Category Archives: Comet Archives

Tune in for your weekly fireside

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Don Ameche, Ginger Rogers, Cecil B. DeMille and Charles Winneger performing on the Lux Radio Theater

“Radio  Waves Over Hollywood” will be streaming live Thursday night from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m (Eastern time).

Topics for Jan. 27:
-Film actors who made it big on TV
-Kay Kyser, Georgia Carroll and other big bands
-Actors who got married
-And more…

So be sure to listen at 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.  live stream on www.winrfm.com (go to Listen Live) or  the old WINR website.

Call in at 803-323-2122, whether you know me or not, to contribute to the discussion.  I would love to hear from you!

And remember, non-Winthrop students can listen and call in too!

Also, if you listen to the “Radio Waves Over Hollywood” show, leave feedback for me in the comments area. Let me know what I need to work on or what you want to hear!

Check out the Comet Over Hollywood Facebook page and Radio Waves Over Hollywood Facebook page.

“I felt so low I could walk under a dachshund on stilts”

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Dachshunds are probably the cutest dog to ever walk the planet. Maybe I’m a little biased, but their foot long torsos, stubby little legs, floppy ears and clown-like mischievousness is hard to resist. No wonder so many actors and actresses had these adorable hot dogs.

I generally don’t do long strings of photo posts, but I have noticed that lots of these cute German dogs pop up in movies and in celebrity homes. I also am really homesick for my best four-legged friend, Molly. Here is a list of stars who had these cute dogs:

*The quote above is from the Clara Bow silent film “It” (1927)

Fatty Arbuckle

Joan Blondell

French Charles Boyer and English Ronald Colman cuddle the little German

Claudette Colbert

Joan Crawford and her famous Baby and Boopshem

Marion Davies and her dachsie

Brian Donlevy

Clark Gable

Jean Harlow and her pup

Walter Huston and his dog spending quality time

Alan Ladd with his two children

Diana Lewis (aka Mrs. William Powell) and her doggie

Carole Lombard (Clark Gable and Carole Lombard had dachshunds together)

Julie London

Adolphe Menjou and his puppy

William Powell

Romy Schneider

Dean Stockwell

Anna May Wong

Even The Duke had a dachshund

Author of the blog and her dachshund Molly, Christmas 2009

 

Check out the Comet Over Hollywood Facebook page or Follow on Twitter at @HollywoodComet

First radio show of the semester! Listen!

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Carole Landis on the radio

It’s the first show of the semester with some changes in the format so be sure to listen!

“Radio  Waves Over Hollywood” will be streaming live Thursday night from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m (Eastern time).

Topics for Jan. 20:
-New movie endeavors and other things in my life movie related
-Assessment of TCM Movie Moguls Documentary and Hollywood history
-One actress’s suicide and its controversy
-And more…

So be sure to listen at 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.  live stream on www.winrfm.com (go to Listen Live) or  the old WINR website.

Call in at 803-323-2122, whether you know me or not, to contribute to the discussion.  I would love to hear from you!

And remember, non-Winthrop students can listen and call in too!

Also, if you listen to the “Radio Waves Over Hollywood” show, leave feedback for me in the comments area. Let me know what I need to work on or what you want to hear!

Check out the Comet Over Hollywood Facebook page and Radio Waves Over Hollywood Facebook page.

Once more, Miss Grable?

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Top pin-ups of WW2: Betty Grable and Rita Hayworth

Betty Grable and Rita Hayworth.

The two pin-up girls that almost all soldiers pinned on their barracks and hearts during World War II.  The two glamour girls duked it out to be Number 1 pin-up thanks to two famous LIFE photos.  Betty with her coy over the shoulder bathing suit glance, and Rita perched on a bed in lacy negligee.

Both women were no doubt enviously beautiful but in very different ways. Hayworth had major glamorous sex appeal. Long wavy red hair, a slender figure and smoldering beauty.  Grable’s sparkling eyes, blonde hair and sunny smile gave way to an all-American girl look.  In the 1940s Time magazine said, “She can lay no claims to sultry beauty or mysterious glamour.  Her peach-cheeked, pearl blonde good looks add up to mere candy- box-top prettiness.” 

This was no doubt the reason Grable was the top pin-up girl.  She had attainable beauty that soldiers could find in their wives and childhood sweethearts.

But though Grable wins in the pin-up photo battle, she may lose in other areas.

I adore Betty Grable so in the past week I’ve been watched both “Springtime in the Rockies” (1942), “Song of the Islands” (1942) and assorted YouTube clips of Betty. While watching these, I’ve noticed something that very much disturbs me. Betty Grable isn’t the best dancer.

In “Rockies” her dance numbers were good but not exciting. In “Song of the Islands” I felt like her hula dancing was a bit haphazard.  She almost frantically waved her arms and hips around. I will say the sand that she was dancing on looked like a hindrance. I was pleased to note that several of her hula moves were authentic based off my “Island Girll” work out DVDs.

In comparison, a recent clip I watched of Rita Hayworth and Fred Astaire dancing in “You Were Never Lovelier” (1942) or Hayworth dancing solo in “Down to Earth” (1947) were impressive to say the least.  Her moves were graceful and well thought out, and footwork was complicated but done with ease.  Hayworth was an excellent tap dancer, but-to be fair- she also had the upper hand since she was part of her father’s dance troop.

Grable can really sell a song and do a fun dance number, but when compared to her contemporaries like Rita Hayworth- Grable really falls short.

Here are too numbers I found to compare their dancing styles.

I chose these two clips for specific reasons:
1. Both Grable and Hayworth are wearing pants, so you can see their feet better
2. They are both meant to look like practice routines
3. Hermes Pan and Fred Astaire have very similar dancing styles

Betty Grable and Hermes Pan in “Footlight Serenade” (1942):

Rita Hayworth and Fred Astaire in “You’ll Never Get Rich” (1941):


Both dance well, but I think Rita does a better job.  Astaire and Hayworth seem to be on the same skill level in their number while Pan is much more graceful than Grable.

What do you think?

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Boola boola and rah rah rah: College in the movies

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A typical day at Winthrop…not. (From “Good News

After a fast Christmas break, I have moved back into my Winthrop University dorm for the last time.  In honor of my last semester as a college “co-ed”  here is a blog with different representations of college in classic film and judge at how realistic the films portray college.

*I’d like to point out that all of these are classic films, so don’t be disappointed that I didn’t review “National Lampoon’s Animal House” or “Accepted.”

 

Harold Lloyd and Jobyna Ralston in “The Freshman”

•The Freshman (1925)-

Harold Lloyd is very excited about going to college after seeing a movie about a popular campus. Lloyd’s only purpose at college is to be the big man on campus. He achieves this by doing a silly dance before he shakes people’s hands and fumbling around the football field. However, he just makes a fool of himself. To review: I’m not a huge fan of Harold Lloyd actually (I am loyal to Buster Keaton), but this is actually one of my favorite silent movies. It’s heartbreaking to see how people make fun of him but also hilarious at the same time. I really don’t know what college life was like in the 1920s, but in my college experiences there is not one BIG popular person. I will say, I am on a fairly small campus of 6,500 people so there are notable figures but no one person who I would say is the most popular.

•Pigskin Parade (1936)- Winston and Bessie Winters (Jack Haley and Patsy Kelly) are college coaches trying to have a winning season. Things are going rough until hillbilly Amos (Stuart Erwin) and his sister Sairy (Judy Garland)-also a redneck- come to campus.  Amos can throw a winning football pass after throwing melons on the farm. To review: Its been a long time since I’ve seen this movie but I remember it being pretty excruciating. Between Judy’s country accent and the Yacht Boys singing, it was pretty obnoxious.

 

Rosemary and Priscilla Lane publicity shot for “Variety Show”

•Varsity Show (1937)-

Priscilla and Rosemary Lane (as Betty and Barbara) and friends are trying to put on a show on Winfield Campus, but the faculty doesn’t like swing music. They pull in former student and Broadway star Chuck Day (Dick Powell), to help with the show, but his last performances have laid eggs. To review: I love Priscilla Lane and Dick Powell, and its fun to see them in a movie together. However, this is another stereotypical song and dance college musical. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen in college put on as big of a show as they do in this movie.

•Vivacious Lady (1938)-Francey (Ginger Rogers) marries college chemistry professor Peter (James Stewart). The marriage is a secret from his family because he is already engaged and his father (Charles Coburn)  is the college president. Stewart and Rogers go to extreme measures to stay together, including Rogers becoming a student at the college. To review: This is one of my favorite movies. Rogers and Stewart have wonderful chemistry and there are several funny moments. I did think most of the college students in Stewart’s class looked a lot older than college students though.

•Bathing Beauty (1944)- Caroline (Esther Williams) goes back to her old job as a teacher at a girls’ college after a misunderstanding with her boyfriend Steve (Red Skelton). Steve tries to win Caroline back by finding a loophole in the rules and enrolling in the school. Comedic moments ensue with Red in a tutu and Harry James jazzing up music class. To review: I love this movie. Esther is beautiful in Technicolor. Xavier Cugat and Lina Romay spice it up with Latin rhythm along with other musical talents like Ethel Smith and Harry James. I know that James and Cugat don’t come and jazz up “I’ll Take the High Road” in music class in college, but it certainly does make college look fun. I also love the ever pert and fun Jean Porter in this movie. She really seems like the quintessential college/high school young lady of the 1940s to me.

Susan Peters is a co-ed with “Young Ideas”

•Young Ideas(1943)- Romance author Josephine Evans(Mary Astor) marries college professor Mike (Herbert Marshall) and cancels her book tour.  Astor’s children, Susan (Susan Peters) and Jeff (Elliot Reed), oppose of the marriage, especially since it may mean their mother’s book career is over. Susan and Jeff enroll in college and do whatever they can to break up the marriage. To review: This is a classic, fun MGM movie from the 1940s. I love Herbert Marshall and he was really funny in this movie. Susan Peters and Elliot Reed were pretty bratty but Richard Carleson gave a nice balance to it. This movie seemed the most of what college might have been like-though I do wonder if freshman really wore little beanies.

•Andy Hardy’s Blonde Trouble (1944)- Andy Hardy (Mickey Rooney) goes to college and is surrounded by beautiful girls-his dream. Two twin blondes trick him and he falls for the icy Kay Wilson (Bonita Granville). Hardy competes with professor Dr. Standish (Herbert Marshall) for Kay’s attention. To review: I don’t like the Andy Hardy movies as much when he goes to college. However, the way college was represented seemed to be pretty realistic.

Peter Lawford and June Allyson in “Good News”

•Good News (1947)- In the 1920s, co-ed librarian June Allyson isn’t exactly what you would call a vamp. Allyson falls for popular, football star Peter Lawford but he is interested in modern woman, Patricia Marshall.  Several songs are fit in during the pursuit of love, including a great number involving “The Varsity Drag.” To review: Once again, I wonder if in the 1920s, schools were so small to have one person who is the most popular? The movie is fun and colorful, but it seems more a vehicle for Joan McCracken and Patricia Marshall-neither who did much else in movies. I wish June Allyson was in the movie more, because she was the whole reason I watched it.

•Apartment For Peggy (1948)- Peggy (Jeanne Crain) and Jason (William Holden) are married, and Jason is going to college as a chemistry major using the G.I. Bill.  Professor Henry Barnes (Edmund Gwenn), a professor at the college, has decided he has lived long enough and wants to commit suicide. The couple lives in a trailer, but needs more room because Peggy is expecting. The professor agrees to let the couple rent out his attic as an apartment and his views on life begin to change. To review: This is a really fun and cute movie. It is very light hearted but let me warn you for some sad parts. I think the college aspect is pretty realistic when put in perspective of post-war men using G.I. Bill to go to college and their wives and their struggles.

•Mr. Belvedere Goes to College(1949)- Clifton Webb as Mr. Belvedere decides to enroll in college since his highest level of education is from the fifth grade.  Though he is older than all the students, Belvedere is considered a freshman and has to deal with ritual hazing. During all of this he makes friends with Tom Drake and beautiful Shirley Temple who has a secret. To review: The movie is very funny, and Clifton Webb gives a droll perfomance as always. Other than the hazing, I thought this seemed pretty similar to a real college. It was pretty large and it didn’t seem like there was that one person in charge.

 

Other college films:
College (1927)- Starring Buster Keaton
College Swing (1938)- Starring Bob Hope, Gracie Allen and Martha Raye
Dancing Co-Ed (1939)-Starring Lana Turner, Ann Rutherford,  and Artie Shaw
These Glamour Girls (1939)- Starring Lana Turner, Lew Ayres and Anita Louise
Second Chorus (1940)- Starring Fred Astaire, Paulette Goddard, Burgess Meredith and Artie Shaw
The Feminine Touch (1941)- Starring Rosalind Russell and Ray Milland
The Male Animal (1942)- Starring Henry Fonda, Olivia de Havilland and Joan Leslie
The Falcon and The Co-Ed (1943)- Starring Tom Conway
Mother Is A Freshman (1949)- Starring Van Johnson and Loretta Young
HIGH TIME (1960)- Starring Bing Crosby, Tuesday Weld and Richard Beymer
Joy in the Morning (1965)- Starring Richard Chamberlin and Yvette Mimeux

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10,000 and counting

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Time to celebrate!

LIFE photo of Betty Grable and Harry James celebrate their daughter's 1st birthday.

Last night “Comet Over Hollywood” reached 10,000 readers from May 2010 to January 2011.

I want to thank all of my faithful readers.  If you ever want to see posts on a certain topic or even criticize my writing, please feel free to do so!

Thanks for all of your support and look for many new posts this year!

Check out the Comet Over Hollywood Facebook page and Radio Waves Over Hollywood Facebook page.

Last “Radio Waves” show tonight!

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1942: Gene Tierney, Gary Cooper, Betty Hutton and Bob Burns doing a show for soldiers

“Radio  Waves Over Hollywood” will be streaming live Thursday night from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m (Eastern time).

This will be my  last show until January so be sure to listen in!

Topics for Dec. 2:
-Favorite Christmas movies-songs and scenes
-Dubbing singing in movies
-Wrap up and recap of favorite films and such, until next semster
-And more…

So be sure to listen at 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.  live stream on www.winrfm.com (go to Listen Live) or  the old WINR website.

Call in at 803-323-2122, whether you know me or not, to contribute to the discussion.  I would love to hear from you!

And remember, non-Winthrop students can listen and call in too!

Also, if you listen to the “Radio Waves Over Hollywood” show, leave feedback for me in the comments area. Let me know what I need to work on or what you want to hear!

P.S. blog readers: I apologize for not putting up the beauty tip on the first of the month. It will be up later in the week. The last week of classes has gotten hectic!

Check out the Comet Over Hollywood Facebook page and Radio Waves Over Hollywood Facebook page.

 

Classic film in daily life: Classic film in ethics paper

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In my classes and extracurricular activities at Winthrop University, I try to incorporate old movies as much as possible. Recently in my Media Ethics (MCOM 410) class, we were required to write a 10 to 12 page paper on an issue in diversity in the media. It could be movies, television, newspaper articles or etc.

Of course I wanted to write about movies. Instead of taking the route of how certain minority groups are stereotyped in films, I decided to write about how white actors played minority roles in films-and this happened a lot in films. White actors and actresses would don heavy make-up, false noses and over-exaggerated gestures to play different ethnic roles such as Asians, American Indians or Hispanics.

Here are movies I talked about in my paper:

Lillian Gish and Richard Bathelmess in “Broken Blossoms”

Actors playing Asians:
-Richard Barthelmess playing the Asian man  “Chinky” opposite Lillian Gish in “Broken Blossoms: The Yellow Man and the Girl” (1919)
-“ (D.W) Griffith’s caricature notions about Chinese posture perhaps have something to do with the hunched torso he (Barthlemess) uses throughout the film.” from Star Acting: Gish, Garbo, Davis by Charles Affron
-Danish Nils Asther as Chinese General Yen in “The Bitter Tea of General Yen” (1933)
-Helen Hayes playing a Chinese girl in “The Son-Daughter” (1932)
-“Anna Mae Wong was dropped in favor of Helen Hayes, whose casting then necessitated the firing of all other Chinese in the cast ‘with the exception of some Chinese as extras in long shot, because white actors looked freakish set against the faces of authentic Asian players.” Pre-Code Hollywood: Sex, Immorality, and Insurrection in American Cinema; 1930-1934 by Thomas Doherty 
-Luise Rainer and Paul Muni in “The Good Earth” (1936)
-“I’m about as Chinese as Herbert Hoover.  I won’t look Chinese, no matter how much makeup I use, and I won’t sound it.” Paul Muni said in biographyActor: The Life & Times of Paul Muni by Jerome Lawrence
-Jennifer Jones as Eurasian Han Suin in “Love is a Many-Splendored Thing” (1955)

Whites playing light-skinned African Americans “passing for white”:
-Ava Gardner as Julie Laverine in “Show Boat” (1951)
-“My own personal choice would have been Lena Horne (for the role of Julie),” Gardner said.  “She was really born for this part. She would have been perfect for it…George Sidney however wanted me.” Ava: My Story by Ava Gardner
-Jeanne Craine as Pinky in “Pinky” (1949)

Actors playing American Indians:
-Mary Pickford playing Indians/Spanish women in “Ramona” and “Song of the Wild Wood Flute” (both 1910)
-Mary Pickford in Sunshine and Shadow: “I noticed rather early that Mr. Griffith seemed to favor me in the roles of Mexican and Indian women.  Perhaps it was because I was the only leading girl in Biography (the studio) with eyes that photographed dark…Whatever reason, I portrayed them all-Indian Maidens and squaws and Mexican senoras and senoritas.  I learned to apply thick applications of red clay mixed with water to my arms and legs with a sponge…don a black horse hair wig and a beaded dress”
-Donna Reed as Sacagawea (or obnoxiously nicknamed Janie) in “The Far Horizons” (1955)
-J. Carroll Nash as Chief Sitting Bull in “Annie Get Your Gun” (1950)
-Rock Hudson as Young Bull in “Winchester ’73” (1950)

Esther Williams and twin Ricardo Montalbon in “Fiesta” (1947)

Actors playing Hispanics:
-Hedy Lamarr, Spencer Tracy, John Garfield in “Tortilla Flat” (1942)
-Stereotypical sexy señoritas like Linda Darnell in “My Darling Clementine” (1946)
-Esther Williams playing Ricardo Montalbon’s twin sister in “Fiesta” (1947) and how she thought this was ridiculous.
-“Ricardo (Montalbon) came from Torrejon, Mexico. His accent was still very heavy at the time and, of course, I didn’t have one at all.  Since we were supposed to be twins, this marked difference in accents was something that troubled me, and I was sure it would bother audiences a great deal as well” The Million Dollar Mermaid: An Autobiography by Esther Williams
-John Garfield (again) and Jennifer Jones in “We Were Strangers” (1949)
-Natalie Wood as Maria in “West Side Story” (1961)

From my research and information I have gotten from Robert Osborne on TCM, whites played minority roles like these in films for a couple of reasons.
1. White audiences did not care to see authentic minority roles due to racism. It seems they preferred to see a white playing the role stereotypically.
2. If there happened to be a romance between a white and a minority (“Bitter Tea of General Yen”) white audiences would shun an authentic interracial relationship. Interracial romances were banned by the Hayes Code.

On a side note, 70 year old professor, Dr. Click, seemed to enjoy my paper and said he was informed on a new topic.

Check out the Comet Over Hollywood Facebook page and Radio Waves Over Hollywood Facebook page.

Birthday on “Radio Waves” Nov. 18 show

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Shirley Temple's 9th birthday in 1938

“Radio  Waves Over Hollywood” will be streaming live this Thursday night from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m (Eastern time).

But this Thursday is a special edition of “Radio Waves.”

November 18 is the birthday of some very important people: Mickey Mouse, Johnny Mercer and Jessica Pickens (me)! I’ll be turning 22 so on my show I will be lighting candles, wearing black and playing sad songs…Not really.

This week is a special show. Since it is my birthday a few guests from off campus are dropping in to discuss their favorite movies.  My mom and others are calling in, so feel free to call in at 803-323-2122 to talk about your favorite movies!

Listen in!

Topics for Nov. 18:
 -Actors who you never expect to sing
-Songs and scenes from my favorite movies
-Movies with Thanksgiving in them
-And more…

And remember, non-Winthrop students can listen and call in too!

So be sure to listen at 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.  live stream on www.winrfm.com (go to Listen Live) or  the old WINR website.

Check out the Comet Over Hollywood Facebook page and Radio Waves Over Hollywood Facebook page.

Radio Waves is full of disguises with Chaney on Nov. 4

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Gertrude Lawrence and Robert Benchley on Lawrence's radio show in 1943. From LIFE magazine

“Radio  Waves Over Hollywood” will be streaming live Thursday night from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m (Eastern time).

Topics for Nov. 4:
-Lon Chaney: Never a happy ending in his movies or life
-Which feud is bigger: Joan Crawford vs. Bette Davis or Bette Davis vs. Miriam Hopkins
-Same songs sung by different people: Which is better
-And more…

So be sure to listen at 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.  live stream on www.winrfm.com (go to Listen Live) or  the old WINR website.

Call in at 803-323-2122, whether you know me or not, to contribute to the discussion.  I would love to hear from you!

And remember, non-Winthrop students can listen and call in too!

Also, if you listen to the “Radio Waves Over Hollywood” show, leave feedback for me in the comments area. Let me know what I need to work on or what you want to hear!

Check out the Comet Over Hollywood Facebook page and Radio Waves Over Hollywood Facebook page.