Backlots

By Lara Gabrielle Fowler

Day 2 of the TCM Classic Film Festival got underway early this morning with screenings beginning at the 9:00 hour. Libeled Lady, my screening choice for this time block, began not long thereafter at 9:30, and this was one of the events I was most looking forward to. Libeled Lady is a read crowd-pleaser, and a personal favorite of mine. The all-star cast assembled for the film can essentially do no wrong in my book, and the combination of talent and skillful direction by Jack Conway makes for a tightly wrapped treat for viewing.

The story deals with the story of a libel suit filed by an heiress (Myrna Loy) due to an untruth written by a newspaper, the editor of which (Spencer Tracy) decides to frame her in an elaborate plot to avoid getting involved in the suit. The other factors in the framing are played by William Powell and Jean Harlow, with a significant supporting performance by Walter Connolly. The cast works so well together that the plot is completely seamless, the highlight of which is when William Powell goes fishing and gives one of the most hilarious screwball scenes on film.

After having a good laugh at Libeled Lady (including uttering a rather embarrassingly loud scream of laughter at 0:46 of the above video), I enthusiastically headed over to the Egyptian Theatre for a screening of Notorious. Arguably Hitchcock’s finest film, it weaves a fascinating web of intrigue within an elaborate plot to infiltrate a Nazi group in Rio de Janeiro. If you haven’t seen this film, you owe it to yourself to do so. I have seen it a number of times, but every time I watch it the suspense and finesse of the filmmaking keeps me on the edge of my seat. My favorite scene hinges upon the procurement of a key by Ingrid Bergman’s character to the wine cellar where there is thought to be suspicious material. In this video, begin watching at the beginning and continue to the 4:00 mark. Note Hitchcock’s use of magic technique to create suspense and to push the scene forward.

Next up was a screening of rare Hollywood home movies from the Academy Film Archive. Included were clips of stars from various classic eras relaxing on the set or at home, and they were a true delight to watch. Highlights included Marlene Dietrich in Austria, Joan Fontaine on the set of Gunga Din, a young Lucille Ball being carried on the set of an early film, and Mitzi Gaynor at the beginning of her career. Along to introduce the screenings were representatives from the Academy library, and Mitzi Gaynor herself introduced her own home movie clips. She looks wonderful, and is still full of pep at the age of 82.

Mitzi Gaynor presenting some of her home movies.

Young Lucille Ball.

Marlene Dietrich relaxes in Austria.

Joan Fontaine on the set of Gunga Din.

After the home movies, I rushed back to the Egyptian Theatre for the screening of It. Clara Bow is my favorite silent star, and I was excited to see such an iconic movie on the big screen. It is a vehicle entirely for Clara Bow. The plot is rather irrelevant, as the movie was formed simply to center around her, and in that it succeeds magnificently. All of Bow’s bubbly charm is out in full force, and we see her as having an abundant amount of what the movie calls “it,” described as “self-confidence and indifference as to whether you are pleasing or not.” Clara Bow became known as the “It Girl,” and the term has entered the modern lexicon. This screening featured a brand new score by Carl Davis, performed with a live orchestra.

Clara Bow in It.

The friends with whom I am staying were very excited about A Foreign Affair. It was the highlight of the festival for many of them, and as I had never seen it before, I was very curious. I was disappointed that the film was screened so late, because I think I would have enjoyed it much more if I had not been so tired. Marlene Dietrich’s magnificent cabaret numbers were far and away the highlights for me–there is something about Marlene Dietrich that is inexplicable. Whenever she is onscreen, all eyes turn to her, and when she does her cabaret numbers, time seems to stop. I think she is one of the most fascinating characters in all of film history, and it is always magnificent to watch her.

Highlights tomorrow include Jane Fonda’s handprint ceremony at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre, The Lady Eve, and Mildred Pierce. Stay tuned!

By Lara Gabrielle Fowler

The TCM Classic Film Festival kicked off today with a flurry of events taking place in the Roosevelt Hotel, followed by an array of screenings in the evening hours. The first official event that I attended was a very difficult trivia quiz hosted by Bruce Goldstein entitled “So You Think You Know Movies?” The questions ranged from the obscure to the very obscure, and the team that won did so with a total of 11 points out of 20. The high point of the event was the fact that a number of people who had questions written about them were there, including Norman Lloyd and James Karen. Regardless of the extreme difficulty of the game, it was heartening to see the celebrities greeted with such a warm reception, receiving standing ovations and much affection from the audience.

After trivia was over, the room cleared for a special announcement by Robert Osborne. A few days ago I received an invitation to a press event at which Robert Osborne would be making an announcement regarding a series of costumes on exhibit at the festival. It was billed as a “part of a major announcement,” and I was curious to see what he would have to say. I sat at one of the press tables and soon after Robert Osborne came out along with a representative from Bonham’s auction house. It turns out that TCM is going to be collaborating with Bonham’s for a major memorabilia auction in November, consisting of many costumes and items from the Golden Age of Hollywood and beyond. The Bonham’s representative was quick to point out that the auction is using the TCM definition of classic–“Classic meaning great, not necessarily vintage,” she said. It promises to be an interesting thing to watch. It won’t start until November, but if you would like to learn more about it, information will be available at http://www.bonhams.com in the coming months.

Access to the opening night screening of Funny Girl was restricted to high level pass holders only, but I instead attended the screenings of Ninotchka (1939) and Summertime (1955) with pleasure. Ninotchka is, as most classic films are well aware, is a legendary comedy, ahead of its time in its use of humor. It tells the story of Ninotchka Yakushova, a Russian envoy who is enlisted in the sale of Russian royal jewels in Paris–and her rigid manner is slowly melted by Count Leon (Melvyn Douglas), who is trying to assist a duchess in her goal to retrieve the jewels before they are sold.

The famous tagline of the movie is “Garbo Laughs!” which refers specifically to one very clever scene in which the Count tries to make her laugh by telling jokes at a restaurant. None of the jokes are funny to Ninotchka until the Count, in his frustration, accidentally falls off his chair. This elicits peals of laughter from Ninotchka, and signals the beginning of her melting persona.

Directed by Ernst Lubitsch, much of the film is echoed in the later Lubitsch film To Be or Not To Be, including much of the cast and the general intellectual feel of the movie. Also similar to To Be or Not To Be which derives its humor from Nazi oppression, the humor has dark undertones dealing with tyranny under the rule of Joseph Stalin. Its story was made into a Broadway musical called Silk Stockings in 1955, which was then transferred to the screen as a 1957 musical film with Cyd Charisse.

Summertime has a completely different tone. A romantic drama starring Katharine Hepburn as an American tourist in Venice and Rossano Brazzi as her Italian love interest, it is more an examination on the realities of life and love than any sort of feel-good romance. Rossano Brazzi’s character is married with 4 children, having an affair with Katharine Hepburn, who is only in town for a short time. David Lean intended for this to be a steamy, passionate love story, true to the stage play by Arthur Laurents. However, at the insistence of the Catholic church, David Lean had to cut 18 feet of shot film, and the story suffers. What remains, though, is a sweet story and the movie contains some of the most beautiful shots of Venice onscreen. A funny trivia bit about this movie that has made its way into the Katharine Hepburn legend, is that Katharine Hepburn refused to perform a scene that required her to fall into the canal, on the grounds that it was far too dirty and she would get sick. After pouring massive amounts of disinfectant into the canal, Hepburn finally agreed to do it but complained throughout her life of chronic conjunctivitis due to that scene in Summertime.

Coverage will begin tomorrow morning on Twitter at 9:30 with Libeled Lady! Be sure to check in for live updates.

See you in the morning!

By Lara Gabrielle Fowler

As a precursor to the official festivities of the TCM Classic Film Festival beginning tomorrow, members of the media were invited to a special press roundtable at which we could ask questions of relevance to our readers. The panel, consisting of TCM premier host Robert Osborne, head of programming Charlie Tabesh, and weekend and daytime host Ben Mankiewicz, allowed the press to get an insider’s view of what goes on at TCM behind the scenes.

Robert Osborne answered questions first. He discussed the importance of the diversity of programming that is one of the cornerstones of TCM, and also mentioned that though he was well aware of the youth demographic and the many classic film fans under 30, the enthusiasm of younger viewers came as a surprise to the rest of the TCM team. “They thought it was only for people with gray hair,” he said. What did come as a surprise for him was how fans seem to find their niches at these TCM events. On the cruise, he said, people had divided themselves into groups and organized themselves according to fandom–for example “The Bogart fans are going here, the Cagney fans are going here, and the Stanwyck fans are going here.” He also went into a bit of the process of choosing films for scheduling, and how he works with the guest programmers that appear often on TCM. He is especially impressed with Cher and her choices for the “women in film” lineup that she is programming, saying that she is not a diva at all and is very accommodating and lovely to work with. “Kind of disappointing!” he joked.

Next was Charlie Tabesh, who expanded upon Osborne’s remarks regarding programming. In response to a question about requests for films to be shown, Tabesh stated that they will go to the message boards and see where the interest is. Regarding the oft-pondered question “What is a classic?” in regard to programming, he responded with the general consensus that there is no definition. Programming is based around context, and he gave the example of Katharine Hepburn as Star of the Month. They wanted to show every single one of her movies, and as Hepburn’s career extended far beyond what many consider to be the classic era, they ventured outside of what they would usually program on TCM.

My question was in response to a complaint I often hear from classic film fans in Europe who are disappointed with the programming on the TCM worldwide branches. I asked if they were in contact with one another and if there was any way that the diversity of programming that Robert Osborne had talked about earlier could be transferred to TCM worldwide. The answer came back that copyright laws are different in different areas, as are the values and desires of viewers. Though they are indeed in contact, they understandably don’t have a say in what is programmed, so regardless of what American TCM might hold as a value, TCMs worldwide can make their own choices.

Ben Mankiewicz answered questions about his input at TCM. He said that above all, he is an employee and doesn’t have too much say, though he is welcome to make his own suggestions. In response to a question about his changed appearance (now appearing clean-shaven and well-dressed as opposed to his former casual attire on the channel), Mankiewicz told an amusing story about how his contract initially stated that he had to keep a goatee at all times. When he expressed a desire to shave it off, the powers-that-be asserted that it was not in the contract at all and that he could do it! So now he appears in the way that he wants to present himself. He also remarked on the real community that TCM fans feel with one another, and how the internet has sparked a phenomenon in classic movie fan community. As an example, he cited #TCMParty, the Twitter hashtag that has united classic movie fans on the site, all watching TCM at the same time. He also remarked on the loyalty to the channel that is unmatched–he has a love for sports and ESPN, he said, but doesn’t feel any kind of loyalty or community with it. TCM fans are special that way, he said–there is no other channel that can inspire this kind of enthusiasm and energy from the fans.

Beautifully said, and absolutely true. I can’t think of one other channel that has this kind of united following.

The festival begins tomorrow afternoon. I have enabled live tweets, and you may follow along on Twitter as well as on the blog. It promises to be a very exciting few days!

See you tomorrow!

By Lara Gabrielle Fowler

Following a lovely journey down California’s Highway 101 with stops in Carmel and Santa Barbara, I have arrived in Hollywood 4 days early for the TCM Classic Film Festival.

In case any of my readers are unfamiliar with Backlots’ festival protocol, I will be enabling live tweets the day before the festival starts, and you can follow along on the blog in real time. I will be attending a press Q&A on Wednesday with Robert Osborne, Ben Mankiewicz, and other TCM personalities, and the preliminary festival coverage will start that evening with the information I obtain from that event. I will also be providing you with plenty of photos and information from the festival on the whole, including pictures of Hollywood and classic film-related sights in the area.

See you next time, and be sure to check out the beginning of Backlots’ festival coverage on Wednesday!