Lashana Lynch became the first woman to own the 007 title in the 2021 James Bond tentpole “No Time to Die,” but it turns out a plan to make James Bond a woman was actually pitched over 60 years prior. In Nicholas Shakespeare’s upcoming biography of Bond author Ian Fleming, titled “Ian Fleming: The Complete Man,” it’s confirmed that producer Gregory Ratoff floated the idea of casting Susan Hayward in a film adaptation of Fleming’s first Bond novel “Casino Royale.”
Shakespeare writes in the biography (via IndieWire): “Since the mid-1950s, many well-known actors had been approached [to play Bond]. Gregory Ratoff had the arresting idea of having Bond played by a woman, Susan Hayward. Ian had entertained several possibilities, from Richard Burton (‘I think that Richard Burton would be by far the best James Bond’), to James Stewart (‘I wouldn’t at all mind him as Bond if he can slightly...
Shakespeare writes in the biography (via IndieWire): “Since the mid-1950s, many well-known actors had been approached [to play Bond]. Gregory Ratoff had the arresting idea of having Bond played by a woman, Susan Hayward. Ian had entertained several possibilities, from Richard Burton (‘I think that Richard Burton would be by far the best James Bond’), to James Stewart (‘I wouldn’t at all mind him as Bond if he can slightly...
- 4/8/2024
- by Zack Sharf
- Variety Film + TV
Yes, a female James Bond has been over a half-century in the making.
Before Lashana Lynch briefly donned the 007 title in “No Time to Die,” the film adaptation of “Dr. No,” a woman was in talks to lead the franchise 50 years prior.
In Nicholas Shakespeare’s upcoming biography of Bond author Ian Fleming, titled “Ian Fleming: The Complete Man,” it’s revealed that original “Casino Royale” producer Gregory Ratoff had imagined a woman in the titular lead role. In fact, Oscar-winning actress Susan Hayward was in Ratoff’s mind to take the part.
Prior to “Casino Royale,” the two Bond films had floundered with “Thunderball” and “Casino Royale” receiving poor reviews, hence the proposed gender-swap.
Shakespeare writes in the biography, “Since the mid-1950s, many well-known actors had been approached. Gregory Ratoff had the arresting idea of having Bond played by a woman, Susan Hayward. Ian had entertained several possibilities,...
Before Lashana Lynch briefly donned the 007 title in “No Time to Die,” the film adaptation of “Dr. No,” a woman was in talks to lead the franchise 50 years prior.
In Nicholas Shakespeare’s upcoming biography of Bond author Ian Fleming, titled “Ian Fleming: The Complete Man,” it’s revealed that original “Casino Royale” producer Gregory Ratoff had imagined a woman in the titular lead role. In fact, Oscar-winning actress Susan Hayward was in Ratoff’s mind to take the part.
Prior to “Casino Royale,” the two Bond films had floundered with “Thunderball” and “Casino Royale” receiving poor reviews, hence the proposed gender-swap.
Shakespeare writes in the biography, “Since the mid-1950s, many well-known actors had been approached. Gregory Ratoff had the arresting idea of having Bond played by a woman, Susan Hayward. Ian had entertained several possibilities,...
- 4/8/2024
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
Since the inception of the Academy Awards, the U.S.-based organization behind them has always strived to honor worldwide film achievements. Their extensive roster of competitive acting winners alone consists of artists from 30 unique countries, three of which first gained representation during the 2020s. The last full decade’s worth of triumphant performers hail from eight countries, while 42.1% of the individual actors nominated during that time originate from outside of America.
The academy’s history of recognizing acting talent on a global scale dates all the way back to the inaugural Oscars ceremony in 1929, when Swiss-born Emil Jannings (who was of German and American parentage) won Best Actor for his work in both “The Last Command” and “The Way of All Flesh.” Over the next three years, the Best Actress prize was exclusively awarded to Canadians: Mary Pickford (“Coquette”), Norma Shearer (“The Divorcee”), and Marie Dressler (“Min and Bill...
The academy’s history of recognizing acting talent on a global scale dates all the way back to the inaugural Oscars ceremony in 1929, when Swiss-born Emil Jannings (who was of German and American parentage) won Best Actor for his work in both “The Last Command” and “The Way of All Flesh.” Over the next three years, the Best Actress prize was exclusively awarded to Canadians: Mary Pickford (“Coquette”), Norma Shearer (“The Divorcee”), and Marie Dressler (“Min and Bill...
- 3/18/2024
- by Matthew Stewart
- Gold Derby
The 2024 Oscar race is on, and one film has the potential to accomplish a feat that hasn’t happened in 64 years. “Oppenheimer” leads the nominations with 13, and it’s on track to win several of those categories. If Christopher Nolan‘s epic claims Best Picture, Best Actor (Cillian Murphy) and Best Supporting Actor (Robert Downey Jr.), it will be the first time since 1960 that the same film (“Ben-Hur”) has won those three exact categories. And it would be only the fourth time it’s ever happened.
See Cillian Murphy interview: ‘Oppenheimer’
Since the Best Supporting Actor category was introduced in 1937, only three films have walked away with Best Picture as well as both male acting categories. In 1945, the inspirational musical comedy “Going My Way” not only became the highest-grossing film of 1944, but also won seven of its ten Oscar nominations, making it the big winner of the night. Beside the top prize,...
See Cillian Murphy interview: ‘Oppenheimer’
Since the Best Supporting Actor category was introduced in 1937, only three films have walked away with Best Picture as well as both male acting categories. In 1945, the inspirational musical comedy “Going My Way” not only became the highest-grossing film of 1944, but also won seven of its ten Oscar nominations, making it the big winner of the night. Beside the top prize,...
- 3/2/2024
- by Susan Pennington
- Gold Derby
Born and raised in Byculla, Bombay, daughter of a cop who used to be responsible for Mahatma Gandhi’s security bandobast, and adopted for life by Calcutta, Usha Uthup is the voice and spirit of the Swinging Sixties that the eastern metropolis was synonymous with till the Bangladesh War and the red shadow of Naxalism changed it forever.
Now, honoured with the Padma Bhushan, along with her ‘Disco Dancer’ star Mithun Chakraborty, 12 years after she was conferred the Padma Shri, Usha Uthup (formerly Iyer), the Queen of Indian Pop famous for her husky voice, boundless energy, distinctive red bindi and tastefully selected Kanjivarams, sang herself into popular imagination with two anthemic numbers of Hindi cinema’s disco era — Hari Om Hari and Aha Nache Nache.
Not formally trained in music, Uthup got her first singing break in a nightclub in Madras before she moved to Trincas, the Mecca of Park...
Now, honoured with the Padma Bhushan, along with her ‘Disco Dancer’ star Mithun Chakraborty, 12 years after she was conferred the Padma Shri, Usha Uthup (formerly Iyer), the Queen of Indian Pop famous for her husky voice, boundless energy, distinctive red bindi and tastefully selected Kanjivarams, sang herself into popular imagination with two anthemic numbers of Hindi cinema’s disco era — Hari Om Hari and Aha Nache Nache.
Not formally trained in music, Uthup got her first singing break in a nightclub in Madras before she moved to Trincas, the Mecca of Park...
- 1/26/2024
- by Agency News Desk
- GlamSham
The Academy Awards have a chance to do something that has only been done three previous times in their entire history. With Paul Giamatti (“The Holdovers”) and Emma Stone (“Poor Things”) nabbing surprising wins at the Critics Choice Awards, it’s the first time ever that both of their lead acting winners matched with the Golden Globe Musical/Comedy champions. If they both repeat at the Oscars on March 10, it would only be the fourth time that the winners of Best Actor and Best Actress paired with the Globe comedy winners.
The first time we had this match since the Golden Globe category creation in 1950 was for the year 1964 when musical films dominated the awards with Rex Harrison winning for “My Fair Lady” as Professor Henry Higgins and Julie Andrews for “Mary Poppins” as the title character. Those movies went on to be the top two nominated films at the...
The first time we had this match since the Golden Globe category creation in 1950 was for the year 1964 when musical films dominated the awards with Rex Harrison winning for “My Fair Lady” as Professor Henry Higgins and Julie Andrews for “Mary Poppins” as the title character. Those movies went on to be the top two nominated films at the...
- 1/22/2024
- by Christopher Tsang
- Gold Derby
Glynis Johns, the upbeat leading lady with the British charm who starred as the spirited feminist mother Winifred Banks in Mary Poppins, has died. She was 100.
Johns lived in West Hollywood and died Thursday of natural causes at an assisted living facility in the area, her manager, Mitch Clem, told The Hollywood Reporter.
A multitalented actress, dancer, pianist and singer, Johns earned a best supporting actress Oscar nomination for playing the widowed saloon and hotel owner Mrs. Firth in Fred Zinnemann’s Australia-set The Sundowners (1960).
Plus, she memorably sang “Send in the Clowns,” which Stephen Sondheim wrote just for her, in her Tony Award-winning performance as Desiree Armfeldt in the original 1973 production of A Little Night Music.
The husky voiced Johns was nominated for a Golden Globe for portraying a daffy older socialite who is stirred by the young stud she meets on the beach in a then-controversial film about sex,...
Johns lived in West Hollywood and died Thursday of natural causes at an assisted living facility in the area, her manager, Mitch Clem, told The Hollywood Reporter.
A multitalented actress, dancer, pianist and singer, Johns earned a best supporting actress Oscar nomination for playing the widowed saloon and hotel owner Mrs. Firth in Fred Zinnemann’s Australia-set The Sundowners (1960).
Plus, she memorably sang “Send in the Clowns,” which Stephen Sondheim wrote just for her, in her Tony Award-winning performance as Desiree Armfeldt in the original 1973 production of A Little Night Music.
The husky voiced Johns was nominated for a Golden Globe for portraying a daffy older socialite who is stirred by the young stud she meets on the beach in a then-controversial film about sex,...
- 1/4/2024
- by Mike Barnes
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
In 1964 Barbra Streisand became a star when she opened the original Broadway production of “Funny Girl” as real-life actress, singer and comedian Fanny Brice. Despite rave reviews, she ended up losing the Tony for Best Actress in a Musical to Carol Channing for “Hello, Dolly!” But in 1968 Babs made her motion picture debut in a film adaptation of “Funny Girl” directed by William Wyler, reprising her role as Fanny. She went on to win the Oscar for Best Actress (famously in a tie with Katharine Hepburn for “The Lion in Winter”). In 1970 Eileen Heckart was Tony nominated for her featured performance as Mrs. Baker in “Butterflies are Free,” but lost to her co-star Blythe Danner. But in 1972 Heckart reprised her role in a film adaptation, which won her an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress.
SEERay Richmond: Oprah discusses taking her ‘The Color Purple’ journey full circle following Thursday night world...
SEERay Richmond: Oprah discusses taking her ‘The Color Purple’ journey full circle following Thursday night world...
- 11/29/2023
- by Jeffrey Kare
- Gold Derby
Just two years after Anita of “West Side Story” became the first non-white fictional character to inspire multiple Academy Award nominations, three others are on their way to earning the same distinction. As was the case in 1986, 30% of 2024’s female acting Oscar slots could be filled by stars of “The Color Purple,” the new version of which serves as an adaptation of the similarly titled stage musical rather than Alice Walker’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. If Fantasia Barrino, Danielle Brooks, and Taraji P. Henson all reap bids for their fresh takes on the parts for which Whoopi Goldberg, Oprah Winfrey, and Margaret Avery were previously recognized, the overall list of doubly Oscar-nominated fictional characters will expand to include 20 examples.
In “The Color Purple,” Barrino executes the lead role of Celie Johnson, who she initially played on Broadway as a direct successor to 2006 Tony-winning originator Lachanze. As in the book and first film,...
In “The Color Purple,” Barrino executes the lead role of Celie Johnson, who she initially played on Broadway as a direct successor to 2006 Tony-winning originator Lachanze. As in the book and first film,...
- 11/14/2023
- by Matthew Stewart
- Gold Derby
(Welcome to Did They Get It Right?, a series where we look at Oscars categories from yesteryear and examine whether the Academy's winners stand the test of time.)
Best Original Song is such an odd category. On the Academy Awards broadcast, it is the one that gets the most airtime, as it is typical to perform all five of the nominated tunes during the show. While this is technically meant to showcase the nominees, it is really an excuse to break up what would be a fairly monotonous, long awards show.
However, most of the songs nominated for Best Original Song aren't all that interesting. A lot of the time, these tunes aren't integral to the film itself in the slightest, and they are simply musical wallpaper to play over the end credits of a movie as you file out of the theater. This is also the category most susceptible...
Best Original Song is such an odd category. On the Academy Awards broadcast, it is the one that gets the most airtime, as it is typical to perform all five of the nominated tunes during the show. While this is technically meant to showcase the nominees, it is really an excuse to break up what would be a fairly monotonous, long awards show.
However, most of the songs nominated for Best Original Song aren't all that interesting. A lot of the time, these tunes aren't integral to the film itself in the slightest, and they are simply musical wallpaper to play over the end credits of a movie as you file out of the theater. This is also the category most susceptible...
- 9/17/2023
- by Mike Shutt
- Slash Film
Joseph L. Mankiewicz’ “Cleopatra,” which opened in New York on June 12, 1963 and in Los Angeles a week later, was not a flop. In fact, the 243-minute film was a box office champ making $26 million at the box office, $6 million more than the Cinerama epic “How the West was Won.” But being the most expensive movie of its time — the budget ended up being around $44 million which would be around $429.5 million in 2023 — it took a long time to recoup its staggering costs. The film was such a drain on Twentieth Century Fox, the studio ended up having to sell nearly 300 acres of its backlot. That acreage was transformed into Century City.
The budgets started to soar when the original production with Elizabeth Taylor, who asked for and received $1 million for her services, Peter Finch as Julius Caesar, Stephen Boyd as Marc Antony and veteran filmmaker Rouben Mamoulian as director, stopped production...
The budgets started to soar when the original production with Elizabeth Taylor, who asked for and received $1 million for her services, Peter Finch as Julius Caesar, Stephen Boyd as Marc Antony and veteran filmmaker Rouben Mamoulian as director, stopped production...
- 6/19/2023
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
Cleopatra is one of the most iconic and famous people in the world. There is no doubt that the former female ruler of Ancient Egypt was one of the most influential in history, and that influence is something that is still recognized in the modern era.
There have been a number of films to have been made about her, with many of them having gone on to achieve plenty of success. When it comes down to trying to work out the best 10 films to have featured her, it can become rather tricky. While the sheer number of them makes it difficult, it is also important to recognize that there are many that are simply brilliantly put together, and the actresses that portrayed the former empress did a stellar job.
What are the 10 best Cleopatra films?
When trying to think of the 10 best Cleopatra films to have ever been released, it...
There have been a number of films to have been made about her, with many of them having gone on to achieve plenty of success. When it comes down to trying to work out the best 10 films to have featured her, it can become rather tricky. While the sheer number of them makes it difficult, it is also important to recognize that there are many that are simply brilliantly put together, and the actresses that portrayed the former empress did a stellar job.
What are the 10 best Cleopatra films?
When trying to think of the 10 best Cleopatra films to have ever been released, it...
- 4/25/2023
- by Martin Cid Magazine
- Martin Cid Magazine - Movies
It was the battle of the Stephens at the 27th annual Tony Awards telecast March 25, 1973 on ABC from the Imperial Theatre. In one corner was Stephen Sondheim’s glorious and exquisite romantic musical “A Little Night Music” based on Ingmar Bergman’s 1955 comedy “Smiles of a Summer Night.” And in the other corner, 25-year-old Stephen Schwartz’s hip, cool, Fosse Fosse Fosse musical “Pippin.”
“A Little Night Music,” which featured song memorable tunes as “Send in the Clowns” and “A Weekend in the Country,” waltzed into the ceremony hosted by Rex Harrison and Celeste Holm and co-hosted by Sandy Duncan and Jerry Orbach with 12 nominations including best musical, best original score, best book for Hugh Wheeler, best direction of a musical for Harold Prince, best performance by a leading actress in a musical for Glynis Johns, leading actor in a musical for Len Cariou, featured actress in a musical for...
“A Little Night Music,” which featured song memorable tunes as “Send in the Clowns” and “A Weekend in the Country,” waltzed into the ceremony hosted by Rex Harrison and Celeste Holm and co-hosted by Sandy Duncan and Jerry Orbach with 12 nominations including best musical, best original score, best book for Hugh Wheeler, best direction of a musical for Harold Prince, best performance by a leading actress in a musical for Glynis Johns, leading actor in a musical for Len Cariou, featured actress in a musical for...
- 4/5/2023
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
Mumbai, March 18 (Ians) Veteran actress Zeenat Aman has shared a throwback picture from 1977 saying it is to inspire “evening plans” for Saturday.
Taking to Instagram, Zeenat shared a monochrome picture dressed in a neck plunging sequined dress. In the picture, she can be seen combing her hair.
She shared the picture with the caption: “Some Saturday glam to inspire your evening plans! I’ve seen this image of myself floating around on the Internet, and thought it would be good to add some context to it.
“The year was 1977, and the cast and crew of Krishna Shah’s Shalimar had gathered at the Turf Club in Mumbai for the film’s ‘mahurat’. It was a packed, high-profile event and everyone was dressed to the nines.
“My glorious silver gown was created by renowned costume designer Mani Rabadi based on a design of my own making. Its plunging neckline and sleek silhouette certainly turned some heads.
Taking to Instagram, Zeenat shared a monochrome picture dressed in a neck plunging sequined dress. In the picture, she can be seen combing her hair.
She shared the picture with the caption: “Some Saturday glam to inspire your evening plans! I’ve seen this image of myself floating around on the Internet, and thought it would be good to add some context to it.
“The year was 1977, and the cast and crew of Krishna Shah’s Shalimar had gathered at the Turf Club in Mumbai for the film’s ‘mahurat’. It was a packed, high-profile event and everyone was dressed to the nines.
“My glorious silver gown was created by renowned costume designer Mani Rabadi based on a design of my own making. Its plunging neckline and sleek silhouette certainly turned some heads.
- 3/18/2023
- by News Bureau
- GlamSham
When Sidney Poitier was honored as the first African American male to win a competitive acting Oscar in 1964 for his lead performance in “Lilies of the Field,” it had been 24 years since Hattie McDaniel became the Jackie Robinson of the Academy Awards with her breakthrough triumph in 1940 for “Gone With the Wind.” And it would be another 19 years before there was a third: Louis Gossett Jr.’s supporting actor victory in 1983 for “An Officer and a Gentleman.”
Wins for three performers of color in 43 years didn’t exactly represent a trend. But in the 39 years after that, there would be 19 more, including a pair of African American actors (Denzel Washington and Mahershala Ali) who won twice apiece. Poitier’s ’64 triumph proved as surprising as it was stirring, and undeniably political. Leading up to that historic event, his inscrutable countenance and the almost regal way he carried himself made Poitier a...
Wins for three performers of color in 43 years didn’t exactly represent a trend. But in the 39 years after that, there would be 19 more, including a pair of African American actors (Denzel Washington and Mahershala Ali) who won twice apiece. Poitier’s ’64 triumph proved as surprising as it was stirring, and undeniably political. Leading up to that historic event, his inscrutable countenance and the almost regal way he carried himself made Poitier a...
- 2/25/2023
- by Ray Richmond
- Gold Derby
For every actor that wins multiple Oscars, there are others who, no matter how much they put into their roles and how much campaigning they do, just can’t make the conversion into winning their first Academy Award.
More often than not, it’s just a matter of bad timing, like being nominated for an Oscar in the same year as one of the four actors mentioned above. There’s just no way of knowing when you’re taking on a role or shooting a film or even once a movie gets out to the critics, how things might change in the time before Oscar night.
Scroll through our photo gallery above (or click here for direct access) to see the 25 actors with the most Oscar nominations and no wins. We include everyone who has been nominated for an acting award at least four times, with Glenn Close and Peter O’Toole...
More often than not, it’s just a matter of bad timing, like being nominated for an Oscar in the same year as one of the four actors mentioned above. There’s just no way of knowing when you’re taking on a role or shooting a film or even once a movie gets out to the critics, how things might change in the time before Oscar night.
Scroll through our photo gallery above (or click here for direct access) to see the 25 actors with the most Oscar nominations and no wins. We include everyone who has been nominated for an acting award at least four times, with Glenn Close and Peter O’Toole...
- 2/21/2023
- by Edward Douglas
- Gold Derby
Raquel Welch, the actor who became an icon and sex symbol thanks to films like “One Million Years B.C.” and “Three Musketeers,” died Wednesday in Los Angeles after a brief illness, her manager confirmed to Variety. She was 82.
She came onto the movie scene in 1966 with the sci-fi film “Fantastic Voyage” and the prehistoric adventure “One Million Years B.C.,” the latter of which established Welch as a sex symbol. The actor went on to appear in the controversial adaptation of Gore Vidal’s “Myra Beckrinridge,” “Kansas City Bomber” and Richard Lester’s delightful romps “The Three Musketeers” (1973), for which she won a Golden Globe, and “The Four Musketeers: Milady’s Revenge” (1974). She was one of the first women to play the lead role — not the romantic interest — in a Western, 1971 revenge tale “Hannie Caulder” — an inspiration for Quentin Tarantino’s “Kill Bill” (2003), according to the director.
(Earlier, Marlene Dietrich and Joan Crawford...
She came onto the movie scene in 1966 with the sci-fi film “Fantastic Voyage” and the prehistoric adventure “One Million Years B.C.,” the latter of which established Welch as a sex symbol. The actor went on to appear in the controversial adaptation of Gore Vidal’s “Myra Beckrinridge,” “Kansas City Bomber” and Richard Lester’s delightful romps “The Three Musketeers” (1973), for which she won a Golden Globe, and “The Four Musketeers: Milady’s Revenge” (1974). She was one of the first women to play the lead role — not the romantic interest — in a Western, 1971 revenge tale “Hannie Caulder” — an inspiration for Quentin Tarantino’s “Kill Bill” (2003), according to the director.
(Earlier, Marlene Dietrich and Joan Crawford...
- 2/15/2023
- by Carmel Dagan
- Variety Film + TV
Long before he won the 2022 Best Actor Oscar for playing tennis prodigy producer Richard Williams in “King Richard,” Will Smith was first recognized in the category for his portrayal of iconic boxer Muhammad Ali in “Ali.” His performance in the 2001 film, which amounts to one hour, 57 minutes, and 22 seconds of screen time, currently stands as the 12th longest ever nominated for any acting Oscar. He also holds the 47th spot on the list thanks to his work in 2006’s “The Pursuit of Happyness.” The performance that finally won him the award is significantly shorter than these two, yet still long by Oscars standards, as it just crosses the 90 minute mark.
Smith’s one-hour, 30-minute, and 10-second-long lead turn in “King Richard” is the 18th longest to have ever merited a Best Actor win. It also constitutes the lengthiest performance in the film by nearly half an hour, with Saniyya Sidney...
Smith’s one-hour, 30-minute, and 10-second-long lead turn in “King Richard” is the 18th longest to have ever merited a Best Actor win. It also constitutes the lengthiest performance in the film by nearly half an hour, with Saniyya Sidney...
- 1/22/2023
- by Matthew Stewart
- Gold Derby
Los Angeles, Jan 16 (Ians) Gina Lollobrigida, the 1950s Italian bombshell who starred in films including ‘Fanfan la Tulipe’, ‘Beat the Devil’, ‘Trapeze’ and ‘Buona Sera, Mrs Campbell’, has died. She was 95.
A generation of Indians will remember Lollobrigida from her sensational appearance at the 1978 International Film Festival of India (Iffi), where her flirty exchanges with Kabir Bedi were grist for the gossip magazine mill as well as politically incorrect comparisons between her physical attributes and those of Zeenat Aman.
Kabir Bedi, in his autobiography ‘Stories I Must Tell’, recalls a famous face-off Praveen Babi had with Lollobrigida at a party the Italian actress hosted in his honour for playing Sandokan in the famous Italian television series. The temperamental Indian actress was upset with Lollobrigida because she was apparently getting too comfortable with Bedi.
Lollobrigida also provided fodder for film magazines when it was rumoured that she was being cast by...
A generation of Indians will remember Lollobrigida from her sensational appearance at the 1978 International Film Festival of India (Iffi), where her flirty exchanges with Kabir Bedi were grist for the gossip magazine mill as well as politically incorrect comparisons between her physical attributes and those of Zeenat Aman.
Kabir Bedi, in his autobiography ‘Stories I Must Tell’, recalls a famous face-off Praveen Babi had with Lollobrigida at a party the Italian actress hosted in his honour for playing Sandokan in the famous Italian television series. The temperamental Indian actress was upset with Lollobrigida because she was apparently getting too comfortable with Bedi.
Lollobrigida also provided fodder for film magazines when it was rumoured that she was being cast by...
- 1/16/2023
- by News Bureau
- GlamSham
Gina Lollobrigida, the 1950s Italian bombshell who starred in films including ‘Fanfan la Tulipe’, ‘Beat the Devil’, ‘Trapeze’ and ‘Buona Sera, Mrs Campbell’, has died. She was 95. A generation of Indians will remember Lollobrigida from her sensational appearance at the 1978 International Film Festival of India (Iffi), where her flirty exchanges with Kabir Bedi were grist for the gossip magazine mill as well as politically incorrect comparisons between her physical attributes and those of Zeenat Aman.
Kabir Bedi, in his autobiography ‘Stories I Must Tell’, recalls a famous face-off Praveen Babi had with Lollobrigida at a party the Italian actress hosted in his honour for playing Sandokan in the famous Italian television series. The temperamental Indian actress was upset with Lollobrigida because she was apparently getting too comfortable with Bedi.
Lollobrigida also provided fodder for film magazines when it was rumoured that she was being cast by Krishna Shah in his Indo-American movie,...
Kabir Bedi, in his autobiography ‘Stories I Must Tell’, recalls a famous face-off Praveen Babi had with Lollobrigida at a party the Italian actress hosted in his honour for playing Sandokan in the famous Italian television series. The temperamental Indian actress was upset with Lollobrigida because she was apparently getting too comfortable with Bedi.
Lollobrigida also provided fodder for film magazines when it was rumoured that she was being cast by Krishna Shah in his Indo-American movie,...
- 1/16/2023
- by News Bureau
- GlamSham
Hubert G. Wells, a longtime Hollywood animal trainer whose many credits include the original Doctor Dolittle, Out of Africa, Babe: Pig in the City and, in 1970, the bizarre kids tv series Lancelot Link: Secret Chimp, died Dec. 25 of natural causes at his home in Thousand Oaks, California. He was 88.
His death was announced on social media by friends and animal training colleagues.
Born in Hungary, Hubert Geza Wells defected to the West following Russia’s crushing of the Hungarian Uprising in 1956.
“Eight years later I moved to California with my Indian leopard and golden pointer,” Wells, the author of the 2017 memoir Lights, Camera, Lions, wrote, referring to the dog-and-leopard show he staged on the East Coast. “A job awaited us, a two-part T.V. show for the Disney Studios. In the following years my animals and, at times, myself as a stunt double, appeared in over 150 films, T.V. shows and commercials.
His death was announced on social media by friends and animal training colleagues.
Born in Hungary, Hubert Geza Wells defected to the West following Russia’s crushing of the Hungarian Uprising in 1956.
“Eight years later I moved to California with my Indian leopard and golden pointer,” Wells, the author of the 2017 memoir Lights, Camera, Lions, wrote, referring to the dog-and-leopard show he staged on the East Coast. “A job awaited us, a two-part T.V. show for the Disney Studios. In the following years my animals and, at times, myself as a stunt double, appeared in over 150 films, T.V. shows and commercials.
- 1/11/2023
- by Greg Evans
- Deadline Film + TV
Hubert G. Wells, who trained animals for films including the original Doctor Dolittle, Out of Africa, Wolf, Sheena and The Ghost and the Darkness, has died. He was 88.
Wells died on Christmas Day of age-related illnesses at his home in Thousand Oaks, fellow animal trainer Doree Sitterly told The Hollywood Reporter.
Sitterly and Wells worked together for 20 years — she doubled for Meryl Streep on Out of Africa while Wells was serving as chief animal trainer on the 1986 Oscar best picture winner — and for 10 of those they lived on a compound in the Santa Monica Mountains that was filled with trained wild animals. (They raised lion cubs in the laundry room.)
The Hungarian-born Wells got his start in Hollywood at Jungleland, a 27-acre theme park and private zoo in Thousand Oaks that was used to rent and train animals for movies, TV shows and commercials. After it closed in 1969, he created Animal Actors of Hollywood,...
Wells died on Christmas Day of age-related illnesses at his home in Thousand Oaks, fellow animal trainer Doree Sitterly told The Hollywood Reporter.
Sitterly and Wells worked together for 20 years — she doubled for Meryl Streep on Out of Africa while Wells was serving as chief animal trainer on the 1986 Oscar best picture winner — and for 10 of those they lived on a compound in the Santa Monica Mountains that was filled with trained wild animals. (They raised lion cubs in the laundry room.)
The Hungarian-born Wells got his start in Hollywood at Jungleland, a 27-acre theme park and private zoo in Thousand Oaks that was used to rent and train animals for movies, TV shows and commercials. After it closed in 1969, he created Animal Actors of Hollywood,...
- 1/11/2023
- by Mike Barnes
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
"My Fair Lady" is a 1964 movie musical based on the 1956 Lerner and Loewe stage musical of the same name, which is in turned based on the 1913 stage play "Pygmalion" which, in its own turn, is based on Greek mythology. Sure, that trail ends with Hollywood, but Broadway is up to exact same shenanigans when it comes to remakes and reboots. Although the story of "My Fair Lady" is significantly altered from the original mythos, the core relationship between creator and creation is unchanged. Well, it's now about British high society and not about a sculptor and a sculpture anymore. Close enough, right?
Anyway, the 1964 film stars the one and only Audrey Hepburn as Eliza Doolittle, the titular fair lady. Co-starring as professor Henry Higgins, the titular claimant of possessing a "fair lady," is Rex Harrison, who also played the role opposite Julie Andrews in the original Broadway production. Wilfrid Hyde-White,...
Anyway, the 1964 film stars the one and only Audrey Hepburn as Eliza Doolittle, the titular fair lady. Co-starring as professor Henry Higgins, the titular claimant of possessing a "fair lady," is Rex Harrison, who also played the role opposite Julie Andrews in the original Broadway production. Wilfrid Hyde-White,...
- 1/8/2023
- by Cameron Roy Hall
- Slash Film
(Welcome to Did They Get It Right?, a series where we take a look at an Oscars category from yesteryear and examine whether the Academy's winner stands the test of time.)
Last week, I went through the eight Academy Award nominations of Glenn Close to examine why the renowned actor has yet to win even a single Oscar in her career. She holds the record for the actor with the most nominations in history without winning, but she doesn't hold that record alone. She shares it with someone I think is safe to call a legend: Peter O'Toole. The British thespian of stage and screen who became an instantaneous movie star in 1962 with the release of "Lawrence of Arabia" was also nominated eight times over the course of his career and never won, and because he died back in 2013, the chance to win is obviously gone, whereas Close still could.
Last week, I went through the eight Academy Award nominations of Glenn Close to examine why the renowned actor has yet to win even a single Oscar in her career. She holds the record for the actor with the most nominations in history without winning, but she doesn't hold that record alone. She shares it with someone I think is safe to call a legend: Peter O'Toole. The British thespian of stage and screen who became an instantaneous movie star in 1962 with the release of "Lawrence of Arabia" was also nominated eight times over the course of his career and never won, and because he died back in 2013, the chance to win is obviously gone, whereas Close still could.
- 1/5/2023
- by Mike Shutt
- Slash Film
Cate Blanchett has received a symphony of praise from critics for her starring role in Todd Fields’ “Tar”and as a strong-willed orchestra conductor. Lydia Tar speaks her mind whether making a fool out of a conducting student at Juilliard or threatening a young girl bullying her daughter at school. But Tar’s diva-tude has nothing on the Sir Alfred de Carter (Rex Harrison) the famed conductor with an ego as big as the Ritz in writer/director/producer Preston Sturges’ hilarious dark 1948 comedy “Unfaithfully Yours.”
Sturges had had an incredible run at Paramount with his brilliant comedies: 1940’s “The Great McGinty,” for which he won the original screenplay Oscar and “Christmas in July”; 1941’s “The Lady Eve” and “Sullivan’s Travels”; 1942’s “The Palm Beach Story”; and 1944’s “The Miracle at Morgan’s Creek” and “Hail the Conquering Hero.” But then came many clashes with Paramount executives, the 1944 critical...
Sturges had had an incredible run at Paramount with his brilliant comedies: 1940’s “The Great McGinty,” for which he won the original screenplay Oscar and “Christmas in July”; 1941’s “The Lady Eve” and “Sullivan’s Travels”; 1942’s “The Palm Beach Story”; and 1944’s “The Miracle at Morgan’s Creek” and “Hail the Conquering Hero.” But then came many clashes with Paramount executives, the 1944 critical...
- 11/17/2022
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
As discussed when thumbing through IndieWire’s favorite horror scores earlier this month, much of the work of horror filmmaking is about giving fear a shape. Horror movies imbue the world we know with a malevolent power, bringing out the threat of violence we suspect is always lurking just below the surface. The home is a particularly potent setting for such a transformation, and while there are a lot of different methods for making a moviegoer question the safety of their supposed haven, one of the most dependable is a good old fashioned haunting. Looking at horror movies from across the decades, we can see patterns of production design, composition and lighting, special effects, and sonic choices that give haunted houses their ghostly and/or ghastly strength. We’ve selected six essential films exhibiting the key building blocks the best filmmakers use to construct the sinister shadows and otherworldly presences...
- 10/26/2022
- by Sarah Shachat and Erik Adams
- Indiewire
Click here to read the full article.
Carl Samrock, the veteran Hollywood publicist who over the course of a 50-year career worked for Warner Bros. and headed his own firm, has died. He was 81.
Samrock died Saturday night of pancreatic cancer at his home in Encino, his wife of 44 years, Carol Andelman Samrock, announced.
Samrock was vice president of national publicity at Warner Bros. Pictures in Burbank under co-chairmen Bob Daly and Terry Semel. He joined the company in 1982 as West Coast publicity director and built and managed a 16-member staff responsible for publicity duties on some 30 films in production or release annually.
Samrock moved to Warner Home Video in 1997 as a consultant to help then-president Warren Lieberfarb introduce the new format.
A year later, he launched Carl Samrock Public Relations, a boutique firm that focused on publicity and promotion campaigns for DVD and Blu-ray releases. For the next nearly two decades,...
Carl Samrock, the veteran Hollywood publicist who over the course of a 50-year career worked for Warner Bros. and headed his own firm, has died. He was 81.
Samrock died Saturday night of pancreatic cancer at his home in Encino, his wife of 44 years, Carol Andelman Samrock, announced.
Samrock was vice president of national publicity at Warner Bros. Pictures in Burbank under co-chairmen Bob Daly and Terry Semel. He joined the company in 1982 as West Coast publicity director and built and managed a 16-member staff responsible for publicity duties on some 30 films in production or release annually.
Samrock moved to Warner Home Video in 1997 as a consultant to help then-president Warren Lieberfarb introduce the new format.
A year later, he launched Carl Samrock Public Relations, a boutique firm that focused on publicity and promotion campaigns for DVD and Blu-ray releases. For the next nearly two decades,...
- 10/3/2022
- by Mike Barnes
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Click here to read the full article.
It was an offer they couldn’t refuse.
APA has signed the estate of The Godfather author Mario Puzo for representation.
The agency will represent the media rights to the author’s novels with the goal of sales for motion picture and streaming minseries adaptations.
Puzo is best known for Godfather, his 1969 novel that was on the New York Times best-seller list for 67 weeks and reportedly sold 9 million copies in two years. The author gained further fame when Francis Ford Coppola adapted the book into the classic film starring Marlon Brando and Al Pacino. Paramount may own those rights, but APA is betting that in this age of insatiable hunger for stories, there will be plenty of interest in the author’s many other works.
The agency has already begun discussion with producers regarding Puzo’s as-yet-unadapted novels including: Fools Die, his first novel post-Godfather,...
It was an offer they couldn’t refuse.
APA has signed the estate of The Godfather author Mario Puzo for representation.
The agency will represent the media rights to the author’s novels with the goal of sales for motion picture and streaming minseries adaptations.
Puzo is best known for Godfather, his 1969 novel that was on the New York Times best-seller list for 67 weeks and reportedly sold 9 million copies in two years. The author gained further fame when Francis Ford Coppola adapted the book into the classic film starring Marlon Brando and Al Pacino. Paramount may own those rights, but APA is betting that in this age of insatiable hunger for stories, there will be plenty of interest in the author’s many other works.
The agency has already begun discussion with producers regarding Puzo’s as-yet-unadapted novels including: Fools Die, his first novel post-Godfather,...
- 8/2/2022
- by Borys Kit
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Throughout the 1960s, several theatrical films from two decades prior were reworked into television series, the majority of which lasted a maximum of two seasons. One of these cases involved the 1947 fantasy film “The Ghost and Mrs. Muir,” starring Gene Tierney and Rex Harrison. The TV adaptation, which debuted in 1968 with Hope Lange and Edward Mulhare in the lead roles, did not fare particularly well and was cancelled by NBC after a single season. It was immediately picked up by ABC, but its tenure there was just as short.
The show did manage to garner six Emmy nominations during its short run, including one for Best Comedy Series. Lange also picked up a pair of Best Comedy Actress trophies, making her the second youngest champion in her category at the time. Over half a century later, she places behind a total of nine younger women, including three who triumphed in their 20s.
The show did manage to garner six Emmy nominations during its short run, including one for Best Comedy Series. Lange also picked up a pair of Best Comedy Actress trophies, making her the second youngest champion in her category at the time. Over half a century later, she places behind a total of nine younger women, including three who triumphed in their 20s.
- 7/21/2022
- by Matthew Stewart
- Gold Derby
A post-James Bond Daniel Craig and Oscar-nominee Ruth Negga currently are shaking things up on Broadway in the latest revival of “Macbeth,” Shakespeare’s tragedy of mayhem, power, murder and madness. The “Scottish play” has a reputation for being cursed because the Bard used real witches’ spells.
It certainly has fallen afoul of the Tony Awards over the years. Negga was nominated but Craig was snubbed. Of the 11 previous stagings of “Macbeth” since the start of the Tony Awards, only the 2008 revival merited nominations for both stars (Patrick Stewart and Kate Fleetwood). Glenda Jackson reaped a bid in 1988 while Christopher Plummer was left in the wings.
The first recorded production of the play in New York was way back in 1768 at the John Street Theatre, which had been built the year before. Though the closing date is unknown, the theater was demolished in 1897. Lewis Hallam, who is the only known cast member,...
It certainly has fallen afoul of the Tony Awards over the years. Negga was nominated but Craig was snubbed. Of the 11 previous stagings of “Macbeth” since the start of the Tony Awards, only the 2008 revival merited nominations for both stars (Patrick Stewart and Kate Fleetwood). Glenda Jackson reaped a bid in 1988 while Christopher Plummer was left in the wings.
The first recorded production of the play in New York was way back in 1768 at the John Street Theatre, which had been built the year before. Though the closing date is unknown, the theater was demolished in 1897. Lewis Hallam, who is the only known cast member,...
- 5/10/2022
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
Get out your handkerchiefs, director Joseph Mankiewicz’ 1947 fantasy has been known to inspire tears in even the hardest-hearted moviegoer. This ectoplasmic romance between Gene Tierney (as the most beautiful spinster ever to don a shawl and wire-rim glasses) and Rex Harrison as the sea-faring ghost who loves her is a match not made in heaven but certainly headed there. Bernard Herrmann’s wistful score is the finishing touch on one of the greatest date-night movies ever.
The post The Ghost and Mrs. Muir appeared first on Trailers From Hell.
The post The Ghost and Mrs. Muir appeared first on Trailers From Hell.
- 5/6/2022
- by TFH Team
- Trailers from Hell
Tony and Emmy winner Robert Morse died April 20 at the age of 90.
Morse’s son Charlie confirmed his passing to Los Angeles’ ABC affiliate via Deadline, and Morse’s death was announced on Twitter by writer/producer Larry Karaszewski, a vice president on the Board of Governors for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
“My good pal Bobby Morse has passed away at age 90,” Karaszewski tweeted. “A huge talent and a beautiful spirit. Sending love to his son Charlie & daughter Allyn. Had so much fun hanging with Bobby over the years – filming ‘People v Oj’ and hosting so many screenings.”
Morse starred in “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying” on Broadway in 1961, winning a Tony Award. He reprised his role of ambitious window washer J. Pierrepont Finch for the 1967 film adaptation of the musical.
Morse later starred in the 1989 Truman Capote one-man stage show “Tru,” for...
Morse’s son Charlie confirmed his passing to Los Angeles’ ABC affiliate via Deadline, and Morse’s death was announced on Twitter by writer/producer Larry Karaszewski, a vice president on the Board of Governors for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
“My good pal Bobby Morse has passed away at age 90,” Karaszewski tweeted. “A huge talent and a beautiful spirit. Sending love to his son Charlie & daughter Allyn. Had so much fun hanging with Bobby over the years – filming ‘People v Oj’ and hosting so many screenings.”
Morse starred in “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying” on Broadway in 1961, winning a Tony Award. He reprised his role of ambitious window washer J. Pierrepont Finch for the 1967 film adaptation of the musical.
Morse later starred in the 1989 Truman Capote one-man stage show “Tru,” for...
- 4/21/2022
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
Elizabeth Harris Aitken, who was married four times, including to two film superstars and a pair of cousins, died aged 85 on Friday April 15.
The socialite, author and family matriarch was most recently the wife of Jonathan Aitken, formerly disgraced politician who served in John Major’s Conservative government cabinet, turned devoted Christian and prison chaplain.
When Elizabeth Aitken wrote her memoirs aged 40, she titled them Love, Honour and Dismay, and dedicated them to “Rh” – which could have been either her first husband, Richard Harris, or her second, Rex Harrison.
Born Elizabeth Rees-Williams in 1936 in Wales, Aitken was the child of a Labour MP. She attended London’s Royal Academy for Dramatic Art herself, where she was in the company of future stars Peter O’Toole, Alan Bates and Albert Finney, but she became best known as the partner of Irish actor Richard Harris. The couple married in 1957. They stayed together for 11 years and had three sons,...
The socialite, author and family matriarch was most recently the wife of Jonathan Aitken, formerly disgraced politician who served in John Major’s Conservative government cabinet, turned devoted Christian and prison chaplain.
When Elizabeth Aitken wrote her memoirs aged 40, she titled them Love, Honour and Dismay, and dedicated them to “Rh” – which could have been either her first husband, Richard Harris, or her second, Rex Harrison.
Born Elizabeth Rees-Williams in 1936 in Wales, Aitken was the child of a Labour MP. She attended London’s Royal Academy for Dramatic Art herself, where she was in the company of future stars Peter O’Toole, Alan Bates and Albert Finney, but she became best known as the partner of Irish actor Richard Harris. The couple married in 1957. They stayed together for 11 years and had three sons,...
- 4/18/2022
- by Caroline Frost
- Deadline Film + TV
Spoiler Alert: Do not read ahead if you have not watched Season 7, Episode 5, of “The Masked Singer,” “Masking For a Duel — Round 2,” which aired April 6 on Fox.
That’s no illusion, it really was Vegas legends Penn and Teller unmasked on Wednesday night’s episode of “The Masked Singer.” Penn Jillette and his quiet partner Teller were disguised under the three-headed Hydra outfit. (Scroll down to watch the unmasking.)
And yes, that was Teller who did most of the singing — in two different voices, one as himself and one in an aristocratic-style voice patterned after Rex Harrison in “My Fair Lady.”
That may very well be the only time you’ll ever hear Teller — famously mute during all Penn & Teller appearances — actually talk. According to Jillette — who naturally spoke solo with Variety — the decision was made to have Teller sing most of the songs since Jillette’s booming voice is so recognizable.
That’s no illusion, it really was Vegas legends Penn and Teller unmasked on Wednesday night’s episode of “The Masked Singer.” Penn Jillette and his quiet partner Teller were disguised under the three-headed Hydra outfit. (Scroll down to watch the unmasking.)
And yes, that was Teller who did most of the singing — in two different voices, one as himself and one in an aristocratic-style voice patterned after Rex Harrison in “My Fair Lady.”
That may very well be the only time you’ll ever hear Teller — famously mute during all Penn & Teller appearances — actually talk. According to Jillette — who naturally spoke solo with Variety — the decision was made to have Teller sing most of the songs since Jillette’s booming voice is so recognizable.
- 4/7/2022
- by Michael Schneider
- Variety Film + TV
(Warning: This post contains spoilers for Wednesday’s “The Masked Singer.”)
Team Bad’s numbers are dwindling. Hydra said goodbye to the competition during Wednesday’s episode of “The Masked Singer” on Fox.
For the second week in a row, the judges were able to guess who was behind the mask before they were unveiled. This time, guest judge Nicole Byer was the one to successfully deduce that Penn and Teller were the contestants hidden inside the Hydra costume.
Other guesses that were thrown out included Bert and Ernie, Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly, and Martin Short and Steve Martin. Penn told TheWrap that the latter was quite flattering.
“They’re friends of ours and two of the most talented people on the planet. So we were thrilled to pieces with that guess,” he said, adding that he wasn’t all that surprised the judges were able to figure it out in the end.
Team Bad’s numbers are dwindling. Hydra said goodbye to the competition during Wednesday’s episode of “The Masked Singer” on Fox.
For the second week in a row, the judges were able to guess who was behind the mask before they were unveiled. This time, guest judge Nicole Byer was the one to successfully deduce that Penn and Teller were the contestants hidden inside the Hydra costume.
Other guesses that were thrown out included Bert and Ernie, Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly, and Martin Short and Steve Martin. Penn told TheWrap that the latter was quite flattering.
“They’re friends of ours and two of the most talented people on the planet. So we were thrilled to pieces with that guess,” he said, adding that he wasn’t all that surprised the judges were able to figure it out in the end.
- 4/7/2022
- by Katie Campione
- The Wrap
By Lee Pfeiffer
We've often written about the shameful conceit of movie studios that used to cast Caucasian actors in leading roles pertaining to ethnic minorities. Sure, it was fine to have actual minority actors playing supporting roles (often for comic effect) but the most important characters were generally always portrayed by white actors or actresses (remember Rex Harrison as The King of Siam???). Sadly, this blatant policy of racial prejudice often extended to films that were sympathetic to the very races they were portraying. Case in point: Geronimo, a 1962 Western that purports to tell the story of the legendary Apache leader who stood virtually alone against the U.S. government, even after most of his tribe was browbeaten into surrendering. The logic at United Artists at the time was that there was no actor more appropriate to play a famous Native American other than blonde-haired, blue-eyed Chuck Connors, who was...
We've often written about the shameful conceit of movie studios that used to cast Caucasian actors in leading roles pertaining to ethnic minorities. Sure, it was fine to have actual minority actors playing supporting roles (often for comic effect) but the most important characters were generally always portrayed by white actors or actresses (remember Rex Harrison as The King of Siam???). Sadly, this blatant policy of racial prejudice often extended to films that were sympathetic to the very races they were portraying. Case in point: Geronimo, a 1962 Western that purports to tell the story of the legendary Apache leader who stood virtually alone against the U.S. government, even after most of his tribe was browbeaten into surrendering. The logic at United Artists at the time was that there was no actor more appropriate to play a famous Native American other than blonde-haired, blue-eyed Chuck Connors, who was...
- 4/2/2022
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
Japanese actor Akira Takarada, the star of the original 1954 Godzilla film, has died at the age of 87. No cause or date of death was given by Toho Studios, which produced that film and announced his death.
Takarada starred as Hideto Ogata in Godzilla, a sailor. His character was the liaison with the Japanese Coast Guard after the first ship that Godzilla sank sent out an Sos. He was also there at the film’s end to watch Godzilla die from the Oxygen Destroyer.
Toho wrote of his death on the official Twitter account for the film. “We are saddened to hear of the passing of Akira Takarada. May his memory continue to inspire the lives of many Godzilla fans.”
Takarada appeared in the 1956 American re-edit, Godzilla, King of the Monsters, with Raymond Burr. He was part of the ongoing Godzilla series, appearing in Mothra vs. Godzilla in 1964. Takarada returned to...
Takarada starred as Hideto Ogata in Godzilla, a sailor. His character was the liaison with the Japanese Coast Guard after the first ship that Godzilla sank sent out an Sos. He was also there at the film’s end to watch Godzilla die from the Oxygen Destroyer.
Toho wrote of his death on the official Twitter account for the film. “We are saddened to hear of the passing of Akira Takarada. May his memory continue to inspire the lives of many Godzilla fans.”
Takarada appeared in the 1956 American re-edit, Godzilla, King of the Monsters, with Raymond Burr. He was part of the ongoing Godzilla series, appearing in Mothra vs. Godzilla in 1964. Takarada returned to...
- 3/18/2022
- by Bruce Haring
- Deadline Film + TV
Well, if Javier Bardem and Penelope Cruz didn’t know who they were taking to the Oscars before, they do now. The married actors earned matching nominations: Best Actor for “Being the Ricardos” and Best Actress for “Parallel Mothers,” respectively. They’re the sixth spouses in Oscar history to earn Oscar acting nominations in the same year.
SEESassy Oscar nominations reactions from our film forum posters: Cheers for Kirsten Dunst, jeers for Lady Gaga snub
Bardem and Cruz join five other couples: Lynn Fontanne and Alfred Lunt; Frank Sinatra and Ava Gardner; Elsa Lanchester and Charles Laughton; Rex Harrison and Rachel Roberts; and Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor.
This is the first time Bardem and Cruz are nominated together, but they have had remarkably similar Oscar track records. Both are nominated for the fourth time. Both won their Oscars on their second try for supporting roles. And both have been...
SEESassy Oscar nominations reactions from our film forum posters: Cheers for Kirsten Dunst, jeers for Lady Gaga snub
Bardem and Cruz join five other couples: Lynn Fontanne and Alfred Lunt; Frank Sinatra and Ava Gardner; Elsa Lanchester and Charles Laughton; Rex Harrison and Rachel Roberts; and Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor.
This is the first time Bardem and Cruz are nominated together, but they have had remarkably similar Oscar track records. Both are nominated for the fourth time. Both won their Oscars on their second try for supporting roles. And both have been...
- 2/9/2022
- by Daniel Montgomery
- Gold Derby
On Thursday, Javier Bardem and Penélope Cruz became only the sixth married couple in Oscar history to be nominated in the same year – but when TheWrap told Bardem that the most famous couple to achieve that feat was Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor, he had a quick response.
“I hope we don’t end up like they did, right?” he said, laughing as he remembered the famously combative couple who were married in 1964, nominated for “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” in 1967, divorced in 1974, remarried in 1975 and divorced again in 1976.
In fact, three of the five previous Oscar-nominated couples did split up post-Oscars. Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne stayed together after their 1932 nomination, as did Charles Laughton and Elsa Lanchester after their dual noms in 1957. But in addition to Burton and Taylor, Frank Sinatra and Ava Gardner were nominated in 1953 and divorced four years later, while Rex Harrison and Rachel Roberts...
“I hope we don’t end up like they did, right?” he said, laughing as he remembered the famously combative couple who were married in 1964, nominated for “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” in 1967, divorced in 1974, remarried in 1975 and divorced again in 1976.
In fact, three of the five previous Oscar-nominated couples did split up post-Oscars. Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne stayed together after their 1932 nomination, as did Charles Laughton and Elsa Lanchester after their dual noms in 1957. But in addition to Burton and Taylor, Frank Sinatra and Ava Gardner were nominated in 1953 and divorced four years later, while Rex Harrison and Rachel Roberts...
- 2/8/2022
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
Every Academy Awards season provides a little slice of history, but more Oscar records could fall with Tuesday’s announcement of the nominations. Here are some of the landmarks that could conceivably be reached:
• If Kenneth Branagh is nominated for both Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay for “Belfast,” he’ll break the record for nominations in the largest number of different categories. Branagh has previously been nominated in five different categories: Best Actor (“Henry V”), Best Supporting Actor (“My Week With Marilyn”), Best Director (“Henry V”), Best Adapted Screenplay (“Hamlet”) and Best Live Action Short (“Swan Song”). George Clooney, Alfonso Cuarón and Walt Disney have all been nominated in six different categories.
• If Jane Campion is nominated for Best Director for “The Power of the Dog,” she’ll become the first woman ever nominated twice in the category. (She was previously nominated for 1993’s “The Piano.”)
• If “The Power of the Dog,...
• If Kenneth Branagh is nominated for both Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay for “Belfast,” he’ll break the record for nominations in the largest number of different categories. Branagh has previously been nominated in five different categories: Best Actor (“Henry V”), Best Supporting Actor (“My Week With Marilyn”), Best Director (“Henry V”), Best Adapted Screenplay (“Hamlet”) and Best Live Action Short (“Swan Song”). George Clooney, Alfonso Cuarón and Walt Disney have all been nominated in six different categories.
• If Jane Campion is nominated for Best Director for “The Power of the Dog,” she’ll become the first woman ever nominated twice in the category. (She was previously nominated for 1993’s “The Piano.”)
• If “The Power of the Dog,...
- 2/7/2022
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
Oscars: Can Penélope Cruz and Javier Bardem Be the Fourth Married Couple Nominated in the Same Year?
Penélope Cruz is luxuriously refined in “Parallel Mothers,” a performance that has picked up critical acclaim and notable accolades since debuting at Venice. The voting bloc of the international community is a key demographic that pushed last year’s “The Father” from Florian Zeller, another Sony Pictures Classics feature, to perform exceptionally well with the Academy despite significant misses from key guild groups leading to nominations. Zeller’s film went on to win two major Oscars for adapted screenplay (Zeller and Christopher Hampton) and best actor (Anthony Hopkins).
The awards prospects for Pedro Almodóvar’s Spanish drama have been hindered by the switch in-person to virtual campaigning, which is not unique to all of this year’s contenders. However, the lifeblood of a film like “Parallel Mothers” appeals to and requires the international community’s presence, so the BAFTA snubs nearly across the board are worrisome. Almodóvar, a familiar favorite,...
The awards prospects for Pedro Almodóvar’s Spanish drama have been hindered by the switch in-person to virtual campaigning, which is not unique to all of this year’s contenders. However, the lifeblood of a film like “Parallel Mothers” appeals to and requires the international community’s presence, so the BAFTA snubs nearly across the board are worrisome. Almodóvar, a familiar favorite,...
- 1/27/2022
- by Clayton Davis
- Variety Film + TV
In the 125 years since the first play based on the life of 17th century author Cyrano de Bergerac premiered, the classic underdog tale’s eternal relevance has been proven time and time again. Its simple love triangle premise has served as the basis for many stage and screen adaptations, two of which captured the attention of Oscar voters. José Ferrer and Gérard Depardieu both earned academy recognition for their portrayals of de Bergerac, and now Peter Dinklage is gunning for a Best Actor bid for starring in the new film “Cyrano.” If he succeeds, the character will become one of only a handful in Oscars history to have inspired three nominations.
Dinklage, who bagged four Emmys during his eight-season tenure on “Game of Thrones,” first played de Bergerac during the Off-Broadway run of the stage musical from which his film derives. His potential Oscar nomination would come 71 years after Ferrer’s,...
Dinklage, who bagged four Emmys during his eight-season tenure on “Game of Thrones,” first played de Bergerac during the Off-Broadway run of the stage musical from which his film derives. His potential Oscar nomination would come 71 years after Ferrer’s,...
- 1/21/2022
- by Matthew Stewart
- Gold Derby
Director Alfred Hitchcock age 21. “Rebecca” star Laurence Olivier at 14. “Gone With The Wind” icon Vivien Leigh at 7. Author Roald Dahl age 4 years and nine months.
The 1921 census, which was released by the U.K.’s National Archives department on Thursday, provides a snapshot into the lives of some of Britain’s best known names long before they became famous. In all, 38 million people were required to fill out the survey just over a hundred years ago, with each citizen individually listed by name.
According to his census entry, in 1921 Alfred Hitchcock was still living at home in Southwark, south London, alongside his 56-year-old mother Emma. His occupation is listed as “Title Designer for Film Company.” At the time, he was working at Famous Players-Lasky, Paramount Pictures’ production arm, which was based in Islington.
Laurence Olivier, still years away from becoming one of Britain’s best-known actors, was 14 years and one...
The 1921 census, which was released by the U.K.’s National Archives department on Thursday, provides a snapshot into the lives of some of Britain’s best known names long before they became famous. In all, 38 million people were required to fill out the survey just over a hundred years ago, with each citizen individually listed by name.
According to his census entry, in 1921 Alfred Hitchcock was still living at home in Southwark, south London, alongside his 56-year-old mother Emma. His occupation is listed as “Title Designer for Film Company.” At the time, he was working at Famous Players-Lasky, Paramount Pictures’ production arm, which was based in Islington.
Laurence Olivier, still years away from becoming one of Britain’s best-known actors, was 14 years and one...
- 1/6/2022
- by K.J. Yossman
- Variety Film + TV
Normal 0 false false false Da X-none X-none
Written and photographed by Thomas Hauerslev
Before the evening show at the Gentofte Kino, Maria Hauerslev, is catching up about "Cleopatra" in the latest issue of "Cinema Retro" magazine.
The 1963 Todd-ao production "Cleopatra" was recently presented at the Gentofte Kino, an original cinema from 1938. As part of a city-wide "Golden Days" festival, Kino's Manager Sune Lind Thomsen, had programmed a screening of the classic "Cleopatra" on Friday evening 3. September 2021 at 18:00 (6 pm). This event was the first Danish public screening in 13 years. This is a short report about this evening.
Directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz and starring Elizabeth Taylor, Rex Harrison and Richard Burton, "Cleopatra" was a sensation when it came out 29. April 1964, but played only 6 weeks at the Imperial Bio in Copenhagen (until 11. June 1964). It is rare to be able to see a film like this in a Danish cinema. The...
Written and photographed by Thomas Hauerslev
Before the evening show at the Gentofte Kino, Maria Hauerslev, is catching up about "Cleopatra" in the latest issue of "Cinema Retro" magazine.
The 1963 Todd-ao production "Cleopatra" was recently presented at the Gentofte Kino, an original cinema from 1938. As part of a city-wide "Golden Days" festival, Kino's Manager Sune Lind Thomsen, had programmed a screening of the classic "Cleopatra" on Friday evening 3. September 2021 at 18:00 (6 pm). This event was the first Danish public screening in 13 years. This is a short report about this evening.
Directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz and starring Elizabeth Taylor, Rex Harrison and Richard Burton, "Cleopatra" was a sensation when it came out 29. April 1964, but played only 6 weeks at the Imperial Bio in Copenhagen (until 11. June 1964). It is rare to be able to see a film like this in a Danish cinema. The...
- 12/7/2021
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
Musicals are divisive by nature, but they can hit a sweet spot with awards voters with the right cast and crew. Andrew Garfield leads the charge on Lin-Manuel Miranda’s directorial debut, “Tick, Tick … Boom!” With tender vocals and a heartfelt vulnerability, Garfield could emerge as a definitive challenger to the best actor prize that has seemed preordained to Will Smith for “King Richard.” If achieved, Garfield would be the first leading actor from a musical to win in over 55 years.
Garfield’s Jonathan Larson is sensitively constructed and harmoniously executed through his sweet arrangements and vocal inflections, especially in the songs “Why” and “Sunday.” Either of those two are likely his “Oscar clip” (which will hopefully be reintroduced back into the ceremony).
Providing a palpable balance and an emotional anchor to the story is Tony nominee Robin de Jesús as Jonathan’s best friend and roommate Michael. The Latino...
Garfield’s Jonathan Larson is sensitively constructed and harmoniously executed through his sweet arrangements and vocal inflections, especially in the songs “Why” and “Sunday.” Either of those two are likely his “Oscar clip” (which will hopefully be reintroduced back into the ceremony).
Providing a palpable balance and an emotional anchor to the story is Tony nominee Robin de Jesús as Jonathan’s best friend and roommate Michael. The Latino...
- 11/11/2021
- by Clayton Davis
- Variety Film + TV
It’s been said that American women of the 1950s admired Marilyn Monroe, but they wanted to be Audrey Hepburn, who projected an entirely different appeal. Hepburn had talent, grace, a dazzling smile and the strength to overcome any obstacle. Paramount now rounds up their Audrey Hepburn holdings to release this seven-picture ode to the great actress, the sentimental favorite. Several are near-perfect entertainments, great films everybody should see. All are handsomely remastered in HD, in their proper aspect ratios. I’d consider this definite holiday gift-giving material.
Audrey Hepburn 7 – Movie Collection
Roman Holiday, Sabrina, War and Peace, Funny Face, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Paris When It Sizzles, My Fair Lady
Blu-ray
Paramount Home Entertainment
1952-1964 / Color + B&w / Street Date October 5, 2021
Starring: Audrey Hepburn, Gregory Peck, Humphrey Bogart, Mel Ferrer, Fred Astaire, George Peppard, William Holden, Rex Harrison.
Directed by William Wyler, Billy Wilder, King Vidor, Stanley Donen, Blake Edwards,...
Audrey Hepburn 7 – Movie Collection
Roman Holiday, Sabrina, War and Peace, Funny Face, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Paris When It Sizzles, My Fair Lady
Blu-ray
Paramount Home Entertainment
1952-1964 / Color + B&w / Street Date October 5, 2021
Starring: Audrey Hepburn, Gregory Peck, Humphrey Bogart, Mel Ferrer, Fred Astaire, George Peppard, William Holden, Rex Harrison.
Directed by William Wyler, Billy Wilder, King Vidor, Stanley Donen, Blake Edwards,...
- 10/19/2021
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Throughout the 1960s, several theatrical films from two decades prior were reworked into television series, the majority of which lasted a maximum of two seasons. One of these cases involved the 1947 fantasy film “The Ghost and Mrs. Muir,” starring Gene Tierney and Rex Harrison. The TV adaptation, which debuted in 1968 with Hope Lange and Edward Mulhare in the lead roles, did not fare particularly well and was cancelled by NBC after a single season. It was immediately picked up by ABC, but its tenure there was just as short.
The show did manage to garner six Emmy nominations during its short run, including one for Best Comedy Series. Lange also picked up a pair of Best Comedy Actress trophies, making her the second youngest champion in her category at the time. Over half a century later, she places behind a total of nine younger women, including three who triumphed in their 20s.
The show did manage to garner six Emmy nominations during its short run, including one for Best Comedy Series. Lange also picked up a pair of Best Comedy Actress trophies, making her the second youngest champion in her category at the time. Over half a century later, she places behind a total of nine younger women, including three who triumphed in their 20s.
- 8/27/2021
- by Matthew Stewart
- Gold Derby
Bones star Emily Deschanel discusses a few of her favorite films with hosts Josh Olson and Joe Dante.
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
The Shining (1980) – Adam Rifkin’s trailer commentary
Dumb And Dumber (1994)
Dude, Where’s My Car? (2000)
This Is Spinal Tap (1984) – John Landis’s trailer commentary
Crusoe (1988)
Watership Down (1978)
Gandhi (1982)
Small Soldiers (1998)
Waiting For Guffman (1996)
Best In Show (2000) – Allan Arkush’s trailer commentary
Vertigo (1958) – Dan Ireland’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review,
Marnie (1964) – Dan Irleand’s trailer commentary, Larry Cohen’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s wine pairing recommendation
La Femme Nikita (1991)
Psycho (1960) – John Landis’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review, Randy Fuller’s wine pairing recommendation
Psycho (1998) – Ti West’s trailer commentary
Citizen Kane (1941) – John Landis’s trailer commentary
Rear Window (1954) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Topaz (1969)
Foreign Correspondent (1940) – Larry Cohen’s trailer commentary
North By Northwest (1959)
Notorious (1946) – John Landis’s trailer commentary,...
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
The Shining (1980) – Adam Rifkin’s trailer commentary
Dumb And Dumber (1994)
Dude, Where’s My Car? (2000)
This Is Spinal Tap (1984) – John Landis’s trailer commentary
Crusoe (1988)
Watership Down (1978)
Gandhi (1982)
Small Soldiers (1998)
Waiting For Guffman (1996)
Best In Show (2000) – Allan Arkush’s trailer commentary
Vertigo (1958) – Dan Ireland’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review,
Marnie (1964) – Dan Irleand’s trailer commentary, Larry Cohen’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s wine pairing recommendation
La Femme Nikita (1991)
Psycho (1960) – John Landis’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review, Randy Fuller’s wine pairing recommendation
Psycho (1998) – Ti West’s trailer commentary
Citizen Kane (1941) – John Landis’s trailer commentary
Rear Window (1954) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Topaz (1969)
Foreign Correspondent (1940) – Larry Cohen’s trailer commentary
North By Northwest (1959)
Notorious (1946) – John Landis’s trailer commentary,...
- 7/20/2021
- by Kris Millsap
- Trailers from Hell
For the first time, there are two Asian Americans in Oscar’s director race: Lee Isaac Chung (“Minari”) and Chloé Zhao (“Nomadland”). That’s notable, but it’s even more extraordinary considering only four Asians were ever nominated as director before this.
The four predecessors were spread over the decades: Hiroshi Teshigahara; Akira Kurosawa; M. Knight Shyamalan; and Ang Lee. Lee has chalked up three noms for directing, with wins for 2005’s “Brokeback Mountain” and 2012’s “The Life of Pi”; he also scored two other noms as a producer.
Following the four key wins last year for Bong Joon Ho and “Parasite,” it seems that Oscar is on a roll. If so, it’s about time.
On Oct 29, 1976, Variety ran a full-page ad under the headline “We are not all alike.” In an open letter, Asian Americans were seeking more diversity in roles, tired of being relegated to “sinister villains,...
The four predecessors were spread over the decades: Hiroshi Teshigahara; Akira Kurosawa; M. Knight Shyamalan; and Ang Lee. Lee has chalked up three noms for directing, with wins for 2005’s “Brokeback Mountain” and 2012’s “The Life of Pi”; he also scored two other noms as a producer.
Following the four key wins last year for Bong Joon Ho and “Parasite,” it seems that Oscar is on a roll. If so, it’s about time.
On Oct 29, 1976, Variety ran a full-page ad under the headline “We are not all alike.” In an open letter, Asian Americans were seeking more diversity in roles, tired of being relegated to “sinister villains,...
- 4/19/2021
- by Tim Gray
- Variety Film + TV
Retro-active: The Best From The Cinema Retro Archives
“The Lady Vanishes One More Time”
By Raymond Benson
The Criterion Collection has issued a Blu-ray upgrade to a previous winning DVD release—Carol Reed’s World War II suspense adventure, Night Train to Munich. It’s a terrific example of the fine cinema Britain was managing to produce even while at war. Released there in August of 1940, the country was already in the conflict, although the Blitz had not yet occurred.
What’s more striking is its resemblance to Alfred Hitchcock’s The Lady Vanishes (1938) in tone, setting, and even characters. Marketing pushes at the time suggested that Night Train to Munich was a “sequel” to Vanishes, which was an extremely popular movie on both sides of the Atlantic. Night Train is not a sequel, though—it’s more of a remake.
Somebody at the studio must have thought they needed...
“The Lady Vanishes One More Time”
By Raymond Benson
The Criterion Collection has issued a Blu-ray upgrade to a previous winning DVD release—Carol Reed’s World War II suspense adventure, Night Train to Munich. It’s a terrific example of the fine cinema Britain was managing to produce even while at war. Released there in August of 1940, the country was already in the conflict, although the Blitz had not yet occurred.
What’s more striking is its resemblance to Alfred Hitchcock’s The Lady Vanishes (1938) in tone, setting, and even characters. Marketing pushes at the time suggested that Night Train to Munich was a “sequel” to Vanishes, which was an extremely popular movie on both sides of the Atlantic. Night Train is not a sequel, though—it’s more of a remake.
Somebody at the studio must have thought they needed...
- 3/27/2021
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
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