Back to Golden Days

I started this blog six years ago as a way to share my passion for classic films and the Old Hollywood era. I used to watch dozens of classic films every month, and every time I discovered a new star I liked I would go and watch their entire filmography. But somewhere along the way, that passion dimmed down. For instance, I watched 73 classic films in 2016, and only 10 in 2020. The other day, I found this film with Douglas Fairbanks Jr. that I had never heard of, and for some reason it made me really excited about Old Hollywood again. It made me really miss the magic of that era and all the wonderful actors and actresses that graced the silver screen. And it also made me think of all the reasons why I fell in love with classic films in the first place. I came up with 80 reasons, which I thought would be fun to share with you. Most of them are just random little scenes or quirky little quotes, but put them together and they spell Old Hollywood to me. Yesterday I posted part one ; here i...

The 1940s were marked by World War II, the deadliest conflict in human history. The end of the war signified a change in the political alignment and social structure of the globe. The Marshall Plan helped rebuild war-torn Europe, while the United States became the most influential economic power in the world. Germany was divided in two, and the Cold War began. The State of Israel was established, Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated, and Chairman Mao founded the People's Republic of China. Engineers at the University of Pennsylvania developed the first general-purpose electronic computer, and Percy Spencer invented the microwave oven.   (from left to right) American troops of the 1st Infantry Division landing on Omaha Beach on D-Day (June 6, 1944); Glen Beck and the ENIAC, the first electronic general-purpose digital computer (ca. 1947); Mahatma Gandhi, assassinated on January 30, 1948 by a Hindu nationalist; Mao Zedong proclaiming the establishment of the People's Republic of China...

I'm decidedly terrible at making lists of any kind — mostly because I change my mind all the time. If I were to write a list of my favourite films, I wouldn't be surprised if I ended with a document longer than Marcel Proust's In Search of Lost Time (for reference, that's 4215 pages long). So, as you can probably imagine, it was a bit of a struggle to select five films I would like to have with me if I was hypothetically stranded on a deserted island. After almost giving myself a headache, I think I have finally come up with the five lucky winners. Bear in mind, however, that if you asked me to do this again tomorrow, my answer would most likely be completely different. My criteria for choosing these films were fairly simple. First of all, I wanted films that make me happy, films that never fail to put a smile on my face. When you are stranded on a deserted island, I assume you would want something cheerful to keep your spirits up. As such, the pictures on this list ...

  In January 1944, MGM chief Louis B. Mayer happened to see a young crooner by the name of Frank Sinatra perform at a benefit concert for The Jewish Home for the Aged in Los Angeles. According to Nancy Sinatra, Frank's eldest daughter, Mayer was so moved by her father's soulful rendition of « Ol' Man River » that he made the decision right then and there to sign Frank to his studio. Sinatra had been on the MGM payroll once before, singing with the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra in the Eleanor Powell vehicle Ship Ahoy (1942), although it is very likely that Mayer never bothered to see that film. Now that Frank was «hot,» however, Metro made arrangements to buy half of his contract from RKO, with the final deal being signed in February of that year. Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra in  Anchors Aweigh Being a contract player at the studio that boasted «more stars than there are in the heavens» gave Frank a sudden perspective regarding his own talents as a film performer. The «g...