Summer Lovin' - ESTHER WILLIAMS

Esther rocking the polka dots poolside

Hall of Fame new inductees this month: William Wyler and Claude Rains

This month I proudly induct director William Wyler and actor Claude Rains into my Hall of Fame. William Wyler just picked up his third Montie for Best Director of The Best Years Of Our Lives, which gives him three so far. He won previously for These Three (1936) and Mrs. Miniver (1942).  And he may not be done yet. And Claude Rains is also a multiple Montie winner. Having won Best Actor for The Invisible Man (1933) and Best Supporting Actor for Casablanca (1942). Give a big welcome to both these fine and outstanding gentlemen.

At The Beach: BETTIE PAGE

Bettie was quite the stunner!

THE MONTIES: 1946 - THE BEST YEARS OF OUR LIVES is absolutely the best of the year!

Back for another round of Monties and another great year in 1946. And leading the way is the amazing film, The Best Years of Our Lives. So let's get started shall we...


BEST FILM:
Winner: The Best Years Of Our Lives
Nominees: The Razor's Edge; It's A Wonderful Life; The Big Sleep; The Dark Mirror; Notorious; The Strange Love of Martha Ivers; Gilda
Thoughts: An outstanding crop of films for this year but for me there was never really any doubt. I remember seeing The Best Years of our Lives for the first time when I was about 19 and it blew me away from the very first moment. I have watched it at least once a year now for over 15 years and it's still an amazing film. I easily award it a Montie for Best Film of 1946.

BEST DIRECTOR:
Winner: William Wyler (The Best Years Of Our Lives)
Nominees: Frank Capra (It's A Wonderful Life); Howard Hawks (The Big Sleep); Robert Siodmak (The Dark Mirror and The Killers)
Thoughts: William Wyler picks up his third Montie as Best Director for his superb work on The Best Years of our Lives. He previously won for These Three (1936) and Mrs. Miniver (1942)

William Wyler picks up his third Montie

BEST WRITER: 
Winner: Vladimir Pozner and Nunnally Johnson (The Dark Mirror)
Nominees: Raymond Chandler (The Blue Dahlia); Robert E. Sherwood (The Best Years Of Our Lives); Anthony Veiller (The Killers)
Thoughts: Top notch screenplay Johnson from an original story by Pozner for The Dark Mirror, a very well done film that a lot of people don't know about.

BEST ACTOR:
Winner: Fredric March (The Best Years Of Our Lives)
Nominees: Humphrey Bogart (The Big Sleep); John Garfield (The Postman Always Rings Twice); James Stewart (It's A Wonderful Life); Cary Grant (Notorious)
Thoughts: Fredric March picks up his first Montie for his terrific performance as Al Stephenson, a returning soldier from World War Two, who has trouble re-adjusting back to civilian life.

Congratulations honey on your well deserved Montie!

BEST ACTRESS:
Winner: Olivia de Havilland (The Dark Mirror)
Nominees: Myrna Loy (The Best Years Of Our Lives); Lana Turner (The Postman Always Rings Twice); Rita Hayworth (Gilda); Donna Reed (It's A Wonderful Life); Lauren Bacall (The Big Sleep), Barbara Stanwyck (The Strange Love of Martha Ivers)
Thoughts: While Olivia did win an Oscar for this year in another film, To Each His Own, which I haven't seen, I chose her for the film I did see her in, The Dark Mirror. Getting to play twins is an actor/actress dream as they get to give two different performances in one film. And boy does Olivia give two amazing performances. In the process, she picks up her second Montie!

See, it says right here...Best Actress winner

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS:
Winner: Teresa Wright (The Best Years Of Our Lives)
Nominees: Cathy O'Donnell (The Best Years Of Our Lives); Martha Vickers (The Big Sleep); Lizabeth Scott (The Strange Love of Martha Ivers); Anne Baxter (The Razor's Edge)
Thoughts: As good as Anne Baxter was in The Razor's Edge, and believe me when I say she was amazing, I went with Teresa Wright's quiet but effective performance in The Best Years of Our Lives. Her role as Peggy, the daughter of Fredric March and Myrna Loy, falls in love with married Dana Andrews and it's a performance that is not showy but really, really good. And that gives her two Monties for Best Supporting Actress in the span of just four years.

Another wonderful performance yields another Montie for Teresa

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR:
Winner: Harold Russell (The Best Years of Our Lives)
Nominees: Dana Andrews (The Best Years of our Lives); Claude Rains (Notorious); Clifton Webb (The Razor's Edge); William Conrad (The Killers)
Thoughts: Real life amputee Harold Russell first acting role came as a returning soldier who lost both hands in World War 2 and he was amazing. A natural performance that was just riveting to watch.

Harold celebrating his win with Hoagy Carmichael

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY:
Winner: The Yearling
Nominees: It's A Wonderful Life; The Best Years Of Our lives; The Postman Always Rings Twice; The Razor's Edge
Thoughts: The Yearling is one of the most beautiful looking films I have ever seen. Just amazing to watch over and over again.

So beautiful

BEST FILM SCORE:
Winner: Hugo Friedhofer (The Best Years of Our lives)
Nominees: Lennie Hayton (The Harvey Girls); Miklos Rozsa (The Killers); Dimitri Tiomkin (It's A Wonderful Life)
Thoughts: From the opening scene of The Best Years where the music just swells so majestically, it is the clear choice for my favorite film score of 1946. Top notch work by Mr. Friedhofer.

My man Hugo

So the finally tally has The Best Years nearly sweeping the Monties with 6 awards. The Dark Mirror lands two awards and The Yearling picks up one. A huge tally for one of my all time favorite films. Be back next month with my picks of 1947.

Be My Guest: Rachel (The Girl With The White Parasol)

A new month means a new guest. For July, it's Rachel who writes the wonderful blog The Girl With The White Parasol. Here's the link to her blog so can visit it if you have never been to it:  thegirlwiththewhiteparasol

Rachel's profile icon

Now onto the questions and her terrific answers.

1. What made you start blogging?

Rachel: I think it all started a few years back when I started reading classic film blogs and realized, “Hey, there are people out there thinking about the same things I am.” I’d been sliding into a classic film obsession for awhile, but I’d pretty much given up on trying to talk about old films in the real world. Then I discovered the online community and felt right at home. Took the plunge during a lull in my real-life activities and haven’t regretted it since.

Me: Awesome!

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

Rachel: Humphrey Bogart, Jean Simmons, James Stewart, Gene Tierney, Barbara Stanwyck, Dana Andrews, Joseph Cotton, Thelma Ritter, Paul Newman, Fredric March, Katharine Hepburn, Dan Duryea, Henry Fonda, Cary Grant, Teresa Wright, Joan Bennett, and so many others. That’s just skimming the top of the list.

Me: Some excellent choices there Rachel.

3. What are some of your favorite films?

Rachel: Double Indemnity, Vertigo. Rear Window, The Magnificent Seven, Groundhog Day, 12 Angry Men, Witness, The Apartment, Midnight, Letter to Three Wives, The Best Years of Our Lives, The Heiress, Laura, The Lady Eve, Sunset Boulevard, Bringing Up Baby, Holiday,.Ninotchka, My Fair Lady, Shadow of a Doubt, The Letter, I Walked With a Zombie, The Unknown, Say Anything, When Harry Met Sally, Airplane!, Black Narcissus, The Reckless Moment, The Maltese Falcon…I could keep going.

Me: The one film on your list that stood out was Airplane...it's one of the funniest movies ever!

4. Describe your first classic movie experience. Like where and when..at a cinema, on TV, etc..

Rachel: Probably one of the Disney films was my chronological first. In addition to the animated ones, I really loved some of the live action ones like The Parent Trap or those swashbucklers with Richard Todd. Our VCR saw a lot of use in those days and I ended up with a whole library of VHS copies. But I think the first time I became consciously aware that a classic film was something to seek out was when my parents rented Stage Fright, telling me that Alfred Hitchcock always made good movies. Little did they know what they started that day…

Me: Cool story

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

Rachel: Well Vertigo, for one. Saw it when I was 12 and didn’t know what I’d just seen. It gave me uneasy dreams for the rest of the night and years later, I would hear the music and the hairs on the back of my neck would stand up. It wasn’t until I got old enough that I realized it was a masterpiece. Hmm, I also didn’t think much of Holiday when I first saw it. And I’m slowly working up a love for The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. Very slowly. When I was a kid, I despised John Wayne’s character so much that it ruined the whole movie for me. But my family loves this film dearly and repeated viewing have given me a lot more empathy for the characters and the story.

Me: I wasn't too crazy about Vertigo the first time I saw either. Over time and repeat viewings and I like a little bit more than the first time I saw it.

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

Rachel: I guess outside, lying on a blanket. It would be a quiet evening with perfect weather and I’d be gazing up at a huge screen, in the midst of an enthusiastic, classic-loving audience. My second place be alone and snug on the couch while the fire’s crackling and the snow’s beating the windows.

Me: Sounds great either way!

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

Rachel: My parents always liked old films for the most part although there were certain kinds they would not touch (silents, melodramas, anything with Robert Mitchum). My mom is probably my favorite person to discuss films with. As for my friends and co-workers, they’re more likely to dip into a few films here and there rather than seek them out as a rule.

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

Rachel: The 40s are my number one. After that, the 30s and the 50s are roughly in second place.

  

Me: the 30's are my favorite era

9. What are some of your favorite film quotes?

Rachel: “I didn’t want to be an old maid. Not in Kansas!”

~Heaven Can Wait

“Then she tried to sit in my lap while I was standing up.”

~The Big Sleep

“A fellow will remember a lot of things you wouldn't think he'd remember. You take me. One day, back in 1896, I was crossing over to Jersey on the ferry, and as we pulled out, there was another ferry pulling in, and on it there was a girl waiting to get off. A white dress she had on. She was carrying a white parasol. I only saw her for one second. She didn't see me at all, but I'll bet a month hasn't gone by since that I haven't thought of that girl.”

~Citizen Kane (well anyone who knows my blog could see that one coming)

“Modern women.”

“They’ve been like that all down through the ages. Especially in a spot like this.” ~Plan 9 from Outer Space

“I am married to an American agent.”

~Notorious

“Walking through life with you, ma’am, has been a very gracious thing.”

~They Died With Their Boots On

  

Me: Some good quotes there Rachel!

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

Rachel: This is really embarrassing, but I haven’t seen Taxi Driver. Let me explain that one. My dad never wanted to watch it, got an idea in his head that he would hate it. So my mom never saw it. Then, when I got old enough to see it, Mom and I planned to finally see it together. Except one thing or another always came around to prevent us from watching it. And I would feel wrong if I saw it without her by this point so I guess it’ll have to wait until we can finally make that movie date. Oh, and I haven’t seen Jules and Jim, An American in Paris, Tokyo Story, Night of the Living Dead, or Blow-Up, to name a few other shameful gaps.

Me: Taxi Driver is pretty good. Intense but really good!

11. What is your favorite genre?

Rachel: I don’t know how to answer this one. I love film noir. I love screwball comedy. I love the romantic fantasies like The Ghost and Mrs. Muir or Portrait of Jennie. But I also really love some of the straightforward dramas and historical films. Maybe it would be faster to say what I least like which is most of the 60s comedies (too bloated and mean-spirited) and pretty near all slasher and horror films. I’m a scaredy cat when it comes to horror.

Me: I love screwball comedies...but I also love the comedies of the 60's as well.

And horror films too.

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

Rachel: Probably a film noir party. We could dress up to the nines, stage a murder in one of the cars, have a Guess Which Elisha Cook Jr. Movie This Is contest, have the couples pose for dramatic, dip-and-kiss homages to old film stills. And then in the morning, after waking up from a marathon drinking and film viewing session, the guests would confer on who had had the weirdest dreams.

Me: Cool!

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

Rachel: Well, I wouldn’t say “care less” because I always feel uneasy when they’re a film that others claim is great and I can’t see it. For classic films, I struggle with The Leopard, Sansho the Bailiff, and Spirit of the Beehive. All renowned films that have been praised to the skies by people I deeply admire…all films that bore me or numb me by turn. I’ll keep trying, maybe someday the switch will flip. As for popular films, I’m pretty indifferent to The Dark Knight, Avatar, The Matrix. But I don’t lose any sleep over not liking those ones.

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

Rachel: Huh. Lot of choices there. I think Nathanael over at Forgotten Classics of Yesteryear (http://www.forgottenclassicsofyesteryear.blogspot.com) and Nate’s Mini Reviews (http://www.natesminireviews.blogspot.com ) must watch 1-2 films a day, judging by the rate of his film commentary. And I’m always left in awe by his determination to leave no genre, style or stone unturned.

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

Rachel: Oh man. Well, I love Bruno Anthony from Strangers on a Train and Harry Lime from The Third Man, to start with a few villains. I love Bree Daniels from Klute, George Bailey from It’s a Wonderful Life, Norma Desmond from Sunset Boulevard, and Ninotchka from well, Ninotchka. I guess for me, I know that I love a film character when I really want to follow them home at the end of the movie and see what happens next.

Me: I love Norma Desmond and Ninotchka too. Good choices Rachel. And that wraps up my interview with Rachel this month. I want to thank her for accepting my invite and answering my questions. Hope everyone enjoyed her stay here as well. And please check out her wonderful blog when you get a chance.

At The Beach: GRACE KELLY

The beautiful Grace and it's also Tuesday...so it has to be Grace Kelly day!

The Best Hitchcock Movies (That Hitchcock Never Made) Blogathon: Bunny Lake Is Missing (1965)

Dorian of Tales of The Easily Distracted and Becky of Classic Becky's Brain Food came up with this wonderful blogathon about movies similar to Alfred Hitchcock movies that were not made by Hitch. So once I heard about it I quickly signed up. Here is the link to see what other films are being done all week long. Seems a lot people were eager to join in on the fun. doriantb.blogspot.com/p/best-hitchcock-movies-that-hitchcock.html

Ann surrounded by dolls... a little creepy

My contribution is the 1965 film Bunny Lake Is Missing, directed by Otto Preminger. The underrated Carol Lynley is Ann Lake, a transplanted American woman in England, with a daughter named Bunny. On the first day of school, Ann arrives to pick Bunny up, only to find that no child by that name is registered there. You can just imagine Ann's shock upon hearing that. So the police is called in to investigate. Sir Laurence Olivier is police inspector Newhouse who wraps his head around this missing person case. Well that's what Ann calls it. Everyone else has their doubts. 

Ann and her brother Stephen

Her brother Stephen (Keir Dullea..very weird here) comes to his sister's aid, but he has some personal issues of his own. The main focus is on Ann and whether she is of sound mind. Does she really have a daughter? or she has just imagined the whole thing? Stephen backs up her story as he should since he is Bunny's uncle but things are not black and white.

Inspector Newhouse is on the case

You can feel the resemblance to a Hitchcock film when you watch Bunny Lake. From the everyone is a suspect scenarios to the woman in distraught. Of course most of Hitch's films had the leading man dealing with things but Carol Lynley is more than up to the challenge. Giving one of her best performances. It helped having a veteran like Olivier on hand too. He brings some distinction and quality to this film. And Otto Preminger is a seasoned director who knows how to keep things flowing.

Bunny..is she real or imagined?

I don't want to go into anymore detail about this film in case some people haven't seen it. It's the type of film where you really can't talk about it without giving things away. So let me just say that Bunny Lake is a worthy film that Hitchcock never made. I think most people will enjoy it.

At The Beach: KAREN MORLEY

Breath-taking Karen in this amazing photo!

Some facts about Rita Hayworth

Here are some notable facts about Rita, my classic movie goddess for the month. Facts provided by IMDB.

Born Margarita Carmen Casino in Brooklyn, New York on October 17th, 1918


Died May 14th, 1987 at the age of 68


Nickname: The Love Goddess


Married five times: James Hill (1958-1961)
Dick Haymes (1953-1955)
Prince Aly Khan (1949-1953)
Orson Welles (1943-1948)
Edward Charles Holmgren Judson (1937-1942)

She appeared 5 times on the cover of "Life" Magazine.


The image of her face was glued onto an A-bomb which was dropped on the Bikini Atoll during a test in 1946.

Through her mother she is part Irish and part English.

In 1947, started her own production company, "Beckworth Corporation" (formed from syllables of her daughters name, Rebecca, and her own surname). It was dissolved in 1954 under advice from her fourth husband, Dick Haymes.

In the early 1940s, she replaced Jean Arthur as the top female star at Columbia Pictures. Coincidentally, the two stars share the same birthday 

The famous red hair was not her natural color (which was black). When she was signed, studio heads decided that her hairline was too low on her forehead, and she underwent years of painful electrolysis to make it higher.

She was voted the 65th "Greatest Movie Star" of all time by Entertainment Weekly.

She was voted the 34th Greatest Movie Star of all time by Premiere Magazine.

Was named #19 Actress, The American Film Institutes 50 Greatest Screen Legends.

One of the few actresses to have danced with both Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly in the movies, other actresses that have also done this includes Judy Garland, Cyd Charisse, Vera-Ellen, Debbie Reynolds and Leslie Caron.

My love of classic movies is beyond measure

Monty

At The Beach: JOI LANSING

Joi looking all so cute in her two piece polka dot bikini..with matching beach towel!