Lucy and Desi Hit the Road

Who hasn't heard the buzz about tiny homes, glamping, van life, and so on? It seems like those videos are everywhere on YouTube, and some are better than others, to be honest. That's why it's always interesting to see that trailer life isn't a new phenomenon, and one of the best movies about that in … Continue reading Lucy and Desi Hit the Road

Judy’s Last MGM Movie

Miss Judy is back... It's no secret that Judy's life got difficult towards the end of her time at MGM, which was an endless push-pull between her trying to take control of her health and well-being and the studio wanting her back at work. Judy was fired from two movies in 1949--Annie Get Your Gun and The … Continue reading Judy’s Last MGM Movie

Ma and Pa In Paris, Mais Oui

Wheels up, y'all... One of the fixtures of nineteen fifties cinema was the Ma and Pa Kettle series. My parents grew up on it, they introduced me to it, I grew up on it, and I've introduced it to my son. These movies have their own brand of charm. Marjorie Main plays herself except that … Continue reading Ma and Pa In Paris, Mais Oui

Down On the Farm

This year has shown us things about ourselves, positive and otherwise, and it may mean discovering depths and talents we never knew we had. With that in mind I decided to revisit 1947's The Egg and I. It's not only based on a true story of a city couple trying to start a chicken farm, … Continue reading Down On the Farm

Six Reasons To See “Meet Me In St. Louis”

In 1944 Americans and everyone around the world were weary of war. There was a desire for simpler, happier times, when nothing very big or exciting happened. Hollywood fed into this with movies such as Meet Me In St. Louis, a gentle story about the Smith family as they wait for the Louisiana Purchase Exposition, or th … Continue reading Six Reasons To See “Meet Me In St. Louis”

Shamedown #4: Too Hot To Handle

Presenting another Shamedown. And another Clark Gable movie. He's getting a lot of exposure this year on Taking Up Room. And in case you missed it before, the whole story of how this got started can be found at Cinema Shame. I don't know about other countries, but in America we hear a lot about women breaking the … Continue reading Shamedown #4: Too Hot To Handle

Stage To Screen: The Women

September 1, 1939 was the day the Second World War started. It was also the day the M-G-M film, The Women, premiered to great fanfare. Three years previously, The Women was a successful Broadway play by Clare Boothe Luce, with a respectable six-hundred sixty-six performances to its credit (or six-hundred fifty-seven, if you believe Wikipedia). Directed by George … Continue reading Stage To Screen: The Women