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High Security!

Posted: August 17th, 2007, 4:48 pm
by Moraldo Rubini
Have I mentioned what's been going on at the office where I work? I work in a highrise office building. The firm where I work is rather large (we have 10 floors in this branch) and to gain entrance one must use a building pass. Each pass has a photo of the holder. But a couple of us have been assessing the personalities of our colleagues and changing their photos accordingly -- we're replacing their photos with pictures of classic movie stars. I've been assigned Leslie Howard. So far we've added Una O'Connor, Olivia DeHavilland, Marlene Dietrich, Joan Crawford, Elsa Lanchester (as the Bride), "Race Bannon" and "Ultra-Man"... okay, the last ones aren't so classic... Luckily, the firm is amused. There's a chip in the pass that tells who we really are; the photo's only cosmetic.

P.S. We just indoctrinated an Edna Mae Oliver!

Who would you be?

Posted: August 18th, 2007, 10:45 pm
by Vecchiolarry
Hi,

I worked on the 18th floor of a 28 storey building. (I am retired now since 2004)....
We had security cards that one swipped on the elevator and it lit up your floor and then you had to swipe again to get into your offices on the 18th floor. We didn't have pictures on our cards though.
Lo & bedamned if you forgot or lost your card!! Security guards were inept, stupid and ignorant; and dealing with them was enough to send one screaming for the nearest insane asylum!! - - please let me deal with Nurse Ratched......
During a G-8 conference here in 2000, I and several others were personally detained by our own security, when their machine at the front door didn't work properly. And these bozos knew me from years of passing their front desk!! Incredible!!!

Well, to answer your question: I guess I'd better pick Ronald Colman, since everybody says I resemble him..... Well, not everybody, but those who know who he is/was!!!
I first heard this from Lillian Burns at MGM in the 50's - and she knew him.... She always advised me to be a gentleman just like him.
So, I'll pick Ronald Colman......

Larry

Classic Youngins

Posted: August 19th, 2007, 3:47 am
by Moraldo Rubini
Vecchiolarry wrote:... I guess I'd better pick Ronald Colman, since everybody says I resemble him..... Well, not everybody, but those who know who he is/was!!!...
I was thrilled that the 30 year old gal who chose Edna Mae Oliver knew who she was. That was her own pick! It gave me hope, I tell ya...

Posted: August 19th, 2007, 5:42 am
by knitwit45
Sara Allgood. And wipe your feet!

Posted: August 19th, 2007, 9:01 am
by Vecchiolarry
Hi Marco,

Yes, there actually is hope out there for us 'classic oldies'......

I can tell you that it surprised me and brought a warm smile to my face when an 18 year old intern at work around 2002 knew who Pola Negri was.
I had mentioned her in passing to our coffee break group and suddenly this new temporary summer worker said, "Oh I know her, she was in 'The Moonspinners'!! She was a hoot!!"......
I nearly kissed him - NOT..... But, I did do a cartwheel - also NOT!!!!

Larry

Posted: August 19th, 2007, 12:08 pm
by mrsl
. . . And on the other side of the coin, Thursday night, my new neighbor stopped in to yak for a while, and for a minute or two she was staring at my TV with a quizzical look on her face - I asked, "Do you know who they are?", and she said, "No, Who", - My answer - Elvis Presley and Ann Margret. So sad.

Anne

Ann-Margrock

Posted: August 19th, 2007, 12:52 pm
by Moraldo Rubini
mrsl wrote:. . . And on the other side of the coin, Thursday night, my new neighbor stopped in to yak for a while, and for a minute or two she was staring at my TV with a quizzical look on her face - I asked, "Do you know who they are?", and she said, "No, Who", - My answer - Elvis Presley and Ann Margret. So sad.
Well, she's just clueless. I mean, if she didn't know Theda Bara or Zasu Pitts, I could understand; but Ann-Margret is still working! She's currently filming a movie with Ellen Burstyn, Chris Evans and David Strathairn.

Posted: August 19th, 2007, 5:26 pm
by Vecchiolarry
Marco & Anne,

Clueless?? She must be brain dead.......

I can somewhat understand not knowing Ann-Margret, as she is not overly publicized today.
But, Elvis Presley - - good lord! he's known all over the world and impersonated daily somewhere!!

As for Theda Bara - - I was contacted at the beginning of the year by a screenwriter in LA, who is doing a movie about her to star Charlize Theron next year.
He asked me for any insights on her and I told him all I knew - - I saw her once at an LA restaurant and she looked quite good, matronly but good and then told him that she was a major Hollywood & LA hostess and a major contributor to Cedar-Sinai Hospital. And, that's all I know, folks!!!
So, we may see her name in lights again. Although I haven't heard any more about it....

Larry

Lost Cleopatra

Posted: August 19th, 2007, 5:55 pm
by Moraldo Rubini
Larry, Did you ever speak with her? I thought she was supposed to have had a terrible speaking voice, but this could just be more lore from that period. She retired from films before the talkies became popular. Supposedly there were efforts in the 1950's to make a film of her life, but that never came to fruition. I'd love to see a movie made about her today. Now I think I need to find someone in this firm for whom a picture of Theda Bara would be appropriate on their building pass...

Posted: August 19th, 2007, 9:31 pm
by Vecchiolarry
Hi Marco,

Yes, I was introduced to her and her husband, Charles Brabin, but it was really just in passing. I think it was around 1952 or '53. As I was not overly interested in movies or movie stars at that time, I didn't have a clue what to ask her. I would have been more impressed with Roy Rogers at that time (he was the only real movie star for me back then).
Theda Bara had a very nice voice as I recall and her husband was British and spoke quite accented.
I don't really think she was considered for 'talkies' as you've said. Her vamp forte had run its course. Although I'm not sure of this, I think she did do stage work(???)......

Pola Negri spoke well also but had a thick Polish accent. She also sang and once had a cabaret act in LA, NYC and Paris and Berlin!!
Also, Mae Murray had a very melodious voice but could get high pitched when excited. She also sang and was on Broadway in musicals at one time. Many people think she could have done musical comedy in the talkies if she hadn't 'pissed off' Louis B. Mayer and quit MGM. Foolish girl!!

Larry

Posted: August 20th, 2007, 10:03 am
by pktrekgirl
Great thread! :lol:

I work for a huge company as well, but there is no way we could get away with changing our photos on our security badges. I'm jealous!

But of course, even if we could, this is a tech company, so likely as not everyone would change themselves not into classic film stars, but into scifi characters. :lol: In my professional world, scifi geeks abound!

As for film stars I'd change myself into...well, I'm not sure. I certainly don't look like any of them! I'd love to have the photo of Barbara Stanwyck or Myrna Loy on my security badge...but that's only cus I love them, not cus I look like them!

New Faces of 2007

Posted: August 24th, 2007, 7:57 pm
by Moraldo Rubini
Today we "indoctrinated" Veronica Lake, Nancy Kwan and Maria Montez. One of the joys of this is all the people learning about these wonderful characters!

Posted: September 1st, 2007, 4:14 pm
by traceyk
mrsl wrote:. . . And on the other side of the coin, Thursday night, my new neighbor stopped in to yak for a while, and for a minute or two she was staring at my TV with a quizzical look on her face - I asked, "Do you know who they are?", and she said, "No, Who", - My answer - Elvis Presley and Ann Margret. So sad.

Anne

We just did some remodelling and one of the changes we made was giving me a room to do crafts and so forth in. I decided to decorate it with those classic movie mini posters (11x17 prints, not originals--I wish I could afford those) Anyway, I was so proud--my 13-year-old daughter could name nearly every movie star pictured. I have NOT lived in vain! LOL

Tracey

Posted: September 2nd, 2007, 10:09 am
by jdb1
Say, Tracey, I have posters and 8x10s too, on the walls of the long corridor in my apartment. I call it my Walk of Fame. Except for a photo of Laurel and Hardy, most others are not recognized by those who see them. And it's not even the Classics who aren't recognized. One of my daughter's friends asked if a photo of George Harrison (as a young man, but still certainly recognizable) was my brother.

However, I suppose I'd get a very low score if I had to put a name to today's faces.