Reds under the bed – Hollywood and the HUAC.

December 10, 2015 admin 12

  John Huston directed and Sterling Hayden starred in The Asphalt Jungle in 1950. At the time both were members of The Committee for the First Amendment, a group formed in September 1947 to support the Hollywood Ten and to oppose those who wished to blacklist actors, writers etc. who […]

MGM’s ‘fixers – Mannix & Strickling.

November 29, 2015 admin 0

    Back when the studio system was in vogue, back in the ‘Golden Years of Hollywood, each of the ‘Big Five’ had its ‘fixers’, men whose job it was to keep scandal and bad publicity at bay; to do whatever it took to ensure that the paying public remained […]

In the beginning…

November 27, 2015 admin 2

  It is difficult today for us to understand how the invention of moving pictures impacted on the public at the turn of the 20th century. After all, we have grown up with them. They are part of our lives and always have been. Back in 1903, however, they were […]

Joan Collins – England’s iconic beauty.

November 19, 2015 admin 3

      Joan Collins was born in London in 1933. Her father was a Jewish man from South African, a moderately successful agent whose later clients would briefly include The Beatles, Tom Jones and Shirley Bassey. Joan signed a contract in England with J. Arthur Rank at the age […]

Leonardo DiCaprio – sensible superstar.

November 13, 2015 admin 4

  I wonder if any of the non-entities who comprised the cast of the woeful 1991 low budget horror feature Critters 3 entertained any suspicions that the 17 year-old who made his movie debut playing the part of Josh in it would go on to become an icon in the […]

Did you know? Points of interest Pt. 24.

November 11, 2015 admin 9

  Yesterday I stole 203 minutes out of the remainder of my life and watched the Liz Taylor, Rock Hudson and Jimmy Dean 1956 blockbuster Giant. I have certainly seen worse movies, but two hundred and three minutes! I found Rock and Liz to be far better than I expected, […]

Did you know? Points of interest Pt.23.

November 9, 2015 admin 0

  Deliverance (1972) was the picture that turned Burt Reynolds into a superstar. The first choice for his role, however, was Marlon Brando, the second Henry Fonda; the third James Stewart. Charlton Heston was also approached. Lee Marvin was asked to play the role that later went to Jon Voight. […]

Did you know? Points of interest Pt. 22.

November 7, 2015 admin 0

  For the life of me I cannot understand why critics rave about Hitchcock’s 1958 so-called ‘classic’ Vertigo. I watched it again yesterday and my opinion of it, if anything, was reinforced. It is as ordinary as dishwater. Take the opening sequence, for example. It is just plain stupid. A […]

Did you know? Points of interest Pt. 21.

November 5, 2015 admin 2

  The 1955 Rodgers & Hammerstein hit musical Oklahoma! was actually shot in Arizona! The songs are every bit as good as those in South Pacific, in my opinion, but the movie contains an overlong dance sequence that is, frankly, boring in the extreme. Surprisingly, Rod Steiger does his own […]

Did you know? Points of interest. Pt. 20.

November 3, 2015 admin 4

    Mississippi-born Dana Andrews had 12 brothers and sisters, one of whom was movie actor Steve Forrest. Their father was a Baptist minister. In the 1940s and 50s Dana was a popular leading man for Sam Goldwyn and 20th Century Fox. A trained opera singer, he was put into […]