ElCid

Looked over this again and it brought to mind the covers for Hard Case Crime books. Many (most) of these are reprints of books from the above period and the 40's thru the 60's. They are publishing more new books though, but still some older ones. No Dashiell Hammetts that I am aware of. May have mentioned before, but the Hard Case covers are more enticing than the books sometimes. Warning: Hard Case is branching out into the "comic book" realm, so some are not novels in the true sense. New euphemisim is "graphic novels," but still a comic book to me. http://hardcasecrime.com/books_bios.cgi

Thanks. I think I may have seen that at a drive-in back then. Fortunately the memory has long since been lost.

Egyptian Feast - No; what is it? I don't mind gore but rather the current trend in movies where it seems almost endless or massive quantities of it. My wife enjoys them. Same applies to movies where there seems to be 2/3 to 3/4 of movie devoted to torture for tortures sake.

One of our favorite TV series. Have the DVD's and watch them often. While Macy's character is dispicable, it is supposed to be. As for what I don't like, musicals, shows with children, shows with animals being abused or worked hard, horror shows that focus mostly on gore and blood, boxing and wrestling (most sports movies actually).

Hearts of the West at 8:00 PM on Jan 04 is a really good movie. It also gives a good presentation of what it might have been like to make "westerns" in the 30's and 40's. Several good character actors in it in addition to a good primary cast.

Hearts of the West at 8:00 PM on Jan 04 is a really good movie. It also gives a good presentation of what it might have been like to make "westerns" in the 30's and 40's. Several good character actors in it in addition to a good primary cast.

SPOILER: Think I know segment of which you speak, but not sure it is really that long. This is when Price is organizing the rescue party? Russell is out of most of it, but what role would she play? She does make a brief appearance about half-way through the segment. There are also scenes back on the yacht with Mitchum and Burr if I recall. Personally, I think the last part is too long and that may be why even part of it seems too long. Not only is it a good rainy day movie, but good during days in winter.

OK, let's see how it goes.

OK, but your posts go into far, far too much about your vague theories (or whatever) of Noir. Others stick to specifics related to the movies or actors on Noir Alley. So, Ill just add you to my ignore list.

You are right about the improved quality of the covers. Unfortunately many publishers also took that as an opportunity to significantly raise prices. Still doing it. Couldn't find Black Lizard on the Hamilton site, but did fine Otto Pennzler's compilation of stories from Black Mask, apparently a Black Lizard magazine way back when. Or maybe the title Black Lizard sounds good.

Sarge: Deleted what you said, just wanted to "quote" you so you will be notified. This thread is for discussions of Noir Alley and while some of us tend to wander a bit in our posts, any discussions about what Noir is and is not should be carried out on the appropriate thread: http://forums.tcm.com/forum/13-film-noir-gangster/ I never go to the other thread because I am not that interested in philosophical discussions of Noir. I post here because I am interested in the movies that are shown on Noir Alley - and Noir Alley is the appropirate name for the program.

You may still be able to find some of these (or similar) books at Hamilton Books on the internet. They have a method of selecting by publisher, which brings up some very interesting titles. One caution, if you use their search program, the title or author has to be exact. These are remainder books, but some are pretty old.

Incidentally Ida, don't get discouraged from posting your views and opinions. Especially about entertainment. You may get a lot of contrary opinions, but that is what keeps this site lively. Welcome aboard!

See below

Just noticed on rereading this post. Typo or intentional? "His Kind of Women" Couldn't resist.

Not sure, The Thin Man DVD set were probably the first "classic" movies we purchased. Now we have hundreds. My favorite is The Thin Man Goes Home. Not as sophisticated as the others, but got Nick and Nora into another setting besides LA and NYC. Song of the Thin Man has a lot going for it, but the jazz slang and the jazz music in it are off putting for me. But it has a lot of classic actors giving good performances. I would rank Shadow of the Thin Man as my second favorite, although it really is hard to rank them. As for the drinking and smoking, it was the times as portrayed in movies. I don't know about the books, but Nick Charles drinking was a key component to the movies. Incidentally, in The Thin Man Goes Home, Nick is on the wagon since his father disapproves of his drinking. He drinks apple cider instead. As a train buff I always note one discrepancy in The Thin Man ( I think). The ending has Nick and Nora and the other couple going to LA on The Sunset Limited(Southern Pacific RR). Entirely possible, but they were more likely to have taken The Super Chief (Santa Fe RR). The Sunset Limited would have required going from NYC to Chicago and then to New Orleans or from NYC to New Orleans. Either would have been way out of the way. The movies launched the TV series with Peter Lawford, Phyllis Kirk and Asta. Not as good as the movies, but entertaining in its own right. I have about half of the episodes recorded, but then they disappeared from broadcast channels.

His Kind of Woman is one of my favorite movies. It is up there with The Big Steal (my favorite) and Macao (another with Mitchum and Russell). Not sure I would call it a comedy, although there are comedic elements for sure. As for Price, Just over the top enough to deliver an excellent performance. As for it being "hammy," I think that is how the writer and director wanted it - and for me it works. SPOILER: I do believe the climatic "fight" scene at the end is far too long though. However, I have noticed that seemed to happen in many mystery type movies of the period. James comments re: the "noir" parts is correct. The first part is very noir, as is the acting by Burr, Charles McGraw and others.

Out of curiosity, next week's feature is His Kind of Woman. Anyone object to it being considered Noir? If so, why?

After reading the reviews and watching a couple of clips, undecided about Turnabout. But, I will probably record it anyway and watch it tomorrow. Already recording One Million BC and Having a Wonderful Crime anyway, so why not. Having a Wonderful Crime is really quite entertaining. Every time I think about Landis, I dislike Rex Harrison a little more. Never really have cared for him much anyway.

After reading the reviews and watching a couple of clips, undecided about Turnabout. But, I will probably record it anyway and watch it tomorrow. Already recording One Million BC and Having a Wonderful Crime anyway, so why not. Having a Wonderful Crime is really quite entertaining. Every time I think about Landis, I dislike Rex Harrison a little more. Never really have cared for him much anyway.

You obviously went to a lot of trouble and most of us probably did not realize somebody would try to do this. I have copied my early post below. If voting, I would vote North By Northwest-1, Rear Window-2, To Catch A Thief-3 and Marnie-4. The rest -0. "North by Northwest number one and Rear Window number two. To Catch a Thief is a pleasant movie that I watch every couple or three years. Marnie is one I'll watch every three years or so if the timing is right. The first three we have on DVD. The rest not so much, if at all."

Thanks for the explanation, which I deleted to save space. As I have often stated, the quality of any movie is primarily based on a combination of the actors, writers and director. Although the contributions of the many other people cannot be discounted. As for A list actors specifically, there are many who can do Noir. Fred MacMurray, William Bendix, Alan Ladd, Dick Powell proved that in their Noir movies. Of course, there are probably some who cannot. Incidentally, I disagree with your premise that characters who had suffered through wartime make superior Noir characters. How many Noir movies even make mention of the character's "wartime" service? Also, there was a lot of "suffering" in WW I as well.

Seeing this picture again reminds me of some of my "historical" questions. 1. How did they keep their hair from becoming greasy and unkempt? 2. How did the guys shave? 3. How did the women shave their legs and why did they? Yes, I know it is Hollywood. The one about shaved legs goes into the 20th century. Apparently it was not a practice until about 1915. So all those Westerns with women swimming, bathing, etc. with shaved legs? Maybe the dance hall girls did, but others?

Eddie said it was not the first Noir, but the one that really brought attention to Noir. The one that proved to the studios and audiences that Noir was a viable commodity.

Sarge said: My first rule is probably this: I don't even start to label anything a noir unless the lead role is an American male who has been discharged from WWII military service and is now dealing with the difficulties of re-establishing himself back into an American society which seems strange, amoral, and unfamiliar to him. Sarge: In other words, no movie made before 1945 can be considered Noir and only then if a WW II serviceman played the lead role? One that had difficulty readjusting. That is unbelievable. Robert Mitchum served April to Oct 1945 (6 months) after being drafted. Reportedly served as a medic at an induction center. Bogart was about 41 when the war started. He "served" in the USO. In your opinion, two of the leading Noir actors are not qualified to do Noir?