Classic Movie Hub Blog

Monsters and Matinees: A lifetime of being terrorized by ‘Grizzly’

Posted on September 11, 2021 by Toni Ruberto

Not all movie monsters fade away with the end credits.

They might make a lasting impression because of their greatness (Universal monsters), uniqueness (The Blob) or silliness (Attack of the Killer Shrews). They can feed on our fears or leave us with new ones like being afraid to swim in the ocean (Jaws).

In extreme cases, they leave us with life-long phobias that have no basis in reality. Take me for example: I’m terrified of quicksand (from watching Tarzan movies), walking into another dimension (The Twilight Zone) and seeing an apparition behind me in a mirror (too many films to mention).

The jaws of death in *Grizzly*, a 1976 horror film that owes a lot to the classic *Jaws*.

My biggest irrational fear: being mauled to death by a bear.

I stay clear of bear exhibits at zoos and other attractions. I don’t go near the woods and certainly won’t camp out overnight. Even staying in a cabin isn’t an option because bears can break windows and knock down walls. I know it’s true because it happened in Grizzly.

The 1976 creature feature about a powerful bear who could rip through barriers, was resistant to guns and as smart as humans was so terrifying that I watched it only once as a kid and never again. Yet an extreme fear of being a Grizzly victim stays with me today.

Family and friends laugh about it. They send birthday cards with pictures of bears and forward bear memes and articles. It became, pun intended, too much to bear. Finally, it was time to face this fear and that meant going back to where it started: to Grizzly. Would it be as horrifying to watch as an adult as my childhood memories led me to believe? I was surprised at the answer.

The movie

Grizzly opens with a nice helicopter ride over a national park. The pilot is talking to two senators about needing the government’s help in protecting national parks from campers and the damage they do. (Bad things always follow a speech like that.)

Suddenly, a lovely musical score by Robert O. Raglan (performed by the National Philharmonic Orchestra of London, no less) begins to soar along with the gorgeous overhead shots of picturesque mountains, forests and streams. It’s serene and romantic – are we watching a travel video or a horror film? Both. (That music returns again and again and was one of the surprises of rewatching the Grizzly.)

Cut to the busy town below that’s overrun by backpackers and campers despite it being off season. There are so many that Forest Ranger Michael Kelly (played by Christopher George) has brought his crew together to deal with the problem. “We’ve got more backpackers pitching tents than raccoons in the woods,” quips one of the rangers.

An innocent camper becomes the first victim of the title character in *Grizzly*.

They’ve got a right to be concerned because those backpackers are about to meet the title character.

Two young female campers are the first victims and authorities are perplexed. Perhaps the girls got too close to a cub (save that for Grizzly II). Or the bear was hungry.

“But bears don’t eat people!” Ranger Kelly insists.

“This one did,” the coroner replies.

Leading the hunt for the bear, Ranger Kelly is joined by war veteran and our helicopter pilot Don Stober (played by Andrew Prine) and the park’s naturalist Arthur Scott (Richard Jaeckel) who camouflages himself in animal hide and arrives with bad news.

As Ranger Kelly, Christopher George makes it his mission to find the deadly *Grizzly*.

“We’ve got a grizzly – and then some,” Scott says. It’s at least 15-feet tall – twice the normal size, judging by its claw marks on a tree – and weighs more than 2,000 pounds. That massive size can mean only one thing: It’s an ancestor of the Arctodus ursus horribilis – the mightiest carnivore during the Pleistocene era.

“What is a million-year-old grizzly doing here?” he’s asked.

“He’s looking for food,” Scott replies.

The film gets into a routine from there: People hunt the grizzly. The grizzly hunts the people. Someone dies. Someone does something stupid. Someone else dies. The hunt continues and it starts again.

This is not a movie where bodies are simply discovered either. Each death is telegraphed, with the tension building as the grizzly stalks its intended victim. The music abruptly becomes ominous. We see the clueless victim from the grizzly’s point-of-view. The grizzly grunts, huffs, growls yet only the viewer hears him. (“Run!” we scream in our heads. “Run!”)

There’s not much a human can do against a bear that stands at least 15 feet tall and can take on a helicopter as in this scene from *Grizzly*.

Immense claws pound the ground as the grizzly gets closer, the music speeds up. It’s intense. There’s none of that fake “teen popping up in a bear costume” schtick to lighten things up, either. (The film’s only comic relief is a scene of backpackers running down the mountain as an evacuation order is announced.)

At multiple points you’ll think “Oh no … the bear is not going to kill (fill in the blank).” Oh, yes it will – this bear is heartless and will claim more victims than you might imagine before it is done.

And it may remind you of another movie monster.

Borrowing inspiration from a classic

On its release, Grizzly was ripped apart for being an unabashed copy of Jaws, made a year earlier.

Judging from the film’s poster that proclaims “The most dangerous Jaws in the land,” it seems the studio would relish the comparison.

In addition to a similar plot (just insert bear for shark), the characters are the same. We see the Roy Scheider authority figure in Christopher George; the grizzled Robert Shaw shark hunter in Richard Jaeckel’s naturalist; the Richard Dreyfuss role is now the pilot who wants to protect nature; and the mayor who won’t close the beach is the park supervisor who, you guessed it, won’t shut down the park.

Grizzly isn’t anywhere near as good, of course. Vincent Canby of The New York Times wrote that it was “such a blatant imitation of Jaws that one has to admire the depth of the flattery it represents, though not the lack of talent involved.”

While my second viewing made those Jaws comparisons clear, that didn’t matter to the adult me who still finds creature features entertaining even if the effects and story don’t hold up.

Let’s take the nightmarish images of bloodied limbs flying across the screen that have haunted me since that first fateful viewing. Today those scenes look so phony you can picture the person just off camera throwing the fake prosthetics. Yet it didn’t matter. It was the idea that a bear could rip your arm or leg off that terrified me, not the ketchup-like blood and the fake arm.

And there was the crux of my lifelong phobia of bears. No matter how weak the movie or how fake the effects may have looked, it was the idea that one of those large claws could slice through my flesh and bone while I walked through the woods picking flowers that was terrifying.

It’s something I could never have imagined without seeing Grizzly. It doesn’t matter that today I see the movie with the flaws I never noticed as a child, the result is the same. Watching Grizzly today didn’t ease my fear of bears, it solidified it. This city-dweller still won’t take chances when it comes to bears.

A long-awaited sequel

Grizzly may have been bashed by critics, but not by moviegoers. Made for only $750,000, it was a financial hit as it pulled in $39 million. Money talks so there was a sequel. If you never heard of it, that makes sense since it would take 37 years to make it to the screen.

Grizzly II: Revenge, also called Grizzly II: The Predator and Grizzly II: The Concert, grew to film folklore after sitting on the shelf for nearly four decades. Part of the curiosity about the film grew because of the brief appearances by future stars George Clooney, Laura Dern and Charlie Sheen. (Given their stardom today, the trio was given top billing in the film and on the posters.)

A young Laura Dern and George Clooney are about to meet a very angry bear in *Grizzly II: Revenge.*

It was filmed in Hungary in 1983 by André Szöts, whose only other directing credit was a TV movie titled Vasárnap Budapesten.

The story is simple: After poachers kill a cub, a mama grizzly goes on the attack – at a rock concert. (The filmmakers staged a rock concert in Hungary for the film that also stars John Rhys-Davies and Louise Fletcher.)

But a producer left early in filming, taking money with him. There were behind-the-scenes fights. And the mechanical bears either broke down or were stolen, depending on the report you read.

The film remained unreleased until producer Suzanne C. Nagy cut through the legalities, added some stock footage, trimmed it a bit, played up the appearances by Clooney, Dern and Sheen and premiered Grizzly II: Revenge at the 2020 Hollywood Reel Independent Film Festival. The reviews have not been kind as it was called a “grievous sequel” by the New York Times and “a terribly shot, badly dubbed, weirdly framed, disjointed rip-off of Jaws,” according to the Chicago Sun-Times.

Judge for yourself. Both Grizzly and Grizzly II: Revenge are available to watch through streaming and rental services.

– Toni Ruberto for Classic Movie Hub

You can read all of Toni’s Monsters and Matinees articles here.

Toni Ruberto, born and raised in Buffalo, N.Y., is an editor and writer at The Buffalo News. She shares her love for classic movies in her blog, Watching Forever and is a member of the Classic Movie Blog Association. Toni was the president of the former Buffalo chapter of TCM Backlot and now leads the offshoot group, Buffalo Classic Movie Buffs. She is proud to have put Buffalo and its glorious old movie palaces in the spotlight as the inaugural winner of the TCM in Your Hometown contest. You can find Toni on Twitter at @toniruberto.

Posted in Horror, Monsters and Matinees, Posts by Toni Ruberto | Tagged Christopher George, Grizzly, Grizzly II: Revenge, Jaws, Richard Jaeckel | 2 Comments

Noir Nook: “Killer” Noir

Posted on September 9, 2021 by Karen Burroughs Hannsberry

Noir Nook: “Killer” Noir

Film noir is not easy to define. Sometimes, it’s not even easy to determine whether a film is noir or not. Whenever I’m asked to describe film noir, I respond that generally speaking, noir films portray a universe typified by corruption, pessimism, and hopelessness, and are commonly distinguished by shadows, reflections, and unique camera angles.

I like to also note that the titles of noir features often contain words that serve as a telling descriptor of this era of filmmaking – such one-word titles as Desperate, Pitfall, Caught, Cornered, and Framed are ideal indicators of the noir sensibility, as are frequently used words in noir titles like ‘fear,’ ‘guilty,’ ‘strange,’ ‘cry,’ and, of course — ‘kill.’

In this month’s Noir Nook, I’m taking a look at my top five noirs with some derivation of the word ‘kill’ in the title – or, as I like to think of them: ‘killer’ noirs.

The Killers (1946)

Loosely based on a short story by Ernest Hemingway, this film opens with the murder of a gas station attendant and ex-boxer known as ‘The Swede,’ by two hired killers. The remainder of the film, consisting of numerous flashbacks, focuses on the efforts of an insurance investigator to determine who killed the Swede and why.

The film stars Burt Lancaster as the Swede, here making his big-screen debut. The cast also includes Ava Gardner, as duplicitous femme fatale Kitty Collins; Edmond O’Brien as the insurance investigator; and William Conrad and Charles McGraw as the memorable murderers of the film’s title.

Noir veteran Robert Siodmak earned an Academy Award nomination for his direction of The Killers (he lost to William Wyler for The Best Years of Our Lives) – it was one of numerous noirs he helmed, including Phantom Lady (1944), Cry of the City (1948), and Criss Cross (1949).

The Killing (1956)

This film centers on an intricately, intelligently designed plan to carry out a racetrack heist. The scheme involves an odd mixture of characters possessing a variety of motives, including a mousy cashier who is desperate to hold onto his gold-digging wife, a bartender caring for his beloved, invalid spouse, and a policeman whose penchant for gambling has left him dangerously in debt.

Using a unique, non-linear storytelling technique, director Stanley Kubrick – who was only 28 when the movie was released – entwined a large cast to create a fascinating film that’s one of my all-time favorites. Some of the film’s most memorable characters were brought to life by Sterling Hayden, as the mastermind of the heist; Elisha Cook, Jr., as the cashier; Marie Windsor as Cook’s spouse; and Vince Edwards, who throws a monkey wrench into the entire proceedings.

Born to Kill (1947)

Featuring two particularly unsavory lead characters, Born to Kill focuses on a double murder, the man responsible for the killings, and the woman who knows he’s responsible but is drawn to him in spite of – maybe even because of – his crimes.

Lawrence Tierney plays the aptly named Sam Wild, a social-climbing psychopath who doesn’t hesitate to kill even though he’s warned by his buddy (Elisha Cook, Jr., again) that it “just isn’t feasible.” And the woman who can’t stay away from him is portrayed by the always excellent Claire Trevor. Others in the cast include Isabel Jewell, as Laury Palmer, one of Sam’s luckless victims; Esther Howard, a friend of Laury’s who tries to find her pal’s killer; and Walter Slezak, a canny private detective.

The film was directed by Robert Wise, whose pedigree not only included several first-rate noirs – notably The Set-Up (1949) and Odds Against Tomorrow (1959) – but also such classics as West Side Story (1961) and The Sound of Music (1965). During his career, he won four Academy Awards and numerous other well-earned accolades.

The Killer Is Loose (1956)

Wendell Corey, who often gets a bad rap for his rather nondescript characters, appears in this feature as you’ve never seen him before, playing “Foggy” Poole, an unbalanced escaped convict, bent on some eye-for-an-eye revenge against the cop who accidentally – but fatally – shot his wife.

The cop is portrayed by Joseph Cotten, and his wife – the object of Foggy’s vengeful desire – is played by Rhonda Fleming. Others on hand include Alan Hale, Jr., best known for his role as the Skipper on TV’s Gilligan’s Island, and John Beradino, who some of you may recognize from the ABC soaper General Hospital, where he played Dr. Steve Hardy from 1963 until his death in 1996.

The Killer Is Loose was directed by Budd Boetticher, who directed Randolph Scott in the 1956 western Seven Men From Now and went on to helm five more acclaimed westerns starring Scott, known as the Ranown Cycle (named after Scott and his producer, Harry Joe Brown).

The Killer That Stalked New York (1950)

An especially timely noir, given the world’s current pandemic state, this feature is about a woman who smuggles stolen diamonds from Cuba – but that’s not all she’s brought with her. Unbeknownst to her, she’s also been infected with smallpox, and upon her return to the Big Apple, the disease quickly begins to spread.

The smuggler/smallpox carrier is Sheila Bennet, played by Evelyn Keyes. As she grows increasingly sicker, it turns out that she’s not only being pursued by health officials trying to stop the disease from mushrooming, but also by federal authorities trying to track down the hot diamonds. And that’s not all – Sheila also discovers that her husband (Charles Korvin), who involved her in the smuggling racket, is two-timing her – with her SISTER! Let’s just say that there’s a lot going on in Sheila’s life.

Unlike the other directors in this “killer” group, the director of The Killer That Stalked New York – Earl McEvoy – is all but unknown today, and only helmed three feature films during his career. He had more experience (although usually uncredited) as an assistant director on such films as The Picture of Dorian Gray (1945) and The Stratton Story (1949). Sadly, he died in 1959 at the age of 45.

And that’s my top five ‘killer’ noirs! Do you have any ‘killer’ noirs on your favorites list? Leave a comment and let me know!

…

– Karen Burroughs Hannsberry for Classic Movie Hub

You can read all of Karen’s Noir Nook articles here.

Karen Burroughs Hannsberry is the author of the Shadows and Satin blog, which focuses on movies and performers from the film noir and pre-Code eras, and the editor-in-chief of The Dark Pages, a bimonthly newsletter devoted to all things film noir. Karen is also the author of two books on film noir – Femme Noir: The Bad Girls of Film and Bad Boys: The Actors of Film Noir. You can follow Karen on Twitter at @TheDarkPages.
If you’re interested in learning more about Karen’s books, you can read more about them on amazon here:

Posted in Noir Nook, Posts by Karen Burroughs Hannsberry | Tagged Alan Hale Jr., Ava Gardner, Born to Kill, burt lancaster, Charles McGraw, claire trevor, Criss Cross, Cry of the City, Elisha Cook Jr, Esther Howard, Evelyn Keyes, film noir, Harry Joe Brown, Isabel Jewell, joseph cotten, lawrence tierney, Marie Windsor, Noir, Noir Nook, Odds Against Tomorrow, Phantom Lady, Randolph Scott, Rhonda Fleming, Robert Siodmak, Robert Wise, seven men from now, stanley kubrick, sterling hayden, the best years of our lives, The Killer is Loose, The Killer that Stalked New York, The Killers, the killing, the picture of dorian gray, the set-up, the sound of music, The Stratton Story, Vince Edwards, walter slezak, wendell corey, west side story, william conrad, william wyler | 1 Comment

Classic Movie Travels: Donald Meek

Posted on September 2, 2021 by Annette Bochenek

Classic Movie Travels: Donald Meek

Donald Meek

A beloved character actor, Thomas Donald Meek was born in Glasgow, Scotland, on July 14, 1878, to Matthew and Annie Meek. Meek was one of four children, with two older sisters named Annie and Maggie as well as a younger brother named Marcus. His family moved to Canada and, later, the United States, eventually settling in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

In Pennsylvania, Meek worked selling dry goods but was also eager to perform on the stage. At the age of eight and long before his family’s move, Meek expressed an interest in acting, first performing publicly in a comic pantomime.

Next, Meek joined an acrobatic team called “The Marvells,” touring throughout the U.S. but leaving the troupe after sustaining many fractures after a fall. Following six months of recovery, he fought during the Spanish-American War in Cuba. There he was wounded in battle and also lost his hair after falling ill with yellow fever. When World War I came about, he enlisted again. Meek served as part of the Canadian Highlanders as a corporal.

Donald Meek You Can't Take it With You (1938) — *You Can’t Take it With You* (1938)

Acting would lead Meek to tour the world. He toured several countries as part of a stage version of Little Lord Fauntleroy and lost his Scottish accent during his wartime travels. After his first few Broadway roles, Meek would find consistency in taking on comedic roles.

Meek would marry Isabella “Belle” Walkin in Boston in 1909, and the couple would relocate to Hollywood. The couple would remain together until Meek’s passing.

As movies grew in popularity, so did Meek’s interest in them. Though he worked at various studios, he took on scores of roles with rapidity and quickly became a highly sought character actor. Among his screen appearances were The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1938), You Can’t Take It With You (1938), Stagecoach (1939), State Fair (1945), and dozens more. In total, Meek would execute over 120 roles in film.

Donald Meek State Fair (1945) — *State Fair* (1945)

Though Meek wished to retire one day and grow hybrid roses, he was not able to realize this dream. He passed away from leukemia on November 18, 1946. At the time of his passing, he was working on Magic Town (1947). Meek was 68 years old.

Today, some of Meek’s residences remain.

In 1910, Meek and his wife lived at 105 Clarendon St. in Boston, Massachusetts, though the home no longer stands.

By the 1930s, they were living in California. In 1936, they lived at 11200 Sunset Blvd. in Los Angeles, California, but this home no longer remains. Their 1940s home at 1977 Mandeville Canyon Rd., however, does stand. The home housed Meek, his wife, and their cook, Edna Leslie. This is the home today:

Donald Meek 1977 Mandeville Canyon Road, Los Angeles, CA — 1977 Mandeville Canyon Road, Los Angeles, CA

Their home at 1500 Beverwil Dr. also stands today and is pictured here:

Donald Meek 1500 Beverwil Drive, Los Angeles, CA — 1500 Beverwil Drive, Los Angeles, CA

Meek was posthumously awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. His star is located on the East side of Vine Street’s 1700 block in Los Angeles.

Donald Meek star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame — Meek’s star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame

Though few tributes to Meek exist, his face continues to be a familiar one to classic film fans.

…

–Annette Bochenek for Classic Movie Hub

Annette Bochenek pens our monthly Classic Movie Travels column. You can read all of Annette’s Classic Movie Travel articles here.

Annette Bochenek of Chicago, Illinois, is a PhD student at Dominican University and an independent scholar of Hollywood’s Golden Age. She manages the Hometowns to Hollywood blog, in which she writes about her trips exploring the legacies and hometowns of Golden Age stars. Annette also hosts the “Hometowns to Hollywood” film series throughout the Chicago area. She has been featured on Turner Classic Movies and is the president of TCM Backlot’s Chicago chapter. In addition to writing for Classic Movie Hub, she also writes for Silent Film Quarterly, Nostalgia Digest, and Chicago Art Deco SocietyMagazine.

Posted in Classic Movie Travels, Posts by Annette Bochenek | Tagged classic movie travels, donald meek, Los Angeles, magic town, Stagecoach, state fair, the adventures of tom sawyer, Travel sites, walk of fame, you can't take it with you | 1 Comment

Western RoundUp: Hour of the Gun (1967)

Posted on August 30, 2021 by Laura Grieve

**Western RoundUp: Hour of the Gun (1967)**

It’s been a few months since I devoted a Western RoundUp column to a single film, so this month I’ll focus on my first-ever viewing of Hour of the Gun (1967).

Hour of the Gun (1967) Movie Poster — *Hour of the Gun* (1967)

In doing so, I’m also returning to the topic of Wyatt Earp. I previously wrote about Earp on film for Classic Movie Hub in 2018, focusing in that column on Frontier Marshal (1939), Tombstone: The Town Too Tough to Die (1942), and Wichita (1955).

In Hour of the Gun Earp is played by a taciturn James Garner, with Jason Robards as Doc Holliday. I’ll note at the outset that in discussing the film I’ll be going into some detail, assuming many readers are familiar with the general outlines of the characters. Those seeking to avoid spoilers may wish to watch the film prior to reading this review.

James Garner, Jason Robards and Robert Ryan in Hour of the Gun (1967) — James Garner, Jason Robards, and Robert Ryan in *Hour of the Gun* (1967)

Hour of the Gun was directed by John Sturges, who had previously directed another film on the Western legend, Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957). That film starred Burt Lancaster as Earp and Kirk Douglas as Doc. It’s still on my future Wyatt Earp viewing list along with Tombstone (1993) and Wyatt Earp (1994).

One of the unique things about Hour of the Gun is apparent as the opening credits begin: The movie begins, rather than ends, with the famed gunfight at the O.K. Corral.

I’ve only seen one other movie which “frontloads” the gunfight at or near the beginning, Dawn at Socorro (1954). The Socorro characters are not named Earp, Holliday, or Clanton, but they are very clearly based on them.

Jason Robards, Frank Converse and James Garner in Hour of the Gun (1967) — Frank Converse, Jason Robards, and James Garner

As also depicted in Tombstone: The Town Too Tough to Die, shortly after the O.K. Corral Morgan Earp (Sam Melville) is gunned down while playing billiards. The combined incidents of the O.K. Corral and Morgan’s death leave Earp and Ike Clanton (the great Robert Ryan) as mortal enemies, with Earp determined to hunt down Clanton and his gang by fair means or foul.

Earp is accompanied on his quest by the loyal Doc, whose ability with a gun belies the fact that he’s in failing health. One by one they track down members of Clanton’s gang, leading to a climactic confrontation with Clanton himself.

James Garner Hour of the Gun (1967) — James Garner

The script by Edward Anhalt conceives Earp in far different terms than the gentlemanly Earp of a Fonda, Scott, or McCrea; this Wyatt mostly (but not completely) stays within the confines of the law, but he’s frankly a rather mean man. Earp cares about his family and his friend Doc – though he and Doc try to hide it most of the time with brusque talk – but anger is the consuming emotion in his life.

It’s quite interesting to see Garner, so often identified with more lighthearted characters, in such a tightly wound role. There’s a stunning scene in the last half hour of the film where Earp shoots someone over and over and over yet again, long past the point of necessity, as he unleashes his rage.

At the movie’s end, though Earp assures the dying Doc he’ll take a prestigious law enforcement job in Arizona, he tells their friend Dr. Goodfellow (Karl Swenson) that he has no intention of doing so. As Earp rides away, a lonely future seems to stretch before him.

Although in some respects Garner’s performance is fairly one-note, at the same time he’s a good enough actor to be compelling. The viewer watches him closely, trying to infer what’s going on in his mind from his actions and especially the look in his eyes.

Robards is quite good as Doc, managing to avoid pathos despite Doc’s alcoholism and poor health. This Doc at times seems to be the voice of Earp’s conscience, particularly when Wyatt determines to follow Clanton into Mexico without a badge. Doc also provides what levity exists in the film; it’s interesting that Robards and Garner flip expectations in this regard.

Ryan has relatively little screen time, but all eyes are on him whenever he appears. He’s frankly terrifying, controlling a large gang of rough men with ease. His performance caused me to remember Spencer Tracy‘s comment when working with Ryan on Bad Day at Black Rock (1955): “He scares the hell out of me.” It’s remarkable acting from someone who offscreen was a quiet family man who co-founded a private elementary school.

Jason Robards, James Garner and Monte Markham in Hour of the Gun (1967) — Jason Robards, James Garner, and Monte Markham

Other pleasures of Hour of the Gun include William Windom in a small but entertaining role as a gambler who owes Doc money and is drafted to serve as a deputy, and a young Jon Voight as villainous Curly Bill Brocius, a role played in previous films by actors including Joe Sawyer and Edgar Buchanan.

The supporting cast also includes Steve Ihnat, William Schallert, Albert Salmi, Charles Aidman, Lonny Chapman, Larry Gates, Monte Markham, and Richard Bull, who like Karl Swenson was later a longtime regular on TV’s Little House on the Prairie.

As befitting a John Sturges film, there are some excellent action scenes, beginning with the gunfight which opens the movie; another particularly good sequence is a gunfight at a train station, choreographed in an exciting fashion.

Robert Ryan in Hour of the Gun (1967) — Robert Ryan

While the depiction of gunfight deaths is relatively restrained in most of the movie, there are a couple of violent moments which tag the film as being made in the late ’60s, including a character taking a bullet in the forehead. It wasn’t more violence than I could handle, but it was definitely more than I expected.

The film feels slightly padded at 110 minutes, and I think it could have been shaved down closer to 90 without viewers missing anything of significance. A good example is a prolonged sequence of a woman, never seen again, waking up her husband in time for him to witness an attack on Virgil Earp (Frank Converse). A full minute probably could have been excised right there.

I was somewhat amused by a title card over the gunfight telling viewers “This picture is based on fact. This is the way it happened.” That statement can be taken with the proverbial grain of salt, for too many reasons to detail here.

The fine cinematography was by Lucien Ballard, with much of the movie filmed on location in Arizona and Mexico. The score was by the great Jerry Goldsmith.

Overall I felt Hour of the Gun, while not reaching greatness, was a solid, worthwhile entry in the cinematic history of Wyatt Earp.

…

– Laura Grieve for Classic Movie Hub

Laura can be found at her blog, Laura’s Miscellaneous Musings, where she’s been writing about movies since 2005, and on Twitter at @LaurasMiscMovie. A lifelong film fan, Laura loves the classics including Disney, Film Noir, Musicals, and Westerns. She regularly covers Southern California classic film festivals. Laura will scribe on all things western at the ‘Western RoundUp’ for CMH.

Posted in Posts by Laura Grieve, Western RoundUp | Tagged Albert Salmi, bad day at black rock, burt lancaster, Charles Aidman, Dawn at Socorro, edgar buchanan, Edward Anhalt, Frontier Marshal, Gunfight at the OK Corral, Henry Fonda, Hour of the Gun, James Garner, Jason Robards, Joel McCrea, John Sturges, jon voight, Kirk Douglas, Larry Gates, Little House on the Prairie, Lonny Chapman, Monte Markham, Randolph Scott, robert ryan, spencer tracy, Tombstone: The Town Too Tough to Die, western, western movies, Western Roundup, westerns, Wichita, william schallert, William Windom, Wyatt Earp | 8 Comments

Cecil B. DeMille’s Hollywood – Book Giveaway (Sept)

Posted on August 29, 2021 by Annmarie Gatti

“Cecil B. DeMille’s Hollywood”
We have Four Books to Giveaway this Month!

CMH is happy to announce our next Classic Movie Book Giveaway as part of our partnership with University Press of Kentucky! This time, we’ll be giving away FOUR COPIES of “Cecil B. DeMille’s Hollywood” by Robert S. Birchard.

In order to qualify to win this book via this contest giveaway, you must complete the below entry task by Saturday, Sept 25 at 6PM EST. Winners will be chosen via random drawings.

…..

We will announce our four lucky winners on Twitter @ClassicMovieHub on Sunday, Sept 26, around 9PM EST. And, please note that you don’t have to have a Twitter account to enter; just see below for the details.

To recap, there will be FOUR WINNERS, chosen by random, all to be announced on Sept 26.

…..

And now on to the contest!

ENTRY TASK (2-parts) to be completed by Saturday, September 25, 2021 at 6PM EST

1) Answer the below question via the comment section at the bottom of this blog post

2) Then TWEET (not DM) the following message*:
Just entered to win the “Cecil B DeMille’s Hollywood” #BookGiveaway courtesy of @KentuckyPress & @ClassicMovieHub – #EnterToWin http://www.classicmoviehub.com/blog/cecil-b-demilles-hollywood-book-giveaway-sept/

THE QUESTION:
What is your favorite Cecil B. DeMille film and why? And, if you’re not familiar with his work, why do you want to win this book?

*If you do not have a Twitter account, you can still enter the contest by simply answering the above question via the comment section at the bottom of this blog — BUT PLEASE ENSURE THAT YOU ADD THIS VERBIAGE TO YOUR ANSWER: I do not have a Twitter account, so I am posting here to enter but cannot tweet the message.

NOTE: if for any reason you encounter a problem commenting here on this blog, please feel free to tweet or DM us, or send an email to clas…@gmail.com and we will be happy to create the entry for you.

ALSO: Please allow us 48 hours to approve your comments. Sorry about that, but we are being overwhelmed with spam, and must sort through 100s of comments…

…..

Don’t forget to check our chats in our Screen Classics Discussion Series with University Press of Kentucky and @CitizenScreen. You can catch them on Facebook and YouTube:

Jayne Mansfield: The Girl Couldn’t Help It — with Author Eve Golden

…..

Vitagraph: America’s First Great Motion Picture Studio – with Author Andrew Erish:

…..

Jane Russell and the Marketing of a Hollywood Legend – with Author Christina Rice:

…..

Growing Up Hollywood with Victoria Riskin and William Wellman Jr:

…..

About the Book: Cecil B. DeMille was the most successful filmmaker in early Hollywood history. Cecil B. DeMille’s Hollywood is a detailed and definitive chronicle of the screen work that changed the course of film history and a fascinating look at how movies were actually made in Hollywood’s Golden Age. Drawing extensively on DeMille’s personal archives and other primary sources, Robert S. Birchard offers a revealing portrait of DeMille the filmmaker that goes behind studio gates and beyond DeMille’s legendary persona. In his forty-five-year career DeMille’s box-office record was unsurpassed, and his swaggering style established the public image for movie directors. DeMille had a profound impact on the way movies tell stories and brought greater attention to the elements of decor, lighting, and cinematography. Best remembered today for screen spectacles such as The Ten Commandments and Samson and Delilah, DeMille also created Westerns, realistic “chamber dramas,” and a series of daring and highly influential social comedies. He set the standard for Hollywood filmmakers and demanded absolute devotion to his creative vision from his writers, artists, actors, and technicians.

Click here for the full contest rules.

Please note that only United States (excluding the territory of Puerto Rico) and Canada entrants are eligible.

Good Luck!

And if you can’t wait to win the book, you can purchase them on amazon by clicking below:

…..

–Annmarie Gatti for Classic Movie Hub

Posted in Books, Contests & Giveaways, Posts by Annmarie Gatti | Tagged author Robert S. Birchard, cecil b. demille, Cecil B. DeMille's Hollywood | 36 Comments

Film Noir Review: Where Danger Lives (1950)

Posted on August 26, 2021 by Danilo Castro

“I didn’t fall in love with a woman – I fell in love with a patient.”

Robert Mitchum was part of a generation of leading men who rose to prominence in film noir. Along with Burt Lancaster, Alan Ladd, and Kirk Douglas, he was a B-lister who’s pulpy charisma catapulted him to A-list status. While these other stars used noir as a stepping stone, however, Mitchum stayed firm. He continued to prioritize noir well into the 1970s, confidently earning the moniker that Eddie Muller bestowed upon him: “the quintessential noir protagonist”.

Mitchum’s resume is stocked with classics, chief among them Out of the Past (1947), The Night of the Hunter (1955), and Cape Fear (1962), but the lesser noir titles are often the ones that speak to the quality and longevity of his artistry. One such title is the John Farrow-directed Where Danger Lives (1950), which puts a uniquely energetic spin on Mitchum’s doomed sap persona.

Dr. Jeff Cameron (Mitchum) is due to finish his shift at the hospital when a suicide victim is rushed into the emergency room. The victim is Margo Lannington (Faith Domergue), who becomes smitten with the doctor and begins seeing him in secret. Their romance reaches a breaking point when it’s revealed that Margo is married, but a series of tragic events conspire to keep these two lovers together. They ditch San Francisco and head for the Mexican border, all the while contemplating possible murder charges.

The notion of a fugitive couple was nothing new by 1950, but screenwriter Charles Bennett manages to inject some interesting wrinkles into the main dynamic. Firstly, Cameron is not a criminal, nor is he trying to escape a criminal past, like so many of Mitchum’s other characters. He’s a model citizen with a respectable practice, making his slide into deviancy all the more tragic. Secondly, Margo is not a malicious woman. She has moments of ruthlessness, but her actions are couched in instability rather than malice. The script goes out of its way to suggest that Margo has genuine feelings for Cameron, and hopes that he doesn’t become wise to her checkered psychological past.

Love on the rocks: Mitchum runs into yet another doomed noir romance.

Those who’ve seen Where Danger Lives know the most distinct element of the film is the concussion that Cameron suffers during the first act. Margo’s husband hits him over the head with a fire poker during a heated struggle, and the side effects of the injury handicap him throughout the rest of his escape. It’s a simple, inspired choice from both a narrative and aesthetic standpoint. Narratively, it dulls Cameron’s wits and makes him more susceptible to Margo at a time when he needs them most. Aesthetically, it allows cinematographer Nicholas Musuraca to emphasize dimly-lit close ups, drawing out the sleepiness in Mitchum’s eyes like few films ever have.

Mitchum always cuts an imposing figure onscreen, but here, he’s allowed to give a more fully realized physical performance. The confidence of his strut gives way to a gradual loss of bodily function, resulting in painful falls or near-crashes on the freeway. The final act of the film is downright painful to watch, as the entire half of Cameron’s body stiffens from paralysis. The vulnerability this imbues is rare in the gallery of Mitchum saps, as most of them feign control until the very end. Cameron doesn’t even bother pretending— he knows he’s doomed.

Mitchum’s dwindling physical state is one of the film’s inspired touches.

Faith Domergue is a worthy sparring partner for the reeling Mitchum, especially when she leans into her character’s unstable side. Domergue was a protege/former lover of Howard Hughes who never got the chance to shine as brightly as she could have, and it’s evident from her work here that she was far more than a pretty face.

The scene where she tries to smother Cameron with a pillow is set afire through her body language and increasingly hyperactive delivery. It’s a scenery-chewing moment that Domergue nails without sacrificing the kernel of humanity that makes her character so tragic. In the end, Margo is a noir casualty we know all too well: someone who wants a happy life so badly they’re willing to commit atrocious acts to get it.

Where Danger Lives is by no means a classic– the film loses steam when the couple drive through Arizona, and the finale, while dramatic, is too eager to undercut the bait-and-switch of Cameron’s “murder”– but it has enough unique elements to distinguish itself as a terrific noir. The implementation of a debilitating injury as a ticking clock is one that still feels inspired today, and the game performances by Mitchum, Domergue, and Claude Rains (in a wicked cameo) makes this trek to the dangerous side of life well worth taking.

TRIVIA: While Cameron describes his injury as a concussion, his symptoms are more consistent with that of an evolving subdural hematoma.

…..

–Danilo Castro for Classic Movie Hub

Danilo Castro is a film noir aficionado and Contributing Writer for Classic Movie Hub. You can read more of Danilo’s articles and reviews at the Film Noir Archive, or you can follow Danilo on Twitter @DaniloSCastro.

Posted in Film Noir Review, Posts by Danilo Castro | Tagged claude rains, Faith Domergue, robert mitchum, where danger lives | 2 Comments

Silents are Golden: 5 Flapper-Themed Films From The 1920s

Posted on August 25, 2021 by Lea Stans

Silents are Golden: 5 Flapper-Themed Films From The 1920s

In the mood for a film about the Roaring Twenties? Something lighthearted with plenty of bobbed hair, short skirts, hip flasks, and jazz? (Personally, my answer is always “yes.”) Save your modern takes like The Great Gatsby (2013) or Midnight in Paris (2011) for a different time–why not go straight to the source and watch a couple of popular flapper flicks from the 1920s itself?

Joan Crawford in Our Dancing Daughters (1928) — Such as *Our Dancing Daughters* (1928)?

When I say “flapper flick,” I mean silents that revolve around the era’s fun-seeking youth culture, not just films that happen to have a lot of cloche hats. The idea of a “flapper” seemed to really take shape around 1922 when the term morphed from a general term for an impetuous teenage girl to signifying a jazz-loving, bobbed-haired young woman always on the lookout for a fun time. (Her male counterpart was the “sheik,” who tended to favor slicked-back hair, loud vests, and baggy trousers.) Studios were always keen to capitalize on trends, so it didn’t take long for frothy comedy-dramas about partying flappers (with all the relevant clichés) to show up regularly in movie theaters.

Here’s a selection of some of my favorite “flapper films,” perfect for kicking back after a long day with some popcorn (and maybe a highball or two, if you’re feeling extra authentic). I’m betting you’ll get a kick out of them!

5. Our Dancing Daughters (1928)

Joan Crawford dancing the "Charleston" on a table in Our Dancing Daughters (1928) — Joan Crawford dancing the “Charleston” on a table in *Our Dancing Daughters* (1928)

Yes, the sparkling, Charleston-dancing lead actress is that Joan Crawford, who had won numerous dance contests before making her way to Hollywood. In fact, this was the very film that made her a star, a rival to established names like Clara Bow.

We follow the story of Diana, the popular jazz baby who’s a virtuous girl at heart, and her friend Ann, who seems sweet and innocent but who’s really a scheming gold digger. When Diana becomes interested in a handsome man from a wealthy family, Ann schemes to get him for herself. “Wild” party scenes in vast Art Deco mansions complete with showers of balloons liven up the story, and seeing a youthful, vivacious Crawford is a surprising treat.

4. Our Modern Maidens (1929)

Joan Crawford and Anita Paige in Our Modern Maidens (1929) — Joan Crawford and Anita Paige in *Our Modern Maidens* (1929)

A followup of sorts to Our Dancing Daughters, this film again stars Crawford (in her last silent role) and also adds Douglas Fairbanks Jr. (watch for the party scene where he imitates his famous father!).

Crawford is a carefree heiress who’s engaged to a diplomat and unwittingly gets herself involved in a love triangle. The story has some surprisingly scandalous moments; however, it might still seem secondary to the huge parties that are the big centerpieces of the film – and of course, there’s all that Art Deco and fashionable clothing to gawk at again.

3. The Plastic Age (1925)

Donald Keith and Clara Bow in The Plastic Age (1925) — Donald Keith and Clara Bow in *The Plastic Age* (1925)

Quite a few Clara Bow features are great examples of flapper films, and this one also does double duty as a “college film”–another popular subgenre. More and more young people were attending college in the 1920s, and “college life” – at least, its fun side revolving around big football games and coed parties – was a familiar topic.

While Bow is the real draw of the film, its star was Donald Keith, playing the athlete Hugh Carver. Hugh is clumsily trying to get through his freshman year at Prescott College when he meets the popular Cynthia, who introduces him to life with the “fast set.” After a few parties too many start to affect his grades, his father gives him an ultimatum: “make good” or you can’t come home.

Based on a popular 1924 novel, The Plastic Age was a huge hit and the first big film that Bow appeared in. The rest, as you undoubtedly know, is history.

2. Synthetic Sin (1929)

Colleen Moore in Synthetic Sin (1929) — Colleen Moore in *Synthetic Sin* (1929)

Who was considered the flapper of her generation? Arguably it was the slender Colleen Moore with her iconic straight bob – no one less than F. Scott Fitzgerald himself said, “I was the spark that lit up flaming youth, and Colleen Moore was the torch.”

Like in The Plastic Age, Synthetic Sin offers two themes for the price of one – a story of a small-town girl trying to make good, and a look into the gangster underworld of New York. The ambitious young Betty gets the part of a “wicked” woman in her sweetheart’s play, but she isn’t up to the task, and the play bombs. Deciding she needs some “sinful” experience, Betty decides to go to New York City and soak up some of that wicked local color. Naturally, she gets (innocently) involved with a criminal gang. The plot is all the more fascinating when we consider that the gangsters are based on the kind of real-life figures audiences would have read about in the papers.

1.Why Be Good? (1929)

Colleen Moore in Why Be Good? (1929) — Colleen Moore in *Why Be Good?* (1929)

Another Colleen Moore vehicle, you arguably can’t get much more “Jazz Age” than this frothy feature. Bobbed hair, trendy frocks, partying, necking, night clubs, Art Deco, fast cars, hip slang, hooch flasks –Why Be Good? truly has it all. Even a Charleston contest!

Moore plays Pert, a spunky, self-assured jazz baby who adores dancing all night in the hippest of clubs. Of course, she’s actually a “good girl” at heart, just happening to be – as she puts it – “naturally too hot for this old folks’ home!” At a club one night she meets the handsome Winthrop, a department store owner’s son, and after they flirt and dance all evening he considerately drives her home. When all the partying makes her late to work the next morning, she discovers to her surprise (and embarrassment) that her new boss is no other than Winthrop.

This sleekly-produced film knows all the flapper tropes – almost too well – and is also highly aware of how flapper culture was being discussed at the time. It’s an excellent time capsule in more ways than one.

So! I hope you’re intrigued enough to check out at least a couple of these films. Since much of the exciting Jazz Age is familiar to us more from modern movies and Halloween costumes, it’s fascinating to see how flappers were portrayed in the actual 1920s, when the culture was fresh and new.

Flapper fashion 1920s — Iconic flapper fashion of the 1920s

…

–Lea Stans for Classic Movie Hub

You can read all of Lea’s Silents are Golden articles here.

Lea Stans is a born-and-raised Minnesotan with a degree in English and an obsessive interest in the silent film era (which she largely blames on Buster Keaton). In addition to blogging about her passion at her site Silent-ology, she is a columnist for the Silent Film Quarterly and has also written for The Keaton Chronicle.

Posted in Posts by Lea Stans, Silents are Golden | Tagged Anita Paige, clara bow, colleen moore, Donald Keith, Douglas Fairbanks Jr, Douglas Fairbanks Sr, flapper, flapper culture, joan crawford, Our Dancing Daughters, Our Modern Maidens, silent cinema, silent film, silent films, silent movies, silents are golden, Synthetic Sin, The Plastic Age, Why Be Good? | Leave a comment

Noir Nook: New-to-Me Noir – The House on Telegraph Hill (1951)

Posted on August 23, 2021 by Karen Burroughs Hannsberry

Noir Nook: New-to-Me Noir – The House on Telegraph Hill (1951)

One of the many things that helped sustain me throughout the more-than-year-long COVID-19 shutdown was participating in a weekly classic movie Meetup. Each week, we were assigned a classic film to watch, and then we gathered via Zoom to discuss it. Recently, we were assigned The House on Telegraph Hill (1951), starring Richard Basehart, Valentina Cortese, and William Lundigan. This feature was one of the few noirs that I’d never seen; when I saw that 20th Century Fox logo at the start of the film, my expectations were high – and I’m pleased to say that they were met.

House on Telegraph Hill (1951) Movie Poster — *House on Telegraph Hill* (1951)

Cortese plays Viktoria Kowelska, who we first meet when she is imprisoned in Germany’s Bergen-Belsen concentration camp during World War II. Viktoria has befriended one of her fellow captives, Karin Dernakova (Natasha Lytess), whose young son was sent to America to live with a wealthy aunt. Viktoria is protective of her weakening friend, but despite her efforts, Karin dies and when the opportunity presents itself, Viktoria assumes Karin’s identity. Although she later learns that Karin’s aunt has died, Viktoria eventually travels to New York and presents herself as the mother of Karin’s son, Chris (Gordon Gerbert), and meets the boy’s appointed guardian, Alan Spender (Basehart). Alan quickly falls for Viktoria, and after a whirlwind courtship, she agrees to marry him, fully aware that the union will further solidify her place in America. Alan takes his new bride to San Francisco, where she meets her “son” and his longtime governess, Margaret (Fay Baker), but once Viktoria settles with this motley crew into the family mansion on Telegraph Hill, she finds that she’s gotten more than she bargained for.

The red flags start popping up immediately. Why doesn’t Alan want to sleep with his wife on their first night in their San Francisco home? What kind of relationship does the governess have with Alan? What’s the deal with the playhouse that Chris isn’t allowed to play in? And what’s in the photo album that Margaret doesn’t want Viktoria to see? The film doles out its secrets like pieces of candy and you’ll eat them up!

The house used in the film still stands today!

The House on Telegraph Hill is available for viewing (for free!) on YouTube – if you’ve never seen it, check it out and let me know what you think! And in the meantime, enjoy the following trivia tidbits about the film . . .

Telegraph Hill was ably directed by Robert Wise, whose noir pedigree includes such gems as Born to Kill (1947), The Set-Up (1949), and Odds Against Tomorrow (1959). Wise was nothing if not versatile – he also helmed West Side Story (1961) and The Sound of Music (1965).

The real Karin was played by Natasha Lytess, who appeared in only a handful of feature films, but was better known as the acting coach for Marilyn Monroe from the late 1940s through the mid-1950s. It’s said that after every take on the 1950 noir The Asphalt Jungle, Marilyn looked to the ever-present Lytess for approval or disapproval of her performance; reportedly you can see one of these glances at the very end of Monroe’s first scene in the movie. Lytess died of cancer in May 1963, less than a year after the death of Monroe. (You can also see Lytess on YouTube, in a clip from the popular quiz show What’s My Line, on which she appeared as a contestant.)

Richard Basehart and Valentina Cortese in House on Telegraph Hill (1951) — Richard Basehart and Valentina Cortese in *House on Telegraph Hill* (1951)

Valentina Cortese and Richard Basehart first met during the filming of this feature and were married the same year of its release, 1951. The union lasted nine years.

The film was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Art Direction (now known as Best Production Design); it lost to A Streetcar Named Desire.

A local San Francisco restaurant, Julius’ Castle, built in 1922, was used as the exterior of the house in the film. A façade was built around parts of the structure to hide certain elements, such as the name of the restaurant. The restaurant closed in 2008 and was put up for sale; the current owner hopes to reopen the restaurant by the end of 2021.

Take a trip to 1950s San Francisco and visit the House on Telegraph Hill. You’ll be glad you did.

…

– Karen Burroughs Hannsberry for Classic Movie Hub

You can read all of Karen’s Noir Nook articles here.

Posted in Noir Nook, Posts by Karen Burroughs Hannsberry | Tagged A Streetcar Named Desire, Born to Kill, Fay Baker, film noir, Gordon Gerbert, marilyn monroe, Natasha Lytess, Noir, Noir Nook, Noir Trivia, Odds Against Tomorrow, richard basehart, Robert Wise, the asphalt jungle, The House on Telegraph Hill, the set-up, the sound of music, Valentina Cortese, west side story, William Lundigan | 1 Comment

Monsters and Matinees: With Beauty and Brains, Mara Corday Battled the Beasts

Posted on August 14, 2021 by Toni Ruberto

With Beauty and Brains, Mara Corday Battled the Beasts

My lifelong obsession with the horror classic Tarantula is well known among my family and friends.

The second column I wrote for Classic Movie Hub detailed my love for the film even though it still gives me nightmares.

There is just so much to enjoy: a cool monster, a scientist dabbling in ill-advised experiments, a few good scares, fun atmospheric music/sounds and a handsome leading man. It also has a personal bonus of memories of watching it late at night with my dad.

And then there is Steve.

Actress Mara Corday portrayed strong, resilient women in a trio of 1950s horror films which was unusual for the time. Here, she’s pictured in *The Giant Claw*.

Steve was the nickname of the character Stephanie Clayton, played by actress Mara Corday. Being a “Toni” (short for Antoinette), I was always excited to meet another female with a man’s name – especially one as remarkable as Steve.

She was intelligent, beautiful and confident – and I wanted to be like her.

The same could be said about Corday. Although she made only three horror films – Tarantula, The Black Scorpion and The Giant Claw – Corday and that horror film trio left their mark in B-movie creature-feature history.

Her characters in those three films broke the stereotype of women who were relegated to swooning and screaming in horror movies. True, Corday’s characters screamed (wouldn’t you if a tarantula was so large it was looking into your second-story bedroom?) and swooned (her leading men were John Agar, Richard Denning and Jeff Morrow after all), but the women were strong, too.

And they didn’t sit back waiting to be saved.

Mara Corday, from left, John Agar and Leo G. Carroll are about to have a big problem in *Tarantula*. Corday is seen in the impeccable white outfit she wears when we first meet her.

In Tarantula, she was a young biologist who helps a well-meaning professor with his efforts to fight world hunger, only to learn his disastrous experiment caused a tarantula to grow as large as a house.

In The Black Scorpion, she played a rancher fighting oversized scorpions that were unleashed by a volcanic explosion in Mexico.

And in The Giant Claw, she was a mathematician saving the world from a killer flying object.

It’s not the men who figure out what’s going on with the beast in the sky in *The Giant Claw*, but the mathematician played by Mara Corday.

* * * *

Mara Corday was born Marilyn Joan Watts on Jan. 3, 1930 in Santa Monica, Calif. She was a dancer and model, auditioning at only age 15 to dance in the cabaret-restaurant Earl Carroll Review. It was there that she later decided to change her name to Mara Corday after thinking it was “too plain.”

“In those days, the actresses had names like Lamarr and Lamour and DeCarlo, so I thought, ‘I’m gonna be something exotic,’ ” she told Tom Weaver in his book It Came from Horrorwood: Interviews with Moviemakers in the SF and Horror Tradition.

She took Corday from a perfume bottle ad and Mara from Marita (“pretty little Mara”), a name she was called by a bongo player at the Mayan Theater where she ushered. The lovely name fits her perfectly and seems natural given her exotic beauty, which is reminiscent of Ava Gardner.

In this publicity photo, it’s obvious why Mara Corday was once named “the most photographed model in the world.”

During the first few years of her film career, Corday was relegated to bit parts in mostly uncredited roles starting with her 1951 debut in Two Tickets to Broadway, followed by such films as Son of Ali Baba (1952), Toughest Man in Arizona (1952), Tarzan and the She-Devil (1953), Drums Across the River (1954) and Francis Joins the WACS (1954).

Corday was signed briefly with producer Hal B. Wallis and as a contract player with Universal-International Pictures. She also continued to model, becoming a popular pin-up girl and magazine cover star. She earned the title of “the most photographed model in the world” after having tens of thousands of photos taken. (She later was a somewhat chaste and clothed Playmate of the Month.)

By 1955, however, she was thrust into the spotlight with director Jack Arnold’s great big-bug classic, Tarantula. Though she was hoping to take on dramatic roles, she was happy to work with Arnold again after starring in his film The Man From Bitter Ridge just a few months earlier.

That’s Mara Corday under the scientific gear along with great character actor Leo G. Carroll in *Tarantula*.

In Tarantula, Corday’s character of Steve gets more than she bargained for after accepting a job as a lab assistant in a small Arizona town. Even as a kid, I was struck by her first appearance in the film as she steps off a bus in the dusty desert town impeccably dressed in a fitted white suit, hat and short gloves. She quickly gets to work helping Professor Deemer (Leo G. Carroll) and looks quite at home holding a clipboard and wearing scientific gear.

In her next film, The Black Scorpion, she spent a lot of time on screen without as much to do. She is resilient and smart as Teresa Alvarez, the head of a ranch located in an area that has been under some type of mysterious attack.

Mara Corday and Richard Denning star in *The Black Scorpion*.

She has a quiet strength as she calms and rallies her terrified workers to return despite the unknown threat, yet she’s also a fitting match in life and love for a visiting geologist played by Richard Denning. I like that she’s allowed to be attractive without being too dolled up, dressed mostly in a rancher’s uniform of pants, button-down shirt, neck scarf and black cowboy hat tilted just right on her head. In later scenes, she glams it up for a few romantic dinners showing women can be tough and beautiful.

For The Giant Claw, Corday plays a mathematician who doesn’t take nonsense from anyone, including a flirtatious scientist and pilot played by Jeff Morrow (admittedly, they do fall quite fast for each other). She helps unravel the mystery along with all the male scientists and military men. She holds her own in meetings surrounded by men and she figures out a key element that can help take down the terror from the sky.

In *The Giant Claw*, Mara Corday shows she can handle a gun to fight off a monstrous attack as well as the guys can, including Jeff Morrow.

* * * *

In January of 1957 – the same year she made The Black Scorpion and The Giant Claw – Corday married actor Richard Long who she met on the set of the 1954 noir Playgirl. Her career tailed off after that.

A publicity photo of Mara Corday and husband Richard Long.

Corday stopped acting just a few years into the marriage to raise her family and was married to Long until his death in 1974. Though they would be married for 17 years, they had problems only two weeks into the marriage and she filed for divorce numerous times.

Sadly it appears from interviews with Corday and other reports, that Long stymied and even sabotaged her career by turning down roles for her behind her back including one on his series The Big Valley.

I’m sorry Corday never had the chance to do the dramatic type of roles she wanted or that she was only able to build off the strong character of Steve in Tarantula in her two other horror films. We could have used more inspirational characters from her.

But we will still appreciate her trio of horror films where she showed us beauty could not have killed the beast without her brains, too.

Her ‘dear friend’ Clint

One of the most popular pieces of film trivia is that Clint Eastwood has an uncredited role as a pilot toward the end of Tarantula. The film started a lifelong friendship between Corday and Eastwood. Years later, he cast her in his films when she was in financial need after twice losing her insurance.

Mara Corday is the waitress pouring a bucket of sugar into Clint Eastwood’s coffee to get his attention in the famous “Go ahead, make my day” scene from *Sudden Impact.*

The roles were small but important. In Sudden Impact (1983) she was the waitress pouring sugar into Eastwood’s coffee in the iconic “Go ahead, make my day scene.” He also cast her in The Gauntlet (1977), Pink Cadillac (1989) and her final film, The Rookie (1990). Corday considers Eastwood a dear friend, calling him a “godsend” in interviews.

– Toni Ruberto for Classic Movie Hub

You can read all of Toni’s Monsters and Matinees articles here.

Toni Ruberto, born and raised in Buffalo, N.Y., is an editor and writer at The Buffalo News. She shares her love for classic movies in her blog, Watching Forever. Toni was the president of the former Buffalo chapter of TCM Backlot and now leads the offshoot group, Buffalo Classic Movie Buffs. She is proud to have put Buffalo and its glorious old movie palaces in the spotlight as the inaugural winner of the TCM in Your Hometown contest. You can find Toni on Twitter at @toniruberto.

Posted in Horror, Monsters and Matinees, Posts by Toni Ruberto | Tagged B-movies, Clint Eastwood, creature feature, Jack Arnold, Jeff Morrow, Mara Corday, Richard Denning, tarantula, The Black Scorpion, The Giant Claw | 2 Comments

Silver Screen Standards: Eliza’s Voice in My Fair Lady (1964)

Posted on August 10, 2021 by Jennifer Garlen

Silver Screen Standards: Eliza’s Voice in My Fair Lady (1964)

The socio-economic and geographical markers of dialect loom large in George Bernard Shaw’s influential play, Pygmalion, its 1938 film adaptation, and the splashy musical version that stars Audrey Hepburn as the fair lady of its title. If you’ve never had to think much about the way you talk, this theme might not be uppermost in your mind when you watch My Fair Lady (1964), but for me, it’s always at the heart of the story. When I went to college at 17, I found out that my rural Georgia twang led people to make a lot of assumptions about me, and I set to work to change it, or at least moderate it, which led to some bitter criticism from my mother. Nobody criticizes Eliza Doolittle for abandoning her Cockney accent, but she does eventually have to confront the ways in which changing her voice changes her identity. If she isn’t a Cockney flower girl, and she isn’t really a member of the idle aristocracy, then who is she? She certainly won’t get the answer from Professor Henry Higgins, who thoughtlessly sets Eliza on this journey without understanding or even being interested in its consequences.

My Fair Lady (1964) Audrey Hepburn as Eliza Doolittle, Wouldnt it be Loverly? — Poor, hard-working Eliza imagines her idea of the good life in “Wouldn’t It Be Loverly” without realizing just how different it will be.

The plot of My Fair Lady more or less follows Shaw’s original play and the 1938 film starring Leslie Howard and Wendy Hiller, and the story has been retold so many times that you already know it. Professor Higgins (Rex Harrison), a temperamental narcissist, bets his new friend Colonel Pickering (Wilfrid Hyde-White) that he can pass Eliza off as a lady in high society. The ruse involves a lot more than speech, of course, as Higgins realizes when he first takes Eliza out in public and she beautifully enunciates her belief that her aunt was “done in” by greedy relatives. With help from his mother (Gladys Cooper) and Colonel Pickering, Higgins completes his efforts to transform Eliza, but he fails to recognize her part in winning his bet. She leaves him, much to his puzzlement and dismay, only to return at the very end, thereby seemingly validating his insufferable egotism (Shaw flatly rejected the possibility of such an ending, and so do I, especially when Jeremy Brett makes such an attractive alternative in the 1964 version).

The musical had originated on Broadway with Julie Andrews as Harrison’s leading lady, and much has been said about Jack Warner’s rejection of Andrews, the casting of Hepburn, and the subsequent dubbing of most of Hepburn’s songs. Despite all of that, the movie turned out to be both a box office and Oscar hit, with 12 Academy Award nominations and 8 wins, including Best Picture, Best Actor (Harrison), Best Director (George Cukor), and Best Music (André Previn). Hepburn wasn’t nominated for Best Actress but is better known for her Eliza today than Wendy Hiller, who had played the role on stage and did earn an Oscar nomination for Pygmalion but lost to Bette Davis for Jezebel (1938).

My Fair Lady (1964) Audrey Hepburn as Eliza Doolittle, Rex Harrison as Henry Higgins, The Rain in Spain — Shedding her Cockney accent is the hard work of the first part of the film, but Eliza has a breakthrough with “The Rain in Spain.”

My Fair Lady continues to be popular today, thanks in part to Hepburn’s radiance, the lively songs, and the gorgeous, Oscar-winning costume design by Cecil Beaton, but its themes also persist and repeatedly turn up in newer films that lead viewers back to it, if not to Shaw’s source material. Pretty Woman (1990) is probably the most famous of the modernizations, but more recently we’ve also seen She’s All That (1999) and the 2014 TV series Selfie as well as numerous movies that tap into the makeover as social ladder aspect of the story, including Can’t Buy Me Love (1987) and The DUFF (2015).

My Fair Lady (1964) Audrey Hepburn as Eliza Doolittle, Jeremy Brett as Freddy Eynsford-Hill — At the races, Eliza looks beautiful and enunciates well but reveals her difference from the well-heeled crowd in her behavior and conversation topics.

Ironically, though, the newer iterations all abandon the theme of dialect that Shaw builds on as the central issue of his play. In Pygmalion and My Fair Lady, Eliza’s speech betrays her lower-class origin more surely than her clothes or her manner; without the elocution lessons, she can never get a better job or ascend the social ladder no matter how good she looks. Higgins boasts at the opening that he can tell where someone is from within six miles or even two streets inside London, and although that might be an exaggeration, it hints at the connections between speech and place, both in terms of location and social status. Eliza’s speech communicates her place; once her speech changes, she loses the old place but doesn’t feel like she belongs in the new one, either. The newer movies, like many viewers, don’t register the importance of dialect and instead see the makeover as the key element; give the girl a dress, fix her hair and apply some makeup, and the rest takes care of itself, but that isn’t at all the point Shaw wants to make.

My Fair Lady (1964) Audrey Hepburn as Eliza Doolittle, Rex Harrison as Henry Higgins, fancy ball — Having completed her transformation, an elegant Eliza prepares to attend the ball with Higgins and Colonel Pickering.

Even My Fair Lady undermines the importance of Eliza’s speech as key, by having Marni Nixon dub most of Hepburn’s songs; Jack Warner cast Eliza based on her looks and stardom, and rejected the more powerful singer Julie Andrews, but then denied Hepburn her own voice in the role even though the actress had prepared and expected to sing. Thus Warner played the Higgins/Pygmalion role in real life, taking Eliza’s voice away and replacing it to suit his expectations, and of course, that’s exactly how many powerful men in Hollywood have behaved to countless women. They, too, see themselves as the Pygmalion of Greek myth, molding formless clay into the perfect Galatea, but in Shaw’s telling, Eliza is already a fully-formed person with a raw but very real voice, and it is she who seeks out Higgins and tries to hire him as a dialect coach.

My Fair Lady (1964) Audrey Hepburn as Eliza Doolittle, ending pink dress — The musical ends with Eliza silent and smiling as Higgins dominates the scene with his smug behavior. George Bernard Shaw would have hated it.

It gets lost in the forced romantic ending that both film versions adopt, but the real instigator of Eliza’s evolution is Eliza herself. Perhaps that’s one reason Shaw resisted the alteration to his play’s ending so fiercely; he even wrote a postscript to it called “What Happened Afterwards” in which he insisted that Eliza should never end up marrying Higgins. Unfortunately, Shaw had lost the battle over the ending for the 1938 film, and by 1964, the “happy” version was firmly ensconced and My Fair Lady repeated it. On the bright side, a 1994 restoration of the movie uncovered some of Hepburn’s vocal tracks, and the premiere screening of the restored film featured her version of “Wouldn’t It Be Loverly” during the end credits. Those tracks appear as bonus features on the 50^th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray, so Hepburn’s version of Eliza’s voice can finally be heard.

The popularity of My Fair Lady has led to numerous spoofs and homages in TV series like Moonlighting, The Andy Griffith Show, The Simpsons, and Family Guy, but for even more cinematic variations on the Pygmalion theme, try Educating Rita (1980), Trading Places (1983), Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen (2004), and Ruby Sparks (2012). More unusual retellings can be found in One Touch of Venus (1948) and Mannequin (1987). If you’re interested in stories about people who change their speech to get ahead in life, learn more about the history of the mid-Atlantic accent in classic Hollywood or delve into the biographies of actors like Cary Grant and Claude Rains.

…..

— Jennifer Garlen for Classic Movie Hub

Jennifer Garlen pens our monthly Silver Screen Standards column. You can read all of Jennifer’s Silver Screen Standards articles here.

Jennifer is a former college professor with a PhD in English Literature and a lifelong obsession with film. She writes about classic movies at her blog, Virtual Virago, and presents classic film programs for lifetime learning groups and retirement communities. She’s the author of Beyond Casablanca: 100 Classic Movies Worth Watching and its sequel, Beyond Casablanca II: 101 Classic Movies Worth Watching, and she is also the co-editor of two books about the works of Jim Henson.