If the Golden era of Old Hollywood is your thing, our podcast is for you! If you want TYRONE POWER instead of TOM HARDY, JENNIFER JONES instead of JENNIFER LAWRENCE, or ROBERT MITCHUM rather than ROBERT PATTINSON, then FROM BENEATH THE HOLLYWOOD SIGN is the gin joint for you. Each week, writer and producer STEVE CUBINE and actress and writer NAN MCNAMARA explore, discuss, and dissect the magical, mysterious, amusing, and sometimes bizarre tales of Old Hollywood. So sit back and revisit a time when the pictures were still big and everyone was ready for their close-up.
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"BIRTHDAY TRIBUTE TO CLASSIC FILM STAR VERA MILES" (050)
Episode 50
Monday, August 26, 2024 • Duration 37:18
EPISODE 50 - “Birthday Tribute to Classic Film star Vera Miles” - 08/26/2024
** This episode is sponsored brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/BENEATH and get on your way to being your best self.” **
After placing 3rd runner up to Miss America in 1948 as Miss Kansas, VERA MILES soon embarked on a long and illustrious career in Hollywood and was soon working with great directors like ALFRED HITCHCOCK (“Psycho” and “The Wrong Man”) and JOHN FORD (“The Searchers” and “The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance”). This week, we pay tribute to Miles as she turns 95 on August 23rd. Listen as we celebrate this beautiful, talented, and somewhat underrated star.
SHOW NOTES:
Sources:
Hitchcock’s Heroines (2018), by Caroline Young;
Women In The Films of John Ford (2014), by David Mevel;
“Vera Miles: Country Girl in Hollywood,” May 13, 1956, by J.D. Spiro, Los Angeles, Times;
“Vera Miles: She’s Alfred Hitchcock’s Newest Acting Find,” January 13, 1957, Parade Magazine;
“Vera Miles Says: I’m Glad I Was Poor,” May 1959, by Amy Francis, Screenland Magazine;
“Vera Miles: Official Biography,” September 1961, Paramount Pictures;
“The Loser Who Became A Star,” May 15, 1973, by Earl Wilson, The New York Post;
“Fighting Trim Vera Miles Still A Doer,” February 20, 1981, by Mark Hemeter, The Times-Picayne (New Orleans);
“Psycho Actress Defends Hitchcock,” June 25, 1983, by Richard Freedman, The Spokesman-Review, Newhouse News Service;
“Vera Miles: Hollywood Walk of Fame,” June 29, 2010, by Carina MacKenzie, Los Angeles Times;
TCM.com;
IMDBPro.com;
Wikipedia.com;
Movies Mentioned:
For Men Only (1952), starring Paul Henried;
The Rose Bowl Story (1952), starring Marshall Thompson;
The Charge At Feather River (1953), starring Guy Madison and Helen Westcott;
Pride of the Blue Grass (1954), starring Lloyd Bridges;
Tarzan’s Hidden Jungle (1955), starring Gordon Scott;
Wichita (1955), starring Joel McCrea;
The Searchers (1956), starring John Wayne and Jeffrey Hunter;
The Wrong Man (1956), starring Henry Fonda;
Beau James (1957), starring Bob Hope;
Web Of Evidence (1959), starring Van Johnson;
The FBI Story (1959), starring James Stewart;
A Touch Of Larceny (1960), starring James Mason and George Sanders;
5 Banded Women (1960), starring Jeanne Moreau;
Psycho (1960), starring Anthony Perkins, Janey Leigh, and John Gavin;
Back Street (1961), starring Susan Hayward and John Gavin;
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962), starring John Wayne and James Stewart;
A Tiger Walks (1964), starring Brian Keith;
Those Calloways (1965), starring Brian Keith, Brandon De Wilde, and Linda Evans;
Follow Me Boys! (1966), starring Fred MacMurray;
The Spirit Is Willing (1967), starring Sid Caesar;
Gentle Giant (1967), starring Dennis Weaver and Ralph Meeker;
Hellfighters (1968), starring John Wayne and Katharine Ross;
The Wild Country (1970), starring Steve Forrest;
One Little Indian (1973), starring James Garner;
The Castaway Cowboy (1974), starring James Garner;
Run For The Roses (1977), starring Stuart Whitman;
Smash Up On Interstate 5 (1976), starring Robert Conrad, Buddy Ebson, Sue Lyon, Terry Moore, and Tommy Lee Jones;
Psycho II (1983), starring Anthony Perkins;
The Initiation (1984), starring Clu Galugar and Daphne Zuniga;
Separate Lives (1995), starring Linda Hamilton and Jim Belushi;
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"BIRTHDAY TRIBUTE TO CLASSIC CINEMA STAR ANN BLYTH" (049)
Episode 49
Monday, August 19, 2024 • Duration 29:30
EPISODE 49 - “Birthday Tribute to Classic Cinema Star Ann Blyth ” - 08/19/2024
** This episode is sponsored and brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/BENEATH and get on your way to being your best self.” **
With her crystal clear soprano voice, porcelain doll face, and fierce acting talent, ANN BLYTH became a much-in-demand star in the 1940s and 1950s. While known mostly as a romantic musical comedy star in films such as “Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid” (1948), “Rose Marie” (1954), and “Kismet” (1955), she was also a deft dramatic actress when given the chance. Who can forget her as Veda, the daughter who made JOAN CRAWFORD’s life a living hell in “Mildred Pierce” (1945), or as the downtrodden alcoholic singer in “The Helen Morgan Story” (1957)? Blyth turns 96 on August 16th and is truly a living legend. Listen this week as we pay tribute with an episode about Ann Blyth’s remarkable life and career.
SHOW NOTES:
Sources:
Ann Blyth: Singer, Actress, Star (2018), by Jacqueline T. Lynch;
“Ann Blyth: Official Biography,” July 1956, Paramount Pictures;
“Film Actress Breaks Back in Accident,” March 10, 1945, LA Examiner;
“Actress Ready to Work After Skiing Accident,” January 18, 1946, LA Examiner;
“Ann Blyth’s Mother Dies,’ July 23, 1946, Los Angeles Times;
“Bright Future Visioned For Youthful Ann Blyth,” September 10, 1949, by Hedda Hopper, Los Angeles Times;
“Angelic Annie,” September 27, 1952, by Richard G. Hubler, Collier’s Magazine;
“The Blyth Spirit,” October 12, 1952, by William Brownell, New York Times;
“Ann Blyth: Bride of the Year,” June 1953, Photoplay Magazine;
“A Blyth Spirit From An Earlier Error,” February 28, 1985, by Jack Hawn, Los Angeles Times;
“She’s Still Singing Just As Beautifully,” March 19, 1989, by Mitchell Smyth, Toronto Daily Star;
“Looking Back: Ann Blyth” June 5, 1990, by Ann Blyth, The Hollywood Reporter;
“Playing Thier Songs,” October 14,1994, by Libby Slate, Los Angeles Times;
“Little Bit of This, Little Bit of That,” September 29, 1997, by Candace A. Wedlan, Los Angeles Times;
“Not Like Veda,” August 12, 2013, by Susan King, Los Angeles Times;
TCM.com;
IMDBPro.com;
Wikipedia.com;
Movies Mentioned:
Chip Off The Old Block (1944), starring Donald O’Connor, and Peggy Ryan;
Babes On Swing Street (1944), starring Peggy Ryan;
Mildred Pierce (1945), starring Joan Crawford, Ann Blyth, Zachary Scott, Jack Carson, and Eve Arden;
Swell Guy (1946), starring Sonny Tufts;
Brute Force (1947), starring Burt Lancaster, Yvonne DeCarlo, and Ella Raines;
Killer McCoy (1947), starring Mickey Rooney;
A Woman’s Vengeance (1948) starring Charles Boyer;
Another Part of The Forest (1948), starring Fredric March, Florence Eldridge, Edmond O’Brien, and Dan Duryea;
Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid (1948), starring William Powell and Irene Hervey;
Top O’ The Morning (1949), starring Bing Crosby and Barry Fitzgerald;
Once More My Darling (1949), starring Robert Montgomery;
Free For All (1949), starring Robert Cummings:
Our Very Own (1950), starring Farley Granger;
Katy Did It (1951), starring Mark Stevens;
The Great Caruso (1951), starring Mario Lanza;
Thunder On the Hill (1951), starring Claudette Colbert;
All The Brother’s Were Valiant (1953), starring Robert Taylor, Stewart Granger;
Rosie Marie (1954), starring Ann Blyth;
The Student Prince (1954), starring Mario Lanza;
Kismet (1955), starring Howard Keel;
Slander (1957), starring Van Johnson and Steve Cochran;
The Buster Keaton Story (1957), starring Donald O’Connor;
The Helen Morgan Story (1957), starring Paul Newman;
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"OLD HOLLYWOOD'S FORBIDDEN LOVE STORY: LON McCALLISTER & WILLIAM EYTHE" (#040)
Episode 40
Monday, June 17, 2024 • Duration 33:11
From Beneath The Hollywood Sign is thrilled to welcome our newest sponsor, www.HappyMammoth.com. Use code BENEATH at checkout for 15% off of your entire first order!
EPISODE 40 - “Old Hollywood's Forbidden Love Story/ Lon McCallister & William Eythe” - 06/17/2024
As we celebrate gay pride month in June, Nan and Steve bring a special episode about 20th Century Fox contract players LON McCALLISTER and WILLIAM EYTHE. Both were handsome, talented, and on their way to becoming major film stars. But there was only one problem — the two young men had fallen in love and wanted to live their lives as a couple. This love was forbidden back then and went against the wishes of 20th Century Fox studio head DARRYL F. ZANUCK. Listen to this inspiring and heartbreaking story of their love story.
SHOW NOTES:
Sources:
Behind the Scenes: How Gays and Lesbians Shaped Hollywood (2001), by William J. Mann;
It Might As Well Be Spring (1987), by Margaret Whiting;
“Terrific Trio,” May 1944, by Marcia Daughtrey, Modern Screen;
“Keyhole Portrait: William Eythe,” June 4, 1944, by Harriet Parson, Los Angeles Examiner;
“Bill Eythe’s Triumph Over Pain,” April 1, 1945, New York Times;
“The Role I Liked Best…” September 2, 1950, by Lon McCallister, The Saturday Evening Post;
“Film Actor Eythe Jailed on Writ of Former Wife,” September 4, 1950, Los Angeles Daily News;
“Actor Suffered Hangover in Durance Vile,” June 3, 1952, Los Angeles Daily News;
“William Eythe, Producer, Held as Drunk Driver,” June 4, 1952, Los Angeles Times;
“Eythe, McCallister Prep ‘Joy Ride’ for Broadway,” March 12, 1956, Hollywood Reporter;
“William Eythe Ill With Hepatitis, Condition Serious,” January 26, 1957, by Hedda Hopper, Los Angeles Times;
“William Eythe Dies,” January 28, 1957, The Hollywood Reporter;
Lon McCallister, 82, Actor Had Brief but Busy Career Before Becoming Investor,” June 18, 2005, by Mary Rourke, Los Angeles Times;
“McCallister’s Heart Outshine His Stardom,” June 21, 2005, by Robert Osborne, Hollywood Reporter;
“Mars Actor Had Meteoric Career,” February 4, 2007, by Sandy Marwick, Butler-Eagle Focus;
IMDBPro.com;
Wikipedia.com;
Movies Mentioned:
The Other Woman (1942), starring Virginia Gilmore, Dan Duryea, and Lon McCallister;
Stage Door Canteen (1943), starring Katharine Hepburn, Paul Muni, Merle Oberon, and Lon McCallister;
The Ox-Bow Incident (1945), starring Henry Fonda, Dana Andrews, Henry Morgan, and Mary Beth Hughes;
The Moon Is Down (1936), starring Cedric Hardwicke, Henry Travers, and Lee J. Cobb;
The Song of Bernadette (1943), starring Jennifer Jones, Vincent Price, Charles Bickford, and William Eythe;
The Eve of St. Mark (1943), starring William Eythe and Anne Baxter;
A Wing and a Prayer (1944), starring Don Ameche, Dana Andrews, and William Eythe;
Wilson (1944), starring Alexander Knox, Geraldine Fitzgerald, and William Eythe;
Home In Indiana (1944), starring Lon McCallister, Jeanne Crain, and June Haver;
Winged Victory (1944), starring Lon McCallister, Edmond O’Brien, and Jeanne Crain;
A Royal Scandal (1945), starring Tallulah Bankhead, Lon McCallister, and Anne Baxter;
The House On 92nd Street (1945), starring Signe Hasso and William Eythe;
Centennial Summer (1946), starring Jeanne Crain, Cornel Wilde, Linda Darnell, and William Eythe;
The Red House (1947), starring Edward G. Robinson, Lon McCallister, and Judith Anderson;
Thunder in the Valley (1947), starring Edmund Gwenn, Peggy Ann Garner, and Lon McCallister;
Scud Hoo! Scudda Hay! (1948), starring Lon McCallister, Walter Brennan, and June Haver;
Meet Me at Dawn (1947) starring William Eythe and Hazel Court;
The Big Cat (1949), starring Lon McCallister and Peggy Ann Garner;
The Story of Sea Biscuit (1949), starring Lon McCallister and Shirley Temple;
The Boy From Indiana (1950), starring Lon McCallister and Lois Butler;
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"FATHER KNOWS BEST: CLASSIC CINEMA'S BEST (AND WORST!) DADS" (039)
Episode 39
Monday, June 10, 2024 • Duration 41:59
From Beneath The Hollywood Sign is thrilled to welcome our newest sponsor, www.HappyMammoth.com. Use code BENEATH at checkout for 15% off of your entire first order!
EPISODE 39 - “Father Knows Best: Classic Cinema's Best (and Worst!) Dads” - 06/10/2024
When you stop to think about the great fathers of classic cinema, Atticus Finch, the mild-mannered Southern lawyer in “To Kill A Mockingbird” (1962), has to be at the top of the list. But who else would be on that list? And what about the horrible fathers of old Hollywood? As you scramble to find that last-minute tie or cologne for dear old Dad for Father’s Day, make sure you check out this week’s episode, where Steve and Nan celebrate some of old Hollywood’s most memorable fathers — the good and the bad.
SHOW NOTES:
Sources:
“20 Best and Worst Movie Fathers,” June 19, 2020, by David Fear, Rolling Stone.com
“Noah Cross (John Huston) Character Analysis: Mad, Bad, and Dangerous to Know,”
schmoop.com
Yahoo.com
RogerEbert.com
IMDBPro.com;
Wikipedia.com;
Movies Mentioned:
How Green Was My Valley (1941), starring
Walter Pidgeon, Maureen O’Hara, Donald Crisp, Patric Knowles, Anna Lee, Roddy McDowell, Sara Allgood, and Barry Fitzgerald;
Bicycle Thieves (1948), starring Vittorio De Sica, Enzo Staiola, and Lianella Carell;
Splendor in the Grass (1961), starring Natalie Wood, Warren Beatty, Pat Hingle, Audrey Christie, Barbara Loden, Zorah Lampert, Sandy Dennis, and Phyllis Diller;
The Heiress (1949), starring Olivia de Havilland, Montgomery Clift, Ralph Richardson, Miriam Hopkins, Vanessa Brown, and Mona Freeman;
The Swiss Family Robinson (1960), starring John Mills, Dorothy McGuire, James MacArthur, Tommy Kirk, Kevin Corcoran, and Janet Munro;
Shane (1953), starring Alan Ladd, Jean Arthur, Van Helfin, Brandon De Wilde, Jack Palance, Ben Johnson, Edgar Buchanan, Elisha Cook Jr, and Ellen Corby;
Chinatown (1974), starring Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway, John Huston, Perry Lopez, Diane Ladd, and John Hillerman;
Rebel Without A Cause (1955), starring James Dean, Natalie Wood, Sal Mineo, Dennis Hopper, Jim Backus, Corey Allen, Ann Doran, Nick Adams, William Hopper, and Edward Platt;
Our Vines Have Tender Grapes (1945), starring Edward G. Robinson, Margaret O’Brien, Agnes Moorhead, James Craig, Jackie “Butch” Jenkins, Frances Gifford, Morris Carnovsky, and Sara Haden;
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“RUTH ROMAN: STAR OF THE MONTH (JUNE)” (#038)
Episode 38
Monday, June 3, 2024 • Duration 36:34
EPISODE 38 - “Ruth Roman: Star of the Month (June)” - 06/03/2024
RUTH ROMAN was more than a pretty face; she was a survivor! She survived childhood poverty, the fickle nature of Hollywood, the wrath of Alfred Hitchcock, several marriages, and the sinking of the luxury liner Andrea Doria in 1956. Yes, Roman was a warrior. This week, Roman is our Star of the Month for June. Join us as we take a look at her life and her long and fruitful career, where her versatility kept her working for five decades in great films such as “Good Sam” (1948), “The Window” (1949), “Strangers On A Train” (1951), and “The Far Country” (1954).
SHOW NOTES:
Sources:
Femme Noir: Bad Girls of Film (1998), by Karen Burroughs Hannsberry;
Ruth Roman: A Career Portrait (2022), by Derek Sculthorpe;
“Stardom Seen for Ruth Roman,” December 11, 1949, by Hedda Hopper, The Los Angeles Times;
“The Progress of a Rising Star: Ruth Roman,” May 1, 1950, Life Magazine;
“Hollywood Hasn’t Changed Her,” May 17, 1950, by Lloyd L. Sloan, The Hollywood Citizen News;
“Roman Holiday,” August 12, 1950, Look Magazine;
Bachelor Girl Life Liked by Ruth Roman,” August 29, 1950, by Ruth Roman, The Los Angeles Evening Herald;
“The Role I Liked Best,” November 4, 1950, by Ruth Roman, The Saturday Evening Post;
“Ruth Roman Aiming at Film Personality,” November 26, 1950, by John L. Scott, The Los Angeles Times;
“Film Star and Radio Executive Plan No Honeymoon,” December 18, 1950, by Louella Parsons, The LA Examiner;
“Hollywood’s ROMAN Candle,” March 17, 1951, by Gladden Hill, Colliers Magazine;
“6-Pound Boy Born To Ruth Roman,” November 13, 1952, The Hollywood Citizen News;
“Matrimony, Motherhood Revive’s Ruth’s Career,” February 1, 1953, by Edwin Schallert, The Los Angeles Times;
“Ruth Roman Saves Her Son,3, and Loses Dress,” July 27, 1956, by Ruth Roman, The Hollywood Citizen News;
“Weeping Ruth Roman Reunited With Her Son,” July 28, 1956, The LA Examiner;
“Hall To Leave Ruth Roman for Diana Lynn,” October 9, 1956, by Louella Parsons, The LA Examiner;
“Ruth Roman says ‘I Do’ in Panama,” November 9, 1956, The Los Angeles Times;
“SeeSaw Star Isn’t Tumbling,” May 13, 1959, by Margaret Harford, The Mirror News;
“Annulment of Marriage Won by Ruth Roman,” August 11, 1961, The Los Angeles Times;
“Ruth Roman Just Unsinkable Star,” October 30, 1963, by Hal Humphrey, The Los Angeles Times;
“Passing Time Has Left Ruth Roman Untouched,” January 10, 1971, by Jim Meyer, The Miami Herald ;
“Ruth Roman,” April 1973, by Don Stance, Film Fan Monthly Magazine;
“Ruth Roman: The Ride of a New Roman Empire,” January 1986, Los Angeles Magazine;
“Ruth Roman, 75, Glamorous and Wholesome Star, Dies,” September 11, 1999, by William Honan, The New York Times;
IMDBPro.com;
Wikipedia.com;
Movies Mentioned:
Stage Door Canteen (1943);
Ladies Courageous (1944);
Since You Went Away (1944);
Song of Nevada (1944);
Jungle Queen (1945);
You Came Along (1945);
Incendiary Blonde (1945);
Gilda (1946);
The Big Clock (1948);
Good Sam (1948);
Belle Starr's Daughter (1948);
The Window (1949);
Champion (1949);
Beyond The Forest (1949);
Always Leave Them Laughing (1949);
Barricade (1950);
Colt .45 (1950);
Three Secrets (1950);
Dallas (1950);
Lightning Strikes Twice (1951);
Strangers On A Train (1951);
Tomorrow Is Another Day (1951);
Invitation (1952);
Mara Mara (1952);
Young Man With Ideas (1952);
Blowing Wild (1953);
The Far Country (1954);
Down Three Dark Streets (1954);
Great Day In The Morning (1956);
Rebel In Town (1956);
5 Steps To Danger (1956);
Bitter Victory (1957);
Desert Desperados (1959);
Love Has Many Faces (1965);
Go Ask Alice (1973);
The Baby (1973);
The Killing Kind (1973);
Impulse (1974);
Day Of The Animals (1977);
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"MEMORIAL DAY MOVIES" (#037)
Episode 37
Monday, May 27, 2024 • Duration 42:50
EPISODE 37 - “Memorial Day Movies” - 05/27/2024
War is Hell. As our nation prepares to honor the brave men and women who lost their lives defending our freedom on Memorial Day, Steve and Nan offer up a special episode where they will discuss a few war-themed films that have resonated with them over the years. Their choices cover everything from the Civil War to World War II.
SHOW NOTES:
Sources:
100 Great War Movies: The Real History Behind the Films (2018), by Robert J. Niemi;
101 War Movies You Must See Before You Die (2009), by Steven Jay Schneider;
Hollywood War Movies, 1937-1945 (1996), by Michael S. Shull and David Edward Wilt;
IMDBPro.com;
Wikipedia.com;
Movies Mentioned:
Sergeant York (1941), starring Gary Cooper, Walter Brennan, Joan Leslie, Margaret Wycherly, George Tobias, June Lockhart, Dickie Moore, Ward Bond, and ,Noah Beery, Jr;
Mrs. Miniver (1942), starring Greer Garson, Walter Pidgeon, Teresa Wright, Dame May Witty, Richard Ney, Reginald Owen, and Henry Travers;
So Proudly We Hail (1943), starring Claudette Colbert, Paulette Goddard, Veronica, Lake, George Reeves, Sonny Tufts, Barbara Britton, Mary Treen, Cora Witherspoon, and Walter Abel;
12 O’Clock High (1949), starring Gregory Peck, Dean Jagger, Millard Mitchell, Gary Merrill, Hugh Marlowe, John Kellogg, Richard Anderson, Robert Patten, and Lawrence Dobbin;
Operation Petticoat (1959), starring Cary Grant, Tony Curtis, Dina Merrill, Joan O’Brien, Arthur O’Connell, Marion Ross, Gavin MacLeod, and Dick Sergeant;
Shenandoah (1965), starring James Stewart, Patrick Wayne, Glenn Corbett, Phillip Alford, Doug McClure, Rosemary Forsythe, Katharine Ross, Harry Carey, Jr, Strother Martin, and George Kennedy;
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"CLASSIC HOLLYWOOD CLONES: THE REMAKING OF A MOVIE STAR" (#036)
Episode 36
Monday, May 20, 2024 • Duration 41:08
EPISODE 36 - “Classic Hollywood Clones: The Remaking of a Movie Star” - 05/20/2024
SHOW NOTES:
They say that imitation is the highest form of flattery. That may not be the case when it came to the star system of old Hollywood. When an actor like CLARK GABLE or GRETA GARBO or ROCK HUDSON emerged as a star, every studio in town tried to capitalize and create their own version. For every MARILYN MONROE, there’s a dozen CLEO MOOREs. Often studios would groom an actor with similar looks and skills to be a “threat” to bigger stars who become difficult to work with, or get older and less appealing, or refuse to appear in assigned films. Most of the stars groomed as a threat to a bigger star usually faded into obscurity, but others learned to get out of the looming shadow of the big star and carve out a career of their own. So this week, we pay tribute to the stars who got their starts by being groomed to replace another star.
Sources:
Jayne Mansfield: A Biography (1973), by May Mann;
Clark Gable: A Biography (2005), by Warren G. Harris;
Marilyn Monroe: The Private Life of a Public Icon (2018), by Charles Casillo;
Ingrid Bergman: My Story (1980), by Ingrid Bergman;
High Society: The Life of Grace Kelly (2017), by Jay Jorgensen and Manoah Bowman;
IMDBPro.com;
Wikipedia.com;
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"THE MYSTERY BEHIND THE COLUMBIA PICTURES’ TORCH LADY AND MGM’s LEO, THE LION" (#035)
Episode 35
Monday, May 13, 2024 • Duration 37:09
EPISODE 35 - “The Mystery Behind the Columbia Pictures’ Torch Lady and MGM’s Leo, the Lion” - 05/13/2024
Every major Hollywood studio has its recognizable logo. Paramount has its “mountain of stars,” 20th Century Fox has its roving klieg lights, and RKO has its radio towers. But two of the most famous studio logos have to be MGM’s “Leo, the lion” and Columbia’s regal “torch lady.” In this week’s episode, Steve and Nan dive into the history of these two iconic symbols of Hollywood excellence. From the image design to the models used to the roaring lions, we will tell you how these two ever-evolving images came to represent two of Hollywood’s finest movie studios.
SHOW NOTES:
Sources:
“The Story Behind Columbia Pictures’ Iconic Logo: How Photographer Found Model for 1992 Shoot,” One 8, 2023, by Tommy McArdle, People magazine;
“The Complete History of the Columbia Pictures Logo,” by Rachel Smith, Hatchwise.com;
“The Story of the Most Famous Lion,” April 17, 2107, by Kat Escher, Smithsonian Magazine;
“The Brief History of the MGM Lion,” June 25, 2022, www.silvescreenings.org;
“The MGM Lion,” April 15. 2020, The Vernacular;
IMDBPro.com;
Wikipedia.com;
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"MOTHER KNOWS BEST: CLASSIC CINEMA'S BEST (AND WORST!) MOMS" (034)
Episode 34
Monday, May 6, 2024 • Duration 47:53
In “It’s A Wonderful Life,” BEULAH BONDI played the most loving mother to JAMES STEWART. Ma Bailey is the epitome of sweetness, kindness, and supportiveness so it’s quite shocking when we meet the Ma Bailey who would have existed had George Bailey not been born. She’s cold, bitter, and unkind. It gives Bondi the wonderful opportunity to play two versions of the same character, which she does flawlessly. So to celebrate Mother’s Day, Nan and Steve are taking a page from Bondi’s playbook as they discuss the good and bad mothers of classic cinema.
SHOW NOTES:
Sources:
Moms in the Movies (2014), by Richard Corliss;
Actresses of a Certain Character (2007), by Axel Nissen;
Irene Dunne: First Lady of Hollywood (2006), by Wes D. Gehring;
Shelley: Also Known as Shirley (1981), by Shelley Winters;
Gene Tierney: Self Portrait (1979), by Gene Tierney and Mickey Herkowitz;
“Mrs. Miniver: The film that Goebbels Feared,” February 9, 2015, by Fiona Macdonald, February 9, 2015, BBC.com;
"Greer Garson, 92, Actress, Dies; Won Oscar for 'Mrs. Miniver’,” April 7, 1996, by Peter B. Flint, New York Times;
“Stella Dallas,” August 6, 1937, New York Times Film Review;
“Barbara Stanwyck, Actress, Dead at 82,” Jan. 22, 1990, by Peter B. Flint, New York Times;
“1989 Kennedy Center Honors, Claudette Colbert,” Kennedy-Center.org;
“Moving Story of War Against Japan: ‘Three Came Home’,” by Bosley Crowther, Feb. 21, 1950, New York Times Film Review;
“Queen of Diamonds: Angela Lansbury on ‘The Manchurian Candidate’,” 2004;
“Manchurian Candidate: Old Failure, Is Now A Hit,” by Aljean Harmetz, February 24, 1988, New York Times;
“Jo Van Fleet,” by Dan Callahan, May 10, 2017, Film Comment;
“Pacific’s largely forgotten Oscar winner made impact on screen,” March 3, 2024,
University of the Pacific;
IMDBPro.com;
Wikipedia.com
Movies Mentioned:
The Grapes of Wrath (1940), starring Henry Fonda, Jane Darwell, John Carradine, and Charley Grapewin;
The Ox-Bow Incident (1943), starring Henry Fonda, Dana Andrews, Mary Beth Hughes, Henry Morgan, Jane Darwell, Anthony Quinn, and William Eythe;
Mrs. Miniver (1942), starring Greer Garson, Walter Pidgeon, Teresa Wright, Henry Travers, and Richard Ney;
Leave Her To Heaven (1945), starring Gene Tierney, Cornel Wilde, Jeanne Crain, Vincent Price, Mary Phillips, and Darryl Hickman;
The Manchurian Candidate (1962), starring Lawrence Harvey, Frank Sinatra, Janet Leigh, and Angela Lansbury;
The Manchurian Candidate (2004), starring Denzel Washington, Meryl Streep, Live Schreiber, and Jeffrey Wight;
Gaslight (1944), starring Ingrid Bergman, Charles Boyer, Joseph Cotten, and Angela Lansbury;
I Remember Mama (1948), starring Irene Dunne, Philip Dorn, Barbara Bel Geddes, Oscar Homolka, Ellen Corby, Sir Cedric Hardwicke, and Barbara O’Neil;
Stella Dallas (1937), starring Barbara Stanwyck, Anne Shirley, John Boles, Barbara O’Neil, and Alan Hale;
Stella (1990), starring Bette Midler, Trini Alvarado, John Goodman, Stephen Collins, Marsha Mason, and Eileen Brennan;
White Heat (1949), starring James Cagney, Virginia Mayo, Edmond O’Brien, Steve Cochran, Margaret Wycherly, Fred Clark, and John Archer;
The Little Foxes (1941), starring Bette Davis, Herbert Marshall, Teresa Wright, Patricia Collinge, Dan Duryea, and Richard Carlson;
The Ten Commandments (1956), starring Charlton Heston, Anne Baxter, Yul Brynner, Edward G. Robinson, Yvonne DeCarlo, Martha Scott, John Derek, Debra Paget, Vincent Price, and John Carradine;
Three Came Home (1950), starring Claudette Colbert. Sessue Hayakawa, and Patric Knowles;
A Patch of Blue (1965), starring Sidney Poitier, Elizabeth Hartman, Shelley Winters, Wallace Ford, Ivan Dixon, and Elizabeth Fraser;
East of Eden (1955), starring James Dean, Julie Harris, Raymond Massey, and Jo Van Fleet
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“ZACHARY SCOTT: STAR OF THE MONTH (MAY)” (033)
Episode 33
Monday, April 29, 2024 • Duration 29:28
EPISODE 33 - “Zachary Scott: Star of the Month (May)” - 04/29/2024
Suave, debonaire, and effortlessly charming, ZACHARY SCOTT is best known for his role in MICHAEL CURTIZ's film noir classic Mildred Pierce (1945). As the duplicitous, silver-tongued charmer Monte Beragon, he romances Mildred, played by JOAN CRAWFORD (in her Oscar-winning role), and Mildred's daughter, Veda (ANN BLYTH). This became Scott's signature role: the sexy cad who was usually at his best swindling, seducing, or being a general scoundrel. It was always fun watching Scott's dastardly ways unfold. He could rock a tux, looked naked without a martini in his hand, and always had a cigarette close by. He was so magnetic that he could even make film-goers feel sorry for him. While he seldom got to play the good guy, when he did, as in what is perhaps one of his best roles in JEAN RENOIR's The Southerner (1945), you realize the versatility that he seldom had the opportunity to display. With a career that included over 40 films and dozens of television roles, ZACHARY SCOTT is our Star of the Month.
SHOW NOTES:
Sources:
Zachary Scott: Hollywood’s Sophisticated Cad (2009), by Ronald L. Davis;
“Actor Zachary Scott, Leading Man for 3 Decades, Dies of Brain Tumor,” October 4, 1965, Akron Bacon Journal
“Who Was Zachary Scott?” www.zachtheatre.org;
“Zachary Scott’s Guilded Cage,” Spring 2020, by Farren Smith Nehme, www.filmnoirfoundation.org;
IMDBPro.com;
Wikipedia.com;
Movies Mentioned:
Mildred Pierce (1945), starring Joan Crawford, Ann Blyth, Zachary Scott, Jack Carson, Eve Arden, Bruce Bennett, Lee Patrick, and Butterfly McQueen;
The Southerner (1945), starring Zachary Scott, Betty Field, Beulah Bondi, Norman Lloyd, J. Carroll Naish, Jay Gilpin, Jean Vanderwilt, Blanche Yurka, and Percy Kilbride;
The Mask of Dimitrios (1944), starring Zachary Scott, Faye Emerson, Peter Lorre, and Sydney Greenstreet;
Hollywood Canteen (1944), starring Bette Davis, John Garfield, Joan Crawford, Joan Leslie, Dane Clark, Joe E, Brown, Barbara Stanwyck, Id Lupino, Sydney Greenstreet, and Jack Benny;
Danger Signal (1945), starring Zachary Scott, Faye Emerson, Mona Freeman, Richard Erdman, Rosemary DeCamp, and Joyce Compton;
Her Kind Of Man (1946), starring Zachary Scott, Dane Clark, Janis Page, and Faye Emerson;
The Unfaithful (1947), starring Ann Sheridan, Lew Ayres, Zachary Scott, and Eve Arden;
Stallion Road (1947), starring Ronald Reagan, Alexis Smith, and Zachary Scott;
Cass Timberlane (1947), starring Spencer Tracy, Lana Turner, Zachary Scott, Tom Drake, Mary Astor, Margaret Lindsay, and Albert Dekker;
Ruthless (1948), starring Zachary Scott, Louis Hayward, Diana Lynn, Sydney Greenstreet, Lucille Bremer, and Martha Vickers;
Whiplash (1948), staring Dane Clark, Alexis Smith, Zachary Scott, Eve Arden, S.Z. Sakall, Jefferey Lynn, and Alan Hale Jr;
Flamingo Road (1949), starring Joan Crawford, Zachary Scott, Sydney Greenstreet, David Brian, Virginia Huston, Gladys George, and Fred Clark;
Shadow On The Wall (1950), starring Ann Sothern, Zachary Scott, John McIntire, Gigi Perreau, Kristine Miller, and Nancy Davis;
Born To Be Bad (1950), starring Joan Fontaine, Zachary Scott, Joan Leslie, Robert Ryan, and Mel Ferrer;
Stronghold (1951), starring Veronica Lake, Zachary Scott, and Rita Meceda;
The Secret of Convict Lake (1951), starring Glenn Ford, Gene Tierney, Zachary Scott, Ethel Barrymore, Ann Dvorak, Barbara Bates, and Janette Nolan;
Dead On Course (1953), starring Zachary Scott and Kay Kendall;
Flame of the Islands (1955), staring Yvonne DeCarlo, Howard Duff, and Zachary Scott;
Violent Stranger (1957), starring Zachary Scott, and Faith Domergue;
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