Blowing in the Wind

 

 

 

This is my entry in the Cinema Couture: The Art Of Illusion Blogathon hosted by Classic Movie Blog Association. 

A few years ago, I had the opportunity to go see Gone With the Wind in a theater. The venue was The Ritz in Austin, Texas. The theater had been around since the 1920's, although it had at times been a different kind of venue. It spent some time being a place to go see live bands, as well as turns at being a valid movie theater. Currently it is a comedy club, but from 2007 to 2021 it served as a movie theater under the auspices of Alamo Drafthouse.

 

The neat thing about The Ritz was that it was a classic old theater, with the seating style basically unaltered from it's days during the heyday of it's existence. The Ritz had two screens (I think). The approach to the actual seating had a small lobby with stairs going up to enter the theater. The seating was probably altered just enough to make them more comfortable to modern audiences, but still laid out in much the same way as it had been during it's first opening. 

 

 

It was originally built in the 1920's and is noted as being the first movie theater built in Austin specifically to show the new "talkies"; movies that actually had sound as opposed to the older "silents". 

The experience of seeing it at the Ritz in 2021 was especially memorable. I'm not sure about ALL of the films that Alamo Drafthouse showed during the Flashback Cinema, but on the occasions when I went to see a film in the Flashback Cinema series (another one I saw was It's A Wonderful Life)  there was an employee who would come out and give a little historical background to the film showing that day. In this particular showing a young lady came out on the stage in front of the screen and gave a little history.

The really memorable part of this exhibition is that the young lady came out in an outfit inspired by the Carol Burnett Show parody of the film, in which Carol, as Starlett O'Hara, came out dressed in an outfit made from one of the mansion's curtains (complete with the curtain rod). Don't have a picture of the young lady in the theater that day, but here is the original Carol Burnett scene to give you an idea...

 

The background to this incident was that the girl said she had mentioned she was going to talk about Gone With the Wind and her father mentioned the classic TV parody. The girl had never seen, nor even heard of, the parody so her father sat her down and showed her the entire episode, and the girl decided to do something similar for her presentation.  

So earlier this year a notice popped up in my Facebook feed that Gone with the Wind was going to be making another appearance in the theater and, coincidentally enough, one of the dates it was going to be showing was on October 10th, which was my sister's birthday. Most years I have a problem with finding something for her birthday, usually settling for something mundane, like taking her to dinner. But, as you know if you have been reading this blog over the years, her tastes in movies tend towards the old classics. And by classics I mean dramas and westerns, but not horror or sci-fi or anything even remotely outre. Which means about 90% or more of the movies I review could safely be classed as "not her cup of tea". (She is definitely not watching White Zombie with me, much less A Clockwork Orange.) 

But this movie falls easily into a category of one she likes. So, last month we went to the local theater.

Note: Gone With the Wind is a classic in the annals of Hollywood. As such, I have no illusions that any of this stuff will be revelations that 95% or more of you didn't already know. I am deeply indebted to Cynthia Marylee Molt who, in 1990, published a volume Gone with the Wind on Film which provided much of the information I used for this piece. Also, many trivia notations came from a Turner Classics production, The Making of a Legend, a documentary made on the production of the film.

The background to the film has a fairly long and intriguing story. The novel on which it was based was started by the author, Margaret Mitchell, as a way to occupy her time while she recovered from an automobile accident. It took her something like 10 years, off and on, to complete, and when it was finally published it was an international best seller. 

The casting of the film is a legend in itself. Due to the popularity and renown of the novel, there was a great interest in the casting of the primary characters. Especially for the headlining role of Scarlett O'Hara. Virtually every actress in Hollywood of an appropriate age (and even some not so appropriate) saw themselves as the best choice to play the role. Even the public got into the debate. According to the  aforementioned documentary, a public poll of who would be the ideal Scarlett ranked the following as the best choice (in order): Bette Davis, Katharine Hepburn, Miriam Hopkins, Margaret Sullivan, Joan Crawford and Barbara Stanwyck. (As a side note, I think Hepburn or Davis would have been good choices, but I think Crawford would have been a bad choice, even though she would have added some nuances to the vindictive side of Scarlett...)

An incomplete list (but including some of the more notable applicants and considered possibilities) for the role would include Lucille Ball, Tallulah Bankhead, Claudette Colbert, Paulette Goddard, Jean Harlow, Susan Hayward, Carole Lombard, Lana Turner and even, (believe it or not), Margaret Mitchell herself!

The part of Rhett Butler was almost a shoo-in for Clark Gable. Nearly everyone thought he was the only possible actor to play the role. But I discovered, reading the reference work on the film cited above, that Mitchell's choice was... wait for it... Groucho Marx! Gary Cooper, Douglas Fairbanks, Errol Flynn, Basil Rathbone and Randolph Scott were considered.

Another interesting contender: The part of Belle, the brothel madam, could have been played by Mae West. As much as I would like to have seen her in that role, I have to admit that I feel the movie would have suffered some if she was in it, mainly because I think she would have drawn attention away from the central characters whenever she was on camera. The role was eventually awarded to Ona Munson, who did a good job.

The costume designer for Gone with the Wind was Walter Plunkett. Because of the Hays Code, many films suffered a little because of the strictures of propriety that the Code enforced. Molt notes in her book that producers clashed with those rules in some productions because you couldn't really be historically accurate in costumes, mainly because the real historical style of clothing was a bit too risque for the times. For instance, the 1934 version of Cleopatra: "for which authentic clothing would have been no clothing at all" and "Forever Amber (1947) {would have required} the bawdy deshabillé of a woman during the Court of Charles II in England". 

For Gone with the Wind, Plunkett had no strictures, since the fashion of the South circa the late 1800's was pretty much along the same lines as what the Code established was allowable. Even the scene where the young women are preparing for nap time, garbed in night clothes, was reasonably sensible for the Code. And the dresses worn by the female characters in public are astounding. 

Sets for the film are also pretty impressive. The only one that really suffers, in my opinion, is the scene involving the burning of Atlanta. Although it is rather impressive in look, the sets, which were really older sets for very obviously NOT southern US settings, is just a little off. Many of the buildings burning look exactly like what they really were: settings from the 1933 film King Kong and also from The Garden of Allah. 

 

As well, since this scene was the first one filmed, prior to the prime casting, stunt doubles were used in most of the scene. Not all that obvious when watching on a small screen, but watching it on a movie theater, many of the long shots emphasized, unintentionally, that that was not Gable and Leigh in the carriage. The rest of the film did have some great settings. I was particularly impressed by the dishevelled look of Tara, post Civil War, when Scarlett returned home. 

 

I will say, at this point, that if you have never had the privilege of seeing the film on the big screen you should jump at the opportunity if it comes your way.  Hopefully you won't have to wait until the (probable) 100th anniversary re-release in 2039...

 

 

Gone With the Wind (1939): 

Note: Given that it's sure bet that you already know the entire plot by heart (and if you don't what have you been waiting for to watch this?), most of what follows will be a musing on my impressions of how the film played out and the characters involved, rather than an in-depth discussion of the story itself. 

The film opens with Max Steiner's score as we see a party being held at Tara. Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh) is surrounded by admirers, hoping to gain her attention. Among these are the two Tarleton brothers, Stuart and Brent (note: the credits are in error as George Reeves is credited as Brent, but actually played Stuart and Fred Crane is credited as Stuart, but actually played Brent. Apparently the credits were already made and it was deemed too costly to redo them. But, unless you were familiar with one or the other, or both, it wouldn't stand out too much, since both characters are pretty much the same...)

 

 

 

Scarlett toys with the affections all of her potential suitors, but her true love is reserved for Ashley Wilkes (Leslie Howard). Unfortunately, the devotion is not requited by Ashley. Instead, he is betrothed to Melanie Hamilton (Olivia de Havilland). Which doesn't set well with Scarlett, obviously. Scarlett comes off in this film as a spoiled and manipulative brat, and her actions throughout gave me nervous shivers. I felt sorry for every man that crossed her path, and couldn't help but feel relief for Ashley, who escaped a lifetime of pure distress if he had been the unfortunate victim of her machinations.

 

Because Scarlett has a single-minded obsession with Ashley, she ultimately marries Melanie's brother, Charles (Rand Brooks), not because she truly loves him; she is only doing it to hopefully inspire a little jealousy in Ashley. (Manipulative bitch that she is). The marriage is doomed, however, when, after the start of the Civil War, Charles is killed in action. Scarlett doesn't spend much time grieving over the loss however.

 

Rhett Butler (Clark Gable) makes his appearance on the scene, and Scarlett takes a dislike to his brash manner, but does eventually mellow towards him, especially after he helps her and Melanie escape Atlanta during the burning of the city by the Union. 

 

She returns to Tara, where the financial troubles of keeping her beloved home cause her to, once again, use her wiles to get money to keep it afloat by marrying Frank Kennedy (Carroll Nye). (Once again, Scarlett's self, self-entitled personality grated on me). Frak also dies, and Scarlett has about as much grieving over the loss as she did for Charles.

 

Eventually Scarlett and Rhett hook up. Rhett, for his part, seems to love Scarlett and her independent spirit, but once again, Scarlett really only holds her true love for Ashley, even though he is still married and devoted to Melanie. The relationship between Scarlett and Rhett gradually deteriorates as he realizes that Scarlett is just as single-minded and immature as when he first met her. This comes to a head when their daughter, Bonnie, dies. Rhett truly was devoted to Bonnie, although it seemed to me that Scarlett just considered her a burden to be borne.

 

Even the ending didn't change my opinion of Scarlett, as her grief over the loss of Rhett's love came off more as a "woe is me, nobody loves me, everybody hates me" scene. Still selfish, even to the last. Her final words in the movie are "I'll think of some way to get him back! After all... tomorrow is another day!" Personally, my opinion of what Scarlett does from here on out is reflected by Rhett's final words: "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn!"

 

So, even though I truly don't like Scarlett, I think the movie is astounding, especially in tems of the way it was filmed, the sets, the costumes and the music. Given a much more likable main female character, this could easily be one of my top ten movies. It still ranks in the top 25, which is a credit to those other factors. And it is worth watching multiple times.

One final note: some critics have disparaged the film for it's portrayal of the slaves as being happy in their position. Were some slaves comfortable with their position as this movie implies? Maybe, but probably not.  That doesn't detract from the film for me. I especially liked the Mammy (Hattie McDaniel) character, despite the fact that her devotion to the O'Hara family may have been unrealistic. Assuredly this is a film that deserves a better reputation than the likes of, say, Birth of a Nation in it's depiction of the Negro. Whether or not you agree, there were some serious changes made during the filming process. Equality, whether agreeably or grudgingly, was upheld at may points. For instance, one article I read stated that the restrooms had to be desegregated on set if the Negro cast were going to continue. And Clark Gable said that unless equality were a part of the set he would not appear in the film. These may seem like minor concessions to the 21st century mind, but given the climate of the time, there were fairly progressive.

With a budget of only about $4 million, the film was an astounding success at the box office, bringing in $380 million in ticket sales (to put that in perspective, a ticket for a film in 1939 was only about 25 cents). The film virtually swept the Oscars that year. Out of 13 nominations it took home 8 of those, including a record setting first Oscar to a black actress, Hattie McDaniel for Best Supporting Actress. Of the five that the movie did NOT win, the most egregious loss, in my opinion, was giving Best Actor to Robert Donat (Goodbye, Mr. Chips) over Clark Gable. 

The film ranks #4 on the 100 Years...100 Movies list put out by the American Film Institute, behind Citizen Kane, Casablanca and The Godfather. (It's no secret about how much I don't like Citizen Kane, but I think the other two deserve their spots, so I personally would not object if it were ranked #3... even if it wouldn't garner that high a spot in my own personal list.) 

This viewing, as I said earlier, was a birthday present for my sister. We had a good time, and it's always a nice thing to see a movie that was previously only available on whatever small screen format that could be found. A side note: My own birthday is coming up next month, and I am hoping we can do another outing, because The Maltese Falcon is being re-released. 

That's it for this time. Drive safely, folks.

Quiggy

 

  

 

Hurrah for Smith

This is my entry in the Leap Year Blogathon hosted by Taking Up Room

In the history of the Academy Awards, the ceremony has only been held once on February 29. That year was 1939.  The turning point for the award in my opinion.  Prior to that only the most avid fans of movies and the Hollywood elite really cared about the award.  It certainly wasn't the mega-extravaganza that exists today.  (For one thing, awards ceremonies dispensed with a lot of the extraneous stuff and just handed out the awards without a lot of fanfare)

The 1939 award ceremony attracted a lot of attention, however.  Gone with the Wind was the odds on favorite in all 13 categories for which it was nominated (and it won in 8 of them).  But the biggest loser at the  Oscars that year would have to be Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.  Competing with GWTW in many categories, and having 11 total nominations, Mr. Smith only managed to snag one of the golden statuettes, one of only a couple in which it was not in competition with the extravaganza.  That award was for Best Story.

James Stewart competed with Clark Gable (as Rhett Butler) for Best Actor.  But in an upset of gigantic proportions, in my opinion, the award actually went to Robert Donat for Goodbye Mr. Chips.  In almost every other category, however, the GWTW nominee topped the voting.  And despite the fact that GWTW is a fantastic film, the fact that the Stewart film failed to achieve more than one award is somewhat of a crime.

One could possibly be forgiven if they see a lot of George Bailey (It's a Wonderful Life) in Jefferson Smith.  Both are rather idealistic, and both feature James Stewart as a character who is rather uncomfortable in his immediate surroundings.  (Not to mention Stewart's iconic delivery as a stammering man who seems to be unable to marshal his thoughts to go along with his speech).

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939):

The junior senator has died.  (The actual state is unnamed, but it must be somewhere in the western part of the United States.  The capitol city, Jackson City, is fictional, so that does,t help.  However, the story which inspired the original play and film was titled "The Gentleman from Montana", which gives credence to some of the descriptions that Jefferson Smith gives to Clarissa Saunders during a private moment. ).  The governor, "Happy" Hopper (Guy Kibbee),  is pressured to name a replacement.  He has two names given to him, both of which are deemed by him as political dynamite, but he must get someone, and quick.

His children suggest a local hero, Jefferson  Smith (James Stewart).  But Smith is an unknown figure in politics.  His big claim to fame is his work in stopping a forest fire in the state.  But Hopper comes to the decision, by a strange coincidence during a flip of a coin, to get Smith as his nominee.

Of course the bigwigs of the political machine, including senior Sen. Paine (Claude Rains) and the political puppeteer Jim Taylor (Edward Arnold) are initially not very receptive.  But they decide that such an innocent guy might be just the right choice after all if they can keep him in line with the current machinations going on in the state and the Senate.

See, there is some subterfuge going on. Read: graft.  A bill in the Senate has a rider to build a dam in the state and fund it with US dollars.  And some, including Taylor, stand to make big money because they have been buying up the land where the dam will be built.

Smith arrives in Washington not having much of a clue about his job.  And the press portray him as a yokel.  Which, when Smith finds out, doesn't set well with him.  But he has been told that the way to get his feet solidly in the Senate is to propose a bill.  He decides that his dream is the best option; he wants to build a national Boys Camp in the state, with a loan from the government to be paid back by  boys across the country, in nickels and dimes donated by them.

Unfortunately for Smith, his chosen location is in the exact same spot as the dam that the political machine is trying to get approved.

Smith learns of this and is disapproving, losing his faith in a longtime family friend, Sen. Paine.  He is seen as a threat, so bigwig Taylor and Paine conspire to get him ejected from the Senate.  Taylor uses his wiles to get Smith discredited, framing him as having bought up the land around the proposed dam/boys camp himself for profit.  And despite the efforts of the boys in the state to clear his name, Smith is convicted of subterfuge and is on the dock to be removed from the Senate at the next session.

Smith, with the help of his secretary, Clarissa Saunders (Jean Arthur), launches a filibuster to prevent his expulsion, and hopefully derail the dam.  A twenty-three hour filibuster, we are led to know, which includes reading the United States Constitution, word for word.  But because of Taylor's machinations, even his home state is against him.

It looks like Smith is going to be fighting a losing battle.  You can't beat the system, he is told.  But Smith has ideals and he thinks that having right on his side will win in the end.  But its not looking good for our hero.

Capra had a hell of a time bringing this movie to the big screen.  For one thing, the real US government was highly objectionable to the poor treatment it received in the script.  And Joseph Breen, the head of the censoring committee in Hollywood at the time warned the production that the script might not be .accepted if it painted a dim light on the Democratic form of government.  This was due more to how the world at large might view the government rather than the US citizenry, but be that as it may.

Fortunately for us, the film did get a go sign, and it was filmed in the spring and summer of 1939.  It didn't set well with the Washington press at it's premiere, and was attacked as being "pro-Communist" for its presentation of the government as corrupt. Capra claimed that some senators even walked out during it's premier at Constitution Hall.  The movie was banned in Europe, especially in Hitler's Germany.

But Washington, and the world at large, were just minor dissenters to the film.  The film got better press from critics who were not in line with the politics of Washington.  Most of the press of the time was more acceptable to the film.  It has since been named in the top 20 of many lists as one of the greatest films of all time, and many consider it to be one of Capra's greatest films.  And as noted above, it was a big winner in the nominations category at the Oscars, (even if it only won one.)  The film, probably quite fairly, is labeled as "Capra-corn" because of its overt sentimentality, but it does have its inspiration.

Drive home safely, folks.

Quiggy

Blowing in the Wind

This is my entry in the Clark Gable Blogathon hosted by Love Letters to Old Hollywood

The world was agog in the late thirties over Margaret Mitchell's book, Gone with the Wind.  Everyone, and I mean everyone, was reading it and anticipating who would play whom in the upcoming film version of the book.  If, that is, it would ever get made.

Yes, there were more than afe who were aghast that Hollywood would even consider TRYING to bring it to the big screen.  After all, for the 30's at least, it was as racy as Old Mother Hubbard's porn stash.

But still, when it came time to cast the film, there was a long line of young and sometimes not so young starlets who thought themselves up to he task of bringing Scarlett O'Hara to cinematic life.  The list of actresses who auditioned for the role is as long as the list of bad girls and boys on Santa's "Naughty List".

Among those who tried for the role are the then top actresses of the day, including Katherine Hepburn,  Bette Davis, Paulette Goddard, Tallulah Bankhead and Miriam Hopkins and about 100 others.  The girl who won the role, Vivian Leigh, was a long-shot at the outset, but eventually won the role.

But there was only one real actor who was in the running for Rhett Butler.  Not only was Clark Gable the preferred choice of the money men and casting bigwigs, but it seems that Mitchell herself had Gable in mind when she was creating the character.  (Although there was a casting call, and some of those who vied for it make for an interesting "what if" when considering the possibilities of potential film versions.)


OK its time for one of those anecdotes which you may or may not find intriguing but that I like telling.  Earlier this year I got to see Gone with the Wind in the theater (and experience that anyone should have, not just devotees of this film.  As with a previous viewing of It's a Wonderful Life, the theater had one of it's employees address the audience prior to the show.  And she showed up in authentic costume.  No not authentic costume from the movie.

She told a few of us that she was telling her father about the event and her father suggested she do it Carol Burnett style.  Just in case you have been living under a rock for most of your life I am including here the classic Carol Burnett parody.

Anyway, it turns out this poor girl had been one of those poor souls living under a rock most of her life and didn't know about the parody.  So her father sat her down and watched it with her.  And she loved it, and  incorporated the same theme into her costume.  (BTW, if you are a devotee of the film, but find the parody lower than a wart on a toad's ass, you probably won't like hanging out with me... I absolutely love it.)

Gone with the Wind (1939):

Scarlett O'Hara (Vivian Leigh) is one spoiled rotten brat.  She has gotten her way all her life, and as a result, is like many of the spoiled rotten brats of today.  At a party at her parents' plantation, Scarlett learns of an impending proposal for marriage to her best friend,  Melanie (Olivia de Haviland).  The problem is that the suitor is Ashley Wilkes (Leslie Howard), and Scarlett has had heart and mind set on obtaining Ashley as her own husband.

So inevitably, Scarlett, believing that she can get what she wants just because she wants it, tries to win Ashley's heart before he can marry her cousin.  But Ashley, despite having some attraction to Scarlett, rebuffs her advances.  After he leaves she angrily throws a vase against the wall, not realizing that Rhett Butler (Clark Gable) has been in the room and overheard every word.

In a pique over her loss of Ashley, Scarlett accepts a proposal of marriage from Melanie's brother, Charles (Rand Brooks).  Scarlett doesn't really love Charles, however.  More or less, she only accepts the proposal as a kind of "getting back" at Ashley for rebuffing her advances.

What with every good Southern boy and man going off to join the Confederacy and fight for the honor and integrity of the South, her new husband is among the early casualties of the war,  But Scarlett doesn't really care.  Her selfish mind is still focused on her next conquest and objective, ultimately trying somehow, someway, to get Ashley, of course.

Enter Rhett Butler again.  At a dance to raise money for the South, Rhett bids a substantial amount of money for the honor to dance with Scarlett, and to the chagrin of those around her, she accepts, despite the fact that she has a moral obligation to be in mourning for her dead husband.

Ashley comes home on Christmas leave, and asks Scarlett to help take care of Melanie, who is now pregnant with their child.  After the child is born, Scarlett sends word to Rhett to ask for his help in returning to Tara with Melanie and the new baby, so the whole crew leave as Atlanta burns.  When they arrive at Tara, they find it in ruins with Scarlett's mother dead and her father a virtual mental case.

Sometime later Scarlett learns that her beloved Tara is in arrears on taxes.  Having no money, and with the threat of a former overseer on the plantation threatening to buy it for a pittance when it goes on the auction block, Scarlett heads to beg Rhett for a loan (in the aforementioned dress made from the window curtains).  But Rhett is basically broke.

So Scarlett, being the ever resourceful (conniving) girl that she is, she finds a way by getting the beau, Frank (Carroll Nye), of one of her sisters, Suellen (Evelyn Keyes), to marry her instead.  Of course, Scarlett doesn't love him either.  She just wants to have access to his wealth to save Tara.

If this is beginning to sound like a soap opera, I'm pretty sure this was the predecessor of those same soap operas we have today.  Eventually Frank dies (didn't see that coming...NOT!) and Scarlett eventually marries Rhett.  Which is a tumultuous marriage, to say the least.  Because after all, Scarlett still loves Ashley and has hopes that someday God will include him in His plans for Scarlett.  Of course, eventually Rhett tires of the little biddy and leaves her.  (Good for him!)

Except that Scarlett finally grows up (a little too late) and realizes that she loves Rhett after all.  But Rhett doesn't give a damn anymore.


Gone with the Wind, despite some negative predictions about how it could be successfully made in the wake of the Hays code restrictions, was a resounding success, and went on to dominate the Oscars that year, winning in virtually every category for which it was nominated.  Significantly, however, Gable lost the Best Actor to Robert Donat for Goodbye, Mr. Chips, which may be one of the most significant Oscar faux pas in the history of the Academy (author's opinion).

It was, without a doubt, a significant role in the actor's career.  Ask anyone to name one movie that Clark Gable starred in and I bet 99% or more will immediately respond with Gone with the Wind.  (the other 1% will probably say "Who is Clark Gable?"... which makes it even more significant if you ask me.)

Well folks, time hitch up the horses and pull this old wreck home.  Drive safely, folks.

Quiggy

Following the Yellow Brick Road

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, written by L. Frank Baum, was first published in 1900.  Although the original first run printing was very limited, it proved to be so popular that by 1949 it had sold over three million copies, one million copies alone by 1938 (before the classic movie was even made).  The author wrote a number of sequels to the book, and in 1910 a silent film version of the first book was filmed.  Another silent film version was released in 1925.  Although it is considered a classic of children's literature, there has been written much to cast it as a political allegory.  I won't delve too much into that aspect here, but one significant change from the book was the fact that the original slippers were silver, and this has been construed as a reference to the Populist idea of transferring the country from a gold standard to one of which silver was also used.  Anyone interested in this can check out the wikipedia article which details this theory here.

In 1939, a musical extravaganza appeared on the screens.  It was a fairly popular movie, especially among kids, but it failed to make a profit.  This seems preposterous now, in retrospect, since it has achieved such a fan base in the 75+ years since its release, but it is true.  Some of the fault for that, as I understand it, was because of the rigid standard of showing movies and getting them out of the theater as quickly as possible to make room for the newer movies that were constantly coming out.

The original movie cut ran for 2 hours.  Think about that for a minute if you will.  The studio execs had conniptions over the length of the film.  (No movies ran that long, unlike today when it's not uncommon to have epic movies run 2½ hours or more.  Lawrence of Arabia, one of the longest movies I have ever seen, ran over 3½ hours).  The movie suffered some cuts, including a scene known as "The Jitterbug", that were cut from the movie.  (A side note:  When the Wicked Witch mentions that she has "sent a little insect to take the fight out of them", it was referring to this scene.  The scene was deleted, but the line was left in, which may cause some confusion to newcomers to the film, since no insect actually appears in the movie).  Remarkably one of the scenes that the execs wanted to cut was "Somewhere Over The Rainbow".  They said they thought it slowed the movie down.  Thankfully, clearer heads prevailed, including associate producer Arthur Freed who threatened to leave the movie production if it were cut.

Some other tasty tidbits of the production:  No less than 5 directors had their hand in the pie.  Even though Victor Fleming was credited with the final cut, No less than King Vidor, another prominent director finished up the last few scenes, but chose not to take credit, granting that since Fleming had directed the majority of it he should get the credit.  Buddy Ebsen (Jed Clampett on The Beverley Hillbillies and Barnaby Jones on the TV show by the same name) was originally cast as the Tin Man, but got sick from the makeup (and almost died).  By the time he had recovered, the part had already been given to Jack Haley (who by now had a different kind of makeup).

In 1959, television started airing the movie annually. (The first TV airing was in 1956, but it did not become the annual event until 1959).   I seem to recall, in my vague memory, that it was on Thanksgiving weekend when I used to see it.  It was a very good experience for a young kid.  I do remember one thing in particular, however.  Movie Fan Fare, a website I frequent often, once had a post asking it's readership what movies scared you, when you were young.  Well, I watched dozens of old horror movies when I was young, and none of them really scared me.  But I still remember one night, after having seen this movie, having nightmares about the flying monkeys from the film.

The impetus for reviewing this movie at this time comes from the calendar I bought for 2017.  It features some classsic movie theater posters from the past.  I hope to review all of them over the coming year (although I admit a couple of them may take some effort to find).

The Wizard of Oz (1939)

The movie begins in black and white, the better to achieve an effect of the barren landscape of Dorothy's farm in Kansas.  These scenes were the ones directed by Vidor, and his feel for the starkness and desolation of the landscape is enhanced by the sepia tones of this segment.  Dorothy Gale (Judy Garland) is an innocent young girl whose optimistic outlook on life is threatened by Miss Elmira  Gulch (Margaret Hamilton).   Miss Gulch is a rich and cranky old spinster who wants to take Dorothy's dog, Toto (Terry the Dog), and have it euthanized because it bit her.

Unable to get her Aunt Em (Clara Blandick) and Uncle Henry (Charley Grapewin) to sympathize or listen to her, as well as the hired hands on her aunt and uncle's farm, Huck (Ray Bolger), Hickory (Jack Haley) and Zeke (Bert Lahr).  She decides to run away.  On her journey she meets Professor Marvel (Frank Morgan) who uses a bit of subterfuge to convince her to return home.

Back at the farm, a tornado is approaching.  Everyone runs to hide in the storm cellar, but Dorothy, arriving a little late, can't get anyone to open the cellar, so she runs to hide in the house, and is knocked out by a flying piece of the house.  The twister takes the house , and eventually drops it in Oz where it lands in Munchkin Land (a country populated by little people), killing the Wicked Witch of the East.  Glinda, the Good Witch of the North (Billie Burke)  arrives to ask her if she is "a good witch or a bad witch".  She insists she is not a witch at all and expresses a desire to go back to Kansas.

Unable to help her, Glinda tells her she must seek out the Wizard of Oz in the Emerald City.  To get there she must "follow the yellow brick road".  To hamper her journey, the Wicked Witch of the West (Hamilton) seeks to stop her and take the ruby slippers Dorothy has acquired from the witch's sister, after she died.

Along the way, Dorothy gains three friends who accompany her: The Scarecrow (Bolger) who wants the wizard to give him a brain, The Tin Man, who wants to get a heart, and The Cowardly Lion, who wants to acquire courage.  Through many travails (and a number of musical interludes), the four arrive at the Wizard's palace, but the fearsome Wizard insists they must prove themselves worthy and gives them a task; to get the magical broomstick from the Wicked Witch of the West.

It would probably not count as a spoiler to reveal the rest of the movie, since I doubt there is anyone old enough to read this blog who has never seen this movie at least once,  but I'll refrain from it anyway.

The movie has entered the echelon of "classic" in the canon of great movies.  It was ranked as #6 of the 100 greatest movies by AFI in 1998 (and has since been downgraded to #10 in the 2007 ranking).  Personally, I'd put it even higher, maybe even as high as #3, but I'm far from a movie expert.  "Over the Rainbow" got a much better ranking as it was ranked #1 in an AFI 2004 ranking of the best 100 Songs.  In addition several quotes from the film are in the top 100 greatest quotes from the same AFI, as well as the Wicked Witch of the West garnering a #4 ranking on their list of greatest movie villains.  Needless to say, the movie has left a profound impact on the viewing public.  It continues to be a favorite, and you'd have to be very isolated indeed to not have had a chance to watch it, since on one or another cable channel it is still shown at least once a year.

The movie has been adapted or used in several other movies over the years.  Among them, an all-black soul adaptation featuring Diana Ross and Michael Jackson, which itself was a film version of a popular Broadway musical.   Also a much-maligned, but personal favorite of this author, Under the Rainbow, a comedy from 1981 featuring Chevy Chase and Carrie Fisher, in which hundreds of little people from across the country converge on Hollywood to be cast in the 1939 movie.

Well, folks, I must be easing on down the road (an intentional reference to the aforementioned  The Wiz).  Godspeed, and keep an eye to the skies for an evil woman riding a broomstick.

Quiggy

Bookends for a Legend

This is my post for the John Wayne blogathon hosted by Hamlette's Soliloquy  and The Midnite Drive-In.  (Today is my birthday, which is why I held off until the last day!!!)

John Wayne had a stellar career.  Beginning in 1926, he began getting small parts and walk-on roles, most of which, in  those early days were non-speaking roles.  Many of his early roles were as a member of the crowd. In 1928, for example, he appeared in the flood scenes in Michael Curtiz's Noah's Ark (which somehow manages to be missed when listing the movies in which John Wayne died... I haven't found this one yet, but since Wayne was not billed as Noah or one of his sons, it stands to reason he must have died in the Flood...)  Also, being a former player for the USC football team, he got several roles as a member of a football team in scenes where the team was on the field.

Wayne's first big break in a major role was as Breck Coleman in Raoul Walsh's The Big Trail.  The film didn't do very well, and Wayne's performance was substandard, so he ended up being relegated to the B picture movie lot.  There he cranked out a lot of typical B westerns, and was garnering a name for himself (albeit only among those, particularly kids, who watched said westerns).

But Wayne had a few fans in the industry, ones who thought they saw star material in the making.  One of these was John Ford, a consummate director who had used the big guy several times before and had even recommended him to Walsh.  For a more in depth coverage the Duke's career up to John Ford's casting of him, please see my blog entry How to Build an Icon (The Hard Way)  Or better yet, pick up one of the excellent biographies published over the last 30+ years.

Stagecoach (1939)

John Wayne had a long career as an actor even before his "big break", but this is the one that really put him on the star map in Hollywood.  9 people overcoming the odds in a hostile atmosphere (not entirely unlike Alfred Hitchcock's Lifeboat, and wouldn't that make for an interesting comparison...?)

Stagecoach was based on an Ernest Haycox story "The Stage to Lordsburg".  John Ford found the story and was enthusiastic about filming it.  But no one in Hollywood wanted to back it because the Western as a film subject was thought to be passe', and only good for filming kid's matinee shows.  It was generally thought that as an adult subject very few would be interested and it was financial folly to even consider it.

In retrospect, of course, it is easy to laugh at the naivete' of these executives.  But consider that for several years, that's about all westerns were good for, as children's flicks.  But even harder on Ford was his decision that the only person to play "the Ringo Kid" was John Wayne.  Even Ford's final backer, Walter Wanger,  balked at the thought, wanting Gary Cooper in the role. But Ford was insistent and won out, although he did have to compromise by billing Claire Trevor's name above Wayne's.

The story begins as the stage to Lordsburg arrives in Tonto.  The stage driver, Buck (Andy Devine) goes off to find his shotgun rider for the next stage of the trip.  But the marshal, Curly (George Bancroft) tells him that his shotgun is off with a posse searching for the Ringo Kid who has just escaped from jail.  When told that the Ringo Kid is headed towards Lordsburg, Curly tells Buck that he, Curly, will be the shotgun rider.

Buck and Curly

Meanwhile, two of the towns most disreputable residents are being driven out of town: Doc Boone (Thomas Mitchell), a doctor who has WAY too much more love for his fellow whiskey bottles than he does for his fellow patients is being evicted from his quarters.  At the same time, also being forced to leave town is Dallas (Claire Trevor), a woman of obviously lower morals than her fellow ladies of the society, (in other words a prostitute, although they couldn't come right out and say it in 1939).

Dallas and Doc Boone

Added to the mix is Lucy Mallory (Louise Platt), the pregnant wife of one of the officers of the Cavalry that is in the next town on the route.  As well as Samuel Peacock (Donald Meek) who is as meek as the name the actor who plays him bears, a whiskey drummer who is constantly being mistaken for a Reverend, a gambler, Hatfield (John Carradine) who has barely concealed designs on the Cavalryman's wife, and a banker, Henry Gatewood (Berton Churchill), who is attempting to abscond with $50,000 he stole from his bank.

Lucy Mallory

Samuel Peacock

Henry Gatewood

Hatfield

These 8 begin the journey, despite warning of Geronimo and his Apache warriors somewhere ahead.  But with the confidence of having a Cavalry troop accompany them, most of them are willing to make the journey. Not too far out on the journey, the stage is brought up short by a man carrying a rifle and a saddle.  It's the Ringo Kid (John Wayne).  due to the fact that the marshal is riding shotgun and the Cavalry is accompanying the stage, however, Ringo is forced to submit to arrest.

The Ringo Kid

Upon arriving at the first stage of the journey, the people find that the expected troop of Cavalry that was to replace the ones they have are gone, riding off to defend against Geronimo's Apaches.  The present troop has orders to return to Tonto after this first leg, despite the frantic objections by some of the stage riders.  But they all decide to press on as each has his or her own particular reason for reaching Lordsburg.  To wit:

Marshall Curly: To see to it that Ringo returns to prison.
Ringo:  To extract vengeance on three brothers who killed members of his family.
Doc Boone:  Because he has worn out his welcomes behind him.
Dallas:  To return to her own roots.
Lucy:  To meet up with her husband and to have their child with him present.
Gatewood: To escape with his stolen booty.
Peacock:  To get back to Kansas City and his wife and five children.
Hatfield:  Who knows, but it probably involves some nefarious purposes with Lucy...
Buck, for his part would just as soon go back, but he is outnumbered.




Along the way, at the second stage stop, it turns out that Lucy's baby will not wait for the more opportune time to come into the world, and the group is delayed by a day as Lucy gives birth to a baby girl.  Dallas and Ringo start up a friendly romance and Ringo asks Dallas to come with him to his ranch, after he concludes his business in Lordsburg.  Dallas tries to convince Ringo to escape while he's got a chance and no one is looking.  He agrees, but before he can get away, he sees Apache smoke signals on the horizon, and stays to help.




On the final leg of the journey the Apaches attack the stage.  Surely you have seen the classic stunt scene in which Ringo (or rather a stunt double posing as Ringo) jumps onto the stage horses to retrieve the reins after Buck has dropped them.  If you haven't I generously have added that clip here:  (The actual stunt begins at about the 5:00 mark if you just want to skip ahead.)

Of course, the classic cliche is "The Cavalry rides in to the rescue, at the last minute..." And they do.  But wait!  The movie isn't over.  Want to see how each individual ties up his or her own strings, just hang on, because even after the last minute rescue there's still some loose ends, and they all get tied up nicely.




Wayne's big break as it were comes at a great time.  From here he never had to settle for anything just to make ends meet.  As time went on, he ended up with the ability to write his own ticket, taking the juiciest parts in some of the most iconic Westerns ever made (including several more with John Ford.)

The Shootist (1976)

The last film John Wayne made was, fittingly, about an aging gun man who is dying of cancer.  Although Wayne was in poor health, and had battled cancer once already, he was not, as the rumors go, dying of cancer at the time.  But cancer did eventually overtake him a couple of years later, so the movie is somewhat prescient.

As a result of his fame and popularity and his impending death, many of Hollywood's actors and actresses wanted to be in on what was already being touted as "Wayne's last film".  According to one source, (a documentary on the film from my DVD), at least one actor, Hugh O'Brien,  volunteered to work for free if he could just have a part in the production of the film.  Many of the others took a severe cut in their normal pay for the privilege.  For a movie with a budget of only about $8 million, the cast was an astounding triumph of casting (James Stewart, Lauren Bacall and Ron Howard, not to mention such incredible character actors like Harry Morgan, John Carradine, Richard Boone, Scatman Crothers, Bill McKinney and the aforementioned Hugh O'Brien).

The Shootist was originally a novel, by the same name, by Glendon Swarthout.  The movie was directed by Don Siegel, who had a stellar career as a director.  Included in his resume were the first Dirty Harry and the original Invasion of the Body Snatchers.  Elmer Bernstein came on board for the music, and Robert F. Boyle, the production designer, did such a good job he was nominated for an Oscar (but lost to George Jenkins for is work on All the President's Men.

The final script had a codicil that Wayne had final approval of the script, as thus there were a few changes.  One of the significant ones, if you read the book, is that Gillom Rogers is not quite as rebellious and antagonistic in the film.  This may have been due to Wayne's influence, although I personally think having Opie Taylor in the role made a significant impact on how the character was played.  In the book, Books goes to the saloon and orders white wine, but at Wayne's insistence, in the movie Books orders whiskey.   Also changed, and this WAS definitely at Wayne's insistence, Books does not shoot one of the characters in the back.  Wayne claimed that he had never done it before in a movie and he was definitely NOT going to do it now.  And is this a spoiler?  Not sure... He also insisted that Gillom, who shoots Books at the end of the novel, NOT be the one to shoot him in the movie.

One of the things that really grabs your attention is the voice-over, at the beginning of the film, by Gillom Rogers (Ron Howard) detailing the life and career of John Bernard "J.B." Books (John Wayne).  The voice-over is accompanied by clips from John Wayne's extensive movie career. Each clip, although not actually playing J.B. in them, serves as a video montage of the career of Books as a "shootist".  (Two of the movies used for clips have been previously reviewed here under the blog entry title of The Valiant Few : Rio Bravo and El Dorado).

John Bernard Books (John Wayne) arrives in Carson City, Nevada, on January 22, 1901, a significant date because that was the day Queen Victoria of England died, and a newsboy is hawking a paper with that headline.  Books buys a paper then seeks out a doctor (James Stewart) who turns out to be an old aquaintance, but whom Books wants to examine him medically.

Books and Doc Hostetler

It is revealed that Books has prostate  cancer and has only a couple of months to live.  On Doc Hostetler's recommendation, he seeks out a room at Mrs. Rogers' place.    There he meets Gillom (Ron Howard) whom he had earlier encountered with Gillom's belligerent sometimes boss, Cobb (Bill McKinney).  He acquires a room from Gillom's mother, Bond Rogers (Lauren Bacall), to whom he gives as a name William Hickock.

Mrs. Bond Rogers

Gillom Rogers

Gillom and Moses (Scatman Crothers) soon discover that the man is really Books, however, and against the hopes and wishes of Books, it soon becomes the day's gossip that the legendary gunfighter is in town.  Mrs. Rogers is not pleased to have been fooled, and enlists the support of Marshal Thibido (Harry Morgan) to oust him from her property and get him out of town.  But Books tells Thibido he intends to stay and die, telling of the cancer.

Moses

Marshal Thibido

Over a period of just one week, Books manages to acquire an attraction of would-be desparadoes who want to earn a name by being the one to kill the famous shootist.  In one dramatic scene two men try to attack him while he is asleep, but he manages to kill them both.  Afterwards, Books starts to implement his plan to die with dignity.  He invites three of the most proficient gunmen in town, Cobb, Jack Pulford (Hugh O'Brien), a faro dealer at the local saloon who thinks he is hot stuff as a gunman, and Mike Sweeney (Richard Boone), who holds a grudge against Books because Books killed Sweeney's brother.

Mike Sweeney

J. B. Books.

Jay Cobb

Jack Pulford

The final showdown between Books and the three gunmen in the local saloon is classic John Wayne gunfight.  If you take time to watch this don't miss out on appearances by John Carradine, looking every bit the 40 years older that he was from his appearance in Stagecoach.  Sheree North, a prolific character actress who guested on a plethora of TV shows appears as a hooker whom Books once loved.  If you are an avid watcher of the soap opera  The Young and the Restless, you can catch a very young Melody Thomas (Nikki Newman) in a brief role.


Between Stagecoach and The Shootist, Wayne appeared in so many movies it would take a year to watch them all...but these two represent some of the best, and definitely the best way to see how he progressed from being just a bit player and Saturday matinee B-movie star to the legend he is remembered as today



Well, that wraps up the view from the back seat this time folks.  Have a safe trip home.  BTW, today is my birthday, so be kind on the comments...:-)

Quiggy

"Frank" and Friends

Frankenstein's monster is proof that a good man just can't be kept down.  Or a bad man can't be kept dead.

The name of Frankenstein brings out the worst in people in the ancient village where the original mad scientist did his dirty work.  (And, just for clarity, the name of the doctor is Frankenstein.  His monster, although usually referred to as "Frankenstein" should be called "Frankenstein's Monster")  There is a series of sequences in the first few movies that follows an identifiable timeline.  The original doctor Heinrich "Henry" Frankenstein, as played by Colin Clive in the first two Frankenstein movies (Frankenstein and The Bride of Frankenstein) was the creator of the monster that plagued the countryside throughout the Universal sequels.

A side note:  If you thought, like I did, the doctor's name was supposed to be "Victor Frankenstein", it was, in the original novel, but in the movies made by Universal, for some reason, they changed it to Henry, and then in a subsequent movie, Son of Frankenstein, it was revealed that his actual name was Heinrich.  You'd have to ask the writers why they made the change, but a subsidiary character in the original movie was named Victor, just not the doctor.

I won't go into the references that were made when Mel Brook's movie Young Frankenstein was made in the first two (that's for a later post if and when I get to it).  There is in this movie a new character, Ygor, who is not a hunchback, as in the Brooks movie, but has a disfigurement nonetheless. Also the gendarme so hilariously played by Kenneth Mars was drawn from a similar character here, Inspector Krogh (Lionel Atwill), played with very subdued humor compared to the Mars character.

Son of Frankenstein (1939)

Wolf von Frankenstein (Basil Rathbone), the son of Henry, arrives in the town of Frankenstein to take over the family castle.  He brings with him his wife Elsa (Josephine Hutchinson) and his son, Peter (Donnie Dunnagan).  He does not get a very welcome reception from the villagers, who believe he will only continue the evil experiments his father started.  They are also sure that Henry's monster still lives, though it supposedly died.  The source of this rumor is the fact that several villagers have died recently under mysterious circumstances.

Rathbone w/ Donnegan and the nursemaid.

Still living in the castle is Frankenstein père's assistant, Ygor (Bela Lugosi).  Ygor was convicted of crimes and hung, but survived the execution.  But as a result of the failed hanging, he has a deformed neck.  Wolf finds the body of the monster in his family crypt and, at Ygor's behest, decides to try to revive the monster.  But Ygor has ulterior motives.  See, all of the mysterious deaths in the village were, indeed, commited by the monster, but all of the deaths were members of the jury that convicted Ygor.  Ygor had been using the monster to get revenge on the village and the jury.

Rathbone w/ Karloff and Lugosi

Wolf has only one real ally in the village, Inspector Krogh (Lionel Atwill), who had previously encountered the monster and had his armed torn off.  The Inspector goes through life with an artificial arm now.  He tries to warn Wolf that the villagers want him gone and protect the doctor, but he is also suspicious that the doctor knows where the monster is and his hiding him.

Rathbone w/Atwill

Wolf, for his part, does not know of the monster's and Ygor's complicity in the deaths of the villagers until too late.  When he confronts Ygor, Ygor is of course not entirely receptive to the doctor's pleas.

Son of Frankenstein is the third in the sequence of the Frankenstein oeuvre, and while not on par with Bride of Frankenstein is still a serviceable entry into the genre.  Basil Rathbone, is in my opinion, the only down side to the movie, probably due to the fact that I am so used to his staid, unemotional portrayal of Sherlock Holmes, that the emotional outbursts from Wolf just seem a bit too bizarre.

Son of Frankenstein  was the last appearance of Boris Karloff in the monster makeup, although he would go on to appear in House of Frankenstein as a mad doctor, and in Frankenstein 1970, a cheapo knock-off from the 50's as the titular Doctor.  It was not the end of his career when he stopped putting on the monster makeup, though.  He had a prolific career afterwards.

Ghost of Frankenstein (1942)

Lon Chaney, Jr makes his appearance as the Frankenstein monster in this sequel to Son of Frankenstein.  Although Chaney would go on to appear in other Universal monster movies, it would be as Larry Talbot, aka The Wolf Man. This was his only role as the titular monster, and a good thing too, because Chaney just did not essay a good Frankenstein monster.

The beginning of the movie finds the townspeople still ranting over the curs they feel that the Frankenstein family has brought on the town.  They are given permission by the mayor of the town to fully destroy the castle.  Ygor (Bela Lugosi), who apparently has inherited the nine lives of a cat, is back and living in the castle.  While the townspeople go block demolishing on the castle, Ygor finds the monster, who also apparently cannot be killed, and revives him.

Chaney and Lugosi

The two go off in search of Ludwig von Frankenstein (Cedric Hardwicke), the other son of Henry.  It is discovered that lightning makes the monster stronger, so the idea is to entice Ludwig, who is a doctor of brain surgery to heal the monster's brain.  At first Ludwig refuses, but is eventually blackmailed by Ygor into agreeing.



Ralph Bellamy, a frequent character actor (as well as one of the two rich brothers in the Eddie Murphy/Dan Aykroyd comedy Trading Places) appears as the town prosecutor, Erik, who is also the boyfriend of Ludwig's daughter, Elsa (Evelyn Ankers).  (Apparently the writers ran out of decent names, because you will note it is the same name as the wife of Wolf from the previous movie.)  Erik calls on Ludwig, as a brain specialist, to examine the monster after it is captured, but things go awry and the monster escapes.

Bellamy, Hardwicke, Chaney and Atwill

Eventually Ludwig is convinced to transplant the brain of his associate Dr. Kettering (Barton Yarborough), whom the monster had previously killed.  Dr. Bohmer (Lionel Atwill), Ludwig's other associate, has other ideas though, with a plant to give the monster the brain of Ygor, with Ygor's willing complicity.

The Ghost of Frankenstein marks a decline in the production values of the series.  While the three previous movies (Frankenstein, Bride of Frankenstein and Son of Frankenstein) could be considered "A" pictures, The Ghost of Frankenstein was the beginning of it's "B" picture phase, and it shows.  Of the Universal Monsters movies I have seen thus far, this one is definitely the lowest ranked one.  But I would still take it over any of the knockoffs that came out in the 50's and 60's.

Well, that's the view from the back seat this week. So long, kiddies and drive safely.

Quiggy