jdb1

You've left out one of the fine actors: Michael Dunn. He was a very good actor, singer, raconteur. He was in a very well-received in a Broadway show: O'Neills' "Ballad of the Sad Cafe" with Colleen Dewhurst. I remember him as a very smart and witty guest on late-night talk shows. He was only in his 30s when he passed away. Most would remember him from his appearances on "Wild Wild West" and the original "Star Trek." (He was the dwarf.)

GKG, I was a child in the 50s, so my favorites are likely influenced by what a star-stuck kiddie would like: Danny Kaye Audrey Hepburn Jeff Chandler Martin & Lewis Fess Parker Kevin "Moochie" Corcoran

And Brando? I always thought he was very good in comedies. And "Bedtime Story" is lots better than "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels," at least as far as the Brando/Martin role goes.

Kitsy, I never saw Jolson perform, but I can tell you that some members of my family used to talk in awe about seeing Jolson in person, and about how dynamic and magentic he was. They said the audiences would scream for more, and not let him leave the stage until he did countless encores. I also have read about an incident where Ruby Keeler was on the stage in a show, and Jolson was in the audience, and that he in effect "stole" the limelight from her, standing up at his seat to sing when members of the audience recognized him. In this article (in one of the many movie/stage books I read) it was stressed that this event was not planned - that Jolson simply took attention away from his wife.

Stoney, the earliest version of "Fascination" I remember is the hit version sung by Jane Morgan. Must've been the mid-50s. I think Dinah Shore also recorded it, but the Morgan version was the one I remember as the bigger success. Jane Morgan lived in France, and recorded many English-language versions of Edith Piaf's songs.

Yeah, it reeked. But could an actress who could actually do comedy have been able to pull it out of the trash heap? That's the question.

Frances, your site is very nice, and very interesting. I forgot about Dave Willock and Carson. I think I remember hearing Willock and Carson together - probably on one of the college stations that broadcast old radio shows. Willock was working practically until yesterday! He's one of those "Oh, there's that guy. What's his name again?" actors. I'll be very interested to see what else you can find out. Thanks. Judith

Yes, I just looked on IMDB, and that's the one. She's a congresswoman who comes back to her alma mater. Robert Young is her long lost beau or something. Interestingly, the commenters in IMDB all have differing opinions on whether this movie is a comedy or a melodrama. Just goes to show.

Maybe the Crawford "comedy" I'm thinking of is "Goodbye, My Fancy?" Anyone? Anyone?

I've been thinking further about Carson, and it occurs to me that when I first saw "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" I was just a young person. Besides the images of Newman and Taylor in their "casual" clothing, the image I have retained first and foremost is Goober's anguished speech to Big Daddy - I've done everthing you've expected of me - what more do you want? - why do you love Brick more than you love me? Beautiful, memorable, and really moving.

I haven't had a chance to look at the site yet, but I certainly will. You all know how I love those character actors, and Carson was one of the really skillful ones. He could play anything, really -- tough, naive, surly, kind, quick-witted, dumb. And he could sing, too. I well remember hearing on the radio a recording of him singing "Who Cares" from "Of Thee I Sing," and he was good. I think he was in a revival of same. Did you ever meet him, Larry?

> Sturges had a real knack for taking people who may > not have been known for their comedy and making them > work. Brian Donlevy in "The Great McGinty" for > example. I'm not sure McCrea had much of a comedy > career before Sturges came along but it sure kicked > him into another level. > I think Donleavy's natural stiffness worked very well in "McGinty." From what I've read about him, he was no pussycat, and took himself very seriously. McCrea, on the other hand, was an easy-going kind of guy, and was a natural for quiet, ironic comedy. I just love the strong, silent type. I can think of one instance where an actor who took herself as a "star" very seriously wasn't much of a comedian, and that was Joan Crawford. Do you know the picture I'm thinking of - she's a college professor or somesuch? Much as I like the lady, talk about yer lead balloons! B. Davis had better success in comedies, I think.

It is sad to think of these lovely women who were so insecure about their looks. Even the elegant Claudette Colbert, with her insistance on being photographed in profile from only one side. On the rare occasions when she showed her other profile, I couldn't find anything wrong with it! Now as for Beatty - I bet he thinks this thread is about him! The last time I bothered even to look at him, it was some interview program or other not too long ago, and the focus of the camera on him was so blurred as to be patently ridiculous! Did he think we wouldn't notice, and think he really looked 25? Even the Great Kate wore those high-necked collars to hide what she considered a crepey neck. And to me, she was one of the stars who certainly seemed to have more self-confidence than the populations of most small cities.

This is a good topic, and will require some thought. I personally like Meryl Streep much better in comedies. She has a nice, relaxed comedic touch. She would have been good in Preston Sturges comedies. I find her dramatic work a little too self-conscious (by this I don't mean embarrassed, but I get the sense that she is very conscious of everything she does, every expression she adopts, and that self-regard is telegraphed to us in the audience) I don't feel that when she does comedy -- she is much more natural. This is something you see a lot of with English actors - I think it was Olivier's style, and has been unfortunately handed down as the "right" way to do drama. Sophia Loren comes to mind as a dramatic actress who is very good in comedies. Her work in "Houseboat" and "It Started in Naples" is delightful. John Barrymore was aces in comedies. He didn't seem afraid to parody himself. The same can be said of Peter Lorre. He was really funny in "Arsenic and Old Lace." Joel McRae is another actor who could effortlessly switch from drama to comedy. There are many more . . . .

Merry Christmas Mother. Merry Christmas Ma. Hi Mommy Mommy, and a hot-cha-cha! And HALT means TO STOP!!

Moira, I was reading the "Lad A Dog" books when my classmates were reading Nancy Drew. Lad was much more interesting a character, I thought. There was also "Big Red" (Irish setter, of course). I think Big Red was a film - was a Lad story ever filmed? Remember a dog story/film called "The Biscuit Eater?" Now, your reminding us of the plot of Courage of Lassie makes me realize that it was a direct ripoff of the original Rin-Tin-Tin story, only Rinny was of course a German shepherd in France, and his war was WWI. Adventures of Rin-Tin-Tin was a cool TV show, too. Transplanted to the US Cavalry of the Old West. I saw Rinny, his boy Rusty, and the handsome guy of the show, whose name I've forgotten, at Madison Square Garden. I think it was a rodeo show. Yo, Rinny! At ease!

THE BIG CITY "It's not a place for women, gal, but pretty men go there." ---W.C. Fields in "The Fatal Glass of Beer"

Yes, I agree. The show got sillier and sillier after Lassie lost her Timmy. Poor Lassie lost her direction. Without the boy/dog (or even girl/dog) bond to work from, it became just another syndicated time-waster. As much as I like Dee Wallace (Stone), I thought her stint with Lassie was not very good. Lassie needed another Roddy MacDowell to truly shine. No other actor could look so radiantly, beatifically, happy when in Lassie's company.

GM, I've read "Ecstasy and Me" too, and I think anyone who is interested in the Hollywood phenomenon should read it. It's not just a recital of the interesting events of Hedy's life, but gives her astute observations about the Hollywood experience. The more I learn about her, the more I like her. Beautiful, principled, and brainy!

Gloria Grahame -- For years I wondered why she had such a "stiff upper lip." Then I saw a bio of her on TV, which noted that she felt her upper lip was too receding, and always put a wad of cotton or something between her upper lip and teeth. I don't really think anyone as sultry as she could be really needed to worry about her upper lip. Yes, the camera magnifies, and it surely called to her attention something she was already self-conscious about.

The first TV Lassie "boy" was named Jeff. Frankly, I liked the boy (Tommy Rettig) better than I liked the dog, who always seemed a bit smug to me (talk about anthropomorphism!).

> And some of the other fine staff at the > university... > jdb1: Professor of New York and Comedy Teams > Well. Thanks so much for the appointment. Students, my first seminar will be in tandem pie-throwing, using Junior's fabled New York cheesecake!

> As long as we're including moms, dads and kiddos in > this thread, what was the thinking behind casting a > very good actress, Mildred Dunnock, as the Mother of > a very lush Elizabeth Taylor in Butterfield 8? > Don't kill me for Millie-bashing---I enjoy seeing > Mildred anytime, but it was as though a raisin gave > birth to an overripe pomegranate in that movie. Who > was her father supposed to have been? A visiting > Apollo on his way back to Olympus? Well, Moira, personally, I don't think anything can top Lauren Bacall as Barbra Streisand's mother in "The Mirror Has Two [Whatever - Faces/Sides?]." She (Babs) wishes. Not a classic film, but it certainly fits the "Are You Kidding?" mode.

I have been thinking about this for a while, and my conclusion is that they are both wonderful, both extremely talented, and both real "movie stars." However, I give it to Cagney by a hair. I find Cagney very sexy. I find Bogart very un-sexy.

Hello, L&H fans. It seems that BBC Radio has put together a compilation of recordings made by L&H on their very successful tour of Europe. I hope we will all be able to either listen to it, or access the excerpts. See the notice below. "Laurel and Hardy On Tour will be broadcast 27 July on BBC Radio 4 at 1130 BST. It can be accessed online for seven days via the Radio 4 website's Listen Again page"