Movies I Watched in May

Donna Reed and John Wayne, They Were Expendable (1945)

This month we watched season 5 of All Creatures Great and Small. I also watched season 1 of The Madison (2026-) starring Michele Pfeiffer and Kurt Russell. The first couple episodes were good, but as the show went on the use of the F word as an adjective became veeerrrrryyy tiresome. The outhouse storyline was completely unnecessary. Didn't particularly care for the last two episodes. I know Kurt Russell will be in season two as well but how much I don't know. I also watched the first six episodes of The Other Bennett Sister (2026), which I really enjoyed but also found a bit sad (the way Mary's family treats her). 

Lots of rewatches, ocean fare, John Wayne (and Ward Bond), and Jack Lemmon

* indicates a rewatch
(?) I've seen part of it but don't think I'd seen the entire thing

1. There Was a Father (1942-Japanese) - Chishu Ryu
2. *They Were Expendable (1945) - Robert Montgomery, John Wayne, Donna Reed, Ward Bond
3. *Without Reservations (1946) - Claudette Colbert, John Wayne, Don DeFore
4. Morning Departure/Operation Disaster (1950) - John Mills, Richard Attenborough, Bernard Lee
5. Borderline (1950) - Fred MacMurray & Claire Trevor, Raymond Burr
6. *Operation Pacific (1951) - John Wayne & Patricia Neal, Ward Bond
7. *Hondo (1953) - John Wayne & Geraldine Page, Ward Bond
8. The Purple Plain (1954) - Gregory Peck, Bernard Lee
9. *Mister Roberts (1955) - Henry Fonda, James Cagney, William Powell, Jack Lemmon, Ward Bond
10. Away All Boats (1956) - Jeff Chandler, George Nader, Lex Barker, Julie Adams, Richard Boone, Charles McGraw
11. The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit (1956) - Gregory Peck & Jennifer Jones, Fredric March, Ann Harding, Marisa Parvin, Keenan Wynn
12. The Tin Star (1957) - Henry Fonda, Anthony Perkins
13. *The Apartment (1960) - Jack Lemmon, Shirley MacLaine, Fred MacMurray
14. *The Wackiest Ship in the Army (1961) - Jack Lemmon, Ricky Nelson
15. *Viva Las Vegas (1964) - Elvis Presley & Ann-Margret, William Demerest
16. (?)In Harm's Way (1965) - John Wayne & Patricia Neal, Kirk Douglas, Paula Prentiss, Henry Fonda, Burgess Meredith, Brandon De Wilde, Franchot Tone, Dana Andrews, George Kennedy
17. Return of the Gunfighter (1966) - Robert Taylor, Chad Everett, Ana Martin
18. Made in Paris (1966) - Ann-Margret, Louis Jourdan, Richard Crenna, Chad Everett
19. The Odd Couple (1968) - Jack Lemmon, Walter Matthau
20. *The Emperor's New Groove (2000) - James Spade, John Goodman, Eartha Kitt
21. *Star Trek (2009) - Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Simon Pegg, Leonard Nimoy, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldana, John Cho, Anton Yelchin
22. *Star Trek Into Darkness (2013) - above cast + Benedict Cumberbatch
23. *Star Trek Beyond (2016) - above cast + Idris Elba, Sofia Boutella

Least Favorite Film: In Harm's Way is one of those all-star affairs that's overly long and not very good. Also Kirk Douglas' character was despicable.

Favorite Movie: I rewatched a ton of movies this month, but my favorite new-to-me film is definitely The Tin Star. 

Away All Boats (1956)

Marilyn Monroe at the 1956 Royal Film Performance

The Daily Telegraph 10/30/56

In 1956, two of the most famous women in the world met. Both women were the same age - 30, but their lives could not have been more different. The occasion? The Royal Film Performance. The women? Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second and Marilyn Monroe. The result? An iconic moment in time.

How did this meeting come about?

Marilyn's arrival in London

In July 1956 Marilyn and her new husband, Arthur Miller, arrived in London, where Marilyn was set to start work on her latest film, The Sleeping Prince (later renamed The Prince and the Showgirl) with Laurence Olivier. She made it known that she hoped to meet the Queen while there and was thrilled when she was issued an invitation to the Royal Film Performance, which was held every year in aid of the Cinematograph Trade Benevolent Fund. It would take place at the Empire Theatre on Monday, October 29th. 

Here is footage of Marilyn arriving, as well as footage of the Queen going down 

the line meeting the stars (with audio from a 1960 interview in the background).

A crowd of around 2000 waited outside the theatre to catch a glimpse of the stars. Marilyn was one of the last to arrive at "The Queen's Show," as she had nicknamed the event. She stood outside and waved to the crowd for two minutes, while they chanted her name, before making her way inside.

source

Her dress, designed by Madame de Rachelle with Marilyn's input, caused quite a stir once she removed her cape. It was described by the Daily Telegraph as "gold tissue with topaz shoulder straps" and by the Daily Record as a strait-jacket, due to its tightness. 

The safety-pin incident actually happened at a press conference.

The Queen, however, didn't bat an eye at Marilyn's revealing dress. Rather, she remarked on the fact that they were "neighbors." With Princess Margaret, who was also in attendance, they talked about biking (Marilyn was gifted a bicycle on her arrival by the Daily Sketch). 

source

source

When asked about what she thought of the Queen afterwards, Marilyn replied that she was "very warm-hearted. She radiates sweetness." She also demonstrated her curtsy to the press. 

Marilyn apparently made a big impression on the Queen too, as she was later reported to have watched all of Marilyn's films. The source also quoted the Queen as saying, "I thought Miss Monroe was a very sweet person. But I felt sorry for her, because she was so nervous that she had licked all her lipstick off" (People, 1961). 

Whether this is true or not, I believe the Queen probably saw at least some of Marilyn's films. 

I'll leave you with this article from the Evening Standard with its' extensive write-up about Marilyn.

Mr. Miller Was Marilyn's LIFEBELT

This post is part of the Marilyn Monroe - 100th Birthday Anniversary Blogathon hosted by Hoofers and Honeys. Be sure to visit her site and read the rest of the entries celebrating the centennial of this iconic woman!

Sources: 
Morgan, Michelle. When Marilyn Met the Queen: Marilyn Monroe's Life in England. Pegasus Books, 2022. 
British and Australia Newspaper Archives

Movies I Watched in April

This month I watched season 1 of The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet. The entire show is on Tubi and the quality is fantastic. My family and I also watched season 4 of All Creatures Great and Small.

* indicates a rewatch

1. Secret Enemies (1942) - James Craig, Faye Emerson
2. *The Adventures of Tartu (1943) - Robert Donat, Valerie Hobson, Glynis Johns
3. China Sky (1945) - Ruth Warrick, Randolph Scott, Philip Ahn, Anthony Quinn, Ellen Drew
4. *Act of Violence (1949) - Van Heflin & Janet Leigh, Robert Ryan, Phyllis Thaxter
5. *Mystery Street (1950) - Ricardo Montalban, Elsa Lanchester, Marshall Thompson, Jan Sterling, Betsy Blair
6. Them! (1954) - James Whitmore, James Arness
7. Soldier of Fortune (1955) - Clark Gable & Susan Hayward
8. *12 Angry Men (1957) - Henry Fonda, Lee J. Cobb, Jack Warden, Ed Begley
9. *King Creole (1957) - Elvis Presley, Carolyn Jones, Walter Mattheau, Dean Jagger, Dolores Hart
10. *In Search of the Castaways (1962) - Hayley Mills, Maurice Chevalier, Michael Anderson Jr. Wilfred Hyde Park
11. *Somewhere in Time (1980) - Christopher Reeve & Jane, Christopher Plummer
12. *Swing Shift (1984) - Goldie Hawn, Kurt Russell, Christine Lahti, Ed Harris
13. The Client (1994) - Susan Sarandan, Tommy Lee Jones
14. Under the Tuscan Sun (2004) - Diane Lane, Sandra Oh

Least Favorite Film: I would have really liked Under the Tuscan Sun if it wasn't for all of the s*x. It could have been a sweet movie. In Search of the Castaways was just as corny and cringy as it was when I first watched it 20+ years ago (checked out on VHS from the library when you still had to pay a dollar to borrow it for two days). According to the trivia on IMDb it was the third most popular film of the year after The Longest Day and Lawrence of Arabia!?!

Favorite Movie: It would have to be Them! I had lots of great rewatches too. 

Anytime I see Dick Wessel in a movie I have to take a screenshot. Here he is in Them!