Speaking of Rage ...

I wrote a post some years back about George Sanders towering over Bob in a scene from Rage in Heaven (1941).  George Sanders was a very large guy, particularly for 1941.  According to celebheights.com, he was 6' 2-1/2".  In the first photo below, he is towering over Bob, along with having a much larger head and body.  Big guy.  

Bob always claimed to be 6' 1".  Now I'm not saying he wasn't in his youth, but it is not unusual to lose height as we age.  Lets be generous and agree that he is 6' 0" at this time.  So, is George even taller or Bob shorter than 6' according to the photo?

And then study the photo below.  Same movie, same set.  What happened?  Is George standing on the other side of the room?  I mean, even his head has gotten smaller!  Just wondering.  By the way, Ingrid was 5' 9".  Wore a lot of flat shoes for sure.  

Bulletin: Rage in Heaven Tonight

 Just found out myself ... TCM is showing Rage in Heaven (1941) tonight at 4:45 a.m. ET.  It doesn't get shown that often, but worth a watch.  I apologize for the lack of warning.  Meanwhile, I'm now running late for a doctor's appointment, but Bob is always a priority!  

Bob Being Bob ... What Could be Better?

 It's Bob and Ingrid Bergman sitting in the doorway of Bob's portable dressing room on the set of Rage in Heaven (1941).  Wonder what they are both looking at so intently.  Is it the first time they've met 6'3" George Sanders?  I can just read Bob's mind ... "I'll have to share scenes with that giant?!"

I haven't seen Bob so wide-eyed before.  Nor so youthful at 36.  Perhaps it's the camera capturing momentary innocent thoughts of surprise or inquisitiveness emanating from Bob's bright mind.   No, I'm not saying Bob was an innocent soul, but a man of many facets including a youthful interest in the world around him.  And it does not appear to be a posed look which would be common for on-the-set publicity photos.   Yup, it's just Bob being Bob.  Nifty. 

G'Lord, George. How Tall ARE You?

       George Sanders, Bob and Ingrid Bergman (b. August 29, 1915)

                                Happy Birthday, Ingrid!

"I want you to stop meddling with my fiancee!"

... exclaims Sir James Felton (Reginald Owen) to Dascom Dinsmore (Bob) as Irene (Myrna Loy) watches in surprise in Petticoat Fever (1936).  A fun movie.  I bet it was a roaring success at the "Tavern Casino" on Friday! 

TCM will be showing Petticoat this Wednesday at 5:00 a.m. EST.  I don't know that I'd be able to make that show time, so I am hoping they show it on demand later.  You can see Night Flight (1933) on demand today, and Rage in Heaven (1941) through Friday.  And three move Bob movies will be shown this Month:  Lady in the Lake (1947) on the 14th; Hide-out (1934) on the 17th; and Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941) on the 18th.  That's a lot of Montgomery all in one month!  And so many are my favorites, and I would imagine yours as well.

None of Bob's movies are scheduled on TCM for his birthday on the 21st.  That's kind of a let down after showing nine movies last year.  Six of his better movies in the weeks before will just have to do.

Egads! Could It Be So?!

Check out the photo.  Bob claimed to be 6' 1", some sources have him at 6' 0.5".  George Sanders is listed at 6' 3".  Hmm. 

What d'ya think?  Is Bob as advertised, or could the studios have possibly exaggerated his height just a tad?  Egads, tell me it isn't so! 

In the movie The Big House (1930), the scene wherein Bob is checking into prison and his vital statistics are being gathered, his height is read off as being 5' 11".  Could it be so?  Hmm.

                 Bob and George Sanders in Rage in Heaven (1941)

The studios tended to add an inch or two to all their male stars, particularly if it got their height over 6'.  That was a very tall man in the 1930s.  Gable's height was listed the same as Bob's.  They are very close to the same height, depending upon the angle, in Forsaking All Others (1934).  And since I've thought for ages that Gable was more like 5' 10" to 5' 11",  I guess I'll have to go with Bob's height as being under 6' as well.  I think Bob may have been a tad taller than Gable, winning by a neck!!  (Sorry, I just couldn't resist it.)

It's really not that all this matters a whole heck of a lot.  It doesn't lessen Bob's stature a bit, and that's what really counts. 

From Mad to Cad

     Bob, as mad Philip, and Ingrid Bergman in Rage in Heaven (1941)

       

                                  Ingrid with George Sanders

Both male leads in Rage in Heaven were cast against type.  Bob is the psychotic villain while Sanders plays the noble, nice guy Ward who wins Ingrid in the end.  George does a nice job, but he played the cad/purring villain with such absolute perfection that the movie is a true waste of his particular talent.  (In case you haven't read it already, do try Brian's Aherne book on Sanders, titled "A Dreadful Man.")

Eight Years Can Take Their Toll

Bob's August Birthday Ladies, No. 8:  Ingrid Bergman was born on August 29th and died 67 years later on the same day.  That's a rather odd distinction.  In December of 1940, she began filming Rage in Heaven with Bob as her co-star.  Eight years later, on December 13, 1948, she appeared with Bob in Lux Mystery Radio Theater's presentation of The Seventh Veil.  It's a fun listen, the mature Bob with his deeper and more resonant voice invoking Crazy Danny from Night Must Fall. 
 

                                   Rage in Heaven (1941)

 Bob and Ingrid taking a coffee break while preparing for their performance on Lux Mystery Radio Theater on December 13, 1948. 

Bob scores points for keeping his pinkie off the cup!  The photo is from a magazine so the resolution is not the greatest ... wish I could read the printing on the cup.  

That's Our Bob

 ... always a ready smile for the fairer sex.

"WHO WOULDN'T ENJOY REHEARSING WITH INGRID BERGMAN?  Robert Montgomery seems to enjoy it, going over his lines with the lovely Swedish star for the new starring MGM picture, Rage in Heaven."   (Photo Caption)

Happy Birthday, Ingrid!

A young, career-minded Ingrid Bergman did not enjoy her experience working with Bob in "Rage In Heaven."  In her 1980 autobiography, My Story, she relates Bob told her and co-star George Sanders that he would not be acting during the movie as a form of protest because MGM had not allowed him to take a month's vacation before starting another movie.   "The first director lasted two weeks.  Then the second one came in and Robert Montgomery went on the same way, his face just an impassive mask.  So the second director quit...  The picture was put together, released and Bob Montgomery got the most glorious reviews because he gave such an original performance.  You see, he was a light comedian, the rage of Hollywood, everybody adored him, and here was Bob being out of character, this absolutely flat performance as a psychopath, and people thought it was great.  They didn't think he had it in him.  So it turned out very well.  For him."

Rage In Heaven Coming to DVD

Props to the Warner Archive for releasing another Bob movie on DVD: Rage in Heaven. Its a bit quirky (dead kittens, full moons and all), but its also an entertaining watch after a long day.

Photo Friday: What If?

For some odd reason, this illustration makes me think of something that would hang above the fireplace. And in that same odd thought, what if Philip Monrell wasn't nuts? Back to reality...a photo/illustration from 1941's Rage in Heaven.

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Rage in Heaven Trailer

IMHO, Bob should have been cast as a killer more often...

Photo Friday: Rage in Heaven

Heaven hath no rage like love to hatred turned.

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Saturdays at 8

Time Magazine, Jan. 12, 1948

Radio's chillers, under the disapproving glares of U.S. parents & teachers (TIME, March 24), had had a bad year, but things were looking brighter. Last week CBS spread itself handsomely on an old, solidly successful crime show, Suspense. The program was extended to 55 minutes, moved to a good early evening spot (Sat., 8 p.m.) and placed in the capable hands of Robert Montgomery, a past cinemaster at leering and bloodletting. Montgomery handles the show's gory details as narrator. As occasional actor, he may recreate some of his grislier movie roles (Night Must Fall, Rage in Heaven). He thinks it should develop into "a damn good dramatic show. The full hour opens up a vista of new material that is fantastic, just fantastic."