Happy Birthday Greetings to Constance!

Constance Cummings appeared with Robert Montgomery in Haunted Honeymoon (1940).  At one point during the early development days, Maureen O'Sullivan had been considered for the role.  However, with WWII being underway in Europe, the O'Sullivan camp decided against traveling to England to make a movie.  Luckily, Constance, unhappy with Hollywood, had married a Brit and moved to England to continue making movies as well as appearing in the theater.  

Ms. Cummings was born May 15, 1910, in Seattle, Washington, and lived until November 23, 2005 ... 95 years old!  

        Bob and Constance Cummings in Haunted Honeymoon (1940)

Lot of Good People Born in May

Besides Bob ...
    May 15 - Constance Cummings, Bob's co-star in Haunted
                  Honeymoon (1940)
    May 17 - Maureen O'Sullivan, Bob's co-star in Hide-Out (1934)
 

                        Lucky shows his farming skills to Pauline

   May 20 - Jimmy Stewart, well, just because!
   May 23 - James Gleason, Bob's very able supporting actor
                   in Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941)

             Mr. Gleason could steal a scene under any circumstance

What Everyone Wants ... One More Bob Movie!!

In case you haven't had your fill of Bob movies, Haunted Honeymoon (1940) will be shown tomorrow at 7:30 a.m. EDT/4:30 PDT on TCM. 

The original title of the film is Busman's Honeymoon, based on a novel by English crime writer Dorothy L. Sayers.  It is one of a series of novels featuring bon vivant sleuth Lord Peter Wimsey and Harriet Vane, a writer of crime novels.  Being very popular in England, it was not looked on kindly that MGM cast two Americans as the iconic English sleuths. 

It took several years to make the movie ... WWII got in the way.  Originally Maureen O'Sullivan was cast as Harriet Vane and Robert Donat as Lord Peter.  Gee, an almost reunion of Maureen and Bob.  (Lucky and Pauline move to England after Lucky gets out of prison, marry and become amateur sleuths.  Hey, that's one possible sequel to Hide-Out!)

        Bob and Constance Cummings in Haunted Honeymoon (1940)

Constance, Maureen and Bob - All May Babies

Constance Cummings was Bob's leading lady in The Haunted Honeymoon (1940).  Born in Seattle May 15, 1910, Constance began her Broadway career as a chorus girl and went on to become a Commander of the British Empire in 1974 and a Tony winner in 1979, and continued to act on the stage into the mid-1990s.  Please checkout her extensive and interesting obituary on Alt Film Guide. 

Maureen O'Sullivan was born May 17, 1911, in Ireland and died in Scottsdale, AZ at the age of 87, a mother of six (her first child Michael died in 1958), grandmother to 32 and great grandmother to 14.  In between, she managed to become a successful actress and made one movie with Bob, Hide-Out in 1934.  Wish they had made more, they were so good together.  Check out her website for many photos of the beautiful actress and her family.  The site has a wonderful photo of Maureen and Bob on the set of Hide-Out.  It's almost as good as this one:

Bob's birthday is next week.  He'll get his own post...duh.  

May Birthday Ladies

                                   Haunted Honeymoon (1940)

Constance Cummings, was born on May 15, 1910, in Seattle, Washington.  She was married to writer Benn Levy from 1933 until his death in 1973, not a bad run for a Hollywood marriage.  Constance, not happy with her movie career nor life in Hollywood, moved with her husband in 1934 to England where she continued her acting (including Haunted Honeymoon with Bob) until 1986 and died in 2005 at the impressive age of 95.

                                        Hide-Out (1934)

Maureen O'Sullivan's life geographically went in the opposite direction of Contance, being born in Ireland May 17, 1911, and moving to the states for a successful and lengthy acting career.  Like Constance she married a writer (later director), John Farrow.  They were married from 1936 until his death in 1963, a marriage producing seven children.  How she managed to have seven children and a successful, busy acting career, I have no idea.  Maureen acted into her 80's, passing on in 1998 at the age of 87.  Hide-Out is one of my favorite movies, she and Bob made a really cute couple.  Wish they had made a follow-up movie together.