Jean Stapleton dies at 90: The sweetest dingbat that will ever live on!

Jean Stapleton dies at 90. All I can say right off the bat, is she brought to life one of THE most memorable characters in television history. It’s no easy task to create a personality that not only transcends the medium of entertainment but continues to touch your heart with a profound level of empathy and straightforward kindheartedness. Pure genius!

Edith Bunker is that person you wish was your Aunt or your neighbor. Jean Stapleton imbued her character with a life force that was at times hilarious and other times agonizingly honest. A great actress of stage and film and an all around sweet heart… We’ll be watching a marathon of All in the Family in this home in tribute to her passing and I’ll raise a glass of cling peaches in heavy syrup to you Jean… “Everybody’s someone when you love them”

‘You’re a pip’-MonsterGirl

MonsterGirl’s 150 Days of Classic Horror! #5 Asylum (1972) / Tales From the Crypt (1972)

MonsterGirl’s 150 Days of Classic Horror!

ASYLUM (1972)

In one of Amicus’s best offerings, directed by Roy Ward Baker, Asylum is a campy portmanteau horror anthology based on several tales by master storyteller Robert Bloch (Psycho 1960). When Dr. Martin (Robert Powell), a psychiatrist looking for employment, arrives at the asylum for the criminally insane, he doesn’t know quite what he’s stepping into. Patrick Magee plays Dr. Rutherford, who gives him the odd assignment of figuring out which one of the patients is actually a former psychiatrist gone mad. Martin is sent to talk to four separate inmates, who then relate their own bizarre personal experiences of the macabre and how they ultimately landed in the asylum. This is one of the best Amicus productions, with a slew of fantastic actors filling out the cast. It’s cheeky and eerie and most definitely a contender for some of the Hammer horror anthologies with its horrific shock value and campy dark humor. The cast includes icon Peter Cushing in ‘The Weird Taylor,‘ Britt Ekland and Charlotte Rampling in ‘Lucy Comes to Stay,’ and one of my favs, Barbara Parkins (Valley of the Dolls 1967), Richard Todd, and Sylvia Syms in ‘Frozen Fear.’ The last segment is entitled ‘Manikins of Horror’ with Herbert Lom.

TALES FROM THE CRYPT (1972)

Tales from the Crypt (1972) is a British horror anthology film directed by Freddie Francis and produced by Amicus Productions. A chilling portmanteau consisting of five separate segments based on short stories from EC Comics’ series “of the same name. The film opens with five strangers stumbling into a crypt during a tour, where they encounter the mysterious Crypt Keeper (Ralph Richardson). He proceeds to reveal how each of them will die.

“…And All Through the House” Stars Joan Collins as Joanne Clayton, playing a woman who murders her husband on Christmas Eve and must fend off a deranged psychotic killer dressed as Santa Claus.

“Reflection of Death” Features Ian Hendry as Carl Maitland, A man who experiences a nightmarish time loop after surviving a car crash.

“Poetic Justice” Stars Peter Cushing as Arthur Edward Grimsdyke, A kind but eccentric old man who is tormented by his cruel neighbors

“Wish You Were Here” Features Richard Greene as Ralph Jason, A variation on “The Monkey’s Paw” story, dealing with the consequences of three wishes,

and “Blind Alleys” Stars Nigel Patrick as Major William Rogers and Patrick Magee as George Carter. Residents of a home for the blind revolt against their abusive administrator.

5 Down, just 145 to go!-Your EverLovin’ Joey formally & affectionately known as MonsterGirl

Step Right Up! We’re Gonna Scare the Pants Off America: The William Castle Blogathon is on it’s way to a theater near you! July 29th- August 2nd, 2013

THE WILLIAM CASTLE BLOGATHON

“I think he was a wonderful director. He followed his dreams, and after all he was right.”–Marcel Marceau

On July 29th 1959 American Producer/Director & Screenwriter William Castle premiered (click on link to read my past post) The Tingler in the US to theater goers. The audience had the underside of their seats rigged with electric buzzers which were activated at the moment Vincent Price cautions them “Ladies and gentlemen, please do not panic. But scream! Scream for your lives! The stunt was named ‘Percepto’ and once the projectionist got his cue to let the current rip, people in the audience got a mild jolt to their tuchus and their money’s worth of chills and thrills!

The urbane Vincent Price plays Dr. Warren Chapin a man driven by a curiosity to find out the source of the mysteriously evil force that creates the SENSATION of fear. He discovers an organism called"¦ The Tingler which manifests itself at the base of the spine when one is experiencing abject fear. The Tingler can only be subdued by the act of screaming.

In his memoirs Step Right Up! I’m Gonna Scare the Pants Off America he talks about the people who got their gluteus maximus’ buzzed with a small electric shock. Castle went as far as to hire fake “screamers and fainters” that he planted in the audience who would then be carted away on a gurney by “nurses” who were situated out in the lobby ready to put them in an ambulance parked outside the theater. This gimmick definitely outshines the last publicity scheme for his first chiller film touted with fanfare in which he offered a certificate for a $1,000 life insurance policy from Lloyd’s of London in case they should die of fright during his picture Macabre (1958) a film he felt inspired to make after seeing the success ofÂ Henri-Georges Clouzot’s Diabolique (1955)Â

Growing up in the 60s and 70s my childhood was filled with the sort of wonderful attractiveness William Castle’s shenanigans fostered in my yearning imagination. His films wouldn’t really be considered frightening by anyone’s standards today, but if you were a kid watching television on a rainy Saturday afternoon way back when, and suddenly you were thrust into a world where wearing whacky goggles would allow you to see wild ghosts wreaking havoc in an old eerie mansion in 13 Ghosts, or a disembodied hand rising up from a bath of brilliant red blood in an otherwise black and white landscape in The Tingler, or that moment when Nora Manning sees Mrs.Slydes the blind housekeeper who glides past her, a crone like harbinger of death, or those jaunty little party favors in the shape of coffins containing guns for the guests in House on Haunted Hill, with the added sensational musical scores and atmospherics you’d know the thrill and nostalgic glow that washes over you because William Castle made himself a presence quite like Hitchcock who was invested in bringing us into their world of fear and getting us excited about it!

Castle’s films have left an indelible mark on so many of us, not to mention the incredible movie stars and character actors who inhabited his memorable films, like Vincent Price, Joan Crawford, Barbara Stanwyck, Shelley Winters, Sid Caesar, Ann Baxter, Robert Ryan, Richard Conte, Julie Adams, Rock Hudson, Rhonda Fleming Robert Taylor, Guy Rolfe, Janette Scott, William Prince, Judith Evelyn, Audrey Dalton, Margaret Hamilton, Tom Poston and Elisha Cook Jr. and so many more…

Keep in mind, he produced my favorite film of all time, which I’ve been planning to do a major feature on down the road. The transcendent mind blowing tribute to paranoia and motherhood, Rosemary’s Baby 1968, thank god he decided to let Polanski direct, but still he was the man behind the masterpiece.

And Castle didn’t just do scary campy joyrides, if you look at his filmography you’ll see an array of film noir & mysteries like Hollywood Story (1951),The Fat Man (1951) Undertow (1949) series’ like The Crime Doctor & The Whistler, adventures like Serpent of the Nile (1953), with Rhonda Fleming. Westerns, television series and screwball comedies too like The Busy Body (1967) starring Sid Caesar, Robert Ryan and Ann Baxter , so if you’re a scaredy cat no worries there’s plenty to cover for everybody!

William Castle is one of THE most recognizable showman of film camp, purveyor of cheap chills, the maestro of gimmickry! In a time when the censors were becoming more lax and psycho-sexual themes were infiltrating the cinematic frontier, the trumpets were hailing Castle to step right up and create his own uniquely tacky ballyhoo! Sometimes kitschy, at times quite jolting and paralyzing, so many of us were marvelously effected by the collective tawdry Schadenfreude.

And so I got to thinking– geez it’ll be the 54th anniversary of that Spine-Tingling fun house ride of B-Movie schlockery and what better way to tribute the P.T. Barnum of Classic B-Movie fanfare than to co-host a blogathon with the witty and well versed Terri McSorley of Goregirl’s Dungeon.Â

Castle opens up The Tingler with this fabulous warning to the audience:

I was going to wait and announce the blogathon officially on May 31st which will be the anniversary of Castle’s death in 1977, but we all seem so excited about this, I thought I better get on it and post the details and start the Tingler climbing up our proverbial collective spines! And what a great bunch contributing too!

In honor of The Tingler’s 54th anniversary

The William Castle Blogathon runs from July 29th through August 2nd, 2013 and is Co-hosted by Joey (MonsterGirl) of The Last Drive In and Terri of Goregirl’s Dungeon.

The list of films and contributors are below: We’ll narrow down the dates each person will publish their post a little further down the road. I don’t want to be too restrictive about films being covered twice as everyone has their own unique perspective. There’s still a bunch of films not chosen yet so please consider widening the scope of our celebration by tackling a lesser known film of Bills! All are welcome, if you’re interesting in joining the ride, please contact me!

Please grab any banners for the blogathon and use them on your site if you’d like!

There’s also no constraints on how long your piece should be. As you know I tend to be really long winded myself. If you have any questions at all, like if you’d prefer your name displayed differently please always feel free to drop me a line at ephemera.jo@gmail.com or leave a comment here:

The Spine-Tinglers Are!

(Lindsey)-The Motion Pictures –Tribute &

(Gwen) Movies Silently– The Crime Doctor & The Whistler

(Dorian) Tales of the Easily Distracted– The Spirit is Willing (1967)

(Vinnie) Tales of the Easily Distracted –Zotz! (1962)

(Stacia) She Blogged By Night –Let’s Kill Uncle (1966)

(David Arrate)- My Kind of Story-Images – Shanks (1974) & Masterson of Kansas (1954) and It’s a Small World (1950)

(Brian Schuck) Films From Beyond The Time Barrier– Strait-Jacket (1964)

(Joey-MonsterGirl!) The Last Drive In –House on Haunted Hill (1959) & Johnny Stool Pigeon (1949) & Back Story: What Ever Happened to William Castle’s Baby? (Rosemary’s Baby)

Furious Cinema–

(Kristina)-Speakeasy– The Houston Story (1956)

(Paul)-Lasso the Movies– The Tingler (1959)

Goregirl’s Dungeon – ‘The Women of Castle”, tribute to musical scores &

(Steve Habrat) Anti Film School –Mr Sardonicus (1961)

(Ruth) –Silver Screenings– The Old Dark House (1963)

(Rob Silvera) The Midnight Monster Show– Homicidal (1961) & House on Haunted Hill (1959)

(Aurora) Once Upon a Screen… – The Night Walker (1964)

Classic Movie Hub– The Busy Body (1967)

(Karen) Shadows and Satin– Mysterious Intruder (1946)

The Nitrate Diva– When Strangers Marry (1944)

(Jenna Berry) Classic Movie Night Ghost Story/Circle of Fear

Forgotten Films-Macabre (1958)

(Kristen) Journeys in Classic FilmÂ Spine-Tingler: The William Castle Story

(Heather Drain) Mondo Heather– 13 Frightened Girls!(1963) & Bio

(Barry) Cinematic Catharsis –13 Ghosts (1960)

(Misty Layne) Cinema Schminema – Project X (1968)

(Ivan) Thrilling Days of Yesteryear-Â The Chance of a Lifetime (1943){Boston Blackie} & I Saw What You Did (1965)Â

(Rich) Wide Screen World – “Top 5 William Castle gimmicks”

(John LarRue) The Droid You’re Looking For- “Visual Feature-(various films)”

(Sam) Wonders in the Dark- Rosemary’s Baby (’68)

(Jeff Kuykendall) Midnight Only– Bug (1975)

(Le) Critica Retro– Texas, Brooklyn and Heaven (1948)

(Toby Roan)- 50 Westerns The Law vs Billy the Kid (1954)

(The Metzinger Sisters) Silver ScenesÂ “Busy Bodies: Promoting Castle’s Camp” & The Films of William Castle!

(Ray) Weird Flix -Slaves of Babylon (1953) & The Saracen Blade (1954)

And a special thanks to David Arrate at My Kind of Story for these banners!

MonsterGirl's 150 Days of Classic Horror: #3 And Soon the Darkness (1970)

MonsterGirl’s 150 Days of Classic Horror!

AND SOON THE DARKNESS (1970)

A Trailer a Day Keeps the Boogeyman Away! Darkness Unleashed!

Directed by Robert Fuest (The Abominable Dr. Phibes 1971, The Devil’s Rain 1975) and written by Brian Clemens. Pamela Franklin plays Jane, and Michele Dotrice is the ill-fated Cathy, two English twenty-somethings touring around the rural French countryside. The two argue about the route and become split up; Cathy vanishes without a trace. Jane begins to search for her friend and stumbles into a world of alienation and the very real threat of a sex murderer on the loose. Who can she rely on as she desperately tries to find her disappeared girlfriend while she is being stalked by a crazed killer.

3 down, 147 to go!- Your EverLovin’ Joey, formally and affectionately known as MonsterGirl

MonsterGirl’s 150 Days of Classic Horror: #1 13 Ghosts (1960) & House on Haunted Hill (1959)

MonsterGirl’s 150 Days of Classic Horror!

13 GHOSTS (1960)

Director/Showman extraordinaire William Castle brings us writer Robb White’s story centered around a quirky, dilapidated mansion once owned by eccentric scientist/occultist Dr. Plato Zorba, who collected ghosts from around the world and invented goggles that enable you to see them. When Dr. Zorba dies, he wills the strange house and its contents to his nephew Cyrus Zorba (Donald Woods) and family, wife Hilda (Rosemary De Camp), son Buck (Charles Herbert), and daughter Medea (Jo Morrow). The Zorba family is broke; the bank has even reclaimed the last bit of furnishings. While blowing out the candles on his birthday, Buck wishes for a house with furniture that can’t be taken away.

So, the fortuitous inheritance comes just in time. Not long after moving in, they discover that the house is haunted. Cyrus finds Uncle Plato’s notes and learns about the 12 ghosts that inhabit the house, including Dr. Zorba himself, who also leaves his housekeeper, Elaine Zacharides (Margaret Hamilton), whom Buck constantly refers to as a witch, not a subtle homage to her role in The Wizard of Oz. Hamilton adds a nice bit of nostalgic camp to the creepy environment: floating objects, hidden panels, a bed canopy that closes up like a vice grip to crush the person sleeping in it, and lurking cobwebby fiends who lunge from the shadows. Trapped within the walls of the house are the 12 manifested ghosties: the crying lady, a feisty skeleton, a meat-cleaving Italian chef who murdered his wife and her lover in the kitchen, a roaring lion alongside its headless tamer, and Dr. Zorba himself. They need a 13th ghost to set them free. The family is in danger because of the fortune hidden in the house. Martin Milner plays Benjamen Rush, the lawyer who handles the estate for the Zorbas. Is there a flesh-and-blood killer among them looking for the hidden fortune? Well, you’ll just have to find out for yourself… A true William Castle fun house ride.

HOUSE ON HAUNTED HILL 1959

Full feature below:

House on Haunted Hill (1959) “Only the ghosts in this house are glad we’re here”

William Castle’s House on Haunted Hill (1959) is a quintessential campy horror film that has become a cult classic. Starring Vincent Price as the eccentric millionaire Frederick Loren, the movie follows a group of strangers invited to a supposedly haunted mansion for a night, with the promise of $10,000 each if they survive until morning.

The film’s plot revolves around Loren and his wife, Annabelle (Carol Ohmart), who have a tumultuous relationship filled with suspicion and accusations of attempted murder. Loren even gives out guns, which are presented as little party favors set inside mini coffins. The guests encounter various terrors as the night progresses, including apparent ghosts, gliding white-eye-balled witches, mysterious attacks, a severed head, and unexplained phenomena, all while Elisha Cook Jr. revels in the violent history of the house while he drinks himself into a stupor.

Castle’s direction combines gothic horror elements with psychological tension, creating a unique atmosphere that blends genuine scares with campy theatrics. The movie is famous for its use of carnival-style haunted house props and effects, which contribute to its distinctive tone. And his infamous gimmicks like Emergo, which entails a floating skeleton that elicited laughs from theatergoers who threw popcorn boxes at it rather than shiver in their seats.

House on Haunted Hill is particularly notable for its twist ending, which plays with audience expectations about the nature of the haunting. The film keeps viewers guessing whether any of the major players elaborately staged the happenings or if it was supernatural in nature.

The movie’s impact extends beyond its initial release, influencing future horror films and inspiring remakes. Vincent Price’s iconic performance has cemented the film’s place in horror cinema history.

1 down, 149 days to go… Your EverLovin’ Joey, formally, affectionately known as MonsterGirl

Quote of the Day! Flight To Hong Kong (1956)

FLIGHT TO HONG KONG 1956

Gritty film noir directed by Joseph M. Newman (Dangerous Crossing 1953, This Island Earth 1955) starring Rory Calhoun who plays the suave Tony Dumont an import/exporter or dealer in stolen gems who becomes enamored by chic novelist Pamela Vincent played by the lovely Barbara Rush. Pamela is drawn to Tony, when they first meet on a plane bound for Hong Kong, which is hi-jacked for it’s shipment of diamonds. Tony is a soft hearted rogue master-mind who smuggles gems for the syndicate in Macao.

CapturFiles_17 "No papa, no mama no whiskey soda" — **“No papa, no mama… no whiskey soda”**

CapturFiles_18 "Me too kid" — **“Me too kid”**

Mama Lin played by the wonderful Soo YongÂ (The Good Earth 1937, Sayonara 1957, Flower Drum Song 1961) has been a benefactor to Tony since he was a boy, and looks after him like a sagely mother.

She cautions him that it is a time for goodbyes, because his infatuation with Pamela will cause him to lose his steady girl Jean Blake (Dolores Donlon). Tony doesn’t heed Mama Lin’s warning and he winds up cheating the mob out of the stolen shipment and lamming it with the diamonds in order to be with Pamela in San Francisco… I won’t spoil the outcome, just catch it if you can on Netflix!

“The heart is a small room Tony… when someone enters it, someone else must move out”-Mama Lin

Wise words Mama Lin… MonsterGirl

Happy Birthday to the inimitable Bea Arthur!

Today is Bea Arthur’s birthday. The grand lady would have been 91. I had the wonderful opportunity to see her one woman show with accompanist Billy Goldenberg in her dynamic ”Bea Arthur on Broadway: Just Between Friends” back in 2002.

I just adore Bea Arthur, from her performance as Vera Charles along side Lucille Ball in 1974 Mame Â singing ‘Bosom Buddies’… to her performance as Edith Bunker’s cousin Maude Finley who was on her fourth husband and a raging liberal breaking the mold of the American Television Housewife…

Or her portrayal of the erudite and snarky Dorothy Zbornak on The Golden Girls.

Below she sings Irving Berlin’s ‘What’ll I Do’, a song that melts me into a puddle, and a duet I’ve done with my Siamese cat Daisy…

Happy Birthday Bea Arthur you’re still in our hearts bigger than life!

Joey

the clip joint: Happy Mother’s Day from The Last Drive In!!!!

MILDRED PIERCE (1945)

STELLA DALLAS (1937)

THE ANNIVERSARY (1968)

CARRIE (1976)

A very Happy Mother’s Day to all you ‘Mother’s’ out there!!!!- MonsterGirl

The Mary Astor Blogathon: The Man With Two Faces (1934) A Caligarian Black Comedy with Astor as a Trilby like Sylph and the tell-tale Mustache in a Gideon’s Bible

THE MAN WITH TWO FACES (1934)

or ‘Of Mice and Mustaches’

Mary Astor plays Jessica Welles a Trilby-Like Sylph who falls under the spell of her treacherous husband played by Louis Calhern.Â Robinson’s role the tagline would suggest, “It’s the most unusual picture since “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.”Â is quite misleading as his character Damon is not a split personality, induced by mad science or a fractured id run amok. He is simply impersonating a fictitious mustache, spectacles and goatee wearing Frenchman in order to lure his vicious prey into his vengeful murderous trap. Louis Calhern is an archetypal Svengali/Caligarian figure and ultimately it’s Damon’s fake mustache accidentally left in a Gideon’s Bible that gives the crime away. Archie Mayo had actually directed Svengali in 1931.

CapturFiles_67 Trilby and Svengali — *Astor* and *Calhern* Archetypal Trilby and Svengali characters

svengali Barrymore and Marsh — *Barrymore* and *Marian Marsh* in Svengali

The Man With Two Faces is a mystery thriller with comical overtones. Invoking Jekyll & Hyde is far off the mark as Edward G. Robinson only dons a disguise to rid his bewitched sister of her treacherous, conniving, abusive and murderous husband. The character of Damon is more like Zorro or The Lone Ranger exacting out a theatrical brand of vigilante justice. As an actor the milieu is perfect for him to wear a ‘mask’ posing as a producer to lure his tortured sister’s husband Vance (Yiddish for bedbug, pronounced ‘vants’ but it applies as Stanley Vance is quite the vermin) into his trap so he can kill him"¦

Mary Astor The Man with Two Faces — Mary Astor as the bewitched Jessica Welles in The Man with Two Faces

Mary Astor has a classy, understated beauty. She’s sophisticated and smart, refined and polished and worldly-wise. Often poised and self-possessed with a simmering kind of sexiness. Yet here in The Man With Two Faces, her light is just a bit diminished by the role of Jessica Welles who is forced to shape-shift from lovely star of the stage into a doll imprisoned in a fugue state.

I was thrilled when Dorian from Tales of the Easily Distracted and Ruth of Silver Screenings let me participate in The Mary Astor Blogathon. I wanted to pick a film that I hadn’t seen in order to enhance the fun of bringing some of her films to the attention of readers and really be inclusive while paying tribute to this great woman. I adore Mary Astor. And as much as I like The Maltese Falcon 1941, and simply adore Bogie, it wasn’t that iconic bit of Film Noir flight of fancy that brought Miss Astor to my attention. I hadn’t truly started to notice her work until I did an extensive feature on Robert Aldrich’s Grande Dame Guignol masterpiece Hush"¦ Hush Sweet Charlotte 1964 It was then that I became taken in with Mary Astor’s performance as the bitter and time worn Jewel Mayhew. Then of course being a huge fan of Boris Karloff’s Television series Thriller, I am one of the few people who actually think Rose’s Last Summer was one of the finest episodes of that series. Mary Astor bringing her classy swank and snark to the role of Rose French. I became a devout fan of hers from that time on, and have started trying to devour as much Mary Astor as I can"¦

It’s funny how most people might connect her with her role as Brigid O’ Shaughnessy in The Maltese Falcon 1941, but I think of her other contributions like Sandra Kovac in The Great Lie 1941 Mme. DeLaageÂ The Hurricane 1937 Antoinette de Mauban The Prisoner of Zenda 1937Â and of course in Dodsworth 1936 as Mrs. Edith Cortright.

Dodsworth-Mary Astor — *Mary Astor* and *Walter Huston* in Dodsworth 1936

The Man With Two Faces is a Warner Bros. black comedy not so much of a mystery, with tinges of the 19th Century melodramatic tradition written for the stage by George S. Kaufman and Alexander Woollcott with a screenplay by Tom Reed and Niven Busch. The original play opened in New York City in 1933 and had 57 performances. Margaret Dale who plays Aunt Martha originated her movie role on the stage. The original cast included Porter Hall and Margaret Hamilton (The Wicked Witch of the West from Oz)

Produced by Hal Wallis, Jack L Warner and Robert Lord and Directed by Archie Mayo (Svengali 1931, Bordertown 1935, The Petrified Forest (1936) Moontide 1942 Angel on My Shoulder 1946) and with the production and art design by John Houghs (Treasure of the Sierra Madre 1948, The Thing From Another World 1951)

Mary Astor as well as Mae Clarke (Frankenstein 1931, Waterloo Bridge 1931 and Public Enemy’s memorable grapefruit in the face girl) seem to be wasted in both these roles where the women are subverted ridiculed, demeaned and inconsequential. I wish Astor had more presence in the film… even the housekeeper Nettie has more spark to her character as does Aunt Martha. Astor just isn’t given enough layers to work with because she is in a trance most of the time, her character Jessica’s lack of affect doesn’t suit her usual spirited performances, here there are only little bursts of the dimension she is capable of.

CapturFiles_2 — I went to Syosset High School which was the town right next to Locust Valley… just a little sentimental factoid about your little *MonsterGirl*

CapturFiles_10 — **Jessica-“doctor dear why are you such a bother”**
**Dr. Kendall– “the bother was getting you well enough to act at all"¦ if you think it’s been a picnic”**
**Jessica-“Alright I’ll rest but do you mind if I get a little excited, it’s the first time in three years"¦ doctor why did all those people remember me?”**

CapturFiles_11 — **Dr. Kendall-” Why shouldn’t they, you weren’t entirely unknown you know.”**
**Jessica-“I know but comebacks you know, you know what they are. Critics staying home out of kindness. And the Times saying you were ‘adequate’**

CapturFiles_14a — *John Eldredge* as playwright Barry Jones

CapturFiles_20 copy — **Daphne-“Give the gentleman a cigar”**

CapturFiles_16 — **Barry-Why, he missed me**
**Damon “Ah, just my luck I always get buck fever when I see an author**“
**Barry-“Damon, I don’t know what you’re sore about your sister has a whole basket full of telegrams and everybody thinks it’s a grand play**“
**Damon– “Yeah, grand for a high school strawberry lawn festival, somebody oughta stuff that second act and put it in a museum"¦”**

CapturFiles_22 — **Daphne– “f I had known that, I’d never have acted in your play”**
**Damon– “Oh Daphne my love… you never acted in any play, never will.”**

CapturFiles_44 — **Aunt Martha– “Well you’ve never said a truer word in your life Mr.Weston the work was just the medicine that Jessica needed”**
**Ben Weston– “Well I always knew she would act again.”**
**Aunt Martha “Well I didn’t. I was in front the night she collapsed. They dismissed the audience, you’d a thought she’d been drugged.”**
**Ben Weston– “A lot of people said it was drugs.”**
**Aunt Martha– “There were all sorts of stories around but the truth was that husband of hers"¦ Stanley Vance.”**
**Ben Weston– “From what I’ve heard, he must have been the lowest form of animal life.”**

CapturFiles_22 Why do you always break down, you did that tonight — **Damon-“Why do you always break down, you did that tonight”**

CapturFiles_92 — **Damon coaches Jessica on the finer points of her acting…**

CapturFiles_106 — **“Hattie I’m famished”**

CapturFiles_119 — **Daphne asks Barry to accompany her on a bit of *Stormy Weather*. Â**

Mary Astor who plays actress Jessica Welles, is a delicate Trilby-like sylph who is married to a cold-blooded cad Stanley Vance (Louis Calhern The Asphalt Jungle 1950) Vance is a conniving, controlling Svengali/Caligari-esque cutthroat who not only bilks old ladies out of their fortunes but actually murdered his first wife. He seems to possess the art of hypnosis and uses it to manipulate Jessica into a state of virtual somnambulist enslavement. With the mere tilt of his head and leering eyes that penetrate she goes deeper under his control. In his presence she is a wilting flower, powerless, catatonic and as submissive as Trilby, a piece of clay to be molded in any form Vance desires.

Continue reading “The Mary Astor Blogathon: The Man With Two Faces (1934) A Caligarian Black Comedy with Astor as a Trilby like Sylph and the tell-tale Mustache in a Gideon’s Bible” →

Happy Birthday Mary Astor!

Today kicks off the celebration… it’s the Mary Astor Blogathon hosted by Dorian of Tales of the Easily Distracted and Ruth of Silver Screenings. So please join everyone in honoring this classy lady…

Just adore that Mary-MonsterGirl