"We're Not Dressing" with Carole Lombard and Bing Crosby (1934)

Carole Lombard, as heiress Dorothy Worthington; along with a very young Ethel Merman as her friend Edith; take a trip aboard Dorothy’s yacht, which is captained by the inimitable Leon Errol. Bing Crosby plays a deckhand hopelessly smitten with Ms. Lombard, not realizing that she has fallen for him as well. There is even a real trained bear who is infatuated with Bing Crosby’s singing.  Add in the yacht hitting a reef, with all finding their way to a seemingly deserted island; even the bear swims in this film; and you have a recipe for a good old fashioned madcap comedy.

When they begin to set up camp ashore; all eyes turn towards the deckhand to provide them with food and shelter. He refuses, arguing that they are now outside of civilized society, and as such, it is now all for one, and one for all. When they refuse, he leaves the group to go fishing for himself.

Unknown to all of them is the presence on the island of 2 biologists; Gracie Allen and George Burns. When Dorothy finds them in the jungle, she resorts to a bit of cunning in order to borrow some tools, which she then lets Bing Crosby “find” in order to build a shelter. She has been very high handed with him and he has refused all of her attentions; so what better way to win him back than to have him believe he is “the man?”

There is great acting by everyone in this film. Ethel Merman is a standout; even at this early stage of her career you can see that she is going to be big. Leon Errol is also wonderfully vibrant as, well, Leon Errol playing a yacht captain. And with Bing singing his way into Carol Lombard’s heart, this film is just plain fun to watch.

Valentine's Day Classic Clips and a Song

I wasn't really sure what to post for today. It's my daughter Sarah's 25th birthday, and that's special. But I wanted something more universal to post, something that would appeal to the romantic in all of us. So, I hit You Tube, looking for Classic Valentines Day Films. I got a compilation of love scenes from 41 different films. I did pretty good, identifying about 2 dozen of the clips correctly. I did have to do it twice, my mind doesn't run as fast as the compilation does.

See how many you can identify without looking at the list provided by saraismyname, who posted this to You Tube last year. The answers are listed below the following video of the Bangles doing their 1989 hit song "Eternal Flame";



These are the films in order of appearance:

Wife vs. Secretary
Made for Each Other
Family Honeymoon
Random Harvest
Love Crazy
Mrs. Miniver
The Palm Beach Story
Conquest
Adventure
Two-Faced Woman
When Tomorrow Comes
Mrs. Miniver
Never a Dull Moment
Remember the Day
Two-Faced Woman
You Can't Take it with You
Penny Serenade
Sitting Pretty
Conquest
Adventure
Stamboul Quest
Remember the Day
Sentimental Journey
If You Could Only Cook
Rebecca
We Were Dancing
The Palm Beach Story
A Night to Remember
Four's a Crowd
Over 21
Random Harvest
Wife vs. Secretary
A Night to Remember
Forsaking All Others
The Gilded Lily
Arsenic and Old Lace
Mr. and Mrs. Smith
Mr. Blandings Builds HIs Dream House
Adam's Rib
Julia Misbehaves
We Were Dancing

And while I'm on the topic of Valentine's Day, let me wish a very special and heart felt Valentine's Day to all of the women in my life who make the world so much more than it would be without them. Of course, that starts with my wife Sue; pictured here with our friend the Frog; and my daughter Sarah. (Quick thinking and a nice save by me on that!)

"Mr. and Mrs. Smith" with Carole Lombard and Robert Montgomery

Alfred Hitchcock was a very funny man. The legendary director, most well known for his films of suspense, had a very dry, and wry, sense of humor. In the early 1970's when a writer for Esquire showed up at his home for an interview, he was ushered into the kitchen to wait. He was also told to help himself to a drink from the refrigerator. Opening the door the writer was confronted with a wax head replica of Hitchcock, on a platter! When Hitchcock walked in, seconds later, the writer was hard pressed to conduct the interview for which he had come.

Aside from the film "The Trouble with Harry", a story about a neighbor whom everybody wants dead, Hitchcock did very little comedy. In almost all of his films there is an element of humor that sets the audience up for some unexpected and shocking moments. But flat out humor was a genre in which Hitchcock did very little work. That's what makes this film so interesting.

Carole Lombard and Robert Montgomery play Mr. and Mrs. Smith, a couple happily married, although there are a few quirks in their relationship. For instance, when they fight with one another it can last for days. During these fights, the record being 8 days, Mr. Smith neglects his legal practice and the couple remain in their apartment, engaged in a silent war. Only when one apologizes can an argument be called off.

At the end of a 3 day fight- pictured silently in the opening scene, which is almost Chaplinesque in it's layout- Mrs. Smith asks Mr. Smith if he had to do it all again would he still marry her? This is very dangerous ground to trod!

Arriving at his office he is greeted by an official from the state in which they were married. This official explains that due to a glitch in the survey of the town where they were wed, they are in fact, not wed at all. Mr. Smith, not knowing that the same official has visited Mrs. Smith, says nothing to her about it. This is the set up for the rest of the movie, which plays as smoothly as anything by Frank Capra.

A great departure from his usual fare, this film is sharply written, and of course flawlessly directed by the master himself. No Hitchcock film would be complete without his trademark "cameo" appearance, and this film is no different. But you have to really watch for it as this film was made in 1941 when the famed Director had a slimmer profile. Here, courtesy of You Tube is the walk on scene- Hitchcock making his entrance from the left, crossing the entranceway of the apartment building.