tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post2491707267022847360..comments2024-02-10T04:53:42.121-05:00Comments on Tales of the Easily Distracted: Wedding Bell Wackiness Double-Feature: BALL OF FIRE and OSCARDorianTBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.comBlogger53125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-76117488020213936502012-02-07T16:35:08.051-05:002012-02-07T16:35:08.051-05:00Deb, thanks and you're welcome! :-) I'm d...Deb, thanks and you're welcome! :-) I'm delighted to hear you're a fellow BALL OF FIRE fan! I enjoyed reading your SPEAK OF THE DEVIL blog post, too. Glad to get a chance to read your work through the ever-delightful Eve Gaal and THE DESERT ROCKS!DorianTBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-8834703553662235822012-02-07T13:54:40.345-05:002012-02-07T13:54:40.345-05:00"Ball of Fire" is one of my favorite com..."Ball of Fire" is one of my favorite comedies thanks for spotlighting it!Debhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14814382247648362550noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-80296321296343332172012-01-30T11:20:31.984-05:002012-01-30T11:20:31.984-05:00Becky, dear friend, Vinnie and I are delighted tha...Becky, dear friend, Vinnie and I are delighted that you've joined us today; we miss you when you're not around! I knew a gal of your fine taste in classic films would love BALL OF FIRE in general and Barbara Stanwyck in particular as much as we do. You said it yourself: the woman is adorable! Many thanks for your praise of BoF, and we hope you'll give OSCAR a try when you can; I think you'll really enjoy it!DorianTBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-46215220153917359272012-01-30T09:59:09.217-05:002012-01-30T09:59:09.217-05:00I LOVE Ball of Fire! It is one of my favorite Sta...I LOVE Ball of Fire! It is one of my favorite Stanwyck movies. She is perfect in the part, and the professors are to die for. Your description of her visual look: "...whether Stanwyck is wearing sequins or a simple shirtwaist dress, you can’t take your eyes off her, especially with the confident, panther-like way she walks" is right on. The woman is adorable. Wonderful analysis of the movie and interesting facts about its making.<br />I've never seen Vinnie's The Oscar, mainly because I'm not a Sylvester Stallone fan, but perhaps I should give this one a chance. Excellent post, TeamB!ClassicBeckyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03591715859057540467noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-80622728719314465992012-01-27T15:27:16.507-05:002012-01-27T15:27:16.507-05:00Jim, with talented folks like Broderick Crawford a...Jim, with talented folks like Broderick Crawford and Claire Trevor in the STOP, YOU'RE KILLING ME cast, I'd like to check it out. Still, it definitely sounds to me like A SLIGHT CASE OF MURDER is the way to go! :-) Besides, Edward G. Robinson is always worth watching. Thanks for the tip, my friend!DorianTBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-21443895063400763812012-01-27T15:09:19.565-05:002012-01-27T15:09:19.565-05:00FYI, Dorian, Stop, You're Killing Me ('52)...FYI, Dorian, <i>Stop, You're Killing Me</i> ('52) starred Broderick Crawford and Claire Trevor in the roles originally played by Edward G. Robinson and Ruth Donnelly. I always liked it, but then I saw it before <i>A Slight Case</i>, which of course is much the better movie.Jim Lanehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00981196894914646656noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-20815649637370763082012-01-27T11:32:45.176-05:002012-01-27T11:32:45.176-05:00Jim, Vinnie and I thank you for your kind world ab...Jim, Vinnie and I thank you for your kind world about our BALL OF FIRE/OSCAR two-fer! We're also glad you're willing to give OSCAR a chance; we really think you'll be pleasantly surprised! I'm a fan of A SLIGHT CASE OF MURDER, too, and I think fans of that delightful comedy-thriller (my favorite genre :-)) will definitely enjoy OSCAR as well. I've never seen STOP, YOU'RE KILLING ME, but I'll keep an eye out for it.<br /><br /> Glad to hear you're a Charles Lane fan, too, and thanks for sharing your funny and charming anecdotes about this durable character actor! If you ask me, TCM needs to have a month devoted to Charles Lane and his many supporting roles; goodness knows Lane made enough movies for TCM to show Lane movies every day for a month! :-) As always, Jim, it's great to have you join the conversation!DorianTBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-79725409627891083762012-01-27T11:31:16.744-05:002012-01-27T11:31:16.744-05:00This comment has been removed by the author.DorianTBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-11704712209473422032012-01-26T22:01:16.954-05:002012-01-26T22:01:16.954-05:00Fun post, both of you. It goes without saying that...Fun post, both of you. It goes without saying that I love <i>Ball of Fire</i>, but I confess to being one of those who let the reviews keep me away from <i>Oscar</i>. You've convinced me to give it a look after all. From your description, it sounds a bit like Warner Bros.' <i>A Slight Case of Murder</i> (later remade as <i>Stop, You're Killing Me</i>).<br /><br />And hey, since today happens to be Charles Lane's birthday, let's hear it for this journeyman actor <i>par excellence</i>! (No relation, BTW; I came by the name naturally, while he was born Levison.) His 359 titles on the IMDb must surely be a record. I remember a TV Guide interview with him when he had (finally!) made a name for himself on the old <i>Petticoat Junction</i>, talking about his career of show-up-on-the-set-one-day-do-your-bit-get-your-money-and-go-home: he said he had only the other day seen himself in a 1930s movie on TV without any recollection of ever having played the part. And when the Screen Actors Guild honored his 100th birthday by proclaiming "Charles Lane Day" he said, "In case you're interested, I'm still available." Happy 107th, Mr. Lane, wherever you are, and thanks for the memories!Jim Lanehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00981196894914646656noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-48143853402579664192012-01-26T18:06:30.302-05:002012-01-26T18:06:30.302-05:00Kristina, it's never too late to come party wi...Kristina, it's never too late to come party with us here at TotED -- glad you made it! Besides, you had me at "Pastrami & Provolone, they were always meant to be together!" (Yet another reason to give OSCAR a try! :-)) With your wit, you're a born screen-grab caption-maker, my friend! And don't you wish all research assignments were as fun as the ones for BALL OF FIRE? :-)<br /><br />I'm with you about BoF's stupendous cast! Not to sound cliched or grumpy, but after watching great classic movies like the ones that you and I have respectively covered here at TotED and over in your wonderful blog SPEAKEASY, sometimes it seems that they really don't have truly exceptional movie stars like Stanwyck and Cooper and all those fabulous character actors like they used to. We need to put together some kind of training program for writers, actors, and directors to bring awesomeness back to movies! :-) Beaucoup thanks for your enthusiastic praise and delightful virtual company, as always!<br /><br />P.S.: If by some bizarre twist of fate anyone here hasn't been following Kristina's SPEAKEASY, find it on TotED's "Further Distractions" column on the right side of the screen, click on "SPEAKEASY," and enjoy! Feel free to check out the other awesome blogs listed there, too!DorianTBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-82478166881027959392012-01-26T16:54:18.369-05:002012-01-26T16:54:18.369-05:00A little late to the party, but Great googly moogl...A little late to the party, but Great googly moogly, i knew this would be fun, after perusing all the comments so as to not sound like a memo from the department of redundancy department, thoughts are as follows:<br />-ok I want pix of romantic screwball caps! Or is that something to do with a font & case?<br />- love the pronuncification tips! (i was asked to leave adolescence once for mispronouncing Siouxsie)<br />-HaHA at Jacqueline’s comment about the profs > Wikipedia! If only we could call them up anytime for reference<br />- Loving the “research” Wilder & Brackett did for the slang. I bet it took them a long time, especially at the burley-q and the track; gotta pick up lots of slang, you know. For research. <br /><br />Seriously though, you remind us all what a fantastic cast this movie has; I dare say you couldn’t assemble anything of its like today, not just the leads but just thinking of Andrews & Duryea all the way down to Lee, Jenkins et al. so so great. Also thinking of how Wilder+Stanwyck gave us things as brilliant yet as different as Ball of Fire AND Double Indemnity just blows the mind. Excellent notes on the times, Coop’s great success that year, Martha Tilton & Gene Krupa! Again, what a movie. <br />One of my absolute fave movies and you did a super job on the post, thank you! <br />As Cuddles Sakall would say: “pshwoooeieeeee!!” and I just broke my spellcheck<br /><br />p.s. I am on #teamNeverSeenOscar, but now I just have to…love how this post puts together Pastrami & Provolone. they were always meant to be together<br />cheers!Kristinahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11659951781597698530noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-60381550021819953122012-01-25T08:31:45.303-05:002012-01-25T08:31:45.303-05:00GOM, I had a feeling that with your great taste in...GOM, I had a feeling that with your great taste in movies, you'd be a big fan of BALL OF FIRE, too! I've mostly seen Dan Duryea playing sleazy no-goodniks, so I got a kick out of seeing him playing that kind of character for laughs; besides, I especially love seeing dumb bad guys get what's coming to them! :-) I remember reading somewhere (most likely the TCM Web site, knowing me) about that nice tip of the hat to SERGEANT YORK. I think I remember a SGT. YORK gag in THE THING FROM ANOTHER WORLD, too; Howard Hawks loved to put in these little plugs for his hits, and why not?<br /><br />Despite the less-than-stellar reviews of A SONG IS BORN, now I feel I must see it for Lionel Hampton and Louis Armstrong! :-) Thanks for dropping by to talk BALL OF FIRE with us here at TotED; come around any time!DorianTBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-29329976677887640372012-01-25T02:45:15.624-05:002012-01-25T02:45:15.624-05:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-24746647088075943532012-01-24T23:43:52.030-05:002012-01-24T23:43:52.030-05:00'Ball of Fire' is one of my faves - a wond...'Ball of Fire' is one of my faves - a wonderfully funny film, and Hawks manages to keep all its antics spinning breathlessly. I just want to mention Dan Duryea, who's hilarious as a none-too-bright henchman demonstrating how he learned pistol shooting from a film he saw (just the other week, he says). His spittle-slicking-of-the-gunsight technique was actually Hawks' nod to Cooper's use of the same gesture in 'Sergeant York.' 'A Song is Born,' Hawks' own remake, is unfortunately nowhere in the same rank as the original 'Ball of Fire' (Hawks was reportedly dismayed w/Virginia Mayo in the Stanwyck part). However, it does feature Benny Goodman as one of the professors, and Louis Armstrong and Lionel Hampton jointly playing Allan Jenkins' role, so it's worth it for that.grandoldmovieshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10773085288675763855noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-81443455032883194002012-01-24T20:58:30.758-05:002012-01-24T20:58:30.758-05:00Eve, thanks for your enthusiastic praise for the B...Eve, thanks for your enthusiastic praise for the BALL OF FIRE part of our double-feature! Lots of writers have tried to freshen up classic stories with modern twists, and I think BoF is one of the very best of these attempts. And you're right about the evolution of slang dictionaries, too. On a related note, have you ever seen the 1967 Christmas caper comedy FITZWILLY, in which Dame Edith Evans' character is working on a dictionary of misspellings? They've got those now, too! See, life imitates art! :-) If you're interested, here's the link:<br /><br />http://doriantb.blogspot.com/2010/12/thin-man-meets-fitzwilly-team.htmlDorianTBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-7712204399531106012012-01-24T20:45:57.954-05:002012-01-24T20:45:57.954-05:00CFB, Vinnie and I are happy to hear that you enjoy...CFB, Vinnie and I are happy to hear that you enjoyed both BALL OF FIRE and OSCAR; thanks for your positive feedback! I absolutely agree that Stanwyck and Cooper's "yum-yum" kiss is way up there amongst my personal favorite examples of movie liplock. I'll be reading your post about PILLOW TALK shortly, and I know it'll be a delight!DorianTBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-53951832349644362212012-01-24T20:16:15.003-05:002012-01-24T20:16:15.003-05:00Dorian, Ball of Fire sounds like a hoot and I can&...Dorian, Ball of Fire sounds like a hoot and I can't believe I've never seen it! Thanks for the thorough story and I love the comparison to Snow White. So funny that slang dictionaries have been around for a very long time and boy are they different today! Intangible Heartshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05047040538015079182noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-8874098762572568752012-01-24T20:15:27.891-05:002012-01-24T20:15:27.891-05:00I love BOF! The "yum-yum" demonstration ...I love BOF! The "yum-yum" demonstration is one of the classic movie kisses of all time. And Stanwyck is so good, with such natural instincts. As for "Oscar," I remember it starting off slow but then getting better and better, so what an interesting mash-up of films :)Classicfilmboyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01278928051994100842noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-35033713844498362772012-01-23T22:03:02.933-05:002012-01-23T22:03:02.933-05:00Page, dry your eyes, little cowgirl -- BALL OF FIR...Page, dry your eyes, little cowgirl -- BALL OF FIRE turns up fairly regularly on TCM, and it was even one of The Essentials! Trust us, BoF is a comedy, all right -- a smart, snappy, fast-moving comedy chock full of sass, witty quips, and characters who are as kooky as they are endearing! Besides, any comedy involving Howard Hawks and Billy Wilder can't help but be entertaining. :-) And thanks oodles for your praise of our BoF screen grabs; these were especially fun to do!<br /><br />We remain loyal fans of OSCAR no matter what. Maybe you have to be fans of New York Damon Runyon period comedies to fully appreciate it :-)) Even if Stallone and/or Tomei don't happen to be your thing, the rest of the cast are a delight, especially Tim Curry trying to teach the family to speak well, using "Roscoe the rum-runner" for his speech lessons! :-) In any case, we're glad you enjoyed our writing either way! Thank you, my good friend! We're looking forward to your post about EASY LIVING!DorianTBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-16675982615693049802012-01-23T21:21:35.366-05:002012-01-23T21:21:35.366-05:00Dorian,
I haven't seen Ball of Fire.. I'm...Dorian, <br />I haven't seen Ball of Fire.. I'm quite sad and confused since I try to catch every Stanwyck film, being a big fan of hers and Cooper. <br /><br />I loved your funny screen grabs! This film doesn't really sound like a comedy to me. But your great write up was enjoyable. Stanwyck in fur is worth an hour (Thanks Edith) then Cooper looking dapper. If it's one of your favorites I'll do my best to find it.<br /><br />Vinnie, <br />I laughed when I saw "Oscar" as your choice since I thought it was one of the worst films I've ever seen. I can't believe it was at the top of the box office for two weeks! WOW! <br /><br />I'm not a fan of Stallone or Tomei so that may be why I thought the film was a snoozefest, with a horrible script to boot. <br /><br />It's fun to see what others find entertaining and I'm so glad that Vinnie signed on for a review with you Dorian.<br /><br />Your writing styles are brilliant and your sense of humor shines through. You know I'm always up for a few laughs. <br />Thanks for adding the interesting trivia on both films too~<br />PagePagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15063277863578004836noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-1493288992978984392012-01-23T20:23:03.055-05:002012-01-23T20:23:03.055-05:00whistlinggypsy, no worries, it's never too lat...whistlinggypsy, no worries, it's never too late to catch up with blog posts! :-) Thanks for your kind words; Vinnie and I are delighted that you enjoyed Team B.'s double-feature of BALL OF FIRE and OSCAR! Ironically, when we first conceived this double-bill, we initially focused on each film involving attempted marriage, but it was your remarks that really hit home the gangster themes, you clever gal -- pat yourself on the back! :-) <br /><br />I've always been a sucker for Runyonesque characters, probably from a combination of growing up in NYC and my late dad being a bookie. :-) By the way, we love JOHNNY DANGEROUSLY, too, though I think we love OSCAR a little bit more (and Tim Curry is just as entertaining without lingerie), but I'll admit when it came to BoF, it was love at first sight for us. Thanks for coming by and joining the BoF/OSCAR conversation, and feel free to drop by any time!DorianTBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-19884034200931544222012-01-23T18:47:05.711-05:002012-01-23T18:47:05.711-05:00D and V, I’m sorry I missed your post yesterday bu...D and V, I’m sorry I missed your post yesterday but it is certainly worth the wait. I can’t help thinking that in the case of BoF; it could not have looked like much on paper. A young hoochie dancer with ties to the underworld meets eight sheltered and studious men and finds true love in the end. The studio higher-ups must have been scratching their heads, but the film works on every level. Barbara Stanwyck is incandescent, Gary Cooper could do no wrong, and as you mentioned, the cast is full of familiar faces we’ve grown to love over the years. Great background information: I always wondered who provided the voice when Shugie sang, and can you believe Babs could pack such a wallop. <br /><br />I noticed a bit of a theme; both BoF and Oscar have comic portrayals of gangsters. I’ll admit that I fall into the “have never seen it” group, but I have never seen “Johnny Dangerously”, either. I’ve gotta say, any character with the last name Provolone certainly wins for originality, and a chance to see Tim Curry in a suit (sans lingerie) is just a bonus. Your reference to Damon Runyonesque characters sounds fitting, these are the characters that floated through my mind as a read your description of “Oscar” and company. Thanks to you both for new insights into both an old and perhaps a new favorite.whistlingypsyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06126688373252306609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-8138091555609164752012-01-23T17:24:57.578-05:002012-01-23T17:24:57.578-05:00Yvette, with your superb taste in art and movies a...Yvette, with your superb taste in art and movies and overall coolness, I should have known you'd be a BALL OF FIRE fan, too! Aren't these mutual admiration societies fun? :-) You're exactly right with your comparison of the 8 professors with Snow White's 7 dwarfs; apparently that's what writers Billy Wilder and Thomas Monroe had in mind, clever boys! Vinnie and I have always thought Charles Lane was born old, bless him; BoF is the first time I've ever seen him anywhere near young!<br /><br />Hope you get to see OSCAR; it's on DVD and it turns up on cable every so often. For Vinnie and me, it's one of those movies which, if we happen to find it on TV, we virtually drop everything and just sit back and enjoy the wackiness! Hope you have a chance to watch and enjoy it, too, my friend!DorianTBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-69905937818027248122012-01-23T16:55:11.899-05:002012-01-23T16:55:11.899-05:00Fabulous post, Dorian and Vinnie. While I'm fa...Fabulous post, Dorian and Vinnie. While I'm familiar with the endearing BALL OF FIRE (LOVE the professors and Gary Cooper's hapless persona) and adore Barbara Stanwyck (I mean, who doesn't?) I have never seen OSCAR, nor do I think I've ever heard of it...Though perhaps my mom and pop had a copy at one time. There's a vague memory trying to break free in my frazzled brain.<br /><br />At any rate, the professors in BOF remind me of the seven dwarfs in SNOW WHITE. They almost serve the same purpose.<br /><br />Hey, Charles Lane was never young - he was born old. Ha!<br /><br />I will promise to try and get around to watching OSCAR when I have a moment. You make it sound so fun. :)Yvettehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08919246184376538331noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-509497574816685109.post-25506608917583217602012-01-23T16:25:53.853-05:002012-01-23T16:25:53.853-05:00Kevin, we absolutely agree that "The chemistr...Kevin, we absolutely agree that "The chemistry between Cooper and Stanwyck is amazing and can't be bottled, otherwise all pairings would be this good." Wouldn't it be great if all actors could magically have instant chemistry? :-) And thanks for the tidbit about Richard Crenna having replaced OSCAR co-star Kirk Douglas in FIRST BLOOD; it's always interesting to hear what went on behind the scenes. Thanks for joining the conversation, Kevin; drop by anytime!DorianTBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.com