Photo Friday: Sworn Enemy

Bob Young & Florence Rice from 1936's Sworn Enemy.

Larger image

Mid Week Laugh

It's been one of those weeks, so I hope I can share some laughter with this clip from What's My Line. John Payne is the guest panelist and Ed Sullivan is the mystery guest in this segment from I believe 1958.

2009 Calendar

The 2009 Robert Montgomery Calendar is now available. The electronic, printable calendar is a freebie and doesn't make any money. Just one more way to remember a favorite actor and maybe "educate" a few folks along the way ("who's that?").

One catch....because bandwidth has become an issue for me, I'm only offering the calendar to those who request one by emailing me.

Many thanks to Renee for taking the time to put this together and contributing and to Liz for contributing!

It Never Happened One Night

If you've ever done any digging into Robert Montgomery, you've probably run into information on him missing out on Clark Gable's Oscar winning part in It Happened One Night. Some sources say he turned it down while others day MGM didn't want to loan him out.

Fast forward to an interview recently posted on Alternative Film Guide with Allan Ellenberger on Miriam Hopkins. Mr. Ellenberger is working on a book about Miriam, which should be a fascinating read once released.

Mr. Ellenberger offered up a fact I never knew: Miriam Hopkins refused Claudette Colbert's Oscar winning role in It Happened One Night.

1934 was already a busy year for Bob with films such as Forsaking All Others, Hide-Out, Riptide, The Mystery of Mr. X, Fugitive Lovers released.

Now there's a fascinating Hollywood "what if."

Miriam & Bob had at least one thing in common: not getting along with Bette Davis - and the feelings were all mutual. The interview offers up more on the Hopkins/Davis rivalry.

I don't care to pull info from Wikipedia, but this is cited and I've read this before: Davis clashed with her co-star Robert Montgomery while making June Bride (1948), later describing him as "a male Miriam Hopkins... an excellent actor, but addicted to scene-stealing".

Bob & Miriam also had some connections back to Summer Stock as well, but that's another post and some needed research.

My New Music Love

Ted Weems & his Orchestra. The best part...his stuff can be found in MP3 format on Amazon. This song is guaranteed to get stuck in your head for the next hour.

Blogger Block

I'm in the midst of a bad case of writer's block. In an effort to get my creative blood flowing again, below are some random thoughts from the past week - nothing of substance.

Whatever happened to Victor Jory? Someone get me a book, please.

Related to the above, I'm watching both Party Wire and The Devil and Miss Jones at the same time - also known as Jean Arthurpalooza. Last week it was Too Many Husbands. Didn't care for the end but the thought of Fred MacMurray and Melvyn Douglas as dual husbands was sure thought provoking.

Will there ever be an HD TCM? Is it even possible?

Liam Neeson as an a** kicker? As someone who really doesn't care for today's movies, I was surprised to find Taken as one of the few new films that kept my attention span in check. It's the "feel good movie of the year" - Neeson's character turns the bad guys inside out. Please don't get this confused with the Taken television mini-series, where space aliens mingle with Lockheed tech reps and screw with the Air Force et. al.

Aside from his marriage to Arlene Francis, why was Martin Gabel a guest panelist on What's My Line so often?

On this date in history: Experimental TV sets installed in homes
Television sets are installed in three homes in Schenectady, New York. RCA and General Electric installed the sets, which displayed a 1.5-inch-square picture. However, televisions did not become common household appliances until the late 1940s.

The picture size sounds a bit like today's iPod. We're going full circle!

More Forbidden in March

Just learned from the TCM Web site that Forbidden Hollywood Vol. 3 is coming out Mar. 24. I'm doing my little dance of joy on this end because Midnight Mary will be one of the films. Sorry, no Robert Montgomery films in this batch.

• Other Men's Women (1931)
• The Purchase Price (1932)
• Frisco Jenny (1932)
• Midnight Mary (1933)
• Heroes for Sale (1933)
• Wild Boys of the Road (1933)
• Bonus Disc: Wild Bill: Hollywood Maverick (1995)
  

Learn more on the TCM Web site.

Happy Birthday, Reggie

Ray, we're still looking for a photo of that tattoo of yours . . . until then, picspam!

Are Husbands Necessary? - No comment :)

Easy Living - It should be in your film collection. Buy it on DVD and watch for my fav. scenes: the Autotmat and the bath.

The Major and the Minor - Fun movie, but the whole "little girl" thing creeps me out. Do check M/M out on DVD.

Say it in French - Haven't been able to find this one yet

Arise My Love - The accompanying radio version of this story is worth a listen as well.

Arise My Love, x 2 - I just adore the photography. It's either the work of a large fan or they hoisted Ray & Claudette up by their ankles.

If Men Played Cards as Women Do

Hollywood has played out this theoretical scenario twice. First in the 1929 short film of the same name and in a scene in 1942's Star Spangled Rhythm. Star Spangled Rhythm is one of those films you start watching and realize, "Holy Cow, everyone's in this thing." In this case, it's the Paramount crowd.

Let me fast forward you into Rhythm to the main scene: a benefit for servicemen, made up of a number of musical scenes and skits, including If Men Played Cards as Women Do. Ray Milland, Franchot Tone, Fred MacMurray & Lynn Overman gather for a friendly card game - hilarious:



Check it out the DVD. Technically a Bob Hope & Bing Crosby vehicle, it also includes Betty Hutton, Alan Ladd, Veronica Lake, Preston Sturges, CB Demille, and many, many more.