Thanksgiving in Hollywood

A collection of Actors and Actresses celebrating Thanksgiving

 

Bette Davis

Joan Crawford

 

Laurel & Hardy

 

Shirley Temple

Shirley, 1935

 

Jean Arthur & Lillian Roth

Judy Garland

Judy

Judy & Mickey

 

Ann Sheridan about to carve

Ann Sheridan carving

Esther Williams (not in a bathing suit)

Jeanne Crain

 

Clifton Webb

Vera-Ellen

 

Marilyn Monroe

Doris Day

Sandra Dee & an enormous pie, 1962

 

And last of all, Barbara Eden from TV Land in a Halloween/Thanksgiving Pilgrim mash-up!

 

Happy Thanksgiving!!

 

Find more great pictures on the TCM blog!

Thanksgiving Films

So, I was trying to think of movies set around Thanksgiving and only two came to mind. One is Rocky (1976), one of my all-time favorite movies, but even though it is almost 40 years old, I don't consider it "old" enough for this blog (although TCM frequently shows '70s films...). The only '70s movies I would consider putting in the "classic movie" category are ones with "classic movie" actors in them, for example, John Wayne in his final films.

The other movie starts with the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. You guessed it, Miracle on 34th Street (1947). But...it's mainly about Santa Claus. It's a good choice to watch the day after though as the first Christmas movie of the season.

 

"He was a clown last year."

 

On Wikipedia there is a list of films set around Thanksgiving (you can find it here) but the only other movie on there that I had watched (with a holiday feel to it) was Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, which was released in 1987, even later than Rocky.

There is also A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, but that is a television special.

You can find a list of more television specials here. They aren't all from the Golden Age of Television but there are a few. I recommend My Three Son's: Chip's Harvest (1:8).

 

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!

Hollywood Film Awards

Tonight the awards season was officially launched with the Hollywood Film Awards. The HFA was founded in 1997 to honor excellence in filmmaking. The recipients or not competing, rather, they are honored for their work in film. The categories include:

• HOLLYWOOD CAREER ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
• HOLLYWOOD LEADERSHIP AWARD
• HOLLYWOOD PRODUCER AWARD
• HOLLYWOOD ACTOR AWARD
• HOLLYWOOD ACTRESS AWARD
• HOLLYWOOD SUPPORTING ACTOR AWARD
• HOLLYWOOD SUPPORTING ACTRESS AWARD
• HOLLYWOOD COMEDY AWARD
• HOLLYWOOD ENSEMBLE AWARD
• HOLLYWOOD SPOTLIGHT AWARDS®
• HOLLYWOOD DIRECTOR AWARD
• HOLLYWOOD SCREENWRITER AWARD
• HOLLYWOOD SUPPORTING ACTOR AWARD
• HOLLYWOOD SUPPORTING ACTRESS AWARD
• NEW HOLLYWOODD AWARDS®
• HOLLYWOOD FILM COMPOSER AWARD
• HOLLYWOOD CINEMATOGRAPHER AWARD
• HOLLYWOOD EDITOR AWARD
• HOLLYWOOD PRODUCTION DESIGNER AWARD
• HOLLYWOOD COSTUME DESIGNER AWARD
• HOLLYWOOD MAKEUP AND HAIR AWARD
• HOLLYWOOD VISUAL EFFECTS AWARD
• HOLLYWOOD ANIMATION AWARD
• HOLLYWOOD HUMANITARIAN AWARDS®

This year marked the first time it has ever been broadcast on television. It premiered on CBS. You can see the full list this years winners here. To learn more about the history of the HFA, click here.

      “The first mandatory stop … in the awards season”
      – New York Times
      “The Hollywood Film Awards has become a pre-Oscar showcase”
      – Los Angeles Times
      “The Race Is On! The Hollywood Awards Launch the Push toward Oscar”
      – Associated Press

And, since I am obsessed with Channing Tatum right now, and as his latest film Foxcatcher won Best Ensemble, here is a picture of him and his wife, Jenna Dewan Tatum, at the HFA:

 

I'm sorry. I can't help myself.

Maureen O'Hara Recipient of Honorary Oscar

 

On August 28th,it was announced that Maureen O'Hara, who turned 94 on August 17th of this year, would receive an Honorary Oscar at the Governor's Awards. The ceremony was held Saturday, November 8th, in the Ray Dolby Ballroom at the Hollywood and Highland Center in Hollywood.

 

The presenters of this first Oscar of the season were Clint Eastwood and Liam Neeson.

Eastwood described her as the "ultimate Irish lass" and the first real movie star he ever met.

Neeson said she was "one of the true legends of cinema" and "one of the most adventurous women who ever lived" as she was a pioneer in doing her own stunts.

In her acceptance speech, O'Hara thanked the three men who made her career: actors Charles Laughton, John Wayne, and director John Ford.

"Happy we finally got an Oscar. I's also like to say thank you to all my fans who have been so kind to me over the years and truly made this night possible.

"Thank you with all my heart. I'll leave you with an old Irish saying. May the road rise to meet you. The wind be always at your back. And, may the sunshine warm thee on your face. Good night."

She also sang the Irish tune "Danny Boy."

She is the second actress, after Myrna Loy (in 1991), to receive and honorary Oscar without ever having been nominated previously - IMDb

CBS
Read more here!
On finding out about getting an Honorary Oscar.
Announcement of Honorary Oscar recipients.

Favorite Films:

The Quiet Man (1952) - John Wayne, Barry Fitzgerald, Victor McLaglen, Ward Bond

Typical reaction to seeing Maureen O'Hara for the first time

 

Rio Grande (1950) - John Wayne, Claude Jarman Jr., Victor McLaglen, the Sons of the Pioneers

 

 

McLintock! (1963) - John Wayne, Patrick Wayne, Stephanie Powers, Yvonne de Carlo, Chill Wills

 

 

 

Miracle on 34th Street (1947) - John Payne, Edmund Gwenn, Natalie Wood

The Parent Trap (1961) - Hayley Mills, Brian Keith, Joanna Barnes, Una Merkel

Celebrating her birthday on set with co-star Haley Mill and director David Swift 

Hedy Lamarr...and Wi-Fi?

Sunday, November 9th, would have been screen goddess Hedy Lamarr's 100th birthday*. According to an article on c|net, she helped develop an "early version of spread spectrum communication, which is part of the basis for wireless technologies such as Bluetooth and Wi-Fi." She died in 2000.

Here's some interesting facts about her from IMDb:

• Was known as the "most beautiful woman in Hollywood."
• Her invention used the earliest known form of the telecommunications method known as "frequency hopping. It used a piano roll to change between 88 frequencies (there are 88 keys on a piano). It was intended to make radio-guided torpedoes harder for enemies to detect or jam.
• The mansion used in The Sound of Music (1965) belonged to her at the time.
• Was the inspiration for DC Comics Anti-Hero, Catwoman.
• Knew nine languages.
• Volunteered at the Hollywood Canteen.

Signing her autograph in the cement court at the Hollywood Canteen - source (lots of great pictures!)

Doing dishes with actress Mary Gordon in the kitchen of the Hollywood Canteen,

November, 1943 - source

*November 9th was also my grandfather's 100th birthday! Who knew they were born the same day!