Category Archives: Actors

R.I.P. Chicken Shop Date

I gasped “No!” out loud when Amelia Dimoldenberg announced she was going to retire her web series, Chicken Shop Date, which she started ten years ago as a way to meet new people, go on “dates”, but also to highlight … Continue reading →

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“I try to lie as much as I can when I’m interviewed. It’s reverse psychology. I figure if you lie, they’ll print the truth.” — River Phoenix

It’s his birthday today. Just as I will never get over Kurt Cobain’s death, and will never stop missing him and wondering what he would be doing now, I will never get over River Phoenix’s death. Losing the two of … Continue reading →

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“If you’re creating anything at all, it’s really dangerous to care about what people think.” — Kristen Wiig

Today is the birthday of one of the greatest actors working today. I can’t seem to stop mentioning Kristen Wiig in my writing. I mention her even if she isn’t the main subject. She’s my favorite. I am in awe … Continue reading →

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“I’m a tough little rebel.” — Linda Manz

Days of Heaven (1978) It’s her birthday today. Manz died on August 14, 2020. She was HUGE to me growing up, and I have written about it on occasion. She didn’t work all that much, but her performances meant so … Continue reading →

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“It’s important not to indicate. People don’t try to show their feelings, they try to hide them.” — Robert De Niro

I haven’t written about the majority of his roles – not for lack of admiration (and in some cases, awestruck wonder) – but here is what I have written: I included his “you talkin’ to me” scene in my gigantic … Continue reading →

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“I had never seen anything like him . . . I vowed nothing would stop me from signing this boy for films.” – producer Hal Wallis on Elvis Presley

Published during Elvis Week in 2017, here’s my piece for Film Comment on Elvis as an actor. And here’s the talk I gave at The Memphian in Memphis, on Elvis’ acting career. And finally: the piece I just wrote for … Continue reading →

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“I gave my eardrums to MGM. And it’s true: I really did.” — Esther Williams

“Critics established a snobbery toward me.” — Esther Williams My formal introduction to aquatic-mermaid-star Esther Williams wasn’t through her movies. Oh, I may have seen some of the numbers on the various afternoon movies shown on local TV, where I … Continue reading →

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“These kids only want to talk about acting method and motivation. in my day all we talked about was screwing and overtime.” — Robert Mitchum

Robert Mitchum, Cannes 1954, photograph by Leo Mirkine It’s his birthday today. The greatest. Excerpt from Are You Anybody? An Actor’s Life, by Bradford Dillman For the past fifty years Robert Mitchum has been captivating filmgoers with his sleepy demeanor. … Continue reading →

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Podcast: Jen Johans and I discuss Dana Andrews

It was so fun to chat with Jen Johans, host of the excellent podcast Watch with Jen, about Dana Andrews. We discuss Laura, Where the Sidewalk Ends, Fallen Angel, Daisy Kenyon (all directed by Otto Preminger), with mentions of Ball … Continue reading →

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“The trouble with Hollywood is everybody is crazy for money.” — Ann Dvorak

Anna McKim chose “Ann Dvorak” as her stage name. She chose a challenging name to pronounce (for American audiences, that is) over her easily-pronounceable real name. Who does that?? Well, she does. It says a lot. It’s mischievous. I love … Continue reading →

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