CaveGirl

That is an excellent choice being that her movie career just died out after her great performance in said film. Love that number and I'd totally forgotten about her. I wonder if she purposely left films and if it had anything to do with her divorce from Fosse? Thanks for a really good example of an aborted movie career after a sensational start.

You are so right about E, as the Memphis Mafia used to call him, Spence. I think without his mother's continual praise of him he would never have recorded his little disc at the Sam Phillips' Sun studios as a present for Gladys, and without it, and Sam's idea to find a white boy who sounded black for recording purposes of the time, Elvis would have continued being a truck driver with long sideburns that he patterned after Rudolph Valentino! Thanks, Spence!

I always think of that police photo of Carole Landis after her suicide. So sad and thanks for your thoughts on her film with Joslyn, an actor I always enjoyed in comedies.

I so agree with you, Dawn. Very astute observation and thanks for posting!

Probably not her type. She liked the Patrick O'Neal type. Sorry, Bette!

No you don't cuz then we'd just be talking about Clara Bow meeting up with the entire UCLA football team and you know where that would end. Those flappers as drawn by John Held Junior were pretty loose girls and once they cropped and marcelled their hair, there was no stopping them with the bathtub gin drunk out of their shoes or their dancing like Joan Crawford, and you know she was in some of those blue movies also.

Wow, I've never seen or even heard of that movie, TB. But I like Alberto Sordi from watching him in "The White Sheik" and "I Vitelloni" so with Davis and Cotten too, I might dig it. Thanks for the triumvirate of films starring both, of which I've seen both.

Thanks, GGG! I don't think I've ever seen this film "Pittsburgh" but it has a good cast with Paul Fix and Nestor so I will look for it. Glad to see there are fellow non-travellers with the crowd!

What with the capture of the Golden State serial killer, Mank and Muller might want to cool it, since they now can find you by locating your relatives online with a DNA sample. Now the names Mank and Muller do sound a bit like the monikers for the Hillside Strangler team of Bianchi and Buono, but I digress. I think Mank probably has just been programmed in this ritualistic con, and would rather go eat at that Russo's restaurant, or whatever his name is, that they used to tout on the channel. Muller, on the other hand, does a bit resemble John Wayne Gacy, so if he starts wearing a clown uniform on the wine ads, look out. I will admit his purple prose writing style would attract teen girls who enjoy Harlequin Romance novels so he might have an in with them. Thanks for acknowledging the scatalogical content hidden behind the boring exteriors of the participants in the wine ads, of Muller and Company.

Thanks for these tips, TB! I had never seen this Bette film so was intriqued. And just read an entire book on a favorite of mine, Edgar Allan Poe and the Cotten film is of interest, though I must say by the end of the Poe biography, as much as I revere him and his brain and writings I have to say he was a most annoying character, always asking for money and denigrating others and starting fights. Oh well...poor boy, maybe the absinthe got to him.

Before starting this discussion, let's go back to the source and without any deconstructionist tendencies deal with the official definition of what "propaganda" is: "prop·a·gan·da noun 1. derogatory information, especially of a biased or misleading nature, used to promote or publicize a particular political cause or point of view. "he was charged with distributing enemy propaganda" synonyms: information, promotion, advertising, publicity, spin" Now admittedly, one man's meat is another man's propaganda so this still might be difficult to ascertain, but hopefully we are talking about blatant themes based on biased or not proven information, meant to influence the viewers. It may be that in Nazi Germany, Hollywood films which they mostly banned were looked on as the propaganda, which is why they were supplanted by Nazi films that possibly excoriated Western values in content. I possibly own a few films which might fit the bill, like Leni Riefenstahl's "Triumph of the Will" from the 1930's. One of the most famous propaganda films is possibly "Jud Suss" from 1940 which I have no idea if it is available for viewing even now. Some might say a film which is politically charged or there to present a specific view of the state of things, like the Polish film, "Ashes and Diamonds" by Wajda but I'm not sure it qualifies. Though TOTW is indubitably a propaganda film, it also is a film with much to admire that separates it from the propaganda. Kind of like admiring the construction of a guillotine but not its mission to behead. Name films which are propaganda but still films worth viewing and ones which are only propaganda in essence. I am impervious to propaganda of any kind, therefore would be willing to watch any and all films of purported propaganda with no fear of coming under their influence.

I am becoming extremely confused. If one is to use a person as a bailiwick to add veracity to a claim, one wonders exactly how Katharine Hepburn would be the logical choice, to discuss morality. In my world, it is of little interest to me whether she was or was not having that well discussed affair with good old Spencer, but if so, then to some who would be offended by the film "Fatal Attraction" it would seem they might also be offended by Katharine Hepburn and her blatant disregard of marital standards. Now again, I have no problem with her, but if I am to defend a strict moral guideline in film attitudes, she would hardly be my choice as a leading lady. One would be much more well instructed to pick someone like Lillian Gish to discuss "filth" in movies, since she might have been impressed with D.W. Griffith but was not having any illicit liaisons with him to my knowledge. By the way, in discussing the "pornographic" content of the film "Fatal Attraction" are you referring to visual content or situational. And by the way, such storylines are contained in so-called religious works like the Bible as cautionary tales and from before the Renaissance, artists were depicting sexual content that you might deem "pornographic" in church altarpieces, to teach the heathens what NOT to do, as in Hieronymous Bosch's triptychs. This is common practice for much religious iconography so the lines are a bit blurred in my opinion as to what constitutes "filth" in practice. Have you come to formulate your standards of what is acceptable as not being "pornographic" by your own learning gleaned from many sources, or do you feel this is following a precept of a group that you adhere to as being your guiding sole source?

Where will this docu-series be presented, if you don't mind me asking?

Enjoyed your sharing of knowledge, Speedracer. My favorite Disney animation is in the film "Sleeping Beauty" because as an artist I totally admire the hard edged line taken to depict the characters, which is so beautifully done. Most animated films would use cutesy rounded detail for female subjects but not this film. I am going to assume that this is due to the unique style of drawing of Eyvind Earle and the possible interplay of making things appear a bit to look like works from the time of medieval tapestries. The amazing detail and pastel color work on the backgrounds is gorgeous too, and I think McLaren Stewart had a hand in that. The people in the film look incredibly sophisticated in detail, that is usually lacking in a typical animated feature. Great topic choice!

Oh, yes...perfect example in "Blade Runner". Watching the original version is a bit disorienting but since I've read a lot of Philip K. Dick's books I could figure it out. Haven't seen the later versions. Love Terence Malick and wow, did not realize the added minutes to that film. I wonder if there are differing versions of things like "Badlands"? Thanks, Lawrence for the sage comments.

Admittedly the many differing length versions of the 1973 Robin Hardy directed film, "The Wicker Man" did not all come out simultaneously. The 88 minute version was released in the UK after some criticism was given at the film being a bit long. I think Roger Corman was involved in this revamping process possibly. I've seen the 88 minute version and though good on its own merits after seeing the 99 minute version which was released in the early 2000's, in the wooden box presentation, I can say it was highly improved. Supposedly the original 102 or 103 minute film, could be lost forever but there was also a Final Cut version that tried to combine elements of both of the above, with the best quality for sound and picture, being sought. Whichever version one sees, the tale by Anthony Shaffer about the disappearance of a child named Rowan on Summersisle, under the auspices of Christopher Lee's rule, is a mesmerizing film. Also starring Edward Woodward as one of the most repressed men extant, with Diane Cilento and Britt Eklund, the film is still a winner. Can you think of other films with such a muddled history of differing release versions in time or sequences?

Yeah, you've got their number, Vautrin! Note how often Ben M. keeps repeating the mantra about how he's not surprised anymore about the young ages of some of the TCM fans!!! I guess not, since the programming of the Trangressing Chaste Minds hypnotic trance mode is daily supplying new addicts. My bet is that if one slowed down those horrid wine commercials with Muller, there are a bunch of subliminals with images of penile objects suspended in the glass reflections of the wine bottles in close-up shots, doing many obscene things. Also just like Chanel did in that famous tv ad, the images overlap in ways that make objects appear to be animated and part of the homunculus in flagrante delicto. I think it's not much of a reach to figure out that the neck of a wine bottle is similar to what inspired the lyrics of the song, "Chantilly Lace" with its long necked goose tidbits. All these supposedly married wine couples on the ads [probably swingers] trying to find recruits for their product too, by making the wine for the film "Beach Blanket Bingo" appear innocent and how they coupled it with food, like a Pasta Primavera is an obvious seductive technique. If one is trying to get innocent teens to indulge in wine though, I think Muller may have to touch up his greying sideburns, because the Danny Thomas look never is attractive to young females or males for that matter.

Uh, I'm hoping beyond hope that you don't look like a combination of Joan's dada, Richard Bennett and Barney Rubble. That would make you appear to be a twin for Allan Melvin, from the old Bilko show and wasn't he a friend of Archie Bunker too? Yikes! A tall Barney Rubble is a bit scary...

Speaking of Native Americans, I remember reading a book once purporting the theory that many white women kidnapped by them, did not want to return to their repressive white hubbies, and were happier living with their captor men, who gave them more freedom in general and perhaps sexual freedom.

Okay, so "greatest guitar player' might be Django Reinhardt or Jimi Hendrix? Remember, Django was operating under that disability of having fused fingers from the fire...

I've tried to forget about it; how did you do it?

I thought your favorite sports movie was "Son of Flubber", Dargo.

You made a new movie, with "Bang the Drum Soley"! Which is okay because I love that movie, and of course I also even love the song, "Bang the Drum Slowly" which I researched once and it was based on an English folk song about a soldier, who was not shot, but had syphilis, which is why he is "wrapped in white linen" which doesn't sound much like a cowboy song does it? DeNiro gives his most winning performance of all time in that film, since he is so un-DeNiro like. A totally beautiful piece of acting by all in the movie for sure. Thanks for mentioning it, James.

Whoa, whoa, whoa!!! "The Most Dangerous Game" is a "sports" movie? To who, Count Zarkoff? Oops, that should be Count Zaroff! I got my Counts confused.

TB, don't you think "Hoosiers" should be up there and on the list? Also maybe "The Great White Hope" about Jack Johnson.