Podcasts for Classic Film Fans: February Round-up

These are interesting, evolving times for film fans. That was reflected in my podcast listening this month. Episode titles link to the show: 

Cinema Junkie 

Celebrating TCM Underground 

February 24, 2023 

While I wasn’t surprised to see TCM Underground cancelled after its programmer Millie de Chirico was laid off in December 2022, it was still sad to realize there would be no more exciting discoveries to be found from this fascinating program. I felt a bit better after listening to this conversation with de Chirico. Not only is she still out there ready to share more films, she has co-written a great book about cult movies that will endure.

The Video Essay Podcast 

Adam Tinius (Entertain the Elk) 

February 16, 2023 

I love how honest this YouTuber is about the ups and downs of making a living creating video essays. It’s interesting how he’s balanced his work between popular topics and more soul stirring projects.

Maltin on Movies 

Jamie Lee Curtis 

February 24, 2023 

Jamie Lee Curtis has a lot of interesting insights to share about her famous parents Tony Curtis and Janet Lee in this open-hearted conversation. It’s a bit amusing how she still doesn’t seem to understand the full array of ways that being a nepo baby has helped her career. I think she means well and truly isn’t able to get it from her perspective. Still, it was funny how she insisted she’d never used her parent’s connections only to share several minutes later that she did just that to get a literary agent.

Pop Culture Happy Hour 

How to Be a Better Movie Watcher 

February 15, 2023 

There’s a great appreciation for all kinds of movies here, from strictly thrills to arthouse, and acknowledgement that the two are not necessarily mutually exclusive. I also loved the tips about how to watch movies, the most valuable information for me being how to stay awake for the full running time after a long day.

On YouTube---Jayne Mansfield: Beyond the Squeals

 

Jayne Mansfield was no dumb blonde, but to become a star she played one. Unfortunately she became trapped in that image and was never able to share everything she had to offer as a performer. However, she did do a lot more varied work than is commonly believed. She wasn’t all about the squealing. I talk all about that in my new video:

YouTube Video: Black in Classic Film Fashion

 

Lately I've been fascinated by the power of color in classic film fashion. It can almost be a character in itself. I made a video about how black is used in vintage film costumes. Yes, it isn't technically a color, but it is one of the most powerful hues for making a memorable garment. I make some commentary to tie it all together, but my focus here is on displaying the clothes and their amazing variety.

Podcasts for Classic Film Fans: January Round-up

The release of the Sight and Sound poll results was typically dramatic and led to some great podcast episodes. Two of my favorite responses to the list are in this month's roundup. 

Unspooled 

Jeanne Dielman, 23 quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles 

January 11, 2023 

This is the perfect discussion about Jeanne Dielman…, which was recently the subject of controversy when it topped the Sight and Sound pool. It taps into what makes this lengthy, often challenging film so mesmerizing. I love how thoroughly the hosts research each topic episode; I always learn so much from them.

I Saw What You Did 

Dirtbag June (Ali, Fear Eats the Soul [1974] and Harold and Maude [1971]) 

January 17, 2023 

Millie and Danielle are such phenomenal podcast hosts. They’ll have you snort laughing with their free-form opening conversation and then get you emotional when they get to the film discussion. I found their discussion of Ali, Fear Eats the Soul and Harold and Maude to be especially sensitive and revealing.

Pure Cinema Podcast \

Decade by Decade Pure Cinema Canon 

January 9, 2023 

Brian and Elric respond to the Sight and Sound list with their own picks for the cinematic canon. I love their choices because the films tend to be both immensely entertaining and great cinema. Many great entry points for those new to exploring movies, but I also found some new viewing ideas in addition to realizing there were a few films I wanted to rewatch.

Forgotten Hollywood 

Author Jeff Keene II on His Book Under The Rainbow 

January 22, 2023 

It’s wild to me that the 2005 and eventual recovery of a pair of ruby slippers Judy Garland wore in The Wizard of Oz (1939) is still being discussed. This is an interesting discussion about some of the ins and outs of the incident with the author of a book about the case.

Book Review--Grabtown Girl: Ava Gardner's North Carolina Childhood and Her Enduring Ties to Home

 

Grabtown Girl: Ava Gardner’s North Carolina Childhood and Her Enduring Ties to Home 

Doris Rollins Cannon 

Down Home Press, 2001 

When I had Ava Gardner Museum board member Lora Stocker as a guest on Watching Classic Movies podcast, she kindly sent a package of goodies from the gift shop afterwards. One of the items was Grabtown Girl: Ava Gardner’s North Carolina Childhood and Her Enduring Ties to Home. I’d read more than one book about Gardner, but I was intrigued by the idea of exploring her roots, because I think her pride in where she came from had a lot to do with her appeal. I also loved that it was a local publication, written by the chairman emeritus of the Museum. 

Based on interviews with family and friends of Gardner, it’s a bittersweet volume, because many of these people have passed since the publication of the book. It’s best looked upon as a sort of supplement to Gardner’s memoir (which is referred to here), filling in the blanks, getting to the truth of various stories, and providing a fuller perspective on a woman who was never especially impressed that she became a star. 

The first part of the book tells the story of Ava’s childhood through the eyes of those who knew her. Part two focuses on the years after she went to Hollywood through the lens of her contacts with home. There’s also a chapter devoted to the creation of the museum, in which Ava tries to visit it when it is closed and declines to get someone to open it up because she figured she’d lived it all herself. 

In essence, the book is a collection of anecdotes like that. Gardner never failed to charm, throughout her life, and there’s a lot of love for her here. Unlike many versions of her life story, she isn’t shown to be a miserable, poverty-stricken child. Of course there were lean years, but thanks to the work and care of her devoted mother and a strong family and community, she thrived as a child and didn’t lack anything she needed. I found it a heartwarming read, a brief one too at 142 pages, but there’s a lot to this slim book. Cannon was able to find a remarkable number of people to reminisce. 

When Lora asked me to record a tribute to Ava for the Museum’s celebration of her 100th birthday, a lot of what I had to say was backed up by Grabtown Girl, a tribute to a woman who found strength in her roots. 

Many thanks to Lora Stocker for providing a copy of the book for review.

On Blu-ray: Attack of the 50 Ft. Woman (1958)

 

Attack of the 50 Ft. Woman (1958) is probably most famous for its poster featuring the titular giantess stepping over a busy freeway with a car in her hand, a bit of creative marketing which doesn’t reflect the plot of the movie in any way. 

While the movie isn’t nearly as sensational as its marketing, it’s nevertheless a fun 66 minutes of sci-fi chaos. I recently revisited the film on a new Blu-ray release from Warner Archive. 

It takes most of the running time of this flick to get to the giant action. In the first part of the movie Hayes is the draw, with an over-the-top, but sympathetic performance. She plays a wealthy woman with an unfaithful husband, played with oily sleaziness by William Hudson. 

With a gigantic diamond around her neck that looks like a decoration from a chandelier and tears streaming down her cheeks, Hayes pounds the wall in frustration. She’s hooked on a toxic guy, and she knows she can’t leave him. The only one who cares for and understands her is her butler, but he is powerless to overcome her self-destructive ways. 

Hudson is openly cheating on Hayes with a bubbly blonde played with effortless immoral flair by Yvette Vickers. When Hayes meets an extraterrestrial giant in the desert one night, the alien encounter eventually supersizes her as well. It’s only a matter of time before her hubby discovers the consequences of his actions. 

Understandably, the best part of the movie is when Hayes assumes giant form and begins to take revenge on the world. Up until that moment though, the film moves at a good pace, with brisk action and lively character actors, like George Douglas in a tremendously goofy performance as the town’s sheriff. 

It was strange seeing this movie with such a clear picture after years of less pristine VHS and television viewings. I honestly liked the grittiness before, but seeing everything with such clarity was also a revelation. 

Special features on the disc include a trailer and a commentary by film historian Tom Weaver and Yvette Vickers which was one of, if not the last projects she did before she died in 2010. She does a great job reminiscing; Vickers loved the pace of making ‘B’ pictures and had a lot of happy memories to share about the production of the film. 

Many thanks to Warner Archive for providing a copy of the film for review.

Review: A trio of fascinating books about Marlene Dietrich

Marlene 

Marlene Dietrich 

2022 (originally published 1989) 

Marlene Dietrich: Photographs and Memories Compiled by Jean-Jacques Naudet 

Captions by Maria Riva 

with Werner Sudendorf 

2022 

Marlene Dietrich’s ABC’s: Wit, Wisdom, and Recipes 

Marlene Dietrich 

Updated Edition 2022 (originally published 1961)  

All from University Press of Kentucky 

It took me a while to decide what I had to say about the University Press of Kentucky’s release of a trio of books about Marlene Dietrich this year, one new, the others reissues. I got a bit hung up on finding the truth of the woman in these publications, when what I truly loved about them was that they communicated her essence, which simply put is what gave her star power. Together, they tell a varied story about a complex woman, revealing different facets about the always vocal star. 

For a more complete story, I suggest reading Maria Riva’s memoir of her mother, but these three books are each essential in their own way. 

As with any memoir, Marlene by Marlene Dietrich tells what the actress was willing to tell, embellished by how she would like to be. She writes in a dramatic, almost poetic fashion, which is similar in style to the song introductions she made when she toured as a singer later in life. 

Dietrich goes into detail about her childhood, her rise to fame, and seems to have been especially affected by her service as an entertainer for the troops during World War II. It's an interesting read and as a story of her life it presents her essence well. I think the truth can be pretty well divined in reading this and Riva’s memoir, but the point of the book is how fascinating it and its author can be.

Marlene Dietrich: Photographs and Memories is the new release of the bunch. It’s a gorgeous tribute to her aesthetic, which was a unique combination of the elegantly feminine and dapper masculine. An introduction provides context for the images to follow, and captions by Maria Riva lend a richness to the images, which consist of a healthy helping of classic Dietrich photos and color pics of several of her dresses and accessories. The garments are a marvel of style and construction and a visual treat for any fan of fashion.

I was most excited to finally read Marlene Dietrich’s ABC’s: Wit, Wisdom, and Recipes. This book is far more revealing than Dietrich’s memoir. It shows the actress was truly the devoted hausfrau she was rumored to be, deeply respectful of the workers who supported her in her craft, and generally kind at heart, though with a bit of vinegar she doesn’t always try to conceal. The extent of her enormous love for herself is rare to see even in a star; she knew her value and wasn’t afraid to speak about it. For that reason, this is an enormously entertaining book. 

While my excitement over finally reading the ABC’s gives that book an edge in my mind, I can’t say which of these publications I find most essential. Overall, it’s a matter of taste and what aspects of the star the reader finds most intriguing. The full picture here is that Dietrich worked in a profession of artifice but enjoyed a life with down-to-earth pursuits as much as the glamour, maybe even more so. Individually and combined, they present the legend well. 

Many thanks to University Press of Kentucky for providing copies of the books for review.