a vixen who Olivier finds harder to win over. Contemplating an affair with her ex-husband seems so out of character to what she once was that I found Harding hard to believe.

The Bride Walks Out (1936)
Ugh! I hate a movie that concentrates solely on how a man doesn’t want his woman to work. I hate it more when the woman in question gives in. Et tu, Stanwyck?? Boo.

Star of Midnight (1935)
So, here’s an oddity. After the first Thin Man in 1934, they paired William Powell and Ginger Rogers together. I mean it works but it was odd seeing Powell basically playing Nick Charles under a different name and Ginger not quite adding up to Myrna Loy. Both Rogers and Powell are great, the film is full of witty moments and highly entertaining. But I adore my Thin Man combo of Powell and Loy and this was just strange.

Grand Slam (1933)
A couple’s relationship is tested when the husband invents his own method of playing bridge. Few interesting moments thanks to Frank McHugh but bridge is boring and so was this movie.

Shipmates (1931)
Here is the Robert Montgomery I know and love. As a wise-cracking seaman, Montgomery learns the hard way that love and life won’t come easy if you can’t take some things seriously.

There’s Always a Woman (1938)
Though it’s no Thin Man, Joan Blondell and Melvyn Douglas are superbly matched. He as the long-suffering husband to his eternally curious wife who is rather good as a detective.

Gambling Lady (1934)
Stanwyck is a gambling lady- good at cards, bad at love. Things work out in the end. Surprised? Me neither.

Murder In a Private Car (1934)
Though Charles Ruggles is in this film, you should watch it solely for Fred Toones’ performance. It's the only real good part in the film.

The Goose and The Gander (1935)
Revenge falls to the wayside in this screwy little film with good performances by Genevieve Tobin and George Brent. I don’t think I am a fan of Kay Francis. I’ll need to look into that more.

Craig’s Wife (1936)
Did you know that Rosalind Russell can be as unfunny as she is funny? Well, she can. She proves it as Harriet Craig. Even Billie Burke doesn’t sparkle in this serious drama. Good film.

Cain and Mabel (1936)
Clever name for a movie however, that’s about the most interesting thing about it. Clark Gable and Marion Davies together was a little flat and not even the wise-cracking Allen Jenkins could revive this piece.

Night Nurse (1931)
Joan Blondell for comedy, Barbara Stanwyck for strength, Ben Lyon for romance and Clark Gable for drama. I had a hard time believing that Stanwyck couldn’t get the law involved on a case she was working on where two children were obviously being starved. Despite that, all performers gave a good show and Gable was especially nasty.

The Amazing Mr. Williams (1939)
Melvyn Douglas must dress as a woman to help solve a case. Need I say anything more? Ok, I will. Joan Blondell.  :)

The Kennel Club Murder Case (1933)
William Powell and detective stories were obviously a good combination.

Heat Lightning (1934)
Aline McMahon plays a mechanic. That’s right, a mechanic. How significant is that in 30’s cinema? I’d say real significant. Drama unfolds when her past accidentally catches up to her at the filling station and lunch counter she owns. But you can depend up Frank McHugh, Glenda Farrell, and Ruth Donnelly to keep things light.

The Skin Game (1931)
I have seen a lot of Hitchcock’s films. I hope to see them all but I also hope they’re not as bad as this one.


Tonight on TCM!
Peter Lawford. Definitely want to see It Should Happen To You!

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The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds (1972)

Beatrice Hunsdorfer (Joanne Woodward), a woman ruled by her disenchantment with life, lives in a ram- shackled home with her daughters, Ruth (Roberta Wallach) and Matilda (Nell Potts) and Nanny (Judith Lowry), a boarder. Middle-aged, widowed, and extremely bitter Beatrice is on the constant look out for a step up. If only she had the money and the right opportunity. The presence of Nanny in her home is a constant reminder of what Beatrice is headed for. Ruth, who is epileptic and as negative as her mother, seems destine to make the same mistakes as her. She is at a rebellious stage in life and though she often does her mother’s bidding, she grows to hate her more and more. Alternatively, Matilda, golden-haired, shy and intelligent finds refuge from her mother’s bitterness through her schoolwork and her pet rabbit. She is currently working on a science project involving man-on-the-moon marigolds, which is simultaneously a metaphor for how life affects each person differently. Matilda, in contrast to her mother and sister, chooses a positive outlook on life despite how her mother treats her. Even when Beatrice kills her rabbit, Matilda is still able to see the value in all people.


A moving drama, Woodward is at her most bitter here. In an interview I saw from the 80’s, Paul Newman, who directed his daughter and wife in this film, remarked of all the characters for Woodward to bring home, Beatrice was the one she chose. Apparently, playing this role put a strain on her relationships with husband and daughter. Despite that, Woodward is entirely convincing as the most negative woman I have ever seen on screen. In contrast, Potts becomes more endearing and inspirational. Definitely worth watching.

 
 
Tonight on TCM!
Burt Lancaster!

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What's shakin', Bacon?

In the spirit of trying to be cool about experiencing my first earthquake...Jerry Lee Lewis, ya'll.
We're shakin' here in Virginia!


Tonight on TCM!
Calm yourself with some Conrad Veidt. He's one smooth character!

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Irresistibly Sweet Blog Award

I would like to thank All Good Things,  Put the Blame on Mame (who did this awesome revamp!) and Forever Classics for awarding me the Irresistibly Sweet Blog Award. I am happy that there are people out there that I can share my love of classic film with and who are kind enough to take the time and follow my journey.


Here are the rules:

1) Thank and link to the person who nominated you.

2) Share 7 random facts about yourself.

3) Pass the award to 12 of your blogging buddies. Yikes!

4) Notify the recipients



7 Random facts about me:

1. I have a hard time picking between Joan Crawford and Bette Davis as my all-time favorite actress.

2. I own a lot of Fredric March films but have not seen them all because I like having some of his work to look forward to.

3. I would love to have lunch with Joan Blondell and Aline McMahon at the same time.

4. I have a hard time watching silent films. Though there is some beautiful cinematography, I think they run on too long.

5. I get excited if I see John Qualen, Margaret Rutherford, Charles Ruggles, Patsy Kelly, Roland Young, Marjorie Main or Frank McHugh in the cast. Great, great character actors.

6. My favorite era of film is the 30's.

7. I sometimes wish my job didn't get in the way of my blogging. :(


Instead of awarding 12 blogs (a task which I found a little daunting), I have decided to add a blog roll on the side for everyone to see what I follow on a daily basis. I encourage you to check out any that you may not be familiar with- I promise you won't be disappointed!


Thank you!!!


Tonight on TCM!
Joan Crawford!! How convenient!

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Vintage Ads

Ronald Reagan for Jeris and "handsomer" hair. 

Susan Hayward for Max Factor.

John Wayne for Budweiser and throwing "middle-management" out the window. 

Shirley Temple for flour and all its sweet rewards. 

Spencer Tracy for the not-so-lucky Lucky Strike. Shout!

Tippi Hedren for Gleem and brushing less.

Orson Welles and daughter Rebecca for alcoholism closing the generation gap with Jim Beam.  

Tonight on TCM!
Cary Grant! Bringing Up Baby is a must see!

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