Well, the Cary Grant Blogathon is finally here and I couldn't be more excited to see all of the posts you have written on one of my favorite actors! Cary is excited to read them too so we'll get right to it.
For those of you who don't have Facebook or Twitter (or don't follow me *shakes head*) I thought I would share photos of my new calendar I designed on Shutterfly! (click photos to view larger)
Of course after I received it I noticed a few mistakes/omissions. I started making this calendar in 2015 so when I changed it to a 2017 calendar I forgot to move Mother's Day so now it's on a Monday... (btw, Shutterfly offers a free calendar about 4 - 5 times a year so this only cost me $8 shipping instead of $25+!! There's also a way to send projects to others on Shutterfly if anyone is interested. You could probably edit it to include your favorite photos).
I also left out Omar Shariff (*face palm) and Jean Simmons (*double face palm), whose birthday is the same as Tallulah Bankhead (who I fortunately like). Since this calendar is for my personal use I left off a few actors that I don't like or who I haven't seen any films of (or who shared a birthday with an actor/actress I liked better) and included some lesser known actors that I like (Richard Long, Michael Callan, etc.).
The cover of the calendar has my favorite person from each month, though in hindsight I wish I would have put Errol and Olivia on there instead of Vera-Ellen and Mary Tyler Moore, but Oh Well.
What do you think? Which month is your favorite? Who would you dedicate a month to?
I was originally going to write about Who Was That Lady? (1960) for the You Gotta Have Friends Blogathon hosted by Moon in Gemini, but I didn't have time to write a full-blown review and also it's been a while since I watched the movie but not quite long enough that I'm in the mood to watch it again. So instead I decided to write about my Favorite Buddy movies.
What is a buddy movie?
Why do we enjoy them so much?
Buddy movies, which portray a close relationship between two people, especially men, are enjoyable because we either have someone that we are that close to and can therefore relate, or we WISH we had someone that we were that close to. Everyone wants a friend who is always there for them no matter what and with whom they can share their joys and sorrows with. Buddy movies are a way for us to experience that relationship, often in situations we would never find ourselves in.
With that being said, here is my (extremely tardy) list of my favorite Buddy Movies (in order of release):
Gunga Din (1939) - True, this film has a group of three friends but Cary Grant, Victor McLaglen, and Douglas Fairbanks Jr. always have each others backs when one of their lives or on the line. When they are in less dangerous situations they play pranks on one another but are always forgiven in the end.
The Road to... movies (1940-1962) - Bob Hope and Bing Crosby are the quintessential Buddy team and their popularity lead to seven movies together in this comedy series.
Two Guys From Texas (1948) - Dennis Morgan and Jack Carson made lots of movies together and were close friends in real life, but this particular film of theirs really seems to capture their real-life friendship. Just watch this song from the film.
We're No Angels (1955) - Again, this is another group of three, but Humphrey Bogart, Peter Ustinov, and Aldo Ray as three escaped convicts play against one another so well it's easy to see them hanging out together in real life.
Some Like it Hot (1959) - You know you're good friends when you're comfortable enough around each other to dress up like women and join and all-girls band! It helps when you know that if you don't you will probably be killed by gangsters.
Who Was That Lady? (1959) - What do you do when your best friend's wife catching him kissing someone else? Help him come up with a cover story of course! That's what Dean Martin does for Tony Curtis when Janet Leigh catching a student "thanking" him.
Cat Ballou (1965) - While Michael Callan and Dwayne Hickman aren't the main stars of the film, their friendship is worth mentioning. They're just a couple of fellows with a price on their heads and not one killing between them.
Not With My Wife, You Don't! (1966) - The one thing that can come between friends is a beautiful blonde, especially when that blonde is Virni Lisi and the two guys are Tony Curtis and George C. Scott.
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) - Probably the most famous Buddy Movie of them all, I watched this for the first time a few weeks ago and absolutely loved it! Paul Newman and Robert Redford act like they have been friends for as long as they can remember. (Does Redford remind anyone else of Brad Pitt in this movie? Both in looks and attitude/comedy style.)
My favorite post-1960s Buddy Films:
The Blues Brothers (1980) - It doesn't get much better than John Belushi and Dan Ackroyd.
Ocean's 11 (2001) - I LOVE George Clooney and Brad Pitt in this movie!!! They are phenomenal together not to mention hilarious. It's amazing what they can say to each other without actually saying anything.
This Means War (2012) - There are lots of Buddy movies made nowadays, but this one tops them all. Chris Pine and Tom Hardy discover they both like the same girl (Reese Witherspoon) and make an agreement that if it begins to affect their friendship they will step away.
The 1946 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade was special for two reasons: It was the first year the parade was televised locally (it would go national in 1947) and it appeared in a movie that was destined to become a perennial Christmas classic - Miracle on 34th Street (1947).
That's right! The crew filmed the actual 1946 parade and Edmund Gwenn actually played Santa Claus. Of the two million live spectators that year, I wonder how many people watching recognized the movie star or realized it was being filmed for a movie that would be coming to theaters the following summer!
Something I don't say often enough on this blog is how much I love Carole Lombard. It's so hard to put into writing the way I feel about her. There is just something about her that makes anyone who comes into contact with her and her films fall in love with her.
This coming January 16th is the 75th anniversary of Carole's tragic death in a plane crash. She was returning to Hollywood after a successful bond-selling tour of the US. She was the first Hollywood casualty of the war. Only 33 years old, we will never know how Carole's life would have been if she had only taken the train as originally planned. But, we can honor her memory with a blogathon.
The Blogathon with run from January 16th to the 18th. I am co-hosting this tribute to Carole with Crystal from In the Good Old Days of Classic Hollywood, who helped me celebrate Olivia de Havilland's 100th birthday with such smashing success.
Before I say goodbye to you all, come on
- join me in a big cheer - "V for Victory!"
RULES:
Since many of Carole's films are not widely available, we are allowing up to three duplicates. However, there are endless other subjects you could write about, such as her marriage to William Powell or Clark Gable, her WWII work, her films with Fred MacMurray, the fun parties she threw, her love of practical jokes, animals, and anything else about her life!
Once you have decided on your topic, let me know in the comments below or comment over on Crystal's blog. Please include the name of your blog and URL (it's easier for me to update the post that way; also, sometimes when I click on the commenters name I get their Google+ profile).
Finally, take one of these awesome banners made by Crystal and display it on your blog! Let's make Carole proud!!
ROSTER:
Phyllis Loves Classic Movies: Carole Lombard's Childhood Home and the Great Flood of 1913; & Carole Lombard's Star Sapphires
