Monday, September 22, 2014

Stars & Their Hobbies ~ Roddy McDowall

Roddy McDowall, Home Movies

Roddy McDowall was a trustworthy kind of a guy and he made many close friends in Hollywood. Every Sunday he would have an open house at his Malibu Beach home. This was a time when the Hollywood elite could come over relax and be themselves. They let their guard down when they were with McDowall. Guests at his open houses would include Natalie Wood, Lauren Bacall, Rock Hudson, Dennis Hopper, Jane Fonda, Paul Newman, Robert Redford, Kirk Douglas and more.

We all know McDowall had skills when it came to cameras. Besides being an actor he was also a film director and photographer. A few years ago we learned that one of his hobbies was shooting home movies. Several silent home movies from 1965 emerged and were put on the internet for us to enjoy. They're an intimate look at Hollywood in front of a very different type of camera.



This is a YouTube playlist of 22 of McDowall's silent home movies.


Thank you to Laura of Laura's Miscellaneous Musings for the idea for this entry!


My series Stars & Their Hobbies explores how notable actors and actresses from Hollywood history spent their free time. Click here to view a complete list of entries.

4 comments:

  1. There are lots more of Roddy's home movies, also on YouTube. Its amazing now to see these some 50 years later, that sunny Malibu of the mid 60s, all these people - friends and co-stars, sharing Sunday afternoons, all in their prime: Lee Remick in serveral, as are Bacall, Newman, Natalie Wood, Jane Fonda, Suzanne Pleshette etc. Julie Andrews with that naked toddler, a more innocent time certainly. And before the internet and social media age, they did not feel the need to put their every move on public view.

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  2. Ah, I just realised this is all of the Roddy movies together - great idea. Interesting seeing visitors to Hollywood filming there then, like Simone Signoret, James Fox etc all here too.

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    1. I edited the above to indicate that the whole playlist was there. I love that I could embed the whole playlist and I didn't have to pick from one or two of them.

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  3. Imagine the price of that Malibu beach-front property now !

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