Sue Sue's TCM Film Festival Tidbit Travel Blog

[kingrat]

So the TCM Film Festival Schedule is up! What are they trying to do to us, have us make difficult choices? Many of the last-minute additions are films I'd like to see. The Macomber Affair, anyone? And they've scheduled so many good films in the late slots that I may have to miss a movie or miss having a drink with my buddies at Club TCM. Wah!

But aren't these good problems to have? Though for lzcutter having to choose between Thelma Schoonmaker presenting Black Narcissus and a showing of How the West Was Won in Cinerama--same early time slot on Sunday, and so is A Trip to the Moon and Beyond, presented by Serge Bromberg--triple wah!

Speaking of those late-night shows: Criss Cross at 10 Thursday night, Letter from an Unknown Woman or Chinatown on Friday night 9:15/9:30, A Night to Remember or Seconds 9:30/9:45 Saturday night, The Thief of Bagdad with the Mont Alto Motion Picture Orchestra vs. Black Sunday as a 7:00 closer on Sunday night. How good is Black Sunday, anyway?

Two for the Road (Stanley Donen presenting) is up against Vertigo (Kim Novak presenting). Guys? What are you doing to me? Among the stuff they hadn't told us about: Bonjour Tristesse. On the big screen.

[pvitari]

Dear TCM festival programmers, to quote James Dean as Jim Stark in Rebel Without a Cause:

YOU'RE TEARING ME APAAARRRRRRRRRTTTTTTTTT!

[Lzcutter]

David,

I found it odd that there is no Meet and Greet scheduled for Thursday or Closing Night Party on Sunday on the schedule yet but I think those might get added.

I plan on going to the two panels on Thursday. High Society poolside seems a bit outside of Tom Brown's comfort zone for introducing the film but either way, it's always fun to see the crowd. I wonder if maybe the Sinatra sisters, Tina and Nancy, will introduce the film or maybe, someone more regal?

After the intro, my evening frees up considerably.

Which is good because Friday morning, I have to be there early to get in line for Wings. Luckily, I saw [/b]The Searchers[/b] on the big screen in 2008 so that's not such a conflict. But, man, dreamy Bill Wellman and the restoration of his father's film, and AC Lyles, YAY!!!

History of the Red Carpet interests me because of the Academy's participation.

I might try to hear Kirk talk about 20,000 Leagues and then head over for the Frankenstein screening mainly because of John Carpenter introducing. I've always liked him, especially at the panel he was part of at the first Festival.

I would love to hear Stanley Donen talk about Two for the Road but the film is so sad, I don't know about sitting through it.

"It's Chinatown, Jake" vs "He was MY boyfriend". I love both Chinatown and Young Frankenstein and Mel talking about the film and the chance to see it on the big screen in all it's black and white beauty, I don't think I can pass that up. Luckily, I've seen Chinatown a couple of times on the big screen but Robert Towne introducing- he is part of the discussion right- because if it's just Evans and Towne is in the audience, that one slips a bit.

And YF is on film so that gets the edge.

Saturday morning I want to hit Fall Guy because I want to hear Walter Mirisch. I wish they would do a Club TCM discussion with just him. He's great.

The Serge Bromberg early 3-D sounds really interesting.

I really want to see the Hollywood Home Movies so that will color what I do after Serge.

Dr. No is a possibility if only for Sean Connery on the big screen. Then there's "Casablanca" (the new restoration) or "Night and the City".

Hollywood Home Movies is a must for me which may impact the sentence above if there is not enough time to get a good seat in Club TCM for this one.

A Night to Remember on that fateful night. I haven't seen it in years, so I'm looking forward to it!

I love Thelma Schoonmaker but How the West Was Won in true Cinerama at the iconic Cinerama Dome, that one has the edge right now.

Will definitely hit the "TCM 18th Birthday Party" though it only being a half hour long seems really weird. Are they getting some sort of award or something?

The good thing this year, plenty of time to eat and not have to scurry back and forth as much as last year.

[JackFavell]

Wow! What a smorgasbord! Honestly, I don't know how anyone could pass up Kim Novak and Vertigo, or The Thief of Baghdad, or Black Narcissus, or the two movies that make me positively drool thinking of them on a big screen, Night and the City and Bonjour Tristesse!

Good luck to you all, figuring out your schedules. We should all have such trials and tribulations as having to choose between Kim Novak and Stanley Donen -- though I know who I'd pick in a heartbeat....

[pvitari]

Well, I went to a 35mm screening of Black Narcissus just last night -- which means I've seen it twice on the big screen now -- and I met Thelma Schoonmaker at that Powell and Pressburger festival in Memphis back in 2006, so... that probably means I'll be getting in a cab early Sunday morning to get to the Dome to see How The West Was Won. Though that's not my favorite movie of all time -- but I've never seen it in a theater, let alone in the Cinerama Dome. In fact, I don't think I've ever seen a Cinerama movie at the Dome. :) So now's my chance.

The others... I haven't made up my mind what I'm going to do about the ones that are conflicts for me. AAAAAAGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

-- Paula

[Sue Sue Applegate]

My head is all a-swirl.....I know I will have some decisions to make! But I am happy that they have the schedule up.


But for some reason, all I've been doing lately is thinking about Capucine. Maybe because TCM FEST 2012
is supposed to be STYLISH for several reasons.

Sunday at 3:45 is the screening of The Pink Panther and the delightful Robert Wagner is scheduled to introduce it.

I always enjoyed that naughty, light-hearted romp, with David Niven and Capucine.


Legendary director George Cukor once claimed that the camera had a love affair with "her" face. He was discussing the lovely Capucine, born Germaine Lefebvre in France in 1928. Capucine received a BA in foreign languages, but balked at the suggestion from her parents that she should be a schoolteacher.


She supposedly was discovered by a French fashion photographer while riding in a carriage, but by noticing how she walked, talked, and enjoyed her love affair with every camera she met, her carriage, her own personal energy and style is what made her so beautiful for us to watch on the screen. And her words and expressions in English were spoken in a lilting husky whisper that would register in a higher pitch when she grew angry or frustrated.

North To Alaska is another one of those films, besides The Pink Panther, that gives her a wide range of expressive outlets for revealing rage, anger, and listening to her bubbly laughter.



While working as a high fashion model for Givenchy in Paris, she was supposedly discovered by high powered agent and
raconteur Charles Feldman. She also worked for the houses of Chanel, Maggy Rouff, and Christian Dior.

Capucine, which means nasturtium in French, was also a dear friend of another fashion flower, Audrey Hepburn, and was in attendance at Audrey's marriage ceremony to Andrea Dotti. Capucine and Audrey both lived in Switzerland, and spoke several languages, so not only did they both look divine, they probably sounded even more marvelous speaking in all those different romantic cadences.

Evidently, she had some happy moments in her life, and helped others to find it, too. Rumored to have been mentioned in the wills of William Holden, Darryl F. Zanuck, and Peter Sellers, Capucine lived in Lausanne, Switzerland for many years, and even though she suffered bouts of depression, she had many friends who tried to help her.

Capucine jumped from her 8-story apartment building in Lausanne in March of 1990, and her struggles were over.

[feaito]

Great account Chris. I admire Capucine's talent.

[moirafinnie]

What beautiful pictures you have found of Capucine, whose presence in movies introduced some sense of mystery into her films. Though I never found her terribly expressive on camera, her beauty and intriguing air of sad elegance followed her like a perfume. In addition to the romantic adventures you have cited, the actress was a protégée of the powerful Charles K. Feldman, a Hollywood lawyer turned big time agent who is often mentioned/accused of creating "the package deal" tossing in several of his clients--whether they were appropriate or not--whenever a project was set up to film. I suspect that may have made it harder for her to be taken seriously, unfortunately.

In his memoirs, Dirk Bogarde, her co-star in the bloated biopic about Liszt, Song Without End (1960), wrote that she was the only woman he ever wanted to marry. He remained close to her for the rest of her life. There are some sources that claim that her disappointment over Bogarde's inability to land her a role in Visconti's Death in Venice (1971) triggered the depressive spiral that led to her sad end--though there was a 19 year gap between the events, which makes it seem like a long time to brood over a professional letdown. Perhaps that was part of it, but I have often wondered if growing up in occupied France might have made her understandably melancholy for the rest of her life.

[Lzcutter]

Jacks,

I've had the good fortune of seeing Vertigo on the big screen so that probably influences my other choices. I've led a charmed life, I think, in that regard. Coming to the City of Angels when I did in the mid-1970s, the city was still awash with revival theaters and add to that, we have the Academy, the Egyptian, the Silent Movie Theater, Last Remaining Seats and the theaters on the campus of USC which I helped to run back in the day when I was in film school.

It was a magical time in a magical city and I was/am truly blessed.

[Rita Hayworth]

What beautiful pictures you have found of Capucine, whose presence in movies introduced some sense of mystery into her films. Though I never found her terribly expressive on camera, her beauty and intriguing air of sad elegance followed her like a perfume. In addition to the romantic adventures you have cited, the actress was a protégée of the powerful Charles K. Feldman, a Hollywood lawyer turned big time agent who is often mentioned/accused of creating "the package deal" tossing in several of his clients--whether they were appropriate or not--whenever a project was set up to film. I suspect that may have made it harder for her to be taken seriously, unfortunately.

She is one of my favorite actresses; and what Moira has written here is the same sediments that I have and she has a certain charm that most actresses do not have. I find her alluring and full of mystery about her and she makes her presence known on film. Sue Sue, thanks for posting all these lovely images of her and I for one find her a fascinating woman to behold. She has one of the most enchanting eyes that are so bewitching to see.

[CineMaven]

Well...I've said it before (and I just did) and I'll say it again...

Thanxx so much SueSue for your post CAPUCINE. You've struck a big chord with me mentioning one of my favorite faves. I'm crazy about her. She was quite stylish...and so ultra-Sophisticated. She has one of the most arresting looks I've ever seen in movies; not quite that apple-pie-pretty, California-Barbie-look of Bardot, or the sweetly sexy look of Romy Schneider...nor the porcelain icy beauty of Deneuve. I think Capucine had more the "I-Am-A-Woman, Can-You-Handle-THAT!" look that challenged men. (Moreau has that look as well).

I'm a big fan even though I've only seen "The Pink Panther" "North to Alaska" and my favorite: "Walk On The Wild Side." I can't wait to hear RJ do his intro for the panther movie. And I expect to have a drink with you soon.

I'm so happy you created such a lovely spotlight for her. I wish the dear woman had been happier.

Though I never found her terribly expressive on camera, her beauty and intriguing air of sad elegance followed her like a perfume.

I love the way you expressed that.

[JackFavell]

Can I jump on the Capucine bandwagon? One of my favorite actresses, I find her mesmerizing on film. Her aloof air was never cold or forbidding, she seemed warm and vulnerable under the cool exterior. I am really happy she has so many fans here. Thanks for the lovely pics.

[Sue Sue Applegate]

Thank you for the "skinny," dear font we fondly call Moira. I appreciate the sweet sentiments that Sue Sue cherishes Jackie, Kingme, 'Nando and Cinemaven.

I think that growing up in occupied France would slant my attitudes and perceptions also, Moira. Astute as usual...

Mave--Your enthusiasm is delightful!

Jackie--I do believe Capucine had a big bandwagon full of admirers and had she truly understood the magnitude of her impact, she might have been much happier.

Kingme--her eyes are enchanting!There just never seems to be the perfect shade of Revlon or Maybelline that can make me look just like Capucine or Audrey or Vivien or Ingrid or Lena....reckon that's why CVS and Walgreens have such fantastic cosmetics sales?

[Sue Sue Applegate]

Annie Laurie Starr,

How could you ever become mixed up with a no good loser like Barton Tare?

Then it started something that nobody could stop!

A road trip…

A woman he would do anything for…and I mean anything!

That first touch, that moment of love’s first blush…

The steamroller of passion …

If you loved this delightfully wacky noir and want to indulge the hidden pulp novel voyeur lurking around in your cinematic soul, check out Peggy Cummins and Eddie Muller when they introduce Gun Crazy at 6:45 on Saturday at the Egyptian. If you've never seen it, it's a must!

Miss Cummins is flying in from London for our festival, and I hope she knows how much we appreciate it!
Read more about her at the Special Guests Link on the TCM Festival Link:
http://www.tcm.com/festival/programs/47 ... uests.html

[kingrat]

SueSue, thanks for the gorgeous pictures of Capucine. The picture with the close-fitting hat with the flame-like extensions is amazing. Moira, thanks for the background information.

I'd never been a fan of hers (Walk on the Wild Side and The Pink Panther didn't do it for me) until seeing The Seventh Dawn and North to Alaska. Her role in The Seventh Dawn is quite complex, and she does justice to it.