Failure is the condiment that gives success its flavor. ~Truman Capote
Quote of the Week — HappymessHappiness
Month: February 2021
David Bruce: The Funniest People in Movies — Money
Money
• Goldwyn Studios used to have the policy that whenever it allowed one of its actors to appear on radio, it would receive half of that actor’s fee. David Niven once appeared on the radio program Kraft Music Hall, for which he received $2,500 and a tray of various kinds of cheeses, courtesy of the sponsor. After receiving his payment, Mr. Niven wrote a check for $1,250, then cut the tray in half and presented Samuel Goldwyn with both the check and the half-tray of cheeses.
• Chico Marx — the fake-Italian Marx Brother — was famous for his comedy. He was also famous for his gambling. He once bet movie director Leo McCarey $100 that he could throw a walnut further than him. Mr. McCarey agreed to the bet, and he picked a walnut from a bag of walnuts that Chico had and threw it. Chico then threw a walnut much further than Mr. McCarey and collected the $100. (Chico was not above cheating — he had earlier filled his walnut with lead.)
• Early in his career, Hollywood director Frank Capra wanted to work for Mack Sennett, but he was unwilling to accept the $35-a-week starting salary that Mr. Sennett offered to everybody who was just beginning to work for him. Fortunately, Mr. Capra discovered a way out of the dilemma. He agreed to accept the $35-a-week starting salary — provided that Mr. Sennett give him a $10-a-week raise on his second day of work. Mr. Sennett accepted the compromise.
• When French comic filmmaker Jacques Tati decided to entertain people in music halls, his father cut him off without a sou. No problem. Mr. Tati was able to get along well and happily without his father’s money. When he needed a meal, he was able to go to a particular cabaret and entertain the customers by pretending to be a drunk waiter. In return, the proprietors of the cabaret were happy to give him a good meal and 50 francs.
• When actor John Gilbert was high on the wheel of fortune, he lent many thousands of dollars to friends and acquaintances. When the wheel turned and he was nearly broke, he tried to call in his loans, but only Dorothy Parker repaid — promptly and in full. Mr. Gilbert sent her a basket of roses and a note reading “Thank you, Miss Finland.” (Finland was the only country to repay its Great War debt to the United States.)
• Filmmaker John Waters had little money when he started out, so he made many of his early films in coin-operated laundries and alleys. The coin-operated laundries were great sets because the lighting was wonderfully bright, and alleys had the big advantage of making it easy to run away when necessary.
• While starring in a film in Hollywood, opera singer Helen Traubel met actor Walter Pidgeon. He told her, “Miss Traubel, I have all your records. You’ve cost me a lot of money.” She replied, “So have you me. For all the movie tickets I’ve bought to see you.”
• When Marilyn Monroe started making money as an actress, she opened a charge account at a store. But whereas most people would open their first charge account at a clothing store, she opened her first one at a bookstore.
• While acting in her first film, The Importance of Being Earnest, Dorothy Tutin called for retake after retake. Finally, the producer asked if she knew how much a retake costs. After hearing the answer — £200 per minute — she stopped asking for retakes.
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Copyright by Bruce D. Bruce; All Rights Reserved
***
The Funniest People in Movies — Buy
The Funniest People in Movies — Buy The Paperback
The Funniest People in Movies — Kindle
The Funniest People in Movies — Apple
The Funniest People in Movies — Barnes and Noble
The Funniest People in Movies — Kobo
The Funniest People in Movies — Smashwords: Many formats, Including PDF
Music Recommendation: The Annulments — “The Calm Before”
BRUCE’S RECOMMENDATION OF BANDCAMP MUSIC
Music: “The Calm Before”
Album: FOREVER DANCING AT THE TENNESSEE
Artist: The Annulments
Artist Location: Dublin, Ireland
Record Company: Aldora Britain Records
Record Company Location: Rothley, England, UK
Info:
“FOREVER DANCING AT THE TENNESSEE is the title of this week’s compilation. It is dedicated to the memory of Paul Mc, a dear friend of John Donegan’s; they used to go to the Tennessee nightclub together. John contributes a track from his Putney record, ‘Dancing At The Tennessee,’ a modernist pop masterpiece and a fitting tribute. The cover image comes from our regular radio collaborator, Paul Huggett.”
“AB Records is an e-zine and record label that promotes the music and work of authentic independent or underground artists from all around the world. Originally established in 2013, they revamped themselves in 2018 with a brand new approach. Their first weekly compilation, aptly titled THE SECOND COMING, was released in late 2019. They now also release original singles, EPs, and charity projects.”
Price: £2 (GBP) for 22 songs by various artists
Genre: Various.
Links:
FOREVER DANCING AT THE TENNESSEE
https://thealdorabritainrecords.bandcamp.com/album/forever-dancing-at-the-tennessee
https://theannulments.bandcamp.com
https://thealdorabritainrecords.bandcamp.com
David Bruce: The Funniest People in Movies — Mishaps, Money
Mishaps
• Phyllis Diller’s first movie with Bob Hope was Boy, Did I Get a Wrong Number! In it, her character was supposed to ride a motorcycle, but her stunt double was unable to do this because she had broken her leg. Therefore, a short stunt man doubled for Ms. Diller, wearing her fright wig and funny clothing. Unfortunately for the male stunt double, Ms. Diller’s husband visited the set, saw the male stunt double from behind, thought the male stunt double was Ms. Diller, and spun the male stunt double around and planted a big kiss on his lips.
• Marlon Brando starred in the movie Mutiny on the Bounty, which was filmed on location in Tahiti. The director used several local women as extras in the movie, but because their natural endowments weren’t up to Hollywood standards, he had them wear falsies. In one scene, the native women dove over the side of the ship, and their falsies came floating to the top of the water and they started playing catch with them. Unfortunately, this scene was cut from the motion picture.
• In the Monty Python movie Life of Brian, Graham Chapman has a brief nude scene in which he appears before 300 Tunisian extras. The extras did not behave as expected, for the extras were Muslim, and their religion forbids women to see such scenes. So when Mr. Chapman suddenly opened some shutters and appeared naked before them, half of the extras — the women — ran away, screaming.
• The weather in other countries can be difficult to figure out. While in Spain to make a motion picture, actor/director Robert Morley dismissed the film crew for the day because it was raining, then he went into a nearby bar. Ten minutes after he had dismissed the film crew, the sun was shining brightly and the sky was without a cloud.
• Bruce Vilanch had a role as a fashion designer in the Diana Ross movie Mahogany, but he ruined the first take of his scene. He was supposed to be sewing in the scene, but he didn’t know how to sew. He ended up sewing his scarf to Miss Ross’ coat, and when Ms. Ross got up to leave, she started to drag him along with her.
• While filming Washington Square, Sir Ralph Richardson astonished fellow actor Montgomery Cliff. Mr. Cliff flubbed take after take while Sir Ralph was perfect each time. Finally Mr. Cliff moaned about Sir Ralph, “Can’t that man make any mistakes?”
Money
• Will Rogers did not seem to take movie-making seriously. Usually, he declined to shoot a scene more than once. This meant that his movies were completed quickly and under schedule. However, this could have led to financial problems for his co-workers, who often had expected to work for longer than the movie actually took to complete. Will Rogers became very popular with his co-workers by using his own money to pay them their salaries for whatever extra time they would have worked if the movie had not been completed so quickly.
• The major Marx Brothers were the witty Groucho, the fake-Italian Chico, and the silent Harpo. Also performing early in their comedy career was the straight-man Zeppo, who dropped out to become a very successful agent. After Zeppo dropped out of the act, movie producer Irving Thalberg inquired if perhaps the Marx Brothers would take a cut in salary because now they were only three Marx Brothers instead of four Marx Brothers. Groucho replied, “Don’t be silly. Without Zeppo, we’re worth twice as much.”
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Copyright by Bruce D. Bruce; All Rights Reserved
***
The Funniest People in Movies — Buy
The Funniest People in Movies — Buy The Paperback
The Funniest People in Movies — Kindle
The Funniest People in Movies — Apple
The Funniest People in Movies — Barnes and Noble
The Funniest People in Movies — Kobo
The Funniest People in Movies — Smashwords: Many formats, Including PDF
Music Recommendation: Speedball JR — “Treble in Paradise”
BRUCE’S RECOMMENDATION OF BANDCAMP MUSIC
Music: “Treble in Paradise”
Album: TREBLE IN TROUBLE
Artist: Speedball JR
Artist Location: Belgium
Record Company: Green Cookie Records
Record Company Location: Thessaloniki, Greece
Info:
“Speedball JR was formed in the summer of 2000 during Ghent’s (surfcity Belgium) famous surf explosion. They originally played more traditional surf rock like Dick Dale, Bobby Fuller Four, and the Ventures. You can hear these influences on their first studio session which was recorded at the end of 2000 at the Yellow Tape studio. Later on they developed a more trashy sound with more garage and sixties influences and started to write their own tunes.”
Price: “Treble in Paradise” is a FREE download; €6 (EURO) for 14-track album
Genre: Surf.
Links:
https://greencookierecords.bandcamp.com/album/gc028-treble-in-paradise-lp-cd-digital
https://greencookierecords.bandcamp.com
David Bruce: The Funniest People in Movies — Mishaps
Mishaps
• Jason Mewes is the comedic genius who plays the uninhibited foul-mouthed Jay to movie writer-director-actor Kevin Smith’s Silent Bob in such movies as Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back. Jay and Silent Bob made a short but memorable appearance in the excellent film Chasing Amy. Since Mr. Mewes had not been acting for a while, Mr. Smith worried that he would not have his lines memorized, so Mr. Smith told his crew that they might be working for a while, perhaps filming Mr. Mewes performing one line of dialogue, then pausing as he memorized the next line so he could perform it, and so on. However, when it came time to record the scene, Mr. Mewes sailed through his dialogue with no problem whatsoever, and it was Mr. Smith who kept forgetting his lines. Afterwards, the crew teased Mr. Smith, saying, “Oh, yeah, Kevin, we better watch out for this Mewes character — we’re gonna be here all night.”
• While filming a scene in the movie Awakenings, Robin Williams’ character was required to restrain Robert De Niro’s character. Mr. Williams heard a loud pop, knew that he had accidentally broken Mr. De Niro’s nose, and started exclaiming, “Oh, no! Oh, God! Oh, Jesus!” Director Penny Marshall thought at first that he was overacting, but as soon as she saw the blood streaming down Mr. De Niro’s face, she realized what had happened. Mr. De Niro insisted on filming the scene nine more times, because his doctor wasn’t available yet, and he knew that his face was going to swell up and he wouldn’t be able to film for a week. Of course, Mr. De Niro was annoyed by the accident, but his nose had previously been broken, and Mr. Williams broke his nose in such a way that it was pushed back to where it belonged. The accident actually improved Mr. De Niro’s appearance.
• Hollywood cameraman James “Jimmy” Wong Howe remembers a few bad times involving guns during his long career. Once, he was filming a prison from an airplane. He saw the prison guards pointing their rifles at him but figured that they were simply making the scene more realistic. Later, he learned that they had been shooting at the airplane because the permit allowing him to film the prison had not arrived on time. On another occasion, several Mexican extras were given blank guns to shoot in a battle scene. However, some of the extras didn’t like each other, so they actually put small pellets in the guns — 50 people were hurt.
• Mexico-born Nicholas Magallanes had a few mishaps in his ballet career. While taking a break during the filming of the ballet A Midsummer Night’s Dream, he chewed on a breath mint. When filming resumed, he was instructed to open his mouth wide, which he did. However, the scene had to be filmed again — his tongue was bright green. On another occasion, this time involving live dance, he was engrossed in a game of chess in his dressing room. Having neglected to listen closely to the music during the performance, he was shocked to hear his entrance music coming over the PA system — he flew to the stage.
• Laurel and Hardy’s Big Business is a short film classic. In it, Laurel and Hardy are selling Christmas trees, and they get into an argument with James Finlayson — an argument that results in Laurel and Hardy deliberately destroying Mr. Finlayson’s house. To make the film, producer Hal Roach rented the house of a vacationing family, paying them a large fee for the privilege of wrecking their house. Unfortunately, the film crew went to the wrong address — that of the house of a different vacationing family — so Laurel and Hardy wrecked the wrong house.
***
Copyright by Bruce D. Bruce; All Rights Reserved
***
The Funniest People in Movies — Buy
The Funniest People in Movies — Buy The Paperback
The Funniest People in Movies — Kindle
The Funniest People in Movies — Apple
The Funniest People in Movies — Barnes and Noble
The Funniest People in Movies — Kobo
The Funniest People in Movies — Smashwords: Many formats, Including PDF
Music Recommendation: Robertas Semeniukas — “Black Days “
BRUCE’S RECOMMENDATION OF BANDCAMP MUSIC
Music: “Black Days”
Artist: Robertas Semeniukas
Artist Location: Lithuania
Info: This is a one-track single.
Single from upcoming album SIX STRINGS UPSTREAM
Robertas Semeniukas – vocals, guitars, bass
Sigita Jonynaitė – back vocals
Viltė Ambrazaitytė – back vocals
Jonas Lengvinas – drums
Music by Robertas Semeniukas
Lyrics by Robertas Semeniukas & Andrius Kairys
Follow Robertas Semeniukas :
www.instagram.com/robertsemeniuk/
www.youtube.com/user/Semeniukofficial
www.semeniukas.com
Genre: Rock.
Links:
https://robertsemeniuk.bandcamp.com/track/black-days
Robertas Semeniukas on Bandcamp
https://robertsemeniuk.bandcamp.com
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNH1GOtImmy5McaX4_1mQgQ
David Bruce: The Funniest People in Movies — Husbands and Wives, Insults, Language, Insults
Husbands and Wives
• Actress Pia Zadora was very young when she married Meshulam “Rik” Riklis, a much older, very wealthy man. When she became pregnant, he was very happy and joked to her, “Now you’ll have somebody your own age to play with.”
Insults
• Don’t mispronounce the names of people who have sharp tongues. Hollywood actress Jean Harlow once approached the wife of the Prime Minister of England, and said, “Why, you must be Margot Asquith,” mispronouncing her name by pronouncing the ‘t’ in “Margot.” Ms. Asquith replied, “No, my dear, the ‘t’ is silent, as in ‘Harlow.’”
• Groucho Marx was known for his ability to insult people. This did have a disadvantage. Dick Cavett says that Groucho once complained that he couldn’t insult anyone anymore. Some people he wanted to insult, but when he insulted them, they laughed, and then they told other people, “Did you hear what Groucho just said to me?”
Language
• When Hispanic actor Antonio Banderas first came to the United States to make movies, he did not speak English, although he was good at making English speakers think that he spoke English. When he met Arne Glimcher, who was to direct him in The Mambo Kings, he kept slapping him on the back, grabbing his arm and laughing, and saying a few English words such as “oh, yeah,” “of course,” and “right, right.” Eventually, Mr. Glimcher said to him, “You don’t understand a word I’m saying, do you?” Mr. Banderas responded by smiling and laughing. That was when Mr. Glimcher knew that he was in the presence of the actor he wanted to star in his movie. (Mr. Banderas did learn English for real and very quickly — he studied it eight hours a day so he could speak English in The Mambo Kings.)
• Actor Eli Wallach attempted to learn French by watching French films. During World War II, he had dinner with a free French family in Casablanca. After dinner, the family’s child was sent off to bed, so Mr. Wallach said to the child a few words that he had learned from a movie. To his horror, he learned that instead of saying “Kiss me good night,” as he had intended, he had said, “Sleep with me.”
Makeup
• While making the B horror movie Evil Dead in rural Tennessee, actor Bruce Campbell was frequently covered in fake blood made in part from Karo Syrup. Sometimes, he would film all night, get in the back of a pickup truck while still covered in “blood,” then pass spit-polished families going to church. He always smiled, waved, and pretended that everything was absolutely normal.
• Comedian Robin Williams dressed in drag when the character he was playing in Mrs. Doubtfire disguised himself as an elderly nanny. The disguise was very effective. While filming in North Beach, California, Mr. Williams — dressed as Mrs. Doubtfire — stopped at a newsstand and looked through Playboy. A college student saw him and told a friend, “That old lady sure is hip, man.”
• Debbie Reynolds starred in many musicals as a dancer and singer. It’s not always a glamorous job — dancers sweat a lot and sometimes have to yell for pits makeup. When that happens, the dancer raises her arms in the air, and the makeup person mops up the sweat and powders the dancer’s armpits.
***
Copyright by Bruce D. Bruce; All Rights Reserved
***
The Funniest People in Movies — Buy
The Funniest People in Movies — Buy The Paperback
The Funniest People in Movies — Kindle
The Funniest People in Movies — Apple
The Funniest People in Movies — Barnes and Noble
The Funniest People in Movies — Kobo
The Funniest People in Movies — Smashwords: Many formats, Including PDF
Music Recommendation: Robertas Semeniukas — “To the Mars & Back”
BRUCE’S RECOMMENDATION OF BANDCAMP MUSIC
Music: “To the Mars & Back”
Artist: Robertas Semeniukas
Artist Location: Lithuania
Info: This is a one-track single.
New Single from upcoming album SIX STRINGS UPSTREAM
Robertas Semeniukas – guitars, bass, keyboards
Jonas Lengvinas – drums
Follow me:
www.instagram.com/robertsemeniuk/
www.youtube.com/user/Semeniukofficial
www.semeniukas.com
Price: €1 for one-track single.
Genre: Rock Instrumental.
Links:
https://robertsemeniuk.bandcamp.com/track/to-the-mars-back
https://robertsemeniuk.bandcamp.com
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNH1GOtImmy5McaX4_1mQgQ
Like Today — Annette Rochelle Aben
Know when the sky’s blue
A true-blue sky of Spring
That calls robins to sing
And buds to bloom
©2021 Annette Rochelle Aben
Like Today — Annette Rochelle Aben
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