CinemaInternational

Actually, the Satanic panic over Black Cauldron and also the two Care Bears things here reminds me that Disney did go into that territory with 1981's little seen the Devil and Max Devlin, a little seen take on the Faust tale with Elliott Gould as Max and Bill Cosby as the devil. [You could also argue that 1993's Hocus Pocus went there too with its over-the-top, soul-sucking, wisecracking, hex-making witches]

It goes without saying that the film for which Blondell received her only Oscar nomination, The Blue Veil (1951), will not be playing (its caught up in entanglements)... but just the other day, a movie catalog came showing that they are selling a region-free import [read as DVD than can be played anywhere in the world] of the film from Australia, meaning that even if it can't be seen on TCM, it can be found..... https://www.moviesunlimited.com/the-blue-veil/9317486003151

Premieres: Career Girls (1997) Git (1965) Something Different (1963) The Return of the Pink Panther (1975) Countryman (1982) The Panic in Needle Park (1971) Beauty's Worth (1922) The Woman Who Wouldn't Die (1964) Made in USA (1987) Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence (1983) Satanis, The Devil's Mass (1970) Repeat Performance (1947)

One who i feel never really had her due was Paula Prentiss. She had a few notable parts in the 70s (Stepford Wives and Parallax View, a risque cameo in Catch-22), but as talented as she was, she never was able to get the career she deserved.

Yes, it aired on TCM within the last year or so on the late shift.... That's right. It was Glass Bottom Boat. A lot of actresses did indeed get stuck in that rut. Her Pleasure Seekers co-star Ann-Margret and Jane Fonda were pretty much the only ones to emerge from that, and in both cases it was because of gritty parts in C*a*r*n*a*l Knowledge and They Shoot Horses Don't They....

I remember there was talk years ago that they wanted Sandra Bullock was wanted to play Grace, but given that they look nothing alike other than the dark hair, it would require an Academy-award level makeup job......

I found out a while ago, and I don't remember where i first heard about it, but the Wikipedia article does give a good idea about it all.

The academy lineup was two from Fame (title song and "Out Here on My Own"), the title track from Nine to Five, "On the Road Again" from Honeysuckle Rose and "People Alone" from The Competition (which was an odd touch having a discoish song at the end of a film about classical piano playing) Left out: The whole soundtrack of Xanadu, Blondie's thumping "Call Me" from American Gigolo, the rest of the Fame songs, Diana Ross's "It's My Turn" from the film of the same name, Kenny Loggins' "I'm Alright" from Caddyshack, and Donna Summer's "On the Radio" from Foxes. Some of the Popeye songs were fun too. if I'd have to make a top 5 (gulp. Daunting task.).... "Magic"/Xanadu "Nine to Five"/Nine to Five "Out Here on My Own"/Fame "Suspended in Time"/Xanadu "Whenever I'm Away from You"/Xanadu I'd need some time to decide which one to pick ultimately. Re: 1979 Oscar race for song. I think the whole momentum of that race was changed when it was revealed that "The Rose" was not originally written for that film (not that is stopped the academy from nominating "Do You Know Where You're Going To" and "Maniac"). On another website, someone once shared the Preliminary Oscar shortlists for the technical categories that they did between 1964 and 1979. (they started doing it again this past year, which might have explained a few surprise nominations) That year's song race and the 5 that came closest to being included....

Xanadu (1980) -- Source: Showtime So, um, yes, this one. Curiosity let me go for it. The soundtrack is for the most part surprisingly great. I knew of "Magic" and "Xanadu", but "Whenever You're Away from Me", "Suddenly", "Don't Walk Away", "All Over the World" and "Suspended in Time" are smashingly effective as well. Olivia Newton-John is likable and melodious and Gene Kelly is a welcome sight as ever. They both play a bit of a back seat to Michael Beck. And the storyline, while obviously fantasy, is quite charming, like a late 1940s film. However, the drawbacks are that the whole roller disco theme was dated right at the film's release, and the ultimate (long) disco scene at the end is very hokey looking. The best scene comes early (the Kelly/Newton-John song and dance scene which is very nostalgic and left me with a big smile). A few production numbers can cause winces. The film is better when it doesn't have flashing lights and goofy Disco dancers, and yet, the film has something about it that makes it likable and that helps get it over its rough patches. A guilty pleasure type.

Seen: 52 films Picture 1. Running on Empty 2. My Neighbor Totoro 3. Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown 4. Madame Sousatzka 5. Married to the Mob 6. Zelly and Me 7. A Cry in the Dark 8. Cinema Paradiso 9. Another Woman 10. The Accidental Tourist Actor 1. River Phoenix/Running on Empty 2. Leslie Nielsen/The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! 3. Edward James Olmos/Stand and Deliver 4. Sean Bean/Stormy Monday 5. William Hurt/The Accidental Tourist 6. Gene Hackman/Mississippi Burning 7. Jeff Bridges/Tucker: The Man and His Dream 8. Bruce Willis/Die Hard 9. Bob Hoskins/Who Framed Roger Rabbit? 10. Don Ameche/Things Change Actress 1. Shirley MacLaine/Madame Sousatzka 2. Gena Rowlands/Another Woman 3. Meryl Streep/A Cry in the Dark 4. Glenn Close/Dangerous Liaisons 5. Christine Lahti/Running on Empty 6. Carmen Maura/Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown 7. Melanie Griffith/Stormy Monday 8. Isabelle Adjani/Camille Claudel 9. Isabella Rossellini/Zelly and Me 10. Jodie Foster/The Accused Supporting Actor 1. Alan Rickman/Die Hard 2. Geoffrey Bayldon/Madame Sousatzka 3. Martin Landau/Tucker: the Man and His Dream 4. Raul Julia/Moon Over Parador 5. John Goodman/Everybody's All-American 6. Divine/Hairspray 7. Dean Stockwell/Married to the Mob 8. David Lynch/Zelly and Me 9. Steven Hill/Running on Empty 10. Burt Lancaster/Rocket Gibraltar Supporting Actress 1. Mercedes Ruehl/Married to the Mob 2. Twiggy/Madame Sousatzka 3. Sandy Dennis/Another Woman 4. Sylvia Miles/Crossing Delancey 5. Amy Wright/The Accidental Tourist 6. Geena Davis/The Accidental Tourist 7. Joan Cusack/Working Girl 8. Frances McDormand/Mississippi Burning 9. Peggy Ashcroft/Madame Sousatzka 10. Glynis Johns/Zelly and Me Juvenile Performance 1. Navin Chowdhry/Madame Sousatzka 2. Alexandra Johnes/Zelly and Me 3. Jodhi May/A World Apart 4. Annabeth Gish/Mystic Pizza 5. Salvatore Cascio/Cinema Paradiso 6. Jared Rushton/Big 7. Macauley Culkin/Rocket Gibraltar 8. Winona Ryder/Beetlejuice 9. Mayim Bialik/Beaches 10. Neil Patrick Harris/Clara's Heart Ensemble 1. Madame Sousatzka 2. Running on Empty 3. Married to the Mob 4. The Accidental Tourist 5. Zelly and Me 6. Stand and Deliver 7. Dangerous Liaisons 8. Beetlejuice 9. Another Woman 10. Stormy Monday Directing 1. Sidney Lumet/Running on Empty 2. John Schlesinger/Madame Sousatzka 3. Fred Schepisi/A Cry in the Dark 4. Jonathan Demme/Married to the Mob 5. Tina Rathborne/Zelly and Me 6. Pedro Almodovar/Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown 7. Woody Allen/Another Woman 8. Lawrence Kasdan/The Accidental Tourist 9. Francis Ford Coppola/Tucker: The Man and His Dream 10. Mike Figgis/Stormy Monday Foreign Film 1. My Neighbor Totoro 2. Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown 3. Cinema Paradiso 4. Camille Claudel 5. Grave of the Fireflies Animated Film 1. My Neighbor Totoro 2. Grave of the Fireflies 3. Oliver and Company 4. The Land Before Time Original Screenplay 1. Running on Empty 2. Married to the Mob 3. Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown 4. Another Woman 5. Zelly and Me 6. Coming to America 7. Working Girl 8. Rain Man 9. Die hard 10. My Neighbor Totoro Adapted Screenplay 1. Madame Sousatzka 2. The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! 3. The Accidental Tourist 4. A Cry in the Dark 5.Crossing Delancey 6. Who Framed Roger Rabbit? 7. Biloxi Blues 8. The Adventures of Baron Munchausen 9.Gorillas in the Mist 10. Dangerous Liaisons Cinematography 1. Stormy Monday 2. Gorillas in the Mist 3. Tucker: The Man and His Dream 4. The Milagro Beanfield War 5. The Adventures of Baron Munchausen 6. Madame Sousatzka 7. Zelly and Me 8. Masquerade 9. Biloxi Blues 10. Funny Farm Art Direction 1. Tucker: The Man and His Dream 2. Dangerous Liaisons 3. The Adventures of Baron Munchausen 4. Who Framed Roger Rabbit? 5. Beetlejuice 6. Camille Claudel 7. The Moderns 8. Cinema Paradiso 9. Die Hard 10. Scrooged Costume Design 1. Dangerous Liaisons 2. The Adventures of Baron Munchausen 3. Tucker: The Man and His Dream 4. The Moderns 5. Everybody's All American 6. Moon Over Parador 7. Who Framed Roger Rabbit? 8. Coming to America 9. Beetlejuice 10. Big Business Score 1. Madame Sousatzka 2. Stormy Monday 3. The Accidental Tourist 4. My Neighbor Totoro 5. Rain Man 6. Cinema Paradiso 7. A World Apart 8. Zelly and Me 9. Masquerade 10. Die Hard Song 1. "This Woman's Work"/She's Having a Baby 2. "Calling You"/Bagdad Cafe 3. "Let the River Run"/Working Girl 4. "Two Hearts"/Buster 5. "Why Should I Worry"/Oliver and Company 6. "Stand and Deliver"/Stand and Deliver 7. Seen films not nominated: A Fish Called Wanda, Heathers, The New Adventures of Pippi Longstocking, Bull Durham

Yeah, the Pet Shop Boys/Dusty Springfield number is one of the year's best, if not the best. It's delightful.

Hehe, I admit i like that song (unpopular opinion). Maybe i should have also posted the 1988 song What Have I Done to Deserve This as the other nominees reaction to losing that night at the grammys.....

So, yes, I decided to go through with the alternate Oscar idea after some thought. I randomized all the years from 1927-2008 (at least 11 years vantage point), and 1988 turns out to be the first year via randomization (1944 and 1999 are next in line). Remember, this whole series will be about your personal picks, not the academy's. You can vote in as many or in as few categories as you want in top 5s or top 10s. Probably unnecessary to say, but in all categories aside from Best Song (which can be judged on its own terms and are sometimes separate from the film) you must have seen the films you mention. Here (arranged by popularity) are films released in 1988, courtesy of IMDb to jog your mind if you need help. https://www.imdb.com/search/title/?title_type=feature&release_date=1988-01-01,1988-12-31&view=simple&count=250 https://www.imdb.com/search/title/?title_type=feature&release_date=1988-01-01,1988-12-31&view=simple&count=250&start=251&ref_=adv_nxt So lets see what the Oscar categories were in 1988. It's also allowed to include categories that the Oscars don't such as ensemble cast, Juvenile Performance (like in Bogie's venerable and beloved thread over in Your Favorites), or anything else that strikes you as important. (You could even do worst film as well, if you want to) Now its up to you. Go wild with your picks, and don't let is stand in your way! Recap will be held to see if there is a consensus lineup....

There was another 1967 film which came with that fictitious person disclaimer: Valley of the Dolls. that despite the fact that in certain circles it was a bit of a parlor game trying to find out who the characters were based on, given that it was widely assumed that Jacqueline Susann based her characters on real-life big names. Also, if I remember correctly, the DVD of the 1985 James Bond film A View to a Kill opens with a disclaimer that the villain Max Zorin (Christopher Walken) or his company is not based on anyone or any company existant. For which i think we can breathe a big sigh of relief, because nobody wants a neo-Nazi sociopath who ploys to drown Silicon Valley and machine gun and/or drown all of his associates so there aren't any witnesses to his treachery.

I'd say Rhoda played a pretty big role in this one and had some of her best lines in it.... "I wonder if shy people shop here" (said while holding up a sheer, see-through pair of pants) "12 years ago, I was sitting at a party like this, drinking wine out of a paper cup like this. You've come a long way baby" (over snow angels which Mary tried to justify by saying "Come on they did it in Love Story!") "great. Maybe somebody will mistake me for Ali Macgraw: Terminal but Cute." "If the wine has a cute name, he's under 30." (over Peter Strauss's age) Reads the label aloud "Granny's Apple Pizazz"

Maybe then, that way, Angela Lansbury could have finally won for Murder She Wrote.....

Just for a little taste of reality, music videos for the 4 songs that Don't Worry Be Happy beat out for the top prize of Song of the year in 1988..... I feel that when Don't Worry be Happy won that prize, the other n ominees should have started belting out an a capella version of this other 1988 hit.....

New Artist has sometimes worked for some, although its pretty apparent that more of the famous ones that won the prize were in earlier decades. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grammy_Award_for_Best_New_Artist

I still sometimes wonder about that system. A few years ago, after that miniseries Feud about Bette and Joan was over, it was revealed that Jessica Lange was put up for the Oscars of 1962 episode. Admitedyl, that was a big episode, but if anybody should have been placed up for that episode it was Judy Davis (who was indeed). Jessica should have been up for the last episode, which was one of her best performances.

The Grammy I can't fathom is "Don't Worry Be Happy" winning for song of the year in 1988. Seriously?!?!

I've read a book on the making of the Mary Tyler Moore Show, the time it was on the air, and the aftereffects on cast and crew. CBS seemingly had a few rules in 1970: a show musn't be about a divorcee, musn't be set in New York, and musn't be completely about a Jewish character (which is highly anti-Semetic). Rhoda broke all those rules just a few years later on the same network......

i think with Mary Tyler Moore, it appears more wholesome in retrospect, within a few years racier sitcoms were coming in the form of Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman and Soap, plus others after that that were more provocative, first on the networks, and especially on cable channels like FX and HBO, where they are usually studded with language, and (on HBO at least) nudity. In today's world, even those other two 70s ones are considered tame. I was thrown for a loop when the DVDs of Hartman said "Not Rated. Appropriate for all ages", a pretty shocking statement when the show included over time a flasher, a house of prostitution, affairs, insatiability, a nervous breakdown, massacres,spousal abuse, diseases of an intimate sort, bizarre freak demises, and waxy yellow buildup on the kitchen floor among other such sundry topics.

Candice was on a bit of a run there for a while. 5 Emmys for the first 7 years of Murphy Brown (which she was very good in). After that, to give others a chance, she asked her name to be removed from the ballot.....And then Helen Hunt won 4 years in a row for Mad About You. Candice did have the record for most Emmys for anybody in a single role until Julia Louis-Dreyfuss won 6 in a row for Veep on HBO. If Ms. Louis-Dreyfuss wins the category again this year (she most likely will), she will set the most Emmys record, taking the title away from Cloris Leachman.

I'll give the best designation to Catch-22. You can tell which one is the worst.

Not due until next year, but an early 80s Western is making its home entertainment debut in 2020. It's Cattle Annie and Little Britches (1981), of interest perhaps for its cast: Amanda Plummer, Diane Lane, Burt Lancaster, Rod Steiger, Scott Glenn, and John Savage. Upon its release, Pauline Kael raved that Burt Lancaster's performance was among his best and that Amanda Plummer (her debut) gave an extraordinary performance that riveled memories of Katharine Hepburn. Strangely never put on video or laserdisc, it will arrive on DVD and Blu-Ray