Diane Ladd and Family

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.

CMBA Hitchcock Blogathon: The Trouble with Harry

I had written about the Bit Actors in this movie a few months ago and I was going to expand on that post for the Blogathon.  It turned out to be much more fun to write a new post instead.  This one may wind up being a bit longer than my usual offering.

Let’s start with the trivia.  Quick…what was Shirley MacLaine’s (b. 1934) film debut?  This is an Alfred Hitchcock Blogathon so that should give you a hint.  (Oh yeah, the answer may be found somewhere in my title.)  The Trouble with Harry from 1955 was MacLaine’s first film, made when she was just 21 years old, and it was the fifth film for young Jerry Mathers (b. 1948, and not as the Beav) who was only seven.

This was also the first pairing of Alfred Hitchcock (1899 – 1980) and composer Bernard Herrmann (1911 – 1975), who went on to a long relationship, making seven films together.  I think that Psycho (1960) would not be the same without Herrmann’s wonderful score.  

The Trouble with Harry is Hitchcock’s favorite Hitchcock film and Herrmann’s score for it was his favorite as well, according to the all-knowing trivia page on IMDb.

This was Edmund Gwenn’s (1877 – 1959) last of four Hitchcock films.  And finally, Philip Truex (1911 – 2008) played Harry, who was dead through the entire film.  This was Truex’s second and final big screen film.  The other was This is the Army (1943) with Ronald Reagan.  And poor Harry gets exhumed four times in the movie.

Alfred Hitchcock didn’t make many comedies, and this one was actually an experiment on his part, to see how a more British style of comedy, made with relatively unknown actors, would fare in America.  Apparently it didn’t fare very well, and was a box office disappointment.  Hitch bought the rights back and held the film out of circulation for about 30 years.  It was re-released in 1984, thank goodness!

I would imagine that die-hard Hitchcock fans may not appreciate Harry.  It does not contain the gripping suspense of most of his other work.  In fact it is more comedy than mystery.  But it contains a lot of Hitchcock.  The way the shots are framed in the camera is unmistakable.  The excellent direction of many newcomers to film, which may have been instrumental to their future success, came only from Hitch.  And the Bernard Herrmann score adds to the feel of the movie.

In short, the story is about a dead man found by a small boy.  Several of the town residents are convinced they caused Harry's demise.  And then there is the problem of the what the law would say, and how to dispose of the body.  After Harry is identified and it is thought he would not be missed, a simple burial in the field seems the best solution.  But Hitchcock adds twists and turns to complicate things.

The cast in Harry is short, only 14 strong, including Hitchcock's trademark walk-on.  The major Bit Actors are:

Royal Dano (1922 - 1994), the deputy sheriff, was a character actor who did a lot of westerns, including a bit part in Cahill US Marshal(1973) with The Duke, and a bigger part in The Outlaw Josey Wales in 1976 with Clint Eastwood.

Mildred Natwick ( 1905 - 1994) had over 80 roles in film and on TV.  She plays Mrs. Gravely (!) who befriends Edmund Gwenn.  Perhaps her most famous film was her last, Dangerous Liaisons in 1988 with Glenn Close.

Mildred Dunnock (1901 - 1991) is the shop owner, Mrs. Wiggs.  She has played in over 70 parts, including BUtterfield 8 in 1960 with Elizabeth Taylor.

I don’t want to give away the entire plot by going into the rest of the story.  Since this is an unusual film for Hitchcock, you may not have seen it, so I don’t want to ruin the ending for you.  Let me say that it is definitely worth seeking out.  The beautiful, scenic, outdoor shots of New England in glorious Technicolor are quite a dichotomy to the story of a dead body found on a beautiful fall day.  And Hitchcock uses it to weave a fun, almost believable story, with a cast that works well together.

I hope you enjoy the entire Classic Movie Blog Association Hitchcock Blogathon.  As of this writing there are twenty of us participating.  Its good today is a holiday!  Here is the entire list of Blogathon entries.  If any of the links don't work, just click on the link to the CMBA site, just above here.  Have fun!

1. The Birds – Classic Film & TV Café http://classic-film-tv.blogspot.com/

2. Dial M for Murder – True Classics: The ABCs of Film http://trueclassics.wordpress.com/

3. The Lady Vanishes – MacGuffin Movies http://macguffinmovies.wordpress.com/

4. Lifeboat – Classicfilmboy’s Movie Paradise http://www.classicfilmboy.com/

5. The Man Who Knew Too Much – Reel Revival http://reelrevival.blogspot.com/

6. Marnie – My Love of Old Hollywood http://myloveofoldhollywood.blogspot.com/

7. Mr. and Mrs. Smith – Carole & Co. http://community.livejournal.com/carole_and_co/

8. North By Northwest – Bette’s Classic Movie Blog http://bettesmovieblog.blogspot.com/

9. Notorious – Twenty Four Frames http://twentyfourframes.wordpress.com/

10. The Pleasure Garden – Thrilling Days of Yesteryear http://www.thrillingdaysofyesteryear.blogspot.com

11. Rear Window – Java’s Journey http://javabeanrush.blogspot.com/

12. Rebecca – ClassicBecky’s Film and Literary Review http://www.classicbeckybrainfood.blogspot.com/

13. Rope – Kevin’s Movie Corner http://kevinsmoviecorner.blogspot.com/

14. Shadow of a Doubt - Great Entertainers Media Archive http://greatentertainersarchives.blogspot.com/

15. The 39 Steps – Garbo Laughs http://garbolaughs.wordpress.com/

16. Three Classic Hitchcock Killers – The Lady Eve’s Reel Life http://eves-reel-life.blogspot.com/

17. Torn Curtain - Via Margutta 51 http://www.via-51.blogspot.com/

18. The Trouble with Harry – Bit Part Actors (That's me!)

19. Vertigo – Noir and Chick Flicks http://dawnschickflicks.blogspot.com/

20. The Wrong Man – The Movie Projector http://movieprojector.blogspot.com/

The Right Stuff (1983)

I haven't seen The Right Stuff (1983) in quite a few years.  That is about all I can take of a movie that is over three hours long.  Any movie that long will be dragging in parts, The Right Stuff is no exception.  It did win four Oscars though.

The story is a good one and the cast is great.  It has lots of detail and lots of history, and it tells what it must have been like for fearless test pilots being recruited for a truly dangerous assignment.  And this is not fiction. 

All of the stars of The Right Stuff were up-and-coming stars at the time and most have gone on to successful careers.  So let's look at some of the less than top names in the cast.

We see Mary Jo Deschanel (b. 1945) in her first movie.  She is the mother of Zooey Deschanel (b. 1980) and wife of director of photography, Caleb Deschanel (b. 1944).  A movie making family.

Royal Dano (1922 - 1994) played the minister who would show up at the pilot's funerals.  Perfectly cast for this film, he exudes a sinister aura.  Dano has 182 roles listed on IMDb, starting in 1950.  He played Elija in Moby Dick (1956) with Gregory Peck.  He also shows up in all the great 1960s westerns on TV. 

Bit Actor Harry Shearer (b. 1943) and big star Jeff Goldblum (b. 1952) both appear as recruiters in small roles in this film.  Shearer has 127 roles to his credit and is the voice of Ned Flanders on "The Simpsons."

An actor named Robert Beer played Dwight D. Eisenhower, a role he played in two other movies...actually, in every movie he has been in.  But casting presidents is not limited to newcomers.  Donald Moffat (b. 1930) was cast as Lyndon B. Johnson.  Moffat has 116 roles on IMDb starting in 1956. 

The wives of the pilots were also cast well.  Barbara Hershey (b. 1948), cast as Chuck Yeager's wife Glennis, is a perennial favorite.  BTW, the Bell X-1 aircraft that Yeager flew faster than the speed of sound was named for his wife, Glamorous Glennis.  It can be seen at the National Air and Space Museum.

I am also a fan of Veronica Cartwright (b. 1949), cast as Gus Grissom's wife, Betty.  She is the sister of Angela Cartwright (b. 1952), another famous actress.

Finally, look for the real Chuck Yeager (b. 1923) as the bartender.  I bet he was handy to have around so the filmmakers could pick his brain. 

I was able to catch The Right Stuff and it is sitting in my DVR.  I may have to break it up to two evenings, but it is time to watch it again.

More Hitchcock

It has been said that Alfred Hitchcock always brought in his films on time and under budget.  Also, when you look at individual frames from any Hitchcock film, each can stand alone as a still photo.  Since I have a photographic background, I do watch his films to see those perfect frames that would look good hanging on the wall.

The next time you get to watch one of his films, keep an eye out to see the composition of the images.  He will always try to frame a face with an interesting background, holding the face just off center.  In still photos you should try to remember the "rule of thirds."  Never put the main subject in the center, but put it one third from the top or bottom, and one third from the left or right.  The horizon should never split a picture in half, and a flag pole or tall building should never be in the center.

The budget for any film is important.  James Cameron seems to have a problem with this, having just released Avatar, the most expensive film ever made, after releasing Titanic, which previously held that distinction. 

Now take a look at Hitchcock's The Trouble with Harry from 1955.  This is as good a movie as you can find.  It is funny, suspenseful, and the story is so twisted, you don't know how it will end.  Maybe that's the problem with Hitch's films...you can only be surprised the first time you see it.

Trouble had a great cast with John Forsythe, Shirley MacLaine, Edmund Gwenn and of course, Jerry Mathers.  Everybody else could only be classified as bit players.  And many of them went on to "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" on TV. 

• Mildred Dunnock (1901 - 1991) played over 70 parts, including BUtterfield 8 in 1960 with Elizabeth Taylor.
• Royal Dano (1922 - 1994) was a character actor who did a lot of westerns, including a bit part in Cahill US Marshal (1973) with The Duke, and a bigger part in The Outlaw Josey Wales in 1976 with Clint Eastwood.
• Mildred Natwick ( 1905 - 1994) had over 80 roles in film and on TV.  Perhaps her most famous film was her last, Dangerous Liaisons in 1988 with Glenn Close.

The entire cast of The Trouble with Harry is only 14 long.  The rest, whom I didn't mention above, had fewer than 40 roles total, with several only acting in one to five parts.  Fittingly, this was Phillip Truex's last role.  He played Harry, who was dead in the entire film.