Merry (almost) Christmas!

So today is Christmas Eve. I suddenly feel like George Bailey!

I want to run around and shout 'Merry Christmas!' to everyone on the street, and to everyone in my life, and to all my friends online. It's such an exciting day...much better than Christmas! Because there are no expectations. No unmeetable demands. No ungratefulness. No lack of money. Lack of fancy wrapping. Lack of the right, perfect gift. My mother and her overly-kind and possibly false sense of generosity. Or having to endure that awkward silence when I give a gift to my father, but not a gift to his wife.

It's Christmas Eve! Hooray, hooray...I can lie on the couch, and watch cartoons, and finish wrapping all the presents.

Then Santa Claus comes tonight... ;)

I've been an awful naughty girl this year, but hopefully he'll bring me a gift anyway!

Dear Santa,
Please bring me one Cornel Wilde, circa 1945, naked and happy in my bathtub.
Thanks!
Love,
Ginger

I hope everyone everywhere has a wonderful day today, and a great Christmas Day tomorrow!

And if you don't celebrate Christmas...then celebrate Bogart's birthday!



He was born December 25th, 1899 -- and of course there's a long-standing rumor that he wasn't born on Christmas; that the Warner Brothers publicity department lied about his birthday just to soften his image, and make him more lovable, but Bacall swears it really is his birthday (as do several others sources). So there: Let's all wear fedoras, and let cigarettes hang from our mouths, and mumble to those already baffled strangers we meet on the street, "Merry Christmas!...We'll always have Paris."

In honor of the birthday boy, TCM's gonna show a bunch of his movies tomorrow night, but I've already seen most of 'em; Bogart was my Dana Andrews of 2005. The only one I haven't seen all of is HIGH SIERRA, and guess who else is in it?

That's right, that's right...Every time a bell rings, I get my delicious Cornel Wilde! ;)

Maybe Santa Claus is secretly Robert Osborne, or even Ted Turner...I'm gonna get my man (at three AM, but who's complaining!), and you'll get peace and warmth, gifts and happiness (because I hope you will! And I bet you deserve it), and the whole world will have a wonderful holiday, I'm sure of it. :)

VHS is dead??...But who will feed my VCR?!

Just as I was stumbling off to bed, I caught a glimpse of something I've been dreading...a story on the news about VHS tapes, and how they're finally, completely, one-hundred-percent dead!

Apparently the last distributor of new VHS movies is shutting down after Christmas. Not a big deal, really, because most people have moved on to DVD, gladly bidding goodbye to VHS tapes...but what do you think this could mean for blank video tapes? Do you think we'll always be able to buy the blank ones??

Several times a year, I'll pick up a six pack of 'em when in Walmart, and put two to four movies on each tape. Thanks to my trusty VCR -- the one Santa Claus brought me back in 1994! -- I've managed to build a nice collection of old movies. Largely consisting (though not pictured here) of titles otherwise unavailable in any format.

Lots of old movies were once released on VHS, but are now out-of-print. And while plenty of classics have been issued to DVD, just think of all the ones that haven't! And then if DVD dies too, as many say it will, then the ones that did make it to DVD might not survive the next round...can't you just imagine THE SCARLET PIMPERNEL (1934) now on Blu-ray at your nearest Walmart??

Ha...nuts to that.

I love my VCR! I love those stacks of ugly tapes. Making labels. Choosing themes for each six hour movie marathon of TV-provided goodness. And it's not about getting them for free, since A) I pay for the tapes, and B) I pay for the satellite service, and the DVR service that catches 'em for me -- I remember just last year, when I still had to jot down what time a movie was coming on, so I could wake up and run to the living room just to start the VCR. Now I wait until after I've watched 'em, then I clean off the DVR by recording everything I want onto a blank tape.

It took me years to buy a DVD. I was one of those who insisted on still buying the VHS version of any movie I wanted, and a few years ago, when most stores decided to get rid of their entire VHS inventory and carry only DVDs, I was one of those people who proudly bought a VHS copy of CITIZEN KANE for ninety-nine cents.

I just don't get it.

Well...perhaps I do, but I don't want to get it! Not with the blank tapes anyway. I don't care if there are no more store-bought movies on VHS...I just don't like the thought of someday not being able to tape off movies, therefore being at the mercy of what makes it to DVD and/or Blu-ray, and as always, to the scheduling and generosity of good ol' Ted Turner.

It's icy here. I have writer's block and a headache and desperately need some sleep. And now all I can think of is how there are millions of more important things going on in the world...but also, how right after Christmas, I'm gonna drive to every Walmart within a sixty mile radius and buy up all the blank tapes I can find!

Like Elaine Benes with her precious case of Sponges...I'll have to decide which movies on my DVR are tape-worthy! ;)

Or hopefully, the blank tapes will just stay with us for a while.

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Links:

L.A. Times: VHS Era is Winding Down

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Twenty Favorite Actresses; and a few I dislike!

My lovely friend Raquelle, from Out of the Past, has tagged me to make a list of my twenty favorite actresses.

My top five are concrete -- I've rarely changed them over the past few years, except Gene Tierney, who has recently been promoted from the five-through-ten group, causing Lauren Bacall to scoot down a few places, and Vivien Leigh to exit the top five completely.

Every name past number ten could easily be re-arranged within the list on a daily basis. I'm very fickle, you know, but not so much with the first group of ten.

I often find myself listing my favorites in 'chronological' order, as in, what year they first came to my affection. Like for my favorite actors, I always list Bogart as number one because he was the first classic actor I ever fell in love with. But if I were to get technical about it (as I'm fixing to, with this list of ladies), my number one would probably be James Cagney.



My Twenty Favorite Actresses:

Audrey Hepburn
Jean Arthur
Gene Tierney
Ginger Rogers
Lauren Bacall

Olivia de Havilland
Barbara Stanwyck
Ingrid Bergman
Vivien Leigh
Bette Davis

Katharine Hepburn
Joan Blondell
Priscilla Lane
Virginia Mayo
Norma Shearer

Myrna Loy
Jean Simmons
Jean Harlow
Hedy LaMarr
Linda Darnell

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Who are your favorites?

Feel free to tag yourself... :)

I joked with Raquelle that I might make this list 'Twenty Actresses I DON'T Like', but I honestly don't have twenty! Which is good, really; I don't want to be hateful.

Eight Actresses I Dislike:

Joan Crawford
Alice Faye
Mae West
Sophia Loren
Jennifer Jones
Greer Garson
Rosalind Russell
Elizabeth Taylor

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Links:
To see Raquelle's Twenty Favorite Actresses, Click Here.
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Internet Search Results; or, How to find Ginger's blog without really trying...

I'm sure every blogger keeps track of their incoming traffic, and how, exactly, each visitor found their page. Most often, people who are directed to my blog via a search engine have entered the keywords 'Fred and Ginger', 'Famous Partners', or 'Cagney Grapefruit': those are my most popular, along with the obvious, 'Dana Andrews'.

Here are a few non-typical keywords of late, or at least some of the more interesting questions and phrases:

"grabbing a woman in the 1930s and kissing her you got your face slapped"

Yes, I imagine you did. ;)

"ginger gays famous"

Ginger gays? Is that like ginger ale?

"gene tierney auto bio"

Gene's autobiography? It's called Self-Portrait, and I highly recommend it.

"famous mottoes about love running away"

This poor person was pointed to that mean-spirited quote from IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE, Here. I'm no lovey-dovey girl, you know...

"Fred's partner before Ginger"

I actually got this one twice in the past couple of days, so why don't I answer it? Yes, Ginger O. Make yourself useful...

FRED ASTAIRE'S PARTNER BEFORE GINGER ROGERS
An answer, by Ginger Olivia Ingenue the third

Prior to his Hollywood career, Fred was famous for dancing on stage with his sister Adele. As for film: he only danced with one woman before his partnership with Ginger Rogers began, and that was with Joan Crawford in his film debut, DANCING LADY (1933).

The End.
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"George Bailey doll"

Ha! I guess I do serve a purpose... ;)

"Errol Flynn Olivia de Havilland"

Right HERE.

"Dana Andrews drunk"

Aw...it's true Dana was an alcoholic; apparently even oft-hungover while filming. He got sober, though, in the 1960s. Hooray for Dana!

"Hangover Square public domain"

As far as I know, it's not in the public domain. You gotta buy it or rent it. Unless you really want it for free, then you can do like me, and tape it off the Fox Movie Channel -- they show it occasionally.

"Ginger Rogers most famous movies"

Oh, I don't know; how 'bout 42nd STREET, TOP HAT, SWING TIME, STAGE DOOR, BACHELOR MOTHER, KITTY FOYLE, THE MAJOR AND THE MINOR...I tend to ignore her later stuff.

"How did Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers meet?"

They met in New York, in 1930. Ginger was in 'Girl Crazy', and Fred was called in to help improve the show's choreography. While demonstrating his suggested additions for the number 'Embraceable You', Fred asked Ginger to try it with him.

So upon their first meeting: they danced!

"James Cagney first talking film"

Cagney never did a silent film; his first talking film was his first film in general: SINNER'S HOLIDAY (1930).

"movie grapefruit face"

See? I told you... :)

"what was Fred Astaire most famous work"

His most famous? Well, for his Ginger films, there's TOP HAT and SWING TIME. Then EASTER PARADE for dancing with Judy Garland, ROYAL WEDDING for dancing on the ceiling, THE BAND WAGON for being film noirish, FUNNY FACE for dancing with Audrey Hepburn, ON THE BEACH for being dramatic, THE TOWERING INFERNO for getting an Oscar nomination, and THAT'S ENTERTAINMENT! for being so darn retrospective.

"Errol Flynn fedora"

You mean like this one?



There, you stranger-with-good-taste: I hope that helps. :)

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Links:
Tagged by the lovely Raquelle: to read her post on funny keywords, Click Here.
Picture of Flynn scanned by Dr. Macro: for his wonderful site, Click Here.
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Hollywood Dolls: An Introduction

The other night, while finishing up my Christmas shopping, I stumbled across a very strange, and very beautiful Hitchcock doll!

THE BIRDS Barbie Doll



Look, it's Tippi Hedren! I've always loved that green suit...

Now I've seen several Film-related Barbie dolls in my day, but never one as creative, 'dark', or as silly as this one. How fun!

More popular film-star Barbies include Audrey Hepburn and Marilyn Monroe. There's Audrey as Holly Golightly from BREAKFAST AT TIFFANY'S, and as Eliza Doolittle from MY FAIR LADY; they also have Marlyn wearing her white dress from THE SEVEN YEAR ITCH, and the pink dress from GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES.

The two most popular movies for making dolls seem to be THE WIZARD OF OZ, and GONE WITH THE WIND. Mattel, of course, has their incarnations of each, but Barbie-maker Mattel's not the only brand out there...Popular doll-makers Madame Alexander and Tonner both have several GWTW and OZ dolls.

World Doll has some of the more interesting GWTW dolls, including not one, but two, of my beloved Ashley! The other companies tend to ignore him, except Franklin Mint, who years ago made a porcelain doll of 'the sad eyed Ashley Wilkes'.

Speaking of Franklin Mint, they make the BEST Scarlett O'Hara doll I've ever seen! Their 16" vinyl Scarlett: it's absolutely beautiful, and more than any other Scarlett O'Hara doll -- including Tonner's popular Scarlett doll -- it actually looks like Vivien Leigh.*



See? Gorgeous!

For years, she's been my dream doll! Unfortunately, Franklin Mint's awful proud of her...
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As for other films and stars:

A few years ago, I ran across Rick and Ilsa dolls from CASABLANCA. Wonderfully dressed in their trench coats and fedoras.

Two of my more recent favorites are the dolls of Fred and Ginger! And although they are modeled after their worst film together, THE BARKLEYS OF BROADWAY, both dolls are very attractive.

There's also a luminous Lana Turner doll, by Integrity.

Two different 'Jimmy Stewart as George Bailey' dolls -- one is totally bland, while the other one is perfect! Very fun, and well-detailed, but little, like the CASABLANCA dolls.

Effanbee has the most unique offering of Hollywood dolls I've seen, including Mae West, Charlie Chaplin, Groucho Marx, Humphrey Bogart, John Wayne, and James Cagney!

And finally, check out Tonner's gorgeous Joan Crawford doll:



Wow...

I'm not a fan of Crawford, but even I want to play with that! :)

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Links:
To see several of the Mattel dolls, Click Here.
To see the Effanbee dolls, Try Here.
For Franklin Mint's Hollywood Celebrity dolls, Click Here.
For Tonner's Joan Crawford doll, Click here.
For Tonner's GWTW dolls, Click Here.
* For more on Franklin Mint's Scarlett, some great pictures, and an interesting write-up about Tonner's version of Melanie Wilkes (& why it doesn't look like Olivia de Havilland!) go here: The Fashion Doll Chronicles.
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What I'm Obsessing Over (12.08)

BACHELOR MOTHER. David Niven's gentlemen-sexiness. Biting Cornel Wilde! Taking Dana Andrews and putting him on a shelf, but loving him forever. Esther Williams: my human cupcake! Shopping, wrapping presents, and (gasp) watching more movies -- now there's a thought! How to not go crazy due to the holidays; how to blog despite feeling shy.

-- removed from sidebar & added here, January 10th, 2009