EugeniaH

Cary Grant and Irene Dunne are one of my favorite screwball comedy pairings. I also love Cary with Jean Arthur, although they made more "subdued" films. Grant and Carole Lombard did only one film together, "In Name Only", but their chemistry was terrific. The scene where Carole visits a very ill Cary in the hospital is moving. I was thinking more about what Tom was saying about the big difference between Grant's earlier screwball roles and his later "suave, sophisticated" roles. I think his transition was natural and believable. Of his later movies, a favorite that comes to mind for me is "An Affair to Remember" "Penny Serenade" is a tearjerker classic. I can watch "Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House" over and over again. I wasn't so crazy about "I Was a Male War Bride". He was a little stiff in "That Touch of Mink" (I understand he wasn't crazy about making it), but it was still a good film. Grant is definitely in my "Top 3" favorite actors list. I've always said Spencer Tracy was #1, but maybe these two run neck and neck.

Here comes the spam again... Maybe TCM can pay some hourly or intern whose only job is to sit at a computer and delete the spam as soon as it shows up?

Welcome, Classic. What was the Grant show like? Did he seem very different from his familiar persona? What did he talk about? I'm also a fan of his films.

I can so see you in this outfit riding your motorcycle, Dargo...

And it gets so much worse after that! Things really takes a turn for the creepy, but Mason always makes it believable. So far I think I can say now that this is my favorite role of his.

Tonight I watched "Bigger than Life," with James Mason. I am normally not a big fan of Mason but he was great in this, as a schoolteacher sinking to the depths of prescription drug (Cortisone) addiction. As the movie unfolds you can see all the different ways his personality changes as the drug takes hold, and the effect on the people around him. Great range.

Thanks for this notice, Barton. I also remember seeing Vigoda on an episode of The Rockford FIles, as a crime boss. (Awful to have to wade through all the Korean spam to get to the real threads - it's been a lot worse these past couple of days...)

Jackie Cooper as a kid is so adorable you just want to squeeze him and pinch his cheeks, lol.

I'm watching eps from The Little Rascals box set. I haven't seen these shorts in decades... I'm on the pre-Alfalfa period, with Jackie Cooper and Mary Ann and Chubby, etc. A lot of the humor can appeal to adults too. I'm not that crazy about the racial stereotyping at times, but I do love all the outdoor shots of the rural Los Angeles of the 20s and 30s.

Gracie of the movies was more of a "dumb broad" character but if you listen to her on her tv show, her misinterpretations could be really clever. There were great writers on that series, including George Burns and his brother Willie. Even though Gracie needed writers, the writers needed her to pull the material off. Getting back to Lucy, I remember reading a quote from Desi, "If anything happens to her we're all in the shrimp business!"

I adore Gracie Allen (I never resist responding to a post that mentions Gracie Allen), but just imho I think she and LB did completely different comedy. Gracie's skill was in "illogical logic" and did not do slapstck. But both women were excellent at their craft. I don't have a vote on who was the all-time best...

That was PRECISELY what I meant, Sepiatone.

I think Lucy is a major comedienne, but I also think a fair amount of credit should go to Desi Arnaz, who helped make "I.L.L." the success that it was. At a certain point on "The Lucy Show", with Desi not there guiding, Lucy floundered.

Thanks, Dargo. I thought Russell won awards for his role, but I couldn't find the info soon enough.

Harold Russell, whose hands were metal hooks, did an excellent job as Homer Parrish in "The Best Years of Our Lives" (the role incorporated his disability). On another note, Herbert Marshall had a wooden leg.

Great post, Arturo. I can hardly add to what you already wrote. I hope that Fred's passing was peaceful. I know that I can never again watch the movie "Treasure of the Sierra Madre" without thinking of this poster.

Blandings is definitely on my list, too! I want to see "Mr . Blandings Builds His Dream House " I am lover of Carey Grant. Not just this movie but all his his movies when I am sick, which today, I am truly sick with a winter time cold/flu. Watching these movies makes me feel a little comfort. Thank you, Shawanda Williams

Not yet, but I'm shootin' high!

I don't have cable; instead I have a DVD collection. I don't have a room full of movies (though that would be my dream, and to have them in a dedicated home theater too, sigh), but I have a good number, for me. In fact, this Christmas I treated myself to a multimedia cabinet that stores up to 500+ DVDs. I also subscribe to Classicflix so I can still watch movies I haven't yet seen. And I have friends who have TCM, so I do get to watch the channel now and then...

I think what you meant to say was, "no bun intended."

SPOILERS FROM MULTIPLE EPISODES I love the Twilight Zone episodes where the character "disappears" into his scenarios/imagination. At the end of "Shrine", Ida disappears into the film. In "A Stop at Willoughby", the main character disappears into the old town. In "Miniature", the character disappears into the dollhouse. I love the idea that if you wish for something hard enough, you can defy reality and make it come true... (Although it was a little sad for the James Daly character in "Willoughby".)

Last night I watched a marathon of The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau eps. I get that nature shows are not everyone's cup of tea, but these are great. He explored the ocean's depths not only for marine life but his team also did a lot of treasure and artifact hunting. Cousteau accomplished a lot in his career - besides all of his world travels, he also invented the Aqualung - which not only helped divers, but it gave Jethro Tull a hit song. (And I never knew before that John Denver's song "Calypso" was about Cousteau's ship...)

I mention this movie now and then in threads, and sorry to repeat myself but I can't help but mentioning it again - The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928) has some of the best camera work I've ever seen, for the strongest emotional effect: the images of suffering Joan, her tormentors, the closeups of the torture instruments and the scene of her burning at the stake...

Blyth starred in a good episode of The Twilight Zone from the last season called "Queen of the Nile", about an actress who is mysterious about her age. The ep is a bit of a copy of the earlier "Long Live Walter Jameson", but aside from that, she was good in it as an elegant woman with a surprising past.

I think she comes off as a class act no matter if playing comedy or drama.