VP19

I guess Ted was a classic movie fan. But he's also a savvy businessman; witness when he kept the film library MGM owned after deciding to sell off all its other assets. Using that library, which few at the time saw any worth in, to make it the nucleus of first TNT and then TCM, was marketing genius. Here's an entry I wrote two months ago on Turner and his work on behalf of classic film: http://carole-and-co.livejournal.com/438472.html

But in 1994, anyone who knew the business could see what was coming; the early years of TNT had served as sort of a dry run for TCM. Turner owned a substantial library, one that has grown, whereas AMC was essentially limited to leasing agreements. Once those dried up, it was very limited in what it could show, and thus decided to go in a different direction (even more or less dropping its "American Movie Classics" title to focus on the acronym). TCM's clout has also enabled it to work lease agreements with Columbia and even Fox (for some Twentieth Century and/or Fox films), and Universal (as well as the currently unavailable batch of pre-1948 Paramount that Universal controls) may be on the horizon, too.

Beautiful woman who has written several books and has acted in films as recently as 2009. She turns 78 next February.

The mix of movies hasn't changed that much, though you'll never convince some folks around here of that. What has changed is the approach to showing the films (intros, etc.); they're designed to more appeal to younger audiences. Some of them are terrific (I love the Rube Goldberg-style movie intro), others less so (the book pop-up is boring, and do we need yet another "Bringing Up Baby" reference?). Nevertheless, TCM is continuing the mission it began more than 17 1/2 years ago -- to serve as a de facto repertory house on TV, important since very few areas still have such theaters or programs -- and it handles that assignment beautifully.

Sinatra came close to marrying Prowse in the early '60s, but it never quite happened. Juliet was a lovely lady and a terrific dancer, sort of a successor to Charisse in sheer, leggy sensuality. I also believe she died fairly young, in her late 50s.

A wonderful new resource for pics is now available. Many issues of Photoplay, the premier fan magazine of its time, have been placed online through the Media History Digital Library. For now, years include 1917, 1920, 1925 to 1930, 1935 to 1938 and 1940. The issues are shown with their original spot or full color (usually limited to covers or ads); it's well worth checking out. Find it at http://mediahistoryproject.org/fanmagazines/

Without meaning to trivialize a sad and horrible topic, one thinks of a variation of that stock headline always seen beneath the banner head in newspapers seen in schlock '50s movies: "Panic In Zanesville -- Menagerie Breaks Loose."

For some reason, episode #10 isn't directly up at YouTube, but links are provided so you can see it. Links for all 13 eps of this landmark series can be found at http://carole-and-co.livejournal.com/452990.html. If you've never seen it (rights issues continue to hold up any DVD release), go check it out.

Perhaps if you knew a little more about the history of silent cinema, it might become more accessible to you. (Note I didn't say "you'd begin to appreciate it," because that sounds rather patronizing, and silent films have a "language" all their own.) I have no idea if you are familiar with the landmark Kevin Brownlow/David Gill documentary series from 1980, "Hollywood," 13 one-hour episodes on the silent era. Rights issues have precluded its release on DVD, but it can now be accessed via YouTube (for some reason, one of the eps can't be directly put up there, but a link is provided). You can learn more about it, including links to each episode, at http://carole-and-co.livejournal.com/452990.html. Give it a try, and while I can't guarantee it will turn you into a fan of silents, you might better understand how they evolved.

Could this be the version Kino Video is issuing on DVD and Blu-ray in December? http://carole-and-co.livejournal.com/450907.html

Personally, I'd like to see opening credits revive what Warners and some other studios did in the early '30s -- show the actor playing the character and his or her character's name (for supporting players, there were frequently two to a screen).

Uh, methinks "Casablanca" and "Citizen Kane" are fairly frequent visitors to the TCM lineup, and deservedly so. (Have also been seeing a lot of "Some Came Running" lately, which I have no complaint with.)

Carole Lombard had a few interesting character names. In her final Pathe film, "The Racketeer" (1929), she plays Rhoda Philbrooke, love interest of the title character (Robert Armstrong). In the 1932 Paramount programmer "No One Man," based on a Rupert Hughes story, her character's name is Penelope Newbold, a wealthy divorcee courted by both Ricardo Cortez and Paul Lukas.

Just thinking -- what if you had to invite a mogul or two as well? Who would you select? I'd probably go with Adolph Zukor (most people seemed to like him) and David O. Selznick.

This is difficult. Since it's 20 "cinema guests," I'm going to invite seven actors, seven actresses, three directors (including one better known for acting) and three writers for a nice blend of glamour and conversation. *Actors:* William Powell Clark Gable James Stewart Orson Welles James Cagney Fred MacMurray Cary Grant *Actresses:* Carole Lombard Myrna Loy Barbara Stanwyck Jean Harlow Claudette Colbert Marlene Dietrich Marion Davies *Directors:* Ernst Lubitsch Howard Hawks Ida Lupino *Writers:* Ben Hecht Norman Krasna Anita Loos

If you don't mind a bit of self-promotion, my blog, "Carole & Co.", is in the fourth and final day of "Carole-tennial(+3)!", the first-ever Lombard blogathon. We have nearly two dozen entries on Carole, her life and career, and they've all been done with plenty of love for the lady. Find roundups of the first three days at http://carole-and-co.livejournal.com/449473.html http://carole-and-co.livejournal.com/449561.html and http://carole-and-co.livejournal.com/449919.html

ps - I am a huge Ben Mankiewicz fan. We're supposed to go on a "date" one of these days, but that phone of mine still isn't ringing. Maybe Ben found out I was married and wants to avoid complications. Uh, misswonderly, that didn't stop Carole Lombard from pursuing the married Clark Gable. (Okay, so what if Gable was married -- to borrow the title of a Lombard film, "in name only" -- he was still married.) Seriously, I would think that Ben and Bob probably review their scripts before reading them, and if something seems like an obvious error, they'll let people know and see if it can be revised. However, as an editor myself (albeit for a newspaper), I know full well you can't catch everything. A few grounders get past them, but overall they are as surehanded in their field as Ryan Zimmerman is at third base. (Yes, I'm a Nats fan.)

While Loretta Young was the female lead in "Taxi!" (in what would be her only teaming with James Cagney), Warners initially planned to cast an actress loaned out from Paramount. But Carole Lombard declined -- a decision she would soon regret. http://carole-and-co.livejournal.com/65901.html It would have been fascinating to see Cagney work with Lombard, and see whether at the time (in late 1931 and early '32, Carole still lacked a sense of direction as an actress) she could have successfully responded to his energy.

Watched this with a great deal of curiosity (and potential apprehension). James Cagney and Humphrey Bogart in an oater? Would it work, or would we view them as merely urban folk in gangster gear? Well, wonder of wonders, it largely worked -- and most of that was attributable to Cagney. He made his role utterly believable, infused with his trademark energy and texture. (Watching him sing a lullaby to an infant -- first in English, then in Spanish -- reminded me of his Yiddish scene in "Taxi!", which will be on at noon Eastern Thursday on TCM.) He seemed clearly in place. As for Bogart, it was one of his typical bad-guy, pre-1941 roles, and he's okay as Cagney's prime adversary (they have a fine fight scene near the end). It's certainly no classic as far as westerns go, but it's certainly more than adequate and something any fan of oaters should see at least once.

Ingrid Bergman, the future Ilsa, making a film for Goebbels (and weeks after the invasion of Poland)? Have I wandered into some bizarre alternate universe? Wait -- it's only a Louella Parsons column. Breathe easy.

Saved by time zones, a la Phineas Fogg and the International Date Line.

Cortez was a frequent target during the pre-Code era -- not from critics, but from his leading ladies! They invariably did him in near the end of such films: http://carole-and-co.livejournal.com/162206.html

Everyone of course has differing tastes; what you may find "comic genius" in Katharine Hepburn, I find insufferably patrician. In defense of Carole Lombard in "Twentieth Century," her Mildred Plotka/Lily Garland character is an actress who, under the tutelage of Oscar Jaffe (John Barrymore), has been molded into his feminine equivalent. At times, she realizes it (think of her "we're lithographs" comment), but she has herself become so over-the-top there's nothing she can do about it. And that's part of the fun of the movie (and play it was based on), as Broadway's Dr. Frankenstein has to battle the monster of his own creation. Someone commented about "Hands Across The Table"; I think one of the best things about that film is how director Mitchell Leisen deftly handled the sexual tension between the Lombard and Fred MacMurray characters in a post-Code environment. It's something that resonates throughout much of the film. Also, I like how Ralph Bellamy is more than his usual "third wheel" part, but actually helps resolve the situation.

That's exactly what I kept asking myself as I read through the Harris book. At one point I think he mentions the books by name next to Lombard's bed. Huh? Following Lombard's death, Gable kept her room as it was for some time, probably for probate purposes. Her items were probably documented.

The title of the book is "Gable & Lombard & Powell & Harlow"; it was issued in the mid-'70s, probably to coincide with the "Gable And Lombard" film (which, unfortunately, wasn't much and thus seriously underperformed at the box office). The book is okay, nothing truly essential, but it's done with respect for its subjects (unlike some other film bios I know of). Once in a while it pops up on eBay and similar sites -- it was a paperback. BTW, as stated earlier, I too am looking forward to Lombard day on Sunday even though none are TCM originals. Does anyone have a lineup for Carole's SUTS day on Aug. 17, 2006, just to compare? December is going to be heavenly for fans of Powell, such as myself. He's my all-time favorite actor.