MissGoddess

I think maybe Shirl's movies are colorized because the marketers were fearful children would refuse to watch any black and white movies. I haven't seen Now and Forever in...forever...because I remember the ending was so sad. However, it's one of my favorite ST movies, along with Wee Willie Winkie. The Lombard/Cooper movie I am dying to see is I Take This Woman. It's probably the one unseen Gary Cooper movie I am most anxious about, since I am a big Carole Lombard fan, too.

PS---You were not far off in thinking about Carole Lombard---she did a movie way back in 1930 called I Take This Woman with Gary Cooper, a movie which The Cowboy and The Lady was based upon. However, this film is hard to find and never shown on TCM.

I think Chris is right, it sounds like Never A Dull Moment, which TCM airs on occasion.

[nobr]Love her outfit!!!!![/nobr] [nobr][/nobr]

[nobr]If you look closely, Nat is wearing a bracelet to disguise the fact that due to a childhood accident, her wrist developed a slight protrusion and in all her movies and pictures she would try to disguise it with jewelry and clothing.[/nobr] [nobr] [/nobr]

Hi KJ Angel---yes, Natalie was cut off in her prime. I have visited the graves of only two Hollywood figures, Natalie's and Marilyn's (they are both in the same cemetary). I left a rose for each. I really do hope that a nice selection of her films will be released one day on dvd, either individually or in a suitable box set. We still do not have one of her best, her Oscar-nominated Love With the Proper Stranger and it scarcely ever gets played on TV, either. It's my favorite of all her films. I even like Steve McQueen in it, because for once he can't help but be softened up by her vulnerability. And I include her child performance among my favorites, too---she and Hayley Mills are my favorite child stars. The little refugee she played in Tomorrow is Forever was just too touching, and of course she was little "Anna" in The Ghost and Mrs. Muir. Miss G

Hi, LuckyD---I was surprised to learn she was so tiny, too, but she more than pleasingly filled the big screen. I remember seeing Gypsy as a twelve-year-old on TV and forming the quite serious resolution of becoming a professional stripper. My parents soon put a period to that ambition. I have always thought that Natalie Wood, Ava Gardner and Brigitte Bardot had the best figures in movies. Unbelievably small waists, all of them.

FG: Natalie had the gift in that her performances, her characters, had a way of communicating directly to the audience, reaching their hearts. You could see the real vulnerability in her eyes and I think that always grabs people.

Beautiful pictures, ForeverG! I love the way she looked when she grew her hair out long. So lovely.

Only 69. She would still be what I call "young". It is particularly sad because I think she developed into a very strong and appealing mature actress. I also think at least one more Academy award would have been in her future, and many performances worthy of it.

> > What is it with you today? Why I've seen > plenty of Gary Cooper movies. I saw that one > with uh, that lady from The Big Valley, where someone > threw a tomato at him and he had to jump off that > building; and then one where he was making a > dictionary and his buddies held Dan whatshisname down > and tickled him; and then one where he was a sheriff > who was out of bullets or something and nobody would > give him any. I know tons of Coop movies. Ask > me anything. LOL!!! Just testing, Lucky D, just testing.... "That lady from The Big Valley"...tsk tsk!!

Beautiful review of Man of the West, Frank---so glad you enjoyed it. And I am reconciled to the ending, like Angie pointed out to me, and you mention in your post, Link was moved to stand up for a stranger, representing all women, and that point would have been lost had she been his wife. I like that you quoted Julie London's best lines, they were the grace notes in the film. I think Gary's performance is quite awesome---and I don't mean that in the Valley Girl sense, but in the original meaning of the word.

[nobr]Wistful, brunette beauty Natalie Wood was born Natalya Nikolaevna Zakharenko to Russian parents in San Francisco in 1938 and drowned tragically off Catalina Island in 1981. The petite, 5-foot tall actress started appearing in films at the tender age of four and was one of the most successful in Hollywood at transitioning from child star to mature actress. Natalie had two daughters, one from second husband Richard Gregson, and another from first and second husband Robert Wagner. Her sister, Lana Wood, also is an actress, most notable for appearing as a Bond girl "Plenty O'Toole" in Diamonds Are Forever.[/nobr] [nobr]Some trivia tidbits courtesy imdb.com and me:[/nobr] [nobr]* Nominated three times for an Academy Award (Rebel Without a Cause, Splendor in the Grass and Love With the Proper Stranger)[/nobr] [nobr]* Had a mortal fear of drowning since childhood[/nobr] [nobr]* Dated Elvis Presley in the 1950s and may have married him, but his mother did not approve. In the 50s, Natalie had a reputation as one of "Hollywood's Bad Girls", along with Janet Leigh and Debbie Reynolds (!) [/nobr] [nobr]* Her mother was a ballerina and Natalie studied ballet since she was a tot. Later, she would attend the same ballet classes as Robert Wagner's current wife Jill St. John, and his TV wife, Stefanie Powers.[/nobr] [nobr]* Her favorite actress, and mine, was Vivien Leigh![/nobr] [nobr] [/nobr]

John---consider both The Bourne Identity and A History of Violence in my Netflix "queue", thanks!

Hmmmm....the Frank Sinatra collection is tempting, except that I already have Kings Go Forth and it's my favorite of the bunch. However, A Hole in the Head may be the drawing card, it's rarely shown and I remember liking it very much. As a would-be Sinatra completist, I may take the plunge.