Sabrina(1954).

Sabrina(1954). Romantic/comedy directed by Billy Wilder, adapted for the screen by Wilder, Samuel A. Taylor and Ernest Lehman from Taylor's play Sabrina Fair. Cast: Humphrey Bogart, Audrey Hepburn and William Holden. This was Wilder's last film released by Paramount Pictures, ending a 12-year relationship.

During an annual party at Oliver Larrabee's Long Island estate, the chauffeur's daughter Sabrina, follows and watches the three timed divorced David romancing a giggling socialite, on the indoor tennis court. Heartbroken, Sabrina runs, crying, back to her room.

Her father Thomas, tells Sabrina to quit "reaching for the moon" and reminds her that, she is leaving for  the best cooking school in the world.

Later, in her bedroom, Sabrina writes her father a suicide note and then shuts herself in the garage and starts the engines of all eight cars. As Sabrina is beginning to feel the effect of the fumes, Linus, hears the rumbling of the engines and opens the garage to investigate. Linus, finds Sabrina coughing and asks her what she is doing there, she explains that she was testing the spark plugs. He carries her back to her bedroom and gives her a stern warning about the dangers of carbon dioxide.

Now in Paris, Sabrina, still in love with David, struggles through her cooking classes and writes letters to her father, telling him about how she is doing in Paris, he then reads them to the rest of the staff. An elderly baron who is enrolled in the school takes charge of her, transforming her into a sophisticated woman.

David, who continues on with his irresponsible behaviors storms into Linus' New York office, angry over a newspaper article announcing his engagement to socialite Elizabeth Tyson. Linus admits that he planted the article, as he wants David to marry Elizabeth, because her father owns sugar factories in Puerto Rico and Larrabee Industries needs sugar to manufacture a new type of plastic.

Later, Sabrina, having completed her two-year cooking course, returns to the Larrabee's Long Island estate. With a new hairdo, stylish Paris clothes and poodle dog named David, Sabrina waits for her father at the Long Island train depot and is surprised when David drives up and offers her a ride. Not recognizing Sabrina, David flirts with her and drives her all the way home before realizing who she is. David, then asks her out that night, then remembers that his family is hosting a party to announce his engagement to Elizabeth.

Sabrina, insists on attending, telling her father later that the moon is now "reaching for her." At the party, David slips away from Elizabeth to dance with Sabrina. David asks Sabrina to wait for him in the tennis court, but before he can leave with his bottle of champagne and glasses, he is stopped by Linus and Oliver.

It is Linus, who meets Sabrina at the tennis court. When Sabrina admits that she is in love with David, Linus pretends to be happy about the romance.

The next day, Linus takes Sabrina sailing, David thanks Linus for "taking care of" Sabrina. Elizabeth shows up to nurse him after he sat on broken glass.. Linus informs his father that he is trying to keep Sabrina from David to protect the merger. On the boat, Linus talks about his two long-lost loves and Sabrina suggests that he go to Paris to forget his troubles.

Sabrina Fairchild: Maybe you should go to Paris, Linus.

Linus Larrabee: To Paris? Sabrina Fairchild: It helped me a lot. Have you ever been there?

Linus Larrabee: [thinks] Oh, yes. Yes. Once. I was there for thirty-five minutes.

Sabrina Fairchild: Thirty-five MINUTES?

Linus Larrabee: Changing planes. I was on my way to Iraq on an oil deal.

Sabrina Fairchild: Oh, but Paris isn't for changing planes, it's... it's for changing your outlook, for... for throwing open the windows and letting in... letting in la vie en rose.

Linus Larrabee: [sadly] Paris is for lovers. Maybe that's why I stayed only thirty-five minutes.

The next day, while driving Linus to town, Thomas overhears Linus making a date with Sabrina and asks him to be "gentle" with his daughter. Linus assures Thomas, that he is sending Sabrina back to Paris, first-class, but when Sabrina arrives at his office, Linus tells her that he is sailing to Paris.

On the drive home, Sabrina sings the romantic French song "La vie en rose," and Linus hints that he is falling in love with her.

Suddenly, she finds herself also falling in love with Linus and she finds that Linus is also falling in love with her. Which brother will Sabrina choose?

Audrey Hepburn, is very charming in this Cinderella story and you will quickly see why she was one of the most beloved actresses of her time.



 Fun Facts:

Humphrey Bogart was a last minute replacement for Cary Grant. Bogart and William Holden couldn't stand each other. Bogart disapproved of Audrey Hepburn (he wanted his wife Lauren Bacall in the role), while Holden fell in love with her. Bogart got $300000, Holden got $150000, and Hepburn only $15000. Asked how he liked working with Hepburn, Bogart replied: "It's OK, if you don't mind to make 20 takes."

Although Edith Head won an Oscar for costume design, most of Audrey Hepburn's wardrobe was by Hubert de Givenchy. In fact, Hepburn chose her own clothes to wear from de Givenchy's collection. This was her first time working with the French designer, and he would become her costumer of choice for most of her career.

This was the second film in a row where Audrey Hepburn gets her hair cut as a symbol of maturity. The first was in Roman Holiday. It is also the first of four films in a row where she'd play a character romantically linked with a man old enough to be her father.

When Linus takes Sabrina to the theatre, they see the play "The Seven Year Itch", which was director/writer Billy Wilder's next movie project. The play is mentioned at least twice.

Co-stars Audrey Hepburn and William Holden fell in love during the making of this film, but Hepburn broke off the relationship on learning that Holden could not have children.

The estate on which the film was shot actually belonged to Paramount Pictures chairman Barney Balaban.

Hubert de Givenchy originally thought he would be providing wardrobe for Katharine Hepburn, as he had never heard of Audrey Hepburn before they were introduced.

Like Sunset Blvd., this film started production without a finished script. Ernest Lehman worked himself to exhaustion working on the script with Billy Wilder during production. One day, when Lehman did not have an extra copy of a scene rewrite to give to Humphrey Bogart, Bogart exploded. Wilder told his crew they would not film another foot of film until Bogart apologized to Lehman. Bogart invited Lehman to his dressing room and shooting eventually continued.

During production Billy Wilder was continuously working on the script. One day he asked Audrey Hepburn to feign illness so he would have enough time to finish the scene to be shot.

The sports car driven by the brothers is a Nash-Healey, is a two-seat sports car that was produced for the American market between 1951 and 1954. It was "America's first post-war sports car"and the first introduced in the U.S. by a major automaker since the Great Depression.

Humphrey Bogart did not get along with either of his co-stars Audrey Hepburn or William Holden, whom he nicknamed "Smiling Jim". He also said that Hepburn was quite untalented and could not act.

In addition to Billy Wilder's two mentions in the screenplay of his next project, The Seven Year Itch, there was also a line of dialogue that included the name of a film just written by Wilder's co-writer, Ernest Lehman - Executive Suite. Linus (Humphrey Bogart) uses the phrase in the sailboat scene with Sabrina (Audrey Hepburn).

Many critics felt that Humphrey Bogart was miscast in the film, and that William Holden should have played Linus with a younger actor as David.

Line up of cars in the classic film Sabrina(1954).

Martha Hyer (born August 10, 1924), her first film appearance was an uncredited part in The Locket (1946).

She had roles in: So Big (1953), Sabrina (1954), The Delicate Delinquent (1956), Houseboat (1958) and Once Upon a Horse, also in 1958 with Dan Rowan and Dick Martin.

She was considered the best replacement for Grace Kelly.

Hyer would play in films such as: The Best of Everything (1959), Ice Palace (1960), Desire in the Dust (1960), The Carpetbaggers (1964), First Men in the Moon (1964), Blood on the Arrow (1964) and The Sons of Katie Elder (1965), Night of the Grizzly (1966).

She co-starred with Keenan Wynn in Bikini Beach (1964), one of the Beach Party movies with Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello.

On television, Hyer played the part of "Hannah Haley" in the episode "Incident West of Lano" on the Western series Rawhide.

Her most significant role came as the love interest of Frank Sinatra in Some Came Running for director Vincente Minnelli in 1958, for which she received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.

Hyer was one of the actresses considered for the Janet Leigh role of the doomed Marion Crane in the Alfred Hitchcock thriller Psycho.

Her last film was, Day of the Wolves, in role of Maggie Anderson in 1971 and her last television appearance was as Peggy Hamilton in the McCloud episode "A Cowboy in Paradise" in 1974.

Hyer married producer Hal B. Wallis in 1966, and the couple remained together until his death in 1986. Her autobiography, Finding My Way: A Hollywood Memoir, was published in 1990.

Dawn's favorite Movie actors and their films of the "60's".

Clint Eastwood:
1964 A Fistful of Dollars
1965 For a Few Dollars More
1966 The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
1967 Le streghe
1968 Hang 'Em High
Coogan's Bluff
Where Eagles Dare

In 1963 Eastwood's co-star on Rawhide, Eric Fleming, rejected an offer to star in an Italian-made western, A Fistful of Dollars. Knowing that he could play a cowboy Harrison suggested Eastwood, who saw the film as a wonderful opportunity.

Eastwood later spoke about the transition from a television western to A Fistful of Dollars: "In Rawhide I did get awfully tired of playing the conventional white hat. The hero who kisses old ladies and dogs and was kind to everybody. I decided it was time to be an anti-hero." Eastwood, created the Man with No Name character, who smoked cigars.

The film was the beginning of spaghetti westerns and Eastwood became a major star in Italy and he also performed in, For a Few Dollars More (1965). Two months later Eastwood began work on the third Dollars film, The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, in which he again played the, Man with No Name.

The Dollars trilogy was not shown in the United States until 1967 when A Fistful of Dollars opened in January, For a Few Dollars More in May, and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly in December. All the films were successful and turned Eastwood into a major film star. Stardom brought more "tough guy" roles for Eastwood. Next, he signed up to perform in the western, Hang 'Em High (1968). Across between Rawhide and Leone's westerns. Using money earned from the Dollars trilogy Leonard helped establish Eastwood's production company, Malpaso Productions, named after the Malpaso Creek on Eastwood's property in Monterey County, California.

While Eastwood was working on his next film, Coogan's Bluff, Jennings Lang arranged for Eastwood to meet Don Siegel, a Universal contract director who later became one of Eastwood's close friends, that would last for more than ten years. Coogan's Bluff also became the first of many collaborations with Argentine composer Lalo Schifrin, who would later score the jazzy themes to Eastwood's films. Eastwood created the prototype for his role as a cop of the Dirty Harry films.

Next he went on to perform in, Where Eagles Dare(1968), about a World War II squad parachuting into the mountains.

Eastwood then performed in his only musical of his career, Paint Your Wagon (1969). Eastwood and fellow non-singer Lee Marvin play gold miners who share the same wife. It was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture Musical or Comedy.

Rock Hudson:
Seconds (1966)
Lover Come Back (1961)
Ice Station Zebra (1968)
Send Me No Flowers (1964)

In the 60s Hudson, performed in many romantic comedies such as: Pillow Talk, the first of several co-starring with Doris Day. This was followed by Lover Come Back, Come September, Send Me No Flowers, Man's Favorite Sport?, The Spiral Road, and Strange Bedfellows. Along with Cary Grant was regarded as one of the best-dressed male stars in Hollywood. He also performed in the science-fiction thriller, Seconds (1966). The film flopped but it later gained cult status, and Hudson's performance is often regarded as one of his best. He also tried his hand in the action genre with Tobruk (1967), the lead in 1968's spy thriller Ice Station Zebra, a role which he said was his personal favorite, and the western, The Undefeated (1969).

Kirk Douglas:
Spartacus (1960)
Seven Days in May (1964)
War Wagon, The (1967)
Lonely Are the Brave (1962)

Douglas, was a major box office star in the 60s, performing in many westerns such as, In Lonely Are the Brave (1962), his own favorite of his performances, Douglas plays a cowboy trying to live by his own code, much as he did in real life.

Douglas played many military men like in the films: Town Without Pity (1961), The Hook (1963), Seven Days in May (1964), Heroes of Telemark (1965), In Harm's Way (1965), Cast a Giant Shadow (1966), Is Paris Burning (1966). Douglas played the lead with an all-star cast in, Spartacus (1960). He was also the executive producer. Douglas also performed in comedies, such as in the film, For Love or Money (1963).

Douglas made a couple of films in the 60s with Burt Lancaster: The List of Adrian Messenger(1963)and Seven Days in May (1964).



Douglas stated that the keys to acting success are determination and application, "You must know how to function and how to maintain yourself, and you must have a love of what you do. But an actor also needs great good luck. I have had that luck."Douglas had great vitality, "It takes a lot out of you to work in this business. Many people fall by the wayside because they don’t have the energy to sustain their talent.".

Cary Grant:
Charade (1963)
Father Goose (1964)
Walk Don't Run (1966)
That Touch of Mink (1962)

In the mid-1950s, Grant formed his own production company, Granart Productions, and produced a number of movies in the 60s such as: That Touch of Mink and Father Goose (1964).




In 1963, he also performed opposite Audrey Hepburn in the film, Charade (1963). His last feature film was Walk, Don't Run.

Grant was the first actor to "go independent" by not renewing his studio contract.  Because of this he decided which movies he was going to perform in, he also had the choice of the directors and his co-stars and at times even negotiated a share of the gross, something uncommon at the time.

Fred MacMurray :
Apartment, The (1960)
Absent Minded Professor, The (1961)
Son of Flubber (1963)
Follow Me, Boys! (1966)

In the 1960s, he starred in My Three Sons, which ran for 12 seasons, making it one of America's longest-running TV show. MacMurray, stared in 1961 as Professor Ned Brainerd in Disney's, The Absent-Minded Professor and in its sequel, Son of Flubber, in 1964.



MacMurray, had a provision in his "Sons" contract that all his scenes be shot first. This freed him to pursue his film work and golf . It's also interesting to note that two character names on "My Three Sons" were named after his real life children, Rob (as in Rob Douglas) and Katherine (Kate); he often referred to his TV son Robbie as 'Rob' and later TV daughter-in-law Katie Douglas as 'Kate.'

He was a staunch supporter of the Republican Party. He joined Bob Hope and James Stewart to campaign for Richard Nixon in 1968.

He was one of the wealthiest actors of the 60s and MacMurray usually brought a brown bag lunch to work. Friends and business associates referred to him as "the thrifty multimillionaire."

Jack Lemmon :
Apartment, The (1960)
Odd Couple, The (1968)
Great Race, The (1965)
Days of Wine and Roses (1962)

Lemmon, was a favorite actor of director Billy Wilder, who felt Lemmon had a natural tendency toward overacting. In the Wilder biography Nobody's Perfect quotes the director as saying, "Lemmon, I would describe him as a ham, a fine ham, and with ham you have to trim a little fat". The biography also quotes Jack Lemmon as saying, "I am particularly susceptible to the parts I play... If my character was having a nervous breakdown, I started to have one".

He also had a longtime working relationship with director Blake Edwards, starring in in the 60s films: Days of Wine and Roses (1962), The Great Race (1965) and That's Life! (1986).

Days of Wine and Roses (1962) was one of his favorite roles. He portrayed Joe Clay, a young, fun-loving alcoholic businessman. In that film, Lemmon delivered the line, "My name is Joe Clay ... I'm an alcoholic." Three and a half decades later, he admitted on the television program, Inside the Actors Studio, that he was not acting when he delivered that line, that he really was a recovering alcoholic at the end of his life.


Lemmon's production company JML produced Cool Hand Luke in 1967. Paul Newman was grateful to Lemmon for his support and offered him the role later made famous by Robert Redford in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid but Lemmon turned it down. He did not like riding horses and he also felt he'd already played too many aspects of the Sundance Kid's character before.

Lemmon often performed in films with Walter Matthau. Among their pairings was 1968's The Odd Couple, as Felix Ungar (Lemmon) and Oscar Madison (Matthau).

William Holden:
Wild Bunch, The (1969)
Paris - When It Sizzles (1964)
Casino Royale (1967)
Devil's Brigade, The (1968)

Holden was forced by studio contracts to perform in films such as, Paris When It Sizzles (1964), also co-starring Audrey Hepburn. By the mid-1960s, his career was beginning to fade.

Robert Redford:
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
This Property Is Condemned (1966)
Barefoot in the Park (1967)
Tell Them Willie Boy Is Here (1969)

Redford, made his screen debut in the film, War Hunt (1962). Later he was cast in larger roles in movies such as, In Inside Daisy Clover (1965) with Natalie Wood, they also performed together in the film, This Property Is Condemned (1966). The same year saw his first teaming with Jane Fonda in, The Chase. Fonda and Redford were paired again in the film, Barefoot in the Park (1967) also the film, The Electric Horseman (1979).

Redford was cast in the film, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969), scripted by William Goldman, in which he was paired for the first time with Paul Newman. The film cemented his screen image as an intelligent, reliable, good guy.




Redford did have a few box office flops, Downhill Racer (1969) and Tell Them Willie Boy Is Here (1969).

Anthony Quinn:
Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
Guns of Navarone, The (1961)
Barabbas (1962)
Alexis Zorbas (1964)

By the 60s Quinn, was beginning to show his age and began his transformation into a major character actor. He played a Greek resistance fighter in the film, The Guns of Navarone (1961), a ex-boxer in the film, Requiem for a Heavyweight, and Auda abu Tayi in the film, Lawrence of Arabia (both 1962). He also played the title role in Barabbas. The success of the film, Zorba the Greek (1964) which won him another Oscar nomination for Best Actor. Other films include: The 25th Hour (1967), The Magus (1968), Guns for San Sebastian with Charles Bronson and The Shoes of the Fisherman, where he played a Ukrainian pope. In 1969, he starred in the film, The Secret of Santa Vittoria .

Henry Fonda:
Once Upon A Time In The West (1968)
Longest Day, The (1962)
Battle of the Bulge (1965)
Boston Strangler, The (1968)

In the 60s Fonda, was still performing in the western television series The Deputy (1959–1961), in which he starred as Marshal Simon Fry. The 1960s also saw Fonda perform in many war and western epics, including 1962's The Longest Day and How the West Was Won, 1965's In Harm's Way and Battle of the Bulge. In the Cold War suspense film Fail-Safe (1964), Fonda played the President of the United States who tries to prevent a nuclear holocaust through tense negotiations with the Soviets after American bombers are mistakenly ordered to attack the USSR. He also performed in the light-hearted film, Spencer's Mountain (1963), which was the inspiration for the TV series, The Waltons.

Fonda , performed against type as the villain 'Frank' in, 1968's Once Upon a Time in the West.

Fonda's was good friends with Jimmy Stewart and they teamed up to work on the film, Firecreek(1968), where Fonda once again played the bad guy.

Happy Birthday: William Holden!

William Holden (April 17, 1918 – November 12, 1981). Holden's first starring role was in the film, Golden Boy (1939), in which he played a violinist turned boxer. That was followed by the the film, Our Town (1940). A story about how a small town changes in the early 20th century. People grow up, get married, live, and die. Milk and the newspaper get delivered every morning and nobody locks their front doors.

Holden, alternated between starring in many films for, for Paramount and Columbia before serving as a 2nd lieutenant in the United States Army Air Forces during World War II, where he acted in training films.

Beginning in 1950, his career took off when he performed as the down on his luck screenwriter Joe Gillis, who is taken in by faded silent screen star Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson) in the film, Sunset Boulevard, for which Holden earned his first Best Actor Oscar nomination.

Please click here to view Sunset Boulevard movie review.

Following this breakthrough film, he performed in the film Stalag 17 (1953), for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor, a pressured young engineer/family man in the film, Executive Suite (1954).
Please click here to view Executive Suite movie review.

He performed a an acerbic stage director in , The Country Girl (1954), a conflicted jet pilot in the Korean War film, The Bridges at Toko-Ri (1954), another man down on his luck in the film, Picnic (1955).

He also performed as a war correspondent in the film, Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing (1955), a prisoner in, The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) and a World War II tug boat captain in the film, The Key (1958).

He performed in many light comedy films such as, The Moon is Blue (1953).
A comedy film produced and directed by Otto Preminger. The story is about how a young girl who meets an architect on the observation deck of the Empire State Building and accepts his invitation to join him for drinks and dinner in his apartment. There she meets Donald's neighbors, his ex-fiancée Cynthia and her father. He quickly discovers Patty, is more interested in discussions about moral and sexual issues.



Holden played Judy Holliday's tutor in, Born Yesterday (1950), as a playwright captivated by Ginger Rogers' character in the film, Forever Female (1953) and as Humphrey Bogart's younger brother, a playboy in the film, Sabrina (1954), which also starred Audrey Hepburn.

Holden starred in his share of forgettable movies such as the film, Paris When It Sizzles (1964), also co-starring Audrey Hepburn.

In 1969, Holden starred in violent Western film, The Wild Bunch and also in the film, L'Arbre de Noel, co-starring Italian actress, Virna Lisi.

Five years later, he starred with Paul Newman and Steve McQueen in the film, The Towering Inferno. He was also remembered for his Oscar-nominated performance in the film, Network (1976). In 1980, Holden performed in the film, The Earthling with child actor Ricky Schroder, playing a loner dying of cancer who goes to the Australian outback to end his days, meets a young boy whose parents have been killed in an accident and teaches him how to survive. During his last years, he performed in the films: When Time Ran Out and S.O.B...

Please click here to view all of William Holden movie reviews.

List of William Holden movies I have seen:

Rachel and the Stranger (1948)
Sunset Boulevard (1950)
The Moon Is Blue (1953)
Executive Suite (1954)
Sabrina (1954)
Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing (1955)
Picnic (1955)
The Key (1958)
Breezy (1973)
The Towering Inferno
The Earthling (1980)

Happy Birthday William Holden and Anne Shirley

Happy Birthday to William Holden (1918 - 1981) and Anne Shirley (1918 - 1993).

Holden is one of my favorite actors and some of my favorite films of his include Sunset Boulevard, Stalag 17, Golden Boy, The Bridge on the River Kwai, Union Station and The Wild Bunch.

Some of Shirley's films that are my favorites include Government Girl with Olivia de Havilland, Stella Dallas, Murder My Sweet, and Vigil in the Night with Carole Lombard.


And by some twist of fate, not only were these two born on the same day, but the same year too.

Executive Suite (1954).

Executive Suite(1954). Drama. Cast: William Holden, Barbara Stanwyck, Fredric March, and Walter Pidgeon. Directed by Robert Wise and produced by John Houseman from a screenplay by Ernest Lehman based on the novel of the same name by Cameron Hawley. The cinematography was by George J. Folsey and the costume design by Helen Rose. It is one of the few Hollywood films that does not have music.

The story begins when Avery Bullard, president of the Tredway Corporation, dies at a important time for the company. The board of directors must now vote for his replacement. First in line is, Loren Shaw, who is more concerned with the profits than the company. He has the backing of one of the shareholders, Julia Tredway, who was in love with Bullard before he died. Board member George Caswell, offers his support in return for certain favors.

The only real person qualified for the position is, Vice President of Design, Don Walling, who is not to sure he wants the job. He would rather spend his time developing new products. Walling is supported by Treasurer Frederick Alderson. Jesse Grimm, is opposed to Walling for reasons of his own, while Walt Dudley is being blackmailed by Shaw, who caught him having an affair.

Will Walling, win over the board of directors and become the new president of the Tredway Corporation?

A couple of the stand out performaces in the film for me are: Shelley Winters, who plays the part as Douglas' girlfriend who wishes he had more of a backbone. Barbara Stanwyck, also has a memorable scene with William Holden, when the sparks begin to fly. I thought the film looked very realistic with the wonderful shots of, Manhattan. What the film has to say about big business, I think may hold true even today.



Fun Facts:

Producer John Houseman wanted Henry Fonda for the role of McDonald Walling. Fonda turned him down to star in a Broadway musical that never reached the stage.

The entire story takes place during the 24 hour period from Friday afternoon, June 19 1953 to Saturday afternoon, June 20 1953.

Shelley Winters (August 18, 1920 – January 14, 2006), her career spanned over fifty years until her death in 2006. Two-time Academy Award winner, Winters is probably most remembered for her roles in A Place in the Sun, The Big Knife, Lolita, The Night of the Hunter, Alfie, and The Poseidon Adventure.

Shelley was a cousin of actor Tony Curtis, she suggested that he try acting, and was helpful in getting him started in the theater when he got out of the Navy after WWII.

Winters originally broke into Hollywood as "the Blonde Bombshell", but quickly tired of the role's limitations. She washed off her makeup and played against type in the film, A Place in the Sun. It was her performance in A Place in the Sun (1951), that first brought a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress.

Shelley soon became popular as a character actress. She studied in the Hollywood Studio Club and in the late 40s, she shared the same apartment with, Marilyn Monroe.

Her first movie was, What a Woman! (1943). Winters first achieved stardom with her breakout performance in the film, A Double Life(1948). After which she landed leading roles in the films, The Great Gatsby (1949) and Winchester 73 (1950).

Another one of her best known films was, Night of the Hunter(1955), with Robert Mitchum and Lillian Gish. She won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for, The Diary of Anne Frank (1960), and another award, in the same category, for A Patch of Blue in(1966).

Notable later roles include: Lolita,Alfie, Harper, The Poseidon Adventure, Belle Rosen (for which she received her final Oscar nomination) and in, Next Stop, Greenwich Village (1976).

Winters suffered with her weight later in life, frequently stating that it was a marketing tool, since there were plenty of normal-weight older actresses but fewer overweight ones and her weight would help her to find work .

Great On Screen Couples: Barbara Stanwyck and William Holden.

William Holden, was so grateful to Barbara Stanwyck for her insistence on casting him in the film, Golden Boy (1939), his first big role, he sent her flowers every year on the anniversary of the first day of the filming.

Thirty-nine years later, when Holden and Stanwyck were joint presenters at the Academy Awards, he interrupted their reading of a nominee list to publicly thank her for saving his career.

Golden Boy(1939) Video: part 1 of 12.



Golden Boy(1939). Drama film based on the Clifford Odets play of the same name. It features William Holden in the role that made him a star: a promising violinist who wants to be a boxer. Barbara Stanwyck plays his love interest. The supporting cast: Lee J. Cobb and Adolphe Menjou.

Barbara Stanwyck and William Holden, reunited for the film, Executive Suite (1954). Drama. A film about power in a corporation in trouble. It was directed by Robert Wise. Based on the novel of the same name by Cameron Hawley. The cinematography was by George J. Folsey. It is one of the few Hollywood films with no musical score.

Great Dramas - Sunset Boulevard (1950)

Excellent film from Billy Wilder (Some Like It Hot) about a struggling young screenwriter (Holden) who runs into former silent film star Norma Desmond (Swanson) who is dreaming of a comeback. She hires him to patch up her script so Cecil B. DeMille can direct her. The lady is a little around the bend, but the writer needs money so he takes the job. This is a marvelous film with great performances. And it holds up today beautifully. William Holden is great as Joe, the writer. It's one of his best parts ever. But it's Gloria Swanson who owns this picture. She is simply amazing. And the dialogue in this film is some of the best you will ever hear in a movie. Great stuff.

 Movie Quote:
Joe Gillis: There's nothing tragic about being fifty. Not unless you're trying to be twenty-five.

SUNSET BOULEVARD (1950)

Sunset Boulevard (1950) Noir. Directed and co-written by Billy Wilder. Cast: William Holden, Gloria Swanson, Erich von Stroheim, Nancy Olson, Fred Clark, Lloyd Gough and Jack Webb. Director Cecil B. DeMille and gossip columnist Hedda Hopper play themselves. Cameo appearances: Buster Keaton, H. B. Warner and Anna Q. Nilsson.

Having trouble finding work as a screenwriter, Joe is served with a court order turn in his car or pay $290 in back payments by the next day.

Joe meets with Paramount studio producer Sheldrake to sell him a picture he has written, but is quickly turned down. Joe decides to head back to Dayton, Ohio, where he worked as a newspaper copy writer.

While driving down Sunset Blvd., he sees the two men who want to reposes his car. He turns into the driveway of a old rundown mansion and hides the car in an empty garage. Joe then enters the house, where strange acting butler (he reminded me of Lurch from the Addams family), orders him upstairs to meet with "madame". Joe soon learns that he has been mistaken for a mortician, who is expected to arrive with a small coffin for the dead pet chimpanzee.

 

Joe recognizes the woman as Norma Desmond, once a famous silent movie star. When Joe tells her that he is a screenwriter. She believes that they are compatible, and hires him on the spot. She has him stay in a room over her garage.

The next day, Joe finds all his things have been moved from his old apartment. At first he is angry with Norma for her taking control of his life. Unfortunately, he desperately needs a job, so he keeps quiet. Joe sits back and watches Norma's fragile/enormous ego go through her ups and downs.

One night, when Norma has her Hollywood friends come over to play bridge. Two men show up and tow away Joe's car. Norma has Max refurbish her expensive Italian sports car for him. In hopes to make Joe happy.

On New Year's Eve, Norma throws a lavish party, Joe goes into a rage because he feels smothered and runs out the door.

Will Joe finally be on his own?

I really enjoyed watching the film Sunset Boulevard. I was surprised by the depth of characters. Especially the outrageous Norma's fragile/enormous ego. The story is dark and twisted with Norma's character coming out at the most surprising moments. Cinematography and lighting are wonderful. A movie I will never forget.

Fun Fact:

The role of Norma Desmond was first offered to Mae West (who rejected the part), Mary Pickford (who demanded too much control), and Pola Negri (who, like Mae West, turned it down), before being accepted by Gloria Swanson.

Union Station (1950) is thrilling from start to finish

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Exciting thriller set in LA, about a train station policeman named Lt. Willie Calhoun (super performance by William Holden) chasing down a ruthless kidnapper. The bad guy has taken the blind daughter of a millionaire and holds her for ransom. The kidnapping is seen by the rich man's secretary (a solid Nancy Olson). Calhoun swears that he will find the girl and put the kidnapper down, and everyone believes him because Calhoun is one hell of a cop. A very short film at about 80 minutes long, but it is packed with riveting drama and some terrific action. Holden is top notch as the policeman, this being one of his best performances ever. And Lyle Bettger is memorable as bad guy Joe Beacon, the kind you love to hate. Union Station is one of those little films that not too many people have heard about, much less seen, but it is one terrific movie. One of my personal favorites. The film-makers of Mel Gibson's 1996 thriller Ransom should have watched this film and took some notes on how to craft an exciting thriller. I mean, that was ok, but Union Station is so much better.
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Marge Wrighter: Gonna send that kid home, aren't you, Joe? I mean after we collect.
Joe Beacom: She'll go home...they ever fish her out of the river. Let's have the coffee, huh?
http://www.tcm.com/video/videoPlayer/?cid=187256&titleId=94488
Click to view movie trailer.

Rachel and the Stranger tribute

Hello everyone! I have got the Rachel and the Stranger tribute finished and ready for yall to watch. I set it up on a smilebox to view from. I am going to upload it to my youtube account later today for the HQ video version. A warning on the video though the talking parts of the video are kind of though so turn your speakers UP! Sorry about that, but it was the best version of the movie I could find. Give your thoughts, please. Even if ya don't like it I want to hear from YOU. Let me know what ya don't like about it. I can take it, I have had negative feedback on my videos before and I still make them.

RACHEL AND THE STRANGER (1948)

RACHEL AND THE STRANGER (1948), is one of my favorite Loretta Young films. The story begins when David Harvey finds himself a widower with a son. They live far from town in the country on a Northwest farm. He needs a woman around the house to cook, clean and teach his son reading/writing/math.

David and Davey pack up the horse and head for town to ask for the preacher's advice, who recommends Rachel. Rachel, is a bonds woman, and is quickly sold to David. David being a decent man marries her.

David keeps his distance from Rachel as he is still grieving the passing of his wife. Rachel is doing everything she can to win over her new family. This all changes when Jim, his (very charming, handsome) friend arrives and shows the neglected Rachel some attention. David starts to realize that she means far more to him than he thought and the trouble begins....



Based on the Howard Fast short story "Rachel".

Cast: Loretta Young, William Holden, Robert Mitchum.

Loretta Young was famous for placing a "swear jar" on the sets of all of her films, charging anyone in the cast or crew who cussed 25 cents, then giving the funds to one of her favorite charities. While making this film with her, Robert Mitchum held his tongue until shooting was over. As he exited the set on the final day of shooting he dropped a $20 bill into the jar, and said, "This should just about cover everything I've been wanting to say"

Sara Haden (November 17, 1899 - September 15, 1981) was a character actress in Hollywood films of the 1930s through the 1950s.

Haden was the daughter of another character actress, Charlotte Walker, who was active in silent films and early talkies.

An attractive woman, Haden however lacked the beauty of her mother. Haden made her film debut in 1934 in the film, Spitfire.

Haden had small roles in many of the studio's films, she is best known for her performances in the Andy Hardy series, cast as Aunt Milly Forrest.

She played a truant officer in Shirley Temple's, Captain January (1936), but she also played a teacher Miss Pipps, who is unjustly fired in the Our Gang comedy Come Back, Miss Pipps (1941).

Haden's other films include: Poor Little Rich Girl (1936), The Shop Around the Corner (1940), Woman of the Year (1942), and The Bishop's Wife (1947).