Summer Under the Stars August 2014 Schedule on TCM

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JackFavell
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Re: Summer Under the Stars August 2014 Schedule on TCM

Post by JackFavell »

Me too, KR! Me too.

Stone - I think William Talman gave Neville Brand a run for his money in The Hitchhiker on Wednesday morning. I had never seen the 1953 Edmond O'Brien/Frank Lovejoy film before and it was excellent... Ida Lupino brought out strong, slightly ambiguous performances in the cast. I loved the 'couple' in the movie - Lovejoy and O'Brien...they were perfect for each other and I kept worrying that one of them would get killed, leaving the other by himself to match wits with Talman. Together you just knew they would overcome anything. The villain has his points, though, and his hostages are pretty 'soft' as he calls it. The low budget movie had huge suspense, and great locations that I recognized from some westerns. The acting and directing make it far more than the description would lead you to believe. Talman was a wonderful actor (as were O'Brien and Lovejoy)...he makes you see the human being under the messed up loony holding gun on the two 'innocent' businessmen.

That being said, I would far rather have met Talman in real life.... Brand gives me the creeps too, especially after seeing him in Cry Terror. Yikes!
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Re: Summer Under the Stars August 2014 Schedule on TCM

Post by JackFavell »

I had a blast yesterday hanging out with Betty Grable.

Betty used to confound me... I never really knew why she became a star, aside from a stubborn resoluteness that kept her plugging away in Hollywood for ten years when a lesser woman would have quit. Well, yesterday, I found out the "something about Betty" that makes her so watchable. She's a regular gal - great looking yes, with porcelain skin, blue blue eyes, and a too full mouth that always looks rosy, perfect hair, and a great figure (those legs!).... but I decided that the most important thing about her was that women liked her too. She's non- threatening. Her persona is so winning that I found myself feeling much happier just being in her presence during the day.

I loved seeing my old favorite from childhood The Dolly Sisters - it was just a tad long, but man, the costumes, sets, dance numbers, supporting cast, Technicolor and Grable herself really made this a knockout 40's biopic-musical. The low-point - the incredibly ewwwww! uncomfortable and perhaps racist Darktown Strutters Ball number, which made me squirm in my seat wondering why they didn't at least use black women for the number. Other than that, the musical was terrific. Another number, the 'vanity case' one, had me laughing and nostalgic all at the same time...Fox girls parading in front of the camera with lipstick hats, powder puff gowns and mascara'd eyeball fabric plastered all over their lovely figures. It was wonderful in the way only a forties musical can be.

Ben M. said that Grable freaked out during filming because the studio had hired June Haver (in order to keep Betty in line) as her co-star. She'd never had any competition, and it threw her. She needn't have worried. My eye always went to Grable and it actually made me appreciate her dancing and acting talents and natural likeability more seeing her up against Haver. Grable just has that extra something that makes her shine. Perhaps it's sincerity. Her acting here in The Dolly Sisters was terrific! She's all that she should be, warm and friendly, and ultimately very sympathetic. You feel for her.

I felt Betty was much more.... REFINED than Haver, though I wouldn't have thought of this word in relation to Grable before. There was something quite elegant (both meanings here - simple and ingenuous as well as poised, beautiful, aesthetically pleasing) that showed up in Betty which surprised me. It's something so feminine and graceful and it caught my eye in every musical number. She had a little more reach, a little more charisma, and all in a very American way. Grable... I guess...is indefinable. Sometimes after watching a star all day I feel the need of a break, but I could watch her again today and be perfectly happy.

Mother Wore Tights was not my cup of tea, although it was winning enough. I enjoyed it during the first half, but by the end I wanted to strangle the film - loving closeups of Mona Freeman singing an overlong, angelic love song to her parents Grable and Dan Dailey made me want to trow up....so I laughed instead. It was quite a popular film, so Ben M. told us, and I can see why, after the war people responded to it's warmth and family values. But I don't want to see it again. :D

Meet Me After the Show was cute, and kept my attention more than I thought it would. Eddie Albert was terrific. Rory Calhoun was UN-refined, but who cares? He's HOT. I'm a fan of MacDonald Carey, but he's a stiff here and Betty carries the whole thing. Not bad for a singer/dancer who I bet people underestimated.

I watched How To Marry a Millionaire for the thousandth time and appreciated it again. Marilyn made me laugh out loud, even when I knew what was coming. I've gone through times where I liked wide-eyed Marilyn best, and suave Lauren Bacall (can a woman be suave?), but this time through I just liked Betty Grable's section so much that she wins the prize. Look at her in her less 'dumb blonde' scenes...when she's just being herself. That's hard to do! The poor gal was given the worst costumes and hairstyles, and some amazingly stupid dialogue, and still she makes the most of her scenes. And she spends most of her time with Rory Calhoun...who is HOT. What more can you ask? :D

I slept through the two films I most wanted to watch, even though I've seen them before. That's what I get for taking my allergy pill right before 10 o'clock! Down Argentine Way and I Wake Up Screaming were just passing scenes for me, a glimpse of Don Ameche singing in a tux and then the tantalizing whiteness of Grable's hair next to Victor Mature's blackness... and I was out like a light again. I'm curious how kingrat liked them. I saw a scene or two from Coney Island, and enjoyed it immensely...I wish I could have kept my eyes open longer to see Betty transform herself from overdressed hoyden to elegant turn of the century star, but it wasn't meant to be.

So here's to Betty! A glass of champagne couldn't be more effervescent than the Blonde from St. Louis. I never did understand what she saw in Harry James.
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Re: Summer Under the Stars August 2014 Schedule on TCM

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I loved your take on Betty Grable, JF. She definitely grows on me though I find some of the Fox musicals blur together for me. The Dolly Sisters (1945) was one that always stood out, in part because of the surreal costumes times two, not to mention all the loopy plot and songs. I always find something else to do when those blackface scenes are on in movies, though it does leave an awful taste in your mouth to think that something you enjoyed contained something so awful. I like June Haver a good deal, but I know what you mean--she was actually a decade younger and less experienced in show biz than Betty, not a particularly expressive actress, and, from most reports, not that eager to be a star. Now one more thing: I can't explain it, but when John Payne bent down and whispered in Betty's ear, "I'll buy you a cup of coffee" at the end, it was positively erotic! Can you explain, Dr. Favell?

Mother Wore Tights was okay, but when Ben Mank. mentioned that James Cagney was almost cast in the Dan Dailey role, I almost fainted. How great would that have been? I am so miffed that it didn't happen. One scene stands out for me: I LOVED it when Betty did the "I'm Burt" number for her friends in the theater.

I guess I am the only person who doesn't really get a kick out of How to Marry a Millionaire. I always think that Fred Clark would have been an "interesting challenge" as a possible fella and William Powell would have been a far better mate than the ones the women wound up with in this movie. I also hate the chilly, overlit color and the far away look of the CinemaScope. But don't let me rain on your parades.

I do like Betty and Carole Landis in I Wake Up Screaming, but they aren't why I enjoy this movie--it's the character actors dogpiling on each other for screen time: Alan Mowbray, Allyn Joslyn, Elisha Cook, Frank Orth, Charles Lane, and--of course, the brilliant Laird Cregar really make this fun to see. Victor Mature was good too as the Broadway hustler who becomes almost human after exposure to an Everywoman, Hollywood-style: Betty Grable, the clear-eyed girl stenographer, with a very sturdy, blonde head on her shoulders--even if her sis was a bit of a tease (at least in male eyes).
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Re: Summer Under the Stars August 2014 Schedule on TCM

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I loved your take on Betty Grable, JF. She definitely grows on me though I find some of the Fox musicals blur together for me. The Dolly Sisters (1945) was one that always stood out, in part because of the surreal costumes times two, not to mention all the loopy plot and songs. I always find something else to do when those blackface scenes are on in movies, though it does leave an awful taste in your mouth to think that something you enjoyed contained something so awful.
I agree about Betty's Fox musicals blurring together. This one certainly broke the mold! When it came out, newly returned vets probably sat there, drooling over the female pulchritude, happy to look at TWO gorgeous women and their scantily clad, perfect bodies for two hours while their wives' were drooling over the crazy surreal costumes and sets. No wonder I remember it from when I was a kid! It's got everything a nine year old appreciates! Bubbling hats, regency-by-way-of-flapper gowns, dutch girl outfits, feathers and fur, crazy double vision, bright colors, S.Z. Sakall.... :D

I sat there during the blackface number and just couldn't make up my mind about it. I mean, it's almost no different than the lipstick number, "let's put the girls into some outlandish outfits and see what happens". At first I thought, "well, at least they are celebrating black beauty" But there's a whole other level to it that is horrifying. By having white women in blackface, with white ideas of beauty portrayed under the makeup... it just gets into truly disturbing territory. I usually don't get too upset at blackface in films, but this was complex and deeply uncomfortable for me. One of those "you want to look away but you can't" moments. Ah well.
I like June Haver a good deal, but I know what you mean--she was actually a decade younger and less experienced in show biz than Betty, not a particularly expressive actress, and, from most reports, not that eager to be a star.
I tried very hard to be objective about the two women and their personalities when watching. I also tried when writing about June Haver to be very kind. I like her, but when watching the film, I can't help but see how real Betty seems in contrast. Poor Haver was probably shaking in her shoes. I do think that the way the two roles were written, it played to the advantages of each star, so it's very enjoyable to watch for either one.

As for the songs, they are what always bring me back to the Fox musicals and movies like Walsh's The Strawberry Blonde. Tin Pan Alley brought us so many great songs in that period between 1890 and 1920 or so, that it's always a pleasure to hear them all strung together. The musical directors of The Dolly Sisters outdid themselves picking a mix of greats and ones that were silly enough to be engaging. I always get the feeling that the studios wanted folks out there in the audience to remember the songs fondly, and that they had a feeling themselves for those songwriters. They must have, or they wouldn't have made so many decent nostalgia films.
Now one more thing: I can't explain it, but when John Payne bent down and whispered in Betty's ear, "I'll buy you a cup of coffee" at the end, it was positively erotic! Can you explain, Dr. Favell?
Because Payne's HOT! hahahahaha! Well, I can't explain the eroticism, but it made me wonder if maybe he had a thing for Grable! That whisper, low enough to make you lean forward, but just barely loud enough for the mikes to pick it up, made me shiver! I think it's his voice. Maybe it's the way he nuzzles Betty's ear so intimately. Or maybe we've been looking at that picture of Payne with a noticeable bulge in his boxing trunks too much! :D

John Payne, like Betty, is someone who has grown on me over the last few years... and not just as a good looking man. He was far more than the simple good-natured love interest in all these lighthearted musicals and comedies. He's a sincere actor, like Betty, but there are hints in The Dolly Sisters of the dark characters he would play later. I found him very appealing, very believable as the tortured Harry Fox. Wish they'd given him one other song to do, but perhaps Fox didn't write any others worth including.
One scene stands out for me: I LOVED it when Betty did the "I'm Burt" number for her friends in the theater.


OMG, Moira, I can't believe I forgot about the "I'm Burt" number! I loved it! It led me to believe the movie was going to have some great surprises in it... which never really materialized. :D I suspect that it was the simple kind of number that Betty loved to do - baggy pants fun and yet there are complicated moves in it that she pulls off effortlessly and in perfect rhythm. Like with the hat! I don't know HOW you make a hat roll down your arm in rhythm. She really takes on a different style for the number and it works. After watching her in all these movies, I find she's a far, FAR better dancer than I ever gave her credit for, quite meticulous in her movement. AND she does that stuffy accent quite well in the Burt number, ending each word with extra syllabic oomph. It was certainly the highlight of the movie. :D
Mother Wore Tights was okay, but when Ben Mank. mentioned that James Cagney was almost cast in the Dan Dailey role, I almost fainted. How great would that have been? I am so miffed that it didn't happen.
I missed the intro! I like Dan Dailey, but it makes me want to cry that Jimmy Cagney didn't do this film. Wow. I can picture it in my minds eye so well.
I guess I am the only person who doesn't really get a kick out of How to Marry a Millionaire. I always think that Fred Clark would have been an "interesting challenge" as a possible fella and William Powell would have been a far better mate than the ones the women wound up with in this movie. I also hate the chilly, overlit color and the far away look of the CinemaScope. But don't let me rain on your parades.
I can understand that. Sometimes the draggy way the comedic beats are held in the film annoys me, like it was a stage play and they are counting it out with a hammer. But the charm of the ladies always wins me over in the end. I too think that Bacall was a fool to go with Cameron Mitchell when she could have had William Powell. What was that line Paul Newman used about Joanne Woodward? Why have hamburger when you could have steak every night? I can't stand Fred Clark in this movie. By the end, he certainly deserves his come-uppance.
I do like Betty and Carole Landis in I Wake Up Screaming, but they aren't why I enjoy this movie--it's the character actors dogpiling on each other for screen time: Alan Mowbray, Allyn Joslyn, Elisha Cook, Frank Orth, Charles Lane, and--of course, the brilliant Laird Cregar really make this fun to see. Victor Mature was good too as the Broadway hustler who becomes almost human after exposure to an Everywoman, Hollywood-style: Betty Grable, the clear-eyed girl stenographer, with a very sturdy, blonde head on her shoulders--even if her sis was a bit of a tease (at least in male eyes).
Oh yeah, you had me at character actors.Absolutely! I love how the plot turns around the character actors and their connections with Landis. And Victor Mature is really good here! But you know how I feel about him. I Wake Up Screaming is perfectly cast. The lighting just blows me away though, more than anything else. When Cregar stands over Mature and a plume of cigarette smoke envelops him, it makes me swoon. Black and White rarely gets any better. I love the way they mixed the glossiness of a big budget musical with the dark noir crime story and underpinnings. It works! I don't know how, but it does.
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Re: Summer Under the Stars August 2014 Schedule on TCM

Post by movieman1957 »

I agree about John Payne. He was on in the background as we were visiting some friends and I was reminded how well he sings. He's quite the tough guy and works well in westerns. He's quite a talent. (There sure was a lot of color in that picture though.)
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Re: Summer Under the Stars August 2014 Schedule on TCM

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Here's the clip of "I'm Burt" with Betty Grable from Mother Wore Tights (1947).

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Re: Summer Under the Stars August 2014 Schedule on TCM

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kingrat wrote:[v]I finally saw all of Marriage Is a Private Affair, and liked this one a lot. What a great property for the young and beautiful Lana Turner, who was a better actress then than later in her career. She's poised and natural, able to hit all the right notes. Maven has mentioned her admiration for Frances Gifford in this film, and I share those sentiments.[/b]
I am soooooooooooooooooooo very very late to this party, but I saw Frances Gifford's name mentioned so I had to stop by. I'm glad you enjoyed her in this movie. I thought she did a wonderful job. I waxed on recently about Ms. Gifford on my blog.
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