TCM: The Greatest Movie Channel

[Robert Lynch]

The ironic part is those roles that Norma had Joan Crawford wanted. Norma being married to Irving Thalberg was the only way she had those roles cherry-picked due to that. When he died, that was the end of Norma's career as an actress. The only role Joan Crawford got was Paid and that was due to Norma being pregnant. All the rest she couldn't due to who Norma was married to.

Edited August 12, 2020 by Robert Lynch

[Rinaldo]

2 hours ago, VCRTracking said:

Her pre-code work was definitely her best.

On the whole, I agree about this. Early on, Norma Shearer could be lively and believable, when she let herself be uninhibited. As she became The Lady of the Studio, her roles became more constricted, and she herself became less engaging. Even as late as The Women, there are bits near the start (when she's goofing around with her daughter, and even when she's first amused by her catty friends) where she's spontaneous and enjoyable. Then she remembers to capital-A Act, and she goes all noble and stilted and weepy. (That Romeo and Juliet is an embarrassment for her.)

[Milburn Stone]

On 8/7/2020 at 4:32 PM, Rinaldo said:

Anyway, in the end this just isn't very good.

There's a clip from Down to Earth on YouTube that would (misleadingly) make you think it is a good movie. Rita has shown up for dance rehearsals and "shows up" the blonde star of the show with her (truly) amazing moves. There's a cut to Larry Parks (who I guess is the show's director) essentially going "Wowser! Hubba Hubba! AAOOOOOO!" with his eyes, for good reason.

[StrictTime]

My take on Norma Shearer is that she was great in silents, but the transition to talkies was tough on her. Not because her voice wasn’t pleasant, but because, especially in her early talkies, her gestures (facial and hands) are still over-emphatic, as they had to be in the silent films. I noticed it particularly in Private Lives, which seemed really rushed and frantic overall. 

[StrictTime]

On to Sylvia Sydney day! I really enjoyed all of her films TCM featured this week. Thirty Day Princess was a cute rom com with an early appearance by Cary Grant (I think they lacked chemistry, but were both gorgeous) and Sabotage was great, of course. I can see why audiences back then were taken aback by the bus scene, but I loved it.

[StatisticalOutlier]

The Getaway was on yesterday.  Good lord, Ali MacGraw is a terrible actress.  When I saw Love Story when it first came out, I was in junior high (prime sucker for a movie like that) and thought she was just awful.  I could. not. understand. what Oliver saw in her, and wasn't the least bit sad when she died.  If she'd sneered "Preppie" at him one more time, I might have strangled her myself.

I remember seeing The Getaway when it first came out, too, but didn't remember having such a strong reaction to her performance, which was indeed equally as bad.  Maybe there was enough other stuff going on that it just wasn't as noticeable.  And she and Steve McQueen pretty much sizzled together in the scene in the park where they were swimming, but I don't think that was acting.  😀

So I got curious and looked at her filmography, and there's almost nothing there.  Thank heavens.

And back to The Getaway, something that drove me crazy was that the bad guy's name was Beynon--spelled like that in the captions over and over.  But everybody pronounced it as if it were spelled Benyon.  I thought maybe it was a captions error, but the character in the IMDb listing is indeed Beynon.

[Rinaldo]

8 hours ago, StatisticalOutlier said:

Good lord, Ali MacGraw is a terrible actress. 

A friend of mine, who has acted and directed, say that Ali McGraw totally disproves the standard adage "If you want to see if someone is a good actor, watch them listening to other actors." Because (possibly because of her modeling experience) when she's doing nothing but listen, she can look attentive and interesting -- but as soon as she has to actually say or do something, there goes the ballgame.

[Milburn Stone]

She was horrible in her debut film, Goodbye, Columbus, too. And so was Richard Benjamin, even though I've liked him in things!

Yet both seemed charming to me in 1969, and the movie packed a wallop. And I had good taste for a 19-year old. Go figure. I guess I was the target audience.

[VCRTracking]

19 hours ago, StatisticalOutlier said:

The Getaway was on yesterday.  Good lord, Ali MacGraw is a terrible actress.  When I saw Love Story when it first came out, I was in junior high (prime sucker for a movie like that) and thought she was just awful.  I could. not. understand. what Oliver saw in her, and wasn't the least bit sad when she died.  If she'd sneered "Preppie" at him one more time, I might have strangled her myself.

I remember seeing The Getaway when it first came out, too, but didn't remember having such a strong reaction to her performance, which was indeed equally as bad.  Maybe there was enough other stuff going on that it just wasn't as noticeable.  And she and Steve McQueen pretty much sizzled together in the scene in the park where they were swimming, but I don't think that was acting.  😀

So I got curious and looked at her filmography, and there's almost nothing there.  Thank heavens.

And back to The Getaway, something that drove me crazy was that the bad guy's name was Beynon--spelled like that in the captions over and over.  But everybody pronounced it as if it were spelled Benyon.  I thought maybe it was a captions error, but the character in the IMDb listing is indeed Beynon.

Speaking of The Getaway, if you want to show why Steve McQueen was the King of Cool without a clip of him driving a car or riding a motorcycle show him loading a shotgun effortlessly when it's upside down!

 

 

Edited August 16, 2020 by VCRTracking

[SeanC]

Olivia de Havilland's tribute night has been scheduled for August 23, I see:

• The Male Animal (1942)
• Princess O'Rourke (1943)
• Light in the Piazza (1962)
• In This Our Life (1942)
• Captain Blood (1935)
• Dodge City (1939)
• The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)
• Gone with the Wind (1939)
• The Heiress (1949)
• To Each His Own (1946)
• Hard to Get (1936)

Surprisingly, no The Snake Pit.

[Charlie Baker]

I think I would have preferred The Snake Pit and maybe (for something from her later career) Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte instead of yet another showing of GWTW.   Still looks like a generally fine line-up.

[meowmommy]

22 hours ago, Milburn Stone said:

She was horrible in her debut film, Goodbye, Columbus, too. And so was Richard Benjamin, even though I've liked him in things!

And she was horrible in the adaptation of Herman Wouk's book, The Winds of War.  Enough to make you root for the Nazis.  Mercifully, she was replaced by Jane Seymour for the sequel, War and Remembrance.

[Milburn Stone]

21 minutes ago, meowmommy said:

And she was horrible in the adaptation of Herman Wouk's book, The Winds of War.  Enough to make you root for the Nazis.  Mercifully, she was replaced by Jane Seymour for the sequel, War and Remembrance.

You've put your finger on what's so horrible about her. She isn't merely a bad actress. That would simply make her inadequate and incompetent. No, somehow she makes you loathe, despise, abhor, and detest whatever character she's playing. You want a safe to fall out of the sky and land on her.

[VCRTracking]

12 hours ago, meowmommy said:

And she was horrible in the adaptation of Herman Wouk's book, The Winds of War.  Enough to make you root for the Nazis.  Mercifully, she was replaced by Jane Seymour for the sequel, War and Remembrance.

Kind of wish she hadnt. Maybe then it wouldn't have beaten Lonesome Dove at the Emmys!

Edited August 17, 2020 by VCRTracking

[EtheltoTillie]

Speaking of Ali MacGraw, I recently watched for the first time in many a year Just Tell Me What Your Want, with Alan King and a young Peter Weller (and don't forget Keenan Wynn as a Jewish real estate tycoon--huh?).  This is the one where Ali MacGraw famously clobbers Alan King on the selling floor of Bergdorf Goodman and then takes it right out into the street and continues while a crowd gathers.  This may be AM's best performance ever!

The movie is awful, though.  All the characters are loathsome, except maybe Myrna Loy.  Alan King's part is well written, though, as a certain kind of domineering businessman.

[EtheltoTillie]

If you have not caught the curiosity Go Naked Into the World, please check it out before it leaves the TCM app.

It's a modern version of Camille, with Gina Lollabrigida as the call girl and Tony Franciosa as the boy who is in love with her.  The over-the-top performance of Ernest Borgnine as Tony's controlling father has to be seen to be believed.  (And he was only about 10 years older.)  He's such a creep, who patronizes the call girl, as does everyone else in his circle of construction executives.

The best thing about the movie is the mid-century-modern decor of Gina's apartment.  It's really beautiful. 

[StatisticalOutlier]

On 8/16/2020 at 9:10 AM, SeanC said:

Surprisingly, no The Snake Pit.

I was thinking I'd just seen it in my on-screen schedule, and it turns out it's on FXM, which is some sort of Fox Movie Channel, which is right next to TCM on my grid.  It's on early Wednesday morning and early Thursday morning. 

 

On 8/16/2020 at 9:02 PM, Milburn Stone said:

You've put your finger on what's so horrible about her. She isn't merely a bad actress. That would simply make her inadequate and incompetent. No, somehow she makes you loathe, despise, abhor, and detest whatever character she's playing. You want a safe to fall out of the sky and land on her.

It's a shame she couldn't have found some loathsome, despicable character to play.  Then quit acting altogether, after that award-worthy performance.  Shame on the casting directors for not picking up on this.

[Inquisitionist]

On 8/15/2020 at 1:54 PM, StatisticalOutlier said:

The Getaway was on yesterday.  Good lord, Ali MacGraw is a terrible actress.  When I saw Love Story when it first came out, I was in junior high (prime sucker for a movie like that) and thought she was just awful.  I could. not. understand. what Oliver saw in her, and wasn't the least bit sad when she died.  If she'd sneered "Preppie" at him one more time, I might have strangled her myself.

And yet she was nominated for an Oscar.  Blerg.  

On 8/16/2020 at 10:10 AM, SeanC said:

Olivia de Havilland's tribute night has been scheduled for August 23,

Thanks for this!  Many films I haven't seen yet, and here is my chance!

ETA that according to IMDb:

Quote

Paramount Production head Robert Evans was developing several high profile projects for her when she filed for divorce. The roles she walked away from to marry lover Steve McQueen were Daisy in The Great Gatsby (1974) and Evelyn in Chinatown (1974).

Jeepers creepers!  Chinatown is one of my favorite movies.  Just no.

Edited August 18, 2020 by Inquisitionist

[Charlie Baker]

Saw a Word of Mouth promoting the Olivia de Havlland day and narrated by her great friend Robert Osborne.  I was handling it just fine until some fairly recent photos of the two together were shown.  Needed some recovery time after that.  

Edited August 18, 2020 by Charlie Baker

[Milburn Stone]

7 hours ago, StatisticalOutlier said:

It's a shame she couldn't have found some loathsome, despicable character to play.  Then quit acting altogether, after that award-worthy performance.  Shame on the casting directors for not picking up on this.

She would have been the best Bond Villain ever.

[Rinaldo]

On 8/17/2020 at 11:11 AM, VCRTracking said:

Kind of wish she hadnt. Maybe then it wouldn't have beaten Lonesome Dove at the Emmys!

I remember that! I was so sure nothing could beat Lonesome Dove (which I really loved -- book adaptations don't come much better), and then it happened.

On 8/17/2020 at 5:25 PM, GussieK said:

Speaking of Ali MacGraw, I recently watched for the first time in many a year Just Tell Me What You Want, with Alan King and a young Peter Weller (and don't forget Keenan Wynn as a Jewish real estate tycoon--huh?).  This is the one where Ali MacGraw famously clobbers Alan King on the selling floor of Bergdorf Goodman and then takes it right out into the street and continues while a crowd gathers.  This may be AM's best performance ever!

I was going to mention that earlier but didn't want to overcomplicate my opinion of her. The movie went almost unseen at the time (I caught up with it over a decade later, via HBO), and it's easy to see why, it's crass and one-note and exhausting. But King has a certain vitality throughout it, and surprisingly Ali M does too. As I remember, it gives her lots to do physically (like the famous King-clobbering), and maybe that helped. Also noteworthy (for a fan of musicals like me), the movie has a rather big part for Judy Kaye as King's daughter. Kaye is a terrific singer and actress (now with two Tony awards) who had just attracted attention by brilliantly taking over the leading role in a musical (On the Twentieth Century) when its star, Madeline Kahn, left a month into the run. This is the only movie she ever appeared in.

On 8/18/2020 at 4:14 PM, Inquisitionist said:

The roles [Ali MacGraw] walked away from to marry lover Steve McQueen were Daisy in The Great Gatsby (1974) and Evelyn in Chinatown (1974).

I hadn't known that about Chinatown, but The Great Gatsby situation was famous, as the movie had been together as a vehicle for her and had had a ton of pre-publicity. After she pulled out, Mia Farrow supposedly wrote to Evans asking if she might be considered.

Thinking back to Ali MacGraw in the 1970s, I recall that at the time she had competition from Candice Bergen, who was equally unskilled as an actress (and she made a lot of them then, most now mercifully forgotten), and in a way never really learned, though she herself clearly had wit and intelligence that she couldn't convey in her characters. Yet there were a couple of differences. She found that a certain energetic determination could serve her well in comedy (most of those forgotten flicks were deadly serious). Also, she has the great gift of a sense of humor about herself. And that really makes all the difference, it can put an audience on your side despite everything. It got her through all those seasons of Murphy Brown and her other work since. I still don't believe most of the people she plays, but she can be fun company even so.

[EtheltoTillie]

10 minutes ago, Rinaldo said:

I remember that! I was so sure nothing could beat Lonesome Dove (which I really loved -- book adaptations don't come much better), and then it happened.

I was going to mention that earlier but didn't want to overcomplicate my opinion of her. The movie went almost unseen at the time (I caught up with it over a decade later, via HBO), and it's easy to see why, it's crass and one-note and exhausting. But King has a certain vitality throughout it, and surprisingly Ali M does too. As I remember, it gives her lots to do physically (like the famous King-clobbering), and maybe that helped. Also noteworthy (for a fan of musicals like me), the movie has a rather big part for Judy Kaye as King's daughter. Kaye is a terrific singer and actress (now with two Tony awards) who had just attracted attention by brilliantly taking over the leading role in a musical (On the Twentieth Century) when its star, Madeline Kahn, left a month into the run. This is the only movie she ever appeared in.

I hadn't known that about Chinatown, but The Great Gatsby situation was famous, as the movie had been together as a vehicle for her and had had a ton of pre-publicity. After she pulled out, Mia Farrow supposedly wrote to Evans asking if she might be considered.

Thinking back to Ali MacGraw in the 1970s, I recall that at the time she had competition from Candice Bergen, who was equally unskilled as an actress (and she made a lot of them then, most now mercifully forgotten), and in a way never really learned, though she herself clearly had wit and intelligence that she couldn't convey in her characters. Yet there were a couple of differences. She found that a certain energetic determination could serve her well in comedy (most of those forgotten flicks were deadly serious). Also, she has the great gift of a sense of humor about herself. And that really makes all the difference, it can put an audience on your side despite everything. It got her through all those seasons of Murphy Brown and her other work since. I still don't believe most of the people she plays, but she can be fun company even so.

Yes!  Ali MacGraw and 70s Candice Bergen--great comparison.  Candice was also maligned at the time for vapid performances.  (Ironically, she showed up again last week with Steve McQueen in The Sand Pebbles).  I have never watched The Getaway, so maybe I will now. 

[VCRTracking]

2 hours ago, Rinaldo said:

Thinking back to Ali MacGraw in the 1970s, I recall that at the time she had competition from Candice Bergen, who was equally unskilled as an actress (and she made a lot of them then, most now mercifully forgotten), and in a way never really learned, though she herself clearly had wit and intelligence that she couldn't convey in her characters. Yet there were a couple of differences. She found that a certain energetic determination could serve her well in comedy (most of those forgotten flicks were deadly serious). Also, she has the great gift of a sense of humor about herself. And that really makes all the difference, it can put an audience on your side despite everything. It got her through all those seasons of Murphy Brown and her other work since. I still don't believe most of the people she plays, but she can be fun company even so.

 

2 hours ago, GussieK said:

Yes!  Ali MacGraw and 70s Candice Bergen--great comparison.  Candice was also maligned at the time for vapid performances.  (Ironically, she showed up again last week with Steve McQueen in The Sand Pebbles).  I have never watched The Getaway, so maybe I will now. 

I guess it was fitting Bergen was the replacement for in the Love Story sequel! Ryan O'Neal's character really had a type.

Her hosting SNL in the 70s helped her out for her future career in comedy. Especially the famous moment where she messed up in a sketch with Gilda Radner who was supposed to play the dumb friend Lisa but Candice called her by her own character's name Fern:

Fern: You’re not too bright, are you, Fern..? I mean.. [ breaks character and laughs ] Whatever your name is! [ can’t stop laughing ]

Lisa [ helping ] Lisa!

Fern: As a matter of fact, you’re extrememly stupid!

Lisa: Well, you’re right, Fern. And, you know, I’m proud of it! [ turns to the camera ] You know, we all can’t be brainy like Fern here.. [ Candace tries harder to stifle her laughter ] That’s why I want to talk to you tonight about a God-given American right – the right to extreme stupidity!

Edited August 22, 2020 by VCRTracking

[EtheltoTillie]

Wow, I forgot that Candy Bergen was in the Love Story sequel!

[Rinaldo]

On 8/22/2020 at 7:12 AM, GussieK said:

Wow, I forgot that Candy Bergen was in the Love Story sequel!

I forgot there was a Love Story sequel!

[VCRTracking]

50 minutes ago, Rinaldo said:

I forgot there was a Love Story sequel!

Here an interesting tidbit on Wikipedia:

"In the original draft of the film, O'Neal's character was meant to end up with the one played by Nicola Pagett. However, on viewing the movie the filmmakers felt that it was not believable O'Neal would go with Pagett after being with the more beautiful Candice Bergen, so they removed these scenes from the movie."

Ouch. Well maybe if they didn't put her in a crappy hairstyle, clothes and glasses!

No offence to Candace but I'd choose

"O'Neal thought a major reason behind the film's failure was the fact the character played by Nicola Pagett was cut out of the last third."

Maybe. Also I think it didn't have a memorable theme song like the first movie. Here's a cover by Shirley Bassey and wow is she like a Maya Rudolph character or what?

 

 

Edited August 23, 2020 by VCRTracking

[Rinaldo]

All true no doubt, but I feel (never having seen it) that the more fundamental reason it failed was that the people who liked Love Story didn't want to see a continuation. The girl dies, the boy cries, the fans sniffle, end of story.

[VCRTracking]

They should have just advertised him reconciling with Ray Milland.

 

[StatisticalOutlier]

Has anyone else noticed that Alicia Malone's bookshelf looks to be organized by color?  I'm kind of ashamed to admit that I think it looks quite appealing.

 

[EtheltoTillie]

Anne Shirley day:  was this something we needed?  Outside of Anne of Green Gables and Stella Dallas, I guess they didn't know what to do with her, and there were some awful movies on yesterday.

Chatterbox--like AOGG on steroids.  Anne Shirley's character wants to be an actress like her late mother.  Grandpa objects.  I lasted 10 minutes.  I would suggest you watch the early scene where AS recites poetry and discusses etiquette with one of the traveling actors she meets.  It's one of the most cringemaking scenes I've ever had the misfortune to view.  M'Liss.  Lasted 5 minutes.  Make Way For a Lady:  Watched final 20 minutes.  Anne Shirley is an annoying teenager playing matchmaker for her widowed father.  Misunderstandings ensue, but no hilarity. 

The problem with Anne Shirley in these movies is that she declaims all her lines -- no nuance.

Edited August 26, 2020 by GussieK

[EtheltoTillie]

Warren Beatty day:  I sampled Mickey One, never seen before by me--and apparently by very few others.  Obscure Kafkaesque curiosity that seemed one part Carnival of Souls and another part Casino.  I may go back and watch the rest.  WB is a comedian on the run from the mob. 

[Rinaldo]

The main thing I know about Mickey One is that Beatty behaved badly on the set, to cast and crew, and my father never forgave him for it. Mind you, my father (who, though he directed movies, mostly commercials, worked only in Chicago) wasn't there, he only heard about it from colleagues who were, but if Beatty's name ever got mentioned, Dad would say he couldn't stand him, and explain why. But he did eventually come around in the 1970s, enjoying some of Beatty's movies, eventually allowing as how people maybe could be forgiven for errors of their youth.

Lots of good movies today on Laurence Olivier Day, all the expected classics (though I might've hoped for his third great Shakespeare film, Richard III, in place of, say, A Little Romance, in which I honestly don't think he's very good). But I want to draw people's attention to the last of his titles being shown, at 4 a.m. ET, The Beggar's Opera. This is the classic 18th-century play with music (essentially the first operetta) about thieves and vagabonds, given the full swashbuckling treatment by director Peter Brook (long before he went avant-garde), with Sir Larry as the robber Macheath. The cast of distinguished British actors mostly have voice doubles for their singing, but Olivier sings for himself (and I find his light baritone quite acceptable, though I know others have disagreed). And it's just great fun, with a light touch (parodying adventure movies at times) anticipating Tom Jones a decade later. It ought to be better known.

[StatisticalOutlier]

On 8/26/2020 at 3:17 PM, GussieK said:

Anne Shirley day:  was this something we needed?  Outside of Anne of Green Gables and Stella Dallas, I guess they didn't know what to do with her, and there were some awful movies on yesterday.

Thanks for posting this.  I thought I was just having a bad day.  I watched Sorority House and thought it was awful, and then something else that I can't remember the name of (and TCM's online schedule goes back only a day, so I can't find it there) that was equally as bad.  And it's annoying because when I see a really bad movie, I think I go into some sort of shock and instead of turning it off, I'll usually keep watching, maybe to confirm that it's as bad as I think it is and that it doesn't get better?  Fortunately, both were really short. 

[EtheltoTillie]

52 minutes ago, StatisticalOutlier said:

Thanks for posting this.  I thought I was just having a bad day.  I watched Sorority House and thought it was awful, and then something else that I can't remember the name of (and TCM's online schedule goes back only a day, so I can't find it there) that was equally as bad.  And it's annoying because when I see a really bad movie, I think I go into some sort of shock and instead of turning it off, I'll usually keep watching, maybe to confirm that it's as bad as I think it is and that it doesn't get better?  Fortunately, both were really short. 

Imagine, it was written by the great Dalton Trumbo!

[StatisticalOutlier]

2 hours ago, GussieK said:

Imagine, it was written by the great Dalton Trumbo!

I know!  I saw that in the opening credits and it didn't make me expect a great movie, but it also didn't make me expect one that was so bad.  It was only a little over an hour long, and I think they had trouble making all the plot elements make sense in that amount of time.  And yet they used some of the little time they had to show the fraternity boys singing outside the sorority house for longer than I think was necessary to make the point.

[Rinaldo]

20 hours ago, StatisticalOutlier said:

TCM's online schedule goes back only a day, so I can't find it there

Luckily their Summer Under the Stars schedule remains available (and clickable) for the whole month.

[StatisticalOutlier]

1 hour ago, Rinaldo said:

Luckily their Summer Under the Stars schedule remains available (and clickable) for the whole month.

Yay you!  The other stinker I watched was Unexpected Uncle.

[VCRTracking]

Lot of great Charlton Heston movies tonight but this is my favorite scene of his:

 

 

[EtheltoTillie]

Attention:  Rocco and His Brothers. That is all. 

[Robert Lynch]

Why is Joan Crawford's age so debated? I could have sworn she had to be born in 1904 and began acting in 1925. Other sources say 1905, 1906, 1907, etc. I could believe that was already in her 20s when she met Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., who was 19 years old. I know Mary Pickford hated her because of her being similar to Olive Thomas. Douglas Fairbanks was a gentleman while Mary was mean. That I know. But why was her age such an issue? She was already in her 20s when she met 19 year old Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.

Were birth certificates in the early 20th Century hard to come by or something? I could never understand why her year changes so much. I think 1904 seems closer than other years as to how old she was really was.

[Charlie Baker]

Another worthy Anne Shirley item: Murder, My Sweet, which I believe was included on her day. Her role is supporting, Claire Trevor is the female lead.

I don't have an answer to the discrepancies in Joan Crawford's date of birth.  But there have been errors on and alterations of birth certificates from the time period in question, I would think. And actresses have been known to shave a year or few off their ages. 🙂 

The Women Make Film project is intriguing and the first installment of the documentary was interesting in its approach.  I would love to be able to catch up with all the films they will be showing,  But time demands I be selective.  I watched Dorothy Arzner's Merrily We Go to Hell, which, if dated here and there and not completely successful at what it sets out to do, does combine comedy with drama pretty well, does use pre-Code frankness in its treatment of alcoholism and infidelity, and has quite fine performances from Sylvia Sidney and Fredric March.  Plus Cary Grant in a small role!

Edited September 2, 2020 by Charlie Baker

[Robert Lynch]

29 minutes ago, Charlie Baker said:

Another worthy Anne Shirley item: Murder, My Sweet, which I believe was included on her day. Her role is supporting, Claire Trevor is the female lead.

I don't have an answer to the discrepancies in Joan Crawford's date of birth.  But there have been errors on and alterations of birth certificates from the time period in question, I would think. And actresses have been known to shave a year or few off their ages. 🙂 

The Women Make Film project is intriguing and the first installment of the documentary was interesting in its approach.  I would love to be able to catch up with all the films they will be showing,  But time demands I be selective.  I watched Dorothy Arzner's Merrily We Go to Hell, which, if dated here and there and not completely successful at what it sets out to do, does combine comedy with drama pretty well, does use pre-Code frankness in its treatment of alcoholism and infidelity, and has quite fine performances from Sylvia Sidney and Fredric March.  Plus Cary Grant in a small role!

That would make sense, but I thought it could be the way birth certificates were made and sometimes lost during that certain time period itself. 1900-1909 was still an horse and buggy era.

[VCRTracking]

However old she was, she was old enough to remember and experience the 1918 pandemic. I watch any movie from the 1930s and see anyone over the age of 20 and think how they lived through that. And it was arguably worse because people didn't know about viruses or how they were transmitted and there wasn't global communication. All the death and fear that lasted more than a year is now just a bad memory to every actor I see in something like DUCK SOUP and it makes me feel a hopeful.

Edited September 2, 2020 by VCRTracking

[MissAlmond]

Sorry to interrupt but I have an urgent question regarding The Snake Pit.  I know TCM didn't recently re-aired it (FXM did and I recorded it) but it's been shown on TCM enough times, I feel this is the board that would know the answer.  

At one point in The Snake Pit we learn a former nurse at the sanitarium is now a patient.  It's not the nurse who is unkind to Olivia de Havilland, it's another one.   From the dialogue, I've always surmised this nurse is in the background earlier before we see her later as a patient.  However, try as I might, I can't find in an earlier scene. I've even concentrated on the background actors hoping to spot her, but nothing.  Now I'm wondering if it's a "given" she was one of many nurses who eventually has her own breakdown. 

Do any of you good TCM people know the answer?  Is this nurse there previously or not?  If she is, please tell me which scene to pause to find her!   If she's not, I can finally let searching for her go.   Thanks in advance.   

[EtheltoTillie]

4 hours ago, Robert Lynch said:

That would make sense, but I thought it could be the way birth certificates were made and sometimes lost during that certain time period itself. 1900-1909 was still an horse and buggy era.

I have done some genealogy research for heirship cases--I don't think that's the problem. 

You'd be surprised what you find intact in old records, at least in cities.   As @Charlie Baker suggested, I think Joan Crawford probably just lied about her age.

Edited September 2, 2020 by GussieK

[ruby24]

Some movies I saw recently:

Seconds (1966)- this was excellent, kind of like an extended episode of The Twilight Zone. I don't think I've ever seen Rock Hudson better.

I Love You Again (1940)- a funny, sweet romantic comedy with William Powell/Myrna Loy, whose chemistry remains impeccable. I'd like to know what other non-Thin Man films of theirs are worth seeing. Also, does Loy ever get to participate in the funny stuff, or is she always the straight man to Powell's clown?

Point Blank (1967)- awesome thriller. Kind of arthouse, French New Wave influenced but with a classic badass American protagonist in Lee Marvin.

 

[EtheltoTillie]

Seconds really is terrific, but I haven’t seen it in many years. Worth a rewatch. 

[Irlandesa]

2 hours ago, ruby24 said:

I Love You Again (1940)- a funny, sweet romantic comedy with William Powell/Myrna Loy, whose chemistry remains impeccable. I'd like to know what other non-Thin Man films of theirs are worth seeing. Also, does Loy ever get to participate in the funny stuff, or is she always the straight man to Powell's clown?

I first saw the Powell/Loy combo in Libeled Lady which remains my favorite movie of theirs.  I highly recommend it.  In fact, it has been a while and I think I'll watch it again this weekend during my time off.  As a bonus, it co-stars Jean Harlow and Spencer Tracy. 

[Bastet]

3 hours ago, ruby24 said:

I Love You Again (1940)- a funny, sweet romantic comedy with William Powell/Myrna Loy, whose chemistry remains impeccable. I'd like to know what other non-Thin Man films of theirs are worth seeing. Also, does Loy ever get to participate in the funny stuff, or is she always the straight man to Powell's clown?

Libeled Lady is their best non-Thin Man collaboration; it's divine.

Love Crazy is another great one; most fans seem to like that even more than I Love You Again, but I go back and forth between those two.

They're all worth seeing - it's Myrna Loy and William Powell! - but some maybe only once.

Double Wedding is their comedy that doesn't quite work - it's slapstick - but it still has its has memorable scenes. 

The dramas - Manhattan Melodrama (their first pairing), Evelyn Prentice, and The Great Ziegfeld (which isn't a typical Loy/Powell pairing; it's more like she's in it) - aren't as good as the comedies, but I quite like the first one and have watched the second several times (I have the Loy/Powell DVD set).

Their on-screen collaboration ends with an uncredited cameo by Loy in Powell's The Senator Was Indiscreet; his character has a wife we hear about and see him talking to on the phone throughout the film, but don't see until the end - one line, she turns around, and it's Loy.

As for the comedic imbalance, it's always there, but Loy does get her moments.

[Pike Ludwell]

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Edited September 3, 2020 by Pike Ludwell