Today, October 15, 2026 marks the 75th anniversary my favorite show of all time–I Love Lucy. Aside from being my favorite show, and I’m sure a lot of people’s favorite show, I Love Lucy is also iconic and groundbreaking, establishing many of the sitcom production techniques still in use today. On Monday, October 15, 1951, the episode “The Girls Go into Business” aired at 9pm and introduced the nation to the exploits of the Ricardos and Mertzes. The episode, “Lucy Thinks Ricky is Trying to Murder Her” was filmed first, but was the fourth episode to air.
For the first episode, the I Love Lucy crew was still working out how they were going to film this show. While there were shows on television at the time of I Love Lucy’s debut in 1951, they were shot on kinescope. Kinescope was essentially the equivalent of someone filming something playing on their television and posting the video on You Tube. Suffice it to say the quality was terrible. CBS was also insistent that Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz relocate the production to New York City, for the kinescope–simply because more of the country’s population lived on that side of the country. CBS wanted most people to receive the live feed and then the populations living in other regions of the country would receive the kinescope recording.
Lucy and Desi did not want to move to New York, nor did they want their show looking like garbage to part of the population. Desi insisted that the show would be produced in Los Angeles and recorded on 35mm film–just like movies. CBS balked at the higher cost. As a compromise, Desi offered that he and Lucy would take a $1,000/week pay cut to make up the production difference. CBS agreed, thinking that this entire project was just a lark for Lucy and Desi. At the very least, Lucy and Desi figured that if the show failed, they’d have some fun recordings for their kids. Little did they know that 75 years later, their show would still be airing and still being talked about.
I discovered I Love Lucy in 1994 when I was 10. I came across it when flipping channels and I came across Nick at Nite. I was immediately hooked and I Love Lucy and the rest of the Nick at Nite lineup became must-see TV. I also credit I Love Lucy and Lucille Ball with getting me interested in classic film. While I’d seen some classic movies like The Wizard of Oz, thanks to the annual television screenings, I hadn’t see very many old films at all until I discovered I Love Lucy and Lucille Ball. My family used to go to the library about once a month and I was fortunate that my library had a large number of books about I Love Lucy and Lucy. I read every single one. From these books, I learned about Lucy’s film career. My library also just happened to have a large number of volumes from the Lucille Ball Signature Collection on VHS. I borrowed every single one.
From Lucy’s films, I discovered more favorite classic films and stars, such as Ginger Rogers and Katharine Hepburn (Stage Door), Ann Miller (Too Many Girls), and Henry Fonda (The Big Street). At the same time, TCM had just debuted, and we had the channel as part of our cable package. I used to scour the tv guide (not the periodical) that came in the Sunday paper, and look for any of Lucy’s films airing on TCM. I’d then set them up on the VCR to record. I’ve seen almost all her films. There are only a few I haven’t seen yet.
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Iwould like to segue into my new feature I’m going to introduce on my blog–I Love Lucy in the Movies. Lucille Ball loved to surround herself with people she knew and liked from working with them during her film career. As a result, I Love Lucy features not only some big guest stars, but also a lot of great performances by character actors. In my blog feature, I’d like to spotlight the actor I recognized from a classic film and discuss their appearance in an I Love Lucy episode.
For my first installment of I Love Lucy in the Movies, I’m discussing Sheldon Leonard’s appearance in Another Thin Man (1939) which I recently watched on TCM for Myrna Loy’s star of the month.
Sheldon Leonard
In Another Thin Man, Leonard plays Phil Church, an employee of a man named McFay, who is hosting Nick and Nora Charles at his estate. However, McFay has been receiving death threats from Church who has been in prison for 10 years after being used by McFay as the fall guy to take blame for some illegal business activities. Nick visits Church in jail to ask about the death threats. Church tells him about dreams he has about McFay’s murder. He’s had the same dream three times and warns Nick that typically his dream comes true after the third time. Sure enough, McFay turns up dead.
In I Love Lucy, Sheldon Leonard appears in the episode “Sales Resistance” as a door-to-door salesman for the Handy Dandy company. He uses various sales tactics to pressure Lucy into making a purchase, though she tries to resist. He appeals to her ego by telling her fake anecdotes about previous customers who were foolish enough to pass up the great products and deals he was offering. Eventually he convinces Lucy to purchase a new vacuum cleaner, a “deal” that results in her having to buy every component (e.g., vacuum, cord, case, hose, etc.) separately. For $1.50, Leonard’s character throws in “the Kitchen Helper,” the first device he tries selling Lucy. It’s supposed to help the busy housewife with chopping.
In both Another Thin Man and I Love Lucy, Leonard plays a sleazy character. His distinctive New York accent and appearance lent themselves well to the world of unsavory characters. He would later go on to become a prolific producer at Desilu, home of I Love Lucy. Three of Leonard’s biggest shows were The Danny Thomas Show, The Andy Griffith Show, and The Dick Van Dyke Show.
Rick at the Classic Film and TV Cafe started National Classic Movie Day on May 16th, back in 2014, and it’s still going strong. I actually have tickets today to see Double Indemnity up on the big screen, but I’m trying to decide whether to go. I know this sounds sacriligious, especially today, but it is about a 1.5 hr round trip from my house to NE Portland, OR. Frankly, sometimes I’m just not feeling the drive, you know? I have also seen Double Indemnity in the theater before, even at Grauman’s Chinese Theater! I could also see it tomorrow too. So we’ll see. I may opt to celebrate National Classic Movie Day at home with Chinese takeout instead. Also in my defense, I saw two classic films in the theater last weekend–Casablanca and The Bad and the Beautiful.
The Classic Movie Blog Association provided all the members with a series of prompts to celebrate this occasion. At the risk of creating an incredibly long blog post, I am going to try and answer each prompt.
Edmond O’Brien and Lucille Ball in A Girl, A Guy and A Gob.
Your Favorite Hidden Film Gems
A Girl, A Guy and A Gob (1941). This is a great comedy starring my fave, Lucille Ball, a young Edmond O’Brien (another one of my faves, and in his second film!), and George Murphy. In this film, O’Brien plays Stephen Herrick, the wealthy boss of a large shipping company. Lucy plays Dot, a secretary who ends up working for Stephen. Unfortunately for them, there was no “meet cute” as the two had met a day or two prior in a tumultuous encounter at the theater. Stephen is part of the upper crust and is engaged to a woman who is obviously with him for the status and perks that his class brings her. He ends up meeting Dot’s more down to earth, albeit eccentric family, and is enchanted by how fun and carefree they live their lives. He and Dot start falling for each other–except she’s going with “Coffee Cup” (Murphy), a sailor whom she’s been dating forever.
The Devil and Miss Jones(1941). This is another great comedy from 1941 with another of my faves, Jean Arthur. In this film, Arthur plays the titular “Miss Jones,” her character’s first name is Mary. “The Devil” in the title refers to Charles Coburn’s character, John P. Merrick, the owner of the department store in which Mary works. At the beginning of the film, Merrick receives word that the employees at his store are trying to unionize. He decides to go undercover as “Thomas Higgins” and get a job at the store so he can discover who is instigating the unionization efforts. Higgins gets a job on the shoe floor selling slippers. He meets Mary and her co-worker/friend, Elizabeth (Spring Byington) and is quickly charmed by both–especially Elizabeth. He then meets Mary’s boyfriend, Joe O’Brien (Robert Cummings), and learns that he is the person behind the unionization campaign. However, at this point Merrick has developed a friendship with these employees and starts to sympathize with their cause. This film is very funny and charming.
Conflict (1945). This is a great, unsung film noir, that even the film’s star, Humphrey Bogart, disliked immensely. However, I disagree with Bogart and think that this is a great film. In this film, Bogart plays Richard Mason, husband to Kathryn (Rose Hobart). In the opening scene, we can see that there is trouble with the Masons. Kathryn nags Richard relentlessly, and even tells him he’s wrong about disliking mutton when he very pointedly says he hates it. However, the tension in their marriage isn’t due to mutton, it’s due to the fact that Richard is openly smitten with Kathryn’s sister, Evelyn (Alexis Smith). Richard eventually comes up with a scheme to “off” Kathryn, and make it look like an accident. The plan seems to go off without a hitch. Family friend, Dr. Mark Hamilton (Sydney Greenstreet), however is suspicious as are the police. This is a great movie and the ending was done very well. While it might not be at the top of the Bogart canon of films, it’s a good movie. Bogart also played a wife murderer in a few films after this one–The Two Mrs. Carrolls (1947) with Barbara Stanwyck, which is also very good.
Out of the Blue (1947). This is an insane, but very funny movie. This film stars George Brent and Carole Landis as Arthur and Mae Earthleigh. The Earthleighs live in an apartment in New York City’s Greenwhich village. Their terrace is next door to bachelor David (Turhan Bey) who owns the very rowdy German Shepherd, Rabelais. David is also an artist and employs a lot of models to pose for him. His current muse is Deborah (Virginia Mayo), who also wants to breed her German Shepherd with his. Later, Mae goes out of town. Bored, Arthur goes to a bar where he meets Olive (Ann Dvorak), a woman who loves brandy, which she says helps soothe a heart condition. However, while the brandy may help Olive’s heart, it also causes her to pass out. In a questionable move for a married man, Arthur invites Olive to his home for brandy. Later, Arthur asks Olive to leave and she does. Until she reenters his home and passes out in his guest room, but not before redecorating the room! The next morning, he discovers Olive and accidentally knocks her down onto the floor. He thinks she’s dead; but she’s actually passed out. This starts a hilarious third act where Arthur, Deborah and David try to move Olive’s “body” around–all while the nosey old lady neighbors, including Elizabeth “Mrs. Trumbull” Patterson watch in shock.
That Funny Feeling (1965). This is a very funny movie starring power couple Sandra Dee and Bobby Darin. Nita Talbot, Larry Storch, and Donald O’Connor provide excellent and hilarious support. In this film, Dee plays Joan Howell, an aspiring actress who makes a living as a maid, cleaning clients’ homes. Darin plays Tom Milford, a publishing executive. On three separate occasions, he and Dee run into each other (literally) at the neighborhood newstand. What Tom doesn’t know is that Joan is the maid who cleans his apartment. Tom’s boss, Harvey (O’Connor), is in the middle of a divorce and is using Tom’s apartment to hide some of his expensive oil paintings, so that they’re not taken from him during the divorce settlement. Harvey wants to send Tom away on a business trip for two weeks. Tom leaves a note for his maid, letting her know that he’ll be gone and requests additional cleaning. She decides to invite herself and friend Audrey (Talbot) to spend the two weeks at her client’s apartment, to getaway from their horribly crummy and cramped place. Tom’s business trip ends up being canceled. He takes Joan out on a date. When it comes time to take her home, Joan directs Tom to his apartment, telling her it’s her home. He is amused and confused, but decides not to come clean just to see how far she’ll go in her deception. At one point, Tom is with Joan and his friends and has to pretend that Harvey’s place is his new place, as they would recognize his place that Joan is pretending is hers. This movie is very funny–especially the part when Dee and Talbot attempt to make Duck a l’orange to disasterous results.
Virginia Mayo, Ann Dvorak, and Turhan Bey in Out of the Blue
2. How did you become a classic film fan and/or who introduced you to classic films?
I’ve always watched classic films, as they were just films. My family never considered movies “old,” they were just movies. My love for classic film really increased though in 1994 when I was 10, when I discovered I Love Lucy one night on my beloved Nick at Nite. I loved the show and especially loved Lucille Ball. My family also went to the library once a month. I discovered that my library had a lot of Lucille Ball, I Love Lucy, and everything adjacent. I read all of it. From these biographies about Lucy, I learned about her movie career. My library also just happened to have a large number of Lucy’s films available on VHS in their audio/visual department. I borrowed every single one. From Lucy’s films and I Love Lucy, I discovered even more favorites–Katharine Hepburn, Gene Kelly, Ginger Rogers, William Holden, Eve Arden… the list goes on. Then from seeing some of these stars’ movies, I discovered other favorite stars like Fred Astaire, Grace Kelly, Ann Blyth, etc. etc. Even 30+ years later, I’m still finding new favorites and I don’t anticipate that trend ending anytime soon.
Vivian Vance, William Frawley, Desi Arnaz, and Lucille Ball in I Love Lucy.
3. What is your favorite film memory?
Seeing Casablanca at the 2023 TCM Classic Film Festival at Grauman’s Chinese Theater, completely packed house (almost 1000 seats), and it was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
Another favorite film memory is seeing Barbarella in a sold-out house at the Hollywood Theatre in Portland, OR. The audience was completely entranced by the campfest that is Barbarella. One of the female attendees even dressed as Barbarella, which is admirable, because it was January in Oregon. Now THAT is dedication to cosplay.
Finally, another favorite memory is seeing Titanic on opening day in December 1997 when I was in the 8th grade. Me, my parents, my sister, my friends, my friend’s parents… at least 10 of us, filled most of an entire theater row at the now defunct Movieland in downtown Salem, OR (where I grew up). My mom worked a few blocks from the theater and went a week or two ahead of time to get the tickets. That was such a fun memory and I ended up seeing Titanic in the theater three times before it finally left the screens in late 1998.
4. What film(s) would you watch to introduce kids to classics?
I would probably choose a colorful, exciting film like The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938) with my fave, Errol Flynn, or something colorful and funny like Singin’ in the Rain (1952). Kids, I’m sure would love Cosmo’s “Make ’em Laugh” dance where he does backflips off of the walls. I also think kids would like Meet Me in St. Louis (1944) because of Margaret O’Brien’s antics and for the bright colors and music.
Olivia de Havilland and Errol Flynn in The Adventures of Robin Hood
5. Talk about your favorite film era/decade/genre
I love the 1940s, it’s my favorite decade of my favorite era (Classic Hollywood) and it is also the peak of my favorite genre–film noir. I love the 1940s for the wartime, homefront movies. I love the advent of film noir and the switch from the glamorous escapist films of the 1930s to the shadow-filled, moody, sometimes derelict locations of film noir. The 1940s were also when another of my favorite genres, musicals, started to become popular with the emergence of Gene Kelly, another of my favorite stars. Two of my favorite films, Casablanca (1942) and Mildred Pierce (1945) came out during this era.
Ann Blyth and Joan Crawford in Mildred Pierce
6. Create a watch list
I’ll admit that I’m not the watch list type. My letterboxd watch list contains exactly zero films. However, right now, these are the films I’m trying to watch, mostly because I got them from the library and need to return them:
1. Nights of Cabiria (1957) 2. Days of Heaven (1978) 3. The Twelve Chairs (1970) 4. Manhattan (1979) 5. The Farmer’s Daughter (1947) 6. Hannah and Her Sisters (1986) 7. Ishtar (1987) 8. Lonely Are the Brave (1962) 9. Swingers (1996) 10. Vanishing Point (1971) 11. Dangerous Liasions (1989) 12. Jerry Maguire (1996) 13. Money From Home (1953) 14. The Towering Inferno (1974)
7. Is there a film that has been passed down generations in your family?
Only films that my parents shared with me. I didn’t really grow up seeing extended family very often, mine lived halfway across the country from us.
8. Share any bucket list classic film you have
Besides allegedly lost films like Convention City (1932) and the full version of The Magnificent Ambersons (1942), I need to watch the entirety of Gone with the Wind (1939). I’ve only seen the first half. I also sometime want to watch Cleopatra (1963) because of the legendary stories about the tumultuous filming. My “bucket list” films are going to be many of the very long films that are supposedly masterpieces.
Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton in Cleopatra
9. What are your favorite classic film resources?
TCM (of course), My own physical media shelves, Criterion Channel, and the library–especially the Inter-Library Loan program.
10. What classic films do you long to see on the big screen?
I’ve been fortunate that I’ve been able to see a lot of my favorite films on the big screen, including my all-time #1 favorite film, The Long Long Trailer (1954) which I’ve seen on the big screen twice. As for some of my other favorites that I haven’t been able to see on the big screen, I’d love to see The More the Merrier (1943), Funny Face (1957), Dark Passage (1947), and Gaslight (1944).
Charles Coburn and Jean Arthur in The More the Merrier
Satsuke and sister Mei take shelter from the rain at a bus stop with Totoro keeping watch in My Neighbor Totoro (1988).
As a native of the Pacific Northwest, Oregon specifically, I have seen my share of rain. In fact, NW Oregon (where I’ve lived my entire life) is in the middle of yet another “atmospheric river” event. Basically, we’re getting rain and a lot of it–at least 3″ between yesterday through tomorrow. Personally, I like the rain. It’s relaxing and makes the outside smell nice. Plus, it makes for excellent movie watching weather. As long as the rain stays out of my basement, I am good.
During the last major rain event, just a couple weeks ago, I watched a bunch of excellent rainy film noir and Clue because I love it and it has rain. That rain marathon and this week’s downpour inspired me to write a post about rain in the movies as well as allows me to highlight some of my favorite movies. Right now, I haven’t returned to watching any rainy films, because I’ve been obsessed with playing Pokopia on Switch 2.
Movies have been using rain since almost the beginning to put forth a certain emotion, add suspense, express a metaphor, or even just to add some atmosphere. A rainstorm is often used as a reason for characters to be forced to stay confined in one space, such as in Key Largo (1948). Rain can be used as a setting for romance, such as the famous kiss in the rain between Audrey Hepburn and George Peppard in Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961). To add atmosphere, rain will often be included such as in Clue (1985), where the characters are summoned to Mr. Boddy’s mansion during a dark, rainy night, and end up caught up in a murder mystery. In this blog entry, I want to focus on some of my favorite rain scenes in films.
Rain is often used to lend suspense to a scene, and where else would you want a lot of suspense and drama? A scene in which someone is driving. Driving in the rain can already be fairly treacherous. Add in a driver who is nervous, angry, distraught, or any other distracting emotion and it’s almost always a recipe for danger, or at least great melodrama.
BEST DRIVING IN RAIN SCENES
Lana Turner has a meltdown in “The Bad and the Beautiful.”
The Bad and the Beautiful (1952). Lana Turner’s Georgia is distraught after discovering that her boyfriend and producer, Jonathan Shields (Kirk Douglas) has been cheating on her with a starlet. She expresses her indignation over his betrayal and he more or less tells her that he can do whatever he wants. He doesn’t owe her any loyalty, because he gave her stardom. Distraught, Georgia gets into her car and takes off on a high-speed race home, through a pouring rainstorm. Anyone who thinks Lana couldn’t act should watch her performance in this scene. She enters the car sobbing, but soon collapses into pure hysteria as the reality of Jonathan’s betrayal and callousness sets in. Juxtaposed against the frenzy of rain and flashes of lights, Georgia’s emotional collapse reaches its apex when she screams and slams on the brakes.
Dead Reckoning (1947). Humphrey Bogart’s character, Rip Murdock, is investigating the death of his friend, Johnny. During his investigation, he falls in love with Coral Chandler (Lizabeth Scott). Unfortunately, he learns that Coral isn’t all she seems and was involved in his friend’s death. Coral and Rip end up in a car together after she accidentally shoots her accomplice instead of him. While Rip drives through heavy rain, he and Coral argue over her intending to kill him. She then pulls out a gun and he hits the gas pedal to floor it. Anyone who has watched a lot of old movies knows that whenever it’s raining and someone is driving recklessly, something bad is going to happen. In this film, Rip ends up crashing head-on into a tree, mortally injuring Coral.
Psycho (1960). This is a classic and for good reason. In this film, Janet Leigh’s Marion Crane leaves Phoenix and heads to California with $40,000 in stolen money in hand. She wants to marry her boyfriend, Sam (John Gavin), but he refuses to do so due to lack of funds. When Marion’s employer asks her to deliver a $40,000 deposit to the bank, the temptation is too strong to resist. This money would solve all of her and Sam’s financial woes. While she originally plans to drive through the night, a rainstorm forces her to seek refuge at the Bates Motel, operated by the young and nervous Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins). Unfortunately for Marion, this is the end of the line.
Rain can also be used to add romance to the scene, because what is more romantic than a classic kiss in the rain type scene. Rain also seems to bring people together–often because they’re forced to seek shelter and each other for warmth.
FAVORITE ROMANTIC RAIN SCENES
Lucy and Desi kiss and make-up in “The Long Long Trailer.”
The Long, Long Trailer (1954). My favorite film of all time features a romantic, albeit cliched (now) romantic kiss in the rain. Tacy (Lucille Ball) and Nicky (Desi Arnaz) spend the entirety of the film more or less on the honeymoon road trip from hell, with one catastrophe after another. The tension and frustration reaches its end when Nicky discovers that Tacy has not only lied to him, but has also put their lives at risk. The couple needs to drive over a high elevation (8000 feet) peak in Colorado. Because of the steep incline and possibility that extra weight could pull the trailer down (and possibly off) the mountain, Nicky tells Tacy that she needs to get rid of all the extra weight she’s added to the trailer in the form of rocks and preserves. Tacy’s idea was that they could collect large rocks from different places they visit and use them to decorate their patio when they reach their new home in Colorado. As a cost-saving measure (to justify the purchase of the trailer), Tacy stars canning fruits and vegetables.
Instead of removing the material from the trailer, she instead distributes it evenly around the trailer, thinking it would solve the weight issue. It does not. Everything comes out. Nicky discovers it. The couple fight and separate. In the pouring down rain, Nicky finally tracks down Tacy (and the trailer) at a trailer park where she’s in the middle of planning to sell the trailer. He opens the trailer door, finds Tacy, but can’t bring himself to apologize. Nicky drives away and suddenly Tacy realizes that she doesn’t want him to leave. She runs out into the rain, in front of Nicky’s car. He stops and gets out. Nicky and Tacy embrace, having made up and reconciled. They run up the steps into their home (the trailer) and kiss.
Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961). While a lot can be said about this film, ::cough:: Mickey Rooney ::cough:: there are some fun parts as well. The ending of ‘Tiffany’s’ is much like the end of The Long, Long Trailer, with Audrey Hepburn’s Holly Golightly and George Peppard’s Paul (or “Fred Baby” as I like to call him) reconciling and kissing in the rain drenched streets of New York City. However, this scene has extra poignancy beyond the classic kiss in the rain. In a previous scene, Holly very cruelly abandons “Cat” her pet, out in the rain, saying that nobody belongs to anyone–even animals. Her whole mantra throughout the film is that she’s a free spirit, she doesn’t belong to (or with anyone). Paul is the only person her circle to actually care about her and want to help her. Everyone else in her orbit is someone she makes money off of (via trips to the powder room), or someone who takes advantage of her naivete (e.g., Sally Tomato providing her with the “weather report” to pass on to one of his associates).
However, Holly is no better in that she only associates herself with people she believes can do something for her. She’s a phony, her agent says. Paul bitterly tells Holly off by stating that in her efforts to prevent herself from being put into a “cage” she’s put herself into one, because she’s unwilling to share herself or part of her life with anyone. He then gets out of the car, throws the ring (that they’d had engraved at Tiffany’s during their fun day in New York City together) at her. The ring is a symbol of a time where Holly was probably being closer to her true self and not putting on airs. Holly grabs the ring, places it over the ever important (and symbolic) left ring finger and realizes that she (and Cat) belong with Paul. Their kiss in the rain (plus keeping Cat warm) symbolizes their new life together. Holly found where she belongs.
Top Hat (1935) Another one of the Fred Astaire-Ginger Rogers films that features Astaire as a character who initially annoys Rogers’ character until a dance brings them together. In this film, Astaire’s Jerry Travers, a tap dance star, arrives in London to appear in a show for producer Horace Hardwick (Edward Everett Horton). Late at night, he decides to practice his number (on hard floors!) and wakes up and annoys Dale Tremont (Rogers). She comes up to his room to complain and he is smitten. She is less so. Then there’s a case of mistaken identity, with Dale thinking that Jerry is Horace, the husband of her friend Madge (Helen Broderick).
Jerry pursues Dale throughout the film and she continues to be repulsed by him because she thinks her friend’s husband is coming onto her. A rainstorm at the park forces Jerry and Dale to seek refuge under a gazebo, where they dance to “It’s a Lovely Day (to be Caught in the Rain).” As with many of their films, Rogers’ annoyed attitude towards Astaire lessens, as they start to fall in love through song and dance.
Finally, rain can also be utilized to add a certain atmosphere to a film, or to evoke a specific feeling.
FAVORITE ATMOSPHERIC RAIN SCENES
Gene Kelly in what is probably the most famous rain scene of all time in Singin’ in the Rain.
Singin’ in the Rain (1952). This film contains the most iconic rain scene of all and I would be remiss to not mention it. Gene Kelly’s classic dance in the rain to the title song, is perhaps the greatest dance number ever captured and the most joyous. I dare anyone to watch this scene and not feel better at the end. What is happier than a dance in the rain, splashing in puddles, without a single care in the world? The “Singin’ in the Rain” number happens after Kelly’s character, silent screen star Don Lockwood, returns from a disastrous screening of his first “talkie,” The Dueling Cavalier. It co-stars his on-screen partner, the incredibly untalented Lina Lamont (Jean Hagen), who is oblivious to the movie’s awfulness and delivers one of my favorite lines, “I liked it!” Don figures that his career is over until friend Cosmo Brown (Donald O’Connor) and new love, Kathy Selden (Debbie Reynolds) convince him to re-tool the film to be the musical, The Dancing Cavalier, with Kathy providing behind the scenes support to cover up Lina’s inadequacies. Overcome with joy and his new lease on life, Don happily sings, dances and splashes his way down the Hollywood streets, until he’s stopped by a befuddled cop. What a buzzkill.
Clue (1985). This film opens with the six main characters arriving at the mansion of Mr. Boddy, in their color-coded vehicles. The house is tall and ominous, as is the torrential downpour. Inside the mansion, both Mr. Boddy and the chef are killed, leaving the six guests, plus butler Wadsworth (Tim Curry) and maid Yvette (Colleen Camp), to wonder who was responsible. The rain forces other unsuspecting visitors to enter the mansion, like a motorist breaking down in the rain and wanting to use the phone, and a cop investigating the motorist’s abandoned car. It rains the entire time throughout the film, lending a sort of spookiness to the classic mystery of “Who Killed Mr. Boddy?”
Thunder on the Hill (1951). This film takes place almost entirely at a convent. Sister Mary Bonaventure (Claudette Colbert) is in charge of the hospital ward of the convent. A horrific rainstorm closes nearby roads, keeping everyone inside and others out. A woman, Valerie Carns (Ann Blyth), is brought to the convent to wait out the storm due to the closed roads. She is supposed to be delivered to the prison to await her execution for the murder of her brother. However, the washed out road delays the inevitable and she is forced to stay at the convent. As one can imagine, Valerie is not particularly amiable or even polite. Sister Mary does her best to be gracious and empathetic to Valerie, eventually softening her up a little. Through talking to Valerie, Sister Mary realizes that she may be innocent and decides to investigate Valerie’s brother’s death before the rain lets up and the roads re-open.
In this film, the rain adds a harshness and uneasiness to the events in the film. As soon as the rain lets up and the road is passable, Ann Blyth’s character is headed to Death Row for a crime that she may not have committed. Other refugees are unhappy with her presence. The head doctor’s wife, Isabel, is a patient at the hospital and is unhappy with Sister Mary. Lending to the tension is that this same doctor also testified against Valerie in the case against her brother–more or less sealing her conviction. The Mother Superior (Gladys Cooper) is upset that Sister Mary refuses to follow her orders that she not intervene between Valerie and the police. Sister Mary is also holding onto her own baggage–the recent suicide of her sister. The relentless rain, the only thing keeping these people cooped up at the convent, increases the tension and drama.
HONORABLE RAIN SCENE MENTIONS:
Dorothy Malone watches, longingly, as Bogart departs her bookstore in “The Big Sleep.”
The Big Sleep (1946). It rains constantly in this film and only lends to the overall darkness and spookiness of the proceedings. The plot is also a mess, the weather might as well be too.
My Neighbor Totoro (1988). In this film, sisters Satsuke and Mei discover Totoro, a forest spirit, living near their new home. The sisters are living near a local hospital where their mother is convalescing. Totoro and his fellow spirits watch over the girls and intervene when Mei goes missing.
Casablanca (1942). Humphrey Bogart’s Rick stands in the rain, eagerly awaiting Ingrid Bergman’s Ilsa’s arrival, only to be handed a “Dear John” letter. As Rick’s heart breaks, the rain washes Ilsa’s words off the page. His life is over as he knows it.
Red Dust (1932). Getting caught in a monsoon forces Mary Astor’s stuffy Barbara into the home of the rugged Dennis Carson (Clark Gable). Also staying with Dennis? Vantine (Jean Harlow), a prostitute who is none too happy or impressed with Barbara’s presence. Vantine has her eye on Dennis too and does not want to share. However, upon spotting a rain soaked Barbara, Dennis is overwhelmed and seduces her. The rain in this film lends an intensity, further making an already stifling film feel even more stuffy than it did before. This isn’t a cold rain. This is a hot, humid, rain.
The Old Dark House (1932). A common trope in horror or mystery films, this is another movie that uses rain to force people inside. Horror often has people seeking shelter from strangers, and they’re always unusual strangers. In this movie, Phillip and Margaret Waverton (Raymond Massey and Gloria Stuart) are driving in a heavy storm with their friend, Penderel (Melvyn Douglas). They end up seeking refuge from the Femm siblings, Horace and Rebecca. The Femms are very weird. They warn their visitors about their butler Morgan (Boris Karloff), who is mute, alcoholic, and extremely dangerous. Eventually, two more people arrive at the Femms seeking shelter, Sir William Porterhouse (Charles Laughton) and Gladys DuCane (Lillian Bond). As the group stays at the home longer, they start to discover more and more unusual people and continue to be terrorized by Morgan. This is not only suspenseful, it is also very funny. “Please pass the po-tay-toes,” is my favorite line in the film.
To say that sisters, Olivia de Havilland and Joan Fontaine, did not get along is putting it mildly. These two women were involved in a lifelong feud that only officially ended with Fontaine’s passing in 2013 at the age of 96. However, I’m sure it picked up again with de Havilland’s death in 2020 at age 104.
Olivia de Havilland and Joan Fontaine.
Olivia de Havilland was born in Tokyo, Japan on July 1, 1916. Her sister, Joan, was born only 15 months later, also in Tokyo, on October 22, 1917. Even as young children, the sisters were constantly bickering and torturing each other. In a 1978 interview with People magazine while promoting her memoir Bed of Roses, Joan claimed that Olivia would constantly try to scare her with dramatic readings of the crucifixion scene in the Bible. In retaliation, Joan would mimic and mock everything Olivia said. On another occasion, Joan tried to pull Olivia into a pool by her ankle, but Olivia put up a fight. This skirmish culminated with Joan breaking her collarbone against the ledge of the pool. Yikes.
In the same 1978 interview, Joan makes a comment about her and Olivia’s mother, Lillian Fontaine de Havilland, and her reaction to seeing daughter Joan in her film, Jane Eyre. According to Joan, Lillian’s response to her daughter’s performance was that “[Joan] was defeated by her beauty.” Joan then states that her mother could never express pride in either her or Olivia.
While I would not even attempt to pretend that I know about psychology or psychiatry, from what I know about the sisters is that both women seemed to be engaged in a lifelong rivalry and attempts to one-up each other. One has to wonder whether this was a subconscious response to their mother’s inability to be proud of either of her daughters. Joan was quoted as saying “Olivia has always said I was first at everything. I got married first, got an Academy Award first, had a child first. If I die [first], she’ll be furious, because again I’ll have got there first!” For the record, Joan did die first.
Joan Fontaine and Olivia de Havilland during seemingly better times.
During the 1942 Oscars, Joan and Olivia were seated at the same table. Both sisters were nominated for Best Actress–Joan for Suspicion and Olivia for Hold Back the Dawn. Joan won. In her memoir, Joan wrote: “All the animus we’d felt toward each other as children, the hair-pullings, the savage wrestling matches, the time Olivia fractured my collarbone, all came rushing back in kaleidoscopic imagery. My paralysis was total.” At that moment, the sisters moved past mere sibling rivalry, to a full-fledged war.
The final nail in the coffin in Joan and Olivia’s relationship, according to Joan, came in 1975 when their mother passed. Olivia was executor of the estate. She also handled their mother’s remains, including cremation, without involving Joan in any of the decisions. Olivia didn’t even invite Joan to the memorial service! Joan attended anyway. In the 1978 interview with People, Joan states that she hadn’t seen Olivia recently and didn’t intend to.
While Joan seemed more than willing to discuss her feud with her sister, Olivia did not seem to want to discuss it. Very little information seems to exist telling Joan’s stories from Olivia’s perspective. In 2013 after Joan’s death, Olivia did say that her sister was a “was a brilliant, multi-talented person, but with an astigmatism in her perception of people and events which often caused her to react in an unfair and even injurious way.” Joan was also quoted as saying “I regret that I remember not one act of kindness from Olivia all through my childhood.” Olivia responded stating that “I loved her so much as a child.” She also made comments stating that her behavior was defensive and she didn’t instigate anything with Joan.
Joan Fontaine and Olivia de Havilland.
To their credit, it doesn’t appear that Joan and Olivia loathed each other to the point where they wished the other any ill will. During the 1960s, the sisters appeared to be moving towards an amicable reconciliation and perhaps even ::gasp!:: becoming friends. Joan spent Christmas 1961 with Olivia. The two attended an event together in 1967 and were actually seen laughing (!), and Joan came to Olivia’s home in Paris in 1969 to help her with some financial and marital issues. Their mother’s death in 1975 killed the relationship. It has been also said that despite their differences, Joan and Olivia respected each other and were proud of the each other’s careers and lives.
Personally, I could never pick one sister over the other, as I enjoy watching both women in their respective films. I don’t even feel that one is better than the other. I feel that their onscreen personas and the types of films they made are different enough that both ladies can stand on their own. In fact, I think today after I finish this article, I may do an Olivia and Joan double feature in honor of this article and Joan’s recent birthday.
My Top 5 Olivia de Havilland and Joan Fontaine Performances:
Olivia de Havilland
Olivia in “The Heiress.”
The Heiress (1949). Olivia’s performance in this film is brilliant. At the beginning of the film, her character, Catherine Sloper, is meek, weak, quiet, mousy, and very unsure of herself and everything. However, once she is betrayed by Morris Townsend (Montgomery Clift), her entirely personality changes. Morris’ betrayal confirms Catherine’s father’s (Ralph Richardson) opinion that he is only after her money. After this climactic scene, Catherine’s entire demeanor changes. She is now bitter, cynical, angry, and confident that she will not let anyone close to her again. Her meek, mousy voice changes to a deeper, more angry and bitter tone. Mariah, lock the door, indeed.
The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938). In this classic action-adventure film, Olivia plays Maid Marian to frequent co-star Errol Flynn’s Robin Hood. She gives a beautiful performance as the ward of King Richard who falls in love with the former Saxon-turned outlaw. Sir Guy of Gisborne (Basil Rathbone) who is in love with Marian and is power-hungry with Prince John (Claude Rains). Marian bravely defies the Norman rulers to aid Robin Hood and the outlaws. She risks being put to death for treason, all because she believes in Robin Hood and his cause.
Hold Back the Dawn (1941). In this film, Olivia gives an amazing performance as Emmy Brown, a young teacher from California who meets Romanian immigrant (Charles Boyer), Georges Iscovescu, in Mexico. Just prior to meeting Emmy, Georges met up with former dancing partner, Anita Dixon (Paulette Goddard), who explains how she circumvented the American immigration rule which requires immigrants to obtain a quota number. These waiting periods can take up to eight years. Anita says she married an American and was admitted into the US right away. When Georges meets Emmy, he sees her as his ticket into the US. His ultimate plan is to immigrate to the US and reunite with Anita. Of course, when Emmy falls in love with him and later learns of his plan, it is pure heartache.
Hush, Hush Sweet Charlotte (1964). This film reunited Olivia with friend and former co-star, Bette Davis. Olivia was brought in to replace Joan Crawford, who memorably appeared and fought with Bette in What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962). (Can you imagine if Olivia de Havilland and Joan Fontaine had appeared in ‘Baby Jane’ ?) Anyway, in ‘Charlotte,’ Bette takes on the role of the helpless protagonist whose married fiancé (!), John Mayhew, was murdered in 1927. He and Charlotte were attending a party and planned to elope. Charlotte’s father did not approve. For 37 years, the community has believed that Charlotte murdered John. She was never arrested or tried, due to lack of evidence. Olivia plays Charlotte’s cousin Miriam, who was also present at that party. Miriam comes to stay with Charlotte at the large family estate. During Miriam’s stay, strange things start happening to Charlotte which cause her (and other people) to start questioning her sanity.
Dodge City (1939). In another pairing with Errol Flynn, Olivia plays Abbie Irving, a young woman who has recently moved to Dodge City, Kansas. Her brother, Lee (William Lundigan), was supposed to move with her but was killed during the trip from the East Coast to Kansas. He was a drunk and incited a stampede and was crushed to death. Accompanying Abbie and the rest of the settlers is Wade Hatton (Flynn) and his gang Rusty (Alan Hale) and Tex (Guinn “Big Boy” Williams). In a classic Western trope, Wade is quickly appointed Sheriff of Dodge City to clean up the town. His main goal is to drive Jeff Surrett (Bruce Cabot) and his gang out of town. Soon after moving to Dodge City, Abbie gets a job at a newspaper operated by Joe Clemens (Frank McHugh). Her role at the newspaper ultimately puts her in the position of having a lot of information (and a venue to publish it) about Surrett and his gang. Of course, she and Wade are also romantically involved. This is a fun Olivia performance as she stands up to Wade’s attempts to put her in her place and she gets to play an atypical female role in a Western. No saloon singer for Olivia!
Olivia in “Hush, Hush Sweet Charlotte.”
Joan Fontaine
Joan Fontaine and Judith Anderson in “Rebecca.”
Rebecca (1940). Despite having won the Oscar for Suspicion, Rebecca is the ultimate Joan Fontaine role. She should have won her Oscar for this part instead. In this film, Joan plays the second Mrs. de Winter who marries recent widower, Maxim de Winter (Laurence Olivier) after a quick whirlwind relationship. The newlyweds return to Maxim’s estate, Manderley, where he previously resided with his deceased wife, Rebecca. The second Mrs. de Winter (whose first name is never mentioned), is constantly reminded of Rebecca’s presence throughout the home. Making matters worse is the incredibly creepy Mrs. Danvers (Judith Anderson), who makes it her life’s work to remind the second Mrs. de Winter that she pales in comparison to Rebecca. Mrs. Danvers was seemingly in love with Rebecca and always looms in the background while the second Mrs. de Winter attempts to make Manderley her home. Joan Fontaine gives a fantastic performance as the mousy, nervous, anxious second Mrs. de Winter who seemingly is always on edge and feels in constant competition with a dead woman whose presence is felt throughout the entire film.
Ivy (1947). In this film, Joan plays the titular Ivy who is always scheming to get the finer things in life. Tired of her current husband Jervis’ (Richard Ney) inability to provide her with the things she wants, Ivy has her sights set on the wealthy Miles Rushworth (Herbert Marshall). She and Miles start going together, but he ultimately bails on the relationship when he learns she’s married. At the same time, she’s also having an affair with Dr. Roger Gretorex (Patric Knowles). Seeing that her marriage to Jervis is an obstacle in her quest for a better lifestyle, she decides to poison him and pin the murder on Roger. The plot ultimately succeeds, but then things start unraveling for Ivy. This is a great movie. Joan is able to use her typical quiet, somewhat mousy demeanor to her advantage to make Ivy seem unassuming at first. This makes her transformation into the greedy and murderous Ivy even more shocking.
Born to Be Bad (1950). In this film, Joan plays another schemer, much like Ivy, but without the murderous streak. She plays Christabel Carey, a young woman who comes to live with her uncle’s employee, Donna Foster (Joan Leslie) while she attends business school. However, from the beginning, Christabel is revealed to be a schemer. The most innocuous thing she does is arriving a day before she’s due to do so. Almost on day one, Christabel has flirted with Donna’s fiancé Curtis (Zachary Scott), painter Gabriel Broome (Mel Ferrer), and author Nick Bradley (Robert Ryan). Christabel initially has her sights set on Curtis and starts to plant seeds in Donna’s mind that he might not be the one. However, he is “the one” for Christabel. Much like Ivy, Joan Fontaine’s quiet, unassuming, somewhat timid demeanor works to her advantage. She’s able to move in on Donna’s man (and the other men) quickly and subtly, without being overt.
Suspicion (1941). While I hate that Cary Grant calls Joan Fontaine “monkeyface” throughout the entire film, I will say that Joan is very good. Again, she’s got the timid, scared woman role down to a tee. In this film, she suspects that new husband Cary Grant wants to kill her and spends much of the film on edge, thinking that everything he does is part of an overall plan to kill her. This role really is an extension of her part in Rebecca, except without Mrs. Danvers and without Rebecca. She is incredibly nervous and frightened, which is nicely juxtaposed by Cary Grant’s cool, calm, and collected demeanor.
Letter From an Unknown Woman (1948). This is such a fantastic film and an excellent part for Joan. In this film, Joan plays a woman, Lisa, who some years prior to the start of the film had fallen in love with Stefan Brand (Louis Jourdan), a pianist. Lisa first saw Stefan when she was a teenager and spent many years pining after him from afar. When she’s an adult and working as a a dress model in Vienna, she stands outside Stefan’s window. While he doesn’t try to pursue anything with her, he finds himself strongly drawn to her. They eventually start dating and fall in love. The film uses a letter written by Lisa in the present as a framing device for the flashback sequences in the film. The events leading up to the beginning of the film are revealed throughout Lisa’s reading of her letter. Joan gives a brilliant, heartwarming and heartbreaking performance as the young woman desperately in love with a man. She gets to play a role outside her usual timid woman, and instead gets to play a romantic, passionate, optimistic woman.
Joan Fontaine and Louis Jourdan in “Letter From an Unknown Woman.”
This blogathon event is devoted to films named after the name of one or more characters in a film. Typically, the titular character is the main character, though in some cases (e.g., 1971’s Klute) it could be argued that the film is named after a supporting character. In 1935’s Alice Adams, the titular character, portrayed by Katharine Hepburn, is very much the main character. It could also be argued that she is the only main character, as everyone else in the film is very much supporting. Hepburn’s Oscar-nominated performance is tremendous and she deserved to win the Best Actress award. Bette Davis ended up winning for her turn in Dangerous, and felt that Hepburn was robbed. Davis felt like her award was an attempt by the Academy to make up for her lack of a nomination for Of Human Bondage (1934) and it came at Hepburn’s expense.
Alice Adams, based on Booth Tarkington’s 1921 Pulitzer Prize winning-novel of the same name, is simply about a young woman trying to move up the social ladder in her small Indiana town. Alice lives with her father, Virgil (Fred Stone), her mother (Ann Shoemaker) and brother Walter (Frank Albertson). Mrs. Adams’ first name is never revealed. The Adams family is made out to be impoverished, but they live in a decent 2-story home and seem to have enough food and things they need. It does appear however, that there isn’t much money leftover for any luxuries.
Alice Adams and her corsage of violets.
However, despite the Adams family’s lack of wealth, Alice isn’t exactly ostracized by her wealthier peers. At the beginning of the film, Alice is at a local florist looking for a corsage for a party to which she’s been invited–a party thrown by the wealthy Mildred Palmer (Evelyn Venable). At first Alice is looking at a rather extravagant corsage and is forced to ask to see the more modest corsage of violets. However, even the $2 ($45.77 in 2024) is too expensive for Alice’s pocketbook. In a motif that would repeat itself throughout the film, Alice refuses to admit that she cannot afford to purchase any merchandise and laments that she didn’t come in sooner when the florist had a bigger selection. She ends up making her own free corsage with violets she finds outside.
Alice has Walter escort her to Mildred’s party. He clearly couldn’t care less about impressing the rich set, but agrees to take Alice at the behest of their mother. Alice on the other hand, immediately starts putting on airs, but is quickly identified as a poser. However, Alice’s social faux pas do not turn off everyone at the party. A young man, the wealthy Arthur Russell (Fred MacMurray), finds Alice charming and talks her up at the party.
Fred MacMurray is an underrated dreamboat from the 1930s.
Alice and Arthur start seeing each other which of course attracts the attention of the upper classes. Mildred is supposedly engaged to Arthur and cannot understand what he sees in the lowly Alice Adams. Alice, who is always conscious of her family’s status and wealth (or lack thereof) continues to put on airs with Arthur so that he doesn’t catch on that she’s part of a much lower social set. Alice’s lies come to a head in one of the funniest and most bittersweet moments in the film.
To impress Arthur, Alice invites him over to her family’s home for a fancy dinner. She frets over the position and condition of the family’s furniture, trying to strategically hide stains and tears by turning the furniture at an angle, flipping over the cushions and placing pillows. Alice even goes as far as to hire a maid, Malena (Hattie McDaniel) to serve the meal. Unfortunately for Alice, she is unequipped and inexperienced to entertain and makes many faux pas at her dinner: the family is way overdressed in formal wear and the meal is too heavy for the hot summer day. Credit must be given to Arthur for enduring one soup and stew after another while he heavily perspires while wearing a wool (or tweed) suit jacket.
Hattie McDaniel is hilarious in this film.
Hattie McDaniel’s performance as maid Malena must be singled out, because she is hysterical and brings some much needed levity for a very heartbreaking (for Alice) scene. Malena is a terrible cook and comes up with a series of soups and stews for the family dinner. She also serves things like pickled watermelon rind and melted ice cream. As she gets hotter and sweatier, Malena’s maid headband (hat? headpiece?) keeps falling and covering half her face. The funniest part though are her facial expressions. As Alice pretends that the family eats caviar and fancy food all the time, Malena’s face tells the real story. She just barely keeps from rolling her eyes when Alice yammers on about her family’s fancy diet and lifestyle.
Eventually, the jig is up when Virgil tells Arthur the truth about the family’s wealth and exposes Alice’s lies. Alice is heartbroken and horrified and fully expects Arthur to dump her due to her lack of wealth and social class. The scene after the dinner party, when Alice looks out the window and sobs, is heartbreaking. She thinks that she’s probably lost her best chance to achieve her dream of moving into the higher social class. However, because Arthur is a genuine sweetheart throughout the entire film, he only finds Alice’s attempts to impress him endearing and tells her that he loves her. We have to hope that he and Alice will live happily ever after.
There is a subplot involving Virgil and his employment at a glue factory where he regularly butts heads with Mr. Lamb (Charles Grapewin) and eventually strikes out on his own with his own “glueworks.” Why a small town needs two glue factories, who knows. Walter eventually embezzles money from Mr. Lamb, which horrifies Virgil. I don’t want to focus on this subplot however, because frankly Virgil’s incessant whining gets on my nerves. I don’t have sympathy for Virgil Adams because he’s such a sad sack.
Arthur and Alice at the dinner party from hell
Back to the best part of the film, Alice and Arthur. Alice Adams is a story about social class. Alice and her family are part of the lower class. Alice desperately wants to be part of the upper class. She recognizes that the upper class have the privilege that allow them to live a life free of struggle. However, because her peers know about her social standing, Alice cannot pretend to be part of their lifestyle–she needs another “in.” Arthur represents that in, as he’s already part of that social set. Meanwhile, Alice’s father, Virgil, seems resigned to being part of the working class and feels that Alice’s attempts to move up the social ladder are a waste of time. He repeatedly thwarts Alice’s attempts to try and be more than she is. Alice’s mother however, also recognizes that there are benefits to being part of a higher class. She urges her husband to strike out on his own to hopefully become a successful business owner, hereby giving them not only the income, but a boost in their social standing.
Katharine Hepburn’s performance is what makes Alice Adams work. She is adept at conveying hope and joy when Alice comes up with her latest tale to tell about her family’s wealth. When her charade is ruined by her father at the dinner, our hearts break for her. The amount of torment and despair is evident on Alice’s face as she weeps. She lights up when she sees Arthur, the man who throughout the entire film has never wavered in his love for Alice–even when she assumes the worst about him. Hepburn is known for playing strong willed, independent women. However, Alice Adams allows her to reveal a softer, more vulnerable side. Hepburn was robbed of the Oscar.
The Luso World Cinema Blogathon is an annual event hosted by Spellbound with Beth Ann and Critica Retro. I’ll admit that I didn’t know anything about Luso cinema, in fact, I didn’t know what “Luso” meant. Research revealed that “Luso” is a prefix used in relation to Portugal and Portuguese culture. From reading through the list of actors/actresses of Portuguese heritage, I learned that one of my favorites, Mary Astor, fits this description.
Mary Astor was born Lucile Vasconcellos Langhanke in Quincy, Illinois on May 3, 1906. Her father was German and her mother was American. Mary got her Portuguese heritage from her mother. Mary was homeschooled by her mother until 1919 when she sent a photo of herself to a beauty contest and became a semi-finalist. When she was 15, she began taking drama lessons and appearing in local productions. Mary submitted her photos to other beauty contests, eventually catching the attention of an employee at Famous Players-Lasky. She was then signed to a six-month contract at Paramount. Mary would eventually make her screen debut in 1921 at the age of 14.
Mary’s career in silent film had its ups and downs. In 1929, she briefly found herself out of work as her voice was deemed too deep for talkies. However, she appeared in a play with her friend Florence Eldridge (wife of Fredric March) which ended up getting her back into films. She started being cast in films again and was on her way to stardom. In 1935, Mary had an extra-marital affair and was later embroiled in a bitter custody dispute with her ex-husband. In many cases, an adulteress’ career would be over, but the scandal seemed to have little effect on her career. Mary would eventually win the Best Supporting Actress Oscar in 1941 for her role in The Great Lie.
Mary Astor’s career reached its peak in the 1940s with her Oscar win and appearance in the film noir classic, The Maltese Falcon, as Brigid O’Shaugnessy. As what happened with a lot of actresses back then, as soon as Mary hit 40 she was seen as a “mother” figure and was often cast in more matronly roles such as matriarch Anna Smith in Meet Me in St. Louis and Marmee in Little Women. Some of Astor’s best roles however come during this time when she took on against-type parts, such as playing a prostitute in Act of Violence or a madam in Desert Fury. Mary made her final appearance in 1964 in the small, but important role of Jewel Mayhew in Hush, Hush Sweet Charlotte.
Mary Astor had a lot of great roles in her long career. Here are my top 5 favorite Mary Astor performances:
Walter Huston and Mary Astor in “Dodsworth.”
#1Dodsworth (1936). In this film, Mary plays “the other woman,” a role which typically isn’t sympathetic and is usually villainous. However, in Dodsworth, Mary’s performance as Edith Cortright and relationship with Walter Huston’s Sam Dodsworth is so beautiful that she is seen as the woman that Sam deserves. In this film, Sam and his wife Fran (Ruth Chatterton)’s daughter is all grown and married. Fran cannot accept being old enough to have a grown and married daughter. Sam retires and hopes to live a life of leisure with Fran. They’re planning on starting their retirement with an extended European vacation. While on the ocean liner, Sam meets Edith and Fran meets a young Englishman (David Niven) with whom she flirts. Sam ends up spending much of his time on the boat with Edith. While in Europe, Fran wants to be part of the jet set, spending her time living the high life while pretending to be much younger. Sam just wants to see the sights. As the Dodsworths find themselves growing apart, through a chance encounter, Sam reunites with Edith.
Mary’s performance in Dodsworth is very charming and sweet. She is what the film needs to offset the vain and materialistic Fran. While she is the “other woman” so to speak, Sam is such a nice guy and Fran is so awful, that we as the audience want Sam and Edith to be together.
Mary Astor and Joel McCrea in “The Palm Beach Story.”
#2The Palm Beach Story (1942). Mary Astor’s performance in this film is unlike any other part that I’ve seen her play. While she doesn’t seem like the obvious choice to appear in a Preston Sturges screwball comedy, Mary is right at home. In this film, she plays the oft-married Princess Maud Centimillia. At the start of the film, she’s on her way home to Palm Beach, FL with her latest conquest, Toto. She pulls up to the dock in her yacht and immediately wants to drop Toto for Tom Jeffers (Joel McCrea). Tom is in town looking for his wife, Gerry (Claudette Colbert) who has traveled to Palm Beach from New York. While on the train to Florida, Gerry meets the Princess’ brother, John D. Hackensacker III (Rudy Vallee). John is instantly smitten with Gerry and takes her back to his home to give her a place to stay.
Mary Astor’s performance as the Princess is hysterical. Even though she’s taken Toto as her lover, she wants nothing to do with him as soon as she spots Joel McCrea. Her disdain for Toto is so clear and obvious, but he’s a dope and doesn’t pick up on it. The Princess constantly has to think of errands to send Toto on so she’ll go away. She’s also very funny when Gerry introduces her husband as “Captain McGlue” in an effort to hide the fact that he’s her husband. When Tom later reveals that he is not Captain McGlue, the Princess says: “Thank heaven for some things. That name!”
Clark Gable and Mary Astor in “Red Dust.”
#3 Red Dust (1933) In this film, Mary plays Barbara Willis, the wealthy wife of Gary (Gene Raymond) who is sent to oversee a rubber plantation in French Indochina. The manager of the rubber plantation is Dennis Carson (Clark Gable). Another visitor to the plantation is Vantine (Jean Harlow), a young prostitute on the lam. Vantine is instantly smitten with Dennis and he seems interested in her until he sees Barbara. Barbara is the polar opposite of Vantine. She is brunette, more classy and ladylike. In contrast, Vantine is a bleached blonde, a brash, and outspoken. Gary ends up coming down with malaria, which puts him out of commission and more importantly, away from Barbara. Dennis spends the week of Barbara’s visit seducing her until she finally succumbs to his advances. Meanwhile, Vantine looks on with intense jealousy.
This is a very sexy part for Mary Astor. She is given the chance to have the hot and heavy affair with the hunky Clark Gable. The entire film is sweaty and it feels sweaty. At one point, Barbara is caught in the rain and is drenched. She then shares a sexy kiss with Gable.
Mary Astor and John Barrymore in “Midnight.”
#4 Midnight (1939) In this film, Mary plays the wealthy Helene Flammarion, the wife of Georges Flammrion (John Barrymore). She is very openly having an affair with ladies man, Jacques Picot (Frances Lederer). At the beginning of the film, Eve Peabody (Claudette Colbert) crashes a concert attended by members of the Parisian high society. She ends up running into Marcel Renaud (Rex O’Malley) who invites her to play bridge with himself, Helene, and Jacques. Eve introduces herself as “Madame Czerny.” Georges enters the room and sees Eve. He pretends to recognize Madame Czerny.
Georges comes up with a scheme to break up his wife and Jacques. He proposes to Eve that she try and break up Jacques and Helene. If she succeeds, Georges will give her a good payoff to reward her for her efforts. He will also give her 50,000 francs and invites her to his and Helene’s home in Versailles for the weekend. Georges also puts Eve up in a suite at the Ritz and buys her a new wardrobe, worthy of her persona as Madame Czerny. Meanwhile, cab driver Tibor Czerny (Don Ameche) is looking for Eve, having fallen in love with her while her drove her around town. When he finally finds her, he is amused that she’s taken on his surname as her fake royalty name.
While Mary Astor is more of a side character in this film, she is very funny in her part as John Barrymore’s unfaithful wife. She has absolutely no discretion in her affair with Jacques. Mary excels in these parts playing a bit of a goody two shoes, but also classy and a bit rigid. She’s also great at delivering her lines with a bit of bitterness, cynicism, while also being very funny.
Mary Astor and Humphrey Bogart in “The Maltese Falcon”
#5 The Maltese Falcon (1941). This is perhaps Mary Astor’s most famous role, that of femme fatale Brigid O’Shaugnessy in John Huston’s directorial debut and Humphrey Bogart’s breakout role. In this film, Brigid introduces herself to Bogart’s Sam Spade as “Miss Wonderly,” but he soon figures out that she’s lying about her identity. She comes to Sam wanting help in finding out the whereabouts of her missing sister. All Brigid can say is that she came to town (San Francisco) with Floyd Thursby. Sam puts his associate, Miles Archer, on the case. Miles is murdered while investigating Thursby’s whereabouts.
Sam sets out to investigate Archer’s death, but is soon thrust into an even larger (more interesting) mystery. He goes to Brigid, now calling herself Brigid having abandoned the “Miss Wonderly” moniker, to find out more information about Thursby. Brigid confesses that she made up the story about her sister and revealed that Thursby was her partner. She also puts forth the theory that Thursby probably killed Archer. When Sam returns to his office, he encounters Joe Cairo (Peter Lorre) who is wanting help looking for a statue of a black bird.
The black bird investigation proves to be a lot more interesting, especially when it turns out that Brigid is acquainted with Joe Cairo. Sam also learns that Cairo and Brigid are part of a gang led by Kasper Gutman (Sydney Greenstreet). Wilmer Cook (Elisha Cook Jr.) is Kasper’s gunsel and eventual fall guy. The ending of the film where Sam calls Brigid out and says she was responsible for Archer’s death. This is Mary Astor’s time to shine. In the scene, she is heartbroken that Sam Spade, with whom she thought she was in love, sends her up the river. She pleads with him to not turn her over to the police, but to no avail. He “consoles” her stating that she’ll probably be out in twenty years. As she descends in the elevator, Brigid’s face is covered by the shadows of bars on the windows.
When I saw this event announced, it took me a bit to decide who I wanted to marathon for this event. The no more than three films viewed requirement also caused further deliberation. No binging a favorite, I needed to pick a rarely viewed star whom I wanted to watch. As I thought more and more about some of my favorite performers, I thought about Paulette Goddard. I’d only seen her in three films: Modern Times (1936), The Women (1939), and Hold Back the Dawn (1941). I loved her in each film. Goddard’s films, with the exception of the ones I’d previously watched, rarely air on TCM. I believe this is most likely due to Goddard being under contract to David O. Selznick and later Paramount. Both of these studios’ output is outside of the Warner Brothers film library to which TCM has access. The film library is made up of the output of Warner Brothers, RKO, and pre-1985 MGM films. As a result, stars under contract with the aforementioned studios are more likely to have a stronger presence on TCM.
Bob Hope & Paulette Goddard
But I digress. I selected Paulette Goddard, as I had handful of her films available in my home library and had a couple of her films recorded. As I reviewed my choices for this marathon, I realized that 3/5 Goddard films also featured Bob Hope. Hope was another Paramount contract player with a long film career. As I thought about which of his films I’d watched, I realized that I’d only seen a couple of his films as well. I decided to add Hope to my entry for this blogathon event.
Paulette Goddard
Dramatic School (1938)
This film is reminiscent of Stage Door (1937) and Finishing School (1934). All three films are about a group of women either living or working together–all involved in the same pursuit, whether it’s living at the Footlights Club boarding house for aspiring actresses (Stage Door), attending the same finishing school (Finishing School) and in the case of Dramatic School, it’s a group of women attending the same, you guessed it, dramatic school. The humor and drama from the film comes from the women’s interactions with one another and their various rivalries when it comes to men and desired acting roles.
Luise Rainer plays the star student, Louise Mauban, who spends her evenings working in a factory to pay for her drama lessons. Due to burning the candle at both ends, Louise is constantly late. To avoid revealing her evening job to her classmates, Louise concocts a lie about spending her evenings being wined and dined by her boyfriend, the Marquis Andre D’Abbencourt. Louise’s classmates begin to suspect that she’s lying, as the stories seem a little too fantastic to be true. Paulette Goddard plays the ringleader, Nana, who comes up with a scheme to reveal Louise’s lie and embarrass her in front of her classmates. It is obvious that Nana and the other girls, one of whom is played by Lana Turner, want to knock Louise down a peg.
Nana’s scheme is to invite Andre and Louise to her birthday party, and bring up one of Louise’s stories in front of Andre. Nana assumes that Andre will inadvertently spill the beans about not dating Louise, which will expose Louise as well as embarrass her. However the plan backfires when Andre is somehow charmed by the stories about him and Louise’s dates, and decides to play along. Then they become a real couple.
Despite being second billed, Paulette really doesn’t have a huge role in the plot. This is more or less Rainer’s film. However, I don’t want to focus on Rainer, because frankly I would have much rather seen more Paulette. Her character is more or less the villain of the film, as she wants nothing more than to humble Louise. I wish her scheme had gone off as she’d planned, it would have made the movie a lot more interesting to watch. Dramatic School was pretty much a dud, but Paulette managed to breathe some life into it every time she was on screen. Her vivacious personality added some nice levity and livened things up, and believe me this film needed all the life it could get.
The Crystal Ball (1943)
This was a blind buy I’d actually purchased from Classic Flix during a previous sale. I’d never heard of this film before, but it sounded fun and I was intrigued by the cast: Goddard, Ray Milland, William Bendix, Cecil Kellaway, Gladys George? I finally watched the film for this blogging event and I’m glad I did. It was a lot of fun.
In this film, Goddard plays Toni Gerard, a young woman who moves to New York from Texas. Homeless and desperate for a job, she reluctantly takes a job as a decoy for a local shooting gallery, run by Pop Tibbets (Kellaway). Having revealed in a conversation with Madame Zenobia (George) that she was a sharpshooter back home, Toni is referred to the shooting gallery for a job. After showing off her shooting skills, Pop hires her. Her job is to pretend to be a random passerby who chooses to try her luck at the shooting gallery. She’ll hit all the targets and attract other customers to try their luck. Then Toni leaves and comes back later when a new batch of potential customers are around.
Madame Zenobia is part of another scam with her colleague, a woman who obtains work as a maid at the homes of wealthy clients. After working for the client for awhile, she determines a piece of jewelry or something else of value that the client loves and would notice if it went missing–or she makes a point of making sure the client knows it’s missing. At the beginning of the film, the maid’s target is wealthy widow Jo Ainsley (Virginia Field). She takes one of Jo’s prized rings and drops it down the drain pipe. She then cries to Jo that her ring is missing and puts on the crocodile tears, feigning distress about her client’s lost property. The maid also cleverly deflects any sort of blame or suspicion. She then convinces Jo to visit a psychic who could tell her the location of her ring. Then of course, before Jo’s visit, the maid has gotten to Madame Zenobia to reveal the location. Jo’s confidence in psychics is affirmed when Madame Zenobia tells her the location and it turns out to be true.
Eventually, Madame Zenobia is injured and Toni has to fill in. She runs both the shooting gallery and psychic scams. Toni also lives at Madame Zenobia’s store. One evening, she spots Jo and her boyfriend, government lawyer Brad Cavanaugh (Milland) entering Madame Zenobia’s store. His chauffer, Biff Carter (Bendix), waits outside. Toni is instantly smitten with Brad and decides to use her new position as the psychic to break up Brad and Jo so she can have him for herself. This scheme is the start of a highly questionable impression that Toni does when she pretends to enter the spirit of Brad’s deceased Native American friend. Toni uses a lot of bad Native American stereotypes and the “injun” slur. This would NEVER go over today. It definitely goes on a bit long too, I think it could have been edited down a smidge.
Regardless, Goddard and Milland have fantastic chemistry–a chemistry that would carry them through four films together. She also has a lot of great comedic moments and gets to wear a few great dresses, including an one shouldered sequin gown that is reminiscent of the one she wears in The Women. Goddard looks absolutely gorgeous in this film and even though the ending kind of doesn’t make sense, we know that she and Milland will end up together.
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Paulette Goddard & Bob Hope
The Cat & the Canary (1939)
This was a really fun horror-comedy film starring Paulette Goddard and Bob Hope. Goddard and Hope made three films together and I watched all three. ‘Canary’ starts with a familiar horror movie premise: a group of people are invited to come to a large estate. The guests are familiar with the host, but don’t know each other. Typically the guests are either offered an incentive to stay (House on Haunted Hill), or are stuck there due to circumstances (The Old Dark House), or in the case of The Cat and the Canary, the guests are there to witness the reading of the deceased homeowner’s will. In this film, the deceased Cyrus Norman’s will stipulated that the heir to his estate and fortune could not be revealed until 10 years after his death. 10 years is up and that is the start of our film.
Goddard plays Joyce Norman, the only actual direct relative of Cyrus’ and the sole heir. However, he has named a first runner-up heir, should the sole heir not be able to live up to the terms of the will–specifically not to go insane within the first 30 days. It’s a weird clause, but it’s well established that Cyrus was an eccentric individual. The runner-up heir’s name is not revealed, which sets up another typical horror film trope–the guests turning against one another. Bob Hope plays another relative of Cyrus’, Wally Campbell. He however, is not related to Joyce. Other guests include Cyrus’ aunt Susan (Elizabeth “Miss Trumbull” Patterson) and a mousy relative named Cicily. Then there are two men, Fred Blythe and Charles Wilder, who seem to resent not being named heirs.
It can be expected that a bulk of the film will involve the other potential runner-up heirs, save for Wally, trying to torment Joyce and drive her insane. Wally makes it a point to be on Joyce’s side and keep an eye on her and keep her safe from the other guests. When I got through Hope and Goddard’s other two films, I noticed that a common plot line was Hope being in love with Goddard. This film was no exception. Hope and Goddard have a nice rapport and chemistry with one another and I enjoyed their three films immensely.
The Ghost Breakers (1940)
This was Paulette Goddard and Bob Hope’s second film together and ended up being my favorite of the three. In this film, Hope plays Lawrence “Larry” Lawrence Lawrence, a radio broadcaster who uses his show as a platform to expose the crimes of local gangster, Frenchy. Goddard plays Mary Carter, a woman staying at the same Manhattan hotel as Frenchy. During the broadcast, Mary is visited by Cuban solicitor Parada (Paul Lukas), who is delivering the deed to a plantation and mansion in Cuba that she’s inherited. Parada wants to take the property off her hands and buy it, but Mary refuses. Another Cuban, Ramon Mederos (Anthony Quinn), calls Mary and warns her not to sell her property. After the radio broadcast ends, Larry is invited by Frenchy (who heard the program) down to the hotel.
Larry arrives at the hotel with a gun, thinking that Frenchy inevitably will try to kill him. At the same time, Ramon arrives as Parada is leaving. Larry, Frenchy, Ramon and Parada all end up in a shootout with Ramon killed in the fracas. Larry thinks he may have accidentally killed Ramon. He ends up hiding in Mary’s steamer trunk, hoping to escape. The plan goes off and he ends up on an ocean liner to Havana with Mary. On board, Mary and Larry end up meeting Geoff (Richard Carlson), an acquaintance of Mary’s. Eventually, Mary and Larry make it to the property that she inherited.
This film was a lot of fun and I attribute its success to the wonderful rapport between Paulette Goddard and Bob Hope. This was another film where Hope fell in love with Goddard. She has such a delightful presence in her films, as she brings some humor imbued with glamour and charm. Hope pretty much plays the same type of guy in a lot of his movies–the wisecracking everyman, but it works. I loved this film and actually found the ending to be surprising.
Nothing But the Truth (1941)
This film was Paulette Goddard and Bob Hope’s last film together. In this film, Hope plays stockbroker, Steve Bennett, who moves to Miami to take a new position—working for TT Ralston (Edward Arnold). On his first day, TT’s niece, Gwen Saunders (Goddard) shows up, in need of money to cover a $40,000 pledge she’s made to a charity. TT promised Gwen that he’ll cover half of her pledge if she can come up with the other half. It either wasn’t clearly stated, or I missed this minor plot point, but it seems that the charity gave Gwen $10,000 and she promised to increase it to the $40,000. The charity’s manager, Mr. Bishop (Grant Mitchell) appears throughout the film trying to find out the status on his $10,000. Gwen appeals to Steve to invest her $10,000 and double it. The catch? She only has 24 hours to give Mr. Bishop the $40,000 pledge, or return the $10,000 otherwise he’ll have her arrested for embezzlement. It seems like it’d be easier to return the $10,000, but we wouldn’t have a movie if she did.
At the same time, Steve tells TT and his other colleagues that he doesn’t approve of their procedure to push bad stocks onto unsuspecting clients. He insists that they could be just as successful telling the truth versus lying. TT and the other men think Steve is crazy, but make a bet with him that he can’t tell the truth for 24 hours. TT puts up $10,000 and Steve puts up Gwen’s $10,000. With $20,000 on the line, we have the main plot of our film. There’s a very funny scene later in the film when Steve’s honesty is tested when he converses with a “mature” woman who insists she looks 30.
Again in this film, Bob Hope’s character is in love with Paulette’s. They have some very funny scenes together. Hope has some great scenes where due to circumstances, he has to try and sneak around on a yacht wearing a dressing robe, belonging to Linda, an exotic dancer.
Bob Hope
Bob Hope
Road to Singapore (1940)
Surprisingly, I had never seen one of Bob Hope and Bing Crosby’s “Road” movies. I decided to watch their first film together and enjoyed it very much. There was obviously some humor and situations very of their time, but overall it was an enjoyable film. Hope plays Ace Lannigan, the best friend of Crosby’s character, Josh Mallon. At the beginning of the film, the two men work on the same ship. Upon disembarking the ship, Ace and Josh notice the mistreatment their colleagues receive at the hands of their wives. Ace and Josh vow to never get involved with women. That vow lasts all of five minutes when they return to town and meet up with Josh’s father (Charles Coburn) and his apparent fiancée, Gloria (Judith Barrett). Mr. Mallon, a rich shipping magnate, wants his son to settle down, marry the right girl and assume a proper role in the family business.
Not wanting to settle down, Josh and Ace head for Hawaii, then later Singapore. In Singapore, they meet Mima (Dorothy Lamour), a local woman who is involved in an abusive relationship with her boyfriend and dance partner, Caesar (Anthony Quinn). Josh and Ace allow Mima stay with them. This sets off some funny scenes where Mima tries to clean the men’s home and cook them proper meals. She also decorates their shack to make it more homey. At first Ace and Josh resent Mima “feminizing” their space, but it is obvious that they secretly like it–and Mima. Eventually they run out of money and Ace comes up with a scheme selling a cleaning product. He assumes the role of snake oil salesmen when he tries to promote this product to the native population, but the sales pitch does not go well. Eventually, Mr. Mallon and Gloria find their way to Singapore to bring Josh back.
It’s obvious why Bob Hope and Bing Crosby were so successful in their road films. The two men were best friends in real life and their friendship extends on screen as well. Dorothy Lamour also co-starred in the “Road” films and she is a good extension to the team. Her character fits well without her seeming like she’s the third wheel, or just shoehorned in. Hope and Crosby’s characters play to their strengths, with Hope having a lot of comedic parts and Crosby singing. Lamour was a dancer and singer and her strengths are allowed to be showcased as well. I haven’t watched the other “Road” movies yet, but I look forward to seeing the next one.
Boy, Did I Get the Wrong Number! (1966)
This movie is one of Bob Hope’s 1960s sex comedies. I am not sure how he ended up in these types of films, but for whatever reason they work for me. I quite enjoy his 1961 sex comedy, Bachelor in Paradise, co-starring Lana Turner. In ‘Number,’ Hope plays married man, Tom Meade, a California businessman who sinks a fortune into a remote lakeside cabin in Rocky Point, Oregon. He thinks that he’ll easily be able to resell it for a profit, but the cabin turns out to be a money pit. It also turns out that the cabin is too rural and not in a desirable place to live.
At the same time, French actress, Didi (Elke Sommer), is tired of playing a sexpot who is renowned for her sexy bathing scenes in her films. When her director/lover insists that she take yet another sexy bath, Didi protests, gets into her car and drives off. In a plot point that doesn’t really make sense, but we’re going with it, Tom makes a business call and is accidentally connected with Didi. She explains that she’s holed up in a nearby hotel and is in need of food and water. Tom tries to covertly sneak out of the house to deliver food and water to Didi’s hotel, but his housekeeper, Lily (Phyllis Diller), catches on and soon she’s involved in the scheme as well.
Seeing his opportunity to profit off this situation, Tom offers Didi the use of his Oregon cabin. Knowing that there’s an intense manhunt for her, Tom thinks that by allowing Didi to stay at his home, he can market it as the cabin in which she hid out. Didi takes Tom up on the offer and relocates to Southern Oregon. As a native Oregonian, when scenes at the the cabin were shown, I could tell from the landscaping that they were not in Oregon. I was right. The “Oregon” scenes were filmed at Lake Arrowhead in California. This film definitely was not the type of film where realism mattered, the extra expense to film on location in Oregon wouldn’t have made a difference.
The main conflict of the film comes when Tom’s wife, Martha (Marjorie Lord) wants to spend a romantic weekend at the cabin. He’s stuck between a rock and a hard place, as he obviously can’t tell Martha the truth. Tom and Lily arrive ahead of Martha and find Didi nearly unconscious from sleeping pills. They manage to move her to a bedroom just in time for Martha’s arrival. This sets off a comedy of errors with Tom needing to move Didi from room to room to keep his secret from Martha. Phyllis Diller has some very funny scenes, including multiple scenes with her driving a motorcycle. I particularly liked the scene when she mowed down all the Boy Scout tents. Hope and Diller had fantastic chemistry. Their chemistry was so good in fact, that it almost makes Martha and Didi secondary characters. As an aside, Marjorie Lord has the absolute worst hairstyle in this film. I know the 60s were about beehives and tall hair, but Lord’s hair is completely absurd. It looks like she placed Agnes Moorehead’s Endora wig on top of a dutch boy haircut.
Happy New Year, everyone! Another busy holiday season has passed. So that I didn’t miss yet a second blogathon (I’ll get back to the Warner Bros one, even though I am way past the date to turn in my post), I wanted to get my post about two of my faves–James Cagney and Humphrey Bogart, finished.
Cagney and Bogart have a lot in common:
Both born in 1899 (Cagney on July 17th and Bogart on December 25th).
Both were born in New York City.
Both started their careers on the New York stage.
Both were Warner Brothers contract players.
Both were known for their gangster films.
Both won their respective Oscars playing non-gangster characters (Cagney for Yankee Doodle Dandy and Bogart for The African Queen).
Both are iconic stars of Classic Hollywood.
James Cagney in 1930.
However, Cagney and Bogart’s childhoods couldn’t be more different. Cagney was born into a lower-class neighborhood and grew up in a tenement. His father was a bartender and his mother was the daughter of a barge captain. Eventually Cagney was forced to drop out of school and support the family financially when his father succumbed to influenza during the 1918 epidemic in the United States. Cagney held a variety of odd jobs before finding work in the theater. He worked as a junior architect, a copy boy, book custodian, bellhop, draughtsman (doing technical drawings–I looked it up), and a night doorkeeper. As a child, Cagney also took tap dancing (which would serve him well in Yankee Doodle Dandy) and also was a skilled street fighter (which I’m sure served him well in his films). In 1919, Cagney’s dancing ability earned him a spot in the New York stage production of Every Sailor. He would continue performing on the stage until 1930 when the stage production of Sinners’ Holiday brought he (and co-star Joan Blondell) to Hollywood for the film adaptation.
Humphrey Bogart in The Petrified Forest (1936)
Bogart’s upbringing couldn’t be more different than Cagney’s. Born into an affluent family who owned an apartment on the classy Upper West Side of New York, Bogart was not suffering. In addition to their apartment, the Bogart parents also owned a lake home on 55 acres. Rare for the time, Bogart’s mother was an extremely successful commercial artist who did illustrations for companies such as Anheuser-Busch, Ivory Soap, and Metropolitan Life Insurance. Despite the legend that baby Humphrey served as the Gerber Baby model, this is not true. The famous Gerber baby logo was not designed until Bogart was an adult and his mother did not design it. Mrs. Bogart did use an illustration of baby Humphrey for Mellins Baby Food. For the record, the original 1926 Gerber Baby was Ann Turner Cook. She was born in 1926 and just passed recently–2022. The sketch was drawn by Cook’s neighbor, Dorothy Hope Smith, who submitted the drawing in response to Gerber’s contest looking for their new logo. Smith’s successful illustration earned her $300 (or $5386 in 2023).
I love this part of Casablanca, I never tire of it.
But enough about the Gerber Baby, back to Bogart. Despite his privileged childhood (with Bogart’s parents earning a combined $70,000 annually, a huge sum for the 1900s-1910s), Bogart was not an academic scholar. He attended numerous fancy pants private schools, eventually ending up in an esteemed boarding school–of which he was kicked out. Mr. and Mrs. Bogart had hoped their son would attend Yale, but that was pretty much off the table once he was kicked out of school. In 1918, Bogart joined the Navy and enjoyed his time after the Armistice ferrying soldiers back from Europe. In 1921, Bogart made his stage debut in Drifting. In 1928, Bogart appeared in a short film, The Dancing Town, and in a 1930 short, Broadway’s Like That. Also in 1930, the same year Cagney was making his screen debut, Bogart secured a contract with Fox and appeared in his first film Up the River, with soon-to-be lifelong friend, Spencer Tracy.
However, unlike Cagney, Bogart’s Hollywood stardom wasn’t instant. Despite having appeared in a series of films for Fox, there was no single breakthrough role for Bogart. Cagney shot to super stardom in his sixth film, The Public Enemy (1931). He was unstoppable after that and appeared in a series of successful gangster films. Cagney also regularly waged wars with Jack Warner, head of Warner Brothers, demanding more money after each successive hit film. Unfortunately, Bogart was not in the same position to make such demands, having not appeared in a hit film. After a couple false starts in Hollywood, Bogart finally got the role he was hoping for when he appeared in 1936’s The Petrified Forest. ‘Forest’ was a Broadway play that featured Bogart and Leslie Howard. Warner Brothers bought the rights to the story and brought Howard out to Hollywood to reprise his role. However, they wanted their star, Edward G. Robinson to appear in Bogart’s role, Duke Mantee. Howard responded to Warners’ request by sending a telegram stating “No Bogart, No Deal.” Warners acquiesced to Howard’s demands, and Bogart’s star was finally on the ascent. He would finally become a bona fide superstar, achieving Cagney’s level of stardom, with a series of hits, one after another–High Sierra (1940), The Maltese Falcon (1941), and Casablanca (1942).
Cagney and Bogart appeared in three films together: Angels with Dirty Faces (1938), The Roaring Twenties (1939), and The Oklahoma Kid (1939)
These are my Top 5 Favorite Cagney and Bogart Films:
(Please excuse me if some of your favorites aren’t listed, either I haven’t seen it, I haven’t seen it for a long time and can’t remember it, there wasn’t enough room in my Top 5, or maybe I loved something else more!)
JAMES CAGNEY
White Heat (1949) This is probably my favorite Cagney film. His portrayal of the vile Cody Jarrett is captivating. He is a terrible person, but in some ways, you can’t help root for him. He’s the villain of the story, but he’s complicated and has some good points, especially where his mother is concerned. There’s also no denying that the ending of White Heat is one of the all-time most iconic scenes in cinema history.
The Public Enemy (1931). There’s no denying that Cagney’s break-through role isn’t one of his best. This film features the iconic scene of Cagney smashing Mae Clarke’s face with a grapefruit. It also features future stars Jean Harlow and Joan Blondell. What more could you want? Cagney screams star quality even in the opening credit sequence where he makes a little punching motion and raises his eyebrows.
Footlight Parade (1933). This film features Cagney tap dancing and hoofing his way through multiple numbers as he plays a producer trying to save his career by producing a series of prologues. He is once again paired with Joan Blondell who plays his secretary who is in love with him and horribly jealous of Cagney’s interest in Claire Dodd. The trio of prologues at the end of the film is the highlight. Also a highlight? Cagney trying to teach Frank McHugh how to move like a cat.
Picture Snatcher (1933). In this film, Cagney plays a “picture snatcher,” the 1930s equivalent of paparazzi. Cagney is an employee of editor, Ralph Bellamy, who is reluctant to hire him. However, Cagney soon wins his place on the team by using rather unscrupulous methods to obtain hard-to-get in demand photos for his newspaper. Eventually, Cagney’s ethics are put to the test when he is admitted to an execution at Sing Sing, where one of the rules is “no pictures.”
Taxi! (1932). Cagney is paired up with Loretta Young in this film where he plays a scrappy taxi cab driver in New York City. Loretta’s father, cab driver Guy Kibbee, is facing pressure from a rival cab service who wants his primo location. The rival cab service is using force to try and dominate the entire cab industry in New York City. Loretta appeals to Cagney to encourage his colleagues to fight back against the rival cab company (aka the mob).
HUMPHREY BOGART
Casablanca (1942). It’s cliche, but this is probably my favorite Bogart film and my second favorite film overall (after The Long Long Trailer). Every piece of this film is iconic, from the score, to the dialogue, to the actors’ performances. Even though I’ve seen it a million times, Bogart’s iconic “hill of beans” speech to Ingrid Bergman at the end of the film still gives me goosebumps. I never tire of it.
The Maltese Falcon (1941). Another cliche choice, but film noir was born with this film and Bogart’s Sam Spade was pretty much the archetype for the film noir detective. The entire cast is fantastic and initiated another great partnership–between Sydney Greenstreet and Peter Lorre. This film is also notable for being John Huston’s directorial film debut.
Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1947). Not a deep-cut but it’s hard to find one in Bogart’s career when he made so many hit films. Bogart’s run of films in the 1940s might be the most successful run of films anyone has ever had. An actor would probably be happy just having a Casablanca as part of their resume. However, Bogart has not only Casablanca, he has ‘Falcon,’ High Sierra, To Have and Have Not, Key Largo, The Big Sleep, Dark Passage, and Treasure of the Sierra Madre. After Rick Blaine, Bogart’s most famous character might be Fred C. Dobbs. Bogart turns in an excellent performance where he starts out as a desperate man just looking to survive in Mexico. He is given a chance to make a bunch of money mining for gold, eventually succumbing to the greed and desperation that motivates his need to get as much money as possible–at whatever cost is necessary.
To Have or Have Not (1944). This is the film that introduced Bogart and Lauren Bacall to not only audiences, but to each other! Bacall was a discovery of director Howard Hawks’ wife, who spotted her on the cover of Harper’s Bazaar. Despite their 25 year age difference, Bogart and Bacall’s chemistry is off the charts and they steal the show. Bacall has one of the all-time greatest screen debuts, where not only is she an instant star, she also became half of an indelible part of Classic Hollywood history–the legendary Bogie and Bacall romance. Bacall also delivers the iconic “you do know how to whistle don’t you? You just put your lips together and blow” line.
In a Lonely Place (1950). This is an absolutely spectacular film noir directed by Nicholas Ray and co-starring Gloria Grahame. Bogart’s son, Stephen, stated that In a Lonely Place is the closest depiction to the real Bogart that was ever captured on film. Bogart’s character is a complicated man. He is capable of love, empathy, loyalty, romance, etc. as depicted in his relationship with Grahame. However, he is also shown as being capable of violence, through depictions of his explosive temper causing him to engage in a serious road rage incident with a fellow motorist. The conflict of the entire film is that a woman who was last seen with Bogart is murdered, but he is cleared as a suspect with Grahame providing an alibi. However, as more and more of his personality and temper is revealed, the film begins to question Bogart’s innocence. This is a fascinating film.
The idea of this blogathon event is to write about a film that features either a character that battles their primal inclinations or one who challenges social norms–think of the plot of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast as the best example of this theme. We have the Beast who has to fight his primal inclinations to be violent and angry when things don’t go his way. Then we have Belle, the young woman who is more interested in reading than she is in marrying the handsome Gaston. She further challenges social expectations by falling in love with the Beast after discovering his inner kindness and caring nature.
Another film featuring a woman challenging social expectations is Queen Christina (1933) starring Greta Garbo as the titular character. The film is a biopic and loosely depicts the life of the real life Queen Christina who ruled Sweden from 1632 to 1654. At the beginning of the film, Christina’s father, King Gustavus Adolphus is killed in battle. His daughter, 6-year old Christina, is the next heir and ascends the throne. As a minor, the adult members of Christina’s court rule until she is old enough to assume control of the throne. The film flashes forward a couple decades in the future and a now-grown Christina is beloved by her constituents due to her fair rule and love for her country. Her goal is peace for Sweden and is happy when the Thirty Years’ War finally ends.
Because an adult woman, especially royalty, cannot be single by choice, Christina’s bachelorette status is in question. The male members of Christina’s court are heavily preoccupied with her marrying and producing an heir. It can also be assumed that Christina is approaching 30 which puts her into spinster territory and increases fears that she’ll never have a child that can inherit the throne. The court keeps pushing their desired suitor, Karl Gustav, on Christina. She is dismissive, because first of all, Karl is her cousin. Then she sees an image of Karl and laughs, “is that what he looks like?” Despite being cousins, Karl and Christina are not acquainted. Other potential suitors throw themselves at Christina and being the progressive woman that she is, she indulges in some of the affairs, but ditches them when they reveal that her throne is what they want.
Even dressed like a pilgrim, Garbo looks amazing.
Later, Christina further rebuffs social norms when she sneaks out of her castle, dressed in male clothing, to ride her horse in the countryside, unbothered. It starts snowing and Christina seeks refuge in a local inn. She manages to claim the last remaining room. Spanish Envoy, Antonio (John Gilbert), shows up at the inn also in need of a room. Fooled by Christina’s male garb, the innkeeper asks her if she’d mind sharing her room with Antonio. After taking one look at Antonio, Christina agrees. Christina makes for quite the fetching man as all the women flirt with her including the chambermaid. In a funny scene, Antonio becomes uncomfortable when he realizes that he’s attracted to “the man” with whom he’s sharing his room. However, when Christina starts to undress to get ready for bed, Antonio is relieved to discover that she is in fact, a woman.
In one of the most “pre-code” scenes in the film, Christina and Antonio end up spending three days (and nights) together when the inn is snowed in. Further defying social expectations, Christina and Antonio’s lust for one another is too intense and it is very obvious that they gave into their carnal desires. The subsequent scenes of Christina (post-coital) walking around their room caressing the bedposts and feeding grapes to Antonio is very sexual and suggestive. Christina even compares their lovemaking to how God must have felt when he created the world (!). For the remainder of the film, Christina maintains her passion for Antonio, but does not reveal her true identity.
The famous scene between Queen Christina and her Lady-in-Waiting
Christina’s implied sexuality subverts social norms, when she’s seen smooching her lady-in-waiting, Countess Ebba, towards the beginning of the film. She becomes visibly upset and jealous when Ebba announces that she’s planning on spending the weekend in the country with her boyfriend. Later, she falls in love with Antonio, suggesting that she was bisexual. This is most definitely not what was expected of 17th century women–especially royalty.
Even to the very end, Queen Christina never gives into societal pressure. After her court coerces the public opinion into denouncing Antonio, she abdicates her throne–giving it to Karl Gustav, the person her court wanted her to marry. Christina plans to sail away on a ship with Antonio to start a new life. However, when she arrives at the ship to meet Antonio, she is saddened to discover him lying on the ground, gravely wounded. He was mortally wounded during a swordfight with Count Magnus, a member of Christina’s court and her former lover. Antonio dies in Christina’s arms. Instead of turning back and attempting to resume her throne, or even marrying Karl to return to her old life, Christina resolves to live the life she and Antonio envisioned. She sets sail, dreaming of her new life living in the house sitting on the white cliffs, overlooking the sea.
John Gilbert and Greta Garbo sensually feed each other grapes during their 3-day tryst.
Christina could have married the man her court wanted. She could have birthed “the heir and the spare.” Christina could have continued being the people’s Queen, doing everything in accordance with royal protocol. However, that’s not what she wanted. She loved who she wanted to love, and lived the life she wanted–much like Greta Garbo herself. Garbo never married. She never had children. Much like Christina, Garbo was rumored to be bisexual or lesbian. In 1941, Garbo turned her back on Hollywood, never to make another film. Her departure from Hollywood could be considered comparable to Queen Christina’s abdication of her throne. Both Garbo and Christina retired to the private life, to live anonymously. Despite rumors that Garbo became a recluse after the end of her Hollywood career, this is not true. She took vacations, attended parties, walked around New York City, and was an avid art collector. It’s easy to believe that the former Queen Christina, upon reaching her home on the white cliffs lived a similar life to Garbo, only the 17th century version.
For the this blogathon, bloggers were asked to write about movies featuring intruders. However, in this case, an intruder is not a criminal. An intruder is a person who may have entered someone’s life uninvited, but ultimately their presence lends to an improvement for everyone they meet. Often in these films, the intruder is either a supernatural being, or an alien, or simply a visitor from another town. Perhaps one of the all-time greatest films that fits this motif is The Wizard of Oz (1939).
One of the most iconic scenes in cinema history.
Because almost everyone has seen The Wizard of Oz, I don’t think an extensive plot summary is necessary. For the three people in the world who haven’t seen this film, it features a young girl, Dorothy Gale (Judy Garland) who resides on a depressing, dusty farm in Kansas. At the beginning of the film, she has a run-in with her mean neighbor, Almira Gulch (Margaret Hamilton), who claims that Dorothy’s dog Toto (Terry) bit her. Almira angrily confronts Dorothy’s guardians, her Auntie Em (Clara Blandick) and Uncle Henry (Charley Grapewin), and demands that Toto be handed over so she can have him destroyed. Henry reluctantly hands Toto over.
Because this is a happy film and having a young girl’s pet killed would be horribly depressing, Toto escapes. Auntie Em encourages Dorothy to take Toto somewhere where they can’t get into any trouble. This serves as the impetus for Judy Garland to sing what is perhaps the most famous movie song ever, “Over the Rainbow.” Later, in an effort to save Toto, Dorothy runs away. A tornado suddenly hits. Dorothy rushes back home and is unable to open the locked storm shelter. She seeks refuge in her house where she’s knocked unconscious by debris. When Dorothy awakens, she’s inside her home, but up in the cyclone. When she lands, she discovers that she is now in the Technicolor world of Oz. The scene of a sepia toned Dorothy stepping into the color saturated world of Oz is one of the most iconic scenes in film history.
The tree throwing apples at Dorothy always makes me laugh.
Soon Dorothy is greeted by Glinda, the alleged Good Witch of the North (Billie Burke). I maintain that Glinda is the true villain of the story. Glinda explains to Dorothy that she has killed the Wicked Witch of the East when her house landed, crushing the witch. The inhabitants of the land, the Munchkins (who I maintain are far creepier than the flying monkeys) rejoice and celebrate Dorothy killing the witch. Suddenly, the witch’s sister, The Wicked Witch of the West (Hamilton) appears, wanting to know who killed her sister, and to obtain possession of her sister’s ruby slippers. Glinda intervenes, placing the ruby slippers on Dorothy’s feet. Dorothy inquires about returning home and Glinda tells her only one person will be able to help her–The Wizard. The Wizard resides in the Emerald City. “Just follow the yellow brick road,” Glinda says.
“I’ll get you my pretty, and your little dog too!” Margaret Hamilton as The Wicked Witch of the West.
While skipping down the yellow brick road, Dorothy encounters three new friends, all with their own dream. She invites each new friend to join her in her journey to the Emerald City to meet The Wizard, assuming that if he can help her, surely he can help them. The first person Dorothy encounters is The Scarecrow (Ray Bolger), who desperately wants a brain. Later, the Scarecrow and Dorothy come across a rusted Tin Man (Jack Haley). After oiling his joints, the Tin Man explains that he wants a heart. He joins Scarecrow and Dorothy. Later, the trio meet a lion in the woods. However, he’s afraid of everything, and is known as the Cowardly Lion (Bert Lahr). The lion desperately wants courage, so he can live up to his title of “King of the Forest.” Eventually they reach Emerald City and speak with The Wizard.
In The Wizard of Oz, the three main characters Dorothy encounters (Scarecrow, Tin Man, and the Cowardly Lion) are literally wasting away in Oz. The scarecrow is nailed to a post. The Tin Man is rusted, and the lion is cowering in fear. Dorothy’s determination to get to Oz to find a way back to Kansas gives them the motivation to try and achieve their dreams as well. Plus, it is easy to see that they may have also wanted to protect this young girl from the Witch while she makes this journey. Through their journey, the quartet becomes close friends and are determined to make each other’s dreams come true.
“Who rang that bell?” The gatekeeper (Frank Morgan) tries to keep the gang from seeing the Wizard.
In the third act of the film, Dorothy is kidnapped by the Wicked Witch of the West and held captive. It is up to the Scarecrow, the Tin Man, and the Cowardly Lion to save Dorothy. The three work together and come up with a plan to sneak into the Witch’s castle and find their friend. This is important as it shows (and proves the Wizard’s point) that they always had the qualities that they’re seeking and were it not for Dorothy, they would have never made this discovery. The Scarecrow uses his intellect to figure out how to save Dorothy. The Tin Man’s heart and affection for Dorothy is what motivates him to save her. The lion wasn’t cowardly at all. Because he cared about Dorothy, he summoned up the courage to break into the Witch’s castle to save his friend.
One person in the film film who isn’t helped by Dorothy’s intrusion is The Wizard, whose scam in the Emerald City is ruined by Toto. Out of guilt, he is planning to leave Oz and escort Dorothy home personally, as he too is from Kansas. Then, the Wicked Witch of the East and West definitely did not benefit from Dorothy’s intrusion. The Wicked Witch of the East was literally crushed to death by Dorothy’s intrusion. The Wicked Witch of the West was “liquidated” by Dorothy when she threw a bucket of water in the Witch’s direction, trying to save Scarecrow whose straw body was on fire. However, Dorothy melting the witch led to the salvation of the flying monkeys and the castle guards, who were literally hailing Dorothy for freeing them.
Behind that smile lurks a sociopath. Billie Burke as Glinda in The Wizard of Oz.
As for Glinda, she is the true scum of this film. Despite her fun floaty pink bubble and her billowing pink sparkly dress, Glinda sucks. First, she puts Dorothy into this dangerous situation by stealing the ruby slippers and placing them on her feet, even though legally as the next of kin, they should have gone to the Wicked Witch of the West. Then, she forces Dorothy to take some dangerous journey to the Emerald City in hopes of getting home, knowing damn well that the Wizard won’t help her. At the end of the film, Glinda tells Dorothy that she had the power to get home the entire time. When asked why she didn’t just tell her that, Glinda glibly responds, “you wouldn’t have believed me.” Dorothy was poisoned, kidnapped and nearly killed by the Wicked Witch, but yes, let’s not tell her how to get home. Thanks Glinda. She’s an intruder that leaves nothing but chaos in her wake.
“Well bust my buttons, that’s a horse of a different color!”
