Blyth Spirit: The Jacqueline T. Lynch Q-and-A

In the long history of Hollywood child stars, there are few who grew up and sustained their early success into a long and fruitful career: Elizabeth Taylor, Natalie Wood, and Kurt Russell immediately come to mind as examples. Another among that number is Ann Blyth, who at age sixteen, went toe to toe with the formidable Joan Crawford in the original Mildred Pierce and earned herself an Oscar nomination. She went on to make a string of stirring dramas and light comedies, with only occasional but memorable opportunities to show off her remarkable singing voice. Today, she is one of the few Old Hollywood stars still with us, and continues to get feted for her accomplishments, as she did at the 2013 TCM Classic Film Festival, for instance.

Now, her career on stage, screen and television is captured in a forthcoming book, Ann Blyth: Actress. Singer. Star. by Jacqueline T. Lynch, whom I have talked about here on many occasions, and am proud and delighted to have gotten to know through her film blog, Another Old Movie Blog (AOMB). Jacqueline spent 2014 blogging in depth about Blyth, and her biography of the actress, due out June 18, will further expand on the work begun there. Jacqueline was kind enough to talk to me at length about Blyth and the book.

Rich Watson: When was the first time you saw Ann Blyth?

Jacqueline T. Lynch: I don't remember. I first saw, as a child, Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid, but I couldn't tell you how old I was or what year. At some point in my teens I saw Mildred Pierce and a couple of the musicals.... Oh, by the way, those Hostess cupcake commercials were on TV as well when I was a child, and I knew her from those, but I didn't equate the cupcake lady with the mermaid. The mermaid had long blonde hair. The cupcake lady had short dark hair. The mermaid didn't speak. The cupcake lady talked a lot about cupcakes and Twinkies....

I knew she was a Hollywood star, but a lot of movie stars were doing commercials then -- Donald O'Connor, Jane Wyatt, Ricardo Montalban, to name a few. I just didn't realize she was the mermaid. I was a dumb kid. 

Sleeper

Sleeper
seen @ Landmark Loew's Jersey Theater, Jersey City, NJ

I wish I could say that there was a great big crowd at the Loew's Jersey Theater Friday night to hear the news that Friends of the Loew's (FOL), the volunteer organization that has been the theater's caretakers for over two decades, won their court case against Jersey City for control of the theater. The announcement was greeted warmly on social media, and the small crowd of cinephiles in attendance were equally pleased, but FOL head Colin Egan said that their preoccupation with the case left little time to advertise this past weekend's films. The timing was "bad," though one can hardly complain. The Loew's has seen plenty of large crowds within the recent past, and they'll see large crowds again.

I had arrived in Jersey City's Journal Square straight from nearby Hoboken. I chose to walk the distance because Google Maps told me I could do it in roughly 45 minutes, so I figured why not? The route the app recommended for me had a few twists and turns into unfamiliar territory, which got me a little nervous, but not nearly as much as when I pressed the wrong button and my cellphone froze. I couldn't access the map, and all of a sudden I was very lost!

At the time I had thought that I might have been in this part of Jersey before, but I couldn't be sure which way Journal Square was, and I was worried I'd arrive at the Loew's late. So I went into a small sports apparel shop and asked for directions, and the two guys there told me which way to go. So no, I probably won't walk from Hoboken to Jersey City again. Too much hassle. I was in Hoboken in the first place only because I felt like eating there for a change. It's much nicer than Jersey City.

Give the Loew's fans credit: even with less than a week's notice, they come out for a movie there. Maybe not in big numbers, but they come. As usual, it was a variety of both older and younger fans. In fact, there were at least three pre-teen boys who ended up sitting in the front row after much deliberation as to where to sit. (You saw a few of them popping up in the foreground of the video I posted last week.) In fact, John & Sue went out there on Sunday, the 31st, for the second movie, Star Trek II, and they're not regulars by any means, so if even they heard about it, then the FOL people are definitely doing their job right. (Sue posted about it on Facebook. She seemed pretty excited about being there.)

So as you've guessed by now, the Friday night movie was Sleeper, one of Woody Allen's rare forays into the realm of sci-fi/fantasy. I had seen it before, but looking at it now, I was surprised at how Chaplinesque it is in places, especially the first half. There are entire sections of the film where Woody doesn't speak, and it's a pleasant surprise to be reminded that he was almost as good at physical slapstick humor as he was at the verbal kind. There are also several chase sequences, some of which are sped up Keystone Kops-style. Indeed, the sheer number of visual gags is startling for a Woody movie. It's easy to forget how good he used to be at this sort of thing; in fact, the visual gags come across better than some of the now-dated verbal jokes.

It helped that Woody was gifted with such an equally funny on-screen partner as Diane Keaton. She's totally in sync with him in this movie, whether they're bickering, which they do a lot of here, or whether she's in on the sight gags with him. She's as much his comedic partner as his love interest, and she's a joy to watch.

When people talk about this period in cinematic sci-fi - roughly between 2001 and Star Wars - Sleeper hardly gets a mention, and maybe it should. Apparently Woody consulted with both Isaac Asimov and Ben Bova when putting together his screenplay, for one thing. The sci-fi gadgets, such as the futuristic cars, the jet pack, and of course, the Orgasmatron, have a stark, pared-down look which, when combined with the black and white color scheme in the clothing and architecture, make the look of the film slightly reminiscent of THX-1138, which came out two years earlier.

The future world of Sleeper may seem somewhat dystopian, but Woody clearly wasn't interested in going far in that direction, thematically. He just wants to have fun, and considering how little non-superhero sci-fi films care for humor these days, Sleeper almost comes across as subversive.

Papa's got a brand new link

"You fathers will understand. You have a little girl.
You're her oracle. You're her hero."

I'd like to send out a big thank-you to everyone who re-tweeted or re-posted or commented on Facebook about my link to the story about Friends of the Loew's winning their court case against Jersey City. I had absolutely no idea this was gonna happen. I had planned to go to the Loew's Jersey City Friday night, yes, but mostly because I hadn't been back there in months and I wanted to get in one more movie before the summer break. I was just fortunate to have been in the area when the news was announced. It was kinda exciting to be a reporter again, if only for a few hours!

Not much else to talk about at the moment. Memorial Day weekend was unusually cool, so I didn't go down to Coney Island like I usually do. I went to John & Sue's place to watch the movie for my Beach Party Blogathon post, which is coming up next week. I also got a last-minute invite from my new friend Sandi to an outdoor performance of The Taming of the Shrew by a local theater troupe. It was in a public park, and unfortunately, there were lots of brats running around the perimeter of the plaza who didn't understand (or care) that there was a play going on. The parents, of course, did nothing. What I saw of the play looked good though.

A lot going on here this month, so stick around. Your links:

Ivan reviews a DVD box set of The Ed Sullivan Show.

Jacqueline wrote a one-act play inspired by The Best Years of Our Lives. (Look for an interview with her this Friday regarding her new Ann Blyth biography!)

I Love Lucy in color? Will says bring it on.

Ryan (happy birthday!) thinks that modern movie fans' nostalgia obsession may be a problem.

Jennifer takes note of the Old Hollywood homages at Disney's Hollywood Studios at Walt Disney World.

Leah thinks silent movies could make classic film fans out of non-fans.

Here's an interesting piece on whether or not anonymity is necessary to write a film blog - from a blogger who is anonymous no longer.

Why do movies like Mad Max: Fury Road and the Fast and Furious movies feed America's car obsession despite the reality of car violence?

Sometimes filmmakers' expectations of New York are based on outdated film-related images.

FOL wins court battle w/Jersey City! UPDATED

UPDATE 5.30.15: From last night at the Loew's: Friends of the Loew's head Colin Egan tells the audience the good news. Yes, it's a crappy video, but there's nothing wrong with the audio. Yes, that's me woo-ing.

This is a win for the little guys, and no matter how the Jersey Journal chooses to spin it, this will only benefit the Loew's and Jersey City in the long-term - if Mayor Fulop works with FOL. Egan made it clear, both last night and in his FOL statement, that he's willing to let bygones be bygones, because what ultimately counts is the future of this grand, magnificent theater, that has the potential to be a marvelous entertainment hub for the tri-state area. We know that FOL's vision for the Loew's is as a non-profit institution that will serve the needs of the community in addition to bringing in the big-ticket concerts. We know that the non-profit model is one that has been proven to work in cities all across America. If Jersey City works with FOL, they can have the best of both worlds. If the theater's future matters to Mayor Fulop, he'll do what's best for it. He has no choice now.

I'll have more about last night when I write about the movie I saw, Sleeper, next week.

UPDATE: From Friends of the Loew's' official statement: They're ready to sit down with Mayor Stephen Fulop and work with him on a mutually beneficial plan that will improve the theater for everyone. Will post direct links tomorrow morning when I'm in front of my laptop again!

Via the Jersey Journal: Hudson County judge rules that the lease between Friends of the Loew's and Jersey City 'is a contract. The parties are bound by that contract.' FOL is in charge till February 2020. I'm in Hoboken right now and will head down to the Loew's tonight for a movie, so I'll have more to follow. STAY TUNED.

New release roundup for May '15

Avengers: Age of Ultron. It is exactly what you expect it to be, but by the time you read this, you've probably seen it a half dozen times already, so you know this. I didn't expect Ultron's "lips" to move the way they do. The effect is kinda weird. In the comics, he just has this big wide screaming mouth, and you don't expect it to move because duh, he's a robot. Also, I didn't like the way Joss gave him the same brand of snark as everyone else. An actual comic book supervillain should talk like one. Hopefully he won't do the same thing to Thanos in the next movie. Loved Hawkeye's role in this film, liked the new heroes, as well as seeing War Machine and Falcon again, and while there were quite a few story elements that left me baffled (I'm told I should've watched Agents of SHIELD, but I shouldn't NEED to, dammit), spectacle wins out in the end, as it always does.

That's it. I wanted to see Tomorrowland, but the middling reviews turned me off to it, which is a shame because I like director Brad Bird and I want to see him do well.

William Powell

From what I've seen of him, William Powell was distinctive from other actors of the 30s in that he was a charmer, but his style of charm came with a measure of tough-talking swagger to it. Not unlike his character in My Man Godfrey, it was as if someone had taken him off the street and turned him into a "gentleman," but they couldn't completely scrape away all of the rough edges to him.

It's funny, but even though the bulk of his career was in comedy, I don't necessarily think of him as a comic actor. To me, he's more like an actor who did comedy, and I'm not sure why that is. These days, comic actors like Will Ferrell or Tina Fey tend to be more pigeon-holed in those roles than in the past, and when they step outside their comfort zones to do a Stranger Than Fiction or a Punch-Drunk Love, that's looked upon as unusual, as an anomaly. 

With Old Hollywood actors like Powell, however, it was different. They took the scripts they were given, and sometimes it was a comedy, like Manhattan Melodrama, or a drama, like The Great Ziegfeld. So maybe my perception of Powell has something to do with that.

Powell made a mind-boggling fourteen films with Myrna Loy, including the six Thin Man films and Ziegfeld, the Best Picture winner. I've talked before about the two of them. Screen pairings like theirs were probably much easier to pull off when actors were tied to a single studio, which would explain why we never see them anymore - at least, not as prolifically. Still, I can understand the appeal in them. It can be a comfort to see two actors you like making movies together. You have an idea of what to expect, even when they're playing different characters.

Before the Thin Man movies, Powell headlined another franchise, featuring him as the amateur sleuth from literature, Philo Vance. He made five of those. I watched a clip from the first of them, The Canary Murder Case from 1929 (which also featured Jean Arthur and Louise Brooks) online, and it struck me that making the transition from silent films to talkies must have been easy for him. He had a remarkable speaking voice. He had made a living playing heavies during the silent era, and Canary was supposed to have been a silent until it was reworked as a talkie.

Powell, with third wife Diana Lewis

For a time, Powell was married to Carole Lombard, and he also had an affair with Jean Harlow. Lombard was his second wife, and they only lasted two years together before divorcing amicably in 1933. (Lombard would go on to marry Clark Gable.) As for Harlow, Powell was born in Pittsburgh and moved to Kansas City, and while there, he lived a few blocks away from Harlow, though they wouldn't meet until they both became movie stars. 

In 1935, they met on the set of the film Reckless, and that's when their relationship began. They would star together in Libeled Lady the next year. When Harlow died in 1937, Powell took it really hard. He paid for her funeral and took a break from acting for awhile. He'd find love again, though, in his third wife Diana Lewis, with whom he stayed until his death in 1984.

Powell was a pleasant actor to watch. I like to think he was a good guy as well; I certainly hope so. He deserves a place up there with the Cary Grants and Fred Astaires of Old Hollywood.

Next: Tod Browning

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Films with William Powell:
The Thin Man
Libeled Lady
Mister Roberts

Previously:
Jack Lemmon
Jean Arthur
Edward G. Robinson
Rita Moreno
Frank Capra
Bernard Herrmann
Joan Blondell
James Dean
Ethel Waters

I just thought this was funny.

Village of the Damned (1960)

Village of the Damned (1960)
seen on TV @ TCM

For this post about Village of the Damned, I will speak in a British accent. What do you think? Is it convincing? I admit, I'm no Meryl Streep, but I don't think a British accent is too hard to pull off. You can't tell, can you? Okay, wait a minute, let me try something...

centre

neighbourhood

anar-kyst

How about now? No? Well, I tried.

This was one I had wanted to see for a long time. I already knew the premise - demon-seed Aryan kids take over a town with their mental powers - but I wasn't entirely sure how scary it would be. I'd say it's more unsettling than outright scary. Whereas most horror movies these days depend on gore or other "shock" moments, Village relies more on tension and mystery, ramping them up little by little until the literally explosive finale. Do we ever find out what force creates the spooky kids? No. Do we need to? Not really. At least I didn't.

I like how this film uses misdirection to keep you on your toes. It begins with a completely different mystery - what has turned everyone and everything in the small British town "off," so to speak? - before introducing the spooky kids and their agenda. Also, George Sanders doesn't take a central role until maybe twenty minutes or so in the film. 

Addison DeWitt as a good guy? Sure, why not - though I kept expecting him to be the secret mastermind behind the spooky kids, or to at least double-cross somebody. Actually, he had a mighty long and productive career. Did you know he was the star of not one, but two film franchises? There was the Saint, back in the late 30s/early 40s; a kind of gentleman thief (perhaps you recall the Val Kilmer movie version), and there was also the Falcon, a detective, also from the early 40s.

Village is a brisk 77 minutes, and it packs quite a bit into the story, partly as the result of implicated actions; the screenplay isn't afraid to let you add two and two on your own. There's a lot of talk, but it's never boring, and while the premise is unusual, to say the least, everything is played straight. You never doubt what's going on. If you think British horror is just Hammer films, check this one out, too (although it was actually made at MGM).