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Seen and Heard on the Blvd-TCM FF 2013

Posted: May 5th, 2013, 2:11 pm
by Lzcutter
This year's TCM Film Festival began for me on Wednesday morning. After a six hour drive (just getting to the freeway in SF at rush hour took a major chunk of time and it's only a few miles!) down the spine of the state (yay, I-5), I arrived home in my beloved City of Angels by early afternoon. I stopped at home to unpack, check the pookies (awake and making big messes for MrC to clean up) and gather my wits.

After a nice break, it was time to jump in the car and head to Mecca, in this case Hollywood. On the way, I stopped off and picked up KyleinHollywood and we headed to the Roosevelt. Iron Man 3 was having its world premiere that evening at the El Capitan so traffic was a bit of a challenge. I dropped Kyle off at the Roosevelt and went to the park the car. Traffic being a mess, it was good I knew the backroads and it didn't take long to get back to the Hollywood and Highland parking complex.

It was too late to pick up our badges so we headed to the lobby to see what was happening. We had the opportunity that evening to attend a private party at Club TCM (for Citicard holders) where Robert O was going to interview Mitzi Gaynor.

But, we had some hours to kill before that. Hanging in the lobby, we got caught up (though we spend a great deal of time talking via email, this was the first time our paths had crossed in real time). While watching the early arrivals at the FF, we met identical twins, the Schneider sisters. They were from Illinois and this was their first film festival. They wanted advice from us old hands and we gave them some pointers:

1) Take time to check out the tapings in the lobby as Robert O and Ben M interviews give you a chance to see and hear many of the guest stars that are scheduled for screenings.
2) Wear comfortable shoes.
3) Get in line at least an hour to 45 minutes early, especially for popular titles.
4) Stay hydrated and don't forget to eat.
5) Don't be afraid to talk to people while standing in line.

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Photo courtesy of Suex2

Soon, we saw Suex2 and a little later, Cinemaven, popped by to say hi. She had just arrived from the airport. Everyone was making plans for that evening. Some were going to Musso and Franks, others were going to Miceli's, some were going to the Arclight for the AFI screenings. We told everyone to give themselves some extra time navigating the Blvd because of the Iron Man premiere. As the afternoon gave way to the evening, well dressed twenty and thirty somethings began filling the lobby as they were waiting for the premiere to start.

We finally decided that some food for us would be a good idea. We ended up at the coffee shop, 25 Degrees, in the hotel. We were seated near the Schneider twins and other Festival goers. At the counter was actor Neil McDonough (Band of Brothers, Boomtown and Justified, season 3).

Before long, it was time for the party at Club TCM. On our way in, we ran into Paula (Countessdelave) and Cheryl. We grabbed a table and sat down to get caught up.

It was time for Genevieve MacGillicuddy, Festival Director, to take the stage to welcome all of us (and thank Citi for sponsoring the event) and introduce Robert O. Gen hoped we would all have a great time at the Festival this year but to kick it all off, she brought Robert O to the stage. The Club went wild with enthusiastic applause. Robert O, about to turn 81, looked great, rested and ready to begin what for him and the staffers would be four days of non-stop activity.

He welcomed us and brought Mitzi Gaynor to the stage. Her mega-watt smile could have lit up the Hollywood sign for days. She sat down next to Robert O and then held us in the palm of her hand for the next hour as she regaled us with stories.

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Photo courtesy of artsmeme.com

She flirted with Robert (I'm rich and I'm a widow), told us the story of how Rossano Brazzi thought he was going to do his own singing in South Pacific because he sung to Katherine Hepburn in Summertime. (Mitzi does a wicked impression of Brazzi singing, by the way). Finally, before filming began, Brazzi began to understand how difficult the singing would be and decided his style was more suited for "intimate singing" like he had done in Summertime.

Mitzi spoke at length about her late husband, Jack Bean, and how supportive he was.

She also talked about vying with Mary Martin for the role in South Pacific, though Martin was in her early 40s by then and too old for the role. Martin really wanted the role. In fact, Mitzi and Jack were invited, along with Mary Martin and her husband, to Oscar Hammerstein's house for dinner. The Martins arrived first. When Mitzi and Jack arrived with another couple, Martin's husband let the other couple in and then shut the door in Mitzi and Jack's face.

Mitzi got the role despite Martin's husband's bad manners.

It was over all too soon. We could have listened to Mitzi for hours, I suspect. But, she had a big day coming up. South Pacific was the poolside screening the next evening and Mitzi and France Nuyen were scheduled to talk before the film.

After the interview, Gen came over to say hello and we got the opportunity to talk to her for a few minutes. She said there was a special event scheduled for the South Pacific screening that we wouldn't want to miss.

It was close to 9:00 and time to call it an evening. I dropped Kyle off at his abode and headed home to tell MrCutter about Mitzi (he's a big fan of South Pacific).

Tomorrow would start early enough!

Re: Seen and Heard on the Blvd-TCM FF 2013

Posted: May 5th, 2013, 2:49 pm
by Rita Hayworth
Nice recap here ... and I sure enjoyed reading it as always. You sure have a knack of writing Lzcutter. Cool Avatar too.

Re: Seen and Heard on the Blvd-TCM FF 2013

Posted: May 5th, 2013, 3:08 pm
by Lzcutter
The next morning began with a trip to the chiropractor and drive into Hollywood. The traffic around Hollywood and Highland was easier than the day before though they still had the Blvd closed off as they prepped for the red carpet that evening that is one of the official kick-offs of the TCM Film Festival.

Once at the Roosevelt, I went up to the Mezzanine to get my badge. Joining me on the elevator ride down, was Jacqueline White and her daughter. Two very spry and lovely ladies.

I joined the other ladies at the first meet and greet of the day, Meet Butterscotchgreer (Theresa Madera from Texas). Our group included Suex2, Cinemaven, Countessdelave, and her friend, Cheryl.

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Photo courtesy of Suex2

We were soon joined by one of the TCM programmers, Stephanie and we had a great time chatting with her about the message boards and our suggestions for upcoming films.

After the breakfast, we hung out in the lobby until Club TCM opened. We grabbed a table so we could sit comfortably during the Meet TCM Staff panel that kicks off the afternoon festivities.

We kept our eyes open for friends. Luckily, kingrat (David) always wears his Indiana Jones hat that makes him easier to spot.

Scott McGee, producer (and monthly podcast director) for TCM's On-Air promos dept) was the moderator this year. The panel included Sean Cameron, Director, Studio Operations, Tom Brown, Director, TCM Original Programming, Charlie Tabesh, Sr. VP of Programming, Jeff Gregor, general manager of the channel, Pola Changnon, On-Air Promo director and Richard Steiner, head of TCM Digital.

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Photo courtesy of OutofthePast.com

This is one of the most popular panels all weekend. People take the chance to ask questions about how TCM works and what is coming up on the channel. Tom Brown talked about the upcoming documentary on Richard Zanuck, Don't Say No Until I'm Finished Talking. Zanuck died shortly after seeing the first rough cut and was pleased with the direction the documentary was going in.

Charlie talked about the upcoming 20th anniversary of the channel (next April). One of the questions from the audience was about more fan programmers and both Charlie and Sean confirmed that fan programmers will be a component of the celebration. The celebration is supposed to be a year long celebration. Charlie also talked about how difficult rights issues can be and how various studios are more inclined to work with TCM than in the past. (On a side note, we saw Lee Tsiantis, who talked a bit more about rights issues with our group).

Jeff Gregor, who used to dress in suits for this panel now sports jeans and a comfortable shirt (I told him he has been indoctrinated into the TCM way), talked about how 49% of the channel audience is under 49 (and this is very much in evidence at the FF by the number of under-forty fans everywhere). TCM also did a brand loyalty survey (Apple, Mercedes Benz, BMW and others) and discovered, much to their surprise, that the only brand that engenders more loyalty than TCM is Apple.

Pola talked about why they made the change in Ben's set ("from downtown loft to Santa Monica bungalow") and how much fun it was to design it right down to the dog leash and water bowl. Ben M is very happy with the new set.

Richard Steiner addressed some of the problems with the website and how they are working to make it better. He also talked about how much work goes into the 31 Days of Oscar and Summer Under the Stars microsites.

Scott McGee, by the way, is a terrific moderator.

After the panel, everyone went to get ready for the parties that night.

The Welcome Party began at 5:00. I got the opportunity to see many of our posters in their finest and they all looked great. As many of them went to walk the red carpet, I got the opportunity to talk to others in Club TCM. I met many first timers (and this would become standard throughout the weekend) who even this early in the weekend, were already talking about returning next year. People were happy to be there. The only grumbling I heard was about the choice of design for this year's posters, etc.

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Photo courtesy of TCM.com

The travel theme this year possibly influenced the design. One of the newbies talked about using iconic stars faces and another countered with how difficult it could be dealing with rights for those faces and how expensive it could be. The previous years, with characterizations of stars in iconic roles, was definitely a more popular choice.

As it got later, I wandered out poolside to see how that was shaping out. As twilight descended, fire dancers came out and entertained the crowd.

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Photo courtesy of outofthepast.com

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Photo courtesy of TCM

They wowed the capacity crowd.

Later, I heard from the general manager of Club TCM that they also ran the film in Club TCM because of overflow from the poolside.

I decided to wander home and have dinner with MrC. I saw Safe in Hell when it was Jeff Stafford's pick for Employee Picks on the channel and as dreamy as Bill, Jr. is, MrCutter is even more dreamy.

More coming up!

Re: Seen and Heard on the Blvd-TCM FF 2013

Posted: May 5th, 2013, 4:02 pm
by Lzcutter
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Friday morning found me back in Hollywood. I met my friend, Mary Mallory, who is a board member of Hollywood Heritage and the author of Hollywoodland, the book on the history of the iconic sign. We talked about the changes coming to Grauman's and she assured me that Hollywood Heritage is watching it all very carefully. For those who don't know, TCL, a Chinese television manufacturing company, has the branding rights to Grauman's for five years. They are working with the owners of the theater to install an Imax screen. The changes to the interior are supposed to be minimal with the loss of the stairs that lead down into the theater. They will relight some of the interior lighting that hasn't been lit in over seventy years. They are keeping the projection booth and the projection equipment as well.

To see what the changes will look like: http://la.curbed.com/archives/2013/04/s ... heatre.php

Hollywood Heritage is the preservation group that fought the destruction of Grauman's fifteen years ago when the Hollywood and Highland complex was being built. They are also the group responsible for Hollywood and Highland completely restoring not only the interior of the theater but the facade and forecourt. So, it sounds like Hollywood Heritage has its eye on the project and won't let TCL or the current owners destroy anything.

After coffee, we wandered over to hotel lobby to wait for Club TCM to open. Mary read the LA Times and I pulled out my Kindle to read more of The Revolution Was Televised a terrific book by Alan Sepinwall on the current resurgence of television drama series.

Once Club TCM opened, we made a bee line for the tables that ring the stage as we were settling in for an afternoon of panels. First up, author and film historian Cari Beauchamp was interviewing esteemed film preservationist and silent film historian, Kevin Brownlow. It was originally scheduled to be a talk between Brownlow and composer Carl Davis. Unfortunately, as the FF drew closer, Carl Davis had to send his regrets.

But, Cari Beauchamp and Kevin had a terrific talk. One of the tidbits to come out was that Carl Davis wrote the exquisite theme to the Hollywood series in five minutes in a taxi! Also, many of audio interviews he did back in the 1960s for his book, The Parade's Gone By were done on reel-to-reel tapes with him carrying the machine around with him. The good news is that Brownlow still has those tapes. They haven't fallen down the rabbit hole of rights hell that has engulfed Hollywood. On that note, he is still hopeful that the series will be released on DVD. Here's hoping! He still wants to direct a documentary on Doug Fairbanks, Sr (I came in with Doug and wouldn't mind going out with Doug) but he he hopes to produce a documentary on great silent directors Maurice Tourneur, Clarence Brown, and Rex Ingram some day.

Also at our table was Elaine Mae Woo, the film historian who did the documentary, Frosted Yellow Willows on Anna Mae Wong. She is a delight to talk with.

After the Brownlow talk, the next panel was Taking the Fall, moderated by Scott McGee on stunt people in films. The panel included stunt performing veterans Jeannie Epper (Romancing the Stone, Blade Runner), Loren Janes (IT’S A MAD MAD MAD MAD WORLD, Bullitt) and Conrad E. Palmisano (AIRPLANE!, First Blood) as they discussed the history of the stuntman profession and their decades of experience in the business. It was a great deal of fun to hear Ms. Epper talk about doing the mud slide stunt in Romancing the Stone, it took weeks to film and the stunt director sent her a dozen roses when it was over.

We switched tables and stayed put because I was convinced that the second installment of Academy Home Movies was going to be standing room only (and it was!- The big draw was thought to be The Great Escape (and I hear it was packed!!). Presented again by Academy staffers Randy Haberkamp and Lynne Kriste, it was a terrific grouping of film. Home movies taken by Douglas Fairbanks, Jr of a summer 1937 trip to Austria he went on with Marlene Dietrich, her husband, his companion and Marlene's daughter. This was the summer before Germany invaded and you would never know the world was on the verge of war. Even without make-up, Marlene and Doug looked incredible.

Color home movies taken by Cary Grant and George Stevens on the set of Gunga Din. Cary looked incredibly dreamy and Vic, Doug, Jr and Joan Fontaine all mugged for the camera.

Actress Fay McKenzie shared her home movies and stories of being on USO tours with Desi Arnaz and her brother-in-law, Billy Gilbert. Desi was quite dashing in those pre-"Babbaloo" days. Bob Koster narrated (with an assist from Mitzi Gaynor) home movies of his father, Henry, and behind the scenes of My Blue Heaven. All these years later, Mitzi still swoons over Dan Dailey. And who can blame her!

We were then transported to Malibu in the late 1930s for a beach party at director Jean Negulesco's beach pad home! Among the guests, an incredibly young James Stewart and others mugging for the camera!

I hung around Club TCM afterwards, talking with filmlover, kingrat and some new friends I had made!

I couldn't stay out late as we had to be up at the crack of dawn for the next day's Bugs Bunny retrospective!

It ended all too soon but not before thunderous applause!

Re: Seen and Heard on the Blvd-TCM FF 2013

Posted: May 5th, 2013, 4:21 pm
by moira finnie
Oh, your description of the Kevin Brownlow talk, the Bob Koster appearance, and the Doug Jr. and Negulesco home movies are making me awfully green with envy :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:

Thanks for all these descriptions. It sounds like movie heaven.

Re: Seen and Heard on the Blvd-TCM FF 2013

Posted: May 5th, 2013, 5:13 pm
by Lzcutter
"You know, of course, this means war!"

MrCutter and I were up early in the morning! And I mean early. I knew Bugs Bunny was going to be a big draw and MrCutter loves Bugs. So I knew we had to be in line by 8:15 which means we had to leave by 7:30 (and MrC had the feed and caring of pookies before we could leave!).

But we made it on time and were in line with our breakfast of soda and popcorn, by 8:15. We were soon talking to others around us and again, most of them were first timers who were having the time of their lives.

The Bugs Bunny Retrospective was co-hosted by animation historian Jerry Beck and film historian, animation lover, Leonard Maltin. "What a great way to start a Saturday morning with Bugs Bunny"!

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Photo courtesy of TCM

We were treated to 10 wonderful Bugs (and Elmer) cartoons beginning with:

A Wild Hare (1940) Tex Avery

Wabbit Twouble (1941) Robert Clampett

Tortoise Wins By A Hare (1943) Bob Clampett

The Old Grey Hare (1944) Bob Clampett

Slick Hare (1947) Friz Freleng

Bugs Bunny Rides Again (1948) Friz Freleng

Long Haired Hare (1949) Chick Jones

What's Up, Doc? (1950) Robert McKimson

Rabbit Seasoning (1952) Chuck Jones

What's Opera, Doc? (1957) Chuck Jones

Mel Blanc voiced many of the Looney Tune characters but he didn't voice Elmer. Radio actor Arthur Q. Bryan voiced Elmer up through What's Opera, Doc? though Mel Blanc did the word, "smog!" in Bryan's voice for What's Opera, Doc?.

It was a terrific morning watching the evolution of Bugs and Elmer and a shout-out to my friend, Mike Schlesinger, for suggesting it to TCM!

"I don't know how many of you have ever heard 500 gallons of water coming at you!"- Burt Reynolds, Deliverance panel

As soon as we got out of the theater, it was time to get right back in the same line for Deliverance. Kyle and I have been advocating for a couple of years for this film to be at the Film Festival especially if they could reunite the cast. Well, TCM did us one better, they reunited almost all of the cast (except Ronny Cox who is also a musician and who was on the road) and director, John Boorman. This was expected to be a full house and TCM fans did not disappoint and neither did the panel!

Ben M surprised me by being the one to moderate the introduction. I was almost certain it would be Tom Brown who is friends with Burt Reynolds. Ben M proved well up to the task!

Jon Voight turned out to be more gracious than I ever would have expected. Ned Beatty, who started out staring out in the audience (and left many wondering if he was okay) turned out to be a hoot! He has a great sense of humor. Burt was more frail than expected but looks to be recovering from his recent hospital stay and John Boorman has a terrific Irish lilt. Burt told the story of how he did the stint where takes a header out of the canoe in the last third of the film. He blamed his ego back then while talking about how the stuntman even knew the stunt was dangerous and tried to talk him out of it. Reynolds ended up cracking his tailbone, bruising a kidney and wishes now that he let the stuntman do the stunt!

Boorman revealed that the studio originally wanted Marlon Brando and Jack Nicholson for the leads and Reynolds did a great mimic of Brando from Godfather. Voight had to be talked into taking the role. He and Boorman remember the details a little differently but they both agree it was a phone call and Boorman counted down before Voight said yes. Voight's girlfriend, Marcheline Bertrand (Angeline's mother), convinced him to take the role.

It was all over way too quick but TCM has video highlights of it here:

http://filmfestival.tcm.com/about/video-gallery.php Just be sure to scroll down to Saturday.

The film has aged very well and still holds up. Voight's performance, especially seen on the big screen, is very nuanced, especially in the last third of the film. Burt and Ned have remained friends ever since.

After the film was over, we walked back over to Club TCM. MrCutter went home to tend to the pookies and I made a bee-line for the conversation with Max Von Sydow. Leonard Maltin hosted the talk. Kingrat has proved a terrific recap here: http://silverscreenoasis.com/oasis3/vie ... =92&t=6197

Max is very tall, by the way. TCM had hoped to screen The Exorcist at the Festival but the print that Warner Brothers offered of the film didn't pass muster with director William Friendkin so they had to replace that film with Three Days of the Condor.

Filmlover, Butterscotch and a couple of others were in Club TCM afterwards. We were all killing time and got involved in the Alex Trebek (who looks terrific) musical score trivia game. I had to leave early (dinner plans and I had to take the subway) and the last piece of music I identified for the gamers was, fittingly, Red River.

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Photo courtesy of TCM

I heard later that there was a four-way tie for the win and despite tie-breakers, there was still a two-way tie at the end and Trebek ran out of music cues. It came down to Alex asking questions about scores off the top of his head. I hear he handled it all with aplomb!

Re: Seen and Heard on the Blvd-TCM FF 2013

Posted: May 5th, 2013, 5:53 pm
by Lzcutter
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The last day of the Festival came way too quickly. How could it possibly be Sunday, already? It felt like it had just gotten started!

We were up early again as we were going to the Festival screening of Cinerama Holiday at the Cinerama Dome. We had seen a picture of downtown Las Vegas, circa 1954, in the Festival pocket guide and couldn't wait to see it on the big screen. Again, we were in line with more first timers. They had all been having fun and all were talking about coming back. One of the visitors, from Canada, had little pins he gave us. One said I heart TCM and the other was for Madx4 World. We all suspected that Madx4 World was going to be very popular. (more on that later).

When Cinerama Holiday was being written, the producers approached two couples, one American, one Swiss, about trading places for the film. The Swiss couple would travel around the United States and the American couple would visit Switzerland and Paris.

Betty (Marsh) York and Beatrice Toller talked about participating in the film with Leonard Maltin. Both women had terrific memories of making the film and Leonard Maltin did a great job. As Ms. Toller told us, she was told by cameramen, "Don't stand between the cameras, your face will wrinkle."

She was given good advice because the faces of people caught in the section of film where the film comes together, wrinkle across the screen.

From the pocket guide: This was the second feature in the three-camera process, following the phenomenally popular This Is Cinerama (1952). In three years, the Cinerama Company had developed more mobile cameras, which gave sequences like ski and bobsled runs through the Swiss Alps and a flight with the Navy’s “Blue Angels” more fluidity and excitement. The film also added a bit of plot, focusing on two couples, one Swiss and one from Kansas, exchanging continents during a six-month vacation. Among the highlights are a Baptist church service in New Orleans, performances at nightclubs in Paris and Las Vegas, a ride on the California-Zephyr through the Pacific Northwest and a French puppet show where the widescreen allows viewers to watch both the performance and the audience.

The footage of Las Vegas took my breathe away. In fact, the entire movie was a travelogue not only of the way places used to look but the way we used to live as a society. People looked much, much older and the foods were much, much heavier and much more fried. There was a section of a county fair in Deerfield, MA complete with young collegians singing the Dartmouth fight song (complete with school sweaters and letter jackets).

A definite time capsule and we hadn't even gotten to the intermission! The film was projected digitally, restored from original Cinerama negatives.

The film went on a bit too long but we were very glad we had gotten up early. As we came out of the theater we saw Darcy Hettrich, talent director for TCM and Tom Brown, director of Original Programming. They must have been getting ready for Madx4 World. As we came out of the Dome, the stand-by line of hopefuls hoping to get in to the screening was down the street and around the corner.

Over at Club TCM, we were getting ready for Cari Beauchamp's presentation of Women in Early Hollywood.

"Shut up and put some glue on the seat". Francis Marion

Cari Beauchamp gave a terrific presentation on Francis Marion and her group of female friends who contributed so much to early filmmaking. Her friends included Mary Pickford, Marion Davies, Adela St. John, Anita Loos and others. Francis worked closely with Irving Thalberg even though she didn't like Louis B. Mayer. She married Fred Thomson and they had an early Hollywood mansion that included 120 acres and guest houses. It was designed by Walter Neff and stood until a few years ago when it was bought by Microsoft millionaire Paul Allen and torn down.

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Home of Francis Marion and Fred Thomson

After Cari's stellar presentation, it was time for silent film location sleuth, John Bengston's presentation of silent film locations around Hollywood. His powerpoint presentation was terrific with lots of then and now pictures. All around me, people were taking notes. It was well attended and there were plenty of questions for him!

After the presentation, I wandered out to the lobby and met up with Suex2, Paula, Alexa (TCM staffer) and her friend Rose. We all had a drink together. MrCutter found me there and off we went to the Pig & Whistle (a location from Bengston's presentation) for dinner with kingrat.

We had a great time just relaxing and getting caught up. David's fish and chips looked delicious. Across the booth from us was another first time couple who were having a great time.

After dinner, David took off for Cluny Brown and we took off for Grauman's and The General. It was a long wait in line but once we got in, we forgot all of that.

Peter (filmlover) and a friend of his sat with us.

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Genevieve welcomed everyone and introduced Robert O. Robert O announced there would a fifth film festival and another cruise! He thanked everyone for attending and then told them about the changes coming to the interior of Grauman's. People were upset and I suspect my friend from Hollywood Heritage was not happy with some of the statement as Robert O made it sound like they were completely gutting the interior.

The restored print of The General was great but the soundtrack composed and played by the Alloy Orchestra didn't really fit the film enough for MrCutter and me. After having seen Vince G and His Nighthawks accompany The Cameraman two festivals ago, I suspect we may be a bit spoiled. Alloy's more modern approach to the score seemed very out of place for a film set during the Civil War.

After the film, people all around us were taking photos of the interior of the theater. As we made our way to Club TCM, everyone seemed very happy but very tired. With an early start ahead of me in the morning, we couldn't stay long. But we promised to see kingrat at Thanksgiving and wished everyone well!

It went by all too fast but we had a terrific time and look forward to next year's adventure!

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Re: Seen and Heard on the Blvd-TCM FF 2013

Posted: May 5th, 2013, 10:08 pm
by Sue Sue Applegate
Lynn, your details and notes are fabulous! I am so happy to read about what all I missed. I especially enjoyed Cari Beauchamp's panel about the Women of Early Hollywood, and Max Von Sydow's interview in Club TCM that David wrote about on his thread, and I love reading about all of your travels and experiences.

Re: Seen and Heard on the Blvd-TCM FF 2013

Posted: May 6th, 2013, 1:08 am
by Rita Hayworth
Lynn, I just love your last post ... especially the "This Is Cinerama" part of where you describe it just beautifully! :)

Re: Seen and Heard on the Blvd-TCM FF 2013

Posted: May 6th, 2013, 1:27 pm
by moira finnie
Thanks for the rundown on This is Cinerama (I loved your comment on the way people looked older and the food looked greasier!). Having loved Cari Beauchamp's book on Frances Marion and marveling at the background info she unearthed for her book on Joseph P. Kennedy and Hollywood, it would have been a thrill to see her in person. I wish that she could have also spoken about my favorite book that she edited, "Adventures of a Hollywood Secretary: Her Private Letters from Inside the Studios of the 1920s" by Valeria Belletti.

Is the Pig & Whistle you visited the same bar where everyone from Harold Lloyd, Victor McLaglen, Ida Lupino and the like used to tip a few back in the day or is it a reproduction of some kind?

Re: Seen and Heard on the Blvd-TCM FF 2013

Posted: May 6th, 2013, 9:52 pm
by Lzcutter
Moira,

Cari Beauchamp mentioned that the book is one of her favorites and she is so glad she got the opportunity to publish it.

The Pig & Whistle is, in fact, in a historic building next to the Egyptian theater. It opened as a Pig & Whistle back in the late 1920s but the restaurant closed in the 1960s. A new management team brought the restaurant back in that location in the early 2000s.

Thank you, everyone, for the kind words! I've really enjoyed sharing my Festival memories with you!

Re: Seen and Heard on the Blvd-TCM FF 2013

Posted: May 7th, 2013, 6:57 am
by sandykaypax
Lynn, I woke up extra early this morning, thanks to my hungry kitty, and couldn't get back to sleep. So, I turned on the computer, made some tea and just took a wonderful virtual trip to the TCM film fest with you!

Thanks so much for taking the time to post it all! Now, off to read the rest of the threads about the festival.

Sandy K

Re: Seen and Heard on the Blvd-TCM FF 2013

Posted: May 10th, 2013, 1:05 pm
by mongoII
Lynn, I had a wonderful excursion at the TCM Festival, thanks to you. I appreciate it.
Glad that you an Jon had a good time.

Re: Seen and Heard on the Blvd-TCM FF 2013

Posted: May 11th, 2013, 12:36 pm
by Lzcutter
Here is a terrific write up on some of the inside information about our favorite channel (and I'm thrilled that it confirms what some of us have been saying for years over at TCM City and been ridiculed for):

http://willmckinley.wordpress.com/2013/ ... -festival/

Also sounds like some great things are coming to the channel!