Ten Performances by . . .

[kingrat]

The object of this new topic is to create a space where everyone can post lists of any kind relating to performances: best of a year, a career, actors who should have remained bartenders, whatever you like. I'll start with this one, since we have been posting lists of our favorite films of 1951.

1951 was a spectacular year for performances by leading men. Humphrey Bogart won the Oscar for The African Queen, one of his most charming roles, and Hollywood had been negligent in not finding an Oscar for Bogart somewhere in the 1940s. But I can think of ten other performances deserving of an Oscar, and would go crazy trying to rank them in order of preference:

Ten Other Performances Deserving of an Oscar for Best Actor in 1951 (alphabetical order):

Marlon Brando, A Streetcar Named Desire
Montgomery Clift, A Place in the Sun
Kirk Douglas, Ace in the Hole
John Garfield, He Ran All the Way
Canada Lee, Cry, the Beloved Country
Michael Redgrave, The Browning Version
Robert Ryan, On Dangerous Ground
Alastair Sim, A Christmas Carol
Robert Walker, Strangers on a Train
Oskar Werner, Decision Before Dawn

Perhaps Oskar Werner belongs in the Supporting Actor category? It's a close call, but he carries the crucial scenes in the center of the film.

[Dargo]

Ten Performances in a Western Deserving of an Oscar (Best or Supporting):

Walter Matthau, 'Lonely are the Brave
Robert Ryan, 'The Wild Bunch'
Chuck Connors, 'The Big Country'
Marlene Dietrich, 'Destry Rides Again'
Karl Malden, 'Nevada Smith'
Alan Ladd, 'Shane'
Josh Brolin, 'No Country for Old Men'
Gary Cooper, 'The Westerner'
Joel McCrea, 'Ride the High Country'
Van Heflin, '3:10 to Yuma'

[kingrat]

Ten Performances in a Western Deserving of an Oscar (Best or Supporting):

Walter Matthau, 'Lonely are the Brave
Robert Ryan, 'The Wild Bunch'
Chuck Connors, 'The Big Country'
Marlene Dietrich, 'Destry Rides Again'
Karl Malden, 'Nevada Smith'
Alan Ladd, 'Shane'
Josh Brolin, 'No Country for Old Men'
Gary Cooper, 'The Westerner'
Joel McCrea, 'Ride the High Country'
Van Heflin, '3:10 to Yuma'

I might add:

Gilbert Roland, The Furies
Judith Anderson, The Furies
Walter Huston, The Furies
Burl Ives, Day of the Outlaw
Beulah Bondi, Track of the Cat
Maria Schell, The Hanging Tree

[skimpole]

Ten Performances in a Western Deserving of an Oscar (Best or Supporting):

Walter Matthau, 'Lonely are the Brave
Robert Ryan, 'The Wild Bunch'
Chuck Connors, 'The Big Country'
Marlene Dietrich, 'Destry Rides Again'
Karl Malden, 'Nevada Smith'
Alan Ladd, 'Shane'
Josh Brolin, 'No Country for Old Men'
Gary Cooper, 'The Westerner'
Joel McCrea, 'Ride the High Country'
Van Heflin, '3:10 to Yuma'

How striking. I can imagine nominating performances in westerns. But the only oscar I'd give one is Virginia Mayo's supporting performance in Colorado Territory.

[Detective Jim McLeod]

Ten Performances As Priests-

1. Bing Crosby in Going My Way (1944)
2. Barry Fitzgerald in Going My Way (1944)
3. Montgomery Clift in I Confess (1953)
4. Jason Miller in The Exorcist (1973)
5, Max Von Sydow in The Exorcist (1973)
6. Karl Malden in On The Waterfront (1954)
7. Jeremy Irons in The Mission (1986)
8. Gregory Peck in The Keys Of The Kingdom (1945)
9. Robert DeNiro in True Confessions (1981)
10. Charles Bickford in The Song Of Bernadette (1943)

[kingrat]

Suppose a newcomer to classic films has heard of Katharine Hepburn but doesn't know where to start. Here are ten suggestions that cover a large swath of her career, though not all of it.

Ten Performances by Katharine Hepburn, in chronological order:

1. Little Women (1933)
2. Stage Door (1937)
3. Bringing Up Baby (1938)
4. The Philadelphia Story (1940)
5. Adam's Rib (1949)
6. The African Queen (1951)
7. Summertime (1955)
8. Desk Set (1957)
9. Long Day's Journey Into Night (1962)
10. The Lion in Winter (1968)

[jamesjazzguitar]

Ten Performances in a Western Deserving of an Oscar (Best or Supporting):

Walter Matthau, 'Lonely are the Brave
Robert Ryan, 'The Wild Bunch'
Chuck Connors, 'The Big Country'
Marlene Dietrich, 'Destry Rides Again'
Karl Malden, 'Nevada Smith'
Alan Ladd, 'Shane'
Josh Brolin, 'No Country for Old Men'
Gary Cooper, 'The Westerner'
Joel McCrea, 'Ride the High Country'
Van Heflin, '3:10 to Yuma'

How striking. I can imagine nominating performances in westerns. But the only oscar I'd give one is Virginia Mayo's supporting performance in Colorado Territory.

Not sure I understand what you're saying here, but it sounds like it is that westerns are a lightweight genre and thus no performance in a western is deserving of winning an Oscar. To me westerns are just dramas set in the west and therefore just as relevant as dramas.

[skimpole]

Ten Performances in a Western Deserving of an Oscar (Best or Supporting):

Walter Matthau, 'Lonely are the Brave
Robert Ryan, 'The Wild Bunch'
Chuck Connors, 'The Big Country'
Marlene Dietrich, 'Destry Rides Again'
Karl Malden, 'Nevada Smith'
Alan Ladd, 'Shane'
Josh Brolin, 'No Country for Old Men'
Gary Cooper, 'The Westerner'
Joel McCrea, 'Ride the High Country'
Van Heflin, '3:10 to Yuma'

How striking. I can imagine nominating performances in westerns. But the only oscar I'd give one is Virginia Mayo's supporting performance in Colorado Territory.

Not sure I understand what you're saying here, but it sounds like it is that westerns are a lightweight genre and thus no performance in a western is deserving of winning an Oscar. To me westerns are just dramas set in the west and therefore just as relevant as dramas.

I wouldn't necessarily say westerns are a lightweight genre. But clearly they're a chronologically limited one. North by Northwest, L.A. Confidential and There will be Blood are clearly dramas set in the west that I would all give acting oscars to. But they're not "westerns" since they all take place in the 20th century. "Westerns" almost all take place in the 19th century. The states from the Dakotas to Texas mark the eastern border of the western and they deal with the period from the beginning of settler colonalism to the consolidation of statehood. Therefore Cimarron which takes place in Oklahoma, marks its eastern and temporal boundary.

[jamesjazzguitar]

How striking. I can imagine nominating performances in westerns. But the only oscar I'd give one is Virginia Mayo's supporting performance in Colorado Territory.

Not sure I understand what you're saying here, but it sounds like it is that westerns are a lightweight genre and thus no performance in a western is deserving of winning an Oscar. To me westerns are just dramas set in the west and therefore just as relevant as dramas.

I wouldn't necessarily say westerns are a lightweight genre. But clearly they're a chronologically limited one. North by Northwest, L.A. Confidential and There will be Blood are clearly dramas set in the west that I would all give acting oscars to. But they're not "westerns" since they all take place in the 20th century. "Westerns" almost all take place in the 19th century. The states from the Dakotas to Texas mark the eastern border of the western and they deal with the period from the beginning of settler colonalism to the consolidation of statehood. Therefore Cimarron which takes place in Oklahoma, marks its eastern and temporal boundary.

I also define westerns based on the time-period, but I fail to see why that means that no performance in ANY western deserves an Oscar.

[Dargo]

Not sure I understand what you're saying here, but it sounds like it is that westerns are a lightweight genre and thus no performance in a western is deserving of winning an Oscar. To me westerns are just dramas set in the west and therefore just as relevant as dramas.

I wouldn't necessarily say westerns are a lightweight genre. But clearly they're a chronologically limited one. North by Northwest, L.A. Confidential and There will be Blood are clearly dramas set in the west that I would all give acting oscars to. But they're not "westerns" since they all take place in the 20th century. "Westerns" almost all take place in the 19th century. The states from the Dakotas to Texas mark the eastern border of the western and they deal with the period from the beginning of settler colonalism to the consolidation of statehood. Therefore Cimarron which takes place in Oklahoma, marks its eastern and temporal boundary.

I also define westerns based on the time-period, but I fail to see why that means that no performance in ANY western deserves an Oscar.

I'm not saying nor implying that at all, James. My list was merely an exercise in limiting those listed to those whose performances just happened to be in the genre of the "Western", but for whatever reason were never nominated nor won the little golden statue for what I believe to be their excellent work in the film they appeared in.

(...I just thought limiting it to one particular genre would help make it a more interesting and more specified list, that's all)

[jamesjazzguitar]

I wouldn't necessarily say westerns are a lightweight genre. But clearly they're a chronologically limited one. North by Northwest, L.A. Confidential and There will be Blood are clearly dramas set in the west that I would all give acting oscars to. But they're not "westerns" since they all take place in the 20th century. "Westerns" almost all take place in the 19th century. The states from the Dakotas to Texas mark the eastern border of the western and they deal with the period from the beginning of settler colonalism to the consolidation of statehood. Therefore Cimarron which takes place in Oklahoma, marks its eastern and temporal boundary.

I also define westerns based on the time-period, but I fail to see why that means that no performance in ANY western deserves an Oscar.

I'm not saying nor implying that at all, James. My list was merely an exercise in limiting those listed to those whose performances just happened to be in the genre of the "Western", but for whatever reason were never nominated nor won the little golden statue for what I believe to be their excellent work in the film they appeared in.

(...I just thought limiting it to one particular genre would help make it a more interesting and more specified list, that's all)

I wasn't replying to what you posted, since what you posted made total sense to me. What didn't make sense was the reply to your post (below). A reply that implies NO performance in ANY and ALL westerns is deserving of an Oscar win. Note the mentioning of the Mayo performance in a film you didn't even list!

I can imagine nominating performances in westerns. But the only oscar I'd give one is Virginia Mayo's supporting performance in Colorado Territory.

[Dargo]

I also define westerns based on the time-period, but I fail to see why that means that no performance in ANY western deserves an Oscar.

I'm not saying nor implying that at all, James. My list was merely an exercise in limiting those listed to those whose performances just happened to be in the genre of the "Western", but for whatever reason were never nominated nor won the little golden statue for what I believe to be their excellent work in the film they appeared in.

(...I just thought limiting it to one particular genre would help make it a more interesting and more specified list, that's all)

I wasn't replying to what you posted, since what you posted made total sense to me. What didn't make sense was the reply to your post (below). A reply that implies NO performance in ANY and ALL westerns is deserving of an Oscar win. Note the mentioning of the Mayo performance in a film you didn't even list!

I can imagine nominating performances in westerns. But the only oscar I'd give one is Virginia Mayo's supporting performance in Colorado Territory.

Ah! Well, the way I took skimpole's comment was more to the idea that he highly and especially likes Virginia Mayo's performance in that western remake of 'High Sierra'.

(...but now I think I see what you're driving at here)

[Swithin]

Ten Performances by actors/actresses playing characters with disfigured faces
Not monsters, just human characters with a problem, in no particular order, although I do have a special affection for Leni, Carlos, and Harry.

Leni Tana as Mona in She Demons "Would you go, if you looked like this?"
Josse De Pauw as Harry aged 19 in Crazy Love
Allison Hayes as Justine in The Hypnotic Eye
Ian Bannen as The Leper in Braveheart
Carlos Ancira as Elmer in Black Pit of Dr. M "Yes it's me. I came back in Elmer's body."
Oskar Homolka as Krull in Mr. Sardonicus
Griffin Dunne as Jack in An American Werewolf in London
Freda Jackson as Letitia in Die, Monster, Die!
Peter Lorre as Janos in The Face Behind the Mask
Larry Maxwell as Dr. Graves in Poison "You think I'm scum, don't you? Well let me tell you something. Every one of you down there is just like me."


Leni Tana as Mona


Carlos Ancira as Elmer


Harry aged 19


Freda Jackson as Letitia

(Sorry about the photos. This is really a thread of lists. I thought the nature of this particular subject warranted a few photos.)

[kingrat]

Hey, Swithin, no fair posting pictures of my exes!

[kingrat]

Thanks to Dargo and Det. Jim for some great contributions. I think Dargo is right that performances in westerns have been undervalued. I love Jim's list of priests, too.

Having previously listed some favorite Katharine Hepburn films that would introduce newcomers to her work, I thought it might be interesting to do another list of ten films that illustrate various phases of her career. Some of the phases overlap slightly in time. Not all of these films are highly recommended!

1. Morning Glory (1933): Serious New Actress in Hollywood--After making a hit playing opposite John Barrymore in A Bill of Divorcement, Hepburn won an Oscar for Morning Glory as an ambitious young actress. What shocked the public at the time (and probably helped Hepburn win the Oscar) was a drunk scene. At the time it was unusual to have portrayals of nice young women being intoxicated. Like Meryl Streep in later years, Hepburn now had the image of being a serious actress.

2. Sylvia Scarlett (1935): The Road Not Taken--Hepburn was bisexual, as William J. Mann documented in his biography, but this film, with Hepburn disguised as a young man, is the only one of hers that hints at sexual ambiguities. George Cukor thought this would be a big hit. Was he wrong! The Hays Office didn't like it. Neither did audiences.

3. Mary of Scotland (1936): Costume Dramas--Little Women was a big success. Most of us today would say that's because Hepburn gets to play a strong, intelligent, independent young woman. MGM thought it was because the public wanted to see her in costume dramas. Thus films like The Little Minister (1934) and Mary of Scotland.

4. Quality Street (1937): Box Office Poison--The costume dramas were not successful, including this one, and she made it on an exhibitor's list of stars who were now "box office poison." Even fine films like Stage Door, Bringing Up Baby, and Holiday failed to make money. Was Hepburn destined to be only a "morning glory" like the actress she had won an Oscar for portraying?

5. The Philadelphia Story (1940): The Antidote for Box Office Poison--Hepburn asked Philip Barry, who had written Holiday, to write a play for her. They worked out that audiences would like her better if they saw her taken down a peg or two. The Philadelphia Story was a hit on Broadway, with Hepburn starring, and the movie was a bit hit. From now on Hepburn had a screen persona and a formula that worked for audiences.

6. Woman of the Year (1942): Tracy and Hepburn. This film began the very successful pairing of Hepburn and Spencer Tracy with the new formula in place.

7. The African Queen (1951): Hepburn the Spinster. Hepburn now begins to play spinsters, women who either remain unmarried (Summertime) or would have if they hadn't happened to meet just the right man (The African Queen, The Rainmaker, Desk Set).

8. Suddenly Last Summer (1959): Starring in Famous Plays. From now on, many of Hepburn's films are based on successful plays, just as the theater is becoming increasingly divorced from the mainstream audience. Suddenly Last Summer is the rare time when she plays a depraved and evil character. She'll also play O'Neill's greatest female role, and Tennessee Williams will say that her Amanda in The Glass Menagerie (1973) is the one most like his own mother.

9. Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967): Counter-Cultural Icon. Garson Kanin's Tracy and Hepburn, perhaps more a work of fiction than actual fact, created the image of Tracy and Hepburn as lovers who spent their lives together outside of marriage. This resonated with young people who rejected traditional marriage. Although she won her second Oscar for playing a woman in a traditional marriage, she was now as "cool" as she had been "uncool" thirty years earlier.

10. On Golden Pond (1981): American Institution. By now she seems a part of American history, not just film history.