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Christmas in Connecticut (1945): Time for this Movie to Be More Famous!

December 2, 2019 By Joi Leave a Comment

Barbara Stanwyck and Dennis Morgan, Christmas in Connecticut

Old Hollywood enthusiasts certainly know (and LOVE) Christmas in Connecticut (Amazon Link). We joyfully list it with our other favorite Christmas films – It’s a Wonderful Life, Miracle on 34th Street, and White Christmas. However, for some reason (that’s beyond me), “mainstream” movie viewers aren’t familiar with it.

Maybe it’s time we start making more noise about this film!

(Continued Below….)

Creative Plot

Barbara Stanwyck stars as journalist Elizabeth Lane. She is a food writer with a popular column runs is one of the country’s most-read magazines. In these columns, she describes herself as a great cook, a hard-working mother… as a woman who runs her home, kitchen, AND farm!

Sounds impressive, right? Unfortunately it’s all lies! She lives (alone) in an apartment in New York and gets all of her recipes from her adorable best friend Felix (played by S.Z. Sakall, in the only way he knows how to play any role… to perfection and deliciously). Truth be told, Elizabeth would probably struggle with boiling water.

The owner of the magazine she works for has decided on a special holiday “angle” for the column: A heroic serviceman will spend his Christmas on Elizabeth’s farm. Obviously… first they’re going to need a farm!

Elizabeth fears that, if the truth comes out, she’ll lose the job she loves, so she gets desperate. Desperate to the tune of “creating” a family, cooking skills, and even the beautiful farm and home.

(Wrapped Up Below….)

Perfect Cast

Joining Barbara Stanwyck and S.Z. Sakall (who’d be plenty in and of themselves) is Sydney Greenstreet (another of my favorites), Dennis Morgan, Reginald Gardiner, and the always wonderful Una O’Connor.

Though he isn’t as well-known as most of the stars around him, Dennis Morgan is absolutely perfect in this role. He plays it to a tee and has noticeable chemistry with beautiful Barbara Stanwyck.

The film is filled with laughs, loves, and plenty of Christmas spirit and charm. If you’ve never seen Christmas in Connecticut (Amazon Link), check it out right away. If you have seen it…. you know what I’m fixing to say… see it again!

Lobby card with Barbara Stanwyck, Sk Sakall & Reginald Gardiner

Buttons: A Christmas Tale On DVD December 3!

November 23, 2019 By Joi 2 Comments

As I began to put this post about Buttons: A Christmas Tale together, I kept thinking, “I can’t remember the last time I was this excited about a new dvd release…”

But it just now hit me. I don’t think I’ve EVER been this excited about a new movie’s dvd release, simply because my favorite movies are old! Which is why I am beside myself with excitement for this one – two of its stars aren’t just legends, they’re two of my favorites: Dick Van Dyke and Angela Lansbury.

I can’t tell you how much I’m looking forward to adding this to my collection.

Buttons: A Christmas Tale is the magical, musical story that shows believing can be the greatest gift of all. Follow the heartwarming journey of two orphan girls whose only wish is to find a home for Christmas. With a little help from their guardian angels (screen legends Dick Van Dyke and Angela Lansbury), they discover that miracles really can happen when you find the power to believe. From director Tim Janis, this inspiring holiday film for the whole family features an all-star cast including Jane Seymour, Roma Downey and Abigail Spencer, and is narrated by Kate Winslet and Robert Redford.

It seems like there is so much negativity, cantankerousness (bet you didn’t expect to bump into that word today), and anger in the world, maybe Buttons is thing we ALL need right now.

A couple of beloved Guardian Angels coming into our world… reminding us how beautiful life truly can be? Sign me up!

Buttons Official Trailer:

I love the beauty in front of and behind this film. I also love that they used two Hollywood film and television legends in these extraordinary roles. They were wise enough to know that extraordinary roles call for extraordinary stars. Angela Lansbury and Dick Van Dyke are as extraordinary as extraordinary gets.

I hope you’ll show your appreciation for these wonderful legends by adding this one in a billion film to your collection. Legends don’t team up everyday, you know.

Continued Below….

The release date of the DVD is December 3, 2019, but you may pre-order at https://paramnt.us/Get.Buttons now. This would make such a beautiful Christmas gift – especially for young people or for people (like me) who are head over heels in love with the film’s guardian angels, Dick Van Dyke and Angela Lansbury.

Digital copies of the film are also available. The digital copy may also be purchased at the same link.

Buttons: A Christmas Tale on DVD

The Lucy Show: The Complete Series on DVD

September 24, 2019 By Joi Leave a Comment

The Lucy Show: The Complete Series is available on Amazon and if you don’t already own it, you should do something about that asap. In fact, what are you waiting for?!

Okay, that was pushy… I apologize, but what can I say, no one loves Lucy quite like I love Lucy!

The Lucy Show ran from 1962-1968 and, in my opinion, was nothing short of delightful. The cast worked beautifully together and the dialogue and acting were hilarious.

Plot: After the death of her husband, Lucy Carmichael (Lucille Ball) and her newly divorced friend Vivian Bagley (Vivian Vance), move their families under one house. Two high-spirited women and a houseful of kids makes for a lot of fun.

Sometimes you almost feel sorry for Lucy’s cranky boss Mr. Mooney (Gale Gordon) as he helplessly watches Lucy get into one thing after another.

Find The Lucy Show: The Complete Series on Amazon – it makes a perfect gift for the Lucille Ball fan in your life.

Buster Keaton: Two of His Best Films: Steamboat Bill, Jr and The Cameraman

September 23, 2019 By Joi Leave a Comment

Talk about a double feature! While I love all Buster Keaton movies to distraction, Steamboat Bill, Jr. and The Cameraman are two of my absolute favorites. For them to be available in a “2 for 1” package makes me especially happy. This Buster Keaton Double Bill is available on Amazon for less than $15. While I have every intention of grabbing one for myself, it’d also make a perfect gift idea for any fan of Old Hollywood and/or Buster Keaton.

Steamboat Bill, Jr.

Buster Keaton, Ernest Torrence, Tom McGuire, and Marion Byron star in one of Buster’s most popular and beloved films. I’ll always have a strong connection to this one because it was my first Buster Keaton film. It was this film that introduced me to an actor who is now one of my absolute favorites. It was also this film that made me fall head over heels in love with silent movies.

William Canning Jr. (Buster) comes to River Junction to meet his father who hasn’t seen him since he was a child. Junior isn’t AT ALL the type of son Senior was expecting or hoping for… at first, that is. By the end of the wonderful movie, he is EXACTLY the son he hopes for.

Senior Canning is being put out of business by J.J. King (Tom McGuire), who not only owns pretty much the entire town, but has recently acquired a new paddle wheel steamer that makes Canning’s older boat, the Stonewall Jackson, seem like a dinosaur.

In spite of the trouble brewing between their parents, Bill Jr. and Kitty King (J.J’s beautiful daughter) take a liking to each other. You can imagine how well this goes over with their fathers.

By the end of the movie, Bill Jr. is called upon to save his father, J.J. AND Kitty. This is one outstanding film and you’ll love every single minute.

The Cameraman

This film stars Buster Keaton and Marceline Day. After seeing a beautiful office worker, Sally (portrayed by Marceline Day), who works for MGM Newsreels, Buster decides to trade in his tin type setup for a movie camera – thinking he can impress both the beauty and MGM. Naturally, it’s a lot easier said than done and the result is absolutely hilarious. Watch for a monkey you’re sure to fall in love with.

Buster Keaton and Ernest Torrence Steamboat Bill, Jr.

From Amazon:

Steamboat Bill, Jr. – Step back in time to the golden age of classic Hollywood comedies. The hugely talented megastar of early cinema, Buster Keaton, provides hilarity in this great comedy. William (Bill) Canning, Jr. goes to River Junction to meet his father who hasn’t seen him since childhood. Neither are sure what the other’s reaction will be. But the old man has problems anyhow, he’s out of business because of the new paddle steamer which is far better than his old boat, Stonewall Jackson. But Bill falls for the daughter of the man who owns the new steamer to the dismay of both fathers. A storm hits River Junction and young Bill must save the daughter and both fathers! Action packed hilarity!

The Cameraman – Step back in time to the golden age of classic Hollywood silent comedies. Buster Keaton in one of his all-time classic films. He’s madly in love with a beautiful woman working at MGM Studios and so he decides to try and get closer to her. Problem is, he’s clumsy. He tries to make it as a motion picture cameraman, but it’s a lot harder than he thought! Lots of action and stunts as you would expect from the king of slapstick comedy.

For more information, see Buster Keaton Double Bill on Amazon.

Buster Keaton and Marion Byron Steamboat Bill, Jr.

Wonderful Audrey Hepburn Movie Collection with HD Remastering

September 20, 2019 By Joi Leave a Comment

I was on Amazon earlier (takes a sip of truth serum… I’m always on Amazon), looking for a particular Audrey Hepburn Biography when this collection caught both eyes.

The Audrey Hepburn Collection (HD Remastering) includes Audrey’s five of her best movies… I’d also throw in Charade:

Breakfast At Tiffany’s (Audrey Hepburn, George Peppard, Patricia Neal, Buddy Ebsen)
Struggling writer Paul Varjak moves into a New York apartment building and becomes intrigued by his pretty, quirky neighbor Holly Golightly. Holly’s lifestyle confuses and fascinates Paul; in public she flits through parties with a sexy, sophisticated air, but when they’re alone she changes into a sweetly vulnerable bundle of neuroses.

Funny Face (Audrey Hepburn, Fred Astaire)
An impromptu fashion shoot at a bookstore brings about a new fashion model discovery in the shop clerk.

Roman Holiday (Audrey Hepburn, Gregory Peck, Eddie Albert)
A young princess, tired of the constraints her position brings, runs away. She does not know the man who befriends her is a reporter out for her story.

War And Peace (Audrey Hepburn, Henry Fonda, Mel Ferrer)
By 1812, Napoleon’s forces controlled much of Europe. Russia, one of the few countries still unconquered, prepares to face Napoleon’s troops together with Austria. Among the soldiers are Count Nicolas Rostov and Prince Andrei Bolkonsky. Count Pierre Bezukhov, a friend of Andrei’s and self-styled intellectual who is not interested in fighting. Pierre’s life changes when his father dies, leaving him a vast inheritance.

Sabrina (Audrey Hepburn, Humphrey Bogart, William Holden)
Bogie and Holden are the mega-rich Larrabee brothers of Long Island. Bogie’s all work, Holden’s all playboy. But when Sabrina, daughter of the family’s chauffeur, returns from Paris all grown up and glamorous, the stage is set for some family fireworks as the brothers fall under the spell of Hepburn’s delightful charms.

This excellent collection is a must have for any lovers of Old Hollywood. It’d also be a perfect gift idea.

The Best of Buster Keaton DVD Collection

September 17, 2019 By Joi Leave a Comment

One of my favorite gifts for my birthday is pictured above – The Best of Buster Keaton DVD Set! Obsessed…. I am completely obsessed with Buster Keaton films, so this was as perfect a gift as it could be for me.

And, yes, of course I’ve already watched each of them.

Twice.

This set includes:

The General
The Goat
The Blacksmith
Steamboat Bill, Jr (my personal favorite Buster Keaton Silent Film)
Cops
The Love Nest

The General and Steamboat Bill, Jr. are considered to be two of the greatest silent films of all time. In fact, Orson Welles once called The General “… the greatest comedy ever made.” High praise and very deserved.

You can find The Best of Buster Keaton DVD Set on Amazon for currently under $10.

Marilyn Monroe Reusable Tote…. Gorgeous!

April 29, 2019 By Joi Leave a Comment

I have become obsessed… obsessed, I tell you, with using reusable totes. Why? I’ll give you a condensed run-down of the reasons because “why” is a very good question!

As an animal lover extraordinaire, my number one reason is to protect wildlife.

According to SPREP.org, thousands (as in the 100,000 range!) of marine animal deaths are caused each year when these animals mistake plastic shopping bags in the ocean for food.
Plastic bags that fly out of trash cans also pose huge hazards to small animals who become trapped in them.

Using reusable totes also cuts down on pollution and conserves resources – benefiting not only animals but all of us!

I currently use a big red Target reusable tote for Target (and other places, as well, as tacky as that may sound) and a few plain-looking Kroger totes for Kroger. Each time I grab my totes and take off for the store, I always wish I had one with one of my Old Hollywood favorite actresses and/or actors on it. I’d love few things more than taking them along for the trip.

I’ve been searching online for such totes and will blog about them here as I find them.

The first one I’ve turned up is this gorgeous Marilyn Monroe Reusable Tote. Oooh La La, what a beauty! And, it’s less than $10 on Amazon.

Durable and weather resistant shopper tote
Made from 25% recycled materials
Handle features an 8 inch drop; Bight and bold Marilyn Monroe design
Wipe clean with a damp cloth
Measures 16 x 6 x 12 inches

Click the link for more details: Marilyn Monroe Reusable Tote

I’ll write about more as I find them.

Gorgeous Marilyn Monroe Scarf

April 9, 2019 By Joi Leave a Comment

The gorgeous black and white Marilyn Monroe scarf pictured to the left is so gorgeous I couldn’t throw it into my Amazon cart fast enough. Fortunately it only costs a little over $5, so there’s zero guilt attached.

I’m in awe at how popular and beloved Marilyn Monroe is, so many years after her death. The same can, of course, be said about many of the stars of Old Hollywood . These stars have some of the most loyal fans the world has ever known.

One of the things I love most about their continued popularity is the fact they are gaining passionate new fans each year as younger generations fall under their spell.

The Marilyn Monroe scarf isn’t just fashionably gorgeous, it’s the perfect way for fans of Marilyn Monroe to let the world know that she’s still on their minds and in their hearts.

Click through the picture or either of the links for more information. This beauty would make a great Mother’s Day or Christmas gift. And, yes, as a matter of fact, I do think about Christmas year round! We have a pretty large family, so if I stand a chance of getting everything I want to get for everyone, I have to start early and keep going all year.

The wonderful thing is, it makes Christmas last year-round.

Lucille Ball Fleece Throw Blanket (Gorgeous!)

March 23, 2019 By Joi Leave a Comment

There is not a bigger fan of Lucille Ball on the planet (or off) than I am. Trust me… I checked. I collect everything associated with this one of a kind beautiful redhead. The problem is, while it’s easy to find collectibles of her as Lucy (I have a gazillion of these collectibles that serve as proof), getting your hands on collectibles of LUCILLE, as a glamorous Golden Age of Hollywood actress, can be tough.

And make no mistake about it, she had a wonderful Hollywood career pre-Lucy Ricardo and she was most definitely Glamorous with a capital G.

This is one of the reasons I’m so in love with this Lucille Ball Fleece Throw Blanket and one of the reasons I threw it immediately into my Amazon cart.

Truth be told, I threw it in there so fast there was a palpable gust of wind.

Features:

Polyester
Fleece throw blanket
36″ x 60″
Officially licensed Lucille Ball product
Cool City Girl design (one-sided print). Unprinted side is white.
Soft 100% polyester

See Lucille Ball Fleece Throw Blanket for more information – this is one gorgeous gift idea for any fan of Lucille Ball.

Glamorous, Indeed!

Movie Star Chronicles: A Visual History of the World’s Greatest Movie Stars (Review)

March 6, 2019 By Joi 1 Comment

Movie Star Chronicles: A Visual History of the World’s Greatest Movie Stars

As I said in my last post, I’m an avid collector of all things “Old Hollywood” – books, dvds, magazines, photos, artwork, coffee mugs, Christmas ornaments, dolls… Books are something I add to my collection almost weekly. What can I say? Books are as big of an obsession for me as old movies are, so combine the two and I can’t stop myself or even slow myself down!

The book you see here, Movie Star Chronicles is one of the newest ones to join my collection. Naturally, my beloved Audrey caught my eye and into the cart it went. I LOVE that the publisher put three of “our” stars on the cover – Audrey Hepburn, Marilyn Monroe, and Marlon Brando.

Beautifully done!

Audrey Hepburn’s Photo Spread

Many stars (“our” stars as well as modern-day stars) are featured in photo spreads like the one Audrey has (above). The stars have a “timeline” that features their filmography, including release dates and genres.

While I love the information, the gorgeous pictures are my favorite thing about this one. Look at the stunning photo of Greta Garbo below. Wouldn’t this photo make a gorgeous art print?!

Greta Garbo as Elizabeth Dohna

Book Description from Amazon:

Movie Star Chronicles promises to satisfy the curiosity of moviegoers, cinephiles, and the Hollywood-hungry fans that fuel today’s entertainment news industry. For film students, it is a practical reference to the most important actors in cinematic history.

Entries illustrated with film and television stills and other archival material chart the careers of 330 actors from the era of silent film to today’s blockbusters. Expert text gives an entertaining overview and color-coded timelines provide an at-a-glance guide to the actor’s career, their roles, movie release dates, earnings and awards.

With 576 pages and more than 2,500 illustrations for only $29.95, Movie Star Chronicles is an outstanding value. It includes:

A to Z coverage of 330 movie stars, with extended entries for 100

20 feature articles on popular movie trends, including vampires; western heroes; singers turned actors; femmes fatales; saints and sinners; acting dynasties; combat stars; cops and more

30 lavish double-page photo spreads showing cinema’s most influential stars at work and how film has evolved from silent black- and-white to color 3-D

20 illustrated features on genres and trends, such as Superheroes, Acting Dynasties, Screen Sirens, and Movie Villains

Color-coded timelines showing the arc of an actor’s career, including release dates and types of features, such as Criminal, Romantic Drama, and Thriller

Best Actor awards: Oscars, BAFTA, Cesar (France), Goya (Spain), David Di Donatello (Italy), Golden Horse (Asia), Cannes, Berlin, Venice, Sundance.

Covering Hollywood, Bollywood and world cinema, Movie Star Chronicles is truly international and comprehensive. Sure to attract a wide readership, it is an essential purchase.

Audrey Hepburn Timeline (continued on the next page in the book)

This big, beautiful book is an excellent coffee table book – one guests would love to lose themselves in. It would also make a gorgeous and much-appreciated gift, whether it’s for Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, a birthday, anniversary, or Christmas.

Greta Garbo’s Photo Spread

I found my copy at the Ollie’s in town but I haven’t seen this one in any bookstores. They do have it on Amazon, of course, however. Pretty sure they have everything.

Take a closer look at Movie Star Chronicles: A Visual History of the World’s Greatest Movie Stars on Amazon. I highly recommend it.