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Call Northside 777 (1948) BUtterfield 8 (1960) Pennsylvania 6-5000 (1985) When a Stranger Calls (1979 / 2006) Don't Answer the Phone! (1980)

Western Union 1941 Pillow Talk 1959

Twilight Zone "Long Distance Call" Dead Grandma calls Billy Mumy Twilight Zone "Night Call" Gladys Cooper terrorized by mysterious calls The Major and The Minor (1942) switchboard

Sorry, Wrong Number (1948) Telephone Operator (1937) Dial M for Murder (1954) Bells are Ringing (1960)

Alias Nick Beal (1949) A Faustian tale, with the visual elements of film noir mixed in, this Paramount production is an effectively eerie take on a familiar story. This time it's Thomas Mitchell as an honest district attorney who has only just said he'd give his soul to convict a crime boss when a message arrives for him to meet a mysterious stranger in a waterfront tavern. The stranger is a dapper Ray Milland who knows a lot, an awful lot, about a bit of everything, but smooths the path for Mitchell to get his conviction, in turn turning him into a leading candidate for state governor. Milland smooths the path for Mitchell here, as well, but this stranger gets Mitchell increasingly mixed up with some underhanded acts and, as time goes by, the price that Milland asks of Mitchell if he can't follow through on his contractual obligations to him is that he must accompany him to a Spanish island unknown on any map, the English translation of which is island of lost souls. A film of genuine atmosphere, achieved through excellent black and white photography and much fog, as well as a clever, subtle screenplay, and fine performances from the leads. Milland is particularly effective, obviously relishing his villainy role, as the smooth talking stranger who appears and disappears from rooms without warning and seems to know what everyone is thinking (even, in one particularly effective scene, knowing the literal words that will come out of a person's mouth before he has even said them). Milland has a way of opening his eyes wide in reaction at times, effectively adding to the cold bloodedness of his self confident suave character. This may well have been the actor's best role in the years immediately following his Oscar win for The Lost Weekend. Also effective, though, is Audrey Totter as a fallen woman Milland recruits to assist him in getting control of potential future governor Mitchell. Totter's is a surprisingly complex characterization, at first cynical, then baffled and finally terrified of who and what she suspects Milland to be. Mitchell is solid as the attorney whose soul is on the line and George Macready, normally seen as screen villains, is, instead, cast against type as a minister, the only character in the film that makes Milland uncomfortable. For years a difficult find to find, Alias Nick Beal has been released on DVD by Kino Lorber with a fine looking print. If you haven't seen this fantasy noir try not to miss it. Second audio track commentary on the disc, by the way, is provided by Noir Alley's Eddie Muller. 3 out of 4

2 Days in Paris 3 Men and a Baby 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days 5 Fingers 7 Seconds 8 1/2 10 Rillington Place 12 Angry Men The 39 Steps 2001: A Space Odyssey

I don't know. Frankly, if asked to summarize the plot for someone unfamiliar with the film, I would probably describe it the same as Ben. The main point is that the staff thought and assumed that they were to be replaced. The real motivation for the computer seems pretty irrelevant to me and fairly unimportant. The reaction of the employees to what they believe will happen is what drives the narrative and humor.

I still think people on these message boards get unncessarily angry about things said by the TCM hosts.

late Sun., 8-22 unusual but great role for Power...... 12:15 am (ET) Nightmare Alley (1947) 1h 51m | Drama | TV-14 An ambitious carnival worker attempts to scam his way out of the carnival in this brutal n... Director Edmund Goulding Cast Tyrone Power, Joan Blondell, Coleen Gray "Power is superb and unsettling here-his manicured, elegant, leading-man good looks counterbalance his character's ruthlessness and, later, his hollow-eyed despair. The movie was deeply important to him. He had bought the rights to Gresham's novel, and then had to persuade a reluctant Darryl Zanuck and 20th Century Fox to go ahead with the film...... , it stands as a bold example of a mainstream work that doesn't talk down to its audience, that trusts viewers to follow it down some very dark pathways............. https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/85008/nightmare-alley#articles-reviews?articleId=650428

DARLING (1965)

Another little known Power movie is being shown, Abandon Ship. It’s a dark survival movie and, again Power shows his acting chops. He’s a tough captain who must make life and death choices among dire situations.

Rachel's death was really tragic. She was bullied and threatened to return to a job and school she hated by a man who tormented and tortured her (along with other children) under his care.....Gregory Trask! (I really HATED that man!). She's used as a pawn by vamp Dirk to get back at Barnabas and then she was shot and killed by Judith (who was under Dirk's power). Poor woman never had a chance to have a better life. Beth also didn't deserve her sad end. I particularly hated Angelique when she gloated to Beth that she was going to marry Beth's man, Quentin. Very few characters got a happy ending on this show.

hmmm...phones or numbers...phones seemed like more fun... Joan Blondell on the switchboard...I've Got Your Number (1934) worse than robocalls...Murder by Phone (1982) The Telephone Song, from Bye Bye Birdie Lily Tomlin's telephone operator character, Ernestine, from Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In

in retrospect, 1897 went on too long, had too many plot cul-de-sacs and too many unresolved issues. but damned if it wasn't compelling- and it was interesting the way ANGELIQUE developed layers as she was forced into helping people, which was admittedly not her strong suit. I've said before that there was no (intentional) humor to be found in the plotlines of DARK SHADOWS, but damned if the (somewhat underwritten and not-fully explained) POSSESSION OF CHARITY TRASK by PANSY was a HOOT and I wish she'd been used more. I also 100% understand all the affection for NANCY BARRETT voiced in this thread. If this storyline was done again, she needed to have a much fuller, longer presence throughout it.

Don Briscoe was extremely attractive, wasn't he? As were many of the show's actors. Remembering again an anecdote from a KLS book, she says that Chris Pennock (Jeb Hawkes) initially auditioned for role of antique shop owner Philip Todd (played by Chris Bernau.) After seeing Pennock audition, Dan Curtis apparently said "no, we'll keep you for the thing in the box.)

The Slender Thread (1965)

MOBY DICK (1956) I recently read some things about Herman Melville and revisited some of his works. Is there a more difficult author to follow on the page than Melville? Maybe, Faulkner....but Melville is a close, inscrutable second. Nevertheless, this was a fine film. Gregory Peck did not feel he was right for the role but I thought he was perfect. His booming baritone matched perfectly with the Shakespearian dialog. There were many scenes between Peck's Ahab and Leo Genn (who was terrific as well) as his second in command, Starbuck, that were riveting and dramatic. The scar on Ahab's face added a dramatic flare. Orson Welles had a little turn at the beginning as a foreboding minister. John Huston's direction was also outstanding. I was surprised it did not garner a single Oscar nomination. Costumes, makeup, cinematography, direction, editing...surely one nomination was in there. Peck was Oscar-esque. The ending where Ahab meets his end with the Great White Whale were very well done. For 1956, the special effects felt authentic. I'm sure on the big screen, at the time, it must have been a harrowing audience experience. Is there a more ridiculous task than whaling? Who thought that job up? The whale was done very well. The Pequod ocean scenes were too. A sensed a little MASTER AND COMMANDER....even a little bit of JAWS-iness in there. My only criticism was the casting of Richard Basehart as Ishmael. I don't know at what point this film was made in Basehart's career, but I thought he was too old and not innocent/naïve enough in the role. Just me. In the end, Peck was fabulous. I DVR'd it and will keep it for future viewings.

You can add LES MISERABLES on that list as well.

Yes, but the fact that Tracy is not there to downsize the department but to make the research department's job easier and that more help will be needed with all of the work that is to be done is the ENTIRE point of the film. That and the fact that well educated women in 1957 could at best look forward to a career as acting as google for men who are much better paid and far less knowledgeable than they are.

Speaking of Michael Caine, I would say either of his best is either ALFIE (original version) or SLEUTH (again the original). As for his worst, without any doubt in my mind I can say it's JAWS: THE REVENGE. Though BEYOND THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE isn't far behind.

BLACK LEGION (1937)

Paul Newman's best The Hustler 1961 worst The Silver Chalice 1954

Spoilers ahead.. He was brought in to automate various departments ahead of a merger of two broadcast networks. No one in the research department was supposed to be laid off. Instead, they were actually going to hire more people due to the merger.

Oh, I dunno, Mr.G. Don't ya think it never got any worse than... (...gotta love the gun toss scene here though, don't ya...yep, might be the funniest unintentionally funny scene ever put on film...I LOL everytime I see it, anyway)

Murder on the Bridle Path

Not that Firecreek s a good movie, but when you have "Ice Follies of 1939" on your resume, this has to be Stewart's worst film.

Midnight Cowboy (1969) The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly (1969) The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011)

Gold Diggers of 1933

I was under the impression the series had been rebooted previously to be multicultural. Little Mosque on the Prairie (2007–2012) was a Canadian television series. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0923293/?ref_=hm_rvi_tt_i_2

Monday August 23, 2021 Eve Arden Summer Under the Stars on TCM stage door obliging young lady at the circus the doughgirls comrade x the unfaithful whiplash tea for two our miss brooks mildred pierce she couldn’t say no the lady takes a sailor

For me, Fonda's "best" and "worst" jumps around career-wise. Especially for one with a stunning overall filmography. For me, his"best" is a coin-toss between his Tom Joad in THE GRAPES OF WRATH and his Norman Thayer in ON GOLDEN POND. His worst, in my mind, would be his dismal miscasting in the role of Henry Stamper in the equally dismal SOMETIMES A GREAT NOTION. As for Hitch, his "best" and "Worst" picks would depend on how well one liked or disliked particular movies. Like VERTIGO for instance. I could EASILY choose it as his worst because I really, really, REALLY don't like that movie. But still, others would pick it as his best. So, y'all know my pick for worst. And since like Fonda, Hitch too has a stunning overall filmography, my pick for "best" will depend on criteria of; Difficulty of filming; Situation the cast was in, and being a good study of the human array of foibles, weaknesses and strengths and willingness to work together despite vast differences in manifold personalities . And by those aspects for his best I'd pick LIFEBOAT. Sepiatone

Oh yes, absolutely, I meant to say she's finally playing a bit of a b1tch at last on the show, her two DARK SHADOWS characters that she'd played before JUDITH (ELIZABETH and NAOMI COLLINS) were mostly pretty nice. She seems to enjoy getting to play someone with a harder edge.

Do I have to elaborate, that thing is a combination of a bad remake of "The Golden Compass" with some kind of Charles Dickens worst nightmare. That's a nightmare one has after being in an accident suffering from a traumatic brain injury.

Even those cheapies he made at Grand National in the late 30s are entertaining. Someone mentioned A LION IS IN THE STREETS (1951) earlier, but I happen to enjoy that film. I get a kick out of the larger-than-life characterizations. It seems like a souped up version of ALL THE KING'S MEN (1949) since it is inspired by similar incidents. One thing that helped Cagney when he started producing and made films away from Warners is he knew how to surround himself with good character actors. And he plays off those people quite well, which is good if the scripts are lacking in certain areas.

Ok, a slight spoiler alert, but I don't think I'll give much away. So, Tracy and Hepburn in "Desk Set" tonight. Ben said it is his favorite of the duo's films. I'll admit that it is my favorite as well. So my jaw dropped to the floor when He told the set-up for the story and got it completely wrong. Tracy, Ben said, is an "efficiency expert" hired to downsize the corporate departments. This means -- according to our TCM host -- that Tracy is to oversee the firing of the research staff and replace them with a computer! I won't go into the story details, but I was astonished to hear Ben say this. Anyone unfamiliar with the film will understand by the end of the story what really happens. I guess my beef here is that after months of constant self-promotion on the part of the TCM hosts about how smart and knowledgeable they all are about movies, this is quite a stunner. It is as if Ben has only glanced at some notes cobbled together by an intern five minutes before going on air. Am I nuts here? Feel free to say "Yes" by the way. Brian

Is there any actor, ever, who hasn't been in one version or another of THE SECRET GARDEN? I mean, it's hardly Shakespeare. Why is this story continually made over and over and over and over...... I think there is some unwritten rule that for an actor to have any sort of a resume they must be in THE SECRET GARDEN....and....FIDDLER ON THE ROOF.

Veronica Lake Next: male actor who started a fashion trend

THE MISFITS (1961)

Tarantula!

The Silent Partner (1978)

I'd love to see the films, I loved the first book.

Okay, but still bringing in a computer largely to replace the work being done by humans, right? Makes me think this is not reason enough for additional forum rage at the thing TCM's hosts say.

Umeki, Miyoshi

Impetigore (2019) Indonesia/Dir: Joko Anwar - Supernatural horror tale about a young woman (Tara Basro) and her best friend (Marissa Anita) who travel to a remote village in hopes of claiming an inheritance, only to discover a sinister curse. Also with Ario Bayu, Asmara Abigail, and Christine Hakim. I thought this was excellent, well-crated with evocative cinematography, fascinating locations, and good performances. I was surprised to learn that this was the official Indonesian submission for Best International Film at the Oscars that year. It was nominated for 17 Citra Awards, the Indonesian equivalent of the Oscar, and won 6, including best picture, best director, best sound, best cinematography, best editing, and best supporting actress for Hakim. (7/10)

A Lion Is in the Streets is probably the worst film Cagney was in. It's the only one I can think of that I didn't like.

Them (2006) France & Romania/Dir: David Moreau & Xavier Palud - Thriller about a young French couple (Olivia Bonamy & Michael Cohen) living in a rural area outside Bucharest. One night they are terrorized by mysterious strangers. This pre-dates, by a couple of years, the "home invasion" horror boom that began with the release of The Strangers in the U.S. There's very little plot, only an escalating series of encounters and chase taking place over the course of a few hours. Some of worked, some of it didn't. A lot of the film was too dark to tell what exactly I was looking at, and later use of strobing light grew tiresome. (6/10)

Sorry. I can't let it pass. You seriously think Dorothy Dandridge has only a hundred fans? I think you're letting your passion for the Bennett sisters, whom you frequently introduce into discussions about a new Star of the Month nominee, carry you away. I agree with you about their worthiness, but give me a break. I'd been looking forward to seeing a couple of those Dandridge movies for over 25 years, and I doubt I was alone. You can be a Bennett champion, and you're a good one, without knocking an actress who would have loved to be in enough movies to fulfill your minimum requirement, but wasn't allowed to because of her race, pure and simple.

A CHRISTMAS CAROL (1938)

Some people make only the best films. All of Shirley Booth's movies are classics. Like ABOUT MRS. LESLIE (1954). And then there are people that always seem to appear in the worst films possible. Poor Pia Zadora.

Just came across this reprint from 40 years ago I had totally forgotten about. Was originally in R Crumb's comic WEIRDO. I had a huge collection of original "underground" comics. Those, along with an incredible collection of bootleg albums, were stolen in 1979.