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It was once said that Jay C. Flippen had “the face of ill-assembled grandeur – as if Mount Rushmore had been taken apart stone by stone and put back together again by a well-meaning idiot.” This colorful description notwithstanding, the burly character actor was a man of fortitude and determination read more

Happy New Year, film lovers! I hope that your holidays were merry and bright, that you are in full recovery mode from any overindulgences, and that you’re ready to kick back and check out some time-worthy noirs and pre-Code features on TCM! Shadowy Pick: Don’t Bother to Knock (1952) TCM is offering read more

Sometimes it takes me a while to come up with my Shadowy and Satiny picks for the month, either because there aren’t many good films from which to choose, or I’ve already written about them in previous posts, or there are just so many winners, I scarcely can settle on one! But I didn’t have any read more

As Groucho Marx once said, time flies like an arrow; fruit flies like a banana. (He slays me.) It’s hard to believe the month is over already, y’all — it seems like just yesterday I was offering up my noir recommendations for November, and now it’s time to say farewell! It read more

On today, the last Trivia Tuesday of Noirvember 2022, I invite you to join me in a shadowy pool of trivia featuring the gents of noir! In the early 1930s, Dan Duryea was making a living by selling ad space in small newspapers for N.W. Ayer, and commuted daily from his home in White Plains, New York read more

There was nobody in Hollywood like Gloria Grahame. She could be sweetly naïve, sexy and shrewd, broadly humorous, or just plain deadly. And she was equally adept at each. While I’ve enjoyed her performances in films like It’s a Wonderful Life (1946) and Oklahoma! (1955), it’s Grahame’s noirs, read more

It’s the last Sunday of Noirvember 2022, but don’t let that stop you from swimming in a sea of shadowy lines from the noir realm. For our final Sunday of memorable quotes, we’re hearing from the gents. Don’t get in over your head . . . “All right, let’s play Twenty Ques read more

It’s not Barbara Stanwyck’s birthday today. And it’s not the anniversary of her passing. None of her noirs were released on today’s date. Nonetheless, I’m shining the spotlight on this iconic noir veteran today – not on the many noirs in which she appeared (including my favorite, Double read more

One of my favorite Audrey Totter performances is in The Set-Up, where she plays the uber-supportive wife of an aging boxer. Another of my favorite Totter roles is in Tension, where she plays a perfectly awful wife who doesn’t give a second thought to stepping out on her milquetoast husband. Both fil read more

When you think of Marilyn Monroe movies, you may envision Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, or The Seven-Year Itch, or Some Like It Hot, but of course I think of her film noir appearances. During her 15-year career, she was seen in four noirs: The Asphalt Jungle (1950), Clash By Night (1952), Don’t Bo read more

I love sharing obscure films with noir lovers. And I love it even more if they’re readily accessible – for free, even. Well, today’s Noirvember post fits the bill on both accounts, I’m happy to say. I’ve had a copy of Decoy (1946) in my collection for several decades now – it’s a fairly read more

As we continue to celebrate Noirvember 2022, I’m excited to present the first Shadows and Satin giveaway. You can win one of the six books below — just in time for the holidays! Just request a free sample electronic copy of the Dark Pages and you’re in. (If you’re on Twitter, read more

Dive into a lively pool of trivia featuring your film noir faves! Born Dawn Evelyeen Paris, and known at the start of her career as Dawn O’Day, Anne Shirley took her final screen name from her character in RKO’s Anne of Green Gables (1934). Sydney Greenstreet made his feature film debut in The Malte read more

In what seems like just a matter of a few years, YouTube has gone from a place where I used to watch old episodes of All My Children in 10-minute bites, to a site where a plethora of first-rate films noirs abide. Today’s Noirvember post offers my list of the Top 10 films noirs (in no particular orde read more

If it’s Sunday, it’s time to step into another shower of words from the world of noir. This week’s batch of noteworthy lines comes from the mouths of the femmes. Don’t forget your umbrella… “How can a man be so dumb? I’ve wanted to laugh in your face ever since I met you. You’re read more

While she’s arguably one of classic Hollywood’s most beautiful stars, Gene Tierney – in my opinion – doesn’t always get the acclaim she deserves for her acting ability. But she was outstanding in films like The Razor’s Edge (1947) and The Ghost and Mrs. Muir (1947) and turned in memorable read more

One of my favorite underrated noirs is Shakedown (1950), starring Howard Duff, Brian Donlevy, and Lawrence Tierney. Until recently, I’d only seen it a few times, because the copy I owned on VHS was beyond lousy and barely watchable. But all that has changed! Shakedown, I discovered the other day, read more

We all know about Bette Davis eyes. But what about Barbara Stanwyck eyes? Stanwyck is one of my favorite performers – along with Bette Davis and Joan Crawford, she is among the three actresses I love the most. She’s talented, versatile, and beautiful – and she has an equally impressive collection read more

Does the name Douglas Fowley ring a bell? If it does, it might be because of his portrayal of the apoplectic director in Singin’ in the Rain (1952). As for me, I know him from his appearances in five films from the noir era: Fall Guy (1947), Desperate (1947), Behind Locked Doors (1948), Armored Car read more

Dive into a pool of trivia featuring your favorite femmes! Ann Blyth was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance as Veda in Mildred Pierce (1945). At age 17, she was the youngest actress up to that time to be nominated. As a child growing up in Snoqualmie Falls read more