Out of the Past

Monday, January 26, 2009

New Books for Classic Film Fans

I found a slew of new (and newish) books out on the market that will be of interest to classic film fans. Not all of them are specifically about classic films but I find many of them tie-in well with related interests. Enjoy!

*To be fair, I'm including a link to Amazon.com as well as to IndieBound.org. IndieBound can direct you to one of your local independent bookstores. Buy local if you can. I'm also including a link to the publisher's page about the book as most bookstore sites don't have much information on these quite yet.
for fans of the great director

Vincente Minnelli
~Hollywood's Dark Dreamer~
by Emanuel Levy
St. Martin's
$35.00
9780312329259
Amazon - IndieBound - Publisher

for department store fans. The store was central to the movie Miracle on 34th Street (1947).

Macy's~The Store. The Star. The Story~
by Robert M. Grippo
SquareOne Publishers
$27.95
9780757003097
Amazon - IndieBound - Publisher

for B movie fans (aren't we all fans?)

The B List
~The National Society of Film Critics on the
Low-Budget Beauties, Genre-Bending Mavericks,
and Cult Classics We Love~
by David Sterritt and John C Anderson
$15.95
Da Capo Press (hi Lissa!!!)
9780306815669
Amazon - IndieBound - Publisher

for fans of the 1920's and flaming youth

Bright Young People
~The Lost Generation of London's Jazz Age~
by DJ Taylor
$27.00
Farrar, Straus and Giroux
9780374116835
Amazon - IndieBound - Publisher

for fans of comedians such as Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton

Make 'Em Laugh
~ The Funny Business of America ~
by Michael Kantor and Laurence Maslon
$45.00
Twelve
9780446505314
Amazon - IndieBound - Publisher

fans of the Philo Vance mysteries of the late '20s/early '30s may appreciate this

Death by Water
~A Phryne Fisher Mystery~
by Kerry Greenwood
$24.95
Poisoned Pen Press
9781590582398
Amazon - IndieBound - Publisher

fans of sharp and witty dialogue in classic films who aspire to charm through conversation

The Art of Conversation
~A Guided Tour of a Neglected Pleasure~
by Catherie Blyth
$22.50
Gotham (Penguin)
9781592404193
Amazon - IndieBound - Publisher

Friday, January 23, 2009

Hot Toddy ~ Don Taylor

Name: Don Taylor

Stats: b. 1920- d. 1998. 29 films as actor, 11 films as director. Directed TV in the '80s.

Rating based on level of excellence: 3 out of 5 Humunahs!

Hotness Factors: Tall, gentlemanly stature, great hair and sheepish smile. He's the boy next door who looks innocent enough but will steal your hot daughter away when your back is turned.

Chicks He Digged: Married two actresses. First wife was TV actress Philis Avery and second wife was scream queen Hazel Court, who passed away last year.

For Optimal Hotness Watch:

Father of the Bride (1950) ~ He's the lucky kid who gets to marry virginal Elizabeth Taylor (at least on screen).

The Naked City (1948) ~ He plays a detective who scours the city of New York looking for the man who murdered glamour (see my post about the movie here).

Stalag 17 (1953) ~ He's the WWII Lieutenant who managed to blow up a Nazi train with a hand-made bomb. He's the hero of all the men at the POW camp. (see pictures below)

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

20 Actors Movie Meme

It was inevitable after the 20 Actresses Movie Meme circulated among the blog world that an Actor one would follow suit. And I was ready! The men were much easier to select from than the women. While it's terribly easy for me to dislike an actress (she looked at me funny), I have high respect for many actors. This list was easy to order as well, since I have formed very strong attachments to certain actors and I could guage what number to put them at based on the strength of my feelings. I also use the giggle-mometer. Whenever I see any of these fine gentlemen onscreen, I let out a giggle. The higher-pitched and more annoying the giggle, the more I like him. I guess you don't want to be around me when I see my King Robert Mitchum on screen do you?