Coming Up on TCM

[jdb1]

Hello, All.

A reminder that the very excellent Come and Get It is on TCM tonight during the Samuel Goldwyn tribute. Based on a portion of the interesting, if soap-operish Edna Ferber novel of the same name, it is raised high by the terrific performances of Frances Farmer, Edward Arnold, Joel McCrea, and especially the deservedly Oscar-winning Walter Brennan. He'll make you cry. The beauteous Farmer was only in her early 20s here.

[jdb1]

Greetings.

A reminder here that The Caine Mutiny is on TCM this evening, and will be a good exercise for those of us who are re-assessing the career of Fred MacMurray. Here is another portrayal by MacMurray of a man of questionable morals. I've always thought that ol' Fred could have just as easily played Van Johnson's "decent man under pressure" part. If only I didn't have so much trouble sitting through the superfluous "romance" portions of the film.

And I have a question: on the afternoon of 2/24 TCM is running a French film called Gervaise, which is, apparently, a 1956/7 version of Zola's novel "L'Assomoir." The book is one of my favorites of Zola's. I don't know this film -- can anyone shed some light?

[movieman1957]

Shake Hands With The Devil is a fairly rare Cagney film coming on the 17th at 12:15am ET. I saw it years ago and really don't remember anything about it but it shows up so seldom (that I can recall) I thought it might be worth a look.

[jdb1]

A reminder that TCM is regaling us with sci-fi tomorrow night (3/31).

The evening is kicking off with an especial favorite of mine, I Married a Monster From Outer Space (1958). Now, don't expect cinematic fabulousness with this one, but it is a departure from most of the others of its era in that it posits the theme that some evil alien invaders aren't quite as enthusiatic about invasion, or about being evil, as they should be. Think of it as a sort of evil alien invader Teahouse of the August Moon, set in American suburbia.

By the way, have you heard about our cable Sci-Fi Network changing its name to Scy-Fy? Oh, my. Why? Whose bright idea was that? They guy who tried to make us drink New Coke? I have no objection to any channel changing its name if it wants to, but what's wrong with Sci-Fi?

I read this new name as "sky-fee." It's like Chic-Fil-A. There was but one in NYC for a while and, not knowing anything about it, when I saw ads for it, I naturally read the name as "Chick-Filla." Imagine my surprise when I heard someone refer to "Chick-Fill-Ay." Ohhhh. Now I get it. Same with our local phone company, the Bell Telephone successor. After it went through several names, the latest of which had been the sensible NYNEX (for New York/New England Exchange), there were billboards around town that said "Verizon." And I read "VER-ih-zon," when all along they meant it to be called "Ver-EYE-zon," like "horizon." Who knew? Before all this re-branding frenzy, I though I knew how to read. Now I'm not so sure.

Seems like needless tinkering to me. Surprised they didn't try to name it Allegis, or Altria. Or Avaya. Or Brobdignag. Or Slartibartfast. Or Myanmar. But I digress.

[sandykaypax]

Hey Judith! I read about the Sci-Fi channel name change, too. I believe that they are changing the spelling and logo so that they can copyright it. It does look silly, though.

I pronounced Chick-Fil-A like chick-filla when I first saw it, too! Glad I'm not the only one. LOL!

Sandy K

[jdb1]

Hmmmm -- speaking as an employee of the trademark and copyright lawfirm named by its peers as the top in its field for the umpteenth time in a row, I suspect that if the Sci-Fi Network did it right (and maybe changed its legal representation), they could copyright their existing name and logo. But that's just my personal, non-professional opinion.

[klondike]

I read this new name as "sky-fee." It's like Chic-Fil-A. There was but one in NYC for a while and, not knowing anything about it, when I saw ads for it, I naturally read the name as "Chick-Filla." Imagine my surprise when I heard someone refer to "Chick-Fill-Ay." Ohhhh. Now I get it. Same with our local phone company, the Bell Telephone successor. After it went through several names, the latest of which had been the sensible NYNEX (for New York/New England Exchange), there were billboards around town that said "Verizon." And I read "VER-ih-zon," when all along they meant it to be called "Ver-EYE-zon," like "horizon." Who knew? Before all this re-branding frenzy, I though I knew how to read. Now I'm not so sure.

Reminds me of one of the first time I scrolled down through our satellite channel listings; I passed a time slot on one of the QVC type homeshopping channels that was running a feature entitled "Coin Vault", of special interest you might safely assume for numismatists and hobbyist coin collectors . . except that I mistook the channel for being part of the foreign language bloc there on DirecTV, and so said to the Mrs: "Hey Honey, look, 'kwon vohl'! Doesn't that have something to do with ducklings?" . . .

[ChiO]

Judith wrote:

A reminder that TCM is regaling us with sci-fi tomorrow night (3/31).

The evening is kicking off with an especial favorite of mine, I Married a Monster From Outer Space (1958).

I'm going to watch it, but I hope I don't have nightmares tonight just thinking about it. It's the first movie that I vividly remember seeing in the theatre and I haven't seen it since. In 1958, I just wanted to see that nice Texas John Slaughter guy and instead got creeped out. Excuse me if I watch it with my hands over my eyes.

[jdb1]

Judith wrote:

A reminder that TCM is regaling us with sci-fi tomorrow night (3/31).

The evening is kicking off with an especial favorite of mine, I Married a Monster From Outer Space (1958).

I'm going to watch it, but I hope I don't have nightmares tonight just thinking about it. It's the first movie that I vividly remember seeing in the theatre and I haven't seen it since. In 1958, I just wanted to see that nice Texas John Slaughter guy and instead got creeped out. Excuse me if I watch it with my hands over my eyes.

Don't be scared. I think that you, as a happily married pillar of the community, will see some very different things in this movie this time around, and will like it a lot better. (Not to mention, of course, the fact that you are now much more likely to recognize cheesy special effects for what they are.)

However -- who can say? I still have trouble watching Forbidden Planet, the film that scared me so much on first viewing in the theater all those years ago that I jumped up and ran into the ladies' room. And don't even get me started about Rodan . . . . . . . . [Shudder]

[Birdy]

There are a couple of great pre-code days coming up in April
APril 8 - Several pre-codes and some Ginger Rogers movies I've not seen. Anyone know anything about Suicide Fleet? Sounds like pre-code fun.
You know how I love a good pre-code suicide.

And on April 14, more pre-codes going into later 30s Torchy Blane movies (Glenda Farrell). I just adore her.
I bought a new pack of DVDs!
B

Also, don't forget Fuller Brush Girl with Lucille Ball on the 18th. There is nothing funnier than when she does her strip tease in the burlesque show in her slip with her lipstick so sticky her lips stick together and broom bristles glued on for eyelashes! This was on in March but just a reminder in case anyone missed it.

[Ollie]

I've got the TORCHY BLANES scheduled. Now if I can keep the cable company from screwing them up-!

I'm unfamiliar with these Ginger Rogers, so I know what I'll try to watch those.

[jdb1]

Hello, SSO-ers,

A reminder that TCM is airing a salute to independent filmmaker Morris Engel tonight, starting off with Engel's best film, IMO, The Little Fugitive.

This no-budget feature has a cast which is mostly non-pro (you may recognize Sesame Street's Mr. Hooper (Will Lee) as the Coney Island photographer, and there are a few other New York actors). The film was highly improvisational, and seems much more like a cinema verite-style documentary than a scripted film, which is part of its charm. The children in it are completely natural, and its title character, who was only about 6 years old at the time, is eminently capable of holding things together.

I've mentioned to you before that this film is set in my old neighborhood in Brooklyn (Borough Park), and has a lot of scenes showing the boardwalk and beach at Coney Island just as I remember them. And those rides -- they may look run down and seedy (Coney Island has always been run down and seedy in my experience), but to a child it was magic. Oh, those ponies!

Little Joey is just a few years older than I was at the time of this movie -- it all rings so very true to me. I hope you all get a chance to see The Little Fugitive. You don't have to be from Brooklyn to appreciate its take on childhood.

[Birdy]

Judith, thanks for sharing about the Brooklyn based, The Little Fugitive. Hopefully I will catch it. I love catching glimpses of NY actors in NY set movies, almost like you're just spying them around the corner.
B

[mrsl]

Hi Birdy:

Although I'm not that crazy about Chicago, I enjoy seeing movies and TV shows supposedly filmed on location here. It's fun to spot places you have been to or visited. I'm the same way with Las Vegas except its so different from when I left, 9 years ago.

Anne

[ChiO]

Thank you, Judith, for the reminder. It was my first time seeing the three Morris Engel films and to say I was floored would be an understatement. Each, especially THE LITTLE FUGITIVE, was a revelation. It is fascinating, and unfortunately rare, to watch a director who treats children as young persons with dignity rather than as primitive innocents or little adults. Like Jacques Tourneur and Charles Burnett, he captured children as children and with respect. Fabulous movies.

I saw more Kubrick and Burnett, rather than Cassavetes, in these films and there were certainly roots in Italian Neo-Realism. What a joy. Thanks again, Judith (and TCM), for helping me wander into these.