I Just Watched...

[Tikisoo]

Okay, looking at this list, I hate "Golden Boy".  Just because it has Stanwyck doesn't give this movie a free pass.

 

I hate this movie too, but mostly because of Lee J. Cobb's "performance" .

 

I will NEVER forget a post here (several years ago) where someone said:

 

"Holden deserves to be pummeled just for wearing that stupid wig"

[LornaHansonForbes]

Okay, looking at this list, I hate "Golden Boy". Just because it has Stanwyck doesn't give this movie a free pass.

 

I hate this movie too, but mostly because of Lee J. Cobb's "performance" .

 

I will NEVER forget a post here (several years ago) where someone said:

 

"Holden deserves to be pummeled just for wearing that stupid wig"

Yes, Cobb is aaaaaawful.

I think that really is Holden's actual hair though, they just curled it or something.

[LornaHansonForbes]

I saw where the half hour, anti-smut short film PERVERSION FOR PROFIT was running on TCM late night last night. I didn't catch it on the network, but it is available on YouTube ( pretty much every short film from many years ago is now in the public domain and can be viewed that way.)

I don't know when the last time I've laughed so hard was.

Highly, highly recommended and if anyone knows where I can get a copy of "I WAS A ROCK N' ROLL TRANSVESTITE", DO let me know.

(Will try to post video link later.)

 

EDIT- HERE WE GO:

 

 

[TomJH]

I watched THE WHITE COCKATOO (1935), part of TCM's tribute yesterday to Jean Muir. There's a comforting familiarity about small mystery thrillers from the '30s, such as this one. It has a lot of the usual plot elements: mysterious tavern setting in an isolated part of the country (in this case France), a girl (Muir) waiting there to inherit a fortune, shots in the dark, a body found, the usual red herring suspects (almost everyone in the cast) and the police inspecting the case who are every bit as hopeless at solving a crime in France as they are in American set thrillers of the same nature.

 

This Warner Brothers affair is directed with efficiency by old pro Alan Crosland, the film further benefiting from some wonderful tavern sets (probably left over from some bigger budgeted productions but every bit as effective here), all beautifully photographed.

 

And the cast is an engaging one. Ricardo Cortez, second billed, is really the lead in this film, as an American tourist who becomes involved in the mysterious tavern happenings, and largely takes over as amateur detective in trying to crack the case (since it's apparent the police here will never be able to do so). And Cortez is solid in his part, as well as showing some smooth charm. (His brother by the way, was Stanley Cortez, master cinematographer of, among other films, The Magnificent Ambersons and Night of the Hunter).

 

 

Warners character comedienne Ruth Donnelly adds to the fun of the proceedings, her role, as usual, comedy relief. She might have had better dialogue and situations in other Warners affairs, but, seasoned pro that she was, Donnelly is still quite amusing. Minna Gombell (made up to look a little more glamourous than usual) and Walter Kingsford are the tavern keepers, and there's also deep voiced straight arrow Addison Richards (whose face is familiar to all '30s film buffs) arriving as a representative of Jean Muir's missing brother.

 

The white cockatoo of the title, by the way, a pet of the tavern owners, does not play a significant role in the production, though he does make a few appearances. At one point, however, Cortez says "It's a known fact that children and animals are better judges of character than we are," at a precise moment when the cockatoo is squawking about being close to one of the suspects. Not exactly great science, of course, but Cortez then goes on to prove his case against that suspect that has the bird in such a flap.

 

I'm not saying that Cortez's character is the brightest cookie in town either, no matter how dumb the French cops may be by comparison. After finding a dead body on a verandah, for example, Cortez drags it into the tavern, then instructs everyone to not touch anything and call the police. A small sword dagger sticking out of the body is pulled out and handled by seemingly everyone around, excluding the cockatoo, while waiting for the police to arrive.

 

But The White Cockatoo is a surprisingly (maybe not so surprisingly) satisfactory little thriller. Lovely photography of superior sets, combined with an almost consistent sound of a howling wind outside the tavern, adds considerably to this atmospheric, somewhat claustrophobic production.

 

 

2.5 out of 4.

[Dargo]

 

 

 

Lorna, you probably know that the old L.A. news anchor George Putnam here was used by Ted Knight to model his Ted Baxter character after, don't ya.

[LornaHansonForbes]

Lorna, you probably know that the old L.A. news anchor George Putnam here was used by Ted Knight to model his Ted Baxter character after, don't ya.

No i did not! But thanks for the fYI, it makes perfect sense.

 

It was hilarious to watch him go on and on about how modern innovations such as the printing press and the interstate system had led to the easy access to SMUT everywhere in America.

 

Oh, if only I could have reached back in time and pulled this guy into this day and age where within about 10 seconds** on the internet you can find whatever kind of freaky, deviant, sick, donkey show filth you're looking for.

 

On discovering this, I bet his head would have blown up just like one of the guys in SCANNERS.

 

**- that's accounting for a slow or dial up connection. I'm sure some can do this in half the time.

[Dargo]

Yep, ol' George was a mainstay on local L.A. news broadcasts for many years back in the '50s-'70s.

 

He used to close each of his newscasts with the following tagline as he'd swing around and motion with one hand toward the Old Glory stationed next to his desk..."Here's to a better and stronger America!"

 

(...he also hosted an audience participation style talk show which I always thought Morton Downey Jr. used as the model for his show later on...and during the Vietnam War era, heaven help any "hippie" who dared walk up to the Putnam program's guest podium and question our country's involvement in that conflict...they'd be called every name in the book)

[speedracer5]

Okay, looking at this list, I hate "Golden Boy".  Just because it has Stanwyck doesn't give this movie a free pass.

 

I hate this movie too, but mostly because of Lee J. Cobb's "performance" .

 

I will NEVER forget a post here (several years ago) where someone said:

 

"Holden deserves to be pummeled just for wearing that stupid wig"

 

I agree that Golden Boy wasn't that great.  My biggest problem with it I agree was Lee J. Cobb.  Why didn't they just cast someone who was older?? He was only seven years older than Holden who was playing his son! Cobb's makeup and performance in that film reminds me of a high school play where high schoolers don silly gray mustaches and wigs in an effort to look old in order to portray a senior citizen and then perform their character with a shaky voice and a hunched back thinking that that's how senior citizens are.  Cobb's performance was annoying and detracted from the story.

 

Holden wasn't that great, but I'll give him a pass because it was his first starring role and I've read much about he was nervous.  I agree with Lorna, that was his own hair.  The studio curled it.  

 

Stanwyck though I thought was great and it was very sweet of her to stick up for Holden when the studio wanted to fire him.  

[speedracer5]

Actually, it's Wynant, but seeing as how you know a lot more about all the THIN-sequels than I do, it is forgiven.

 

It was the third film I was thinking of, which was released in the US as THE RETURN OF THE THIN MAN and overseas as ANOTHER THIN MAN (guess European audiences were more discerning about title-character-related anachronisms.)

 

Am I alone in thinking that this third film in the series is really dark? Not just the plot- which involves multiple murders and some inter-familial homicide as well as arson and a dog murder- it's literally dark, like with some proto-noir shadowy lighting and production design.

Sorry i'm so late in responding.  I read this last week and meant to reply and then forgot.  

 

You're right about the third film being really dark--especially the dog murder.  I love that each of The Thin Man film had a different vibe.  The only thing I really dislike about the third film is the baby party.

[MCannady1]

I watched THE WHITE COCKATOO (1935), part of TCM's tribute yesterday to Jean Muir. There's a comforting familiarity about small mystery thrillers from the '30s, such as this one. It has a lot of the usual plot elements: mysterious tavern setting in an isolated part of the country (in this case France), a girl (Muir) waiting there to inherit a fortune, shots in the dark, a body found, the usual red herring suspects (almost everyone in the cast) and the police inspecting the case who are every bit as hopeless at solving a crime in France as they are in American set thrillers of the same nature.

 

This Warner Brothers affair is directed with efficiency by old pro Alan Crosland, the film further benefiting from some wonderful tavern sets (probably left over from some bigger budgeted productions but every bit as effective here), all beautifully photographed.

 

And the cast is an engaging one. Ricardo Cortez, second billed, is really the lead in this film, as an American tourist who becomes involved in the mysterious tavern happenings, and largely takes over as amateur detective in trying to crack the case (since it's apparent the police here will never be able to do so). And Cortez is solid in his part, as well as showing some smooth charm. (His brother by the way, was Stanley Cortez, master cinematographer of, among other films, The Magnificent Ambersons and Night of the Hunter).

 

 

Warners character comedienne Ruth Donnelly adds to the fun of the proceedings, her role, as usual, comedy relief. She might have had better dialogue and situations in other Warners affairs, but, seasoned pro that she was, Donnelly is still quite amusing. Minna Gombell (made up to look a little more glamourous than usual) and Walter Kingsford are the tavern keepers, and there's also deep voiced straight arrow Addison Richards (whose face is familiar to all '30s film buffs) arriving as a representative of Jean Muir's missing brother.

 

The white cockatoo of the title, by the way, a pet of the tavern owners, does not play a significant role in the production, though he does make a few appearances. At one point, however, Cortez says "It's a known fact that children and animals are better judges of character than we are," at a precise moment when the cockatoo is squawking about being close to one of the suspects. Not exactly great science, of course, but Cortez then goes on to prove his case against that suspect that has the bird in such a flap.

 

I'm not saying that Cortez's character is the brightest cookie in town either, no matter how dumb the French cops may be by comparison. After finding a dead body on a verandah, for example, Cortez drags it into the tavern, then instructs everyone to not touch anything and call the police. A small sword dagger sticking out of the body is pulled out and handled by seemingly everyone around, excluding the cockatoo, while waiting for the police to arrive.

 

But The White Cockatoo is a surprisingly (maybe not so surprisingly) satisfactory little thriller. Lovely photography of superior sets, combined with an almost consistent sound of a howling wind outside the tavern, adds considerably to this atmospheric, somewhat claustrophobic production.

 

2.5 out of 4.

I like THe White Cockatoo also.  The cast is good and the story is very good and suspenseful.  I happened to find the book of that title by Mignon Eberhart - (a great mystery writer of the 30's and 40's) in a used bookstore.  THe film pretty much adheres to the story.

(Not long ago I viewed some good Pre-Codes with Ricardo Cortez and watched for more of his films recently).

[TomJH]

I like THe White Cockatoo also.  The cast is good and the story is very good and suspenseful.  I happened to find the book of that title by Mignon Eberhart - (a great mystery writer of the 30's and 40's) in a used bookstore.  THe film pretty much adheres to the story.

(Not long ago I viewed some good Pre-Codes with Ricardo Cortez and watched for more of his films recently).

 

I've had TCM since 2005 and I believe this was the first time since then that the channel has shown The White Cockatoo. There are some other little films that are rarely shown on TCM (like RKO's Hat, Coat and Glove, also with Ricardo Cortez, or Warners The Mad Genius, with John Barrymore). These are films to which the channel would have fairly easy access, I would have assumed. I don't quite know why they are so sparing in their presentations of them.

[MCannady1]

I've had TCM since 2005 and I believe this was the first time since then that the channel has shown The White Cockatoo. There are some other little films that are rarely shown on TCM (like RKO's Hat, Coat and Glove, also with Ricardo Cortez, or Warners The Mad Genius, with John Barrymore). These are films to which the channel would have fairly easy access, I would have assumed. I don't quite know why they are so sparing in their presentations of them.

They do seem to go sparingly with those at TCM just as they get accessible to the public.  By coincidence, I

/just ordered the Warner Archives film The Mad Genius and had taped Hat, Coat and Glove several  years ago.

 

To my knowledge they have not been on again.  If you have trouble finding them on-line I would be glad to make a

copy.

[TomJH]

They do seem to go sparingly with those at TCM just as they get accessible to the public.  By coincidence, I

/just ordered the Warner Archives film The Mad Genius and had taped Hat, Coat and Glove several  years ago.

 

To my knowledge they have not been on again.  If you have trouble finding them on-line I would be glad to make a

copy.

 

Thanks very much for the kind offer, MCannady, but I did snag recordings of both of them (at least, I'm pretty sure I have them buried somewhere). If you haven't seen the Barrymore film yet, you're in for a treat. With sets by Anton Grot and direction by Mike Curtiz, I think this is one of the Great Profile's better films, a little touch of Grand Guignol, made after the success of Svengali and largely in the same vein. Barrymore is a marvel in it. The only pain in this film is the casting of glum Donald Cook, as Barrymore's dancing protégé "genius." Oh, well, you can't have everything.

 

Thanks once again, MCannady. Very generous of you to make the offer.

[LornaHansonForbes]

Sorry i'm so late in responding.  I read this last week and meant to reply and then forgot.  

 

You're right about the third film being really dark--especially the dog murder.  I love that each of The Thin Man film had a different vibe.  The only thing I really dislike about the third film is the baby party.

 

 

Thanks.

 

From the three THIN MAN films that I have seen, I think the mistake they maybe made in the series was to habitually make the killer the last person you'd suspect, or even better, someone from outside the suspect pool.

 

...Of course, that was probably a big part of the draw to the films, people probably caught on and tried to guess who seemed like the last person the killer would be, if they were right, they were happy, if they were wrong, they were surprised.

[SansFin]

I have on now: Barrett-Jackson automobile auction on: Discovery Channel.

 

That have sold: 1977 Pontiac Firebird TransAm "Smokey and the Bandit" automobile used for promotion of movie. It is a: Z-Code 400 automobile. Burt Reynolds rode in car up to stage. He received standing ovation from thousands in the pavilion. He spoke briefly and is as charming and feisty as ever!

 

http://www.barrett-jackson.com/Events/Event/Details/1977-PONTIAC-FIREBIRD-TRANS-AM-SMOKEY-AND-THE-BANDIT-PROMO-CAR-190067

 

It sold for: $500,000 plus buyer's premium.

[darkblue]

It sold for: $500,000 plus buyer's premium.

 

Any undercoating thrown in?

[SansFin]

Any undercoating thrown in?

 

 

I doubt that automobile will ever be driven where there is mud or salt. 

[darkblue]

I doubt that automobile will ever be driven where there is mud or salt. 

 

Yep. It'll probably spend the rest of its life indoors.

[SansFin]

Yep. It'll probably spend the rest of its life indoors.

 

 

They showed picture of decorated truck which hauled it to various events. I assume it has been driven exclusively around parking lots in good weather so people could admire it. 

 

This vehicle did not appear in movie. I believe that one of those would be one to use to tear up highways and make donuts in snow.

[film lover 293]

"Mambo" (1954)--Shelley Winters described this crazy film in her first autobiography "Shelley: Also Known As Shirley" (1980).  She filmed it in Venice while she divorced her husband, Vittorio Gassman, who was  her co-star.  Winters should have looked in the editing room after the picture finished; a third of what she described having filmed never made it into the American version of the film, and Winters and Gassman are almost edited out of the movie.  Winters and Gassman share one scene, and their anger at each other is obvious.  Winters had a remarkable memory for faces; I could identify each actor/actress by her descriptions in her first autobiography. For those who know the backstory (which takes up 30 some pages in "Shelley: also known as Shirley" (1980)) behind the making of this strange film, 7/10 stars.  Everyone else, 5/10 stars.  Is available on YT.

[darkblue]

They showed picture of decorated truck which hauled it to various events. I assume it has been driven exclusively around parking lots in good weather so people could admire it. 

 

This vehicle did not appear in movie. I believe that one of those would be one to use to tear up highways and make donuts in snow.

 

mmmm.....donuts.......

[LornaHansonForbes]

"Mambo" (1954)--Shelley Winters described this crazy film in her first autobiography "Shelley: Also Known As Shirley" (1980). She filmed it in Venice while she divorced her husband, Vittorio Gassman, who was her co-star. Winters should have looked in the editing room after the picture finished; a third of what she described having filmed never made it into the American version of the film, and Winters and Gassman are almost edited out of the movie. Winters and Gassman share one scene, and their anger at each other is obvious. Winters had a remarkable memory for faces; I could identify each actor/actress by her descriptions in her first autobiography. For those who know the backstory (which takes up 30 some pages in "Shelley: also known as Shirley" (1980)) behind the making of this strange film, 7/10 stars. Everyone else, 5/10 stars. Is available on YT.

I was reading a classic Hollywood gossip item yesterday they claimed that Shelley Winters was caught on a talk show admitting that most of (at least one of) her autobiographies was made up. Apparently, those days being different from these days, she managed to get the producers to scrap the footage.

 

FILE UNDER: don't know if it's true or not, but wouldn't be surprised either way.

[Tikisoo]

if anyone knows where I can get a copy of "I WAS A ROCK N' ROLL TRANSVESTITE", DO let me know.

 

For those coming late to the "classroom" experience, AVGEEKS.com is the place to get your fix. These guys have been gathering all kinds of educational films and transferring them to DVD for decades. (like Blackboard Bungle)

I believe all TCM's Underground shorts are provided by AVGeeks... because they are all the same available titles (like Corderoy)

 

What I really love about the AVGeeks transfers is they don't restore ANYTHING so you see it exactly as kids would have seen the discolored, worn out, clipped version in school so many years ago.

 

One of my favorites is Sonny Bono wearing gold lamé, introducing a pot film saying, "Blowing grass can be fun....or a real bummer". These movie show the stereotype "teens at a party smoking pot and someone jumps off the roof or forgets a baby in the tub" a la Dragnet.

[Bogie56]

I saw where the half hour, anti-smut short film PERVERSION FOR PROFIT was running on TCM late night last night. I didn't catch it on the network, but it is available on YouTube ( pretty much every short film from many years ago is now in the public domain and can be viewed that way.)

 

I don't know when the last time I've laughed so hard was.

 

Highly, highly recommended and if anyone knows where I can get a copy of "I WAS A ROCK N' ROLL TRANSVESTITE", DO let me know.

 

(Will try to post video link later.)

 

EDIT- HERE WE GO:

 

 

 

Perversion For Profit was on again this morning in the wee hours.  Informative and entertaining.  Highly recommended viewing.

[film lover 293]

LornaHansonForbes--Can confirm one part of Winters' autobiography on my own, that no editing short of cutting her out of the film "Mambo" (1954) would hide.  She goes from a mannish wardrobe, with no cleavage shown, to a "show-all-you can-get-by-the-censors wardrobe in the film.  Also, they didn't edit out all of Winters' smoldering looks at Silvana Mangano, or Michael Rennies' at Vittorio Gassman.  Imdb also says there were 13-20 minutes cut from the film, due to its original homosexual theme and subsequent U.S. ban (Information from imdb).  It was given a new, baffling plot, totally different from the one in Winters' book; Bosley Crowther's New York Times review is still available online. About making this film,  I'll go with Winters' accuracy on this; there was just too much press coverage for her to make anything up that couldn't be easily checked.