Angela Lansbury | Hollywood Yesterday

Angela Lansbury Behind the Scenes of The Harvey Girls

December 29, 2022 By Joi

Angela Lansbury, Behind the Scenes of The Harvey Girls (1946)

The extraordinary Angela Lansbury is one of those rare stars everyone seems to love.. and, come on, who can blame us?! She was so incredibly talented, charismatic, colorful, and genuinely lovable and such a gift to those of us who love movies AND those of us who love great classic television.

It’s really, really hard to believe she’s gone, isn’t it? She is and will be missed so much. She’s a great example of the adage, “Live your life so that you will be greatly missed when you’re gone.”

I rewatched The Harvey Girls recently and kept thinking, “I’d forgotten how beautiful she was!” She had a unique, sassy type of beauty that… as far as I’m concerned… is impossible to beat.

The 1946 musical-western was directed by George Sidney and also stars Judy Garland, Ray Bolger, John Hodiak, Preston Foster, Cyd Charisse, Marjorie Main, Chill Wills, and Virginia O’Brien.

You can find The Harvey Girls on dvd and Blu-ray (Amazon link) or watch the movie on Prime Video.

Ethel Barrymore, Angela Lansbury, and Keenan Wynn in Kind Lady (1951)

February 19, 2022 By Joi

Ethel Barrymore, Keenan Wynn, and Angela Lansbury

Talk about an OUTSTANDING cast – Kind Lady (1951, directed by John Sturges) certainly has one: Ethel Barrymore, Maurice Evans, Angela Lansbury, Betsy Blair, Keenan Wynn, John Williams. SO much talent, it isn’t any wonder this movie is as good as it is. Unfortunately, this one can be a real challenge to find – it isn’t on television very often (can’t remember the last time it was, to be honest) and it certainly isn’t on Prime Video.

Oddly enough, the only place I’ve found it on dvd is as a double movie package (which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, truth be told): Kind Lady Double Feature (Amazon link).

Ethel Barrymore, Keenan Wynn, Betsy Blair, Maurice Evans, and Angela Lansbury

Basil Rathbone and Angela Lansbury, Behind the Scenes of The Court Jester (LOVE This Picture!)

June 10, 2021 By Joi

Basil Rathbone and Angela Lansbury, Behind the Scenes of The Court Jester

My obsession with and love for “behind the scenes” movie or tv photographs knows no equal. If anyone DOES love them as much as I do, I’d sure love to hear from them!

This photo of Basil Rathbone and Angela Lansbury sharing a meal while filming The Court Jester (1955) is one of my favorites.

She even eats with class!

Angela Lansbury: Death on the Nile

January 23, 2021 By Joi

Angela Lansbury

I have a LOT of favorite actresses and actors – it happens when you watch a LOT of movies and tv series. Especially when you watch every single genre and every single year from silents through today.

As you’d imagine, I eat a lot of popcorn.

Although there are many “favorites” in my world, there is a select group I call my “ABSOLUTE favorites.” These are the ones I collect, talk incessantly about, and the ones I hold in a special place in my heart. They’re also the ones you DO NOT want to criticize in my presence!

Angela Lansbury is most definitely one of my ABSOLUTE favorites. I just adore her and can’t imagine movies or television without her.

The publicity photo, above is for Death on the Nile (1978, directed by John Guillermin). While she may not have been considered one of the leading stars, as far as I’m concerned she stole this movie completely out from under a truly remarkable cast.

You can buy Death on the Nile on dvd on Amazon (I have added it to my Angela Lansbury collection!).

Pictures of the Day: Celebrating Angela Lansbury’s Birthday!

October 16, 2020 By Joi

Angela Lansbury, The Harvey Girls

One of my favorite Old Hollywood, modern Hollywood, and television actresses of all time is the same actress – the absolutely wonderful, talented, and beautiful Angela Lansbury.

I could spend all day trying to sum up the things that make this lady so extraordinary and the next three days trying to describe how much I love her! Given that my husband and cats would all appreciate meals on each of these days, I will simply say, there has never been anyone quite like her and there never will be.

I “collect” my favorite stars – in that I collect all books about them, all of their movies and television series (when applicable), magazine articles, photos, etc. Rest assured this lady is one of the ones collected in this household.

I’m trying to collect the entire Murder She Wrote (link to the collection on Amazon) series – but I’m doing it season by season. In the end, it would probably be cheaper to just buy the entire collection at once, but it’s too late now!

Happiest of birthdays to this extraordinary lady!

Angela Lansbury, The Manchurian Candidate

Death on the Nile Photos in Honor of Agatha Christie’s Birthday

September 15, 2020 By Joi

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…

Raspberry Tea
Coffee
Chocolate
At least one cat
At least one book

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.

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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.

How impressive IS this cast? Seven of the cast members account for a total of twenty-eight acting Oscar nominations with eight wins!

Death on the Nile Cast

Death on the Nile marked the first of Sir Peter Ustinov’s six performances as Hercule Poirot.

This film was the first, of three, produced screenplays from novels by Dame Agatha Christie, written by Anthony Shaffer. The others were Evil Under the Sun (1982) and Appointment with Death (1988).

As I said, the books are better, but that’s to be expected… Agatha Christie was a mad genius!… but the movies are always extremely entertaining, especially with this cast.

You can find Death on the Nile (link leads to the dvd on Amazon) on Amazon. I’m not sure which Agatha Christie adaptations are available on Prime, it’d certainly be worth checking for this one… or any of them.

Maggie Smith and Bette Davis in Death on the Nile

Maggie Smith and Bette Davis, Death on the Nile

Angela Lansbury: Bedknobs and Broomsticks

September 11, 2020 By Joi

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.

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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.

Angela Lansbury: The Harvey Girls…. Va… Va… VOOM!

September 6, 2020 By Joi

Angela Lansbury: The Harvey Girls

While Angela Lansbury is and has always been an exceptionally talented actress (movie, television, stage), she isn’t always recognized for her beauty. Her gorgeous eyes, pouty mouth, and perfect skin made her a knockout in old Hollywood.

I’ve loved watching Angela Lansbury’s movies for years and was addicted (addicted, I tell you) to her television series Murder, She Wrote (link to the series on Amazon Prime Video). Each week, I couldn’t wait to spend an hour with Jessica Fletcher and always wondered what we’d get into next.

Because of my adoration of the series, when I think of Angela Lansbury, I think of Jessica Fletcher – and I’m sure that’s how it is for most of us. That’s why it’s wonderful, now and again, to revisit her from old Hollywood.

As this photo from The Harvey Girls (1946, directed by George Sidney) proves… Jessica Fletcher was a real looker!

You can find The Harvey Girls dvd on Amazon or watch it on Prime.

Angela Lansbury, The Harvey Girls

Angela Lansbury, The Picture of Dorian Gray

June 16, 2020 By Joi

Angela Lansbury, The Picture of Dorian Gray

Anytime we talk about Old Hollywood beauties, the usual names roll off of our tongues – Ava Gardner, Dorothy Dandridge, Maureen O’Hara, Audrey Hepburn Marilyn Monroe, Rita Hayworth, Lena Horne… I’m here to say that another name (usually saved for favorite television actresses lists) be thrown into the mix: Angela Lansbury.

Look at this beautiful face!

If you watch her in The Picture of Dorian Gray, Gaslight, The Harvey Girls… or many of her wonderful films… you’ll be reminded just how beautiful she was – and IS. She is a living legend and an especially beautiful one.

Angela Lansbury

Buttons: A Christmas Tale On DVD December 3!

November 23, 2019 By Joi

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.

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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.