Forgotten Hollywood

Manny P. here…

   Very unfamiliar filmakers that were part of Hollywood’s Golden Age have died. Yet, these are folks needing a final moment in the sun because of the influence they had in cinema during the Studio Era.

    Kathryn Trosper Popper was the last living cast member of Citizen Kane. She was the inquiring journalist who asks, What’s Rosebud? in the 1941 film. In addition, she was director Orson Welles’ longtime personal assistant, working with him in the Mercury Theater division at RKO.                                                      ORSON WELLES   KATHRYN TROSPER POPPER

   Her husband Martin Popper was the co-chief defense counsel for The Hollywood Ten. He defended Dalton Trumbo and John Howard Lawson, who were convicted in 1950 of contempt of Congress for refusing to declare whether they were Communists. In 1961, Martin was convicted of the same offense. Her brother Guy Trosper became a screenwriter and producer, writing screenplays for Birdman of Alcatraz and The Spy Who Came in From the Cold.

   Kathryn Trosper Popper was 100.

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   Richard Davalos was an actor, best known at James Dean’s brother in East of Eden, and a convict in Cool Hand Luke. His other screen credits include roles in I Died a Thousand Times and Kelly’s Heroes. Davalos (right) won the Theatre World Award in 1955 for his fine performance in the Arthur Miller play A Memory of Two Mondays.

   The thespian was active on television, guest-starring in Perry Mason, Bonanza, Rawhide, 77 Sunset Strip, Mannix, SWAT, The Rockford Files, Hawaii Five-O, The Jeffersons, Hart to Hart, and Murder She Wrote.

   Richard Davalos was 85.

Until next time>                               “never forget’

Manny P. here…

   Sir George Martin was a British record producer, arranger, and composer. His influential involvement with The Beatles altered pop music for generations. He was motivated by iconic composers, such as Cole Porter, Bernard Herrmann, and even, Sergei Rachmaninov, Johann Sebastian Bach, and Maurice Ravel. Martin is considered one of the great record producers, with 30 #1 hit singles in the United Kingdom; and 23 #1 hits in the United States.

   After serving in the War Office and the Royal Navy during World War II, Martin used his veteran’s grant to attend the Guildhall School of Music and Drama from 1947 to 1950. Following his graduation, he worked for the BBC’s classical music department, and then joined EMI, as an assistant to Oscar Preuss, the head of EMI’s Parlophone Records. He took over after Preuss retired. During his tenure, he worked with Peter Ustinov, Peter Sellers, Spike Milligan, Rolf Harris, Peter Cook, and Dudley Moore. Martin produced the popular soundtrack album for David Frost’s BBC television show That Was the Week That Was in 1963.

   His irreverent background led to solid work with British Invasion artists, including Cilia Black, Gerry and the Pacemakers, Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas, and most famously, The Beatles. His influential suggestion led to Ringo Starr taking over drummer chores for the group. He also collaborated with Matt Monro, Neil Sedaka, Kenny Rogers, Gary Glitter, Jeff Beck, America, and Celine Dion. Late in his career, Martin produced Elton John’s moving redux after the tragic death of Princess Diana (Candle in the Wind); and a Cirque du Soleil Las Vegas stage tribute to The Beatles.

   In fact, Martin’s work with The Beatles is legendary. His hits as a recording engineer include Love Me Do and Please Please Me; and particularly, as the orchestral arranger for Yesterday, Eleanor Rigby, Michelle, Penny Lane, I am the Walrus, Strawberry Fields Forever, In My Life, A Day in the Life, With a Little Help From My Friends, All You Need is Love, Here Comes the Sun, Hey Jude, Lucy In the Sky with Diamonds, and Let It Be. These compositions had an influential effect a decade later on Jeff Lynne in his creation of Electric Light Orchestra. George helped arrange Uncle Albert / Admiral Halsey for Paul and Linda McCartney after the band dissolved.

   George helped create the modern audio landscape of cinema of the 1960s and 1970s. Martin composed, arranged, and produced movie scores, including A Hard Day’s Night, for which he garnered a 1964 Oscar nomination; Ferry Cross the Mersey; Yellow Submarine; and Live and Let Die. He produced Shirley Bassey’s chart-topping Goldfinger in 1964. Martin also wrote scores for small films starring Peter Sellers, Mickey Rooney, and Michael Caine. In 2011, a documentary chronicling his career was a BBC production.

   His protégé, Ringo Starr, reported his passing. George Martin was 90.

Until next time>                               “never forget”

Manny P. here…

   Like all remarkable television programs, Downton Abbey was given a proper sendoff. 9.6 million viewers said goodbye to the most popular series in the PBS history. Lord Grantham might have remarked… Golly!

   Since I’ve seen every episode during its six-season run, I have personal favorite characters: Tom Branson, Mrs. Patmore, Lady Edith, Isobel Crawley, Anna Bates, Mr. Molesley, and Dr. Clarkson. But, there is no denying, writer and creator Julian Fellowes provided appropriate screen time to each actor that graced the small screen, making Downton Abbey an international sensation. Fellowes and I share the same appreciation for minor roles, and his attention to detail was superb. And, wasn’t it marvelous to enjoy guest stars as esteemed as Shirley MacLaine and Paul Giamatti in support of Dame Maggie Smith, Hugh Bonneville, and Elizabeth McGovern.

   Watching the last episode was bittersweet, much like the moments when M*A*S*H, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, and Cheers offered their finale. I’ll have the same morose feeling when its time slot competitor, The Good Wife, also concludes later this Spring. Losing two fabulously written shows at the same time seems so unfair.

   For their part, PBS representatives are suggesting Downton Abbey might return with a one-episode yearly special if Julian Fellowes can be convinced to continue to tell the story of Robert and Cora Crawley, and their upstairs-downstairs extended family, beyond 1926 as the United Kingdom approaches the tumultuous decades of the 1930s and 1940s. I believe the series is the most popular program since Star Trek left the airways, so there is chatter for a shelf life that may transcend its initial run. I’m quite confident some semblance of negotiations are going on.

   One can only hope…

Until next time>                               “never forget”

Manny P. here…

   Nancy Reagan was an actress who would rise to become First Lady in the White House. During the Ronald Reagan administration, she’s best known for her Just Say No anti-drug campaign. Her personal friends included Elizabeth Taylor, Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr., Rock Hudson, Robert Taylor, and British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.

   Besides Just Say No, her own agenda included bringing glamour and glitz back into the White House. She asked Reagan to break his silence on the AIDS crisis. The First Lady attended Cabinet meetings; acted as a presidential adviser that led to his acceptance of executive responsibility after the Iran-Contra scandal, and ouster of chief-of-staff Don Regan; and she urged him to thaw United States  relations with the Soviet Union despite objections from members of his Cabinet and Senate leaders. Nancy was by his side when President Reagan demanded that Soviet General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev tear down that wall separating Germany in his 1987 remarks at Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate.                                                                                NANCY REAGAN

   Her mother was film and stage actress Edith Luckett. She majored in drama at Smith College, and found stage work with the help of her mom’s connections. After a few years on Broadway, Nancy Davis moved to California and signed a seven-year contract with MGM. She made 11 films, including Portrait of Jennie, It’s a Big Country, and Hellcats of the Navy  (with Ronald Reagan). She was cast in supporting roles, and co-stars included Glenn Ford, Barbara Stanwyck, Ann Southern, Ray Milland, Zachary Scott, James Mason, Jennifer Jones, and Joseph Cotton. Nancy also made television appearances from 1953-1962, as a guest star in The Ford Television Theatre, Schlitz Playhouse of Stars, General Electric Theatre, and Wagon Train. She briefly dated Clark Gable.

   She met Ronald Reagan in 1950, when he was president of the Screen Actors Guild, and she was seeking help with a problem: Her name had been wrongly included on a published list of suspected communist sympathizers. They discussed it over dinner, and she later wrote that she realized on that first blind date she had met her soul mate. They wed two years later, on March 4th, 1952 and William Holden was the Best Man. Daughter Patti was born in October of that year, and son Ron followed in 1958. Reagan already had a daughter, Maureen, and an adopted son, Michael, from his marriage to actress Jane Wyman. They remained married for 52 years.

   Nancy was thrust into the political life when her husband ran for California governor in 1966 and won. She found it a surprisingly rough business. When they swept into the White House, the former actress committed to the agenda set forth by her beloved Ronnie. She was steadfast and devoted to his complete recovery after an attempted assassination two months into his administration in 1981. Later, she supported background checks for gun owners.

   She went public in her personal fight over breast cancer. After her tenure as First Lady, Nancy spent the remainder of her life in a battle against Alzheimer’s disease. The affliction that marked the post-presidency of Ronald Reagan had a lasting influence on her. She raised millions for research, breaking with fellow conservative Republicans in advocating for stem cell studies. The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine lost a friend and a champion.

  Senator John McCain called their union a real Hollywood love story. As the president’s body lay in state in the rotunda of the United States Capitol, Mrs. Reagan caressed and gently kissed the flag-draped casket, a defining moment that underscored their mutual and lasting love. After her husband’s passing, Nancy was a frequent fixture at the Ronald Reagan Library, remarkably orchestrating his legacy over the past twelve years. She also supported Republican Party causes and campaigns through the Ronald Reagan Foundation.

   The gracious Nancy Reagan was 94. She will be buried next to her beloved Ronnie at the Presidential Library location in Simi Valley.

Until next time>                               “never forget”

Manny P. here…

   An Ohio university says actor and filmmaker Tom Hanks will help dedicate the school’s newly renovated motion pictures center. Wright State University says he also will participate in an invitation-only gala to raise funds for the Tom Hanks Scholarship and Visiting Artist Program. Hanks is a national co-chair of a $150 million fundraising campaign for the school near Dayton.

   Hanks will appear at several private events in addition to the April 19th dedication and gala. He’ll meet with theater, dance and motion picture students. The Oscar-winning star of Philadelphia and Forrest Gump is not an alumnus of Wright State, but he has long ties to the school and a connection with its teachers and alumni.                                TOM HANKS —>

   He performed at the university with a Shakespeare company in the 1970s.

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   Pat Conroy (left) was a New York Times bestselling author who wrote several acclaimed novels and memoirs. Two of his novels, The Prince of Tides and The Great Santini, were made into Oscar-nominated films. He’s recognized as a leading figure of late-20th century Southern literature. He sold over 20 million books throughout his career.

   His abusive father was Marine aviator and military hero, Donald Conroy. His character was vividly brought to the screen by Robert Duvall. Later, Barbra Streisand and Nick Nolte played more of the scribe’s protagonists. Each of these actors earned Academy Award consideration.

   Last October, the University of South Carolina Beaufort held a three-day literary festival featuring Pat Conroy and discussions of his work, and included a screening. The event culminated with a 70th birthday party in his honor.

Until next time>                               “never forget”

Manny P. here…

   As news broke, yesterday was a particularly rough day for friends and fans of cinema, television, and radio broadcasting:

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   George Kennedy was a consummate character actor whose career spanned six decades. He’s best remembered for being the prison pal of Paul Newman in Cool Hand Luke, which earned him an Oscar; and as Joe Patroni in the Airport series of disaster films.

   Born in New York City, Kennedy’s father was an orchestra leader and his mother was a ballet dancer. During World War II, he served in the United States Army for sixteen years, having seen combat and working in Armed Forces Radio. He was involved with the opening of the first Army Information Office, which provided technical assistance to films and television shows, like The Phil Silvers Show.    GEORGE KENNEDY —>

   Beginning in 1960, he appeared in memorable movies, including Spartacus, Shenandoah, Lonely are the Brave, Charade, Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte, The Sons of Katie Elder, Flight of the Phoenix, In Harm’s Way, The Dirty Dozen, The Ballad of Josie, The Boston Strangler, Cahill U.S. Marshall, The Eiger Sanction, Bolero, Death on the Nile, and Earthquake. He shared screen time with some of the greatest actors of Hollywood’s Golden Age, such as James Stewart (one of his closest pals), Audrey Hepburn, Kirk Douglas, Cary Grant, Walter Matthau, Bette Davis, Olivia de Havilland, Joseph Cotten, John Wayne, Peter Finch, Ernest Borgnine, Clint Eastwood, Charlton Heston, Ava Gardner, Burt Lancaster, Dean Martin, Tony Curtis, Lee Marvin, Jack Lemmon, Peter Ustinov, Sir Richard Attenborough, David Niven, Dame Maggie Smith, Angela Lansbury, Henry Fonda, Bo Derek, and the list goes on. In the 1990s, George was a mainstay on the Naked Gun series of comedies.

   Kennedy also guest-starred in television programs, including Gunsmoke, Peter Gunn, Maverick, Have Gun Will Travel, Bonanza, The Andy Griffith Show, Death Valley Days, Perry Mason, Dr. Kildare, The Untouchables, McHale’s Navy, The Virginian, Ironside, Daniel Boone, and starred in a number of episodes of Sarge, The Blue Knight, and Dallas. His last major recurring role was on the daytime soap, The Young and the Restless.

   The durable George Kennedy was 91.

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   A colleague and personal friend in Southern California broadcasting has died. Charlie Tuna was a legendary Boss Jock on 93 AM KHJ during its heyday, working alongside Robert W. Morgan, Real Don Steele, and Humble Harv. I was fortunate to work with Charlie during my years at 11-10 AM KRLA, 104.3 FM KBIG, and 94.3 KIK-FM. He also had on-air shifts on KIIS-FM, KTNQ, KHTZ, KODJ, KMPC, KLAC, and most recently, KRTH; all in the Los Angeles metro market. Art Ferguson was his actual name.

   Tuna appeared in the movie Rollercoaster. He’s been the backstage announcer on a number of television game shows. He was also the voice for the last two years of television’s syndicated Mike Douglas Show and the late night Thicke of the Night. In 2012 to 2014, he became the voice of Los Angeles independent station KDOC-TV. Tuna raised nearly $2.5 million for Children’s Hospital Los Angeles with his annual Tunathon (2004–2007). In 1997, Los Angeles Radio People readers voted him one of the Top 10 Los Angeles Radio Personalities of All Time; and he was elected by his LARadio.com broadcast peers as one of the 2007 and 2013 Top 10 Los Angeles Radio Personalities. Tuna lived in Tarzana and served as the city’s honorary mayor since 1977.

   Rest well my friend. Charlie Tuna was 71.

Until next time>                               “never forget”

Manny P. here…

   Ennio Morricone was an Academy Award winner this year for Best Music Score of the film, The Hateful Eight. The composer-legend was hired by Quentin Tarantino to score his latest Western epic; the title of the film a spoof of The Magnificent Seven. The amazing thing about Morricone: He was born BEFORE the very first Oscar ceremony in 1929.

                                         ENNIO MORRICONE

   Born in November, 1928 in Rome, Ennio’s first films were undistinguished. But, his arrangement of an American folk song intrigued director, and his former schoolmate, Sergio Leone. They subsequently collaborated to establish the iconic soundtrack of the Spaghetti Western genre. The composer memorably scored A Fistful of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, and notably, The Good the Bad and the Ugly. All three flicks starred Clint Eastwood.

   Throughout his storied career, he prospered in Hollywood, composing for prolific American directors such as Don Siegel, John Carpenter, Brian De Palma, Barry Levinson, and Oliver Stone. His background compositions can be found in the remake of The Thing, Exorcist II: The Heretic, La Cage aux Folles, Once Upon a Time in America, The Untouchables, Bugsy, Wolf, Cinema Paradiso, In the Line of Fire, Casualties of War, and Bulworth.

   Tarantino had wanted to work with Morricone for years. His chance came when the director created a homage to the Spaghetti Western. Ennio’s nomination for The Hateful Eight marks him as the second oldest nominee in Academy history, behind Gloria Stuart. His win on Sunday marked a first competitive Oscar; and at the age of 87, he became the oldest recipient to take home the statuette. It was his sixth nomination.

   In 2007, the Board of Governors gave the composer a Lifetime Achievement Award, figuring Morricone’s career was long over. Once again, they were wrong. I only mention it because they pulled this same stunt on Paul Newman (The Color of Money) and Henry Fonda (On Golden Pond), one year before each won their very first competitive Oscar.

   Congratulations to the maestro!

Until next time>                               “never forget”

Manny P. here…

   As the first ad manager of Disneyland, JACK LINDQUIST ->   played a huge role in the park’s history. From marketing attractions as E Tickets to launching the Disney Ambassador program, he was not only involved in the growth of Walt’s original park, but helped with marketing and entertainment ideas subsequent resorts opened by the company including Walt Disney World, Tokyo Disneyland, and Disneyland Paris (Euro Disney). After years of working in various advertising roles for the company, Lindquist became the president of Disneyland in 1990.

   Among his many accomplishments were during his 38 years with the company were Walt Disney’s Magic Kingdom Club, Disney Dollars, the Disneyland Pigskin Classic, and Grad Nites. He was also a champion for expanding the theme park, and the development of Disneyland Resort.

   Linquist retired from the Walt Disney Company on November 18, 1993  — Mickey Mouse’s 65th birthday. In addition to being a named a Disney Legend, Lindquist was also honored with a window on Main Street USA. His likeness can be spotted on a pumpkin in Mickey’s Toontown.

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   Join me today at the Cypress Public Library at 5331 Orange Ave. at 2:30p in honor of today’s Academy Awards ceremony. I will be chatting about Oscar history, and promoting my Forgotten Hollywood Book Series. You will also have a chance to win dvd’s from classic movies.

   All the fun is happening in Cypress, CA. Come by, and pick up copies of my paperbacks.

Until next time>                               “never forget”

Manny P. here…

   The plane legendary pilot Amelia Earhart was flying when she disappeared over the Pacific has been spotted in a 1936 Clark Gable / Joan Crawford flick. Researchers with International Group of Historic Aircraft Recovery — or TIGHAR — recently spotted Earhart’s Lockheed Electra (given away by the registration number on its wing) in Love on the Run.

   In the film, the Lockheed carrying Gable and Joan Crawford narrowly avoids running into a crowd of spectators during a rocky takeoff. Love on the Run debuted about eight months before Earhart’s disappearance in July 1937.

   Stunt Pilot Paul Mantz, who also served as Earhart’s technical adviser, performed the takeoff. He had the aircraft re-painted in a fictional scheme and used for the ground sequences, while studio cockpit mock-ups and scale models were employed for other scenes. The plane was delivered to Earhart on her 39th birthday on July 24th, 1936, within weeks of the scene being filmed. It’s unclear if she knew it was used in a movie. It appears even official Earhart biographers were unaware of the famous plane’s cinematic appearance.

   Neither Earhart nor her plane have ever been found, though TIGHAR is preparing a new submersible-led mission to find it for the summer of 2017.

   Bulletins as they break…

Until next time>                               “never forget“

Manny P. here…

   Douglas Slocombe was the British cinematographer who filmed the Nazi invasion of Poland as a newsreel camerman (his footage was used in the Herbert Kline documentary, Lights Out in Europe), the Indiana Jones trilogy, and the madcap farce created at Ealing Studios comedies. He shot 80 films, working with directors as varied as George Cukor, John Huston, Norman Jewison, and Roman Polanski.

   The son of journalist George Slocombe, his father was the Paris correspondent for the Daily Herald. Visiting Danzig in 1939, the younger Slocombe photographed the growing anti-Jewish sentiment. He covered a Joseph Goebbels rally and the burning of a synagogue, for which he was briefly arrested.

   He became the house cinematographer for Ealing Studios. His career began with the famed black comedies across the pond of the late 1940s and early 1950s that made Alec Guinness a star, including Kind Hearts and Coronets, The Man in the White Suit, and The Lavender Hill Mob.

      Following Ealing’s demise, Slocombe signed on to a number of CinemaScope releases. His credits were formidable, with productions such as A Lion in Winter, Travels with My Aunt, The Blue Max, Jesus Christ Superstar, Never Say Never Again, Rollerball, The Great Gatsby, Julia, and shot several scenes for Steven Spielberg for Close Encounters of the Third Kind. So impressed, the director enlisted him for Raiders of the Lost Ark, as well as two sequels. His last film was 1989’s Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.

   He was nominated for three Academy Awards, and he won three BAFTA’s. The British Society of Cinematographers gave him a Lifetime Achievement Award in 1995. He was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the 2008 New Year Honours.

   Douglas Slocombe (right) was 103.

Until next time>                               “never forget”

Manny P. here…

   Harper Lee, the very elusive novelist of To Kill a Mockingbird, has died. The book, with a child’s-eye view of racial injustice in a small Southern town, quickly became a best-seller, won the Pulitzer Prize, and was made into a memorable movie in 1962, with Gregory Peck’s Oscar-winning portrayal of Atticus Finch. His literary daughter, Scout, was loosely based on her early life. As the civil rights movement grew, the novel inspired a generation of lawyers, was assigned in high schools all over the country, and was the consensus assignment for nationwide reading programs.

   Born in Monroeville, Alabama, Lee was known to family and friends as Nelle. Like Atticus, her father was a lawyer and state legislator. One of her childhood friends was Truman Capote, who lived with relatives next door for several years. Capote became the model for Scout’s creative and impish friend Dill. Lee’s friendship with Capote was evident later when she traveled with him to Kansas, beginning in 1959, to help him do research for what became his own best-seller, In Cold Blood.

   Lee attended the University of Alabama, where she wrote and became editor of the campus literary magazine. After studying to be a lawyer like her father and older sister, Lee left the university before graduating, heading to New York to become a writer, as Capote already had done. She worked as an airlines reservation clerk in New York City during the early 1950s. Finally, with a Christmas loan from friends, she quit to write full time the first draft of To Kill a Mockingbird. She sent it to J.B. Lippincott in 1957. The manuscript, according to the publishing house, arrived under the working title, Atticus. Lee worked with editor Tay Hohoff in shaping the book to its final form, a period when Lee was financially strapped and dealing with the difficulties of rewriting. The title became To Kill a Mockingbird, based on the adage:

It was all right to kill a blue jay, but a sin to kill a mockingbird, which gives the world its music.

   By 2015, its sales were reported by HarperCollins to be over 40 million worldwide, making it one of the most widely read American novels of the 20th century. When the Library of Congress did a survey in 1991 on books that have affected folk’s lives, Mockingbird was second only to The Bible.

   Harper became quite mysterious as her book became more famous. At first, she dutifully promoted her work. She spoke frequently to the press, wrote about herself, and gave speeches (once to a class of cadets at West Point). Lee began declining interviews in the late 1960s and, until late in her life, firmly avoided making any public comment about her novel or her career. Other than a few magazine pieces for Vogue and McCall’s in the 1960s, she published no other book until stunning the world in 2015 by permitting Go Set a Watchman to be released. Watchman was written before Mockingbird, yet was set 20 years later, using the same location and many of the same characters. Watchman jumped to the top of best-seller lists within a day of its announcement, and it remained there for months.

   Parallels were drawn between Lee and Margaret Mitchell, another Southern woman whose only novel, Gone with the Wind, became a phenomenon, and was made into a beloved movie. But, Mitchell’s book romanticized the black-white divide; Lee’s work confronted it, although more gently than novels before and since. Her novels, while hugely popular, were not ranked by scholars in the same category as the work of other Bible-belt authors, such as Eudora Welty or Flannery O’Connor. Some critics called her efforts — naive and sentimental. The novels were also considered patronizing for highlighting the bravery of a white man on behalf of blacks.

   Nelle wrote a letter of thanks in 2001 when the Chicago Public Library chose Mockingbird for its first One Book One Chicago program. In 2007, she attended a White House ceremony, receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom. By 2014, Lee’s released novel finally became an e-Book. A new production of To Kill a Mockingbird will head to Broadway during the 2017-2018 season, under the direction of Tony-winner Bartlett Sher, and adapted by Oscar-winner Aaron Sorkin.

   Friends and Monroeville townsfolk found Lee to be warm, vibrant, and witty, who enjoyed life, played golf, read voraciously, ate at McDonald’s, fished, fed ducks by tossing seed out of a Cool Whip tub, and went to plays and concerts. She lived in an assisted living facility there for years as her health worsened. Two black bows hung on the doors of the old courthouse — now a museum — after her death was announced.

   Nelle remained friends with Mary Badham, the actress who was Scout on screen; and with Gregory Peck until his passing. The scribe truly believed that the actor was destined to play Atticus. Otherwise, she simply abstained from the public in a defiant search for privacy. With her pristine legacy firmly in tact, Harper Lee will continue to live on as a literary giant.

   Nelle was 89.

Until next time>                               “never forget”

Manny P. here…

   George Gaynes, the star of cult 1980s classics like Punky Brewster and Police Academy. Even though he started acting in the 1950s, the actor received his first big break in the 1982, when he was cast in Tootsie. Starring opposite Dustin Hoffman, Gaynes’ lustful soap opera star was a hit, and the film went on to receive ten Academy Awards that year. Two years later, he was cast in the misfit comedy Police Academy. The lowbrow humor didn’t sit well with critics, but audiences loved it. The comedy would become the sixth highest grossing film of 1984 and spawned six sequels, all of which included Gaynes. He also had a recurring role in the soap opera, Search for Tomorrow.                                          GEORGE GAYNES —>

   He rapidly built a reputation as a Broadway musical comedy performer in the 1940s and 1950s, which led to guest-starring roles on television. He appeared on Cheyenne, Bonanza, The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, The Patty Duke Show, Mission Impossible, Hawaii 5-0, Hogan’s Heroes, Mannix, Columbo, The Six Million Dollar Man, McCloud, Cannon, McMillan & Wife, WKRP in Cincinnati, Quincy M.E., Matlock, Cheers, and Chicago Hope. Gaynes also had a prominent part in the mini-series, Rich Man Poor Man. In cinema, he co-starred in PT 109, The Group, Marooned, The Way We Were, Altered States, Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid, and Wag the Dog.

   George Gaynes was 98.

Until next time>                               “never forget”

Manny P. here…

NEW FORGOTTEN HOLLYWOOD SHOW ON THERAPYCABLE

   FORGOTTEN HOLLYWOOD – Episode #11 on THERAPYCABLE features guest Linda Gacsko, who has enjoyed a storied career behind the camera for such films as Groundhog Day, The Fugitive, Thor, and Anchorman. Her current role as producer / host of Rock the Doc, which celebrates the magic of Doc Martin (which airs in Southern California on KCET) gives her the timely opportunity to showcase a fine contribution of British television on Public Television.

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   Gacsko is busy in show business, with duties in motivational speaking, warm-up for studio audiences, and stand-up comedy. She is also an advocate for economic empowerment, animal welfare, and our environment. Our conversation on Forgotten Hollywood should be lively and entertaining… and an inspiration to women wanting to break into the business of entertainment.

   To watch and enjoy this interview on THERAPYCABLE, click or (cut-and-paste) to view my latest program:

http://therapycable.com/culture-videos/today-s-women-in-cinema.html

Until next time>                               “never forget”

Manny P. here…

   Famous screen characters in cinema are considered culturally iconic. However, what if characterizations lead to a series of films that have little to do with the initial faire. The urban legend lives on to generations of movie-goers. Consider three examples during Hollywood’s Golden Age.

~ FRANKENSTEIN – Baron Frankenstein was the creator of the tall creature that terrorized Eastern European hamlets, and in one instance, the American home of Abbott and Costello. His son, also named Frankenstein, would revive the fiend. Other mad scientists kept the franchise alive for almost two decades. Frankenstein and his offspring were not played by Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, Lon Chaney Jr., Glenn Strange, or Peter Boyle; they were portrayed by Colin Clive, Basil Rathbone, and even, Gene Wilder. By the way, the genetically man-made monster was actually named Adam.        COLIN CLIVE ——>

~ THE THIN MAN – Nick Charles, the posh detective, was fleshed out in the writings of Dashiell Hammett. The first in the series of flicks paired William Powell with Myrna Loy (Nora). The initial movie was directed by W.S. Van Dyke in 1934, and earned Powell an Oscar nod. Nick Charles was not The Thin Man; but, the man the detective is initially hired to find. In cinema, he also became the first victim in the series. The actor caught by Nick and Nora at the end of the mystery was the ubiquitous Porter Hall. Each subsequent sequel had The Thin Man in the title to sell movie tickets.

~ THE PINK PANTHER – Inspector Clouseau was the bumbling detective forever in search of The Pink Panther. Peter Sellers perfected the role of the cagey law-enforcement boob in a number of movies. It’s just The Pink Panther was initially not a jewel thief, a British royal, or even, an animated character; rather, it was the nickname of a really gaudy diamond. The erudite criminal, known as The Phantom, was elegantly presented by David Niven. And, so it goes.

   Isn’t it fun to set the records straight.

Until next time>                               “never forget”

Manny P. here…

   The statuettes for the upcoming Academy Awards are based on an original Oscar from 1929. The film academy announced that a New York foundry is restoring features of the original design to the Oscar statuettes for 2016 using digital scans and 3-D printers.

   It took Polich Tallix Fine Art Foundry three months to make the 50 statuettes needed for the February 28th ceremony using the high-tech process. Oscar was previously made in a more traditional way by Chicago’s R.S. Owens & Company, the academy’s foundry for the past 34 years.

   The original ceremony lasted only 15 minutes and honored films released from August 1st, 1927 until July 31th, 1928. Academy president Douglas Fairbanks and vice president William C. DeMille (elder brother of Cecil B. DeMille) handed out the 30cm-high, 24-karat gold-plated britannium trophies, which were still five years away from getting its Oscar nickname.

   Oscar is still plated in 24-karat gold. It’s dimensions remain the same: He’s 13 ½-inches tall and weighs 8 ½ pounds. And he’s still just as hard to acquire.

   Hello gorgeous!

Until next time>                               “never forget”