Clik here to view.
A Fairytale Gone Wilder: BALL of FIRE
Before he came to Hollywood, Billy Wilder had written this story concept years earlier in German, “From A to Z.” He said Thomas Monroe helped him “Americanize it”. Here, his story fully evolves into a...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Exploring JEZEBEL (1938)
For this installment of our Bette Davis study, we’ll explore another significant role for Davis as “Julie Marsden” in William Wyler’s JEZEBEL (1938). As we have addressed in our introduction, the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Is a New Era Red Scare Underway in Hollywood?
I’m fascinated by politics as much as I am classic film. As a local film historian in my small college town, I teach a variety of courses on Old Hollywood with a healthy dose of history. When Variety...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Bette Davis earned a DARK VICTORY
In our Bette Davis journey, we have arrived at the year 1939, which history has claimed was the greatest in cinematic history. I tend to agree. It was also a pinnacle time in Bette’s career. As we...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Tallulah Bankhead Exposes THE CHEAT (1931)
One of the captivating traits found in a Pre-Code film is a dark tone, that often reflects a discernible note of danger. I suppose it’s a flair for the dramatics that draws many to the dark side of...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Bette Davis Delivers in THE LETTER
In our last film, DARK VICTORY (1939), we explored a medical mystery surrounding a privileged socialite. Today we are discussing THE LETTER (1940), another mystery, yet this time of murder and less...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The Background Story: Bette Davis in NOW VOYAGER
In today’s stop along our grand Bette Davis adventure, we are studying NOW VOYAGER (1941). It is undoubtedly a dramatic tale of romance, but also rooted in a theme of psychiatry and mental health. As...
View ArticleClik here to view.
A Real Hollywood Comeback: ALL ABOUT EVE (1950)
Today we are in for a real treat. Many have rightfully described Joseph L Mankiewicz’s ALL ABOUT EVE as one of cinema’s most remarkable films, and specifically as the most literate and intelligent...
View ArticleClik here to view.
WHAT EVER HAPPENED to BABY JANE?
We have arrived at the final film in this Bette Davis film study series. The opportunity for WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE came nearly twelve years after our last film, ALL ABOUT EVE. She continued...
View Article“ONLY CURTIZ SPOKEN HERE”
A Film Study of MICHAEL CURTIZ One of Hollywood’s greatest directors of its pinnacle ‘golden era’ is a name you’ve possibly never heard of. Michael Curtiz directed an impressively prolific...
View Article