Princess of Tap

Yes it's Hitchcock - -. This actress was in one of his movies and did this on the set. It wasn't in the movie; it was something the actress did as a joke.

When I saw Woody Allen's Play It Again Sam in the 1970s, I had never seen Casablanca. I was mesmerized by the whole thing. A couple years later I was able to see Casablanca at a Revival theater in the city. It was even better than Woody Allen's movie and for the first time I realized what people had been talking about for decades. Even though I'd heard these phrases for years, none of it seemed clichéd to me because I had never seen the cinema. Having lived in Paris, I was amazed at how they managed to make it so realistic --shooting the actors on the Sound Stage but using real newsreel footage of Paris. The other thing that fascinated me was the international cast of character actors. At that time I didn't know the names of all those people, although I had seen their faces. It was the beginning for me to really learn who the character actors were. And those were some of the best.

William Holden's drinking was out of control at this point. And I think it had a lot to do with his feeling of guilt due to a vehicular manslaughter that he was responsible for-- Driving while drunk.

Sounds a little bit like my teenage crush-- Troy Donahue in Parrish?

Brian Wilson wrote one of his instrumentals on Pet Sounds as an audition number for a movie theme. Can you give us the name of the movie and which instrumental we're talking about?

5) Broderick Crawford won the Oscar for best actor for All the King's Men.

Alan Ladd next: A Dizzy Dame

This actress heard about a director's pejorative statement about actors. So she did something about it - - she decided to illustrate it on the set. Can you please give us the name of the actress, the director, and the film that was being shot? Also, please describe the action that took place.

Montgomery Clift Next: an animal lover

William Powell

Marty Short, I must say-- next: Eddie Murphy or Chris Rock

Peter Sellers Next: The Girl Next Door

3) Doris Day's first hit record was Sentimental Journey when she was with the Les Brown band of renown.

Natalie Wood

Paul Newman Pizza is the only Pizza I eat. It's healthy and it's cheap.

Then can we say Carole Lombard is the Actress of 1936 - - with My Man Godfrey, The Princess Comes Across, and Love before Breakfast. Now I'm so excited I'm carried away - - Plus Carole is the all-time Queen of the Screwball-- in addition to the 1936 offerings we have: Nothing Sacred, 20th Century, True Confession and Hitchcock's one screwball as a present to Carole, Mr. & Mrs. Smith.

GPF-- 1936--this is about my favorite year. And you have just about all my favorite actors and movie stars and some were actually both - - Leslie Howard Spencer Tracy William Powell Clark Gable Fred Astaire Charles Laughton Gary Cooper Robert Young James Stewart Randolph Scott Melvyn Douglas Melvyn Douglas is such a solid leading man in romantic comedies as well as dramas, I'm sorry that he often gets overlooked. Thanks for including him.

And this woman was phenomenal; she actually came to the Pepsi Cola bottling Factory in my small Midwestern City to open it. People talked about it for years! Whatever else you want to say about her - - the woman was a star!

Tom-- I read all about American Madness in Frank Capra's autobiography years ago and I've seen it in many documentaries concerning the director. I would compare it to Cukor's What Price Hollywood--what he was going to achieve --in the 2 A Star is Born. What Price Hollywood and American Madness are the precursors to these series. I was going to do something on cinematographers separately but I might as well finish it here. Victor Milner in the General Dies at Dawn really hit the target as well as those other two that I mentioned in the previous posting. The night scenes are just unbelievable in these movies. That's what's so exciting about black-and-white cinematography. James Wong Howe set the standard for the Thin Man series. And in 1936 with After the Thin Man, Oliver T Marsh carried the standard magnificently. The most important part of the plot takes place outdoors when Elissa Landi's husband is murdered. Wow, what a scene!

2 things have come up today that I have to notice because they're rather important to me-- there's been a great deal of popularity for Frank Capra's It's a Wonderful Life. Apart from Casablanca it may be the only classic film that many people know. The basic sentiment of that film, of all Frank Capra's film in my opinion started with Mr.Deeds Goes to Town. People said Hitchcock made the same film over and over again until it was perfect. Well Capra was no different. Mr. Deeds Is the template which meant it was the most difficult film to create because it came first--the others-- mr. Smith, Meet John Doe, Wonderful Life excetera are just embellishments on mr. Deeds--and part of a series. It's the basic argument about our own Society. The Love of Money vs. The love of people or greed vs. What's doing the right and the decent thing. It sounds very simplistic, but it's very difficult to represent on screen and to project on screen. What made Gary Cooper a great movie star was that he is a minimalist. Cinema picks up what the stage misses. Some people in terms of their face, their body, their ability to project or their limited ability to project or speak expansively is what's needed in cinema and not the stage. I've had this argument with many people about Gary Cooper over the years, but he simply has some unknown quality that works in Cinema. Before I finish I have to say something about Joseph Walker. Walker was the cinematographer for Mr. Deeds. He also did Mr Smith, It's A Wonderful life, you can't take it with you, It Happened One Night-- they said he was Capra's favorite. The black and white beauty of Walker's night scenes in Mr. Deeds have only been equaled by James Wong Howe or Ted Tetzlaff. It's absolutely the height of what could be achieved black and white Cinema in the 1930's. The cinematography is part of what makes this film so beautiful. The Depression era was rife with people wanting to get rich quick, simple people in humiliating pain, people struggling to get by. This film is really a film of its time and place. And the actor came along just at the right time and the right place--he became for many in America, the Depression Everyman. I think you have to know little bit or even to understand a little about the common quality of American culture and American society within the context of American history in general at the time to truly appreciate how great Gary Cooper is in this movie. But this movie, and so many of Capra's movies are so popular all over the world that I just think that they also have a universal message for everyone.

1936 Movies-- Not Award Winners but too good to miss The following films are good examples of their genre for 1936 - - but they just happen to be some of my personal favorites that I wholeheartedly recommend for your viewing pleasure. Poor Little Rich Girl-- Irving Cummings-- 20th Century Fox-- Musical **Best Juvenile Performance of 1936 - - Shirley Temple A musical that is a drama with comedic edges that shows the range of Shirley Temple when the cuteness is held in control. Dracula's Daughter-- Lambert Hillyer-- Universal-- Horror Gloria Holden's take on the female vampire is unique and unforgettable but unfortunately was considered to be controversial and did not become a fixture at Universal. The Charge of the Light Brigade-- Michael Curtiz--Warner Brothers-- Adventure/War/Period Piece No Gunga Din here, but who could resist Errol Flynn and his cinematic brother Patrick Knowles fighting over Olivia de Havilland from India to the Crimea? Love before Breakfast-- Walter Lang - - Paramount - - Srewball And I can say Carole Lombard was the actress of 1936. This romantic comedy is as good as anything she ever did. It's a perfect example of how she can control a movie. Nothing over the top absolutely entertaining. With Cesar "Butch" Romero playing her farcical fiance in one of his best roles. This movie is what the thirties is all about for me. **Most Auspicious Debut - - Judy Garland singing her heart out at the finale of Pigskin Parade. She didn't just stop the show she was the the music part of the show. Patsy Kelly, Patsy Kelly-- I just like to say her name, she really carried the rest of the show. ?? Most inauspicious New Leading Man-- John Gielgud in Secret Agent Have to say that everybody in this movie had sterling performances but Gielgud, who later became the Hamlet of his generation and a great Screen Actor. However,with this movie he wasn't quite there yet. ** Itsy Bitsy Actress Award of 1936 goes to Mayo Methot in Mr. Deeds Goes to Town ( I've been looking around for years to find something positive to say about this woman. She had a hard life.) ** Itsy Bitsy Actor Award of 1936 goes to a fan favorite Franklin "Pangy" Pangborn in My Man Godfrey. An actor who never disappoints. ** The Acting Award to a Nonhuman of 1936 goes to Asta in After the Thin Man, a fine actor who steals every scene that he is in.

Hint-- dancer did a role on Broadway dancing and repeated that role in the movie version of the musical.

" scuse me while I kiss the sky." Jimi Hendrix - - Purple Haze

Richard Widmark's daughter was married to Los Angeles Dodgers Hall of Fame pitcher Sandy Koufax.

This dance assistant worked for several famous choreographers in the movies, danced on Broadway and was featured dancing in several films before going out and becoming a choreographer. When you name this dance professional, please also identify the two famous movie choreographers that the artist assisted as well some of the movies associated with this person.