Happy Flag Day!

 

Ava Gardner

Joan Caufield

Joan Blondell

Marion Davies

Eleanor Parker

Martha Vickers

Cyd Charisse

Claudette Colbert

Ann Miller

🌺 Happy National Gardening Day! A Pictorial

“To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow.” — Audrey Hepburn

 

Though nothing can bring back the hour
Of splendor in the grass, the glory in the flower,
we find our strength in what remains—
the sun, the soil, and April rains.

Lucille Ball

 

 

Joan Blondell 

 

Marsha Hunt

 

Ann Savage

 

Norma Shearer 

 

Ava Gardner

Joan Crawford

 

 

 

 

Noirvember Fatale Attractions: Ava Gardner in The Killers (1946) 💋

She strides into the room dressed in black satin, her eyes shimmering with mischief, and just like that, every man in the story loses track of where he was headed. In The Killers (1946), Ava Gardner introduces us to Kitty Collins.. a femme fatale so captivating and subtly dangerous that you can’t help but see why a man would risk everything for her.

Directed by Robert Siodmak, this film takes its cues from Ernest Hemingway’s short story, weaving between past and present as detectives piece together why ex-boxer “The Swede” (Burt Lancaster, making his film debut) didn’t fight back when two hitmen came for him. The answer, as is often the case in classic noir, begins with a woman. Kitty Collins.

The type of woman who smiles as if she knows you’re not being truthful because she’s already spun a better tale.

“I am poison, for myself as for those around me. I would be afraid to live with a man I love — I would cause him too much harm.”

That line is quintessential Ava. Kitty isn’t loud or theatrical; she’s a slow burn — all silk on the surface and steel underneath. She doesn’t explode; she seeps in. Her danger isn’t in the threats she makes, but in the truths she admits. Kitty knows exactly what she is… and she knows men will still walk straight into her arms anyway.

She doesn’t seduce for kicks; she seduces to survive. She doesn’t bluff; she manipulates with the quiet assurance of someone who’s already strategized five steps ahead.

She doesn’t destroy men with poison...she dismantles them with hope. The Killers marked Ava Gardner’s rise to fame. Before Siodmak chose her for the role of Kitty, she had been drifting through smaller parts, but this decision catapulted her into the spotlight.

Hemingway was said to be quite taken with Ava’s performance, remarking that she perfectly captured Kitty’s “danger and temptation.” The film snagged Oscar nominations for Best Director, Best Editing, and Best Adapted Screenplay pretty impressive for a noir that sprang from a short story that’s barely ten pages long.

Kitty Collins never raises her voice, never hurries, and never apologizes. She allows the Swede to fall slowly, willingly until he’s completely oblivious to the ground beneath him. She doesn’t just break hearts. She examines them, selects them, and walks away with the fragments.

“People have told me through the years that it was The Killers that set me on the road to stardom, that defined my image as the slinky sexpot in the low-cut dress, leaning against a piano and setting the world on fire.”

Fade to black… until the next Fatale Attraction. 🖤

Mary Astor in The Maltese Falcon (1941)

 

🌟Classic Off-Screen Quotes: Ava Gardner

"If I had my life to live over again, I'd live it the same way. Maybe a few changes here or there, but nothing special. The truth is, honey, I've enjoyed my life. I've had a hell of a good time."-- Ava Gardner 

😱DISAS-TOBER! 🎥 REVIEW: Earthquake (1974)

 "Who do you have to know to get a drink around here?"

 

This month, I'm sticking with my Disas-tober theme, so I decided to check out a movie my mom saw in theaters. It's the classic 1974 film Earthquake, which imagines what would happen when a massive 9.9 quake hits L.A. 

Honestly, you all know I love a cheesy movie, but this one was a bit of a slog.  A lot of it just didn’t click for me, and I felt pretty bored. But then when the BIG earthquake finally hits, it finally gets interesting. The special effects are the highlight and make it worth watching at least once. The visuals and sound are really impressive. My mom told me that the film used something called Sensurround, which was meant to enhance the audio experience during screenings. She said her seat shook! 

Released on November 15, 1974, it features a star-studded with Charlton Heston, Ava Gardner, George Kennedy, Lorne Greene, Genevieve Bujold, Richard Roundtree, and even a funny cameo from Walter Matthau, plus a young Victoria Principal with a wild afro that was her own. As for the acting, Heston is his usual wooden self, and Gardner’s character is so over-the-top shrewish that it’s hard to watch. Bujold’s performance is bad and so is the romance with Heston. And why was Lorne Greene cast as Gardner’s dad when they’re only a few years apart? The only performance I liked was George Kennedy as an angry and disillusioned cop.

After the earthquake hit, I found myself bored again.

Why would they choose to set up a hospital rescue in the lower section despite being warned about aftershocks?

Why should I be concerned about Marjoe Gortner, who plays a National Guardsman with a violent personality in the movie? Why do I not feel any connection to any of the characters, including Bujold's kid who goes biking when the earthquake hits? The list goes on.

I just couldn't seem to connect with any of the characters in the film or stories, so I found myself not really caring about what happened to them. Unlike The Poseidon Adventure and The Towering Inferno (which I'll be reviewing soon), where I really cared about the characters and their outcomes.

The editing is choppy, the subplots are weak and badly acted, and some of the cuts are completely illogical, making the story hard to follow. However, when the earthquake hits, the film truly shines with incredible practical effects. From miniature buildings to detailed matte paintings, the attention to detail is outstanding. Trust me, the earthquake scene will leave you on the edge of your seat.

Earthquake introduced a groundbreaking technique specifically designed for filming. They used a "shaker mount" camera system that simulated earthquake effects by shifting the entire camera body a few inches side to side, instead of just shaking it on a regular tripod. This created a much more realistic motion. This camera setup was mainly used for outdoor scenes and other on-location shoots. Additionally, Universal's sound team created a system called "Sensurround," which consisted of large Cerwin-Vega speakers powered by BGW amplifiers. This system produced sub-audible "infra bass" sound waves at an intense 120 decibels, similar to the noise of a jet taking off, allowing viewers to feel the earthquake's impact. The film also featured a large number of highly skilled stunt performers for the most dangerous scenes, like high falls and dodging debris, setting a record in Hollywood with 141 stunt artists involved in the production. There have been reports of audience members experiencing nosebleeds and broken ribs due to the Sensurround system.

My face as I watched Earthquake

After witnessing all the chaos and destruction from the earthquake, a drunk Walter Matthau's is still just sitting there. It’s kind of funny! It seems like he didn’t want too much attention since he’s credited under the name Walter Matuschanskayasky.

 

I totally get where he's coming from. His face was like a mirror of how I felt. I guess I should've watched the movie like my mom did in 1974, but I was only a year old back then! 😆 She said it was a blast and I wish I could've been there to experience it.

The miniature sets 

Even though around 800 theaters in the U.S. and 2,000 worldwide could use the Sensurround technology, it was rarely utilized after the film Earthquake and faded away within five years. The only other films that used Sensurround were Midway in 1976, which was successful; the mostly forgotten disaster film Rollercoaster in 1977, which didn’t do well; and Battlestar Galactica in 1978, a strange re-edit of the TV series' initial episodes. After that, the technology was never seen again.
The film was directed by Mark Robson, with a screenplay by Mario Puzo and George Fox, and the music was composed by John Williams.

 
The concept of earthquakes led to the creation of the attraction Earthquake: The Big One at Universal Studios in both Florida and Hollywood.

🎆 4th of July Sparklers: A Pictorial