Classic Cinema Online blog

Award Winning Film to be re-released on DVD February 8

2011-01-28T20:49:00.005-07:00

America America

This is the story of film Director Elia Kazan's uncle, who emigrated to America from Turkey in the late 1800's.

This film should give all Americans an appreciation for the hardships that so many immigrants have endured in their quest to escape the injustices of their home land to make it - legally - to the shores of America.

Stavros Topouzoglou (Stathis Giallelis) was a Greek man, born in Turkey, who faced many challenges on his way to America. With his family's blessing and their entire meager wealth, they send him on his way to Constantinople so that he would board a ship to America with the intent that he would work to bring his family to America to join him.

Things didn't go quite as planned, though - along the way he picks up a rather annoying sidekick who takes him for all he's got. Despite this, he struggles to find a way to make his destination - without his father's knowledge of his having been cheated and robbed, facing one misfortune after another.

Eventually making it to Constantinople, he meets up with his cousin who tries to help him, but the strong willed Stavros has his own ideas, which lead him into a little trouble. While in Constantinople, he has his first sexual encounter with a woman, and later takes a wife who's low self esteem basically ruins their wedding night.

Stavros is still determined to beat all odds to get to America, though -- some of his experiences are angering while others are laughable, but they all make this film worth watching repeatedly.

An interesting note about this film: It was filmed on location in Greece and Turkey, and Kazan opted to use lessor known actors rather than well known stars in this production. These tidbits really give the film an authenticity that it would not have otherwise had, and I think makes the film that much more interesting. One thing is certain, the scenery is gorgeous!

America America won an Academy Award for Best Art Direction - set decoration, black and white in 1964 and two Golden Globes for Best Director and Most Promising Newcomer Male in 1964, and was selected for preservation in the US National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

Director Kazan (A Streetcar Named Desire, East of Eden) was the recipient of the coveted Lifetime Acheivement Oscar and is renowned as one of the most honored and influential directors in Broadway and Hollywood history, having netted a total of 20 Academy Awards and multiple nominations plus three Tony Awards for Best Director.

Born in what is known today as Istanbul, Turkey (then, Constantinople, of the Ottoman Empire), Elias Kazanjoglou passed away in New York City just after his 94th birthday in 2003.

You can purchase this wonderfully intriguing DVD, which arrives February 8, at the Warner Brothers shop.

IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT: Classic Cinema Online does not sell DVDs

2011-01-04T16:43:00.000-07:00

Dear viewers;

Over the last few weeks Classic Cinema Online has received numerous emails from people wanting to know why they haven't received the DVDs they ordered, or complaining about the quality of their purchase.

I would like to assure everyone that Classic Cinema Online does not sell DVDs, but apparently people are purchasing DVDs from a company that they think is Classic Cinema Online.

I strongly advise anyone who has purchased DVDs through any company that they think was Classic Cinema Online that they first and foremost report their purchase to their bank or credit card company IMMEDIATELY.

Your billing statement may cite Classic Cinema Movies, Film-Classic Movies, Film Classics, Nocturnal Pictures, or even Marquee Video.

After reporting this to your bank, you might want to also contact your local authorities - police or DA - and report the fraud. You might also contact the FBI - they deal with bootleg items and copyright infringement.

Meanwhile, if anyone visits any website that offers DVDs for sale through a link they found on Classic Cinema Online, please make note of that website address and email it to me. You may use the contact form located on the Classic Cinema Online website - the link is at the bottom of the page.

Apparently this "web company" changes its name often, and uses names that are very close to companies or websites that are reputable and plays on the good reputations of those companies or websites to gain their 'customers'.

Generally a non-reputable company that plays off of reputable ones will have a word different in their name, or an incorrect spelling of the name of the company you think you're doing business with. It can be misspelled by only one letter, may contain a hyphen where there normally would not be one, and so forth, so please double check the trade name of any company you are conducting business with on line to make sure you are conducting business with the company that you think you are conducting business with.

When a non-reputable entity does something like this, it's called "spoofing" and they will often use your information to make unauthorized transactions to your bank or credit card or other accounts, and may even steal your identity.

If ever Classic Cinema Online begins to sell DVDs or other products, I will initiate a press release and post an article about it on the website so that everyone knows it's legitimate.

Until then, I refer people to the Warner Brothers on line store (wbshop.com) or sometimes to Amazon.com (even though they're boycotting Classic Cinema Online because Classic Cinema Online is based in Colorado), or Mill Creek Entertainment for DVD purchases, depending on their need.

-- Sandra
Classic Cinema Online

Congratulations to our Holiday DVD winners!

2010-12-01T10:10:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Stacey Young and Charlie Zabbia, our Holiday DVD winners!

Stacey won 1st prize: Peanuts deluxe Holiday Collection BD/DVD set of 3 remastered Peanuts Holiday classics: A Charlie Brown Christmas, A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, and It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown.

Charlie won 2nd prize: 'Twas the Night Before Christmas animated holiday classic remastered deluxe edition DVD, with special features.

Enjoy the DVDs, you two, and thank you for participating!

Holiday DVD drawing

2010-11-26T11:50:00.001-07:00

You can WIN one of these two holiday DVDs!

Classic Cinema Online and Warner Brothers Entertainment are giving away these two fun holiday DVDs! Enter the drawing today for your chance to WIN!

The drawing will be held Wednesday, December 1, 2010. Two names will be drawn, each winner will receive one of these two prizes:

First Prizeis the Peanuts deluxe Holiday Collection BD/DVD set of 3 remastered Peanuts Holiday classics: A Charlie Brown Christmas, A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, and It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown.
Second Prize is 'Twas the Night Before Christmas animated holiday classic remastered deluxe edition DVD, with special features.

To enter the drawing simply send an email with your name and mailing address to classiccinemaonline.com@gmail.com; you must put "Holiday DVD drawing" in the subject line.

The drawing will take place on Wednesday, December 1, 2010, and is open to US residents only. Must be 18 or over to participate. Please read our official drawing rules for details.

Celebrating Claude Rains

2010-11-10T09:23:00.000-07:00

You enjoyed him in Casablanca, The Invisible Man, and countless other films. This versatile actor would be 121 years old if he were still with us today.

I thought I'd honor his memory with the lighthearted and whimsical "Pied Piper of Hamelin". Click the poster and enjoy!

Bargain Bin Delight - Breakfast at Tiffany's

2010-11-01T18:29:00.002-06:00

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Audrey Hepburn plays that daring, darling Holly Golightly to a new high in entertainment delight!

I found this wonderful flick in the $5 bin at WalMart, and couldn't believe it! Such a classic for only five bucks?!

And with a cast like Audrey Hepburn, George Peppard, Patricia Neal, Mickey Rooney and Buddy Ebson, what could possibly go wrong? This movie was flawless! And is it any wonder? It was directed by Blake Edwards!

As usual, Audrey Hepburn was flawless. Her acting, her grace, her poise, her natural beauty and style was always perfect - no wonder so many people adored her!

And that handsome looking co star of hers - wow! What a lovely on screen couple they made!

Holly Golightly (Audrey Hepburn) is a beautiful and somewhat eccentric young woman who loves to dress up, drink, and socialize. She's really a call girl - the original lead was supposed to go to Marilyn Monroe who turned it down because her agent thought it would be bad for her image, but the storyline was watered down quite a bit from the novel, so it wasn't really apparent that she was a call girl. Known to throw loud parties that would annoy her neighbor (Mr. Yunioshi, played by Mickey Rooney), the loveable, mixed up character was enjoyable to watch .

She and her nameless cat lived in a small apartment (How'd they get all those partiers in there?!) in New York, enjoying the heck out of themselves. Along comes a handsome new neighbor (Paul Varjack, played by George Peppard) and her life gets even more crazy! As she repeatedly fails at her attempts to land a sugar daddy, she goes from man to man hoping to "marry for money".

Paul is immediately smitten with Holly, but seems to be having some weird kind of relationship with an extremely wealthy woman whom he introduces to Holly as his "designer". Apparently she's also his publishing agent - as he's a writer.

Holly and Paul seem to get along great - like best friends. Somehow Paul reminds her of her brother Fred, with whom she is close, so she decides to call him "Fred".

The story keeps getting better - it turns out that the party girl was married at the age of 14 to some hillbilly horse doctor (Buddy Ebson - who else?) who is still smitten with her, so he looks her up in New York.

This film has some really funny moments - like the drunken woman who is laughing at herself in the mirror, then in another scene she's bawling her eyes out. And there's Mr. Yunioshi - who is always annoyed. You know, that doesn't even look like Mickey Rooney - I'd have never guessed it was him, myself, but he played the role flawlessly. That makeup job and his witty talent added an extra element to this film that I thought was delightful.

If it wasn't noise, it was the doorbell. And he'd always meet his annoying neighbors in the stairwell, glaring at them and threatening to call "the po-reece".

Cat lovers everywhere will probably become angered - there is a scene towards the end of the film where Holly and Paul are in a taxi, it's raining out, and he's getting after her because he loves her and she's fighting the feeling. So she orders the cab driver to stop the cab and she kicks the cat out of the cab and into the rain. There's a scene of the poor, soaked kitty with this confused look on his face.

Now, I like cats, myself, so this scene really got to me. I actually yelled at the screen (as if she could hear me) "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" That poor kitty! I wanted to go pick him up and feed him some Salmon.

Anyway I loved this film, and it really didn't deserve to be tossed into the $5 bin at WalMart, but I'm glad it was otherwise financially strapped people like me wouldn't have been able to enjoy it. This was a real treasure.

Go check out the $5 movie bins at your local WalMart (or other discount store) and see what treasures you can find in there. Then send me an email and tell me about it!

We love red drapes!

2010-10-21T08:56:00.002-06:00

If there is one thing about Classic Cinema Online that seems to have impressed people, it's our red drapes, which have been an important part of our theme since we began.

Traditionally, cinemas of old would have a velvet Grand Drape that was red, which is why Classic Cinema Online has red drapes. There is something about red and black together that cause black and white pictures to really stand out, and the artistic value of the colors together anyway is priceless.

Currently, Classic Cinema Online is now on it's 4th set of red drapes. Our first set is no longer in use, and our second set seems to be the most popular. That set is still in use on this blog and our MySpace page. Our third set was actually a modification of the second set and is still used on our Twitter profile, while our fourth and current set is a completely new set used in the background of Classic Cinema Online's main site. That set has been in use since about July of this year.

I've discovered that since Classic Cinema Online was first published on the web in December of 2006, over time other blogs and websites dedicated to vintage film and entertainment have also started to use red drapes in their backgrounds -- some of those sites and blogs are actually using Classic Cinema Online's second set of drapes.

I was approached about this recently and asked if I felt violated or infringed upon. No way! I'm honored that Classic Cinema Online's look is so popular!

If your "Vintage Film" or "Golden Hollywood" type of blog happens to have red drapes in the background (Which you can find in the default blogger background settings, by the way), please send me an email and I'll link to your blog or website on our links page. (Of course, the blog or website has to be Classic Cinema Online type of material to qualify for this - I won't link to sites that promote anything illegal or "adults only" oriented, for example.)

Acceptable site content would include information about vintage films, film production and stars; vintage movie posters, movie houses, vintage movie DVDs, personal memories of the movies, and so on. If it's dedicated to vintage Hollywood and has red drapes it should have no problem qualifying.

-- Sandra
Classic Cinema Online

Here's lookin' at you, Bogie

2010-10-13T17:05:00.001-06:00

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On October 5, Warner Brothers released Humphrey Bogart: The Essential Collection - a collection of 24 Bogart films complete with goodies!

The set includes a 48-page book about Bogie with an introduction by Robert Osborne - TCM's host and film historian, 12 Discs containing 24 movies and special features including bloopers, radio shows, classic cartoons and newsreels plus short documentaries.

Another added bonus is a 13th disc, "The Brothers Warner" - an interesting documentary about the Warner Brothers themselves, who brought Humphrey Bogart to fame.

Finally, one of my favorite parts of this classic collection is a special collector's set of photo cards with posters and rare correspondence about Humphrey, which shows someone's sense of humor.

This must have set contains hours and hours of vintage entertainment for any Bogie fan out there.

The collection includes To Have and Have Not (1944) - the film he was making when he met Lauren Bacall; Casablanca (1942), The Maltese Falcon (1941), The Big Sleep (1946), The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948), Key Largo (1948), and more.

You can purchase this collection today for only $79.95 ( and FREE SHIPPING!) at the WB Shop.

WARNER HOME VIDEO TO RELEASE KING KONG (1933) SEPT 28

2010-09-23T19:18:00.002-06:00

Press Release

On September 28, 2010, the original 1933 RKO classic King Kong makes its long awaited debut on Blu-ray Disc™. Presented by Warner Home Video, the newly remastered King Kong features extensive bonus content, including a collectible Blu-ray Book written by renowned film historian Rudy Behlmer; a feature length documentary on Kong creator Merian C. Cooper, directed by acclaimed filmmakers Kevin Brownlow and Christopher Bird; commentary by Ray Harryhausen and Ken Ralston with Merian C. Cooper and Fay Wray; and a seven-part documentary that delves deeply into just about every aspect of the making of the film.

With 32 pages of rare photography and trivia, the captivating Blu-ray Book, written by Rudy Behlmer, centers around the vision of director, Merian C. Cooper and his larger than life persona that brought the story of King Kong to the screen. A prolific film researcher and historian, Behlmer personally interviewed Cooper and has written numerous books and contributed to a wide variety of documentaries, videos, DVDs and laser discs about Hollywood's Golden Age.

In this very special Blu-ray release, the newly remastered film is presented in its 1933 entirety and includes scenes that were originally considered too shocking for the 1938-1956 re-releases. With equal parts adventure, horror and old-fashioned romance, King Kong is a milestone of movie-making that has endured for more than seven decades. Named as one of the “100 Best Films of All Time” by Time Magazine, King Kongpremiered in New York City in 1933. The film was an instant success, breaking box-office records to become one of the top moneymakers of the 1930s.

Available on Blu-ray: September 28, 2010

Official Site URL: www.wbshop.com

UPDATE: KING KONG is also now available FOR DOWNLOAD on iTunes: http://bit.ly/WBD_KINGKONG

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Wonderful things happening at Classic Cinema Online!

2010-09-13T21:23:00.004-06:00

Hello everyone!

As Classic Cinema Online gets ready to celebrate it's fourth year on the net in December, some changes are taking place behind the scenes.

This blog will no longer be used to update our weekly features, from now on we'll actually blog on the blog and use the main site for showing our features.

Beginning this week, look for our new links page called CCO recommends. These are websites that Classic Cinema Online thinks you will enjoy. We'll also blog about those sites right here.

Classic Cinema Online is also getting ready for a new look (hopefully to launch by the beginning of the year) that will make navigating the site and searching for your favorite films much easier. The look will still have that old time theater feel but the content will be more streamlined with extended movie billboards.

All those and more are coming your way right here at Classic Cinema Online.

Grab some popcorn and enjoy the show!

ANNOUNCEMENT

2010-08-08T08:29:00.000-06:00

Starting this week all of our "Now Playing" features will replace the daily matinees for a while.

These are the same great movies that Classic Cinema Online would normally be presenting every Sunday, but instead of presenting them all at once, they're being shown one day at a time, Monday through Friday.

You'll still be able to access the entire week's worth by clicking on the number that appears at the under of the day's feature, Tuesday through Friday.

Saturdays will still be devoted to silent films and Sundays will be devoted to Old Time Radio programs. Plus you can always browse our selection of films by accessing the Movie Billboards and the Movies Master List, which I'll be updating soon.

Showing the films this way will allow me to be more efficient so that I may bring you more Classic Cinema Online goodies.

Aug 1 - 7, 2010

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July 25 - 31, 2010

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July 18 - 24, 2010

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July 11 - 17, 2010

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July 4 - 10, 2010

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June 27 - July 3, 2010

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Be sure to visit the Classic Cinema Online home page daily for serials and daily matinees!

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June 20 - 26, 2010

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Happy Father's Day!

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June 13 - 19, 2010

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June 6 - 12, 2010

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May 30 - June 5, 2010

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May 23 - 29, 2010

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May 46 - 22, 2010

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May 9 - 15, 2010

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May 2 - 9, 2010

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