Tag Archives: Michael Curtiz

August 2023 Viewing Diary

Posted on September 3, 2023 by sheila

Oppenheimer (2023; d. Christopher Nolan) In general, I am not a Nolan fan (the only one of his I liked was Dunkirk), and I went into this hesitantly because I read an interview with him where he said the whole … Continue reading →

Posted in Monthly Viewing Diary, Movies | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 30 Comments

2022 Books Read

Posted on January 6, 2023 by sheila

Some re-reads this year, but a lot of new-to-me authors as well. New novels written by faves. Been a year of upheaval and transitions. I’ve managed to keep up my regular reading schedule. I just don’t feel right if I’m … Continue reading →

Posted in Books | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

My talk at the old Memphian Theatre: Elvis in Hollywood

Posted on November 18, 2018 by sheila

When Indie Memphis senior programmer Miriam Bale asked if I wanted to give a talk on Elvis during my time in Memphis, I was excited, but when I heard it was going to be in the Circuit, it felt almost … Continue reading →

Posted in Actors, Movies, Music | Tagged , , , , , , | 22 Comments

Stuff I’ve Been Reading

Posted on November 26, 2017 by sheila

— The great Wesley Morris with another slam-dunk, a piece I wish I had thought to write. But that’s why I love him so much: he writes stuff I’ve felt, in an inchoate unformed way, and he puts words to … Continue reading →

Posted in Actors, Books, Directors, Movies | Tagged , , , , , | 8 Comments

Silhouettes and Shadows in Mildred Pierce (1945)

Posted on March 20, 2015 by sheila

Directed by Michael Curtiz Cinematograpy by Ernest Haller

Posted in Movies | Tagged , , | 11 Comments

King Creole (1958): The Dreamspace of “New Orleans”

Posted on October 10, 2014 by sheila

Young Danny Fisher (Elvis Presley) in King Creole (1958) is a high school flunky a couple times over (“I’m not going back to school. Before you know it, I’ll be a freshman again”), working jobs as a busboy in seedy … Continue reading →

Posted in Actors, Movies, Music | Tagged , , , , | 11 Comments

A QA with Jeremy Richey about Elvis Presley As An Actor

Posted on April 8, 2012 by sheila

Jeremy Richey’s site Moon in the Gutter has been an almost-daily pitstop for me ever since I discovered it years ago. He approaches his topics with passion and enthusiasm, and reminds me of one of those buttons on Facebook that … Continue reading →

Posted in Actors, Movies | Tagged , , , , , , | 78 Comments

The Books: The Making of Casablanca: Bogart, Bergman, and World War II, by Aljean Harmetz

Posted on March 30, 2012 by sheila

Next book on the Hollywood shelf: The Making of Casablanca: Bogart, Bergman, and World War II, by Aljean Harmetz The book was first published under the title Round Up the Usual Suspects, which I like better, but that’s neither here … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Movies | Tagged , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Iron Ladies, Hollywood-Style

Posted on December 28, 2011 by sheila

This article originally appeared on Capital New York. It’s still up there, although it’s now part of Politico, and so I have reprinted the piece here, because I fear all of the dead links in my future. In lieu of … Continue reading →

Posted in Movies | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Elvy and Valty

Posted on December 16, 2011 by sheila

Elvis Presley, Walter Matthau, Carolyn Jones, “King Creole” Walter Matthau in a BBC interview on working with Elvis Presley in the Michael Curtiz-directed King Creole (Curtiz famously had an incomprehensible Hungarian accent): I almost hesitate, I creep up to the … Continue reading →

Posted in Actors, Movies | Tagged , , | 4 Comments