scsu1975
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Posts posted by scsu1975
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Let's hope TCM does not pan and scan, because we all get the heebie jeebies when that happens.
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(...ya know, I still hold out the hope that SOMEDAY all you Anglophiles will come to see the due propriety inherent in ridding the Language of that superfluous letter 'u' seemingly irrevocably ensconced within those British dictionaries...yep, hope springs eternal, as they say)
I have had two articles published in British journals, and their "style guides" always say to spell words as Americans do; "honor," not "honour" for instance. So I did. And then when the articles came out in print, the editors had changed all the spelling back to the British style.
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Ya know Rich, I DO hear Niagara Falls is pleasant this time of year.
(...come to think of it)
This thread is on its way to derailment.
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It is called the "Slowly I Turn" shot, first used by The Three Stooges, and then perfected by Linda Blair in The Exorcist.
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I Was an FBI for the Communists
Side-splitting comedy, starring Tor Johnson as a bungling Russian spy named James Commie, who is appointed Director of the FBI. Hilarity ensues when Commie can’t remember whether he is supposed to rig the election for Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump. In the hysterical finale, Al Franken and Jill Stein become President and Vice-President, running on, you guessed it … the Franken-Stein ticket. Everybody then smokes dope and forgets about climate change. Kathy Griffin has a cameo as a skid-row derelict.
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Saturday, June 3rd/4th; all times E.S.T.
2:30 a.m. "The Muthers" (1976)--I had to go to imdb for information on this one; there's nothing on tcm. imdb plot summary "A band of female pirates goes undercover at a prison camp on a coffee plantation to rescue their leader's sister." Combination blaxploitation/women-in-prison/martial arts movie that played the drive-in circuit in the mid 70's sounds a "so bad, it's good" candidate.
4:15 a.m. "Cleopatra Jones" (1973)--One of the best blaxploitation movies, starring Tamara Dobson in the title role, and Shelley Winters as Mommy.
TCM is long overdue in showcasing blaxploitation films. At the very least, they should schedule a Pamela Grier night.
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Actually it looks like he is giving the finger to UCLA.
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Most people probably do not realize that before any of film versions of Ben-Hur, there was a stage version, which included the chariot race. Here is a scene involving Esther, Simonides, and Ben-Hur (played by William Farnum). This still is from around 1900. Interesting to see Ben-Hur dressed as a Roman soldier.
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I don't know when the chariot race occurred in Lew Wallace's novel of Ben Hur but, for me, one of the flaws of both the '26 and '59 film versions is that everything that occurs after the race is clearly anti-climactic.
The novel consists of 8 "books." The chariot race occurs in the 5th book.
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This was followed up with Wes Anderson's THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL 2014. The long, convoluted story was told as a flashback, but the story itself is not really the focus, as it is mostly farcical. The Hotel, the time/place/people are the true focus of the story. Told in fairy tale style, the frame composition is often centered in mirror images, the sets are bathed in eccentric light and color combinations and special effects are deftly used to emulate the "mind's eye" of the teller.
This is one of the craziest, but most entertaining films I've ever seen. Going into it, I smelled a bomb, but I came out of it laughing. My favorite line is when Goldblum says of Dafoe, "did he just throw my cat out of the window?" And I say this as a cat lover.
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Growing up in the 60s getting vaccinated was a big deal. I remember kids checking out each others upper arm for the scar the shots would leave (I believe that was a polio shot scar).
Yeah, we got vaccinated in school. I remember one kid fainting while we were lined up. Later on, we had an oral vaccine.
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Groucho is telling Margaret Dumont a story in one of the movies (it might be "The Coconuts," I'm not sure), and Dumont says, "I'm fascinated." Groucho responds, "I'm fascinated, too -- right on the arm." I didn't get it at all until my mother explained that Groucho was punning on the word "vaccinated."
The thing is, it still doesn't completely explain it -- I'm wondering if back in the twenties or thirties "vaccinated on the arm" was a familiar phrase. It's certainly not today. It seems like there must be more to the story. Or is it just not a very good pun?
Anyone here have any info on this? My mother passed away a long time ago, so needless to say I can't ask her!
Thanks.
The quote is from Animal Crackers.
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Elena Verdugo (1925-2017) - Actress Elena Verdugo has died at the age of 92. She made her first film appearance at age 5 in 1931's Cavalier of the West. She appeared in small roles and in B-films for the next two decades, including House of Frankenstein (1944), Little Giant (1946), and Cyrano de Bergerac (1950). She later moved on to TV with much success, guest-starring in multiple series and playing nurse Consuelo Lopez on Marcus Welby MD for 7 years. She received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960.
Sorry to hear this. She was lovely as the gypsy in House of Frankenstein and very cute as Costello's girlfriend in Little Giant. Her ancestors were among the original settlers in what is now Los Angeles. At one time, they owned about 36,000 acres in the area.
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I've always liked this escape from behind the Iron Curtain adventure, even if it is far fetched.
It's amazing, though, to see the difference in character actor Richard Haydn here, though. Film buffs probably best remember him as a comedy eccentric (such as Prof. Oddly in Ball of Fire) or, perhaps, his similar comedy performance when he appeared on The Dick Van Dyke Show. But here he gives a straight dramatic performance and it's difficult to even recognize him as the same actor.
Good point about Haydn. I did not recognize him at all in Forever Amber.
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"The Amazing Transparent Man" (1960)--Starring Marguerite Chapman. Directed by Edgar G. Ulmer.
Here is Chapman, auditioning for a part in It Happened One Night.
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Reisner's ex-wife was famous in her own right. Here she is with some Swedish guy:
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I dunno.
If that IS a sweater, it's a really weird sweater.
Were turtlenecks with a nylon embroidered neck a thing in the 1910's?
Forget the sweater. The real issue is that Reisner was stuck with the horrible nickname "Dinky Dean" when he broke into films. Chaplin gave him that nickname.
In a 1949 interview, Dean expressed some disgust with that nickname, saying "I played sweet and sympathetic parts so long that I never want to see one again." On his work as a heavy in the film The Traveling Saleswoman, he said "the meaner and more menacing the screen role, the better I like it. If the part calls for a cad, a scoundrel and an A-No. 1 stinker, that's me. Instead of 'Dinky Dean,' call me 'Stinky Dean'."
Or maybe hand him a gun and call him "Dirty Dean."
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If we're talking films that disturb, this one tops the list for me. But kudos to these ladies for playing such risky roles!
Cate Blanchett and Judi Dench in Notes on a Scandal
Jeez, Cate has certainly good downhill. On the other hand, Judi looks spectacular!
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Tuesday, May 30th. All times E.S.T.:
1:30 p.m. "The Thing From Another World" (1951)--Final creature feature of the month, and a darned good one.
Is it just me, or does Paul Frees sound like he is dubbing his own voice in each of his films?
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it's possible the screenwriter had that in mind in setting the film there...or was it based on a source novel?
There was a novel entitled "Soiled Henry," but I don't think it had anything to do with a San Francisco cop.
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1. HOLY CATS! Has this kid got a NECK TATTOO?!
Yes. It reads "Do you feel lucky?"
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Wow! Yeah, I'd never seen this picture before. My family definitely has some cool old memorabilia from The Collegians, and it was really neat to learn that he wrote it too. I wonder what his impression of college really was and where he got his ideas from, considering he never went himself...
Here is an interesting tidbit, from the Los Angeles Times, July 28, 1926:
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I think the fascist criticism lobbed towards the film is the fact that Harry Callahan is a law onto himself, and it pretty much portrays civilized society with its rules, regulations and norms as ineffective- and in order to keep everyone safe, we have to have this Uber violent police state.
Hey, wait a minute. Uber drivers are fascists?
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Thanks for sharing stories about Mr. Laemmle. Here is something you might have not seen.
I found this picture of Carl Laemmle, Jr. (upper left photo) from 1926. He was promoting The Collegians on the side of a Whippet, a car which was making a trip from Los Angeles to New York City.
The Collegians was a collection of two-reelers depicting college life. Laemmle was credited with the writing. As a side note, the Whippet covered around 3560 miles, using 82.25 gallons of gas, for a whopping 43.28 mpg!
TCM has started to zoom the picture
in General Discussions
Posted
Yes. Steele was pretty good as Tor, and I believe he may have known him as well. Steele died within the last few months. I think he was previously a high school teacher.