The 2013 Lombard Cup update

Here are the latest numbers on the first five matches currently taking place over at Kristen's blog, Journeys in Classic Film. 

I am happy to report my girl Carole Lombard is winning by the count of 29 to 4 over Veronica Lake.

Rosalind Russell leads Cyd Charisse 25 to 8. That will make Desiree very, very happy!

Shirley Jones leads Jennifer Jones 19 to 14.

Jean Harlow is up on Marilyn Monroe by the score of 20 to 13.

And Rita Hayworth currently leads Greta Garbo 19 to 14.

So Team Carole leads in 4 of the 5 matches over Team Veronica which is great. The matches are up till Friday so please visit Kristen's blog to cast your vote. Here's the link:  journeysinclassicfilm.com/2013/09/10/lombard-cup-updates

The 2013 Lombard Cup is underway

The 2013 Lombard Cup is underway as Kristen has the first five matches up and running. Here's the link to her blog to go cast your votes... journeysinclassicfilm.com/2013/09/08

THE 2013 LOMBARD CUP Week One Matches

The fun begins tomorrow over at Kristen's blog, Journeys In Classic Film. Here are the five scheduled matches that will run through Friday. Here is the link to go vote at Kristen's blog.. journeysinclassicfilm.com
So vote on your favorites and next week there will be 5 more matches, this time taking place here at All Good Things

MATCH 1

CAROLE LOMBARD (Team Carole)

VS

VERONICA LAKE (Team Veronica)

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

MATCH 2

ROSALIND RUSSELL (Team Carole)

VS

CYD CHARISSE (Team Veronica)

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

MATCH 3

SHIRLEY JONES (Team Carole)

VS

JENNIFER JONES (Team Veronica)

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

MATCH 4

JEAN HARLOW (Team Carole)

VS 

MARILYN MONROE (Team Veronica)

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

MATCH 5

GRETA GARBO (Team Carole)

VS

RITA HAYWORTH (Team Veronica)

Carole Lombard returns to action

The news is out as the 2013 Favorite Classic Movie Actress Champion, Carole Lombard returns to compete in The Lombard Cup, leading a team of 20 other classic movie actresses against Team Veronica (as in Veronica Lake) of Journeys In Classic Film. Carole will face off against Veronica in the very first match to see which actress is liked more by our fans and followers. I sat down with Carole to briefly chat with her about this upcoming event.

Monty: Hi Carole...fancy meeting you here.
Carole Lombard: Hi Monty..glad to be back here at All Good Things. Feels like only yesterday when I was just on here.
Monty: Speaking of that, how does it feel being the favorite classic movie actress of 2013? still great I imagine?
Carole: oh it is so wonderful. I still get phone calls and messages congratulating me and saying how great it was that I won.
Monty: It was a long time coming for sure..glad you won. I don't know if I could have handled other loss..
Carole: you couldn't? oh Monty..I think I would have been climbing the walls, knowing I would have to come back next year to do it all over again.
Monty: Now on to the Lombard Cup..thank you for accepting to be the captain for All Good Things team. You girls are gonna have a tough time as Kristen of Journeys in Classic Film has one heck of a team assembled.
Carole: Oh yeah..I've seen it...Myrna Loy, Marilyn Monroe, Elizabeth Taylor, Barbara Stanwyck, Ginger, Katharine Hepburn..good lord. It's gonna be a challenge! But it's all in good fun. I think we will have a good time. 
Monty: Well at least you won't have to go through 6 matches to win it. Just one match and you can sit back and cheer on your team-mates.
Carole: Oh god yes! I love this format Monty. Much less stress..haha!
Monty: Well Carole, here's to you and your team doing the best you can and hopefully you girls can win the cup and bring it home to stay here on All Good Things.
Carole: We will certainly try our best Monty.

Monty: Ladies and Gentlemen..Carole Lombard!

Glad to be back here in blogland....

Glad to be back....and so is Carole...

On my previous post about my upcoming Lombard Cup, my friends KC, Patti and Robin left comments asking where have I been and that it was great to see me back in blogland. It never occurred to me that I would have been missed during my brief time away from blogland since July. I have been using Facebook to concentrate on my All Good Thing page there and posting star of the week reviews, photos, videos, etc. And it has been fun doing stuff over there but now I am back with the upcoming Lombard Cup and then following that will be another tourney that me and Desiree will be doing together. Just wanted to say thank you to everyone that said such nice comments and have missed me. Glad to be back!

THE 2013 LOMBARD CUP begins this Sunday

I stated a few weeks ago that me and Kristen of Journeys in Classic Film would be holding The 2013 Lombard Cup on our two respective blogs. Her team against my team. 21 classic film actresses per team that we selected with my team captain being Carole Lombard and hers being Veronica Lake. Akin to golf's Ryder Cup, we will have 21 single matches pitting actress against actress where you guys get to vote on who you like more. Each week we will have 5 matches with the final week having 6 matches. There will be no tie-breakers and if a match ends in a tie then both teams will get half a point. Whoever wins the match gets a full point. And at the end of the month whichever team has the most points wins The Lombard Cup and will keep it at their blog for a full year. Then we get to do it again the following year with new team members. Me and Kristen will trade hosting duties as the first five matches will begin over at her blog for week 1. Then I will do the next five matches the following week and so forth. Here's the link to Kristen's blog:  journeysinclassicfilm.com

And here are the first five matches. The polls will be up sometime on Sunday and will be one vote per match. So please go vote for your favorites.

TEAM CAROLE               VS           TEAM VERONICA
Carole Lombard                                 Veronica Lake
Rosalind Russell                                Cyd Charisse
Shirley Jones                                      Jennifer Jones
Jean Harlow                                        Marilyn Monroe
Greta Garbo                                        Rita Hayworth

Post Tourney Wrap-Up

Carole is reflective after winning the trophy

By now everyone knows that Carole Lombard is the Favorite Classic Movie Actress of 2013 thanks to her tournament win. It was a sweet victory for Carole, who had lost twice previously in the 30's era bracket final match the past two years to eventual tourney winners Irene Dunne and Ginger Rogers. I just wanted to do a post about some of the achievements that were accomplished with this year's tourney. And give thanks again to my friends Mythical Monkey, Desiree and Kristen who helped me stage this annual fun event.

Carole logged the most votes in the tourney with 309 votes through 7 matches. Her 65 votes against Bette Davis in championship match were the most votes she received out of any of her matches.

But Barbara Stanwyck has the honor of most votes in any match this tourney as she logged 72 in her lopsided win over Norma Shearer. Ava Gardner was second with 67 votes against Eleanor Parker.

Audrey was quite happy with her record setting win

Audrey Hepburn did something really cool. She posted 55 vote victories in round 1 and 3 of the 50's era bracket. She also recorded the only shut-out in tourney history in one of those matches as she drubbed Pier Angeli 55-0. The other 55 scoring output came against Deborah Kerr.

Biggest surprises came in the form of two-time Final Four finalists Grace Kelly and Natalie Wood, both making early exits. Natalie lost to Shirley Jones in round 3 of the 60's era bracket while Grace got knocked off by Ava Gardner in round 4 of the 50's era bracket. It would seem strange not seeing Natalie and Grace in the final four this year after making it to the first two.

Another happy camper was Diana, who will most likely be the top

seed in the 60's era bracket next year

Tourney first timers that did well included Diana Rigg, who made it all the way to the final four to lose to Bette Davis and finish with a 5-1 record. Paula Prentiss also from the same 60's era bracket made it to round 3 before losing to Anne Bancroft. And Eleanor Powell in the 30's era bracket danced her way to two wins before losing to Joan Blondell.

Some of the best matches that came down to the wire included Loretta Young outlasting Maureen O'Hara 33-30; Julie Andrews 41-39 over Maggie Smith. Marilyn Monroe edging Lana Turner 35-33 in a nail-biter. And the one lone tie match between Lauren Bacall and Ida Lupino in the 40's era bracket. Desiree had to do a tie-breaker poll question which saw Lauren squeak by.

So there you have some highlights from the 3rd Annual Favorite Classic Movie Actress Tourney. I hope everyone enjoyed it and look forward to next years.

Bette quietly went about her business under the radar

and almost took home the crown. Next year Bette..it might be yours!

Carole Lombard...the day after

 After her victory over Bette Davis on Sunday to claim the crown for Favorite Classic Movie Actress of 2013, Carole Lombard was as giddy as a schoolgirl. Congratulations Carole!

It's official...Carole Lombard captures the crown for Favorite Classic Movie Actress of 2013

A triumphant Carole!!!!!

The third time proved to be the charm for Carole as she claimed the Favorite Classic Movie Actress crown for 2013 after two previous tries came up just a little short. She defeated Bette Davis 65-28 in the final match to add her name to the list of Classic Movie Actress tourney winners. The other two being Irene Dunne and Ginger Rogers, both whom knocked out Carole in the previous years. The 65 votes Carole accumulated were the most she achieved in any match this year. I guess she saved the best for last. It extends the 30's era actresses dominance in this tourney as they have now won all three tourneys. This win marks Carole's 15th win in tourney/match play to give her a record of 15-3, good for 2nd all time. Only Grace Kelly has won more matches with 16. It was a tough loss for Bette but most likely she will be the favorite to win it next year as Carole is now ineligible to compete due to her win. I'd like to thank Mythical Monkey, Desiree and Kristen for helping me put on this event and all those who voted. We will do it all over again next year. But for right now, let Carole bask in this momentous victory. And I for one couldn't be any happier!

Championship Match Day 4 Update: It's now just a formality

Carole Lombard is hours away from being named Favorite Classic Movie Actress of 2013 as she leads Bette Davis by a comfortable margin of 62-25. She gained 11 more votes today,compared to just 3 votes for Bette. I will conclude the match tomorrow afternoon at 3 pm EST. Bette would need some kind of miracle to just make this close so I think it's a safe bet to say Carole will win.

PAGE: 1

DownloadCreate Chart1. Which actress do you prefer?
	answered question		87
	skipped question		0
		Response Percent	Response Count
1 BETTE DAVIS		28.7%	25
1 CAROLE LOMBARD		71.3%	62

Championship match Day 3 update: Carole Lombard is in control

Day 3 finds Carole Lombard increasing her lead over Bette Davis in the 2013 Favorite Classic Movie Actress Tourney. As of 8 pm EST, Lombard leads Davis by the count of 51-22. Today's votes so far were 11 for Carole and 6 for Bette. Looks like Bette can't make up any ground at all..not even on her birthday. The match continues through Sunday but it looks more and more like Carole will finally walk away with the Favorite Classic Movie Actress crown after two years of heartbreak. Here's the chart posted below to show the actual votes and percentages:

PAGE: 1

DownloadCreate Chart1. Which actress do you prefer?
	answered question		73
	skipped question		0
		Response Percent	Response Count
1 BETTE DAVIS		30.1%	22
1 CAROLE LOMBARD		69.9%	51

Championship Match Day 2 Update: Lombard extends her lead over Davis

Uh-oh..looks like Bette may be in a spot of trouble.  As of 8 pm EST on Day 2 of the championship match shows Carole Lombard extending her lead over Bette Davis even further by the count of 40-16, to a 24 vote advantage. After day one, Carole's lead was only 11. There are still three days left in the match, but if Bette doesn't make a charge soon, it might be over by tomorrow. I copied and pasted the actual match totals so far so everyone can see for themselves. I will not lie, I am hoping Carole can hold on and win this thing. After all she is my favorite actress ever!

1. Which actress do you prefer?
	answered question		56
	skipped question		0
		Response Percent	Response Count
1 BETTE DAVIS		28.6%	16
1 CAROLE LOMBARD		71.4%	40

Championship Match Day 1 Update

One of the biggest matches in tourney history is off to a blazing start. As of 8 pm EST, Carole Lombard (30's era champion) leads Bette Davis (40's era champion) by the count of 21-11. That is a fantastic start for Carole and leaves Bette trailing for the first time in the tourney this year. But it is still early and we have four more days left. Anything can happen. So if you haven't voted yet, swing on by and click on the link on the right hand sidebar. 



Bette grabs a smoke while Carole sips some tea during this match..to each her own!

Davis/Lombard match is underway

The match to decide the favorite classic movie actress of 2013 is now underway. The link is on the right hand sidebar to go cast your vote for either Bette Davis or Carole Lombard. I will post a nightly update to let everyone know how the match is going. Good luck to both actresses. Should be a great match.

Bette Davis vs Carole Lombard for the title

You couldn't have asked for a better championship match to decide the favorite classic movie actress for 2013. After years of higher seeds such as 10th seed Irene Dunne and 7th seed Ginger Rogers winning the coveted title against a 4th seed Vivien Leigh and top seed Natalie Wood, this is the first match in tourney championship history, where both actresses are number 1 seeds. Bette was a top seed in the 40's era in the drama queens category while Carole was a overall top seed for the top four women in the entire tourney. So this should be one doozy of a match. Here are the stats for the two ladies:

CAROLE LOMBARD
Tourney Record 14-3 (through 3 years)
wins so far:
Doris Day 43-19
Barbara Stanwyck 36-27
Joan Blondell 39-20
Myrna Loy 61-21
Jean Harlow 50-31
Margaret Dumont 58-7
Number of posts on All Good Things: 91
Rank on my Favorite Actresses List: 1
Number of Monties: (1) Best Actress for My Man Godfrey (1936)
My top 3 favorite Carole films: Mr. and Mrs. Smith, My Man Godfrey, and In Name Only


VS

BETTE DAVIS
Tourney Record 11-2 
wins so far:
Diana Rigg 48-15
Rita Hayworth 25-13
Judy Garland 44-39
Vivien Leigh 32-18
Olivia de Havilland 31-13
Jane Wyman 55-4
Number of posts on All Good Things: 55
Rank on my Favorite Actress List: 9
Number of Monties: (1) so far for The Little Foxes (1941) as Best Actress
My top 3 favorite Bette films: All About Eve, The Man Who Came To Dinner, and Old Acquaintance

And the odds are dead even, according to the oddsmakers in Las Vegas. So this match can go either way. The match begins tomorrow morning and runs through Sunday morning. So all Bette and Carole fans, please come out and show your support by casting a vote for your favorite.

Bette Davis and Carole Lombard take care of business

In the two semi-final matches, it was Bette Davis and Carole Lombard who were triumphant, setting up a killer final match. Davis downed tourney newcomer Diana Rigg 48-15, thus ending Rigg's Cinderella run. But the one-time Avenger and former Mrs. Bond enjoyed a 5-1 record in her maiden tourney. Not bad at all. Bette received the second most votes of her tourney run, only 7 votes shy of her record drubbing over Jane Wyman 55-4 in round one. 

Fresh off the presses...Bette's win over Diana Rigg

In the other match it was Carole Lombard taking care of Doris Day 43-19, and sending Carole to the final match after two years of previous heartbreak. The last two tourneys, Carole lost in the 30's era bracket final match to Irene Dunne and Ginger Rogers, who both went on to win the tourney crown their respective year. So now this year's final match will be two number 1 seeds and both with huge fanbases. Should be one heck of a match. I will write a post about this match and both finalists tomorrow and start it on Wednesday morning. It will run through Sunday afternoon and by then we will have our favorite classic movie actress of 2013.

Carole pours herself a drink after her victory over Doris Day

Day 2 of the Final Four has Bette Davis and Carole Lombard in complete control

The two matches in the final four of the favorite classic movie actress tourney have shaped up to be blow-outs. Top seeds Bette Davis and Carole Lombard are having very little trouble in their matches. Bette leads Diana Rigg 32-9 while Carole leads Doris Day 31-9 as of 8 pm EST. There is one more day of voting but it's looking like we will be seeing a championship match between Bette and Carole. Which is fine with me. I will write a post on that big time match-up on Tuesday. And will start the championship match on Wednesday morning to run through Sunday.

THE FINAL FOUR begins tomorrow

The Final Four for the 2013 Favorite Classic Movie Actress will begin tomorrow and I think this year's foursome represents each specific era quite well. These four actresses: Carole Lombard, Bette Davis, Doris Day and Diana Rigg are all making their first final four appearances. In the case of Diana Rigg, it is her debut tourney. I was getting used to see tourney mainstays like Grace Kelly and Natalie Wood being in the final four that it is something of a shock to not see them here this year. But the show must go on and here is the rundown on this year's final four.

CAROLE LOMBARD
Tourney Record 13-3 (through 3 years)
wins so far:
Barbara Stanwyck 36-27
Joan Blondell 39-20
Myrna Loy 61-21
Jean Harlow 50-31
Margaret Dumont 58-7




VS

DORIS DAY 
Tourney Record 9-2
wins so far:
Ava Garder 40-19
Audrey Hepburn 34-32
Jane Russell 54-22
Cyd Charisse 51-17
Vera-Ellen 45-13




Carole has logged 244 votes in her favor in her five wins for a 48 vote average.
Carole leads the final four finalists with most votes gained. Hope that's a good sign.
Doris has logged 224 votes in her favor in her five wins for a 44 vote average. 
So they are pretty close and will go into this match evenly matched.


**************************************************
BETTE DAVIS
Tourney Record 10-2 
wins so far:
Rita Hayworth 25-13
Judy Garland 44-39
Vivien Leigh 32-18
Olivia de Havilland 31-13
Jane Wyman 55-4




VS


DIANA RIGG
Tourney Record 5-0 (first year)
wins so far:
Shirley Jones 30-17
Catherine Deneuve 38-14
Julie Andrews 48-20
Angela Lansbury 44-40
Julie Christie 43-19

Bette has logged 187 votes in her favor over five wins for an average of 37 votes per match.
Diana has logged 203 votes in her favor over five wins for an average of 40 votes per match.
Diana has had some impressive wins, particularly over 60's titans Catherine Deneuve and Julie Andrews. She did struggle with Angela Lansbury though. While Bette has been pretty consistent with her only real close match coming against last year's final four finalist Judy Garland.

I will have the polls up early tomorrow morning and will have the matches run through either Monday evening or Tuesday evening. Not quite sure yet.