coffeedan1927
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Posts posted by coffeedan1927
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Friday's question: What actor gave Deanna Durbin her first on-screen kiss? And in what movie?
Good luck!
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Valentino is right, nedlato! Well done!
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Thursday's question: What actor was preparing to play Benvenuto Cellini on the screen before his untimely death?
Good luck!
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It was indeed, virtualpope! Good job!
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Ed, I've had a lot of fun watching Harold Lloyd the last two Sundays, even though the schedule is severely skewed. By the time the last films came on, they were airing 15-20 minutes late! I had to babysit my VCR all night to make sure I didn't miss anything.
But it was worth it to get films like THE FRESHMAN, which has to be one of the silent era's most perfect comedies -- right up there with Chaplin's THE GOLD RUSH, Keaton's THE GENERAL, and Harry Langdon's THE STRONG MAN. I'd have to rank THE KID BROTHER right behind, it's such a beautifully photographed work, and Carl Davis's Coplandesque music score was an added treat. Lloyd put a lot of TLC into his films, and it shows in every frame.
But you're right about WELCOME DANGER -- it put me to sleep after about 20 minutes. Lloyd tried to save his silent picture by dubbing in dialogue and sound effects, which was badly done and all too obvious. He should have reshot the whole thing, but the expense was probably prohibitive. I think half an hour of WELCOME DANGER could have been trimmed with little, if any, deleterious effect.
FEET FIRST was better, but only marginally so. Lloyd had better control of the sound medium here. Some of the gags were better -- I liked the silly little hula he did on the ship deck. But the overall story line was weak, and I didn't like the final thrill sequence on the side of the building where Harold is trapped and can't get down. I didn't root for him as in SAFETY LAST, where the climb up was unplanned but deliberate; instead I felt sorry for him, which in this case was not a pleasant feeling at all.
I like the quality of Harold's voice -- it's perfect for the characters he plays, just the right combination of innocence and determination. If he does sound tense or strident sometimes, it's usually in character, and doesn't call a lot of attention to itself.
Out of all of Lloyd's talkie output, MOVIE CRAZY best approximates the pace and flow of his silent movies, and Constance Cummings was probably his best leading lady, although Una Merkel also supports him well in THE CAT'S PAW, which is definitely NOT a stinker. In fact, THE CAT'S PAW deserves some space all its own, so I'll comment on it later.
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No, you weren't seeing things -- TCM aired the best available print of THE MILKY WAY last Sunday night. I've seen the film both theatrically and on video, and this print actually looked a little better than the ones I've seen before. There are several reasons why this film doesn't look as good as Harold Lloyd's other features. Listen, and you shall hear . . .
As Suzanne Lloyd mentioned in her intro to the film, Harold Lloyd felt he needed the financing and resources of a major studio for his next picture, so he surrendered production control of THE MILKY WAY to Paramount, which paid him a salary of $125,000 for the film. Therefore, Paramount controlled the film, not Lloyd.
Fast forward to 1946, when Samuel Goldwyn produced THE KID FROM BROOKLYN starring Danny Kaye, an almost-shot-for-shot remake of the THE MILKY WAY. To prevent the original from competing with his new film, Goldwyn bought up all surviving elements of THE MILKY WAY, including the original negative, and destroyed them.
Fortunately for us all, Lloyd secured a complete print of THE MILKY WAY for his own film library, but lost track of the film until the mid-1960s. (This is why there are no scenes from THE MILKY WAY in any of Lloyd's compilation films -- he wanted to include it, but he didn't know where it was at the time!)
Since the original film negative no longer existed, in order to create new prints, a dupe negative had to be struck from Lloyd's surviving print. Now, as anybody who knows anything about film preservation knows, no matter how good a dupe negative is, it cannot capture the clarity of the original, but it's always better than nothing.
Add to this the fact that the film was now in the public domain (why renew the copyright on a supposedly non-existent film?), and the waters get muddier -- along with the condition of the film.
I noted that THE MILKY WAY did not sport the same Harold Lloyd Entertainment aegis and copyright notices that the other Lloyd films had. Perhaps Suzanne Lloyd doesn't wish to put her name as executive producer on something that, in its present state, doesn't accurately represent her grandfather's vision. Maybe there are other copyright problems we don't know about. Whatever the reason, I'm not complaining -- THE MILKY WAY is one of Harold Lloyd's best talkies, and like most of Lloyd's films, deserves a greater audience. And I'm sure that TCM got the best possible print to show to us!
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Wednesday's question: In what film did George Murphy play Ronald Reagan's father?
Good luck!
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Correctamundo, venerados! Good job!
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Au contraire, swingsoul! TCM has indeed shown films from 20th Century-Fox, Columbia, Paramount, and Universal. They own a few of these films outright, but they do lease films from these and other studios if the demand is there. Check out tonight's line-up of films starring Tyrone Power, for example, who was under contract to 2oth Century-Fox for most of his career.
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Tuesday's question: Many of us remember Robert Young as Dr. Marcus Welby on television, but what was the first movie in which Young played a doctor?
Good luck!
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You got it right, virtualpope! Congratulations!
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You got it right, virtualpope! Congratulations!
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Monday's question: In which of his features does Harold Lloyd play a character named Harold Lloyd?
Good luck!
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Okay, here we go with another week of trivia . . .
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Moviejoe, you're in first with the right answer! Well done!
Let us now make room for Mongo's fertile mind and flying fingers . . . See you all on Monday!
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Friday's question: What movie dancer was the model for Snow White in Walt Disney's SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS (1937)?
Good luck!
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Pretty close, nedlato. Although Pat O'Brien made his film debut in the 1931 version of THE FRONT PAGE, he had nothing to do with the stage play.
The correct answer? One of O'Brien's best friends and most frequent co-stars -- James Cagney!
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Thursday's question: What well-known actor understudied Lee Tracy as Hildy Johnson in THE FRONT PAGE on Broadway in 1928?
Good luck!
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Good guess, moira, but the correct answer is . . . Sydney Greenstreet.
Director John Huston wanted to do a project that would reunite all or most of the cast of THE MALTESE FALCON, the first movie he directed, and BEAT THE DEVIL looked like a good bet. Humphrey Bogart, Peter Lorre, and Greenstreet readily agreed, but in the end Greenstreet was too ill to make the film, so Robert Morley took his place.
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Wednesday's question: What actor did Robert Morley replace in the cast of the 1954 film BEAT THE DEVIL?
Good luck!
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You're right, sam! Groucho also played the guitar in MONKEY BUSINESS (1931) and GO WEST (1940).
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Tuesday's question: We all know that Harpo Marx played the harp, and Chico Marx played the piano, but what instrument did their brother Groucho play?
Good luck!
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You do believe correctly, antarcticexile! Good job!
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Monday's question: What newcomer to films was known as "The Voiceless Sinatra" in the mid-1940s?
Good luck!
Trivia -- Week of April 14, 2003
in Trivia
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You got it, max! Gotta throw in an easy one now and then . . . And nedlato, as that sign says in ON THE BEACH: "There is still time, brother."
And now I leave you in Mongo's capable hands. See you all on Monday, and HAPPY EASTER!