Be My Guest - Kristen (Journeys In Classic Film)

My guest this month is one pretty cool blogger named Kristen. She writes the awesomely amazing blog Journeys in Classic Film. We became friends last year and share a love for classic film. Right now she has this amazing tourney going on featuring the best actresses from the classic era to the modern era. And she will be helping me next month for my annual classic movie actress tourney. I thought it was high time everyone got to meet her. Some already know her but some will be meeting her for the first time. Take it away Kristen. Oh and here's the link to Kristen's cool blog:  journeysinclassicfilm.com

1. What made you start blogging?

Kristen: My blog started out as an experiment to see if I could actually commit to keeping one (I have a lot of one and done entries on the Interwebs).  When I started I was/am working for two other sites that kept me writing about contemporary, opening-weekend movies, and I wanted a chance to write about classic movies, which I don't normally get to discuss so as I was starting to blog regularly I noticed it was shifting more towards discussing classic movies.  The rest, as they say, is history!

Me: And a great history you are now making Kristen.

2. Who are your favorite classic stars?

Kristen: Veronica Lake, first and foremost, is my blog mascot so she's top.  Other leading ladies include Lauren Bacall, Natalie Wood, Marilyn Monroe, Julie Andrews, Katharine Hepburn, Joan Blondell, Bette Davis, Ann-Margaret, and Ingrid Bergman.  As for the men, I'll be hard pressed to find a boyfriend who won't have me comparing him to William Holden and Robert Mitchum.  Also adore Cary Grant, Warren Beatty, William Powell, Humphrey Bogart, Marlon Brando, Gene Kelly, and Jack Lemmon.  

Me: I reallty can't argue with none of your choices Kristen.

3. What are some of your favorite films?

Kristen: Such a lengthy list as any film blogger would say.  I'll leave it to classics only: Singin' in the Rain, Anne of the Thousand Days, Splendor in the Grass, West Side Story, Night of the Hunter, Sabrina, Bringing Up Baby, The Big Sleep, Gentleman Prefer Blondes, Some Like It Hot, Bye Bye Birdie, The Thin Man, A Streetcar Named Desire, Sullivan's Travels, I Married a Witch, Xanadu (yes, I included that).

Me: Some great films you named that I also love with the exception of West Side Story and Xanadu.

4. Describe your first classic movie experience

Kristen: I did see the Disney re-releases a few times, but my seminal classic movie experiences have to be in 7th and 11th grades.  In 7th grade my history teacher showed us Anne of the Thousand Days to spotlight the Tudor dynasty.  I was the only one who loved it, and actually wrote an extra credit paper on it.  Later in high school I took a film class and watching Singin in the Rain made me realize I needed to watch more.  So both my experiences were in a classroom (how sad that film classes are hardly offered now).

Me: I saw that in 10th grade English lit...love that movie! Like you too.

5. What films upon first viewing did you not like, but later on after re-watching loved them?

Kristen: Casablanca first off.  After seeing that in a theater, I really appreciated how representative of classic film it truly is.  Gentleman Prefer Blondes, Jaws.

Me: All three are winners in my book.

6.Describe the perfect way for you to watch a film

Kristen: The perfect setting would be in an old movie palace that actually showed classic movies in their heyday.  We used to have an old theater like that in my town, but it closed.  

Me: Sounds marvelous

7. How many friends, family member or co-workers share your love of classic films?

Kristen: My mother is probably the second biggest classic film fan, but when I recommend her movies she has a very distinct taste (she hates screwball comedies) and we don't usually like the same films.  My best friend likes some, but she's particular to romances which I'm iffy on.  

Me: Oh she doesn't like screwball comedies...man those are my favorites!

8. What is your favorite time period: the 20's, 30's, 40's, 50's or 60's?

Kristen: The 40s

Me: Good call...The 30's are my favorites but I also love the 40's quite a bit too.

9.  What are some of your favorite film quotes?

Kristen: "I can never have children."  "We'll adopt some" - Some Like It Hot.  "I sent her as far as I could, since we don't own Scotland" -Anne of the Thousand Days. "And his whiskers are real, too!" -Miracle on 34th Street (something about the way little Natalie Wood says this line makes me smile). "Can I still come over and push you in the pool?" -Sullivan's Travels.  "But with a little sex in it" -Sullivan's Travels "Isn't it better for a girl to be preoccupied with sex instead of occupied?" -The Moon is Blue 

Me: Great quote from The Moon is Blue

10. What classic films have you yet to see for one reason or another?

Kristen: Citizen Kane, The Godfather: Part 2, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, The Best Years of Our Lives, any of the work of Ingmar Bergman

Me: You have to see The Best Years of Our Lives Kristen..It is beyond great. Patti will back me up on that!

11.  What is your favorite genre?

Kristen: Drama which, to me, includes film noir, political, historical, ec.

Me: Cool..and there are tons of great dramas for sure

12. If you threw a movie theme party, describe how you would do it. The costumes, decorations, food, etc.

Kristen: It could be because I saw Gangster Squad, but I'm dying to do a 1940s Hollywood glamour type party based around The Big Sleep, The Blue Dahlia or Double Indemnity.  Of course the ladies would have coiffed hair a la the peekaboo style of Veronica Lake.  Lots of pinstripes, fedoras, hopefully my friends would be into talking like Edward G. Robinson.  

Me: Haha...awesome!

13. What are some films that are widely loved that you couldn't care less about?

Kristen:  I always state my distaste for Gone With the Wind.  I also don't get the adoration for Mrs. Miniver.  Other movies I hate to admit I don't like include The Women, An American in Paris, and The Band Wagon.

Me: Right there with ya on An American in Paris and The Band Wagon. Don't like either of them.

14. Who’s the biggest film fanatic that you know? Besides yourself of course.

Kristen: Most of the people I know that are bigger film fanatics are bloggers such as you Monty, Nick Powell of Cinematic Katzenjammer (although he's modern films), the amazing Patti of They Don't Make 'Em Like They  Used To, Lindsay of The Motion Pictures, the group at French Toast Sunday

Me: Nice shout out to Patti there!

15. And finally who are some of your favorite film characters?

Kristen: The entire cast of Some Like It Hot, Max Cady from Cape Fear, Harry Powell from Night of the Hunter, Jennifer of I Married a Witch, Sabrina Fairchild and David Larrabee of Sabrina, Elizabeth Lane of Christmas in Connecticut, Anne Boleyn of Anne of the Thousand Days, Donald Greasham of The Moon is Blue, the second Mrs. de Winter in Rebecca, Alicia Huberman and Devlin from Notorious, Susan of Bringing Up Baby

Me: Yes to all of those characters especially Elizabeth Lane..,my favorite Barbara Stanwyck role and film.

Well that wraps up another be my guest this month and I want to thank Kristen for taking the time to come on here and be a good sport and answer all my questions. She did an excellent job don't you agree? Please stop by and check out her amazing blog if you haven't already and I will see everyone back here next month with another new guest and friend.

All Good Things 2012 In Review

As 2012 comes to a close, I figure now would be a good time to look back at some of the highlights that took place here on All Good Things. I've broken things down by month. So let's get started with January.

JANUARY

Lauren Bacall

Lauren Bacall kicked off the new year as my classic goddess of the month. I wrote a piece about the "H" letter films done by Paul Newman such as Hud, Harper and Cool Hand Luke. I started a new photo series called Tea Anyone, focusing on classic stars drinking or sharing their love of tea. The top post for the month was Things To Know About Lauren Bacall with 696 views.   poohtiger-allgoodthings.blogspot.com/2012/01/things-to-know-about-lauren-bacall Impressive Ms. Bacall..impressive.

FEBRUARY

Jean looking fabulous

Jean Harlow graced the month of February as the classic goddess of the month.  I did a Valentine Day linkup with my friend Kori over at Blonde Episodes. The most viewed post was my Top 50 favorite classic actresses list (revised) with 662 views.poohtiger-allgoodthings.blogspot.com/2012/02/my-favorite-top-50-classic-film I also wrote this funny little story about how we classic fans are a rare breed. Check it out here:  poohtiger-allgoodthings.blogspot.com/2012/02/joan-whoa-funny-little-story


MARCH 

Ginger wins it all

March Madness was back with my 2nd Annual Favorite Classic Movie Actress Tourney and it was much bigger. In fact I went from 64 contestants to 128. So large in fact I had to get help from two blogging buddies, Mythical Monkey and Desiree. By far my most ambitious project to date and one of the main posts yielded over 1200 views. WOW!  poohtiger-allgoodthings.blogspot.com/2012/03/2012-favorite-classic-movie-actress Ginger Rogers would eventually win the tourney continuing the tradition of a 30's era actress being champion. Irene Dunne won it in 2011. The tourney pretty much took over my blog but I still had time for Teresa Wright as my classic movie goddess of the month. And my contribution to the Gone Too Soon Blogathon with my piece on Natalie Wood.  poohtiger-allgoodthings.blogspot.com/2012/03/gone-too-soon-Natalie Wood

APRIL

Christmas came early as Christmas in Connecticut won a Montie

as Best Film of 1945

April was a quiet month. Well compared to March. The iconic Greta Garbo was my goddess for the month. I finally got back to my Monties, my version of the Oscars with my 1945 edition. Christmas in Connecticut was the big winner. And my morning movie spotlight on The Night of the Iguana was tops with readers with 924 views.  poohtiger-allgoodthings.blogspot.com/2012/04/morning-movie-night-of-iguana-1964


MAY

Anne Baxter

I started a blogathon called Cinematic Wold Tour, which used films as travel spots and locales. It ran all summer and I think it was successful enough to warrant it for a yearly occasion. Anne Baxter was the goddess of the month. And the be my guest feature with my friend Lori Kemp was the top post of the month with 241 views.  poohtiger-allgoodthings.blogspot.com/2012/05/be-my-guest-lori-kemp


JUNE

Jean Arthur

I started yet another a new series, called My Hollywood Crushes. And my first selection was Cindy Williams of Laverne and Shirley fame. Jean Arthur was my goddess for the month. My summer photo series, At The Beach, returned to the highest viewed post of the month with 470 views of the sexy Anne Francis. poohtiger-allgoodthings.blogspot.com/2012/06/summer-lovin-anne-francis 


JULY

Rita Hayworth

Rita Hayworth stormed into the month of July as my classic goddess. Perfect timing as I posted about her quite frequently. My Childhood crushes for the month were Jenny Agutter and Catherine Mary Stewart, they netted the most views with 516 and 584 respectively. poohtiger-allgoodthings.blogspot.com/2012/07/my-childhood-crushes-6-catherine-mary

AUGUST

One of my favorite new films

The summer was winding down and I started the month of August with my annual 31 Stars in 31 Days, spotlighting a different classic star each and every day. Such notable stars this time around included Grace Kelly, Errol Flynn and Natalie Wood among others. And a modern film, the animated Brave led all posts with 614 views.  poohtiger-allgoodthings.blogspot.com/2012/08/brave-2012-is-pure-cinema-magic

SEPTEMBER

My good friend Jessica Ellen Rowe from Australia

I love when things work out so perfectly. My classic goddess of the month and my guest of the month go hand in hand. Joan Crawford is one of my good friends favorite actresses and Jessica Ellen Rowe made for a delightful month. Her stint also yielded the most views for this month with 249. poohtiger-allgoodthings.blogspot.com/2012/09/be-my-guest-jessica-ellen-rowe


OCTOBER

Now you can add tourney winner to Grace's list of achievements

October proved to be a very busy month for me. First I had a new tourney going on, this one dedicated to the leading ladies of Alfred Hitchcock films. Grace Kelly finally snatched her first ever tourney trophy after coming so close twice before in my fave classic actress tourney. William Powell and Myrna Loy walked into my Hall of Fame. And my annual spotlight on the women of Hammer Horror Films return to a big response in Caroline Munro's post of 136 views, 2nd most for the month.  poohtiger-allgoodthings.blogspot.com/2012/10/the-women-of-hammer-films-caroline-munro


NOVEMBER

Team Classic put a beat down on Team Modern

My first annual Lombard Cup tourney began, pitting a team of classic era actors against modern era actors. Team Classic walloped those guys by the count of 16 and 1/2 points to 4 and 1/2 points. Natch, it was the most viewed post for the month with 107.  poohtiger-allgoodthings.blogspot.com/2012/10/the-lombard-cup-detailsteam-classic-vs
Jane Wyman was my goddess for the month. And my fall photo series returned with some great pics of classic stars in the lovely autumn weather.

DECEMBER

Walter and Hildy went to the tourney and came

home winners

And I wrapped up 2012 with surprise, another tourney. This one for favorite screwball film. Winner...His Girl Friday, which happens to be my all time favorite film ever.  poohtiger-allgoodthings.blogspot.com/2012/12/the-first-round-of-favorite-screwball My good friend Alicia Garbo from Facebook was my guest for the month. And my Holiday Cheer photo series returned with some cool holiday pics.

All in all, 2012 was a pretty good year in blogging for me. My pace from that record setting year in 2011 was way off. I only did 470 posts this year,compared to that mammoth 731 I did in 2011. Still it was my second best year ever, 100 more posts than the next closest year. I expect 2013 to be probably around that same mark of 400 + posts as I don't see me ever getting to that 700 plateau ever again. I would like to thank everyone who stopped by to check out my blog and I promise to keep things just as exciting in 2013.

My love of classic films is beyond measure

Monty

THE MONTIES: 1945 - Christmas comes early for Barbara Stanwyck

So sorry for the delay in between posts on the Monties, my version of the Oscars. Just was so busy with work and a lot of the films and star performances I hadn't seen yet, so I really couldn't critique on any of them. That is until now. So let's get started shall we..


BEST FILM:
Winner: Christmas In Connecticut
Nominees: The Lost Weekend; Leave Her To Heaven; Mildred Pierce; Scarlet Street; Detour; They Were Expendable; A Tree Grows In Brooklyn; The Wicked Lady; And Then There Were None
Thoughts: 1945 was another solid year in film. With some notable star driven films like Mildred Pierce and Leave Her To Heaven. And some smaller films that caught everyone's attention like Detour and The Wicked Lady. But my pick for favorite film of 1945 is Christmas In Connecticut. Call me sentimental but this is my favorite Christmas movie ever and my favorite Stanwyck film as well. It's funny, romantic and a joy to watch. While The Lost Weekend may boast some stellar acting and a riveting story line, I have a soft spot for Christmas in Connecticut. I know I may take some heat on this one, but what can I say, this is my fave film of 1945.

Pure holiday joy with Barbara

BEST DIRECTOR:
Winner: Billy Wilder (The Lost Weekend)
Nominees: Fritz Lang (Scarlet Street); Rene Clair (And Then There Were None); Edgar G. Ulmer (Detour); Michael Curtiz (Mildred Pierce)
Thoughts: Billy Wilder may be more remembered for his wonderful comedies (Some Like It Hot, The Apartment) he was never better than directing The Lost Weekend. Talk about a taut gripping tale that doesn't pull any punches. And while it's my second favorite film from 1945, there is no denying the amazing job Wilder did as director.

BEST WRITER:
Winner: Charles Brackett and Billy Wilder (The Lost Weekend)
Nominees: Ranald MacDougall (Mildred Pierce); Frank Davis and Tess Slesinger (A Tree Grows In Brooklyn); Dudley Nichols (Scarlet Street)
Thoughts: Can't beat the dramatic and tense dialogue in Weekend crafted by Brackett and Wilder. Some really good stuff!


BEST ACTOR: 
Winner: Ray Milland (The Lost Weekend)
Nominees: Edward G. Robinson (Scarlet Street); Danny Kaye (Wonder Man); Tom Neal (Detour); James Mason (The Wicked Lady)
Thoughts: Without a doubt, Ray Milland gives the performance of the year. Heck it's the best performance of his career. As his life slowly spins out of control due to his addiction to alcohol, you feel his despair and keep thinking..this guy has hit rock bottom. Kudos to Milland.

"OK, quit playing Jane. Where's my Montie?"

 

BEST ACTRESS:
Winner: Barbara Stanwyck (Christmas in Connecticut)/Joan Bennett (Scarlet Street) TIE
Nominees: Joan Crawford (Mildred Pierce); Gene Tierney (Leave Her To Heaven); Margaret Lockwood (The Wicked Lady); Donna Reed (They Were Expendable); Jane Wyman (The Lost Weekend); Ann Savage (Detour); Virginia Mayo (Wonder Man)
Thoughts: Now this is the category where I had the most trouble choosing from all the wonderful performances in what has to be a stellar one for women. And I really couldn't decide on just one, so we have a tie. And it was close to being a three way tie but I finally chose Stanwyck  and Bennett. As two totally opposite performances as you can get. Stanwyck was more of the comedic vein and she was wonderful. And no this is not a sentimental vote for her as this is my fave performance of hers and film. And Joan Bennett took it up a notch playing another femme fatale for Fritz Lang as the terrific Kitty March. The pair previously on The Woman in the Window, but I thought Joan's performance here was much better. And Gene Tierney came awfully close to making this a three way tie, but she just misses it by an inch.

Ok fellas, here we go! Fingers crossed I don't mess this up!

See I told ya, working with Fritz would eventually pay off Eddie!

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS:
Winner: Eve Arden/Ann Blyth (Mildred Pierce) TIE
Nominees: Jeanne Crain (Leave Her To Heaven); Vera-Ellen (Wonder Man); Anne Revere (National Velvet); Angela Lansbury (The Picture of Dorian Gray)
Thoughts: Another tie as I thought Eve Arden and Ann Blyth were both amazing in Mildred Pierce. Arden in another sidekick role was good as always and she picks up her second Montie, the first was for Stage Door (Best Supporting Actress...which she shared with Lucille Ball). And Blyth was really good as the daughter from hell, Veda. That girl could give you nightmares.

 

"Why no I didn't  have to pay Monty off to win...honest! Girl Scouts honor!"

 

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR:
Winner: James Dunn (A Tree Grows in Brooklyn)
Nominees: Dan Duryea (Scarlet Street); Jack Carson (Mildred Pierce); George Sanders (The Picture of Dorian Gray); Walter Huston (And Then There Were None)
Thoughts: James Dunn gives one of the best performances I have ever seen as the ne'er-do-well father who just can't seem to do right. In real life, Dunn would struggle years later with bouts with alcohol and his career would stall. But he will have this one great performance left as his legacy.

James is all smiles after receiving his first Montie

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY:
Winner: Leave Her To Heaven
Nominees: The Picture of Dorian Gray; Anchors Aweigh; National Velvet; The Lost Weekend; Mildred Pierce
Thoughts: One of the most glorious looking films I have ever seen. I mean the color just leaps off the screen. Actresses Gene Tierney and Jeanne Crain look stunning. This was an easy choice for me.

Even Gene can't believe how beautiful the movie looks...

So final count has The Lost Weekend being the big winner with 3 Monties; followed by Christmas In Connecticut (2 Monties) and Mildred Pierce (2 Monties). I will be back with the 1946 edition soon. Hopefully it won't be as long a wait as this time was. Once again, sorry for the delay.


NOTABLE FILMS THAT I HAVE NOT SEEN FOR THIS YEAR:


SPELLBOUND
THE KEYS OF THE KINGDOM
SAN ANTONIO
THE CORN IS GREEN

Poll Results - Favorite Barbara Stanwyck Christmas movie

It was a close vote but Christmas in Connecticut edged out Remember the Night as favorite Barbara Stanwyck Christmas movie. Connecticut received 10 votes while Night received 7 votes. Thanks to all those that voted.