VP19

The lack of production values in many early thirties movies is due to the cheapness of the filmmaking, not the lack of development in filmmaking itself. I've often heard the remark made that a lot of the vitality in films was destroyed due to the clunkiness of early sound equipment, which tied down actors and cameras. But I don't buy it. That may have been true in 1928 and much of 1929, when the industry was feeling its way through talking pictures and much of the equipment was indeed clunky, but by late '29 technical advances had been rapid and were copied or adapted by virtually all the top-tier studios. By early 1930, any problem with "talkies" likely occurred at the receiving or distribution end, as many theaters -- especially those outside major metro areas with relatively little resources -- couldn't procure first-rate sound systems. (And there were still a few holdouts to sound, particularly in rural markets.) Is the pace of many early talkies absurdly slow? Yes, but that was part of the learning process. At the start, many in the business erroneously assumed that adapting plays or musicals as they had been presented on stage would be sufficient, not realizing the language of filmmaking was something else entirely, and that merely adapting a play, while adding closeups and such to add variety to the viewer, wouldn't be enough.

I enjoyed "Her Night Of Romance," and I can now see why Constance Talmadge was a big star in her day. (Heretofore, the only movie I've seen her in is "Intolerance," a far different film and environment.) Talmadge's comedic style probably influenced her good friend Marion Davies, and one can imagine this story being remade in the 1930s as a Carole Lombard vehicle (with Walter Connolly portraying her wealthy father, as he did in "No More Orchids") and Robert Montgomery, Cary Grant or Tyrone Power -- heck, even Colman himself -- as the Colman character. All in all, a charming romantic comedy, a genre often overlooked when examining 1920s film. More Connie Talmadge, TCM!

Since TCM airs relatively little Constance Talmadge (or Colleen Moore, or Dorothy Gish), you can be sure I'll be watching. (To be fair, many of the films by the above actresses are lost, but even among those movies that are available, TCM doesn't run many of them, even on "Silent Sunday Nights.")

Another vote for Ann Dvorak day, because i think she was one of the best dramatic actresses of the 30's. I'm happily surprised to see so many other people are looking forward to her day too. i thought i was her only fan LOL. and i haven't see a majority of the movies in the lineup yet. Ann, Jean Gabin and Conrad Veidt look to be this year's equivalents of Thelma Todd from last year's SUTS -- people casual classic Hollywood fans may know from a handful of films, but one who will come off as a revelation when seen in a larger context.

I'm sure in 1926, some Philadelphians probably got a chuckle from the title of one of those Tom Mix oaters. In Philly parlance, "K&A" refers to the intersection of Kensington and Allegany (or was it "Allegheny"? I haven't been there for a long time), two well-known streets in the Kensington neighborhood of town. That intersection is also a stop on the Market-Frankford elevated line. Of course, it might have been the other way around, and the term "K&A" originated through the Mix movie. I dunno.

And to borrow a line from the great Cy Coleman, "the best is yet to come"! (Like "Summer Under The Stars," which is already here.)

When one thinks of Bing, they'll remember him as that amiable and easygoing actor/crooner. And, as the OP, mrstewart, has mentioned here, both of these very talented gentlemen appear to be on that "Who Was He? Road" in the near future. However, think of how Humphrey Bogart, or Marlon Brando, or James Dean, or Elvis Presley, all of whom seem to find new fans generation after generation, after, in some cases, decades after they've died. All of them started out either playing the "Bad Guy" or "The Rebel". In the case of Elvis, of course, he started out by shaking up the established music business of the time. What's interesting about Crosby is that stylistically, at least in his first few years, he was a definite musical rebel of sorts, the prime proponent of a new, more intimate, less stiff pop vocal style (listen to jazz vocal records from most of the 1920s to hear the difference). He regularly recorded with black acts such as the Mills Brothers and even Duke Ellington's orchestra and always cited Louis Armstrong as a prime influence. Bing was hugely popular in the black community in the '30s, inspiring imitators both black and white. Heck, even Presley was indirectly influenced by Crosby (one of Elvis' favorite singers was Dean Martin, who sang in Bing's style).

I don't know how many of you have checked out the online material for this year's "Summer Under The Stars," but the TCM people have outdone themselves with the multimedia display and the salutes to each star. (For example, Orson Welles is shown in a funhouse for the famed "mirror" scene in "The Lady From Shanghai," while Claudette Colbert is shown outside a motel in honor of "It Happened One Night" and Conrad Veidt is in the expressionist world of "The Cabinet Of Dr. Caligari.") Go click on it to see for yourself -- and for more of my thoughts on 2011 SUTS, go to http://carole-and-co.livejournal.com/431370.html.

I think we would have seen him cast Lombard, not Day, in THE MAN WHO KNEW TOO MUCH. It would've been Lombard and Stewart, who worked together on MADE FOR EACH OTHER. Also, given their propensity for comedy, I think Stewart and Lombard would've been the right choice for THE TROUBLE WITH HARRY. Those projects would have had to have come significantly earlier in Hitch's career than they did for Lombard to have done them had she lived; by 1955, when "Harry" was released, she would have been in her mid-forties. That's why I didn't automatically plug Carole into other Hitchcock films.

I'm guessing some of those Columbia films TCM showed in its infancy no longer belonged to Columbia itself, but to independent producers who may have sold their rights to other packagers that found their way to the Turner library.

I think many folks would vehemently disagree with you about Julie and her sex appeal. Blake Edwards comes to mind. So would James Garner.

"Mr. & Mrs. Smith" isn't a classic by any means, but it's a well-made, if a bit formulaic, screwball comedy in "The Awful Truth" mode. It's an anomaly in the Hitchcock canon and really can't be judged by the same standards as his other films. That said, had Carole Lombard lived past January 1942, I have no doubt Hitch -- a friend of Carole's -- would have used her in one of his more typical films (not necessarily one he eventually made; he might have found a script more applicable to her skills and personality). Certainly Lombard would have been a worthy "Hitchcock blonde," and in "Mr. & Mrs. Smith," he photographs her lovingly.

I saw a John Wayne box collection at Kroger the other day that consisted mostly of his '30s oaters (the programmers he made in between "The Big Trail" and "Stagecoach," where he really learned his craft), as well as a documentary on John Ford and the West (Wayne certainly played a major role in that) and a few other public domain films. IIRC, the box had 12 DVDs and sold for about $5.99.

Tippi was probably a toddler when Ox-Bow incident was filmed. She isnt THAT old! Please don't get me wrong -- I wasn't saying she would have remembered that film when it came out. However, it's entirely possible she crossed paths with Henry Fonda or Dana Andrews, both of whom worked into the 1960s (of director William Wellman, I'm not so sure), so Tippi might have had something interesting to say about them. I think of Robert Wagner introducing the Harold Lloyd film and saying he had known Lloyd from having dated his daughter. (And no, I'm not saying that Tippi had needed to date Peter Fonda!) Considering the short notice Wagner, Jane Powell and Hedren were on for their wraparounds, they did (or have done) a reasonable job under the circumstances. Ben Mankiewicz, who has more experience at this sort of thing (as well as more time for preparation), should do better for SUTS.

I have to admit I was a bit disappointed in Tippi's introduction to "The Ox-Bow Incident" last night. To be fair, I'm really not that familiar with her career beyond the two Hitchcock films she is justly famous for, so I don't know if she ever worked with Henry Fonda, Dana Andrews or William Wellman; if she had any such stories, I wish she'd mentioned them. I know she tours regularly, introducing "The Birds" and "Marnie" to film groups, and I have no doubt she is a bright and engaging lady -- but to echo an earlier comment, last night she looked out of her element, more so than Powell or Wagner were. Regarding Ben Mankiewicz for "SUTS," it's probably an expedient choice for TCM -- and a lot easier than finding different guests with ties to each star in question on such short notice. (That might be a fun approach for 2012, if there was sufficient planning and if the channel's budget warranted it.) Will Ben continue to do his regular weekend intros as well? (As a Carole Lombard fan, I'm curious about that, because Carole will be the SUTS subject on Sunday, Aug. 28. Unfortunately, the schedule that day does not include the early '30s films she made that were written by other members of his family tree.)

I often wonder if it is even necessary to have any hosts on TCM. They could just show one movie after another - that would be fine with me. I see where you're coming from; certainly TCM functions just fine during the day on weekdays without a host. However, prime time is important to the channel, and Osborne (and his guests, or substitutes as is currently the case) do provide a human face. That's important in establishing a personality for TCM. In the same vein, you could argue TV networks or local stations really don't need anchors -- they could simply run the news with a narrator, a la vintage newsreels. But anchors (even if they are merely newsreaders, as they are called in Britain) give stations a face, a focal point...and that's particularly important today, as few, if any, local stations do their own regular programming, aside from newscasts and sports.

If you're not familiar with the Internet Archive, it's quite helpful for anyone doing research on a variety of topics -- and that includes fans of classic movies. Its media history collection currently consists of 79 entries, including Photoplay (the best-known of the fan magazines) from much of the late 1920s and 1930, Film Daily (a trade publication) up through mid -1933 (and the last half of 1934), plus several U.S. and British film industry yearbooks and almanacs from the '30s, '40s and '50s. (Publications are added regularly.) Also, you can search and download these publications. In short, this site is truly invaluable. Go to http://www.archive.org/search.php?query=collection%3Amediahistory&sort=-publicdate&page=1 for the list. For a taste of the riches at hand -- including a multi-page 1931 RKO Pathe trade ad for Constance Bennett in full color -- go to http://carole-and-co.livejournal.com/429115.html.

The "Lubitsch touch" and Mickey Mouse? You can't go wrong with that combo.

I really like how they tweeked the Hotel sign. Where it would traditionally read "No Vacancy" on a hotel neon sign, the TCM version reads "No Commercials". And where a hotel would draw attention to "Color TV", the TCM version reads "Color-B&W". All in all very witty. Now, to which films showing next month do those vehicles pay "homage"? You didn't think they were just randomly chosen, did you? <wink> Well, there was a motorcyclist (for "The Wild One"), a bus (for "It Happened One Night," although that vehicle didn't venture outside the Eastern time zone) and, of course, a "long, long trailer."

Maybe if TCM honors Loretta Young for a SUTS tribute and I sat through a day of her films, I might get a better sense of her talent. I just see her as modeling dresses in her films, not really channeling emotion and conveying much character. Again, this bothers me. I really do want to like her. You will definitely like Young if you see her pre-Code work; it's a revelation for those who are only familiar with the more mannered Loretta from the late '30s and 1940s. For one thing, her beauty is incredibly ethereal. For another, she plays all sorts of roles, including some where sex appeal is paramount (not a reference to that studio -- most of Loretta's early '30s work was at Warners), and she's more than up to the task...and a solid actress, too, even though she wasn't out of her teen years until early 1933. I am thankful the pre-Code revival restored Young's reputation as an actress (most of her pre-Codes were out of circulation for decades), and that Loretta received appreciation for her work before she left us in 2000.

Likewise, the actors who spent most of their careers at Paramount do not get selected as SOTM, either. At least we have Paulette Goddard this year during SUTS (last year it was Bob Hope). Maybe next year they can get some Veronica Lake or Dorothy Lamour titles. Looking at the roster, there are several stars who are probably associated with Paramount more than any other studio (Colbert, Lombard, Goddard, Dietrich), although in Carole's case, the lone Paramount running on Aug. 28 is "Hands Across The Table." (It would be nice to see "No Man Of Her Own," "Bolero" or even a few of her more obscure early '30s programmers.) Much the same applies to Claudette, whose only '30s Paramount film on Aug 12 is "Midnight." ("She Married Her Boss," from 1935, was made at Columbia, where she'd made "It Happened One Night" the year before.) Three of Marlene's collaborations with Josef von Sternberg at Paramount -- "Shanghai Express," "The Scarlet Empress" and "The Devil Is A Woman" -- will air on Aug. 31. So stars who spent most of their career at Paramount can become part of the SUTS roster; you simply won't see many of their Paramount films. A novice to classic Hollywood who watches on the 28th might get the impression that Lombard spent most of her career at Columbia (a studio which, to be sure, used her to better advantage than Paramount generally did, kudos to Harry Cohn), as all five of the films she made there are airing, compared to one out of 22 features at Paramount.

As a Lombard fan, 24 hours of Carole are always welcome (on the 28th), but since none of the films to be shown are TCM premieres, my enthusiasm is slightly muted. From the perspective of stars I haven't seen enough of, the days for Ralph Bellamy (7th), Ann Dvorak (9th) and Joan Blondell (24th) are things to look forward to. And Marlene Dietrich (31st) is a nice way to close the month.

Assuming the poster is from 1926 (and not a re-release), I believe the Aug. 20 date proves that "Son Of The Sheik" was in theaters before Valentino's death, since he died a few days later that month. (Not sure for how long it had been out, since unlike today -- where films are released simultaneously to thousands of theaters -- movies made the rounds from big downtown houses to neighborhood theaters over a few weeks or even months.)

Used your piece Saturday (the guest columnist for Hedda, discussing what the U.S. film industry might expect from this strange new technology called television) as the basis for an entry in which Carole Lombard and Clark Gable "discuss" its possible ramifications: http://carole-and-co.livejournal.com/427479.html

*mr6666 wrote:* * **King Kong on the Empire State.*. I think modeling it after the remake of King Kong using the World Trade Center will have a better effect since one can walk beneath Kong, between the 2 towers Something that happened nearly 10 years ago makes that possibility both very unlikely and in poor taste.