movies | dual personalities

November 19, 2015

“In my case, self-absorption is completely justified.”*

by chuckofish

Today is the birthday of the wonderful character actor Clifton Webb (November 19, 1889 – October 13, 1966). Born Webb Parmelee Hollenbeck (what a great name!) in Indianapolis, Indiana, he moved to New York City with his mother Maybelle when his parents divorced. By age 19 he was a professional ballroom dancer using the stage name Clifton Webb.

Between 1913 and 1947, Webb appeared in 23 Broadway shows, starting with major supporting roles and quickly progressing to leads. He introduced Irving Berlin’s “Easter Parade” and the Gershwin’s “I’ve Got a Crush on You” in Treasure Girl (1928). Most of Webb’s Broadway shows were musicals, but he also starred in Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest and in his longtime friend Noel Coward’s Blithe Spirit and Present Laughter.

Movies followed and he made some great ones: Laura (1944), of course,

and The Razor’s Edge (1946)–he received a supporting actor Oscar nomination for both. But remember him in Sitting Pretty (1948) where he played Mr. Belvedere for the first time? This movie is hysterical.

And he received a leading actor Oscar nomination for it. (Laurence Olivier won that year for Hamlet–go figure.) He made three Mr. Belvedere movies and also Cheaper By the Dozen (1950)–another classic Webb role.

I also really like him as Barbara Stanwyck’s husband in the under-appreciated Titanic (1953)

and in the English war movie The Man Who Never Was (1956).

He was equally adept at comedy and drama–never over-doing either. You could probably argue that Clifton Webb always played Clifton Webb, but he was always wonderful, so who cares?

He lived with his mother until her death at age 91 in 1960, leading Noel Coward to remark, apropos Webb’s grieving, “It must be terrible to be orphaned at 71.”

A toast to Clifton Webb and, if you can find one of his movies, watch it!

*Waldo Lydecker (Clifton Webb) in Laura (1944)

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November 6, 2015

Friday movie picks

by chuckofish

Earlier in the week it was the birthday of character actor Martin Balsam (1919-1996) who, I was reminded, was in a lot of my favorite movies. For instance he was in Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961)–

playing O.J. Berman, Holly’s agent. (“Hey, Fred-baby!”)

He was in A Thousand Clowns (1965)–

as Murray’s brother Arnold. (He won an Oscar for this one.)

He was in Hombre (1967)–

playing Paul Newman’s friend Henry Mendez.

Indeed, he was all over television and movies in the sixties and seventies and all the way to end of the millennium. As an ethnically-ambiguous Jew from the Bronx he could play everything from Mexican bandits to Wasp admirals and he did, over and over. He was like Ward Bond in an earlier generation, always popping up in random movies. What a career!

So I suggest you watch a movie with Martin Balsam in it. There are a lot of good ones from which to choose!

I will also note that I watched Melissa McCarthy’s Spy (2015) the other night.

I am not a big fan of Ms. McCarthy–she is frequently over-the top in the vulgarity department–but I thought this movie was really funny. Besides McCarthy, the movie features Jude Law as a James Bond-type spy and Jason Statham in a parody of himself. Allison Janney is great as the Boss Lady who is a super bitch, but has been there and seen that and, in the end, understands.

The use of the f-bomb in this movie is a parody in itself. As Rose Byrne says, “What f**kery is this?”

When all is said and done, Paul Fieg (the writer) manages to make some good points about women who are ignored, stereotyped, laughed at, and generally under-appreciated because they are not traditionally beautiful, thin, assertive etc.

Anyway, I laughed non-stop to the point of embarrassment. My eyes were streaming with tears. The OM sat stone-faced throughout, of course, but he did stay for the whole movie, which is unheard of practically, and I think he smiled a few times.

So try it; you might like it.

9 Comments

October 30, 2015

“One more murder may be one too many.”*

by chuckofish

Every year at this time I wrack my brain for a good movie recommendation for Halloween. I usually come up with something, but what is there new to suggest? As I have said many times, I am no fan of horror and I do not like gratuitous violence and bloodshed. So what does that leave?

How about some good old-fashioned Sherlock Holmes?

The Hound of the Baskervilles (1939) with Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes and Nigel Bruce as Dr. Watson is hard to beat.

Holmes and Watson investigate the legend of a supernatural hound, a beast that may be stalking a young heir on the fog-shrouded moor that makes up his estate. Yes, fog-shrouded moors are a good choice for Halloween, don’t you think?

I seem to remember that The Scarlet Claw (1944) is also pretty scary.

When a gentlewoman is found dead with her throat torn out (!), the villagers blame a supernatural monster, but Sherlock Holmes, who gets drawn into the case from nearby Quebec, suspects a human murderer.

Of course, there’s always Jane Marple–and by that I mean Margaret Rutherford.

There are four of these movies, but Murder Most Foul (1964)–when Miss Marple joins a theatrical company after a blackmailer is murdered, and then several members of the troupe are also dispatched by a mysterious killer–is my favorite.

But come to think of it, Murder She Said (1961), Murder at the Gallop (1963) and Murder Ahoy (1964) are all wonderful and hilarious! One could have a wonderful night of binge-watching all four.

I have not seen it in a long time, but M (1931) with Peter Lorre, Fritz Lang’s haunting, German-language crime drama, in which the Berlin police are hunting a whistling killer of children, is a great film.

The criminal underworld is after the killer as well, since the police manhunt has put a damper on their activities. And Lorre as the creepy killer is almost sympathetic in the famous confession speech where he describes with anguish his horrible compulsion. And who does creepy better than the Germans?

Another movie I have not seen for a long time, but liked when I first saw it, is From Hell (2001). Johnny Depp stars as an opium- and absinthe-addled Scotland Yard man assigned to the Jack the Ripper case, Robbie Coltrane is his stalwart partner and Ian Holm is the creepy royal surgeon who offers his advice. I’m sure I recall gratuitous violence and bloodshed, but nothing’s perfect. And it is scary.

Well, these are just suggestions.

I may binge watch Supernatural…remember Garth from season seven?

Happy Halloween!

*Miss Marple in Murder She Said (1961)

4 Comments

October 27, 2015

“Ramrod, wreckage and ruin”*

by chuckofish

R.I.P. Maureen O’Hara. She was 95 and had quite a life.

She made five movies with John Wayne (lucky lady!),

but she made a lot of other good ones too, like Oscar-winner How Green Was My Valley (1941), The Parent Trap (1961) with Brian Keith and Hayley Mills and Miracle on 34th Street (1947) with Natalie Wood. In fact she was in quite a few of my favorites! She even made a movie with John Candy–she played his mother!–Only the Lonely (1991).

In 2014, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences selected Maureen to receive the Academy’s Honorary Oscar. She was only the second actress, after Myrna Loy in 1991, to receive an Honorary Oscar without having previously been nominated for an Oscar in a competitive category.

Maybe I’ll watch Rio Grande (1950) tonight…

and toast Maureen O’Hara!

Into paradise may the angels lead you. At your coming may the martyrs receive you, and bring you into the holy city Jerusalem. (BCP, 500)

*Kathleen York in Rio Grande (1950)

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October 19, 2015

“The outermost suburbs of the Truth”*

by chuckofish

I didn’t do a whole lot this weekend. I went to a few estate sales and I puttered around the house. I walked around my neighborhood. It is the perfect weather for that.

I watched Furious 7 (2015) with Vin Diesel et al.

It was ridiculous but highly entertaining. Indeed, the movie deserves an Oscar for special effects, because I certainly could not tell you where the real Paul Walker began and ended. Those Weta Digital people are pretty amazing.

I didn’t go to church but stayed home and re-read Telling Secrets by Frederick Buechner, the third in his trilogy of memoir. It was the first book I ever read by Buechner and I was sold for life. But I guess he is not for everyone. When I first discovered him over twenty years ago, I recommended him to everyone I knew. One friend read The Sacred Journey (the first book of memoir) and thought he was a whiner. That is the last way I would describe him, but to each his own.

“The passage from Genesis points to a mystery greater still. It says that we came from farther away than space and longer ago than time. It says that evolution and genetics and environment explain a lot about us but they don’t explain all about us or even the most important thing about us. It says that though we live in the world, we can never really be at home in the world. It says in short not only that we were created by God but also that we were created in God’s image and likeness. We have something of God within us the way we have something of the stars.”

Buechner is the Man as far as I’m concerned.

And now it’s Monday again. Tra la la.

*Telling Secrets by Frederick Buechner

3 Comments

October 9, 2015

Friday movie pick: ”Call your baby, My wife’s having a husband”*

by chuckofish

Today we say happy birthday to Edward Andrews, character actor extraordinaire and Episcopalian. He was born to be the senior warden** in some fancy church, don’t you think?

In actuality he was the son of an Episcopal minister, born in Georgia in 1914. He attended the University of Virginia, and at age 21, made his stage debut in 1935, progressing to Broadway the same year. His movie career didn’t take off until he was in his forties, but he was made for the movies. Of course you remember him. He was perfect as both the harried executive and the slightly sleazy politician/military type. He frequently played The Mayor.

Last weekend I watched Send Me No Flowers (1964) in honor of Rock Hudson, and Andrews was hysterical as the doctor who puts up with Rock’s hypochondria.

He is also great in The Thrill of it All (1963) with Doris Day and James Garner, playing the flustered older father-to-be and advertising executive.

He was a staple on television from the 1950s until he his death in 1985. He was everywhere.

Anyway, one of Andrews’ movies might be just the ticket tonight as I know darn well it will be too stressful to watch the Cardinals take on the Cubs. Of course everyone in 49 states and Kansas City will be rooting for the Cubs against the Cards. That is always the way it is in the post-season. I hate it, but what can I do?

Pray hard.

*Gardiner Fraleigh in The Thrill of It All

**The senior warden in an Episcopal Church works alongside the parish rector. Together they share with their congregation the mission and vision of the parish and manage its operations as well. They also identify and work with members of the congregation who show leadership qualities or abilities and model ways of incorporating the Gospel in their daily lives.

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October 5, 2015

O friends, in gladness let us sing, supernal anthems echoing*

by chuckofish

[FYI supernal means a) being or coming from on high b) heavenly, ethereal.]

I went to church twice on Sunday so I am feeling the supernal vibe. I read at Evensong, but I had to go to a meeting after the 10 a.m. service, so that is why I also attended that service. I am “mentoring” one of our confirmands, so I was getting the lowdown on expectations for the coming year. My assignment is a girl I have known since she was a tiny tot and not someone who is too cool for me. No piercings or dyed black hair either. All ~~should~~ will be well.

The boy came over after church and knocked down an old fence for us.

The OM and I would have wrestled with this for who knows how long, so once again, how grateful we are to have his manly help.

It took him all of 10 minutes, so we went out to lunch at Steak ‘N Shake.

On Friday night the OM and I went to a work-sponsored party at the zoo. I got to see the new polar bear in his swanky new environment.

He growled at me through the glass. He was up-close and personal, right? I wanted to see him swimming, but he did not oblige.

We also saw some penguins

and we rode on the empty train.

We ate a hotdog and went home. It was an evening well spent.

I am reading the new mystery by Robert Galbraith (a.k.a. J.K. Rowling)–The Silkworm, which I am enjoying very much. I am not a big mystery fan, but the characters in her series are real (not cardboard) and I like her P.D., Cormoran Strike.

I watched Mad Max: Fury Road (2015), which I did not particularly like, and Send Me No Flowers (1964) with Rock Hudson (“Is it a sharp pain, is it a dull pain, or does it grip like a vice?”), which I liked very much.

Also, this is pretty darn great:

How was your weekend?

*Lasst uns erfreuen, #618

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October 2, 2015

Friday movie pick: “He’s the last guy in the world I woulda’ figured.”*

by chuckofish

Thirty years ago today, Rock Hudson died after a 15-month battle with AIDS . He was only 59.

So in his memory, I suggest we watch one of his movies tonight.

We could go with Rock Hudson and John Wayne in The Undefeated (1970)

or Rock Hudson and Doris Day and Tony Randall in Pillow Talk (1959)

or Rock Hudson and Gina Lollobrigida in Come September (1961).

His 1950s melodramas are a little heavy-handed for my taste but they’re not terrible. And he was great in his later career playing stand-up military types like Cdr. Ferraday in Ice Station Zebra (1968). But I like his romantic comedies best. He was perfect in them.

Indeed, he was just kind of perfect.

Have a great weekend! You go, Mike Matheny!

Yes, the Cardinals clinched their third straight division title, their fifth straight playoff appearance and their 12th postseason trip in the past 16 seasons. 100 wins. Central Division champs! Home field advantage!

*Fred in Lover Come Back (1961)–Hudson’s comedies are peppered with lines like this, as if his gayness was one big private joke in Hollywood (wink wink). I guess it was.

7 Comments

September 24, 2015

“Oh he’s real abstract. He’s…different.”*

by chuckofish

Tomorrow (Friday) is James Dean day on TCM–so set your DVR! And wait–they aren’t showing the usual three movies–the only ones he made before dying at age 24. They are presenting a selection of performances that he gave on live television that are rarely seen. All the programs are TCM premieres.

Born in Indiana, Dean moved to New York City in 1951 to study at the Actors Studio. While in NYC he performed in stage and TV dramas, and these are the roles to be showcased. They include a thief who finds redemption in Something for an Empty Briefcase (1953) for NBC’s “Campbell Soundstage”; an accused murderer in Sentence of Death (1953) for CBS’s “Studio One”; an ex-convict struggling for a new life in the Rod Serling teleplay, A Long Time Till Dawn (1953) for NBC’s “Kraft Theatre”; the restless son of a farm couple (Dorothy Gish and Ed Begley) in Harvest (1953) for NBC’s “Robert Montgomery Presents”; a waiter suspected of stealing in Run Like a Thief (1954) for NBC’s “The Philco-Goodyear Playhouse”; a lovestruck stable boy in Sherwood Anderson’s I’m a Fool(1954), with Natalie Wood, for CBS’s “General Electric Theater”; a “hepcat” killer in The Dark, Dark Hours (1954), with Ronald Reagan, for the “General Electric Theater”; and a wealthy man accused of robbing his family in The Thief (1955), with Diana Lynn and Mary Astor, for the ABC “United States Steel Hour.”

I don’t know about you, but I can’t wait! (My apologies and regrets to those of you who do not get TCM or have DVR capabilities. So it goes. Why not watch Rebel Without a Cause–always a fine idea!)

*Buzz Gunderson in Rebel Without a Cause

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September 17, 2015

The world is more than we know

by chuckofish

Once again I learned something interesting in an email from my flyover university about the death of an illustrious alum. William Becker, who was the head of Janus Films, was the uncle of one of my best friends growing up. I had no idea. I knew her aunt was a famous choreographer and I remember when her family went to NYC for spring break one year. ( You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown had opened on Broadway. Her next show was Grease.)

Eighth grade pre-contact lenses

But I did not know her uncle was so connected to the movies.

My friend was never particularly interested in the movies. Not like I was anyway.

Well, regardless, I am grateful to Janus Films for making La Belle et La Bete (1946), The Seventh Seal (1957), La Strada (1954), Rashomon (1950), Seven Samurai (1954), Tunes of Glory (1960)…and so on available to us all–first in American theaters and then on DVD.

It is a small world.