Movies 'Til Dawn Blog

SATURDAY STOOGEFEST

‘Pardon My Scotch’ (1935) was the 9th short comedy made by The Three Stooges for Columbia Pictures. It was photographed from Thursday, April 11th through Monday, April 15th 1935 and released on Thursday, August 1st of that year. Prohibition, which had been repealed sixteen months prior to the film being

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MARXIANA PT.5–PLAYING BRIDGE WITH CHICO

I’ve mentioned a few times this week my new favorite podcast ‘The Marx Brothers Council Podcast’ and the episode I listened to this morning, which focused exclusively on Chico Marx, is one of the best and most touching so far. Leonard Marx remained an enigma to most people who knew

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MARXIANA PT. 4–AT HOME WITH GROUCHO AND FAMILY

Here’s a lovely short silent film showing Groucho Marx and family on a typical day in 1933 outside their home at 701 N. Hillcrest Drive in Beverly Hills. These are not ‘home movies’ per se–this was clearly staged, shot and edited so as to make a film in the style

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MARXIANA PT. 3–LILLIAN ROTH SINGS

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6tTMQYdBIYQ Most of what we know about Lillian Roth we know from Susan Hayward’s robust but depressing portrait of her in ‘I’ll Cry Tomorrow’, the screen bio of Roth’s tragic life based on her memoir. One of the first searingly honest portraits of an alcoholic’s descent, Roth’s book completely overshadowed

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MARXIANA PT. 2–ON THE SET OF ‘ANIMAL CRACKERS’

I’m pretty sure I posted this once before but it’s so extraordinary that it never gets old. It seems that one day on the ‘Animal Crackers’ set, sometime around when they were shooting the opening (which includes ‘Captain Spaulding’ of course), a camera rolled during a rehearsal. For an all

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MARXIANA: ‘THE COCOANUTS’

This past week I’ve discovered a terrific podcast about the Marx Brothers called ‘The Marx Brothers Council Podcast’. Each episode is a witty, deep dive into one of their movies as well as other topics covered (such as the infamous ‘Marx Brothers Scrapbook’ as conceived and edited by the late Richard J. Anobile).

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SATURDAY STOOGEFEST

‘Income Tax Sappy’ (1954) was the 153rd short film made by The Three Stooges for Columbia Pictures. No dates are available for its production period but the film was released on Tuesday, February 2nd, 1954 so we may assume it was photographed sometime during the calendar year 1953. It’s one

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FOSSE DANCES

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BIiZuAVZH4whttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2SkYdsvgOpw Here are two videos demonstrating Bob Fosse’s stratospheric performance talent, which was largely ignored or forgotten once his stratospheric choreographing and directing talent erupted for all to see. Though he began as a performer, Fosse, always super show-biz savvy, must have seen that he was never going to be

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FOSSE DIRECTING ‘ALL THAT JAZZ’

This is pure YouTube at its best. Apparently knowing of my admiration for the opening sequence of ‘All That Jazz’ which I posted yesterday, YT dredged up this extraordinary seven minute reel of raw footage of Fosse directing that very sequence and greeted me with it this morning. It must

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‘ALL THAT JAZZ’: THE OPENING

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2e9acreKmQ Behold the first six minutes of Bob Fosse’s 1979 ‘All That Jazz’, a paean to musical theater, dance, creativity, life and death. To my eyes, the film looks better and better over time but nothing beats the above sequence. Edited within an inch of its life, it tells in

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'Pardon My Scotch' (1935) is our Three Stooges Saturday offering. Moe's fall at 3:25--not a stunt double--is truly awesome. #comedy #Violence #SlapFighting #TCM #FilmTwitter #comics https://raymonddefelitta.org/saturday-stoogefest-18/

Chico Marx plays championship #Bridge on a very strange 1960 #television show. Thanks to @MarxBrosPodcast for the excellent episode on Chico which inspired me to go in search of this gem. #comedian #TCMParty #cards https://raymonddefelitta.org/blog/

The Groucho Marx's are featured in a short #silent home #movie shot in #BeverlyHills in 1933. A very wistful and lovely glimpse of a #family and neighborhood now gone. #comedian #TCMParty #film https://raymonddefelitta.org/marxiana-pt-4-at-home-with-the-groucho-and-family/

The lovely Lillian Roth (not Susan Hayward) sings 'Why Am I So Romantic?' from the Marx Brothers 'Animal Crackers'. It's the only non-Marx musical performance in one of their movies that doesn't piss me off. #movie #comedy #singer #TCMParty #musical https://raymonddefelitta.org/marxiana-pt-3-lillian-roth-sings/

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