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*"So what's your list of Sturges films look like? I'm curious to know your order of preference."* - FrankGrimes Well, its not as if the Sturges canon is that large. (What a terrible joke to play on some one - "List your Top Ten Preston Sturges films." It's kinda like a snipe hunt.) Anyway, there is *Hail The Conquering Hero* at the top and *The Palm Beach Story* afterwards. Put *Christmas In July* and *The Great Moment* at the bottom and let the remainders just sit in a pile between the top and bottom. (No one considers *Diddlebock* worth talking about, do they?) Now I have to go find MrHoneywell. Though why he wants to play Hopscotch in the Boston Garden is beyond me. Kyle In Hollywood -------------------------- "Oohh, I bought a goat and his name was Jack. But he got homesick so I had to give him ba-a-a-ack" *F.McGee.*

Friday, September 5^th^

*"Of those who have opined on Sturges on this board I think most list "The Palm Beach Story", "Sullivan's Travels", or "The Miracle of Morgan's Creek" as their favorite. I'm hoping Kyle chimes in on this one."* - FrankGrimes "What's your name, civilian?" "Woodrow LaFayette Pershing Truesmith. Go ahead and laugh." "That ain't anything to laugh at to anyone that knows anything." I have to admit, my ears peaked (or is it "piqued"?) when, during his "Under The Influence" interview, Quentin Tarantino mentioned *Hail The Conquering Hero* as his favorite Preston Sturges film. I thought I was the only one. The above quote is one of the reasons why. Our reluctant hero's name is funny and we do laugh. Sturges expects us to laugh. But then we are quickly shamed into having found something humorous in the names of real American heroes - even when Sturges has attached the names to our 4-F hero Eddie Bracken. (Who is so much more pleasing this time around than he was as the manic Norville "The Spots!" Jones of *... Morgan's Creek*.) There are moments of high hilarity and moments of quiet poetry in *Hail The Conquering Hero*. I love the scene with the bar/restaurant manager who has magician's coat full of war souvenirs that he has accepted in lieu of payment from servicemen on leave. It is perfect - and almost tops the introduction of "The Weenie King" in *The Palm Beach Story*. Yet, with smiles still on our faces, Eddie Bracken then solemnly recites the name every battle that the Marines have ever fought in a manner that almost comes out as Free Verse. Make me laugh and then roust my pride in country and I am smitten. Like all Sturges films, he is a master of the long take (and the dolly shot). The scene at the bar when Woodrow and his future protectors first meet lasts FIVE minutes before there is an edit. Five Minutes! And that includes the speech on the Marine battles. It is so refreshing to watch a film where the dialogue sets the pace of the film - and a scene isn't broken up with unnecessary edits and cutaways. It shows a respect and confidence in his actors and the characters he has created for them. Plus, Sturges also respects the intelligence of his audience to look at what he has put on the screen and "see" what he wants us to see. He can show six Marines - walking in cadence - united in a sense of purpose - with a stumbling Woodrow being pushed along in the middle of these legs. He shows us only their legs and feet. There are no faces. No twisting of arms. No superfluous dialogue. Just some visual "business" to engage one's brain and let the viewer fill-in what he/she can't see going on above those knees. That's so special in a day when every punchline and double-take is telegraphed in advance by directors raised on television. ( "Let me zoom in here because there's a joke coming. Gotta tell the audience to get ready to laugh." ) This film covers "patriotism" and "compatriot-ism" (if there is such a word), the intersection of duty with responsiblity and how those fighting for their "Motherland" were doomed to fail against an army fighting for their land of mothers. "I knew the Marines could do almost anything but I never knew they could do something like this." "You've got no idea." And until one sees *Hail The Conquering Hero*, one won't have any idea what I've been writing about. But I hope I've given everyone a reason to check it out. Kyle In Hollywood -------------------------- "Oohh, I bought a goat and his name was Jack. But he got homesick so I had to give him ba-a-a-ack" *F.McGee.*

*"LOL. However, my inviolate rule this time is that 6 AM starting time must be met..."* Get 'filmlover'. The "Little General"! Gee, you'd even bounce 'tcmprogrammr' from your Challenge. 4 Thursday September *2:00 AM* I Loved A Woman (1933) A Chicago meat-packer tries to keep a rein on his social-climbing wife. Cast: Edward G. Robinson, Kay Francis, Genevieve Tobin. Dir: Alfred E. Green. BW-91 mins, TV-G, CC 5 Friday September *3:32 AM* Short Film: Barber Shop Blues (1933) *3:45 AM* Living On Velvet (1935) A guilt-ridden pilot finds a new outlook on life when he falls for a society girl. Cast: Kay Francis, George Brent, Warren William. Dir: Frank Borzage. BW-76 mins, TV-G Kyle In Hollywood -------------------------- "Oohh, I bought a goat and his name was Jack. But he got homesick so I had to give him ba-a-a-ack" *F.McGee.*

*"If my scheduled week is after one of those dates can I mark the movie as p/s?"* -ILRM "The answer had better be yes, because I've done it in the past!" - ydobon And so have I. I have also started days at 3:15am, 3:30am & even 4:00am (All PST) because I have seen TCM do it. The most inviolate rule that I have seen on TCM is "primetime" starts at 8pm/5pm every night. (And I have seen films overlap into the next hour by one or two minutes while a film still is scheduled to start at the top of that same hour. It happens rarely, but it happens.) Kyle In Hollywood -------------------------- "Oohh, I bought a goat and his name was Jack. But he got homesick so I had to give him ba-a-a-ack" *F.McGee.*

Thursday, September 4^th^ Message was edited by: hlywdkjk because the original image lost crispness in compression

"It's not the coffee. It's the bunk." Preston Sturges' *Christmas In July* Kyle In Hollywood -------------------------- "Oohh, I bought a goat and his name was Jack. But he got homesick so I had to give him ba-a-a-ack" *F.McGee.*

Wednesday, September 3^rd^ "American Politics in the Movies" all month on TCM.

*" my favorite Coen film, which actually is saying a lot. Blood Simple, Fargo, and Barton Fink are my next favorites."* - FrankGrimes No "Turn to the left." ? No "Ya know? For the kids!" ? Tsk. Tsk. Tsk. Kyle In Hollywood -------------------------- "Oohh, I bought a goat and his name was Jack. But he got homesick so I had to give him ba-a-a-ack" *F.McGee.*

filmlover - Just re--read your original post and want to ask - As in the past, are we able to schedule _any_ film for the weekly "Silent" / "Imports" / "Underground" Showcases - regardless of whether they have been previously seen on TCM - without counting the film as a "premiere"? Thanks. Kyle In Hollywood -------------------------- "Oohh, I bought a goat and his name was Jack. But he got homesick so I had to give him ba-a-a-ack" *F.McGee.*

*"A wise man once told me (Kyle) that if you look in the TCM database and there is an article on the film then it has almost surely been shown."* - movieman1957 Aw, shucks. It's nothing any red-blooded American Boy wouldn't have done. ILRM - 'movieman1957' is right. One of the best ways to discover if a film has been shown on TCM is to perform a search on the particular title in the TCMDatabase. On the left side of the page, there is a list of related links with other sources of information on the title. One of the listings is for "Articles". If the link for "articles" is in bold (i.e. - *Articles* ), it means there is an article on the TCM website that accompanied the TCM presentation of that film. For example see here - http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title.jsp?stid=81891 And, as to the definition of "premiere", you can choose any film from the "libraries" listed in 'filmlover's original post (Any RKO film, Any Columbia film, Any Goldwyn film, etc.) and use them freely and not count the film as a "premiere". Films from Paramount, Fox, etc. that have _not_ been shown on TCM previously must count toward the total of eleven premieres for the week. So you can schedule *Love Story* without calling it a "premiere" http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/title.jsp?stid=4689 but *Oliver's Story* would have to be listed as a "premiere" http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title.jsp?stid=85536 And if you ever have any questions about certain films, just ask in here and someone may be able to find an answer for you. (Some of us have a bunch of old schedules to use for reference.) Kyle In Hollywood -------------------------- "Oohh, I bought a goat and his name was Jack. But he got homesick so I had to give him ba-a-a-ack" *F.McGee.* Message was edited by: hlywdkjk

"My name is Robert Osborne and I am a fan of TCM." At least, that is what I think he says at the very end of his new promo spot. Yes, I caught the new RO promo last evening. It seems more "arty" than what I remember the promo from Ben Mankiewicz being. But still an interesting - and flattering - piece for regular watchers of TCM. It is nice to hear that TCM doesn't take their audience for granted - from the faces of TCM, no less. Kyle ("Stella Artois, Anyone?") In Hollywood -------------------------- "Oohh, I bought a goat and his name was Jack. But he got homesick so I had to give him ba-a-a-ack" *F.McGee.*

Gosh. I thought I'd check in here and read what everyone thought about *The Wedding Night* which TCM showed last night. Didn't anyone catch it? It's a movie I know nothing about. Kyle In Hollywood -------------------------- "Oohh, I bought a goat and his name was Jack. But he got homesick so I had to give him ba-a-a-ack" *F.McGee.*

*"the latest weird thing that gmail has associated with your emails-something called an Eggbaby."* - Mlle. Minya I wonder if it is because I have been using GoogleNews to read up on all the "latest" about a certain "baby" in the news? (I just Googled "Egg Baby". It is a line of baby clothing. And also a term describing certain simulated pregnancy/parenthood projects used in High Schools using an "egg" or a sack of flour.) *"EEEEEEEEEEeeeeeee! Kyle, you just made my morning!!!"* After a month-long hiatus from "fan favorites", I thought it best to post to some popular images this week. Kyle In Hollywood -------------------------- "Oohh, I bought a goat and his name was Jack. But he got homesick so I had to give him ba-a-a-ack" *F.McGee.*

Tuesday, September 2^nd^ Source: IMPA *Touch Of Evil* - part of today's celebration of the Telluride Film Festival on TCM.

Hi 'RainingViolets101', I don't think I do have a poster for any of the films June Haver made. But I'll keep an eye open for one just for you. Kyle In Hollywood -------------------------- "Oohh, I bought a goat and his name was Jack. But he got homesick so I had to give him ba-a-a-ack" *F.McGee.*

*"TCM is so obsessed with packaging their offerings thematically I find it surprising that Labor Day isn't addressed today."* - Stephen444 As you have found out tonight, if you have been watching, every year Labor Day is set aside to celebrate the Telluride Film Festival on TCM. The actual Festival in Telluride occurs every year during the Labor Day weekend and TCM is a major sponsor/participant in the festival. Telluride Day is often one of the most interesting days of programming during the entire year. And tonight lives up to that history with three films being premiered on TCM - *Millions Like Us* , *Big Deal On Madonna Street* and *Sophie's Choice*. What _was_ different this year was TCM setting aside the daytime hours to bring in Steven Bochco to co-host with Robert Osborne and present some exceptional courtroom dramas - along with some promotion (and a recommendation from RO) of the new TNT series "Raising The Bar". "Sorry Steven. I'll be watching Buster Keaton. But it was a nice try anyway." Kyle In Hollywood -------------------------- "Oohh, I bought a goat and his name was Jack. But he got homesick so I had to give him ba-a-a-ack" *F.McGee.*

*"I have always wanted to do a salute to Preston Sturges, have any films directed by him been aired on TCM before?"* -Kubrickbuff Yes - including *The Great McGinty* which is being shown this month (September 24^th^). In fact, I think the only Sturges film that has _not_ been shown on TCM is *Unfaithfully Yours*. Kyle In Hollywood -------------------------- "Oohh, I bought a goat and his name was Jack. But he got homesick so I had to give him ba-a-a-ack" *F.McGee.*

I see 'filmlover' isn't "sleeping in" on the holiday. I wasn't expecting this to be posted so early in the day. Thanks for "eleven" premieres. That pretty much matches the number of premieres that appear on TCM each month. (Gad. How did we ever do this with just "two" premieres? Ahh. The "good old days".) Hopefully I won't procrastinate too long and run out of time this go 'round. Kyle In Hollywood -------------------------- "Oohh, I bought a goat and his name was Jack. But he got homesick so I had to give him ba-a-a-ack" *F.McGee.*

jaxbratcm - Welcome to TCM City. And you haven't breeched any protocol with your post. Nothing immediately comes to mind from your brief description of the film - at least to my mind. But I am far from the most literate film-watcher in TCM City. Can you offer up any more details about the film? One thing I wanted to comfirm is that the "movie" is "feature-length" and not a film short. "How to be a Housewife" almost sounds like it would be a Robert Benchley short. Or a Joe McDoaks short. Hopefully someone more familiar with WWII-era films will find something familiar in your description and have an answer for you. Kyle In Hollywood

Monday, September 1^st^ (After 31 Days of "Stars" on TCM in August, I thought a "Moon" would be nice on September 1.)

*"Kyle, I haven't seen the Ben one yet, but I just saw a nice, short one with Robert O."* - cinemafan That's cool. Sounds like there are a pair of these promos. I look forward to catching the Robert Osborne version soon. Kyle In Hollywood -------------------------- "Oohh, I bought a goat and his name was Jack. But he got homesick so I had to give him ba-a-a-ack" *F.McGee.*

Anyone seen her yet?

*"Excellent questions."* - MattHelm Thank you Teacher. (I feel like I am in the first grade.) *"There's a pension if you opt for it, or you can have them put the money in an investment fund. I don't get full medical and the insurance company we go through is a joke. I get partial tuition reimbursement. I really don't see what our union is doing for us."* Well, from what you've listed, it certainly sounds like it is doing something. And _all_ insurance companies are a "joke" these days. *"I think schools would be competitive with private and charter schools and want to pay a competitive wage and benefits to keep teachers in the public sphere. Just like private business that pays well and treats their employees well.* You don't think that the union/public schools are the ones setting the "prevailing wage" for the profession and that private/charter schools must match that? *"I worked for Costco while in college and their starting pay was ten bucks back then, with excellent benefits. I still have friends there who cashier and make $50K a year with four weeks vacation."* Good point. And illustrates my point above. Here in California, grocery store clerks are unionized and their wages and benefits set the standard for the entire "profession" - whether union or not. Non-union stores often offer incentives - financial or otherwise - to remain union-free. I don't know if cashiers/clerks are unionized in Florida but if Costco is offering "four weeks paid vacation" to senior cashiers, I am led to believe that such a benefit matches or exceeds what the region's unionized clerks in the industry receive. *"I didn't see WALL-E and heard about that environmentalist thing, but I've heard even conservative reviewers say it's nonsense. I really don't have much interest in computer animated movies though. To me, they look like animated rubber dog toys."* I'll admit that I haven't seen *WALL-E* either. But I can't help but admire a film and filmmaker that not only attempts to be a silent movie (gasp!) - but celebrates it. (I agree about the "rubber dog toy" description though.) Kyle In Hollywood -------------------------- "Oohh, I bought a goat and his name was Jack. But he got homesick so I had to give him ba-a-a-ack" *F.McGee.*

"We get together and discuss movies with one another. We don't discuss our grocery lists." (paraphrased) - Ben Mankiewicz While that's true, given time, I am sure we'll get around to discussing our grocery shopping in here sooner or later. Kyle (Double Coupons!) In Hollywood -------------------- "Oohh, I bought a goat and his name was Jack. But he got homesick so I had to give him ba-a-a-ack" *F.McGee.*