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Post by topbilled on Jul 30, 2024 16:45:58 GMT
Bob Hope didn’t really hit it big in movies until 1938 when he was cast in Paramount’s THE BIG BROADCAST OF 1938. This is the film where he first sang his signature tune 'Thanks for the Memory.' From this point on, there was no stopping him. Usually featured by the studio in lightweight comical or musical fare, he headlined 40 films at Paramount (many alongside his pal Bing Crosby) until 1958. Occasionally, Bob Hope tried dramatic roles but those were far and few between and usually did not win over audiences.
Check out:
THANKS FOR THE MEMORY (1938)
ROAD TO SINGAPORE (1940)
MONSIEUR BEAUCAIRE (1946)
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Post by I Love Melvin on Aug 4, 2024 12:59:47 GMT
A lot of my memories of Bob's movies come from the old days of local TV stations showing family-oriented movies in dedicated weekly or nightly slots, when studios still made their movies available to all bidders. Now we're in a situation where, as fans of TCM, we don't get to see Paramount films on a regular basis. But Bob was smart about his co-stars, often using popular established female stars, so we see some of his movies that way; Paleface is coming up on Jane Russell's SUTS day. YouTube is a great resource too, though the prints aren't always the best. I just watched a good print of a 1953 Paramount Bob Hope musical, Here Come the Girls, with Rosemary Clooney and Arlene Dahl, which I don't remember seeing programmed anywhere. It's probably not obvious to younger viewers, but there was a time when Bob Hope was literally an American institution, with his own TV show (transitioned from radio), a regular gig hosting the Academy Awards, and an annual TV slot for his Christmas USO visits to the troops. For a time he was about as big as a star could get.
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Post by kims on Aug 4, 2024 14:34:21 GMT
Hope was a real trouper and generous. When I was in college Vickie Carr was the scheduled Homecoming show. She became ill days before the show and Hope stepped in. Do performers do that today? Though he often played a ham, I think there was also in him the recognition that the fans make a star and in gratitude he stepped in as a replacement for acts that needed to be cancelled.
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