Category: Comedy

Classic Film, Comedy

Christmas in Connecticut – Holiday Classic or Feminist Screwball?

For classic film fans, the holiday season represents a time to wax nostalgic over those classic films that pop up this time of year. Everyone has his or her own must-see favorites. Perhaps you prefer a mainstream flavor like WHITE CHRISTMAS or IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE, or perhaps you go for something a bit under the mainstream radar like HOLIDAY AFFAIR or IT HAPPENED ON … Continue reading Christmas in Connecticut – Holiday Classic or Feminist Screwball?

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Classic Film, Comedy

Surviving Holiday MayhemWith These Ladies of Screwball Comedy

Dan (Ralph Bellamy): “I certainly learned about women from you.”Aunt Patsy (Cecil Cunningham): “Here’s your diploma.” (As she hands him Lucy’s break-up letter) In The Awful Truth (1937), Ralph Bellamy as wealthy cowpoke Dan does indeed learn a great deal about the risks and foibles of falling for a glamorous socialite (Irene Dunne), still in love with her soon-to-be-ex husband (Cary Grant). In the 1930s and 40s, the Screwball Comedy … Continue reading Surviving Holiday MayhemWith These Ladies of Screwball Comedy

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Classic Film, classic film review, Comedy

A Christmas Miracle Comes for Trudy Kockenlocker

Many a cinephile enjoy debating what films merit the definition for a holiday movie. Ever since Preston Sturges directed THE MIRACLE of MORGAN’S CREEK (1944), the controversy surrounding the film was less focused on whether it’s a Christmas movie, but more on the shock that it ever passed the production code under Breen’s watchful eyes. Written and directed by the king of screwball comedies, Preston Sturges, The Miracle … Continue reading A Christmas Miracle Comes for Trudy Kockenlocker

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Blogathon, Classic Film, Comedy

PAUL LYNDE: Sardonic Clown

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

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Blogathon, Classic Film, Comedy

A Dog, a Dinosaur Bone, and a Delinquent… Go to the Beach with BACHELOR FLAT (1962)

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)

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Comedy, Modern Film, Streaming

Celebrating Life, Death, and Ricky Gervais in GHOST TOWN (2008)

  Brit funny man Ricky Gervais is known for his brutal humor, as the controversial host of the Golden Globes, as the creator/writer/star of the original (2001 British version) “The Office,” and for his outspoken stances on atheism and animal rights. On his comedy styling, he never holds back and everyone is equally vulnerable to his verbal barbs. For a man who has very firm … Continue reading Celebrating Life, Death, and Ricky Gervais in GHOST TOWN (2008)

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Blogathon, Classic Film, classic film review, Comedy

THAT TOUCH OF MINK (1962)

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)

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Classic Film, classic tv, Comedy

Fangirling Doris Day

My love for Doris Mary Ann von Kappelhoff is no secret. As a classic film obsessive, I’m often asked who my favorite (male and female) movie stars are. With zero hesitation, Cary Grant and Doris Day. Even her name reflects that Day was destined to be star. Her mother gave her the name “Doris” after the silent film star Doris Kenyon. Later, “Day” was inspired … Continue reading Fangirling Doris Day

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