Time to go home. Well, sort of... I have to say, I've never done a review like this before. One of my favorite blogs is Hooked On Houses, but it's the kind of thing where I look but don't touch. Part of this is because I live in an apartment, so I have no skin in … Continue reading Get Me To the (House) On Time
Bette’s War
During the Second World War, most stars worked to support the fight. Jeanette MacDonald joined the American Women's Voluntary Service (AWVS). Rita Hayworth donated the bumpers off her car for scrap and replaced them with wooden ones. Many, many actors, directors, and crew members, like Jimmy Stewart and George Stevens, enlisted in the Armed Forces. … Continue reading Bette’s War
Sailing Forth
In Of Human Bondage, we saw Bette play a cruel, gold-digging vixen keeping a romantic young man in her clutches. Eight years later, the shoe was on the other foot when Bette took the role of Charlotte Vale, a woman controlled by her mother, in the 1942 film, Now Voyager. Not only is the movie an interesting … Continue reading Sailing Forth
Bye, Mildred
Fasten your seatbelts. It's going to be a bumpy blogathon (OK, I couldn't resist 🙂 ). It's a fact of life that not all attraction is mutual. It's also a fact that sometimes relationships happen because one person wants to throw the other a bone. It is yet another fact that abuse can come from … Continue reading Bye, Mildred
A Highly Ordinary Life
Producer Lynn Novick once called the generation that fought World War Two "reticent," and this is absolutely true. These men believe that they're no one special, and that they went to war because they knew they had a duty to defend their nation. Most of them weren't career soldiers but regular guys who went off … Continue reading A Highly Ordinary Life
Waiting For Judgement
What happens after death is an interesting question, maybe a little scary, but very important. I definitely didn't start this blog to proselytize, and I'm not going to start now, but death is something we'll all face someday. The problem is, no one who dies can tell the rest of us what it's like--all we … Continue reading Waiting For Judgement
Into the Wild Blue Yonder
And we're off... 🙂 Have you ever explored a B-17? I had the opportunity a few years ago, which was an amazing experience. The plane was the same one that appeared in the movie, Memphis Belle, and it's not only beautifully maintained, but it still flies. There was so much more to seeing the plane than being where Sean … Continue reading Into the Wild Blue Yonder
Forgotten Man, Where Art Thou?
Here we are again. How were everyone's holidays? Did anyone else feel like they just zipped by? Yeah, me too. And yep, the eagle, er, angel has landed. The Great Depression looms large in twentieth-century history. Roughly twenty-five percent of the American public were unemployed in 1933, and farmers in particular found themselves displaced. Bankers … Continue reading Forgotten Man, Where Art Thou?
That Darn Bat
Every once in a while, even busy supporting players have to break out of their ruts, and Agnes Moorehead was no exception. In 1959 she got top billing in The Bat, opposite Vincent Price. A mildly suspenseful and slightly campy film, The Bat is an entertaining example of what Agnes could do with a lead role. Director … Continue reading That Darn Bat
God Dag (Good Day), Bruna
Confession time: I've only seen six of the eighteen movies Agnes Moorehead made at M-G-M while she was a contract player there. According to The MGM Story by John Douglas Eames, Agnes's first movie for the studio was The Youngest Profession in 1943 and her last was The Singing Nun in 1966. While she was always superb, most of her … Continue reading God Dag (Good Day), Bruna
There’s A War On, Darling
Agnes Moorehead was a busy lady her entire life, and she was all over the place during the forties. While under contract at M-G-M, Agnes was loaned out to various studios, including Selznik International, where she made one of my all-time favorite movies, Since You Went Away. Very loosely based on a book of the same name … Continue reading There’s A War On, Darling
A Way of Escape
The concept of escapism is something I've dipped my little toe into already on this blog, but when Ruth and Kristina announced their Things I Learned From the Movies blogathon, I decided to go a bit deeper--namely, the point at which I got what escapism means. I have grown up on old movies, mainly because of my parents. … Continue reading A Way of Escape
Flaemmchen Vs. Mildred
Remember this? Yup, it's that time. I'll be honest: I have a love-hate relationship with all things Joan Crawford. It's got nothing to do with the Mommy Dearest stuff Crystal barred us from going into for this blogathon, either. Joan's face always seemed so hard to me, especially in her later work, as if a … Continue reading Flaemmchen Vs. Mildred
On an Island With You…and Five Movies: My #NationalClassicMovieDay Picks
In honor of May 16th being National Classic Movie Day, Rick of Classic Film and TV Cafe posed this question to the blogging world: If you were stranded on a deserted island, which five movies would you choose to watch for the rest of your life? It's with a bit of trepidation that I approach this … Continue reading On an Island With You…and Five Movies: My #NationalClassicMovieDay Picks
Taking Up Room 