There’s something engrossing in the character study of a beautiful psychopath. In Otto Preminger’s ANGEL FACE (1953), we get up close with an alluring monster. Don’t be too disappointed that only few spoilers and not much plot details are coming your way. This film is not a whodunnit murder mystery. Oh sure there will be murder. But there’s no mystery of this particular killer… and … Continue reading Falling For a Psychopath: ANGEL FACE (1953)
It’s difficult to say what role I first discovered Paul Lynde. I was born in the winter of 1966, and throughout my childhood in the late sixties and seventies, he was everywhere. Never a leading man, yet he was a standout in small roles in the most popular films, tv shows, and game shows. For a comedic actor who always got the minor roles, he … Continue reading PAUL LYNDE: Sardonic Clown
After an unusually cold April, May suddenly feels more like a scorching July and makes me yearn for the beach. Or, classic beach movies. When I nostalgically recall of summers of my youth, silly sex comedies of the 60s often filled my days. I wasn’t old enough to see them first-run so my screenings were likely a decade or two later, running in syndication on … Continue reading A Dog, a Dinosaur Bone, and a Delinquent… Go to the Beach with BACHELOR FLAT (1962)
When the classic film community discovered the sad loss of a beloved fellow blogger recently, Paddy aka Patricia Nolan-Hall of CAFTAN WOMAN, ANOTHER OLD MOVIE BLOG and LADY EVE’S REEL LIFE mobilized to create a blogathon to honor her memory. When I think of Paddy, I am moved by her generosity and kindness. She was very committed to not only participating in nearly every single … Continue reading A Sunny Tribute…THE GLASS BOTTOM BOAT (1966)
Borrowing a catch-phrase from our favorite home of the classics, Turner Classic Movies, Kellee of Outspoken & Freckled / @IrishJayHawk66), Paula of Paula’s Cinema Club / @Paula_Guthat) and Aurora, of Once Upon a Screen / @CitizenScreen) dedicate a blogathon to character actors for the ninth consecutive year. To the faces, the laughs, the drama presented by these wonderful actors whose names all too often go unrecognized we dedicate WHAT A CHARACTER! 2020. The hosts extend … Continue reading Announcement: 9th annual WHAT A CHARACTER! BLOGATHON
Frank McHugh was never destined to be the top banana in a film. He lacked any traditional leading man looks. His voice was never skilled to ever become a songbird. And other than portraying a dancing cat with simple steps while chewing a cigar, he was certainly no Fred Astaire. But he had all the right stuff to be a very popular second banana in … Continue reading Frank McHugh, Everybody’s Pal
Seeing Donald Pleasence As a (slightly rusty) artist, I’m always people watching. I don’t sketch as much as I used to, and now it’s mostly dogs, but I still find myself looking deeply at people features, their body language, attitude, smile, and gate… but mostly I look at their eyes. And it’s for that reason why my entry for the What A Character! Blogathon is … Continue reading Seeing Donald Pleasence
Today we bring you the first day of the 8th annual WHAT A CHARACTER! BLOGATHON, hosted by yours truly and my fellow co-hosts, your ambassadors of classic film: Paula of Paula’s Cinema Club @Paula_Guthat and Aurora of Once Upon A Screen @CitizenScreen. In celebrating this annual event, this weekend we honor the unsung heroes of big and small screens everywhere, the unforgettable character actors. Who are those familiar faces … Continue reading WHAT A CHARACTER! BLOGATHON: Day 1
It’s hard to believe we’ve been hosting this blogathon for eight years now. But perhaps not that shocking considering that discussing those scene-stealing character actors is a crowd-pleasing pastime amongst cinephiles. Wise-cracking Eve Arden, nurturing Louise Beavers, sassy Thelma Ritter, double-take pro Edward Everett Horton, tart-tongued Edna May Oliver, gravelly-voiced Eddie “Rochester” Anderson, fatherly Charles Coburn, frazzled Franklin Pangborn, bull frog voiced, barrel-chested Eugene Pallette, … Continue reading Announcement: It’s the 8th Annual WHAT A CHARACTER! Blogathon
Doris Day was 40 years old when Delbert Mann’s THAT TOUCH OF MINK (1962) premiered, cementing her ridiculous (yet popular) reputation as the “world’s oldest professional virgin.” At this point, she was flourishing in her career within a string of crowd-pleasing sex comedies and rom-coms from the late 1950s that continued into the 1960s. THAT TOUCH OF MINK followed a sure-fire formula with successful films … Continue reading THAT TOUCH OF MINK (1962)
Outspoken & Freckled 