Before Yosemite Became a Traffic Jam

Love this scenic photo of Bob and Constance Bennett riding horses in Yosemite in The Easiest Way (1931).  It is an original photo, a quality print. 

Moving in a bit closer, you get a better view of Bob and Connie, and their two very patient steeds.

One step closer and we get a great shot of our primary interest.  Great photo.

Dascom Dinsmore ... Really?

Bob and Myrna, a great pairing.  In a totally enjoyable movie.  Nicely captured on print.  Just makes you want to smile.  Enjoy your day!

                   Myrna Loy and Bob in Petticoat Fever (1936)

Another Handsome Critter of the Golden Age

This is a change of pace post.  No Bob.  Had the urge to share a few photos of Cary Grant instead.    Cary was another one of those extremely handsome actors that populated the Golden Age of movies.  In the photo below, he is 33 years old and quite the hunk.  I apologize that the photo shows sign of deterioration, obviously an original silver nitrate photo.  But the face is still intact and that is what counts. 

                                    Talk of the Town (1937)

Mr. Grant made an impressive number of very good and successful movies.  Going free lance once his initial contract with Paramount expired, Cary showed his excellent business sense by the movies he chose to make.  Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House (1948) is one of my favorites, so clever and witty, with the perfect Mrs. Blandings, Myrna Loy. 

        Cary and Myrna Loy in Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House

And then there is Dudley from the classic The Bishop's Wife (1947).  Can you imagine anyone else in that role? 

Many a Pleasant Dream ...

You just can't have too many ways of displaying photos of your favorite stars.  The pop up easels below would appear to be a very inexpensive kind of photo, frame all-in-one.  Perfect for teens on tight budgets.  The photo is printed directly on cardboard with the easel part of the back.  These are about 5"x7", just right for a small display area, like a teen's nightstand.  (Yes, I know this doesn't apply to today's teen!  But those in the 1930s, 1940s ... a world of difference.)

To illustrate a slight problem with the easels, this Bob pop up has lost its easel.  Still a great picture to have.

And some fans even displayed photos of other stars besides our Bob.  Clark Gable I understand.  In college, I had the Rhett Butler playing cards poster tacked to the ceiling above my bed.  Many a pleasant dream ...

One of the few people who could wear an Ascot

A portrait of Bob taken during the making of Hide-Out in June/July of 1934.  Which means he has just turned 30 years old.  I like the overall sense of smugness, yet with humor sparkling in his eyes.    Such a handsome critter. 

An Ambitious Youth Was He

A 1929 interview with the very young Mr. Montgomery follows.  It may well be the first time his path to the movies has been told, which would explain the different twists of the tale.  There is a buddy who travels with him on the oil tanker in this one and they actually travel all the way to Los Angeles to try to break into the movies, before Bob goes to NYC to begin his theater career.   Oh, well, it is a fun read. 

Old Bob's Signature More Legible than Mine!!

As it has been noted a time or two in the past, I rather enjoy collecting Bob autographed photos.  Tis a great combination of a good photo of Mr. Montgomery and knowledge that we both handled it that makes it extra special for me. 

           Bob and Rosalind Russell in Live, Love and Learn (1937)
 

This autographed photo is from the private collection of a Mr. Harry Wilkinson of Marblehead, MA.  Please look at the bottom stamp: "AFTER AUTOGRAPHING Kindly Return TO:" with the date 6-81 written by hand.  I'm assuming that is the date the photo was returned to Harry.  And the significance of that date ... Bob died in 9-81.  So he signed this only three months before his death.   Nifty.  Now, if I could only find something of his from his youth!

It Helps To Get Along With Your Co-Star

Clarence Sinclair Bull took the publicity photos for Bob's movie Lovers Courageous (1932).  There are a good number of them and each one is better than the next.  It is difficult to beat a combination of a good photographer and two quite handsome subjects.  27-year-old Bob and 22-year-old Madge Evans seem to be the perfectly matched couple, who will go on to make four more movies together [Hell Below (1933), Made on Broadway (1933), Fugitive Lovers (1934) and Piccadilly Jim (1936)], as well as maintaining a long-lived friendship off-screen.  

The photo below is my current favorite, mostly because it is my most recent purchase!

                    Bob and Madge Evans in Lovers Courageous

Gonna Take a Sentimental Journey ...

It is January, 1970.  Bob, who traveled extensively throughout his life, is in England checking out old haunts.  His visit is covered in the Jan. 4th issue of the Sunday Times.   

"Robert Montgomery, the American film actor and director, standing in front of a Hawker Hurricane with Air Vice Marshal R. Jones, Air Officer Commanding No. 11 Fighter Group, when he made a sentimental journey last week to R.A.F. Bentley Priority, Stanmore.

In the spring of 1941 as a United States Navy lieutenant, Mr. Montgomery made frequent visits to Bentley Priority while serving on the Embassy staff in London.  Despite the fact that America was neutral and that it was strictly against regulations, he managed to do duty in the top secret underground operations room --- the nerve center of Fighter Command.

Mr. Montgomery said that the knowledge he gained through his back door visits paid off handsomely after Pearl Harbour when he was called upon to set up an operations room in the White House for President Roosevelt."  

                             65-year-old Mr. Montgomery