Lena Horne: An American Legend

In the years around the turn of the century I was a member of the planning and design team for the newly established Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site in Alabama. Fundraising was a big part of our mission and we asked a large core group of airmen who they would like to see as a national spokesman for the effort. To a man, the response was, "Lena Horne!" who made a number of visits to their two Tuskegee airfields during World War II. They adored her. She was beautiful, had a sultry voice, the perfect figure for a World War II pinup, and a highly successful musical career on stage and screen. She was also strong-willed and, at times, defiant, both characteristics that served her well in the American civil rights movement following the war. No wonder she appealed to them.

Horne publicity photo from 1964, NBC Bell Telephone Hour

Who was this international star and favorite pinup? Lena Horne was born on this day in Brooklyn in 1917. Those familiar with the singer will always remember her remarkable talent as a legendary performer with a sparkling personality and a beautiful smile, In her almost seventy years in entertainment she worked the big band and cabaret circuits, movies, Broadway, and television. She became politically active in the fight for civil rights following World War II, a decision that placed her on the federal entertainment blacklist for over a decade. Readers can learn more details about Horne's life and career in a New York Times obituary published following her death in May 2010.

Horne at Tuskegee Institute banquet, Tuskegee, Alabama, during World War II

Due to her age and disabilities, Horne was unable to take on the role the Tuskegee Airmen so enthusiastically desired but fundraising commenced in a different direction and eventually contributed to construction and interpretation at the park. Her image and the stories of her visits are embedded in those exhibits.

I remember Horne well from her frequent television performances and recordings beginning in the 1950's. She's always been a personal favorite among pop and jazz singers and the stories of her association with the Tuskegee Airmen tells me she was one very special lady.

Here she is performing her signature song, Stormy Weather, from the 1943 film of the same name.

And here is a fine synopsis of the life and times of Horne prepared for a segment of the PBS News Hour in 2010.

Sources

Photos and Illustrations:
public domain photograph, NBC Television, Wikipedia.org
banquet photo, Noel Parrish Collection, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington

Happy Birthday, Mel Brooks: He's 99 Years Young Today

When he was 14, Mel Brooks, began his career in show business as a comedian at several Catskill Mountain resorts north of New York City. After service in Germany in World War II - he dismantled booby traps and defused land mines among other duties - he returned home determined to establish a career in entertainment where he soon found himself enjoying writing more than performing. He honed that skill for several years on Sid Caesar's Show of Shows and Caesar's Hour. Around 1960 he teamed up with Carl Reiner, also a Caesar comedy writer, to develop a sketch that would make both of them famous.

Entitled "The 2000 Year-Old Man," the concept featured a comic Brooks as the old man being interviewed by Reiner as the straight man. Over fifty years the duo produced several recordings of the often ad lib sketches produced in studio as well as live on countless television programs. After this success and a move to Hollywood filmmaking wasn't far behind.

Today we wish the 2000 year-old man a very happy birthday. The performer, writer, director, producer, songwriter, and perpetually wacko comic personality is 99 years old. In his seventy year career he's brought us some of the finest comedy to grace the American stage, big screens in theaters, and the television screens in millions of our homes. And there's no end in sight either with his work in animated features and now rare television appearances. It's only a guess where his talents could emerge in the future.

Brooks in a still from Blazing Saddles, 1974

His film career began with The Producers in 1968. The rest is history, a laugh track of films including:

Blazing Saddles (1974) "Mongo only pawn...in game of life."

Young Frankenstein (1974) "Abby...Normal."

Silent Movie (1976) "Non!"

High Anxiety (1977) "Those who are tardy do not get fruit cup!"

History of the World Part I (1981) "It's good to be the king."

Spaceballs (1987) "May the schwartz be with you."

Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993) "Actually Scarlet is my middle name. My whole name is Will Scarlet O'Hara. We're from Georgia."

Dracula: Dead and Loving It (1995) "I have been to many stakings - you have to know where to stand! You know, everything in life is location, location, location...."

The Producers (musical) 2001 "Will the dancing Hitlers please wait in the wings? We are only seeing singing Hitlers.

The Producers (film remake) 2005 "My blue blanket! Give me back my blue blanket!"

Young Frankenstein (musical) 2007 "He vas my boyfriend!"


The American Film Institute's 100 Greatest Comedies list has The Producers (1968), Blazing Saddles, and Young Frankenstein ranked at #11, #6, and #13. Here is the unforgettable three minutes and twenty seconds from the film he calls his personal favorite, the 1968 production of The Producers:

I think one reason why the 2000 year-old man is still laughing with us at 99 rests with the fact that the Mel Brooks on stage and film is most often the same man one finds in private life. How does he do it? I recall the many stories my National Park Service colleagues told of Brooks and his wife, Anne Bancroft. In the '70's and '80's they were frequent guests at Caneel Bay Resort inside Virgin Islands National Park on the island of St. John. Known for playing practical jokes on the younger park rangers and resort staff during the day, Brooks and Bancroft hosted them at after-hours gatherings where hilarity ruled. Given the public comedy we know, one can only imagine the memories to come out of the spontaneity of such an evening. The world would be a far happier place if all of us could have more evenings like that.

Today, instead of laughing at the comedy and satire Brooks gave us over the years the political correctness of the day would rather smother it and insure we never produce it again. So unfortunate. Regardless, with the passing of Carl Reiner at 98 in 2020, we're looking at Brooks as the last man standing from a remarkable era of comedy entertainment in the US. Here's wishing one of the funniest men on the planet a very happy birthday. It's my hope that we can laugh at his wacko genius for years to come. 


For more information as well as a most entertaining read this summer I recommend Brooks's memoir published in 2021. Without a doubt it will leave you smiling.

But wait, there's more. Brooks has two new projects under developement. First, there is Very Young Frankenstein, a television series influenced  by his earlier film, Young Frankenstein, in 1974. A pilot is expected soon. The second project is Spaceballs 2, a sequel to his 1987 film, Spaceballs. The film is expected to be released in 2027.

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Orson Welles: Hollywood's Fiercely Independent Genius

Today marks the 109th anniversary of the birth of Orson Welles. He has been missing from the world stage for over a generation now. The film and stage industries will always owe him immensely for what he brought to them and for the treatment his genius received at the hands of a Hollywood film cartel that resented outsiders.

Welles at 21

There will never be another cinematic alchemist quite like Orson Welles. Interested in experiment and discovery in the performing arts, he was a remarkably talented actor, writer, director, producer, and more. Before he was thirty he had terrified the nation with his realistic Halloween presentation of H.G. Wells's War of the Worlds radio broadcast (1938) and awed film audiences with Citizen Kane (1941). The film still tops most "best film ever made" lists around the world. Welles was already a rather contentious artist when he achieved almost instant fame. His creativity and drive helped label him as a difficult if not reckless personality and he never endeared himself to the Hollywood in-crowd. As a result his film legacy was limited to a number of noteworthy productions and a long list of unfinished projects and pipe dreams.

The achievement of early fame and the fast and loose pursuit of art at almost any cost gave him a unique perspective on creativity and the entertainment industry. Although he appreciated his solitude he was never one to shy from the limelight and delighted in interviews and personal appearances where he could deliver and endless stream of anecdotes in his rich, unforgettable baritone voice.

For a taste of Welles as writer, director, and co-star, here is the famous "mirror scene" from The Lady of Shanghai (1948). Film critic David Kehr has called the film "the weirdest great movie ever made."

And here from his 1958 film, Touch of Evil, is the classic "crane shot" that makes an appearance in every college film class.

In later life Welles became known as a great conversationalist. From 1974, here are the highlights from an interview with the British broadcaster, Sir Michael Parkinson. Welles talks about politics, bullfighting, his friendship with Ernest Hemingway, personal heroes (Winston Churchill, Gen. George S, Marshall), the power of criticism, the film industry, the stars (he thought James Cagney was far and away the best), his attitude toward his films, and future projects. It's a quick and entertaining 37 minutes and in my mind reveals much about the man who foreshadowed the flourishing independent film movement we know today.

A film is never really good unless the camera is an eye in the head of a poet.

                                                                        Orson Welles, 1958

Sources

Photos and Illustrations:
Welles portrait, Library of Congress (Carl Van Vechten, photographer, March 1, 1937)

Text:
Title derived from quote, Welles, from the film, F For Fake (1973)
Kehr quote: chicagoreader.com, review of The Lady of Shanghai
Welles quote: "Ribbon of Dreams" in International Film Annual no. 2, 1958

A Southern Preacher's Kid Observes His World

Erskine Caldwell (1903-1987) was an only child, a "PK," a preacher's kid. His family moved frequently throughout the South until he was fifteen when they settled in Wrens, Georgia. Still, his father often preached on large circuits, necessitating plenty of travel. In fact, the elder Caldwell traveled so regularly that his son could determine his destinations by the odor of coal smoke on his suit. In time, father took son on many of these journeys. The peculiarity, poverty, and injustice of the Depression era South was embedded in Erskine Caldwell's memory and he soon began writing about it. His observations had little to do with remnants of "the late unpleasantness" - the Civil War - that often gripped the region. Instead, Caldwell wrote of the raw realities of the human condition in the South. This, and his crusade for improving conditions, did not sit well with many Southerners. The dislike was enhanced because he was writing "in absentia," having left the South before 1930. Furthermore, his subject matter often placed him in conflict with censors across the country.

Caldwell had a long career as a writer of both fiction and non-fiction, but he is best known for Tobacco Road (1932), God's Little Acre (1933) and other works from the 1930's. An adaptation of Tobacco Road played on Broadway for eight years - a record at the time - beginning in 1933. A "sentimental burlesque" adaptation directed by John Ford in 1941 contributed to the stereotyping and ridicule of poor white Southerners. Caldwell greatly disliked the film. God's Little Acre remains one of the most popular novels in the U.S. with over ten million copies in print. A 1958 film version is considered the best presentation of Caldwell themes on film.


Here are the opening scenes from Tobacco Road (1941) and the theatrical trailer from God's Little Acre (1958):

Caldwell, who was born on this day in 1903, is an interesting blend of 20th century authors. He is Sherwood Anderson, William Faulkner, D.H. Lawrence, Christopher Isherwood, Joseph Mitchell, and a reflection of other modernists. Readers who seek more than discourse on the happy veneer of the human condition will enjoy Caldwell's interpretations. A good place to start is Deep South: Memory and Observation, a collection of travel essays written in 1968.

Read more about him in this entry from the New Georgia Encyclopedia. The volume is also the source of a quotation and other information in this post.

Leni Riefenstahl: Defining Propagandist

 

Leni Riefenstall in 1933

Today marks the birthday in 1902 of the German Expressionist film maker, Leni Riefenstahl (1902-2003). If you were in school during the third quarter of the 20th century there's a likely chance you are familiar with her landmark 1935 film, Triumph of the Will. The film was frequently shown in civics classes during the Cold War as a legendary example of propaganda. It was the product of Riefenstahl's fascination with Adolph Hitler, the National Socialist movement and his desire to document the party rally in Nuremberg in 1934. It was the second film she produced for Hitler. Its success, as well as their ongoing friendship, resulted in other notable projects but nothing approached the success of Triumph of the Will. At the same time, her association with the party, its principals, and her use of the enforced labor of talented Jews brought her a brief prison term at the end of World War II. She was also shunned for three decades by the world-wide film industry.

Reich Chancellor Adolf Hitler greets Leni Riefenstahl, 1934

In the last quarter of her life of 102 years she focused on still photography of nature and culture in Africa. At age 72, she developed an interested in underwater photography, became a certified diver, and went on to produce two books and one film featuring marine life.

Riefenstahl reached the heights of creativity and controversy in her lifetime. I don't expect interpretations of her legacy will change. To admire her amazing technical innovation in documentary film making one has to ignore her association with evil. It is an association she denied but the evidence was deeply embedded in her life and work. We are also left with hard evidence that she was a genius behind the camera.

Here are some highlights from her films:


The 1932 film, Das Blaue Licht (The Blue Light) is based on a Brothers Grimm fairy tale. Riefenstahl directed, produced, and starred in the film. It is notable as an example of Alpine cinema, one of the first sound films to be shot on location, and the film that attracted Hitler to Riefenstahl.

Triumph of the Will (1934) is a propaganda masterpiece documenting the Nazi Party Congress in Nuremberg directed, co-written, produced, and edited by Riefenstahl. Its imagery has defined National Socialist leaders and the movement to this day.

The film also produced some viciously effective humor including this propaganda short by Charles A. Ridley in 1941. The Lambeth Walk dance craze swept across Europe - including Germany - after it was featured in a 1939 film. Resistance movements in German occupied territories had a dangerous but effective habit of splicing the parody into feature films and shown to local audiences that often included German soldiers. The practice infuriated The Furhrer and members of his leadership circle, especially propagandist Joseph Goebbels. Both the song and dance were eventually banned in Germany but the ridicule had already achieved its objective.

And from the prologue of Olympia (1938) her documentary - written, directed, and produced - of the famous Berlin games of 1936. Image and sound quality are marginal in this clip but the intent shines through. Viewer warning: be prepared for skimpy 1930-style thongs and bare breasts.

For an interesting assessment of Riefenstall's impact on film making, here is D.L. Booth writing in the Bright Lights Journal about the "body beautiful," particularly in the James Bond film series beginning in 1962.






Sources


Photos:
portrait, Невідомо [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons
with Hitler, Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-R99035 / CC-BY-SA [CC BY-SA 3.0 de (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/de/deed.en)], via Wikimedia Commons


Text:
wikipedia.org, Leni Riefenstall
leni-riefenstall.de
theguardian.com/film/2003/sep/09/world.news1, Leni Riefenstahl

Mel Brooks At 98: Laughing All The Way

When he was 14, Mel Brooks, began his career in show business as a comedian at several Catskill Mountain resorts north of New York City. After service in Germany in World War II - he dismantled booby traps and defused land mines among other duties - he returned home determined to establish a career in entertainment where he soon found himself enjoying writing more than performing. He honed that skill for several years on Sid Caesar's Show of Shows and Caesar's Hour. Around 1960 he teamed up with Carl Reiner, also a Caesar comedy writer, to develop a sketch that would make both of them famous.

Entitled "The 2000 Year-Old Man," the concept featured a comic Brooks as the old man being interviewed by Reiner as the straight man. Over fifty years the duo produced several recordings of the often ad lib sketches produced in studio as well as live on countless television programs. After this success and a move to Hollywood filmmaking wasn't far behind.

Today we wish the 2000 year-old man a very happy birthday. The performer, writer, director, producer, songwriter, and perpetually wacko comic personality is 98 years old. In his seventy year career he's brought us some of the finest comedy to grace the American stage, big screens in theaters, and the television screens in millions of our homes. And there's no end in sight either with his work in animated features and now rare television appearances. It's only a guess where his talents could emerge in the future.

Brooks in a still from Blazing Saddles, 1974

His film career began with The Producers in 1968. The rest is history, a laugh track of films including:

Blazing Saddles (1974) "Mongo only pawn...in game of life."

Young Frankenstein (1974) "Abby...Normal."

Silent Movie (1976) "Non!"

High Anxiety (1977) "Those who are tardy do not get fruit cup!"

History of the World Part I (1981) "It's good to be the king."

Spaceballs (1987) "May the schwartz be with you."

Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993) "Actually Scarlet is my middle name. My whole name is Will Scarlet O'Hara. We're from Georgia."

Dracula: Dead and Loving It (1995) "I have been to many stakings - you have to know where to stand! You know, everything in life is location, location, location...."

The Producers (musical) 2001 "Will the dancing Hitlers please wait in the wings? We are only seeing singing Hitlers.

The Producers (film remake) 2005 "My blue blanket! Give me back my blue blanket!"

Young Frankenstein (musical) 2007 "He vas my boyfriend!"


The American Film Institute's 100 Greatest Comedies list has The Producers (1968), Blazing Saddles, and Young Frankenstein ranked at #11, #6, and #13. Here is the unforgettable three minutes and twenty seconds from the film he calls his personal favorite, the 1968 production of The Producers:

I think one reason why the 2000 year-old man is still laughing with us at 98 rests with the fact that the Mel Brooks on stage and film is most often the same man one finds in private life. How does he do it? I recall the many stories my National Park Service colleagues told of Brooks and his wife, Anne Bancroft. In the '70's and '80's they were frequent guests at Caneel Bay Resort inside Virgin Islands National Park on the island of St. John. Known for playing practical jokes on the younger park rangers and resort staff during the day, Brooks and Bancroft hosted them at after-hours gatherings where hilarity ruled. Given the public comedy we know, one can only imagine the memories to come out of the spontaneity of such an evening. The world would be a far happier place if all of us could have more evenings like that.

Today, instead of laughing at the comedy and satire Brooks gave us over the years the political correctness of the day would rather smother it and insure we never produce it again. So unfortunate. Regardless, with the passing of Carl Reiner at 98 in 2020, we're looking at Brooks as the last man standing from a remarkable era of comedy entertainment in the US. Here's wishing one of the funniest men on the planet a very happy birthday. It's my hope that we can laugh at his wacko genius for years to come. In fact I read earlier this week that he is about to start pre-production on a Spaceballs sequel.


For more information as well as a most entertaining read this summer I recommend Brooks's memoir published in 2021. Without a doubt it will leave you smiling.

Frank Capra, American Filmmaker: "...See The Rainbow, Feel The Rain, And Hear The Laugh Of A Child."

We don't hear much these days about the film director, Frank Capra. His best work is after all nearly a century old. On the other hand he left a rich legacy in the film industry that in many repsects spilled over into the televison era. Far and away he led the industry in directorial praise during the 1930s. He's also credited with shifting the industry's focus from productiion to direction. As an outstanding storyteller and skilled director he's credited with creating the best film portrayals of the human condition during the Great Depression years, 1929-39.

Like many early icons in the American film industry, Capra's story begins in poverty. He was born in Sicily on May 18 in 1897. When he was five his family arrived in this country after a two-week passage in steerage and settled in Los Angeles. He worked his way through college earning a degree in chemical engineering, but also found no work in that field. A series of odd jobs eventually brought him into the film industry where he would become one of the greatest names in 20th century Hollywood.

Today most of us know him as the director of the perennial Christmas film, It's A Wonderful Life (1946). These's much more of Capra's storytelling to enjoy. Here's a small portion of what he produced in his black and white world:


It Happened One Night (1934)

Mr. Deeds Goes To Town (1936)

Lost Horizon (1937)

You Can't Take It With You (1938)

Mr. Smith Goes To Washington (1939)

War Department Film Series (1942-45)

It's A Wonderful Life (1946)

Here Comes The Groom (1951)


Each of these films received Academy Award nominations and all but one - It's A Wonderful Life - received Oscars in one or more categories. Here is his obituaryhis obituary (1991) from The New York Times. And here is a fine 1978 interview he made with the American Film Institute's American Film about his life and film making technique.

Undoubtedly Capra leaves us a rich legacy in 20th century film entertainment. It's a legacy anyone can enjoy. And there's a good chance we'll learn something about ourselves and the human condition we share.

Buon compleanno, Francesco!



Sources

Photos and Illustrations:
portrait, public domain photo by Columbia Pictures, operarex.highwire.com

Text:
title adapted from a Capra quote
wikipedia.org

Orson Welles: "I Started At The Top...."

Today marks the 109th anniversary of the birth of Orson Welles. He has been missing from the world stage for over a generation now. The film and stage industries will always owe him immensely for what he brought to them and for the treatment his genius received at the hands of a Hollywood film cartel that resented outsiders.

Welles at 21

There will never be another cinematic alchemist quite like Orson Welles. Interested in experiment and discovery in the performing arts, he was a remarkably talented actor, writer, director, producer, and more. Before he was thirty he had terrified the nation with his realistic Halloween presentation of H.G. Wells's War of the Worlds radio broadcast (1938) and awed film audiences with Citizen Kane (1941). The film still tops most "best film ever made" lists around the world. Welles was already a rather contentious artist when he achieved almost instant fame. His creativity and drive helped label him as a difficult if not reckless personality and he never endeared himself to the Hollywood in-crowd. As a result his film legacy was limited to a number of noteworthy productions and a long list of unfinished projects and pipe dreams.

The achievement of early fame and the fast and loose pursuit of art at almost any cost gave him a unique perspective on creativity and the entertainment industry. Although he appreciated his solitude he was never one to shy from the limelight and delighted in interviews and personal appearances where he could deliver and endless stream of anecdotes in his rich, unforgettable baritone voice.

For a taste of Welles as writer, director, and co-star, here is the famous "mirror scene" from The Lady of Shanghai (1948). Film critic David Kehr has called the film "the weirdest great movie ever made."

And here from his 1958 film, Touch of Evil, is the classic "crane shot" that makes an appearance in every college film class.

In later life Welles became known as a great conversationalist. From 1974, here are the highlights from an interview with the British broadcaster, Sir Michael Parkinson. Welles talks about politics, bullfighting, his friendship with Ernest Hemingway, personal heroes (Winston Churchill, Gen. George S, Marshall), the power of criticism, the film industry, the stars (he thought James Cagney was far and away the best), his attitude toward his films, and future projects. It's a quick and entertaining 37 minutes and in my mind reveals much about the man who foreshadowed the flourishing independent film movement we know today.

A film is never really good unless the camera is an eye in the head of a poet.

                                                                        Orson Welles, 1958

Sources

Photos and Illustrations:
Welles portrait, Library of Congress (Carl Van Vechten, photographer, March 1, 1937)

Text:
Title derived from quote, Welles, from the film, F For Fake (1973)
Kehr quote: chicagoreader.com, review of The Lady of Shanghai
Welles quote: "Ribbon of Dreams" in International Film Annual no. 2, 1958

Adolf Has A Birthday - And A Pin In His Cushion

Yes, today is Der Fuhrer's birthday. We remember him solely as the last century's foremost mass murderer, challenged only by Mao Zedong, and followed by runners-up, Vladimir Lenin, Joseph Stalin, and Pol Pot. Perhaps this day will remind us that our president is pandering for votes from his party's Jew hating faction as they chant "Death to Israel" and equally disturbing, "Death to America". Already, analysts are saying the group could easily cost him the presidential election in November. It reminds me that our national experience today walks uncomfortably close to that of Weimar Germany, the breeding ground for the rise of Adolf and his National Socialist party to victory in 1933. Given the Holocaust and World War II that followed we cannot associate Adolf and his party with any kind of win. 

We could remember Der Fuhrer by listing his atrocities which remain well documented and commemorated in western culture. I choose to build on that foundation through the forms of humor we know as satire and parody. Both have been described as the most effective forms of ridicule by far and a staple in public discourse and entertainment beginning with the Greeks 2500 years ago. Therefore, I present to you the Adolph Hitler Pin Cushion, a most popular item in American households during World War II. The fine specimen pictured below comes from my great aunt's home.

In our time the film industry has produced some wonderful examples of humor applied to Der Fuhrer. For some individuals and groups it is difficult to understand. In a 2018 National Public Radio interview, Mel Brooks, the comic who brought us The Producers (1967 and 2005) and many other masterful comedies, explained his motivations for making the original film:

. . . Listen, get on a soapbox with Hitler, you're gonna lose — he was a great orator. But if you can make fun of him, if you can have people laugh at him, you win. . . . The comedy writer is like the conscience of the king . . . . He's got to tell him the truth. And that's my job: to make terrible things entertaining.

I would add the terrible things not only become entertaining but also allow us to survive, understand, and accept their reality. Yes, there is healing in this humor.

Here are four examples of satire and parody at work from Charlie Chaplin's, The Great Dictator (1940) where Hitler meets Italy's Mussolini; Mel Brooks's, The Producers (1967); and the British Ministry of Information's Schichlegruber Doing The Lambeth Walk (1942).

Horrible voice, bad breeding, vulgar manners, you have everything you need to be a politician.

          from The Knights, a play by Aristophanes, 424 BCE





Sources

Photos and Illustrations:
Hitler pin cushion figurine, World War II era, OTR personal collection

Text:
NPR Morning Edition interview with Susan Stamberg, April 26, 2018, https://www.npr.org/2018/04/26/605297774/mel-brooks-says-its-his-job-to-make-terrible-things-entertaining

Charlie Chaplin: The Consumate Comedian

If you took a photograph of the "Little Tramp" to almost any corner of the world touched by Western culture, chances are, someone would recognize it. That's a powerful statement given that the character hasn't appeared in a film for over seventy years. Greatness persists. And so it is with Charlie Chaplin, born on this date in London in 1889.

In his 88 years, he graced the world of entertainment as a performer, director, producer, businessman, and composer. His concern for everyday people and their often difficult lives was a common theme in virtually all his films as well as his private life. Such humanitarian sympathies led him to ally with well-known leftist in the U.S. and eventually leave the country in the early 1950s'. Through it all, his endearing, bumbling yet refined tramp brought laughter and awareness to millions.


Take some time today to visit Chaplin's official site. The biography page is especially useful, providing information about nine "masterpiece features" and a complete filmography. Chaplin has three films on the American Film Institute's Greatest Films of All Time list. They are: City Lights (1931) at #11, The Gold Rush (1925) at #58, and Modern Times (1936) at #78. It's important to keep in mind that Chaplin was the director, producer, writer, star, composer, and editor for all of these films except Modern Times, edited by Willard Nico.

My personal favorite among all of his films is The Great Dictator (1940). Interestingly, this film was Chaplin's first "talkie." In it Chaplin portrays two characters, the "Little Tramp" variation of a Jewish veteran of World War I attempting to reestablish his life as a barber, and Adenoid Hynkel, dictator of Tomainia. Any resemblance between Adenoid Hynkel and Adolph Hitler is completely intentional. The film is a masterful piece of political satire made as an appeal to Americans and their leadership to wake up to the threat of Nazi Germany. It's often cited as the finest example of the use of ridicule in film in the twentieth century.

Here are two clips from The Great Dictator. First is the famous "globe scene," and second, "Benzino Napaloni - played to ridiculous perfection by Jack Oakie - meets Adenoid Hynkel at the train station." These clips are restricted and can be viewed by clicking on the YouTube link provided. 

 

Happy birthday, Little Tramp. Thank you for being the comedian you were and for helping shape the comedy we enjoy today.

A day without laughter is a day wasted.

                    Charlie Chaplin

Eskine Caldwell: A Southern PK Writes Of Depression In His Homeland

Erskine Caldwell (1903-1987) was an only child, a "PK," a preacher's kid. His family moved frequently throughout the South until he was fifteen when they settled in Wrens, Georgia. Still, his father often preached on large circuits, necessitating plenty of travel. In fact, the elder Caldwell traveled so regularly that his son could determine his destinations by the odor of coal smoke on his suit. In time, father took son on many of these journeys. The peculiarity, poverty, and injustice of the Depression era South was embedded in Erskine Caldwell's memory and he soon began writing about it. His observations had little to do with remnants of "the late unpleasantness" - the Civil War - that often gripped the region. Instead, Caldwell wrote of the raw realities of the human condition in the South. This, and his crusade for improving conditions, did not sit well with many Southerners. The dislike was enhanced because he was writing "in absentia," having left the South before 1930. Furthermore, his subject matter often placed him in conflict with censors across the country.





Caldwell had a long career as a writer of both fiction and non-fiction, but he is best known for Tobacco Road (1932), God's Little Acre (1933) and other works from the 1930's. An adaptation of Tobacco Road played on Broadway for eight years - a record at the time - beginning in 1933. A "sentimental burlesque" adaptation directed by John Ford in 1941 contributed to the stereotyping and ridicule of poor white Southerners. Caldwell greatly disliked the film. God's Little Acre remains one of the most popular novels in the U.S. with over ten million copies in print. A 1958 film version is considered the best presentation of Caldwell themes on film.


Here are the opening scenes from Tobacco Road (1941) and the theatrical trailer from God's Little Acre (1958):

Caldwell, who was born on this day in 1903, is an interesting blend of 20th century authors. He is Sherwood Anderson, William Faulkner, D.H. Lawrence, Christopher Isherwood, Joseph Mitchell, and a reflection of other modernists. Readers who seek more than discourse on the happy veneer of the human condition will enjoy Caldwell's interpretations. A good place to start is Deep South: Memory and Observation, a collection of travel essays written in 1968.

Read more about him in this entry from the New Georgia Encyclopedia. The volume is also the source of a quotation and other information in this post.

A Day For Pirate Speak

Blackbeard the Pirate Engraving, Benjamin Cole, ca. 1724

I like exploring words and word origins but I especially like spoken words so I'm really pleased to let readers know that today is International Talk Like A Pirate Day. Without a doubt the number of "arrrrrhhs" and "shiver me timbers" heard throughout the day brought out some smiles and responses. Undoubtedly some of you never want to hear anymore pirate speak until next year, perhaps at the earliest. There's nothing wrong with enjoying the lighter intentions of the day but being so fond of the topic I decided to share some information about the who, what, when, where, and how of pirate talk. If you enjoy the topic as much as I do you're going to like the following links:

Arrr Matey! The Origins of the Pirate Accent A strong case for the origin of pirate talk.

Pirate R As In I R Eland? This is a potential alternate explanation to the link above.

West Country Dialects A comprehensive resource on speech in Southwest England.

Bristolian Dictionary A long entertaining list from a 2009 post on Smarty's Blog.

Sid Totter (b. 1877): Listen to him speak in a 1950's West Country dialect.


If you find the above list a bit of a challenge and bypassed it, spend a few minutes with Robert Newton, a.k.a. Long John Silver, displaying his Dorset accent in a reading of a short poem. Earphones will be helpful:

And now enjoy Newton as Long John Silver:

Shiver me timbers! Not sure I care much about the origins after hearing Newton's performance again. I was four years-old when he appeared in Walt Disney's Treasure Island (1950). And yes, me hearties, he'll always be my personification of the perfect pirate.

Leni Riefenstahl: She Defined Propaganda As Documentary Persuasion

Leni Riefenstall in 1933

Today marks the birthday in 1902 of the German Expressionist film maker, Leni Riefenstahl (1902-2003). If you were in school during the third quarter of the 20th century there's a likely chance you are familiar with her landmark 1935 film, Triumph of the Will. This legendary propaganda piece was the product of her fascination with Adolph Hitler, the National Socialist movement and his desire to document the party rally in Nuremberg in 1934. It was the second film she produced for Hitler. Its success, as well as their ongoing friendship, resulted in other notable projects but nothing approached the success of Triumph of the Will. At the same time, her association with the party, its principals, and her use of the enforced labor of talented Jews brought her a brief prison term at the end of World War II. She was also shunned for three decades by the world-wide film industry.

Reich Chancellor Adolf Hitler greets Leni Riefenstahl, 1934

In the last quarter of her life of 102 years she focused on still photography of nature and culture in Africa. At age 72, she developed an interested in underwater photography, became a certified diver, and went on to produce two books and one film featuring marine life.

Riefenstahl reached the heights of creativity and controversy in her lifetime. I don't expect interpretations of her legacy will change. To admire her amazing technical innovation in documentary film making one has to ignore her association with evil. It is an association she denied but the evidence was deeply embedded in her life and work. We are also left with hard evidence that she was a genius behind the camera.

Here are some highlights from her films:


The 1932 film, Das Blaue Licht (The Blue Light) is based on a Brothers Grimm fairy tale. Riefenstahl directed, produced, and starred in the film. It is notable as an example of Alpine cinema, one of the first sound films to be shot on location, and the film that attracted Hitler to Riefenstahl.

Triumph of the Will (1934) is a propaganda masterpiece documenting the Nazi Party Congress in Nuremberg directed, co-written, produced, and edited by Riefenstahl. Its imagery has defined National Socialist leaders and the movement to this day.

The film also produced some viciously effective humor including this propaganda short by Charles A. Ridley in 1941. The Lambeth Walk dance craze swept across Europe - including Germany - after it was featured in a 1939 film. Resistance movements in German occupied territories had a dangerous but effective habit of splicing the parody into feature films and shown to local audiences that often included German soldiers. The practice infuriated The Furhrer and members of his leadership circle, especially propagandist Joseph Goebbels. Both the song and dance were eventually banned in Germany but the ridicule had already achieved its objective.

And from the prologue of Olympia (1938) her documentary - written, directed, and produced - of the famous Berlin games of 1936. Image and sound quality are marginal in this clip but the intent shines through. Viewer warning: be prepared for skimpy 1930-style thongs and bare breasts.

For an interesting assessment of Riefenstall's impact on film making, here is D.L. Booth writing in the Bright Lights Journal about the "body beautiful," particularly in the James Bond film series beginning in 1962.






Sources


Photos:
portrait, Невідомо [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons
with Hitler, Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-R99035 / CC-BY-SA [CC BY-SA 3.0 de (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/de/deed.en)], via Wikimedia Commons


Text:
wikipedia.org, Leni Riefenstall
leni-riefenstall.de
theguardian.com/film/2003/sep/09/world.news1, Leni Riefenstahl

The Comedy Genius, Mel Brooks, Turns 97 Today

When he was 14, Mel Brooks, began his career in show business as a comedian at several Catskill Mountain resorts north of New York City. After service in Germany in World War II - he dismantled booby traps and defused land mines among other duties - he returned home determined to establish a career in entertainment where he soon found himself enjoying writing more than performing. He honed that skill for several years on Sid Caesar's Show of Shows and Caesar's Hour. Around 1960 he teamed up with Carl Reiner, also a Caesar comedy writer, to develop a sketch that would make both of them famous.

Entitled "The 2000 Year-Old Man," the concept featured a comic Brooks as the old man being interviewed by Reiner as the straight man. Over fifty years the duo produced several recordings of the often ad lib sketches produced in studio as well as live on countless television programs. After this success and a move to Hollywood filmmaking wasn't far behind.

Today we wish the 2000 year-old man a very happy birthday. The performer, writer, director, producer, songwriter, and perpetually wacko comic personality is 97 years old. In his seventy year career he's brought us some of the finest comedy to grace the American stage, big screens in theaters, and the television screens in millions of our homes. And there's no end in sight either with his work in animated features and now rare television appearances. It's only a guess where his talents could emerge in the future.

Brooks in a still from Blazing Saddles, 1974

His film career began with The Producers in 1968. The rest is history, a laugh track of films including:

Blazing Saddles (1974) "Mongo only pawn...in game of life."

Young Frankenstein (1974) "Abby...Normal."

Silent Movie (1976) "Non!"

High Anxiety (1977) "Those who are tardy do not get fruit cup!"

History of the World Part I (1981) "It's good to be the king."

Spaceballs (1987) "May the schwartz be with you."

Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993) "Actually Scarlet is my middle name. My whole name is Will Scarlet O'Hara. We're from Georgia."

Dracula: Dead and Loving It (1995) "I have been to many stakings - you have to know where to stand! You know, everything in life is location, location, location...."

The Producers (musical) 2001 "Will the dancing Hitlers please wait in the wings? We are only seeing singing Hitlers.

The Producers (film remake) 2005 "My blue blanket! Give me back my blue blanket!"

Young Frankenstein (musical) 2007 "He vas my boyfriend!"


The American Film Institute's 100 Greatest Comedies list has The Producers (1968), Blazing Saddles, and Young Frankenstein ranked at #11, #6, and #13. Here is the unforgettable three minutes and twenty seconds from the film he calls his personal favorite, the 1968 production of The Producers:

I think one reason why the 2000 year-old man is still laughing with us at 97 rests with the fact that the Mel Brooks on stage and film is most often the same man one finds in private life. How does he do it? I recall the many stories my National Park Service colleagues told of Brooks and his wife, Anne Bancroft. In the '70's and '80's they were frequent guests at Caneel Bay Resort inside Virgin Islands National Park on the island of St. John. Known for playing practical jokes on the younger park rangers and resort staff during the day, Brooks and Bancroft hosted them at after-hours gatherings where hilarity ruled. Given the public comedy we know, one can only imagine the memories to come out of the spontaneity of such an evening. The world would be a far happier place if all of us could have more evenings like that.

Today, instead of laughing at the comedy and satire Brooks gave us over the years the political correctness of the day would rather smother it and insure we never produce it again. So unfortunate. Regardless, with the passing of Carl Reiner at 98 in 2020, we're looking at Brooks as the last man standing from a remarkable era of comedy entertainment in the US. Here's wishing one of the funniest men on the planet a very happy birthday. It's my hope that we can laugh at his wacko genius for years to come.

For more information as well as a most entertaining read this summer I recommend Brooks's memoir published in 2021. Without a doubt it will leave you smiling.

A Star Wars Premiere Elicits Memories Of Replicants And What It Means To Be Human

On this day in 1977 Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope opened in theaters across the US. It went on to be a blockbuster in science fiction fantasy filled with memorable characters and computer generated worlds of first-rate entertainment. A franchise worth billions grew out of the film but few of the chapters that have followed in the last forty years, in my opinion, have equaled or exceeded the excitement of the original. Last year when this post first appeared I had planned to write about Star Wars but a radio comment reminded me that the composer, Vangelis, had died a few days earlier. That reminded me of his score for the highly influential sci-fi cult classic, Blade Runner, adapted from Philip K. Dick's novel, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? (1968) and released in 1982.

Most people know a lot about the Star Wars films but unless you're a sci-fi fan you likely don't know much if anything about Blade Runner.  It opened in theaters on June 25 in the midst of some extraordinary competition. The release coincided with that of Star Trek - The Wrath of Khan, widely considered the best of the Star Trek films, and E.T. The Extraterrestrial, a sci-fi treat that would go on to earn the American Film Institute's ranking as the 24th greatest film of all time. Blade Runner, a dystopic, complex, contemplative, and often misunderstood film went on to receive a mediocre box office reception and mixed reviews. In time it would be recognized as a cult classic among sci-fi buffs rather than, at the time of its release, a deserving blockbuster among a wider audience. The film will not answer any questions for audiences but, given today's interest in artificial intllegence, will surely prompt viewers to ponder what it means to be human.

In the forty years since its release Blade Runner has notably influenced all stages of science fiction and fantasy fiction film productions including those of the Star Wars franchise. It also occupies a comfortable spot in several American Film Institute categories. 

In the following scene the "organic robot." Roy Batty, saves the life of Rick Deckard, the blade runner who comes out of retirement to kill him. Batty then goes on to deliver one of the most memorable monologues on film.

If you happened to enjoy Star Wars in 1977 reading this post likely brings a smile to your face. It was 121 minutes of pure entertainment. To see a film that created the anti-Star Wars genre as well as a model for many science fiction fantasy films to come, see the darker entertainment of Blade Runner. You will not be disappointed.

Frank Capra: The Most Prominent Filmmaker Of The Depression Decade, 1930-39

We don't hear much these days about the film director, Frank Capra. His best work is after all nearly a century old. On the other hand he left a rich legacy in the film industry that in many repsects spilled over into the televison era. Far and away he led the industry in directorial praise during the 1930s. He's also credited with shifting the industry's focus from productiion to direction. As an outstanding storyteller and skilled director he's credited with creating the best film portrayals of the human condition during the Great Depression years, 1929-39.

Like many early icons in the American film industry, Capra's story begins in poverty. He was born in Sicily on May 18 in 1897. When he was five his family arrived in this country after a two-week passage in steerage and settled in Los Angeles. He worked his way through college earning a degree in chemical engineering, but also found no work in that field. A series of odd jobs eventually brought him into the film industry where he would become one of the greatest names in 20th century Hollywood.

Today most of us know him as the director of the perennial Christmas film, It's A Wonderful Life (1946). These's much more of Capra's storytelling to enjoy. Here's a small portion of what he produced in his black and white world:


It Happened One Night (1934)

Mr. Deeds Goes To Town (1936)

Lost Horizon (1937)

You Can't Take It With You (1938)

Mr. Smith Goes To Washington (1939)

War Department Film Series (1942-45)

It's A Wonderful Life (1946)

Here Comes The Groom (1951)


Each of these films received Academy Award nominations and all but one - It's A Wonderful Life - received Oscars in one or more categories. Here is his obituary (1991) from The Washington Post And here is a fine 1978 interview he made with the American Film Institute's American Film about his life and film making technique.

Undoubtedly Capra leaves us a rich legacy in 20th century film entertainment. It's a legacy anyone can enjoy. And there's a good chance we'll learn something about ourselves and the human condition we share.

Buon compleanno, Francesco!



Sources

Photos and Illustrations:
portrait, public domain photo by Columbia Pictures, operarex.highwire.com

Text:
title adapted from quote, acceptance speech, American Film Institute Lifetime Achievement Award, 1982
wikipedia.org