Bronxgirl48 Posted August 5, 2011 Author Share Posted August 5, 2011 Turned on TCM, then nature called. I didn't remember it was John Garfield day. So I'm on the throne, thinking I'm listening to THE THING, such was the identifiable Hawksian overlapping, tense byplay with a group of men obviously under great pressure to overcome a harrowing situation. Then I find out it's another Hawks film, AIR FORCE. Apparently John Ridgely was in the cast, as "Irish", but, I still couldn't recognize him. Then I thought I heard Onslow Stevens giving orders, but, no, it was Stanley Ridges. Two under-appreciated, talented supporting players who also sound alike. Edited by: Bronxgirl48 on Aug 5, 2011 7:39 PM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CineMaven Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 I always remember Stanley Ridges from Karloff's "BLACK FRIDAY" where he's a mild-mannered college professor who hangs out with his scientist friend Karloff and gets into an accident... After Karloff gets finished with him, transplanting his injured brain with one from a dead gangster ...Ridgely alternately goes from kind and mild-mannered to an S.O.B. gangster persona. (But one fringe benefit...Anne Nagel's his girlfriend. Oh and Anne Gwynne's in the cast too!) He's been in lots of things, and when I see him I smile with familiarity. But really Bronxie...you should know John Ridgely. He's the FIRST actor everybody sees when they start watching classic films. He's been in every movie ever made by every studio in Hollywood. (Except for those Edison kinescopes). If you've seen him once...you've seen him ten trillion times. (Ooooh, let me not mention a trillion, in this economy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bronxgirl48 Posted August 7, 2011 Author Share Posted August 7, 2011 We watched the same Universal horror movies as kids! This is how I remember Stanley too: I hope I can identify John Ridgely the next time I "see" him... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CineMaven Posted August 7, 2011 Share Posted August 7, 2011 Awwwwwwww man! That's EXACTLY how I remember Ridges! This is crazy eerie. "The Wolfman" "Ride 'Em Cowboy" "Keep 'Em Flying." "Hold That Ghost." "Is it me or just my money...oh oh oh oh, Aurora." < ( Sigh! ) > Universal. Do you think our parents would have let us hang out at each other's houses? "Spin & Marty" "Sky King" "Fury" "My Friend Flicka." Gee Bronxie. I'm twelve again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bronxgirl48 Posted August 7, 2011 Author Share Posted August 7, 2011 "Charlie Smith!" "It'll be a pleasure to take you boys for a ride" "Moose Matson always said he kept his money in his head" "Sorry to take you folks out of the way like this" "Hey, he's running away with our luggage!" "Can I get some breakfast before we leave?" "Draw one!" "Dear, you called me darling!" "Darling, you called me dear!" "Oh, Chuck! Ohhh, Ch-ch-ch-u-u-u-c-k!!" I'm twelve too. Edited by: Bronxgirl48 on Aug 7, 2011 7:33 PM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MissGoddess Posted August 10, 2011 Share Posted August 10, 2011 Lady B...you mentioned you wanted to see *Trent's Last Case*...did you catch it? I had to work and missed all but the last ten minutes or so. I wish now I had recorded it. It's awful I know the ending and I'm afraid I've spoiled it for the rest of the movie. Did you like it? I was surprised that I liked what I saw of Michael Wilding, who never did much for me. He was good. I never even HEARD of this movie until you mentioned it to me. It baffles me I could be so unaware of an Orson Welles film, lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackFavell Posted August 10, 2011 Share Posted August 10, 2011 I never heard of it either and watched all but the last half hour - together we have a whole movie in our heads.... I suddenly like Michael Wilding. I watched him in Stage Struck then An Ideal Husband and saw Under Capricorn last year and I really like him, in that very narrow range of films. He's awful in Torch Singer or Hollywood type films, but get him with a good director, in the right part and he's quite good. Wasn't Margaret Lockwood stunning? I thought she looked even more beautiful in this one than some of her earlier movies... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bronxgirl48 Posted August 11, 2011 Author Share Posted August 11, 2011 Hey, girls! I've become a big Michael Wilding fan over the years. Love him in UNDER CAPRICORN (the scenes with Ingrid Bergman) Watch his left eyebrow as he's confronted by Cecil Parker (who by the way, HAS FANTASTIC ARMPITS. You won't see them in this clip, however; it's when he's make-shift bathing at the office) http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=XCxmzpHrfpM Unfortunately, Wilding's characteristic gentlemanly grace and humor are ironically not seen to best advantage in TRENT'S LAST CASE, which I understand is supposed to be the first detective send-up. Maybe it's the dreary Republic Studios production values, but this adaption is one big snooze, cinematically flat, plodding, and lacking suspense. I was (half-heartedly) waiting for Orson to liven things up with his ham and false nose, but, yawn....Welles seems to be acting in another film entirely -- his own. I like Margaret Lockwood, she's cool and somewhat mysterious, with an elegant facade that hints of brooding, possibly tempestuous emotion waiting to be unleashed. Michael is a newspaper artist and amateur sleuth. I found his performance oddly by-the-numbers; he even looked somewhat bored. The plot twists didn't thrill me; in fact, I laughed out loud at the final revelation. Edited by: Bronxgirl48 on Aug 10, 2011 11:34 PM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bronxgirl48 Posted August 11, 2011 Author Share Posted August 11, 2011 The 1932 SCARFACE is probably my favorite gangster movie, and I love Paul Muni in it. (Vince Barnett is hilarious as his "secretary", and Georgie is a cutie-pie, very hot, as the calm, cool, collected, coin-flipping "Little Boy" Rinaldo) Hawks makes the violence so, er, exhilarating, doesn't he, lol? And the screenplay, in between crime-denouncing scenes that Howard no doubt had to include, like the G-man saying stuff like: "When I think what goes on inside the heads of these lice, I could vomit!" -- SCARFACE is actually quite witty. But as I was watching this time around, I couldn't help thinking who else would have made a superb Tony Camonte (and with a real Italian accent): Edited by: Bronxgirl48 on Aug 11, 2011 3:16 AM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CineMaven Posted August 11, 2011 Share Posted August 11, 2011 I don't quite see Rudy with a gat in his hand mowing guys down...but I can definitely picture him dancing a very close tango with Ann Dvorak. Hmmmm...devilishly and deliciously decadent. "Dance with MY sister, will ya?! Why I'll show ya!!!" The censors would have lost their Continental minds!!! ] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MissGoddess Posted August 11, 2011 Share Posted August 11, 2011 Thanks Bronxie, I guess I did not miss much. I still would like to have seen more of Orson than just the snippet in flashback. He looked like he still had on his "Kane" make-up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackFavell Posted August 12, 2011 Share Posted August 12, 2011 cicely tyson cicely tyson cicely tyson cicely tyson cicely tyson I just saw THE HELP. Even in a movie in which there are other actresses doing some great acting, and she only gets about 3 minutes of full screen time, she is INCREDIBLE. I swear all she has to do is show up on the screen and she moves me to tears. Has she gotten a lifetime achievement award at the Oscars? Now there is one actress who deserves it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CineMaven Posted August 12, 2011 Share Posted August 12, 2011 Hellooooooooooooo JackaaaAaaay :-) No doubt, Cicely Tyson is a fine actress. She could stand toe-to-toe opposite any of the gals of her generation. She's in between Beah Richards and...and...I dunno, Ruby Dee. I don't doubt her acting chops. But I don't think she made enough of an impact, or did enuf "A"-list movies to warrant a Lifetime Achievement award. I'm not going to be able to see "THE HELP." I can take a lot from 1935, but not from 2011. I heard such an unmercifully excoriatingly scathing review of it that I can't in good conscience go to see it. I'm a Viola Davis fan too...and her short turn in "Doubt" was fantastic. Viola Davis, Alfre Woodard, Angela Bassett, (the late) Janet MacLachlan, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Theresa Randle, Gabrielle Union, Lynn Whitfield, Kim Hamilton,Tyra Ferrell, Christine Lahti and Sophie Okonedo are among the actresses who I wish Hollywood would give more of a chance to show what they can do. Running back to the classics (as fast as I can)...I was bowled over by Ann Dvorak on Tuesday. Let me tell you about her in "Three On a Match." Edited by: CineMaven on Aug 11, 2011 10:57 PM. I know, I know...Christine Lahti? Yeah. I've ALWAYS wished Hollywood would have given her a really big chance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bronxgirl48 Posted August 12, 2011 Author Share Posted August 12, 2011 Orson was in TRENT'S LAST CASE for maybe 15 minutes, 20 tops. I did like the scene in the car where he talks about OTHELLO. That probably WAS his Kane make-up, lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bronxgirl48 Posted August 12, 2011 Author Share Posted August 12, 2011 > don't quite see Rudy with a gat in his hand mowing guys down...but I can definitely picture him dancing a very close tango with Ann Dvorak. Hmmmm...devilishly and deliciously decadent. Rudy did play villains in the early part of his career and was quite convincingly menacing, but, I do know what you mean, lol. Although he could probably, um, rise to the occasion with the firearms. And also with Poppy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CineMaven Posted August 12, 2011 Share Posted August 12, 2011 < ( spit take! ) > my dear Bronxie. < ( spit take! ) > No doubt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackFavell Posted August 12, 2011 Share Posted August 12, 2011 I hear you, Maven - and you are the MAVEN, so you know what you are talking about! These actresses should be spread across the landscape of our cinema more than they are. I was simply impressed with the acting that Viola Spencer, Tyson, and Octavia Spencer did, even if the movie was only so so, and was even perhaps wrong. Thanks for being honest about it! Now to see Alfre Woodard and Viola Davis in a movie together - WHEW! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CineMaven Posted August 12, 2011 Share Posted August 12, 2011 WHEW!! I'm done. I got that over with; was outta there by 8:40am and all looks well. ***************** "SISTERS IN CINEMA:" I'm a Maven alright. But believe me, I know that everything I say is merely my own opinion. I understood that you were impressed. And I agree, spread 'em out...spread 'em out. I would love to see a courtroom drama where Meryl Streep is a defense attorney opposite Angela Basset's prosecutor. Or vice versa...or anything. Maybe Laura Linney. ****************** "THE SECRET FURY[/i]": WHAT THE HECK is Claudette Colbert doing in a room with some jazzy bluesy hopped up hepcats in a scene. She seems totally out of place there. What's Paul Kelly doing with white hair? I've been in the 30's sooo long. He looks like a little leprechaun. It had to have been quite something to build whole sets around Colbert's left side of her face. If they didn't have it in the budget...they probably couldn't hire her. I've never seen any expression on her face. She's got one of the most immobile faces the silver screen has ever seen. What am I missing? Am I confusing her with Helen Hayes? She cracked up on the stand like Lupino did in "They Drive By Night." She did that very well. Hold up!!! It's Ethel. Ethel Mertz!!! Vivian Vance is doing a scene with Robert Ryan. Lucyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!!! ******************* "THE COMPANY SHE KEEPS" GOT IT. You're very welcome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackFavell Posted August 12, 2011 Share Posted August 12, 2011 I like Claudette, but I think everything you say is true! She is probably a very limited actress, but I find her more expressive than you do, and I like her within that comfortable range. I just find she exudes warmth. And her voice is like velvet. I think some of the movies today are not her at her best. Did you see the Secret Heart? I think she is quite good in it, as is June Allyson, surprisingly. I prefer Colbert in the thirties and forties myself. I am looking foreward to getting a copy of She Married Her Boss. I need more Gregory La Cava movies, his timing is wonderful. Let's see if this one matches up with My Man Godfrey and Stage Door. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CineMaven Posted August 12, 2011 Share Posted August 12, 2011 I agree with you about her voice. It's a pleasure to close my eyes and listen to her. No, I didn't catch "The Secret Heart" this morning. I saw some of it many many years ago. LaCava...how he wrangled all those actresses I'll never know. I missed it the other Saturday but "Stage Door" is one of the greats. It's another litmus test for me. In "The Secret Fury" there's an Asian woman in the looney bin with Claudette, working on a loom. I've never seen that. At least we're good enough to be crazy. I like that. Progress. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackFavell Posted August 12, 2011 Share Posted August 12, 2011 Ha! I am missing most of today's programming - it was all I could do to wrangle the TV for one day of Ben Johnson. If I now say I want to stay home and watch Claudette all day, I'll be facing a hurricane of protest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CineMaven Posted August 12, 2011 Share Posted August 12, 2011 :-( Oh dear. I'm sorry. :-( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackFavell Posted August 12, 2011 Share Posted August 12, 2011 No big. In our family we share. Now I have to work up the gumption to say I want the TV for Lon Chaney day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CineMaven Posted August 12, 2011 Share Posted August 12, 2011 Okay. Family is good. Sharing is great. But man...I WANT MY MTV!!! Uhmm...I mean my TCM. Are there any particular stars of this month that you are looking forward to really seeing? Just curious, whether you get the tv or not...who didja want to see this August? Psst! Can you sneak over your white picket fence to your neighbor's house on the pretext of borrowing sugar, but then just sit down and watch some TCM? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackFavell Posted August 12, 2011 Share Posted August 12, 2011 Hahaha! That would be great! And I'd get some peace and quiet. But I'd have to boot her out of her own home. I have a lot of faves this month - in order: JOAN BLONDELL - in a class by herself Conrad Veidt Lon Chaney Carole Marlene Burt Linda Darnell I won't miss Bogie, Jimmy, Cary or Joan, because they are always good, always deliver. Jean Gabin is the unknown quantity for me. I can't wait to see his day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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