Ann Sothern ca. early 1940s. Although never a superstar, MGM contract actress Ann Sothern was billed above the title in comedies, dramas, and musicals during the 1940s and early 1950s – along the way, getting to sing the classic Oscar-winning ballad “The Last I Saw…
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Lena Horne. Lena Horne movies: Velvety-voiced singer generally relegated to specialty numbers during heyday of the Hollywood musical Had things been different, it’s anybody’s guess whether or not three-time Grammy winner Lena Horne, Turner Classic Movies’ “Summer Under the Stars” performer of the day (Aug.…
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Hal Prince. Out of his record-setting 21 Tony Awards, eight were as Best Director of a Musical for the following: Cabaret (at the 1967 ceremony), Company (1971), Follies (1972, with Michael Bennett), Candide (1974), Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (1979), Evita (1980),…
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Howard Keel in Dallas with Donna Reed: late 20th-century mainstream resurgence of two former Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer stars. On Season 8 (1984–1985) of CBS’s hit TV soap Dallas (1978–1991), 1950s MGM contract actor-singer Howard Keel, previously a “guest star” on the show, was hired as a regular…
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The Music Man with Robert Preston and Shirley Jones: Independence Day movies. Numerous Hollywood musicals have attempted to capture that elusive, reality-averse quality known as “Americana-ness” – e.g., Yankee Doodle Dandy, Meet Me in St. Louis, In the Good Old Summertime, On Moonlight Bay, By…
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Howard Keel at the height of his career in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, with Jane Powell. In his autobiography, Only Make Believe: My Life in Show Business, Howard Keel refers to the making of Stanley Donen’s 1954 sleeper blockbuster Seven Brides for Seven Brothers…
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Howard Keel MGM musicals: Texas Carnival publicity shot with Esther Williams. In his MGM musicals of the 1950s, Howard Keel was almost always paired with small, girl-like leading ladies – Betty Hutton, Kathryn Grayson, Ann Blyth, Jane Powell – which at times made the broad-shouldered,…
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Jane Powell. Jane Powell movies: MGM actress in musicals of the 1940s & 1950s Jane Powell, the youthful star of a series of lighthearted Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer color comedy-musicals of the 1940s and 1950s is Turner Classic Movies’ Star of the Month in June. Undeniably a pleasant…
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Howard Keel musicals at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer: Box office roller-coaster ride. Brought to Hollywood in 1948 to star in MGM’s then popular musicals, stage performer Howard Keel seemed poised to reach major stardom after the impressive international success of his first movie at the studio, George Sidney’s…
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Howard Keel publicity shot ca. 1950. A prominent name in Hollywood musicals in the first half of the 1950s, Howard Keel was seen – and heard – as baritone-voiced, larger-than-life characters in a quintet of the best-liked entries in the genre: Annie Get Your Gun,…
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Roy Rogers, Singing Cowboy of 1940s and 1950s Hollywood. Known for his affable characterizations and, both on and off screen, “traditional values” stance, the King of the Cowboys – step aside, John Wayne & Gene Autry – toplined the “subversive” 1938 musical Western Under Western…
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Fred Astaire. Fred Astaire movies: Dancing in the dark & on the ceiling on TCM Aug. 5 is Fred Astaire Day on Turner Classic Movies, as TCM continues with its “Summer Under the Stars” series. Just don’t expect any rare Astaire movies, as the actor-singer-dancer’s…
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Ron Moody Oliver Twist characterization: As Fagin in Carol Reed’s 1968 musical Oliver!, based on Charles Dickens’ classic novel. Ron Moody ‘Oliver Twist’ effort: Fagin in 1968 box office and critical hit ‘Oliver!’ (See previous post: “Ron Moody: Oliver! Actor, Academy Award Nominee Dead at…
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Ron Moody: ‘Oliver!’ actor played Fagin in 1968 movie. Ron Moody: ‘Oliver!’ actor nominated for an Oscar dead at 91 Two well-regarded, nonagenarian British performers have died in the last few days: 93-year-old Christopher Lee (June 7), best known for his many portrayals of Dracula…
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Martha Stewart in ‘Doll Face,’ with Perry Como. Martha Stewart: Actress / Singer in Fox movies not dead despite two-year-old reports to the contrary According to various online reports, including Variety‘s, actress and singer Martha Stewart, a pretty blonde featured in supporting roles in a…
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Claudette Colbert and Maurice Chevalier in The Smiling Lieutenant. Claudette Colbert movies: From ‘The Smiling Lieutenant’ to ‘Skylark’ Claudette Colbert, the studio era’s perky, independent-minded – and French-born – “all-American” girlfriend (and later all-American wife and mother), is Turner Classic Movies’ star of the day…