ValeskaSuratt

*Mabel Normand* passed away on February 23, 1930 from tuberulosis -- and IMHO too many pratfalls, both on screen and in real life. *"This thing is horrible ! ... WHO CARES ?"* she wrote in the months preceding her death while confined in a sanitorium in Monrovia, California. *"Part of what done it"* ... a letter from Mabel asking for the name of a friend's bootlegger and complaining about a medical problem with her ear ...

Religion became a minor problem when Streisand co-starred with Egyptian Omar Sharif in Funny Girl ... From Wikipedia: "His decision to work with co-star Barbra Streisand angered Egypt's government at the time due to Streisand's support for the state of Israel. Streisand herself responded with 'You think Cairo was upset? You should've seen the letter I got from my Aunt Rose!'" Oy, what would Aunt Rose have written if she heard the rumors of their affair ?

mr6666, I love that Orlando was a TCM premiere this past week. It's one of my more off-beat favorite films, and I love the score. Though not a movie star, Quentin Crisp's sexual identity had quite an impact and John Hurt portrayed him brilliantly in The Naked Civil Servant.

Has anyone mentioned ... ? What elevates Tootsie from being a "men-in-drag movie" to a commentary on sexual identity is how much Hoffman's character learns about women's sexuality -- like how women struggle with on-the-job sexual harrassment. Or like when Jessica Lange tells "Dorothy" that she wishes a guy would be (pardon the expression) straight with her about wanting to go bed ? Yet when Hoffman in guy-drag says it to her word-for-word, she throws a drink in his face.

> {quote:title=TopBilled wrote:}{quote}Very interesting. There is a term called 'omnisexual' which may or may not pertain to Dietrich (and others). Its closely-related "second cousin" is androgeny, something which Dietrich pulled off better than anyone but then she was a veteran of the Berlin nightclub scene of the 1920s.. Mick Jagger's one of the very few men to attempt it when did movies in the early 70s ...

> {quote:title=casablancalover2 wrote:}{quote}Hi Valeska, > I didn't take it as a fight, that's what I meant as curve ball, not foul ball. My, my was a double meaning. First to the comment of my post that read too self-serving, and I took about 30 seconds to find your post talking about yourself too. I found it charmingly paradoxical and amusing. Second, my, my is more me-me-me.. LOL > > I once read we write diaries for it is the one subject on which we can claim we are the authority! Message boards will allow plenty of first-person opportunity to share experiences and thoughts. I like to read them from others, personally. Let's just hope we're not too boring. Thanks much for clarifying. On my wish list, right up there with teeth that don't click when you whistle, is that I should someday be able to post in forums without causing the kind of impressions which you aren't the first to describe. If only this forum allowed "signatures" -- and for anyone unfamillar: a "signature" is a phrase you create which appears at the bottom of every comment you post -- I'd want mine to read: *Just here to have fun. Where's the candy counter ?* Either that or : *Pax Vobi-scope !* Your comment about the diaries reminded me of one of my favorite authors, the relatively-obscure Dawn Powell, who was more than once described as Dorothy Parker's superior in wit. While it's not the best example of that hyperbole, in one of her novels she describes a lonely young New York artist of the early 1950s sitting in an empty bar, writing in her diary, since "a journal is for those who have no one else to tell their troubles to." Finally, as for > Let's just hope we're not too boring. Marie Dressler said it perfectly in Dinner at 8 ... harlow[/i]mariedresslerdinnerateight+2.jpg] *"Oh, my dear ... that's something you need never worry about."* Treat me right and I give autographs, Valeska Suratt

> {quote:title=FredCDobbs wrote:}{quote}Why am I elected to go to the village? Why me instead of you and Curtin? Oh, don't think I don't see through that. You two've thrown in against me. The two days I'd be gone would give you plenty of time to discover where my goods are, wouldn't it? Everything's clear now. You're hoping bandits will get me. That would save you a lot of trouble, wouldn't it? And your consciences wouldn't bother you none, neither. Your impersonation is spot on ! You sounded just like Bogie ! :^0

> {quote:title=Arturo wrote:}{quote}A fair to great lineup of movies with the mental health theme. Most of the dramas are quite harrowing, and all feature strong performances overall. Too bed I couldn't've left my other personality at home to watch TCM while I went to work, or better yet, have him go to work and I stay to watch TCM. Joanne Woodward amazes me every time I see Three Faces of Eve.

Thanks.

Interesting observations on Dietrich from Philosopedia.org : Her only child, Maria Riva, shocked not a few with a 1993 biography that listed her mother’s lovers ... a who’s who of notables: newscaster Edward R. Murrow; generals James M. Gavin and George S. Patton; actor Jean Gabin; novelist Erich Maria Remarque. There also were others: Edith Piaf, John Gilbert, Gary Cooper, Maurice Chevalier, Yul Brynner, José Iturbi, Hans Jaray, Brian Aherne, Adlai Stevenson, Michael Wilding, Mercedes de Acosta, Frank Sinatra. Also, there was her husband - Rudolf Sieber - to whom she is said to have shown or sent all the letters she received from her various lovers. Molly Haskell has written of Maria’s biography, Marlene Dietrich (1993): "Ms. Riva endorses Kenneth Tynan’s axiom that Dietrich 'has sex without gender,' but I would say she is both genders, and she existed at a moment in time in a censored medium - romantic rather than sexual, glorying in a language of innuendo rather than clinical categories - when it was possible (in the von Sternberg-Dietrich masterpiece Morocco) to kiss a woman on the lips and run off after a man in the desert sand, to be love object and love subject simultaneously. She makes us wonder, safely, without having to lose sleep over it, what is a man and what is a woman, after all, if so much of one can exist harmoniously in the other?" *Dietrich's answer as to why she had so many sexual partners: "They asked."* http://philosopedia.org/index.php/Marlene_Dietrich

Mawene Dietwich with Joan Cwawfowd

helenbaby, How about Mitzi Gaynor ? I gather from the currently-running segment in which she talks about Gene Kelly, Cukor and the divine Kay Kendall that she's already done some sort of archival interview ... She doesn't seem to have done a Private Screenings with Bob ... but maybe she's not "big" enough or her career not extensive enough for that honor ? I bet she'd be great on the Cruise -- I heard from a friend who'd worked with her that she's a major hoot.

> {quote:title=RMeingast wrote:}{quote}Surprised nobody has commented on any of the films concerning mental health on TCM today... > > > > I think the only ones I've ever seen before are "Suddenly, Last Summer," "The Snake Pit, and "The Three Faces of Eve." > > > > All excellent films... It's too bad I missed the others... Welcome to Rubber Room Cinema. Fortunately, all 7 of my personalities have been enjoying it tremendously.

*Lady Hamilton For a Day* Hollywood snickered when Vivien Leigh was replaced by venerable May Robson as the disgusting old denizen of 18th Century London’s lowest gutters, desperate to seal her daughter’s marriage to Prince Schlitzmaltz of Milwaukia, who's saved when some Runyon- esque royalists pass her off as "Lady Hamilton." The sterling British supporting cast includes Womley Wittlebottom as Dave la Duc de Dufus, Alan Mopbrow as the Baron of Brooklyn, and DeManda Keylight as Roxy "Boom Boom" Sanchez. Tinsel Town's tittering, however, turned into catatonic shock when rumors of romance emerged between one-eyed warrior Lord Hamilton (Laurence Olivier) and his creakily coquettish co-star. Robson confided in Hedda Hopper -- off the record, she thought -- “Dearie, I feel just like an old box of Cracker Jack -- I may be stale but some kid still wants the prize !”

*3:10 to You, Ma ... !* Oh, wonderful MissWonderly ... like you, I eschew the "LOL" even when -- as now -- I am ... (LOLing).

> {quote:title=hlywdkjk wrote:}{quote}AndyM108 - > > I don't think anyone here will know for sure. It is possible that additional "breaks"/ intros will be placed inside the longer blocks of shorts. (90 mins. or longer) > > The only aspect that I would bet on is that there will be a full "Feature Presentation" intro at 8pm, 9pm, 11pm, 12:45am and maybe even at 2am. > > Would it be that terrible if there were one or two additional introductions within the longer segments? > > If it is any help, you can see the titles being shown within each programming block on the daily schedule page. > http://www.tcm.com/schedule/index.html?tz=est&sdate=2012-09-06 Thanks for that link. Clicking "Expand" on each of the shorts slated to start at 8:00 pm revealed their durations and the total is only 49 minutes ... those running between 9:00 and 11:00 only total 83 minutes ... so I smell "breaks" in there somewhere. Unfortunately, it may require a divining rod to determine exactly where they'll be.

VP19, Thank you for mentioning my favorite ingenue of enormity, Joy Harmon in Villiage of the Giants. Johnny Crawford dangling so desperately from her dancing yet decidedly decoupaged decolletage definitely defies description. The clip (with, oh, that music!) is here :

> {quote:title=RMeingast wrote: > }{quote}BTW, nice photo... I like the scarf. Looks like it's hand tatted? Funny you should ask -- I was obviously attempting to figure that out when the picture was snapped.

> {quote:title=Sepiatone wrote:}{quote} > The "Games and Trivia" forum has threads with so many pages it would take you a couple of days to catch up. Plus my experience on it is that so many of the members are busy with the "games" that the threads I started requesting the clearing up of trivia went unresponded. Thanks for the suggestion, but I prefer to continue posting where and how I have been. I don't understand why you and finance prefer that I post elsewhere since contributing facts and information to discussions of classic movies hardly strikes me as offensive or even problematical. But whatever the reasons for your lack of appreciation, I encourage you to use the "Ignore" button or, if you feel my posts are in violation of board regs, please flag them.

> {quote:title=finance wrote:}{quote}Then why don't you participate in the "games and trivia" forum? Because anyone contributing information to these threads need not be relegated to only one forum. Nice try though.

willbefree25, I really appreciate your stepping in for casablancalover2 to "translate." Sometimes, these forums seem like playing charades without my glasses -- I kinda get what's going on but a lot of it is pretty "blurry" ... I do, however, start worrying about senility when my comments are un-parsable even by an English Lit major. And while I'm not entirely sure what "the helium was squeezing it off the edges of my laptop" means, I think I get the gist ... and since Mama Valeska always taught us "If you don't like the smell of it, don't kick it," I won't. Instead, I'm going to stick to doing what I enjoy doing here: posting trivia in a way I genuinely hope others may enjoy without *ever* finding off-putting, as that's the exact opposite of my intention. Again, thanks for taking the time to explain.

Casablancalover2, I meant no "fight" and apologize that it came off like that. I should have been clearer in my meaning: "I agree with what casablancalover2 has said, AND ALSO ... (how about the benefit of one's comments FOR OTHERS ... blah blah blah) ..." > Oh my, my. Now, you'd be doing a huge favor by explaining what that means because you're the second commenter here today who's responded to me using that same phrase and I don't know what it means.What *I* meant is literally what I said -- no snark, spin or hidden meaning added or intended : > I appear to be the only one who finds this topic fascinating. Sorry if it strikes people as exploitative or disrespectful ... (or just plain DULL) ... See, I post here because I *LOVE* finding, reading and sharing movie trivia. If somebody else is interested in the junk I post, great. If not ? Also great. (Or as Bette Midler used to say, "It makes no nevermind.") I don't EVER want to seem like I'm pushing it on anybody else (hence the above apology from the Garbo thread) ... or like I'm being a "know-it-all" ... or anything else other than I *LOVE* movie trivia !

Very well said, LonesomePolecat.

misswonderly, The courtesy of your exchange with darkblue is IMHO what made it possible. Had he hit you with some terse correction like: "It's "BREAST" and it's by Congreve." ... However accurate and linguistically economical that might be, to me it conveys condescension -- and yet that might not have been the commenter's intent at all ! I've found that even though we speak the same language, there's still a lot of "translation" required ... at least in public forums like this.

> {quote:title=willbefree25 wrote:}{quote}Well, since none of them seem to have wandered in here, should we on the correct side of the scale stand in judgement of them? > > In other words, has anyone answered TCMAdmin's original question yet? > > > That said... why do you think *you *should be able to be rude, mean, cruel, flippant, disrespectful, etc. about other users? You go first. :^0