Irene Dunne wins the 2016 Lombard Cup

Due to issues with the polls being compromised and allowing people to vote as many times as they wanted to, I made the decision to wrap up the Lombard Cup with Irene Dunne being the winner. Her match with Myrna Loy was the one of the matches that was compromised but since she had been leading in the points standings for the past three weeks, Irene was the legitimate winner regardless. Congrats to her and Josie Miller, who chose her as her actress for this competition. And marks another major win for Irene, as you may recall she was my first classic movie actress tourney champion back in 2011. Thanks to all my friends who played and all those that voted!

Two matches..four couples...let's go!

Down to the final four of the favorite classic couple tourney. The match between Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers vs Cary Grant and Irene Dunne will take place here on this blog. While the match between William Powell and Myrna Loy vs Nelson Eddy and Jeanette MacDonald will take place on Desiree's blog. The fun begins today at 6pm EST and will run through Wednesday evening. Go here to vote on Desiree's match..http://www.rozrussell.com/. And can I add that I think this is an awesome final four with anyone of these couples that can take home the prize as favorite classic screen couple.

MATCH 1

1 FRED ASTAIRE AND GINGER ROGERS

VS

2 CARY GRANT AND IRENE DUNNE

**************

MATCH 2

1 WILLIAM POWELL AND MYRNA LOY

VS

2 NELSON EDDY AND JEANETTE MACDONALD

We have our final four couples....

We have our final four classic couples and two of the four are the top seeds when this tourney began. It was top seed couple Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers taking care of 2nd seed couple Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland 30-12. The other top seed couple to advance was William Powell and Myrna Loy, who staged a comeback to beat pesky underdogs Rosalind Russell and Robert Montgomery 38-30. So that means the other two top seed couples did not fare as well. Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall lost to 2nd seed couple Cary Grant and Irene Dunne 27-15. while 2nd seed couple Nelson Eddy and Jeanette MacDonald defeated the legendary couple, Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn 38-28. So now the stage is set for the four remaining couples in two matches that will begin on Sunday. Match 1 will pit Fred and Ginger against Cary and Irene while match 2 will feature William and Myrna against Nelson and Jeanette. Then the winners of those matches will battle it out for the crown as favorite classic couple. 

Eight Couples move on to Round 3

Here are the four matches that will begin on Sunday with the 8 couples that are remaining in the Favorite Classic Couple Tourney. All Good Things will host the Elaine Marriott and Erenia Russo brackets while Desiree will host the Josie Miller and Catherine Bellamy brackets on her blog, Rosalind Russell. The matches will run through Thursday evening. You will notice that three of the four matches feature match ups between the number 1 and 2 seeds. The underdog couple Rosalind Russell and Robert Montgomery, ranked 6th, are defying the odds and look to continue their upset streak.

THE ELAINE MARRIOTT BRACKET

1 FRED ASTAIRE AND GINGER ROGERS

VS

2 ERROL FLYNN AND OLIVIA DE HAVILLAND

***************

THE ERENIA RUSSO BRACKET

1 HUMPHREY BOGART AND LAUREN BACALL

VS

2 CARY GRANT AND IRENE DUNNE

**************

THE JOSIE MILLER BRACKET

1 WILLIAM POWELL AND MYRNA LOY

VS

6 ROSALIND RUSSELL AND ROBERT MONTGOMERY

**************

THE CATHERINE BELLAMY BRACKET

1 SPENCER TRACY AND KATHARINE HEPBURN

VS

2 NELSON EDDY AND JEANETTE MACDONALD

Week 2 Lombard Cup Matches

Team Carole takes a 4-1 point lead into week 2. And they will need it as the competition gets even tougher this second time around. Here are the matches scheduled to begin tomorrow...

MATCH 6

IRENE DUNNE (TEAM CAROLE)

VS

KATHARINE HEPBURN (TEAM VERONICA)

MATCH 7

ROMY SCHNEIDER (TEAM CAROLE)

VS

JANE RUSSELL (TEAM VERONICA)

MATCH 8

ELEANOR PARKER (TEAM CAROLE)

VS

GENE TIERNEY (TEAM VERONICA)

MATCH 9

DORIS DAY (TEAM CAROLE)

VS

MAUREEN O'HARA (TEAM VERONICA)

MATCH 10

JUDY GARLAND (TEAM CAROLE)

VS

MARGARET O'BRIEN (TEAM VERONICA)

Matches will run through Friday. The polls will be open tomorrow morning here on All Good Things. Good luck to both teams.

All Good Things 2012 Classic Stars Of The Year

Welcome back everyone to my 2nd annual Classic Stars of the Year list as chosen by All Good Things. These are the stars that made the most noise on my blog. That I wrote and talked about the most or who won the most tournaments or polls. In general the best of the best. I based it on Entertainment Weekly's yearly Entertainers of the Year list. So there will be 12 distinguished actors and actresses who made the cut (1 for each month) and I will begin with number 12 and work my way down to number one. 

Hitch lands at no 12.

12.) ALFRED HITCHCOCK - The director was prominent this year with two films, The Girl and Hitchcock. I have seen The Girl and thought it was interesting enough. Can't wait to see Hitchcock with Anthony Hopkins in the title role. I posted about Hitch a few times this year and had a tourney spotlighting the leading ladies of his films.

The urbane Claude

11.) CLAUDE RAINS - The incomparable Rains made some noise on All Good Things with his entrance into my Hall of Fame, one of twelve stars/directors chosen this year. He is also coming off his second Montie (my version of the Oscars) for Best Supporting actor in Casablanca.

The lovely Rita in one of her many summer pics

here on All Good Things

10.) RITA HAYWORTH - Ahhhhh, Rita. She was one of my classic movie goddesses for the year and she also made the most appearances in my at the beach photo series. Stunningly beautiful.

The dashing Flynn

9.) ERROL FLYNN - Another Hall of Fame inductee and much posting on my FB page to drive most women into a frenzy, specifically Classic Becky.

The definition of Classic Star Glamour, courtesy 

of Jean Arthur

8.) JEAN ARTHUR - Jean was another of my goddesses for the year and she also became a Hall of Famer. Plus I think she made a number of random postings thru the year here.

Good to see ya Carole...

7.) CAROLE LOMBARD - Pretty much, Carole will be on this list every year. No question about it. She is my favorite actress of all time and I post something about her at least once a month. I have posted about her 74 times since I started this blog in 2009. The most of any actress.

Hiya Cary!

6.) CARY GRANT - Same thing goes for Cary, as he is my favorite actor of all time. I have posted about Cary 81 times since 2009, the most of anybody here on All Good Things. And he is currently represented quite well with 8 films in my favorite screwball film tourney.

Irene knows how to make an entrance doesn't she

5.) IRENE DUNNE - The 2011 winner for Favorite Classic Film Actress didn't compete in this year's tourney but she still made some noise with regular postings and showing up with three films in the screwball film tourney.

Powell and Loy as Nick and Nora Charles

4.) WILLIAM POWELL & MYRNA LOY- Frequent film co-stars Bill and Myrna walked in together for the Hall of Fame. Her film, The Best Years of Our Lives picked up a slew of Monties. And she was just an all around good gal to hang out with here. They both had several films competing in this year's screwball film tourney

Marilyn

3.) MARILYN MONROE - It's Monroe. Pretty much says it all right there. Tons of pics and postings on here and my FB and Tumblr pages.

Grace, winner for Favorite Leading Lady

in a Hitchcock Film

2.) GRACE KELLY - After being a bridesmaid two years in a row in my Favorite Classic Film Actress tourney, Grace finally won a tourney. Wasn't for that, but for Favorite Leading Lady in an Alfred Hitchcock film. Plus, I continued to post about her with my weekly series, If It's Tuesday, Then It Must Be Grace Kelly.

Congrats Ginger!

1.) GINGER ROGERS - Looking like a repeat of 2011 as the favorite classic film actress tourney winner would claim top classic star of 2012. This year it's Ginger Rogers, who had a dominating run in the tourney for her eventual win as favorite actress here on All Good Things. Congrats Ginger! You are the top Classic Star of the Year!

Here's to another great year in 2013.

My love of classic films is beyond measure

Monty

All Good Things first giveaway

And the answer is.....

In the spirit of Christmas, I am holding my first giveaway contest. Everyone knows that Cary Grant is my favorite actor, so the question will be about him. Out of the 72 full length feature films he did in his career, how many would you guess have I seen? I will give two hints: as much as I love Cary, I have yet to see all his films and last year I did a ranking of my top 25 favorite films of his. So it's not 72, and it's not less than 25. The closest to the right answer without going over will win a gift card. Just leave your answer in the comment section of this post or email me at monty_hawes@yahoo.com

If there are multiple people who choose the same answer that is closest then I will give out that many gift cards accordingly. Just my way of saying thanks to the blogging community who have been following All Good Things for the past few years. The contest ends Wednesday evening at 8pm. That way I can announce the winner and send out the gift card on Thursday. Hopefully in time for Christmas.

The first round of Favorite Screwball Film Tourney is in the books

The first round of The Favorite Screwball Film Tourney is in the books and with the exception of three upsets, most of the expected winners are moving on to round 2. The upsets included one of the four major top seeds..Trouble in Paradise losing to My Favorite Wife 23-15. Paradise made a gallant comeback as it was done early by the score of 13-2, but fell short. Another upset occurred when third seed Libeled Lady fell to sixth seed The Palm Beach Story by the count of 20-17. And a mild upset took place when 2nd seed Sullivan's Travels lost to 7th seed Ball Of Fire by the score of 22-20. The other matches were pretty much blow-outs except for Theodora Goes Wild and Topper engaging in a close 19-17 thriller. Here are the complete scores below:

Just hold on a minute baby and let me get ready for round 2

IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT 34
THE MORE THE MERRIER 8

MERRILY WE LIVE 22
THE GILDED LILY 7

THE PHILADELPHIA STORY 26
TWENTIETH CENTURY 16

HIS GIRL FRIDAY 37
THE MAJOR AND THE MINOR 8

MY MAN GODFREY 33
EASY LIVING 8

See it says it right there..The Awful Truth wins..so I actually 

beat myself if you can believe that

THE AWFUL TRUTH 25
ARSENIC AND OLD LACE 18

YOU CAN'T TAKE IT WITH YOU 24
BLUEBEARD'S EIGHTH WIFE 12

BALL OF FIRE 22
SULLIVAN'S TRAVELS 20

MY FAVORITE WIFE 23
TROUBLE IN PARADISE 15

THE LADY EVE 22
NINOTCHKA 16

THE PALM BEACH STORY 20
LIBELED LADY 17

THE THIN MAN 27
HOLIDAY 11

BRINGING UP BABY 34
BOMBSHELL 5

MIDNIGHT 27
THE GOOD FAIRY 8

TO BE OR NOT TO BE 30
THE DEVIL AND MISS JONES 6

THEODORA GOES WILD 19
TOPPER 17

Some stats:

Cary Grant started with the most films competing in this tourney with 8...he now has five left. Still the most by anyone else.

Carole Lombard, Irene Dunne and Barbara Stanwyck are perfect. Carole and Irene started with three films each and Barbara started with two. All of their films moved on to the next round.

Jean Arthur avoided a possible shut out as one of her films made it to round 2. Easy Living and The More The Merrier got sent packing but You Can't Take It With You won it's match.

Second round action with the remaining 16 films will begin Sunday evening. So everybody take a breather and come back then for round 2.

My love of classic films is beyond measure

Monty

Screwball Tourney Day 1 Update

My first ever screwball film tourney got off to a fantastic start on Sunday with about 20 fans voting on the first round matches on average. Three of the four top seeds are rolling early, and there are some back and forth matches taking place as well. Here are the breakdowns on yesterday's exciting start.

My Favorite Wife has a leg up over Trouble in Paradise

after day one

Three of the four top seeds are besting their opponents quite easily. Overall top seed Bringing Up Baby leads Bombshell 15-1 (I wonder who is the lone person so far to cast their vote for the Jean Harlow vehicle). The second top seed It Happened One Night is up big over The More The Merrier by the count of 18-3. The third top seed My Man Godfrey is having no trouble at all with Easy Living and leads 17-4. The last top seed, Trouble in Paradise is having trouble with upstart My Favorite Wife. It is getting hammered 14-3. The pairing of Irene Dunne and Cary Grant evidently is too much.

If I'm reading this right, then we're winning...

In other matches that are also blow-outs include: To Be Or Not To Be ahead of The Devil and Miss Jones 13-2; His Girl Friday up big on The Major and The Minor 17-4; and The Philadelphia Story double over Twentieth Century 14-7.

It's gonna be close between us and Sullivan..

Now the nail-biters currently going on include: Arsenic and Old Lace with a slight 11-9 edge over The Awful Truth; The Palm Beach Story with a one point edge over Libeled Lady 9-8; The Lady Eve over Ninotchka 10-7; and  Sullivan's Travels tied with Ball of Fire at 10-10. 

My oh my, how exciting is this. The matches continue on through Friday and I will keep everyone updated with posts through-out the week. Below are the complete scores on all the matches:

IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT 18
THE MORE THE MERRIER 3

MERRILY WE LIVE 11
THE GILDED LILY 5

THE PHILADELPHIA STORY 14
TWENTIETH CENTURY 7

HIS GIRL FRIDAY 17
THE MAJOR AND THE MINOR 4

We are definitely in trouble...

MY MAN GODFREY 17
EASY LIVING 4

ARSENIC AND OLD LACE 11
THE AWFUL TRUTH 9

YOU CAN'T TAKE IT WITH YOU 12
BLUEBEARD'S EIGHTH WIFE 8

BALL OF FIRE 10
SULLIVAN'S TRAVELS 10

MY FAVORITE WIFE 14
TROUBLE IN PARADISE 3

THE LADY EVE 10
NINOTCHKA 7

THE PALM BEACH STORY 9
LIBELED LADY 8

No worries sugar...

THE THIN MAN 10
HOLIDAY 5

BRINGING UP BABY 15
BOMBSHELL 1

MIDNIGHT 11
THE GOOD FAIRY 5

TO BE OR NOT TO BE 13
THE DEVIL AND MISS JONES 2

THEODORA GOES WILD 10
TOPPER 5

My love of classic films is beyond measure

Monty

ALL GOOD THINGS first inductions to it's Hall of Fame

I was toying with the idea of creating a Hall of Fame for all the great stars and directors that I have written and talked about on here. So like most hall of fame things, there are certain criteria to be met to get inducted. I have three. They are as follows:

1.) Winner of a Montie - which everyone knows is my version of the Oscars. So if a certain star or director or writer has won a Montie, that means they are in the mix. If they have won several Monties, then that only increases their chances of getting in.


2.) Winner of a tourney - everyone also knows how much I love staging tournaments featuring actors, actresses, directors and even films against one another. If a person wins a tourney, they are a lock to get inducted. I also say if they do well enough in the tourney but don't win, they will be strongly considered as well. For instance, Grace Kelly and Natalie Wood both made the final four for two years in a row without winning a tourney. That is still an impressive feat.


3.) Can be voted in via a poll - From time to time, I will have polls that will specifically ask should this person be inducted into the hall of fame. 

Looks like we're in Irene, my dear...

I plan to induct two people a month and the first pair chosen is none other than Cary Grant, my favorite actor of all time and Irene Dunne. Why these two you may ask? Let me explain what this pair have accomplished. Cary is a three-time Montie winner (Best Actor for The Awful Truth, His Girl Friday and Penny Serenade) and winner of the 2011 Favorite Classic Movie Actor Tourney. More than enough qualifications to earn an induction. Meanwhile Irene is no slouch herself being a Montie winner for The Awful Truth and winner of the 2011 Favorite Classic Movie Actress Tourney. So please congratulate Cary and Irene as being All Good Things first inductees into the Hall of Fame.

FUNNY LADIES/SINGERS AND DANCERS Round Two Update

Once again I am stressing over Carole as she is in a dogfight with Jean Arthur. Don't know how much more I can take of it. Anyway here are the latest numbers after day two.


SILENT/30'S ERA

Irene has set yet another record...most votes in a match..at 91 and climbing

CAROLE LOMBARD 65 JEAN ARTHUR 64
MYRNA LOY 72 JEAN HARLOW 36
GINGER ROGERS 77 HATTIE MCDANIEL 28
IRENE DUNNE 91 JEANETTE MACDONALD 13


Like I said Carole has her hands full with Jean Arthur as I think this match will go down to the wire. The other matches are pretty much over. Defending champion is just pummeling Jeanette MacDonald with a record 91 votes and counting. Can Dunnie put up a 100? We'll soon find out.


40'S ERA

ROSALIND RUSSELL 59 JANE WYMAN 59
LUCILLE BALL 59 EVE ARDEN 51
JUDY GARLAND 49 BETTY GRABLE 42
RITA HAYWORTH 50 ANN MILLER 29


My oh my...Roz and Jane are tied at 59 apiece. Lucy is in a close one with Eve Arden. And Judy has gotten more than she bargained from Betty Grable, leading only by 7 votes. But Rita is rolling over Ann Miller.


50'S ERA

JANET LEIGH 46 JUDY HOLLIDAY 28
MARILYN MONROE 45 THELMA RITTER 36
DORIS DAY 60 VERA-ELLEN 21
DEBBIE REYNOLDS 52 CYD CHARISSE 28


Top seed Doris Day is leading big by nearly 40 votes over Vera-Ellen, as expected. Thelma Ritter has really pushed Marilyn Monroe in a tough match. And looks like Judy Holliday has met her match in Janet Leigh.


60'S ERA

NATALIE WOOD 50 HAYLEY MILLS 17
JANE FONDA 39 SANDRA DEE 24
JULIE ANDREWS 39 SHIRLEY JONES 27
SHIRLEY MACLAINE 36 ANN-MARGRET 31


The only close match here is between Shirley MacLaine and Ann-Margret. Shirley has only a slight 5 point edge.


All the matches will conclude tonight unless there is a tie somewhere and then we will go into a tie-breaker match.