filmlover

Sorry, posted in wrong thread. Message was edited by: filmlover

Cinemascope, I think the votes re Maltin are fairly split down the middle. It is possible you might be sensitive to criticism of LM because you like him. As you know, I can't stand anything about him so I am in the camp that is totally against him. I guess he is one of those people where people either love him or hate him, with very little middle ground. It's like liver, either you love it or hate it. I think it comes down as to how each of us perceives Maltin. You perceive him as polite, genial, and enthusiastic about movies. To me, he is knowledgeable but he is too over-enthusiastic, or as I like to phrase it, "too much in your face". I like Osborne because he is well-dressed, calm, and dignified. While I find Maltin to act like he is an obsessed fan. I've seen both in person. I met Robert Osborne at a film collector's convention where he was looking at one seller's autographed pictures. We got talking for a few moments, and he was as friendly and polite as he is on TCM. I've also seen Maltin in person, and remember him at Clayton Moore's funeral. I feel he is not the best dresser in the world, but a lot of it has to be his weight. He also had a way of giving off the feeling that he was more privileged and deserved to get in places the rest of us shouldn't. Again, remember, these are just my perceptions. One person can look at someone and see a standoffish snob. Another person can look at him and see someone who is shy.

Scarlett, I am on DISH and I haven't noticed this in regards to recording a movie. I could be watching something live on one channel, and then the clock will come on about a minute or two before some feature I have set the timer for on another channel. But as far as it showing up in the recording I have not had this problem at all. One thing I do is program my timer to start about three minutes before the program and about the same after. I do that so I won't miss something (though it can cut the tail of the movie before if the previous movie is running right up to the start point of the second one, e.g. an 89 minute movie in a 90 minute slot). Maybe if you set it like that, then you might not get the clock in the recording.

Waldo, all I can say is make sure you order correctly or your copy of "Random Harvest" could turn out to be "Random Harvey."

If you look on eBay, you will find many DVDs at interesting prices of what look like American releases but are Chinese imports. Apparently, these have all been produced legitimately in connection with the studios. I can only think that the reason studios release them there and at low prices is because they are in competition with the really bad flooding of the market by pirated videos in China. Anybody else have more specific details?

I'm afraid there isn't a way to send that to TCM. The TCM programmer does look in on the contest's schedules, but that's about it. Your best bet is to suggest individual films through the "Suggest A Movie" link: http://www.tcm.com/suggestamovie/index/

An interesting thought occured a few minutes ago while looking at "The Story of Dr. Wassell." I wondered which actor portrayed more real-life personalities. For example: Gary Cooper: Alvin York Lou Gehrig Dr. Wassell Marco Polo James Cagney: Lon Chaney, Sr. George M. Cohan George Arliss: Disraeli Rothschild Voltaire Cardinal Richelieu Paul Muni: Louis Pasteur Emile Zola Benito Juarez Edward G.Robinson: Dr. Erlich Reuter Bette Davis: Queen Elizabeth I Carlota von Hapsburg Catherine the Great Katherine Hepburn: Mary Stuart Queen Eleanor I can think of many more but I thought I would throw it open to you, and maybe together we can figure out which actor portrayed more real people.

Thank you, Cinemascope.

I am afraid kubrickbuff?s post puts me in an awkward position. If I allow the schedule that he had written, and which I have seen, to be entered into the contest, then I am guilty of allowing him to avoid ANY of the contest?s requirements and rules that were posted in the instructions in the first post of this thread. The fact that everyone else who has posted their schedules so far in the competition (five magnificent schedules) has included ALL of these requirements and rules makes me think it is not only NOT difficult but IS also part of the ?Challenge? of the Challenge. By which, I mean the following: The very first Challenge was created to give all of us the opportunity to not only put together a week?s worth of films we would like to see on TCM, but also to learn first hand what the TCM programmer goes through in planning his schedule. And when he does his schedule, he has to include spots for all of the main regular TCM features and work within certain other requirements, requirements that have been incorporated into the Challenge. This not only is part of the discipline but also gets him to show added creativity working with such. This is now the Fifth TCM Programming Challenge. And everyone who has entered schedules in the previous four Challenges over the last year has included all the requirements. That?s quite a history. Now, on the other hand, if I don?t allow it to be entered, then I get looked upon as someone who has stifled individuality of someone who thought his work was ?perfect?. Now, in the grand scheme of things, this is nothing worth writing about. But when I won the last Challenge, using the Challenge?s requirements, I was thrilled to be able to host this new Challenge. Moderating this Challenge is an enormous honor to me. Unfortunately, for whatever reason, it has befallen unto me this unplanned challenge to the Challenge. I have discussed with another respected member, a previous Challenger winner, the possibility of simplifying the requirements in the future, but that is still under discussion?for the future. Kubrickbuff has created a schedule he is proud of, a schedule that meets none of the contest?s rules and requirements. Unfortunately, it has come so early in the Challenge, it could leads others to say, ?Well, why should I have to follow anything but what I want if he didn?t have to?? I think the Challenge has a great tradition, and it is a tradition I choose to uphold. (For more details on kubrickbuff's efforts, please go back to the first page of this thread and read forward.)

I guess I don't think like that because I didn't look on what sex the newscasters were, just how they delivered the news, how they did their job.

But my point is that there are only two permanent hosts. I'm just talking numbers, not race or creed or religion or sex.

I wasn't calling into question the race factor, really, more about the "male" factor. I just think with there only being two hosts, there is a very good possibility that they could be two males or two females. That one is male and the other not female just doesn't seem bad to me. I wasn't trying to misinterpret what you were saying, that's why I presented the sentence exactly as you wrote it.

Just as long as we move away from having a white male on-screen 100% of the time when there's a host.... I'm sorry, but I can't just let that pass. There are only two hosts on TCM at the present time. It just happens that they were born male and Caucasian, probably more through a collaboration of male and female parents than a TCM desire. One, Osborne, happens to be a film scholar and writes a daily column in a show business newspaper, The Hollywood Reporter. The other, Mankiewicz, has hosted a news magazine show and a satellite radio show, in addition to knowing a lot about Hollywood because he "is the grandson of writer Herman Mankiewicz and great-nephew of director Joseph L. Mankiewicz, who between them wrote and directed such films as Citizen Kane (1941), All About Eve (1950), Guys and Dolls (1955), The Pride of the Yankees (1942), Dinner at Eight (1933) and Cleopatra (1963)." (from the info release by TCM upon his hiring). If TCM was hosted by twelve white males, then I could understand your objection and would readily agree...but there are only two hosts altogether. That they are both male and white isn't what I would think of as defying the laws of chance. So, when both do their jobs very well, I can't see a request to "move away from having a white male on-screen 100% of the time when there's a host."

To me, James Lipton comes across as too dry. The trouble with Liza is that I would pretty much expect in each intro she would seque into something other than the title being shown and say, "You may not know it, but I am Judy Garland's/Vincent Minnelli's daughter. Ha ha, you didn't know that? Well, I am." While Lipton is too dry, Minnelli is too "always onstage".

LOL - Paul Newman is a great choice. Well, twister, I thnk we've uncovered Paul Newman's screenname. And while I am not Osborne, I would like to have his writing ability and success.

Hi, sugarpuss, welcome back. We've missed you around here! As to joining in, definitely, welcome! And anybody else who still wants to join in, too, you are also welcome. This Challenge closes on March 7th at midnight PT. (For anyone who hasn't seen the rules yet, check out the very first post in this thread by clicking on the link above). Sugarpuss, the choices of libraries to pick from has greatly increased. In addition to the WB-pre 1950, MGM-all, and RKO-all films, you now can choose any film from Columbia, J.Arthur Rank, Monogram, United Artists-post 1950, and Disney-live action only. It doesn't matter if they have not been shown on TCM before, you do not need to include them under one of the 5 Premieres you are allowed. Only films from other than the 8 studios above count as Premieres (unless, of course, the film has been previously seen on TCM, in which case it doesn't count as a Premiere, and should have "p/s" next to the title).

lol, "lose sleep"? I'm feel I'm having a nightmare I can't wake up from, lol.

Gene Shalit???? Gad, do we want to have this on our screens on a regular basis? And, lol, as for me being Robert Osborne, not even close.

It's either just above or under this one in the General Discussions.

What lisp? I've never heard him lisp.

but change is always a good thing too... Well, I wouldn't say "always", Change can be good, it can also be bad.

That would be great.

I need to reiterate what I said last night when I read this suggestion in the other thread: Gad, when I read the suggestion of Maltin on TCM, it was just before I was heading off to bed for the night. And just as they say you shouldn't eat or watch something unsettling on TV before bedtime because you will have a bad night's sleep, such a suggestion filled me with dread. I couldn't even drop off for about half an hour, worried that such a thing might actually come to be. As you can tell, I am not a fan of Leonard Maltin. Robert Osborne is a great professional and delivers his intros and exits with style and just the right amount of ease and charm. I find Maltin's style too much in your face. I have a few DVDs that have him introducing the features on the DVD and I have to skip right by them. His whole presence upsets me and I am glad WB doesn't use him anymore. Since he is mostly on the Disney DVDs, and I get very few of those, I feel better. One of the thoughts I had last night before I was able to finally get to sleep after reading the dread suggestion of him being a replacement for RO (or him even being on TCM) was, "I didn't think anything could ever make me give up TCM, but that would do it." I post this as my opinion only, because I can't stand the man. I think it would be the worst thing to ever happen to TCM.

Since the whole aspect about Maltin as possible host/co-host is taking away a bit from the original discussion, I'll start a separate thread about it, hope those of you who've given your opinions will join in. Oh, God, I hope it doesn't lead to a separate thread. I guess I hat the thought of a thread on it because it might lead to it actually happening someday. know you are in favor of it, but I can't think of anything worse happening to TCM. If a separate thread is created, I will have to reprint my thoughts below.

"Ball of Fire" is something I have been waiting for a rerelease. I certainly do hope they extra it up. (Hey, if rental places can say, "DVD it tonight," then I can come up with a horrible expression like "extra it up".