JackBurley

A Star in the Night was shown last night. Have you seen the Shorts Forum? They list a schedule of all the shorts that will shown on TCM. Here's the link to the forum: http://forums.tcm.com/jive/tcm/thread.jspa?messageID=7862184

That short subject caught me off-guard too. It had so many corny, schmaltzy elements from Christmas tree carrying cowboys to the 100 voice choir singing in from a motel room. Stereotypes galore. Yet it all added up to a swell short picture! The short subject after Meet Me in St. Louis showing a young Judy Garland singing "Silent Night" was a gem too. A good night on TCM.

Oh lordy, I'm sorry. This year? Hmmm... I'd better go do some homework!

It wasn't in place of Love Finds Andy Hardy, rather it was a short subject shown after the Mickey Rooney/Judy Garland feature. It was called Star In The Night and was released in 1945.

That was a lovely Christmas gift to bestow on the eve of Christmas Eve. I've long heard that there was a short of Judy Garland singing "Silent Night" with the St. Luke's Episcopal Church Choristers of Long Beach, California, but I'd never seen it. Sometimes I questioned the rumors. And now, on December 23 (after the screening of Meet Me in St. Louis, this very short short appeared. Hope you'll show it more often next year. It was swell! Thank you.

I just watched it and was also struck by the woman in deep pink. She always reminded me of someone... and on each viewing I think it might be Betty Garret, but no... tonight it hit. Is it possible that she is Florence MacMichael?!

The remaining days are still not up, but I thought I'd give the link for those who don't know it. The first three days are certainly rich. http://www.tcm.com/schedule/month/?cid=&timezone=EST&oid=3/1/2007

Would it be cheating to mention Robert Walker and Robert Walker, Jr.? It's just that it's spooky sometimes watching the son, who's the spitting image of his father...

1. Busby Berkeley - Taking the depression out of the Depression; this set featuring some of Mr. Berkeley's Warner Bros. treasures is a delight (if only they'd included the final Gold Diggers movie). With plenty of extras: cartoons, newsreels, radio programs, featurettes. 2. Greta Garbo - Luxury in a box; I treasure the idea that I have Garbo at my fingertips now. Includes a documentary on the Swedish Sphinx. 3. Citizen Kane - Robert Ebert's audio commentary is priceless; this alone would make the set worthwhile. 4. The Wizard of Oz - This three disk set is loaded with extras. Tornado outtakes? I'm sooo there! 5. La Belle et la Bete - Gorgeous transfer of Cocteau's enchanting film. Supplemental material includes a present-day trip to the locales. 6. The Red Shoes - I've always wanted to watch this Powell/Pressburger gem alongside Moira Shearer. The audio commentary allows me this privilege. 7. Brief Encounter - David Lean brings Rachmaninoff... er, I mean, Noel Coward to the screen. I've seen it many times and haven't grown weary of it yet. 8. Singin' in the Rain - Great extras, including musical scenes from earlier movies that used the songs featured in this film; and a document on the Freed unit that has lots of great outtakes and material I'd never seen before. 9. Amarcord - I've always loved watching Fellini's fanciful memories of growing up in Rimini; and this set has some great interviews with the stars in later years. It's swell to catch up with Gradisca (Magali No?l) again. 10. Le Notti di Bianche - This issue from the Criterion Collection tugs at my heart. For DVD design, I have to mention Sunset Boulevard. The menues and seques to each link is beautifully done. Love the map of Hollywood, which links us to information on hot spots from the movie. I have a pile of DVDs which I haven't watched yet. I'm betting some will be worthy of the top ten. For instance, I'm looking forward to Jacques Tati's Playtime, which has a second disk of extras.

I caught some of Bundle of Joy and felt uncomforable about it most of the time. It seemed "unnatural" to see both Adolphe Menjou and Franklin Pangborn in color. Seeing Menjou in color somehow just reminds me of his affiliation with the Motion Picture Alliance for the Preservation of American Ideas, and the chilling footage of his compliance with the House Committee on Un-American Activities. Seeing Eddie Fisher with Debbie Reynolds was a constant reminder of the cad he was about to show himself to be. So the whole thing seemed a little twisted to me. Hey there's a rumor that Mr. Fisher was one of the cannibalistic street urchins in Suddenly Last Summer. Supposedly, he is only 5'4", so fit right in with the kids. Can this be true?

There's Jerry Trimble, who has been in a lot of action movies of the past fifteen years... and there's Arthur Trimble, the child actor who starred in the Buster Brown during the late 1920's... And there's David Trimble who was in Brokeback Mountain... a search on IMDB.com brings up 69 Trimbles in various industry positions...

I had no idea that those links existed! What a find, Mr. K! Alak, none of that bevy is the gal in question. How can one so striking be so elusive? Thanks for opening that treasure trove.

Yes, Mr. K! That's her! The one on the left, in the blue. And that one on the right, with the florist shop on her head, looks suspicously like Helen Gilbert. Your dedication to this quest is admirable. Viva Photobucket!

Thank you Mr. Fan, I'd forgotten about the Meet Me in St. Louis: The Making of an American Classic documentary. I just pulled it out; but alas, I don't think Dorothy Raye is the one... Helen Gilbert? The picture of Ms. Gilbert that Ayres showed doesn't look like the woman on the trolley. But I suppose people change over the years...

"It's in the trees! It's coming!" Dana Andrews starred in Jacques Tourneur's cult classic Return of the Demon. I first saw this as a youth and it haunted me for years. Any idea how Dana Andrews ended up in this British film? Was he under contract to Columbia at the time, and they sent him over? Perhaps he was a free agent and going to Europe in search of work as the studio system was crumbling back home? It seems to have been a one-time deal; at least his other films at the time were all made in the U.S. Thanks Mr. Mongo, for this spotlight!

She was reportedly in 16 films, Mr. Ranger, including Blue Skies, The Bishop's Wife and she was the little matchgirl in Hans Christian Anderson. Thanks Mr. Mongo for bringing this story to us!

We could combine this thread with the screen kiss thread so that I could efficiently mention the longest screen kiss, as Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman share the receiver while receving their share of smooch in Notorious.

"The song, for which Mancini and Johnny Mercer (lyrics) won the Best Original Song Oscar was actually a reworked melody from an earlier film which I can't remember right now." Now I'm curious, Mr. 40a... By the way, I read the following [perhaps apocryphal] story today: "Author Truman Capote came up with the title for his Breakfast at Tiffany's when a gay friend told him he had spent the night with a young, callow marine. The next morning, the delighted host offered to take his homme de tryst to breakfast and asked him to pick a restaurant. The marine, unfamiliar with Manhattan, and only having heard of one place, answered, 'I'd like to have breakfast at Tiffany's.'"

I read the following [perhaps] apocryphal story today: "During the filming of The Women, the original billing called for movie stars Norma Shearer and Joan Crawford alone above the title. Co-star Rosalind Russell waited until most of her scenes were completed, then started calling in sick. Her agent informed MGM that she would recover if she were billed above the title The studio agreed, but her name is in much smaller letters than Shearer and Crawford. Still, Russell made her point. Oh those divas of yesteryear!"

Where was Gertrude Stein when we needed her?

Seven Brides for Seven Brothers is most definitely on DVD. In fact, it comes in a special two-disc set with commentary by Stanley Donan, a wide-screen version, a documentary on the "making of", newsreels and a short subject. It's one of my essential DVDs!

"Just a dumb piece of trivia." *Gasp!* In the "real world" it might be considered a dumb piece of trivia, but on the TCM board these bits are considered gold. Thank you, Mrs. L. Sorry to bring you down, Ms. 1; Larry's Dance of the Seven Veils should do the trick of bringing you back to the party.

I have a large, eclectic and (so I've been told) bizarrre and music recording collection, Mrs. L. You think my movie taste is all over the board? You ain't seen nuttin' yet! I have the Stan Freberg rendition of this nutty song. 'Tis a yearly tradition to play it... Glad I can still keep you on your toes.

How odd. I responded to this on the 19th (saying that the database seemed to be okay again), but I just noticed that it looks as if the response didn't take. Good news: database is up. Bad news?: It's dropping posts? (Did I hit cancel by mistake? We'll never know, will we...) Thanks anyway!

I'm gettin' nuttin for Christmas Mommy and Daddy are mad. I'm gettin' nuttin for Christmas 'Cause I ain't been nuttin' but bad. I broke my bat on Johnny's head, Somebody snitched on me. I hid a frog in sister's bed, Somebody snitched on me. I spilled some ink on Mommy's rug, I made Tommy eat a bug, Bought some gum with a penny slug; Somebody snitched on me. I'm gettin' nuttin for Christmas Mommy and Daddy are mad. I'm gettin' nuttin for Christmas 'Cause I ain't been nuttin' but bad. I put a tack on teacher's chair, Somebody snitched on me. I tied a knot in Susie's hair, Somebody snitched on me. I did a dance on Mommy's plants, climbed a tree and tore my pants, filled the sugar bowl with ants, Somebody snitched on me.