alix1929
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Posts posted by alix1929
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I just love to watch pre-Codes. Considering the "wholesome" time period they were filmed during, I am always amazed at what they managed to zing past the ever present censor.
Alice Brady--she sounded so different with out that nutty rich lady accent, like the one she uses in MY MAN GODFREY. She looked very good too!
And Warren William...my favorite pre-Code leading man. Who else could look at an eighteen year old girl, standing at the edge of his penthouse pool and coo, "Why don't you take off your clothes & stay awhile." No one, except Warren!
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OH THANK YOU!!! I had written myself a note about watching STAGE MOTHER and I completely forgot about it until I saw "Pre-Code Alert." I would have missed this movie, if not for you, and I offer a million thanks! I have 28 minutes, as of right now, until show time.
What is COMMON CLAY about? I've seen Miss Bennett in COMMON LAW, and it's really a spicy show! I've never seen THEY CALL IT SIN, but the title says enough for me. Bring it on!
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Well, I'd beg to differ with the way you divided up your years.
My favorite years are 1929-1934, the "pre-Code" era, and those are without a doubt, my favorite movies.
Of course, I love silents too!
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Paty, don't you kind of miss all the gossip that used to go on around here? I sure do.
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Oh, was I in heaven! A William Haines movie! For some reason I had never seen this one until yesterday (taped the Silent Sunday Night movie) and I enjoyed it. Haines looked so youthful, slim and sexy. He had great eyes, didn't he, and sure knew how to use them. I think since this was made in 1926, he'd have been just 26 years old. Also impressive was Lon Chaney in a "non-traditional" role for him. He was excellent as drill sergeant O'Hara. Kind of felt sorry for him, as he hopelessly pursued lovely Eleanor Boardman.
I also thought the titles were well written. I snickered and giggled throughout this movie. Oh yes, and while I'm on the subject, the "new" score to this movie was well done too. It wasn't annoyingly modern and seemed to fit the mood and action involved. Let's give this composer a chance to do more scoring!
Any other thoughts on this one?
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Hmmm...I guess I missed this one. It does sound like an excellent supporting cast: Charles Butterworth, Una Merkel, and Edward Everett Horton. None of them ever give a bad performance--in my opinion.
Novarro is one that I always wished had had a longer career in talkies. I don't think his accent was all that bad (hey, look at Garbo! Dietrich!) and he was a gorgeous honey of a man. Do you think the fact that he was gay, and that LB Mayer disliked gays contributed to his decline? I don't mean that Mayer sabotagued his career or anything, but someone in the front office looking out for your welfare can't hurt now, can it? Or do you think that he just didn't fit into the talkies as well as he did in the silent pictures?
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John Gilbert?
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Other early 1920's scandals include the Thomas Ince murder (did Hearst plug him aboard his yacht and cover the whole thing up?), Charlie Chaplin's marriage to a teenage (14 years old? 15 years old?) girl, and the murder of William Desmond Taylor (was Mary Miles Minter involved?).
If you run a search on "William Desmond Taylor," you'll uncover a great site called "Taylorology" which focuses much time/attention on this case. You could spend HOURS reading the information on this site, and there are also links to info on Fatty Arbuckle too.
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If the year is 1920(or thereabouts), you'd probably be hearing about Olive Thomas' suicide/murder or about the accident that Wallace Reid had that lead to his serious morphine addiction. If it was around 1922-23, then you might be reading about the Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle scandal. Can't recall the exact year of those events, but they are close to the early 1920's.
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I am so jealous! I wish I lived close and could go to films at the NYC Film Forum all the time. In fact, I begged my husband to take me (cross country) to see the Clara Bow movie KICK IN, which hasn't been seen since it aired in 1931, and he said, "No." Well, actually he said more than no, but it was worth a try.
I would also love to see TROUBLE IN PARADISE in a theatre!
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My first memory of seeing a real movie in a theatre was MARY POPPINS in the mid-1960's. I recall the theatre like I was there yesterday--it was on a busy downtown street corner, and had a huge overhanging art deco type roof with running lights under it. We had to wait in line to see the movie (my dad wasn't too pleased about that) and I remember looking up and seeing all those sparkling lights. Once inside, there were murals on the walls, and oh, those velvet seats! And the movie was so big and colorful. It was much better than TV (we had black-n-white at the time). I remember that I absolutely loved MARY POPPINS, and could sing, "Just a Spoonful of Sugar" after the show. I think the family legend is that my dad fell asleep during the show. So much for my first movie.
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You said it all so well, MovieJoe! I am also a Shearer fan. In fact, as I sat typing, I was rather hard pressed to name even one of her films I didn't enjoy. My all time favorite is probably THE DIVORCEE, but I liked all the ones you named.
And let's not forget to sing the praises of Ms. Shearer's silent films too. I always enjoy her work in THE STUDENT PRINCE everytime I see it. She looks so fresh and young and Ramon Novarro is a perfect romantic lead for her in this one. I would dearly love to see more of Norma's silents.
Does anyone attribute her success to the fact that she was married to Irving Thalberg? My own personal feeling is although she had the boss and his insightful hand guiding her career, her own talent kept her on top.
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Hmmm...thanks for the info. I wonder who it is I'm thinking of that died relatively young, at the start of a fantastic movie career?
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Yep, I like him too. He personifies the 1930's wisecracker perfectly. I agree, he can be a little irritating though. Cagney pulls off that wisecracking thing in a way that annoys you far less than Tracy does.
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On one of my videotapes, I have a "One Reel Wonder" that is mostly outtakes from the 1930's and 1940's that show bloopers the stars made while filming.
My favorite one is one of Warren William and a blonde--I'm thinking it's Joan Blondell--doing an office scene. William has a speech he's making. He's holding a cigarette, talking to the actress, and he flubs a line. He looks straight at the camera and says, "Oh D**M!" and the actress begins to crack up laughing, and he does too. Of course, the profanity is bleeped (this HAD to be cleaned up for the public to see!!) but you can clearly read his lips. His reaction when he flubs is very funny and natural.
I wish I knew which of my many videotapes this short is one, because it is very amusing and has bloopers of many of my favorite actors from the 30's.
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Well, my fascination with the handsome Mr. Warren is well known, but I will continue to sing his praises...
I love the scene in EMPLOYEES ENTRANCE where he sort of prevents Loretta Young from leaving by saying, "You don't have to go..." and trapping her inside his arms. I'd have grabbed him in a second and yelled "Okay by me!" heehee! I always think of him as the perfect pre-Code seducer and despoiler of young women.
Seriously though, he is such an underappreciated star, and I would dearly love it if TCM would do a "Star of the Month" tribute to Warren and focus on his pre-Code work. I'm glad, Nick, you're a fan too.
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She really was a hot number in 1932! However, through the whole movie, I kept thinking, "That's Mrs. Paroo!" Her character was perfect next to Constance Bennett's character in BED OF ROSES.
Hey TCM...Let's see more movies like this one!
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Anyone else seen this movie with Norma Shearer? I guess I taped it at some point, and labeled the cassette, but never got around to watching it until now. It was pretty good, although I found Herbert Marshall very boring and stodgy. Otherwise I enjoyed it. Care to comment??
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I don't remember ever seeing the footage from SOMETHING'S GOT TO GIVE. I did, however, read a book called, "Marilyn, the Final Take" or something like that. It devoted a lot of ink to debunking the myth that Monroe was drugged during the filming and that the footage was unusable. It was the opinion of those who had seen what footage remained, that Monroe was looking good, and her acting was okay as well.
When did TCM air that piece of film? Was it during a documentary or something?
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Una Merkel. She was always someone's best friend and although she rarely got the lead, your eyes were drawn to her. Plus, she had that distinctive voice you just didn't forget.
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You sound like a pre-Code fan to me. Check out the genre forums (once there, go to the pre-Code folder) and enjoy the chat there. Glad you're here.
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Yep, I'd be interested in MURDER too, although if it had to be replaced, BED OF ROSES wasn't a bad replacement. I enjoyed the Joel McRae & Constance Bennett movie a lot.
I really thought Pert Kelton was fabulous!
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Sorry, the film Roth was in was LADIES THEY TALK ABOUT, not LADIES OF LEISURE. Mistake on my part, although I think Stanwyck was in both of those!!
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Yes, I caught this one too. I was excited to find it sandwiched between the movies.
A night dedicated to Miss Roth would be most delightful, I'd think. She is delicious in MADAM SATAN, keep your eyes open, that one shows periodically, especially in the wee hours of the morning. She was also good in LADIES OF LEISURE, as you mentioned earlier.
I know very little about her. Could anyone enlighten me? I do know she died very young. Thanks in advance.
Pre-Code Alert!
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Oh Mongo, I'm forced to disagree with you too. I hate to see pre-Codes buried in the archives! I'm so happy when one sees the light of day--no matter how average a movie it is. One average pre-Code is much better than a movie from India any day!
Alice Brady did look mature, and she did look pregnant, especially in the scene where Freddy died in that big coat with the furs that ran all around it. I thought it was an "average" movie, but still better than the Bollywood movies.