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Movies
Movies
Follies of the Madmen #301
The birth of the selfie generation.
Posted By: Paul - Wed Jan 18, 2017 -
Comments (6)
Category: Business, Advertising, Products, Family, Hobbies and DIY, Movies, 1950s
The Bubble
Wikipedia page.
Posted By: Paul - Fri Jan 13, 2017 -
Comments (3)
Category: Aliens, Ineptness, Crudity, Talentlessness, Kitsch, and Bad Art, Movies, Science Fiction, 1960s
Alice White and Bunnies
I am not sure why 1930s actress Alice White was made to pose with bunnies so often, but she certainly looked fetching with them.
Source of third foto.
Posted By: Paul - Thu Jan 12, 2017 -
Comments (7)
Category: Animals, Anthropomorphism, Movies, Publicity Stunts, 1930s
The Voice of Snow White
Snow White and Adriana Caselotti (source: The Disney Wiki)
I came across a story in a 1938 newspaper about how Adriana Caselotti got the job of being the voice of Snow White in Disney's 1937 movie:
Three years ago when Adriana Caselotti, above, was 18, she was a naughty little girl who listened in on the phone calls of her father, Guido Caselotti, Hollywood voice teacher. When the Walt Disney studio called one day asking him to find the right voice for Snow White, she piped "Me, me, me, how about me?" into the extension on which she had been eavesdropping. The studio liked her cheerful chirping, and she became the "voice" of the fairy story heroine. Now she hopes to become a movie actress.
Unfortunately for Caselotti, her dream of becoming a movie actress didn't turn out as she hoped. In fact, providing the voice for Snow White turned out to be the worst career move she could have possibly made as an aspiring actress — because Walt Disney, wanting to preserve the "illusion of Snow White," decided he couldn't have her voice be heard in any other context. So he prevented Caselotti from ever finding work as an actress again, except for minor appearances in The Wizard of Oz and It's a Wonderful Life.
As a consolation prize for having destroyed her career, the Disney company named her a "Disney Legend" in 1994.
From wikipedia:
In 1935, after a brief stint as a chorus girl at MGM, Walt Disney hired Caselotti as the voice of his heroine Snow White. She was paid a total of $970 for working on the film (worth approximately $16,160 as of 2011). She was under contract with Disney, and Disney prevented her from appearing in further film and other media, even for Disney, after Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Jack Benny specifically mentioned that he had asked Disney for permission to use her on his radio show and was told, "I'm sorry, but that voice can't be used anywhere. I don't want to spoil the illusion of Snow White." The only other work Caselotti did following her premiere was an uncredited role in MGM's The Wizard of Oz (1939); she provided the voice of Juliet during the Tin Man's song, "If I Only Had a Heart", speaking the line, "Wherefore art thou Romeo?" In 1946, she had an uncredited role in Frank Capra's It's a Wonderful Life, singing in Martini's bar as James Stewart was praying.
Wilkes Barre Times Leader - Apr 8, 1938
Posted By: Alex - Sun Jan 08, 2017 -
Comments (1)
Category: Movies, Cartoons, Actors
Envy
Wikipedia page says:
Envy received generally negative reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 8% based on 117 reviews with an average rating of 3.1/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Jack Black and Ben Stiller fail to wring laughs from a script that's essentially one extended poop joke."[3] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 31 out of 100 based on 30 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".[4] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "D" on an A+ to F scale.[5]
The film had been shot almost two years before its release, and was in danger of going straight-to-video in the US due to poor audience response during test screenings. It was only due to the success of 2003's School of Rock starring Jack Black that it finally got a theatrical release. Nevertheless, the film performed poorly in US theaters, so much so that it was released straight-to-video in several European countries and Australia.[6]
The film was nominated for a Razzie Award for Worst Actor (Stiller), but lost to Fahrenheit 9/11 (George W. Bush). At the 2004 Cannes Film Festival, during a press conference for Shark Tale (2004), both Black and DreamWorks' Jeffrey Katzenberg publicly apologized for Envy.[6]
Posted By: Paul - Sun Jan 08, 2017 -
Comments (0)
Category: Ineptness, Crudity, Talentlessness, Kitsch, and Bad Art, Movies, Scatology, Dogs, Twenty-first Century
Cinderella’s Bad Influence
In the 1950s, Dr. John Kershaw, an English medical officer, argued that, "The expectation of meeting a dream lover and automatically living 'happily ever after' keeps children from being taught 'to realize the difficulties and responsibilities of marriage.'"
More recently, Cinderella has been attacked for the "princess culture" that it cultivates. From the Sentinel & Enterprise (3/22/2012):
Assistant English professor Joe Moser said he believes Disney's "Cinderella" is a patriarchal, cautionary tale warning American women against being too independent. Released in 1950, the movie came shortly after World War II, a time when many women took jobs outside the home because the men were away. Moser thinks some of the aspects of the film were a push to put women back into their supposed place.
"Cinderella is remarkably passive throughout the entire movie," Moser said, adding that Prince Charming didn't take much of his life into his own hands either and relied greatly on his father.
Rather than make her own dreams come true, he said, Cinderella waits for others, such as her fairy godmother, to do the work for her, and trusts that things will turn out right.
The message it sends is that it is best to buy into the status quo and that one's dreams can be achieved by following the rules set by previous generations, Moser said.
"Cinderella is remarkably passive throughout the entire movie," Moser said, adding that Prince Charming didn't take much of his life into his own hands either and relied greatly on his father.
Rather than make her own dreams come true, he said, Cinderella waits for others, such as her fairy godmother, to do the work for her, and trusts that things will turn out right.
The message it sends is that it is best to buy into the status quo and that one's dreams can be achieved by following the rules set by previous generations, Moser said.
NY Times critic Peggy Orenstein has even written a bestselling book on this subject, Cinderella Ate My Daughter (2011).
To the best of my knowledge, I've never seen Cinderella. Perhaps I should consider myself lucky for having escaped its poisonous influence.
Chicago Daily Tribune - June 1, 1954
Posted By: Alex - Wed Jan 04, 2017 -
Comments (4)
Category: Movies, Myths and Fairytales, 1950s
Mystery Illustration 35
Which famous film star is this drawing intended to represent?
Answer after the jump.
More in extended >>
Posted By: Paul - Mon Dec 26, 2016 -
Comments (3)
Category: Celebrities, Movies, 1940s
The Connection
Unless you're a film buff you probably haven't heard of Shirley Clarke's 1961 movie The Connection. It was an experimental film, purporting to be actual footage of a group of heroin junkies waiting in an apartment for their dealer ("the connection") to show up. Though, of course, the supposed junkies were all actors, and the film was scripted.But the movie's real claim to fame is that it was the first American film to ever use the word "shit." From wikipedia:
The film is significant in the history of film censorship, as Clarke and producer Lewis Allen had filed suit to be able to show the film in New York. (The film had already premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 1961.) In that era, in New York, the State's Department of Education had a vote on the State's film licensing board, and they voted to deny a license, mainly on the grounds that the word "shit" was used repeatedly during the film, even though it was mostly used to refer to drugs.
The case went all the way to the New York State Court of Appeals (the state's highest court). The Court of Appeals affirmed the decision of the intermediate level Appellate Division, which had held that while 'vulgar', this usage could not be considered obscene. Ultimately, the film was not a success at the box office.
The case went all the way to the New York State Court of Appeals (the state's highest court). The Court of Appeals affirmed the decision of the intermediate level Appellate Division, which had held that while 'vulgar', this usage could not be considered obscene. Ultimately, the film was not a success at the box office.
The trailer:
The full film:
Posted By: Alex - Tue Nov 15, 2016 -
Comments (1)
Category: Movies, 1960s, Curses, Slurs, Insults, Vituperation, Libel and Slander
The Silence of the Hams
Posted By: Paul - Sat Oct 22, 2016 -
Comments (3)
Category: Ineptness, Crudity, Talentlessness, Kitsch, and Bad Art, Movies, Homages, Pastiches, Tributes and Borrowings, 1990s
Ted V. Mikels, RIP
Obituary here.
Posted By: Paul - Wed Oct 19, 2016 -
Comments (2)
Category: Death, Eccentrics, Horror, Movies, 1960s, Blood, Dismemberment, Screams, Grunts and Other Exclamations
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| Alex Boese Alex is the creator and curator of the Museum of Hoaxes. He's also the author of various weird, non-fiction, science-themed books such as Elephants on Acid and Psychedelic Apes. Paul Di Filippo Paul has been paid to put weird ideas into fictional form for over thirty years, in his career as a noted science fiction writer. He has recently begun blogging on many curious topics with three fellow writers at The Inferior 4+1. Contact Us |