Bit Part Actors

Dean Stockwell - Bit Actor

2012-02-28T13:45:00.001-05:00

I watched the Academy Awards, as I'm sure most everyone who reads blogs about classic movies did. I was glad to see that The Artist won five awards. It was a movie, not a way to show off CGI mastery. (Even though I did like Hugo.)

Another film that was talked about was The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, starring Daniel Craig (b. 1968) and Rooney Mara (b. 1985). Mara only has 16 titles to her name, so she may still be a Bit Actor. Titles being what they are, this title reminded me of The Boy with Green Hair (1948). I don't know why.

The boy who had that green hair was played by veteran child actor, Dean Stockwell (b. 1936). Stockwell started on film working with Greer Garson, Gregory Peck and Lionel Barrymore in The Valley of Decision (1945). and next up was Anchors Aweigh (1945) starring Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelley.

In 1947 he appears as Nick Jr. in the final Nick and Nora film, Song of the Thin Man. By 1950 he was receiving star billing in some movies...at age 14...including the title role in Kim, also starring Errol Flynn (1909 - 1959). In 1951 he was in Cattle Drive starring Joel McCrea (1905 - 1990).

And then...nothing. Until he shows up on television in 1956 at age 20. He works on TV in many teleplays and some series', while making a few more films. He co-stars in Compulsion (1959) with Orson Welles (1915 - 1985).

Dean Stockwell

A big role as Katherine Hepburn's son is a boost to Stockwell's career. In Long Day's Journey Into Night (1962) he appears also as Jason Robard's brother in Eugene O'Neill's classic. But also at that time, according to info found on Wikipedia, Stockwell spends some time as a hippie, which was probably not a good choice for a serious actor.

He eventually came back to acting and entered the medical field as Dr. Rudy Devereux on "Dr. Kildare." There are good roles and some really bad roles in Stockwell's future. One particularly bad film was The Werewolf of Washington (1973) which only rated a 3.7 on IMDb.

Dean continued to work hard. He has a total of 193 titles listed on IMDb. But his choices, or perhaps the projects that are offered to him, are not always A titles. You can find him in Paris Texas (1984), The Legend of Billie Jean (1985), and the TV movie "The Gambler, Part III: The Legend Continues."

Not all was bleak, and there were some better titles. Beverly Hills Cop II (1987) and Married to the Mob (1988), plus a strong role on "Quantum Leap" helped him considerably. In 1997 he appears in Air Force One with Harrison Ford, Gary Oldman and Glenn Close, and also in The Rainmaker with Matt Damon and Danny DeVito. Not bad, but maybe not great. At least he's in very good company, and it is obvious that he is recognized as being able to turn in a credible performance.

Dean Stockwell may still show up in new work. His last listed film is The Deal (2007) starring Penelope Ann Miller (b. 1964), and he is in a few television roles up to 2009 including "Battlestar Galactica." Stockwell has a long and varied career, and against all odds, he was able to transform from a child star, to a reliable Bit Actor.

Abraham Lincoln on Presidents' Day

2012-02-20T13:50:00.003-05:00

Today is Presidents' Day 2012. Presidents' Day was an evolutionary federal holiday, starting as Washington's Birthday first set by congress in 1879. It was celebrated each year on Washington's actual birthday, February 22. Some states celebrated Lincoln's Birthday as a holiday on February 12th, but it was never a federal holiday by Act of Congress.

Members of congress in the 1950s originally toyed with the idea of making March 4th a holiday to honor all of the presidents, since that was the original election day. It didn't get very far because it would have meant February 12, February 22, and March 4 would then all be holidays.

In 1971 the Uniform Monday Holiday Act took effect. The third Monday in February was designated as Washington's Birthday, but there was still no federal holiday for Lincoln. To this day, the official name for the day is Washington's Birthday, but you will find that name only on official government forms and web sites.

I had fun in July 2011 going through the films depicting George Washington. I have mentioned some films where Lincoln is honored but not in detail, so let's look at Abraham Lincoln (1809 - 1865) in the movies.

There are over 300 titles listed for the character Abraham Lincoln on IMDb. More than twice those for Washington. Perhaps being assassinated is more desirable for a movie than dying of a cold. Either way the end is the same. Both presidents gave their all for our country and I would be hard pressed to say which was the better man. They tie on my list...both at Number One.

We see the first cinematic Lincoln in 1911, two years after the first screen appearance of Washington. The film was His First Commission, starring Charles Brabin (1882 - 1957) in the Edison short film. Brabin may be best knows as the husband of Theda Bera (1885 - 1955). Brabin only appeared in six films, but he was a notable director and writer. He directed Boris Karloff (1887 - 1969) and Myrna Loy (1905 - 1993) in The Mask of Fu Manchu in 1932.

Lincoln's character is in quite a few silent films. There are several films listed in the early part of the second decade on the 20th Century starring Ralph Ince (1887 - 1937) and Francis Ford (1881 - 1953). Ince was also a director but had a long film career, including Little Caesar (1931) starring Edward G. Robinson. Ford was John Ford's older brother and he appeared in almost 500 films and television shows. A true Bit Actor, many of Ford's roles were uncredited.

In 1915, D. W. Griffith released The Birth of a Nation, one of the great silent films. Lincoln is portrayed by Joseph Henabery (1888 - 1976), another director who has only 22 acting credits ending in 1916.

The first talkie to show Lincoln was Two Americans (1929) starring Walter Houston (1883 - 1950) as Lincoln. From what I have read, Lincoln's actual voice was fairly high and squeaky. For public speaking he would tend to start on a high note in his voice to attract the attention of his audience, and then let the voice lower a bit to where it was more comfortable. I have often wondered how many actors got that right.

Two Americans was produced by Paramount, and the next year Walter Huston is Lincoln again in D. W. Griffith's production called Abraham Lincoln. This was meant to be a biography, but in 1930 my guess is that the story may have been embellished a bit to make it more enjoyable.

Henry Fonda played the part in Young Mr. Lincoln (1939) and Raymond Massey (1896 - 1983) was in Abe Lincoln in Illinois (1940). Lincoln was also portrayed by Charles Middleton (1874 - 1949) and John Carradine (1906 - 1988) in that era.

In the 1950s television brought Lincoln to the small screen, and many actors tackled the part. My favorite may have been Royal Dano (1922 - 1994) in the series "Omnibus." Dano has a great, deep voice, absolutely wrong for Lincoln, but perfect for his story on TV.

Here are some interesting titles where you can find Lincoln on TV.
"Alcoa Presents: One Step Beyond"
"The Twilight Zone"
"The Rifleman"
"Doctor Who"
"The Ed Sullivan Show"
"The Time Tunnel"
"Star Trek"
"Love American Style"
"The Muppet Show: Sex and Violence"
Is nothing sacred?!?

A bit later we see Lincoln as the respected, dignified person he really was. In 1985 Hal Holbrook (b. 1925) played Lincoln in the series "North and South," and let's not forget the 1990 Ken Burns series "The Civil War" starring Sam Waterston (b. 1940) as the voice of Lincoln.

This year there are two releases to note here. Abraham Lincoln vs. the Zombies with Bill Oberst, Jr. (b.1965) and Lincoln starring Daniel Day Lewis (b. 1957) and directed by Steven Spielberg. I'll stick to the second one.

B4 They Were Stars - William Shatner

2012-02-13T13:58:00.000-05:00

Yes, he was once not a star. William Shatner (b. 1931) made some good stuff before leaving the Earth to take command of the Star Ship Enterprise on the original "Star Trek" series in 1966.

Everyone knows he was born in Canada and started acting on the stage and in early television. His first appearance on screen was in a movie called The Butler's Night Off (1951). It has been described as forgettable with "...no entertainment value..." But it was work.

The Shat (I didn't make that up) worked in Canadian television, and in 1953 appeared in "Space Command" along with his future Chief Engineer James Doohan (1920 - 2005), the first time they worked together. The next year Shatner is on "Howdy Doody," and he appears in some episodes of "Encounter" with Patrick Macnee (b. 1922) of "The Avengers" fame.

His next film was Oedipus Rex (1957) a Canadian production starring Douglas Campbell (1922 - 2009) where Shatner was in the chorus. In 1958 he has a much bigger break and co-stars in The Brothers Karamazov with Yul Brynner (1920 - 1985). That film was made by MGM and is all American...except for it being a Russian theme with Brynner who was also Russian.

Back to television, where Shatner is starting to find a home. We are still in the late 1950s and he has guest spots on "Suspicion," "Climax!," "Playhouse 90," "Kraft Theater," and "The United States Steel Hour." He also appeared a few times on "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" and "One Step Beyond," and also in "Thriller" hosted by Boris Karloff.

I would say that 1961 was Shatner's best pre-Trek film year. He stars in The Explosive Generation as a teacher, with Patty McCormack (b. 1945) and Beau Bridges (b. 1941), and then appears in Judgement at Nuremberg with Spencer Tracy, which I believe is his first role as a captain (but not of a star ship).

His next film was The Intruder (1962) a Roger Corman production about integration in the South. Probably not a great film, but it was work and star billing. Also in the early 1960s you will find Shatner in his most famous "Twilight Zone" episode, "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet" plus one previous appearance on that series. Shatner was on all of the popular television suspense shows, including "The Outer Limits."

Do you remember the 1963 hit movie of Tab Hunter and Frankie Avalon called Operation Bikini? Bill Shatner was the narrator.

Next there were a few regular roles on several TV shows. Look for Shatner in "77 Sunset Strip," "The Defenders," and "Dr. Kildare." He even starred in a one season series called "For the People." He has some addition guest spots on "Route 66," "Burke's Law," "The Man from U.N.C.L.E.," "Gunsmoke," "The Fugitive," and "Twelve O'Clock High." That's not a bad way to make a living.

There was one more film before Gene Roddenberry cast him in his defining role. Incubus (1966) was a horror film made entirely in the forgotten language of Esperanto (for some reason). I think I'll pass on that one.

That brings us to 1966 and Star Trek's five year mission to explore strange new worlds. The mission only lasted three years, but look at what it started.

Charles Ogle and Frankenstein

2012-02-07T13:59:00.000-05:00

The year was 1910. Edison Studios made the first screen adaptation of Mary Shelly's Frankenstein. I would have wanted to be there.

The film was only about 15 minutes long, but that was fairly normal for 1910. I have not seen it, but I understand that a nitrate copy was restored a few years ago, so there is still hope. The special effects were achieved by melting a wax figure of a man, and printing the negative backwards so he emerges from the goo and becomes The Monster.

Augustus Phillips (1874 - 1944) played Dr. Frankenstein. This was his first film, and he went on to make over 140 titles in a dozen years.

The part of The Monster was played by Charles Ogle (1865 - 1940) early in his film career. Most likely he did his own makeup. I hesitate to say IMDb listed it as his eight film, because that simply may not be true. In the early days, studio records were spotty and anyone walking past a set may be called in to action. IMDb lists over 300 films for Ogle, but the number is surely higher than that.

Charles Ogle as The Monster (1910)

In addition to becoming the first Frankenstein Monster on film, Ogle appears in the very first movie serial, What Happened to Mary, made by the Edison Company in 1912. It was a dozen monthly one-reelers starring Mary Fuller (1888 - 1973) who also appeared in Frankenstein. Fuller made over 200 films in a span of only ten years starting in 1917. According to IMDb, Fuller and Ogle made 78 films together, which would not be unusual for contract players working at a silent film studio.

Charles Ogle played Bob Cratchit in the 1910 version of A Christmas Carol. It was not the first film adaptation of that famous Dickens story. Tom Ricketts (1853 - 1939) made the first one in 1908 at the Essanay Studios made famous by Charlie Chaplin.

Ogle was able to work with many early film stars. He was in two films with Mae Murray (1889 - 1965), and in 1920 appeared in Treasure Island with Lon Chaney. He is in five films with Mary Pickford (1892 - 1979), about 14 with Noah Beery (1882 - 1946), and he worked with Fatty Arbuckle, Jack Holt and William Boyd as well.

Ogles final film was The Flaming Forest (1926) and he passed away two years later. While none of his films will ever be as popular as they were back in the silent era, you may be able to catch him on a DVD or at a silent film festival. It is worth the time to research people like Ogle. The films we watch today have greatly benefited from the work of the stars in the early days of Movie Magic.

Double Indemnity

2012-02-02T13:48:00.000-05:00

In June of 2011 I wrote about Tom Powers (1890 - 1955) and his role in Double Indemnity (1944), but I didn't touch on the rest of the Bit Parts in that wonderful film noir classic. The only thing I didn't like about the film is Barbara Stanwyck as a blonde, and I don't think I'm alone.

I won't discuss the stars here. Stanwyck, Fred MacMurray and Edward G. Robinson don't need any of my words. But who else was part of making this film so good?

Porter Hall (1888 - 1953) played the witness, Mr. Jackson, who saw Neff on the train. It is interesting that Hall was in Going My Way the same year as Double Indemnity. Going won seven Oscars and Double didn't win any. Check out my last post about Porter from October 2010, where I outlined his fabulous career.

Jean Heather (1921 - 1995) played Phyllis' step-daughter Lola, who was much more loved by her father than by Phyllis. Jean only made eight films, and her next role was in, you guessed it, Going My Way. The rest of her pictures weren't much to write about, but she did get to act with some great stars including Dorothy Gish, Beulah Bondi, Charles Ruggles, Marjorie Main, Olivia DeHaviland, Gene Autry and others, all in a five year acting career.

Byron Barr (1917 - 1966) played Nino, Lola's boy friend. He didn't play much else, with only 19 titles listed to his credit.

Richard Gaines (1904 - 1975) played Edward Norton, Jr. He is the father of Virginia Holden, who was later adopted by William Holden. With almost 70 titles on TV and in movies, Richard always seemed to appear in less than top notch films. Again, in the era of the large production studios controlling their stars, he was able to work with some great actors and actresses. In the 1960s he frequently appeared as a judge on "Perry Mason."

Another Going and Double alumnus is Fortunio Bonanova (1895 - 1969). He has over 90 titles listed and did appear as a vocal coach to Dorothy Comingore in Citizen Kane (1941). In 1957 he appears in An Affair to Remember, but his is a name you probably won't.

Don't forget to look for Raymond Chandler (1888 - 1959) sitting in the hallway at the insurance office as Neff walks past. It was the only cameo filmed for Chandler, who is renowned as a novelist and wrote the screen play for Double Indemnity. He's the one reading a paperback.

And finally, there is the Dictaphone. It plays a key role in this movie, and as our younger generation starts watching film noir, we can only hope they learn something about history and how things worked in the early half of the 20th Century. Neff uses multiple cylinders to record his story, and these can be seen in the final few shots when Keyes confronts him in his office. If some youngster asks what that thing is, please fill them in. A Dictaphone is way cooler than an iPhone.

I have spoken before about how Bit Parts help to make great movies. In the case of Double Indemnity, it appears that the Bit Actors played second fiddle to the incredible story. I just watched the film a few weeks ago, and I was struggling to remember who played which part. This movie belongs in the 100 Best Movies list, and I am glad it was selected by Library of Congress to be in the National Film Registry.

Me and The Sons of the Desert

2012-01-30T13:16:00.001-05:00

It has been a rather busy week for me. As a card-carrying member of the Sons of the Desert, I was increasingly disturbed by the lack of a web site for my own local Tent. I spend a fair amount of time on the Internet researching Bit Actors, and I expect many other people do as well. We need a presence.

A word of explanation may be in order, if you are unfamiliar with the Sons. In 1933, Laurel and Hardy released what was probably their very best feature film, Sons of the Desert. It was about a fraternal organization The Boys belonged to, and they were having a convention in Chicago. All of the California members took a solemn oath to attend...without consulting their wives! You can imaging what they went through to make the trip (without their better halves) and the consequences they reaped upon their return.

Fast forward a few years to the 1960s. Writer and historian John McCabe was working on his biography Mr. Laurel and Mr. Hardy, and in speaking with Stan Laurel at his home, McCabe suggested creating a group of Laurel and Hardy admirers who would celebrate their films. The Sons of the Desert was born. Other founding members included Al Kilgore, Orson Bean and Chuck McCann.

The first meeting took place in New York City in 1965, a short time after Stan passed away. The SotD grew and each new city was to start what is called a Tent, and they would name it after one of the L&H films. I am in the Philadelphia, PA area and ours is the Two Tars Tent, named after a silent film from 1928.

Our Tent is now in its 41st year. We had a web site a few years ago, but since this is a completely volunteer organization (based on Laurel and Hardy!) the web site was not looked after properly. It was nobody's fault because people get busy. Then, I opened my BIIIG MOUTH (sorry for stealing your line, Jackie Gleason) and got the job! The important thing is that The Two Tars Tent now has a functioning web site, thanks to the ease of Google Sites. I was helped by two of our board members, Roger Gordon and Bob Rooney. Thanks, guys!

The address is a bit unwieldy, but Google Sites is free, so I won't complain.
https://sites.google.com/site/twotars14/home
Google Sites has a number of nifty features and it should be easy to maintain.

On the site you will find a calendar that I hope will fill with important events regarding old movies, especially in the Southeastern PA area. I am also adding the birthdays of many old stars. I am still posting photos from past events, and there are some links to other movie related web sites on the links page.

I hope you will stop by the new web site and let me know what you think. If you love to laugh, you may want to look for a Sons of the Desert Tent in your area and get to some meetings. You will find a welcoming atmosphere and a great bar where you can park your camel and have "one for the desert."

The Artist - Silent Still Works

2012-01-25T13:35:00.000-05:00

I have seen my share of silent films. If you belong to the Sons of the Desert, you learn the charm of screen acting without dialog. After you see a few good silents, you start seeking them out, looking for the most famous...for the best of the silents.

I would say that City Lights (1931) was one of the best. Chaplin used every trick he learned in his career to bring a touching story to the screen, and it really didn't need words. Although he made it after talkies had become the norm, he was convinced that silence was golden for the movies. His character, The Tramp, was mute, so film should be as well.

I had the pleasure of seeing The Artist (2011) last weekend. We went to the Ambler Theater in Ambler, PA, which was opened in 1928 as a Warner Brothers theater. The first film shown there was Our Dancing Daughters (1928) starring Joan Crawford (1905 - 1977). It was a perfect place to see The Artist.

This was our first visit to The Ambler and I was impressed. Please check out their web site, especially if you are in the Philadelphia area. The theater has undergone a complete restoration and many aspects are recreated as they were in 1928. The neon sign was removed in the 1960s so it was reconstructed to look just like the original.

As far as the new Oscar nominated film, The Artist is everything you can imagine. The two stars, Jean Dujardin (b. 1972), and Berenice Bejo (b. 1976), each have less than 40 films to their credit. There are a few actors and actresses in the film who are well known. Penelope Ann Miller, John Goodman, James Cromwell, and Malcolm McDowell come to mind. But in this film, I would have to call them Bit Actors. Malcolm McDowell has one short scene early in the film with Bejo as she auditions for her first movie.

It seems that everyone wanted to be part of this new...or rather old idea. Cromwell said that he jumped at the chance to make a film like this. He knew it would be special.

In the LA Times blog, 24 Frames, on January 24, 2012, this explanation caught my eye -

As costar John Goodman has pointed out, silent films by their nature are best experienced in a crowd, where the emotions produced by the music and the emotive nature of the acting get naturally amplified as they bounce from person to person. In an age when watching movies alone at home is a given and watching them regularly on your cellphone is being touted as one of the glories of the future, academy voters likely found it exhilarating to be reminded of the special nature of the theater-going experience.
Finally, for more than one reason, “The Artist” is that almost unheard of film that makes voters feel good about what they do for a living, that makes them take pleasure in working in the industry when so little else does.

For the record, I will NEVER watch a movie on my cell phone, but the article hits the nail on the head. And it was so nice to go to a theater and not have to push through a crowd of teenagers! I do suggest that teenagers interested in movies should see this film, with an open mind, and after watching The Artist check out City Lights. They will be impressed.

As an added plus, the locations used to make the film are historic. The mansion used toward the end of the film was the home of silent movie star Mary Pickford (1892 - 1979), and the studio used as a set was actually a 1920s movie studio...perhaps it was Chaplin's, I am not sure. Don't even get me started on the cars. (Two beautiful Cadillacs.)

As an added plus, the film was shot in the correct aspect ratio for most silent films of the old days, the titles and inter-titles were period correct, and most of all, the dog, played by Uggie, was perfect!

The parallels with Charlie Chaplin cannot be missed. The star of The Artist also has a problem with the advent of talkies, and he is able to (eventually) make the switch. I won't say how, but see this film!

This is the first silent film since the end of the silent era to be nominated for an Oscar. I wish I could vote! I wish I could buy the poster, too.

Vertigo and The Lady Eve

2012-01-22T13:21:00.002-05:00

Back in May of 2010 I started writing my blog about the wonderful Bit Actors who entertain us in film and on television. In less than two years I have had over 25,000 people from all over the world look at my posts. Even though there are many blogs that blow that number away, I am thrilled and humbled by it.

I started this blog more as therapy than to become some sort of authority on film. I am the first to admit that I have never studied film history, but I do appreciate a good movie. (Heck, I like all films!) In fact, I think I may have been inspired by the film Julie and Julia (2009) to do this. I like to cook as well! I find writing relaxing, and I have fun doing the research.

One of the best things to come out of this effort is the friendship and collaboration that I have found by joining the Classic Movie Blog Association. We all write about movie related topics. Some are pretty general and some are aimed at particular stars or genres, but all are interesting and enjoyable.

There are occasional Blogathons as well. That is when several writers get together and write about the same topic. I am currently honored to be part of a Vertigo Blogathon at The Lady Eve's Reel Life site. After reading the posts that preceded mine on her site, I was a bit apprehensive about appearing in the company of people who are so familiar with the topic, and are also such wonderful writers.

I hope you will stop by and read my post, and also all of the other posts in the month long series. It is an incredible banquet of all things Vertigo, and provides insight and explanations of all aspects of that wonderful 1958 film, and Alfred Hitchcock. Hitch was a master, and some of the posts will give you a new appreciation of him. After the month of posts is completed, I am sure I will be watching Vertigo one more time, if only to see it from a more informed perspective. I hope you will join me!

If you are new to my site, pick a name from the list on the right and read my post. Sorry the list is so long, but it seems my subject matter is quite extensive. Comments are always welcome.

B4 They Were Stars - Tony Curtis

2012-01-19T14:17:00.000-05:00

I would like to fill in some bigger stars with details about their career before they gained stardom. That's why I have added the label B4 They Were Stars to my list at the right. I thought I would write about someone today, but I am struggling to find the right star.

Cary Grant first came to mind. He was a stage actor before coming to the movies, and when he first appeared on screen, he was an instant hit. He made some early films with Mae West, and he did have a short spell of work that wasn't the best. But his popularity, particularly with West, helped to save Paramount, so I don't think he could ever be considered a Bit Actor. I wonder what would have happened to him if he retained his real name, Archie Leach?

My next thought was Katherine Hepburn. Same basic story. Her first film, A Bill of Divorcement (1932) with John Barrymore made her a star.

You can't think of Hepburn without thinking of Spencer Tracy. Another star from the start! He made a few early short films in 1930 and was seen by John Ford who gave him the lead in Up The River (1930).

Maybe in those early days of talking films, if you had so much talent and stage acting experience, it was easy to make it big on screen. The depression was just starting and it was much easier for the cash-strapped public to go to the movies than the theater, so the studios needed great talent to promote in all the films they were pushing out.

Let's try a few more recent titles and see where those stars came from. Jack Lemmon started his screen acting on television in 1949. It wasn't until 1954 that he made his first movie. That was It Should Happen to You, starring Judy Holliday and, you guessed it, Jack Lemmon.

Intense, and Handsome

I can't think of Jack Lemmon without thinking of Tony Curtis (1925 - 2010) and that actress, Marilyn something-or-other. Maybe Curtis will fill my need. Curtis' first film was a 16mm documentary short called How to Smuggle a Hernia Across the Border (1949) Anyone who would be in a movie with that title must either be a Bit Actor, or a friend of Jerry Lewis. It was, in fact, the first film directed by Lewis, and it was shot at his house. No Oscars were awarded.

Tony's early films were either uncredited or he was billed at Anthony Curtis. He did make quite a few films before catching on, or rather, before the public caught on to his considerable talent and good looks. In 1950 he was in Francis, a story about a talking mule, but it was a Donald O'Connor film.

Winchester '73 (1950) is one of my favorite Jimmy Stewart westerns, and Anthony had a small part in it, along with a Native American named Rock Hudson. Curtis made two films in 1950 with Audie Murphy. He then stars in The Prince Who Was a Thief (1951), Flesh and Fury and No Room for the Groom both in 1952, but they were not big hits and those films didn't really include any other big stars.

These early starring roles may not have been blockbusters, but they are a proving ground for a young actor who is working out his character. After Son of Ali Baba (1952), he has the title role in Houdini (1953) and I believe that may have been a turning point for him. As with most actors, not every film is a success, but he went on to complete about 130 titles over a 59 year span of work. And let's not forget Jamie Lee. Another one of his successes!

Bob Anderson

2012-01-10T13:52:00.001-05:00

Bob Anderson wasn't even a Bit Actor, and there are 51 Robert Anderson's listed on IMDb. Bob's name has (III) after it, indicating he is the third Bob Anderson listed on that web site. There is also a Robert Anderson (III) listed as an actor in the 1920s. So who is Bob Anderson (III)?

The Bob Anderson (1922 - 2012) for today's post was basically a swordmaster and fight choreographer. In fact, he is considered the finest who ever lived. His name was brought to my attention while doing some research, and I found out that Bob just passed away on January 1, 2012 at the age of 89.

He did act in some TV shows and only a few movies, appearing mostly as a stunt double and rarely credited. But he was involved in movie magic starting in 1953 when he coached Errol Flynn (1909 - 1959) in fencing for The Master of Ballantrae. Before that Bob was on the British fencing team for the Olympics in 1952 after serving in the Royal Navy during World War II.

I don't know much about Bob, and there is little info on most of the usual web sites. But if you have ever watched an action movie that had a sword fight, chances are Bob Anderson was involved. Here are just a few of the films he helped along. They speak volumes about how good he was.

The Guns of Navarone (1961)
From Russia with Love (1963)
Casino Royale (1967)
Barry Lyndon (1975)
Star Wars (1977, plus the next two installments)
Superman II (1981)
Highlander (1986)
The Princess Bride (1987)
First Knight (1995)
The Phantom (1996)
The Mask of Zorro (1998)
"Highlander" (TV series 1992 - 1994)
Die Another Day (2002)
The Legend of Zorro (2005)
Pirates of the Caribbean (most likely all of them before 2010)

In addition to being fight choreographer for the original Star Wars trilogy, he was David Prowse's (b. 1935 - portraying Darth Vader) stunt double for the light saber fights, and probably killed Obi-Wan Kenobi. The later Star Wars prequels relied on CGI for many of the stunts, including Christopher Lee's (b. 1922) famous fight with Yoda in Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005).

Anderson was the swordmaster for The Lord of the Rings trilogy from 2001 to 2003. He taught Viggo Mortensen (b. 1958) how to fence for that series and said he was one of his best pupils. He also taught Sean Connery (b. 1930), Antonio Banderas (b. 1960) and Johnny Depp (b. 1963) among many others.

Rest in peace, Bob. Maybe its a guy thing, but I think you have brought a lot to the movies, and we thank you for it.

Diane Ladd and Family

2012-01-04T13:57:00.002-05:00

A quick commercial before we get to Diane and family. Please stop by The Lady Eve's Reel Life all this month for a Reel Treat. Eve has put together a month of blog posts on Alfred Hitchcock's great movie Vertigo (1958). Eve has invited ten guest writers to participate. I was asked to give all of the Bit Actors my usual treatment, and I am sure every post is worth reading. Don't miss it!

I happened across Diane Ladd (b. 1932) last week on "Gunsmoke" in an episode called "Sweet Billy, Singer of Songs" from 1966. She looked familiar, and quite pretty, but I couldn't place her until I saw her name in the credits. It was a fun episode with all of Festus' relatives. The cast was amazing, including Judy Carne (b. 1939), Royal Dano (1922 - 1994) and Slim Pickins (1919 - 1983) as well.

Diane has 123 titles listed on IMDb and was married, for a while, to Bruce Dern (b. 1936). They produced Laura Dern in 1967, and Diane has made several movies with her daughter.

Most of her early work was on television, but she did appear in a few movies. Murder, Inc. (1960) starring Stuart Whitman (b. 1928) was her first, then Something Wild with Carroll Baker (b. 1931) in 1961, and 40 Pounds of Trouble with Tony Curtis (1925 - 2010) the next year.

I must admit that I am unfamiliar with most of her movie work before 1970. Things seemed to perk up in the mid 1970s though. She was in White Lightning (1973) with Burt Reynolds, Chinatown (1974) with Jack Nicholson, and received her first of three Oscar nominations for Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore also in 1974. That nomination led to a role on the TV spin-off, "Alice."

She was finally getting some starring roles after working very hard for the opportunity. We won't talk too much about Embryo (1976) a sci-fi/horror flick with Rock Hudson. She also stars in a few better movies, All Night Long (1981) with Gene Hackman and Barbra Streisand, and with Jason Robards (1922 - 2000) in Ray Bradbury's Something Wicked This Way Comes in 1983, which also featured Royal Dano. He's one of my favorites.

Ladd then takes a few cruises on "The Love Boat" and shows up with John Randolph (1915 - 2004) as Chevy Chase's parents in Christmas Vacation (1989). Two more Oscar nominations followed for Wild at Heart in 1990 and Rambling Rose in 1991. In those two movies, she played her real daughter, Laura Dern's, mother. Laura was also in Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore, but she was just seven years old playing a bit part.

Not all went well, though. In 1993 she starred in Carnosaur where she plays a scientist bent on destroying everyone on Earth with a virus. No Oscars for that one. Better movies followed in Primary Colors (1998) and 28 Days (2000).

Her last good role was in American Cowslip (2009) with ex-husband Bruce Dern. She worked with Bruce in four movies, and with Laura in nine.

You can find Diane in the HBO comedy series "enlightened" playing mother and daughter again with Laura. And she is still hard at work on new movies. At only 80 years old, I think we will continue seeing her for a while. And if you are in Hollywood, look for her star on the Walk of Fame, next to Bruce and Laura's. In 2010, they were the first family to be awarded stars together.

Hugo - Will It Become a Classic?

2011-12-27T14:04:00.000-05:00

Well, I saw my very first 3D movie last weekend...at least since The Three Stooges released a few in the 1950s to be viewed with red/blue glasses. We saw Hugo (2011) at a Regal Cinema, and we enjoyed the movie very much. But not everything about it.

The best part was that we went on a Sunday evening, with Monday being a school day. There were, maybe, ten people in the theater. No one was talking, no one was texting. And there were also no employees anywhere to be seen. We got tickets at the box office (one person), bought popcorn (two people), and saw no others working. There was no one to take our tickets as we walked down the looooong corridor to theater #6 (of 24). I guess you can skip buying a ticket on Sunday nights, but you didn't hear that from me.

The first disappointment was the insane number of ads and previews. The movie was listed as starting at 7:25 p.m., but the titles did not roll until 7:45. The 2D ads ended at 7:25 and the 3D previews started then. After the previews there was an announcement to come even earlier to see more previews, but we won't rush to the theater next time.

Hugo is a wonderful story that takes place around 1930, and it includes a history lesson on early cinema that will make it a favorite of film buffs. Georges Melies (1861 - 1938) figures prominently in the film, played by Ben Kingsley (b. 1943). Much has been written about Hugo already, so I won't bore you with details or give away the plot. These are just a few thoughts about the experience.

The story hinges on an automaton that is being repaired by a young, orphaned boy. As a young boy, I used to frequent The Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, where they have an automaton (probably built before 1800) very similar to the one in Hugo. In fact, the one at the F.I. was part of the inspiration for Brian Selznick's book, The Invention of Hugo Cabret, on which the movie is based.

Franklin Institute Automaton

In the movie, after the machine started working again, it wrote down the name of it's creator, which was previously unknown. When the F.I. received theirs in 1928, it had been damaged in a fire and also had to be repaired. The automaton at the F.I. was mis-identified as being built by a French inventor named Maelzel. After its repair, it also wrote the name of its creator, Henri Maillardet, and the mystery of who built it was solved.

As far as the movie, I loved the story and I loved the acting. Everyone was perfectly cast and did their job well. So what was wrong?

The effects were over the top. This seems to be the way things are going. As with Spooks and Pardon My Backfire, both from 1953 with The Three Stooges, the 3D effects are sometimes used just because they can. The opening scene has us flying through the train station, between people and things and through clocks, and it sets you up right from the start. There is no reason to have so many overhead shots with the camera pointing straight down.

If you stay for the credits (and I usually do) you will find 436 names under the heading Visual Effects Artists. That includes matte painters, computer graphics people, animators, plus all of their coordinators, supervisors and managers. I know its a big job, but that's a bit much. I wonder how much of the $170,000,000 budget went to them.

Also, the use of hand held cameras to add instability to some scenes is not appreciated (by me). I had vertigo last winter after a fall on the ice, and it was not pleasant. Why has that become a standard in every new film with some action scene? Is Steadicam so expensive to use?

All that being said, I will buy Hugo for my film library. The story is simply that good. Go to the theater and see it in 3D if you haven't already. It is an experience. Will it become a "Classic Movie?" Who knows. That's not up to me. I didn't like The Polar Express (2004), but that is being shown every Christmas.

Below is a link to an article written by Richard Bann for the Laurel and Hardy web site. He speaks about Hugo and Georges Melies in answer to someone's question about Stan Laurel embracing magic in his films. I always enjoy reading items by Dick Bann, who has written several books on classic movies.

The link is not easy to navigate. Go to http://www.laurel-and-hardy.com/ and click on 'Did You Know' on the left side of the page. Then, click on 'Ask Lois' at the top. There is no way to give you a direct link...sorry. Lois Laurel-Hawes is Stan's daughter. Next, scroll down the page to the question from John Raynor, which is not too far down. If you can find it, I hope you enjoy it. And spend some time on that web site. It is also worth the trouble.

Christmas Gifts

2011-12-20T13:20:00.000-05:00

Christmas 2011 is almost here. I was thinking about the many gifts we have that keep us happily entertained all year long. Here are some of the things I am thankful for having.

First, for my loving wife who is enjoying classic movies with me. She has learned a lot about these old films, and guess what, she really likes them! She has found favorites in Bette Davis, Fred and Ginger, Busby Berkeley, William Powell and many others, and is fast becoming a Barbara Stanwyck fan. She even likes old Sherlock Holmes films. More than once she has come home from Costco with a collection of classic movies on DVD, and she is currently reading the biography of Siegmund Lubin.

Turner Classic Movies. One of the best gifts we have is TCM. And not just for the wonderful, seemingly never ending, list of movies they broadcast. Yesterday morning, as a filler between movies on TCM they showed the faces of all the actors and actresses who passed away during 2011. It was a true tribute to them all. And not just the big stars like Elizabeth Taylor, James Arness, Peter Falk, Jackie Cooper and Harry Morgan, but ten names of lesser known people for every name you know.

TCM also shows some wonderful one and two reelers as fillers. Old newsreels, travelogues and comedy shorts added between films make you feel like you are back in the old days at the theater. I just saw a clip of Mario Lanza from The Great Caruso (1951) singing Ave Maria. It was obviously shown in theaters as a holiday treat between shorts and feature films back in the day.

TCM has also given us Robert Osborne, one of the most knowledgeable movie historians on TV. I know that TCM has a research department second to none and they give Mr. Osborne much of his material, but he will probably forget more about classic films than I will ever know. He interviews stars, and hosts films in the Hollywood Essentials series with various stars who add their own insight. Every film intro includes something I don't know, and that only enhances the experience.

The IMDb and TCM web sites are two valuable resources for any film buff. How can these things be free?!? They have more information than you could ever want, and I find myself absorbed in them almost every day. A wonderful gift to us all, if you ask me.

One of my favorite things is the Encore Western channel. Almost every night I can see "Have Gun, Will Travel" and "Gunsmoke" plus some great movies. They will be showing Apache (1954) starring Burt Lancaster tonight. What a great way to watch good TV without having to think too much.

While I am talking about TV, let's not forget FiOS. We switched from old metal cable to a fibre optic system as soon as it was available in our area. What better way to send great old movies, than to speed them on as light. The quality is very good, the DVR is a great invention, and it is so versatile to use. If I see that a movie is going to be on, I can set up the DVR to record it from any computer on the Internet.

Movie Blogs are also on my grateful list. I started blogging almost two years ago because there wasn't much being written about Bit Actors. It seems to be catching on, and hits on my blog are gradually increasing every month. I have also met some wonderful friends here, though not in the flesh. Bloggers are located all over the world, so it doesn't matter much where you are, we can be friends. And groups like the Classic Movie Blog Association keep us together.

I am going to replace my old desktop computer in January, so that should give me more flexibility to capture content, and have pictures and maybe film clips available. Who knows, maybe an HDTV and Blu-ray are in my future.

I am hoping for the new Laurel & Hardy: The Essential Collection DVD set and a bottle of good Scotch for Christmas. Simple pleasures for a simple mind. And if I don't get a chance later, I hope your holiday season is as happy as it can be, and it is filled with classic films.

Thurl Ravenscroft, Dramatic Basso Profondo

2011-12-14T13:57:00.000-05:00

I am always fascinated by a good voice. Some of my all time favs in the movies are the great voices of Basil Rathbone (1892 - 1967) and Andy Devine (1905 - 1977). Right up there with them is Thurl Ravenscroft (1914 - 2005), a name not well known, but an unmistakable voice that probably hundreds of millions of people have heard, mostly without knowing it. He is as famous for uncredited roles as Marnie Nixon (b. 1930) is for all of her ghost singing in major musicals.

While not strictly an actor, Thurl was a singer and voice artist in more than 50 titles from 1940 to 1998. Most frequently he worked for Walt Disney...in animated films and shorts, and also as a voice heard at the Disney theme parks.

Some of his early work was in Looney Tunes, working with Mel Blanc (1908 - 1989). By the way, Blanc has over 1,000 titles listed on IMDb! Thurl's first live action film was a comedy called Puddin' Head (1941) starring Judy Canova (1913 - 1983) where he was a singer in the Sportsman Quartet. He also appears in Lost Canyon (9142) with William 'Hopalong Cassidy' Boyd.

In the late 1940s he starts a singing group called The Mellomen. They worked in films and provided backup for singers as diverse as Bing Crosby, Elvis Presley and Arlo Guthrie, not to mention Spike Jones. You can hear Ravenscroft and The Mellomen in Cinderella (1950), Alice in Wonderland (1951) and Peter Pan (1953).

In 1954 The Mellomen appear in The Glenn Miller Story with James Stewart. He was also the singing voice for Stewpot, played by Ken Clark, in South Pacific (1958).

Back to Disney animated features Sleeping Beauty (1959), 101 Dalmatians (1961) and The Sword in the Stone (1963). Also in 1963 he appears with Elvis in It Happened at the World's Fair.

I am not sure I have heard this, but he is listed as a voice singing in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969). I'll have to dig that one out and listen more closely. And more Disney features, The AristoCats (1970) and The Many Adventures of Whinnie the Pooh (1977).

So the next time you find yourself at Disneyland or Walt Disney World, listen for Thurl's voice in everything! The Tiki Room, Pirates of the Caribbean, as the lead singer in The Haunted Mansion song Grim, Grinning Ghosts, and calling 'All Aboard' at every train station.

This time of year, you can't go more than a few feet from a radio without hearing Thurl singing You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch! from the 1966 TV short "How the Grinch Stole Christmas!" And his most famous part, also uncredited, is as Tony the Tiger for all the commercials for Frosted Flakes cereal. I told you that you knew him! He was Grrrrreat!

Margo Martindale

2011-12-02T14:43:00.001-05:00

It occurs to me, from time to time, that most of what is written about Hollywood is about actors. I have written about many actors, and very few actresses. I should spend more time with actresses, or rather writing about them.

I was rambling through IMDb, as I am prone to do, and came across Days of Thunder (1990), The Rocketeer (1991), The Firm (1993), and Sabrina (1995). An odd selection of movies that are somehow similar in quality. Not great movies, but good movies. And all have Margo Martindale (b. 1951) in perfect Bit Parts. She has speaking lines in all of them, but not a major role in any.

Honestly, I don't remember her in her first film, Days of Thunder. It was a racing movie with Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman. Margo's part must have been very small. Her next time on the big screen was The Rocketeer, that I wrote about a few days ago. She played Millie the waitress, and was perfectly cast. She looks like a waitress.

She had a better part in Lorenzo's Oil (1992) and a better starring cast with Nick Nolte and Susan Sarandon. Then, Nobody's Fool (1994) with Paul Newman, and Sabrina (the remake in 1995) with Harrison Ford. It is interesting to see that she made multiple movies with many of the big names, which means she must be in demand. Four with Nicole Kidman, three with Susan Sarandon, two with Meryl Streep, two starring Tom Cruise, etc.

Forward a few years to Practical Magic (1998) with Sandra Bullock and Kidman again. Here she played a housewife who is a non-believer in magic, but comes around in the end. In 2002 Margo has a small role in The Hours, but that movie stars Meryl Streep (and Kidman again), and anything with Meryl Streep has got to be good. I haven't seen The Hours, but it should be on my list.

Million Dollar Baby (2004) a boxing film about a woman (Hilary Swank) and her trainer, Clint Eastwood. That movie won four Oscars. And more recently you can see Margo in Hannah Montana: The Movie (2009) if you really want to, and Secretariat (2010).

She also worked on television in several movies and had regular roles on "100 Centre Street," "The Riches," "Dexter," "Mercy," "Justified," and "A Gifted Man."

A slight Texas twang in her voice and a presence on screen that just makes you love her. Margo Martindale is a perfect Bit Actress. You'll recognize her every time you see her.

Roy Roberts - Another Familiar Face

2011-11-28T12:20:00.001-05:00

I happened to catch Chinatown (1974) on TV this past holiday weekend. This is a great Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway movie, made in the style of a 1930's murder mystery. Lots of twists and turns to keep you thinking. More movies should be made this way. It is easy to watch.

I also saw the new Green Hornet (2011) movie, starring Seth Rogan. It is the very antithesis of what could be called a classic film. Rogan is severely mis-cast as the hero. He would look more at home remaking Animal House (1978). Plus the quick cuts in every action sequence makes it impossible to follow which car is being wrecked and who is being injured/killed. Don't waste your time on that one.

Back to Chinatown. Early in the film Mayor Bagby is talking about a reservoir project, and I knew I had to write about him. Roy Roberts (1906 - 1975) is a face that everyone who has ever watched TV or been to the theater has seen.

Chinatown was his second to last film. He ended his movie career in 1975's The Strongest Man in the World, starring Kurt Russell. (Chinatown was better with ten Oscar nominations and a win for Best Writer, compared to Strongest's no Oscars or nominations for anything.) The funny thing is that he was 68 years old when he made Chinatown, but he looked the same at least ten years earlier as Admiral Rogers on "McHale's Navy."

Roberts' first major film was Guadalcanal Diary (1943) starring Preston Foster, Lloyd Nolan, and William Bendix. Of course, there were loads of war movies turned out in the 1940s, and Roy was in many of them. His next film was The Fighting Sullivans (1944).

In 1946 he was in My Darling Clementine as the mayor. It was his only time working with director John Ford. Before moving to television, he made so many films with so many stars that it would be difficult to pick the best, or even to do enough research to find his larger parts. He lists close to 200 titles on IMDb.

Here are just a few pre-TV titles -

Gentleman's Agreement (1947 with Gregory Peck)

Captain from Castile (1947 with Tyrone Power)

Joan of Arc (1948 with Ingrid Bergman)
He Walked by Night (1948 with Richard Basehart)
Force of Evil (1948 with John Garfield)
Chain Lightning (1950 with Humphrey Bogart)
Skirts Ahoy! (1952 with Esther WIlliams)
Stars and Stripes Forever (1952 with Clifton Webb)

And so many more...

It was interesting that he could go from a co-starring role in one film to an uncredited role in his next. A true sign of a great Bit Actor.

Roberts' television work started in the early 1950s and it agreed with him. His first regular role was "My Little Margie" but he appeared as a player in many shows before that. He did teleplays and spots on series' but rarely more than three times.

He hit it big as Captain Huxley on "The Gale Storm Show" appearing in over 80 episodes. He went on to have regular parts on "McHale's Navy," "The Beverly Hillbillies," "The Lucy Show," "Bewitched," Petticoat Junction," and "Gunsmoke." I also saw him in a "Gunsmoke" episode this weekend.

I think we will be seeing Roy Roberts' face for many years to some.

What films did you watch over the Thanksgiving weekend? And which Bit Actors did you see?

Laurel and Hardy New Release!

2011-11-15T12:48:00.001-05:00

Last month a new collection of sound Laurel and Hardy films was released by Vivendi Entertainment. Laurel & Hardy The Essential Collection includes all of the boys talkie shorts and many of the Hal Roach feature films. Missing are silent films and the later 20th Century Fox films.

I bumped into a great write up by one of my heroes, Leonard Maltin on the MovieFanFare blog, which is part of Movies Unlimited. I would be lost without Maltin's Movie Guide.

I have written several times about The Boys, and also about Richard Bann, who was instrumental in bringing the collection out. Dick Bann was also heavily involved with the restoration of these films through the efforts of UCLA Film Preservation. Since Dick is one of the most knowledgeable film historians in this area, he was able to guide the restoration of all of these films to include the original logos and titles.

Many original 35mm prints were recovered, and the quality of these films (which I have not yet seen) is supposed to be incredible.

My love of Laurel and Hardy goes back to my youth, watching them at The Keswick Theatre in Glenside, PA on Saturday afternoons. I also watched them on our old RCA 12" black and white television in the 1950s and 1960s.

Then, in the later 1970s, I joined The Sons of the Desert, the international Laurel and Hardy appreciation society. Now I could watch the films at meetings in 16mm prints on a large screen. Many of those prints were rather poor dupes, though, so the quality was hit or miss. The movies were always great! One meeting was held at the Keswick, and we were able to rent a 35mm print. That was a treat, especially because I was in the projection booth that night.

Some of the films started being released on video tape and then on DVD. But these were usually made from the old television prints, and again, quality suffered, as well as content. The television versions were not the same as the theatrical releases, but that's all that was available.

Dick and others have also recorded commentary tracks for some of the films, and there are also quite a few special features included to make this collection a must-have.

I suggest that you first read Dick Bann's article on the official Laurel and Hardy web site, and also check out the UCLA Film Preservation site. Just click on my links. Make a donation to UCLA, then write down the "Laurel & Hardy The Essential Collection" on your holiday wish list. Santa may be kind to you. I am hoping he is to me!

Eddie Jones and The Rocketeer

2011-11-11T12:29:00.001-05:00

I watched The Rocketeer (1991) the other day. It is a movie my kids always liked, and it has some great nostalgia mixed in to a comic book story about an aerobatic pilot in the late 1930s who finds a rocket pack and flies off to save his girlfriend and the world from the Nazis. It may not appeal to everyone, but I never met a movie I didn't like.

If you are a classic film buff and haven't seen this film, it is worth the time. You will no doubt recognize a character made up to look like The Hoxton Creeper from the Basil Rathbone/Nigel Bruce Sherlock Holmes film, The Pearl of Death (1944). The Creeper was played by Rondo Hatton (1894 - 1946) and he reprised the role in House of Horrors, released in 1946.

Hatton made only 22 films before a fatal heart attack took him. His appearance, that garnered him the role in Pearl, was due to the disease acromegaly, which disfigured him into the Creeper. It is thought that Abraham Lincoln, and another Bit Actor named Andre the Giant (1946 - 1993), also suffered from acromegaly.

In The Rocketeer, the Creeper part was called Lothar and was played by 7' tall Tiny Ron. Ron has only 19 titles listed on IMDb. But I think there will always be roles for a 7' Bit Actor!

A face you will probably recognize, but may not know the name, is Eddie Jones (b. 1937). Jones played Malcom, who worked at the airfield and helped at the air shows. A year later he played Marla Hootch's father in A League of Their Own.

Jones stared out in acting slowly, but kept up a good pace. He is in Trading Places (with Eddie Murphy and Dan Aykroyd) in 1983 as Cop #3. He had recurring roles on television in "The Equalizer" and "Dark Shadows," and later as Jonathan Kent on "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman." He had a regular part in "The Invisible Man."

On the big screen you can see Eddie in Cadillac Man (1990), The Grifters (1990), and Seabiscuit (2003) among many others. At 75 years old, he is still acting.

The only other thing I want to mention is the music of The Rocketeer. It is fabulous. Of special note is the torch singer, played by Melora Hardin (b. 1967) at the South Seas Club. She isn't listed in IMDb as a singer per se, so I am not sure it is her voice, but it was perfect. I wish there were still clubs like that.

As far as the stars of The Rocketeer, I think they may have taken it a bit too seriously. Timothy Dalton (b. 1944) especially. But I think Dalton always takes his roles too seriously. Terry O'Quinn (b.1952) played Howard Hughes, and he was very good in the part, even though it was very small.

If you haven't seen it, SEE IT!

Back from Vaca at Walt Disney World

2011-11-03T13:30:00.002-04:00

Yes, this is a blog about Bit Part Actors, but I just spent a week with a full cast of the best actors and actresses on the planet. The cast members at Walt Disney World.

Everyone (if you know anything about Disney) knows that all of the employees of the Disney organization are called "cast members." You don't apply for a job there, you audition for a part, and hey don't wear uniforms, they are costumes, etc. Each ride is a "show" and they follow a script.

We spent five days and four nights at Disney's Caribbean Beach Resort. Highly recommended for a relaxing atmosphere that is needed after a day at one of the theme parks. And the combination of going in October, plus a AAA discount, made our trip quite affordable. Think about this...the room at a Disney moderate resort (they have value, moderate and premium), a day in a theme park (usually about $85), and the Disney Dining Plan that paid for almost all of our food, was only about $100 per person/per day.

We spent a day at the Food and Wine Festival in Epcot. Held in the fall, the festival includes many extra-cost demonstrations, some concerts, and booths scattered around the park where you can buy samples of food and drink from different countries. I was very happy there!

While at Epcot, we visited the Mexico exhibit. I am amazed every time I walk in there. Inside, no matter how hot and bright the day is, you are brought OUTSIDE at night, to a Mexican plaza with shopping stalls and a restaurant. It is fun! They also have a short boat ride. Please be careful stepping into your boat...

The ride is basically a travelogue of Mexico, and it stars Donald Duck, Jose Carioca, and Pancito, from the 1944 Disney animated feature, The Three Caballeros. This feature was very similar to a 1942 feature, Saludos Amigos, featuring Donald and Jose. These travelogues were made to bolster our ties with South America during World War II.

Of course, Donald Duck was voiced by Clarence 'Ducky' Nash (1904 - 1985). Ducky would usually walk around with his Donald marionette and let Donald speak for him. Nash had quite a career for basically only playing a single role...but who among us wouldn't have done the same thing, given the chance?

IMDb lists 188 titles for Nash, plus 7 more as himself. In addition to Donald, he also voice Donald's nephews a few times, plus a bat, a bullfrog, Figaro in Figaro and Cleo (1943) and a sequel, and that's about it from 1934 to 1983.

In my collection I have The Reluctant Dragon (1942) which was released as a DVD titled Behind the Scenes at the Walt Disney Studios starring Robert Benchley (1889 - 1945). It is a priceless look at how things were done to create the wonderful animated features we grew up with. Ducky Nash is featured recording a scene as Donald with Clara Cluck, voiced by Florence Gill (1877 - 1965).

What fun! I can't wait to go back. Maybe next fall, as long as the economy keeps the prices down!

Buster Keaton

2011-10-18T13:41:00.001-04:00

There are many names that shine when you think of silent movies. Buster Keaton (1895 - 1966) is certainly one of them. But he was not always a star. In fact, his star shown brightest for only a few years in his long acting career of over 150 titles.

Keaton started acting at age three in his parents' vaudeville act, along with partner Harry Houdini (1974 - 1926). From what I have read, it was a tough act for Buster, who was physically mistreated on stage in the act, in search of laughs. He took all the punishment, and always came up with his stone face in the end. A trait he never lost. His father's problem with alcohol finally ended the act, and I hope it was before Buster was seriously injured.

His first small part in film was The Gangsters in 1913 (of course, everything in 1913 was a small part), and he started in a movie career in 1917. His friendship with Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle (1887 - 1933) would last through over 20 films together.

Keaton took second billing (or lower) to Fatty in many of these early films. But he also was a writer and director for some of them. In 1920, Keaton gets top billing in the short film, One Week. His first feature length film, The Saphead, was released the same year.

Shortly after that, Arbuckle fell into legal troubles that ended his acting career, but Buster was off and running. 1920 to 1929 would be his finest decade.

Of the best, we have The Navigator (1924), Sherlock Jr. (1924), The General (1926), and Steamboat Bill Jr. (1928). I have previously written about The General, which is considered one of the best examples of silent film. And Steamboat Bill Jr., would inspire Walt Disney to make the first Mickey Mouse talkie, Steamboat Willie, also in 1928.

In many instances, silent film stars would lose their glow with the advent of sound films. This was not the case with Buster Keaton, but he declined none-the-less. His many personal problems led to drinking. He moved to MGM, and lost his creative control, which deepened his depression.

By 1940 he was in his third marriage, this time to Eleanor Norris (1918 - 1998) who is credited with helping Buster end his drinking so he could get some work. His movie career continued, but he would never be a big star again. He had many small appearances in great films such as In the Good Old Summertime (1949), Sunset Boulevard (1950), and Limelight (1952).

After growing up watching old Buster Keaton two-reelers on television, I was pleased to see him in It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963) with the greatest comedy cast ever assembled for a movie. He belonged in that film, and even at age 68 he still had his screen charm and his ability to play a physical part.

Keaton also found some television work, but he was misplaced in Beach Blanket Bingo and How to Stuff a Wild Bikini, both in 1965 with Annette Funicello. His final film was A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1966) starring Zero Mostel, Phil Silvers and Buster Keaton.

Keaton's huge house in Hollywood was purchased by James Mason, and Mason found a treasure trove of Buster's old nitrate films in a hidden closet. Luckily Mason knew these films were important and he made sure they were preserved for us to enjoy.

That's quite a story about one of the greatest silent movie stars, who became a wonderful Bit Actor.

Buckaroo Banzai

2011-10-10T13:40:00.001-04:00

And the full title is The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension (1984). BB has become a cult movie over the years. In my opinion, it is because the cast was amazing, creative, and uninhibited.

Most of the cast of BB were Bit Actors at the time. Some went on to become much bigger stars, and many were chosen because they were unknown. It is Peter Weller's (b. 1947) fifth movie, and was made before Robocop (1987). Jeff Goldblum (b. 1952), John Lithgow (b. 1945) and Christopher Lloyd (b. 1939) each had a few more films under their belt, but were not yet household names.

I guess the first read of the script of BB, before auditioning for a part, would scare away any A list star. Here we have a neurosurgeon/physicist who is also a test car driver and has a rock band (and no time for much else, I imagine), trying to prove that his overthruster will allow him to drive through a mountain. I can't see Harrison Ford (b. 1942) jumping at that role. And did I mention, all the bad guys in the movie are named John, and the good guys are all Hong Kong Cavaliers.

Ellen Barkin (b. 1954) is the love interest, Penny Priddy. Barkin has had a few good roles, including The Big Easy (1986) and Ocean's Thirteen (2007), and she has won an Emmy Award. I don't put much weight on the Emmy, because I appeared in an Emmy winning documentary once!

Lewis Smith (b. 1956) only has 29 titles listed on IMDb, starting in 1981. He goes on to play Curly Bill in Wyatt Earp (1994) starring Kevin Costner, but mostly he does guest parts on television. He played Perfect Tommy, well, perfectly in BB.

Robert Ito (b. 1931) has always been one of my favorites, ever since I got to know him as Sam on "Quincy M.E." starring Jack Klugman (b. 1922). Ito has 129 titles listed now, but his career started a while ago. His first movie was Women of the Prehistoric Planet (1966) starring Wendell Corey (1914 - 1968). I think Wendell should have his own entry in my blog someday. Corey may be best known as Det. Lt. Doyle in Rear Window (1954, and one of my favorite films), but his career ended after he appeared in The Astro-Zombies (1968).

Just a few more names...Vincent Schiavelli (1948 - 2005) is another John (but he already looks like an alien), and Yakov Smirnoff (b. 1951) plays the National Security Advisor, of course. The full cast list is long and distinguished!

The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension is a complex film that requires some minor understanding of physics to at least get some of the theory, and a quick wit to get all of the inside jokes among the more obvious ones. It is a film that must be seen more than once to fully enjoy it. But if you are trying to make sense out of it, you may have to see it many more times.

The Big House and Chester Morris

2011-09-28T13:29:00.000-04:00

Sometimes I wonder how my brain works. In idle conversation last week, a friend of ours was mentioning that she didn't want a big house. That got me thinking about the 1930 gangster movie, The Big House, starring Chester Morris (1901 - 1970) and Wallace Beery (1885 - 1949). Now you are probably wondering how my brain works.

I haven't seen The Big House in quite some time, but I remember the movie as being quite gritty, almost artsy in the filming. Early talkies had less than optimal sound and that added to the dark feel of the film, and the hopelessness of being in prison.

Chester Morris started acting on the stage and made a few silent films from 1917 to 1925. His first talkie was Alibi in 1929, and he had the starring role. He was also nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor in that film. He was now off on a movie career as a star.

The Big House was the next year, and it was also a big hit. Morris played many gangsters and detectives in the decade of the 1930s, co-starring with a fine bunch of popular stars. By 1940, he was losing his stardom, and I think we could categorize him as a very popular Bit Actor from that time on.

The next decade saw him in B-movies, including a series of Columbia films where he played Boston Blackie. I believe they made 14 Blackie films in the 1940s, and this is where Morris is best remembered. I should take a closer look at the full cast of these films, because they are one of the best sources for great Bit Actors.

Boston Blackie's Chinese Venture (1949) was his last in the series. It starred Morris and Richard Lane (1899 - 1982) as Insp. Farraday. This would also be Morris' last movie in a starring role.

The 1950s brought television, and Morris was seduced by the dark side. In fact, I only counted three movies on IMDb from 1950 to 1970 for him. The rest was TV. I am sure his name was remembered by the new television audience, so this was probably a good move for him.. His movie career hadn't made him another Bogart or Cagney, and television was rapidly taking over the leisure time of the new bunch of younger viewers. (Including me.)

Morris shows up in many of the teleplays that were popular in the 1950s. Shows like "Omnibus," "The Phillip Morris Playhouse," "Studio One in Hollywood," "Playhouse 90," and "The United States Steel Hour."

The 1960s brought many new series' to TV, and Chester obliged by appearing in "Rawhide," "Naked City," "Route 66," "Suspense," and "Dr. Kildare." I am amazed that Morris was able to shape his career so neatly into decades!

His final role was a movie, The Great White Hope (1970) starring James Earl Jones (b. 1931) in his fourth film. Chester Morris passed away in 1970, a victim of an intentional overdose while he was suffering from cancer. His death took place in New Hope, PA, which is not too far from where I live.

I wonder if he knew how much pleasure he brought to his fans over the years? I certainly hope so.

Andrew Duggan

2011-09-21T14:12:00.000-04:00

I happened on a broadcast of "Cheyenne" on Encore Westerns the other day, and decided to watch it. I instantly recognized Andrew Duggan (1923 - 1988) as the villain, so here he is. The episode was called "The Angry Sky" from 1958, and Duggan played a judge who was also trying to be a great criminal. Good old Cheyenne Bodie, played by Clint Walker (b. 1927) figured it out in no time.

After some work on Broadway, Duggan started his screen acting career in teleplays in 1949. I would say that he was best known as a guest star on over 100 TV shows. He appeared on "Cheyenne" at least six times, but he also worked on the big screen. He has 174 titles listed on IMDb, so let's look at some highlights.

His first movie was Patterns (1956) starring Van Heflin (1910 - 1971) and written by Rod Serling (1924 - 1975). It appears that his early films were mostly B movies with stars like Randolph Scott (1898 - 1987) and Rory Calhoun (1922 - 1999). In 1958 he is in The Bravados starring Gregory Peck.

In 1959 he got his own TV series, "Bourban Street Beat" that lasted only one season. Still, it was top billing. Along at this time, he is listed as the trailer narrator for several films, including Whatever Happened to Baby Jane (1962). After Bourbon was cancelled, one of it's spin offs, "77 Sunset Strip," provided Duggan with some guest work. He also was the narrator for PT 109 in 1963.

A bigger hit for Duggan was Seven Days in May (1964) starring Burt Lancaster and Kirk Douglas. Later in the 1960s he had a recurring role as Brig. General Ed Britt in "12 O'Clock High."

After playing many high ranking military officials, Duggan finally gets to play the president in James Coburn's spy spoof, In Like Flint (1967). 1969 brought his last starring TV role in "Lancer." In 1971 he played John Walton in the TV movie, "The Waltons" before it was made into the popular series.

Speaking of presidents, Duggan played Dwight D. Eisenhower in "Tail Gunner Joe" (1977), Lyndon B. Johnson in The Private Files of J. Edgar Hoover (1977), an unnamed president in "A Fire in the Sky" (1978), President Eisenhower again in a TV mini-series "Backstairs at the White House" (1979), and Eisenhower again in his final television role in "J. Edgar Hoover" (1987).

Somewhere in there he appeared on "M*A*S*H" as Margaret Houlihan's father, Col. Alvin 'Howitzer' Houlihan, and as a character called 'Hacksaw' on "Charlie's Angels."

Andrew Duggan's final movie was A Return to Salem's Lot (1987), which was not rated very good on IMDb. All in all, I think he had a great career with a lot of varied work. Although never a big star, he certainly qualifies as a great Bit Actor. We can even forgive him for mistakes like Frankenstein's Island (1981)!

Virginia Davis and Walt Disney

2011-09-13T14:08:00.002-04:00

I started thinking about early Walt Disney (1901 - 1966) live action films and took a look at IMDb. Well, Disney produced over 650 films, mostly shorts and most of the early films were animated. With no easy way to figure out which were live action, I decided to continue looking at other resources.

On Wikipedia I found that Disney's first successful cartoon series' were the Alice Comedies. Starting with the 1923 silent short, Alice's Wonderland. These films included live action and animation. Alice was originally played by Virginia Davis (1918 - 2009). Walt himself, and Virginia's mother Margaret Davis also appeared in the film. Also included in the film is Ub Iwerks (1901 - 1971), the legendary animator of the Disney Studios, and co-creator of Mickey Mouse (b. 1927).

There were about 57 entries in the Alice series. and they were made during Disney's move from Kansas City to California. Virginia moved with the studio, to help Margaret's ambitious hopes for her daughter.

Virginia worked in 15 of the Alice Comedies, and also in a few more silents with Ronald Coleman (1891 - 1958) and Harry Carey (1878 - 1947). In 1932 she appears in Three on a Match, with a young Bette Davis (1908 - 1989) and Joan Blondell (1906 - 1979), and also Humphrey Bogart (1899 - 1957). She plays Blondell's character when she was young.

Virginia went on to a few more uncredited roles before giving up acting. Notably, she was in: College Holiday (1936) with Jack Benny, George Burns and Gracie Allen; You'll Never Get Rich (1941) starring Fred Astaire (1899 - 1987) the year before he made Holiday Inn; a couple of Betty Grable (1916 - 1973) films; and her final film was The Harvey Girls (1946) starring Judy Garland.

Wikipedia credits her with several films that don't appear in IMDb, and I have no way of checking those listed. If you see Virginia Davis in Flying Down to Rio (1933), please let me know.

After leaving Hollywood, Virginia eventually started a career as a realtor in the mid-west, and ended up selling homes back in California. She was later sought out by Disney fans and regained more popularity than she had when she was making films. That must always be a shock to actors who thought they left their old career in the dust.

She certainly qualifies as a Bit Actress, and I would say a successful one, even with a short career spanning just 18 years and 28 films. She helped make Walt Disney a household name.

Don't Think Twice, It's Bob Dylan

2011-09-02T15:11:00.000-04:00

Labor Day weekend is upon us. I am not sure where I'll be or what we will be doing for the next few days, so here I am, writing. I found a new, free music service on the Internet called Spotify. It has a few ads, but it isn't very intrusive. What I like is the ability to search and easily create playlists that are saved in the cloud. You can then retrieve the same playlists on any computer.

Music is integral to movies, and could be considered a Bit Actor of sorts (I guess). Well, maybe that's stretching it a bit, but this is my blog and one song has grabbed my attention.

I heard the Bob Dylan song "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right" and wondered how many versions are available by different artists. I counted over 65 different recordings, but they didn't have one on Spotify by Dylan, who wrote the words. I heard quite a few who tried to sound like him, though.

The song came to my attention years ago because I used to listen to Peter, Paul and Mary a lot. I met all three of them several times. Nice folks. They had a big hit with the song, which went to #9 on the charts.

Some of the versions I heard today (I have been listening to the same song for over three hours) are truly terrible. Many are by folk singers and they tend to all sound the same. Elvis Presley recorded it. I am currently listening to it sung by Shinji Tonomura in Japanese (I think).

If you try this, watch out for karaoke versions. It seems the same version is released on multiple karaoke albums, so they all sound exactly the same. Feel free to sing along.

The absolute best version out there is by The Wonder Who. As a joke, Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons did a rock'n'roll version of DTT,IAR in 1965, but they didn't use their real name. It was such a hit that it reached #12 on the charts!

Let's look at the history. Bob Dylan (b. 1941) wrote it down in 1962 and released it in 1963. The melody was taught to him by (or stolen from) a folksinger named Paul Clayton (1931 - 1967) who was popular in the Greenwich Village scene. Clayton called the song, "Who's Gonna Buy You Ribbons When I'm Gone?" Dylan and Clayton both had recording contracts and their record companies fought out lawsuits over the song, but the two artists remained friends.

The melody is actually from an older folk song called, "Who's Gonna Buy You Chickens When I'm Gone?" and that one is in the public domain. I love that title!

As far as the movie connection, so I can stay somewhat on topic... According to Wikipedia, the song was used in Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid (1973). Then Bob Dylan made a four hour long movie called Renaldo and Clara (1978). It was used in other Dylan films, Hearts of Fire (1987) and Masked and Anonymous (2003). In 2007 it is in I'm Not There, a bio/musical with Dylan influence. Plus you will hear it in countless documentaries about Dylan and the era that brought music of the same genre.

Bob Dylan had numerous other songs recorded for soundtrack use, and he appears in six movies and a TV movie. He is heard on well over 300 soundtracks.

There was also a movie released in 1999 called Don't Think Twice, that has nothing to do with the song or Dylan.

I am approaching six hours of listening to the same song. They are playing in artist first name order. I'm still waiting for the Ts to play so I can hear The Four Seasons version. I'm up to Steel Train, whoever that is. It must be like a movie marathon...I'm not tired of hearing it!

Have a great holiday weekend!