EugeniaH

Watching W.C. Fields in "You're Telling Me!", at the scene where it takes Fields 10 minutes to hit a golf ball. Not his best film imo, but funny stuff all the same. He did a similar bit playing pool in "Six of a Kind". (Edit: "The Old Fashioned Way", which I'm watching now, is a much funnier film.)

Luckily, I was never served rat for dinner like poor Blanche Hudson, lol...

My relationship with my own siblings was a lot more tumultuous, but once I was able to cut the cord things improved for me 5000%. Thankfully, my parents weren't around when that happened, which would have upset them... On a movie note, two of my siblings watched a lot of classic movies, so that helped get me interested in old movies initially (though not to the degree I am now). My sister liked films like "Miracle on 34th Street" and "March of the Wooden Soldiers", and my brother liked Abbott and Costello, The Marx Brothers and a lot of Frankenstein/monster flicks.

I read a library copy recently but I ordered one online for myself. The book is very well written. Her title is clever... That's a hook right there. People will want to buy it thinking she's talking about something more, as the French would say, risque.

Note for Olivia fans: I just looked on amazon.com and "Every Frenchman Has One" will be released by Amazon in late June of this year.

Are you referring to the line in the article where Olivia refers to Joan not by name but as "my sibling"? If so, that stood out to me, also. Otherwise, I didn't get too much venom from it (but as I mentioned earlier, she's talking to a reporter here).

Sibling rivalry as high drama: In the movies: Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? In real life: Olivia DeHavilland and Joan Fontaine (I'm the youngest of four, with two brothers and a sister, but I haven't spoken to two of my siblings in almost twenty years.)

I just placed a hold on this at my library. Thanks!

Has anyone read Joan's biography? I think it was talked about on the board? Was it a one-sided hatchet job?

In my top-5 favorite actresses list, two are Cancers (DeHavilland, Stanwyck), two are Libras (Lombard, Arthur), and one is a Sagittarius (Irene Dunne). But anyway, this is getting too far off topic. Must be something in the stars, lol... I wonder what an Olivia/Joan film would look like. Given Joan's talked-about competitiveness, I wonder if behind the scenes it would look like the set of a Bette Davis/Miriam Hopkins film, with one accusing other of stealing scenes... Anyway, I've always enjoyed Olivia's films a little more, though I liked Joan in Jayne Eyre, which I saw on LornaHansonForbes' recommendation (thanks!).

I had the women and the signs mixed up, lol. Yes, I'm a Libra, like Carole Lombard and Jean Arthur, two of my favorites. Olivia is another favorite.

Reading this terrific article (yesterday), I guess I'm a little surprised that Olivia mentioned Joan at all, given the feud, but maybe at this late age she's decided to take a higher road? Still, she's talking to a journalist, not a close friend... Yes, the story she tells of her "reunion" with Flynn is very bittersweet, not only for the condition of Flynn's health but the way the interaction ended.

When I saw Robert Ryan in Clash by Night I absolutely loathed him, hated him... But of course, that's what makes him a good actor. He had me completely believing his character. He wasn't so likable in Bad Day at Black Rock, either. (I think I saw these two movies one after the other, and I thought to myself, "Sheesh, has he done anything where you can actually feel sympathy toward him?")

Updating my last post: as said, I'm also watching "Cry Wolf". Like the pairing of Stanwyck and Bogart, Stanwyck with Errol Flynn also works well. They do their best with the material that's there. But for some time while watching the film, I'm waiting for something to 'happen'. There's mystery and a lot of 'clues' given, but it's a whole lot of talk and a lot of time focused on the fears of the Geraldine Brooks character. Finally, though, with the scene of Stanwyck going up the dumwaiter, things are heating up. The turn of events with the Geraldine Brooks character, Stanwyck scrambling across the roof, the scary confrontation with Flynn and Flynn's menacing side really coming out, it's getting better.

I've been watching two films I haven't seen in quite a while: "The Two Mrs. Carrolls" and "Cry Wolf." I had mentioned in another thread that I thought "Carrolls" had problems in the script, but as I look again it really seems to me like it's a neat little thriller. Sure, Hitchcock would have added much, but... Some pan Bogart's performance but I thought he was believable as a man who's a little 'bent' upstairs. Stanwyck has some moments of forced/unnatural acting in the beginning, but eventually she hits her stride. The viewer can focus on her dilemma and we wonder how she'll get herself out of it. Interesting twists and turns in the plot. I love the set of the estate and the dark lighting. Alexis Smith did a great job as a sharp and sexy 'other woman'. The ending is exciting and I also love the moment when (SPOILER): Sally discovers Geoffrey's painting of her as an Angel of Death. The painting, too, is striking and shocking.

Here's another one:

Speedy, when I was looking for photos to post here, I found one that reminded me... I have photos of Old Hollywood in my apartment, and this one is one of them... These two, along with Tracy and Hepburn, are my favorite movie couples:

The greats Flynn and DeHavilland on the set of Robin Hood:

Color still from the Cry Wolf set (I'll try and find an Errol/Olivia pic next):

You have at it. I'll be over working on Burt Lancaster...

If the "overzealous" leading lady was Olivia they would have had to carry Flynn off in a stretcher! (That is, based on what you wrote about filming Robin Hood...)

I didn't notice Bette's strong mannerisms the first time I saw Essex, for some reason, but the second time, definitely. I hadn't read that the real Elizabeth had this quirk; maybe it was just a scene-stealer technique! Speedy, you've got me wanting to watch Cry Wolf (I haven't seen it in quite a while) and an Errol/Olivia film, but I can't stay up all night, lol. I have the TCM Errol Flynn Collection DVD and a friend of mine has his Signature Collection.

Agreed, Cry Wolf wasn't the best vehicle for either Flynn or Stanwyck, but I loved that they were cast together. (Similar to The Two Mrs. Carrolls: Bogie and Stanwyck were great casting, but the script had problems). The two leads in Cry Wolf had good chemistry and the actors did the best with what was there. I ideally could see Flynn's role fleshed out and less time devoted to the annoying Geraldine Brooks (who Stanwyck didn't like off the set, lol). And speaking of good chemistry, check out Flynn and Bette Davis in The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex! But imo the best of the best was Errol and Olivia.

It's a shame that (imo) Flynn's role in Cry Wolf was weak. If the script was better he would have been something, really breaking out of the, as you say, pretty boy mold, like Tyrone Power did with Nightmare Alley. (I can't remember what you thought of Flynn in this, Speedy) Anyway, strongly agree, he would have been great in hardboiled noir roles.