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The Chase (1946) Based on a novel by Cornell Woolrich, The Black Path of Fear, this film noir, with its dream-like quality, boasts, close to the half way mark, one of the most starling narrative twists you will ever find in a film, one that I guarantee no viewer will see coming. Set immediately after the war, Robert Cummings plays an ex-navy man, down on his luck, who comes across a wallet full of cash. After treating himself to a meal he decides to do the right thing and return the wallet to its owner. The owner turns out to be an ultra wealthy gangster (Steve Cochran) who lives in a huge white house. Surprised and intrigued by the fact that Cummings is an honest guy he decides to hire him as his chauffeur. Also at the residence is Peter Lorre, as a sulking minion of the gangster, as well as a sad and terrified Michelle Morgan, as the gangster's wife who, Cummings soon learns, is desperate to get away. I won't reveal any more of the story except to say that, after initially leading the viewer through some intriguing though familiar pathways, it then takes an unexpected turn. Benefiting from often beautiful photography, the cast all add impressively to the production, as well. Michelle Morgan is strikingly beautiful as the sad lady who wants to escape, while Robert Cummings, usually associated with light comedy, is admirably restrained and credible as the everyman protagonist who finds himself drawn unexpectedly into a bizarre situation through quirky circumstances seemingly beyond his control. A highlight performance in the film comes from Steve Cochran, later to be cast by Warner Bros. as brooding gangster hulks, and an actor who never seems to disappoint me. In this film he plays a games playing psychopath who is also addicted to adrenaline pumping thrills. He has a back seat accelerator and brake installed in his car by which he will occasionally take control of the vehicle, not only to test the nerves of any chauffeur who can only sit in the front seat and steer, but to enjoy the further rush of all aboard, including himself, flirting with death. Cochran's eyes light up with a satanic glee, along a small half smile on his face, in these scenes. And, of course, Peter Lorre is fun to watch, as always, as Cochran's chain smoking underling, frequently grumbling while also ready to carry out any deadly tasks required of him. Lloyd Corrigan plays a businessman who innocently visits Cochran's posh home, only to anger him when he is reluctant to sell a couple of his boats to him. Corrigan then makes the mistake of visiting Cochran's wine cellar in one of the highlight scenes of the film. The ending may seem a little too tidy and convenient and there are are some shots of cars and trains that are clearly models but these are minor flaws in a film that works. For years dark, murky prints of The Chase that were available on DVD were sad reflections of the public domain hell into which the film had been condemned. Fortunately, though, Martin Scorsese's The Film Foundation was involved in a 35mm restoration of the film, now available on blu ray, returning it, to a large extent, to a semblance of its former visual glory. The Chase is a solid contribution to the film noir club but I don't think you even have to be a fan of this kind of dark, moody entertainment to enjoy this one. 3 out of 4

CBS censors are usually credited with that coinage after they saw Mary Tyler Moore in her capris on the Dick Van Dyke show. They sent Carl Reiner a memo I think using that term to describe the rather sharp definition apparent when her back was to the camera. That cute a butt was just not ready for prime time.

Denzel Washington Jack Webb Stacy Keach

I guess you're right. It seems it doesn't take much to entertain me these days. I'm trying to fill the times when I cannot play golf . Also, these old movies both good and bad remind me of times when life seemed more simple.

If you thought Ralph Meeker was hot in "Jeopardy", you should see him in "Shadow In The Sky" during the scene where he and Jean Hagen are at a beach and he's wearing what qualifies as an early 50's version of a Speedo. You probably won't be disappointed in what you see (co-starring James Whitmore and Nancy Davis).

Re: “Undercupping” I just learned A FUN NEW WORD TODAY!!!!! THANK YOU! ps- Yes absolutely, I amend my previous statement, undercupping for all!!!!

A lot of people think they just buy the DVD or Blu-Ray at Wal-Mart, pop it in a player and send it out over the airwaves or down the cable to their TV, not realizing how complicated lawyers and legislatures have made it. One TCM lawyer talked for a few minutes before a showing of a film at the TCM Film Festival that their legal department had been working for several years to be able to get the rights, as it was tied up in probate hell. Edit to clarify: The TCM lawyers had to work so long just to figure out exactly who had the rights, and then negotiate to get them. The first part took a long time to unravel, as the rights had been neglected by various heirs through the years.

Well that answers my question. They weren't on any album in a timely manner when they were hits. Thanks.

Yeah, but finding them free to watch! Some posts here are a real tease! See what I mean?

1942

Greta Garbo Next: Had a stage mother or stage parents

To this list I would like to add Nicola Walker, who is the lead detective in the British television series Unforgotten.

Enough birthday candles on that cake? Looks like a forest fire. I agree. It just goes to show our society still considers this predatory behaviour as a typical topic for discussion. It's not unlike calling out long dead actors as "racist" in their private lives. Not much we can do about it now.

JEANNE EAGELS (1957)

I had the privilege of hearing her up close and personal in a Chicago nightclub quite a few years ago. She was middle-aged but still had it all together. Those legendary professional singers like her are dying out today, if they're not already dead. It's not that people do not have good voices today or that they don't have a desire to sing Quality Music. But It's that there's no audience for it in the United States really and you only get as good as people like Nancy Wilson, Eydie Gorme or Sarah Vaughan by singing for live audiences for many years. Also, It helps if you can make a living recording, as well as singing live. I liked Nancy's recordings of "Satin Doll" and "The Best Is Yet To Come".

For me at least, the evening of Fox films had some merit, as I had not seen Down Argentine Way (1940) with Betty Grable (last shown on TCM in 2014), or Connecticut Yankee (1931) (last shown on TCM in 2010 per MCOH’s records). One comment I would make on the material that Alicia Malone presented with 2 other guests discussing the studio system: In general I appreciate the contributors, but I would prefer to not hear the details of what a casting couch predator Darryl Zanuck was right before watching a film. This is not something I can just shrug off and then immediately try to enjoy the movie. I am not questioning the validity of what was said, just the timing. If the material being presented is to the detriment of viewing the film, perhaps it should be kept as a completely separate segment. (I know, TCM doesn’t really do that.) And to clarify, I don't think this is a case of the comments providing ‘context’ for the film. I don’t think the specific failures of the studio executives have much to do with the content of a 70 or 80-year old musical. I really hope these comments don't kick off a firestorm against me.

Here's my favorite NANCY WILSON who was wonderful.

Here is a singer \ musician that, as far as I recall, isn't mentioned much today: the lovely and talented Nancy Wilson.

ANGIE DICKINSON SUSAN SAINT JAMES KATE JACKSON JACLYN SMITH FARRAH FAWCETT CHERYL LADD TYNE DALY SHARON GLESS ANNE FRANCIS DIANA RIGG

Great actor!!! Always loved seeing him play somewhat evil/bad characters. He had a knack of playing those types of roles. And he had a great voice as well!!!

::SPOILERS:: I know this was two weeks ago, but I just watched The Strange Affair of Uncle Harry. I liked it up until the ending. Oof. That ending. If it'd just ended a few minutes earlier, I would have really enjoyed it. Normally, if a movie is pretty good but has a crappy ending, I can look past it. But with 'Harry,' I felt like the tacked-on ending completely undid everything that had happened in the second half of the film. My husband and I were watching it and were actually pretty involved in the story especially when Harry put the poison in the hot cocoa and Lettie sipped it, saying "ooh this is sweet." Harry had used the sugar cubes to obscure the taste of the poison. Then, Lettie volunteers to bring the cocoa up to Hester and I just knew, "oh no, she's going to give Hester the wrong cocoa." The storyline after that fact, with Lettie basically framed for Hester's murder and Harry knowingly corroborating the maid's accusations of Lettie murdering Hester, both my husband and I were like "Yes! Go Harry." Then the jail scene where Harry tries to confess and Lettie won't have it. I thought , "oh man, she's going to stick it to him from the grave." Then, all of that was undone with that ridiculous "it was just a dream scenario." My husband and I were like, "Wait?! What?!" We felt betrayed by the ending. Apparently the studio filmed five different endings to 'Harry' and used the one that test audiences liked the most. I just want to tell the 1945 test audience: You made a terrible, terrible decision. One of the other alternate endings has Harry seeing a psychiatrist at a mental hospital and recounting the events that led to him being committed. I think even that ending would have worked better. The original play ending had the action ending when Lettie won't accept Harry's confession and walks away to her execution. Harry lives the remainder of his days alone and with a guilty conscience. That ending seems the most appropriate. I would have loved an ending where after the murder, Deborah comes back and she and Harry live it up, finally free of his lecherous sister. Leave Her to Heaven had an ending similar to this, with Gene Tierney framing Jeanne Crain for her own murder just to keep a hold on Cornel Wilde from the grave, but I felt like the happy ending of 'Heaven' worked as it seemed like an appropriate conclusion--Ellen FINALLY doesn't win.

NY Times piece on the future of the Up series... https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/14/movies/michael-apted-up-series-future.html

Demon Seed (1977)

THURS. This & "COURT JESTER'' are 2 of Kaye's best.......... 6:15 pm The Inspector General (1949) 1h 42m | Musical | TV-G A perpetual student is mistaken for a government official in a small Eastern European vill... Director Henry Koster Cast Danny Kaye, Walter Slezak, Barbara Bates

Our fourth western star is lovely BARBARA HALE She taught Hugh O'Brian how to show a bit of leg in SEMINOLE (1953). She interacted with Brod Crawford in LAST OF THE COMANCHES (1953). She married Randolph Scott in 7TH CAVALRY (1956). She felt protected by Joel McCrea in THE OKLAHOMAN (1957).

DRAGON SEED (1944)

Joanne Rogers, wife of Mister Rogers, dies at 92

FRANCES (1982)

Another poster who does not understand broadcast "packaging" of films. Networks don't always have control of what they are licensed to broadcast by availability, cost & "bundled" packages offered by distributors.

Moreover, TCM was probably burning off Fox movies that had been licensed before Disney acquired assimilated acquired the Fox catalogue. I'd love to see the titles you mention and other surviving pre-1935 Fox titles. But Disney appears to have put these films--at least for now?--in the vault alongside Song of the South.

During the wrap-up for The Glass Key, Eddie mentioned that next weekend he would be returning to his “official Noir Alley lair” to present Barbara Stanwyck’s Witness to Murder (1954). For fans of Noir Alley trivia, I suspect this Eddie material was recorded sometime early last year. Witness to Murder was originally scheduled to be shown on Noir Alley the weekend of April 18, 2020, but was preempted when TCM changed things up for the virtual TCM Film Festival. So this presentation has probably been sitting on the shelf ever since. Regardless, as Eddie says, “you do not say no to Barbara Stanwyck!”

Sir Alec Guiness (in Kind Hearts and Coronets) Next: Was in a movie with Alex Guiness

Sylvain Sylvain, New York Dolls Founding Guitarist, Dies at 69

ARTHUR TREACHER next: Bye Bye Birdie 1963 The Cincinnati Kid 1965 The Train Robbers 1973 Magic 1978 Grumpy Old Men 1993

Communism was just a red herring!

DEAD RINGER (1964) Next: lots of circus scenes

Samson was played by Victor Mature in Samson and Delilah 1949

Moreau, Jeanne

1967 The Last Adventure (1967) Robert Enrico, France With Alain Delon, Lino Ventura and Joanna Shimkus. Today the film seems a bit sloppy and all over the map but I think that was the point in 1967. It begins as a sort of Jules and Jim triangle but in this the guys seem more interested in their planes and fast cars than lovely Joanna Shimkus. Then it shifts gears into a treasure hunt adventure film but even then everyone seems more interested in having a few laughs. So it is a bit confused but amusing nonetheless. Les Mauvaises Frequentations (1967) Jean Eustache, France Like a few other French films of this period this one is about young insincere men on the hunt for girls. I didn’t find it very endearing. The imdb lists it at 42 minutes. The criteria in this thread was for a film to be 40 minutes long. The print I saw was 38 minutes so it barely qualifies as a feature.

Has to be a man. Most woman wish to ignore milestone birthdays (so they can have the same one,,,, 5 years later).

Lovers and Other Strangers

UNDER TWO FLAGS 1936

DODSWORTH (1936)

From January 13-15, 1921, the Poli ran 45 Minutes from Broadway, starring Charles Ray as Kid Burns and Dorothy Devore as Mary Jane Jenkins. The film’s release date is uncertain, but it was six reels and is presumed lost. Plot: Ex-boxer Kid Burns is secretary and friend to Tom Bennett. Bennett has inherited millions because his uncle left no known will. Burns falls for Mary Jane Jenkins, the housemaid. He succeeds in thwarting the plans of fortune hunters who want the inheritance. Eventually, it is revealed that Mary Jane is the real heir. She gives up her wealth to marry Burns. The stilsl below could not be placed in context. The first shows Ray with what is probably the will on the floor: The second shows Ray with an unidentified actor: The production still below shows most of the cast. From left to right, they are William Courtright, Eugenie Besserer, May Foster, Charles Ray, Dorothy Devore, Harry Myers (as Tom Bennett), and Hazel Howell: The film was based upon a stage play of the same name, written by George M. Cohan. Victor Moore played the lead role on stage. Several of the songs can be heard in the film Yankee Doodle Dandy. While generally praising the film, The Motion Picture News remarked that Ray may have been miscast. “He carries too much refinement, too much gentility in his make-up to live the character of Kid Burns perfectly, no matter how he takes care of the portrayal. A sweater, a cap, and tough gestures, cannot turn Charlie Ray into a “diamond in the rough.” He is artist enough, however, to lend his own interpretation to the role.” Exhibitor’s Herald wrote that “Charles Ray departs from his characteristic village youth role, but finds plenty of opportunities for the mannerisms which have made his style and skill so universally known that it needs no comment.” In a related story, the Bridgeport Times ran a “Photo Star Popularity Contest,” which concluded on Saturday evening, January 15, 1921. The voting was held at the Poli, with each hundredth person voting getting two free passes to the Poli, and the person casting the thousandth vote getting five dollars. The final tally showed, on the men’s side, Charles Ray with the most votes (2131) followed by Wallace Reid (1294). On the women’s side, Norma Talmadge, with 2647 votes, bested Dorothy Gish, who received 1439 votes. The complete tallies are shown below:

STAR REPORTER 1939

I always enjoy Eve Arden, but I think my favorite role of hers is as Principal McGee is GREASE. She plays befuddled so well!