bad move

Baby the Rain Must Fall (1965)

Henry Thomas is out on parole in a small Texan town and, in the evenings, he is the lead singer in a band...

Director: Robert Mulligan
Writers: Horton Foote (play), Horton Foote (screenplay)
Stars: Steve McQueen, Lee Remick and Don Murray

sometimes it just looks so good on paper. this movie did not ruin my love of mcqueen but it did have me lamenting those scenes of him lip syncing.

one of steve's lines from the film:

Henry Thomas: I'M NOT GOING TO QUITE MY MUSIC! YOU HEAR THAT OLD LADY?... I'm not going to quite MUSIC!

okay!

a man needs a mate

jack warden is really good as the tough guy who is forced to succumb to his softer side in 'the lonely', an early episode of 'the twilight zone':

in http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IZyXaz5pW5k

it is chilling to imagine his character's plight and it is mind expanding to remember that love is always within us, no matter what the object of our affections.

photo: if anybody could fake it as a robot it was veruschka.

kooky

i never get over how few credits some film icons have. ali mcgraw? a mere handful. goldie hawn has only 31 credits but they span decades. she certainly did take the world by storm in the seventies:

1975 Shampoo
1974 The Sugarland Express
1972 Butterflies Are Free

in 1980 she gained greater acclaim in 'private benjamin', a film i have yet to see. what i did see was goldie sharing my tram in the airport in london. that is the goldie who her daughter seems like. hippie and blonde.

i do not get the kate hudson thang! but i always got goldie.

the hits keep coming

the year was 1965. 'the sandpiper' was the third of eleven films that Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton starred in together.

time wrap

did these two ever make a movie together? who cares!

mia was in india with the beatles and peter made it into the song, 'she said.' serious cred, however dodgy.

smooth operator

70 soundtrack credits and three nods at acting. bryan's last role, as the guy with murder on the mind in 'breakfast on pluto' was the only actual big screen film. he was very convincing as that creep.

bryan ferry is a terrific songwriter who has never felt the need to hide his adoration for the beatles and bob dylan. i think this is commendable! he continues to suavely sing his way into many hearts and charm his way through interviews. this son of a miner seriously shook the soot from his custom tailored suits and the world of music is classier for it.

making 'le mepris'

Jean-Luc Godard, Brigitte Bardot, and Michel Piccoli

the one that didn't get away

what qualities make a movie great? let's start with the letter 'H':

humorous
heartwarming
hell raising
historic
healing
heroic

and that's just one letter. 'one flew over the cuckoo's nest' is a bona fide classic and for anyone young enough to not 'get' the whole nicholson thing, here is the place to begin.

his 'mcmurphy' brings to mind jon voight's 'joe buck' from 'midnight cowboy.' they are both brilliantly written characters whose roles got taken by terrific actors who made sure their characters got what they deserved. their performances allow you the grace of realizing it's good to cry.

photo: makin' movies with a thoroughly original wild and crazy guy

she irons!

some very famous lout had the temerity to claim that ava gardner was heaven to go to bed with and hell to wake up with. i imagine she cackled at that. she really did cackle, didn't she?

here is the gorgeous and two sided ava, making up to the man who woke up on the wrong side of her bed.

getting to know you

jean harlow and clark gable

i now pronounce you...

she won the hearts of america as 'samantha' in 'bewitched' and he won an oscar for his supporting role in 'they shoot horses, don't they?' elizabeth montgomery and gig young were married for six years. they both made great contributions to the brilliant show 'the twilight zone.' i love them both.

just speak

the best voice in the business. i wouldn't call it the most 'believable' voice as in i'd follow it anywhere, but amusing to the nth degree. she was always great, most famously in the 1952 film version of the oscar wilde play 'the importance of being earnest.' interestingly, her son is an actor who appeared in the lovely film 'wilde' based on oscars life.

i loved the recent 'little dorrit' and the actress who played the hero's mother was unreal wicked. i am now curious to see how the petite joan played that demanding role in the 1988 version.

electric blue

it's 'crawl out of the woodwork' time now that the great elizabeth taylor is out of her physical stress. so much elizabeth love is floating around in the form of images and tattle telling. i doubt anything we see or read will alter our own personal affection for her.
whether people choose to imagine her collecting funds for her foundations, picking out heavenly pets, or reuniting with the man she said she'd marry for the third time were he still alive, she touches us.

so, thanks to lots of new images surfacing, i found what i believe to be a very good illustration of the greatest movie couple of all.

no need to question the quality of this movie. in this beachy love triangle elizabeth is charmingly shooting to be contemporary while burton is doing his consistent best in yet another struggle with morality. it's worth shaking the sand out of your shoes.

another pretty face

this guy also was considered to have plenty of talent but during his years at the studios the roles went to rock hudson or tony curtis. however, william reynolds is terrific in 'the twilight zone' episode called 'the purple testament.' not only does he see into the future, he gets to look closely at the marvelous dick york, his co-star. you can enjoy it on youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qKLcKPaN-6Y&feature=related

unlike those actors he was pitted against, william had a softer quality, more akin to keir dullea. one gorgeous guy.

extra bonus! warren oates, the absolute winner when it comes to portraying somewhat clueless likable fellows, has a small part towards the end.

da dunne!

just cause i never mention cary grant's favorite leading lady does not mean that i do not adore irene dunne!

here's looking at you, kid

http://popsicleskies.tumblr.com/post/4095026274/if-you-have-someone-who-looks-like-ingrid-bergman

“If you have someone who looks like Ingrid Bergman looking at you as though you’re adorable, you are.” - bogart

twinkle twinkle little stars

they're gone but not forgotten. this is francoise dorleac, sister of catherine deneuve who only lived to be 25. forever young, forever beautiful.

altered images

Nick: To you, everybody's a flop. Your husband's a flop, I'm a flop.
Martha: You're all flops. I am the Earth Mother, and you are all flops.

photo: george segal as 'nick' and dame elizabeth taylor as 'martha'

small to silver

how do you follow a handful of years on a hit television show? well, the guy on the right chose to be the voice of simon in:

Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chip-Wrecked

matthew gray gubler and shemar moore are two handsome devils who star in 'criminal minds', a show i do not watch. however, these guys are what i would call highly watchable!

1932-2011

“I feel very adventurous. There are so many doors to be opened, and I'm not afraid to look behind them.”

trust him

i love warren beatty. he is funny, graceful in a clumsy kinda way, and vain and handsome in a foolish attempt to convince himself as much as us. he has made some incredibly heartwarming films. 'heaven can wait' might be the best uplifter of all time.

'bonnie and clyde' was a big winner for warren who chose profit over paycheck. faye dunaway was insanely beautiful as the wild gal who craved a little tenderness. there is one very cool warren moment in this movie that reveals warren the man, at least i think it does.

the soon to be 'barrows' are sitting in a coffee shop booth getting to know one another. he tells her what a knockout she is but that she ought to remove the clip from her hair. just like that, no big deal but when bonnie takes that clip out she's his.

it's in the details.

photo: warren and faye/catherine deneuve avec clip

herbert marshall

i love this actor!




























photos: with kay francis/norma shearer/melvyn douglas

mama says

"If you forgive a man, don't reheat his sins for breakfast."

taylor in marfa

reluctant

it is hard to imagine that the woman in this photo conveyed being in love better than all the other screen stars, but she did.

my kinda of guy

Packy Cannon (played by Nils Asther) is an artist, adventurer, and ex-prizefighter. i know john gilbert gets most of the acclaim when it comes to co-starring with garbo, but trust me, 'packy' will live on in your mind. he is one heck of a character perfectly played by nils.

photo: garbo in the middle/nils on the right

feast your eyes

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMpss7tQ4fM

this episode is not only down right elegant, but it has a cast of only two. right up my alley! if i did not know that the most darling man in movies, robert montgomery, was her dad, i might guess that the wonderful actress susan hayward was her mom.

elizabeth montgomery will forever be etched in one's mind as 'samantha' from 'bewitched.' before they poured a bucket of bleach on her head and kitted her out with diaphanous witchy wear (when not in housewife mode) she was an absolute stunner of a brunette.

in this episode of 'twilight zone' there is almost zero dialogue. this one moment in her career proves that elizabeth montgomery would have been a terrific silent film actress. i am not exaggerating. watch it and you will agree.

photo: her costume rocks and looks like it had been designed by vivienne westwood.

selective memory

'I really don't remember much about Cleopatra. There were a lot of other things going on.'-Elizabeth Taylor

things, as in richard. might as well recall the love and not the studios huge loss over the making of that film.

facts: Despite being a critical failure, it won four Academy Awards. It was the highest grossing film of 1963, earning US $26 million, yet made a loss due to its cost of $44 million, the only film ever to be the highest grossing film of the year yet to run at a loss.

witchy woman

every time i watch either 'now, voyager' or 'separate tables' i want to put my hand through the screen and give gladys cooper a good throttle to that neck of hers. her rubies and pearls would not deter me. if there is one actress who gives mommie dearest a run for her money it is our gal gladys.

the woman was simply stellar in anything i have seen her in. yes, she did play nice characters too but she is so well know as the cruel and domineering mother of better davis in 'now, voyager' that her wickedness rules over her kinder moments. she is a classic.

she became a dame of her home country but also made tons of movies in hollywood. watching cooper is a great lesson in self control.

photos: gladys appears to have gypsy blood/her shining hour (now, voyager)/she looks so nice!/she was such a beautiful child

demand references

Ivor Novello starred in hitchcock's 'the lodger.' i am not familair with the early hitchcock movies but look at this stunner! perhaps he inspired david bowie who named one of his great albums 'lodger.' some cool facts about ivor:

'During the Second World War Novello was sent to prison for eight-weeks after he had fraudulently obtained petrol for his Rolls-Royce car. After he was released he wrote the musical Perchance To Dream. This included We'll Gather Lilacs, whose theme of lovers parting and hoping to meet again, made it one of the most popular songs of the war.
In 1947 Novello helped establish the Songwriters' Guild (later known as the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors).

Ivor Novello died in London on 6th March 1951. After his death the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors instituted the Ivor Novello awards, granted annually for outstanding contributions to British popular music.'

misappropriated petrol for his rolls! went on be the name of a foundation to establish awards for excellence in music! what a guy.

the brit pack

here they are, representing decades of gorgeous talent:

tom courtenay
helen mirren
laurence olivier

aging gracefully

104 screen credits and going strong, the wonderful actor james fox is next going to make it to the big screen playing a royal in the madonna directed movie about wallis and edward. as i recall, james' brother, actor edward fox, once played 'edward.'

well, even though his brother is also terrific, there has always been something about james for me. even his small role in 'the loneliness of the long distance runner' offered a glimpse into this man whose strength never manages to hide a vulnerability. the was absolutely lovely in 'passage to india' and kick ass as 'chas' in everyone's fave twisted tale of hiding out in a london townhouse inhabited by mick jagger (ex-rockstar) and his stunning sweetheart anita pallenberg. 'performance' was a deliciously messy meal sprinkled with magic mushrooms that bent 'chas' out of his own recognition.

apparently the making of 'performance' left a terrible taste in james' mouth:

Fox left the acting profession for nine years (1970-79) after he filmed Performance (1970) with Mick Jagger.-wikipedia

'People think Performance (1970) blew my mind... my mind was blown long before that. Performance (1970) gave me doubts about my way of life.- james fox


photos: fox up to date/gangster associate 'chas'/freewheelin'/with early love actress sarah miles

put the bottle (of peroxide) down

'In 1937, Myrna had a narrow escape when her horse bolted during the filming of The Rains Came (1939) with Tyrone Power; she was nearly killed.'

whoa! those torrential rain sequences were amazing. the film was good and tyrone power was just such a sweetheart, trying to befriend myrna while dodging her desire. the story was really a good one that touched on history, love, and redemption. even if the terrific storms looked 'hollywood' this movie is right up there.

what is not happening is seeing the stunning myrna loy as a blond. this is nor from the film.

classic

Jean-Paul Belmondo in A Bout De Souffle, Jean-Luc Godard, 1959

seriously now

“How can a woman be expected to be happy with a man who insists on treating her as if she were a perfectly normal human being.”-Oscar Wilde

i haven't seen colin firth and rupert everett in 'the importance of being earnest' but i feel sure rupert had a fine ol' time as he unabashedly admits to still being in love with his co-star since their early days filming 'another county', a film i really liked.

question of the day

how gorgeous is julie christie?



photo: Fahrenheit 451 (1966) Directed by François Truffaut. Starring Oskar Werner and Julie Christie.