Holiday Gift Guide for Classic Film Fans

Do you have a classic film fan in your life? Or perhaps you are one and want to spread the joy to others? Why not buy a classic film themed gift for them for the holidays? Now I could list a whole bunch of DVDs, Blu-Rays and Boxed Sets for you but that's no fun. You could easily just browse some great online shops like the TCM Store, Kino Lorber, Barnes and Noble or Warner Archive for ideas. However, if you are looking for some non-DVD/Blu-Ray gift ideas, why not consider one of the following:

Books

Buy books for the holidays! As most of you know, I work in the book industry. So buying books supports me. How, so? You buy a book, it supports the industry, I work in the industry, it keeps food on the table, clothes on my back and a roof over my head. Do you know how much Carlos eats? It's a lot! Keep us fed, buy some books. Besides, books are cool!

Saul Bass: A Life in Film & Design - by Jennifer Bass and Pat Kirkham - Wow! What a gorgeous book. Saul Bass is the legendary designer of title sequences from great films directed by Alfred Hitchcock, Otto Preminger and many others. This is makes for a great coffee table book, discussion piece or just a fun book to flip through.





A Song in the Dark: The Birth of the Musical Film by Richard Barrios - This book comes highly recommended from early film expert Jonas, also known as the Talkie King, who blogs over at All Talking! All Singing! All Dancing!. This title is perfect for that budding film historian in your life.

Turner Classic Movies Crossword Puzzles -If your loved one is a TCM fanatic and thinks crossword puzzles are a lot of fun, this is the perfect gift for him or her. Inspired by the crossword puzzles in TCM's Now Playing Viewer's Guide, this book has 80 puzzles sure to keep anyone entertained for hours!

Just Being Audrey by Margaret Cardillo and illustrated by Julia Denos - A fabulous picture all about Audrey Hepburn. It's a great way to pass down your love of Hepburn to a child or for collectors of all things Audrey.

For children's books I also recommend: Skit-Scat Raggedy Cat, a picture book about Ella Fitzgerald which was inspired by the Abbott and Costello film Ride 'Em Cowboy (1942) and Footwork: The Story of Fred and Adele Astaire, a picture book about the two young siblings growing up in show business.


For other book ideas, check out my book review series called Get Your Read On. I've reviewed numerous books of interest to classic film lovers.

Holiday Cards

Classic Movie Cards from Silents and Talkies - These are amazing! Designed and colored by hand by the uber-talented Kate Gabrielle. There are 7 in all, including some Happy New Year's cards. You can get all 7 designs or mix and match or buy all of 1 kind. 

Home Theater

Panasonic 3D Wi-Fi Blu-Ray player - Let's face it. Most classic film fans have been reluctant to get Blu-Ray players. Heck, a lot of us are still trying to update our VHS collections to DVD! However, so many wonderful classic films are being introduced to the Blu-Ray format that your old movie lover is missing out by not having a player! CNet gave this particular Blu-Ray player by Panasonic a rating of "excellent". It's on sale at Best Buy for $159.99 with free shipping.

DVD Storage Box - One of the biggest dilemmas for any classic film fan is where to store all of ones DVDs and Blu-Rays. If your loved one has more films than they know what to do with, get them a couple of DVD storage boxes. These are a great alternative to furniture and fit well on bookshelves. You can stack them, move them around and hide them in nooks and crannies. Carlos and I have several of these!


Ephemera

Immortal Ephemera eBay Store and Website - My good friend Cliff sells lots of great Classic Film ephemera at his eBay store and on his website. Most items are under $10  You can find over 500 vintage stills, trading cards, tobacco cards, press photos, etc. Cards are $0.99 US shipping (unlimited) and other items are shipped free (US only). International Shipping is available as well. If your loved one is a big fan of a particular star from the Golden Age of Hollywood, check out Cliff's Shop by the Stars page and you can see what he has available for each actor or actress. These items make great gifts for the collector in your life!




Collectibles

Metropolis Mug from Brattle Theater - For just $12, you can get this fantastic Metropolis mug and support my favorite repertory theater at the same time. Win-win!

1:18 Steve McQueen Bullitt 1968 Mustang Fastback in Highland Green - Calling all Steve McQueen Fans! Calling all Car Enthusiasts! This is a wonderful toy replica of the Mustang that Steve McQueen drove (sorta) in the classic car chase scene from Bullitt (1968). I'm sure Carlos is salivating over this one.

Etsy - Etsy.com is full of wonderful vintage and hand-made collectibles which are sold by independent sellers and artists. Check out this Paul Newman Charm Metal Bracelet. Each charm is a photograph of Newman enclosed in a glass and metal casing.





Miscellaneous

Ticket Stub Diary - What's more fun than collecting ticket stubs? It's wonderful going back to see all the films you've enjoyed at the theater. But where do you put them all? Chronicle Books offers a Ticket Stub Diary for $14.95. You can also keep museum passes, concert tickets and lots of other stuff in here!

The Original Whirley Stovetop Popcorn Set - This set comes with a stovetop pot and stirrer, 3 popcorn packs and 4 popcorn tubs. Perfect present for your classic movie fan who loves to munch on popcorn while enjoying films!







What will you be buying for your beloved classic film fan? What do you hope you'll be getting for the holidays?


Full Disclosure: I found all these items online myself! I have not been influenced by any companies and I am not being compensated to feature any titles. I did include some Amazon.com affiliate links but that's it!

Winner of the Steve McQueen Book Giveaway!

 

The winner is Chad of noirWhale.com and noirWhale on Tumblr. Congrats Chad and thank you to everyone who entered my contest.

Comfort Movies on my Birthday

Today is my birthday! Yay! Having a birthday fall around Thanksgiving can be a mixed blessing. The big holiday competes with my birthday and my friends and family have other plans that revolve around Thanksgiving. While yesterday I spent quality time with my family, today I'm all by myself. But that's okay! Because I have my wonderful online friends and lots and lots of classic film to keep me company.

I don't tend to re-watch films all too often mostly because of personal guilt. I feel guilty watching my favorites when there are so many new-to-me films to explore. However, on the week of my birthday, I set aside my feelings of guilt and watched whatever I wanted! YEAH! There is something so comforting in watching a favorite old movie. It's like wrapping yourself in a soft blanket you've had for years. It feels delightful.

This week I watched these, my beloved classics:

Tony Rome (1967) - 1960s Miami seemed like a fabulous place to be (even with all the crime, extortion and junkies). Frank Sinatra is at the height of his coolness during this decade and his Tony Rome character is wonderful. I also love how sexy Jill St. John and Gena Rowlands are in this. I love watching this film for the ambience and atmosphere and for all the amazing details.

Ocean's 11 (1960) - In my mind, I've written several posts about this film but none of them have made it on to this blog. One time I watched this film 3 times in a row just wishing I could celebrate New Year's in 1960s Las Vegas with the Rat Pack. It's such a cool movie. I even watched this on my iPhone on the treadmill at the gym (and once on the stair master too!). Today I watched it for the great cast, the ambience, Ee-O 11 (one of my favorite songs) and that amazing final scene.

Bachelor Mother (1939) - In my opinion, Bachelor Mother is the best film to come out of 1939, the greatest year in movie history. It's such a cute fun movie. For years, I've dreamed of having a New Year's Eve like the one Ginger Rogers and David Niven have in the film. I ended up watching this film three times this week! 'Apply Nu Chea!

Holiday Affair (1949) - Of course, what birthday would it be without a healthy dose of my favorite big barrel-chested lug, Robert Mitchum. Holiday Affair is one of the few romances he did and this is a romance-family-holiday film to boot! He's just so incredibly charming as the Toy department clerk who gets fired because of Janet Leigh. The two fall in love in the midst of crazy circumstances. Such an adorable and heart-warming film. I had to watch it a couple of times.

A Patch of Blue (1965) - I fall in love with Sidney Poitier every single time I each this film. A Patch of Blue is a heart-wrenching/warming story of a blind Caucasian woman who falls in love with a seeing African-American man. So charming and your heart is made of stone if you don't empathize with poor Selina, the main character.

Christmas in Connecticut (1945) - I watch this film each year. I'm not a fan of Barbara Stanwyck but she's absolutely charming in this holiday classic alongside the dimpled Dennis Morgan, big-bellied Sydney Greenstreet and the hilarious S.K. Sakall who practically steals the picture away from the big stars. I especially love all the food talk. For fun, check out my Christmas in Connecticut Menus! 

Yours, Mine and Ours (1968) - My health in the past year hasn't been the greatest. But films like Yours, Mine and Ours always put life in perspective. Even when life gives you more than you can handle, make do with what you got and give it your best shot! And count your blessings. In the case of this movie, Lucille Ball and Henry Fonda have 20 of them! Quite a handful indeed. This is such a fun movie to watch too!

If you could watch as many of your favorite films as you wanted on your birthday, what would you watch? 

Winner of Learning to Live Out Loud: A Memoir by Piper Laurie

 

The winner of Learning to Live Out Loud: A Memoir by Piper Laurie is...

Kathy from Florida!

This was Kathy's entry: "My favorite Piper Laurie movie is "Tim" (1979).  I like how she gets into the heart of an older woman.  At first you see her almost resigned to a lonely life, then she meets a young man. She befriends him, then begins to have feelings for him. This frightens her, but finally she realizes that life doesn't always go the way you assume it will, and when something good comes along, you shouldn't be afraid to embrace it."

Thank you to Kathy and everyone who entered my giveaway!