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Post by christine on Aug 7, 2024 19:15:06 GMT
Even though I think most people link him with the 'I Love Lucy' show, I liked William Frawley in MIRACLE ON 34TH STREET 1947.
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Post by jamesjazzguitar on Aug 7, 2024 21:37:11 GMT
Even though I think most people link him with the 'I Love Lucy' show, I liked William Frawley in MIRACLE ON 34TH STREET 1947.
I've enjoyed Frawley in Alibi Ike (1934 DeHavilland film), The Princess Comes Across (1936 Lombard film), The Adventures of Huck Finn (1937 Rooney film), Footsteps in the Dark (1941 Flynn film), The Bride Came COD (1941 Cagney\Davis film), Roxie Hart (1942 Rogers film), Flames of the Barbary Coast (1945 Wayne \ Dvorak film), and Monsieur Verdoux (1947 Chaplin film). |
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Post by NoShear on Aug 7, 2024 22:38:31 GMT
NoShear I am not aware of her detractors...I have always been a fan of Patty Duke's acting. My first exposure to her was watching It Takes Two in the 80s as a pre-teen. I just thought that was a great sitcom and wished it had lasted a few more seasons. Apparently, TopBilled, whatever it was that I read was enough to make me think that your review was soft and supportive of Patty Duke. |
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Post by topbilled on Aug 7, 2024 22:40:12 GMT
Even though I think most people link him with the 'I Love Lucy' show, I liked William Frawley in MIRACLE ON 34TH STREET 1947.
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Post by NoShear on Aug 7, 2024 22:40:13 GMT
NoShear I am not aware of her detractors...I have always been a fan of Patty Duke's acting. My first exposure to her was watching It Takes Two in the 80s as a pre-teen. I just thought that was a great sitcom and wished it had lasted a few more seasons. Apparently, TopBilled, whatever it was that I read was enough to make me think that your review was appositively soft and supportive of Patty Duke. |
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Post by topbilled on Aug 7, 2024 22:42:15 GMT
NoShear I am not aware of her detractors...I have always been a fan of Patty Duke's acting. My first exposure to her was watching It Takes Two in the 80s as a pre-teen. I just thought that was a great sitcom and wished it had lasted a few more seasons. Apparently, TopBilled, whatever it was that I read was enough to make me think that your review was soft and supportive of Patty Duke. |
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Post by topbilled on Aug 8, 2024 13:40:16 GMT
Barbara Eden
Barbara Eden is remembered for her role on the 60s television series I Dream of Jeannie. She had been referred to the show’s writer/creator Sidney Sheldon, who wanted to make a fantasy sitcom like Elizabeth Montgomery’s Bewitched. Unlike other actresses trying out for the role of Jeannie, Barbara had a distinct advantage since she was already established in films and in one of them, Universal’s THE BRASS BOTTLE, she had played a similar sort of character. Playing Jeannie for five seasons made Barbara a household name. The program has been rerun continuously and still attracts new generations of fans. But she was already impressing audiences during the years she worked as a contract player at 20th Century Fox. Initially the studio put her in a TV version of its popular film HOW TO MARRY A MILLIONAIRE. It ran for two seasons, then Barbara was featured in motion pictures with other Fox performers like Pat Boone and Elvis Presley. These were not challenging roles, but then Barbara wasn’t there to turn in earth-shattering performances. She was usually hired to give audiences escapist entertainment, and she did it rather well. Occasionally, she turned up in more dramatic fare, such as the science fiction mega hit, VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA. In that production, she worked with Fabian– they would costar again after Barbara moved over to Columbia, in the romantic beach party picture RIDE THE WILD SURF. After she scored a hit with I Dream of Jeanie, Barbara found herself typecast. In the 70s, after the show had finished its run, she turned to TV movies where she attempted more serious roles. But by the early 80s, she was ready to do another weekly series. She signed on to do an NBC comedy called Harper Valley, which was based on a film she made. After this Barbara turned up in guest roles and when she wasn’t on screen, she found steady employment in theatrical productions. Later she did five episodes of Dallas. Larry Hagman’s other TV wife might have gone back to the bottle, but Barbara never did.
 Suggested Viewing:
A PRIVATE'S AFFAIR (1959)TWELVE HOURS TO KILL (1960)FLAMING STAR (1960)VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA (1961)FIVE WEEKS IN A BALLOON (1962)THE YELLOW CANARY (1963)7 FACES OF DR. LAO (1964)
THE BRASS BOTTLE (1964)RIDE THE WILD SURF (1964)HARPER VALLEY P.T.A. (1978)
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Post by NoShear on Aug 8, 2024 13:49:23 GMT
Patty Duke
Patty Duke gained favorable notices when she costarred with Anne Bancroft on Broadway in a hit dramatization about Helen Keller’s life, THE MIRACLE WORKER. It was a role the young child star played 719 times on the stage from 1959 to 1961. She was captivating, and there was no doubt she would be asked to repeat her performance in the big screen version. In the process she gained more fans appreciative of her unique talents. And for the first time in Oscar history, she became the first child performer to receive a competitive award. This was not in a special juvenile category but as best supporting actress, beating out other performers much older than she was at the time. To say Patty Duke had become a star would be putting it mildly. However, she wouldn’t make another hit film until a few years later. In the meantime, her star quality was put to good use in a self-titled television sitcom where she played “identical cousins.” The Patty Duke Show was created by her lifelong friend Sidney Sheldon, who later became a bestselling novelist. Audiences watched two sides to Patty in this weekly series.
Off-screen the budding actress dealt with a failing marriage, abuse and clinical depression. She tapped into her private inner turmoil when she was cast in 20th Century Fox’s THE VALLEY OF THE DOLLS. She stunned everyone with a shattering performance of a drug-addicted beauty. Despite this portrayal, her feature film career did not regain the momentum it had in the beginning. Eventually Patty would become typecast on television. However, there were notable roles in horror films during the 1970s: a Universal production filmed in Canada; and a sequel to ROSEMARY’S BABY.
In between acting jobs, she married again and had children. Both her sons would also become actors. In the late 70s, she appeared in an interesting telefilm for NBC. It was a remake of THE MIRACLE WORKER. This time Patty played teacher Anne Sullivan, and Little House on the Prairie‘s Melissa Gilbert was Helen. It earned plaudits from critics and was a hit. Patty and Melissa remained good friends after the production finished. In the 80s, Patty returned to the weekly TV grind in a new sitcom, It Takes Two, opposite Richard Crenna. It lasted a season, and they played parents to future stars Helen Hunt and Anthony Edwards. For the rest of the decade and into her later years, Patty kept busy with guest appearances on various programs. She also wrote her autobiography, ‘Call Me Anna’ (her given name)– it detailed the abuses she endured as a youngster as well as her bipolar diagnosis. She even found time in 2002 to return to her Broadway roots in a revival of the musical ‘Oklahoma!’
 Suggested Viewing:THE MIRACLE WORKER (1962)The Patty Duke Show (1963-1966)
BILLIE (1965)VALLEY OF THE DOLLS (1967)ME, NATALIE (1969)MY SWEET CHARLIE (1970)YOU'LL LIKE MY MOTHER (1972)LOOK WHAT'S HAPPENED TO ROSEMARY'S BABY (1976)THE SWARM (1978)THE MIRACLE WORKER (1979) Top Billed, you've probably already seen this photo I encountered during my childhood - I once posted it on the old TCM Message Boards, but thought of it for you:  |
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Post by topbilled on Aug 8, 2024 13:51:47 GMT
What a sweet photo NoShear!
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Post by topbilled on Aug 8, 2024 13:54:18 GMT
A video for Jeannie C. Riley's iconic hit Harper Valley P.T.A. with clips from the film.
Barbara Eden is gorgeous in this.
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Post by Andrea Doria on Aug 8, 2024 17:36:20 GMT
Oh that PTA video was fun! Louis Nye and Pat Paulson! Two men who always made me laugh.
Barbara Eden guest stars on an episode of The Andy Griffith Show as Floyd the barber's new manicurist. She soon has all the men in town lined up to get their nails done and all the women jealous, but, and this is what I think is special about her, she plays her pretty, ditsy characters with a sweetness that comes across as kind and very likeable.
Andy had to explain to her why she had caused such a commotion. She had planned to leave anyway since she had made up with her boy friend in Mount Pilot.
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Post by topbilled on Aug 9, 2024 15:17:31 GMT
George Peppard
George Peppard came from a middle class home. When he was young, he wasn’t sure what he was going to do with his life– he signed up with the Marines but that only lasted two years. He then went to college, and took a variety of odd jobs putting himself through school. Along the way, he was bitten by the acting bug and began to perform in campus theater productions. He switched majors, and he switched colleges. Eventually he earned his degree and wound up in New York, in the hopes of becoming a professional actor. It didn’t take long for George to catch on in the big city. Within a short time, the handsome clean-cut guy was cast in important stage roles and in live TV dramas. A year later, he was signed to a contract with MGM. The studio had to wait six months for him to make his first film, since he had a starring role on Broadway. When he finally arrived in Hollywood, he appeared in a major motion picture hit– HOME FROM THE HILL. He played Robert Mitchum’s son in Vincente Minnelli’s melodramatic adaptation of the bestselling novel.His next film for Metro underperformed, and when Paramount indicated an interest in the actor, a loan-out was arranged. This led to his being cast as a gigolo who learns about true love– in BREAKFAST AT TIFFANY’S with Audrey Hepburn.
His services were usually divided between the two studios for the next few years. There were more hits with both companies; films like THE CARPETBAGGERS and OPERATION CROSSBOW proved extremely popular with audiences. George was experiencing a major hot streak, culminating with his performance as a German soldier in Fox’s expensive WWI drama THE BLUE MAX. In the late 60s, his movie career went into decline. He had moved over to Universal; and there were still modest hits, usually in the western genre. By the beginning of the next decade, George was ready to reinvent himself. An opportunity to do so came when Universal featured him in a new television series called Banacek. For two seasons, he played a smooth Polish crime solver; and the role saved his career.
Afterward, he was back in more feature films, usually at Universal. But by 1980 his career was seriously stalling again. Personal and financial problems also plagued him, but he was not ready to quit. A whole new audience would come to appreciate George Peppard when he reinvented himself on television once more. In 1983 he was cast as Colonel John Smith in Universal’s action adventure show The A-Team. It ran on NBC for five seasons; and with its immense success, George morphed into one of the most recognizable character actors around. In each episode, he kept one finger on his trademark cigar, and another finger on the grenades he used to blow up bad guys. It may not have required much method acting, but it was the part of a lifetime.
 Suggested Viewing:HOME FROM THE HILL (1960)THE SUBTERRANEANS (1960)BREAKFAST AT TIFFANY'S (1961)THE VICTORS (1963)
THE CARPETBAGGERS (1964)OPERATION CROSSBOW (1965)
THE THIRD DAY (1965)THE BLUE MAX (1966)THE EXECUTIONER (1970)ONE MORE TRAIN TO ROB (1971)
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Post by christine on Aug 10, 2024 0:49:44 GMT
George Peppard played with Dean Martin in ROUGH NIGHT IN JERICHO 1967 - along with Jean Simmons. It's the only film in which Dean played the bad guy.
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Post by topbilled on Aug 10, 2024 7:34:02 GMT
Donna Reed
Donna Reed was born Donna Mullenger, and she grew up an Iowa farm girl. She wanted to become a teacher and on the advice of a relative, she went to college in Los Angeles. While working on her degree, she was spotted by MGM talent scouts. Donna was signed to a motion picture contract with the studio, but because America was about to enter the war, and there was a bias against Germans, her last name was changed to Reed. She had a lead role in a remake of PUBLIC HERO NO. 1, which was titled THE GET-AWAY. It was a hit, but different from the kinds of wholesome pictures the studio would start to place her in. She soon worked with Mickey Rooney in an Andy Hardy picture; played little Bobby Blake’s mom in the family comedy MOKEY; and she had a role in the western comedy GENTLE ANNIE.
During this time, her image became popular with American service personnel. As a result of her popularity with soldiers, MGM decided to cast Donna as Robert Walker’s girlfriend in the military satire SEE HERE, PRIVATE HARGROVE.
There was also an assignment in John Ford’s war drama THEY WERE EXPENDABLE, where she played opposite fellow Iowa native John Wayne. Donna and Duke would work together again in the 50s, in the college football comedy-drama TROUBLE ALONG THE WAY. From this point forward Donna was generally typecast as the girl-next-door. As a result of her screen image, RKO requested to use her for Frank Capra’s postwar drama IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE.
It’s probably Donna’s most well-known film, with her cast as James Stewart’s small town sweetheart. After the success of this picture, Donna returned to Metro but was dissatisfied with subsequent roles and asked to be let out of her contract. She did two films at Paramount with Alan Ladd, then signed with Columbia. And at Columbia, she successfully played against type in FROM HERE TO ETERNITY, earning an Oscar. By the late 50s, Donna’s movie career was in decline. She and her producer husband sought to re-establish her on television. For eight years, she starred in The Donna Reed Show, playing (what else) an all-American suburban mom. After the sitcom left the airwaves in 1966, Donna went into semi-retirement.
But in the mid-80s, producers Leonard Goldberg and Aaron Spelling lured her back to television for a movie of the week and a special two-part episode of The Love Boat. Then when Barbara Bel Geddes temporarily vacated her role on the primetime sudser Dallas, producers of that program enticed Donna to step in for a year to play Miss Ellie.
 Suggested Viewing:THE GET-AWAY (1941)THE COURTSHIP OF ANDY HARDY (1942)MOKEY (1942)
SEE HERE PRIVATE HARGROVE (1945)THEY WERE EXPENDABLE (1945)
IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE (1946)BEYOND GLORY (1948)TROUBLE ALONG THE WAY (1953)FROM HERE TO ETERNITY (1953)
BACKLASH (1956)
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Post by christine on Aug 10, 2024 17:23:34 GMT
Donna Reed plays Dean Martin's love interest in THE CADDY 1953, shot at Paramount studios. This is the movie where Dean sings his hit song "That's Amore" for the first time.
 Watch as Donna Reed puts Dean Martin under her spell while he sings to her!
 Directed by Norman Taurog.
TCM will be showing THE CADDY 1953 on Saturday, August 17th as part of the Summer Under The Stars Festival when the star that day is Dean's partner of ten years - Jerry Lewis!
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