Classic Movie Hub Blog

Lives Behind the Legends: Grace Kelly

Posted on March 23, 2021 by Arancha van der Veen

Grace Kelly: The Family Outsider

Grace Kelly is a legend unlike any other: both classic Hollywood star and real-life princess. She seemed to embody the glamour and class of Hollywood’s Golden Age. With her timeless sense of style and effortless beauty, she is still a role model to many women around the world. She made it look so easy: becoming a world–famous actress, then quitting at the top of her game to become European royalty. And she did it all, excuse the pun, with grace. But behind the ease and elegance, Grace was a woman who fought to make something of herself, trying to be her own person against a dominant force throughout her life: her family. It may come as a surprise to some, but Princess Grace was an ‘outsider’ to her family. However, if it was not for this family dynamic, Grace may have never made it to Hollywood or Monaco.

Grace was born into a ‘new money’ family in Philadelphia that enjoyed a significant amount of status within their community. Grace’s father, John Sr. (Jack), had won three Olympic gold medals, owned a successful brickwork contracting company, and was almost elected Mayor of Philadelphia in 1935. Her mother Margaret was the first woman to coach women’s athletics at the University of Pennsylvania. Quite an accomplished pair! Her parents valued athleticism and a grounded attitude above all, but Grace was a sensitive, shy and creative little girl. Her parents, particularly her father, made no secret of the fact that they did not understand her. Grace’s three siblings all took after their athletic and boisterous parents, making her the odd one out. As a child, she was usually putting her creative imagination to good use, playing make-believe with her dolls.

Grace kelly (upper left) and her family — Grace Kelly (upper left) and her family

Grace also had poor timing when it came to siblings: her older brother Kell was the only son, and her older sister Peggy was the first (and favorite) daughter. The only thing Grace had going for her, as the third born, was being the baby of the family, but this changed when her younger sister Lizanne was born when Grace was four years old. Grace openly stated that she resented Lizanne, and Lizanne later admitted that she truly was a ‘brat sister.’ Lizanne loved to make Grace’s life miserable, and older sister Peggy would make Grace do her chores for her. Meanwhile, Kell was busy being groomed to be his father’s successor. Grace was left to fend for herself. ‘We were always competing for everything – competing for love,’ Grace later admitted. Still, she loved her family deeply. But the only person in her family she could really relate to, was her uncle George. As a gay, Pulitzer Prize-winning screenwriter, he was just as much the odd one out as Grace, in their rough and tumble family. They had a great bond and, to Grace, he was a role model in sophistication.

Even though she was ridiculed by her family for her acting aspirations, Grace was undeterred. Acting was her passion and she couldn’t wait to start her life as a young adult in New York City. She turned to her uncle George who helped her get into the Academy of Dramatic Arts. While there, Grace worked hard to get rid of her nasal voice and Philadelphia accent, ending up with a slight British accent instead. Imitating her new accent became the latest joke in the Kelly family. Still, Grace was determined to make something of herself. Her sister Lizanne later admitted that Grace ‘wanted to show daddy she could do it’. Grace would later look at her college days as some of the best days of her life. Finally, she was among like-minded people. She had inherited a strong work ethic from her parents; she worked hard to perfect her craft and made money by modeling on the side.

Perhaps as a result of the troubled relationship she had with her father, Grace almost exclusively dated older men. One of the first, was her acting instructor Don Richardson, who was married. This seemed to be a theme in Grace’s love life, as rumors of her dating married men in the industry were rampant once she became a star. The most controversial one was her affair with Dial M For Murder co-star Ray Milland. He reportedly left his wife of 20 years for her, and the press branded Grace as a home-wrecker and worse. Milland ultimately went back to his wife, but Grace’s Catholic family, who had worked hard for a respectable place in the upper echelons, was fed up with the scandalous news reports. So when a story about Grace and married actor William Holden hit the press, Grace’s father and brother stormed into the office of gossip magazine Confidentiality and roughed up some reporters.

Grace was embarrassed about her family, and her Catholic upbringing made her feel guilty. At the end of the day, what she really wanted was a family of her own. Grace felt she finally found that in designer Oleg Cassini, Gene Tierney’s ex-husband. He was the first man Grace publicly acknowledged as her partner. But tension already set in before he ever even met her family, with her brother Kell telling Time Magazine: ‘I don’t approve of these oddballs she goes out with. I wish she would go out with more athletic types.’ Although her mother kept a more open mind, the very Catholic Jack Kelly refused to accept the twice-divorced designer. Grace privately ranted about her family and told Cassini they should just elope, but in the end, she just couldn’t go against her father. Her family was too important to her.

Grace’s love life might have been messy, but she was still a superstar. She had won an Academy Award, starred in back-to-back box-office successes and was on the cover of magazines everywhere. Unfortunately, her family was a lot harder to impress than the public — especially her father. When asked about her success, her father said: ‘I thought it would be Peggy. Anything that Grace could do, Peggy could always do better.’ Needless to say, Grace felt embarrassed that her father didn’t keep his condescending remarks in the family. She was also concerned about the press attacks on her, and worried that her career had nowhere to go but down.

A solution presented itself in the form of Prince Rainier of Monaco. After meeting when Grace was in France for the Cannes Film Festival, the pair enjoyed a short courtship. Each party was charmed by the other. They wrote each other letters, and romantic feelings soon developed. It wasn’t lost on Grace that this romance could solve her problems. She was incredibly disillusioned with Hollywood, and becoming a Princess could be an exciting new chapter in her life. The rumors about her love life made her feel like a joke and Rainier could finally give her the respectability ánd the family of her own she so craved. Her family was also on her mind as well — after becoming a world-renowned star, they still would not give her the pat on the back she needed. Surely marrying a real-life Prince would suffice? It would give her ‘new money’ family, the ‘old money’ status that eluded them. Something her hard-working father would appreciate.

Grace Kelly, her parents and Rainier during the engagement announcement — Grace Kelly, her parents, and Rainier during the engagement announcement

Rainier was looking to solve a problem too. Monaco was not doing well financially, and without an heir, it would lose its independence. Grace’s Hollywood glamour could rub off on Monaco and attract tourists, and their marriage would hopefully produce an heir. More importantly, they were both ready to settle down and felt that they had found their perfect match. They married after a quick courtship and Grace moved to Monaco. The small principality was over the moon with their glamorous princess.

Grace’s mother was delighted that her daughter was now royalty. But if Grace married Prince Rainier for her father’s approval, she should not have bothered. Jack Kelly was used to being the most important man in any room, and he did not appreciate having a son-in-law who overshadowed him. When he visited the palace, he would ridicule the pretentiousness and protocol. In the six years between the wedding and his death, he only made two trips to Monaco. Still, Grace was heartbroken when her father passed away, and she was reportedly despondent for months after. As Rainier later said: ‘She was oversensitive to her family. They mattered terribly much to her – more, it certainly seemed, than she mattered to them. Though there were strong family ties with the Kelly’s, there wasn’t a lot of heart.’ But Grace refused to give up on them.

Although Grace struggled to adjust to palace life, the birth of her three children brought her much joy. She had hoped to return to acting with the lead in Hitchcock’s Marnie, but after outrage from the public, she accepted the fact that acting was a thing of the past. Instead, she found a creative outlet by making dry flower collages and doing poetry readings. Philanthropy also became important to her as well; among other things, she founded AMADE Mondiale, which promotes and protects the well-being of children around the world.

When Grace finally hit her stride in Monaco, she became the one her family could always turn to. She supported her sister Peggy through two divorces, as well as her brother Kell, when he left his wife for a transsexual woman and subsequently lost his nomination for mayor. She proudly told her friends that she was ‘mother confessor’ to her many nieces and nephews, and they teased her about her tendency to help solve all of her family’s problems. At the end of the day, it was Grace who was always there for her family. She never closed her heart to them and was proud to become the person her loved ones could always turn to.

Grace Kelly and her grand-niece Ellen Jones at the Kelly family home in 1979

In hindsight, Grace’s struggles with her family may well have given her the motivation and perseverance she needed to become the person she wanted to be. Her creativity and sensitivity were a family oddity, and it’s a testament to her strength that she never changed to fit in, or pretended to be something she wasn’t. On the contrary, she fine-tuned these qualities, using them to make a living doing what she loved, and be the best person she could be. Although she felt unaccepted by her family, she always accepted them and reveled in her role as the one her family could always turn to when they needed help.

The sources for the quotes in this article are “Grace: Secret Lives of a Princess” by James Spada and “Grace Kelly: Hollywood Dream Girl” by Jay Jorgensen and Manoah Bowman.

…..

— Arancha van der Veen for Classic Movie Hub

You can read all of Arancha’s Lives Behind the Legends Articles Here.

Arancha has been fascinated with Classic Hollywood and its stars for years. Her main area of expertise is the behind-the-scenes stories, though she’s pretty sure she could beat you at movie trivia night too. Her website, Classic Hollywood Central, is about everything Classic Hollywood, from actors’ life stories and movie facts to Classic Hollywood myths. You can follow her on Twitter at @ClassicHC.

Posted in Lives Behind the Legends, Posts by Arancha van der Veen | Tagged grace kelly, Oleg Cassini, Prince Rainier of Monaco | 1 Comment

Silents are Golden: The Makeup of Silent Clowns

Posted on March 18, 2021 by Lea Stans

Silents are Golden: The Makeup of Silent Clowns

One of my 2019 articles for Classic Movie Hub concentrated on the distinct makeup that was used in silent films. Now let’s take a closer look at the era’s most distinct-looking makeup of all!

So if you ask me, one of the best things about the big, zany, timelessly entertaining world of silent comedy is also one of the most dated – that crazy makeup.

White faces, fake mustaches, painted-on eyebrows…it all has a weird, grotesque charm. And you might wonder – just why did comedians in the 1910s and 1920s have such cartoony looks? And why did the tradition stay mainly in the silent era (not counting Groucho Marx)?

Buster Keaton, Roscoe Arbuckle, and Al St. John sporting their looks.

Wearing exaggerated makeup was a centuries-long tradition in theatre. Candlelight or oil lamps were used to illuminate the stage, and thick makeup was necessary so audiences could make out the actors’ faces. The dimmer light usually hid the flaws of heavy makeup, although it could still look garish at times. Different types of characters had particular makeup looks, too, such as “youthful” characters having brightly rouged cheeks, or “elderly” characters having heavily lined faces.

Comedians adopted some of the most garish makeup of all, of course, and the tradition seems to have stuck even as theaters switched over to brighter gaslights in the 19th century. By the era of vaudeville in the U.S., comedians looked practically indistinguishable from actual clowns.

Vaudeville Clown Makeup — Which is which?

The foundation of this makeup was always pale greasepaint (a step up from the lard or butter concoctions from the candlelight days) spread evenly over the face and then set with plenty of powder, which was smoothed away with a brush. A few layers of powder and the comedian had his canvas for the rest of the look.

The next step was using a black or brown liner to carefully draw on the eyebrows and line the eyes. This liner tended to come in a tiny pan that had to be warmed up with a match before being applied. Putty could be used to create bulbous noses, warts, or rounder cheeks. And one of the most popular additions to any comedian’s makeup was a crepe mustache. The crepe was made of wool and came in a long braid. Pieces could be clipped off, combed out, and fashioned into a mustache or chin beard of any shape or size. Spirit gum was used to paste it to the face.

Several comic makeups in *Just Imagination* (1916)

Men and women alike sported whitened faces and boldly lined eyes and eyebrows – it was all part of the fun. And in the early 20th century certain comic characters had specific looks that would’ve been easily recognizable to audiences back in the day. In a time of increased immigration in the big cities, ethnic humor was popular (although it tended to signal “low” slapstick comedy), and some actors specialized in particular ethnic personas. An “Irish” comic would often have a bald cap and side-whiskers, a “French dandy” usually had a goatee and mustache, and a German character (called “Dutch” back then) had a round chin beard and spectacles. Blackface was also common on the stage – as you’re doubtless aware – and some black performers like the famed Bert Williams wore it as well. It’s no secret that anything and everything was up for spoofing in vaudeville, and the unpretentious power of heavy makeup was essential.

Lloyd Hamilton and Bud Duncan Ham & Bud — Slapstick duo Ham and Bud.

By the time film became popular, comedians carried their exaggerated looks over to the big screen. The limits of the old, orthochromatic film made the contrast of white faces and black-lined eyes even stronger than before, adding to the clown effect. The simple touches of liner and crepe also kept goofy reactions from disappearing under the klieg lights. The 1910s was probably the height of the exaggerated makeup style, pairing perfectly with the frenetic slapstick that characterized countless one- and two-reel shorts made by Keystone, Joker, Essanay, and many other studios.

Roscoe Arbuckle, Edgar Kennedy, and Louise Fazenda in Fatty’s Tintype Tangle (1915) — Roscoe Arbuckle, Edgar Kennedy, and Louise Fazenda inFatty’s Tintype Tangle (1915)

What was one key to becoming a successful screen comedian? Adopting a signature makeup look, of course. The most obvious example is Charlie Chaplin, whose small, neat “toothbrush” mustache, curving eyebrows and lined eyes were both expressive and instantly recognizable. More than one comedian literally copied Chaplin’s look, such as Billy West and the shameless Charlie Aplin (yes, Aplin).

Charlie Chaplin — The one and only Chaplin.

Ford Sterling was another popular comedian who had a signature look, a “Dutch” getup complete with chin whiskers. Billy Bevan had a drooping, cartoony mustache and arching eyebrows. Louise Fazenda had big lined eyes and spit curls. Larry Semon always had bold black eyebrows, and the slapstick duo Ham and Bud always sported chunky mustaches.

Keystone short 1910s Mack Swain, Chester Conklin, and Jack Cooper — Some glorious looks from a Keystone comedy.

Some comedians had more fearless styles than others, with varying results. Mack Swain had a wide mustache, heavily darkened eyes (the entire eye area, in fact), and a single lock of hair stuck to his forehead. Harold Lloyd initially tried to imitate Charlie Chaplin by adding two little dots of a mustache instead of just the toothbrush (it didn’t last long). Jimmy Aubrey had one of the most bizarre getups, with heavy eyebrows and a mustache that looked like two melting caterpillars.

By the 1920s, the old exaggerated makeup was going out of style, along with much of the ethnic humor (to the relief of some immigrant organizations). The crude, frenzied slapstick of the 1910s was replaced by subtler, toned-down comedy. And accordingly, comedy makeup got toned down too. Some comedians eventually stopped wearing crepe, while others kept their signature mustaches but made them more natural-looking and ditched the heavy liner. Some adopted clean-shaven “everyman” looks – even Larry Semon gave it a shot. And others, like Louise Fazenda, let go of their signature looks but found steady work in character parts.

Larry Semon in the 1910's and 1920's — Larry Semon in the ‘10s and ‘20s.

And yes, there were a hardy few who continued on their merry greasepaint ways, particularly the iconic Charlie Chaplin. But by the talkies, the heyday of bold eyeliner and eyebrows and wacky mustaches was largely in the past.

In the ‘50s and ‘60s, the old silent comedy makeup style was nostalgic to many folks who remembered the silent clowns fondly. Nowadays the greasepaint and crepe mustaches seem old-timey to the point of being surreal. But I’d say that this very surrealism, combined with the joyous lack of pretension, will attract curious viewers – and new fans – for years to come.

…

–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 al st.john, Billy Bevan, Billy West, Buster Keaton, charlie chaplin, Edgar Kennedy, ford sterling, Groucho Marx, Ham and Bud, Harold lloyd, Jimmy Aubrey, Just Imagination, Larry Semon, Louise Fazenda, Mack Swain, Movie Makeup, Roscoe Arbuckle, silent cinema, silent film, silent films, silent movie, silent movies, silents are golden, Snub Pollard, the champion, Vaudeville | Leave a comment

How Many Films did James Cagney and Pat O’Brien Star in Together?

Posted on March 16, 2021 by Annmarie Gatti

How Many Films did James Cagney and
Pat O’Brien Star in Together?

It’s a friendship that’s endured for 55 years. – Pat O’Brien,
about his friendship with James Cagney

James Cagney and Pat O’Brien were friends for almost 60 years, working together in numerous films from 1934-1940, and reuniting one last time for their final film performances in 1981.

James Cagney and Pat O’Brien starred in NINE films together:

Here Comes the Navy (1934), directed byLloyd Bacon, on DVD and Prime Video
Ceiling Zero (1936), directed by Howard Hawks
Torrid Zone (1940), directed by William Keighley, on DVD and Prime Video
Devil Dogs of the Air (1935), directed by Lloyd Bacon, on DVD and Prime Video
The Irish in Us (1935), directed by Lloyd Bacon, on DVD
Boy Meets Girl (1938), directed by Lloyd Bacon, on DVD
Angels with Dirty Faces (1938), directed by Michael Curtiz
The Fighting 69th (1940), directed by William Keighley, on DVD and Prime Video
Ragtime (1981), directed by Milos Forman, on DVD and Prime Video

My Favorites? Boy, that’s a tough one, but I would have to say Angels with Dirty Faces and Ragtime. What are some of your favorites?

Just have to share this marvelous video clip interview of the ‘old friends’ 🙂

james cagney pat o'brien angels with dirty faces — Angels with Dirty Faces

james cagney pat o'brien ragtime — Ragtime, both Cagney and O’Brien’s very last film

…..

–Annmarie Gatti for Classic Movie Hub

In all their glory:

Posted in How Many Films Did They Star In Together?, Posts by Annmarie Gatti | Tagged how many films did james cagney and pat o'brien star in together, james cagney, pat o'brien | 1 Comment

Monsters and Matinees: All Bug-Eyed over Big-Bug Movies

Posted on March 13, 2021 by Toni Ruberto

All Bug-Eyed over Big-Bug Movies

It could have been the colossal ants. Or the big locusts. Maybe the giant leeches. Most likely it was that house-sized tarantula. I’ll never really know the one film that started my obsession with big-bug movies (“bug” being used loosely), but I know why it happened: I was introduced to them by my dad whose whose unapologetic enjoyment of these films I still carry today. (Giant rabbits? Where?)

Although they necessarily scary by today’s standards, they are fascinating enough to get the imagination going while drawing out a few eewws along the way.

Giant bug movies were a hit as soon as they invaded the big screen in the early 1950s and it’s easy to see why in the context of the time. Fears of nuclear bombs and communism in post-war America were manifested in these attacking hordes of ants, locusts and pretty much any small creature you could blow up 100 times its size and have it destroy a a small town. (Invading aliens similarly mirrored fears at the time, but bugs are more fun.)

Scientist Pat Medford (Joan Weldon) and FBI Agent Robert Graham (James Arness) fight off a giant ant in Them!

Interestingly, it was a dinosaur that led Warner Bros. to later make the film credited with starting the big-bug craze. In 1953, the studio released The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms, a true classic about a hibernating dinosaur jostled awake by A-bomb testing in the Arctic Circle that terrorized the East Coast of North America. The film’s unexpected box-office success – thanks to stop-motion animation genius Ray Harryhausen and his fictional Rhedosaurus – stirred up interest in other giant creature films.

George Worthing Yates – who would go on to write such B-movie gems as It Came from Beneath the Sea (1955), Earth vs. the Flying Saucers (1956) and Attack of the Puppet People (1958) – had written a story treatment about giant ants terrorizing the New York City subway system. Warner Bros. bought the original story and a screenplay was written by Ted Sherdeman and Russell Hughes with the setting moved to the more cost-efficient California. (The movie also was planned to be shot in color and 3D but was eventually made in black and white – again for budget reasons – with only the film’s title in color.)

*Them!* was originally going to be filmed in color and 3D. Both were cut because of budget constraints and this title shot from the opening credits is all that remains in the film.

Not only would Them! be the highest grossing film of 1954 for Warner Bros., it opened the door to big-bug films that were only limited by the imagination. That they had the bonus of the easy-to-follow formula provided by The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms and Them! made these films easy to replicate: Start with mysterious deaths and destruction; add a scientist(s) and the military; have fantastic proclamations and explanations (“We may be witnesses to a biblical prophecy come true!”); and show throngs of people running and screaming in terror.

The public was hooked and the shift was felt throughout the industry.

As Bela Lugosi (played by Martin Landau) said in Tim Burton’s film Ed Wood: “Nobody wants vampires anymore. Now all they want is giant bugs.”

The best remains Them!

‘It’s Them alright.’

Them! begins with a mystery.

An adorable little girl is found wandering the desert in her pajamas by highway patrol officers. Clutching her doll, the unresponsive child appears to be in shock. The officers take her to a nearby camping site to find her family, but it’s torn apart and no one is around.

“This wasn’t caved in, it was caved out,” Officer Ben Peterson (played by James Whitmore) proclaims as he examines the wreckage where he notices, oddly enough, that sugar cubes are missing.

Two highway patrol officers, including one played by James Whitmore at right, discover a vacation trailer destroyed in *Them!*.

A puzzling, high-pitched sound comes from the desert, temporarily waking the little girl who returns to her catatonic state as quickly as the sound subsides without anyone noticing. (“It’s the wind – it’s freakish in these parts,” is an explanation neither officer believes.)

As an atmospheric sandstorm brews creating even more odd sounds, they discover the nearby general store is also destroyed.

“This wasn’t pushed in, it was pulled out,” Ben says examining the missing store wall. Sadly, they discover the body of kindly Gramps Johnson. Once again, sugar is missing but money hasn’t been touched and that leads to the logical conclusion that it’s the work of a homicidal maniac.

“No money stolen, violent wreckage, just sugar taken,” Ben says.

Just sugar taken – nothing strange about that.

Officer Ben Peterson (James Whitmore) is protective of the traumatized little girl (Sandy Descher) he found in the desert in *Them!*

Brought in to help with the mystery are FBI agent Robert Graham (played by a handsome and blond James Arness) and scientists from the Department of Agriculture Harold Medford (Edmund Gwenn) and his daughter Pat (Joan Weldon).

When Dr. Medford learns the destructive activities are all taking place near Alamogordo, New Mexico, where in reality the first atom bomb tests took place in 1945, that seems to confirm his suspicions. (Using the example of real A-bomb tests surely would cause unease with moviegoers.) Dr. Medford puts a glass of formic acid – a compound in ant venom – under the catatonic girl’s nose leading to one of the most effective and timeless scenes in 1950s horror as she jumps awake screaming “Them! Them! Them!” – giving the film its title.

It’s one of a surprising number of effective scenes in this taut sci-fi thriller that include a giant ant slowly rising over a scientist’s head; an officer turning lights off one by one, shrouding himself in darkness as the winds and that awful whistling sound return; and the chilling image of an ant throwing a human rib cage down a small dirt mound as it lands among other bones and debris including a gun holster. (“You just found your missing persons.”)

The film’s documentary style also builds tension. There are moments watching it in 2021 that we can imagine we are viewing live cable news.

Dr. Medford also shows a very short and efficiently informative film on ants to educate a meeting of leaders – and moviegoers. (Not all films were successful with this tact: Deadly Mantis would be better off without the long opening explainer that includes a lesson in radar.)

Although they find the ants and destroy their nest, it’s not even close to being over. Two egg cases that belonged to the queens – who can fly – are empty and the rest of the film details the methodical nationwide hunt for them. The final sequences, which include a search for two missing boys, make the most of the atmospheric Los Angeles storm drain system – a perfect place for big ants to hide.

“We haven’t seen the end of them. We’ve only had a close view of the beginning of what may be the end of us,” Dr. Medford says with the same requisite deference to an end of the world scenario seen in other films including one that even has the name The Beginning of the End

It wasn’t a big bug, but the giant octopus in It Came From Beneath the Sea certainly counts when it comes to the giant creature films of 1950s.

Though Warner Bros. started this craze, the studio didn’t keep it going. Luckily, others stepped in, going beyond bugs to include an octopus so big it could wrap itself around the Golden Gate Bridge (It Came from Beneath the Sea) and people who towered over power lines (The Attack of the 50-Ft. Woman, The Amazing Colossal Man).

“When man entered the atomic age, he opened doors to a new world. What we will eventually find in that new world, nobody can predict,” Dr. Medford warns at the end of Them!

Not surprisingly, neither science nor the movie world have closed that door yet. The results of humans destroying nature remain a subgenre of sci-fi and horror films. In the 1970s, environmental concerns were especially prevalent in films that went for quantity of creatures over size as armies of creepy crawlies attacked in films such as Bug (1975), produced by William Castle; Empire of the Ants (1977) based on an H.G. Wells story; Kingdom of the Spiders (1977), and The Swarm (1978).

Yes, that giant tarantula is eye-level with the second story of this house in *Tarantula*.

Other big-bug films

Here are a few suggestions of other 1950s films to add to your watch list.

Tarantula (1955). Directed by Jack Arnold, this is film of my nightmares. An experiment by a benevolent scientist trying to create a super nutrient to help feed the world goes wrong, causing an arachnid to grow to giant proportions. The tarantula goes solo in this, but he grows large enough to tower over a house and that’s a terrifying site.

Beginning of the End (1957). Bert I. Gordon directs Peter Graves in this melodramatic take on giant grasshoppers overtaking the world. Not quite up there with Them! but still a good time.

Black Scorpion (1957). This time a volcanic eruption in Mexico is to blame for unleashing an army of scorpions that are bigger than men. If you are creeped out by the thought of being crushed to death by giant claws this might not be for you. Willis O’Brien (King Kong) was the special effects supervisor. Richard Denning and Mara Corday co-star.

The title character in *The Deadly Manti*s rises from the ice after a nuclear explosion.

Deadly Mantis (1957). Another volcanic eruption, another giant creature awakens from a frozen slumber. Recommended viewing if you can ignore the talky opening explanation. (Just give us the bugs, please.) Craig Stevens, William Hopper and Alix Talton help the U.S. Army battle the giant insect.

Attack of the Giant Leeches (1959). There’s something strange in the swamp waters leading to a string of mysterious deaths in this film from executive producer Roger Corman.

The Killer Shrews (1959). Once again, research to stop world hunger goes terribly wrong causing an accidental growth spurt in rodents. Action takes place on a remote island where a captain and first mate are stuck by a storm after delivering supplies to a group of researchers.

Key players in Them!

The film had a cast of future all-stars.

After Them!, James Arness put on a cowboy hat for his next role as Sheriff Matt Dillon on Gunsmoke, a series that lasted for 20 seasons.

Fess Parker is only in the film for one scene as a pilot put in an insane asylum after seeing flying saucers that looked like ants. The day of shooting, representatives from Disney were on set to check out James Arness to star in Davy Crockett. They were so impressed by Parker, they cast him instead.

That’s a 23-year-old Leonard Nimoy making a cameo in *Them!* as he monitors suspicious activity including “thefts of sugar” and high-pitched sounds.

Leonard Nimoy has a cameo as an officer who grabs a report off a teletype machine.

William Schallert, who would later star in such popular TV series as The Patty Duke Show, is in an early scene as an ambulance driver.

* * *

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 Edmund Gwenn, George Worthing Yates, james arness, james whitmore, Joan Weldon, Ray Harryhausen, tarantula, The Beginning of the End, The Giant Gila Monster, The Killer Shrews, Them | 2 Comments

Noir Nook: Noirish Beginnings (Part 2)

Posted on March 11, 2021 by Karen Burroughs Hannsberry

Noir Nook: Noirish Beginnings (Part 2)

First impressions, Mama always said, are important.

Our introductions to film noir features aren’t necessarily indisputable predictors of the quality of the picture ahead, but there are certainly those that grab you within the first few minutes and never – to our benefit – let go.

This month’s Noir Nook takes a look at more noirs whose distinctive beginnings accurately telegraph the film’s shadowy sins and devilish delights.

The Big Combo (1955)

This film, which is one of my all-time favorites, centers on the efforts of a tenacious police lieutenant (Cornel Wilde) to bring to justice a local mob boss known only as Mr. Brown (Richard Conte) – all the while falling for Brown’s mistress (played by Wilde’s then real-life wife, Jean Wallace). The first thing you’ll notice is the film’s unique jazzy score; it puts you on notice that you’re in for a hot time. As the film begins, we focus on a boxing arena, but we’re not there for the fight. Instead, we’re taken into the bowels of the building, where we see a young woman dressed in a strapless cocktail dress and heels, running from two men (Lee Van Cleef and Earl Holliman). Before long, the men catch up to her, but she promises to return to her seat if they’ll unhand her and allow her to return on her own. They agree, and she expresses her gratitude by smacking one of the men square in the face with her sequined evening bag.

They Live By Night (1946)

Yet another of my favorites, They Live By Night has one of the most unusual openings that I’ve ever seen. It shows stars Farley Granger and Cathy O’Donnell, filmed in close-up, kissing and cuddling before what appears to be a flickering fireplace, accompanied by a sweet and innocent score. The captions inform us: “This boy and this girl were never properly introduced to the world we live in. To tell their story …” The couple then abruptly stops kissing and looks with surprise-slash-concern-slash fear toward the camera, and the film’s title fills the screen, along with a radical shift in the music. Beneath the credits, we see a car populated by four men, recklessly moving along highways and through unpaved fields, until it blows a tire, pulls off the road, and the action begins.

Shield for Murder (1954)

Edmond O'Brien & John Agar in Sheild for Murder (1954) — Edmond O’Brien & John Agar in *Shield for Murder* (1954)

Picture this: Edmond O’Brien is purposefully walking down a dark, secluded street, when he pauses in a doorway, observing a man nearby who is completing some sort of financial exchange with two gents in a parked car. O’Brien withdraws a gun from his pocket, fits it with a silencer, then throws a casual arm around the other man’s shoulders after the car pulls away. As O’Brien leads him toward an alley, the man’s eyes widen with fear, and with good reason – seconds later, O’Brien shoots the man in the back, removes a thick envelope from his coat, and then shouts, “Stop or I’ll shoot!” before firing his gun into the air. What O’Brien doesn’t know – but we do – is that this entire chain of events has been witnessed by a man living in an apartment above the alley. And it’s not until this point that the opening credits begin to roll.

Private Hell 36 (1954)

It’s nighttime in the big city. The camera focuses on a high-rise office building, then goes inside to show the lobby elevator. When the doors open, we see a man dressed as an elevator operator carrying a leather satchel. When he exits, we see something else – a dead man on the elevator floor. The man runs to a nearby getaway car, which disappears into the night as a voiceover intones: “The crime: murder. The motive: money. Three hundred thousand dollars, which never reached the bank’s night depository. The place: New York City. The killer and the money vanished, a slick, cold-blooded job.” We’re further informed by the narrator that the case came alive again a year later, in Los Angeles, where off-duty Det. Sgt. Calvin Bruner (Steve Cochran) spied some suspicious activity in a downtown pharmacy. As Bruner begins to investigate, the opening credits roll, and once he’s inside the building, he commences to participate in one of the best fight scenes I’ve seen since the climax of Red River (1948).

The Damned Don’t Cry! (1950)

Once again, we start at night. This time, we’re shown a car driving down a deserted highway. When it comes to a halt beside a sand dune, we see that there are three men in the front seat, but only two of them are breathing. These two remove the third man from the car and dump him unceremoniously over the edge of the dune. The next morning, the body is discovered by a couple of surveyors, who contact the local police. “Well,” says one of the cops when he recognizes the dead man, “they finally got him.”

—

Incidentally, each of these first-rate noirs can be found on YouTube. Tune in and see what happens after these attention-grabbing openers.

You won’t be sorry.

…

– 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 cathy o'donnell, Cornel Wilde, dorothy malone, earl holliman, Edmond O'Brien, farley granger, film noir, howard duff, joan crawford, john agar, kent smith, Lee Van Cleef, Noir, Noir Nook, Private Hell 36, red river, richard conte, shield for murder, steve cochran, the big combo, the damned dont cry!, they live by night | 4 Comments

Cinemallennials: Paths of Glory (1957)

Posted on March 10, 2021 by Dave Lewis

Cinemallennials: Paths of Glory (1957)

For those of you who are unfamiliar with Cinemallennials, it is a bi-weekly podcast in which I, and another millennial, watch a classic film that we’ve never seen before, and discuss its significance and relevance in today’s world.

In today’s episode, I’ll be talking with Nick Reed about Stanley Kubrick’s 1957 anti-war film, Paths of Glory – a film that is often thought of as one of the most shocking criticisms of war, its futility, and what it does to both its participants and the civilians that are affected by its consequences.

Stanley Kubrick is often considered to be one of the most innovative filmmakers of all-time. Kubrick’s technical achievements, combined with his meticulous focus on realistic detail, his thought-provoking stories and his use of painterly cinematography, are all examples of what makes him one of the greats. In addition to his methodical and visual hallmarks, Kubrick’s philosophical approach to filmmaking appeals to both intellectuals and the common man as he is able to balance the fine line of simple, but not uncomplicated. Spartacus, Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, 2001: A Space Odyssey, A Clockwork Orange, Barry Lyndon, The Shining, and Full Metal Jacket could never have been realized in their finalized state as some of the greatest films of all time — if it wasn’t for Paths of Glory.

Kirk Douglas and Stanley Kubrick on the set of Paths of Glory. Production still photographer: Lars Looschen © Bryna Productions, United Artists

Paths of Glory follows the story of Colonel Dax (Kirk Douglas), who is ordered by his arrogant and grandiose commanding officer, General Mireau (George Macready) to capture an impossible strategic position in no man’s land, most likely leading his troops to their certain deaths. After the attack fails, and with his pride hurt, Mireau singles out four of Dax’s men for court-martial which could lead to their execution. Dax must defend these men against Mireau’s words and, as one of the best criminal lawyers in all of France prior to the war, he is the only one capable to do so. Or is he?

During the episode, Nick and I will be discussing the horrors of the First World War, how it is insufficiently discussed in the United States, the ill-guided romanticization of war in general, and how that view of it can change the human condition.

Stanley Kubrick once told Craig McGregor of the New York Times that: “Man isn’t a noble savage, he’s an ignoble savage. He is irrational, brutal, weak, silly, unable to be objective about anything where his own interests are involved – that about sums it up. I’m interested in the brutal and violent nature of man because it’s a true picture of him. And any attempt to create social institutions on a false view of the nature of man is probably doomed to failure.” This quote is what really drives both Paths of Glory and Kubrick’s often absurdist depiction of war and its institutions.

In Paths of Glory, the French trenches are realistically grim and full of reproduced sights and sounds that soldiers would have likely witnessed and heard — as one can see from the most famous scene of the film in which Colonel Dax trudges through the mud, flanked by his men with shells exploding on all sides. While Kubrick presents a fraction of what was actually in the trenches with its sound and fury, what makes Paths of Glory stand out as an anti-war film is his use of dialogue and music to mock the absurdities of the war and its officer class, and show how that class can change the future of the lower classes’ human condition without any real consequence.

Through this exploration of the First World War and in the way its romanticized, we as the younger generation should learn how the supposed “War to end all wars” still affects us today as a result of the millions of unnecessary deaths. Not only was it the inspiration for Paths of Glory, amongst other great feats of cinema - as recently as Sam Mendes’ 1917 – but its direct consequences have led to some of the problems that we still are facing today.

I hope you enjoy this episode of Cinemallennials, which you can find here on apple podcasts or on spotify. Please reach out to me as I would love to hear your thoughts on Paths of Glory, especially if you’re a first-time viewer too!

…..

— Dave Lewis for Classic Movie Hub

You can read all of Dave’s CMH Cinemallennials articles here.

Dave Lewis is the producer, writer, and host of Cinemallennials, a podcast where he and another millennial watch a classic film that they haven’t seen before ranging from the early 1900s to the late 1960s and discuss its significance and relevance in our world today. Before writing for Classic Movie Hub, Dave wrote about Irish and Irish-American history, the Gaelic Athletic Association in the United States, and Irish innovators for Irish America magazine. You can find more episodes of Cinemallennials, film reviews and historical analyses, on Dave’s website dlewmoviereview.com or his YouTube channel.

Posted in Cinemallennials, Posts by Dave Lewis | Tagged george macready, Kirk Douglas, Paths of Glory, stanley kubrick | 1 Comment

Silver Screen Standards: The Mark of Zorro (1940)

Posted on March 9, 2021 by Jennifer Garlen

Silver Screen Standards: The Mark of Zorro (1940)

Twenty years after the silent hit with Douglas Fairbanks, Tyrone Power donned the iconic mask for The Mark of Zorro (1940), a truly delightful swashbuckler packed with action, comedy, and romance that still enchants new audiences today.

The Mark of Zorro (1940) Tyrone Power and Basil Rathbone — The thrilling duel between Don Diego (Power) and Captain Esteban (Rathbone) is a quintessential moment in swashbuckler history.

The Zorro movies are, in many ways, the direct forebears of the superhero blockbusters of our modern age, a heady mix of popular culture in both their history and their influence, and as such ought to be watched by anyone with an interest in comic books, action movies, superheroes, and American movie culture. You don’t, however, need to be obsessed with the cultural origins of Batman (as relevant as he is) to love The Mark of Zorro. It’s a grand romp with a cast of favorite stars that perfectly demonstrates the appeal of the swashbuckler genre and the dashing Tyrone Power, with lively direction from Rouben Mamoulian and a rousing, Oscar-nominated score from Alfred Newman.

The Mark of Zorro (1940) Linda Darnell and Tyrone Power — Who could resist Linda Darnell as the beautiful Lolita? Power’s hero is smitten but must play the sort of dandy Lolita despises.

I’ve always loved swashbuckling action heroes, and Power’s Zorro – along with Errol Flynn’s Robin Hood – is one of the best for introducing older kids and teenagers to some classic movie magic. Power is utterly charming as the duplicitous Don Diego, who assumes the manner of a fop on his return to California in order to keep the corrupt rulers from suspecting his escapades as the masked vigilante. As thrilling as he is when playing the hero, Power really shines with the comedy and romance, especially when confronted by the irresistible Linda Darnell as Lolita. At every moment Power’s Diego hides a smile at his own audacious deception, even when his father (Montagu Love) despises his seemingly useless son. We often talk about how the classic film camera loves iconic actresses, but the camera loves Tyrone Power just as much. He’s absolutely captivating, the embodiment of roguish masculine sex appeal poured into very tight pants. Whether he’s dancing with Lolita, fending off the advances of her aunt, Inez (Gale Sondergaard), or fencing with the villainous Captain Esteban (Basil Rathbone), Power is a delight to behold.

It helps tremendously, of course, that Power enjoys the support of an amazing cast, especially Darnell as his lady love and the elegantly menacing Rathbone as his nemesis. As one of the great heavies of classic movie history, Rathbone is very much in his element and at home with the swordplay, having been the British Army Fencing Champ twice during his military career. Rathbone is one of those truly brilliant actors who makes every role memorable, but the jealous, violent Captain Esteban ranks high among his most thrilling characters. Other cast members highlight the comedic elements of the story, especially J. Edward Bromberg as the craven Quintero and Gale Sondergaard as his scheming, preening wife.

The Mark of Zorro (1940) Tyrone Power and Eugene Pallette — Don Diego’s father is alive and well, but he has a second father figure in Eugene Pallette’s Felipe, the priest who helps Zorro hide his plunder.

Eugene Pallette is also great fun as the feisty friar, Felipe, who encourages Diego to fight for the people. For Pallette, it’s almost the exact same role he had already played as Friar Tuck in The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938) just two years earlier, in which Rathbone and Montagu Love had also appeared. They overlap in so many fascinating ways that I tend to think of The Adventures of Robin Hood and The Mark of Zorro as the perfect swashbuckling double feature, although you could make a whole film festival out of it by adding The Scarlet Pimpernel (1934), Captain Blood (1935), The Black Swan (1942), and The Flame and the Arrow (1950). As a collection, the films reveal the genre’s most enduring conventions and character types, from heroes and heavies to ladies and lackeys.

While Fairbanks returned to the character for Don Q, Son of Zorro in 1925, Power only played the role of Zorro once, but both of them helped to create a character who has endured in many different forms. Like modern superhero movies, swashbucklers make for great escapes from a troubled world; they give us heroes to believe in and cheer for as well as villains to hiss. Zorro occupies a special place because of his role as a particularly American hero after the continental adventures of Robin Hood and The Scarlet Pimpernel. (It helped, too, that Hollywood could make Southern California represent itself for a change, instead of pretending to be Sherwood Forest or some other faraway location.)

The Mark of Zorro (1940) Tyrone Power, J. Edward Bromberg and Basil Rathbone — Power’s Don Diego faces a foolish enemy in Bromberg’s Quintero and a more serious threat in Rathbone’s ruthless Captain Esteban.

After Fairbanks and Power, other actors would go on to play the heroic outlaw; Robert Livingston took the part for The Bold Caballero (1936), and Guy Williams became Zorro for a generation of viewers in the Disney television series that ran from 1957 to 1959. More recently, Antonio Banderas donned the costume as Zorro’s successor in The Mask of Zorro (1998) and The Legend of Zorro (2005). Each version has its appeal, but the 1940 film is still a quintessential example of the swashbuckler genre and a great place to start an exploration of the connections between classic movie heroes and modern ones.

If, like me, you’re a sucker for Tyrone Power’s dark-eyed charms, be sure to see him in Blood and Sand (1941) and Son of Fury: The Story of Benjamin Blake (1942) as well as The Black Swan (1942). For a shocking change of pace, catch him in the fascinatingly gritty circus noir, Nightmare Alley (1947), or see his last great performance in Witness for the Prosecution (1957) before his death in 1958 of a heart attack at the age of 44. To get back to the original story of Zorro, read Johnston McCulley’s 1919 novel, The Curse of Capistrano, which was originally released as a serial and then appeared as a book in 1924 with the title, The Mark of Zorro.

…

— 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.

Posted in Posts by Jennifer Garlen, Silver Screen Standards | Tagged Basil Rathbone, blood and sand, Captain Blood, Don Q son of Zorro, douglas fairbanks, errol flynn, eugene pallette, gale sondergaard, guy willaims, j. edward bromberg, Linda Darnell, montagu love, nightmare alley, Robin Hood, Rouben Mamoulian, silver screen, silver screen standards, son of fury the story of benjamin blake, The Adventures of Robin Hood, The Black Swan, the bold caballero, the flame and the arrow, The Mark of Zorro, the scarlet pimpernel, Tyrone Power, Witness for the Prosecution | 2 Comments

Classic Movie Travels: Lucille Bremer

Posted on March 4, 2021 by Annette Bochenek

Classic Movie Travels: Lucille Bremer – New York and Mexico

Lucille Bremer

Lucille Rita Bremer (pronounced “Bray-mer”) was a film actress and dancer, particularly remembered for her work in MGM musical films. Born in Amsterdam, New York, to Richard Bremer and Sarah E. Nichols on February 21, 1917, and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Bremer’s father was of German descent and worked as a barber, while her mother was of Scottish descent and worked as a homemaker. Bremer was the youngest of two children. She had an older brother named Walter, who was 11 years older than her.

When her family settled in Philadelphia, she developed a strong interest in dancing. She studied ballet as a child and later went on to dance with the Philadelphia Opera Company, sparking an appreciation for the performing arts.

As the years went on, Bremer aimed to pursue dancing professionally. She returned to New York to dance at the 1939 World’s Fair and soon secured a career as a Rockette at Radio City Music Hall by age 16. She was typically 5^th from the right in the lineup and toured with the show.

In addition to her work as a Rockette, Bremer actively sought additional dance roles, including appearances in Panama Hattie, earned a featured role in Dancing in the Streets, and the ingénue role in Lady in the Dark. At the same time, she attempted to begin a career in films. After an unsuccessful screen test for Warner Brothers, she once again turned to dance. However, her luck changed when MGM producer Arthur Freed discovered her dancing at the Copacabana and Club Versailles.

Ultimately, Freed invited Bremer to Hollywood for a screen test with MGM. There, she tested with a passage from Dark Victory (1939). She was offered a contract to showcase her talent as a dancer, soon studying acting in an effort to become a star for the Freed Unit.

After appearing in some uncredited film roles, Bremer’s big break would be as Rose Smith in Meet Me in St. Louis (1944). This appearance was followed by more work in musicals such as Ziegfeld Follies (1945), Yolanda and the Thief (1945), and Till the Clouds Roll By (1946). Though she starred in Yolanda and the Thief opposite Fred Astaire, the film was a box office failure and severely marred her rise to film stardom. Gradually, MGM ceased promoting her and she would make her final starring role in a film noir called Behind Locked Doors (1948).

Lucille in a wardrobe test for Meet Me in St.Louis (1944) — Lucille in a wardrobe test for *Meet Me in St.Louis* (1944)

Disenchanted with Hollywood, Bremer left the industry and focused on her private life. She married Abelardo “Rod” Luis Rodriguez, son of a former president of Mexico, at Catalina Island in 1940, later moving to California Sur, Mexico. The couple started a private resort called Rancho Las Cruces, in addition to the Palmilla and Hacienda Hotels in Baja. Her connection to Hollywood piqued the interest of her former film colleagues, eager to vacation in Mexico. In addition, the couple also found business partners in Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball, as well as Bing Crosby.

The couple would go on to have four children: Nicolas, Cristina, Torre Richard, and Karen Rodriguez. They divorced in 1963.

Following her divorce, Bremer moved to La Jolla, California, where she owned a clothing boutique for children. She balanced her time between La Jolla and Baja, traveling frequently, until her passing from a heart attack on April 16, 1996, at a La Jolla hospital. She was 79 years old.

Today, very few tributes or locations of relevance in relation to Bremer remain. Her 1920 home at 1135 Miller St. in Utica, New York is long-gone.

In 1940, she lived in an apartment at 307 79^th St in New York, New York, which does remain today.

Lucille Bremer home 307 79th St in New York, New York — 307 79^th St, New York, New York

Bremer’s ashes were partially scattered in the Sea of Cortez as well as next to the church that she and her husband had built on the resort property. A plaque honoring Bremer as well as Desi Arnaz is affixed to the church.

Lucille Bremer's church on the Rancho Las Cruces Resort property — Bremer’s church on the Rancho Las Cruces Resort property

While Bremer left behind a brief filmography, her work continues to entertain fans of classic Hollywood musicals.

…

–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 arthur freed, behind locked doors, bing crosby, classic movie travels, Dark Victory, Desi Arnaz, Fred Astaire, lady in the dark, Lucille Ball, Lucille Bremer, Meet Me in St. Louis, panama hattie 1942, Till the clouds roll by, yolanda and the thief, ziegfeld follies | 1 Comment

What’s Streaming in March on the CMH Channel at Best Classics Ever? And Then There Were None, Oliver Twist, Shine On Harvest Moon.

Posted on February 28, 2021 by Annmarie Gatti

Our March Picks on the Classic Movie Hub Channel
March Birthdays and Vintage Westerns!

It’s that time again… We have our monthly free streaming picks for our Classic Movie Hub Channel at Best Classics Ever (BCE) – the mega streaming channel for classic movies and TV shows!

That said, here are some of our March picks available for FREE STREAMING all month long on the CMH Channel. All you need to do is click on the movie/show of your choice, then click ‘play’ — you do not have to opt for a 7-day trial.

In celebration of March Birthdays, we’re featuring Joan Crawford (born Mar 23, 1905) in the 1932 Lewis Milestone-directed drama Rain, opposite Walter Huston. We’re also celebrating director David Lean’s birthday (Mar 25, 1908) with his 1948 adaptation of Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist starring Robert Newton and Alec Guinness — as well as David Niven’s birthday (Mar 1, 1910) with Happy Go Lovely and Jennifer Jone’s birthday (Mar 2, 1919 ) with Beat the Devil. We’ll also be showing two of my favorites, Little Lord Fauntleroy starring Freddie Bartholomew (born Mar 28, 1924), and And Then There Were None starring Barry Fitzgerald (born Mar 10, 1888).

June Duprez, Barry Fitzgerald, and Louis Hayward in And Then There Were None (1945)

Robert Newton and Kay Walsh in Oliver Twist (1948)

Freddie Bartholomew and Mickey Rooney in Little Lord Fauntleroy (1936)

…..

We’re also celebrating some Vintage Westerns this month with some iconic western film stars including Roy Rogers, Gene Autry and Tex Ritter! And more…

William Farnum, Lynne Roberts and Roy Rogers in Shine on Harvest Moon (1938)

…..

For those of you who aren’t familiar with the service, Best Classics Ever is a new mega streaming channel built especially for classic movie and TV lovers. The idea of the channel is to make lots of classic titles accessible and affordable for all. That said, Classic Movie Hub is curating titles each month that our fans can stream for free on the Classic Movie Hub Channelat Best Classics Ever. If you’d like access to the entire selection of Best Classics Ever titles, you can subscribe to everything for a low monthly fee of $4.99/month (Best Stars Ever, Best Westerns Ever, Best Mysteries Ever, Best TV Ever) or for an individual channel for only $1.99/month.

You can read more about Best Classics Ever and our partnership here.

Hope you enjoy!

…..

–Annmarie Gatti for Classic Movie Hub

Posted in Best Classics Ever BCE, Classic Movie Hub Channel, Posts by Annmarie Gatti, Streaming Movies & TV Shows | Tagged streaming classic movies, streaming classic tv shows | Leave a comment

Western RoundUp: Rio Bravo (1959)

Posted on February 26, 2021 by Laura Grieve

Western RoundUp: Rio Bravo (1959)

This month I’m taking a look at Rio Bravo (1959), which is not only one of my favorite Westerns, it’s one of my all-time favorite movies.

My history with this film goes back to May of 1977 when I was in my early teens and saw the film for the very first time at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art’s Leo S. Bing Theater. (Alas, the theater where I had so many formative movie viewing experiences was demolished in 2020.) Even at that point in my life I was keeping records of my movie watching and gave Rio Bravo a four-star rating, an impression which has only been solidified with the passage of time.

As the years went by I also enjoyed introducing our children to the movie; it’s a particular favorite of our oldest son’s, and when we adopted a stray dog who came to our door many years ago, everyone approved of our son’s suggestion to name our dog Chance, after John Wayne‘s Rio Bravo character, Sheriff John T. Chance.

Rio Bravo (1959) John Wayne as Sheriff John T. Chance — John Wayne as Sheriff John T. Chance in *Rio Bravo* (1959)

Because the movie was on our TV screen so often when our children were young, I refrained from watching it in recent years, though I loved it no less; part of my thinking was that perhaps the next time I saw it I’d be fortunate to see it once again on a big screen. Due to COVID, that now seems unlikely in the coming months, so when I had a yen to see the film recently I pulled out our DVD for a happy reunion with old friends.

Rio Bravo was directed by Howard Hawks, who had previously directed Wayne in another Western classic, Red River (1948). The screenplay by Jules Furthman and Leigh Brackett was inspired by a story by B.H. McCampbell.

For those who haven’t seen it, the film takes place in a dusty frontier town where, shortly after the film begins, Sheriff John T. Chance (Wayne) arrests Joe Burdette (Claude Akins) for killing a man in cold blood.

Joe is the brother of powerful Nathan Burdette (John Russell), who pledges to free his brother from the jail before the marshal can arrive to pick Joe up for trial. Burdette’s men are placed all over town, keeping a threatening eye on the jailhouse. The only men the sheriff has to aid him are his deputies, elderly Stumpy (Walter Brennan), and alcoholic Dude (Dean Martin).

Ricky Nelson, John Wayne, and Dean Martin Rio Bravo (1959) — Ricky Nelson, John Wayne, and Dean Martin

When Chance’s old friend Pat Wheeler (Ward Bond) arrives in town and offers his help, Chance turns him down, but Wheeler is gunned down in the street anyway. Colorado (Ricky Nelson), a young gunslinger who had been working for Wheeler, joins forces with Chance to prevent Joe from being busted out of jail.

John Wayne as Sheriff Chance & Angie Dickinson as "Feathers" in Rio Bravo (1959) — John Wayne as Sheriff Chance & Angie Dickinson as “Feathers”

“Feathers” (Angie Dickinson), a gambler’s widow who’s also just arrived in town, takes a liking to Chance and helps as she can, guarding Chance while he sleeps and later helping Chance and Colorado by providing distraction during a key moment battling Burdette’s men.

In the end, like so many Westerns, it all comes down to an explosive – literally! – gunfight.

Ricky Nelson & John Wayne in a shootout Rio Bravo (1959) — Ricky Nelson & John Wayne in a shootout

Rio Bravo is a superb mixture of familiar Western themes, great dialogue, top action scenes, music, romance, and marvelous performances; in a nutshell, it has every single element a Western fan could want.

I’ve always had warm feelings about the camaraderie in this film, played out in many scenes against glowing lamplight. Thinking along those lines, this was my first time to watch the movie since seeing Hawks’ sci-fi film The Thing From Another World (1951), and I was really struck by how much the two films had in common.

In each Hawks film, a group is stranded in the middle of nowhere with no immediate help coming, trying to shut down a literal or figurative monster. At the same time, the group dynamics are so reassuring and enjoyable that the viewer wishes to be there and be part of it, despite the danger.

Walter Brennan & John Wayne Rio Bravo (1959) — Walter Brennan & John Wayne

A key moment in this regard comes just before the final confrontation, when Wayne, Martin, Brennan, and Nelson are relaxing in the jailhouse and sing a couple of songs. (A nice “through-line” from Hawks and Wayne’s previous Western is that one of the songs, “My Rifle, My Pony, and Me,” uses instrumental music the film’s composer, Dimitri Tiomkin, had previously written for Red River.) On the surface, one might assume this is wasted time simply to showcase the two singers in the cast, especially given that the film runs a lengthy two hours and 21 minutes. But to the contrary, this sequence is one of the best in the film.

There’s something quite special in the characters just “hanging out,” underscoring the relationships and that these are men who can count on one another, as indeed they will need to very soon thereafter. It’s the single scene, lovingly photographed by Russell Harlan, that has lingered most in my memory in the decades since my first viewing.

Dean Martin Rio Bravo (1959) — Dean Martin

Beyond that, there are so many other favorite moments, the best of which for me is a fast-paced shootout with Colorado and Feathers helping Chance out of a dangerous confrontation. It’s so beautifully choreographed that I can never resist rewinding and watching it a second time before continuing on with the rest of the movie.

The performances, like the rest of the movie, are spot-on. This is one of my favorite Wayne roles, as he is by turns assured, supportive, and, when dealing with Feathers, completely baffled. Rio Bravo follows in the footsteps of earlier Wayne Westerns, particularly Tall in the Saddle (1944) and Angel and the Badman (1947), where his tough character is turned upside down when dealing with a strong, direct woman. (There’s more on those two films in my 2018 column on favorite John Wayne films and leading ladies.) Dickinson and Wayne quickly build believable chemistry as the story plays out over a short time span.

Ricky Nelson Rio Bravo (1959) — Ricky Nelson

The first time I saw the movie, I thought Nelson was the weak link in a polished cast, but over the years I’ve revised my opinion. He’s as perfect for his role as the rest of the cast, reminding me just a bit of Audie Murphy.

Martin, in particular, shows real acting chops as a tormented alcoholic trying to reform, and Brennan has some scene-stealing moments as grizzled Stumpy. Speaking of scene-stealing, the bit where Chance bends over and spontaneously kisses Stumpy’s balding head is definitely such a moment.

The terrific cast also includes Estelita Rodriguez, Pedro Gonzalez Gonzalez, and Bob Steele.

Viewers may notice that Harry Carey Jr. is billed in the opening credits, but he never actually shows up in the movie. Years ago my husband emailed Carey about this via Carey’s website, and Carey graciously responded, explaining that it was decided after filming that his character was extraneous to the story, so he ended up on the cutting-room floor. It’s too bad, but given the movie’s running time, I’m guessing it was the correct decision.

Elaborating on that, as mentioned above the film clocks in with a running time closer to two and a half hours than two. Although I’m generally a fan of shorter, fast-paced films, I have no issues at all with this movie’s running time; it flies by, and I appreciate every scene. I wouldn’t drop a second of what made it into the film’s final cut.

In summary, I consider Rio Bravo to be a perfect Western. Whether a viewer is brand-new to the genre or is a longtime fan, this film is most highly recommended.

…

– 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.