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Tag Archives: Shirley MacLaine
Podcast: The Last Thing I Saw: Focus on Billy Wilder
It was so much fun appearing on Nicolas Rapold’s “The Last Thing I Saw” to discuss Billy Wilder. The other guests were Farran Smith Nehme (a good friend of mine), and Steven Mears. The inspiration to discuss Billy Wilder was … Continue reading
Posted in Books, Directors, Movies
Tagged Austria, Billy Wilder, Germany, Jack Lemmon, podcast, Ray Milland, Shirley MacLaine, Stalag 17, William Holden
2 Comments
July 2021 Viewing Diary
Sally, Mary and Irene (1925; d. Edmund Goulding) For some reason, I forgot to include this gem in my June viewing diary. Considered lost forever, it is one of Joan Crawford’s earliest films – and one where she is actually … Continue reading
Posted in Monthly Viewing Diary, Movies, Television
Tagged Alfred Hitchcock, Ann Dvorak, Bette Davis, Billy Wilder, Bong Joon-Ho, comedy, dance movies, documentary, drama, France, Fred MacMurray, Fredric March, Gary Cooper, Grace Kelly, Jack Lemmon, Japan, Jimmy Stewart, Joan Blondell, Joan Crawford, Juliette Binoche, Marilyn Monroe, Mervyn LeRoy, Miriam Hopkins, Pre-Code, Shirley MacLaine, silent films, thrillers
16 Comments
Recommended Books: Memoirs
More recommendations: Recommended Fiction Recommended Non-Fiction MEMOIRS The Fervent Years: The Group Theatre And The Thirties, by Harold Clurman Probably the most famous of all the Group Theatre-related books. Harold Clurman writes his memories of that time and what those … Continue reading
Posted in Actors, Books, Directors, Music, writers
Tagged African Queen, Anjelica Huston, Austria, Baby Doll, Benjamin Franklin, Born Standing Up, Bruce Springsteen, Carroll Baker, Charles Grodin, Czechoslovakia, Diane Keaton, Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Elia Kazan, Ellen Terry, Elvis Presley, Frank McCourt, Ginger Rogers, Goldie Hawn, Group Theatre, Harold Clurman, Ireland, James Salter, Jeanette Winterson, John Strasberg, Katharine Hepburn, Kathleen Turner, Lana Turner, Lauren Bacall, Lee Strasberg, Marlon Brando, Maud Gonne, Memoirs, Patricia Bosworth, Primo Levi, Robert Evans, Rosalind Russell, Russia, Shane Leslie, Shelley Winters, Shirley MacLaine, Stefan Zweig, Steve Martin, The Kid Stays In the Picture, Victor Serge, WWII
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Present Tense: Death Scenes
William Holden, “Sunset Boulevard” For my next “Present Tense” column at Film Comment, I wrote about a long-time obsession – which I have covered from time to time here on my site: Actors performing death scenes. And a tribute to … Continue reading
Posted in Actors, Movies
Tagged Alfred Hitchcock, Billy Wilder, Bonnie and Clyde, Faye Dunaway, Francis Ford Coppola, James Cagney, Janet Leigh, Jensen Ackles, Marlon Brando, Meryl Streep, Present Tense, Raoul Walsh, Roaring Twenties, Shirley MacLaine, Sunset Boulevard, Supernatural, Vincente Minnelli, Warren Beatty, William Holden
6 Comments
April 2017 Viewing Diary
I just dash these off. Superficial bullet-point analysis for the most part. It’s a good way to keep track of what I’ve seen, for year-end lists, of course, but also for future reference. I also always love the discussions on … Continue reading
Posted in Monthly Viewing Diary, Movies, Television
Tagged Angela Lansbury, Bette Davis, Cristian Mungiu, documentary, Dogfight, France, Hal Ashby, Humphrey Bogart, Isabelle Huppert, James Cagney, Joan Blondell, Joan Crawford, John Huston, Josephine Decker, July and Half of August, Kate Winslet, Leonardo DiCaprio, Margaret Atwood, Nancy Savoca, Paul Verhoeven, Romania, Shirley MacLaine, Supernatural, Susan Sarandon, Vincente Minnelli, women directors
50 Comments
“Well, I’m not your run-of-the-mill lady from the Valley, am I?” – Shirley MacLaine
I am always behind the curve with TV trends. The Downton Abbey mania has been so bad that even virtual strangers are stopping me on the street telling me how much I will love it. When people find out I … Continue reading
The Books: “My Lucky Stars: A Hollywood Memoir” (Shirley MacLaine)
Daily Book Excerpt: Entertainment Biography/Memoir: My Lucky Stars: A Hollywood Memoir, by Shirley MacLaine Wonderful book! It might be my favorite of Shirley MacLaine’s (although granted I have not read her latest). It’s a book of anecdotes and character studies … Continue reading
Posted in Actors, Books
Tagged Dean Martin, entertainment biography, Shirley MacLaine
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The Books: “Dance While You Can” (Shirley MacLaine)
Daily Book Excerpt: Entertainment Biography/Memoir: Dance While You Can, by Shirley MacLaine Dance While You Can came out in the early 90s. Now it can’t be said that MacLaine ever really had a dry period – that’s one of the … Continue reading
The Books: “Out On a Limb” (Shirley MacLaine)
Daily Book Excerpt: Entertainment Biography/Memoir: Out on a Limb, by Shirley MacLaine This is the book that tipped her over the edge onto a whole other level of wide-spread cultural consciousness. Out on a Limb was 15 weeks on the … Continue reading
The Books: “Don’t Fall Off the Mountain” (Shirley MacLaine)
Daily Book Excerpt: Entertainment Biography/Memoir:: Don’t Fall Off the Mountain, by Shirley MacLaine I wonder if Shirley MacLaine is bad at anything. I’m sure she is – and so she doesn’t spend her energies in those areas … or who … Continue reading
Posted in Actors, Books
Tagged Alfred Hitchcock, Bob Fosse, entertainment biography, Hal Wallis, Shirley MacLaine
13 Comments