Did you know? – Dietrich, Turner & Crawford. A few thoughts.

July 22, 2017 Alan Royle 5

    MARLENE DIETRICH        (1901-92) Marlene had literally hundreds of lovers of both sexes. Debate still rages over whether or not she and Greta Garbo were intimate.  There is considerable evidence that they made a movie together in Europe before heading for America, but both ladies always maintained they had […]

WAMPAS Baby Stars of 1927.

January 15, 2017 Alan Royle 2

  Patricia Avery (1902-73) Boston-born Patricia Avery must have wondered ‘what the hell happened?’ After starring opposite superstar Lillian Gish in Annie Laurie, immediately making two more films and then being chosen as a WAMPAS Baby Star – all in 1927 – her star seemed set to soar above the Hollywood […]

Hollywood & the Catholic Legion of Decency (CLOD).

December 18, 2016 Alan Royle 6

  At the zenith of their power the ‘Seven Sisters’ (MGM, Warners, Paramount, Universal, Columbia, Fox and RKO) did much as they pleased. Few outsiders had any influence over their decisions or their conduct. Few, that is, with the exception of the Catholic Legion of Decency (CLOD). They were a […]

Did you know?

December 6, 2016 Alan Royle 0

  RUBY KEELER I recently watched 42nd Street (1933) in its entirety, having only seen excerpts until then. The acting was very ordinary, the sound quality (as expected) was inferior, and the highlighted singers were mostly awful. And that includes Ruby Keeler. In fact, she not only couldn’t sing, she […]

The Silent Movie Era – a few observations.

November 30, 2016 Alan Royle 6

                                                             Here are a few unrelated ‘snippets’ from the good old days of the ‘Silent Era’. Some of them you may already know about; others you may not. But each one contributes to our knowledge and understanding of that long ago […]

Gay Hollywood in the studio days.

December 16, 2015 admin 2

  I read recently that ‘gay-gossip is the newest and most clever form of homophobia’. Nice try, but I’m not buying it.  I am neither homosexual nor homophobic, but I am interested in subterfuge and in exposing old-time movie studios that made an art form out of gulling the public. […]

Old TV Shows – more trivia.

November 23, 2015 admin 0

  Leonard Nimoy, the future Mr. Spock in the Star Trek series, served a stint in the US Army where he reached the rank of sergeant. In 1955 he suggested to an old army buddy named Ken Berry that he go to California and try to make it as a […]

More tragic Hollywood.

November 17, 2015 admin 0

  I fell in love for the first time when I was nine. It was 1957 and the object of my infatuation was a brunette with a cute smile and Mouseketeer ears on TV’s Mickey Mouse Club. Her name was Annette Funicello and to me she was perfection with a […]

What’s in a name Part One?

August 2, 2015 admin 0

Back in the good old studio days it was customary for studios to come up with snappy nicknames for their female stars. Well, they thought they were snappy, anyway. For some reason these were seldom given to male actors, although that is not to say that some of these guys […]

Hollywood’s real-life war heroes ( Pt 3 )

April 1, 2015 admin 78

Here are a few pieces of trivia regarding actresses during World War Two that you may or may not know. The first one deals with selling War Bonds, the second involves touring with the United Services Organizations Inc. (USO), and the third looks at the famous Hollywood Canteen. Touring with […]