Day: February 9, 2021

David Bruce: The Funniest People in Movies — Actors

Actors

• John Huston directed The Misfits, the final film of both Clark Gable and Marilyn Monroe. During filming, Ms. Monroe became very ill, and Mr. Huston made her go to a hospital to recuperate. Later, a reporter asked why he had done that — was it out of consideration for the movie picture or out of consideration for Ms. Monroe? Mr. Huston replied, “The picture? The hell with the picture! The girl’s whole career was at stake!”

• While making the movie The Heroes, Terry-Thomas engaged in a bit of fun at Rod Steiger’s expense. In the movie, Mr. Steiger’s character dies after being hit with seven bullets, and Mr. Steiger made a big production of the scene, even saying a prayer to Heaven after being mortally wounded. After Mr. Steiger’s character died, Terry-Thomas walked over and said, “I say, old boy, are you all right?”

• Who says Marilyn Monroe didn’t know how to act? When she made The Prince and the Showgirl with Laurence Olivier, the two stars grew to detest each other. In one scene, Ms. Monroe’s character was supposed to flirt with Mr. Olivier’s character. Ms. Monroe’s Method acting coach, Paula Strasberg, told her, “Think of Frank Sinatra and Coca-Cola.” The advice worked, and the scene worked.

• Ben Affleck got to act with his favorite actor, Peter O’Toole, in the movie Phantoms. The location of the movie was in various very cold places in Colorado, and Mr. Affleck joked, “I would rather be in the Saudi Arabian desert.” Mr. O’Toole, who had filmed Lawrence of Arabia in the Saudi Arabian desert, looked at Mr. Affleck and said quietly but firmly, “No, you wouldn’t.”

• In 1939, Ralph Richardson played Captain Durrance in the film The Four Feathers. Captain Durrance is blinded by the African sun, and a scene in which he reads Braille contains an in-joke for fans of Mr. Richardson’s performances in Shakespeare. The Captain uses Braille to read Caliban’s speech, “The Isle is full of noises,” then he says, “But of course I knew that speech by heart.”

• In 1962, Sydney Lumet directed Sir Ralph Richardson and Katherine Hepburn in the movie Long Day’s Journey into Night. Once, Sir Ralph asked him a question about acting, and Mr. Lumet gave him an 11-minute answer. Sir Ralph looked at him — balefully, according to Mr. Lumet — then said, “Ah, I think I know what you want — a little more flute and a little less cello.”

• During the filming of Robert Altman’s Nashville, he used a wide-screen Panavision frame. Actors were miked individually, and they didn’t even know if they were in the frame in some of the crowd scenes. One of the actors asked Mr. Altman, “How will I know if I’m on camera?” He replied, “You won’t. Just do something interesting, and you might end up in the picture.”

• One day, Orson Welles and Peter Bogdanovich were talking about movies — as usual — and they began to discuss the actress Greta Garbo, whom Mr. Welles adored. Mr. Bogdanovich lamented that she had made only two really good movies — Camille and Ninotchka. Mr. Welles was silent for a moment, and then he said, “You only need one.

• Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton acted together in several movies, including Cleopatra. When Ms. Taylor proposed acting together in yet another movie, Mr. Burton declined, saying, “We don’t want to become another Laurel and Hardy.” Ms. Taylor replied, “Why? What’s so bad about Laurel and Hardy?”

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Copyright by Bruce D. Bruce; All Rights Reserved

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Music Recommendation: Cassandra Syndrome — “No Moe Peace Forever”

BRUCE’S RECOMMENDATION OF BANDCAMP MUSIC

Music: “No More Peace Forever”

Album: SATIRE X

Artist: Cassandra Syndrome

Artist Location: Frederick, Maryland

Info:

“Cassandra Syndrome is a Maryland-based Symphonic/Gothic Metal band brimming with explosive riffs, operatic punch and infectious energy. This female-fronted powerhouse combines elements that are simultaneously dark and beautiful. Forcefully heavy riffs and a healthy dose of groove combine with soaring soprano vocals to create what Metal Bite calls ‘[P]ure metal magic.’”

“Eschewing the synthesizer-laden stereotypes of symphonic metal, Cassandra Syndrome (formed in 2005) revolutionizes the genre with a unique blend of axe-heavy melodic metal and operatic vocals. The powerful alliance of Joe Cariola’s punishing bass, scathing riffs of Jen Tonon’s rhythm guitar, and throbbing beats of Jay Jericho’s drums create a driving ground assault which weakens your defenses before being met by the searing lead lines of guitarist Chris Kackley. Above it all, radiant as Angelic Death, the resplendent soprano of Irene Jericho soars above the battlefield.”

Price: Name Your Price (Includes FREE)

Genre: Metal.

Links:

SATIRE X

https://cassandrasyndrome.bandcamp.com/album/satire-x

Cassandra Syndrome on Bandcamp

https://cassandrasyndrome.bandcamp.com

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid — HappymessHappiness

I was intrigued when I first saw this book and I read it without any other information except that it’s about Evelyn Hugo, a Hollywood star, married seven times. But after reading it, there was so much more about Evelyn Hugo. The author introduces to us the aging Evelyn Hugo who is now finally ready […]

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid — HappymessHappiness