jarhfive

GarboManiac, A bit of car trivia: Valentino was given an Isotta-Fraschini by Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks, but Valentino died before a first ride. The custom cobra hood ornament on Valentino's Fraschini was replicated for the "Sunset Boulevard" car. Gloria Swanson owned an Isotta-Fraschini and used the thing. However, I don't know if she hired a glowering Teutonic chauffeur. Rusty

Stoneyburke, The Wombat movie is "The Young In Heart" from 1938. No Doris Day. Oops. GarboManiac...I don't know how many "wicker on body panel" cars were made, but another famous rattan paneled auto was Norma Desmond's Isotta Fraschini. I just read that the Isotta Frachini automobile was the most expensive (and prized) foreign built car during the 1920s. Rusty

stoneyburke, Overall length about 18 inches. Estimated weight 40 pounds. Still working on the car...thinking about how to do the wheels and tires (maybe a patina to color the copper(?)...yes, the model is 100 percent copper metal). Isn't "The Flying Wombat" an incredible design?! Rusty

stoneyburke, A few months ago I was looking for some automobile designs to create a model car out of copper metal. The car in the movie "Topper" was at the top of my list of possible templates. I did a little internet investigation. The "Topper" car is a singular vehicle--a modification of a Buick roadster. If you are interested, the following link details a bit about the "Topper" car and the people who created such a wonderful thing (the same folks who created the "Young At Heart" Phantom Corsair): http://www.coachbuilt.com/bui/b/bohman_schwartz/bohman_schwartz.htm BTW: I decided to fabricate a model of the 1933 Pierce-Arrow Silver Arrow...maybe the most valuable production car in the world. And a real beauty. Rusty Message was edited by: jarhfive

path40a, Quote: "Not every leading man could be a virile as James Cagney, Gary Cooper, or Clark Gable (just ask James Craig;-)" Sorry. I misread the name "James Craig" and asked Walter Craig (John Boles). He said your "leading man...virile" statement is correct. Rusty

MattHelm, Yeah...and I'm nostalgic for that Richard Simmons' "Wheedle-A-Meal" deal, uh...commercial. Rusty

Hello, Edward Arnold was one of the best of the "classic Hollywood" character actors, occasionally a terrific lead actor, but never had a serious romantic role. And it **** me off! Well, as much as a 75 year old show biz thing can **** me off. I don't understand why an overweight man, or woman, could not have been cast as a believable romantic lead. I think about John Belushi as the romantic leading man in the movie "Continental Divide" (1981) and how natural the John Belushi-Blair Brown romance story was presented. Too bad the same sort of casting did not happen 50 years earlier. I bet Edward Arnold would have had a few love interest roles and Mr. Arnold would have been great and it would be one less item on my "things to be **** about" list. Rusty

jdb1, Okay, George Brent did not need to resort to blackmail to gain leading man status. What about George Arliss? George Arliss must be the weirdest looking (golden age of Hollywood) leading man. Did I mention Warner Brothers billed him as Mr. George Arliss? I think Mr. George Arliss had some scandalous info on Jack Warner. Oh, I am kidding. I have watched three of his movies--"Disraeli" (1929), "The Man Who Played God" (1932) and "The House of Rothschild" (1934). George Arliss was cast as leading man because of his unique screen persona. I wish his name was included among the great actors of Hollywood. Rusty

jdb1, Quote: "What do you think about it? Are there leading players who should have taken character roles, and vice versa?" jdb1...you ask some really good questions. Yesterday, having watched another movie starring George Brent ("The Man Who Talked Too Much"), I remain convinced Mr. Brent is not a leading man. George Brent-o-****...please don't misunderstand my message. I like George Brent. I think George Brent is a fine actor. I (simply) don't understand the decision to cast Mr. Brent as a leading man in so many 1930's and 1940's movies. I wonder, "did George Brent 'have the goods' on one, or more, of the Warner brothers?". Rusty

Hello, Recently watched a rented DVD of "Night and the City". A wonderful Criterion disk of a very good movie. Richard Widmark plays a small time hustler suddenly on the fast track...to the big time...of professional wrestling...in London! Yeah! Richard Widmark is good in so many roles, but his performance in "Night and the City" is one of Widmark's best. The only drawback to the movie is the stingy screen time for Gene Tierney--Widmark's "fed up with the hustle" girlfriend. Rusty Message was edited by: jarhfive

Hello, I am not going through all the pages of this thread to see if he was mentioned, but if you are talking about THE hunky, "shirt off" guy--Ricardo Montalban. I guess I am not supposed to notice "hunky...Ricardo Montalban". I blame my wife. She goes into another world every time you know who appears on my television screen. Impossible not to notice the object of her, uhm...concentration. Pier Angeli. TCM's recent day of Angeli movies I recorded every one of the crappy things. Why? Because of the engaging Pier Angeli. Rusty

DavidEnglish, Ah, Weltschmerz... "Sweet" is poetic, but seems a bit out of place (considering the occasion for the communication). I choose Sanders' suicide note number one. BTW: Thinking about the subject of world weariness, I remember seeing a photograph of the actress Nico. The "still" was from some Andy Warhol movie. I remember the caption said something like, "Nico is bored". Oh yeah...Nico was bored, jaded, world weary. Must of been a fun movie. At the top of my list of unrelentingly cynical characters (golden age of movies) is Alan Ladd as Phillip Raven in "This Gun for Hire" (1942). Rusty Message was edited by: jarhfive

jdb1, Quote: "Does anyone have any thoughts on my previous posting about characters in un-character-istic roles?" Sidney Greenstreet's uncharacteristic role as nice guy in "Christmas In Connecticut". Sidney Greenstreet laughs a lot in "Christmas In Connecticut". Despite the "nice guy" role, Greenstreet's laugh causes a shiver up my spine and then down my spine. The famous "out of character" casting of W.C. Fields as Mr. Micawber in "David Copperfield (1935). He (Fields) plays Micawber as I would expect W.C. Fields to play Mr. Micawber. BTW: Last night, watched the terrific Jules Dassin crime film--"Night and the City" (1950). An actress named Googie Withers is one of the stars. She does a top notch job in the film as the character--Helen Nosseross. Why do I mention Googie Withers? While watching the credits, I could not help but notice her name...and...well...what a great stage name--"Withers". Rusty

Hello, Jack Gurney, 14th Earl of Gurney (Peter O'Toole) jumps off his cross in "The Ruling Class". Captain Hank Quinlan (Orson Welles) rolls out of his car in "Touch Of Evil". Billy Pilgrim (Michael Sacks) "slogs" through snow drifts in "Slaughterhouse-Five". What makes this scene special (to this viewer) is the accompanying music of Johann Sebastian Bach. Martin Riggs (Mel Gibson) and Roger Murtaugh (Danny Glover) careening car scene (before the credits). One of the "Lethal Weapon" sequels ("Lethal Weapon 2"?). Rusty

Hello, Donald MacBride. From Donald MacBride's IMDB biography: "Best known for his work in slapstick comedy and detective whodunits, character actor Donald MacBride lent his serious, craggy mug and determined professionalism to scores of 30s and 40s crimers." I have wondered the name of the bug-eyed, "craggy" faced detective/ concierge guy for a long time. Yesterday, watched a bit of "Beat The Band" (1947) on TCM. Mr. MacBride was one of the cast members. Finally, I was able to connect the "always ready to explode" guy with a name. A great character actor. Rusty

Hello, I doubt if the movie is mentioned on any "top ten" list, but "Tales Of Terror" (1962) has a wine tasting scene. Peter Lorre and Vincent Price "ham it up" for a few minutes of oenophile fun. Rusty

MattHelm, Quote: "I'd like to share my dakarees with you, Rusty ol' chum, but I'm too possessive of them. So possessive, I'm having contractions (every five minutes or so) just thinking about it." I suffer from dungaree contraction. I am compressed. Rusty

Hello, This topic is becoming interesting...plus, I am craving one of those delicious Louisiana dakarees. Rusty

lzcutter, Quote: "So, my question is How much are you (the universal you meaning everyone) willing to pay per month to keep TCM as part of your pick and choose package?" Ten dollars. Notice my quick reply? I've been busting my buttons (for months) to answer that particular question. I feel better. Rusty

GarboManiac, I'm picking John Barrymore (best Hollywood actor). Last night, I watched a couple of Mr. Barrymore's movies on DVD--"Bulldog Drummond...". Not his best movies and the DVD?...my God, five movies per DVD side! Even through the pixels, John Barrymore's screen persona was tremendous. John Barrymore's Broadway stage work must of been...words fail me...worth the price of admission. Thinking about the subject, Lionel Barrymore's acting job did not fall short of his brother in "Arsine Lupine". What the heck, I still choose John Barrymore. Note that I would never buy a "fifty movies...five DVDs" thing. The DVD set was a gift. Rusty

DavidEnglish, You have written a very good critique of "Exterminating Angel". If you don't mind, I would like to add a couple of things that popped into my mind watching "Exterminating Angel" (my second viewing). First. Bu?uel’s "off beat" humor must be considered watching any of his movies. "Simon Of The Desert" pretty clearly illustrates Bu?uel's comedy. I recommend a viewing, if TCM ever re-broadcasts the thing. Second. The title--"Exterminating Angel". I think it may refer to sleep and dreams (nightmares). I don't know a specific reference for the term "exterminating angel". Maybe, "the exterminating angel of sleep...". Something poetic, I am sure. Third. DavidEnglish...I just looked at your web site and I am impressed by your efforts. Your classicfilmpreview is terrific...you highlight some very good movies. Rusty

GarboManiac, Quote: "...Goodness, let's just talk about who's the prettiest, who was the best actor, who was miscast, stuff like that there!..." Yes, I agree. I want to write a message about MY favorite topic--Errol Flynn. Errol Flynn--he was the man. BTW: GarboManiac...who was the best actor? Rusty

Hello TCM, Today, Tuesday June 20th, I received a "come on" (advertisement) from AOL to my "catch all for crap" e-mail address. I am writing this message because the text of the AOL spam included my TCM forum screen name. I understand TCM "separated" from AOL several months ago...am I correct? Is the AOL spam a "legacy" of the old AOL "screenname" service? TCM isn't selling my forum identity to AOL? Right?? BTW: I simply don't know why AOL would be sending me spam. After all, I am a "triple lifetime member"! NOT. Rusty

CharlieT, Quote: "Yes." Cool. Rusty

Squealing tires on dirt roads. No need to keep a diary. Look at any available newspaper. An "up to the minute" account of what is happening in your life will be printed...often on the front page. Rusty