I saw the last three episodes yesterday evening. It was a big chunk to swallow in one go, but I enjoyed every minute of it. The rise of the criminal organisations thanks to prohibition was very well highlighted. One particular example was really illuminating. A crooked lawyer discovered a loophole i...

I started looking through this amazing catalogue and couldn't stop. It contains the Garbo estate: objects, clothes, shoes, etc. that are sold next month. I found the clothes particularly fascinating. She seemed to love turquoise and had many dresses of that colour. Browse through the catalogue, you ...

Recently I saw a new restored print of The Silent Enemy (1930, H.P. Carver) on Arte TV. This film is an amazing silent film about the lives of Native Americans in what is now Canada, before the arrival of Europeans in America. The film was made using a cast of Native Americans in superb exteriors. T...

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51hwg22NRrL._SL500_AA300_.jpg I watched the first two episodes of this brilliant TV documentary yesterday on Arte TV. Thanks to the new digital service, I could even watch it in English rather than dubbed in French. I had seen some Ken Burns documentaries befor...

Wow, Christine. You are a cross-cultural wonder. Have you ever been to New Orleans? I haven't been there since Hurricane Katrina, but it was an extraordinary place. Did you have anything to do with the boxed set of the Albert Capallani films that was released about a year and a half ago? Is your tr...

Oh thanks Moira & Jack Favell, it's always nice to know I'm missed. :) I am really sorry, but I had to do an emergency translation that just took all my time, WEs included. And after the whole day on the computer, I didn't have the energy to type a review. I translated a really interesting book ...

http://i199.photobucket.com/albums/aa123/cleteux/Couverture.jpg Hello everybody! This is one of the reasons why I wasn't much online recently. My French translation of Kevin Brownlow's book on Napoléon is coming out on December 3rd. The publisher promised high-quality reproductions of the 110 still...

I've been wondering where you got to, Ann! Nice to see you back. I was just very busy meeting several deadlines, correcting proofs and running around Paris from archive to archive. With three books on the go, I was unable to attend SSO. Now I have a bit of a respite and I'll try to be more present....

I'm glad to see that everybody is safe after the hurricane. I hope the electricity and everything will be back to normal very soon.
Sorry, I haven't been on SSO very much recently. But I want to give you all my best wishes.

Really happy you enjoyed it, Fernando! Les Nouveaux Messieurs is a true gem of French cinema. It's a film that should have been available on DVD for years. We have to thank Flicker Alley for their pioneering work. The CF is not doing its job: keeping alive French cinema.

A belated HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Fernando!!! I hope you had a lovely day.

Yesterday I watched Brancaleone alle crociate (Brancaleon at the crusades, 1970) a hilarious comedy by Mario Monicelli with Vittorio Gassman. The storyline reminded me of the maddest Monty Pythons plots. Brancaleone da Norcia (V. Gassman) is a dishevelled Middle-Ages knight riding a yellow horse. He...

Actually, we get very little silent on France 3 TV, only twice a year or something like that. And French TCM hardly ever shows silents...

http://i199.photobucket.com/albums/aa123/cleteux/SilverScreen/Upstream2.jpg Last week-end, French TV broadcast Upstream (1927, J. Ford). This silent comedy was re-discovered in New-Zealand in 2009. It's a typical backstage comedy showing the life of vaudeville thespians in a pension. Gertie (Nancy ...

'Gentleman's Agreement' actress Celeste Holm dies By Alan Duke, CNN July 15, 2012 -- Updated 1610 GMT (0010 HKT) NEW: Holm "passed peacefully" with her husband and friends and family nearby," her niece says Holm won the best supporting actress Oscar for "Gentleman's Agreement&quo...