“I don’t know what the secret to longevity as an actress is… maybe it’s the audience seeing itself in you.” … Joan Blondell Joanie should know. Joan Blondell, born Rose Joan Blondell on August 30, 1906, in NYC, lived her entire life performing on stage and screen. She died of leukemia on December 25, 1979 in Santa Monica, CA. It is bittersweet to honor this … Continue reading Joan Blondell, Shining Star Forced to be a Satellite
Josef von Sternberg’s SHANGHAI EXPRESS was the top grossing film of 1932 (in US and Canada)- at the apex of the salacious Pre-Code era. With good reason. This exotic film takes us on a journey via rail in Northern China from Peking to Shanghai. There’s a uniquely diverse group of passengers that sometimes clash and sometimes simmer for the ride. Ultimately, each are surprised to … Continue reading The Seduction of SHANGHAI EXPRESS (1932)
What made the Pre-Code era so scandalous, was the content and characterizations in those films made between 1930-1934 in a time when censorship was in name only. In the years 1932-1934, these were the rebellious years of filmmaking where the envelope was pushed so far, the Hays code of censorship was finally enforced. One of the benefits of this scintillating period was the portrayal of … Continue reading Classic Movie History Project: Women In Film 1932-1934
“There’s no room for sympathy or softness – my code is smash or be smashed!”… Warren William as Kurt Anderson In the heart of the Great Depression of 1933, Roy Del Ruth’s EMPLOYEES’ ENTRANCE was released just a few months prior to the election that ousted stock-market-crashing President Hoover and ushered in economic-rebuilder President FDR. The political and economic climate of desperation and uncertainty in … Continue reading The Cost of Success in EMPLOYEES’ ENTRANCE (1933)
Mae West was an original. Her personality was bigger than life and her sexuality was a powerful force of nature. In West’s second writing credit on film, Wesley Ruggles’ I’M NO ANGEL stands out as a definitive Pre-Code. Following the success of SHE DONE HIM WRONG released earlier that year, the even greater popularity of I’M NO ANGEL as the top grossing film of 1933 … Continue reading Salacious Sins in I’M NO ANGEL (1933)
Outspoken & Freckled 