2023 TCM Film Festival

[speedracer5]

What a great post.

You've probably been spoiled for life with the Spotlight pass. The worst part (and sometimes the best part) of the TCMFF is standing in a queue waiting to go in, and the Spotlight pass lets you bypass most of the waiting. The worst is because it's a time sink. The best is because you have a lot of time to meet others while standing in the queue.

We had no overlap in our film choices. We would have if you had made it to In the Heat of the Night. I was mostly concentrating on films I hadn't seen, and I had only seen a few scenes from this one. I was surprised to see that it was less than half full. Nearly everything else I saw was in a full or nearly full house.

Re: Mank's stature - LOL. A lot of celebrities are smaller than expected when you see them IRL. We ran into Ben and his wife in the elevator at Loews a few years back. He's shorter than I am, and I'm 5'8".

Re: Grauman's, it is fun seeing a movie there. It's been modified a few times inside (the latest was for the IMAX conversion, that changed the seating configuration) but the interior decoration still remains. It's actually not owned by TCL - they just bought the naming rights in 2013, originally a 10 year deal. So the name might be changing again shortly! Hopefully the other former Grauman property - the Egyptian - will again be available next year for TCMFF. While waiting for In the Heat... we met a former projectionist who worked at the Egyptian. He said the last he heard was that it might open by the end of 2023, but they've run into unexpected problems with the renovation. Netflix now owns the Egyptian. They've also used the El Capitan in years past. It's also a great place to catch a movie (usually with an organ mini-concert and sometimes a "curtain show" before the feature).

I know I probably spoiled myself with the spotlight pass. We wanted to go all out and see what it was all about. I actually liked not having to wait in line, or having to leave screenings early to draw a good queue card. I hate the idea of only watching parts of different movies. Over the 3.5 days, we managed to watch 13 movies, 2 panels and a Laurel and Hardy short. We could have seen 15 movies if we'd had more energy. I know that the movie conflicts are par for the course with the festival, I just wish they would have either spread out the blocks a little bit or maybe staggered the movies a little better? I don't know. There were so many conflicts I had where the movies overlapped by 15 minutes or so. It's a real schedule killer when the poolside screenings are staggered in a way to block out two entire blocks of movies.

Some of our decisions were made based on the special guest. If Ann-Margret hadn't been there for "Bye Bye Birdie," I would have gone to "Treasure of the Sierra Madre" because 'Birdie' isn't my favorite musical, but I do enjoy it. And if Russ Tamblyn hadn't been there for "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers," I would have seen "The Muppets Take Manhattan." Lol.

If we go next year, I hope that the Egyptian and/or El Capitan are open so that I can see the inside. I really want to do a nitrate screening, which I know can only be done at the Egyptian. If these venues were added, would the movies be more spread out? Or would there be more movies on the schedule?

RE: Mank. Yes, he is tiny, especially when standing next to Eddie. Jacqueline Stewart is very petite too, which was surprising because she strikes me as someone who would be tall. But I was literally standing next to her in the elevator and I was wearing flat sandals. I'm 5'2". Jacqueline is probably 5'3ish. Alicia was taller, but I didn't see what kind of shoes she had on. I would venture to say that she's at least 5'5-5'6". When we met Dave he was sitting, so I was never able to gauge how tall he was. On TV, it is hard to tell the host's heights because they're usually standing alone.

The friend I was with doesn't like Humphrey Bogart, so what did I do? I dragged him to two of them in a row (African Queen and Treasure of the Sierra Madre), neither of which he had seen. I almost opted for Bye Bye Birdie, but only to see Ann-Margaret and the dance sequence for Gotta a Lot of Livin' to Do on the big screen. I've always wondered how long that took to rehearse and shoot.

If they do go back to the Egyptian, there likely won't be any additional films screened. They basically substituted the American Legion post for the Egyptian and I imagine that they would keep it at 5 main venues. Adding one would increase the cost - the event management company that runs the queues, etc would have to hire more folks. Venues like El Capitan and the now-defunct Cinerama Dome were always one-off venues - showing just a title or two. They've also used the Montalban Theatre in the past for interviews and the like. Most of the venues are scheduled in 3 to 3.5 hour blocks. The problem comes when you get a film that runs longer than 2:15 or so. That throws the schedule for that venue off w.r.t. the others for the rest of the day. It seems to me that the poolside showings never quite fit into the rest of the pattern. I've never been to one, and this was my 8th visit.

I asked the former Egyptian projectionist if they were going to continue showing nitrate prints after the renovation, but he wasn't sure.

I do wish they could find a bigger room for some of the panels or limit participation in some way. It's no fun standing for an hour in a wall-to-wall crowd.

I love Bogart. I've seen "The African Queen" in the theater twice and it wasn't something that was jumping out at me this go around. I would have loved to see "Treasure of the Sierra Madre" but I love Ann-Margret and had to see her. She also just finished filming a Guest Programmer segment with Eddie Muller that will air on TCM in the future. I enjoyed the Legion but we only saw one film there as it was so far removed from everything else. We contemplated seeing the Rin Tin Tin silent, but we didn't want to deal with the shuttle. The shuttle is a great feature and while the walk isn't really that long, it can feel much longer at the end of the night. However, I think TCM needs to hire more shuttles. When we saw "Enter the Dragon," we lucked out in that we just happened to be in the right place at the right time when the shuttles showed up. With each shuttle only being able to transport 13 people at once, if you're in a long line 3 or 4 shuttles' worth deep, it would probably behoove you to just walk. I think having all the venues centrally located w/o needing to use the Legion would be nice. We saw the Cinerama Dome from the outside, it was a shame that it was boarded up.

Talking to people in the TCMFF Facebook group that I'm in, a lot of them are married couples and they split up at the festival and reconvene at different points when their schedules align. Jimmy and I didn't do that, we just worked together to do a schedule that worked for both. He's pretty easy going and went along with the flow for the most part. He was interested in the panels because he wanted to see/do things that he couldn't otherwise do anywhere else. He also picked "Harvey" and "Enter the Dragon." The Henson Puppetry panel was his absolute favorite thing at the festival.

We didn't have issues finding seating in the panels, we arrived about 30 minutes early to both of the ones we attended and found seats. I do agree though that they should use a bigger space, or add more seating. I didn't notice huge crowds of people standing during the panels, so maybe they did limit participation. I wouldn't want to stand either, I'm short and wouldn't be able to see anything. That's why I never do GA tickets at concerts--unless that's the only type of ticket available, then I stand in the back away from the crowd.

[txfilmfan]

I know I probably spoiled myself with the spotlight pass. We wanted to go all out and see what it was all about. I actually liked not having to wait in line, or having to leave screenings early to draw a good queue card. I hate the idea of only watching parts of different movies. Over the 3.5 days, we managed to watch 13 movies, 2 panels and a Laurel and Hardy short. We could have seen 15 movies if we'd had more energy. I know that the movie conflicts are par for the course with the festival, I just wish they would have either spread out the blocks a little bit or maybe staggered the movies a little better? I don't know. There were so many conflicts I had where the movies overlapped by 15 minutes or so. It's a real schedule killer when the poolside screenings are staggered in a way to block out two entire blocks of movies.

Some of our decisions were made based on the special guest. If Ann-Margret hadn't been there for "Bye Bye Birdie," I would have gone to "Treasure of the Sierra Madre" because 'Birdie' isn't my favorite musical, but I do enjoy it. And if Russ Tamblyn hadn't been there for "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers," I would have seen "The Muppets Take Manhattan." Lol.

If we go next year, I hope that the Egyptian and/or El Capitan are open so that I can see the inside. I really want to do a nitrate screening, which I know can only be done at the Egyptian. If these venues were added, would the movies be more spread out? Or would there be more movies on the schedule?

RE: Mank. Yes, he is tiny, especially when standing next to Eddie. Jacqueline Stewart is very petite too, which was surprising because she strikes me as someone who would be tall. But I was literally standing next to her in the elevator and I was wearing flat sandals. I'm 5'2". Jacqueline is probably 5'3ish. Alicia was taller, but I didn't see what kind of shoes she had on. I would venture to say that she's at least 5'5-5'6". When we met Dave he was sitting, so I was never able to gauge how tall he was. On TV, it is hard to tell the host's heights because they're usually standing alone.

The friend I was with doesn't like Humphrey Bogart, so what did I do? I dragged him to two of them in a row (African Queen and Treasure of the Sierra Madre), neither of which he had seen. I almost opted for Bye Bye Birdie, but only to see Ann-Margaret and the dance sequence for Gotta a Lot of Livin' to Do on the big screen. I've always wondered how long that took to rehearse and shoot.

If they do go back to the Egyptian, there likely won't be any additional films screened. They basically substituted the American Legion post for the Egyptian and I imagine that they would keep it at 5 main venues. Adding one would increase the cost - the event management company that runs the queues, etc would have to hire more folks. Venues like El Capitan and the now-defunct Cinerama Dome were always one-off venues - showing just a title or two. They've also used the Montalban Theatre in the past for interviews and the like. Most of the venues are scheduled in 3 to 3.5 hour blocks. The problem comes when you get a film that runs longer than 2:15 or so. That throws the schedule for that venue off w.r.t. the others for the rest of the day. It seems to me that the poolside showings never quite fit into the rest of the pattern. I've never been to one, and this was my 8th visit.

I asked the former Egyptian projectionist if they were going to continue showing nitrate prints after the renovation, but he wasn't sure.

I do wish they could find a bigger room for some of the panels or limit participation in some way. It's no fun standing for an hour in a wall-to-wall crowd.

I love Bogart. I've seen "The African Queen" in the theater twice and it wasn't something that was jumping out at me this go around. I would have loved to see "Treasure of the Sierra Madre" but I love Ann-Margret and had to see her. She also just finished filming a Guest Programmer segment with Eddie Muller that will air on TCM in the future. I enjoyed the Legion but we only saw one film there as it was so far removed from everything else. We contemplated seeing the Rin Tin Tin silent, but we didn't want to deal with the shuttle. The shuttle is a great feature and while the walk isn't really that long, it can feel much longer at the end of the night. However, I think TCM needs to hire more shuttles. When we saw "Enter the Dragon," we lucked out in that we just happened to be in the right place at the right time when the shuttles showed up. With each shuttle only being able to transport 13 people at once, if you're in a long line 3 or 4 shuttles' worth deep, it would probably behoove you to just walk. I think having all the venues centrally located w/o needing to use the Legion would be nice. We saw the Cinerama Dome from the outside, it was a shame that it was boarded up.

Talking to people in the TCMFF Facebook group that I'm in, a lot of them are married couples and they split up at the festival and reconvene at different points when their schedules align. Jimmy and I didn't do that, we just worked together to do a schedule that worked for both. He's pretty easy going and went along with the flow for the most part. He was interested in the panels because he wanted to see/do things that he couldn't otherwise do anywhere else. He also picked "Harvey" and "Enter the Dragon." The Henson Puppetry panel was his absolute favorite thing at the festival.

We didn't have issues finding seating in the panels, we arrived about 30 minutes early to both of the ones we attended and found seats. I do agree though that they should use a bigger space, or add more seating. I didn't notice huge crowds of people standing during the panels, so maybe they did limit participation. I wouldn't want to stand either, I'm short and wouldn't be able to see anything. That's why I never do GA tickets at concerts--unless that's the only type of ticket available, then I stand in the back away from the crowd.

I only went to one panel this year - the opening day panel where they talk about TCM and the festival. It was standing room only. We were at the back, and every time the door opened, you couldn't hear the speakers due to the lobby noise filtering in. I usually attend more, but the schedule didn't allow. I did run into Donald Bogle at Larry Edmunds on Thursday. He was finishing up a book signing there.

[EP Millstone]

. . . Prior to the festival, I purchased Art of Noir, with the hope of getting it signed during this event. I'm happy to report that it was a success.

I wonder what a graphologist would make of Eddie Muller's autograph. You can't . . . or at least, I can't . . . even decipher that it's "Eddie Muller." I met Muller almost 25 years ago at a bookstore that was promoting his crime-fiction novel Shadow Boxer. He signed my copy for me. It's packed away in a box. I'm tempted to "exhume" it to see if Muller's signature has deteriorated (as mine has).

The situation with the Cinerama Dome is saddening. It was where I saw It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, which premiered at the Dome, also making its premiere, in 1963. According to recent reports, the Hollywood landmark may yet be resurrected.

[speedracer5]

The friend I was with doesn't like Humphrey Bogart, so what did I do? I dragged him to two of them in a row (African Queen and Treasure of the Sierra Madre), neither of which he had seen. I almost opted for Bye Bye Birdie, but only to see Ann-Margaret and the dance sequence for Gotta a Lot of Livin' to Do on the big screen. I've always wondered how long that took to rehearse and shoot.

If they do go back to the Egyptian, there likely won't be any additional films screened. They basically substituted the American Legion post for the Egyptian and I imagine that they would keep it at 5 main venues. Adding one would increase the cost - the event management company that runs the queues, etc would have to hire more folks. Venues like El Capitan and the now-defunct Cinerama Dome were always one-off venues - showing just a title or two. They've also used the Montalban Theatre in the past for interviews and the like. Most of the venues are scheduled in 3 to 3.5 hour blocks. The problem comes when you get a film that runs longer than 2:15 or so. That throws the schedule for that venue off w.r.t. the others for the rest of the day. It seems to me that the poolside showings never quite fit into the rest of the pattern. I've never been to one, and this was my 8th visit.

I asked the former Egyptian projectionist if they were going to continue showing nitrate prints after the renovation, but he wasn't sure.

I do wish they could find a bigger room for some of the panels or limit participation in some way. It's no fun standing for an hour in a wall-to-wall crowd.

I love Bogart. I've seen "The African Queen" in the theater twice and it wasn't something that was jumping out at me this go around. I would have loved to see "Treasure of the Sierra Madre" but I love Ann-Margret and had to see her. She also just finished filming a Guest Programmer segment with Eddie Muller that will air on TCM in the future. I enjoyed the Legion but we only saw one film there as it was so far removed from everything else. We contemplated seeing the Rin Tin Tin silent, but we didn't want to deal with the shuttle. The shuttle is a great feature and while the walk isn't really that long, it can feel much longer at the end of the night. However, I think TCM needs to hire more shuttles. When we saw "Enter the Dragon," we lucked out in that we just happened to be in the right place at the right time when the shuttles showed up. With each shuttle only being able to transport 13 people at once, if you're in a long line 3 or 4 shuttles' worth deep, it would probably behoove you to just walk. I think having all the venues centrally located w/o needing to use the Legion would be nice. We saw the Cinerama Dome from the outside, it was a shame that it was boarded up.

Talking to people in the TCMFF Facebook group that I'm in, a lot of them are married couples and they split up at the festival and reconvene at different points when their schedules align. Jimmy and I didn't do that, we just worked together to do a schedule that worked for both. He's pretty easy going and went along with the flow for the most part. He was interested in the panels because he wanted to see/do things that he couldn't otherwise do anywhere else. He also picked "Harvey" and "Enter the Dragon." The Henson Puppetry panel was his absolute favorite thing at the festival.

We didn't have issues finding seating in the panels, we arrived about 30 minutes early to both of the ones we attended and found seats. I do agree though that they should use a bigger space, or add more seating. I didn't notice huge crowds of people standing during the panels, so maybe they did limit participation. I wouldn't want to stand either, I'm short and wouldn't be able to see anything. That's why I never do GA tickets at concerts--unless that's the only type of ticket available, then I stand in the back away from the crowd.

I only went to one panel this year - the opening day panel where they talk about TCM and the festival. It was standing room only. We were at the back, and every time the door opened, you couldn't hear the speakers due to the lobby noise filtering in. I usually attend more, but the schedule didn't allow. I did run into Donald Bogle at Larry Edmunds on Thursday. He was finishing up a book signing there.

The other panels weren't as full then as the "Meet TCM" one. We didn't go to that panel. The TCM staffers were helping people find seats during the panels, so maybe they were trying to limit attendance. They also shut the doors as soon as the panels started, so nobody else could filter in. I did notice some of the lobby noise, so that was a little frustrating; but it wasn't too bad because the doors stayed closed once the presentation started.

[BagelOnAPlate]

The American Legion Theater is very convenient for people staying in the hotels and motels up Highland Avenue, especially for the early morning or evening shows, or to sneak in a nap at your hotel and then go to the Legion. It's not much further from the Chinese Multiplex than the Egyptian.

The balcony at the Egyptian was a lawsuit waiting to happen: poorly lit and with unevenly spaced steps. I hope the renovation fixes this.

We loved the American Legion Theater. The only movie we saw there was Enter The Dragon. We knew we had a short time between The Exorcist at the Chinese IMAX and Enter The Dragon at the Hollywood Legion on Saturday so we walked to the Hollywood Legion after the Evolution of Henson Puppetry presentation to see how long the walk would take with the hope of finding a place to eat before Bye Bye Birdie.

We found this great Mexican restaurant on Highland Avenue --- Zarape --- that was kind of hidden. It was connected to the Best Western Hollywood Inn. We ate outside, but there were some interesting art inside the restaurant --- including a depiction of Marilyn Monroe.

[BagelOnAPlate]

After the panel, we were back at Grauman's for another special presentation--ANN-MARGRET being interviewed before a screening of "Bye Bye Birdie." When Ann-Margret was introduced as a guest, neither Jimmy nor I cared what was scheduled against it. We were seeing Ann-Margret. Dave Karger interviewed her and the interview was excellent. She also looks fantastic for 81. She said that she has the same energy now that she had 60 years ago when she made "Bye Bye Birdie." Good for her. She also just released a rock n' roll album. Ann-Margret talked about filming the famous scenes bookending the film and also briefly talked about Elvis being the inspiration for Conrad Birdie as well as being first choice for the part. She said it was surreal that her next film was "Viva Las Vegas" with Elvis. At the end of the interview, TCM presented Ann-Margret with a birthday cake inspired by her legs.

Bye Bye Birdie and the interview with Ann-Margret were highlights of the festival for me.

When Dave Karger asked her about her experience working with specific actors from the movie, I was surprised that he asked her about Maureen Stapleton (they had no scenes together) and not Bobby Rydell (who played her boyfriend).
I wasn't surprised that she was asked about Paul Lynde. Her answer --- that he had the rest of the cast laughing constantly with the "naughty" things that you didn't expect to come out of his mouth --- was similar to what others have said about their experience working with him.

[speedracer5]

After the panel, we were back at Grauman's for another special presentation--ANN-MARGRET being interviewed before a screening of "Bye Bye Birdie." When Ann-Margret was introduced as a guest, neither Jimmy nor I cared what was scheduled against it. We were seeing Ann-Margret. Dave Karger interviewed her and the interview was excellent. She also looks fantastic for 81. She said that she has the same energy now that she had 60 years ago when she made "Bye Bye Birdie." Good for her. She also just released a rock n' roll album. Ann-Margret talked about filming the famous scenes bookending the film and also briefly talked about Elvis being the inspiration for Conrad Birdie as well as being first choice for the part. She said it was surreal that her next film was "Viva Las Vegas" with Elvis. At the end of the interview, TCM presented Ann-Margret with a birthday cake inspired by her legs.

Bye Bye Birdie and the interview with Ann-Margret were highlights of the festival for me.

When Dave Karger asked her about her experience working with specific actors from the movie, I was surprised that he asked her about Maureen Stapleton (they had no scenes together) and not Bobby Rydell (who played her boyfriend).
I wasn't surprised that she was asked about Paul Lynde. Her answer --- that he had the rest of the cast laughing constantly with the "naughty" things that you didn't expect to come out of his mouth --- was similar to what others have said about their experience working with him.

I was surprised that Dave Karger asked her about Maureen Stapleton as well. Though he wisely did not ask her about Dick Van Dyke, who I know resented the film's emphasis on her character, versus the play in which the plot was centered around his character and not the Kim character like in the film.

[txfilmfan]

After the panel, we were back at Grauman's for another special presentation--ANN-MARGRET being interviewed before a screening of "Bye Bye Birdie." When Ann-Margret was introduced as a guest, neither Jimmy nor I cared what was scheduled against it. We were seeing Ann-Margret. Dave Karger interviewed her and the interview was excellent. She also looks fantastic for 81. She said that she has the same energy now that she had 60 years ago when she made "Bye Bye Birdie." Good for her. She also just released a rock n' roll album. Ann-Margret talked about filming the famous scenes bookending the film and also briefly talked about Elvis being the inspiration for Conrad Birdie as well as being first choice for the part. She said it was surreal that her next film was "Viva Las Vegas" with Elvis. At the end of the interview, TCM presented Ann-Margret with a birthday cake inspired by her legs.

Bye Bye Birdie and the interview with Ann-Margret were highlights of the festival for me.

When Dave Karger asked her about her experience working with specific actors from the movie, I was surprised that he asked her about Maureen Stapleton (they had no scenes together) and not Bobby Rydell (who played her boyfriend).
I wasn't surprised that she was asked about Paul Lynde. Her answer --- that he had the rest of the cast laughing constantly with the "naughty" things that you didn't expect to come out of his mouth --- was similar to what others have said about their experience working with him.

I was surprised that Dave Karger asked her about Maureen Stapleton as well. Though he wisely did not ask her about Dick Van Dyke, who I know resented the film's emphasis on her character, versus the play in which the plot was centered around his character and not the Kim character like in the film.

Lynde had a few biting remarks about the changes when it moved from Broadway to Hollywood. The best was : "They should have retitled it to "Hello, Ann-Margret!""

He complained that they cut some of his best scenes from the play. But I don't think either Paul Lynde or Dick Van Dyke directed these at Ann-Margaret herself. It was the production team that made these changes to showcase Ann-Margret. Just my reading on it. The original play is quite different, as the film cut a lot of songs, and moved the remaining ones around to different spots in the plot. The basic premise survives, but a lot of the ancillary business was changed.

[speedracer5]

Bye Bye Birdie and the interview with Ann-Margret were highlights of the festival for me.

When Dave Karger asked her about her experience working with specific actors from the movie, I was surprised that he asked her about Maureen Stapleton (they had no scenes together) and not Bobby Rydell (who played her boyfriend).
I wasn't surprised that she was asked about Paul Lynde. Her answer --- that he had the rest of the cast laughing constantly with the "naughty" things that you didn't expect to come out of his mouth --- was similar to what others have said about their experience working with him.

I was surprised that Dave Karger asked her about Maureen Stapleton as well. Though he wisely did not ask her about Dick Van Dyke, who I know resented the film's emphasis on her character, versus the play in which the plot was centered around his character and not the Kim character like in the film.

Lynde had a few biting remarks about the changes when it moved from Broadway to Hollywood. The best was : "They should have retitled it to "Hello, Ann-Margret!""

He complained that they cut some of his best scenes from the play. But I don't think either Paul Lynde or Dick Van Dyke directed these at Ann-Margaret herself. It was the production team that made these changes to showcase Ann-Margret. Just my reading on it. The original play is quite different, as the film cut a lot of songs, and moved the remaining ones around to different spots in the plot. The basic premise survives, but a lot of the ancillary business was changed.

I like "Bye Bye Birdie," though it's not my favorite musical. My issue is with Birdie himself. I know that he's supposed to be based on Elvis and the part was actually offered to Elvis first, but I think Colonel Tom turned it down for Elvis, which is a shame. I could believe girls and grown women losing their minds over Elvis (because he is hot, I fully get the hysteria over Elvis); but the actor who was eventually cast just does not have the same "it" quality Elvis had. I cannot believe that teenage girls would be going gaga over him. I also don't like Bobby Rydell, there's just something about him that annoys the crap out of me. And I don't know if this makes sense, but he sings like he's perpetually got a s***-eating grin on his face, and epitomizes the cheesy lounge singer, without having any charisma. I just cannot believe Ann-Margret would be into him, I feel like in another movie, she'd eat him alive. I know she's supposed to be the innocent teenage girl here. I wish they'd gotten someone hotter to play her boyfriend or even someone with a personality bigger than Wonder Bread, but I don't know who'd that be. It probably couldn't be my choice, James Darren, because he'd probably be too closely associated with Moondoggie at that point, and would be too old to be a believable teenager. Maybe Ricky Nelson? Or Frankie Avalon? Or Fabian? I'm not sure.

I love Paul Lynde though. I love how he's always "Paul Lynde" whether he's in 'Birdie,' "For Those Who Think Young," or "Beach Blanket Bingo," or even playing Uncle Arthur on "Bewitched." Every time I read/hear Ed Sullivan mentioned, I think of Paul Lynde. "Ed SULL-A-VAAAAAAAN." If anyone hasn't seen the Paul Lynde Halloween Special from 1976, I highly recommend it. It isn't good by any means, but it's something else. Aside from Lynde, it has Florence Henderson, Betty White, the witch from HR Pufnstuf, Margaret Hamilton, Pinky Tuscadero, Tim Conway, Billy Barty, Donnie and Marie, and KISS.

[jimimac71]

I've never seen Bye Bye Birdie. Now I suppose it isn't necessary.
My favorite Ricky Nelson would be Rio Bravo. If you want a male option, Fabian.
Back in my day, Paul Lynde was best on The Hollywood Squares.
My "thing" for Marie Osmond is thankfully in the past.

[HoldenIsHere]

I was surprised that Dave Karger asked her about Maureen Stapleton as well. Though he wisely did not ask her about Dick Van Dyke, who I know resented the film's emphasis on her character, versus the play in which the plot was centered around his character and not the Kim character like in the film.

Lynde had a few biting remarks about the changes when it moved from Broadway to Hollywood. The best was : "They should have retitled it to "Hello, Ann-Margret!""

He complained that they cut some of his best scenes from the play. But I don't think either Paul Lynde or Dick Van Dyke directed these at Ann-Margaret herself. It was the production team that made these changes to showcase Ann-Margret. Just my reading on it. The original play is quite different, as the film cut a lot of songs, and moved the remaining ones around to different spots in the plot. The basic premise survives, but a lot of the ancillary business was changed.

I like "Bye Bye Birdie," though it's not my favorite musical. My issue is with Birdie himself. I know that he's supposed to be based on Elvis and the part was actually offered to Elvis first, but I think Colonel Tom turned it down for Elvis, which is a shame. I could believe girls and grown women losing their minds over Elvis (because he is hot, I fully get the hysteria over Elvis); but the actor who was eventually cast just does not have the same "it" quality Elvis had. I cannot believe that teenage girls would be going gaga over him. I also don't like Bobby Rydell, there's just something about him that annoys the crap out of me. And I don't know if this makes sense, but he sings like he's perpetually got a s***-eating grin on his face, and epitomizes the cheesy lounge singer, without having any charisma. I just cannot believe Ann-Margret would be into him, I feel like in another movie, she'd eat him alive. I know she's supposed to be the innocent teenage girl here. I wish they'd gotten someone hotter to play her boyfriend or even someone with a personality bigger than Wonder Bread, but I don't know who'd that be. It probably couldn't be my choice, James Darren, because he'd probably be too closely associated with Moondoggie at that point, and would be too old to be a believable teenager. Maybe Ricky Nelson? Or Frankie Avalon? Or Fabian? I'm not sure. burned

I love Paul Lynde though. I love how he's always "Paul Lynde" whether he's in 'Birdie,' "For Those Who Think Young," or "Beach Blanket Bingo," or even playing Uncle Arthur on "Bewitched." Every time I read/hear Ed Sullivan mentioned, I think of Paul Lynde. "Ed SULL-A-VAAAAAAAN." If anyone hasn't seen the Paul Lynde Halloween Special from 1976, I highly recommend it. It isn't good by any means, but it's something else. Aside from Lynde, it has Florence Henderson, Betty White, the witch from HR Pufnstuf, Margaret Hamilton, Pinky Tuscadero, Tim Conway, Billy Barty, Donnie and Marie, and KISS.

speedracer, you know I love you so we'll have to agree to disagree about Bobby Rydell.

I think he's super cute, charismatic and a good singer. The problem with his casting as Hugo Peabody in BYE BYE BIRDIE, for me, is that he is too dreamy, much more so than Jesse Pearson. who plays the Elvis-like character in the movie. Hugo, as the character is written, is supposed to be an average-looking all-American guy, The part was originally played on Broadway by Michael J. Pollard, who is probably best remembered as C.W. Moss in BONNIE AND CLYDE (with Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty in the title roles). In the movie. Bobby Rydell's Hugo is better looking (and a better singer) than the Elvis stand-in. Of course, if the real Elvis had played Conrad Birdie, it would have been a different story! No one burned up the screen more than Elvis . . . except for maybe Ann-Margret. The two of them set the screen ablaze in VIVA LA VEGAS!




Michael J. Pollard as Hugo Peabody in BYE BY BIRDIE


Bobby Rydell performing "Kissin' Time"
(The random shots of the people in the audience crack me up . . .)


WARNING: FIRE HAZARD!

PS. Yes, Paul Lynde's Halloween Special has to be seen. I love it!

[Swithin]

The first time I saw Bye Bye Birdie (the movie) as a kid, I was disappointed. It was at Radio City Music Hall, and when Ann Margret opened the film with that song, I thought, "What the hell is that?" I had grown up with the original Broadway cast album, which I loved, and there ain't no such song in the show. The movie also cut one of my favorite songs: "Normal American Boy," which was really disappointing ("An English Teacher" was also cut). Chita Rivera's memoir has recently been released, it will be interesting to see what she says about Birdie.



As the years went by, I got to like the film.