Members

For those who might be interested, here are the original 1948 MGM titles to Frank Capra's STATE OF THE UNION. After the original release, rights reverted to Capra and he reissued it under the Liberty Films banner. The remade titles also misspelled Katharine Hepburn's name (as "Katherine"). Also significant is that the original release did NOT include the portion of the scene in Kay Thorndyke's office where her editors resign en masse. I've included the original cutting of that sequence on the video, followed by the original Liberty Bell end title (title was changed and music was cut in the reissue).

I didn't have any special plans for National Silent Movie Day, my husband and I were taking advantage of free studio time for the pottery class we're taking. But afterwards, we got some sushi takeout and watched Peter Bogdanovich's "The Great Buster" documentary which was just starting when we flipped on TCM. I own this documentary and have seen it twice; but I never tire of it. It is a fantastic documentary. Some of Buster's 1960s commercials and TV appearances were so much fun too. I could watch him on Candid Camera all day long. He is hysterical.

and Jack Cardiff knew how to take her picture. I don't dwell on actresses' beauty--often. I pay attention to, well, their acting. But sometimes I'm knocked over and hopelessly in love, and all I want to do is look at them and adore them. I'm like that with Maureen O'Sullivan, and Constance Bennett, and--oh well. . . .

Here it goes... The Godfather. I am not a fan of Marlon Brando. There. I said it!!! Many believe he was our greatest actor. I never felt that way. And if I have to see another clip of him yelling “Stella!” from A Streetcar Named Desire, I think I am going to puke. They could have told the film in a much less violent way. I understand that filmmaking in the early 1970’s seemed to be going the way of showcasing lots and lots of violence, but I am sure that they could have been able to show less and the story could have been better. From my understanding it was the studio which wanted a more violent visual style. Coppola wanted a more talky, drama-laden version. The Godfather, Part II. Not too bad, just don’t like De Niro all that much. Pacino is fine, but ultimately I am not a fan of the intercutting between the two time periods.

The great British actress Avril Elgar has died, aged 89. I had the pleasure to see her on stage, but she may be better known to American audiences for her numerous appearances on television. https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2021/sep/29/avril-elgar-obituary

I spent a number of Saturday afternoons at the movie theater watching Tommy Kirk with Annette, Fred MacMurray and Moochie, but he was always my favorite performer in all of those movies. The last Saturday afternoon I spent watching him was in '65 for "The Monkey's Uncle". It was his last Disney movie and I was too old to be at Disney movies then anyway. But I had gone to see The Beach Boys. Tommy was a good part of my movie childhood, and I'll never forget him.

October Schedule 10/3- THIS IS FRANCIS X BUSHMAN (2021) *documentary* https://letterboxd.com/film/this-is-francis-x-bushman/ BEN HUR (1925) https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/35/ben-hur/#overview 10/10- CAMILLE (1921) https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/1867/camille/#overview 10/17- ROARING ROAD (1926) https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/498405/roaring-road/#overview THE FIRST AUTO (1927) https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/767/the-first-auto/#overview 10/24- THE MONSTER (1925) https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/3040/the-monster/#overview 10/31- AS THE EARTH TURNS (1938) * found in 2019* https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/2219237/as-the-earth-turns/#overview METROPOLIS (1926) https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/5892/metropolis/#overview

The actor Tommy Kirk, who appeared in numerous Disney movies and television productions in the 1950s and 1960s, has died at the age of 79. He was one of many memorable young stars -- including Annette Funicello and Kevin "Moochie" Corcoran --who achieved fame on "The Mickey Mouse Club." The Hollywood Reporter said Kirk (pictured below at a memorabilia show) lived alone, and his body was found Tuesday in Las Vegas. Kirk once said that his career with The Mouse Factory was short-circuited because he was gay. “Disney was a family film studio and I was supposed to be their young leading man," he said. "After they found out I was involved with someone, that was the end of Disney.” Kirk also fell from grace after an arrest on December 24, 1964 on suspicion of marijuana possession at a Hollywood residence. He wasn't prosecuted for that or for a charge of possessing illegal drugs after barbiturates were found in his car. But his career suffered because of the incidents. Tim Considine and Kirk played the junior detectives Frank and Joe Hardy in episodes of "The Hardy Boys" -- serialized adventures that aired on "The Mickey Mouse Club." They appeared in "The Mystery of the Applegate Treasure" (1956) and "The Mystery of the Ghost Farm" (1957). Both actors and Corcoran were inducted as Disney Legends in 2006. Kirk starred in the classic 1957 Disney feature film "Ole Yeller," the story of young Travis Coates and his family as they coped with problems at their late-1860s Texas homestead while the father (Fess Parker) was away on business. Travis drew some comfort from his relationship with the title dog, which helped protect the boy, his mother Katie (Dorothy McGuire) and brother Arliss (Corcoran). The film was based on the award-winning 1956 children's novel by Fred Gipson. The movie's unforgettable ending inspired a funny sequence in a Season 2 episode of TV's "Friends," in which Phoebe (Lisa Kudrow) discovered that her mother had misled her as a child by turning off the TV before the climactic scene. Considine and Kirk played romantic rivals in 1959's "The Shaggy Dog," the popular Disney live-action comedy feature about high school teen Wilby Daniels (Kirk) who became magically transformed into a Bratislavian sheepdog. Although he retained his human consciousness after the shape shift, Wilby realized he was in trouble because his mailman father (Fred MacMurray) detested dogs. Kirk was reunited with "Ole Yeller" co-stars McGuire and (Corcoran) for Disney's 1960 adventure film "Swiss Family Robinson," based on Johann David Wyss' about a family of shipwreck survivors on an island somewhere in the southwest Pacific. Sir John Mills starred as the family patriarch, McGuire was his wife and their three sons were played by James MacArthur, Kirk and Corcoran. In 1961, Kirk co starred with MacMurray and Keenan Wynn in Disney's live-action comedy feature "The Absent-Minded Professor," MacMurray played the title character, Medfield College's physical chemistry professor Ned Brainard. His legendary absent-mindedness resulted in three canceled wedding ceremonies, which exasperated his fiancée (Nancy Olson). Meanwhile, his explosive home experiments accidentally created an anti-gravity substance he called "flubber" (a portmanteau for flying rubber). Brainard found himself struggling to fend off the schemes of a greedy land developer named Alonzo Hawk (Keenan Wynn), who wanted to profit from flubber. Kirk played Hawk's son Biff. The movie's 1963 sequel was "Son of Flubber." In 1964, it was Kirk's turn to star as a Disney braniac. "The Misadventures of Merlin Jones" starred the actor as a college student whose experiments with mentalism resulted in his developing the ability to read minds. The sci-fi comedy also starred Annette, Leon Ames, Stu Erwin, Alan Hewitt and Norman "Woo Woo" Grabowski. Kirk and Annette starred in "The Monkey's Uncle," the 1965 sequel to "The Misadventures of Merlin Jones" that revolved around such plot devices as the custody of a chimp named Stanley and the invention of a human-powered flying vehicle. Annette sang the title song with musical backing by The Beach Boys. It was Kirk's final film for Disney. His contract was terminated by Walt Disney after it was discovered he had become involved with a male minor. Kirk continued to appear in movies, including the 1968 independent project "Mars Needs Women," which co-starred Yvonne Craig. The sci-fi comedy cast Kirk as a Martian on a search for females for The Red Planet. Although it was not released theatrically, it has developed a cult following through the years.

I've been on a silent movie kick for a while now, and several of them have been foreign. Pardon the length of this post! The Woman Always Pays (1910) Denmark/Dir: Urban Gad - A bored society woman (Asta Nielsen) impulsively runs off and joins the circus. This meager plot enables Nielsen to do a "scandalous" dance that was so outrageous at the time that it made the film a smash hit and established her as one of the first international movie stars. It's understandably quaint by today's standards, but still interesting to see. (7/20) Homer's Odyssey (1911) Italy/Dir: Francesco Bertolini & Giuseppe de Liguoro & Adolfo Padovan - Large-scale adaptation of the epic, with impressive sets, costumes and special effects for the time. Co-director Liguoro also stars as Odysseus. (6/10) The Springtime of Life (1912) Sweden/Dir: Paul Garbagni - Melodrama following the life of a young girl from childhood through adulthood, and the men who vie for her hand in marriage. Among those are Victor Sjostrom and Mauritz Stiller. The film is fairly standard stuff for the period, but seeing the much-revered directors in their acting youth was a treat. (6/10) Fantomas: In the Shadow of the Guillotine (1913) France/Dir: Louis Feuillade - First installment in the first chapter-serial, following the exploits of the gentleman criminal Fantomas. Clever scenarios and a quick pace highlight this groundbreaking work. (7/10) Sealed Orders aka The Mysterious X (1914) Denmark/Dir: Benjamin Christensen - Military intrigue and melodrama as a decorated officer (director Christensen) is accused of treason. The art of cinema advances ever so incrementally, but Christensen's best work is ahead of him. (6/10) The Tunnel (1915) Germany/Dir: William Wauer - Pseudo-science fiction about a bold, visionary engineer (Friedrich Kaybler) who sets out to construct an undersea tunnel connecting Europe to North America. This was passable, although the sound remake in 1933 was better. (6/10) Shoe Palace Pinkus (1916) Germany/Dir: Ernst Lubitsch - The director also stars as comical character Sally Pinkus, a young goofball who gets into various scrapes. After running into trouble at school, he sets up shop as a shoe seller. The Pinkus character had been played by Lubitsch for several years, both on stage and in film, before hitting it big with this release. (6/10) A Man There Was (1917) Sweden/Dir: Victor Sjostrom - Sjostrom stars as a grizzled hermit whose sad tale is told in flashback, detailing how he came to be in his unenviable position. The high melodrama is helped by excellent scenic photography and operatic situations. (7/10) The Torture of Silence (1917) France/Dir: Abel Gance - Standard melodrama scenario with a bored wife considering an affair with her husband's brother. The filmmaking is good, even if the story is weak. Gance remade it in sound in 1933. (6/10) I Don't Want to Be a Man (1918) Germany/Dir: Ernst Lubitsch - Comedy starring Ossi Oswalda as a troublemaking young woman who dresses as a man in order to put one over on the man assigned by her father to make her more ladylike. Oswaldo was vaulted to stardom with this role, and she's very entertaining, although the material is more a little slight. (7/10)

We had never seen The Grass is Greener, but ordered the DVD years ago. It is now one of the movies that we watch frequently. Just an excellent bit of entertainment. It may be a "staged drawing-room comedy," but it is a very well done one. All four actors are excellent in it.

You Asked for It

Next up The Glass Wall (1953) . It's a good story about man (Gassman) a refugee from WWII trying to find his American GI Joe sponsor in New York City. All he's got to go by is the soldiers first name and his occupation before the war which was a jazz musician. Like looking for a needle in a haystack. He meets various characters on his quest. The director was Maxwell Shane writer/director of those rather unheralded noirs Fear in the Night (1947), City Across the River (1949), and and its remake Nightmare (1956). It was written by Ivan Tors and Maxwell Shane. The excellent cinematography was by Joseph F. Biroc (It's a Wonderful Life (1946), The Killer That Stalked New York (1950), Cry Danger (1951), Loan Shark (1952), Vice Squad (1953), Down Three Dark Streets (1954), Nightmare (1956), The Garment Jungle (1957)). Music was by Leith Stevens (Illegal Entry (1949), Johnny Stool Pigeon (1949), Abandoned (1949) Shakedown (1950), Undertow (1949), The Narrow Margin (1952), Angel Face (1953), Private Hell 36 (1954) The Lineup (1958) and others). Some great early 1953 NYC location shots of Times Square, Mid Town Manhattan and the 3rd Avenue El (though some of them are obvious rear projections). The vignettes with each of the various New Yorkers Gassman encounters could have been a tad longer, but it's a quicky B at 82 minutes so can't expect too much.

On Svengoolie tomorrow, October 2, 2021: Kicking off a month of Frankenstein films.

Thanks Bronxgirl & Dan. Your posts are perfect examples of how debate should work. I enjoy several of the movies Bronxie dislikes, but completely understand her reasoning...because she takes the time to explain, even if just a sentence or two. And knowing these films, I can see why she feels that way. I don't, but that's OK. That's what makes movies (& any art) fun-they touch you or they don't. That said, I was taught never to use the word "hate" either-"dislike" was the strongest I could say. Same for (Philadelphia Story) couldn't say "stink" but "smell" was acceptable.

Missing my NPG e-mail for OCT. but there's THIS for SAT., 10-2 (times ET) 8:00 pm Cartoon Carnival (2021) Documentary ".... a feature-length documentary that looks at the birth of animated film, and the often forgotten story of the pioneers of the silent era. To quote the film’s press release: “To many, the history of the animated cartoon begins with the story of Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse, but in reality the story begins as soon as man first dreamed of somehow capturing the moving image. ..... Director Andrew T. Smith Cast No Cast Information Available. 9:45 pm 100th Anniversary of Fleischer Animation – Part 1: The Silent Era (2021) 46m | Documentary Max and Dave Fleischer founded their own animation studio in 1921, initially calling it Ou... Director Tommy José Stathes Cast No Cast Information Available. 10:45 pm 100th Anniversary of Fleischer Animation – Part 2: The Sound Era (2021) 51m | Documentary Classic Betty Boop, Bimbo, Popeye, and Olive Oyl appearances highlight a sound-era retrosp... Director Tommy José Stathes Cast No Cast Information Available. =================================================== "Cartoon Carnival” and Fleischer Tribute on TCM Saturday Oct. 2nd "The evening will divided into three sections: at 8pm/5pm – CARTOON CARNIVAL, a brand new documentary centered around the meticulous silent animation restoration work of our very own Tommy Jose Stathes (and featuring commentary from many of our favorite animation historians and Cartoon Research contributors). More information on this documentary below – but do not miss it! That will be followed at 9:45pm/6:45pm by The 100th Anniversary of Fleischer Animation – Part 1: The Silent Era. Tommy Stathes curated this block – which contains the world premiere of several brand new Stathes restorations and rarities. ....... At 10:45pm/7:45pm, TCM will present the 100th Anniversary of Fleischer Animation – Part 2: The Sound Era curated by Tommy and Steve Stanchfield – and features several new Stanchfield/Stathes restorations – and from a curatorial point of view is a perfect selection of Fleischer animated mayhem. ......... see article: https://cartoonresearch.com/index.php/cartoon-carnival-and-fleischer-tribute-on-tcm-saturday-oct-2nd/

MANUELA

Plan Nine From Outer Space (1956) next: people dressed in resort attire

Rebecca Keegan @ThatRebecca My first screening @AcademyMuseum’s stunning David Geffen Theater. Museum Director Bill Kramer introduced The Wizard of Oz, accompanied by the American Youth Symphony Orchestra and conducted by David Newman. Lorna Luft was in the audience. 12:54 AM · Oct 1, 2021 from Los Angeles, CA·Twitter for iPhone

The Garden of The Finzi-Contini 1970 Italy Directed by Vittorio De Sica.Dominique Sanda Fabio Testi Helmut Berger. One of the last films directed by De Sica and one of his best.Set in Italy in 1938 the ordeal of a Jewish Italian family when the racial laws are imposed in the country by Mussolini .Beautiful cinematography.Oscar best foreign film 94 minutes 8.5/10

Thank goodness, she lived long enough to receive an honorary Academy Award on March 21, 1994. It'll be interesting to see how her presenter, Glenn Close, finally gets one.

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes Next: Flashbacks in/near the climax

Tell Me You Love Me, Junie Moon

I watched The Magician, the 1926 horror-thriller starring Paul Wegener, directed by Rex Ingram. Horror film fans (Present!) will recognize the influence of this MGM production, filmed in France, on Universal horror "talkies," most notably Frankenstein. Turner Classic Movies' 2010 edition emphasizes the similarity between The Magician and Universal horror films via Robert Israel's evocative soundtrack. Israel exquisitely accompanies cinematographer John F. Seitz's nightmarish images and Ingram's melodramatic story-telling with familiar musical excerpts from Dracula and The Mummy (the title themes of both being Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake), The Black Cat (enhanced with the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, Ludwig van Beethoven, Johannes Brahms, Franz Liszt, and Robert Schumann), and Werewolf of London (score by Karl Hajos). I could easily imagine a sound remake by Universal Pictures starring Bela Lugosi as sinister hypnotist Oliver Haddo*. Eighty-nine minutes definitely well spent! Thank you, TCM! * W. Somerset Maugham, who authored the source novel, based Haddo on Aleister Crowley -- also the inspiration for Hjalmar Poelzig in The Black Cat.

How about this one: In From Russia with Love, Kerim Bay sets off a bomb so that Bond and Tatian can steal the Lektor. As they escape under the building through the sewers, I believe they encounter rats. The scene was shot in Spain, as Britain did not allow filming with wild rats. 🐀

Carmen Miranda

A Date with Judy

As biography it's almost entirely worthless. As a showbiz movie, it's fun. Ann Blyth is a cutie. I saw it first as a little kid, probably before I knew who Buster was. Donald I think appealed to me as a kid because he himself was so like a kid.

October Schedule 10/3- THE HUMAN CONDITION III (1961, Japan) https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/557715/the-human-condition-iii/#overview 10/10- BLACK MOON (1975, France, West Germany) https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/68907/black-moon/#overview SUNLESS (1983, France) https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/482055/sunless/#overview 10/17- THE STALKER (1979, Russia) https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/344200/stalker/#overview 10/24- LA STRADA (1954, Italy) https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/80554/la-strada/#overview YO YO (1965, France) https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/96424/yo-yo/#overview 10/31- VAMPYR 1932, Germany) https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/343956/vampyr/#overview HAXAN (1922, Sweden) https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/508216/haxan/#overview

Friday October 1, 2021 70s on TCM the bad news bears harold and maude black sunday

Abismos De Pasion 1954 Mexico aka Wuthering Heights Directed by Luis Bunuel with Jorge Mistral Irasema Dillian.Very good adaptation of the Emily Bronte's classic book,more faithful to the story,very good acting and direction,another good one by Bunuel. 90 minutes 8/10

Brelan d'As 1952 France Aka Full House Directed by the great Henri Verneuil Michel Simon Raymond Rouleau.Three separate crime stories with three different detectives :Simon impersonnate Maigret his story screenplay is by Simenon.The first story with Rouleau is the best one,Rouleau is fantastic with witty,snappy dialogue, a real joy. Remastered 2020 4 k 118 minutes 7/10

Flower Drum Song Road to Rio Luxury Liner

Well, one thing I do like about Danny is that he can switch from silly to sophisticated rather seamlessly which I think was the essence of his appeal. For example, in ON THE RIVIERA Kaye plays the urbane man-about-town French flyer and also an American entertainer who doubles for him. Not sure O'Connor for all his gifts had that particular versatility, but of course I'd be glad to be proved wrong.

Track of Thunder was released all around the country as part of a double bill; the other feature was 1958's Thunder Road. Here is one ad, from Columbia, SC:

I'll use the word "dislike" for: DR. ZHIVAGO As someone who appreciates David Lean, this is a big disappointment for me. There are two fine performances from Rod Steiger and Tom Courtenay. Otherwise, I much prefer (and highly recommend) 1937's KNIGHT WITHOUT ARMOR if one wants picturesque adventures and love amidst the turmoil of the Russian Revolution. Robert Donat and Marlene Dietrich are wonderful as the two star-crossed lovers. And that ending! Talk about romantic! Sigh.... BONNIE AND CLYDE I understand it's American "New Wave" but hell, just take out everything and leave Foggy Mountain Breakdown, lol. Yes, I "get" all the so-called intellectual allusions but just don't care! MODERN TIMES I know -- heresy! But for cripes sake Charlie, you and Paulette are in a department store. Can't she at least swipe a pair of shoes? Apparently Ms. Goddard must remain barefoot and cheek-smudged throughout. Chaplin just loves the concept of a Victorian waif. Gets on my nerves and ruins whatever "genius" ideas, visual or otherwise, the comedian is trying to impart. (by the way, Paulette is also cheek-smudged in THE GREAT DICTATOR) WHITE CHRISTMAS Flat and uninspired. A little of Danny Kaye goes a long way. HOLIDAY INN is the one to watch as it has cozy charm plus Fred Astaire who is teamed with Bing, which for me is much more timeless, classic and satisfying pairing.

In this excellent streaming presentation on a Russian website, you can see Buster Keaton at the 2:19 (two hours, 19 minutes) moment in It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World. https://ok.ru/video/31467375134?fromTime=8392

@TomJH: I liked BLOW UP for that reason. It seemed like nothing is spelled out for the viewer; we are left to our own devices to try and figure out what's going on. I believe, however, there WAS a murder . . . but what happened to the body? And who was it? And is the person or persons who removed the body the same people who killed the man? Well, shucks! I dunno . . .

If you want to learn more about Janette Scott, you might read Mel Tormé's autobiography, It Wasn't All Velvet, which I just finished. (And thanks to Mr. Gorman's post above, I was able to spell Mel's last name correctly.) They were married for several years. She had previously been involved with David Frost. Janette Scott gave up the lead in Sands of the Kalahari to follow Mel to America.

Just guesses here, ScaretyCat, er, Peebs... ABC would be the logical choice as the network obviously was all about the movie-made-for TV in the 1970s. As to the first film: GOLDFINGER - even the Bond franchise's men seemed to regard it as Fort Knox formula!

Saturday, October 2 9:45 p.m. The 100th Anniversary of Fleischer Animation: Parts One and Two (2021)

Zane, Billy

STRICTLY BALLROOM (1992) Next: lots of attractive men

Dan Dailey

Its interesting that you love Donald in Rain but tire quickly of Danny. They were always so similar to me. Childish and silly in their extremes. I like Rain for the title number but the rest just sort of sit through. The dialect coach scenes are fun.

This is offset by the availability of braille services. 🤚

There's "Give 'em Hell, Harry!" -- the 1975 filmed stage production for which James Whitmore received an Oscar nomination for his portrayal of President Truman. Of course, it was a one-man show.

RIP Tommy Kirk

Funny you should ask - just yesterday I enjoyed watching Burt in some pirate movie. Can't remember the name, but the important thing was Burt, all shirtless and sweaty on some desert island with his coconuts on display. My my my what a pulchritudinous man, I thought. publicity still from Desert Fury, 1947

Deadline Hollywood @DEADLINE Here's the complete list of #TonyAwards winners: Tony Awards – The Winners List (Updating Live) The 74th Annual Tony Awards, hosted by Audra McDonald, will be livestreamed tonight at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT, exclusively on Paramount+. The presentation will honor the outstanding shows, performance… deadline.com 11:00 PM · Sep 26, 2021·Twitter Web App