The Silver Screen Oasis

Hello everyone on this thread; I'm back from a long hiatus.

I'd like to add a note of dissention here -- while I certainly don't hate Lombard, I can't honestly say I'm wild about her either. It's really interesting how an actor can seem so different to different viewers. One of the things I've never liked about Lombard is that she simply doesn't reach me from the screen. I find her a not-warm screen presence; I don't really believe what she's doing, and I do, in fact, find her acting style pretty darn "drama school." I especially don't like the way she sort of sings her dialogue, in a fluty, musically descending, artificial style.

There are plenty of actors out there in old movies who have stagey, overdone, and/or artificial ways of delivering their lines. I dislike some because of it, and like others in spite of it. It's a matter of perception from the screen. Lombard has never moved me, but it's never been so bad that I've walked away. I've just said "meh."

October 6th, 1908 - January 16th, 1942


She could be loud and raucous and ditzy. Or quiet, earnest, thoughtful with impeccable comic timing. Undeniably, she was one of the most popular actresses of the 1930's. It was just August 10th that TCM featured CAROLE LOMBARD. Well today is her 106th birthday. And the line-up for her includes:

* * * * * * * * * * *

6:00 AM - SWING HIGH, SWING LOW (1937) When success goes to his head, a bandleader could lose everything. Dir: Mitchell Leisen. Cast:  Carole Lombard, Fred MacMurray, Charles Butterworth. C-83 mins.

7:30 AM - FOOLS FOR SCANDAL (1938) A Hollywood star falls for a broken down aristocrat. Dir: Mervyn Le Roy. Cast:  Carole Lombard, Fernand Gravet, Ralph Bellamy.
BW-80 mins.

9:00 AM - THE GAY BRIDE (1934) A gold digger tries to get ahead by marrying a succession of ill-fated racketeers. Dir: Jack Conway. Cast:  Carole Lombard, Chester Morris, ZaSu Pitts. BW-80 mins.

10:30 AM - MADE FOR EACH OTHER (1939) A couple struggle to find happiness after a whirlwind courtship. Dir: John Cromwell. Cast:  Carole Lombard, James Stewart, Charles Coburn. BW-93 mins.

12:30 PM - TO BE OR NOT TO BE (1942) A troupe of squabbling actors joins the Polish underground to dupe the Nazis. Dir: Ernst Lubitsch. Cast:  Carole Lombard, Jack Benny, Robert Stack. BW-99 mins.

2:30 PM - MR. AND MRS. SMITH (1941) A quarrelsome couple discovers their marriage isn't legal. Dir: Alfred Hitchcock Cast:  Carole Lombard, Robert Montgomery, Gene Raymond. BW-95 mins.

4:30 PM - NOTHING SACRED (1937 ) When a small-town girl is diagnosed with a rare, deadly disease, an ambitious newspaper man turns her into a national heroine.
Dir: William A. Wellman. Cast:  Carole Lombard, Fredric March, Charles Winninger. C-74 mins.

6:00 PM - IN NAME ONLY (1939) A wealthy man falls for a widow but can't get his wife to divorce him. Dir: John Cromwell. Cast:  Carole Lombard, Cary Grant, Kay Francis.
BW-95 mins.

In my not so humble opinion, one of the finest film actors I've seen. True depth. Not just showmanship. Real, honest, characterization. Not too many actors deserve to be called brilliant. This is one time I'll use the word!