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Houdini, Portrait at Age 32

Harry Houdini biography

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Biography of Harry Houdini (1874-1926)

Houdini means “escape artist or other ingenious person,” according to the dictionary.  Harry Houdini epitomizes that, of course, as the man who created the field of escape artistry, as well as becoming the most famous magician of his day, and equally well known for his debunking of fake “psychics.” His story, in one sense, ended on the stage after dying of a ruptured appendix, but in another sense continued for many years afterward.  Houdini personally stated that his story began in Appleton, Wisconsin … but it likely actually began in Budapest, Austria-Hungary.

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Aladdin and the King of Thieves, starring Gilbert Gottfried, Jerry Orbach, Scott Weinger, Linda Larkin, John Rhys-Davies

Aladdin and the King of Thieves

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Aladdin and the King of Thieves (1996), starring Gilbert Gottfried, Jerry Orbach, Scott Weinger, Linda Larkin, John Rhys-Davies

Review of Aladdin and the King of Thieves

I truly enjoyed the original Aladdin movie by Walt Disney, and I was terribly disappointed by it’s first sequel, The Return of Jafar.  I’m glad to say that I truly enjoyed Aladdin and the King of Thieves.  It’s as good, if not better, than the original film.  Let me tell you why.

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Them! starring James Arness, James Whitmore

Them!

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Them! (1954) starring James Arness, James Whitmore, Edmund Gwenn, Joan Weldon

There are certain movie cliches, and the 1950’s is possibly best known for the science fiction “giant monster” movie (ie. Kaiju). It often served as a morality story, about the dangers of atomic energy, unexpected consequences, and fear of the future, using ordinary animals that have been mutated to giant size to tell the story. It’s been told many times since, but never better than in the first movie of its’ type, Them!

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Lon Chaney Jr. biography

Lon Chaney Jr. biography

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Lon Chaney, Jr. (February  10, 1906 — July   12, 1973), born Creighton Tull Chaney, son of the iconic silent film actor Lon Chaney, was an American actor known for playing the titular role in the 1941 film The Wolf Man and its various crossovers, as well as portraying other monsters such as The Mummy, Frankenstein’s Monster, and Count Alucard (son of Dracula) in numerous horror films produced by Universal Studios.  He also portrayed Lennie Small in Of Mice and Men (1939). Originally referenced in films as Creighton Chaney, he was later credited as “Lon Chaney, Jr.” in 1935, and after 1941’s Man Made Monster, beginning as early as The Wolf Man later that same year, he was almost always billed under his more famous father’s name as Lon Chaney. Chaney had English, French and Irish ancestry. His career in movies and television spanned four decades, from 1931 to 1971.

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Lupino, Sydney Greenstreet, William Prince, Willie Best

Pillow to Post

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Pillow to Post (1945), starring Ida Lupino, Sydney Greenstreet, William Prince, Willie Best  In short, Pillow to Post is a delightful comedy.  The basic story has… Read More »Pillow to Post

The Stranger (1946) starring Orson Welles, Edward G. Robinson, Loretta Young

The Stranger

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The Stranger (1946) starring Orson Welles, Edward G. Robinson, Loretta Young

Synopsis of The Stranger

In The Stranger, Wilson of the War Crimes Commission is seeking Franz Kindler, mastermind of the Holocaust, who has effectively erased his identity. Wilson releases Kindler’s former comrade Meinike and follows him to Harper, Connecticut, where he is killed before he can identify Kindler. Now Wilson’s only clue is Kindler’s fascination with antique clocks; but though Kindler seems secure in his new identity, he feels his past closing in.

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The Buster Keaton CollectionThe Buster Keaton Collection presents three of the first films (one, The Cameraman, a near masterpiece) Keaton made for MGM beginning in 1928, an arrangement that gradually ushered the great comic actor and director into the sound era but ultimately deprived him of creative control. The Cameraman, considered by many to be Keaton’s last important silent work, is an unusual story about a tintype portrait photographer (Keaton) who becomes a newsreel cameraman in order to win the heart of a secretary (Marceline Day). After flubbing an assignment by double-exposing some action footage, the hapless hero tries to prove himself in several memorable sequences of Keatonesque knockabout comedy (including a Chinatown street battle). There are also a couple of grace notes, such as a scene set in Yankee Stadium in which a solo Keaton exquisitely mimes the moves and attitudes of a pitcher. But The Cameraman’s strange, almost subconscious power is in its variation on an old Keaton refrain: The hero’s conflict over different kinds of authenticity, represented here on either side of a motion picture lens–the difference between capturing something real and living it. The Cameraman shows obvious and unfortunate signs of MGM’s insistence that Keaton, long accustomed to improvising scenes, conform to prepared shooting scripts. But it is less stifling than the second feature (Keaton’s last silent movie) in this set, the 1929 Spite Marriage, a slight farce about a pants-presser (Keaton) who borrows his customers’ fine threads to attend the theatre every night. There he worships an actress (Dorothy Sebastian) so furious with her caddish lover and co-star (Edward Earle) that she asks Keaton to marry her. The predictable results are unworthy of a Keaton film, but he does shine in several hilarious sequences, such as a disastrous turn as a bit player in his soon-to-be-wife’s stage dramas. Finally, 1930’s Free and Easy, Keaton’s talkie debut, is a garish MGM valentine to itself, trotting out celebrity actors and directors (Lionel Barrymore, Cecil B. DeMille, Fred Niblo) in a wooden story set on a movie lot. But while Keaton struggles with dialogue and a script that frequently sidelines him, he has many good moments causing havoc on film sets. –Tom Keogh Product Description of The Buster Keaton Collection A two-disc DVD collection that spotlights the actor’s MGM period. “TCM Archives: The Buster Keaton Collection” features two of Keaton’s funniest silents, “The Cameraman,” re-mastered with a new score by former Frank Zappa band member Arthur Barrow, and “Spite Marriage” (featuring its original 1929 Vitaphone musical score) along with “Free and Easy,” Keaton’s first talkie. The DVD set also features film historian Kevin Brownlow’s poignant new documentary “So Funny It Hurt: Buster Keaton and MGM.” Considered by many cinema’s greatest silent clown, Buster Keaton was a consummate practitioner of physical comedy whose career began in vaudeville at the age of three. Wearing trademark slapshoes and big baggy pants identical to his father’s, most gags involved pratfalls with his father kicking him across the stage or tossing him into the air. Within a few years of his debut, Keaton was scoring rave reviews which applauded the physical comedy that would come to be so much a part of his film fame. “The dexterity or expertness with which Joe Keaton handles ‘Buster’ is almost beyond belief of studied ‘business.’ The boy accomplishes everything attempted naturally, taking a dive into the backdrop that almost any comedy acrobat of more mature years could watch with profit” (Variety, March 12, 1910). Details of The Buster Keaton Collection Films The Cameraman – After becoming infatuated with a pretty office worker, Keaton sets out to become a newsreel cameraman in order to be closer to his dream girl. Keaton’s first film for MGM, made in 1928, is considered one of his funniest masterworks and offers up a feast of visual gags. The newly remastered DVD includes a new score by Arthur Barrow. Spite Marriage – In this 1929 silent laugh-filled classic, Keaton stars as Elmer, a man madly in love with stage star Trilbey Drew. When Trilbey’s boyfriend gets engaged to another woman, she marries Elmer in a desperate attempt to get even. This was Keaton’s final silent comedy, and is presented here with its original Vitaphone music score. Free and Easy – In Keaton’s first talkie, he stars as an agent to beauty contest winner Elvira Plunkett. When Elvira decides to try her luck in Hollywood, Elmer goes along to help and the two soon find themselves falling in love. Chaos ensues when the couple must contend with Elvira’s disapproving mother and a handsome movie star, who also has his sights set on the lovely Elvira. This 1930 classic is highlighted by guest appearances from a host of other MGM stars of the era including Robert Montgomery and Lionel Barrymore.

The Buster Keaton Collection

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Editorial Review of The Buster Keaton Collection, courtesy of Amazon.com

buy-from-amazon The Buster Keaton Collection presents three of the first films (one, The Cameraman, a near masterpiece) Keaton made for MGM beginning in 1928, an arrangement that gradually ushered the great comic actor and director into the sound era but ultimately deprived him of creative control. The Cameraman, considered by many to be Keaton’s last important silent work, is an unusual story about a tintype portrait photographer (Keaton) who becomes a newsreel cameraman in order to win the heart of a secretary (Marceline Day). After flubbing an assignment by double-exposing some action footage, the hapless hero tries to prove himself in several memorable sequences of Keatonesque knockabout comedy (including a Chinatown street battle). There are also a couple of grace notes, such as a scene set in Yankee Stadium in which a solo Keaton exquisitely mimes the moves and attitudes of a pitcher. But The Cameraman’s strange, almost subconscious power is in its variation on an old Keaton refrain: The hero’s conflict over different kinds of authenticity, represented here on either side of a motion picture lens–the difference between capturing something real and living it.

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That's Amore lyrics, as sung by Dean Martin in The Caddy

That’s Amore lyrics

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That’s Amore lyrics, as sung by Dean Martin in The Caddy

In Napoli where love is king
When boy meets girl here’s what they say …
When a moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie
That’s amore
When the world seems to shine like you’ve had too much wine
That’s amore
Bells will ring ting-a-ling-a-ling, ting-a-ling-a-ling
And you’ll sing “Vita bella”
Hearts will play tippy-tippy-tay, tippy-tippy-tay
Like a gay tarantellaRead More »That’s Amore lyrics