No connection to Barbara, apart from the fact that they were both Nominated for Best Actor/Actress in 1944. He won for Going My Way, which was crazy when you consider that neither Fred MacMurray or Edward G Robinson were even Nominated for Double Indemnity. Barbara was Nominated but lost to Bergman for Gaslight.

Barbara, Bing and Bob were also guest stars in Paramount's all star films, Hollywood Victory Caravan (1945) and Variety Girl (1947) , but did not have any scenes together.

The Marvellous Mary Astor won a well deserved Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her stunning performance as the temperamental concert pianist friend of Bette Davis in The Great Lie. Accepting her Oscar, she thanked two people, Tchaikovsky and Bette Davis.

She had a couple of connections to Barbara, in December 1937, along with Errol Flynn, they appeared in the Lux Radio Edition of Lilian Hellman's These Three. This was filmed with Merle Oberon, Joel Mcrea and Miriam Hopkins, and later as The Loudest Whisper with Audrey Hepburn, Shirley Maclaine, James Garner, and Miriam Hopkins again, this time in a supporting role as Audrey's meddling Aunt. This remake touched on the subject of lesbianism, which was not mentioned in the earlier radio and film versions.

Robert Aldrich had the idea of having Bette, Joan and Barbara all in the same film when he planned to reteam the first two stars in Hush, Hush Sweet Charlotte after their smash success in Whatever Happened to Baby Jane. It all fell apart when Joan felt that Bette had the upper hand in this production, and faking an illness, put herself into a hospital. She should have stuck it out, because it was the last good role that she was offered. There were rumours that Barbara was offered the role, which she later denied, saying that even if she had been, she would have checked with Joan first to see if it was OK with her, "Because Joan is a friend of mine,"

She then disclosed that she had been offered the cameo role of Jewel Mayhew, which she read, but chose not to do, and Mary Astor subsequently took over.

We haven't mentioned Victoria's sad passing in here before, but she and Julie Walters have long been my favourite comedienne's. One of the last shows that I saw in the theatre was "Acorn Antiques the Musical", and I don't think that I have ever laughed so much.

Bing was born two days before me, although 34 years before, and now I have outlived him, along with most of the big male stars of that era. Now all I have to do is outlive Bob.

Hello all

Have been offline - getting a new laptop.

Just wanted to say a big thank you again, I have enjoyed catching up all the movie info, on the last few pages.

I am off to read about Ann Blyth now I am back online

Hope you are all doing good?

x

I'd have LOVED a film starring Barbara Stanwyck, Bette Davis and Joan Crawford -the three big legendary Queens of Hollywood. Even if it was naff it would have been good and a cult classic.

I think Fred MacMurray is a name we've not discussed much and he's not spoken of too much but was he fully appreciated in his own era by his peers?

Hollywood is very slowly coming away from its taboo about lesbian and gay relationships but even now it seems to be something their rather nervous of.

I see lots of homoerotic or gay subtexts in many old Hollywood films as they had to be subtle but perhaps sometimes my imagination or interpretation works overtime! 😁

Yes I'm doing good thanks!
Do share any titbits of gossip or anecdotes you pick up about Ann Blyth -I am fascinated that she is one of Joan Crawfords younger costars who never once slagged her off especially with all the allegations it would have been easy to jump on the bandwagon.

Bette did have a small role in Barbara's So Big in 1932, but although they appeared briefly in the last scene, they never exchanged a single word.

I believe that Fred was well liked by his peers, he was certainly very popular with his leading ladies. He appeared in seven films with Claudette Colbert, four with Carole Lombard, four with Barbara, and also starred opposite Katharine Hepburn, Joan Crawford, and Shirley Maclaine. After his first wife died, he married ex 20th Century Fox star June Haver, and they were together until his death in 1991.

I think that I mentioned before that Barbara portrayed the first lesbian ever seen in a Hollywood film when she played a New Orleans brothel owner in A Walk on the Wild Side in 1962.

There's a studio glamour shot of Barbara Stanwyck on page 104 of the June issue of Sight and Sound magazine. This is to illustrate a review of a book "Freelance women in the Hollywood Studio System" by Emily Carman. Carole Lombard and Stanwyck appear to be the leading names featured.

Of Stanwyck the review notes:


I think by 1957 the studio system was falling apart anyway.

That is interesting to hear, I must confess that I never ever bought Sight and Sound, far too highbrow for me. I used to love the late lamented Films and Filming.

Yes, even the older studio contract stars were dispensed of in the late 50's, in those days once an actress reached 40 that was usually the kiss of death for their career, unlike today, with Meryl, and Helen Mirren still getting plum roles in their 60's and 70's.

Forty Guns was little more than a B Western when it was released, and it has ironically become a Cult film. After working non stop for 28 years, it was her last film for four years until she came back with a bang in 1961 as the lesbian Madame in A Walk on the Wild Side. During that time away from the big screen she had switched to TV and starred in her first TV series, "The Barbara Stanwyck Show", which won her the first of her three Emmy's as Best TV Actress. We never saw it over here, but thankfully this series in now available on two DVD boxed sets, and well worth watching.

Thank you for this CLL Dodge - I am going to buy this. Only get Sight and Sound occasionally.

I know Walter explained Barbara's decision to be a freelance actress but I just find it all fascinating - how brave and forward thinking were these actresses who didn't sign a contract when it was the "norm" to do so. i assume they must have been under such pressure and if a film was a flop they must have struggled to convince the next studio, they were right for the next role.

Hilda - any info on Ann Blyth I will gladly share.

Ps - what films off the top of your head do you see a homoerotic undercurrent? I am intrigued

Many Thanks!
Goodness me I do have a lot of posts to reply to and catch up on but I will be brief atm as I'm currently sitting in the cinema about to watch a new Meryl Streep film but will give more detail later on ☺👍
To me there's lots of gayness in old Hollywood films from the unique strong film actresses who garnered a natural gay following and much popularity in the community as well as very camp films like Gentleman prefer blondes to other films which to my imagination have a gay subtext. But more later! 😁


Would you say Fred was a bit of a ladies man?

Am I right in thinking that June is still alive in her 90s?

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marlene_Dietrich

On this day in 1992 the legendary Hollywood star Marlene Dietrich died

Fred was very much a one man woman, he married Lilian his first wife in 1936, and they remained together until her death from cancer in 1953. He married June not long after, and they were together until his death in 1991.

June died from respiratory failure in July 2005 a month after her 79th birthday, she is buried with Fred at the Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City, California.

Duplicate post.

That was my film magazine of choice, too. I tried Empire but it seems to be aimed at teenagers. Total Film much the same.

I LOVED Marlene, and was lucky enough to see her twice in concert. Every word and gesture was meticulously rehearsed, there was nothing spontaneous about her performances, but she was quite magical to see in the flesh.

My favourite performances are in The Devil is a Woman, A Foreign Affair, Stage Fright, and Witness for the Prosecution, for which she should have received a Best Actress Oscar Nomination.

Incredibly, her daughter Maria Riva will have outlived her by two years when hopefully she will turn 92 in December.

I watched Shanghai Express last year and loved it. The lighting in particular just added to the Dietrich legend in that film. She was so beautiful.

That incredible butterfly lighting was of course the creation of Marlene's Svengali, Joseph Von Sterberg. He encouraged her to diet, and between them they created the legend that she became in just a few years. He could be quite imperious with her, but having been brought up in a typically disciplined German household she was happy to be guided by the man who gave her her first big break in The Blue Angel.

Goodness me Walter I'm a tad green eyed if you've managed to breathe the same oxygen as Marlene Dietrich!!

That must have been magical! I sense that if so much of her persona and behaviour was rehersed then I imagine that helped to create a great deal of mystique around the question of what the real Marlene was like and thus a true enigma!

I know this sounds daft but can you describe a little more how the experience of going to see her live went? How it felt? How long were you on cloud nine? ☺😘

Take a look at these search results: https://twitter.com/hashtag/AllAboutEve?s=09

Thought that fans of golden era Hollywood would be interested to know that after all these years after its initial release legendary Hollywood film "All About Eve" trended on twitter last night IE it was a very popular topic of discussion -because it was shown on TCM movie channel I think!

It was 50 years ago, so I guess it was like the first time that I saw my first big Hollywood star in the flesh, when I was 13 years old, that was Burt Lancaster, and it was surreal.

Since then I have seen and spoken to so many legendary stars, including Judy Garland, Gloria Swanson, Ethel Merman, Bette Midler, Lena Horne, and Deborah Kerr. I guess that my four most memorable encounters were seeing Marilyn, and speaking to Joan Fontaine, Bette and Barbara.

The film with the most literate script, and most quotable dialogue EVER!

Margo Channing: "Everybody has a heart, except some people!"

My two all time favourite films have the name "Eve" in their title.

I've said this before and I will say it again you should write a book! You've had a very unique experience in life and it would be wonderful if it could be chronicled for other film buff fans to read! Although I'm quite sure that many of them will be green eyed like me in a non malicious way! I bet Bette Midler was very colourful and would have fitted right into her own niche if she'd been around in Hollywood's golden years! I think you'd have liked Debbie Reynolds if you'd met her especially when she and Elizabeth Taylor were enemies in the 1960s given your loathing of Elizabeth Taylor!!


That seems pretty mean spirited -perhaps he upset the wrong person over something trivial!? Hollywood does seem to be the kind of town were petty grudges can be nursed and executed for years! Was Glenn Ford especially controversial in anyway?

On this day of May 9th in previous years Hollywood screenwriter Fay Kain was born in 1917.

She wrote a number of films including "The Opposite Sex" which had a divine cast consisting of June Allyson, Joan Collins, Dolores Gray, Ann Miller, Ann Sheridan and Leslie. Nielson.
I think I'm right in thinking only Joan Collins is still with us?

Also on this day in 1998 Hollywood star Alice Faye who was a huge star in her time (a top ten box office draw in 1939) died aged 83.

For some reason whenever I think of Alice Faye I think of Dorothy Squires -I think it's because they both died in 1998 and perhaps quite close together datewise?

Fay Kanin was also connected to the AFI, I recall seeing her name in the programme for Barbara's Lincoln Centre Tribute.

I LOVE The Opposite Sex, the best ever remake of a Classic film, (The Women). It had so many favourite ladies in it, and the musical numbers were great. Yes, Dame Joan is the only surviving star from that 60 year old film.

I met Alice Faye at the National Film Theatre, 5th May 1993, which just happened to be the day that we were both celebrating our birthdays, she was 78, and I was 56. When she signed a photo for me, I told her that we shared the same birthday, so she very nicely signed it, "Happy Birthday Ray, Love Alice."

Only that he screwed practically every available female under 50 during his Hollywood hey day. No wonder his long suffering wife, the fabulous tap dancer Eleanor Powell divorced him. His son Peter, wrote an excellent book on him, and said that he was insatiable when it came to women.