Joan Blondell

Friday Photos: True Hollywood Confessions

September 7, 2018 by Robert J. Avrech 5 Comments

“There’s a fine line between acting and not acting at all. And not acting is what a lot of actors are guilty of. It amazes me how some of these little numbers with dreamy looks and dead pan are getting by with it. I’ve seen a couple of them – I won’t mention names – with Oscars in their hands. I’d hate to see them on stage with a dog act.”
– Joan Blondell (1906-1979)

Friday Photos: True Hollywood Confessions

June 1, 2018 by Robert J. Avrech 6 Comments

“The bad girls were so much fun to play… The critics always said I acted best with a gun in my hand.”
—Audrey Totter

Friday Photos: True Hollywood Confessions

June 30, 2017 by Robert J. Avrech 15 Comments

…the discussion of security prompted actress Ginger Rogers to tell the group and the President, “Oh, I get scared for him”, and turning to Reagan, she said “because I love you so much, and we who love you get scared for you.” “I think the press is terrible, she said. “They’ve not been very nice to our president.”
—Ginger Rogers
From a 1983 Washington Post article: “Reagan on the Press,” by Daniel Radcliffe.

Friday Photos: Welcome to the New La-La Land

May 22, 2015 by Robert J. Avrech 9 Comments

“Paul Newman, Jim [Garner], and Steve and I went to the races at Riverside. On our way home, the men became annoyed because I had insisted on stopping at the next service station rest room. They had hoped to beat the traffic home. When they did stop I discovered to my dismay that there was a long line of women ahead of me. Unable to stand the delay any longer, I came up with a brilliant idea. I said to the girls standing there, ‘Hey, do you know there’s a car full of movie stars around the bend?’ 'Who?’ they cried in unison, 'Why, there’s Steve McQueen, there’s Paul Newman, and there’s James Garner!’ The girls looked at each other and ran like crazy, leaving me in sole possession of the facilities. I never did tell the fellas how a swarm of females suddenly discovered them!” -Neile Adams (Mrs. Steve McQueen) — “Paul Newman, Jim [Garner], and Steve and I went to the races at Riverside. On our way home, the men became annoyed because I had insisted on stopping at the next service station rest room. They had hoped to beat the traffic home. When they did stop I discovered to my dismay that there was a long line of women ahead of me. Unable to stand the delay any longer, I came up with a brilliant idea. I said to the girls standing there, ‘Hey, do you know there’s a car full of movie stars around the bend?’
‘Who?’ they cried in unison, ‘Why, there’s Steve McQueen, there’s Paul Newman, and there’s James Garner!’ The girls looked at each other and ran like crazy, leaving me in sole possession of the facilities. I never did tell the fellas how a swarm of females suddenly discovered them!”
-Neile Adams (Mrs. Steve McQueen)

Hollywood was once the dream capital of the world. Movies peddled glamour and fantasy. This was La-La Land where outrageous plots and larger than life characters allowed audiences to construct alternate realities — entertainment.

But La-La Land has relocated.

On Wednesday, President Obama delivered the commencement address at the Coast Guard Academy in New London, Conn. The mission of the Coast Guard is to protect America’s coasts. But according to this Commander-in-Chief the real threat to America comes not from enemies attacking the homeland, but from so-called global freezing/global warming/climate change — whatever they’re calling the weather this week.

Hollywood in Stitches, Part II

November 13, 2014 by Robert J. Avrech 8 Comments

Vivien Leigh knits between takes on the set of “Waterloo Bridge” 1940.

Part I is here.

“Hurry up and wait!”

Anyone who has worked on a major Hollywood production is familiar with this ironic command.

There is a tremendous amount of down time on a Hollywood film. It takes hours to set up lights, rig camera and sound, and make sure the sets and props are in place. Thus, actors spend a huge amount of time waiting, waiting, waiting for the the cameras to roll.

In the past, especially in the 1930s, scores of Hollywood actresses took up knitting to help pass the countless hours between takes.

Several years ago, at a swanky Hollywood party, I met the wealthy widow of a prominent producer who had been active during Hollywood’s Golden Age. After draining a few glasses of champagne the elderly lady talked about, well, the good ol’ days. When I expressed my admiration for classic Hollywood movies she told me that at the tender age of 15, she was one of Busby Berkeley’s chorus girls.

“We didn’t really dance, y’know, just walked up and down those darn stairs and tried not to break our necks, while Buzz whipped the camera around on a huge crane.”

After a few more glasses of champagne the lovely ex-chorus girl explained that setting up Buzz’s excruciatingly complicated shots took so long that the chorus girls nearly went crazy with boredom.

“Some girls drank bootleg and flirted outrageously with front office wolves,” she said. “Other girls quietly knitted.”

“Which one were you?”

“Honey, I figured it out very quickly: Men had a good time with the girls who drank gin — but they married the girls who knitted.”