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I've been blogging a long time (13 + years) – lately not so much. I mean, after a while, you kind of run out of novel things to say. Plus – man, are there some great classic film bloggers out there. I am amazed, not only at their writing ability, but at their intricate knowledge of all t read more

Hal Linden strikes a debonair pose in this publicity photo from the short-lived NBC television series "Blacke's Magic" ( 1986 ). Linden portrayed magician Alexander Blacke who, along with his con artist father ( Harry Morgan ) solved mysteries using trickery and illusion to capture the culprit.  read more

I’ve now watched the Jon Hamm-helmed remake of Fletch three times. This may surprise those of you who adored the original Fletch series–and Chevy Chase’s performance in it–as much as I did. But the film is a different animal and defies comparison; it also contains enough qui read more

Movies have always reflected the hopes and dreams of the public, especially in terms of romance. Since almost every movie genre - from mysteries to swashbucklers, from war to love stories - features a leading man and a woman, it is not surprising that thousands of different screen couples exist on f read more

Books of Magic
Original series and recent “Moveable Type” trade paperback Back in 1991, DC decided to let one of their successful new writers, Neil Gaiman, fresh from his success with The Sandman, an opportunity to play in the sandbox with a bevy of their silver age B list characters, weaving read more

While a film may be 2 hours or more in length, there are those special moments - unforgettable moments - that linger in the heart and mind. These moments can crystallize in a flash all we need to know about a character or their story. They are the poetry of motion or a word or a look that jolts the read more

It’s Magic, Charlie Brown is the dramatically inert tale of Charlie Brown (Michael Mandy) turning invisible. It takes a while for him to turn invisible, with the first half or so of the special spent on a magic show. Magic opens with Charlie Brown demanding Snoopy go to the library to better himsel read more

The Miracle of Magic is a funny title for the chapter since nothing really miraculous happens. There’s some anti-miracles. Maybe it refers to the curse of the Clay people getting lifted, which involves magical receptacles, but not really magic itself. It’s a strange sequence where the still suspici read more

Queen of Magic has a lot going on. After the perfunctory cliffhanger resolution, there’s another chase sequence (of sorts) through the Clay Men’s caves. It takes a while–and has Buster Crabbe and company duking it out with the actual bad guys (Beatrice Roberts’s human thugs)–but eventually read more

Every once and a while, Magic Mike XXL throws in some vague nod towards having character development. It doesn’t. And the movie knows it doesn’t need any, but it still pretends it does. All of the characters have the same arc, with the exception of “lead” Channing Tatum. He’s only the lead read more

Annette Bochenek of Hometowns to Hollywood is hosting The MGM Musical Magic Blogathon from May 18th to the 20th. Click HERE for the laughter and song from the MGM dream factory. Jeanette MacDonald jumped from a dues-paying stage actress and singer to a leading lady of motion pictures with he read more

Annette Bochenek of Hometowns to Hollywood is hosting The MGM Musical Magic Blogathon from May 18th to the 20th. Click HERE for the laughter and song from the MGM dream factory. Jeanette MacDonald jumped from a dues-paying stage actress and singer to a leading lady of motion pictures with he read more

In the spring of 1924, Jane Alice Peters (aka the future Carole Lombard), 15 and a student at the newly-opened Fairfax High School in Los Angeles, was named its Queen of the May. A scout representing comedy king Charlie Chaplin attended the pageant, was impressed by her beauty, and invited Jane/Caro read more

Mike Morgan ( Robert Young ) is a skeptic. He was a former magician who now makes his living selling his magic tricks to other New York City magicians. "Miracles for Sale" is his tagline, and creating illusions is his racket. So, when he comes across a real-life mystery he naturally attempts to pick read more

Heaven and Earth Magic Directed by Harry Smith 1962/US First viewing/YouTube One of 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die   If you have only 1001 slots on a list, why waste one on this thing? This is “art” and there is no discernible story and no dialogue.  It looks like Smith cu read more

Kate Douglas Wiggin's popular 1911 novel "Mother Carey's Chickens" was an ideal bit of literary property for Walt Disney Studios. It featured genteel characters, old-fashioned humor, a sweet story line, and a healthy dose of gaps in the plot ideal for musical intervals. The story centered around a read more

As part of my Carole Lombard research for this blog, I peruse plenty of portraits of the lady, some of which I think I've seen before (but, since there's no Paramount p1202 or other studio tag, I can't completely confirm that I have). However, I'm nearly 100 percent certain I've never seen the pic a read more

As part of my Carole Lombard research for this blog, I peruse plenty of portraits of the lady, some of which I think I've seen before (but, since there's no Paramount p1202 or other studio tag, I can't completely confirm that I have). However, I'm nearly 100 percent certain I've never seen the pic a read more

Music Review : Blur – The Magic Whip (2015, Parlophone) Forever for mainstream music listeners Blur will be linked with their hit Song 2 and for a few more their singer will be remembered as the mysterious voice behind Gorillaz. Blur’s new album, The Magic Whip, features twelve n read more

Harold Lloyd Biography Giveaway! Entry Task for our First Facebook Contest this Month. Time for the first of our two fabulous Classic Movie Book Giveaways this month on Facebook, courtesy of Bear Manor Media!  To kick things off, we’ll be giving away a copy of  Harold Lloyd: Magic in a Pair of read more