Winter Under the Stars

[TopBilled]

1 hour ago, sewhite2000 said:

I forgot to mention in my previous post that I saw Sally Field on Bob Costas' late night interview show circa 1990. Costas brought up the now largely forgotten 1981 film Back Roads as a personal favorite of his, and Sally kind of bristled when he mentioned it, saying that Tommy Lee Jones "wasn't very nice to me" and that she wouldn't care if she never worked with him again. Anyway, flash forward 20-plus years, and I remember seeing Sally saying somewhere (maybe it was on The Essentials?) that an older and more mature Jones had sincerely apologized to her for his behavior on that picture and that she'd accepted his apology. They had a memorable scene together in Lincoln in which her character puts his in his place, and he has to smile and take it with courtly demeanor. That made me happy for some reason. I don't know why I care whether millionaire actors get along, but you read so much dirt about these people, a feel-good story was a nice change.

What a great story. Since she was playing a lead role in LINCOLN, she probably had casting approval. And probably only agreed to let Jones be cast if she could have the upper hand with him. LOL

[TopBilled]

Our first child star is

BOBBY DRISCOLL.

I feel a bit sad when I think of him.

He just seems so natural in his roles.

Recently I was watching episodes of Rawhide and he appears as Gary Merrill's son in one of them. He had a shocking death scene to play. I looked up his credits on the IMDb and saw this was very near the end of his career. In fact he did one more appearance on Rawhide. A bit later he had an uncredited part in a short film.

He is known for the movies he made with Walt Disney. Including the now-controversial SONG OF THE SOUTH (1946).

Here's the sad part. I read that Disney dropped him because he had severe acne. As an adult he had a narcotics addiction and was arrested, around the time his acting career hit the skids. He died in the mid-60s, barely 31 years old...apparently homeless.

I love watching him in THE BIG BONANZA (1944) a Republic "B" western in which he steals every scene he's in. He's excellent as the son of Myrna Loy & Don Ameche in SO GOES MY LOVE (1946). And of course he's great in THE WINDOW (1949).

What is your favorite Bobby Driscoll movie? 

[sagebrush]

It's always sad when someone is remembered more for how they died than any of their achievements. I remember my parents using his name as a warning to my sisters and I as to what can happen if we dabble in the world of drugs.

Definitely, THE WINDOW is my favorite Bobby Driscoll film.

[sewhite2000]

Well, I saw a re-release of Song of the South when I was a child, probably the last one before it was "disappeared", so that's probably the only appearance of his I ever saw.

He was mentioned recently on a thread discussing assertions that Stan Laurel may have been impoverished at the end of his life, which every poster thread but me got angry and vowed it wasn't true and that Internet writers are generally full of it. Finally, one poster said well, he may not have been rich, but when I think of "impoverished", I think of Bobby Driscoll. Which is probably the first time I heard of him by name. Although there may have been an Entertainment Weekly article about him a few years ago. Not sure.

[TopBilled]

Our first precode star is

HELEN TWELVETREES

She liked to relax on the set. But on screen she played women in emotionally charged situations.

She was a contract player at Fox then moved over to Pathe/RKO.

Her RKO films include:

BAD COMPANY (1931)
THE PAINTED DESERT (1931)
MILLIE (1931)
A WOMAN OF EXPERIENCE (1931)
PANAMA FLO (1932)
STATE’S ATTORNEY (1932)
IS MY FACE RED? (1932)
YOUNG BRIDE (1932)

[sewhite2000]

I'm constantly reminded of how much more I have to learn about the classic film stars. This is an actress I've heard of, probably because of how unusual her last name is. It sounds like a Native American name. I started State's Attorney once very late at night on TCM, but I fell asleep at some point, so it's possible I saw her depending on how early her entrance into the film is. Otherwise, I don't I've ever seen any of her films.

[sagebrush]

The only film I can recall seeing Ms Twelvetrees in is STATE'S ATTORNEY. I had in the past confused her with another petite, blonde actress, Isabel Jewel, who was mainly a character actress.

[TopBilled]

This one is probably her most well-known film.

It's in the public domain and easy to find on YouTube and Amazon.

[kingrat]

On 12/25/2020 at 9:34 AM, sewhite2000 said:

I forgot to mention in my previous post that I saw Sally Field on Bob Costas' late night interview show circa 1990. Costas brought up the now largely forgotten 1981 film Back Roads as a personal favorite of his, and Sally kind of bristled when he mentioned it, saying that Tommy Lee Jones "wasn't very nice to me" and that she wouldn't care if she never worked with him again. Anyway, flash forward 20-plus years, and I remember seeing Sally saying somewhere (maybe it was on The Essentials?) that an older and more mature Jones had sincerely apologized to her for his behavior on that picture and that she'd accepted his apology. They had a memorable scene together in Lincoln in which her character puts his in his place, and he has to smile and take it with courtly demeanor. That made me happy for some reason. I don't know why I care whether millionaire actors get along, but you read so much dirt about these people, a feel-good story was a nice change.

I remember liking Back Roads, which would be a good film for TCM to re-discover. It had a genuinely Southern feeling. Tommy Lee Jones has kept his Southern accent, and Sally Field plays Southern very well.

[Vidor]

2 hours ago, TopBilled said:

This one is probably her most well-known film.

It's in the public domain and easy to find on YouTube and Amazon.

 

"Millie" also features Joan Blondell as one-half of a lesbian couple in scenes that were startling even for the pre-code era.  There's a scene where Millie is talking to Blondell and her "friend", the latter two sitting in bed together, in lingerie.

[TopBilled]

3 hours ago, Vidor said:

 

"Millie" also features Joan Blondell as one-half of a lesbian couple in scenes that were startling even for the pre-code era.  There's a scene where Millie is talking to Blondell and her "friend", the latter two sitting in bed together, in lingerie.

We should point out that MILLIE is not a vehicle for Blondell, she has a supporting role and limited screen time. It's Twelvetrees' film. I just wanted to say this in case some Blondell fans seek the movie out to watch it. She's not the star. This was made right before she started getting starring parts at home studio Warner Brothers.

But yeah, she's great in it...Anita Louise also has a supporting role.

[TopBilled]

Our second musical star is

GEORGE MURPHY

He was skilled at comedy and drama. But I think he is probably remembered for his musical films at MGM. 

Amazingly TCM has never honored him.

The bulk of his filmography consists of MGM and RKO pictures.

By George it's time we show some appreciation.

[sagebrush]

I love Murphy's 1950's TV MGM narration segments. Whenever a guest would pop in, he treated them like royalty. It's too bad he never went the route of talk show host. I think he would have been great.

I think I liked him best in LITTLE MISS BROADWAY with Shirley Temple and Alice Faye. His dance style was easy going, and I thought he had a nice singing voice, too.

[TopBilled]

54 minutes ago, sagebrush said:

I love Murphy's 1950's TV MGM narration segments. Whenever a guest would pop in, he treated them like royalty. It's too bad he never went the route of talk show host. I think he would have been great.

I think I liked him best in LITTLE MISS BROADWAY with Shirley Temple and Alice Faye. His dance style was easy going, and I thought he had a nice singing voice, too.

Yes, that's a fun one.

[sewhite2000]

You were recently touting Murphy in another thread, and I realized then my exposure to him was pretty limited. I guess I'd largely reduced him to the Second Male Lead Who Doesn't Get the Girl. But I'm sure I need to see more.

Five films I'm sure I've seen him in are Tom, D i c k and Harry, This is the Army, 10th Avenue Angel, Broadway Rhythm and For Me and My Gal.

[TopBilled]

3 hours ago, sewhite2000 said:

You were recently touting Murphy in another thread, and I realized then my exposure to him was pretty limited. I guess I'd largely reduced him to the Second Male Lead Who Doesn't Get the Girl. But I'm sure I need to see more.

Five films I'm sure I've seen him in are Tom, D i c k and Harry, This is the Army, 10th Avenue Angel, Broadway Rhythm and For Me and My Gal.

Those are great choices. Also STEP LIVELY (1944) is one I'd suggest seeing.

[TopBilled]

Our second villain or villainess is

MARIE WINDSOR

She's excellent in film noir like CITY THAT NEVER SLEEPS (1953).

And in HELL'S HALF ACRE (1954).

She also gives a memorable performance in THE SNIPER (1952).

Besides noir, she made her mark in westerns and did many guest spots on classic TV series.

[sewhite2000]

I do remember her from The Sniper, although I didn't know her by name.

[TopBilled]

19 minutes ago, sewhite2000 said:

I do remember her from The Sniper, although I didn't know her by name.

Another good one is THE KILLING (1956). She plays a "bad" woman in that one.

I think her best role is in HELL'S HALF ACRE (1954) a Republic noir. She's photographed very nicely in it, and she has memorable scenes to play.

[garovick]

3 hours ago, TopBilled said:

Another good one is THE KILLING (1956). She plays a "bad" woman in that one.

I think her best role is in HELL'S HALF ACRE (1954) a Republic noir. She's photographed very nicely in it, and she has memorable scenes to play.

She was also good in The Narrow Margin.

[sagebrush]

I thought Windsor was really good in FORCE OF EVIL, too.

 

[Det Jim McLeod]

9 hours ago, TopBilled said:

Another good one is THE KILLING (1956). She plays a "bad" woman in that one.

She is one of my favorite "bad" girls of film, she was very sexy and devious as the adulterous, double crossing wife in The Killing.

She played another villainous part in a lighter film, Abbott And Costello Meet The Mummy.

A more obscure one is Japanese War Bride (1952), here she plays a racist suburban wife who is offended when neighbor Don Taylor comes home from the war with a Japanese wife (Shirley Yamaguchi).

[midnight08]

On 12/28/2020 at 6:41 AM, sagebrush said:

I love Murphy's 1950's TV MGM narration segments. Whenever a guest would pop in, he treated them like royalty. It's too bad he never went the route of talk show host. I think he would have been great.

I think I liked him best in LITTLE MISS BROADWAY with Shirley Temple and Alice Faye. His dance style was easy going, and I thought he had a nice singing voice, too.

Alice Faye wasn't in "Little Miss Broadway".

[jamesjazzguitar]

3 hours ago, Det Jim McLeod said:

She is one of my favorite "bad" girls of film, she was very sexy and devious as the adulterous, double crossing wife in The Killing.

She played another villainous part in a lighter film, Abbott And Costello Meet The Mummy.

A more obscure one is Japanese War Bride (1952), here she plays a racist suburban wife who is offended when neighbor Don Taylor comes home from the war with a Japanese wife (Shirley Yamaguchi).

she was very sexy and devious,,,   that says it all for me,  with regards to Maria Windsor.    While I can see some saying she wasn't a classic beauty,  she was far more sexier and thus a lot more appealing,  than most of the so called classic beauties  (e.g.   Hedy Lamar).

So many fine performances in noir films,  westerns and even comedies.     

PS:  Japanese War Bride is a film that was relevant to me since my mom was a Japanese War Bride and when she came to the USA in 1955,  sadly had encounters with women like the one Windsor plays in this film.

 

[Princess of Tap]

On 12/28/2020 at 5:41 AM, sagebrush said:

I love Murphy's 1950's TV MGM narration segments. Whenever a guest would pop in, he treated them like royalty. It's too bad he never went the route of talk show host. I think he would have been great.

I think I liked him best in LITTLE MISS BROADWAY with Shirley Temple and Alice Faye. His dance style was easy going, and I thought he had a nice singing voice, too.

 

1 hour ago, midnight08 said:

Alice Faye wasn't in "Little Miss Broadway".

 Alice Faye was in "Poor Little Rich Girl" with Shirley Temple and Jack Haley.