A New Series: From The Past To Now - Jimmy Stewart and Tom Hanks

Here is the new series I mentioned last month I would be doing comparing an actor/actress from yesteryear to one of today. The first choice is Jimmy Stewart and Tom Hanks. And that these two men would be comparable is no surprise. Hanks quickly became a heir apparent to Jimmy thanks to his same everyday appeal. Both men had similar starts in their careers. Stewart would have bit parts in films such as Wife vs Secretary with top billed Clark Cable, Myrna Loy and Jean Harlow and Rose Marie with Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy before scoring leading roles in Vivacious Lady, You Can't Take It With You, and Made For Each Other. Hanks meanwhile got his start on TV in small roles on such series as Happy Days, Taxi and The Love Boat. He then moved on to lead on the comedy series Bosom Buddies. Humble beginnings for both men. Stewart would soon become a huge star thanks to such big films like Mr. Smith Goes To Washington, The Philadelphia Story (his only Oscar came here), Destry Rides Again, and The Shop Around The Corner. All coming while in his early 30's. A few years later would come the all time holiday classic It's A Wonderful Life. Hanks would have similar success at the same age with comedy hits such as Bachelor Party, Splash, The Money Pit, Dragnet and Big.


After playing such stalwart good guys, Stewart would soon turn over a new leaf during the 1950's by appearing in complicated westerns done by Anthony Mann and top notch thrillers by Hitchcock such as Vertigo and Rear Window. Stewart was at his best when working with these two highly respected directors. Hanks would get similar chances to shine with different types of films other than comedies. He would appear in such sterling dramas like Philadelphia (for which he won a Best Actor Oscar), Apollo 13, Forrest Gump (another Best  Actor Oscar) and Saving Private Ryan. Hanks would also appear in the hugely family animated series of films Toy Story. Hanks best films came under the direction of Ron Howard (yes Opie from The Andy Griffith Show) and Steven Spielberg. The only difference between the two men would be that Stewart appeared in about twenty westerns. So far Hanks has made not one single western. But Hanks did remake one of Jimmy's older films. He remade the sentimental classic The Shop Around The Corner into the likeable You've Got Mail.


Hanks would be constantly compared to Stewart thanks to his good guy, aw shucks demeanor and most film goers enjoyed both men's films. True there are a lot of non Hanks fans more so than non Stewart fans but you still can't help but see the connection between the two stars. And for the record I am a fan of both. So this is the start of a wonderful new series that I hope to being doing at least once a month. Everyone let me know what you think.

Penny Serenade (1941) - a rediscovered classic

A friend of mine from work was recently telling me that her VHS copy of Penny Serenade (1941) the Cary Grant/Irene Dunne tearjerker is on its last legs. I told her I thought I had an extra DVD copy of because I record so many movies on TCM, I sometimes lose track of which ones I've recorded. Lo and behold I had two copies of Penny Serenade. Well its been a few years since I seen it, so I decided to watch it again and it's better than I remember. The story has Cary as dashing news reporter Roger Adams, who meets and falls in love with record store clerk Julie (Irene Dunne). They get married and travel to Japan for Grant's assignment. It's there where an earthquake hits and Julie who is pregnant loses the baby and the ability to conceive again. The couple are able to adopt a little girl later on but tragedy strikes again. Expertly directed by George Stevens who is able to mix light comedy with the heavy drama with ease. Grant and Dunne are superb together and it proves my point that Irene was Cary's best co-star. Look for Edgar Buchanan in a scene stealing role as Uncle Applejack, who helps the couple out from time to time. And for those who say Cary can't really act outside of screwball comedies, just take a look at the scene where he pleads with the judge to not take his adopted child away from him. That 5 minute sequence is one of Cary's or anyone else for that matter, best film performances ever. Penny Serenade is a great movie. One of those timeless classics and I'm glad I'm able to give a copy to one of my friends so she can have it forever now.
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Jeanne Crain - Classic Movie Goddess of the Month Part 2

Here are notable facts and trivia about Jeanne found on IMDB:

Devoutly Catholic mother of 7.


Although frequently cast in musicals, she herself was not a singer. Louanne Hogan was specifically under contract so that she could dub the singing in all her musicals.
Won the "Miss Camera Girl of 1942" title in Long Beach, Florida, and given a contract by Fox.


By the time she left Fox studios in 1956, she was making $3,500 a week.

Long-time husband, Paul Brooks, was an RKO contract player at one time, briefly appearing in the movie Those Endearing Young Charms (1945). He went by the stage name of Paul Brooks, but gave it all up to become a highly successful businessman.


Children with Paul Brooks: Paul F. Brinkman Jr. (b. 6 April 1947), Michael (b. 21 January 1949), Timothy (b. 2 August 1950), Jeanine (b. 5 March 1952), Lisabette (b. 21 November 1958), Maria (b. 10 January 1961), Christopher (b. 5 May 1965).
Two of her children, Michael and Christopher, predeceased her.

In her retirement years, she and her husband spent most of their time working at two of their ranches.

Crain, who starred in the original 1950 film version of Cheaper by the Dozen (1950) sadly passed away just twelve days before the release of the remake of the same film starring Steve Martin.


Her youngest child, son Christopher Brinkman, was the original lead guitarist for the rock group Jane's Addiction (1985-1986). He died of a drug overdose in 1997.

All Good Things 2010 Year In Review

I decided to do a post reviewing my first full year on All Good Things. 2010 was a great year if I must say so. To all of my followers who didn't know, I started All Good Things in October 2009 and it really took off in 2010. It was fun blogging about classic movies and meeting fellow fans as well. I did a mammoth 325 posts in 2010 which I thought was a lot. I will break down my review of 2010 by months. So here we go.

JANUARY - I continued my Classic Movie Goddess Series with Grace Kelly, which turned out to be one of my best choices. I love Grace Kelly. I also spotlighted the underrated actress Gail Patrick. I also had my first annual awards selection called The Monties, choosing my favorite films and TV series along with actors and actresses of the modern era. I only did 13 posts in total for the month of January as I had an accident coming home from West Virginia during a snowstorm. But I still thought January was a good month. Next month would be a much more productive month. Oh I also posted a review of Mr. and Mrs. Smith, a terrific screwball comedy with my favorite actress of all time Carole Lombard and directed by the master of suspense Alfred Hitchcock? Yeah, Hitch's only true comedy.

FEBRUARY - The shortest month of the year yielded 37 posts by me as I was very busy blogging away. Elizabeth Taylor was my CMG (classic movie goddess). And I wrote a piece about one of her legendary screen performances in Who's Afraid Of Virgina Woolf? And another review of Cat on A Hot Tin Roof. I started a new series simply called Good Morning, which featured a photo of an actress simply saying Good Morning to all my followers. Some of the actresses included Ann-Margret, Paulette Goddard and June Allyson. I also posted Happy Birthdays to such notables as Jack Lemmon, Lana Turner, and Kathryn Grayson. In honor of the Oscars, I did a post on great actors and actresses who were never nominated for an Oscar which included such shockers like Joseph Cotten, Errol Flynn and Myrna Loy. I did a post on Dirk Bogarde as thanks to my friend Kate Gabrielle of Silents and Talkies for introducing me to this wonderful actor. I also did reviews for These Three (1936), The Lady Eve (1941) and Five Came back (1939). Whew! Like I said I was quite busy in February but I enjoyed every single minute of it.

MARCH - My birthday month came in like a lion with a total of 29 posts including Ann Sheridan as my CMG of the month. I did reviews on Rio Bravo, Bringing Up Baby and the new film The Blind Side, starring Sandra Bullock. I also started a new series called Iconic Photos which featured fondly remembered pics from well known classics. I kicked the series off with the classic Marilyn Monroe comedy, The Seven Year Itch. And I did a poll asking the question who were your favorite movie pair? And I had an awesome response of 51 votes and the winners were Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.

APRIL - Myrna Loy kicked off the month of April as my CMG. I reviewed her wonderful Thin Man series that starred her and William Powell. I wrote a piece called Why Cary Grant is my favorite actor. I continued my iconic photos with Rita Hayworth as Gilda.  And my latest poll asked the question if it wasn't for Gone With The Wind winning Best Film of 1939, what other movie from that year would you have chosen. It was a landslide victory by The Wizard of Oz with a whopping 68% of the vote. WOW! And I had a couple of good mornings from Betty Grable and Esther Williams.

MAY - The weather was starting to warm up and things were started to heat up on my blog. I chose Bette Davis for my CMG. And I posted a list of her 8 essential films along with other facts and pictures. I did birthday shout-outs to John Wayne, Anne Baxter and Jeanne Crain. I started yet another series called Be My Guest and which I asked guest bloggers to answer some questions about their favorites. My first guest was my new friend Kori, who writes the fantastic blog Blonde Episodes. Be My Guest would soon become one of my favorite attractions on here. I did a memorial on the recently passed Lena Horne. Had a good morning from Donna Reed. And I wrote a piece on That Girl, one of my favorite TV comedies of yesteryear.

 JUNE - The start of summer began in full with Donna Reed being my CMG. I did birthday tributes to Marilyn Monroe and Rosalind Russell. My poll of the month asked the question from what movie did modern audiences know Grace Kelly from and to my surprise a whopping 30% had no clue to who Grace was. Unbelievable. Anyway I started yet another new series called FUN SUMMER MOVIES, which focused on those summer films that I recall fondly seeing at the theaters while growing up. First up was Back to the Future and Raiders of the lost ark. My guest blogger for the month was my best blogging friend Dawn, who handles other wonderful blogs such as Noir & Flick Chicks, Betty Grable, Saddles and Spurs, Esther Williams and more. And I aslo posted my favorite 30 classic actresses list, one of my best posts ever.

JULY - A scorching summer continues into the month of July with the ever perky Debbie Reynolds as the main attraction of the month. My guest blogger was Tracy aka Gilby37, who I met on the blog What We're Watching on TV. Fun Summer Movies continued with Jurassic Park, Soapdish, Star Wars and Big. A load of birthday tributes included Olivia de Havilland, Harrison Ford, Barbara Stanwyck, Ginger Rogers, Natalie Wood and Sandra Bullock. And I wrote a review of my favorite Alfred Hitchcock film, The Lady Vanishes.

AUGUST - Rosalind Russell led the way in August as my CMG. Fun Summer Movies continued with The Goonies and Single White Female. I had birthday tributes for Myrna Loy, Rhonda Fleming, Norma Shearer, Ella Raines, and Esther Williams. My guest blogger was Laura of Laura's Miscellaneous Musings. I did my favorite 25 Cary Grant films. I wrote a great review of Stage Door. And I started another series of comparing two similar films. Up first was Breakfast at Tiffany's and Butterfield 8.

SEPTEMBER - If I had to list my favorite CMG that I have done so far, this month's actress Natalie Wood would be at the top. While she may not be my favorite actress, I had a wonderful time writing about her the entire month. And for the record, Natalie ranks 17th on my favorite classic actresses of all time. My guest blogger was Sarah from And..Scene. I did birthday tributes to Raquel Welch, Margaret Lockwood, and Deborah Kerr. And I wrote reviews on Peyton Place and Waterloo Bridge.

OCTOBER - I did something different for this month as I focused on the women of Hammer Studio Films instead of one particular actress for my CMG. I wrote about Hazel Court and Joanna Lumley. I also chose a classic horror movie a day and wrote about it. Included were Cat People, The Innocents, Psycho, The Uninvited, The Wicker Man, I Walked with a Zombie, Rosemary's Baby, Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? and lots more. I also started a new series dedicated to all things Grace Kelly entitled If It's Tuesday, Then It Must Be Grace Kelly, which has been a lot of fun to do. I did birthday tributes to Rita Hayworth, Janet Leigh, Miriam Hopkins, Catherine Deneuve and Constance Bennett. And I did another films comparison between The Best Years of our Lives and Since You Went Away.

NOVEMBER - Things got back to normal this month as Ginger Rogers was the CMG. My guest blogger was actually me. I decided that most of my followers don't know all about me. So I took the guest spot to answer my own question. It was kind of weird but still fun to do. I did a tribute to my grandmother who recently passed from Alzheimer's. Birthday tributes included Grace Kelly and Vivien Leigh. The poll of the month asked the question what was your favorite Fred and Ginger movie. The winner was Top Hat. I wrote reviews for The Chalk Garden starring Deborah Kerr and Hayley Mills and Make Your Own Bed with Jane Wyman and Jack Carson.

DECEMBER - The year winds down with the month of Christmas. Barbara Stanwyck was my CMG. I joined in on Sally's 12 Days of Christmas event on her blog Flying Down To Hollywood. She asked friends and fellow bloggers to write about a favorite Christmas movie and I chose The Man Who Came To Dinner. My poll of the month asked the question what was your favorite Stanwyck Christmas movie, Remember the Night or Christmas In Connecticut. The winner was Connecticut by 3 votes, which is my favorite Christmas movie of all time. Anastasia of Lily Lemontree was my guest blogger for the month. I did birthday tributes to Frank Sinatra, Lee Remick, and Denzel Washington. I posted my favorite Christmas movies of all time. I wrote a review of the great film Golden Boy. And another review of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. And that will wrap up my 2010 review. Thanks to all my followers for reading my blog and I hope 2011 with be even better.

Photo Of The Day - Joan Blondell and daughter

Here is a nice photo of actress Joan Blondell and her daughter Ellen circa 1941.

Seven Things I'm Wishing To Happen in 2011 For Movies

Here is a list of 7 things I wish will happen in 2011 as far as films go. Why 7, I have no idea.

1.) Enough with 3D already. I mean it's cool to see some films in 3D, specifically the effects driven ones, but Hollywood needs to rein in the 3D just a bit. Not every film has to be shown in 3D, especially considering the price involved. Dang!

2.) The last Harry Potter film ever just has to be excellent. Considering the track record of the films, I don't see that being a problem.

3.) The return of James Bond. Now that Bond studio MGM has settled things financially, they need to make an announcement when the next Bond film will begin shooting. I'm hoping they start this year so it can be out in 2012.

4.) Thanks to the awesome film that is True Grit, more westerns please!

5.) The year of the Portman. I hope Natalie Portman has the biggest year ever. I hope she picks up the Oscar for Black Swan and scores with all her new films like Your Highness, Thor, and No Strings Attached. Go Natalie!

6.) Please Matt Damon and Ben Affleck make another film together. You guys are doing pretty good apart, but would love to see you team up one more time.

7.) And finally, Hollywood, can we get more story and character driven films ala The Fighter, The Town, etc. I like popcorn movies as much as the next guy, but I would like some substance every now and then as well.

So that's my wish list for 2011 in films, and they are mostly realistic. So I'm hoping most of them will come true.

Jeanne Crain - Classic Movie Goddess Of The Month Part 1

Here is Jeanne's bio provided by Denny Jackson on IMDB:

She was born Jeanne Elizabeth Crain on May 25th, 1925 in Barstow, California.While in junior high school, Jeanne played the lead in a school production which set her on the path to acting. When she was in high school Jeanne was asked to take a screen test to appear in a film b... read morey Orson Welles. Unfortunately, she didn't get the part, but it did set her sights on being a movie actress.After her high school career, Jeanne enrolled at UCLA to study drama. At the age of 18, Jeanne won a bit part in Fox Studio's film entitled The Gang's All Here (1943) and a small contract. Her next film saw Jeanne elevated to a more substantial part in Home in Indiana (1944) the following year, which was filmed in neighboring Kentucky. The movie was an unquestionable hit. On the strength of that box-office success, Jeanne was given a raise and star billing, as Maggie Preston, in the next film of 1944, In the Meantime, Darling (1944). Unfortunately, the critics not only roasted the film, but singled out Jeanne's performance in particular. She rebounded nicely in her last film of the year, Winged Victory (1944). The audiences loved it and the film was profitable.In 1945, Jeanne was cast in State Fair (1945) as Margie Frake who travels to the fair and falls in love with a reporter played by Dana Andrews. Now, Jeanne got a bigger contract and more recognition. In 1949, Jeanne appeared in three films, A Letter to Three Wives (1949), The Fan (1949), and Pinky (1949). It was this latter film which garnered her an Oscar nomination as Best Actress for her role as Pinky Johnson, a nurse who sets up a clinic in the Deep South. She lost to Olivia de Havilland for The Heiress (1949). Jeanne left Fox after filming Vicki (1953) in 1953, with Jean Peters. She had made 23 films for the studio that started her career, but she needed a well-deserved change. As with any good artist, Jeanne wanted to expand her range instead of playing the girl-next-door types.Jeanne died of a heart attack in Santa Barbara, California, on December 14, 2003. Her husband Paul Brooks had died two months earlier.

RIP actress Anne Francis (1930 - 2011)

SANTA BARBARA, Calif.) -- Anne Francis, the actress who appeared in the 1956 sci-fi classic Forbidden Planet and later starred as a sexy detective in the TV series Honey West, died Sunday from complications of pancreatic cancer, according to The Los Angeles Times. She was 80. A family spokeswomen told The Los Angeles Times that Francis, who was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2007, died at a retirement home in Santa Barbara, California.
Francis’ career also included roles in films such as Blackboard Jungle, Bad Day at Black Rock, Funny Girl and Battle Cry. According to IMDB.com, the actress’s last acting role was a 2004 appearance in the CBS series Without a Trace. But it was Forbidden Planet and her role as the daughter of a scientist on a planet inhabited by an alien monster that brought Francis fame in Hollywood. The movie co-starred Walter Pidegon, as well as Leslie Nielsen, who died on Nov. 28, 2010. Francis also broke ground with the TV series Honey West. Though it only ran one season, from 1965-1966, it was one of the first TV series to star a woman in an action role.

According to IMDB.com, Francis was married and divorced twice. She leaves behind two daughters.

TRUE GRIT is the best film of 2010 (well, to me it is)

The updated western True Grit is the best film of 2010 as it does the original John Wayne version proud.

Fans of the original story remember that the young Mattie Ross (in this one played by newcomer Hailee Steinfeld) seeks vengeance on Tom Chaney (played by Josh Brolin), the man who murdered her father. Since the law doesn't seem to be in a hurry finding Chaney, she hires one-eyed and drunk U.S. Marshal Rooster Cogburn (played by Jeff Bridges) to do the job. A Texas Ranger named LaBoeuf (Matt Damon) is also looking for Chaney for a different crime and joins the duo.

 The Coen Brothers direct this film and tone down their usual shtick and makes an effective modern western. There is lots of humor and several exciting action sequences. The three leads are wonderful. Steinfeld is easily the best performer in the cast as she holds her own with veterans Bridges and Damon. Her Mattie Ross pretty much is the main character unlike the first film version which focused more on Cogburn. Speaking of Cogburn, Bridges is very good as the stubborn marshal and has several emotional scenes with Steinfeld. But he also gets tough when he needs to be when dealing with the Ned Peppers Gang, who have Chaney as part of their group. Damon actually provides a good deal of the laughs as he is in constant conflict with Cogburn. The cinematography and music score are also top notch. I enjoyed True Grit immensely and think it's even better than the original, save for the awkward ending. So I will honestly say that True Grit was my favorite film of 2010 and I can't wait to see it again.
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New Poll Started

I have a new poll all ready to go and I asked my classic movie goddess for the month to handle the introduction. I ask the question how many movies do you watch in a given week. Not just classic movies, but all kinds of movies. I used to watch on average 2 a day, so that would have been about 16 for me in a week, give or take. Now with things being so busy, especially during the week, I may watch 1 a day during the work week and at least 3 or 4 on the week-end. But when I'm off from work, I can easily watch 5 in one day. So it varies for me. Anyway there are 4 different answers everyone can choose from and the poll will be up for 2 weeks.