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Movie Profiles & Premiums Newsletter Vol.3 #14
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Cliff Aliperti
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Sep 01, 2005 00:13 PDT
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Movie Profiles & Premiums Volume 3, Number 14. August 31, 2005
Brought to you by things-and-other-stuff
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This is the plain text version of the newsletter. Read this online in
html format and loaded with pictures of movie collectibles at:
http://www.things-and-other-stuff.com/astos%20issues/astos3-14.htm
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FIRST REEL:
Well, I'm confusing myself...I don't know what I want to do. As many of
you know, this was (is?) planned to be the final issue of The Movie
Profiles and Premiums Newsletter. I've been blowing out my collectibles
stock for the past three weeks or so with an eye towards getting back to
work for someone else (with a regular and dependable paycheck). I
thought I had a pretty good lead on a job here on Long Island so that
eased my decision. But ah, no phone call on that as of yet, so now I
must consider Manhattan. I worked in Manhattan for four years right
after college and I got to tell you, I hate wasting three-plus hours a
day commuting (Long Island Railroad). Thankfully, I still have a good
deal of stock to bulk out on eBay to keep myself busy (and paid) in the
here and now. The question is, what's next?
It's likely back to Manhattan for me, but I haven't decided for sure
yet. If I can brainstorm a way to take sales to the next level, well
then, I'll gladly stay at home behind my desk. The past few days as
I've sat here somewhat dazed, I've toyed around with a new idea. My
magazines sell well individually, but they have been well below average
in return as I've lotted them out. I decided to keep them, and from
there I decided I'd need somewhere to sell them. Most of the movie
items are gone, so this isn't the place to do that. I bought a domain,
http://www.paperpubs.com, that I'm not sure what I'm going to do with.
The only thing I'm sure about is that I'm going to take my time doing
it. Currently it's set up at http://www.prostores.com as I'm giving
their free trial a try-out. It's not thrilling me and I'll likely
abort.
For those interested, Prostores is the new eBay project (I think it
evolved out of their purchase of Kurant) and it probably needs some more
work before it's optimal. Anyone thinking of selling individual
collectible items like me will need to at least shell out for the
Advanced version, as the Business wasn't doing the trick for me at all.
If you have any questions about it, feel free to e-mail me at
thi-@things-and-other-stuff.com and I'll try to help. Mind you, I
need a bit of help myself on this one.
More likely, I'll close that down and begin by checking out TIAS again
(I had been there briefly after I left Ruby Lane). Or, I have a basic
design for a site similar to this one and I could do the same thing and
use that with a link to my eBay store. I'm looking for ease and
something cheap, but I can't find an exact match anywhere. I've had it
with Marketworks, they've been great, but it's gotten too confusing to
set up my storefront, and they've had a slew of problems lately with
both auction launching and image hosting. I need something pretty
simple--I'd love to do a cart right on my site through OSCommerce or
some other shareware, but I don't know MySQL or PHP.
But I'm having so much fun unloading my stock that I'm becoming a little
more tempted each day to go shopping for more movie collectibles. After
all, I do love this stuff. I'm going to try and hold back from
purchasing anything immediately, I really need to get a clear idea of
what I want to do with myself, but if I appear somewhere in the last 5-7
seconds of an eBay auction sometime in the near future, you'll know that
I'm back...and then things won't change much here.
As it is, I planned on suspending the newsletter and my sales. The site
http://www.things-and-other-stuff.com will remain online, and it is my
plan that it will always be online and that I will update it at my
leisure. As a matter of fact I started a new feature on the site called
Cliff's DVD List
(http://www.things-and-other-stuff.com/cliffs-dvd-list.htm) that you can
either check out now or read more about below. If I follow though and
knock off my sales altogether, please believe when I say it's a dollars
and cents decision and not one that reflects on my passion for this site
and the topics that it covers. And that's my muddled explanation of my
future.
Before we go any further I want to mention the "Books & Movies" Forum
hosted by our puzzler Carly Svamvour and her husband Jeff
(http://wildcity.proboards14.com/index.cgi?board=Books). Feel free to
check it out, post a review, reply to to one already written, ask a
question, or just read over what's been written.
For interested collectors, here is a link to my items currently for
sale:
All eBay Auctions:
http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQfgtpZ1QQfrppZ25QQsascsZ1QQsassZthingsQ2dandQ2dotherQ2dstuff
On to our show, in summary, here are the opening credits...
1. Solution to Mid-Summer Night's Screen, A Crossword Puzzle by Carly
Svamvour
2. Photo ID Guide: 1920's-50's 5x7 Fan Photos (158 images over 3 pages!)
3. James Stewart by Kelly Ann Butterbaugh
4. The Silent Collection featuring Lionel Barrymore by Tammy Stone
I planned on keeping this issue somewhat short and it looks like I've
succeeded. The solution to Carly's puzzle from last issue is here,
there is no new puzzle because I'm not sure if/when there will be a next
issue to share the solution with you. There's only one new Photo ID
Guide but it is three pages long and it does contain 158 images, so it
should keep you busy. Kelly Ann Butterbaugh is back this time covering
Jimmy Stewart. Finally, Tammy Stone, who has had an entry in all 49
issues of ASTOS/The Movie Profiles and Premiums Newsletter, tackles
Lionel Barrymore at my request. Thanks so much Tammy for sharing your
excellent work with us all for so long. Thank you to all of the writers
who have contributed over the years. Hopefully I'll be contacting you
all sooner rather than later for more.
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Part II of Spencer Shannon's favorite movie books are listed below. If
you'd like to share your own Top 5 in a future issue, please write to
thi-@things-and-other-stuff.com and let me know your personal
favorites (with or without commentary).
By Spencer Shannon-(AFI member/Variety's "Oscar-Oracle!")
Top 5 Books About the Classics (mostly 1925-1960).
Part II
(* denotes Oscar winner)
1) "This Is Hollywood" I picked this up in Tinsel-Town itself. The
legendary book store on H. Blvd: Larry Edmunds. A bit morbid, but also
has must have details on the history of H.O.L.L.Y.W.O.O.D.! Cover has
Marilyn Monroe on it & it's difficult to find, but I know where to get
it, again, for those interested?-(Author: Ken Schessler)
2) Given that the majority of movie stars that are covered on this
website are long-deceased & given the town and its total lack of history
(tearing everything down, etc) The closest one may get to a favorite
star is their final resting place. Note: Honorary Mayor: Johnny Grant,
has many asking him about "Walk-of-Fame" (established 1961) If said
"STAR," is interred under their "STAR?" Nope, the majority of
Hollywood's Golden Age/Studio-System, pretty-much picked: Glendale's,
"Forest Lawn" (*Gable, Lombard, Harlow, *Tracy, *Bogie, *Jimmy Stewart,
*Pickford, W.C., Flynn, Ladd, *Burns & Allen, *N. Shearer, *Thalberg,
*Selznick & even *Walt Disney! To name only a handful) The ultimate
book on this is titled: "Final Curtain" by Margaret Burk & Cary Hudson
(there are 2 of same title, but this 1 is superior!)
3) "THE MOVIES" This is another "Massive Book!" & very old too, but
it's had revisions over the years. It's authors are: Griffith, Mayer &
the famed critic: Bosley Crowther (P.S. Huge book, all in B & W
4) "HURRELS HOLLYWOOD" This legendary photographer to the stars of
Studio-System: George Hurrell is the main man that all went too when it
came to publicity photos! Myrna Loy, Valentino, *"The King Gable,
Lombard, R. Taylor, *Crawford, Dietrich, Garbo & even a rare poster-(not
in this book, of Spencer Tracy who was not fond of having his photo
taken.
5) "Citadels Films of Series" To date, I own about 5 of these "MUST
HAVE BOOKS!" In the back of each is a list of all of the other stars
that are covered in the series...I have a ways to go! Each has in depth
analysis, credits & even the reviews of the era.
Honorable Mention:
Finally, every movie buff, should have at least one on *Walt Disney
(1901-66). I have "Disney from A to Z" Now what do others have?
I'm going to opt out of responding to this list this month, though see
last month's issue for my five favorites. What I'm going to provide
instead is a link to another list that I've been working on. Cliff's
DVD List will be a page on the things-and-other-stuff.com site listing
not my favorite movies, but those that I own on DVD. They'll be listed
chronologically according to original release date and I'll do my best
to comment briefly on both the film itself as well as the DVD edition.
All film titles will be linked to Amazon.com through my affiliate links.
I managed to complete half a shelf's worth of titles in time for
tonight (many more titles to come) which covers all of the Criterion
titles that I own. I'll try and stick to the oldies next, but from the
length of this initial page it looks like this will eventually be
several pages in length so maybe by the time I finish up I'll cut it
into eras or even decades. I've posted a link to the page towards the
bottom of the home page as well, which should make it easy to find if
you'd like to come back in the future and see what I've added.
Hopefully you find it interesting, for me I get to shoot off my mouth
about my movies. Here's the link one more time:
http://www.things-and-other-stuff.com/cliffs-dvd-list.htm.
There you go, and into the time tunnel we go:
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SOLUTION to last issue's "Mid-Summer Night's Screen" Crossword Puzzle
http://www.things-and-other-stuff.com/ENTERTAINMENT/ASTOS/puzzles/073105%20solution.htm
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Carly Svamvour is a writer who makes her home in the west end of
Toronto, Canada. She has published her poems, short prose pieces and
puzzles in many places throughout Canada and the U. S. A. She is
currently working on her photo-journals with an eye to success at being
a travel writer. See more of Carly at Wild City Times - click here for
the magazine and online writing workshop.
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Photo ID Guide:
1920's-50's 5x7 Fan Photos 3-Page Photo ID Guide (158 images!)
http://www.things-and-other-stuff.com/ENTERTAINMENT/prices%20realized%20ID%20folder/fan%20photos%202.htm
Click the link above for images & details!
This Photo ID Guide covers three pages and features all of my remaining
5x7 Fan Photos...these are currently available in one lot on eBay which
ends tonight, September 1. Visit the listing to bid on it:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7541564610&rd=1&sspagename=STRK:MESE:IT&rd=1
#
James Stewart
By Kelly Ann Butterbaugh
“Mr. Stewart Goes to Hollywood”
Running through the snow with a gait that seemed as if his legs would
buckle from beneath him at any moment, he was oblivious to everything
around him. As he shouted his greeting to those whom he passed on the
street, his only thoughts were about getting home to see his family. As
American as baseball, the well known scene of George Bailey returning to
his wonderful life is what gives meaning to the movie’s title. It’s a
cinematic moment that will outlive the film upon which it was cast.
Not any actor could have portrayed George Bailey; he needed to be
awkward but lovable, aspiring yet naive, and downtrodden yet redeemable.
He needed to be James Maitland Stewart. Long in the face as he was in
the legs, Jimmy Stewart became America’s son as he stammered his way
into people’s hearts before his death on July 3, 1997. His life echoes
that of the fictitious George Bailey so similarly that it is easy to
understand why Stewart noted the role as his favorite.
“Sometimes I wonder if I’m doing a Jimmy Stewart imitation myself,”
Stewart was known to say in reflection of his life.
His roots were set in Indiana, Pennsylvania where he was born on May 20,
1908 in his parent’s home above their store. He was the oldest of three
children and the only son. There above the J.M. Stewart Hardware Store
the future icon spent his boyhood days sledding down the family
staircase on an oriental rug and organizing magic shows in the basement
with his sisters.
Even as a youth Stewart managed to gravitate towards admiration. He
achieved the honor of Eagle Scout, the highest rank attainable, while in
the Boy Scouts of America. Not unlike his role as George Bailey,
Stewart aspired to be an architect while attending the then all-boy
Princeton University from where he graduated with his degree in 1932.
It was there that he turned towards acting after a friend convinced him
to join the University Players group in Massachusetts. From there he
followed his calling and his newly found friend, Henry Fonda, to the
stage.
As his film career started with The Murder Man (1935), Stewart
demonstrated his panache for choosing roles which represented the
soft-spoken and likeable man whom his fans loved. This well-liked
demeanor served him well in films such as Harvey (1950) where a kindly
Stewart befriended an invisible six foot rabbit and The Philadelphia
Story (1940) for which he was awarded the Best Actor Oscar.
As diverse as the country who loved him, Stewart avoided typecasting by
taking on roles which showed a more serious side and proved successful
with them as well. Casting aside the boy next door quality, Stewart
found critical success in Alfred Hitchcock’s films Rear Window (1954),
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956), and Vertigo (1958). Stewart even
added western films to his endless list of credentials. Such films as
The Man from Laramie (1955) and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)
display the lanky man from Pennsylvania with a rougher and more gristly
demeanor. It was these westerns, however, which allowed for a contract
between Stewart and Universal Pictures which awarded Stewart a cut of
the film’s profits, an unprecedented deal.
The more notable points in Stewart’s career came with the film You Can’t
Take It with You (1938.) Not only did this film win the 1938 Academy
Award for Best Picture but it also brought together the classic pair of
James Stewart and director Frank Capra. During its filming Capra, like
everyone it seemed, fell in love with the man he called America’s
Everyman. This association with Capra brought Stewart back to the
Academy Awards in 1939 with a nomination for Mr. Smith Goes to
Washington in which he played a senator. In the following year he would
move on to win the Oscar for his role of a reporter in The Philadelphia
Story. Stewart then gave the award to his father who displayed it in
his storefront appropriately overlooking Philadelphia Avenue for the
next twenty-five years. From this partnership with Capra also came
Stewart’s signature role of the failing optimist George Bailey in 1946
with the filming of It’s a Wonderful Life.
It wasn’t only Stewart’s choice of characters that made him the icon of
the American society; it was his personal life as well. Following in
the footsteps of the characters he played, Stewart remained loyal to
both his family and his country. He married Gloria Stewart on August
9, 1949 and remained at her side until her death in 1994. With Gloria
came her two sons from a previous marriage, one of whom died in Vietnam,
and in 1951 their family grew to include twin daughters.
Before taking on the duel role of husband and father, Stewart enlisted
in the service of his country and defended it as a member of the air
force during World War II. His notably thin six foot three and a half
inch frame caused him to be denied admission to the air force at first
when he came in five pounds under the recommended weight. His charm and
logic won his way into service after he persuaded the admitting officer
to ignore his weight examination. Stewart went on to fight the war in
the front lines, earning himself the title of colonel as well as the
Distinguished Flying Cross medal and seven battle stars. As a result,
Stewart claims the title of highest ranking military actor in history
with only the exception of former president Ronald Reagan.
No wonder people like Jimmy Stewart, for he is the all-American. Not
lacking in imperfections, the often awkward but always loveable Stewart
related well to the average person.
When asked about his public persona, Stewart once replied, “I’d like
people to remember me as someone who was good at his job and seemed to
mean what he said.”
And that’s exactly what they did.
For more information about James Stewart, visit the James M. Stewart
Museum site at http://www.jimmy.org
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Residing in Pennsylvania, Kelly is a teacher, a freelance writer, a
wife, and a mother. She writes and publishes fiction, editorial essays,
and occasional non-fiction articles. Contact her at Englis-@rcn.com
#
The Silent Collection by Tammy Stone
Lionel Barrymore
For someone who never wanted to act, Lionel Barrymore made a lot of
movies, mostly as an actor but as a writer/director as well. He even
composed a film or two. Without doubt a Renaissance man of the moving
image era, Lionel seems to have had entertainment in his blood, whether
he wanted it or not, as part of the ultimate royal family of cinema. The
Barrymores, who have graced the screen almost without interruption since
the earliest days of silent cinema, have had among the most illustrious
and notorious careers in the history of the movies. A lesser known fact
is that the Barrymore siblings were grandchildren to John Drew (1927 –
1862), a famous stage actor in his own day. This is a family with a
lineage.
Lionel, oldest brother to John (profiled on these pages) and Ethel, was
born Lionel Herbert Blythe on April 28, 1878 in Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania, USA. He did not have the striking looks of his siblings,
which meant little to a man who grew up wanting to be an artist. Now,
most families don’t have “entertainment industry” as the family
business, but strutting on the stage was par for the course for the
Barrymores, and Lionel was expected to follow suit. And so he did. A
career on stage was born.
From the start, character roles were his bread and butter – after all,
many of the meatier roles tended to go to those without matinee idol
looks. So, despite his young age, he was still playing the side
characters, among them figures of authority like the Father or the
Military Officer. As we know by now, this was the era of the stage,
which provided both entertainment and art. Movies were just a fledgling
new industry, and considered a low-class, populist entertainment. How
things change! But for Lionel, it was considered a huge disappointment
and a step down when he was forced, due to debts he had accumulated, to
take on some film roles in order to make ends meet.
This is how he came to the silver screen; specifically, the Edison’s
Biograph Company, in 1911. He appeared in a few films under the
direction of the legendary cinematic innovator D.W. Griffith (also known
as the “Grandfather of the Close-Up”), and had the opportunity, like
many others did, to work on the creative side as well. Lionel much
preferred writing and directing to acting, but as we know, is better
remembered for his latter skills. He acted in over 90 films in this
period: The Battle (1911); Heredity (1912); Almost a Wild Man (1913);
Men and Women (1914); The Flaming Sword (1915); The Upheaval (1916); and
The Millionaire’s Double (1917) is but the briefest survey. The movies
were gaining momentum, and Lionel was right there helping to make this
happen.
A true multi-tasker, however, and a true man of the arts, he had not
fully segued into film; he was still performing on the stage and in
1917, played the famed Colonel Ibbetson in “Peter Ibbetson;” this
performance resulted in a great film role; that of Milt Shanks in The
Copperhead (1920). He moved audiences tremendously with this powerful
role; his was a presence that worked equally well on stage and screen.
Soon he was immersing himself more fully in the still-emerging motion
picture business. He signed a contract with MGM – one that would
ultimately last 25 years – and was hoping to do more directing than
acting. But he was a known face and MGM wanted him in the pictures. To
appease him, they let him oversee projects they didn’t much care about
and that featured actors who were notoriously difficult to work with.
Some of these projects include Life’s Whirlpool (1917), Confession and
His Glorious Night (both 1929), and 1931’s Ten Cents a Dance (1931).
Despite his best efforts at a career as a filmmaker, it was Lionel the
Actor audiences – and the studio – wanted to see. He made hundreds of
films, not only in the silent era, but through to the early 1950s.
Highlights from the MGM period of his silent era career are: The Master
Mind and The Devil’s Garden (1920); The Great Adventure (1921); The Face
in the Fog (1922); The Eternal City (1923); America and I am the Man
(1924); A Man of Iron and The Girl who Wouldn’t Work (1925); Paris at
Midnight and The Bells (1926); Body and Soul and The Thirteenth Hour
(1927); Drums of Love (1928); and his last of this era, The Mysterious
Island (1929).
A gifted actor, he made film after film well into the sound age, finally
winning an Academy Award in 1931, for his role as an alcoholic lawyer in
A Free Soul – a sound film also known for introducing Clark Gable to the
world. Unlike many of his peers, whose careers faded into oblivion the
minute talking became a necessity, Lionel’s booming voice and gruff,
surly looks made him the perfect contender to talk on film: indeed, his
popularity soared in the 1930's as he made films like Mata Hari (1931);
Grand Hotel (1932, with brother John) and Rasputin and the Empress
(1932, with brother John and sister Ethel); One Man’s Journey and
Looking Forward (1933); Carolina and Treasure Island (1934); The
Personal Histories, Adventures, Experience and Observation of David
Copperfield, the Younger and The Return of Peter Grimm (1935); The
Devil-Doll (1936); and A Family Affair and Saratoga (1937).
In 1937, Lionel was suddenly stricken by arthritis in a bad way, and
remained in a wheelchair for most of the rest of his life. But he was
very much a known public figure, and a revered one to boot. He was doing
an annual radio appearance as Scrooge in A Christmas Carol and continued
to do his Dr. Gillespie role in the film series Dr. Kildare (an MGM
production). In terms of film, he slowed down quite a lot, but shone if
a few more character roles, in films like 1946’s It’s a Wonderful Life
(which has since been immortalized on TV) and the classic Duel in the
Sun (1946) and Down to the Sea in Ships (1949). His final film role was
Main Street to Broadway (1953), a film made a decade after brother
John’s death, and in which Ethel also appears. A fitting end for the
royal family of movies.
He was largely shut out of the opportunity to blaze a trail in the
emerging medium of television thanks to his stringent MGM contract. He
circumvented this problem by continually appearing on radio. He also
went back to his original artistic aspirations and spent much of his
golden years making music (composing works like “Partita” and “Ballet
Viennois”), writing (for instance, the novel Mr. Cartonwine: A Moral
Tale) and engaging in the visual arts. But eventually his arthritis got
the better of him, and he had to slow down. But he couldn’t quite stop;
ambition should have been his middle name. The story goes that on the
day of his death he was getting ready to do his weekly performance on
radio’s Hallmark Playhouse. Instead, the show gave him a warm and
well-deserved tribute. It was November 15, 1954, and Lionel was 76
years-old.
Lionel was buried next to his second wife and his brother John in the
Calvary Cemetery in Hollywood. He never wanted to be an actor, and
openly admitted this many times over. Is it an irony that it is this
profession that has immortalized him, or another example of the
ill-fated life and times of almost every member of the Barrymore clan?
This is interesting to think about on the side; meanwhile we have his
many, many film roles to remind us that his gifts as an actor have truly
stood the test of time.
#
Tammy Stone is a freelance writer and journalist based in Toronto. Watch
for her regular column on the greats of the Silent Screen in each issue
of ASTOS. Tammy invites you to write her at tammyst-@yahoo.ca with
any questions or comments on her column.
#
End Credits:
Thank you for reading this far, hope you enjoyed it all! Next issue,
that would be Issue #50, is a question mark. As I write this I hope it
is soon, but we'll see. In the meantime, if you feel like staying
trapped in the time tunnel be sure to visit me at
www.things-and-other-stuff.com, a recent count tells me you have over
500 pages to peruse here. Enjoy!
#
As always feel free to e-mail any thoughts or ideas to us at
thi-@things-and-other-stuff.com, we're always willing to listen.
#
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