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The 'O Canada' Blogathon! My thoughts on Norma Shearer Norma Shearer with frequent co-star Robert Montgomery in THEIR OWN DESIRE (1929). I hadn't discovered Norma Shearer until I was in my twenties, but when I did, my discovery was akin to a patriotic awakening. She was Canadian! And I' read more

My sick day survival guide! Billy Idol Two words, one person: Billy Idol. He's a classic, right? Bah! Either way, I can't get enough of his new autobiography called DANCING WITH MYSELF (Simon & Schuster, 2014). I pre-ordered it a couple of weeks ago and since it's arrived in the post I h read more

Book Look! 11 Pre-Code Hollywood Movie Histories by Cliff Aliperti I must mention pre-Codes at least three times a week on this blog (and that makes perfect sense considering I post on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays). So basically I pretty much mention pre-Codes in every single post. If yo read more

Making classic movies sound 'cool' "Hi, my name is Vanessa. It's a pleasure to finally meet you!" "Hi Vanessa, I'm so-and-so and it's lovely to meet you too! So, what do you do?" "I'm a writer." "Wonderful! How interesting! What do you write about?" "Mostly current event stuff and life read more

Do I need classic film? The simple answer? YES. Now, here's the long-winded answer: I don't think my life truly depends on whether or not I watch/buy/consume/obsess-over classic movies but it does feel nice and it does make me smile on a regular basis (which is the best medicine, really). read more

A Modern Silent: London Symphony If you're a regular reader of my blog, you'll know that just last year I completely fell in love with silent films. Give me an ancient black and white film with a beautiful orchestral soundtrack, plenty of emotive faces, an intriguing storyline and no sound w read more

Pre-Code Perversion: Private Lives (1931)* Have you ever watched a movie and thought to yourself: What if this were to happen in real life? If you're at all familiar with the premise of Noel Coward's PRIVATE LIVES you'll know that something like this could very well happen to anyone, really read more

A friendship to write home about! Let me ask you something: if you could pick any classic film star (male or female) to be your best friend in 2014, who would you choose? BUT HANG ON! Before you answer that question, you might want to think long and hard about whether or not this person woul read more

Cineplex Classic Film Series: Dial M For Murder (1954) Classic movie screenings don't happen all that often in the suburbs of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), but when they do you know I'll be there with bells and whistles (and popcorn). Canada's chain of Cineplex movie theatres devises kil read more

Falling out of love with classic film Have you ever found yourself falling out of love with classic movies? I know we're all devoted classic film fans at heart, but I'm sure we've all found ourselves in this predicament before at some point in our lives: the bloom is gone and the mere thoug read more

The Hollywood Revue of 1929 (1929)* I have been waiting YEARS to see this film! Thanks to the kind folks at Warner Archive who sent me a copy of the DVD to review, I have finally been able to strike this film off of my To Watch list. The first I had heard of this film was during a viewing o read more

What it feels like to strike gold at the library I like to visit my local library at least once or twice every week. My Mother is the one who introduced me to the library back when I was a little runt just out of diapers. Books on tape were what I started off with until I was old enough read more

Snog, screw, marry, dump! I get my best blogging ideas in bed.  Oftentimes when I'm drifting off to sleep or just lying under my sheets and duvet in the dark I'll start thinking about blog post ideas and editorial content that I can delve into for some of my freelancing gigs. My mind and read more

What does the script say? My favourite film quotes! Humphrey Bogart and Martha Vickers in a particularly lurid scene in The Big Sleep (1946). "She tried to sit in my lap while I was standing up." -The Big Sleep (1946) If there is one thing I can pretty much guarantee about classic movie read more

My favourite television classics! There's something about vintage television that makes me feel all warm and cuddly inside. Like a piping hot, soothing cup of tea, classic TV series go down like a warm, comforting, life-sustaining dream. Though I'm only in my early thirties - I am, really I a read more

It helps to have icons! In the September 2014 issue of Glamour magazine, Editor-In-Chief Cindi Leive asks: Who do you channel when you're standing in front of your closet in the morning weighing your options? Her answer was comic book heroine Brenda Starr. My answer? It changes from day to d read more

Why YOU should watch classic movies! Just like my mother always used to say: there's a first time for everything! Us classic film bloggers didn't emerge from the womb watching old movies - contrary to what some of us may have you believe. No, each one of us was slowly introduced to classi read more

Crushing hard on silent film! Charles "Buddy" Rogers, Clara Bow, and Richard Arlen star in Wings (1927). Here's something I never thought I'd say: I've become utterly and fabulously obsessed with silent movies! Silent films were something I had always shied away from watching because I tho read more

What would Nick & Nora do? I wish this was my family: Nora, Asta, and Nick Charles in The Thin Man (1934). Last week was the week from hell. The office was in absolute shambles and my personal life didn't fare any better. To say that I was at the end of my rope by Saturday night is an absol read more

Book Look! Ann Dvorak: Hollywood's Forgotten Rebel by Christina Rice Let me confess something to you: although I love reading, when it comes to making my way through a book, I'm a bit of a slow mover. I like to take my time exploring the book's setting and understanding each and every charac read more