Tag Archives: Kay Francis

“People don’t know it, but I’m primarily Irish. We get these dark periods.” — William Powell

Posted on July 29, 2025 by sheila

“I have never gone into a picture without first studying my characterization from all angles. I make a study of the fellow’s life and try to learn everything about him, including the conditions under which he came into this world, … Continue reading →

Posted in Actors, Movies | Tagged Carole Lombard, Jean Harlow, Kay Francis, Myrna Loy, Pre-Code, screwball comedy, William Powell | 6 Comments

For International Women’s Day: Ladies I Love

Posted on March 8, 2025 by sheila

I post edited versions of this every year. I add names. I take names off if I feel like it. I enjoy compiling it. It’s not just about enjoyment. As women’s rights are up for grabs more than ever, like … Continue reading →

Posted in Actors, Art/Photography, Directors, Personal, writers | Tagged A.S. Byatt, Abigail Adams, Agnes Varda, Aline MacMahon, Amy Heckerling, Ann Savage, Anna Karina, Anne Frank, Anne V. Coates, Annie Proulx, art, Aubrey Plaza, Australia, Austria, Barbara Bel Geddes, Barbara Stanwyck, Barbra Streisand, Bette Davis, Bibi Andersson, Brazil, Britney Spears, Busby Berkeley, Camille Paglia, Canada, Carole Lombard, Cate Blanchett, Charlotte Bronte, Charlotte Rampling, China, Croatia, Diane Keaton, Dolly Parton, Drew Barrymore, Dubravka Ugrešić, Edie Sedgwick, Ellen von Unwerth, England, Etta James, Eve Babitz, France, Frances Farmer, Gena Rowlands, George Eliot, Georgia, Germany, Gloria Grahame, Golshifteh Farahani, Greta Garbo, Greta Gerwig, Harriet Andersson, Hediyeh Tehrani, Hong Kong, Ida Lupino, Ingrid Thulin, Iran, Ireland, Isabelle Adjani, Isabelle Huppert, Italy, Janet Malcolm, Japan, Jean Arthur, Jeanette Winterson, Jill Clayburgh, Joan Crawford, Joan Didion, Joan Jett, Joanna Hogg, Josephine Decker, Judy Garland, Julie Christie, Kate Lyn Sheil, Kay Francis, Keri Hulme, Kristen Stewart, Kristen Wiig, L.M. Montgomery, Laura Dern, Laurette Taylor, Leila Hatami, Lily Tomlin, Liv Ullmann, Louise Glück, Madeleine L'Engle, Madeline Kahn, Maggie Cheung, Maggie Smith, Marianne Moore, Marilyn Monroe, Martha Graham, Mary Oliver, Maud Gonne, Mélanie Laurent, Mia Hansen-Løve, Nancy Savoca, Natalie Portman, Nina Hoss, Nina Simone, Olivia Laing, Olympia Dukakis, Patricia Highsmith, Pauline Kael, photography, Poland, Rebecca West, Romania, Rosalind Russell, Russia, Sandrine Bonnaire, Shabnam Toloui, Shirley Jackson, Sophia Takal, South Korea, Spain, Supernatural, Sweden, Tana French, Taraneh Alidoosti, The Netherlands, Tiffany Haddish, Tina Turner, Tuesday Weld, Wanda Jackson, women directors | 106 Comments

March 2024 Viewing Diary

Posted on April 17, 2024 by sheila

Conspiracy (2001; d. Frank Pierson) I went down a little Wannsee Conference rabbit hole so figured I’d re-watch this chilling nasty little movie. Lured (1947; d. Douglas Sirk) I had never seen this. I love discovering new Douglas Sirks! This … Continue reading →

Posted in Monthly Viewing Diary, Movies, Television | Tagged Australia, Austria, Boris Karloff, Carole Lombard, documentary, Douglas Sirk, drama, England, film noir, Fred MacMurray, Fredric March, George Sanders, Germany, historical drama, horror, Howard Hawks, Indigo Girls, John Barrymore, Kay Francis, Lucille Ball, musicals, Pre-Code, Radu Jude, Ralph Bellamy, Romania, romantic drama, screwball comedy, The Netherlands, William Powell, William Wellman, women directors, WWII | 12 Comments

February 2023 Viewing Diary

Posted on March 6, 2023 by sheila

Reboot (2022) Allison and I watched it together when I was in New York for the first half of this month. I adore this series and am so bummed it wasn’t picked up for Season 2. We had a blast … Continue reading →

Posted in Monthly Viewing Diary, Movies, Television | Tagged Alfred Hitchcock, Aline MacMahon, Aubrey Plaza, Australia, Barbara Stanwyck, biopic, Boris Karloff, Brad Pitt, Busby Berkeley, Charlotte Bronte, comedy, Douglas Sirk, drama, Emily Bronte, England, film noir, France, Fred MacMurray, Ginger Rogers, Gold Diggers of 1933, Greta Garbo, Hugh Grant, Hungary, Ireland, Joan Blondell, Joan Crawford, John Barrymore, Kay Francis, Leonardo DiCaprio, Loretta Young, Madonna, Mervyn LeRoy, musicals, Pre-Code, Quentin Tarantino, reviews, William Powell, William Wellman, women directors | 18 Comments

March 2022 Viewing Diary

Posted on April 3, 2022 by sheila

I’m going along my own viewing way, and then I get a gig, and everything changes. You can tell when it happens. Not announcing this gig yet, and will not be confirming or denying anything. The viewing diary is what … Continue reading →

Posted in Monthly Viewing Diary, Movies | Tagged Al Pacino, Australia, Cary Grant, Charles Grodin, comedy, Diane Keaton, documentary, drama, Francis Ford Coppola, horror, Ireland, Jerry Lewis, John Cazale, Josef von Sternberg, Kay Francis, Martin Scorsese, Miriam Hopkins, Palestine, Pre-Code, Radu Jude, Robert De Niro, Romania, Shelley Winters, Sylvia Sidney, women directors | 2 Comments

April 2021 Viewing Diary

Posted on May 2, 2021 by sheila

Jewel Robbery (1932; d. William Dieterle) This glittering pre-Code, starring William Powell as a jewel thief, and Kay Francis as a married woman in love with her jewels, is such a subversive delight. Powell is devastatingly charming and Francis is … Continue reading →

Posted in Monthly Viewing Diary, Movies | Tagged Alfred Hitchcock, Billy Wilder, Carole Lombard, Cary Grant, comedy, Costa-Gavras, David Lynch, documentary, drama, England, France, Greece, historical drama, horror, Jack Nicholson, Joanna Hogg, Joel McCrea, Kay Francis, literary adaptation, Martin Scorsese, Memphis, Monte Hellman, Nicolas Cage, Patricia Arquette, Pre-Code, Roman Polanski, Russia, sci-fi, short films, Stalag 17, Tilda Swinton, Ukraine, Warren Oates, westerns, William Holden, William Powell, women directors | 15 Comments

Movie Marathon on Block Island

Posted on February 6, 2010 by sheila

While I had tons of time to read, and walk, and have visitors, and write, and dream, I also had an orgy of movie-watching out on the Island. I brought some movies with me, but for the most part, I … Continue reading →

Posted in Movies | Tagged A Place in the Sun, A Woman's Face, Cary Grant, Clark Gable, Cyd Charisse, Deborah Kerr, Elizabeth Taylor, Fred Astaire, Fredric March, George Sanders, Gloria Grahame, Hedy Lamarr, Henry Fonda, Humphrey Bogart, In a Lonely Place, Ingrid Bergman, Jimmy Stewart, Joan Crawford, John Ford, Johnny Guitar, Josef von Sternberg, Karl Malden, Katharine Hepburn, Kay Francis, Loretta Young, Marlene Dietrich, mirrors, Montgomery Clift, Philadelphia Story, Robert Duvall, Robert Mitchum, Rosalind Russell, Shelley Winters, Tennessee Williams, The Darjeeling Limited, The Double Life of Veronique, Wes Anderson | 1 Comment

The Essence of Old-School Female Stars

Posted on May 8, 2009 by sheila

Pretty faces. Kay Francis as a platinum blonde! Some of my faves there. Sylvia Sidney, too. They’re all so individual, aren’t they? You would never mistake Clara Bow for Barbara Stanwyck. It would be impossible. There can be a sameness … Continue reading →

Posted in Actors | Tagged Angelina Jolie, Barbara Stanwyck, Clara Bow, Ewan McGregor, Gena Rowlands, Gene Hackman, Jeff Bridges, Kay Francis, Kurt Russell, Mickey Rourke, Susan Sarandon, Sylvia Sidney | 6 Comments

Tag Archives: Kay Francis

“People don’t know it, but I’m primarily Irish. We get these dark periods.” — William Powell

For International Women’s Day: Ladies I Love

March 2024 Viewing Diary

February 2023 Viewing Diary

March 2022 Viewing Diary

April 2021 Viewing Diary

Movie Marathon on Block Island

The Essence of Old-School Female Stars

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