Van Johnson was an underrated comedian and actor all-around. The picture above is of him in one of my favorite movies Yours, Mine and Ours (1968). I'll miss him for sure. God Speed Van Johnson!
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I will echo a farewell to Van Johnson. I especially liked him in The Caine Mutiny, and I noticed him in a small part the other day in The Purple Rose of Cairo.
ReplyDeleteNot sure if she falls in your interest, but Bettie Page died the day before.
Brad - I haven't seen The Caine Mutiny. Is it good?
ReplyDeleteYes I knew about Bettie Page. Sad isn't it? If you'll noticed on the right hand side of the blog there is a "Newsreel" section and I mention her. She's not classic movie related but I did really like her personally.
I consider The Caine Mutiny essential viewing for classic movie fans. The performances are terrific, and include perhaps Johnson's best role as a none too bright officer who makes a momentous decision at a critical moment. It also features good work from Jose Ferrer, Fred MacMurray and most importantly Humphrey Bogart. You will also see Lee Marvin in a small early role. If you are like me, your list of movies to watch exceeds your available time. Nonetheless, I recommend you add The Caine Mutiny. You're young, you will get around to it eventually. ;)
ReplyDeletePoor Van...
ReplyDeleteA friend of mine told me, "One of your old actors died..." (As if I own them!). I asked, Which one? He said, "Oh, I don't know...name some."
I started naming off every old actor I could think of, and when I said Ernest Borgnine, he said, "Yeah, that's it!"
So I spent the whole day thinking Ernest Borgnine had died instead of Van Johnson.
...
I was especially upset to hear about Bettie Page.
Thanks for the recommendation Brad!
ReplyDeleteGinger - Oh, that's a funny story in a sad way. My co-worker Frank had thought Van Johnson had died a long time ago and was surprised to see about his recent death when he then realized he confused him with Van Helfin.
Oh. I really liked Bettie Page. :-(