Eight Great Christmas Movies
December 17th, 2009 by Scott Marks
This artcle orginally appeared on SDNN.com
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As the song says, “Christmas makes you feel emotional, it may bring parties or thoughts devotional.” One thing is for sure. Those of us devoted to attending multiplexes this Christmas don’t have much to party about.
2009 could be the most depressing holiday movie season on record. For every charmingly diverting film like “Fantastic Mr. Fox” or “Me and Orson Welles,” there are numerous offerings fraught with themes of suicide, child abuse, child murder, corporate downsizing, war, drug abuse and several forecasts of the end of civilization as we know it.
Here are a sprinkling of (mostly) delightful antidotes to the bummer crop currently playing at a mall near you. Most of us have repeatedly seen “It’s a Wonderful Life” or “Miracle on 34th Street” and there’s a reason for it. They’re grand entertainments. But why not take the time to acquaint yourself with other movies listed below?
Henry ‘Clarence’ Travers
“It’s a Wonderful Life”/Frank Capra (1946)
Jimmy Stewart plays George Bailey, who looks back on a lifetime of shattered dreams and personal sacrifices. One day, after a string of bad luck, he decides he wants to end it all. But before he can, a bumbling angel named Clarence shows him what life would be like without him. And he convinces George that he really does have “a wonderful life.”
Some argue that Frank Capra’s film is sentimental to the point of being cheesy. While the ending can be viewed as mushy, the film also boasts a dark side. Stewart’s performance as the tortured businessman is a textbook example of post-war frustration and despair. It is strong enough to strip away more than a few layers of schmaltz. And who’s to say that in another ten years George won’t be ready to once again kick the crummy dust of Bedford Falls off his shoes?
By the way, when “It’s a Wonderful Life” entered the public domain in 1974, practically every television station began broadcasting the film during the holiday season. In 1993, Republic Pictures enforced its claim to the copyright and NBC is currently the only U.S. TV station that’s licensed to show the film.
“Miracle on 34th Street”/George Seaton (1947)
Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus and his name is Edmund Gwenn. No other artist in the history of cinema has embodied Kris Kringle quite as convincingly as the British character actor who took home an Oscar for his performance.
Little did Macy’s Department Store know that after firing its alcoholic Santa, they would luck upon the real deal. After numerous psychiatric exams and a trip to Bellevue, Kris’ authenticity is validated by the young daughter (Natalie Wood) of the store’s special events director (Maureen O’Hara). A sterling example of Hollywood craftsmanship and as convincing a piece of sentimental hokum as any ever filmed.
“The Bells of St. Mary’s” / Leo McCarey (1945)
“Bells” was the follow-up to the hugely successful “Going My Way” and has the distinction of being the first sequel to be nominated for a best picture Oscar.
Bing Crosby reprises his role as Father O’Malley, a showbiz priest assigned a position at an urban Parochial school following the former Pastor’s mental breakdown brought about after spending years “up to his neck in nuns.” Once established, Father O’Malley falls in love with Sister Mary Benedict (Ingrid Bergman), a tubercular nun, all the while helping a prostitute’s daughter (Joan Carroll) get an education. One would think that, back in 1946, it would have been easier to film the Bible in real time than to get this material past the censors, but director Leo McCarey had an understanding of humanity and an ability to find delicate humor in the most unlikely of places. “The Bell’s of St. Mary’s” is anything but cloying. It’s insightful, heartfelt and in many ways more uplifting than “It’s a Wonderful Life.“ It even features Henry Travers, one film before gaining winged immortality as Capra’s Clarence.
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Tags: Bing Crosby, Bob Hope, Cary Grant, Christmas Holiday movie, Citizen Kane, Deanna Durbin, Edmund Gwenn, Frank Capra, Frank Tashlin, Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly, George Bailey, Gregg Toland, Henry Travers, Holiday Inn movie, holiday movie classics, holiday movies, IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE, jimmy stewart, Macys, Miracle on 34th Street, Mr. Magoo Jim Backus, Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol, natalie wood, Old Ski Nose, Scott Marks, SDNN, Silver Bells song, Thanks for the Memories, The Bells of St. Mary's, the bishops wife, THE LEMON DROP KID, Violently Insane Psychopath, White ChristmasFiled Under Uncategorized
Jerry Lewis plays baseball with the Los Angeles Dodgers
April 7th, 2009 by Scott Marks
Jerry Lewis and the VistaVision Camera on the set of Frank Tashlin’s THE GEISHA BOY (1958)
Thanks to Rob(chester) Martinez for send me these marvelous candids in order to celebrate opening day. Like I know the difference between opening day and the Stanley Cup. It’s all meaningless to me since Jack Brickhouse went on to his reward.
Ryuzo Demura, Unidentified, Jerry Lewis & Jim Gilliam
Since The Geisha Boy was released in November 1958, I’m guessing that these were snapped earlier that spring. Sadly, Frank Tashlin is nowhere in sight. At this point in his career, Jerry was riding an unrivaled wave of success and his mania for documenting his every move was approaching its zenith. Everywhere that Jerry went a camera (both still and motion picture) was sure to go. His warehouse contains rows of thousands of leather bound photo albums chronicling every move of his life for decades. I remember reading a magazine interview a year or two after Jerry suffered his heart attack. He talked about how confronting death for the first time took some of the steam out of his penchant for self-preservation. Or should I say, preserving self? Wish I could spend a few hundred hours perusing that archive…
To see all seven of the photos, click here.
Jerry and his adoring fans on the set of THE GEISHA BOY (1958)
Tags: 1958, Baseball, candid photos, candids, Frank Tashlin, Jerry Lewis, jerry lewis candids, jerry lewis photos, los angeles, los angeles dodgers, opening day, THE GEISHA BOYFiled Under Image Blog
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