Seraphic Secret

Robert J. Avrech: Emmy Award winning screenwriter. Movie fanatic. Helplessly and hopelessly in love with my wife since age nine.

Shirley Temple

Friday Photos: True Hollywood Confessions

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“I made my own image because I refused to change my name or my hair. They wanted to change me completely when I first came over because that was the standard thing to do. They took stars from Hungary, Germany, France, and tried to change them – to make them more beautiful to American eyes, I suppose. But then they became just like all the other American stars that were there. Lots of publicity stills in bathing suits and hats and all that.”
—Ingrid Bergman

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Friday Photos: True Hollywood Confessions

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“I know very little about the simple life. I’m a product of crowded places and jammed-up emotions, where right and wrong weren’t always clearly defined and life wasn’t always sweet, but it was life.”
—Barbara Stanwyck

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Thanksgiving 2018: The Children of the Children of Israel

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Studio photographers shot millions of still photos of their actors, often with holiday themes. This is the one of the few religiously inclined Thanksgiving stills I have come across. The actress is Barbara Kent, a minor star in the silent ear best known for starring opposite Harold Lloyd in “Welcome Danger” 1929. But her very best role was in a little known but quite wonderful silent film “Lonesome,” 1928.
Studio photographers shot mountains of photographs of contract actors, often with holiday themes. This is a charming Thanksgiving  photo. The actress is Barbara Kent, (b. Barbara Cloutman, 1907- 2011) a popular star in the silent era best known for twice starring opposite Harold Lloyd, “Welcome Danger” (1929), and then “Feet First,” (1930). But her very best role was in a little known but quite wonderful silent film “Lonesome,” (1928). Seraphic Secret wrote a memoriam for this lovely actress when she passed away. You can find it here.

As far as I know, there are only two countries in the world that were founded on the idea of hope.

America and Israel.

And what was the hope?

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Flashback: When Hollywood Celebrated Christmas

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Mary Pickford helps Hollywood celebrate Christmas, 1920s.
Mary Pickford helps Hollywood celebrate Christmas, 1920s.

There was a time when Hollywood openly and joyously celebrated Christmas. Now, among the Hollywood elite, the greeting I hear is “Happy Holidays.”

Look, we at Seraphic Secret are Orthodox Jews. This is not our holiday.

But we want our Christian friends to celebrate Christmas. The politically correct Happy Holidays shtick is another nail in the coffin of American culture; another instance where a minority of obnoxious liberals bully the larger culture into secular nothingness.

American Christianity is a unique force for good in world history. It is not the Christianity of Europe that is poisoned with genocidal Jew-hatred.

Hollywood used to celebrate Christmas using every tool in the cinematic playbook.

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Friday Photos: True Hollywood Confessions

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“I was never beautiful like Miss Hayworth or Miss Lamarr. I was known as ‘the little brown wren’. Who’d want to get me at the end of the picture? I thought I was the plainest, most unattractive thing ever, and glamour was something I felt was far beyond my grasp. But—and isn’t it funny?—now when I look at my old movies I think I was the most gorgeous creature—simply divine!”
—Bette Davis, 1973

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