HoldenIsHere

Another great example is THE MAN IN THE IRON MASK (1998), featuring Leonardo DiCaprio in a dual role:

The topic reminds me of the movie BIG BUSINESS from the late 1980s starring Lily Tomlin and Bette Midler as two sets of mismatched twins: one rural (West Virginia) and one urban (NYC). While none of the characters are heads of state, "city Bette" is the head of a corporation and "country Lily" is forewoman of a furniture factory (that is owned by the "city" versions of Bette and Lily). "City Bette" wants to sell the factory. "Country Lily" travels to NYC (with her sister who wants to see "the big city") to try to stop the sale because the loss of the factory will be an economic disaster for the West Virginia town. Needless to say, there are multiple cases of mistaken identity once the country versions arrive in Manhattan. The funniest part for me was when "country Bette" pretends to be "city Bette" and imitates Joan Collins from DYNASTY (using dialogue from the scene where Joan Collins as Alexis takes control of Denver Carrington and threatens to "fire the board on the spot" if they don't do her bidding).

THE BRAIN THAT WOULDN'T DIE was batsh*t crazy in such a good way. The part where the creature in the closet tears off the assistant's good arm and the assistant's loooong death scene as he smears blood all over the place! And then later when the creature from the closet bites off some of the scientist's flesh!

Even though she never accepted her Oscars in person, the awards were apparently very important to Katherine Hepburn. Jane Fonda tells the story of Hepburn calling Fonda after Hepburn's win for ON GOLDEN POND (in which Fonda played Hepburn's daughter) and saying to Fonda, "Now you'll never catch me!" (Jane Fonda had already won 2 Oscars at that time and was nominated for a Supporting Actress Oscar for her role in ON GOLDEN POND.)

I don't see a TCM article for any of the STAR WARS movies so I think it's unlikely that any of them have ever aired on the channel. Chapter 11 of THE STORY OF FILM series that aired on TCM dealt a lot with STAR WARS in its discussion of the rise of the summer blockbuster and multiplex theaters in America. If I remember correctly, TCM aired JAWS as a representative movie the night that chapter aired.

ALADDIN is one of my all-time favorite Disney movies. I also love THE THIEF OF BAGDAD (1940), especially Sabu's performance.

Disney and Lucasfilm recently unveiled the second teaser trailer for STAR WARS:THE FORCE AWAKENS (which Disney plans to show before AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON that opens in May). There's still no indication of what Adam Driver's role will be, but there's a glimpse of Harrison Ford as Han Solo, with a line of dialogue Is that Mark Hamill in the voiceover in the beginning talking about the Force being strong in his family?

I hope it is George C. Scott and that TCM airs THE HOSPITAL that got bumped from the schedule when they did a prime time mini-tribute to Scott last year.

I totally agree with you about American movies from the early 1970s---before the blockbuster mentality led to in essence a new kind of code for mainstream movies which led to moviemaking by committee.

Since we know the Essentials selections for August, we can start speculating who will be the Summer Under The Stars honorees for the those 5 days. I suppose August 8 will be Julie Harris because who else in EAST OF EDEN has enough movies to fill 24 hours (well, I guess it could be Raymond Massey or Burl Ives). I would think August 29 would be Paul Newman, but didn't he have a day last year?

I think you can only flag titles that are already on the schedule. You can click on REMINDER on the movie's TCM database entry and you'll be sent an email alert to remind you when the movie is airing on TCM. The REMINDER button does not appear for movies that are not currently on the schedule.

Yeah, I think the people on Amazon who are complaining about the topless scene being cut from the DVD release of THE OWL AND THE PUSSYCAT are mistakenly thinking they saw the scene in the movie when in fact they actually saw the photos that were leaked.

Here's what I found: In spite of this desire to work on something more contemporary and "hip," she was nonetheless extremely nervous about the brief nude scene the script required. The story called for her to remove her top and jump into bed with co-star George Segal, but when it came time to film it, she was very reluctant. According to James Spada's biography Streisand: Her Life, she told director Herbert Ross she couldn't do the scene because she was insecure about her figure and worried about what her mother would say. Spada quoted screenwriter Buck Henry as recalling that she and Ross went into a closet where she showed him her body and he reassured her that she had nothing to worry about. Nevertheless, it took Ross nearly an hour to convince her, and he had to reassure her that if she wasn't happy with the scene, it would be cut. She finally agreed, nervously baring her breasts and climbing into bed next to Segal. Star, director, and crew all had a good laugh when the relentless perfectionist insisted she wanted a retake. As for mother Diana Kind, she only commented later, "I'm shocked by all those things actresses have to do today, but I guess it's part of the job." The scene was ultimately cut before release, but photos of the nude Streisand were leaked to High Society magazine. The actress won an injunction against the publication, and the shots disappeared from public view.

Thanks for this information. Apparently this cut was also made on the DVD release hence these customer reviews from Amazon: It's amazing how one cut can ruin a film. Well, here's the proof! I can understand why Barbra demanded her topless scene destroyed, but editing the 'F' word in a major key scene is unforgivable. This is a true classic comedy and a beautifully transferred DVD with its heart cut out! There oughta' be laws against this kind of hollywood butchery! This DVD contains the 'PG' version! while watching this version you'll notice where the cuts were made. This DVD includes a two page booklet that states how the film was cut in the 70's including language and a scene revealing a topless "Funny Girl". It then states how the profanity was restored in 1999 for a re-release but without the nude Barbra because it was destroyed in the 70's. Well I hate to tell Columbia but this film isn't restored and is lacking a very funny moment in the original film. One scene is when Streisand and Segal are walking down a city street talking and a car of guys starts following them yelling out insults, then Streisand walks over to them to tell them to "F@ OFF!"(cut out dialog) followed by these guys chasing them. This scene was so badly edited that it ends up making no sense. There was a television version of the film that contained the whole scene intact with muting out the four letter word. darkblue, when you saw the movie in the theater during its original release, do you remember the shot of Streisand's bare breasts? My understanding was that, while the scene was filmed, it ultimately was never included in any released print of the movie.

What was edited from the version of THE OWL AND THE PUSSYCAT that was shown on TCM? How annoying if it was. "Bombs away!" I agree with you about UP THE SANDBOX. It's a great movie that wonderfully blends fantasy and reality.

Yes! In DUTCHMAN Shirley Knight is reprising a role that she played to great acclaim on stage. I read where she considers that to be one of her favorite films probably because its connection to her experience on stage. Here's what Roger Ebert said about her performance in the movie: "A word about Miss Knight's performance, which won an award at Cannes: It is superb. She plays the bitchy blond with such skill that this becomes one of the best performances by an actress in memory."

Shirley Knight is highly acclaimed and respected by her peers. She's been awarded a Tony, 3 Emmys and 2 Golden Globes. She's worked more on the stage than in film and put her family and artistry above "Hollywood" fame. She was nominated for an Oscar for two of her first film roles (in THE DARK AT THE TOP OF THE STAIRS and SWEET BIRD OF YOUTH), but she relocated to New York City to study and focus on stage work. She was married to British playwright John R. Hopkins until his death. Her acclaimed stage roles include Irina in THE THREE SISTERS, Blanche DuBois in A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE and Lola in COME BACK, LITTLE SHEBA. Tennessee Williams wrote the role of Dorothea in A LOVELY SUNDAY FOR CREVE COEUR for her. After seeing her performance in A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE, Williams reportedly said he had finally found his Blanche. Among her many television appearances, one of my favorites was her recurring role as Bree Van de Kamp's mother-in-law on DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES (for which she was nominated for an Emmy). In fact her role on DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES was my first exposure to Shirley Knight. When I saw her as Phyllis Van de Kamp, I was blown away and had to find out more about her.

But box office draw is an indicator of popularity --- which demonstrates that a performer is "stomached" (to use your terminology) by a vast number of the movie-going audience. ,

That's a bit of an uninformed comment. Barbra Streisand was the top female box office draw in the 1970s so the mass majority of peoople could "stomach" her.

Airing tonight (April 11) on TCM is the early Francis Ford Coppola movie THE RAIN PEOPLE, featuring a mesmerizingly real performance by Shirley Knight. I saw it for the first time when it aired on TCM last year. I'd never heard of the movie so I went into it not really knowing what to expect. I was completely captivated by this movie, especially by Shirley Knight. For those who love American movies from the late 1960s and early 1970s (as I do) I highly recommend THE RAIN PEOPLE. One warning though: if you don't like movies where there is not a clear "hero" or "villain," you may not like this movie. Shirley Knight plays a flawed character --- in other words, a real human being. For some viewers her realness (and the realness of the movie itself including its pacing) might be exasperating, but for me it was utterly compelling. The people of the movie are, in fact, not "rain people" but are viscerally real. In addition to Knight, the movie also features James Caan and Robert Duvall.

Since you mention Mrs. Danvers, what are your thoughts on Bessie (the maid) in LAURA? Her attachment to Laura was quite intense. Granted there's no scene with her and Laura's underwear (a la Mrs. Danvers in REBECCA), but her devotion to Laura is off the chart.

I think that Vera Caspary had hoped that the movie would somehow retain her novel's multiple narrator format, but this perspective would probably never be considered for a mainstream movie made in the 1940s. I think your characterization of the movie being in black-and white while Caspary's source novel is in color is excellent. The movie's focus is on the crime while the novel (in addition to being a good detective story) explores class issues and sexual politics and questions the ideals of masculinity and femininity.

Below is the complete dialogue from the cut portion of the scene. The cut dialogue is between Laura's line "I owed him too much" and Mark's line "I can understand that, Laura. But what I can’t understand is why you’ve tried so hard to protect Shelby these last few days." There is an attempt to bridge the cut by the reinsertion of the shot of Waldo on the stairs. MARK (exasperated) You don’t owe him a thing. LAURA I owe him everything I am. MARK (impatiently) Just because he endorsed that pen five years ago, for a nice fat check— LAURA He told you that story, too? MARK It’s true, isn’t it? LAURA (shaking her head) You see, Mark, you simply don’t understand Waldo. He dramatizes everything. To him, I, like everything else, am only half real. The other half exists only in his own mind. The story he told you about the pen was one he had written for his column. Once he writes something, he believes it. Do you know where he actually first found me? In a night court. I had been picked up for vagrancy. Mark reacts as from a physical blow. MARK Vagrancy? LAURA Oh, I wasn’t guilty. It was just something that happens every day, I suppose. I came to New York, looking for a career. Highest honors in art school back home– the usual background. But I couldn’t get a start. One night I found myself locked out of my room. They picked me up on a bench in Central Park. She shakes her head unhappily at the memory. LAURA The judge wouldn’t believe my “hard luck story”. But Waldo believed me. He was in court, gathering material for his column. He came forward and paid my fine. Then he called Bullitt and Company, and got me a job. I went to work the same day. (she looks up at him) It isn’t easy to forget anything so wonderful as that. Mark is touched by the story, but still puzzled.

I'm bumping this thread since LAURA is being discussed again on these boards.