Surviving A Night of Deprivation

Our local cable system was down last night....aarrghhh!!  No computer and, therefore, no access to the blog.  No television, therefore no St. Louis Cardinals baseball.  (Yes, you can take the girl out of Missouri, but...)  It was all very frustrating.

Fortunately, there were a couple good things about being disconnected from the outside world.  Not being able to watch the Cardinals play, I didn't have to watch them lose their 4th game in a row.  They lost two more today, unfortunately the cable was back up. 

We resorted to watching two DVDs, picked at random. My husband and I are both old movie fans and can find something of interest in most movies.  The first movie was Joan of Paris (1942) starring Michele Morgan and Paul Henreid.  Maltin gives it a ***1/2 rating, we gave it a **1/2.  Tad bit too melodramatic for us, but enjoyed the supporting actors.  The excellent, short-lived actor Laird Cregor plays the evil German "Herr Funk" with relish.  May Robson effortlessly steals her scenes as the heroic teacher/underground leader.  Hans Conried appears briefly as a gestapo agent, he had such a great snarl.  And Alan Ladd, in his last role before hitting it big in This Gun for Hire (1942), plays a wounded pilot named "Baby."  It's always fun to watch future stars as they develop their persona.

The second movie was  Hired Wife (1940) starring Rosalind Russell, Brian Aherne, Virginia Bruce, Robert Benchley and John Carroll who play in order: the sassy secretary; the handsome, clueless boss;  the gold digger; the best friend and inebriated lawyer; and the gigolo.  The cast is much better than the script, makes the movie watchable.

If you made it this far through my ramblings, thanks for the effort.  And since I feel I need to work in at least one photo, this is Aherne, an avid flyer, with his plane in 1934.  He's obviously where he's happy - and without the constraint of his hairpiece.  Besides, it's always the smile that makes the man.

It's the Blue Eyes

                            True Romances, December, 1934

A Hollywood Version of an English Garden

              Bob and Dame May Whitty in  Night Must Fall (1937)

Several outdoor scenes of Night Must Fall were filmed in Sherwood Forest, an area south of Thousand Oaks, CA between Hwy 101 and the Pacific Ocean.  The area was used by several studios beginning in the 1920s, in particular Douglas Fairbanks' Robin Hood (1922) ... hence the name.  Lake Sherwood is now bordered by expensive developments and, fortunately, several state parks protecting undeveloped areas of the Santa Monica Mountains.  It is understandable why people want to live there --- mountain scenery, ocean air, near L.A. but away from the crowds.  Maybe when I win the Lottery. 

That rocky ridge in the background may look familiar.  The television show M.A.S.H. was filmed in Malibu Creek State Park, located about nine miles southeast of Lake Sherwood.  The terrain is very similar.  Think helicopters flying wounded to the Army camp.  Yeah, England and South Korea are a lot alike ... only in the movies. 

The Uninvited Coming to DVD & BluRay

Happiness is seeing old movies come to DVD.  For Carrie, even more joy comes from a BluRay copy.  The awesome folks at the Criterion Collection are bringing The Uninvited to both on October 22, just in time for Halloween (boo).

And, if you're a Ray Milland fan (and we know you are), be sure to pick up Ministry of Fear, also on DVD/BluRay from Criterion.

Spend the Weekend Doing Whatever You Enjoy - You've Earned It!