EugeniaH

Lonesome, I love it!! (clap, clap) :^0

Erol Flin!

I had forgotten about this! I'll bet there will be a lot of weddings today (for the superstitious types). The last date that came close to this was 08/08/08 (or maybe 8/8/88). And as I look out the window on 11/11/11 it's gray and drizzling rain. Yippee.

Do you think that maybe Rains' character was a variation of sorts of the sap that Leslie Howard played in *Of Human Bondage*? Again, it's been a while since I've seen *Skeffington*... Skeffington obviously wasn't as desperate as the Leslie Howard character, but...

It's been a while since I've seen the film (once was enough, in my opinion), but maybe Skeffington had a compassionate nature that allowed him to overlook her faults and love her anyway.

Skeffington shoulda strangled Fanny. God, she was annoying.

Actually, when it comes down to it, I prefer Alison to Marie (*Night After Night* is hilarious)... Are there any actresses out there today like Marie Dressler? I think not. True, we have Meryl Streep and Helen Mirren as examples of "older" talent, but would the Hollywood of today hire the likes of someone (admittedly unattractive) like Marie no matter what her gifts? But, I'm sure that's an argument for another thread...

*Speaking of that, to whom it may concern (Bette fans), there are FIVE new Bette movies that just came out on DVD a couple of weeks ago from the Warner Archive Collection. They are: Juarez (1939), Fashions of 1934 (1934), The Sister (1938), The Rich are Always with Us (1932), and Housewife (1934).* Thanks for sharing that, Bette. I'm going to see if these are available on Classicflix yet. I was never a huge Davis fan, and still am not, but your enthusiasm is infectious.

BD, I love 20k Years in Sing-Sing! It's on my "to-buy" list.

Bette - My memory might be faulty on this, but I think that when it came to filming the scene of Crawford opening the lid over her dinner plate, she specifically waited until the final take to look at the rat for the first time (that is, she didn't look at her meal during the rehearsals), so that her reaction would be genuine for the final cut. And I'm remembering her reaction!! If it was me, I would be destroying the set in fright!!

ugaarte, your comparison is interesting, because I was going to post that I used to frequently confuse Marie with Alison Skipworth, another wonderful actress... But back to Marie!

I enjoy watching Marie Dressler and I like her films with Wallace Beery (they're great together and I laugh when she tells him off). One film she was in that I didn't like at all was *The Girl Said No*, because of the obnoxious William Haines. But he was supposed to be obnoxious, so I guess he's done his job.

I don't desire Lombard physically, but if there's one actress I would wish to be "best friends" with, it would be her.

Whatever the off-screen relationship between Davis and Crawford was, on screen they were gold. It's too bad they didn't make any other movies together (even in the 40s, etc.), but I'm sure Crawford was glad to get out of the "Charlotte" movie. Edited by: EugeniaH on Nov 8, 2011 5:09 PM

I love the scene where Jane is standing in front of the mirror singing "Daddy, Sweet Daddy"... and then she realizes that she is no longer that young girl... Powerful acting. Then the part where Davis kicks Crawford... wow. And, the "special dinner..."

Bette, you should definitely make a point of seeing this movie. Admittedly, it's a long way from *Dark Victory* and Bette takes some getting used to here if you are more a fan of her movies from the earlier years... But her acting is terrific in this and the pairing of Davis and Crawford was brilliant. I doubt two other actresses could have pulled it off so well and made it the classic that it is. It's a camp phenomena, it's true, but this is a movie I still haven't tired of watching (not that I watch it so frequently, but I'm always willing to watch it...) It's terrific to read that you got into BD at 10. Which movie of hers hooked you?

Hi NormaShearerGirl - *Example of a good remake:* Stella Dallas (1937 remake of 1925 film) - earned B. Stanwyck an Academy Award nomination *Example of a bad remake:* Stella (1990) with Bette Midler.

My choices are those that others have already answered (Mitchum, McQueen), but in a more modern era, Harrison Ford in *Raiders of the Lost Ark* is extremely cool.

*For television: Jerry Doyle, Terry Savalas, Jimmy (Dynamite) Walker and Redd Fox.* Hamradio: adding to your tv list of "cool" characters - James Garner as Jim Rockford.

I always groove to Laurel & Hardy. They rock, and never get old! B-)

People driving casually down a straight road will turn the wheel back and forth rapidly. A woman running away from danger will automatically fall to the ground and become helpless.

Hi rohanaka - I found this on the web. Hope you all will be able to read the text... I'll type it out if it looks too small. That's about all I can contribute to this thread, though. My main cooking staple is the microwave oven!

Stanwyck's mother was killed stepping off a trolley and her father abandoned the family. Her older sisters took care of her and brother Byron for a while but eventually she was sent to an orphanage (which ended up being multiple, as I recall). But back to the Davis thread - congrats on #200! B-)

I'm reminded, too, of the recent discussions on these boards surrounding *Casablanca* and *Citizen Kane*, two films that would be voted "essential" by a number of people (like film critics and academics), but torn apart and criticized here.

Hey, you don't have to do any searches for me - you have your own work cut out for you! But I really appreciate your offer. It's harder in Stanwyck's case anyway, since she spent much of her early life in orphanages, etc.