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- Ebert: The Best Films of 2024
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- “There needs to be one more bag.” — Buck Henry
- “I take it to be my portion in this life, joined with a strong propensity of nature, to leave something so written to aftertimes, as they should not willingly let it die.” — John Milton
- “As long as the house of The Holy Spirit remains a haven for criminals the reputation of the church will remain in ruins.” — Sinéad O’Connor
- “As an artist, I wonder, What can I do to make the audience think differently about what good is, what bad is, who a man is, and who a woman is.” — Matthias Schoenaerts
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Tag Archives: Elia Kazan
Meeting Elia Kazan
For Elia Kazan’s birthday I met Elia Kazan once. He showed up at a production of Clifford Odets’ Awake and Sing, which was being put on at the Actors Studio. I was involved in the production as a general Girl … Continue reading
Posted in Directors, On This Day, Personal
Tagged Actors Studio, Awake and Sing, Clifford Odets, Elia Kazan
11 Comments
“I’m not interested in money. I just want to be wonderful.” – Marilyn Monroe
It’s her birthday. Marilyn Monroe: People had a habit of looking at me as if I were some kind of mirror instead of a person. They didn’t see me, they saw their own lewd thoughts, then they white-masked themselves by … Continue reading
Posted in Actors, On This Day
Tagged Billy Wilder, Elia Kazan, John Strasberg, Lee Strasberg, Marilyn Monroe, Peter Bogdanovich, Some Like It Hot
26 Comments
“Only the bad directors tell you how to read a line, how to define your character. The good ones let you do your job.” — Carroll Baker
It’s her birthday today. When you look back on your life – especially once you’re, how you say, OLD – it’s sometimes interesting to try to untangle some of the strands, the things that happened that made you who you … Continue reading
Posted in Actors, Movies, On This Day
Tagged Baby Doll, Carroll Baker, Elia Kazan, James Dean, Lee Strasberg, Something Wild
2 Comments
An Acting Lesson: John Wayne and the “Reality of the Doing”
An old piece, re-posted for John Wayne’s birthday: In one lengthy scene in Hondo, filmed in one almost unbroken take, Wayne makes horseshoes in the little outdoor smith in the yard. Geraldine Page hovers nearby. He talks to her about … Continue reading
“The only thing an actor owes his public is not to bore them.” — Marlon Brando
“Sending Marlon Brando to acting class was like sending a tiger to jungle school.” – Stella Adler It’s his birthday today. Let’s start off with this, a piece I had long wanted to write: Revelations about Marlon Brando in about … Continue reading
Posted in Actors, Movies, On This Day
Tagged Elia Kazan, Marlon Brando, mirrors, On the Waterfront
38 Comments
“Make voyages! — Attempt them! — there’s nothing else …” Happy Birthday, Tennessee Williams
Tennessee Williams (Thomas Lanier Williams) was born on this day in Columbus, Mississippi in 1911. I love this early note from Tennessee Williams because it already incorporates his most famous line, from Streetcar Named Desire. Will you do a total … Continue reading
Posted in Books, On This Day, Theatre, writers
Tagged Elia Kazan, Glass Menagerie, Laurette Taylor, Marlon Brando, Streetcar Named Desire, Tennessee Williams
23 Comments
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof in the Berkshires
Re-posting my lengthy piece on the production I saw of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof in 2016, in honor of the anniversary of the play premiering on Broadway. On the evening of July 4th, I took the Mass Pike … Continue reading
Posted in Actors, On This Day, Theatre
Tagged Cat On a Hot Tin Roof, Elia Kazan, Supernatural, Tennessee Williams
64 Comments
The First Glimpse of The Guy Who Started It All
For James Dean’s birthday Age 13. Babysitting. Up later than I normally would be. East of Eden was on late-night television. I had never seen it. I don’t even know that I was aware of who James Dean was. And … Continue reading
Posted in Actors, Movies, Personal
Tagged Actors Studio, East of Eden, Elia Kazan, James Dean, Lee Strasberg
8 Comments
June 2023 Viewing Diary
Succession (2018-2023) I finally watched, having somehow resisted the DEAFENING buzz over the last couple of years. I like Jeremy Strong, liked his small moment in Zero Dark Thirty, he totally stood out in The Big Short (directed by one … Continue reading
Posted in Monthly Viewing Diary, Movies, Television
Tagged Billy Wilder, Cristian Mungiu, documentary, Douglas Fairbanks Jr., drama, Elia Kazan, Eva Marie Saint, France, Harriet Andersson, Ingmar Bergman, Karl Malden, Katharine Hepburn, Lee J. Cobb, Marlon Brando, On the Waterfront, Otto Preminger, reviews, Rod Steiger, Romania, romantic drama, Stalag 17, Stanley Kramer, Sweden, true crime, war movies, William Holden, women directors
23 Comments