Apropos of yesterdays post featuring home movies (I think) of Jean Harlow in the early 30s, here’s documentary footage of the premiere of ‘Hells Angels’, Howard Hughes World War 1 aviation epic, in 1930. It was the first big time role of Harlow’s career which makes the announcers description of
Here’s a completely obscure, not to say befuddling, piece of footage showing us Jean Harlow in conversation with her ‘vocal coach’ Samuel Kayzer. (It somehow makes sense that this footage is entirely silent). Who shot it? For what purpose? It doesn’t look professionally done so was it some kind of
Try this one on for size in the bad-luck show-biz department. You’re a successful Broadway actor in the 1920s. The movie business comes calling. You land roles of increasing prominence. The talkies arrive and it’s found that your voice is more than adequate for leading man status (at a time
Yesterday I posted Marvin doing his hit tune ‘Hitch Hike’ on ‘Hollywood A Go Go’ but sans the dance known by the songs title, which had previously created a sensation on ‘American Bandstand’. Well, here’s that clip of that dance that created that sensation. The ‘Hitch Hike’ dance is pretty
Here’s Marvin on a 1965 episode of ‘Hollywood A Go-Go’ singing ‘Hitch Hike’, with some of the most bodacious go-go dancers ever invented backing him up. The single of’ Hitch Hike’ was successful enough to land Gaye his first top forty pop single in 1963 with the song reaching number
Here’s a nice little video essay on Leonard Bernstein’s apartment in the Dakota, on Central Park West and 72nd Street. It features mostly stills of the large, tall and crowded rooms (stuffed with furniture and artifacts), though there is also a little doc live-action stuff thrown in. The apartment was
Apropos of yesterday’s post featuring Henny Youngman, here’s another Henny TV appearance, this time on Ed Sullivan. (We see the terrifying looking Sullivan briefly at the top of the clip). I continue to question why Henny is funny, given the staleness of the jokes and the charm-free nature of the
Was Henny Youngman ever really funny? Of course not. Which is why he’s so frigging funny. It’s the staleness of the jokes, the completely tossed-off manner of his delivery (as if he were pre-bored on the audiences behalf) and constant lack of invention and relentless recylcling of material that somehow
Here’s a terrific clip of the Nicholas Brothers from ‘Orchestra Wives’ (1942) performing ‘I’ve Got A Gal From Kalamazoo’. Unfortunately the first minute and a half of this precious routine is wasted by having the brothers sing (or should I say lip-sync) the entire song. Hiring the Nicholas Brothers to
Given the hugeness of their talent, the above title is ludicrous and reductive to say the least. Lets kick off this early 2024 week with the terrific ‘Jumpin’ Jive’ number from ‘Stormy Weather’. You have to sit through a minute and a half of Cab Calloway (not an easy task)