Golden Age of Hollywood
Rita Hayworth, Gilda
Rita Hayworth’s performance in Gilda helped make her a household name – one that is still synonymous with beauty, to this day.
Gee… wonder why???
She and Glenn Ford were wonderful in this excellent film – I could watch it several times a month and never get tired of it.
You can buy Gilda on dvd (Amazon link) or watch the movie on Prime Video.
Rita Hayworth, Gilda
James Caan, John Wayne, and Olaf Wieghorst
One of my favorite Westerns of all time is El Dorado (1967). Directed by the wonderful Howard Hawks, it often gets overshadowed by Rio Bravo but… make absolutely no mistake about it… El Dorado belongs in no film’s shadow. It’s more than capable of standing on its own.. casting its own huge shadow!
The western stars John Wayne, James Caan, Robert Mitchum, Charlene Holt, Michele Carey, Olaf Wieghorst, and (last but by no means least – he makes the movie what it is), Arthur Hunnicutt as Bull. In the same way there could be no Rio Bravo without Stumpy, there could be no El Dorado without Bull.
You can watch El Dorado on Prime Video or buy the dvd on Amazon.
John Wayne, Robert Mitchum, and Arthur Hunnicutt
Elizabeth Montgomery
One of my absolute favorite television actresses of all-time is the beautiful Elizabeth Montgomery…. my favorite color is purple. What happens when the two team up??
Absolute. Magic.
There was just something about this actress, wasn’t there? She was so very talented and had a natural gift for comedy – yet, she was also as beautiful as any actress who ever lived, does live, or will live! Like Lucille Ball and Barbara Eden – she proved that some clowns just happen to be exceptionally lovely.
Bewitched premiered on this date in 1964 and, remarkably, it is just as hilarious today as it was then. The writing, directing, and certainly the acting are all beautifully timeless.
Lauren Bacall
Lauren Bacall was born Betty Joan Perske on September 16, 1924, in New York City. Little did anyone know the legendary actress Betty Joan would one day become!
While I love all of Lauren Bacall’s movies (she has a very rich filmography… as rich and distinctive as her voice), my favorites are Key Largo, Dark Passage, The Big Sleep, How to Marry a Millionaire, and To Have and Have Not.
When Humphrey Bogart was on the screen, there was magic. When Lauren Bacall was on the screen, there was magic. When they were on the screen together…. the word hasn’t been invented for the magic they generated together.
Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall, Key Largo
David Niven, Peter Ustinov, and Bette Davis in Death on the Nile
I love books. There you have it – an understatement to end all understatements! I love them so much, I collect many different types, so they’re always near me. In fact, it occurred to me recently that (when home) three things are always within my reach…
Even as I type this out, I have raspberry tea and a cup of coffee to my left, two cats to my right, and Mary Astor’s wonderful autobiography right in front of me. What can I say, I get antsy if any of these four life sources are out of my reach.
Hmmm… maybe that’s why I’m such a homebody. I can take my tea, chocolate, and coffee with me but not my cats and book collections.
One of my favorite authors (tying with Emily Dickinson and my daughter Emily, named in her honor) is the wonderful Agatha Christie. I collect her books and read them again and again. True story: seven or eight years ago, I was making out my New Year’s resolutions and I must have been in a cheeky mood because I wrote down… “Always be in the middle of an Agatha Christie mystery” AND “Eat chocolate every single day.”
I guess I just wanted to MAKE CERTAIN at least two of the resolutions were kept? They were… to the tune of that year and every year since.
Cheeky Kentuckian.
{Continued Below…}
Agatha Christie Books
There have been numerous films made from Agatha Christie mysteries. While I’ve never seen one that was quite as good as the book, itself, they are always entertaining – especially when they have a cast like Death on the Nile had! Peter Ustinov (as Hercule Poirot), Bette Davis, David Niven, George Kennedy, Maggie Smith, Angela Lansbury, Jack Warden, Simon MacCorkindale, Lois Chiles… outstanding cast and a darn good movie.
Death on the Nile Cast
James Stewart and Shelley Winters Winchester ’73
If you’re one of those people who forget the magnetism Shelley Winters had on the big screen, I have a homework assignment for you – watch her in Winchester ’73 (pictured here) and in Executive Suite (1954). She’s one of the highlights from both films, which is absolutely saying something since James Stewart stars in one and William Holden, Frederic March, and Barbara Stanwyck star in the other!
Don’t get it twisted, the other stars are extraordinary, too (as always) but there’s just a little something extra about Shelley Winters’ screen presence. A little somethin’ somethin’ if you will.
If you haven’t seen Winchester ’73 or you’ve never seen it, I hope you’ll watch it soon. Each time I do, I ask the same questions…
You can find Winchester ’73 on Amazon (link to the dvd on Amazon) or watch it on Prime.
Claudette Colbert, Cleopatra
One of the most extraordinary actresses of all time was born on this date in Saint Mandé, France in 1903. This is an actress with a filmography that’s so remarkable – not just in quantity but quality as well.
Below are my… as of now… personal favorite Claudette Colbert movies (each link leads to the film on Amazon Prime or dvd). I know, as I watch more of her films, I’ll pick up new favorites to add along the way.
Claudette Colbert, Cleopatra
Clara Bow, Wine (1924)
One of the most frustrating things about loving silent films is living with the fact that so many of them are now lost. When you love so many of the stars from this era, you can’t help but feel that you’ve lost something precious. My personal favorite silent era stars are Clara Bow, Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd, Georgia Hale, Charlie Chaplin, Douglas Fairbanks, and Mary Pickford. I want to see everything they ever did!
Wine (1924) is one of the Clara Bow films listed as lost. The promotional photos make me even more anxious to see it!
Clara Bow and Robert Agnew, Wine
Angela Lansbury: Bedknobs and Broomsticks
We all have certain favorites that we would go to battle for don’t we? Stars who… if anyone DARED say anything bad about them… we would not be able to stop ourselves from questioning everything from their upbringing to their core values!
While I love quite a few actresses and actors to distraction – there are some that I tolerate others not loving as much as I do. For example, I love Joan Crawford, Katharine Hepburn, and Bette Davis (a lot) but I understand that each lady may have people who they don’t resonate with. I love John Wayne and Humphrey Bogart, but understand that some people simply do not like Westerns, Bogie’s style, or Elvis films. I disagree mightily, but I won’t throw a pillow or a rabid possum on anyone for their stance.
Basically, I allow it.
Then there are stars such as Angela Lansbury, Jerry Lewis, Maureen O’Hara, Dick Van Dyke, Lena Horne, Bob Hope, and Lucille Ball… suffice to say, I take great offense to negativity directed at these stars! I honestly have no idea why this is – but I honestly get perturbed when these stars receive criticism! Maybe it has something to do with the fact they are/were (in my opinion) above reproach.
(Continued Below…)
Angela Lansbury, Cindy O’Callaghan, Roy Snart, and Ian Weighill
I recently caught half of Bedknobs and Broomsticks and fell in love with the film all over again. I’ve seen it many times over the year but I’m always so pulled into the magic and beauty of the film and magic and beauty of its star, Angela Lansbury.
I wish movies like this were still made – films where no one has to prance around half-dressed, no one has to beat the stuffings out of anyone or shoot them down in the street, and no one uses the kind of language that makes you glad your cat can’t repeat what she hears.
Mind you, I’m not a prude… but, having said that, isn’t it refreshing to go back in time when things were simpler, cleaner, and had an innocence that you tend to forget ever existed.
If all of that sounds unfamiliar to you, I hope you’ll re-watch Bedknobs and Broomsticks (as well as other similar movies) soon. They leave you realizing how far we have come… and that is, most definitely, not always a good thing.
You can find Walt Disney’s Bedknobs and Broomsticks (link to the dvd) on Amazon or watch it on Prime.
Louise Brooks
Today’s pictures of the day are of the lovely Louise Brooks from the silent film Pandora’s Box (1929). The original title was Die Büchse der Pandora.
Although they were very different actresses, I often think of Clara Bow and Louise Brooks along the same lines. Both were similarly beautiful and highly unique. People often tend to prefer one over the other (much as they do Buster Keaton or Charlie Chaplin), but… as far as I’m concerned… it’s best to just love them all!
If you aren’t familiar with Louise Brooks, I hope you’ll look up her films (a special edition of Pandora’s Box is available on dvd on Amazon). She truly was a remarkable actress with a “reach up and grab you by the lapels” screen presence.
Louise Brooks
The beauty above is Silent Film star Mildred Davis. She was a frequent co-star (and longtime wife) of legendary actor Harold Lloyd. She’s one of my favorite silent film actresses and one I can’t understand not being a household name!
There’s nothing quite like watching a movie from the Golden Age of Hollywood. Whether it’s a Musical, Western, Comedy, Romance, Film Noir, or Drama – if it’s on, I’m not too far away… with popcorn and raspberry tea in hand and a couple of cats nearby.
Below are a few Old Hollywood movie reviews I’ve done on the blog. There are, as you’d imagine, a lot more to come. – Joi (“Joy”)
We’re in the Money (Joan Blondell, Glenda Farrell)
The Naked Spur (James Stewart, Janet Leigh)
The Prince and the Showgirl (Marilyn Monroe, Laurence Olivier)
The White Sister (Helen Hayes, Clark Gable)
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (Howard Keel, Jane Powell, Russ Tamblyn, Julie Newmar)
Rio Bravo (John Wayne, Dean Martin, Angie Dickinson, Ricky Nelson, Walter Brennan)
El Dorado (John Wayne, Robert Mitchum, James Caan, Charlene Holt, Michele Carey)
Rio Grande (John Wayne, Maureen O’Hara)
Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein (What is it With Me and These Movies??)
The Stooge (Jerry Lewis’ favorite Lewis and Martin Movie… for good reason.)
Critic’s Choice (Hilarious movie starring Bob Hope and Lucille Ball)
To Please a Lady (Clark Gable and Barbara Stanwyck team up in a fast track movie)
Grand Hotel (Joan Crawford, Greta Garbo, John Barrymore, Lionel Barrymore)
Hearts Divided (Marion Davies, Dick Powell)
The Quiet Man (John Wayne, Maureen O’Hara, Barry Fitzgerald)
More Old Hollywood Movie Reviews
Find out just how much I (truly) Love Lucy in the Lucille Ball category. I’m warning you, I call it an obsession for a very good reason…
Another personal absolute favorite of mine is Barbara Stanwyck. Not only was she beautiful and outrageously talented, she was exceptionally bright, charismatic, and colorful. This growing collection of Barbara Stanwyck Quotes will give you an idea of just how colorful she was!
