The April 2013 TCM Schedule

[moira finnie]

Either of you ever see Trip to Bountiful? She's very good in that, and I am actually the founder of the secret pinkie handshake when it comes to her.....

I have tried to watch that more than once, especially since I like Horton Foote as a writer, but no dice, so far. I know I should try again...someday.

[moira finnie]

For all club members of the secret pinkie handshake, be sure to check out Toys in the Attic where Wendy Hiller mops the floor with the twittering Miss Page.

I don't think we can overestimate the prestige of those who had big reputations on Broadway.

Nope, couldn't make it through that one either, even though I always wanted to be exactly like Yvette Mimieux when I was a kid...and that ain't happenin' either, sweetheart! If I were her sister (Wendy Hiller) I'd have put that ditherer (Geraldine Page) in the attic with the toys and that scheming layabout brother (Dean Martin). But that would have been a very different Southern Gothic movie.

OH! Welcome back from the festivities, kingrat! I hope when you have time you'll share your experiences if you would like.

[Rita Hayworth]

Last Night ... I watched five movies last night on TCM starting with The Loves of Carmen and ending with Gilda. I am not going to talk about the two Rita Hayworth's films at all. But, these films instead in condensed forms. I did not watch Gypsy Sweetheart because I took a power nap instead and brewing coffee.-

The Undercover Man - 1949 Movie

The combination of Ford and Nina Foch was excellent and this film is one of the grittiest Crime films that I seen so far. I enjoyed watching it and it's fast paced and according to IMDb it is James Whitmore's first movie appearance as George Pappas and he was outstanding as well. This movie made me think and I had to keep a mental scorecard to figure out what's going on and I for one find it an very intriguing film to watch. I really enjoyed this movie. Excellent Supporting Cast too.

Babies for Sale - 1940 Film

This is the first time I seen this film and I just don't care for this film because back then the Code of Motion Pictures kept it a check and all the movies that I watched last night on Turner Classic Movies featuring Glenn Ford ... this one did not bode me well. I would not see this movie again. It was not my cup of tea.

Framed - 1947 Movie

Janis Carter


This is the best film that I watched last night on Turner Classic Movies (excluding both The Loves of Carmen and Gilda, both starring Rita Hayworth) and the chemistry of Ford and Janis Carter who played a femme fatale by the name of Paula Craig was fabulous. This is the first time I ever seen her in a featured movie and where you been all my life. I watched this film with the sound on (no closed captioning) and she has a very pleasant and easy to understand voice and it was a joy for me to hear her on film. I am going through IMDb for her list of films and see what I can see later on this year and beyond.

I find this film full of twists and turns and its quite suspenseful and full of energy and drama. I find this film fast paced, easy to follow, and most importantly the chemistry of Janis Carter and Glenn Ford was great. Great writing by Ben Maddow who did the screenplay and that alone made it very enjoyable for me.

I also like the acting duo of Ford and Edgar Buchmann (the miner, that helped Mike Lambert (played by Ford) was very good) and that was an added bonus too because I have no problems relating and understanding Edgar on screen.

I wanted this film to go longer - and I feel it's has no justice for being 82 minutes long. it's whipped by so fast ... I was charmed by it ... Janis Carter (pictured above) is a good actress and I shoot myself in the foot for not seeing her earlier in my life. I loved Framed.

[Bronxgirl48]

Jackie, I wonder if, had Dennis been popular in the thirties, reaching the heights of lightweight musical success a la Dick Powell, would he too have reinvented himself for the grittier '40's decade? Possibly yearn to break out of the pretty-boy singer mold and play Philip Marlowe? (I just know Morgan would look terrific in a trenchcoat) I love your description of Dennis in THE HARD WAY: "tough and sexy", which is exactly what he was. But Jack Carson, over the years, proved to be more versatile and effective as a dramatic actor. For instance, could you ever see Dennis in a Tennessee Williams vehicle? No way! But Carson strangely slipped effortlessly into Southern Gothic territory with CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF, lol.

moira, I missed many of the Fords, so hopefully I'll catch some of them on YouTube.

I'm glad I made it through THE AMBASSADOR'S DAUGHTER. It was tough going. Once again, that '50's bloated wide-screen made the actors seem they were in various stages of dysentery and could barely move lest an "accident" occur. (this is also notable in 1954's BLACK WIDOW) Location filming in France unfortunately did not add any background froth, but instead a strange heavy lurid quality, since every Parisian interior looked weirdly like the inside of a bordello, including husband-and-wife Loy and Menjou's bedroom, something I really don't want to think too much about.

[moira finnie]

I saw The Ambassador's Daughter some time ago, and felt that everyone was a decade older than they should have been for the roles they played. I almost wish the likelihood of a mature romance for Myrna had been explored--she would have been more interesting than the others--and certainly knew how to get some fun out of bland material.

Whenever he appears in movies in the '50s Tommy Noonan always seemed to have wandered in from hosting a local "bowling for dollars" show.

He's always pretty much the same: bland (in everything), sometimes creepy (Violent Saturday) concerned (A Star Is Born), nice guy (Bundle of Joy) and no threat to anyone--which makes it all the more bizarre to realize that the über-slimey John Ireland was his half-brother in real life. One guy had too much presence for comfort, and the other bro had close to none.

Not that there weren't some good movies made in the Eisenhower years, but the fifties were often a very strange time for movies and Tommy Noonan is one reason. Not my favorite film decade by a long shot.

[Bronxgirl48]

"Bowling for Dollars" LOL Poor Tommy. I could hardly believe he and John Ireland were related. (and why did I always think that Joanne Dru was Ireland's SISTER?)

John Forsythe had a certain "old-school" (even back then) charm for me on television, but he just fades into the background in movies. (exception: I was really frightened of him as the judge in "...AND JUSTICE FOR ALL") I don't know what they were thinking pairing him with de Havilland in TAD. Her character needed a Robert Ryan type to wake everybody up.

I myself am not crazy about American film in the fifties, but very fond of that decade for English comedies and mysteries. There's just something about post-WWII Britain (stopping right before the annoying kitchen-sink, Angry Young Man era; and the following Swinging London stuff) that is tremendously appealing and cozy to me.

[moira finnie]

"Bowling for Dollars" LOL Poor Tommy. I could hardly believe he and John Ireland were related. (and why did I always think that Joanne Dru was Ireland's SISTER?)

Because in real life (well, as "real" as it got in nightclubs of the period) Tommy Noonan and Peter Marshall were a comedy team. No, they weren't giving Martin & Lewis alot of competition, but they were successful. Long story short, Tommy Noonan's partner Peter is the younger brother of Joanne Dru who was married to John Ireland for several years. (Her career never recovered from that). I figure Dru & Ireland met at someplace called the Boom Boom Room in Atlantic City while visiting their respective brothers at a gig?

John Forsythe had a certain "old-school" (even back then) charm for me on television, but he just fades into the background in movies. (exception: I was really frightened of him as the judge in "...AND JUSTICE FOR ALL") I don't know what they were thinking pairing him with de Havilland in TAD. Her character needed a Robert Ryan type to wake everybody up.

LOVE John Forsythe's niceness as Bachelor Father, not as much on Dynasty and can't take the shouting by Al "I'm an Actor" Pacino in ...And Justice For All, but I do remember JF being almost unrecognizable as an evil judge.

I myself am not crazy about American film in the fifties, but very fond of that decade for English comedies and mysteries. There's just something about post-WWII Britain (stopping right before the annoying kitchen-sink, Angry Young Man era; and the following Swinging London stuff) that is tremendously appealing and cozy to me.

It was a GREAT period for movies outside America (esp. in France and Italy) and, yeah, the Ealing films rule. Even in the Angry Young Man era there were still an occasional Jack Hawkins, Nigel Patrick, and John Mills movie to enjoy with some quiet observations about the world to enjoy.

[Bronxgirl48]

Oh that's right, Peter Marshall! I forgot about him. (I wonder why, lol?) I've always wondered if a certain part of John Ireland's anatomy was donated to a science museum after his death. I liked Joanne married to t.v. hubby Mark Miller, in GUESTWARD HO.

Just revisited NO DOWN PAYMENT on YouTube. Sheree North could act! Who knew?? And there was actually a time when Pat Hingle was sexy.

Nigel Patrick (sigh) I have to admit I do like some of the AYM films, including ROOM AT THE TOP. For the Angry Young Girl category, my favorite is A TASTE OF HONEY.

Pacino is just as bad in SEA OF LOVE.

Yes, France and Italy in the '50's just blew us away. Ophuls, Carne, Clouzot, Fellini, Bresson, etc.

[movieman1957]

I stumbled briefly on an interview Peter Marshall did with Florence Henderson recently and he said Joanne worked mostly to pay off her husband's debts. (Ireland and the first one.) Other than that he indicated she would have been quite happy being a mom only.

[Bronxgirl48]

Bronxgirl, Moira, you guys are making me laugh. Whenever I see Tommy Noonan, "Bowling for Dollars" is going to light up in my mind. I actually like a lot of American movies from the 1950s, but it was not a good decade for American comedy, and the BLACK WIDOW-style "What are we going to do with this wide screen format? Oh right, nothing" films are pretty bad. Italy, France, Japan, and Sweden had some great filmmakers at work.

Whenever wide-screen Technicolor bloat hangs heavily upon me, I get quick relief from MARTY, TWELVE ANGRY MEN, THE CATERED AFFAIR, THE BACHELOR PARTY, A HATFUL OF RAIN, NO DOWN PAYMENT, etc., as well as the many schlocky delights of low-budget sci-fi/horror movies of that period. Suitably refreshed with social realism and ROBOT MONSTER, I can then return to AROUND THE WORLD IN 180,000 DAYS or SAYONARA, RED BUTTONS.

[rohanaka]

Glenn Ford He's actually quite good in Dear Heart as well, but I can't bear Geraldine Page, and have never learned to get over my dislike.

Oh, sister, move over and give me the secret pinkie handshake!! I can just about take her in Hondo because John Wayne, the dog and the kid are really good, (but it bummed me out that the Duke's entourage was mean to her on the set according to a bio I read once). Still, Geraldine Page was probably phenomenal on stage, and I know many people revere her work, but I just don't get it. What's wrong with us?.

Sorry to be so late coming in on the whole 'Secret Pinkie Handshake" thing, ladies.. but just wanted to pop in and say.. that I can totally get why you formed the club, but the secret to not NEEDING the secret handshake for me has been, that I have only seen a handful of Miss Page's movies. Ha! (Miss Nancy, I have not even seen TTTB, though I do recall her getting a lot of praise for it)

So even though I have only seen a few of her movies... I guess that I have just seen the right ones, because while I DO confess she is not exactly "likeable" in either Hondo OR Dear Heart.. she WEARS her most irritating qualities well (at least for me) in both those movies.

I think It is her "awkward" way of speaking.. it is not your "typical-sounding" voice... and sometimes she appears almost TOO irritating (but only just almost) and yet these things (to me) help her to be believable in Hondo.. She has had to be "tough" in a very tough life.. and yet she is LONGING for someone to share it with. She took a chance on the ONLY guy around.. and paid dearly for it.. and then in walks the DUKE of all people.. and he more or less overwhelms her by being everything her (loser) husband was not. Anyway.. I thought she did a very good (and believable) job with all that and those "awkward and irritating" personality traits really carried her along well.

And (at least to me) these same two qualities play out in an even MORE awkward and irritating (and yet appropriate) way for her in Dear Heart if only because she also adds a huge dose of "trying too hard" along with it, ha. But again.. she wears it well because her character IS awkward, and irritating, and tries WAY too hard. So it all plays out painfully.. and yet perfectly for her (despite how squeamish I feel when I watch it, ha) I think she must have just had a knack for handling (and carrying off) the "awkward and irritating" types of characters.

Maybe.. perhaps.. I could be wrong.. because did I mention I have never seen that many of her films?? (ha.. ok, go ahead.. teach me the whole pinkie thing JUST in case)

OH... and MEANWHILE.. just today in fact the kidling and I checked out one of her movies from the library and watched it tonight (for the first time ever for both of us) and I think her voice, and her manner of speaking were (again) PERFECT for the role she played... (though this time she was more annoying than awkward but STILL very irritating.. OH.. and overbearing.. and WAY over the top even.. (and yet perfectly believable)

Of course, she was playing opposite Zsa Zsa Gabor and Bob Newhart (as mice).. and a couple of animated crocodiles.. so it may be that voice of hers just stood out a bit more that way. But whatever the reason GEE was she a big meanie!! (and she REALLY got on my nerves.. but again.. she was SUPPOSED to be that way.. so it worked for me!)