"Imitation of Life" with Claudette Colbert, Louise Beavers, and Ned Sparks (1934)

When Bea Pullman is widowed, she and her 8 year old daughter Jessie are hard-pressed to make ends meet. At this crucial moment of Bea's life Delilah Johnson shows up on her doorstep, looking for work. It's the middle of the Great Depression and Delilah, played by Louise Beavers, is willing to work as a maid for Bea and her daughter. Delilah has a daughter of her own, named Peola, played by Fredi Washington. She is the same age as Jessie, and though her mother is as black as can be, Peola is light skinned and easily mistaken for white. At first this causes no trouble, but as she gets older, things change. Meantime, the two women need one another; Bea needs the help in order to find work, while Delilah needs the job to feed herself and Peola.

Delilah makes the most wonderful pancakes in the world, and the two women set out to open a pancake house. Alan Hale plays the store fixture salesman, Marvin, who is outwitted by Bea when the two negotiate the refurbishing of the store which Bea has selected to open her pancake house. With no money down Bea must convince Marvin to let her have the furnishings and make payments.

The business is doing well and all problems seem to have vanished when Elmer Smith; played with his usual aplomb by Ned Sparks; an out of work victim of the Depression, comes loitering outside the shop on the boardwalk. He is broke, and hungry. He offers to give Bea a million dollar idea for a "stack of those wheat cakes". His idea is simply put; "Why not box it?" And they do, with Aunt Delilah's picture on the cover. The gamble is a huge success, making the women wealthy in a short time. He also becomes their business partner, always looking out for Bea.

As all of this is taking place, the two daughters, Jessie and Peola grow up. And, as they do, Peola realizes that in spite of her light skin, she is black. When her mother inadvertently "blows her cover", the child is mortified and rejects her in order to lead a life "passing" as white. This, of course breaks her mother’s heart, and Delilah is taken ill from the stress and pain of having "lost" her daughter.

Meanwhile, Jessie has grown into a beautiful young woman, just as her mother has fallen in love with Stephen Archer, played by Warren William. He is an expert entomologist, that is, he studies insects. When Peola goes missing, both Bea and Delilah go in search of her, leaving Jessie alone with Steve for a few days. During this time she falls in love with him, in spite of the difference in their ages. Although he finds her to be a delightful young woman, he is truly in love with Bea.

By this time, Delilah has passed away, and Peola has returned home, mortified at the way she treated her mother. Jessie, on the other hand, has decided that her mother's happiness is more important than her own, and plans to go to Europe for a few years and complete her schooling, thus removing herself from the situation between her mother and Steve. But Bea will have none of it, and though it breaks her heart to do so, she calls off her impending marriage to Steve, realizing that their union would always represent a division between herself and her daughter.

This is one of the best films of the 1930's. It is also one of Ms. Colbert's best performances, encompassing drama, tinged with a bit of humor thrown in. Fans of "It Happened One Night" will enjoy this movie immensely. Though “Imitation of Life” was remade in the 1950's with Lana Turner, the original is still the benchmark for this wonderful film. Taken from the novel by Fannie Hurst, and with a screenplay by William Hurlbut, you simply can't go wrong with this one.

Trayvon Martin - RIP

"The Palm Beach Story" with Joel McCrea, Claudette Colbert and Rudy Vallee (1942)

One of the scenes shown in yesterday's Valentine's Day post depicted a woman’s toes curling. It was one of the ones I guessed correctly. Coincidentally, it is also one of the newer selections just purchased for the Classics Collection at the Mooresville Public Library. So, naturally I had to take it home. And I'm so glad that I did. It has been awhile since I have seen this quirky, off-beat comedy by Preston Sturges, and in this case, absence makes the heart grow fonder, both for the principal characters, as well as the viewer.

Tom Jeffers, played by Joel McCrea and his wife Gerry, played by Claudette Colbert are broke. He is a struggling architect and the bills have mounted up. They are being evicted from their Manhattan luxury apartment when J.D. Hackensacker III, played by screen legend Rudy Vallee enters their lives as the meddling old millionaire "Sausage king." With a self-deprecating wit and charm, he pays off the couples debts. This causes some friction between the two, and Gerry decides that she can serve her husband best by getting a quick divorce. He is in complete disagreement.

After a night on the town, Gerry leaves Tom, bound for Palm Beach by train. (There are some great scenes of the old Pennsylvania Station in this part of the movie.) Without any money for a ticket, she vies for the attention of a group of old millionaires who are all members of the "Quail and Ale" club. This group is composed of some of Hollywood’s finest character actors, including William Demarest and Chester Conklin, along with Fred "Snowflake" Toones as the beleaguered black bartender, "Snowflake", in what would today be considered a "politically incorrect" role. They are on their annual outing to go hunting, drinking and singing. They quickly vote to adopt her as a member and pay for her ticket. Tom arrives at the station just in time to see his wife leaving.

In despair, he heads home, only to discover that J.D. Hackensacker, III is now his neighbor. The old gent is irritated that Tom is not chasing his wife in order to get her back. So, he finances Tom's train ticket to go and chase her down. On the way he discovers that Hackensacker's sister, the Princess Centimillia, played by Mary Astor, is after him. With the plot all set, it only remains to be seen what happens next in this typically fast paced and funny production, written and directed by the master of the ridiculous, Preston Sturges.

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!)

"It Happened One Night" with Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert (1934)

During the Great Depression in the 1930's, a new genre of film made its appearance across the country. They were called "screwball" comedies, because the plots were slightly insane, and also, because like a good "screwball" in a baseball game, you were never really quite sure just where it was all going to end up. The other night I watched Frank Capra's "You Can't Take It With You" after quite a few years. I enjoyed it so much that I returned to the library for some more of Frank Capra's magical celluloid elixir. I came home with "It Happened One Night."

Briefly, the film is about a news reporter, Peter Warne, played by Clark Gable, who gets fired for some very good reasons. When he embarks on a bus trip back to New York he meets, and attempts to befriend, Ellie Andrews, played by Claudette Colbert, as she flees from her millionaire father, who is opposed to Ms. Andrews pending marriage to a social celebrity who may just be marrying her for her money.

Naiveté is the order of the day as Ms. Andrews tries to make her way back to New York via bus, exposing her to a level of living which she has never experienced before. And experience is just what she gets; from having her bags stolen, to being hit upon by a traveling salesman. Life on the road is not something she is prepared for.

Peter Warne, with his keen eye as a reporter, as well as a man of the world, discovers Ms. Andrews’ true identity and keeps a careful eye on her as she makes her way from Miami to New York aboard the bus. When her baggage is stolen, she is left penniless, and the two try to make it to New York on $4 dollars. Forced to leave the bus when her true identity is discovered by the philandering salesman "Shapley", played by Roscoe Karns, Warne and Ms. Andrews leave the bus and begin to hitchhike the remaining way.

Her father, a millionaire known simply as "Andrews", played by Walter Connolly, has all the airports, bus terminals and train stations watched by private detectives, but he has neglected the one way in which his daughter is now traveling; by thumb.

As the couple bicker and banter their way towards New York they discover a mutual respect for one another. This respect begrudgingly turns into something more, and though Ms. Andrews' father has finally accepted his daughter's impending marriage to the intended groom, he is only too happy to meet Peter Warne, and would be even happier to have him as a son in law instead. How all of this works out is the icing on the cake in this delightful "screwball" comedy.

Made with the same team of screenwriter Robert Riskin, working from a short story by Samuel Hopkins Adams, and directed by Frank Capra, this movie earned 5 Academy Awards in 1934. The categories were Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Director and Best Screenplay. They really don't make them like this anymore.