Showing posts with label Ida Lupino. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ida Lupino. Show all posts

Sunday, September 10, 2023

Ida Lupino: A Biography by William Donati

Ida Lupino: A Biography
by William Donati
Paperback ISBN: 9780813196480
January 2023
University Press of Kentucky
360 pages


“Emotionally, Ida was a jumble of contradictions, infused with the polarity often present in intensely creative individuals.” — William Donati

Ida Lupino is one of the great outliers of the film industry. In a time when there were limited roles for women except for being an actress or writer, Lupino managed not only take on both roles but to also add director, producer and businesswoman to her list. To modern age audiences she's a feminist icon. But in reality Ida Lupino was a walking contradiction. Even as a pioneer female filmmaker who was fiercely independent she held onto traditional values when it came to gender roles. She leveraged her fame to advance her career but also advocated for her privacy. Some regarded her as a warm person and others pointed out her iciness. Lupino was not about to be pigeonholed into a single category of any kind. She was a complex person and unapologetically herself.

Originally published in 1997, William Donati's book Ida Lupino: A Biography chronicles the life of an actress-filmmaker who lived her entire life in show business. The book was originally meant to be Lupino's autobiography written with the help of Donati. But the project stalled and when Lupino died in 1995 Donati moved forward with a more traditional biography. The book was recently reissued this year by the University Press of Kentucky but I haven't been able to confirm if any notable changes were made to the original text.

The book begins with Ida Lupino's formative years as a member of the Lupino showbiz family, her close bonds with her father Stanley and mother Connie, her move from the UK to Hollywood to pursue a career as a film actress and her early days a Paramount contract star playing ingenue roles and her bout with polio. We learn about her friendship with Thelma Todd and the events of that fateful night when Todd mysteriously died (the author had also written a book about Todd). Then there were Ida Lupino's marriages to actor Louis Hayward, writer and filmmaker Collier Young and her particularly tumultuous relationship with Howard Duff which are all discussed at length. The author offers only brief glimpses into Lupino's mental health struggles and her fraught relationship with her daughter Bridget Duff. Almost every film that Lupino acted in and a majority of her television work is discussed. Her work with The Filmakers—the production company she started with her husband Collier Young— and the more involved projects she made while at Warner Bros. get the most coverage.

Some interesting facts I learned from the book:

  • Lupino was such a perfectionist that she often drove herself to exhaustion, illness and/or injury.
  • She greatly admired anyone who took the business seriously and preferred to work with people were as driven as she was.
  • Producer Mark hellinger stepped in to vouch for Lupino so she would get cast in the film They Drive by Night (1940). That film as well as High Sierra (1941) became breakout roles for both Ida Lupino and her co-star Humphrey Bogart.
  • Ann Sheridan and Lupino often got the same types of roles and replaced each other in different projects. For example, when Lupino turned down a role in King's Row (1942), it went to Ann Sheridan.
  • When Jack Warner offered her a 7 year contract he told her she'd be another Bette Davis for Warner Bros.
  • To prepare for Moontide (1942), Lupino took French actor Jean Gabin on a tour of the seedier parts of Los Angeles for a "first-hand look at vice and violence."
  • The Hard Way (1943) and Devotion (1946) were two of Lupino's most challenging productions due to complications with the studio, WWII and Stanley Lupino's death from cancer.
  • Agent Charles K. Feldman sought Lupino as a client and even bought the rights to Road House (1948) and sold them to Twentieth Century Fox with the stipulation that Lupino be cast in the lead.
  • Lupino enjoyed working with The Breen Office and welcomed their changes which she didn't view as censorship but rather as improvements.
  • For her hard-hitting drama Not Wanted (1949), which she produced and eventually directed, she couldn't use the title "Unwed Mother" because it was too salacious. But the restrictions did not apply to marketing materials so she plastered UNWED MOTHER in bold type in various newspaper ads to promote the movie.
  • She fostered new talent by casting Sally Forrest and Keefe Braselle in Not Wanted (1949) and Never Fear (1950).
  • Lupino and Young struck a deal with Howard Hughes to partner on three films between RKO and The Filmakers production company. Lupino was one of the few executives Hughes would actually agree to meet with directly. 
  • While the Motion Picture Association objected to the making of The Hitch-Hiker (1953), Lupino and The Filmakers went ahead with the production. Lupino had already gotten permission from prisoner Billy Cook and the two men he kidnapped. Their story was the basis of the movie.
  • Many of us know that The Bigamist (1953) had Lupino starring and directing in a film that also included her ex-husband Collier Young and his new wife Joan Fontaine. While that seems like it would have been an uncomfortable situation, Lupino and her third husband Duff were friendly with Young and Fontaine and the couples often spent time with each other.
  • According to the author, "with The Bigamist, Ida Lupino became the first woman to direct herself in a major motion picture."
  • Lupino was quick to adapt and in the early 1950s that meant transitioning to television. She insisted that her husband Howard Duff be her co-star in the TV sitcom Mr. Adams and Eve. The story idea was developed by her ex-husband Collier Young.
  • Producer William Frye personally chose Ida Lupino to direct which would be her last production The Trouble with Angels (1966). They originally wanted to cast Greta Garbo but couldn't get her out of retirement and was replaced by Rosalind Russell.
  • I love this quote from Rosalind Russell about Lupino: "The sex of a director doesn't mean a hoot. The one all-important thing is talent. Somehow it has evolved that directing is a man's profession. A woman has a tough, almost impossible time breaking down this caste barrier. Miss Arzner managed it. Ida is doing it now."


This biography suffers from inherent bias which was to be expected considering the book began its life as Lupino's autobiography. It's clear that the author very much admires and respects his subject. Lupino is treated with reverence but some of the more superfluous language feels cloying. However, the author does not shy away from exploring Lupino's self-destructive behavior, her contradictions and her co-dependent relationships with men. I was frustrated with some of the outdated language used and wondered if in this new edition some of that could have been edited out.

Ida Lupino: A Biography by William Donati is a mixed bag. While it offers the reader plenty of interesting information and a cohesive outline of Lupino's extraordinary career, it's plagued by some odd choices in narrative. I would recommend this anyone who is interested in learning more about Lupino. It's a good starting point it covers a lot of territory in just under 300 reading pages. Some of the more personal aspects of Lupino's life probably wouldn't have been revealed had it not been for the author's friendship with Lupino. There are some insights here that the reader might not find elsewhere that definitely add value to the text overall.




This is my third book review for my Classic Film Reading Challenge.


Thank you to the University Press of Kentucky for sending me a digital copy for review. And thank you to the Greater Boston Film Classics Club for inviting me to host a virtual discussion on this book!

Tuesday, October 1, 2019

Ida Lupino: Filmmaker Collection




Now available from the good folks at Kino Lorber Studio Classics is Ida Lupino: Filmmaker Collection, a Blu-ray boxed set featuring four films directed by Ida Lupino: Not Wanted (1949), Never Fear (1950), The Hitch-Hiker (1953) and The Bigamist (1953). Each of the four films has been beautifully restored and the discs includes a selection of special features. The Blu-rays are available individually too but the boxed set comes with a stylish slipcase and an exclusive booklet which republishes former Variety film critic Ronnie Scheib's article Ida Lupino: Auteuress.

I was particularly excited for this boxed set because I'm very interested in Ida Lupino's work and with bad copies of these films have been making the rounds it was high time they be presented at their very best.



Not Wanted (1949)

Ida Lupino's directorial debut came without an onscreen credit. She had taken over for Elmer Clifton when he suffered a serious heart attack and was too ill to continue. He died shortly after the film was released. Not Wanted stars Sally Forrest as Sally Kelton, a wide-eyed and naive young woman who falls for an older man, a piano player named Steve (Leo Penn). Much to her parents dismay, Sally runs away from home and follows Steve who only has a passing interest in her. Drew Baxter (Keefe Brasselle), a gas station attendant with an injured leg, falls for Sally only to have her runaway again. Turns out Sally is pregnant with Steve's child and hides out at a home for unwed mothers to decide her future. Lupino co-wrote and co-produced the film. This is a fantastic little drama that doesn't cast judgment on its protagonist. Rather it beckons the audience for some sympathy. Lupino's sister Rita has a small role as Joan, a fellow unwed mother who bonds with Sally.

Special features:
New 4k restoration in conjunction with the Academy Film Archive
Audio commentary by Barbara Scharres, Director of Programming at the Gene Siskel Film Center and filmmaker/historian Greg Ford
English subtitles
The Wrong Rut - hygiene reel
Various Kino Lorber Classics movie trailers




Never Fear (1950)

Lupino's next picture Never Fear was a personal one. The film reunites Sally Forrest and Keefe Brasselle as Carol and Guy, a pair of dancers on the brink of success. Just as Guy proposes to Carol and they book their next big job, Carol comes down with a case of polio which partially paralyzes her legs. She's sent to a rehabilitation center, Kabat-Kaiser, where she struggles with feelings of self-pity and despair. There she meets fellow polio patient Len (Hugh O'Brian) who has a much better attitude about his condition. Lupino's sister also appears in the film in a similar role to that she played in Now Wanted as one of the protagonist's peers who offers some perspective with her experience. At the age of 16, Lupino herself suffered from the disease which paralyzed her right hand. This was during one of the major polio outbreaks in California. The polio vaccine was still a few years away and this film was one major way Lupino brought awareness to the disease. Never Fear is a taut and compelling drama that feels authentic even if you didn't know the backstory. It was filmed at the Kabat-Kaiser facility in Santa Monica and the extras were real patients.

Special features:
New 2k restoration in conjunction with the BFI
Audio commentary by film historian Alexandra Heller-Nicholas
English subtitles
Various Kino Lorber Classics movie trailers




The Hitch-Hiker (1953)

Perhaps Lupino's best known and most acclaimed work, The Hitch-Hiker proves that a female director could work beyond the scope of what would be considered women's pictures. Lupino not only directs but she also co-wrote the screenplay with ex-husband and frequent collaborator Collier Young. The story revolves around three male characters. Roy (Edmond O'Brien) and Gilbert (Frank Lovejoy) are best buds out on a fishing trip in Mexico. They pick up a hitch-hiker Emmett (William Talman) who unbeknownst to them is a deranged serial killer who is targeting unsuspecting motorists. What ensues is a frightening road trip that keeps audiences at the edge of their seats. The dynamic between the three actors is palpable and Talman is absolutely terrifying as Emmett.

Special features:
New 2K restoration in conjunction with the Library of Congress
Audio commentary by film historian Imogen Sara Smith
English subtitles
Various Kino Lorber Classics movie trailers




The Bigamist (1953)

For Lupino to have worked on The Bigamist to me meant she was the ultimate professional. Why? Not only was she the director, she also directs herself as one of the stars. Also she collaborates again with her ex-husband, writer/producer Collier Young who was at the time married to the film's other star Joan Fontaine. I'm not sure I would have been capable of all that but Lupino did so and the end result was this fine drama. Edmond O'Brien stars as Harry Graham, a salesman who travels back and forth from San Francisco and Los Angeles. It turns out he has two different women in each city, his wife Eve (Joan Fontaine) at home and his girlfriend Phyllis (Ida Lupino) in L.A. His secret comes to light when Mr. Jordan (Edmund Gwenn), an adoption coordinator, investigates Harry. The conceit could have lent itself to melodrama but instead Lupino and her crew offer a sensitive portrayal of a man in love with two women. We know how it will all end but we enjoy the journey anyways.

Special features:
New 4k restoration in conjunction with Paramount Pictures
Audio commentary by film historian Kat Ellinger
English subtitles





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Kino Lorber Studio Classics Ida Lupino: Filmmaker Collection will make a fine addition to your home library of classic films. This is a must-have for any Ida Lupino fan or anyone who enjoys 1940s/1950s dramas and film noir. My one complaint about the set is the formatting of the booklet which makes it difficult to read. I wish some more effort to design it as a proper book had been taken.

Thank you to Kino Lorber for sending me a copy of this set for review.

Wednesday, March 28, 2018

Fritz Lang's While the City Sleeps (1956)

Ida Lupino and Dana Andrews with director Fritz Lang

After two decades of making films in America, director Fritz Lang was at his wits end. The 1950s was difficult time in the film industry. Television was a major rival for audience’s time and attention. For Lang, good opportunities were fewer and far between. It also didn't help that Lang had developed a reputation for being cruel to his actors. In an effort to salvage his Hollywood career, Lang met with producer Bert Friedlob. Friedlob was quite a character. He had dabbled in many different businesses, (he was a liquor salesman and even managed circus acts) and became a film producer while he was married to his third wife actress Eleanor Parker. His films included A Millionaire for Christy (1951), The Steel Trap (1952), The Star (1952) and others. Lang needed a producer and Friedlob was ready and available. According to Lang biographer Patrick McGilligan, after Lang signed with Friedlob, the producer wasn’t interested in any of the directors ideas however the two agreed on one project in particular. Friedlob owned the rights to the novel The Bloody Spur by Charles Einstein. The former  journalist's book was based on the true story of William Heirens, a Chicago based serial killer who targeted women and left messages behind scrawled in lipstick. Lang was familiar with the “lipstick killer” case and agreed to direct the movie. According to McGilligan, the killer in this story reminded Lang of Peter Kurten from his German film M. When William Friedkin interviewed Lang in 1973, they discussed Lang’s interest particularly in films about murderers and criminals. Lang didn’t want to admit it but he did agree that his interests did lie in “social evils.”

While the City Sleeps (1956) follows a cast of characters at the Kyne newsroom at a time when the company as at the brink of major change. Amos Kyne (Robert Warwick), head of the Kyne empire, died just at the time when his newsroom was working on their biggest scoop. A lipstick killer is on the loose. On the story is Edward Mobley (Dana Andrews), the head of the Kyne telecast, Mark Loving (George Sanders), head of the Kyne newswire and Jon Day Griffth (Thomas Mitchell), the Kyne Newspaper’s chief editor. They are in competition for the top spot along with resident newspaper artist Harry Kirtzer (James Craig) to take over where Amos Kyne left off. Unfortunately they're faced with Kyne’s son Walter Kyne (Vincent Price), the spoiled rich brat who has no newsroom experience but likes the power his new position gives him. While the team battles for the top spot by trying to solve the lipstick killer case, the women of the newsroom are also making their mark. Mobley’s girlfriend Nancy Liggett (Sally Forrest) is Loving’s secretary and also Mobley’s pawn to lure the lipstick killer. Women’s story report Mildred Donner (Ida Lupino) isn’t afraid to manipulate her coworkers to play office politics with the big boys. And then there is Kyne’s wife Dorothy (Rhonda Fleming), who is having a secret affair with Harry. Dorothy and Nancy catch the eye of the lipstick killer (John Drew Barrymore, billed as John Barrymore, Jr.). Will Mobley and his police detective friend Burt Kaufmann (Howard Duff) get to them in time before the killer does?

Dana Andrews, Sally Forrest, Thomas Mitchell and Ida Lupino

Producer Friedlob's screenwriter Casey Robinson adapted Einstein’s novel to screen. According to Lang biographer McGilligan, "Robinson had no journalism experience; and the script would lack the real-life verisimilitude the director usually boasted." It did seem unrealistic to me that Andrews’ Edward Mobley was more instrumental in solving the mystery than Howard Duff’s Lt. Burt Kaufman. Friedlob and Robinson also injected an anti-comic book message into the story which did not age well. According to the AFI, “Friedlob announced that the film would address one of the concerns currently publicized by Senator Estes Kefauver, that of the effect of comic books on "juvenile delinquency’" and how the film would be a "weapon in the growing battle against the corrupting force of comic books on young minds." Comic book publisher Tony London pushed back saying that the film's message cast a bad light on an entire genre when only a few bad apples were to blame. Fast forward to 2018 and comic book franchises drive the current film industry. What would have Friedlob thought of that?

Rhonda Fleming and Vincent Price

In a publicity piece for the film, Fritz Lang said the following regarding Rhonda Fleming, "She amuses all the male instinct and she displays her physical assets to great advantage in the picture." Fleming often played such roles which were the complete opposite of what she was like in real life. In an interview with George Feltenstein for the Warner Archive Collection podcast, Fleming said,
“We went on to do While the City Sleeps with Fritz Lang. Which is one I really didn’t want to do because it was what my moral values didn’t stand for. A cheating wife, betraying her husband and lying. I almost turned it down but I guess I wanted to work with Fritz Lang and a great cast. But some of those naughty and not so nice roles were actually wonderful opportunities to play a wider variety of roles and not be mixed up in nice and sweet roles. It’s a favorite of many of my fans, these films.”

Independently produced, United Artists was originally going to distribute the film but in a last minute effort to get the film out on the market quickly Friedlob sold the completed film to RKO. Released in May 1956, While the City Sleeps was well-received. McGilligan said "it was considered a taut, well-made suspense film” and got good reviews in the trades. Friedlob and Lang went on to make Beyond a Reasonable Doubt released that same year (a review of that title coming soon!). Unfortunately, Friedlob died suddenly, just a month after the release of their second film together.

Fritz Lang is my favorite director and that’s because I’ve come to enjoy all the movies I’ve seen of his, even the not so great ones. (To date I’ve seen all but four, his two lost silents and his last two films made in Germany). In While the City Sleeps, the serial killer storyline is besides the point. This movie is really a suspenseful newsroom drama. It’s more about the social politics of an office than it is the hunt for a murderer. Everyone in the film plays to their strengths. And what a cast! Andrews, Lupino, Sanders, Mitchell, Fleming, Forrest, Craig, Price, they are all superb in this picture. Even Barrymore is convincingly frightening as the blood-thirsty Robert Manners. One thing I love about Lang’s films is how the female characters are portrayed. In a male-driven office, the three principal women are not simply pawns in their game. When Sanders tries to manipulate Lupino to get ahead, she manipulates him right back. Forrest isn’t content being the spurned fiancee who Andrews cheats on. A brief moment of defiance helps save her life. Fleming’s part is probably the weakest of the three but she also has her strengths including fighting off the killer. The film has some editing problems. There were some loops added for dramatics that were too noticeable to be taken seriously. A few shots seemed to be sped up or shot in reverse for a similar effect.




While the City Sleeps (1956) is available on Blu-Ray from the Warner Archive Collection.


Warner Archive Wednesday - On (random) Wednesdays, I review one title from the Warner Archive Collection. Thank you to Warner Archive for sending me a Blu-Ray copy of While the City Sleeps (1956) to review!

Friday, November 12, 2010

They Drive By Night (1940)


This scene never happened. But it's a great shot nonetheless!

Poor Bogie. By 1940, he was fed up with all the roles Warner Bros. had been giving him. They Drive By Night (1940), might have been the last straw. Bogie got fourth billing after George Raft, Ann Sheridan and Ida Lupino. Not only that, Ida Lupino, a newcomer to Hollywood, stole the picture from veterans Raft and Bogart with her performance as the evil and downright crazy Lana Carlsen. Bogie played gangsters, a Mexican Bandito, Irish horse handler and has been killed or maimed in a movie in every which way imaginable. They Drive By Night is a good precursor for High Sierra, Bogie's breakout role because this may be the lowest Bogie's career had sunk before he made it big. I mean, c'mon, the guy loses an arm, his job and the means to support his family within the first 30 minutes. And all because his character fell asleep on the job. Then he disappears for the rest of the picture until the very end. Not quite worthy of the great Bogie in my opinion. It was time for Hollywood to wake up and see Bogie for what he really was. In watching this film, I thought it was interesting that the role of Lana Carlsen, a sultry and manipulative wife of a trucking magnate, was given to newcomer Ida Lupino rather than Ann Sheridan who was quite good at playing/being a seductress. At first Sheridan's character Cassie is a wise-cracking tough waitress but she softens into a plain jane/prospective wife when she falls for George Raft. It seemed to me Lupino would have better in that role but I like that Lupino played Lana because boy did she do a good job! George Raft was pretty decent as a good guy trying to make it by in a harsh world. However, every time I see Raft on screen I'm always reminded of his supposed mob connections and of his whirlwind affair with Norma Shearer. The documentary that came with the DVD mentioned that this film is really made up of two different stories. So in a way, you get two movies for the price of one! Or a 1/4 Bogie movie for the price of two non-Bogie films. It's hard to tell if we've been cheated out of a great Bogie performance or treated to a fine Lupino one. It all depends on how you look at it.

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