Glenn Ford

To tell the truth, he was never a favorite of mine.  I'm not even sure that he was an actor of any special note.  Oh, he was completely competent and had some good moments... a few very good moments... and that's about all I can muster.  I do think he was in fewer than 20 good-to-great films and I own them all.  I don't think I own any because they were Glenn Ford movies, per se, but simply that they were good films.

Character Actors: Cobb & Coburn

Here's another look at two character actors whose careers lasted for decades.  Without men like Lee J. Cobb and Charles Coburn, movies would be a helluva lot less interesting.  I regard the gruff Cobb as one of the finest character actors there ever was.  Gentlemanly Coburn with his monocle and fussy manners graced dramas and comedies alike but it was in the latter that he is most remembered.  Let's take a look at two fine actors.

REVIEW: Race

 

Directed by Stephen Hopkins
2016 Sports Biography
2 hours 14 minutes
From Focus Features

Starring
Stephan James
Jason Sudeikis
Shanice Benton
Jeremy Irons
William Hurt
Carice van Houten
Barnaby Metschurat

Good 40s Films: Sullivan's Travels

1941 Comedy Drama
From Paramount Pictures
Directed by Preston Sturges

Starring
Joel McCrea
Veronica Lake
William Demarest
Robert Warwick
Porter Hall
Margaret Hayes
Franklin Pangborn

Poor Bobby Driscoll

It is March 30, 1968.  Two boys come across a dead body in an abandoned tenement on New York City's lower east side.  Beer bottles and religious pamphlets are nearby.  He is white, 30-35, no identification and needle marks on his arms.  An autopsy is done and it is determined that he died of a heart attack.  He is buried in a pauper's grave.

Brazilian Bombshell

To say that there was never anyone quite like her is a serious understatement.  From South America came Carmen Miranda whose uniqueness brought undisputed razzle-dazzle to musicals in the 1940s.  Her English was always a stretch to understand but no one could miss the flashing eyes, the gyrating hips, the toothy, welcoming smile, the rapidly moving arms and hands and of course the turbans, usually piled high with fruits or flowers. Her staccato-like delivery of a song while always moving about like a whirling dervish was memorable.  Chic chica boom chica boom. 

REVIEW: Hail, Caesar!

Directed by Ethan & Joel Coen
2016 Comedy Drama Musical
1 hour 40 minutes
From Universal Pictures

Starring
Josh Brolin
George Clooney
Alden Ehrenreich
Ralph Fiennes
Jonah Hill
Scarlett Johansson
Frances McDormand
Tilda Swinton
Channing Tatum

Good 40s Films: The Dolly Sisters

1945 Musical Biography
From 20th Century Fox
Directed by Irving Cummings

Starring
Betty Grable
John Payne
June Haver
S. Z. Sakall
Reginald Gardiner
Frank Latimore
Gene Sheldon
Trudy Marshall