“The Kiss” from 1929: A Look at Infidelity Before and Under the Code

Crystal Kalyana, the authoress of In the Good Old Days of Classic Hollywood, is a devoted hostess of blogathons which honor famous actors' birthdays. This year I have participated in her blogathons for Olivia de Havilland + Errol Flynn, Ethel, Lionel, and John Barrymore, Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy, and Joan Fontaine. These blogathons generated some …

“Remember the Night:” Thievery in Code Films

Since the first silent films in the 1890s, thieves have been important characters in movies. There is just so much you can do with them. They can be main characters or bit parts; they can be villains or protagonists. They can be pickpockets, bank robbers, embezzlers, or jewel thieves. The "It Takes A Thief" Blogathon …

“Mister Roberts:” NOW: Eight Months After

For the “Now (and Then)” Blogathon hosted by Thoughts All Sorts and Realweegiemidget Reviews, I am reviewing two James Cagney films which are separated by twenty-two years. Footlight Parade was released in 1933, and Mister Roberts was released in 1955. 1933 was James Cagney's fourth year in Hollywood, and 1955 was his twenty-sixth year. Even …

“Footlight Parade:” THEN: Eight Months Before

James Cagney was an actor whose great talent in the film industry made him a movie star for thirty years. After achieving fame through his fourth film, The Public Enemy, Mr. Cagney appeared in around sixty movies before his retirement after One, Two, Three in 1961. His career put him in many diverse genres and roles, …

“Sabrina:” A Swell Dish from 1954

This weekend is the feast of the Food in Films blogathon at Silver Screenings and Speakeasy. I would like to thank my two hostesses for allowing me to join the potluck by serving up my opinions on an epicurean and cinematographic collaboration. For my contribution, I have chosen Sabrina, a swell dish from 1954. What classic …