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I was fascinated with It Always Rains on Sunday (1947) long, long before I ever saw it. I came across a picture of the film’s poster on the Internet, was immediately drawn to it, and printed out a copy, where it decorated my work cubicle for several years. That was in the mid-2000s. I didn’t get read more

Every year, I look forward with great anticipation to the announcement of the Summer Classic Movie Book Challenge, the brainchild of Raquel Stecher over at the Out of the Past blog. This event was made for people like me who love buying classic movie-themed books, but never seem to get around to rea read more

After enjoying an absolutely stellar Summer Under the Stars on TCM, it was a delight to see that September’s line-up is chock-full of first-rate pre-Code and film noir features. Here are my picks for the month. Shadowy Pick: Frisco Jenny (1932) As much as I love this feature, I was gobsmacked to rea read more

A U.S. District courtroom in Miami, Florida. April 24, 1946. 3:20 pm. This is the setting for the opening scene of Notorious (1946), one of my many favorite Alfred Hitchcock films, starring Cary Grant, Claude Rains, Louis Calhern – and the subject of the Ingrid Bergman blogathon. Sometimes categoriz read more

I’m always in the mood for Marlene Dietrich. I don’t care if she’s speaking English, French, or German, whether the film is a pre-Code, film noir, or western – black and white or in color – or whether she’s the star or playing a supporting role. Whatever it is, I’m there. So when I learned read more

I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again – August is my favorite month! Why? Because that’s the month that TCM presents Summer Under the Stars, where they feature a different classic film star (or team, in the case of this year’s Nicholas Brothers!) and show their films for 24 hours. This year’s read more

In 1925, writer Theodore Dreiser released An American Tragedy – it was his sixth novel and followed such popular fare as Sister Carrie in 1900 and Jennie Gerhardt in 1911. The novel was, as they say, ripped from the headlines; it was based on the well-known 1906 Gillette murder case, which involved read more

I’ll admit it. I’ve only seen Betty Grable in two films. It’s not because I’m not a fan; I’ve always thought she was lovely, with a gorgeous figure – I’ve even read her biography – but she’s mostly a musical gal, and if you know me, you’ll know I’m not exactly the world’s biggest read more

TCM is serving up a smorgasbord of first-rate pre-Codes and films noirs in July, from tried-and-true favorites to little-known gems. Check out these winners . . . Satiny Pick: If I Had a Million (1932) This is an unusual pre-Code, in more than one way. First off, it’s not your typical uber-scandalou read more

Groucho Marx was onto something when he said time flies like an arrow (and fruit flies like a banana). It’s been almost three months since I returned from the 2023 TCM Film Festival – before I know it, it’ll be time to start gearing up for the 2024 event! Before that happens, let me share read more

There’s good stuff on TCM in June, y’all. Read on . . . Satiny Pick: The House on 56th Street (1933) The TCM pre-Code offerings for the month of June contain several films that I considered for my Satiny pick, including Central Park (1932), Play-Girl (1932), and Christopher Strong (1933) read more

Alfred Hitchcock Presents, a half-hour anthology series created, produced and hosted by – you guessed it – Alfred Hitchcock, aired on CBS-TV from 1955 to 1960, and on NBC-TV from 1960 to 1962. Presented as a mashup of the mystery, horror, and thriller genres, the episodes varied from the undeniably read more

It was the best of times, it was the best of times. The 2023 Turner Classic Movies Film Festival was a stone gas. (And in case you weren’t around in the 1970s, that’s a good thing!) Not too long ago, I returned home after attending my ninth in-person TCM Film Festival, held in Hollywood each spring, read more

There’s not likely, any time soon, to be a couple of back-to-back months of outstanding films like TCM aired in March and April of this year, but May is no slouch in the good-movie department. Check these out! Satiny Pick: Evelyn Prentice (1934) I’m starting my Satiny pick discussion with a read more

It’s hard to believe that in less than two weeks, I’ll be on my way to Los Angeles for the 2023 TCM Film Festival, with my fest-going partner, my older daughter Veronica, by my side. I remember when the dates for the fest were first announced last October – April seemed to be such a long time read more

Usually, in this space, I offer up two recommendations, for the film noir feature and the pre-Code feature airing on TCM in the coming month that I think you should watch. But TCM has thrown quite a hefty monkey wrench into my plans this time around – in the month of April, the channel is airing all read more

I’ve had an idea for a new blog series for quite some time now, and I thought that today was a perfect day for my first entry. Over the decades, I’ve seen innumerable noirs – some that I frankly don’t even remember, many that I’ve loved, and a few that left me cold despite their acclaim from read more

March is Oscar month – and my film noir and pre-Code recommendations this month both star Edward G. Robinson, who not only never won an Oscar, but was never even nominated! I hope you’ll take the time to celebrate this unforgettable performer by checking out two features that showcase his versatile read more

February is a short month, but there’s no shortage of first-rate pre-Codes and noirs on TCM for you to discover, including the two I’ve selected as my recommendations . . . Satiny Pick: Bed of Roses (1933) This film stars one of my favorite pre-Code stars: Constance Bennett. She’s not usually read more

I didn’t know what to expect from El Vampiro Negro. Because it was a Flicker Alley release, and preserved by the UCLA Film and Television Archive, I figured it would surely be worth my time, but as a firm disliker of horror films (and vampires in particular), I’ll admit that the title threw me off read more