Happy 100th Birthday Olivia de Havilland: my review of GOVERNMENT GIRL (1943)

Government Girl (1943) is a vastly underrated and little known Olivia movie that is fun to watch.  Olivia plays Elizabeth "Smokey" Allard, a Washington secretary who knows the ins and outs of Washington DC as war is ongoing and weapons must be made. Also the housing shortage is in full affect as Smokey does her best to find her gal pal May (played by Anne Shirley) and her beau a hotel room for their honeymoon. In the meantime auto make ED Browne (played by Sonny Tufts) arrives in time to see what he can do to help production. Of course he doesn't know how to deal with the politics of Washington so Smokey lends a hand. This is B movie but it is still fun to watch. Some say Olivia over-reacts in her performance but I think it's fun. She is ably supported by Tufts, Shirley, Agnes Moorehead, Harry Davenport and Una O'Connor. I recommend this delightful little movie for those who have never seen it.   Oh best scene is where Smokey and May get drunk to try and get some information from an unsavory character. Olivia is hysterical!

Happy Birthday Carole Lombard!

You know I had to post about my all time favorite actress, Carole Lombard! I may have slacked off on blogging over this past summer but leave it to Carole to get me going again. TCM is honoring her today with several of her films and while I will missed them, I have been posting about her all day long on my Facebook and Tumblr pages. HAPPY BIRTHDAY CAROLE!

I Love It When Things Work Out Perfectly....Happy Birthday Grace Kelly!

So today is Grace Kelly's birthday, which I already posted about on my Facebook blog page. But then I realized today happens to be Tuesday, which anyone who follows my blog knows that I have a series called If It's Tuesday, Then It Must Be Grace Kelly. I usually post photos, reviews of her films and just anything I feel like about Grace on those specific days. So the fact that her birthday happens to fall on a Tuesday this year is just wonderful timing that I had to post about it. Here are some lovely photos of Princess Grace on this special day!

Happy Birthday Audrey Hepburn!

Audrey Hepburn was one of the most beloved actress ever to grace the screen. Today would have been her 84th birthday. Now while she only made about 30 or so films, she made quite the impact. Roman Holiday. Sabrina. Breakfast At Tiffany's. My Fair Lady. The Children's Hour. Two For The Road. Charade. All are fondly remembered films today. She was a great fashion icon too. But Audrey was more than just an actress. She was also a goodwill ambassador to the United Nations UNICEF fund helping children around the world in need. Let's all remember Audrey today and recognize all her achievements. 

The most star studded week for birthdays ever! Party this weekend for sure!

This first week of April has got to be one of the biggest and best ever for classic stars from the golden age. I mean when April 1st kicked off this past Monday with such notables like Debbie Reynolds, Jane Powell and Lon Chaney..it was the start of something good. Here is a list of some of the more notable birthdays that have and will happen this week. Impressive to say the least. I have probably overlooked some more stars, so please forgive me.

April 1st:
DEBBIE REYNOLDS
JANE POWELL
LON CHANEY
ALI MCGRAW
WALLACE BEERY
TOSHIRO MIFUNE












April 2nd:
ALEC GUINNESS
BUDDY EBSEN
JACK WEBB

Buddy Ebsen

April 3rd:
MARLON BRANDO
DORIS DAY
LESLIE HOWARD
JAN STERLING

Jan Sterling

April 4th:
ANTHONY PERKINS

April 5th:
BETTE DAVIS
SPENCER TRACY
GREGORY PECK
MELVYN DOUGLAS
WALTER HUSTON
JANE ASHER

Melvyn Douglas

April 6th:
JOI LANSING

Joi Lansing

April 7th:
JAMES GARNER

Happy Birthday Cary Grant (1904-1986)

Today marks Cary Grant's birthday. He is without a doubt my favorite actor of all time. And as I imagine, he is probably a lot of people's favorite actor. A perfect example of sophistication and charm. He was a master of screwball comedies, which is my favorite genre. He shines in such notable classics like Bringing Up Baby, The Awful Truth, Arsenic and Old Lace, His Girl Friday, My Favorite Wife and lots more. He also excelled in films for Hitchcock...To Catch A Thief, Notorious, Suspicion, and North By Northwest. He could do anything as he had excellent range. Drama, comedy, suspense, even military films like Destination Tokyo, and action yarns like Gunga Din. So looks like it will be a Cary Grant viewing weekend for me. Which suits me just fine. Happy Birthday Cary!

Happy Birthday Ava Gardner (1922-1990)

One of my favorite actresses, Ava Gardner has a birthday today on Christmas Eve. She would have been 90 had she still been alive. She had one of the most impressive careers of any actress, classic or modern. She began with a lot of uncredited roles around 1941 including one in The Shadow of the Thin Man. Maisie Goes To Reno in 1944 was one of her first credited roles. But it was in 1946 for the film noir classic, The Killers that put her on the map. Her turn as Kitty Collins was amazing. Afterward, the roles came pouring in. The Hucksters, One Touch Of Venus, Pandora, My Forbidden Past, Show Boat, Mogambo, The Barefoot Contessa, and then some strong performances in the 60's to wind down her career. Such as The Night of the Iguana, Seven Days in May and 55 Days at Peking. She continued to act through-out the 70's and 80's as well. Happy Birthday Ava!

Virginia Mayo Tribute on TCM today for her birthday

I gotta hand it to TCM..when it comes to honoring classic film stars on their birthdays, they don't hold back. The other day it was Gloria Grahame. Today it is Virginia Mayo. The actress will be honored with several films including Smart Girls Don't Talk (1948), White Heat (1949), The Girl From Jones Beach (1949), and Always Leaving Them Laughing (1949). The fun begins at 6am EST. Wish I could catch some of them but I will be at work when they are showing. For those who can though, check out her films as Virginia was an amazing actress.

Gloria Grahame Birthday Tribute on TCM today

In honor of Gloria's birthday today, TCM is honoring her with a host of her movies. Beginning at 7am eastern time and including The Big Heat (1953) with Glenn Ford and Macao (1952) with Robert Mitchum and Jane Russell. Other films include Crossfire (1947) with Mitchum again, A Woman's Secret (1949) with Maureen O'Hara and The Good Die Young (1954) with Joan Collins and Laurence Harvey. What a lineup. Happy Birthday Gloria! Wish I could catch some of these but work calls..gotta go. Hope to catch them later!

Happy Birthday Grace Kelly (1929 - 1982)

Today would have been Grace's 83rd birthday today. What a talented and remarkable woman she was. Starring in three of Alfred Hitchcock's best films and later on became Princess of Monaco after marrying Prince Rainier. She is one of my top twenty favorite actresses of all time. Think it will be a Grace Kelly today with viewings of all her three Hitchcock films. Happy Birthday Grace!

Happy Birthday Carole Lombard (1908 - 1942)

Everyone knows that Carole Lombard is my favorite actress of all time! Today marks what would be her 104th birthday. Carole died at the very young age of 33 in that tragic plane crash delivering war bonds. Her mother was with her on that fateful plane as well. When it comes to screwball comedies, Carole is the queen.  To Be Or Not To Be, Nothing Sacred, Twentieth Century, My Man Godfrey, Hands Across The Table, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, and so on. She also showed her dramatic range in films like In Name Only, Made For Each Other and Vigil in the Night. I plan on watching several of her films this weekend to mark this occasion.
\Happy Birthday Carole! You were the best!

Happy Birthday Romy Schneider (1938-1982)

Austrian actress Romy Schneider has quickly become one of my favorite actresses in the few movies I have seen of hers. Recently in Good Neighbor Sam, co-starring Jack Lemmon and What's New Pussycat with Peter Sellers and Peter O'Toole. Up to number three on my favorite actress list. September 23rd marks her birthday, or what would have been her birthday. She died from cardiac arrest at the age of 43. Me and my best friend Irene Palfy have had many a conversation about her. She is an awesome actress indeed! Happy Birthday Romy! We still have all the wonderful films you did to enjoy.

Happy Birthday Caryn Richman! (The new Gidget)

When I was a teen growing up, the new Gidget had just come out. Starring Caryn Richman and showing what had happened to Gidget and Moondoggie as they grew up, got married and raising their niece. I loved this show mainly because of Caryn. She came out of the blue and was perfect as the adult Gidget. I watched it every Saturday morning at 11:30 am for the three years that it aired. Anybody else remember this show? Caryn recently celebrated her 56th birthday back on April 9th. Looking at the pics below, looks like she hasn't aged a day.

Happy Birthday Elizabeth Montgomery (1933-1995)

I was not about to let this day get away without honoring Elizabeth Montgomery, one of my favorite actresses ever! She is in fact my favorite TV actress thanks to her great turn as Samantha Stevens, on the long running series Bewitched. But also because of her great dramatic work in TV movies such as The Legend of Lizzie Borden (1975), Act of Violence (1979), and Sins of the Mother (1991) to name just a few. Of course Elizabeth is the daughter of classic film star Robert Montgomery, but she made her own and did not get a free pass thanks to family. While starting out in series with bit parts on Wagon Train, Kraft Theater, Cimarron City, Climax, among others. And appearing in a few big Hollywood movies, her biggest being Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed (1963) with Dean Martin, it was on the series Bewitched, that she found her true mark. For eight wonderful years, she played the housewife who happens to be a witch Samantha Stevens, who was also getting into troublesome situations. Her eccentric family including mom Endora (Agnes Moorehead) would always drop by unannounced to cause trouble. It's on this show that Elizabeth became a true star. So on this day I wish her a very Happy Birthday! Oh and one more impressive thing about Elizabeth...who could twinkle their nose like she could so well. I know I can't.

Happy Birthday Bette Davis (1908 - 1989)

Happy Birthday to Bette Davis. I can't believe TCM is not showing a movie or two in her honor today. But that's cool. Because one of my recent birthday gifts was a Bette DVD collection consisting of Jezebel, Dark Victory, Old Acquaintance and Now, Voyager (of which Voyager is the only one I have never seen). So looks like I will have a mini-marathon of Bette movies when I get home from work today. At least watch Now, Voyager and one other film. Probably Dark Victory. Sounds like a good double bill..don't you think?