flickerknickers

Betty Grable was a fabulous presence. Whenever I watch her in "Moon Over Miami", "The Dolly Sisters" and "Coney Island," I simply melt. That dazzling smile, that electric charisma she exuded. Also, up there with my holy icons of beautiful people is another golden haired blonde, Marion Hutton. She was the sister of bombshell Betty Hutton but there are many today who think Marion should have been the bigger star. Marion swipes "Orchestra Wives" from cute but dull, Ann Rutherford, and when she rocks the houses in her dazzling number, "I've Gotta Gal in Kalamazoo", she becomes a legend for the ages. Hip, Hips hooray-to betty and marion!

hiya men! it's adorable little and simply precious patypancake chiming in. is "Drums of Fu Manchu" out on tape or disc? I coulda swore I saw some publicity on this. This is the one that the great one, William Witney, said was his favorite. I'm simply mystified as to why Republic hasn't put out ALL of their classic cliffhangers on disc! I understand that making a DVD is much, much cheaper than making a tape of a movie. I know that kay Aldridge and Linda Stirling, Helen Talbot and Peggy Stewart are still alive and it'd be fascinating to hear them comment on disc as to how some of their hair-raising episodes were made. One gal I'd simply love to see and hear today: Constance Worth! She's the fabulous babe in "G-Men vs. the Black Dragon."

Howdy thar, pardnuhs! Ken and bansai (alias Mongo), I, too, am one of the missing regulars--Jeryson, I believe I was called back in those golden days--and I'm now the newly reincarted Patypancake! I feel like an extra from 'Island of the Screaming Dead" or "Jungle Holocaust." Anyway, I, too, have developed an urge to rewatch some of my fave serials of late because it's been snowy and freezing up here in Babylon-on-the-Hudson, alias New York City. "G-Men vs. the Black Dragon" is still one of my all-time faves and I loved the way feisty, gutsy Constance Worth handled that machine gun and wore those great l943 hats. Another goodie I'm watching and watching over and over is "G-Men Never Forget." Okay, it's not the ultimate Republic thriller but it does star an all-time favorite cult star, Ramsey Ames, who I adored as the Princess Ananka in "The Mummy's ghost." So long for now. Let's all regenerate interest in this site. I think all the old regulars are still floating around in those cyber ice floes, calling for help because they can't get in.

And don't forget the legendary "Pearl Habor" that came to us in 3 discs, the mythical "Armageddon" that came in 3-4 disc sets, the FIVE different DVD versions of "Reservoir Dogs" that you can own in two-three disc sets. And we can all look forward to yet another re-edited, new-footage added, three alternate endings to "Jurassic Park." Pu-leeze! Give me Davis, Garbo and Deanna Durbin, along with all those incredible Technicolor extravaganzas of Betty Grable and I'll never leave my cage.

Barbara Streisand is seriously planning to do a musical movie remake of "Mame"! These old dames just never give up. She wants Jack Nicholson to play the male lead (oh,God, pu-leeze no)and the kid from "Sixth Sense" to be her little nephew. I think John Travolta is lobbying hard to play the nephew role and is trying to get the script writer to raise the age level--like from ten to 65! now that "chicago" has become such a big movie hit, they're now thinking of re-making "grease" and "viva las vegas." the latter would star britney spears in the ann-margaret role and will smith repeating elvis's part. I'm sure the world will be a better world is these projects are all realized and these egomaniacs are finally satisfied.

movie joe, i'm completely with you on that incredible black and white look they somehow achieved back in the glorious 30s and 40s. I was watching--for the umpteenth time--Universal's creamy, dreamy l943 production of "His Butler's Sister" with the devine Deanna Durbin last night. Universal somehow made the white backgrounds, walls, curtains, etc. look so incredible. In the stunning close-ups of Deanna as she sang a fabulous rendition of "Russian Medley", the smoothness and glow were surreal. You also saw this in the great Universal horror sequels--in particular the l942 "Night Monster." The whites, blacks and silvers all glowed. I would love to have seen these gems on a big, old-fashioned screen back then. Screens literally had millions of silver fragments to make the movies actually glow. What a sight that must've been?

I still cannot the difference between Mary Gordon and Sara Albright. They must've been siamse twins. also, Elizabeth Risdon and Lucille Watson. Also, can anyone really tell whether kate Hudson, Reese Witherspoon and Alicia Witherspoon are the same person?

CoffeeDan, I'm thrilled TCM may be showing us a docu on "Complicated Men." But I read the book and was horrified when the author completely ignored some of my favorite complicated men--especially Billy Haines! The author's selection of men was puzzling, too. Granted, the early talkies didn't have that many male super stars because the silent ones were gone with the wind. But Charles Laughton isn't my idea of a complicated man--which means to me a sensual hunk who can be bad to the bone.

wdwfanatic, try to getyour hands on a l915 Cecil B. DeMille's sex and seduction classic called "The Cheat." This is one of my all-time favorites. It stars long-dead stars like Fannie Ward, Sesue Hayakawa but it's about this society bimbo who tries to kill this oriental man for attempting to seduce her! Hot stuff for l915. You'd love the fashions, the hair-styles, the make-up. The performances are knockouts, especially Fannie Ward in the Court Room scene. Another knockout silent film is "Regeneration" from l914. The male star looks amazingly like Marlon Brando and what a performance. And then there're the great Jazz Age flapper movies starring Clara Bow that you'd love.

Bad news for old movie buffs: the New York Times just ran a feature article on the fate of old movies on DVD. Prognosis: negative. Studio honchos in charge agreed there was so much "new product" flooding the market that the industry could barely keep up with turning these wonderful new flicks--like "Adventures of Pluto Nash" and "Austin Powers"--that there is no room for the old ones. A very few--like "All ABout Eve," "Rebecca"--will appear only occasionally. Even worse, all VHS copies of old classics will not be made after 2003. You'd better grab your faves now on tape and just keep on taping from the great TCM station.

Since we're on one of our favorites--Victor Mature--I always thought Jane Russell looked like Mature in drag.

Dear TCM: please consider creating a channel just for us B-Movie, Movie Serials, Horror/Fantasy addicts. I would love to see the entire series of Tarzan, Boston ****, Charlie Chan, Bomba the Jungle Boy, Ma and Pa Kettle, etc. We want the entire Republic Pictures backlog of all those super-duper movie serials--like Adventures of Captain Marvel, G-Men versus the Black Dragon (the greatest of them all), all the great Judy Canova hillbilly comedies; all the Universal horror cataloge; all Universal's Deanna Durbin musicals. Oh, come on Mr. Ted, give it to us like right now! We'll promise to send you love songs, poetry and cyber-kisses galore! MMMMMMM-waaaaa (that was a big cyber-kiss).

Moira, when I think of the wonderful John Garfield, I think of the tragic misteps in his career and the what-if's. For instance, he was desperate to play the coveted role of Howard Roark in Ayn Rand's version of "The Fountainhead" (1949). Instead, Rand demanded that the aging, over-the-hill (for this type of role) Gary Cooper play him instead and the results was a major bomb. Tennessee Williams wanted Garfield--get this--as STanley Kolwaski in "Streetcar Named Desire" but a certain unknown named Marlon Brando came along. Orson Welles wanted him in his classic, "Touch of Evil" but Charleston Heston nabbed the role. Bette Davis was hot for Garfield to co-star with her in "A Stolen Life." The scenery chewing, method-acting Dane Clark got the role instead. And the horrible pressure of being black-balled because of the McCarthy hearings finally ended his life. What-if's!

The Pete Smith comedy shorts were all real charmers. A curious bit of trivia about Pete: some of us remember him for his star-making role of the crazed dope-fiend in the l939 cult classic, "Marihuana." He's the one who bugs and rolls his eyes and giggles hysterically while puffing away on a "reefer." Luckily, he went on to better things.

Alix and Brad,I am so with you both about that incredible feature idea of having both "Waterloo Bridges" on the same disk. Just imagine being able to compare Mae Clark and Vivien Leigh. Also, as we discussed many months ago, the James Whale version (1932-33)is supposed to have been butchered by the censors. And yes, yes, we want the pre-codes on disk because there's bound to be some surviving cast/crew members alive who could comment about how "BAbyface" or "Night Nurse", etc. were made. Brad, wow, that would be a treat to see the missing footage in "King Kong" of the spiders. But wasn't there another sequence of man-eating lizards, too, that was chopped out? Come to think of it, why isn't "King Kong" out on DVD anyway? This is one of the real greats--along with "Since You Went Away."

I've got one of those new-fangled machines called a DVD player. I'm having lots of fun with it--but, the oldie-goldies I would love to watch, along with commentaries and "the making of..." and all the bells and whistles are nowhere to be seen. Here's my list of favorites I would love to see on disc--loaded with extras: 1. Broadway Melody (1929)-- Wouldn't it be great to have that adorable spitfire, 94-year-old Anita Page to unload all the behind-the-scenes drama that went on during filming? 2. Since You Went Away (1943)--Let's get Shirley Temple and Jennifer Jones together and have them dish about this great American classic, and how Claudette Colbert demanded entire sets be rebuilt so only the right side of her face was filmed. 3. All of Betty Grable's great Technicolor extravaganzas. 4. His Butler's Sister - l942. Deanna Durbin is fantastic in Adrian frocks and gowns. And watch this kid perform the phenomenal "Russian Medley". Let's demand Deanna come out of seclusion in France and comment about this flick's incredible close-ups. 4. Orchestra Wives - l941. Fantastic Glenn Miller movie, featuring his marvelous Modernaires and just listen to those classics: "At Last," "I've Got a Gal in Kalamazoo. Get Ann Rutherford to comment. Blonde, singing bombshell Marion Hutton steals every number. Do you have any favorites you'd love to see on disc? Musicals, horrors, dramas, comedies?

Whenever I see a picture of Mt. Rushmore and one of those stone faces I'm always convinced I'm viewing a close-up of Mr. Stone Face himself--Robert Mitchum. As he grew into old age, it was like his face had metamorphed into the Killer Devil Doll--you know, the one that chased Karen Black around in the fright classic, "Triology of Terror." But then Meryl Streep has always possessed a strong resemblance to that great character actress, Edna Mae Oliver.

I've tried posting an answer for two days but I keep getting kicked out. Okay, one last time. I wish and wish some wise studio mogul would issue these priceless pre-codes on DVD, along with commentaries from surviving cast and crew. "Babyface" is a perfect example of some original cast/crew member to clear up what happened to that bizarre ending. So many of the pre-codes were sabatoged by the horrible Breen office and then later by the Catholic League. When they were released for TV in l950, they were butchered even more. I remember watching a 30 minute version of "Grand Hotel" back in l958--because it was so heavily censored, only 30 minutes remained, which made this classic totally confusing. "Marked Woman" wasn't available for viewing on network TV--like ABC, CBS, etc.--until just recently because the censors said--are you ready--the women depicted were of "questionable character"! Translated: they were prostitutes!

Vantine it is! I simply adored Harlow! She made me think of a sweet, vulnerable girl who was trying to act tough and survive in a tough world. I also loved that slight slouch she had and the way she put her hands on her hips. Do you remember that incredible scene in "Public Enemy" (1930)when James Cagney spots her for the first time? She's wearing total art deco: heavily mascared eyes, penciled brows, a weird, fur outfit and cloche hat. When I saw her looking like that, I thought to myself: good god, this really is a new type of American beauty. Compare that look with all those Jazz babies. Even Bow always looked sweet and soft as a flapper. But Harlow in "Public Enemy", looking blunt and painted up, just knocked me out of my seat.

Mark, Olmstead, we must've been cloned because my addiction to Bette Davis just grows stronger every year. I simply can't get excited by the current crop of female thespians. And don't get me started on the glories of Meryl Streep. She simply doesn't have the juice that Bette had. The two movies of her's that fascinate me even mroe are her **** sister supreme portrayal in John Huston's masterpiece, "In This Our Life" (1942) and Bette's ultimate bigger-than-life femme monster, Rosa Moline, in the great King Vidor classic,l949's "Beyond the Forest." I usta be a high-class dame named Jery Son--until this dag-burned system demanded I do a Myra Breckenridge transformation to my present cult status of the glorious, the adorable precious little Patty Pancake!

badluck, although I'm a horror movie nut, the rare silent horror flicks I've seen have left me yawning. Except for "The Bat," a l927 thriller that stars Jack Pickford, that had outstanding lighting, photography, direction, etc. Even this one isn't a horror movie since it's about a man dressed up as a bat. The true horror genre, where men become monsters and vampires, etc., didn't really come into its own until l931's "frankenstein," followed by "dracula."

Alix, I think I now know the reason for Kay Francis' weird hair-dos in all her early pix. She was wearing an art deco do! I think I'll part my hair in the middle like she does and see what my buddies say! They'll probably say: "DO-NOT!"

MovieJoe, I know exactly what you're going through because I live here in Manhattan and until recently, I had to put up with buddies who lived in lower Manhattan who raved and raved about TCM while I--who live up yonder in the great big Upper Eastside--couldn't get it. Well, two years ago we FINALLY got the requisite digital wiring into our building. TCM finally beamed in over my 27-inch Panasonic TV screen and let me tell you, I've been one happy little movie freak since then. It's really like having an incredible movie repertory theater in your den. When I first came to NYC 20 years ago, I used to haunt all those old movie revival houses--like the Regency, the Thalia, Theater 80, etc.--but the VCR killed'em all. Even two years ago, AMC was steadily sliding down hill. I noticed AMC was showing edited movies, almost no goldie-oldies, no silents, etc. And when I first started watching it, the adorable Bob Dorian was host. And the real kicker is that it boasts of showing the Little Rascal comedies--but, it's showing censored, heavily edited Little Rascal comedies. About 50 of them are locked away because of "racial insensitivity"--which is hysterical since the Little Rascals pioneered in integrated casts. TCM is the ultimate old movie palace.

Babs, hate to disagree with you on "Sorry, Wrong Number" but I thought you were fab-u-lous as Clifton Webb's gutsy, earthy wife in l950's "Titanic." Especially at the end where she can't find her son, Norman, in her lifeboat and she screams: "Norman!" I always break down when I watch this scene. I also remember seeing that movie in a real big theater and afterwards I asked my Mama how could I make my 5-year-old mouth look as glossy and wet as Babs. My Mama's anwswer wasn't very poetic. She said: "Smear on the vaseline!" But you know, the old gal was right. "Titanic" is your masterpiece!

Bansai, alias, Mongo, you are indeed a champ! I followed your directions and bingo, I seem to have been able to stick around for a few seconds and actually make a post. Spiderman ain't got nothing on you.