At The Beach: CARY GRANT

My man, Cary Grant posing at the beach...

Happy Birthday Ella Raines (1920 - 1988)

I know it is Lucille Ball's birthday today but it is also Ella Raines as well. I didn't want her to be overlooked so Happy Birthday Ella! She starred in such films as the women's film Cry Havoc, Preston Sturges comedy classic Hail The Conquering Hero and Corvette K-225 (her first film). And several other B westerns. Hence her photo below.

At The Beach: From Here To Eternity

One of the all time great film images came from this terrific film, From Here To Eternity with the forbidden romance between army man Burt Lancaster and Deborah Kerr, a frustrated housewife.

At The Beach: Julie Adams

Probably not the best way to spend a day at the beach...being terrorized by The Creature From The Black Lagoon. But give actress Julie Adams credit for rocking the white swimsuit and looking lovely as the creature lunges at her. She is posing like...."will this side work? If not I can change positions."

Classic Movie Goddess of the Month - Esther Williams: Part One (Facts and Trivia)

Here are some interesting facts about Esther Williams:

Date of Birth: 8 August 1921 Los Angeles, CA

Birth Name: Ester Jane Williams

Height: 5'8 1/2"

Esther Williams' youth was spent as a teenage swimming champion. She eventually was spotted by a MGM talent scout while working in a Los Angeles department store.
She made her film debut with MGM in a 1942 "Andy Hardy" picture called Andy Hardy's Double Life (1942).
 
After this movie, MGM created a sub-genre specifically for her, the aqua musical and they were huge hits during the 40's.
 

She was married 4 times including once to actor Fernando Lamas.
 
In the 1950s she was known as "America's Mermaid."




Before her stint in MGM musicals, she had been training as a competitive swimmer, and probably would've participated in the 1940 and/or 1944 Olympics (she would've been 18 and 22 years old respectively) if World War II hadn't canceled them.


Longtime friend of June Allyson.

Her first job was at age 8 at a local Inglewood, California neighborhood school's swimming pool counting towels.




Was inducted into the Swimming Pool Hall of Fame in 1967.




She lent her name to a brand of swimming pools that are still sold today, Esther Williams Pools.




She was offered roles in both The Poseidon Adventure (1972) and The Towering Inferno (1974) by Irwin Allen. She turned down both.

THE MONTIES: 1938 ( I show some love to Errol Flynn and Bringing Up Baby racks up)

Getting ever so closer to that golden year of 1939. But first we have the solid year of 1938 where I have some Monties to give out. So on with the show...

 BEST FILM:

YOU CAN'T TAKE IT WITH YOU
BRINGING UP BABY (WINNER)
THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD
JEZEBEL
HOLIDAY
MERRILY WE LIVE
VIVACIOUS LADY
BOYS TOWN
THE LADY VANISHES


Everyone knows Bringing Up Baby is my second favorite film of all time and it is a great representation of the screwball genre. Cary Grant is at his most hilarious best and the usually rigid Katherine Hepburn gets to loosen up and has a great time in this entertaining film. I award it a Montie with all my heart.

BEST DIRECTOR:

FRANK CAPRA - YOU CAN'T TAKE IT WITH YOU
MICHAEL CURTIZ - THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD (WINNER)
HOWARD HAWKS - BRINGING UP BABY
GEORGE CUKOR - HOLIDAY
WILLIAM WYLER - JEZEBEL

The super talented Michael Curtiz did such an amazing job on Robin Hood, that he was my clear cut winner for a Montie. Well he had a little help from William Keighley too. I mean Howard Hawks did a fantastic job with Bringing Up Baby but I thought Curtiz had the bigger task.

BEST ACTOR: 

JAMES STEWART - YOU CAN'T TAKE IT WITH YOU
CARY GRANT - BRINGING UP BABY
ERROL FLYNN - THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD (WINNER)
JAMES CAGNEY - ANGELS WITH DIRTY FACES
SPENCER TRACY - BOYS TOWN

It is common knowledge that the Academy has made several notorious blunders in it's history. Never nominating Errol Flynn for any of his film roles is one of them. I rectify that by giving Errol a most well deserved award for his totally entertaining performance as Robin Hood. It doesn't get any better than this.
 
BEST ACTRESS: 

JEAN ARTHUR - YOU CAN'T TAKE IT WITH YOU (WINNER)
GINGER ROGERS - VIVACIOUS LADY
KATHERINE HEPBURN - HOLIDAY
BETTE DAVIS - JEZEBEL
OLIVIA DE HAVILLAND - THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD

The always delightful Jean Arthur is just wonderful in You Can't Take It With You as Alice Sycamore, you just can't take your eyes off her when she is onscreen.


BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: 

BASIL RATHBONE - THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD
CLAUDE RAINS - THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD
LEW AYRES - HOLIDAY
CHARLES RUGGLES - BRINGING UP BABY
WALTER CATLETT - BRINGING UP BABY (WINNER)

Walter Catlett is a hoot as Constable Slocum in Bringing Up Baby. Even though he doesn't come into the film late in the final moments, he makes an immediate impact. His aw shucks small town demeanor conflicts with Kate Hepburn's wily sophisticate with uproarious results.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: 

BILLIE BURKE - MERRILY WE LIVE
VIVIEN LEIGH - A YANK AT OXFORD
MAY ROBSON - BRINGING UP BABY (WINNER)
MARY ASTOR - THERE'S ALWAYS A WOMAN
MILDRED NATWICK - THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD

May Robson was quaint and quite a firecracker as Susan's Aunt Elizabeth, who had to deal with all sorts of mayhem and confusion at her home.

So final tally has Bringing Up Baby bringing home 3 Monties (Film, Supporting Actor, Supporting Actress). The Adventures of Robin Hood taking home 2 Monties (Director, Actor). And the lovely Jean Arthur picking up her first Montie for You Can't Take It With You.

Next up...the great golden year that is 1939.

AT THE BEACH: AUDREY HEPBURN

The always fair and beautiful Audrey Hepburn looking so colorful at the beach....

Check out those huge sunglasses...and the cute short hair cut...

 Some of you may find this hard to believe but at first when I started watching classic movies many years ago, I wasn't too crazy about Audrey. I really wasn't feeling her at all. But a strange thing happened that turned the tide. It was one film and one actor that brought out Audrey in a different light to me. The film was CHARADE and the actor was Cary Grant. I thought the movie which was kind of a light Hitchcock thriller was just so entertaining and I saw Audrey in a new way. After that, I was hooked on seeing more Audrey films and even re-watching the ones I didn't like the first time. But I still don't like Breakfast at Tiffany's. Sorry to all the Tiffany fans but I just can't get into that one. So everyone just relax on this Wednesday and if you can't make it to the beach, at least watch an Audrey Hepburn film to make so day go by that much better.

If It's Tuesday, Then It Must Be Grace Kelly...Guest Post by Jennifer Cooper

AT THE BEACH PHOTO #2 - GRACE KELLY

I know it's been a few months since I last did this series but one of my blogging friends contributed a nice piece to go along with a summer at the beach pic and wanted me to share it with all my friends. Her name is Jennifer and she writes the wickedly cool Musings of a Morleysaurus. So without further adieu here is Jennifer..Oh and check out Jenn's blog when you get a chance at the  link below
http://morleysaurus.blogspot.com/?zx=9e85a421210f2da2

When I saw that Monty was doing his At the Beach series on All Good Things, I instantly thought of Grace Kelly! Not only do I adore her as an actress, I also think that she is the most beautiful woman of all time. And unlike many women nowadays who are considered ‘most beautiful’ and ‘sexiest’ and what have you, Grace was a natural beauty, as natural and stunning as they came…as you can see from pictures of her on the beach especially. Her Oscar winning turn in The Country Girl is further proof of this, playing the long suffering and weary housewife to Bing Crosby’s alcoholic husband, she still looks absolutely gorgeous. Her performance in this film is astounding and was proof that she was really something special…the day she married Prince Ranier and became a princess was the day that Hollywood lost a true star…who only knows what she might have went on to achieve had she not become Princess Grace. Alfred Hitchcock most certainly lost one of his most wonderful ladies, and one he loved very dearly.


Over her short time as a Hollywood darling though, she managed to fit in some absolutely wonderful movies, starring with some of Hollywood’s greatest leading men. These included Cary Grant, Jimmy Stewart, Gary Cooper, Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra and Clark Gable, with my personal favourites being with Cary Grant in To Catch a Thief and James Stewart in Rear Window. Rear Window is a film that is so perfect it still stands today as one of the greatest movies ever made. I love her performance in it; I love how she goes from ice queen, fashionista to this almost geeky investigator/fashionista! She is 110% adorable in this film, and an uncomparable beauty!



 As this is the At the Beach series of pics, I urge you all to watch To Catch a Thief and enjoy some gorgeous French sunshine…all with a glass of brandy! I actually blame Hitchcock for my love of brandy, I only started drinking it as I was watching so many Hitchcock/Grace Kelly movies at the time and everyone drank brandy, so I wanted to drink brandy and pretend I was one of them, haha. Anyhoo, my brandy love aside, the chemistry between Grace and Cary Grant (my favourite classic movie actor) is brilliant! It’s all a very love/hate relationship between the two and it’s wickedly funny! Aww, to have seen more films with these two together, but alas, I can only dream! To Catch a Thief is one of my favourite Hichcock flicks, I mean it has Grace Kelly, Cary Grant, murder and glamour; what more could a girl want? So yes, guys in America enjoying the heatwave, why not take some time out and enjoy some good old Hitchcock with the lovely Grace, spending lots of time looking gorgeous on the beach!



Thanks Jennifer for this cool piece. I look forward to each and everyday at the beach, because I don't know what star will decide to drop by unexpectedly.

At The Beach: Photo #1

Since this has been one of the hottest summers ever, I will be posting a pic a day of classic movie stars hanging out at the beach. To keep things cool here at All Good Things. Up first: who better than Marilyn Monroe.

Marilyn at the beach...

It's August and here is Esther Williams to help cool things down...

As the summer heatwave continues, here is a lovely pic featuring my classic movie goddess of the month, Esther Williams, to help kick things off for August.