Movie For A Rainy Saturday Night - Mildred Pierce!

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Barry:

Most of my work is in the design and architecture field; I'm an editor at Modernism Magazine (www.modernismmagazine.com). Movie writing is a sideline for me. However, here's a link to an article about a Crawford movie that was never finished, called Great Day. It was shelved after only a few days' shooting, and the reasons for that have been a Hollywood mystery for decades. The article sets out my own theory for the debacle, and the reasons why I believe I have figured out what happened:

 
The weather

After a glorious summer, this weekend is said to be the last warm, sunny weekend of the summer. Temps have cooled considerably, but it's still pleasant enough. Monday a mammoth rain storm is supposed to move in, but by next weekend it's supposed to be dry, if not warm, again.

I spent the day addressing some nagging rust issues on two of my vehicles - the van and the pickup. The problem got so bad that there's now a gaping hole in the roof of the cab. I can't get to it from inside (the headliner is metal spot welded in place), so I'll probably stuff the space with some sort of metal wool and then lay on the Bondo. I repainted the truck myself about 8 years ago and apparently this section of the roof didn't get enough prep, or something.
 
Sandy--- I was in a hurry and didn't read the post about your authorship of the articles on Shearer and Crawford. Great writing---which doesn't surprise me, as your posts are always literate and well-structured. I'm definitely going to check out Modernism.

And I knew you were in Iowa; I don't know why I wrote Nebraska. My tiny fevered mind is showing its age.
 
Hey! It's Saturday night again. Tonight's movie is one of my favorites, courtesy of Turner Classic Movies: "I Am A Fugitive From A Chain Gang" starring Paul Muni (1932). If you haven't seen it, check it out. It's quite a powerful story.
 
Guess what's on tonight on the SF PBS stations?

Mildred Pierce... lol... I guess we're about a week behind NYC when it comes to such vintage flicks...

The second feature is Mrs. Miniver, which I've never seen. So I'll be recording it on my DVD recorder... should be a good one. They all talk like Laundress, after all.
 
Thanks For the Comments!

I really appreciate it. If Robert doesn't mind the horn-tooting, Modernism is a magazine dealing with midcentury architecture and design; it's a great resource for people who like that period.

Frigilux: I love that Paul Muni movie, but its title always makes me grin, because Dorothy Parker turned it into one of her best wisecracks. She always referred to it as I Was a Fugitive From a Daisy Chain Gang.
 
Suds:

Mrs. Miniver is one of my favourite movies. It has an undeserved reputation as a sticky-sweet M-G-M fantasy; it's actually a very hard-edged look at war. Once you've seen it, you'll know what I mean - keep your eye on Teresa Wright, who plays Carol Beldon. What happens to her in the movie was almost unheard-of for a star in the 1940s.
 
PS: Sandy...had NO IDEA that Joan was supposed to play the "Olivia" role in "Hush-Hush Sweet Charlotte" ! Now THAT would've been a delectable thing...especially on the heels of "Baby Jane"!
 
Charbee:

Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU! Now I know - It's a Zenith Consoltone. Bless you, as Joan would say.

Frigilux: Joan shot on Charlotte for something like ten days. Footage is probably still around somewhere, and I have seen stills. If the footage is ever located, it would make a great DVD extra. I've read that Davis was in awe of Joan's ability to execute very complicated action while still remaining on her marks and in her lighting.
 
Oops again:

Frigilux:

Sorry, that comment about Joan on Charlotte was intended for Charbee; what I meant to say to you was that my other most favourite wisecrack of Dorothy Parker's was in regards to her liking for hotel rooms instead of trying to run a house:

"All I need is a place to lay a hat - and a few friends."
 
Better Shot of Radio:

Here's a closer shot of the Zenith Consoltone. It looks like the "Zenith" logo was masked out (common practise in movies then), but you can make out the "Consoltone" lettering if you look closely enough. Charbee, I cannot thank you enough!

danemodsandy++10-10-2009-23-31-37.jpg
 
Bette in awe of Joan...

Joan does that to me too. For example, in the scene on the stairs outdoors in Female on the Beach, Joan bends over to pick up the shark hook. There is a closeup on her foot as she bends forward. She manages to bend down and NOT place any weight on the foot nearest the camera. She is wearing her trademark Fuck Me shoes and manages to keep her foot looking pretty and pointed. Me and a friend tried to do the same bending over move without looking shaky or placing too much weight on the "pretty foot" and it was nearly impossible.

Another minor detail: In Best of Everything, Miss Farrow is on the phone. As we know, nobody does Phone like Joan. Most people wouldnt notice, but i saw that Joan discreetly held the coiled handset cord while doing her scene. So as to keep the springy cord from bouncing and distracting.

Joan is a force of nature.
 
Let me add my thanks...

My, how this thread has grown! Thanks so much for identifying that radio!! And, Sandy, you are a fount of information. I really admire both your expertise and your writing. Oh, and for those of you who haven't seen Mrs. Miniver; it is a MUST for movie buffs. I fell for Greer Garson the first time!
 
Brett and Keith:

Brett:

Joan had one of the most awesome bag of tricks in motion-picture history - she is able to remain the focus of every shot she's in, every time. There is one scene in 1955's Queen Bee that, to me, sums up her expertise. The other actors are in a room, talking. Joan comes in, with a smile on her face - and she is absolutely terrifying; you know she's about to rip everyone else to shreds, even before she stops smiling. Being able to "telegraph" information like that is the mark of a very experienced performer.

Keith:

Isn't Mrs. Miniver great? I especially appreciate what happens to Teresa Wright, because it's so realistic and unexpected - people actually did die that way in wartime Britain. There is a sequel, titled The Miniver Story, made in Britan (the original movie was shot on the M-G-M lot in Culver City, CA) in 1951. Some people love it, some find it a downer, but I think it's worth your time. The re-creation of the original 1942 set of the Miniver house - built nine years after the original and over five thousand miles away from California - is astounding.
 
Mrs. Miniver

Is The Miniver Story when she became ill and hid it from the family? I have a vague recollection of that. For some reason, I thought there were 3 movies in that series. None of them topped the first, as tends to be the case. And, yes, the depiction of wartime Britain really brought the Blitz home to me. I remember thinking my parents lived through that period; no wonder Mama is so strong, and STOIC! Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm trolling ebay for a Consoltone! LOL
 
Happy to be able to contribute! I've been fascinated by old tube radios since I was a kid. It is sad to me that so many no longer realize what an incredible impact "radio" had on the lives of everyone, especially in the 1930s, and on thru the 1960s. It was the first contact with the "outside world" for most folks, before the boobtube came along.
 
Charbee and Keith:

Charbee:

Is the little flip-up thingy on top of the radio a Wavemagnet? It's hella cool, whatever it is.

Keith:

Yes, The Miniver Story is the one where Kay Miniver dies, after concealing her illness from the family. Not everyone likes the movie, but I enjoy it very much. Like most female performers who had been Big Names in the 1940s, Garson's career wasn't going too well in the '50s - television and the Justice Department order to movie companies that required them to divorce their studio operations from theatre chains had ruined the studio system. Garson's chance to play her best-loved character again was a rare occurrence in that era. The reason she got the opportunity was that M-G-M, like every movie studio, showed its movies in Britain, making a lot of money - but there was a problem.

The British monetary laws in place after World War II forbade M-G-M to take those earnings out of the country - Britain, which was in dire straits after the war, needed all its currency to stay there. The solution was for M-G-M to use those earnings to make movies in Britain - money couldn't be taken out of the country, but a movie negative could be. Because of British labour laws, M-G-M had to use performers who had U.K. backgrounds for the movies it made there, plus it needed to use stars who were familiar to American audiences, to help ensure the movies were profitable Stateside. Garson fit that description.

Another movie made under this situaton was 1952's Ivanhoe, which starred semi-Brits Elizabeth Taylor, Joan Fontaine, and George Sanders; the supporting cast and the crew were almost entirely British. The one American in the movie was Robert Taylor. While The Miniver Story was only somewhat successful, Ivanhoe was a very solid hit, making a lot of money for M-G-M in America, as it was intended to do.
 

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