Harlow's Baby Picture.

Jean Harlow was born Harlean Harlow Carpenter in Kansas City, Missouri. Harlean was nicknamed "The Baby", a name that would stick with her for the rest of her life. She did not learn that her name was actually Harlean and not "Baby" until the age of five, when she began to attend Miss Barstow's Finishing School for Girls in Kansas City.

TCM Alert: Saturday, February 4th

Three great films set in England with the backdrop of World War will air Saturday night on TCM. Two of the three films I have never seen before and look forward to. The films are A Yank in the R.A.F (1941) at 11 pm EST; Mrs. Miniver (1942) at 12:45 am EST (which is the one film I have seen) and The White Cliffs of Dover (1944) at 3:15 am EST. Looks to be a solid night of movie watching.

Be My Guest - Kim (Part 1)

Due to certain circumstances, I might have 3 guests this month or just one. Not for sure yet. When I did not know if the first people I asked was going to make it this month, I asked Kim Wilson of 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die to fill in. I sent her the questions one morning and by the end of the day she had answered all 14. So Kim will have the honor of going first. And if no other guests show up, then Kim will came through for me big time. A little facts about Kim before we get started. She hails from Cincinnati, Ohio. Her interests are films, books and playing games. She has two Malti-Poos named Buffy and Carmie. And in addition to her blog 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die, she also co-writes the series Two Dames Dishing with Becky of Classic Becky's Brain Food. So now onto the questions. Oh and here's a link to Kim's wonderful blog: 1001moviesblog

Me: What made you start blogging?







Kim: I started blogging at the TCM classic film union when I began my quest to see the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die. Then, some friends from the CFU started their own blogs—one being the Classic Film and TV Café—and I became a contributor. Once I’d built up enough posts I started my own blog.




Me: Hey I joined that as well. It's a cool place to hang out.

 

Me: Who are your favorite classic film stars? Name as many as you want.

Kim: Females in this order - Catherine Deneuve, Bette Davis, Barbara Stanwyck, Greta Garbo, and Katharine Hepburn


Males in this order: Paul Neuman, William Powell, Cary Grant, Henry Fonda, and Charles Boyer


Me: I believe you're the first person to name Catherine Deneuve as one of your faves, besides me. Cool. And you have Cary up there as well. A plus as well.

 

Me: What are some of your favorite films?

Kim: Too many to list! Tops from the 30s to the 70s:


1930s: The Thin Man, Camille, My Man Godfrey, The Awful Truth, Jezebel, Bringing Up Baby, Gone with the Wind, Ninotchka, and The Wizard of Oz

1940s: The Philadelphia Story, The Lady Eve, Now Voyager, Notorious, Spellbound, Mildred Pierce, To Be or Not To Be, The Red Shoes, and The Best Years of Our Lives


1950s: Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, All About Eve, The Quiet Man, Singin’ in the Rain, The Bridge of the River Kwai, The Ten Commandments, Smiles of a Summer Night, The Earrings of Madame de…, and Gigi

1960s: The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, The Apartment, Spartacus, Hud, My Fair Lady, The Sound of Music, The Producers, Dr. Strangelove, and Z


1970s: Patton, Rocky, Network, The Godfathers (Part II is the best though), and Chinatown


Me: From the 30's alone, you have some marvelous faves. I like how you broke them down by years too.

 

Me: Describe your first classic movie experience.

Kim: It would have to be watching The Wizard of Oz every year with my family. I wrote about it on my blog last year. Basically, it was a bonding experience I shared with them every year.


Me: Awesome! Well that wraps up part one of my interview with Kim. Check back in a few days as we continue with some more lively discussions.

A message from Jean Harlow...

Dear Monty,

 I have a previous engagement of a golf charity event tomorrow. But afterwards, I will be right over to All Good Things.

Yours,
Jean

What a girl....Thanks Jean!

It's gonna be great having you

as the classic movie goddess for the month!

A big thank you to Lauren Bacall for being this month's Classic Movie Goddess

It's time for us to say good-bye to Lauren Bacall who made a fabulous classic movie goddess this month. I had a great time writing about her all month long and wished she could have stayed longer. But alas, she has to make way for Jean Harlow, who is arriving shortly. But I will probably have Ms. Bacall back for a return engagement if she is ok with that.

I think Lauren is a little shocked her time as Classic Movie Goddess is over...

well I'm sure she will have a good time with Bogie and Marilyn

Birthday Roll Call: January 31st

Today marks birthdays for several notable actresses. So time for a birthday roll call.

JEAN SIMMONS (Jan 31, 1929 - Jan 22, 2010)

Notable films: Black Narcissus, Elmer Gantry, Spartacus, Guys and Dolls, The Grass Is Greener



SUZANNE PLESHETTE (Jan 31, 1937 - Jan 19, 2008)

Notable work: The Birds, Nevada Smith, The Bob Newhart Show, 40 Pounds of Trouble



TALLULAH BANKHEAD (Jan 31, 1902 - December 12, 1968)

Notable work: Lifeboat, A Royal Scandal, Tarnished Lady, My Sin, Devil and the Deep



DANIELA BIANCHI (Jan 31, 1942 - present)

Notable work: From Russia With Love, Always on Sunday, The Last Chance)



JOANNE DRU (Jan 31, 1922 - September 10, 1996)

Notable work: Red River, She Wore A Yellow Ribbon, All The King's Men

Classic Stars Match Play #18 - The "It" Girl CLARA BOW vs The "Oomph" Girl ANN SHERIDAN

For the next match play, two very well known actresses, who each had popular nicknames, will battle for victory. Clara Bow, known as The "It" Girl will face Ann Sheridan, who was given the name The "Oomph" Girl. Both women also had some other common traits. Clara Bow's birth name was actually Clara. Ann's birth name was also Clara. Both never won Academy Awards. In fact neither ever received a nomination, which is a crime. So here are the ladies stats as we get ready for an exciting match.

CLARA BOW

Clara is thinking..."Ann Sheridan? Boy is this gonna be tough!"

Name: Clara Gordon Bow
Birth Date: July 29, 1905 (Brooklyn, New York)
Height: 5' 3"
Academy Awards: none
Monties: 1 nomination (Best Actress: Wings - 1927)
My favorite Clara film: The Wild Party (1929)
Match play record: 0-1 (lost to Irene Dunne in the 30's era of the 2011 Favorite Classic Actress
Tournament)

CLASSIC STARS MATCH PLAY

ANN SHERIDAN

Ann showing off her patriotic colors

Name: Clara Lou Sheridan
Birth Date: February 21, 1915 (Denton, Texas)
Height: 5' 5"
Academy Awards: none
Monties: 3 nominations, 1 win (Best Actress: Edge of Darkness - 1943)
My favorite Ann film: I Was A Male War Bride (1949)
Match play record: 0-1 (lost to Vivien Leigh in the 40's era of the 2011 Favorite Classic
Actress Tournament)

The match begins immediately and will run through Saturday, Februry 4th at 8pm EST.

Good luck to both women.

Ann is being supported by her friends which include Gail Patrick, Wendy Barrie and others

While Clara shows off her moves to the fellas

Danny Kaye edges past Jerry Lewis 10-8 in match play

This was one of the closest match plays yet. In fact this match was tied between Danny Kaye and Jerry Lewis 7-7 until the last two hours. Kaye's fans came through as he edged Lewis by 2 votes. Danny notches his first match play win and evens his record at 1-1. Lewis drops to 0-2 as he has yet to claim a win. Thanks to all those who voted and a new match will be up tomorrow.

Danny is quite happy after his match play victory

Good Sunday Afternoon from Joan Blondell

Just a photo of Joan wishing everyone a great Sunday. She is apparently at the beach....

Can you believe this year marks the 50th anniversary of James Bond?

When a film or series reaches a milestone such as 25 or 50 years, that is reason for a celebration. Well the James Bond film series will hit 50 years come May 8th, marking the original release of the first Bond film, Dr. No. The 23rd film, Skyfall will debut later on this year with Daniel Craig returning as the superspy for the third time. I am kind of surprised that this anniversary has been kept under the radar so far. I know it's only January, but this is pretty big news. How many film series have gone this long and are still running. Very impressive! Well I intend to do something about it. Here on All Good Things, expect Bond posts all year long. About the actors who played Bond to the films and anything else I can think of. Should make for a grand time. 50 years. Well done James, well done.