You may not know the name Jaclyn Smith, but you’ll certainly know her when you see her. Jaclyn played Kelly Garrett in the original TV series of Charlie’s Angels which she starred in from 1976-1981. She was the only angel to stay for all 5 series of the show, not surprisingly as it earned her(…)
What on earth were the WAMPAS Baby Stars you might well ask? Well, if you lived in 1920s and 30s America you would have been very much aware of this campaign. It was run by the United States Western Association of Motion Picture Advertisers (WAMPAS) who picked a lucky group of young actresses every year(…)
I have just read the most fabulous book! Silent Murders is a stylish murder mystery set in 1920s Hollywood. Not only is it an un-put-downable (that’s totally a word) story, but it’s set against a fascinating backdrop of real life film stars. The main character, Jessie, an ex-Vaudville actress with a rather shady past, lands(…)
Fay Wray is perhaps the most famous of all the early scream queens because of her role as Ann Darrow in King Kong. She began her career aged just 19 in 1926 as one of the WAMPAS Baby Stars (actresses who the Western Association of Motion Picture Advertisers thought were on the threshold of movie(…)
I love old Hollywood Horror movies, they can be scary but not in the horrible gory vile way that movies tend to be today. I watched the 1958 version of Dracula the other day and it was an absolute delight! Not really scary at all, nice comfy horror, which is just about right for me!(…)
Rubye De Remer was a particuarly pretty silent movie actress during the 1920s. She landed a spot in the Ziegfeld Follies after being spotted after winning a New York beauty contest, and was dubbed “the most beautiful blonde since Venus” by Florenz Ziegfeld. Like many Ziegfeld Girls she went on to work in the movies,(…)
With parents like Judy Garland and film director Vincente Minnelli, Liza was always going to be a big hitter in the movie world but she was also a real style icon of the 1970s. Her first major film role was in the movie ‘Journey Back to Oz‘: an animation sequel to ‘The Wizard of Oz’(…)
I’d forgotten just how delightful Fred and Ginger movies are. It’s been probably 15 years at least since I last watched one and they really are the best kind of movies. If you love a good rom-com, amazing dancing and show stopping glamour, then they really are for you. Swing Time has got to be(…)
Myrna Loy is perhaps known best for her roles as femme fatale in silent movies. Because of her exotic beauty she was often cast in the role of Asian or Eurasian characters but later became a popular female lead in romantic comedies where she was frequently paired with William Powell and Clark Gable. Here are(…)
I treated myself to a 1950s Hammer B-movie yesterday: X… the Unknown. It kills… but cannot be killed! It rises from 2000 miles beneath the earth to melt everything in its path.. machine gun bullets, flame throwers… nothing can stop it! Sounds fabulously terrifying eh? Happily I can report that it wasn’t very terrifying at(…)
Alfred Cheney Johnston is most well-known for his photographs of the girls who performed in the Ziegfeld Follies in the 1910s and 20s. Here are some of his more risqué photos of the girls, including one of Gloria Swanson. They probably aren’t particularly suitable for viewing at work, depending on how open-minded your boss is(…)
Until recently ‘ghost singing’ in movies was the best kept secret in Hollywood. It might have been that the actor or actress simply couldn’t sing in tune, or that their voice just didn’t have the strength or range required, but one thing is for sure: dubbing was a widespread phenomenon. Actresses like Cyd Charisse, Joan(…)
I couldn’t find out very much about this beautiful girl, except that her name is Pearl Aufrere, a chorus girl and actress in the early 1910s in London. She seems to have made the news more for her illustrious engagements rather than her stage appearances. She was engaged to Viscount Dangan, an engagement which was(…)
You’ll never guess what I discovered today! Well, you probably don’t need to guess if you’ve read the title of this article… ANYWAY Clint Eastwood narrowly escaped death in a plane crash when he hitched a ride in the cargo compartment of a plane in 1951. And you thought he was just a tough guy(…)
I actually watched this movie last week but haven’t had time to write it up until now. It was shown in the rush of nostalgia following the sad news of Lauren Bacall‘s death and I have to say I’m delighted this fiim was shown on TV. Lauren Bacall called it a “good little movie… with(…)
You might be surprised to know that during the 1910s and 20s the biggest name in American cinema was that of Lillian Gish. I’m sure you’ve heard of her more notorious contemporaries (good time girl Clara Bow springs to mind) but Miss Gish was the star known as The First Lady of The Silent Screen.
Greer Garson (or Eileen Evelyn Greer Garson Fogelson as she was christened) was a huge 1940s movie star who has rather faded from public memory. She was one of MGM’s biggest stars and also one of the biggest box-office draws during the mid 1940s. She also received an impressive 7 Oscar nominations! She was born(…)
This week we heard the sad news that Lauren Bacall died aged 89. Famous for her husky voice and relationship with Humphrey Bogart (both on and off-screen) she was one of the most iconic screen presences of the 40s and 50s. Above: Armed Forces Radio Services broadcaster Jack Brown interviews Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall(…)