Seraphic Secret

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

Helen Twelvetrees

Independence Day: Once Upon A Time Hollywood Loved America

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Betty Grable wishes America a happy and meaningful July 4th. G-d Bless America.

A long time ago, in a universe far far away, in a place called Hollywood, the movie studios and the actors who flourished in those dream factories, celebrated their love of America and enthusiastically indulged in overt displays of patriotism.

L.B. Mayer (b. Lazar Meir) the powerful head of MGM, was a pioneer of the motion-picture industry, and the man who invented the star system. Mayer adopted July 4th as his birthday. Scores of Hollywood historians get all snarky about Mayer’s birthday, claiming that he conveniently changed his birthday in order to cash in on a public identification with America.

What these historians fail to recognize is that Mayer probably did not know the date of his birth.

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July 4th Flashback: When Hollywood Loved America

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Betty Grable wishes America a happy and meaningful July 4th. G-d Bless America.

A long time ago, in a universe far, far away, in a place called Hollywood, the movie studios and the actors who flourished in the dream factories, celebrated their love of America and enthusiastically indulged in overt displays of patriotism.

L.B. Mayer (b. Lazar Meir) the powerful head of MGM, was a pioneer of the motion-picture industry, and the man who invented the star system. Mayer adopted July 4th as his birthday. Scores of Hollywood historians get all snarky about Mayer’s birthday, claiming that he conveniently changed his birthday in order to cash in on a public identification with America.

What these historians fail to recognize is that Mayer probably did not know the date of his birth.

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Flashback: July 4th, When Hollywood Was Patriotic

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A long time ago, in a universe far, far away, in a place called Hollywood, the movie studios and the actors who flourished in the dream factories, celebrated their love of America and enthusiastically indulged in overt displays of patriotism.

I like this photo of Ava Garden framed against the American flag. At the dawn of her career she did scores of bathing suit, July 4th photos. But this pic, probably from the early 50's, shows a more mature and confident actress as an American icon.
I like this photo of Ava Garden framed against the American flag. At the dawn of her career Gardner posed for scores of July 4th cheesecake photos. But this pic shows a more mature and confident actress as an American icon.

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Friday Photos: True Hollywood Confessions

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“You see, life goes on without the slightest regard for individual preoccupations. You may take what attitude you like toward it or, like most people, take no attitude at all. It doesn’t matter a darn to life. The ostrich, on much the same principle, buries its head in sand. But just as forces outside the sand ultimately get the ostrich, so life, all the time, is getting you. I’ve found that sometimes you can gamble with life, but that’s about as near as you ever come to beating it.” – Helen Twelvetrees
“You see, life goes on without the slightest regard for individual preoccupations. You may take what attitude you like toward it or, like most people, take no attitude at all. It doesn’t matter a darn to life. The ostrich, on much the same principle, buries its head in sand. But just as forces outside the sand ultimately get the ostrich, so life, all the time, is getting you. I’ve found that sometimes you can gamble with life, but that’s about as near as you ever come to beating it.”
– Helen Twelvetrees

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Hollywood Friday Photos — The Beautiful and the Damned

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Anna May Wong (1905 – 1961) was the first American-Chinese movie star. Her long career spanned silent and sound movies, radio, stage and television.Her first film role was Toll of the Sea (1922) one of the first movies produced in color. Tragically, the Production Code instituted by the studios to protect against outside censorship, which forbade race-mixing, Wong was never cast as a leading opposite a Caucasian star. Thus, she was relegated to support roles and often as a stereotypical dragon lady. This wonderful photo is by artist Man Ray, real name Emmanuel Radnitzky.
Anna May Wong (1905 – 1961) was the first American-Chinese movie star. Her long career spanned silent and sound movies, radio, stage and television. Her first film role was in Toll of the Sea (1922) one of the first movies produced in Technicolor. Tragically, the Production Code instituted by the studios to protect against government censorship, upheld anti-miscegenation laws. Thus, Wong was never cast as a leading lady opposite a Caucasian star. Her greatest disappointment, and a notorious outrage, was when MGM refused to cast her as O-lan, the leading role in their adaptation of Pearl S. Buck’s huge best-seller, “The Good Earth.” Instead, the plum assignment went to the competent but dreary Luise Rainer. For most of her career, the enormously talented and beautiful Anna May was relegated to supporting roles and B movies, frequently as a stereotypical dragon lady. This evocative photo, which views Anna May’s silken, waterfall hair, as a distinct character, is by artist Man Ray, real name Emmanuel Radnitzky.

 

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