George, Gracie & Bob - Radio Style

Gracie Allen gets all melty over Robert Montgomery, while George Burns carries on in this episode of The Burns & Allen Show from April 7, 1949. There's some seriously funny lines in of this show...

MP3 - 7 MB

A special thanks to Bantaskin for digging this one up!

Memorial Day

We cherish too, the Poppy red
That grows on fields where valor led,
It seems to signal to the skies
That blood of heroes never dies.

- Moina Michael

Photo Friday - Maybelline & Joan Crawford

To Maybelline -
The eye make-up
I would never be without

Sincerely
Joan Crawford

Larger photo

I've come across an absolute ton of Joan Crawford photos and clippings - so much so I could probably start up a Joan photo blog (which I won't). I plan to scan the interesting stuff for here.

Marvelously Indestructible

Early birthday wishes to John Wayne, who would have turned 100 on Saturday. IMHO, he's still kicking movie a** today.

Winterset, Iowa - the Duke's hometown - has a serious birthday party going on this weekend. Looks like a fun time actually...

Classic Coming Attractions

The Digital Bits web site has an updated classic DVD column up. New box sets reviewed include James Cagney, Tyrone Power, and Errol Flynn. Of particular interest on this end is the August 7 release of the William Powell/Myrna Loy Collection (Manhattan Melodrama, Evelyn Prentice, Double Wedding, I Love You Again, and Love Crazy).

And if you've held out all these years from buying To Catch a Thief (like me), it sounds like it's finally safe to buy the latest DVD issue.

On This Day in History, May 21

1901 - First speed limit law is enacted
1904 - Robert Montgomery is born
1927 - Lindbergh lands in Paris
1945 - Bogart and Bacall marry

Picture in Picture - Letty Lynton

Ok, not the exact photo, but I think it's close enough!

Maverick, Goose, and a Cast of Characters

Gah, I just cringe saying it. Top Gun. There, I did it.

The Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) has named Top Gun as the top aviation film of all time. From the news release: "Many aviation fans have this film as part of their video collection or regularly search for the movie's airings on television. Knowing the flying sequences are based on actual U.S. military training makes the film even more appealing to pilots." Ergh.

Here's the top 10, from which #1 was voted from:

• Twelve O'Clock High
• Memphis Belle (the 1990 version, not the original)
• The Battle of Britain
• The Spirit of St. Louis
• The Great Waldo Pepper
• Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines
• The Flight of the Phoenix
• The High and the Mighty
• The Blue Max
  

IMHO, this list has some good ones, but is severely lacking in other areas. Oh well, the power of the popular vote...

James Cagney is a Canadian

Ok, now that I have your attention - Jimmy plays the part of a Canadian pilot in Captains of the Clouds (1942), which was just released on DVD. Greenbriar Picture Shows has a good article on the film. Another Technicolor beauty.

Photo Friday: Twice as Good

George Hurrell, Robert Montgomery, and a mirror - 1931.



Download different sizes via Flickr & thanks to drxblog.

Two Guys From Milwaukee

Ah yes, Milwaukee - lakefront jewel of Wisconsin. I can understand why a prince from a far off country would lie and say he's just another guy from Milwaukee (nudge, nudge).

Two Guys From Milwaukee isn't an Oscar winner (or nominee) or some profound drama that has left impressions on millions - it's just a fun 40s movie.

Dennis Morgan (who I've discovered has quite the set of pipes) plays Prince Henry. He's touring the states and has an interested in "ordinary" people, especially since his home country may be no more after an upcoming election. Oh, he also wants to meet Lauren Bacall. Enter Jack Carson as Buzz Williams, NYC taxi cab driver. He's really from Milwaukee.

Prince Henry decides to go AWOL and take on the town for a few days, to see what America is really like. Stopping in a bar for a drink, he meets Carson's character and they begin to talk. "Where ya from?" Looking around, Prince Henry spots a beer sign extolling the pleasures of Milwaukee beer. "Milwaukee" he proudly pronounces! And the fun begins.

S.Z. Sakall also plays in this movie as Count Oswald, advisor to the Prince. I'm sure you've seen him before, you can't miss the face.

If you do catch this film on TCM, make sure you watch it all the way - there's a small surprise at the end with the names of Lauren & Humphrey.

Busted Scanner, Busted Luck

I performed surgery on my beloved Microtek scanner yesterday to clean the underside of the glass. After seeing the garbage it was generating from black & white photos, it was time. You know the rest of the story.

I'm now looking for something USB 2.0 with slide scanning capability. If you have any recommendations, please leave me a comment!

Photo (Poster) Friday - The Lady in the Lake

Poster from the Australian release of The Lady in the Lake. With thanks to Steve-O.

Large photo

Midweek Sightings

I picked up the May issue of Arizona Highways & ran across an article on John Wayne's ties to Arizona. If you're a JW fan, you might be interested in some of the tidbits of info they offer.

Catching up on my CSI watching, I spotted someone familiar in one of the recent episodes - James Whitmore. With a few more years added to the face from the Miracle Gro ads, I had to do a double take. Whitmore has to be one of the earliest actors I can remember growing up as a kid. Who can forget Them! His character in CSI was, uhm...well, a frequent customer of the local brothel. Great to see you still acting, Mr. Whitmore!

TCM Bob Schedule for May

Sorry to say, TCM won't be having any mini birthday marathon this year.

21 Monday
10 p.m. They Were Expendable (1945)
A Navy commander fights to prove the battle-worthiness of the PT boat at the start of World War II. Cast: Robert Montgomery, John Wayne, Donna Reed. Dir: John Ford