ChristineHoard

I watched BIGGER THAN LIFE with James Mason last night and I read the article on the TCM Schedule. The author said, and I am paraphrasing here, that Walter Matthau's character may be the most subtle gay character (or subtext) ever on film. If so, it was so subtle I don't think I picked up on it (I do know that subtlety is key in many 1950's melodramas). He was a gym teacher and a friend to James' character and his family. Was it his (non)relationship with the hot lady school teacher? Is anyone else familiar with this movie and have any thoughts to share? By the way, I really liked BIGGER THAN LIFE and it reminded me of some of Douglas Sirk's work but was directed by Nicholas Ray.

Are you sure APPLAUSE is a musical stage version of ALL ABOUT EVE? Helen Morgan was in the early talkie (1929) APPLAUSE. I thought Lauren Bacall was in the stage version of Morgan's APPLAUSE. How can you love Bette Davis and not love ALL ABOUT EVE? I think it's one of her best and I'm a big fan,too.

TopBilled, I liked your Joan Blondell column. She had the most beautiful eyes. I know you can't include everything for your "Notable Films" section but I think Joan was also notable in NIGHTMARE ALLEY and A TREE GROWS IN BROOKLYN. Jack La Rue - he looks like such a bad***. Helen Twelvetrees - so much sadness in her life. The pre-code talent was such an interesting group. Several of the women had a harder time in the post-code era than the men. Thanks for sharing.

The 1974 version according to Rayban's list (the Robert Redford-Mia Farrow version). I'd like to see the Alan Ladd version from 1949..

I have no idea! I got the common denominator question but that second question was over my head. If I was that kid, I never would have gotten a chance to eat. Anyway, I really liked BIGGER THAN LIFE and it was quite harrowing toward the end when Mason is in full-blown 'roid rage. The ending may have been a little too optimistic; his wife is going to control the pills being dispensed? Good luck with that! Good film that has probably grown in appreciation over the years. Issues like drug abuse, especially with pain pills, is certainly relevant today.

This was interesting and thanks for sharing. The only thing I didn't quite get was that Hyde was so hunched over - he looked like he was about 4 feet tall so that he didn't seem too threatening. However, from a historical standpoint, this was worth watching. My favorite version is the Paramount version with Fredric March. He and Miriam Hopkins are excellent. I think this is the best version. The Barrymore version is good, too. The Spencer Tracy version is OK but hampered by the Production Code and I don't think Tracy is right for the part. I recommend you watch these three first.

I'll try but I'm not very good with math. We'll see...

Yes! I love "There's Always Tomorrow" and I've seen it on TCM a couple of times. It would have been a good choice for the Postwar Melodrama theme TCM has going this month. I said in another post that there seems to be always something going on underneath the surface of 1950's era domestic dramas. That's how it was in the "real world", too, in the 1950's. Art imitates life, or is it the other way around (rhetorical question)?

She was high maintenance and that was one reason he needed the money. He wanted to keep her around, buy her things, go on trips. Babes like that don't come cheap and if he wants to keep getting laid, it's going to cost (remember his wife is an invalid). A lot of older, wealthy, powerful men like "Uncle Lon" keep a young "side piece", at least in film noir. He's not keeping her around if he isn't getting something in return.

I was not a happy camper when I first saw my favorite Barbara Stanwyck in that hairdo. I loved her hair in the 1940's before then. Fortunately her acting skills overcome the hair.

Coming on Friday (OK, day after tomorrow) is BIGGER THAN LIFE. I read about this on the TCM site as one of the post-WW2 melodramas and it looks extremely interesting, Directed by Nicholas Ray and starring James Mason from 1956. Basically about a family falling apart due to Mason's drug dependency but it looks like there's more going on beneath the surface. This is one thing about domestic dramas from the 1950's - there's always stuff going on underneath the main story.

Yes, good article and I agree with it.

I also remember Richard Deacon on THE DICK VAN DYKE SHOW. As for movies, I remember his scenes in the original INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS. I liked him. Good supporting actor.

I'm not familiar with your first two titles, topbilled, but I would say the other two are definitely war films for women.

There's a good article in THE DAILY BEAST about Johnathon Demme and his movie PHILADELPHIA (sorry I don't know how to bring to to this thread) for those who might be interested. The title of the Griffin book was designed to titillate and sell copies. I doubt the publishers cared whether it offended anybody or not.

Thanks for the link to the Tommy Kirk info, Jlewis. Interesting. It seems it was the substance abuse that really derailed Tommy's acting career, not his sexuality.

Can anybody educate me on what happened with Tommy Kirk? I do remember him from the Disney flicks I saw as a kid. I never saw the Mars flick but I remember when it came out. I thought BEWITCHED was much funnier than JEANNIE. As an adult I learned that several in the cast were gay (or alleged to be gay) and I thought that it must have been a fun set to work on. Maybe some of the cast members could just be themselves and that would be a freeing experience. I never watched EDGE OF NIGHT but I've read that it was considered one of the best soaps ever. I have fallen out of the soap habit but used to watch Y&R and B&B all the time. Soaps used to be timely with some issues, like Erica's abortion on AMC and then got cold feet later on so any female who got pregnant and didn't want the baby wouldn't get an abortion but would miss-carry (usually a convenient fall or something) instead. The last time I watched, soaps did not do a particularly good job with gay issues or gay representation. For example, B&B takes place in LA's fashion industry yet nobody's gay. Go figure...

Oh, I think she did have sex with him. It's just that they couldn't come right out and say it or show it due to the Production Code so they had to be subtle. It's implicit, not explicit. Great movie; one of my all-time favorites. I just love it.

Are you sure about the author? I googled the author and came up empty and I googled books about Spencer Tracy but none showed up with that author.

If you can know the names of any of the actors, director or writer, you can look them up for their film credits and take it from there.

FEUD: "You Mean All This Time We Could've Been Friends" what a finale! Really heartwrenching. I don't want to say too much right now for those who haven't seen it yet, but I found this episode incredibly moving and there are a lot of great scenes - some very touching and some quite sad.

Colleen Moore and Richard Barthelmess

I have read Gary Cooper described as "beautiful" early in his career and I would agree (I'm talking late 1920's & early 1930's). He was certainly good looking later but not beautiful.

I haven't seen YENTL in quite a while but I remember I liked it. Now, as for A STAR IS BORN: I saw it in the theater when it was released and when TCM ran it not too long ago. I liked the songs a lot and watched it mainly for that but not too keen on the story and consider it the weakest of the three versions (four if you count WHAT PRICE HOLLYWOOD?). If you're into the music and don't care about plot, it's worth a rewatch and then tell us what you think. Remember these great lyrics from "Hellacious Acres"? "Tricky Dicky barkin' flashing you his pardon. Admission's free, you pay to get out. Go to Hell! It's a sin-filled city An amusement park It's a one-way ticket to the other side A Dr. Jeckyll and a Mr. Hyde"

I'm setting my DVR for these films tonight (I'd watch them live but there's other programming I want to see): THE GREAT MAN. which is supposed to be a thinly-veiled look at an Arthur Godfrey-type character (is anybody old enough, besides myself, to remember Godfrey's show on TV?) and the two late-night Harold Lloyd flicks. Lloyd is my favorite silent comedian. I've seen SWEET SMELL OF SUCCESS a number of times and I really like it. Burt is always wonderful and plays a bad guy as well as anyone and this movie shows that Tony Curtis can really act if given the right material. If you haven't seen it, check it out.