tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-41141081446340002752024-03-05T17:32:51.875-08:00Everything CagneyThe Blog of All Things CagneyNoireehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11465062741888837392noreply@blogger.comBlogger65125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114108144634000275.post-65778425662219511802010-09-23T14:30:00.000-07:002010-09-23T14:30:30.009-07:00Winner Take All (1932)<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjowz5GJfKhpmRaj5I7VlZQWy4znUIPcEEhs6LfZ7-wb595l-GJV61vXiDU-zOXoF-7G67SV2D0JMZfg0HpgxugQsnlLhOjQgiz_umQHM79rDQ5pHy8w5Szci6-fqeAuRn1mShDqwR5DoMX/s1600/CGC+Photo+VIRGINIA+BRUCE,+JAMES+CAGNEY+Winner+Take+All.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjowz5GJfKhpmRaj5I7VlZQWy4znUIPcEEhs6LfZ7-wb595l-GJV61vXiDU-zOXoF-7G67SV2D0JMZfg0HpgxugQsnlLhOjQgiz_umQHM79rDQ5pHy8w5Szci6-fqeAuRn1mShDqwR5DoMX/s320/CGC+Photo+VIRGINIA+BRUCE,+JAMES+CAGNEY+Winner+Take+All.jpg" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh32V5OlH9MaE-hM9xvtyZVPcBWQYUHM-DnrJ4v31i6umU7cZ88RsH4TvRai49a0rp43dt40BTUGUZHEV3DQHjpeCFG71gFkqdCFsfVHmlr2asxUvm3PWdODNr_IncJjK4EkzilGHR16LRe/s1600/1930s+James+Cagney+Winner+Take+All+VINTAGE+PHOTO+27f.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh32V5OlH9MaE-hM9xvtyZVPcBWQYUHM-DnrJ4v31i6umU7cZ88RsH4TvRai49a0rp43dt40BTUGUZHEV3DQHjpeCFG71gFkqdCFsfVHmlr2asxUvm3PWdODNr_IncJjK4EkzilGHR16LRe/s320/1930s+James+Cagney+Winner+Take+All+VINTAGE+PHOTO+27f.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I just watched the 1932 James Cagney movie <em>Winner Take All </em>for the first time , and it was okay . It was the first James Cagney movie I watched in Probably like 7 months before Completely focusing on Robert Downey , Jr. . . And since it was my first James Cagney movie review blog written in That sametime span , I'll Probably keep this blog short . Anyway , eventhough I was not too impressed by this movie , I thought it was typical Cagney . And he was not very good - loking in musts of the movie ( I did not know They had plastic surgery back then) . Anyhow , on w / the blog. </span><br />
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBm3YdY5F2uNI3RBzaNj1ymgnfEypTcWFNFSQnaBvhqWvNX1XszlVxjUqMrhzbO31qll0uwMG1-wg4Ma18zXYCtPNvWmO4GWQe8kJFCGIy-i_YBq-PuCecGcyR0mLEQewCp1mkbQy8vDWk/s1600/cagney362.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBm3YdY5F2uNI3RBzaNj1ymgnfEypTcWFNFSQnaBvhqWvNX1XszlVxjUqMrhzbO31qll0uwMG1-wg4Ma18zXYCtPNvWmO4GWQe8kJFCGIy-i_YBq-PuCecGcyR0mLEQewCp1mkbQy8vDWk/s320/cagney362.jpg" /></a><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The <em>New York Times</em> review of <em>Winner Take All</em> (1932) begins , "After enforcement of bone highly successful in His portrayal as a gangster, a gambler , a taxicab driver , a confidence man , and an automobile racer, James Cagney , the stormy petrel of the Warner Brothers studio , turns His attention . .. to impersonating a prize fighter . " Critic Mordaunt Hall goes on to note That Cagney is far more convincing Than Most players who elect to impersonate Pugilist . " Cagney so Often overplayed gangster In His early movie career thats it 's easy to over look the variety of His performances , and his dedication to getting it right , even in routine programmers . At That Time, Cagney Recalled In His autobiography , " I was still learning , and I went along making what was Given to me . " <em>Winner Take All</em> May have put routine , but Cagney was not . in His first boxing role , Cagney plays an on-the -skids fighter who's drying out at a Southwest health spa . While there, he meets an impoverished young widow and her little boy , and returns to the ring to help themself financially . He wins , but once he goes back to New York , he gets tangled up with a society lady and his ego gets out of control . </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl88QSJ3wdvUpgC9SDpulDTjsIuIWlU3wOMUVdfNmA8wY5h-0VVUnsAf9z8NS_f6Xz7XmCyXbyAnFq8qhpjn4Jo1_fn7KlzT8z6RNcVoJn2g6WX6t9PNF07O22ItbdbY62LsQHRrZyHNok/s1600/cagney+lookin%27+normal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl88QSJ3wdvUpgC9SDpulDTjsIuIWlU3wOMUVdfNmA8wY5h-0VVUnsAf9z8NS_f6Xz7XmCyXbyAnFq8qhpjn4Jo1_fn7KlzT8z6RNcVoJn2g6WX6t9PNF07O22ItbdbY62LsQHRrZyHNok/s320/cagney+lookin%27+normal.jpg" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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Cagney Trained for the role with a real-life boxer , former welterweight champion Harvey Parry , Who has a role in the film. Cagney Recalled In His autobiography That another professional fighter, watching him spar , was Certain That Cagney had fought professionally - his footwork Proved it . " I said , ' Tommy , I'm a <em>dancer</em>. Moving around is no problem . " " <em>Winner Take All</em> was written by Wilson Mizner , a true Hollywood character , screenwriter , raconteurs , con man and bon vivant . Mizner knew something about the fight game - his colorful suits included managing Several boxers in New York , as well as bilking miners Constantly the Alaskan Gold Rush , racketeering and Extortion rich speculator consistently the Florida land boom , and writing successful Broadway plays . Cagney wrote That he was fascinated by Mizner and sat for hours listening to His stories . </span><br />
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<em>Winner Take All </em>some unusual HAS plot twists - not many boxing pictures feature The fighter getting a nose job to fit in with society His sweetheart - That Raise IT above the run - of-the - mill . Were critics and impressed with Cagney 's portrayal . "Mr. .. .. Cagney gives Such A Fascinating picture of the boxer 's conceit and stupidity thats the original plot , Which Might Have Come From A Novelette , was repaid in the intricacies of His character , " According To the <em>Times</em> of London . " He Carries with him a véritable smell of the shower cream , or sweating body and sodden leather . He walks like a punch - drunk fighter, "wrote Gerald Breitgan in the <em>New York World -Telegram</em>. Cagney Would play boxers Twice more , in <em>The Irish in Us</em> (1935) and <em>City for Conquest</em> (1940) . <br />
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<em>Winner Take All</em> was another hit for Warner Bros. . . , and Cagney , who just a year EARLIER had gone on strike Until The studio raised His salary from $ 400 to $ 1600 a week , staged another strike for the second but not the last time . He did not work for six months , and threatened to quit movies and go back to New York to study medicine at Columbia University. He got a raise, but not as much as he'd asked for, and over the next decade , Cagney Would Be Both one of the studio's biggest moneymakers , and one of the biggest thorns in Jack Warner 's side .</span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUU8KiMGv7cCjitf-Ghujz_hatTSPUxkraO7d3yYlKD4Cluws4qTxoWO9MnIgjHyuCWtGBbidGl3eLpGFPtu2HET_mS4G6qfOwa6ZJlG22hY33bxq0t5EZgmfLUynpU8ZGQ-2boBtcJqrt/s1600/Winner+Take+All.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUU8KiMGv7cCjitf-Ghujz_hatTSPUxkraO7d3yYlKD4Cluws4qTxoWO9MnIgjHyuCWtGBbidGl3eLpGFPtu2HET_mS4G6qfOwa6ZJlG22hY33bxq0t5EZgmfLUynpU8ZGQ-2boBtcJqrt/s320/Winner+Take+All.bmp" /></a><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Another strange thing I noticed about Cagney in this movie was That His voice was Thicker Than normal and he was some what dimwitted . It is the contrast Between Jim Kane's competency and his mental fogginess That makes him a Poignant figure Without His presence <em>Winner Take All </em>Would Have Been The Most routine child or prize fight drama with ITS protagonist caught at the apex of the must familiar shield or triangle , Between a good girl and a bad girl . Taken together with <em>Taxi</em>, and with two or three subsequent component component films <em>Winner Take All </em>Helped establishement Cagney not merely as a comic figure, but Also as a democratic one - spokesman , if u will , for Aggressively unpretentious urban populism.</span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Anyway , in the words of Robert Downey , Jr. . in <em>Iron Man 2 , </em>" Ah , it feels good to be back ! "</span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgncnU_VwlWC9U1VjV0JKJxzBCZd7z8PXsnnofDDRnuii5ngQ2ZBnCUw3uCzBYB7JOGMTx3VSWH6fUSMtuXNvBboWLgcpz3H3HYQHjEmUyqxWZgXsXmHN7waHdVRdRobBF4LbO15-kNCWnS/s1600/cagney827.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgncnU_VwlWC9U1VjV0JKJxzBCZd7z8PXsnnofDDRnuii5ngQ2ZBnCUw3uCzBYB7JOGMTx3VSWH6fUSMtuXNvBboWLgcpz3H3HYQHjEmUyqxWZgXsXmHN7waHdVRdRobBF4LbO15-kNCWnS/s320/cagney827.jpg" /></a><span style="color: #cc0000;"></span></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtVbDs_OmpS9zPLT67yXUciKNWM_jFhNSlNPxbrbCX7XWHEs90n8aR_bQPb18vLtOfKG3F9c1Ps1ohK3mAQ80u49AQ_HwktnbgR0V7hniGz0cKM7ih71e1_l4tIxdEo8SMSjQyHnV2wwBW/s1600/cagney651.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtVbDs_OmpS9zPLT67yXUciKNWM_jFhNSlNPxbrbCX7XWHEs90n8aR_bQPb18vLtOfKG3F9c1Ps1ohK3mAQ80u49AQ_HwktnbgR0V7hniGz0cKM7ih71e1_l4tIxdEo8SMSjQyHnV2wwBW/s320/cagney651.jpg" /></a></div><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBT8uFhOZMTXOf8tuEpyMm6YqY6VgWGI-JoPop7XwOfiJiRar_Zm9be8JNkQfU7MfqSORgWU7pWiSgN7Z2b51XYhLf1rYSvwGzC8Y0oIBcLnKIG2VZ1sWk3u1TB-w2I6PqY1aBbH7NmMEz/s1600/Movie+Actors+GUY+KIBBEE+JAMES+CAGNEY+Vintage+Orig+Photo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBT8uFhOZMTXOf8tuEpyMm6YqY6VgWGI-JoPop7XwOfiJiRar_Zm9be8JNkQfU7MfqSORgWU7pWiSgN7Z2b51XYhLf1rYSvwGzC8Y0oIBcLnKIG2VZ1sWk3u1TB-w2I6PqY1aBbH7NmMEz/s320/Movie+Actors+GUY+KIBBEE+JAMES+CAGNEY+Vintage+Orig+Photo.jpg" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2SxW6X4KIJu1BwO27kdmrwPwP3qXowgguR2gB9m25YGKqu34XnxwxAMTfCr_HVY69_JABscETUzYwj2ylvHEKz_vy8U6hPqhQ_1Iojzbs87Shb1ObeJ-_yLR98b0ORExLpAAnBYVR5CjY/s1600/winnertakeall6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2SxW6X4KIJu1BwO27kdmrwPwP3qXowgguR2gB9m25YGKqu34XnxwxAMTfCr_HVY69_JABscETUzYwj2ylvHEKz_vy8U6hPqhQ_1Iojzbs87Shb1ObeJ-_yLR98b0ORExLpAAnBYVR5CjY/s320/winnertakeall6.jpg" /></a></div></div>cagneyfan2008http://www.blogger.com/profile/09370117899423931277noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114108144634000275.post-24564352497655298282010-04-27T13:14:00.000-07:002010-04-27T13:26:47.606-07:00Hello, My Regular ViewersSorry I haven't been posting as regularly as I used to. I know it's been a whole month since I last posted something, and I'm sorry. But I promise I'll get back on my blogging feet (or hands) once I start watching James Cagney films. You see, I've been focusing too much of my attention on Robert Downey, Jr. (whom I fell in love with when I saw him in <em>Sherlock Holmes</em>) and the hype associated w/ the upcoming <em>Iron Man 2 </em>movie that I just sorta...I don't know--let this place collect dust? Plus, I also had to focus my attention on school and I also went on vacation this month, so I was very busy. But don't worry; I haven't forgotten about u guys; don't know when I'm gonna start blogging though.cagneyfan2008http://www.blogger.com/profile/09370117899423931277noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114108144634000275.post-9382165757560260942010-03-17T11:07:00.000-07:002010-03-17T11:40:02.016-07:00Happy St. Patrick's Day!<span style="font-family:arial;color:#99ff99;">FROM <span style="color:#66ff99;">JAMES CAGNEY, </span><span style="color:#33ff33;">ROBERT DOWNEY JR., </span><span style="color:#33cc00;">AND ME!</span></span><br /><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5449667415058079570" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 314px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9ZzoaOF-rQ_W2iM-hZfx0bgoJCypkb1Z3FkNtyTV7BaLDHyff1GGeQVOZ84TY4cxTrsseAwDExCpht8EirctZOrkqguLawlmqlnBPWDayU-mH7ym_FyIg3rUDrPeE2yVIbl_QTZ4kl9Gj/s400/James+Cagney+The+Irish+in+Us+Boxing.jpg" border="0" /></div><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5449668110578780930" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 278px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2_XK4dcn-RoLZoMx700lka-8859yi48r2I-GbrHHssRP81pBJb5yGGgs2QbjBmpJM9WpZ_yA0H8fwqi0lWjLy6XxWNgJwW9hDhqZw-rgBcHfAkbBkSATc2bqlrsJZ5T8SWCwpd-khbGKr/s400/On+the+set+of+Sherlock+Holmes.jpg" border="0" /><br /><a href="http://plugin.smileycentral.com/http%253A%252F%252Fwww.smileycentral.com%252F%253Fpartner%253DZSzeb008%255FZSYYYYYYYYUS%2526i%253D8%252F8%255F9%255F34%2526feat%253Dprof/page.html" target="_blank"><img alt="SmileyCentral.com" src="http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/8/8_9_34.gif" border="0" /><img src="http://plugin.smileycentral.com/http%253A%252F%252Fimgfarm%252Ecom%252Fimages%252Fnocache%252Ftr%252Ffw%252Fsmiley%252Fsocial%252Egif%253Fi%253D8%252F8_9_34%2526uiv%253D3.0/image.gif" border="0" /></a><a 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href="http://www.webfetti.com/download.jhtml?partner=ZKzeb007_ZSYYYYYYYYUS&utm_campaign=wf_glitter&utm_source=1170357&utm_medium=wf_myspace"><img height="18" src="http://t.webfetti.com/images/nocache/tr/wf/rds/gl/my/1170357.gif" width="160" border="0" /></a><br /><img alt="Webfetti.com" src="http://ak.webfetti.com/assets/glitter/0/317.gif" border="0" /><br /><a href="http://www.webfetti.com/download.jhtml?partner=ZKzeb007_ZSYYYYYYYYUS&utm_campaign=wf_glitter&utm_source=1170358&utm_medium=wf_myspace"><img height="18" src="http://t.webfetti.com/images/nocache/tr/wf/rds/gl/my/1170358.gif" width="160" border="0" /></a><img alt="Webfetti.com" src="http://ak.webfetti.com/assets/glitter/0/320.gif" border="0" /><br /><a href="http://www.webfetti.com/download.jhtml?partner=ZKzeb007_ZSYYYYYYYYUS&utm_campaign=wf_glitter&utm_source=1170361&utm_medium=wf_myspace"><img height="18" src="http://t.webfetti.com/images/nocache/tr/wf/rds/gl/my/1170361.gif" width="160" border="0" /></a><br /><img alt="Webfetti.com" src="http://ak.webfetti.com/assets/glitter/0/304.gif" border="0" /><br /><a href="http://www.webfetti.com/download.jhtml?partner=ZKzeb007_ZSYYYYYYYYUS&utm_campaign=wf_glitter&utm_source=1170345&utm_medium=wf_myspace"><img height="18" src="http://t.webfetti.com/images/nocache/tr/wf/rds/gl/my/1170345.gif" width="160" border="0" /></a>cagneyfan2008http://www.blogger.com/profile/09370117899423931277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114108144634000275.post-77317363875245156562010-02-16T12:54:00.000-08:002010-02-16T14:07:50.182-08:00Here Comes the Navy (1934)<span style="color:#33ffff;"></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj_P7PY7QVOcUpZNbg3guYPaF9dfrpMYJ0EEe5z5u2ms0C0EGKefsgwMy77a2O8i28mLR4_h1ChavDlz_aE8nxlphoV9Gqm4DcgK68FJBI8PaRyFekGQ2zZK2t6Ppzkrm6jNhLqF4wZAZH/s1600-h/American+actor+James+Cagney+(1899-1986)+dances+with+a+young+lady+in+a+scene+from+an+unknown+film.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5438952724567144818" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 238px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj_P7PY7QVOcUpZNbg3guYPaF9dfrpMYJ0EEe5z5u2ms0C0EGKefsgwMy77a2O8i28mLR4_h1ChavDlz_aE8nxlphoV9Gqm4DcgK68FJBI8PaRyFekGQ2zZK2t6Ppzkrm6jNhLqF4wZAZH/s320/American+actor+James+Cagney+(1899-1986)+dances+with+a+young+lady+in+a+scene+from+an+unknown+film.jpg" border="0" /></a>I have just recently watched the 1934 James Cagney movie <em>Here Comes the Navy </em>for the first time, and it was cool!! James Cagney was good as Chesty O'Connor, a cocky, can-do civilian riveter-turned-sailor (this was before the Navy became a symbol of homosexual camp) who represents the common working man of the Depression. I'm so glad I finally got to watch this movie that I so desperately wanted to see! Even though it was very different from the trailer, I must say that I pretty much liked it!! Anyway, James Cagney is with his two best buddies--Pat O'Brien and Frank McHugh--in this film! Frank McHugh's role was big compared to his other roles in Cagney films, and he seemed to have a lot of lines as well as the most comedic dialogues w/ Jimmy Cagney. As for Pat O'Brien, well his and Jimmy's chemistry is very apparent even though their characters don't get along in the film. Their bromance is amazing; I have often compared them to Robert Downey, Jr. and Jude Law, who were just as good together in <em>Sherlock Holmes</em>!!! And Gloria Stuart, who is almost a centigenarian now, was also good as Cagney's love interest. Anyhow, I felt very sorry for Jimmy Cagney's character earlier in the movie when he is beaten mercilessly by Pat O'Brien in a fight. And his girlfriend didn't even help him, which really sucked. (And I must add that this movie, with its nautical theme, had me longing for the beach. <img title="Cool" alt="Cool" src="http://js.kickstatic.com/kickapps/js/tinymce/jscripts/tiny_mce/plugins/emotions/img/smiley-cool.gif" border="0" />)<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5438952735573943074" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 276px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ6aRoaYKY5u1vlWeE6aXiKY06mzHvvCzd4lZOeWc-l3kggV4q_KUs60omddEnQ-ENtZyvk83biUVAEAho33-jtV4JJGYFAVltHO4yO5aAoifOPbhHWk7Wz6kFQVPHMP-DqskglC5iO-o5/s320/cagmchugh10.jpg" border="0" />Modern-day military movies are more likely to focus on Marine special forces or Navy SEALs than on ordinary sailors, but until the Vietnam era the United <a title="view James_Cagney_and_Gloria_Stuart_in_Here_Comes_the_Navy_trailer.jpg" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_JamesCagneyandGloriaStuartinHereComestheNavytrailerjpg/photo/4803369/66470.html"></a>States Navy had enough mystique to fuel many popular films. <em>Here Comes the Navy</em>, made between the world wars in 1934, is a good example. Drenched in navy atmosphere, it was filmed in real navy locations and populated with real navy extras polishing guns and swabbing decks in the background. Most impressive of all, much of the action was shot on the <strong>U.S.S. Arizona</strong>, which became legendary when Japanese aircraft sunk it in the December 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor that propelled the U.S. into World War II. All this makes the film a natural for navy buffs and a smooth-sailing history lesson for everyone else.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnf_iePoT-BeMVVAHbMWuIEovgZ50r-W0w4Nc2q70_ql8QTCOKdQFxZ1quFFm7s_bYNnCwZyFjRmu3dcuLdv7oWUzXVUfr4tSV43FwSDJ0eJ3gqQ8cjdLWSdGqUfnvWfl2FklWoKtZuBqS/s1600-h/cagmchugh26.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5438953912764709170" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 286px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnf_iePoT-BeMVVAHbMWuIEovgZ50r-W0w4Nc2q70_ql8QTCOKdQFxZ1quFFm7s_bYNnCwZyFjRmu3dcuLdv7oWUzXVUfr4tSV43FwSDJ0eJ3gqQ8cjdLWSdGqUfnvWfl2FklWoKtZuBqS/s320/cagmchugh26.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />The picture has good Hollywood credentials, too. Its stars are James Cagney and Pat O’Brien, making the first of their nine movies together – they did seven more for Warner Bros. and then reunited for <em>Ragtime</em> in 1981, the last feature for both of them. <em>Here Comes the Navy</em> also <strong><em>scored a nomination for the Best Picture Academy Award</em></strong>, which it lost – along with such other contenders as <em>The Thin Man</em> and <em>The Gay Divorcee</em> – to <em>It Happened One Night</em>, a hard movie to <strong>beat<em> </em></strong>(speaking of which, I hope <em>Avatar </em>isn't that way @ the Oscars this year <img title="Wink" alt="Wink" src="http://js.kickstatic.com/kickapps/js/tinymce/jscripts/tiny_mce/plugins/emotions/img/smiley-wink.gif" border="0" />).<br /><br />While working in the shipyard, Cagney runs afoul of Biff Martin, chief petty officer of the Arizona, played by O’Brien with just a smidgen less feistiness than Cagney displays. Their squabble turns into a brawl when they compete for a woman at a dance, and when Chesty loses the fight – the lovely lady distracts him just as Biff throws his best punch – the scrappy laborer sets his sights on revenge. This is easier said than done, since Biff immediately goes to sea, so Chesty does what any self-respecting movie character would do: He joins the navy, volunteers for the Arizona, and loo<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwdec8Re1FebQBn9Xrq6b1kJCFlwTT_yYYAz6oTm6HvdkTPmB6dj0PN_VwvONxxdUCqHMW9NtM2ybVfAfP1LhzYpW-tFOaVVl_PJ-xtDvHhX8HYzdVU2Ffn5EAE7oAqgu3uoGsfVlaFTP6/s1600-h/HereComesPost.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5438958781370566898" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 156px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwdec8Re1FebQBn9Xrq6b1kJCFlwTT_yYYAz6oTm6HvdkTPmB6dj0PN_VwvONxxdUCqHMW9NtM2ybVfAfP1LhzYpW-tFOaVVl_PJ-xtDvHhX8HYzdVU2Ffn5EAE7oAqgu3uoGsfVlaFTP6/s200/HereComesPost.jpg" border="0" /></a>ks forward to decking his enemy.<br /><br />Eventually the two meet again, but when Chesty prepares to give Biff what’s coming to him, Biff informs him of something he should have learned in basic training: Officers rank higher than enlisted men, and if Chesty’s fists fly, the rest of his body will land in the brig. Complicating things further, Chesty sees another alluring woman and falls so much in love that he can’t give her up – even when she turns out to be Dorothy “Dot” Martin, his enemy’s loving sister. This sends all of them into a three-way feud, with Dorothy snagged between her sailor friend’s wooing and her big brother’s sco<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSbMjHsc9x7nukXxCSKNAysTM2O_2RYnu_vBCx1EzjLx1seiWrPahTXjlbzNLvyEQv9RhZCS7NKyIIPNrqOwztpCH_Gq637ehbufzmCuliIlPovsfLlcHTYi_IYfo2hS9OtJXEDb52zDz7/s1600-h/cagmchugh14.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5438953909502541650" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 177px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSbMjHsc9x7nukXxCSKNAysTM2O_2RYnu_vBCx1EzjLx1seiWrPahTXjlbzNLvyEQv9RhZCS7NKyIIPNrqOwztpCH_Gq637ehbufzmCuliIlPovsfLlcHTYi_IYfo2hS9OtJXEDb52zDz7/s320/cagmchugh14.jpg" border="0" /></a>lding.<br /><br />Could things be any worse? You bet. Chesty sneaks off the ship to see Dorothy, and gets caught when he tries to sneak back on. Angry at being punished, he belligerently bad-mouths the navy, which shocks his shipboard buddies and turns them against him. Deciding he’s beaten all around, Chesty slinks away and transfers from battleship duty to a dirigible unit. There he shows he’s a trusty American after all, and everyone has a happy Hollywood ending.<br /><br /><a title="view Cagney On Parade.jpg" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_Cagney-On-Paradejpg/photo/4832258/66470.html"></a>In addition to the U.S.S. Arizona, parts of <em>Here Comes the Navy</em> were shot on location at real navy yards. The picture also shows maneuvers by the Pacific Fleet, and the climax -- when Chesty performs a daring rescue involving a dirigible trying to land at sea -- uses footage of the <strong><em>U.S.S. Macon</em></strong>, an American airship that was downed by a storm the following year, bringing an end to the military’s experiment with lighter-than-air vehicles. The film’s rescue scene is based on an actual incident two years earlier, when crewmen of the U.S.S. Akron held onto a blimp’s ground ropes as it lifted into the air; the real-life accident killed two men, but this didn’t stop Warner Bros. from transforming it into a chance for Chesty to save the day. Cagney did some of his own stunt work, burning his hands on a rope until they “looked like hamburger,” as he described it later.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVmzGyB9jIeaUY4ZfnSRKrICwnqAJpTV41KZM0t9b84qh2l3VfK8f25lNWAu0DPCsjV0nBOf3QttmZAlnucj1S1vvTckbPVeBntXMe3jLrTxAeSP6MwZBtudVN-tfUZOHrBHRGt23yKNNu/s1600-h/cagney201.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5438954752055887778" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 242px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVmzGyB9jIeaUY4ZfnSRKrICwnqAJpTV41KZM0t9b84qh2l3VfK8f25lNWAu0DPCsjV0nBOf3QttmZAlnucj1S1vvTckbPVeBntXMe3jLrTxAeSP6MwZBtudVN-tfUZOHrBHRGt23yKNNu/s320/cagney201.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />Along with its glimpses of armed-forces history, <em>Here Comes the Navy</em> reflects an interesting moment in Hollywood history: It was Cagney’s first movie after the Catholic Legion of Decency gained censorship power in the industry, and Warner Bros. wanted to signal that the star’s brash personality wouldn’t be toned down as long as it kept selling tickets. That said, the movie struck some observers as unexpectedly subdued. In addition to laughs and authenticity, the reviewer for the <em>New York Times</em> praised it for having “the added advantage, in these parlous times, of being beyond censorial reproach.” This was especially “remarkable” in a Cagney production, the critic continued, since his “rough-and-tumble antics in several earlier pictures” had been “held up to scorn by those who would reform the screen.” While the star himself hadn’t changed his style, the reviewer wrote, “the restraining hand of the producer, writer, director (or all three), never is relinquished.”<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl1WalRIMn1r66NVAamMWjxhIdIlF1Ty7cezfK71gcYbV_mlei6XfhnLFQv-VWNHGXb-ZCm7QUqZ8yDSe5yg02ZFSvqhsbjkxGez-Bb0NhWlnb4IIo6NEN7fRpTrxo5iyjWy-fBJbdxnFa/s1600-h/cagney832.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5438957681151384178" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 155px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl1WalRIMn1r66NVAamMWjxhIdIlF1Ty7cezfK71gcYbV_mlei6XfhnLFQv-VWNHGXb-ZCm7QUqZ8yDSe5yg02ZFSvqhsbjkxGez-Bb0NhWlnb4IIo6NEN7fRpTrxo5iyjWy-fBJbdxnFa/s200/cagney832.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />The director who may or may not have restrained Cagney was Lloyd Bacon, whose most celebrated picture is <em>42nd Street</em>, the popular Depression musical of 1933. That movie gains a lot of its pizzazz from the song-and-dance numbers staged by Busby Berkeley, and in <em>Here Comes the Navy</em> the military interludes serve a similar purpose, punching up a comedy-drama scenario that might easily run out of steam on its own.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx5y8LVMHF_4qWJKc_wUpk5ukjrPeQWyzADOp2Z3k_plkbJn-ZsyJYWPJ3hGPo5C-OvkuwBVtG_sxGbIIX33xMYufBXxUYR1vkItWgbRvXfgVVFKt32HYSDhOg-uITWdS-dT-WEzRnfOeH/s1600-h/cagney459.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5438954764106086082" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 255px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx5y8LVMHF_4qWJKc_wUpk5ukjrPeQWyzADOp2Z3k_plkbJn-ZsyJYWPJ3hGPo5C-OvkuwBVtG_sxGbIIX33xMYufBXxUYR1vkItWgbRvXfgVVFKt32HYSDhOg-uITWdS-dT-WEzRnfOeH/s320/cagney459.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />The comedy episodes were enthusiastically received by the <em>New York Times</em> reviewer, who applauded some of “the heartiest laughs of the current cinema season” and called the finale, wherein a caterwauling old lady sings a wedding song from lyrics tattooed on her dopey son’s torso, a “perfect comedy climax.” Today’s viewers won’t be so tickled by such silliness, and it’s painful to watch the movie’s disgracefully racist material (it wasn't so painful for me to watch; trust me, I've seen worst), as when Chesty puts on <strong>blackface</strong> so he can slip off the ship among African-American sailors going on leave. Like the battleship and dirigible sequences, these are best viewed as historical artifacts from America’s not-so-distant past. Seen in this light, <em>Here Comes the Navy</em> has more to reveal than Cagney’s talent for high-spirited hijinks.<br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5438956948975822834" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 159px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO8xzmUJPt9pTrVi2skoONsHw3NE0utwlLzuZ0BqS8ATi6IBog0gHhB5yRAYmjLwoWR0Q8xlLcn0JNh2Kib6BjF-SUstUURSDN2bZ862JcOvrcznwNXRFMQh3qE4DjimtBK1WznLLX06Bl/s200/cagney781.jpg" border="0" /><em>Here Comes the Navy </em>is the first and best of the Cagney-O'Brien service pictures and features excellent performances by the entire cast. Cagney plays his character with just the right blend of intensity and devilish, sarcastic, Bart Simpson-like charm. Anyway, this is my favorite Cagney film next to <em>Footlight Parade</em>, <em>Taxi!</em>, and <em>Jimmy the Gent</em>. My prospective favorite James Cagney films, which I have yet to see, are <em>Hard to Handle </em>and <em>Devil Dogs of the Air</em>. And since I mentioned earlier that it was a contender for the 1934 Best Picture Oscar, it isn't nearly half as famous as some of its rivals, like <em>Gay Divorcee </em>and <em>Thin Man</em>. But it's just as charming and lighthearted as the two, and just as watchable, compared to some of the other 1934 films like <em>Cleopatra </em>and <em>Imitation of Life</em>.<img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5438952730619827474" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 242px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP4Sa-YMZSu-J8Qnal_jRYyv1b8XeUOl72RSqELVnVg0ReJV34oJwpmbahiHcl0jV4wH0gkb7gjHhpFRjcYQVTj-QhemEbv-eyL_0BD7DtmGb8ivo2oL8bD8-CI7kLWoDfj9qMU8VNkhU5/s320/Being+Annoyed.bmp" border="0" />Anyway, I would recommend the film for James Cagney fans who love seeing him in military dramas. <strong><em>Happy commenting!!!</em></strong><br /><img alt="Webfetti.com" src="http://ak.webfetti.com/assets/glitter/0/791.gif" border="0" /><br /><a href="http://www.webfetti.com/download.jhtml?partner=ZKzeb007_ZSYYYYYYYYUS&utm_campaign=wf_glitter&utm_source=10064843&utm_medium=wf_myspace"><img height="18" src="http://t.webfetti.com/images/nocache/tr/wf/rds/gl/my/10064843.gif" width="160" border="0" /></a><br /><img alt="Webfetti.com" src="http://ak.webfetti.com/assets/glitter/0/793.gif" border="0" /><br /><a href="http://www.webfetti.com/download.jhtml?partner=ZKzeb007_ZSYYYYYYYYUS&utm_campaign=wf_glitter&utm_source=20000387&utm_medium=wf_myspace"><img height="18" src="http://t.webfetti.com/images/nocache/tr/wf/rds/gl/my/20000387.gif" width="160" border="0" /></a><br /><img alt="Webfetti.com" src="http://ak.webfetti.com/assets/glitter/0/794.gif" border="0" /><br /><a href="http://www.webfetti.com/download.jhtml?partner=ZKzeb007_ZSYYYYYYYYUS&utm_campaign=wf_glitter&utm_source=20000388&utm_medium=wf_myspace"><img height="18" src="http://t.webfetti.com/images/nocache/tr/wf/rds/gl/my/20000388.gif" width="160" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="http://plugin.smileycentral.com/http%253A%252F%252Fwww.smileycentral.com%252F%253Fpartner%253DZSzeb008%255FZSYYYYYYYYUS%2526i%253D8%252F8%255F4%255F100%2526feat%253Dprof/page.html" target="_blank"><img alt="SmileyCentral.com" src="http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/8/8_4_100.gif" border="0" /><img src="http://plugin.smileycentral.com/http%253A%252F%252Fimgfarm%252Ecom%252Fimages%252Fnocache%252Ftr%252Ffw%252Fsmiley%252Fsocial%252Egif%253Fi%253D8%252F8_4_100%2526uiv%253D3.0/image.gif" border="0" /></a><a href="http://plugin.smileycentral.com/http%253A%252F%252Fwww.smileycentral.com%252F%253Fpartner%253DZSzeb008%255FZSYYYYYYYYUS%2526i%253D8%252F8%255F4%255F101%2526feat%253Dprof/page.html" target="_blank"><img alt="SmileyCentral.com" src="http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/8/8_4_101.gif" border="0" /><img src="http://plugin.smileycentral.com/http%253A%252F%252Fimgfarm%252Ecom%252Fimages%252Fnocache%252Ftr%252Ffw%252Fsmiley%252Fsocial%252Egif%253Fi%253D8%252F8_4_101%2526uiv%253D3.0/image.gif" border="0" /></a><a href="http://plugin.smileycentral.com/http%253A%252F%252Fwww.smileycentral.com%252F%253Fpartner%253DZSzeb008%255FZSYYYYYYYYUS%2526i%253D1%252F1%255F4%255F53%2526feat%253Dprof/page.html" target="_blank"><img alt="SmileyCentral.com" src="http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/1/1_4_53.gif" border="0" /><img src="http://plugin.smileycentral.com/http%253A%252F%252Fimgfarm%252Ecom%252Fimages%252Fnocache%252Ftr%252Ffw%252Fsmiley%252Fsocial%252Egif%253Fi%253D1%252F1_4_53%2526uiv%253D3.0/image.gif" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br />(Next blog [for sure]: <em>Animal C<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMC62J2FqzvXGNi6OSEKxG2SciwltyUmAQhGbC3ukLhFpnsmXN3O9JkqiVdSXJtWAMqNm7Egiy3Fv6SxlO02C7OwAQLR4lBU6RD4qq8YXIEvJPno4Nj5ZXYdLJjKU6Lt1WL3z_tLrn-Ris/s1600-h/cagney1020.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5438956021722335890" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 183px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMC62J2FqzvXGNi6OSEKxG2SciwltyUmAQhGbC3ukLhFpnsmXN3O9JkqiVdSXJtWAMqNm7Egiy3Fv6SxlO02C7OwAQLR4lBU6RD4qq8YXIEvJPno4Nj5ZXYdLJjKU6Lt1WL3z_tLrn-Ris/s320/cagney1020.jpg" border="0" /></a>rack<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAYQKOfctLA7LZ0vIsA9_ZLDCmZlKbXSV_ZQctgznWBO1uw7w19TM06CIIffVIl2qu54gzBuW-FIWUOBlhlZATOIU2DRN-QX3pe7dEiH0S7XGTtStyOfaKOLteWbzn-pDmklseWDw0TG0H/s1600-h/cagney128.jpg"></a>ers </em>[1930]) <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVXdJLEvaEFdvfLBoqwQkPonKQVLzjTzEQmzbeVo1r-iPSUrFW1PjTQeb4dJjxd1RfeiWWyDfQwEILiB7mptYJfJ0sreI50Z6vF11X-vAnoVLp2aF39-TA8KtFzNEAInLt3oJu2GEv3nUZ/s1600-h/Here+Comes+The+Navy....jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5438956362415024178" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 234px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVXdJLEvaEFdvfLBoqwQkPonKQVLzjTzEQmzbeVo1r-iPSUrFW1PjTQeb4dJjxd1RfeiWWyDfQwEILiB7mptYJfJ0sreI50Z6vF11X-vAnoVLp2aF39-TA8KtFzNEAInLt3oJu2GEv3nUZ/s320/Here+Comes+The+Navy....jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5438956949619932626" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 144px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5DXmgP-iYtwUnjkK2aFnkJUBlCHpeSIOB0xTEM1HTxQqRkQfJ08Ky7oX-9DobFTB__l-4OPwcYOingIICJCi74JuLFpZOgeVd7vJTrqeHmPqAM-0abBhcRUexlaODLTi_HHCR5zYEuLc6/s200/cagney657.jpg" border="0" /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT3t5aoDP6hQuM2CM9VTZCZCz9w24tItQpCohMwHH018ZUUFlXw7uR5oYnyrvnrvKczRaAmusqFXzcTnJw4DLc3CfwRauDVs__biQuOKSdVTue9ZchrclqiHmcX2mmozZQ4Di1C-qq5quP/s1600-h/cagney868.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5438957685587346018" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 180px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT3t5aoDP6hQuM2CM9VTZCZCz9w24tItQpCohMwHH018ZUUFlXw7uR5oYnyrvnrvKczRaAmusqFXzcTnJw4DLc3CfwRauDVs__biQuOKSdVTue9ZchrclqiHmcX2mmozZQ4Di1C-qq5quP/s200/cagney868.jpg" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHia7dGgRgitpp2u6s1S9nzbLTHP5mQQfKyR2W6ywRrd2djV2ABCmMr4Vobw1jG31oBiRhKPz0OpXdmZVjHSNFXTt3nRjPcBQKz-8WeKkzp-naD4XslTn4Tvvq8TIHehxa5GzzuaDvWRvJ/s1600-h/James_Cagney_in_Here_Comes_the_Navy_trailer.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5438958785470103266" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 156px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHia7dGgRgitpp2u6s1S9nzbLTHP5mQQfKyR2W6ywRrd2djV2ABCmMr4Vobw1jG31oBiRhKPz0OpXdmZVjHSNFXTt3nRjPcBQKz-8WeKkzp-naD4XslTn4Tvvq8TIHehxa5GzzuaDvWRvJ/s200/James_Cagney_in_Here_Comes_the_Navy_trailer.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:lucida grande;color:#33ffff;">Clips from <em>Here Comes the Navy </em>(1934): </span><object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/uVEa6dd4X6A&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xcc2550&color2=0xe87a9f"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/uVEa6dd4X6A&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xcc2550&color2=0xe87a9f" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object><br /><object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/5Hz_lBEIcwk&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/5Hz_lBEIcwk&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object><br /><object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/MLGKIIQcVso&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x3a3a3a&color2=0x999999"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/MLGKIIQcVso&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x3a3a3a&color2=0x999999" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object><br /><object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/xUJM-8KmKGA&hl=en_US&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/xUJM-8KmKGA&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object>cagneyfan2008http://www.blogger.com/profile/09370117899423931277noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114108144634000275.post-91377514739769829222010-02-14T17:20:00.000-08:002010-02-14T17:37:11.155-08:00Happy Valentine's Day!!!<span style="font-family:courier new;color:#ff0000;">FROM <span style="color:#ff6666;">JAMES CAGNEY, </span><span style="color:#ffcccc;">JOAN BLONDELL, </span><span style="color:#ff99ff;">AND ME!!! </span></span><br /><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5438275089441030786" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 314px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt2JDbA5N9-c9G3GS8H6Ba0a3MPLG9pV4gBPzoajZIzxe9iEII47qqZmaIrgNR5BAiYH8bQt_2Q345ESUmkEADqEORJb2tyuug7Hm7B2fVfts0u_fx35FNYpefztpUkZt1abDWJUcxbUIc/s400/pulling+ear.jpg" border="0" /><br /><a href="http://www.dazzlejunction.com/"><img alt="Myspace Comments" src="http://i188.photobucket.com/albums/z92/dazzlej2/graphics-holiday/valentine-glitters/have-a-lovely-valentines-d.gif" border="0" /></a> </p><p><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffccff;">Please take time to watch this montage about romance in movies: </span><br /><object id="AOLVP_65779380001" height="346" width="476" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000"><param name="_cx" value="12594"><param name="_cy" value="9155"><param name="FlashVars" value=""><param name="Movie" value="http://o.aolcdn.com/videoplayer/AOL_PlayerLoader.swf"><param name="Src" value="http://o.aolcdn.com/videoplayer/AOL_PlayerLoader.swf"><param name="WMode" value="Transparent"><param name="Play" value="-1"><param name="Loop" value="-1"><param name="Quality" value="High"><param name="SAlign" value="LT"><param name="Menu" value="-1"><param name="Base" value=""><param name="AllowScriptAccess" value="always"><param name="Scale" value="NoScale"><param name="DeviceFont" value="0"><param name="EmbedMovie" value="0"><param name="BGColor" value="000000"><param name="SWRemote" value=""><param name="MovieData" value=""><param name="SeamlessTabbing" value="1"><param name="Profile" value="0"><param name="ProfileAddress" value=""><param name="ProfilePort" value="0"><param name="AllowNetworking" value="all"><param name="AllowFullScreen" value="true"><embed src="http://o.aolcdn.com/videoplayer/AOL_PlayerLoader.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" wmode="transparent" allowfullscreen="true" bgcolor="#000000" width="476" height="346" name="AOLVP_65779380001" flashvars="videoid=65779380001&publisherid=1612833736&playerid=10032373001&codever=1"></embed></object></p>cagneyfan2008http://www.blogger.com/profile/09370117899423931277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114108144634000275.post-21036538117434791592010-01-29T19:02:00.000-08:002010-01-29T19:45:25.599-08:00Mister Roberts (1955)<div><div><div><div><div><div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKuUI-PxdjVEKk8etohjCFzZlUKy3_Lsu9G2Dw8fhq1JpRN4_4f7W2EWXz5BHnBfHj3-p27rwTtxaZ57efEPqx-ZJcFT9SFCQG4Z-4lWIfgjLiZ4YDNiIRGAV4YPW-aZSoOlSMcVJJIpuv/s1600-h/Annex%2520-%2520Cagney,%2520James%2520(Mister%2520Roberts)_01.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5432369027344935074" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 243px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKuUI-PxdjVEKk8etohjCFzZlUKy3_Lsu9G2Dw8fhq1JpRN4_4f7W2EWXz5BHnBfHj3-p27rwTtxaZ57efEPqx-ZJcFT9SFCQG4Z-4lWIfgjLiZ4YDNiIRGAV4YPW-aZSoOlSMcVJJIpuv/s320/Annex%2520-%2520Cagney,%2520James%2520(Mister%2520Roberts)_01.jpg" border="0" /></a>I just watched the 1955 James Cagney/Henry Fonda/Jack Lemmon/William Powell movie <em>Mister Roberts </em>for the first time, and it was cool. James Cagney didn't really have a lot of screentime in this film, but he convincingly portrayed the tyrannical Captain as the ship dictator he was through his wonderful acting. Another appeal of this movie that took place during WWII was that it had an all-star cast and directed by famous director John Ford (well, it was mostly directed by Mervyn LeRoy; it had two directors).<img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5432369018547436322" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 203px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaM55nvXmmnxfZ1UanDIY-lpO_6A0NQxW8wTlzvQNJtxyC6lAgTlnZicQccMhOUhdpWTmwqhEtEcCmGlRvVUU2wHKEQr4xJVCoJE36D5X4BxHHVslZ4LiOm-hHUEsVoI9NLqdRRfrWQqhI/s320/1955+Henry+Fonda+James+Cagney+Mister+Roberts+photo.jpg" border="0" />The film takes place on an American Naval cargo ship during the waning days of World War II. The ship's perpetual mission is to supply the United States<a title="view Aye Aye Captain.jpg" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_Aye-Aye-Captainjpg/photo/7330882/66470.html"></a> fleet in the South Pacific. The ship’s captain, Morton, has a spotless record of cargo delivery that he maintains through an oppressive command: he refuses to let the crew remove their shirts during hot days working in the cargo hold and has not granted his men ”liberty” for at least two years, despite frequent requests from his XO, Lt. JG Douglas "Mister" Roberts, who serves as cargo chief. Roberts has an excellent working relationship with the crew, often bending the rules to allow them some leeway. Morton’s reputation for timely handling of cargo was rewarded with a palm tree from an impressed admiral, which he keeps in a dirt-filled bucket near the ship’s bridge; Morton is quite proud of his gift, however, the crew <strong>despises</strong> the tree and the Captain himself.<br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1E93_0z6tsIFz6_ONKTkybubcu7qjwGnzC1O4dHGyEwQpvqMstsA-jlxurFpYoxbixpda5lIgpiEjKlPdJddj_SBsPHwQ0JSDdQzSNw0ujDRTPJHqyDjDrEgLD7z0ePinsplwTUR_JpvS/s1600-h/misterrobertscast.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5432369865774178626" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 283px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1E93_0z6tsIFz6_ONKTkybubcu7qjwGnzC1O4dHGyEwQpvqMstsA-jlxurFpYoxbixpda5lIgpiEjKlPdJddj_SBsPHwQ0JSDdQzSNw0ujDRTPJHqyDjDrEgLD7z0ePinsplwTUR_JpvS/s320/misterrobertscast.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><p><em>Mister Roberts</em> (1955) started as a novel by Thomas Heggen, but became popular when it hit Broadway as a stage play in 1948, written by Heggen and Joshua Logan. The play starred movie actor Henry Fonda who had left Hollywood after making <em>Fort Apache</em> (1948) with director John Ford. For once, that turned out to be a wise decision, as the play became one of Broadway's most popular hits.<br /><br />When Logan and the play's producer, Leland Hayward, went to Warner Brothers to make the film version, Fonda felt there was little chance he would be given Roberts. After all, he was then<strong><em> nearly fifty years old</em></strong> and Roberts was written as being a man in his twenties. In fact, Warner Brothers would have preferred Marlon Brando or William Holden in the lead. However, one of the first decisions the producing team made was bringing Ford onboard as director and Ford demanded Fonda. To make Fonda seem younger, most of the rest of the cast was populated with older actors; fifty-five year old James Cagney as the dictatorial Captain Morton and, after Spencer Tracy turned down the role, sixty-two year old William Powell for Doc. For the young Ensign Pulver, Ford chose a little-known actor who had made a screen test for his previous movie <em>The Long Grey Line</em> (1955)- Jack Lemmon. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKZLmvZ07LU9xPlS6yvAJmDdTxEO7Q0tCDUX1lW0cboXwQG0caNp0gxhS5XVPa8ZaA7hFIBtI0eVKIWvZuqyfgEI5GBegvs26lVKgSvaXe4BvOiyOLfm-bAiimrfrHVWVBESXxnNNW-2Qb/s1600-h/Vintage+Photo+Henry+Fonda+Mister+Roberts.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5432370821784809714" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 259px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKZLmvZ07LU9xPlS6yvAJmDdTxEO7Q0tCDUX1lW0cboXwQG0caNp0gxhS5XVPa8ZaA7hFIBtI0eVKIWvZuqyfgEI5GBegvs26lVKgSvaXe4BvOiyOLfm-bAiimrfrHVWVBESXxnNNW-2Qb/s320/Vintage+Photo+Henry+Fonda+Mister+Roberts.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />As the filming began, sailing could not have seemed smoother. Ford used his Navy connections to find one of the old cargo scows to use for the story's setting and boat; cast and crew were all sent to Midway Island for exterior shooting. Why it all went wrong is a matter of <strong>controversy</strong>. After years playing Roberts on stage, Fonda felt he owned the role and knew how it was to be played. Ford had other ideas, introducing bits of broad physical comedy, inventing new situations and, allegedly, throwing more attention to Lemmon's Pulver than Fonda's Roberts. Fonda kept his mouth shut but Ford could tell he was dissatisfied. One night, Ford confronted Fonda in his quarters while Fonda was having a meeting with Hayward. "I understand you're not happy with my work," Ford muttered and, when Fonda confirmed it, Ford charged him, swinging wildly. Fonda managed to hold him back and Ford later apologized. The damage, however, was done and was irreparable.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyKLgMTDzD2KZy3OEhyphenhyphenKYP9PqhGZcZbnqhpA6bKWl6LXY-wIdiLuOknl-IZEL8Sxm_zzZpZLyVnwUDtyOYLvRgOJN8NZUsQiR8pgrcWi_5NgXEayxRmu8F29G0sJ7ArFOcbeRtUbO_PPZY/s1600-h/mister+roberts+lobby+card.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5432369862417363442" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 216px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyKLgMTDzD2KZy3OEhyphenhyphenKYP9PqhGZcZbnqhpA6bKWl6LXY-wIdiLuOknl-IZEL8Sxm_zzZpZLyVnwUDtyOYLvRgOJN8NZUsQiR8pgrcWi_5NgXEayxRmu8F29G0sJ7ArFOcbeRtUbO_PPZY/s320/mister+roberts+lobby+card.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /></p><br /><p>Ford continued directing the movie into the next month but could not handle being subservient to an actor. His way of dealing with the humiliation was drinking, keeping an ice chest <strong><em>full of beer</em></strong> nearby and downing up to two cases a day. After exterior shooting was completed, Ford was hospitalized with a gall bladder attack. The day he went into hospital for surgery, he was replaced by Mervyn LeRoy, the director of <em>I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang</em> (1932) and <em>Quo Vadis?</em> (1951). LeRoy shot all the studio-bound interiors except for two scenes, the laundry scene and Pulver's final message to the Captain, both of which were directed by Joshua Logan.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim6fw58Q04T68iq9DZG2i6yD_E6e4hdO60A0InjfBYbfS7CUETakY4BhkXSYgjceKPXdFdvCplS9YVbj3VrQPtbvXSWO4BL4TWkZPbE75py4T8SYSvae4jiuigHTmO4nbutNnBTD7dxMP6/s1600-h/R+PHOTO+James+Cagney+%26+Henry+Fonda+Mister+Roberts+1955.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5432370817844263250" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 245px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim6fw58Q04T68iq9DZG2i6yD_E6e4hdO60A0InjfBYbfS7CUETakY4BhkXSYgjceKPXdFdvCplS9YVbj3VrQPtbvXSWO4BL4TWkZPbE75py4T8SYSvae4jiuigHTmO4nbutNnBTD7dxMP6/s320/R+PHOTO+James+Cagney+%26+Henry+Fonda+Mister+Roberts+1955.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />Those who knew the play well from Broadway were unhappy with the end result but their perspective may have been colored by unrealistic expectations. Movie audiences loved Mister Roberts, making it 1955's <strong>third-biggest box office hit</strong>, and earning Jack Lemmon his first Academy Award. Ford went on to what many feel was his greatest movie, <em>The Searchers</em> (1956), while Fonda had a long career of acting triumphs. But these two former friends never worked together again.<br />The movie was directed by <span style="color:#002bb8;">John Ford</span>, <span style="color:#002bb8;">Mervyn LeRoy</span> and <span style="color:#002bb8;">Joshua Logan</span> (uncredited). While directing the film, Ford had personality conflicts with actors <span style="color:#002bb8;">Henry Fonda</span> and <span style="color:#002bb8;">James Cagney</span>. When Ford met Cagney at the airport, the director warned that they would "tangle asses," which caught Cagney by surprise. Cagney later said: "I would have kicked his brains out. He was so goddamned mean to everybody. He was truly a nasty old man." The next day, Cagney was slightly late on set, and Ford became incensed. Cagney cut short the imminent tirade, saying "When I started this picture, you said that we would tangle asses before this was over. I'm ready now – are you?" Ford walked away and he and Cagney had no further conflicts on the set.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxcVwt417Cr7P14i39z9HioPsZ0Ag0OCiUIwjObQj9aGOAEgIePivlK0_xMUKpM_qVhIXQxDIJnP6IYI3yf4JvlGOyX5JAn-YFvjiqwsqIwg8NEB_fokUTDQFfaA_PXan-KpjGm10wv5FR/s1600-h/MISTER+ROBERTS+Lemmon+Henry+Fonda+Orig+1955+Photo.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5432369857509305842" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 241px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxcVwt417Cr7P14i39z9HioPsZ0Ag0OCiUIwjObQj9aGOAEgIePivlK0_xMUKpM_qVhIXQxDIJnP6IYI3yf4JvlGOyX5JAn-YFvjiqwsqIwg8NEB_fokUTDQFfaA_PXan-KpjGm10wv5FR/s320/MISTER+ROBERTS+Lemmon+Henry+Fonda+Orig+1955+Photo.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />During the production of the film, Jack Lemmon started a long-time friendship with Cagney which lasted until Cagney's death in 1986. Their first introduction is as funny as the film itself. Prior to his appearance in his first film, years before Mister Roberts, he started in live television. In one particular performance, Jack Lemmon decided to play his character differently. In his brainstorming he decided to play the character left-handed, which is opposite to his own way of movement. With much practice, he pulled off the performance without anyone noticing the change. This change even fooled Lemmon's wife at the time. A few years went by and Jack met Cagney on their way to Midway Island to film Mister Roberts. They introduced each other and Cagney chimed in "Are you still fooling people into believing you're left handed?" They had a great laugh and a strong friendship endured ever since. As Lemmon noted, this was an example of James Cagney's ability to observe human behavior for his acting.</p><p>Henry Fonda wrote in his 1982 autobiography, <em>My Life</em>, that he believed that as good as the movie is, the play is even better. The film was William Powell's last movie, although he died decades later, in 1984. Powell was offered many chances to return to the screen but refused, apparently believing that 35 years of film acting were enough. Anyway, I would recommend this film for James Cagney fans who are also fans of Henry Fonda, Jack Lemmon, or William Powell. <strong><em>Happy Commenting!!! <img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5432369030668030082" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 252px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOPWRI9jOV1Cdy1CLSQCWARYi2aE8zGQHNRPjm3re2FKJxFZjVpufcJUx_lQa47OKcUGJxLdQriwfZ8Lfwx4pylF_eJ4_3YoClgUQI9Q-H2Dh0b_-e-pnAUQ4sRrJQ79YZLRYNlRD6p2os/s320/Mister+Roberts+1955.jpg" border="0" /></em></strong></p><p>(Next blog [for sure]: <em>Horse Feathers </em>[1932])<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3dSyTYGUyXkUkWzo-3ult0Surspal3RI7tX89tMzx1YfWvS4cIyRLvex4I9jU70yV48Zs6q8W_wDNKKB1L0Jk9oPNdPZgE60_eFkG15VUd52IjgEogAt1sqHQBNMOeAK_YJJYlcE9cbp4/s1600-h/Vintage+photo+James+Cagney+in+MIster+Roberts+1955.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5432370828205132818" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 253px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3dSyTYGUyXkUkWzo-3ult0Surspal3RI7tX89tMzx1YfWvS4cIyRLvex4I9jU70yV48Zs6q8W_wDNKKB1L0Jk9oPNdPZgE60_eFkG15VUd52IjgEogAt1sqHQBNMOeAK_YJJYlcE9cbp4/s320/Vintage+photo+James+Cagney+in+MIster+Roberts+1955.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p><span style="font-family:lucida grande;color:#ff9966;">Clips from <em>Mister Roberts</em>:</span></p><object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/qPyWurgARUc&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/qPyWurgARUc&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object><br /><object height="295" width="480"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Z-tXIVvtE7k&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Z-tXIVvtE7k&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="295"></embed></object></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>cagneyfan2008http://www.blogger.com/profile/09370117899423931277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114108144634000275.post-88970063865876044512010-01-16T13:15:00.000-08:002010-01-16T13:21:27.172-08:00Video Related to White Heat (1949)<span style="font-family:Times New Roman;color:#ff99ff;">George C. Scott on James Cagney. Includes clips from this film: </span><br /><br /><object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/_MgboIZ8PWE&hl=en_US&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><br /><br /><br /><br /><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/_MgboIZ8PWE&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object><br /><br /><br /><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427449946779026258" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidRsjaXfl8eFLE4E5gtGONhSPmVRb-TeYEFqkyAUCdv4fxr_xmx8v9sUMbiHRbqIoZChs95L7zRSQ7Vpf0zVzoTFO1ixOObkZyQyQExCtg_aCT6zaQQcKxAezngnBu5bl4cfdnWSdtCCeg/s400/White+Heat+(1949).jpg" border="0" /></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXyWUcN1LPUzFeaK1FRmaoZ6UkmI9j7beYmqd1yitWep62WjZ8XHx_UXKOHgEfRULQNRbhaRqeLeVAm-_As4O9thWVAjR-BRGUsFq6onMs1UOl2XfM8zfWMKRYl-EjlXFLzk7M-5NIfJcQ/s1600-h/WHITE+HEAT+original+publicity+photo+JAMES+CAGNEY.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427450245496464306" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 318px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXyWUcN1LPUzFeaK1FRmaoZ6UkmI9j7beYmqd1yitWep62WjZ8XHx_UXKOHgEfRULQNRbhaRqeLeVAm-_As4O9thWVAjR-BRGUsFq6onMs1UOl2XfM8zfWMKRYl-EjlXFLzk7M-5NIfJcQ/s400/WHITE+HEAT+original+publicity+photo+JAMES+CAGNEY.jpg" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVC3WHQGUA8sn_Z0v6joOjyDaJKwGZFV0bBD-FvSYGiGal_yQtMM4LQLP8Ap_FQkPx0Cbu8R9xxbeAZEdvB-PgnS2vlzJHaLsgT3slgNDaZ2lwC4sE0fJ73iY7GvIra4DbAYcvQdlnky0_/s1600-h/WhiteHeat1.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427450492443752626" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 306px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVC3WHQGUA8sn_Z0v6joOjyDaJKwGZFV0bBD-FvSYGiGal_yQtMM4LQLP8Ap_FQkPx0Cbu8R9xxbeAZEdvB-PgnS2vlzJHaLsgT3slgNDaZ2lwC4sE0fJ73iY7GvIra4DbAYcvQdlnky0_/s400/WhiteHeat1.jpg" border="0" /></a>cagneyfan2008http://www.blogger.com/profile/09370117899423931277noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114108144634000275.post-14180049137542477432010-01-16T12:04:00.000-08:002010-01-16T13:22:55.929-08:00White Heat (1949)<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMRodIPEyH1cAUGAnwirwZESv2EknFljpgiLt4B5cAw-LQzlyYHjBpoFgIAH3j94xqfo75pLelNwuuGBoboJuXN0ues6JznPwMQAwF-kGymm7OtDH0G4BM1GRE0iGkMiymCztHKzbmp44w/s1600-h/white+heat+opening.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427437751652624786" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 222px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMRodIPEyH1cAUGAnwirwZESv2EknFljpgiLt4B5cAw-LQzlyYHjBpoFgIAH3j94xqfo75pLelNwuuGBoboJuXN0ues6JznPwMQAwF-kGymm7OtDH0G4BM1GRE0iGkMiymCztHKzbmp44w/s320/white+heat+opening.jpg" border="0" /></a>I just <strong>finally</strong> watched the 1949 James Cagney movie <em>White Heat</em>, and it was cool. James Cagney was great as Cody Jarrett, the crazy, madman (Hitler-like) criminal who has an obsessed and less than healthy relationship w/ his mother (an <em><strong>Oedipal</strong></em> mama's boy). Brutal, psychotic criminal Cody Jarrett trusts no one, least of all his unfaithful wife Verna and overly ambitious right-hand man Ed Sommers; no one, that is, except his equally criminal mother, the only one who can soothe the blinding migraines that plague him. Sent to jail on a charge he fakes to avoid conviction for the more serious crimes of train robbery and murder, Cody takes into his gang smalltime crook Vic Pardo, who is in reality undercover cop Hank Fallon, sent to infiltrate the Jarrett gang. Cody controls his gang from prison via instructions passed to his mother. Later, in the prison mess hall, Cody learns of Ma Jarret's murder. He goes berserk, and it takes several guards to restrain him and drag him screaming from the room. He's put into a straitjacket and placed in the prison clinic, from which he engineers an escape, taking "Pardo" along with him. After a botched payroll-robbery at an oil refinery, Cody learns Pardo is a special agent and tries to kill him.<br /><div><div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427436977724965762" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 299px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXwAeq1R6Ml6N-Vk7R98V7zKpL3g7VPcndEliM4q9MDl-gvfa-EYDSJd8Xqp-m_g1A7VlZd355jygAv2d7YskpUhHvqksjho1ShQkxSDmHtWK2ihA-jTBiJw1aIF8hgvOUTxcp21ArFzPd/s320/james+cagney+in+white+heat.jpg" border="0" /><br />An exciting, dynamic film in its own right, <em>White Heat</em> also stands out as the flaming finale to the era of stark, fast-paced crime films made famous by Warner<a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_white-heatljpg/photo/7331761/66470.html"> </a>Brothers and James Cagney (among other stars) from the 1930s on ­ films in which the focus was on the often violent but charismatic gangster rather than the law enforcement officials who hunt him. It was also the apotheosis of Cagney's brilliant career, a kind of summing up of the memorable outlaw characters he had created. His projects that followed in the 1950s were mostly <strong>lackluster</strong> affairs, and the cocky, pugnacious star audiences had come to love was glimpsed infrequently in such films as <em>Love Me or Leave Me</em> and <em>Mister Roberts</em> (both 1955). His last big film before retirement was the Billy Wilder Cold War comedy <em>One Two Three</em> (1961). He returned to the screen twenty years later as the turn-of-the-century New York police chief in <em>Ragtime</em> and made one more film, the TV drama <em>Terrible Joe Moran</em> (1984) before his death in 1986.</div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw97GvJkWdpOu_BV0wYkOUDoh9gmh_A__ptJHWHjMy5WE0zfFUcJH7IHQAbIM0HAVyZ8X4fGfwmzuku8ZADbDTNrVrQMndm2YI0hUJzDJ9E5PDKPLCKTVDS4r8A5IGGnHKyxxe3Nalzcsx/s1600-h/James+Cagney+White+Heat+Lobby+Card.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427438544100350098" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 253px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw97GvJkWdpOu_BV0wYkOUDoh9gmh_A__ptJHWHjMy5WE0zfFUcJH7IHQAbIM0HAVyZ8X4fGfwmzuku8ZADbDTNrVrQMndm2YI0hUJzDJ9E5PDKPLCKTVDS4r8A5IGGnHKyxxe3Nalzcsx/s320/James+Cagney+White+Heat+Lobby+Card.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /></div><div><em></em></div><div><br /></div><div><em>White Heat</em>, then, is a chance to catch Cagney one last time as the no-holds barred gangster he created in such pictures as <em>The Public Enemy</em> (1931) and <em>Angels with Dirty Faces</em> (1938). Here, however, the character has been <strong><em>pushed to the extreme</em></strong>, and the progression to Cody Jarrett can be traced through a trio of gangster films made by director Raoul Walsh, of which this was the last. In <em>The Roaring Twenties</em> (1939), Cagney's criminal is seen in the context of history and society, a man whose ambition and drive is put to service on the wrong side of the law by the circumstances of time and place. In <em>High Sierra</em> (1941), Walsh cast Humphrey Bogart as Roy "Mad Dog" Earle, a troubled man on the run, the gangster as the last individual in an increasingly soulless world. With <em>White Heat</em> the archetype is pushed to the very edge, depicted as a vicious man gripped by insanity. It's fitting that the image Cagney was so identified with should go out with such a bang.</div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho9fWvCxsxDpgpK6-ADUIh4RRiqDEYBqmj5Ga3zsn5qqCIQ7phkIX7hNupBQJCzT0cDfjLv0A5saGyzTVOFajEnt8kB_wA0_AIWAIWilMyySeYnlsAYFcEaNOgE4t2vM6T6T5BTF6WTkMg/s1600-h/smoke.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427439597270283954" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho9fWvCxsxDpgpK6-ADUIh4RRiqDEYBqmj5Ga3zsn5qqCIQ7phkIX7hNupBQJCzT0cDfjLv0A5saGyzTVOFajEnt8kB_wA0_AIWAIWilMyySeYnlsAYFcEaNOgE4t2vM6T6T5BTF6WTkMg/s320/smoke.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /></div><div>The spectacular ending aside, the most famous scene in <em>White Heat</em> is undoubtedly the one in which Jarrett gets the news in prison of his mother's death. The news is passed down from inmate to inmate at the prison mess hall tables until it finally reaches Jarrett, who explodes into psychotic grief, staggering around the room landing punches on everyone who gets in his way while letting out a kind of strangled, primal cry. Cagney was once asked by a reporter if he had to "psych" himself up for the scene. Cagney responded, "You don't psych yourself up for these things, you do them," reiterating his very non-Method philosophy that working on inward emotional motivation is a waste of time leading to a performance solely for the actor himself. According to Cagney, an actor shouldn't psych himself up to be the character, he should simply understand the character and play it for the audience. His only preparation for the scene, he later said, was remembering a visit as a youngster to see a friend's uncle who was in a psychiatric hospital. "My God, what an education," he said. "The shrieks, the screams of those people under restraint. I remembered those cries, saw that they fitted, and I called on my memory to do as required."<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJiG2F1HF1Kx94wRd1xkQKYlS2SoE9goYQRfZXk24YI5aSZjJEUy95h9GKutO-YZ6FPm_t_9aBj4ZUwyNx-f1MKa1UJ9CSNegYzZjrhIAOQCbTmMU9oPW176IYN2ekl5HSCZGEeg1MwLBB/s1600-h/cagney714.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427438534327939090" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 283px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJiG2F1HF1Kx94wRd1xkQKYlS2SoE9goYQRfZXk24YI5aSZjJEUy95h9GKutO-YZ6FPm_t_9aBj4ZUwyNx-f1MKa1UJ9CSNegYzZjrhIAOQCbTmMU9oPW176IYN2ekl5HSCZGEeg1MwLBB/s320/cagney714.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>In some ways, <em>White Heat</em> is also a swan song for Warner Brothers, the studio that had become known for quickly produced, gritty action-oriented pictures with a social conscience. By the time this film was released, the Supreme Court had forced the big Hollywood studios to divest themselves of their lucrative theater chains, and the stock company that had made Warners so successful in the 1930s and early '40s had either left the studio or were on their way out. Several stars had already made their last movies under their long-term contracts: Ida Lupino in 1947, Olivia De Havilland in 1946, Ann Sheridan in 1949 and "Little Caesar" Edward G. Robinson in <em>Key Largo</em> (1948). Humphrey Bogart's last Warners picture would be <em>The Enforcer</em> (1951), and Errol Flynn would exit in 1953. Even 'Queen of the Lot' Bette Davis was history, storming out of her contract after the over-the-top melodrama <em>Beyond the Forest</em> (1949), and not to return until <em>Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?</em> (1962).<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2qDCzmTxnifh6Bupd1IcGPXAPRCMD_k_qTsZFUQwf9JrUcMyf48fGeEOKK-k9VAglqwYeoqHYmhZ2YKVro1e32xFPhA9onWH5Qza1oPXHfj_w3mwN2bimq3SXwr1eYbgT7RxBKp7g0yTn/s1600-h/prison.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427439591024700690" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 256px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2qDCzmTxnifh6Bupd1IcGPXAPRCMD_k_qTsZFUQwf9JrUcMyf48fGeEOKK-k9VAglqwYeoqHYmhZ2YKVro1e32xFPhA9onWH5Qza1oPXHfj_w3mwN2bimq3SXwr1eYbgT7RxBKp7g0yTn/s320/prison.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><div><br /><br /></div><div>Cagney had already quit the studio after his Oscar®-winning turn as George M. Cohan in <em>Yankee Doodle Dandy</em> (1942). "Movies should be entertaining, not blood baths," he said in the last days of his Warners contract. "I'm sick of carrying a gun and beating up women." He formed his own production company with his brother William, and for the next five years their pictures were distributed by United Artists. There were, however, only four films in those years, none of them very successful financially. So Cagney returned to Warner Brothers with a degree of autonomy (his production company remained intact) and made the kind of "blood bath" he had turned his back on seven years earlier. "It's what people want me to do," he grumbled. "Someday, though, I'd like to make just one picture kids could go see."For all his grumbling, though, White Heat remains one of the crowning achievements of Cagney's career. It's hard to imagine another actor of the time convincingly pulling off this all-stops-out portrayal of Cody Jarrett. And this is no mere farewell or throwback to another era. It has the volatile dynamism of the best gangster flicks of the '30s and '40s, but it mixes in important tendencies taking shape in post-war cinema. The train robbery heralds the attention to the logistical details of a crime that would play such a vital element in films like John Huston's <em>The Asphalt Jungle</em> (1950) and Stanley Kubrick's<em> The Killing</em> (1956). It displays elements of the documentary style made popular by <em>Naked City</em> (1948) and similar movies. And it shares something of the film noir style in its often shadowy cinematography and focus on its lead character's twisted psychology.</div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ7f8A1gKhFgmGAl2VCo5UzZIKJxfRVCaRlPpevomHHfsydIsP7SCAGp5Hzga3IFxKtLsxprlYQLqH3nFhzprb24h53ALIKMt6_XiHu2vFqcPlqxs7THzYCjBgEWXAG3M2gXYeagDLxbzD/s1600-h/whiteheat49xk5.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427441643958164626" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 161px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ7f8A1gKhFgmGAl2VCo5UzZIKJxfRVCaRlPpevomHHfsydIsP7SCAGp5Hzga3IFxKtLsxprlYQLqH3nFhzprb24h53ALIKMt6_XiHu2vFqcPlqxs7THzYCjBgEWXAG3M2gXYeagDLxbzD/s200/whiteheat49xk5.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /></div><div><em>White Heat</em> was Raoul Walsh's best film since <em>High Sierra</em>, another powerful thriller set in the same vicinity. But he directed another Warners star famous for playing gangsters, his first work with Cagney since <em>The Strawberry Blonde</em> (which I personally prefer to this movie) in 1941. (Of course, he directed both Cagney and Bogart in <em>The Roaring Twenties</em>.) White Heat is arguably the finest work of Walsh's impressive career, and the director always gave credit to Cagney for adding fascinating layers of depth to the character. Perhaps the richest performance of his career, it--like Rocky Sullivan in <em>Angels with Dirty Faces</em>--should have brought Jim an Oscar; but, as in 1938, the Academy still didn't give Best Actor awards for gangster portrayals (ha-ha). Cagney's Academy Award for <em>Yankee Doodle Dandy</em> was won as much by the patriotic character and subject matter as by the actual performance (but Jimmy Cagney preferred that way, and so do I). <em>White Heat</em> was the six Warners film to depict a relationship between a Cagney character and his mother. Interestingly, it was the first to <strong>bump off</strong> Mom, a character who would never again appear in a Cagney film released by Warners.<img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427440510561528946" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 192px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuB4jLDQRUi7B5iLCk1zAMYUzN-GYqbPoAznBm6ifnWu8r-LxUTnGiRFgBYYxivO_zGRqejCMmW3b82hG3SamHlwoRJZLVgRzq7hzgyyq3KkGYXfsFrtfHv3GRn8-NMBsrE7bdL3UjVcLS/s200/Virginia+Mayo+and+James+Cagney2.jpg" border="0" /></div><div></div><div>As we all know, like many other classic films, this film is not safe from the parodying clutches of some TV shows such as <em>The Simpsons</em>. In <em>The Simpsons</em>, Bart paraphrases Cody Jarrett's famous quote "Made it, Ma! Top of the world!" while riding a globe in an episode from season 10 called <em>The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace</em>.</div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427436973479634434" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHaDJwkZOyYmMFKauvpKAyi2ydxLekC42bSv_iUFfXtmhTsL9AZMyWYxwUdTfswhB_KHpsk9TsZxJCzEjMIjRcCERN3x4IotuRGM3IIVtautvmWZQGYL1wXmqnAB2d28rJlIxLw-V6DIzA/s320/James+Cagney+-+White+Heat+1949.jpg" border="0" />I didn't really watch the shooting scenes because they were too dramatic. Anyway, this film is a must for any James Cagney fan, but I have a legitimate reason for such procrastination: I never really liked James Cagney's famous films, including <em>Yankee Doodle Dandy</em>. I really preferred films like <em>Footlight Parade, Taxi!, Hard to Handle</em>, some of his underrated works. I do not care for the famous ones, especially <em>Angels with Dirty Faces</em>. <strong><em>Happy Commenting!!!<br /></em></strong><a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_Virginia-Mayo-and-James-Cagneyjpg/photo/7331757/66470.html"></a><a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_straitjacketjpg/photo/7331263/66470.html"></a><a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_mayo53jpg/photo/7314570/66470.html"></a><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427440514729450962" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 149px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNgDHSbtcaM05dQyPPrnK-fGKOYTmMRlDD5LyyKLXH82_54u16jXPaW0jDNRmn46CCxfp_Ok9mUchdGUIyOBSkCFJQtfmUnjeKJrfuZrTwp7pCObmK04Xs7_tS5XzReXwQP3I11NiA5RFW/s200/Virginia_Mayo_and_James_Cagney_in_White_Heat_trailer.jpg" border="0" />(Next blog [for sure]: <em>Monkey<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDNA-Qp_soOe6E1dIGAhjd2kBXd1vAMjVELNM5CsN1YqeCXT4-rQfyChxtGnEJueA-NMLXrZ0_jlAPaTE58yj6Y_GDk13U6mcYG1X4H8DE2IitYCJKzv8GyM_q0Ym8oPPdn7kzUPhldjgi/s1600-h/James+Cagney+Vintage+Publicity+Photo+7x9.5.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427438540407511042" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDNA-Qp_soOe6E1dIGAhjd2kBXd1vAMjVELNM5CsN1YqeCXT4-rQfyChxtGnEJueA-NMLXrZ0_jlAPaTE58yj6Y_GDk13U6mcYG1X4H8DE2IitYCJKzv8GyM_q0Ym8oPPdn7kzUPhldjgi/s320/James+Cagney+Vintage+Publicity+Photo+7x9.5.jpg" border="0" /></a> Business</em> [1931])<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvqfIYBhsY7c45b7f17JWRmvHH-O8QdtUOL2GlU6C09bY4lE7P9-4hH6GDCWGElucW4qi23tME-u22MIG-I8qbDo2WUpBl3GxOEgJAt3TKnghiOoay9tYer3QbxTe_7C7FApJ52b_mFg4e/s1600-h/James+Cagney+White+Heat+Studio+Copy+Photo.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427439586288182130" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 253px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvqfIYBhsY7c45b7f17JWRmvHH-O8QdtUOL2GlU6C09bY4lE7P9-4hH6GDCWGElucW4qi23tME-u22MIG-I8qbDo2WUpBl3GxOEgJAt3TKnghiOoay9tYer3QbxTe_7C7FApJ52b_mFg4e/s320/James+Cagney+White+Heat+Studio+Copy+Photo.jpg" border="0" /></a></div></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427443322285626210" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 128px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPeqxTJEBu06lgAdgoVymUY9orhR7ZOmTf02ZWOoOHCt0ER4S1qQmJ8rf0fjvQUFzBq0AfQIKX1VsMp0OSJUjLtibuHRfTSfMPNazmVcMU7VnZNPzwO_Y_5ZrZPf5Dy1AK8NeRCydTJiMP/s200/WHITE+HEAT+1949+James+Cagney+Virginia+Mayo+MOVIE+CARD.jpg" border="0" /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMvzJIUrRcVtAEVCb4dORJAjVSHJlAUUVNJsOt4006t94jSdxgaNFULQ6iwg0nfbW8fdEXTtRNHqTKi6YfKPmW1_eA5uZvS3Iwz1Jifyo90ubn36CVWwdc909n0_fhgqLW2kc3xtPech2w/s1600-h/smashie+smashie.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427441641903143938" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 110px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMvzJIUrRcVtAEVCb4dORJAjVSHJlAUUVNJsOt4006t94jSdxgaNFULQ6iwg0nfbW8fdEXTtRNHqTKi6YfKPmW1_eA5uZvS3Iwz1Jifyo90ubn36CVWwdc909n0_fhgqLW2kc3xtPech2w/s200/smashie+smashie.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#ffcc66;">Clips from <em>White Heat</em>: </span><br /><object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/iC0kd4yQrBE&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xcc2550&color2=0xe87a9f"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/iC0kd4yQrBE&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xcc2550&color2=0xe87a9f" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object><br /><object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/ybepshlRvq0&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ybepshlRvq0&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object><br /><object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/mv55Px-9qR0&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x3a3a3a&color2=0x999999"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/mv55Px-9qR0&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x3a3a3a&color2=0x999999" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object>cagneyfan2008http://www.blogger.com/profile/09370117899423931277noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114108144634000275.post-68087924254285813392010-01-07T16:18:00.000-08:002010-01-10T10:45:04.668-08:00Captains of the Clouds (1942)<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrJC817Dx8OYiNFn47qX2lN6oNd4rGQzu6XzQY76DKQNOdMxW1c7jHqM086RKy2lC1yOfCyJ8KVuXX8-SyKDeY0fwYmON1OB5N-XSjLWjRPKcYUdfc0qD6y10sjLcvaiE56gM5JyVZh2Ha/s1600-h/Cagney_gal.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424166850830245618" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrJC817Dx8OYiNFn47qX2lN6oNd4rGQzu6XzQY76DKQNOdMxW1c7jHqM086RKy2lC1yOfCyJ8KVuXX8-SyKDeY0fwYmON1OB5N-XSjLWjRPKcYUdfc0qD6y10sjLcvaiE56gM5JyVZh2Ha/s320/Cagney_gal.jpg" border="0" /></a>I just recently watched the 1942 James Cagney film <em>Captains of the Clouds</em>, and I fought it spectacular, photography-wise. James Cagney was good as Brian MacLean, the cocky Canadian bush pilot who joins the Royal Canadian Air Force and must learn to turn himself into a team player. As for the film itself, I did not care for it; I only paid attention to the wonderful cinematography that the wonderful Technicolor had to offer. Anyway, folks, this is almost my last James Cagney film review blog, so there will be a hiatus between this blog and the next James Cagney film review blog, until like next month or so, or until that yahoo on YouTube <strong><em>finally</em></strong> uploads a new James Cagney movie (or I may finally watch <em>White Heat</em> and do a film review blog about that). Anyhow, during that hiatus which I'm not sure is gonna exist yet, I will be writing Marx Brothers film review blogs. Just wanted to keep you folks posted for a moment there. So anyway, on with the film...<br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424166846864463186" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 245px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf47UkD8cwBF0UIpN3kC5KMmCp5bModBtp6oB4jzjezghuK5o4GtomSO_vBzoi3H-9M7zQ7gitpz11dA2D6yVXmgbHWJLG3Ug952J3L0qYpV_oIzp3kSVMbXrTKv04Rt8RbHapUz0QUWsH/s320/Cagney+Smelling+a+Flower.jpg" border="0" /><strong>"So Full of Spectacle and Glory it Had to be Made in Technicolor!"</strong> screamed the ads for <em>Captains of the Clouds</em>, and sure enough, James Cagney's first <a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_Scene-from-Captains-of-the-Clouds/photo/5072332/66470.html"></a>color movie boasts some spectacular aerial sequences. The story follows a group of Canadian bush pilots who decide to join the Royal Canadian Air Force when WWII breaks out. It sounds simple enough, but the truth is that <em>Captains of the Clouds</em> was an exceptionally challenging and difficult picture to make. Warner Bros. producer Hal Wallis wrote in his memoirs that the film "proved to be by far the most extensive and difficult venture in location work undertaken by Warners since the silent period." Most of the film was shot in and around Ottawa. With difficult wartime conditions, every hotel in the area was booked, and the crew had to be housed in an army camp - with army food. "They grum<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFUXlP6TjUO85Gfj_4gzYtvxq29q9cIfNiPwwMQqhsbl4sZNZz5k3aoEjSbTa1SpEJRREPNV9NztjKv-HXB1LMgupzfn1t_5nRIYb_SJE_sM8DL4ghbe5mJTrASUiYs8APY12ClVs4yi-a/s1600-h/Calvacade+to+Canada.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424168756637567362" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 237px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFUXlP6TjUO85Gfj_4gzYtvxq29q9cIfNiPwwMQqhsbl4sZNZz5k3aoEjSbTa1SpEJRREPNV9NztjKv-HXB1LMgupzfn1t_5nRIYb_SJE_sM8DL4ghbe5mJTrASUiYs8APY12ClVs4yi-a/s320/Calvacade+to+Canada.jpg" border="0" /></a>bled loud and long," recalled Wallis, "and twice we came close to a strike on the picture."<br /><br /><div><p>One day, Cagney suffered a concussion during a stunt in which his character gets knocked into the water by a propeller. Afterwards, Wallis and director Michael Curtiz were informed by their technical adviser that in such a situation "the propeller would normally have been turned off, and we had gone through this experience for nothing." Other problems included truck crashes, plane crashes, various on-set injuries and even lightning, which one afternoon struck a camera reloading shed "and burned it to the ground."But the single hardest sequence to shoot was the elaborate "wings" ceremony, in which Air Marshal Billy Bishop's speech to the ranks on an airstrip is interrupted by Cagney's daredevil flying maneuvers. The scene took forever to nail down. Just getting the timing right was a major logistical challenge which required many attempts, but there were other problems: A sudden rainstorm. Engine trouble. Not enough sunlight. Malfunctioning cameras. The air marshal showing up late. After a week, wrote Wallis, "Rain, technical mishaps, and problems of every kind continued to dog us. We finally had to piece together fragments of footage from the many days of shooting in order to achieve a finished result. In the picture, however, it looks as if the whole sequence was shot at high noon in optimum sunny conditions."<img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424170267614408866" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 158px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiitJmVKE1azojBb5TRXMwMloDtplfwgaaxS-Jx-iCuEi2BLsj9Tvd9lmGcZlpwux02SHFMLA_X76p1cSbUov5GeZDIpBwwh12CGxyUfulkCkWpqZxEpe8f0T5ufD-pY-bXtsGaOZaeIn9/s200/Flyer+Cagney.jpg" border="0" /><em>Captains of the Clouds</em> sprang from a magazine story called "Bush Pilots" which Canadian actor Raymond Massey had brought to Wallis's attention. Cagney wasn't crazy about the script but was persuaded to do the film by Jack Warner, who told him that he would be contribu<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgks7xfncdxUUlkyyG4p5FgmM2oCX7sFI-2DkK62YdmLVQ4OrKgBcIamj_fJOKcfYSTjoIyPpqS5GAcAzHxI0HmsjqedUs2yLgIhX6XUXCgQmBd00gp0fXKYls2T6jIIgfy8YTP2PuJsv9t/s1600-h/Captains_of_the_Clouds-_next_ones.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424169459146377330" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 252px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgks7xfncdxUUlkyyG4p5FgmM2oCX7sFI-2DkK62YdmLVQ4OrKgBcIamj_fJOKcfYSTjoIyPpqS5GAcAzHxI0HmsjqedUs2yLgIhX6XUXCgQmBd00gp0fXKYls2T6jIIgfy8YTP2PuJsv9t/s320/Captains_of_the_Clouds-_next_ones.jpg" border="0" /></a>ting to the war effort by accepting the role. Cagney relented, but only on the condition that his brother Bill be the line producer. In his memoirs, Cagney also remembered the film as one of his <strong><em>most grueling</em></strong>, but he added, "the one consolation for all the hard work was the kind of person you worked with. Alan Hale, that big, wonderful guy we all loved. Always in a good humor. Dennis Morgan, also a nice, nice guy. As the years wear on, I look back at those people and think about them. When they were around, I really enjoyed them, but now I realize that I could have enjoyed them more. The picture business has always been such a hysterical one and the demands on attention so great that one didn't have time to savor everything to the fullest - particularly your friends. That is one of my regrets." <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIGuu0nVwKunlQeN84-dz4rw9c4MN2eoOO7lOFCUCxARo9yUb18k6sxykGl6Wsw3Sufouk6J3gF8pGN5X82lB5OlW6HfqWq-D3U-PozuoTDprEtzPhEWES7zcq8q33eiWVFuTmJ8YutBZ3/s1600-h/Captains_of_the_Clouds_1.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424168758451700498" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 261px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIGuu0nVwKunlQeN84-dz4rw9c4MN2eoOO7lOFCUCxARo9yUb18k6sxykGl6Wsw3Sufouk6J3gF8pGN5X82lB5OlW6HfqWq-D3U-PozuoTDprEtzPhEWES7zcq8q33eiWVFuTmJ8YutBZ3/s320/Captains_of_the_Clouds_1.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br />Reviews were mixed, but critics raved over the <strong>sensational aerial scenes</strong>. <em>Time</em> said, "Although Cagney is much better than his thankless role, the real heroes of <em>Captains</em> are director Michael Curtiz and his five cameramen, who caught the matchless greens and browns of Canada's infinite north-country." The Motion Picture Academy thought so, too, nominating Sol Polito for a Best Cinematography Oscar®. (He lost to Fox's <em>The Black Swan</em>, shot by Leon Shamroy.) Ironically, Polito almost didn't make it to the set. As an Italian, he had serious trouble getting across the Canadian border since Canada was already at war with Italy. He also suffered a heart attack during production. </p><br /><p><em>Captains of the Clouds</em> was completed before Pearl Harbor and released in January 1942. I<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPU5rIvkubMsE3LEl5b3O-4bZRgsNRo-SpOhXLuIb4xIS9ebGTqzadfPvjW5w__0gWqNgoLNpQ8d2th_4s5oXHUa9JCRmYJGGrWTB6A1audNjkQmIvi3B9ha02aAwlcB5QbuQP2W1DdsJ9/s1600-h/COTC+ad.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424169461539886514" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 299px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPU5rIvkubMsE3LEl5b3O-4bZRgsNRo-SpOhXLuIb4xIS9ebGTqzadfPvjW5w__0gWqNgoLNpQ8d2th_4s5oXHUa9JCRmYJGGrWTB6A1audNjkQmIvi3B9ha02aAwlcB5QbuQP2W1DdsJ9/s320/COTC+ad.jpg" border="0" /></a>n hindsight, the picture is an interesting precursor to the WWII combat film genre that would soon get underway. Intended also as a rousing <strong>"war preparedness"</strong> film for American audiences, by the time it played, the U.S. was already at war, but it did serve as a showcase of the Canadian war effort. Released in an era of patriotic films that skirted propaganda themes, <em>Captains of the Clouds</em> received an enthusiastic public acceptance. Although it was a "Hollywood" production, the film premiered simultaneously on February 21, 1942 in New York, London, Ottawa, Cairo, Melbourne, Toronto, Winnipeg and Vancouver with RCAF pilots transporting film copies to all these cities. The public reaction can be partly attributed to the plot line that revolved around the unique Canadian wilderness and the enigmatic bush pilot mystique. The vivid aerial scenes filmed in Technicolor were another aspect of the expensive production that garnered critical attention. Although reviews were mixed especially in regards to the stagey plot and forced "romantic" overtures, the aerial scenes were considered the film's redeeming feature.<br /></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhirUDjlrJIOT2ebn_QTWbMggemNG_yolERGqJaauEM-tfTa4d4m9zlkhF26e2XdCZrU29sdJPANz2BQc6-DAaZkxNUg8Gca_zrdOlyX89FO7aE3T_lGdP15DlRDmx8hgxIjh6XaOryLAeV/s1600-h/hugging.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424171400529215218" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 158px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhirUDjlrJIOT2ebn_QTWbMggemNG_yolERGqJaauEM-tfTa4d4m9zlkhF26e2XdCZrU29sdJPANz2BQc6-DAaZkxNUg8Gca_zrdOlyX89FO7aE3T_lGdP15DlRDmx8hgxIjh6XaOryLAeV/s200/hugging.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><p>The description of the film's production is detailed in an article at <a href="http://www.pastforward.ca/perspectives/august_292003.htm">http://www.pastforward.ca/perspectives/august_292003.htm</a><span style="BACKGROUND: #ffff33;color:#6600ff;" ><span style="font-family:Calibri;font-size:small;"><br /></p><br /><blockquote><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 10pt"><span style="BACKGROUND: #ffff33;color:#6600ff;" ><span style="font-family:Calibri;font-size:small;">Much of<br />the crew stayed at the Empire Hotel and at Len Hughes Camp Champlain during<br />their stay here. The big stars spent very little time here but some of the crew<br />remained for several weeks shooting the bush plane scenes. Cagney hated flying<br />and did not fly as was the case with the other actor pilots. Hollywood stunt<br />flyers were brought in. The close-ups of the cabins of the planes were shot<br />later in Hollywood in mock up cockpits. Of local interest is the fact that well<br />known North Bay businessman Harry Mulligan, who had some Hollywood connections<br />was instrumental in bringing the movie to North Bay. He loaned his carrier<br />pigeons to the director to send messages to North Bay for transmission to<br />Hollywood and elsewhere. Trout Lake was just in the early stages of its<br />development and there were no phones and the roads were very rough. Yvette<br />Gravelle Boyce who lives on Nipissing's south shore and her sister Jeanette<br />worked as cooks at Len Hughes Camp Champlain in 1941 and fed the staff and crew<br />of the film on several occasions. Cagney and others had cabins there for<br />convenience. The sisters and a brother were asked to be a part of a scene where<br />people were needed in the background and their brother caught a rope thrown from<br />a docking plane in one scene. Stand ins were often used until a scene was<br />actually shot and before the stars stepped in and sometimes a double that looked<br />like the star was used where a close up was not required. Mildred "Middy"<br />Morland, daughter of the owner of North Bay's Morland real estate company was<br />chosen to be a double for Brenda Marshall. In one scene she stands on a<br />wagonload of hay while Cagney's bush plane buzzes the wagon. The scene was shot<br />several times and the star was nowhere in sight until she comes down off the<br />wagon and is seen in a close up. Mildred married Jack Gorman, a young reporter<br />at the Nugget who covered the shooting of the film. They live in North Bay. She<br />recalls the good pay and the trips to work in a Deluxe taxi.</span></span></p></blockquote><br /><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 10pt"></span></span>The film obviously recycles elements of both <em>Devil Dogs of the Air</em> and <em>Ceiling Zero</em> (in a very clumsy attempt), but without O'Brien (regrettably), and neither color nor the addition of an awful (I'll say) title song could freshen it. Anyway, <em>Captains of the Clouds</em> was Jimmy Cagney's second Warner Bros. aviation picture in a row (you see, it was made after <em>The Bride Came C.O.D.,</em> and it was his fourth overall), but his very first to feature material connected to World War II. After directing this film, Michael Curtiz directed two of the generally best films in American film history which make this film look like crap: <em>Casablanca</em> (which I like very much since it doesn't overpraise the US unlike the latter film) and <em>Yankee Doodle Dandy</em>.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8karCYBsLnG6lLOLAW0-AQNayL_7Dc1mVUtcrhtl-q4n3OtuWrk57yZ0jL2FZJxZZwWdZm604ndYio445UWY9XBtp_BHBdsqV22CMuk9VFTQnkgy9i5dxPpfoVWNc94ac9qfZv4LDzGk_/s1600-h/on+the+set.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424172461814786354" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 150px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8karCYBsLnG6lLOLAW0-AQNayL_7Dc1mVUtcrhtl-q4n3OtuWrk57yZ0jL2FZJxZZwWdZm604ndYio445UWY9XBtp_BHBdsqV22CMuk9VFTQnkgy9i5dxPpfoVWNc94ac9qfZv4LDzGk_/s200/on+the+set.jpg" border="0" /></a></p>Anyway, I did not really watch the fighting scene at the end and some of the flying scenes since they were too dramatic. I would recommend this film for James Cagney fans who enjoy watching him in war films. <strong><em>Happy Commenting!!<br /></em></strong><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424170260993934754" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 158px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrhL7JIKe0Z0tp_5nTlT1YdmSADPTRU3wbBVsI1ZujcZsduOP0Nvm-qC3W6XLFjMz-fjeHApUBYCX7i63h7NvTHV5DSnLh5_I2ZvQKDOPimVOJLTt3qFTFj_We9XLEmX4igaHYYg6yaoKo/s200/Flight+Injuries.jpg" border="0" />(Next blog: <em>A Day a<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX49eLnUjcBNPtT8yAu0nVLRDbQmoWYJ569ORKwFGZra0NYXDXH_6xu4uDJRffdVC9oJJFAMRDzLdYCg0_8mbW6Qx3CB2-CZgcDNt1836jSovYGacKT-aGXKiY7nk4fYqYCClbRyCV9Z6Y/s1600-h/James+Cagney+in+Captains+of+the+Clouds2.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424171404266697490" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 162px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX49eLnUjcBNPtT8yAu0nVLRDbQmoWYJ569ORKwFGZra0NYXDXH_6xu4uDJRffdVC9oJJFAMRDzLdYCg0_8mbW6Qx3CB2-CZgcDNt1836jSovYGacKT-aGXKiY7nk4fYqYCClbRyCV9Z6Y/s200/James+Cagney+in+Captains+of+the+Clouds2.jpg" border="0" /></a>t the Races</em> [1937])<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi51McLbiHPsEt08rhg1PRVX-PXJn_EQ_SgLQCaAwCQ178XsMVwhejxgrnzQRsG-ejV0H9jRcQ3VoFeQ6RCgAwIVHrKqqSP_X-4O4Sj6YWVKtpf195kWhzsxSzqkMMtwLCtO2GK8opIrjNb/s1600-h/James+Cagney+Nice+8x10+B%26W+Glossy+Photo.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424172459160425650" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 161px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi51McLbiHPsEt08rhg1PRVX-PXJn_EQ_SgLQCaAwCQ178XsMVwhejxgrnzQRsG-ejV0H9jRcQ3VoFeQ6RCgAwIVHrKqqSP_X-4O4Sj6YWVKtpf195kWhzsxSzqkMMtwLCtO2GK8opIrjNb/s200/James+Cagney+Nice+8x10+B%26W+Glossy+Photo.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 10pt"><span style="font-family:'Lucida Handwriting';"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="color:#ff9999;">Clips from <em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">Captains of the Clouds</em>:</span></span></span><br /><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/3P7kA9qHwd4&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x006699&color2=0x54abd6"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><br /><br /><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/3P7kA9qHwd4&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x006699&color2=0x54abd6" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br /><br /><object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/IvH3k3yZyY4&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><br /><br /><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/IvH3k3yZyY4&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object><br /><br /><br /><object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/LClcwChbVzk&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><br /><br /><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/LClcwChbVzk&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object></p><br /><img alt="Webfetti.com" src="http://ak.webfetti.com/assets/glitter/0/750.gif" 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/></a>cagneyfan2008http://www.blogger.com/profile/09370117899423931277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114108144634000275.post-26099960503831081032009-12-28T07:37:00.000-08:002009-12-30T06:34:34.908-08:00Video Related to The Bride Came C.O.D.<span style="font-family:times new roman;color:#66ffff;">Part 2 of the 1941 Warner Bros. Bloopers Reel, which has nothing to do with this film but has a few clips from it:</span><br /><object height="285" width="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/UJA69_VhClg&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca&border=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><br /><br /><br /><br /><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/UJA69_VhClg&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="340" height="285"></embed></object><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420331133184924578" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 221px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSqfYZpzyG6joxXDrlQuZeLDbl-6X6-HQvJrosuFrrMUf82yWhoNifk3gtPKjLRD4FvTMHXD2ZlBMpr8eynyQkEjeKBsMVeierFR4vKlIliuHJVJ6pQkYmpWwfDzMUZN0797icWm5AiAfK/s400/German+film+program+for+Bride+Came+COD.jpg" border="0" /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGAQX6vTrX6Vplf3lCYgeNBn_VR4965vH8f0y3pVtd0pbgTD18r-xp1KPUtH3zJmf2gxd6fgCMYLSylsrcC6bhCyl1KM-r4bD3TgiadQ8QbsyrvtVucgdrzHPfoG2wVSq-igRD1PvL2_TT/s1600-h/JAMES+CAGNEY+BETTE+DAVIS+THE+BRIDE+CAME+COD+PHOTO+W857.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420331561375270194" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 370px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 264px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGAQX6vTrX6Vplf3lCYgeNBn_VR4965vH8f0y3pVtd0pbgTD18r-xp1KPUtH3zJmf2gxd6fgCMYLSylsrcC6bhCyl1KM-r4bD3TgiadQ8QbsyrvtVucgdrzHPfoG2wVSq-igRD1PvL2_TT/s400/JAMES+CAGNEY+BETTE+DAVIS+THE+BRIDE+CAME+COD+PHOTO+W857.jpg" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHSLcTaS0KChYxxA1SAmnShR__PNWG48ofvCVFguLdHBwQUqswyKiD-5oZ2TVouzGkzvIC3cRLg00AsjMHDcCzPA0-v3UYPsLv6H8T_LXam0qLZ-XETNTBqpNF9iCtwYHmPo30qilwFPGa/s1600-h/JAMES+CAGNEY+and+BETTE+DAVIS+movie+still+(f231).jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420331891787141106" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 319px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHSLcTaS0KChYxxA1SAmnShR__PNWG48ofvCVFguLdHBwQUqswyKiD-5oZ2TVouzGkzvIC3cRLg00AsjMHDcCzPA0-v3UYPsLv6H8T_LXam0qLZ-XETNTBqpNF9iCtwYHmPo30qilwFPGa/s400/JAMES+CAGNEY+and+BETTE+DAVIS+movie+still+(f231).jpg" border="0" /></a>cagneyfan2008http://www.blogger.com/profile/09370117899423931277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114108144634000275.post-68808510488934844412009-12-28T06:24:00.000-08:002009-12-28T07:34:40.475-08:00The Bride Came C.O.D. (1941)<span style="font-family:Arial;color:#99ff99;"></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigEQnckfx4RR-DI_oWTC_Bob3uOwdtojo09Jw3jSeImGLfNk_O3CQDbEFklZP9Lx4-Lyf1kW0zdcXN-Qi-M3xXsWZZpxkBd_B4KEp7tlEB06qzm3RqTDUld4Wj5yE6oCm51kYPzOrP0kvm/s1600-h/Bette+Davis+James+Cagney+photo+%23K70.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420297270980934498" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 232px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigEQnckfx4RR-DI_oWTC_Bob3uOwdtojo09Jw3jSeImGLfNk_O3CQDbEFklZP9Lx4-Lyf1kW0zdcXN-Qi-M3xXsWZZpxkBd_B4KEp7tlEB06qzm3RqTDUld4Wj5yE6oCm51kYPzOrP0kvm/s320/Bette+Davis+James+Cagney+photo+%23K70.jpg" border="0" /></a>I just recently watched the James Cagney/Bette Davis movie <em>The Bride Came C.O.D.</em>, and it was pleasant if not totally great! James Cagney was lovable as Steve Collins, the scrappy aviator who must collect $1,180 to pay off his plane so it doesn't get reposessed by kidnapping Bette Davis. This is one of the few Bette Davis films that I have seen, besides that clip from <em>All About Eve</em> (1950) that I watched in film class last year. In fact--and don't take this to heart--I'm not really a big fan of Bette Davis. (There! I said it once again!) For some reason, I find her acting to be really disturbing! Nevertheless, I do think that she and James Cagney were very similar, as both were dramatic and could act in a wide range of film roles. Still, there is something about her that I just don't like. But before I prattle on about my feelings for Bette Davis, I should really focus on the film! So anyway...<br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420297548008952738" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 222px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNrVObtLCGggZcQt1F9lrIxtGPlJBKD85lepVT__OUsRJDMKyp1qhWqWgDR6eUzJW5oNiaqQD-ISVj4oMQND2qWjSWgPiTJ6sXZ35F7mAaZiPi2J_rWKXmGYGC0dTNcEPDtYjLIYFU0Vmo/s320/BETTE+DAVIS+Movie+Photo+JAMES+CAGNEY.jpg" border="0" />Bette Davis and James Cagney went for a change of pace in <em>The Bride Came C.O.D.</em> (1941), a slapstick comedy about a runaway heiress kept from marrying a band leader when her father (Eugene Pallette) hires Cagney to kidnap her. They got the hit they were hoping for -- it was one of the year's <strong>top 20 box-office films</strong> -- but a year later the studio gave them the bird, quite literally, when Chuck Jones spoofed their film in the Conrad Cat cartoon "The Bird Came C.O.D." For Davis' part, she would later complain that all she got out of the film was a derriere full of cactus quills.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFrVjMp_Q0178-kwsJZ7vcOeCzjLyPpsRycWgLh5se_f-AGMMnQ_m2TZm0pi3E-pTpkrmjmvjpOystu632G1Y9IyCGiYmN21zMoHFlOM7n6hTWMKjCM24YA-BH35sXaZRTKioZxK7p4COX/s1600-h/cagneycrow.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420299214764393986" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 266px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFrVjMp_Q0178-kwsJZ7vcOeCzjLyPpsRycWgLh5se_f-AGMMnQ_m2TZm0pi3E-pTpkrmjmvjpOystu632G1Y9IyCGiYmN21zMoHFlOM7n6hTWMKjCM24YA-BH35sXaZRTKioZxK7p4COX/s320/cagneycrow.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div>Warner Bros. had developed the project for Cagney, who was gradually moving away from gangster roles. (I personally think that Jimmy Cagney's label as a tough guy could not be more wrong! He was a very versatile actor, just like Johnny Depp and Meryl Streep!) He was making the romantic comedy <em>The Strawberry Blonde</em> (1941), and advance word on the film was quite good, so another comedy seemed the perfect choice. Cagney was eager to break into independent production at the time, so he insisted that his brother, William, who was set to be his partner once he went independent, serve as associate producer.<a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_Actress-Bette-Davis-With-Actor-James-Cagney-in-Scene-of-Bride-Came-CODjpg/photo/7103214/66470.html"> </a></div><br /><div>Originally the studio considered a number of established comedic actresses for the female lead. They bypassed the likes of Ann Sheridan, Ginger Rogers and Rosalind Russell, however, in favor of rising star Olivia de Havilland. Then Davis expressed an interest in the part, and Hal Wallis went to bat for her. Both had read critics' complaints that she needed a break from serious dramatic roles. In addition, she was eager to re-team with Cagney, who <strong><em>like her had a history of battles</em></strong> with the Warner Bros. management. They had not w<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJoyfgcCjrg1co4oWjRuLEegjdGqoXd_cZDwtBcZ59R2iC1_upeOS8AGjq7v2EgY5XhX1YiLHzm9pWr0G_UCqPSn60PXHirXX-dAftXUda7JmhPkTTlcpTA7shERv9fE53b1lzzRkm7ap-/s1600-h/picking+cactus+pricks.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420304055098290738" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 162px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJoyfgcCjrg1co4oWjRuLEegjdGqoXd_cZDwtBcZ59R2iC1_upeOS8AGjq7v2EgY5XhX1YiLHzm9pWr0G_UCqPSn60PXHirXX-dAftXUda7JmhPkTTlcpTA7shERv9fE53b1lzzRkm7ap-/s200/picking+cactus+pricks.jpg" border="0" /></a>orked together since 1934, when they teamed for the minor comedy <em>Jimmy the Gent</em>. Some biographers have suggested that the studio was punishing her with the film because of her notorious temperament, while others have suggested she may have wanted to emulate Katharine Hepburn, who had been equally successful in serious and comic roles. Also possible is that she was drawn to the film's obvious similarities to I<em>t Happened One Night</em> (1934), another tale of a runaway heiress saved from a bad marriage by the love of a simple working guy. Director Frank Capra had tried to cast Davis in that film, but Warners didn't want to loan her to another studio on the heels of her loan-out to RKO for <em>Of Human Bondage</em> (1934). Instead, the role had gone to Claudette Colbert, who ended up winning the Best Actress Oscar® most critics think should have gone to Davis for the RKO film.</div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCklTHm2EYpWJEI_ZpsTGpVDTd8fFZSADOVD81E7Kuuf1WVhC3bIbmle-Rx6Sd16miYExmxbVlKrmv-kHw1FiNH895V5fWvFjGeEPbkECUsb5JTCsX6_FFOPWKgwgjIXUnv8QpPibiSVrW/s1600-h/Eating.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420300223453677202" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 279px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 217px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCklTHm2EYpWJEI_ZpsTGpVDTd8fFZSADOVD81E7Kuuf1WVhC3bIbmle-Rx6Sd16miYExmxbVlKrmv-kHw1FiNH895V5fWvFjGeEPbkECUsb5JTCsX6_FFOPWKgwgjIXUnv8QpPibiSVrW/s320/Eating.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div>Any hopes of scoring another <em>It Happened One Night</em> were dashed, however, when production started and the promised re-writes from twin writing partners Julius and Philip Epstein did little to improve the script. (Director William Keighley described the atmosphere on the set as funereal.) Nor were matters helped by ten days of location shooting in Death Valley in January. When Cagney complained about the heat, with temperatures climbing to <strong>100 degrees each day</strong>, Keighley could only console him that they hadn't shot during the summer, when the highs hit 130.As for the cactus quills, studio publicity claimed that Davis actually got them by accident when she was told to jump out of Cagney's downed plane into a sand dune that concealed the offending flora. The incident was then added to the script. By other accounts, there was a stunt woman on hand to perform the bit, but when Davis got into the cactus patch for the next part of the scene, she got "quilled" nonetheless. A doctor had to be brought in to remove 45 of the things from the star's <strong><em>stern</em></strong>. Her painful situation got worse a few days later when the script called for Cagney to fire a sling shot at the injured body part.<a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_James-Cagney-and-Bette-Davisjpg/photo/7132855/66470.html"></a> </div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrcXzYcaEM7zT5y3A6EH8kLZDf4RDBT0O-aSzxFwFh7JOAhKe6Yr8wL4uMx69favX6umhuyeXd6GBjtxG-hGGOwLnX1wd1-usqnnlE28CyJotuLGWzgySSjJuXDkzQCJ6U3YhGYbURMsKA/s1600-h/bride+came+cod-james+cagney+smiling.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420299207564044050" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 248px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrcXzYcaEM7zT5y3A6EH8kLZDf4RDBT0O-aSzxFwFh7JOAhKe6Yr8wL4uMx69favX6umhuyeXd6GBjtxG-hGGOwLnX1wd1-usqnnlE28CyJotuLGWzgySSjJuXDkzQCJ6U3YhGYbURMsKA/s320/bride+came+cod-james+cagney+smiling.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><div>Although most critics welcomed the comic about face for Davis and Cagney, some were quick to point out that the property itself was hardly up to their talents. <em>The New York Times</em> dismissed it as "a serviceable romp," while Archer Winston in <em>The New York Post</em> pleaded "Okay, Jimmie and Bette. You've had your fling. Now go back to work." More recent fans have looked on the film as one of the low points in both stars' careers, though acknowledging that their first love scene, set in a mine shaft, is a standout for both. Davis would fare better the following year in the more sophisticated comedy of <em>The Man Who Came to Dinner</em>, also written for the screen by the Epstein brothers (adapted from the 1940 Hart/Kaufman play where the Monty Woolley character is based on Alexander Woolcott play and the character Banjo is based on Harpo Marx [True!] ) while Cagney would have a much better role as a flyer in the wartime drama <em>Captains of the Clouds</em> (also 1942).</div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5Qe8wu-Hi3AyNL49xRS-4GF-AcOY3pXtXAt-yj3IIFxm6OwjbIMXrjRG-F2uCoAcmudM1Ms_4m3YLzw2QsI0J8ufLwnVht9Q03Ms37VjAy5GM4QoYqgMr92jyK28ns0OidP7NQtrfUmUm/s1600-h/Fighting.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420300224633710242" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 253px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5Qe8wu-Hi3AyNL49xRS-4GF-AcOY3pXtXAt-yj3IIFxm6OwjbIMXrjRG-F2uCoAcmudM1Ms_4m3YLzw2QsI0J8ufLwnVht9Q03Ms37VjAy5GM4QoYqgMr92jyK28ns0OidP7NQtrfUmUm/s320/Fighting.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>And while this film is definitely not one of James Cagney's or Bette Davis' best, it is enjoyable when you watch it for the first time but when you watch it for the second or third time...Well, let's just say it all goes downhill from there. Plus I might add that in one scene Cagney and Davis <strong>sing</strong> to each other discordantly through a closed door. That scene was entertaining in the trailer but in the actual film, it was awful and obnoxious! Although some of you folks may think that Bette Davis can do anything, one of those things is obviously not singing!</div><br /><div>Now you folks may think that I judged Bette Davis rather unfairly earlier on, and I probably did, so I thought I could watch perhaps some of her best films just to see that she ain't so bad. But I can't fo<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzkI0HTPxLJHeWHkYi_ZO9ageLeU1V_3-9UaOQGajRM_xWvbIkPZ9D2QY4YZ26clsTuzRjTe9bK_vCMzQNz1eKBxF72LGqEnvWfNyxQYzlA4NECETaW8jrM9QCY9ytm5k9mg_1VwOmCM5V/s1600-h/James+Cagney+and+Bette+Davis+in+Death+Valley.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420303223425693090" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 158px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzkI0HTPxLJHeWHkYi_ZO9ageLeU1V_3-9UaOQGajRM_xWvbIkPZ9D2QY4YZ26clsTuzRjTe9bK_vCMzQNz1eKBxF72LGqEnvWfNyxQYzlA4NECETaW8jrM9QCY9ytm5k9mg_1VwOmCM5V/s200/James+Cagney+and+Bette+Davis+in+Death+Valley.jpg" border="0" /></a>rce myself to like her. I've discovered over time that I don't have to go with the flow and that it should be okay if I don't like Bette Davis. Now I'm not complaining or anything but it seems that around here, you folks seem to have uniform interests: You all love the same actors like Bette Davis, Humphrey Bogart, Cary Grant (by the way, did any of you know that Cary Grant was Jewish?), etc, and the same films like <em>The Thin Man</em>, <em>Dark Victory</em>, Alfred Hitchcock films, etc. (And besides, we all know you can't have too much of a good thing! ) At this moment, I should stop before I get too preachy or self-serving, but all I'm saying is we should diversify our interests! To explain my point, just as an example, I have seen no one mention, or express interest in, <em>King Kong</em> (1933).<br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420301257992222338" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 132px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi25xpxjwghR7WBQfZQD3ke9nmwZNCDJE8SgpzAKAhkuJ50PUcUhHSOOpwPDfw8JIrf-WChsUFgZjF0AeZbnHhUuE74lEEUcQS71_GJnGW6OwXgrBds7kzKHAL_e16nCCLIss7U_fndpZRh/s200/The+Bride+Came+COD+movie+poster.jpg" border="0" />To make a long story short, I personally prefer <em>Jimmy the Gent</em> to this film but in any case, I would recommend this movie for James Cagney fans who love seeing him in comedies and who are also Bette Davis fans. <strong><em>Happy commenting!!!</em></strong><br /><a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_Bride-Came-CODjpg/photo/7103210/66470.html"></a><a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_Prickly-Pairjpg/photo/7138901/66470.html"></a><a title=""view Hollywood's Diva on the Set" " href="http://fan.tcm.com/_Hollywood3839s-Diva-on-the-Set/photo/7103218/66470.html"></a><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420301252406115698" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 145px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTYUBtne1c-7u_zvOUSvyBBpR9f2zkLQD-AaDXYRFPi1gqQEYe3Adg-fkR-YCn4yj_AXzkSenARQRLW_mva_Q6ijGnxNDyTfirO2pz5cYrl2eQxDiNv7yuL4TszBvkRkDVfns5Ccb6UpXD/s200/JAMES+CAGNEY+1941+BRIDE+CAME+C.O.D.+VINTAGE+PHOTO+226P.jpg" border="0" />(Next blog: <em>A Night at <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFqJ2JZg5yyA2_-QhEAqJvQGQYLD4-HhyphenhyphenZNguAw9TD-13CpUtFA2WKTGkMgpUyZ7SsC3MRDexYUZWaik0mYwzwZVlRiwd3lPtRsZd-saGPKJQ4V9MHwRrgDGZVrKHSNOBnAGqcVwwi7g0D/s1600-h/Stranded.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420303218112094898" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 143px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFqJ2JZg5yyA2_-QhEAqJvQGQYLD4-HhyphenhyphenZNguAw9TD-13CpUtFA2WKTGkMgpUyZ7SsC3MRDexYUZWaik0mYwzwZVlRiwd3lPtRsZd-saGPKJQ4V9MHwRrgDGZVrKHSNOBnAGqcVwwi7g0D/s200/Stranded.jpg" border="0" /></a>the Opera</em> [1935])<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpbUEilV4XsjWzSipQjJe9FiDuVqxpvhPQfbJNsfC-0q6Dl5Iolz3zr6LiYGIF6gOq86sf1nbgqlo8GUFfV_dcqoLaimxwO4n1zhPl4kIKOfJYEORffN8EMsLCJsnJYGwk9BY6sc5_J_s8/s1600-h/James+Cagney+in+The+Bride+Came+C.O.D..jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420304057360522530" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 146px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpbUEilV4XsjWzSipQjJe9FiDuVqxpvhPQfbJNsfC-0q6Dl5Iolz3zr6LiYGIF6gOq86sf1nbgqlo8GUFfV_dcqoLaimxwO4n1zhPl4kIKOfJYEORffN8EMsLCJsnJYGwk9BY6sc5_J_s8/s200/James+Cagney+in+The+Bride+Came+C.O.D..jpg" border="0" /></a></div><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><br /><div></div><div><span style="font-family:arial;color:#99ff99;">Clips from <em>The Bride Came C.O.D.:</em></span><br /><br /><object height="285" width="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/5d5PPLY1xXQ&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x2b405b&color2=0x6b8ab6&border=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><br /><br /><br /><br /><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/5d5PPLY1xXQ&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x2b405b&color2=0x6b8ab6&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="340" height="285"></embed></object><br /><br /><object height="285" width="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/SybTmh87SYE&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01&border=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><br /><br /><br /><br /><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/SybTmh87SYE&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="340" height="285"></embed></object><br /></div><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420307826301581826" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 286px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhimNQsmSu32oFKPaa8Yn2i104cotB_eHrmakdn3QZPJ_jt5AqwnR69WBH30Rim286hsuTiUEANrhRivUPUrMMNc0le2hZq32Uf0CXoEgHPV1eJnYS1Zvpv7V8IEheTg6SwaFDcOm25Czo-/s400/The+Bride+Came+COD.jpg" border="0" /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1tKnuTyL7-pRfVKb0fbQBxMbyVHgpB41xlT9UZeFC5EqBq0XENtRpnNtSiGAD3BRrlitwoONXfMBADqgIHyAE-0y9L3s5FMIXEXTDUPO5tPW7PxXhLLvKuysSWAM9p1LgZ0wujUwqM3Nh/s1600-h/JAMES+CAGNEY+BETTE+DAVIS+VINTAGE+PHOTO+BERT+SIX+201C.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420308705680093826" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 376px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 270px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1tKnuTyL7-pRfVKb0fbQBxMbyVHgpB41xlT9UZeFC5EqBq0XENtRpnNtSiGAD3BRrlitwoONXfMBADqgIHyAE-0y9L3s5FMIXEXTDUPO5tPW7PxXhLLvKuysSWAM9p1LgZ0wujUwqM3Nh/s400/JAMES+CAGNEY+BETTE+DAVIS+VINTAGE+PHOTO+BERT+SIX+201C.jpg" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2NpWNI5nXTfIRBk6QTO2Qb0FrrpByONdsCCJHxJU5rynRK9hQj2Xkzfkcch4ojJ9YSpWA6gukTozYku067joikeEd4R3g6fcWjb0dfy8azZNXoWB-34rP9NBm3h9fE4EHw-_HIfaLf6jX/s1600-h/JAMES+CAGNEY+%26+BETTE+DAVIS+8X10+B%26W+PHOTO.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420309469102814722" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 280px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 228px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2NpWNI5nXTfIRBk6QTO2Qb0FrrpByONdsCCJHxJU5rynRK9hQj2Xkzfkcch4ojJ9YSpWA6gukTozYku067joikeEd4R3g6fcWjb0dfy8azZNXoWB-34rP9NBm3h9fE4EHw-_HIfaLf6jX/s400/JAMES+CAGNEY+%26+BETTE+DAVIS+8X10+B%26W+PHOTO.jpg" border="0" /></a>cagneyfan2008http://www.blogger.com/profile/09370117899423931277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114108144634000275.post-25377893465804304882009-12-20T04:42:00.000-08:002009-12-21T04:56:45.484-08:00Video Related to St. Louis Kid<span style="font-family:lucida grande;color:#ffcc00;">1936 Warner Brothers Bloopers Reel, which has nothing to do with this film but has a few clips from it: </span><br /><object height="285" width="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/cY2D51MPs10&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x3a3a3a&color2=0x999999&border=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/cY2D51MPs10&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x3a3a3a&color2=0x999999&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="340" height="285"></embed></object><br /><br /><div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417308505094349282" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 244px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7ObRrfbGR6dp0OX-6yOtTSfiQNPP2Nr7Prqd0q8jjvzZujNKxUsc6WKCPpSR9urmZ6SF5z1pW6coyv74zxq_LUDaUmO-fsDbrf0D52TtbbCzZ4OFn-vwrZn8CXLvH2U7yNZ0wIZ5C-ija/s320/Cagney+in+The+St.+Louis+Kid.png" border="0" /></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9gpclIRJRlOKgjAEf9tKTFwsHA-Q4yYJLTa0LNqFyPKQqoZ6sF5jS7kNiAnO1KSV1MGI2mTaJBRhv2OmZcoGt9JR-_6t67L8Ua5R7efRxtGC1E7i21yt4n07csc5qwSSopaVovDHTgjUh/s1600-h/I+love+that+smile!!.png"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417309904720300786" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 243px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9gpclIRJRlOKgjAEf9tKTFwsHA-Q4yYJLTa0LNqFyPKQqoZ6sF5jS7kNiAnO1KSV1MGI2mTaJBRhv2OmZcoGt9JR-_6t67L8Ua5R7efRxtGC1E7i21yt4n07csc5qwSSopaVovDHTgjUh/s320/I+love+that+smile!!.png" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq32U7uoYgCgSTZCbq4IJzJ6aYdH_p6tVCtkIdHsEGg-CYjgl7mvzs6BvWSo9XOqw7JMhjZ0U0Lpx2v6PuOhnRCefxPdOpatm0_xc4JWXyO9zwrxugmxqth9A7_lrKc3iYhuKMYwRAcpZl/s1600-h/Truckers.png"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417310066356745762" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 152px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq32U7uoYgCgSTZCbq4IJzJ6aYdH_p6tVCtkIdHsEGg-CYjgl7mvzs6BvWSo9XOqw7JMhjZ0U0Lpx2v6PuOhnRCefxPdOpatm0_xc4JWXyO9zwrxugmxqth9A7_lrKc3iYhuKMYwRAcpZl/s200/Truckers.png" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="color:#ff0000;">P.S. I've found a very good that describes Cagney. It's "Country Boy" by Alan Jackson.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH54FYwoKRtEjHanNBP4zjXeGvxst-0lXljp3OryVzcBY8bjOOApUT3OVfRw9kac1KRrbjt8hFotk-V81s7bCZE-2gZxMGXdzWb-bg3g3Zo7QFmJA7-CLaqQsweAkCm6muqQz6lGhByiig/s1600-h/St.+Louis+Kid+lobby+card.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417672405515878466" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 144px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH54FYwoKRtEjHanNBP4zjXeGvxst-0lXljp3OryVzcBY8bjOOApUT3OVfRw9kac1KRrbjt8hFotk-V81s7bCZE-2gZxMGXdzWb-bg3g3Zo7QFmJA7-CLaqQsweAkCm6muqQz6lGhByiig/s200/St.+Louis+Kid+lobby+card.jpg" border="0" /></a></span></div>cagneyfan2008http://www.blogger.com/profile/09370117899423931277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114108144634000275.post-66080147073559894582009-12-20T04:12:00.000-08:002009-12-21T04:54:01.861-08:00The St. Louis Kid (1934)<div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrTsCVYZWP3XAH_bBnjIj9X_REoKwuFi07SnNxOpVuotQ30cICGVeFB_qerKmAzOUvJ7hjOE25pWI6jXhgIV35OHxuP9ckankzhxw6JYl3qo6CO9QANptjqzhChkHfwTKjo1aPkcDHOpY4/s1600-h/cagney95.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417292371575808354" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 242px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrTsCVYZWP3XAH_bBnjIj9X_REoKwuFi07SnNxOpVuotQ30cICGVeFB_qerKmAzOUvJ7hjOE25pWI6jXhgIV35OHxuP9ckankzhxw6JYl3qo6CO9QANptjqzhChkHfwTKjo1aPkcDHOpY4/s320/cagney95.jpg" border="0" /></a>I just recently watched the 1934 James Cagney film <em>The St. Louis Kid</em> for the first time, and it was good. James Cagney was good as Eddie Kennedy, the pugnacious truck driver who always finds himself in jail and uses a new method of punching guys--using his head (literally)! In <em>The St. Louis Kid </em>(1934), his nineteenth picture, James Cagney plays a truck driver who gets embroiled in a <strong>"milk war"</strong> between a trucking company and striking dairymen - a <em><strong>topical</strong></em> subject of the time. The trucking company is determined to maintain its milk shipments even though the dairymen are on strike. When a dairy worker is murdered, Cagney is accused of the crime and must find the real killer to clear himself. He also must rescue his kidnapped girlfriend (Patricia Ellis) in this zippy little film which runs barely over an hour.<br /><br /><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417292374264680962" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 271px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJx80r0L0RElFFnYdG8f_kd1JrF6n4hzBARdaniHOFseUtnIbDKVlzAIhGLByFfL29PPkJsVG2VI3txBIEDGmFglEzDjuvb7GNLhd5MTauq_vpTHvJFCkChuzQp61SNwG2kUvPIosrh6ZD/s320/cagney97.jpg" border="0" />Production began on July 16, 1934. On July 19, Warner Bros. production chief Hal Wallis sent director Ray Enright a memo, which read in part: "Your first two days' dailies, generally, look very good. The action is good and your set-ups are OK but there is one major criticism and that is in Cagney's characterization... I know that, when he first read the script, he objected to playing another tough character and I can see that he is doing his best to soften him up and make him as much of a gentleman as possible...It is true that we don't want to play him as tough as he<a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_James-Cagney-Hugging-Patricia-Ellisjpg/photo/7025793/66470.html"> </a>usually plays these things as there is naturally an objection to slugging dames and all of that stuff today but, at the same time, we don't want to lose Cagney's real characterization which is a semi-tough character... It is going to hurt the picture considerably unless you change immediately." In a follow-up memo, Wallis wrote: "I want you to call me...when you get this and let me know if you are directing the picture or if Cagney is directing it." A snide remark, to be sure, but it illustrates the power struggle that often went on as both the studio and the star battled over shaping the star's <strong>on-screen persona</strong>.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5gm4Ezrzk_6UR7Gr6Sl1hqooYdOd-w2XvahvRTJTpTqmbCKhLsODI5AZwApdGllHIqkQHt8SMdSRgSffObcK52i1h-XXOJww7OjKxHemwODuw08vlIspBqEWfd6LuL1axh5Lc08L344Dw/s1600-h/cagney375.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417293529739039986" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 251px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5gm4Ezrzk_6UR7Gr6Sl1hqooYdOd-w2XvahvRTJTpTqmbCKhLsODI5AZwApdGllHIqkQHt8SMdSRgSffObcK52i1h-XXOJww7OjKxHemwODuw08vlIspBqEWfd6LuL1axh5Lc08L344Dw/s320/cagney375.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /></div><br /><br /><br /><div>In this film, it is said that James Cagney's character is 24 years old; Cagney himself was <em><strong>already 35 years old</strong></em> (already entering middle-age) when he did this film. However, because of his baby face, he could easily have gotten away with playing someone 11 years younger than himself!! And Cagney the <strong>country gentleman</strong> is made obvious by his lines in which he speaks highly of the countryside and praises the farmers of America (I'm pretty sure he ad-libbed those lines)! Speaking of which, some critics complained that the picture would have been far more interesting if it had delved more deeply into the politics of the milk wars, but almost all admired the film's fast pace. Many also noted that the movie inverts a memorable feature of some of Cagney's previous films: "<em>The St. Louis Kid</em> shows James Cagney receiving a cuff on the jaw from his leading lady instead of giving her one," observed <em>Time</em>. "He can take it as well as dish it out," said <em>The New York Times</em>. "He permits himself to be slapped vigorously by Patricia Ellis, [and his] response is limited in violence to what the cinema literateurs picturesquely refer to as a dirty look."And Cagney seemed to use that dirty look rather mischievously and cutely!<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha2Z4kKyt4mHyB96rjg0haUgufsTkofG_Ecqa_973JTk7S_Otdo4ggua7JSKj0QMu3D19wdR4hk15IfUnhv4MnUWUb4eRm6Re2L5ti9djRc0x1ULEdDNQu3eItuqik1JZqq0mEfPKfZ7QZ/s1600-h/poor+guy!+jimmy+forgets+his+lines+too!.png"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417296315280576530" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 150px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha2Z4kKyt4mHyB96rjg0haUgufsTkofG_Ecqa_973JTk7S_Otdo4ggua7JSKj0QMu3D19wdR4hk15IfUnhv4MnUWUb4eRm6Re2L5ti9djRc0x1ULEdDNQu3eItuqik1JZqq0mEfPKfZ7QZ/s200/poor+guy!+jimmy+forgets+his+lines+too!.png" border="0" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCwXwEp45L6rzB9HdobP5NFY3d0nsVJewOKKq0gwR6gHQs-eW0c6AJGvI_Lb_5kAyxxEupyIYXZO-Tu_Wd5zz_5rqRgPGtjqPuPBJUJbhwnLiyWXq8wZsAG5MfHGc-WYZhfQeOfLt4S8m_/s1600-h/That+bitch+putting+a+knife+to+him.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417671512658745666" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 149px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCwXwEp45L6rzB9HdobP5NFY3d0nsVJewOKKq0gwR6gHQs-eW0c6AJGvI_Lb_5kAyxxEupyIYXZO-Tu_Wd5zz_5rqRgPGtjqPuPBJUJbhwnLiyWXq8wZsAG5MfHGc-WYZhfQeOfLt4S8m_/s200/That+bitch+putting+a+knife+to+him.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />Supporting player Allen Jenkins, a fixture in working-class Warner melodramas and comedies of the era, appeared with Cagney five times, usually as the comic sidekick. In the book <em>Warner Brothers Presents</em>, film historian Ted Sennett wrote vividly of Jenkins: "Cabbie, gangster, manager, sidekick, he had the battered but tenacious look of the urban animal who had been around - and intends to stay around." (And besides seeing him in Cagney pictures, I think I remember seeing Allen Jenkins in one episode of <em>I Love Lucy</em> as well. For those of you who are also big fans of <em>I Love Lucy</em>, you should know what I'm talking about.)<br /></div><br /><div></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9IDgNpblvc7uhWC_AWbx2uvrR5LA1jfvtuTq2Lg6BcXj08GsZxeZu1bf62QQA2gWM2EipvU1NuPu8B4Y-N-syp3abC7goVVjbaUtR6bVwxidh9WxCKhBwDrMVjuNDvDbtkvUZH6DRmopG/s1600-h/cagney658.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417293534112501826" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 298px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9IDgNpblvc7uhWC_AWbx2uvrR5LA1jfvtuTq2Lg6BcXj08GsZxeZu1bf62QQA2gWM2EipvU1NuPu8B4Y-N-syp3abC7goVVjbaUtR6bVwxidh9WxCKhBwDrMVjuNDvDbtkvUZH6DRmopG/s320/cagney658.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><div>Co-star Patricia Ellis, a now-forgotten actress of low-budget 1930s Warner Bros. movies, was a last-minute replacement for Ann Dvorak, who had <a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_James-Cagney-Patricia-Ellis-The-St-Louis-Kid-8X10jpg/photo/7025797/66470.html"></a>herself replaced Margaret Lindsay. Speaking of which, I enjoyed the fact that Cagney and the actress started out as backstabbing enemies (in one scene, she puts Tobasco sauce on his toast and I just love it when he goes outside and spits it out) but became rather disappointed when they became boyfriend and girlfriend. </div><br /><br /><div><em>The St. Louis Kid</em> was supposedly Cagney's first "Code" film, while according to most sources, that honor belongs to <em>Here Comes the Navy</em> (fun fact: Cagney became one of the Top 10 box-office draws during the year 1934, next to Shirley Temple and Clark Gable). It was a project apropos of his recent election to Vice President of the Screen Actors Guild. Anyway, in the end, the Cagney couple get married and spend their honeymoon in jail after being busted by an innkeeper. This ending is an obvious example of the type of film Warner Brothers began producing after the Production Code was enforced.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg_EoggYTvenOOym1aop7YrEtT7iyhILIsRBkus9rgQv5o7Mg0XV3VCNow1qwwmlvfge_65Jq4NNhkMeEmB566_oU9gz6Smiu60yj_bFu6CmDcUDOXKJcByFZDee02YOJbiD6uMgoaH5_w/s1600-h/StLouisKid.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417294384990910050" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 248px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg_EoggYTvenOOym1aop7YrEtT7iyhILIsRBkus9rgQv5o7Mg0XV3VCNow1qwwmlvfge_65Jq4NNhkMeEmB566_oU9gz6Smiu60yj_bFu6CmDcUDOXKJcByFZDee02YOJbiD6uMgoaH5_w/s320/StLouisKid.jpg" border="0" /></a> </div><br /><div><em>The St. Louis Kid</em> is a prime example of the studio's blend of compromised liberalism, cocky tough-guy action and situation comedy that emerged after mid-1934. Hollywood liked to place the blame for labor troubles in the 1930s when it could, so that it did not have to confront corporate American responsibility labor violence (I've notice that the same evasion marks <em>Taxi!</em>), but still, the picture was very occasionally funny plus lively. </div><br /><div>And I almost forgot to add that Jimmy Cagney dances a little in this film at a local dance--and that's where his girl-enemy falls in love with him. (She is also attracted by his incendiary charm, which is what I'm also attracted by.) And I also almost forgot to add that I was both amused and surprised when Cagney escapes from his handlers after being accused by doing the personally unspeakable: Smoking a cigarette at a gas station in the scene.<br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417295443440245570" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 139px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9-9FBPT5dWcMRpR3Wmk3L3N7JdIAuQYD2KlItjG0Sl7kUHgRJ0fbr9g9HDYbVGPm8HmV4A9sTrpgM_4lAkhsiMw9JctBceSMd0hxz-11519NCkrHfG-1vw3FcIYDXSrx7agerVPpKslB3/s200/Frandom.jpg" border="0" />Anyhow, before watching this film, I couldn't understand any of its plot or itself, and I doubt if I could understand it when I watched it. It was a Jim Cagney movie that I wasn't so crazy about seeing but then again, I really wanted to see it! As for the head blows, suitably enhanced by the sound department, they were <em><strong>very</strong></em> surprising and funny, and Cagney would repeat this bit later in a scrap with Bette Davis in <em>The Bride Came C.O.D.</em> (1941). I would recommend this movie for any James Cagney fan who loves seeing him in lively comedy-dramas.<br /><a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_JAMES-CAGNEY-THE-ST-LOUIS-KID-1934-MOVIE-PHOTOjpg/photo/7025795/66470.html"></a><a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_1934-rp-cardjpg/photo/7025791/66470.html"></a><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417295438105333042" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 150px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyVyeF_uDxkFkXmYlBbkS-j0pJfYRHqCTyqLLWtl7glt1sS_ay3rmcloZoYtzPC0Gt80Elehz5-03M2en1wZ7RyIsimHl_d6OBlVLww7Wiu3CXuvwv5phcFfyRT87o-pP4UrZWmkeZb9QB/s200/forgetting+his+lines.png" border="0" /><br />(Next blog [for sure<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRDCaod2qDWC6Qt5H9oxHrTG-L_E3aqYfatYXCEU6P7nIvw0RDfXYz_YnPQJw74t-Lh32VubITpMXBql6DueV6DxgAJpS1uP8OD3NawQ93LIUth41wGUHcKtcgHCpvi4PBgd2D_0SctYv2/s1600-h/StLouisKid_2.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417296632781719394" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 193px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 276px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRDCaod2qDWC6Qt5H9oxHrTG-L_E3aqYfatYXCEU6P7nIvw0RDfXYz_YnPQJw74t-Lh32VubITpMXBql6DueV6DxgAJpS1uP8OD3NawQ93LIUth41wGUHcKtcgHCpvi4PBgd2D_0SctYv2/s320/StLouisKid_2.jpg" border="0" /></a>]: <em>The Bride Came C.O.D.</em> [1941])<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvy-IoygKZS_WjQM6ADruPjv-2-lvIea2HGvXLBPRWO-I8Z4np19t9SXZeSyWOP7KrpY4HwCsLvWvbBFw4RlbgH0KOj9gSD39Ik_-nHVNLRv1qBRkeAvYaMNgXCIcNwePVkcbl5b2Sm7vz/s1600-h/cagney834.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417294388625182786" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 246px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvy-IoygKZS_WjQM6ADruPjv-2-lvIea2HGvXLBPRWO-I8Z4np19t9SXZeSyWOP7KrpY4HwCsLvWvbBFw4RlbgH0KOj9gSD39Ik_-nHVNLRv1qBRkeAvYaMNgXCIcNwePVkcbl5b2Sm7vz/s320/cagney834.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;color:#cc66cc;">Clips from <em>The St. Louis Kid</em>: </span><br /><object height="285" width="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/5ZWj5QavFRc&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00&border=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><br /><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/5ZWj5QavFRc&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="340" height="285"></embed></object><br /><br /><object height="285" width="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/sG7U_ENht7o&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b&border=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><br /><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/sG7U_ENht7o&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="340" height="285"></embed></object></div>cagneyfan2008http://www.blogger.com/profile/09370117899423931277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114108144634000275.post-31109270581146565312009-12-18T07:26:00.000-08:002009-12-18T07:44:35.610-08:00Videos Related to The Fighting 69th (1940)<span style="color:#9999ff;">1940 Warner Brothers Bloopers Reel, Part 2, which has nothing to do with but has a few clips from it (but they don't have James Cagney in them): </span><br /><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/UeMY6frwPsQ&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xcc2550&color2=0xe87a9f"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><br /><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/UeMY6frwPsQ&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xcc2550&color2=0xe87a9f" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#ffccff;">James Cagney on <em>What's My Line </em>(which has nothing to do with this film): </span><br /><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/mszKabPYEho&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><br /><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/mszKabPYEho&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><div></div><br /><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5416601708456459762" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 329px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-10nlGB74BXj-CfmoBXfRoo2F8JVmk92RtDN-UoPkguDw_LnLOzqvP1qc66EowykykTZy4d4js546ZMdseeWSRCttL4cFegQuc3LMH0JKNPJKVUpCdwy3h-LPRTyV5vnRW8e3Lpbesd4y/s400/on+the+set.jpg" border="0" /></div>cagneyfan2008http://www.blogger.com/profile/09370117899423931277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114108144634000275.post-67161325119449875702009-12-18T06:18:00.000-08:002009-12-18T07:24:49.657-08:00The Fighting 69th (1940)<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc9ze9V4iuMQy_hro1b1_36vRvFp82WQhQihLUU925R7AHXuTWbUaXaS_fJl7ffiZBSZ4gcpi72JtKg_RYzm8fXiEa4yV3aJpxvAahRH-f4gsqT995vVXmSBv8mNkcDVxlU4JUT_n_bTcZ/s1600-h/at+church+in+cognito.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5416587162138821186" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 244px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc9ze9V4iuMQy_hro1b1_36vRvFp82WQhQihLUU925R7AHXuTWbUaXaS_fJl7ffiZBSZ4gcpi72JtKg_RYzm8fXiEa4yV3aJpxvAahRH-f4gsqT995vVXmSBv8mNkcDVxlU4JUT_n_bTcZ/s320/at+church+in+cognito.jpg" border="0" /></a>I just recently watched the 1940 James Cagney movie <em>The Fighting 69th</em>, but not for the first time, and it was full of action! James Cagney was superb as Jerry Plunkett, the obnoxious, despicable braggart who soon turns into a coward as soon as he gets down in the trenches! It was very rewarding to see James Cagney in a movie with his two best friends, Pat O'Brien and Frank McHugh, again!<br /><div><div></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5416587156450588802" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 256px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9LVhfririPMHOKl6GzAKc8auJccdEjuYQqXUcuDgYgbLFeKQKVnmrdP7s16fCmSfTcAxqd91wm0F8v3JpOXsweWgJh_mZ1t0tgMbMkwdyGMXRUIbwdwJKxF2aa0XU2mBAH_xTTXvxLhvG/s320/99131_JAMESCAGNER8452_122_768lo.jpg" border="0" />Warner Brothers' inspirational tale <em>The Fighting 69th</em> (1940) was an <strong><em>enormous hit</em></strong> with the public when it first premiered in pre-Pearl Harbor America. The studio rightfully assumed that American audiences, well aware of the escalating signs of war in Europe and the Pacific, would respond well to a patriotic action-adventure. And the box office take alone convinced Warner Bros. mogul Jack Warner to continue making gung-ho war films, culminating in a movie about the much-decorated World War I hero, <em>Sergeant York</em> (1941). Like the latter film, <em>The Fighting 69th</em> is based on the true-life story of a World War I hero - Father Duffy, who was played by Pat O'Brien. The real Father Duffy was the regimental chaplain of "the fighting 69th," a group of Irish national guardsmen who were incorporated into the Rainbow Division in 1917 after distinguishing themselves in combat.<br /><div></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV_FYh6ZlrfNhC5tfBp46D3fpHCEgi8rxqBYCPzf9s1Eae3N4PvVPW5jwIqzxXgnl4kOlIAh5o0IUlbb8tE_OTWT4YlJRNaP47Yz9RtxyBAXB6eHrQGTeahQly_QkqKw74Wa3fop2_OFxl/s1600-h/cagney13.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5416587762443042178" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 162px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV_FYh6ZlrfNhC5tfBp46D3fpHCEgi8rxqBYCPzf9s1Eae3N4PvVPW5jwIqzxXgnl4kOlIAh5o0IUlbb8tE_OTWT4YlJRNaP47Yz9RtxyBAXB6eHrQGTeahQly_QkqKw74Wa3fop2_OFxl/s320/cagney13.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div>Typical of Warner Brothers (and Hollywood), their film version of The Fighting 69th was highly <strong>fictionalized</strong>. Tom Wicker wrote in <em>Past Imperfect: History According to the Movies</em> that the movie was <strong><em>"stereotypically "Hollywood."</em></strong> (Eh, what are you gonna do?) He also commented that "predictably, the wise guy turns coward in battle; predictably, the wise priest tries to save his soul; predictably, the coward finds God and courage in the end. <a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_fighting69thjpg/photo/6935832/66470.html"></a>And when all else fails, as it usually does, the film throws in Frank McHugh for wisecracks and funny faces."<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS0tm18cpKVfaCHNm5dV-1nBPRkxD8OqOn9f7XoVRS07uTa4EAUh2BaHOTv0q9jN7wvkeliBaOOEbw1vBZMWjxmGHBWA6T9refBzz07PciQx1bfZc3RFzU_dfnAkAe282_4c8Xc7RLs3Dz/s1600-h/fighting69th2.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5416588368147438770" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 279px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 218px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS0tm18cpKVfaCHNm5dV-1nBPRkxD8OqOn9f7XoVRS07uTa4EAUh2BaHOTv0q9jN7wvkeliBaOOEbw1vBZMWjxmGHBWA6T9refBzz07PciQx1bfZc3RFzU_dfnAkAe282_4c8Xc7RLs3Dz/s320/fighting69th2.jpg" border="0" /></a> </div><br /><br /><br /><div></div><div>O'Brien's co-star in the picture was James Cagney, who often played the scoundrel in need of redemption from O'Brien's saints in Warner Bros. movies. Together the two actors co-starred in nine films together, including <em>Ragtime</em> (1981), the last film either one of them ever made. Close friends off camera, O'Brien later remarked of his frequent and easily more famous co-star, "Jimmy can steal a scene by lifting an eyebrow." Father Duffy was one of O'Brien's most famous portrayals, while Cagney's was patriotic showman George M. Cohan, whom he played in <em>Yankee Doodle Dandy</em> (1942). Ironically, statues of both of these famous men are still standing in the middle of New York City's Times Square. </div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix5xPFvO4wQ4GMg6cDUbdSv3I12AUHvVip2RqGO3Ayl8e7tk543GqfgD1Y9LPHT5CHd7bPCu0D83QLirNqpZKvyPhpBU344lfDzJwTuk2lZGeZD6lsf1WVFt11HqzHN9z_dCG6zsS4LJnM/s1600-h/cagney102.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5416587770323555730" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 215px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix5xPFvO4wQ4GMg6cDUbdSv3I12AUHvVip2RqGO3Ayl8e7tk543GqfgD1Y9LPHT5CHd7bPCu0D83QLirNqpZKvyPhpBU344lfDzJwTuk2lZGeZD6lsf1WVFt11HqzHN9z_dCG6zsS4LJnM/s320/cagney102.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div>Jimmy’s character in this film was very different from his usual characters. He usually made them lovable and cute (in my eyes) but he makes this character disagreeable (well, maybe not so much in my eyes). A scene in this film that I really loved for its use of juxtaposition is a scene where Jimmy Cagney is sitting by a sign that says <strong>"NO SMOKING!"</strong> But rather predictably, he is disobeying the sign by <strong><em>smoking!</em></strong> </div><br /><div>Most of The Fighting 69th was filmed at Warner Brothers' Calabasas Ranch which doubled as Camp Mills, the regiment's training base, various French villages and numerous battlefields. No expense was spared in the pre-promotion of the film, which included a well-publicized meeting in New York City between <a title=""view James Cagney Appearing with Pat O'Brian.jpg" " href="http://fan.tcm.com/_James-Cagney-Appearing-with-Pat-O39Brianjpg/photo/6987866/66470.html"></a>O'Brien, Cagney, the real Father Duffy and surviving members of the regiment. For this event, <strong>more than five thousand fans</strong> showed up to greet the two stars when they arrived from Hollywood at Grand Central Station. The <strong>real</strong> Father Duffy also attended the New York City premiere and shook hands with nearly every actor who appeared in the film, all of whom were of Irish descent. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLfSgFmKP95E6XnUpAq8GzAQkgUUkwzZsG19PjmmgfRpe6eHGLo45UElK5Z_Tt2QwExObxEq1bvmEBvjdXTaj6lSPQQU-op8Zb0T0v11hXKjWith7Jix4XUV7k-ttA-6hWcYVxmNAr1n2e/s1600-h/gun+cleaning.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5416588373919875938" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 255px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLfSgFmKP95E6XnUpAq8GzAQkgUUkwzZsG19PjmmgfRpe6eHGLo45UElK5Z_Tt2QwExObxEq1bvmEBvjdXTaj6lSPQQU-op8Zb0T0v11hXKjWith7Jix4XUV7k-ttA-6hWcYVxmNAr1n2e/s320/gun+cleaning.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><div><em></em></div><div><em>The Fighting 69th</em> beat another rival studio's production of the same story to the theatres; Fox had planned to borrow Spencer Tracy from MGM for the starring role in <em>Father Duffy of the Fighting 69th</em> but dropped it once the O'Brien-Cagney picture went into production. When <em>The Fighting 69th</em> was released, the critics were mixed in their reviews. Some derided the movie's clichés while others enjoyed its vitality and pace. Frank Nugent, the film critic at the New York Times (and later a close collaborator of director John Ford), wrote that the film "is better if you can manage to forget the plot, with all it obvious theatrics, hokum and unoriginality, and think of it instead as the human, amusing and frequently gripping record of a regiments' marching off to war." The public, though, loved every minute of it and helped make it one of the biggest <em><strong>moneymakers</strong></em> of the year. (And the public is obviously more important than the critics.)<br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5416591110008390242" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 160px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtP5-FYksxYognM6CfFzlQadwrH3Z_CFK3dJ1mXWeXeebZ2PkLOi3ah068sUbIc_15n-boTLtBSuWZo2fUoECiwQKnd-H3hSe3j8y9UAfP1UGDazE7aHsU58PDrOOnAXyAPn4nJDYYtcOi/s200/openingfighting69thmq2.jpg" border="0" />James Cagney, Pat O'Brien, and George Brent (who I obviously underestimated by thinking he wasn't a very famous actor but he apparently is) are all billed above the title (that's because they're all better and more important than the <strong>f******</strong> title [sorry, but I just had to say that]), and the impressive group of actors is featured in of Warners' most stunning visual "cast parades" before the action begins. William Keighley's depiction of the "Rainbow Division" opens at Camp Mills, New York, featuring fictionalized versions of real-life soldiers Father Duffy, "Wild Bill" Donovan (Brent), and Joyce Kilmer (Jeffrey Lynn), the poet best known for "Trees." <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6VFGgOMhAR6Nv6vnglghAWt7nHj3ZCpLYJhe_N_79h1vwXiiwI1QvUT4_C3uIOd_47dQlqT7WxEQmqoKQcJ0_aTEbUK5sADndc5HweV0z16-y3OI0CtpYs40Afi-BRukp_tpg7LQ2ALEu/s1600-h/we're+not+promising+anything.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5416592871186966530" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 163px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6VFGgOMhAR6Nv6vnglghAWt7nHj3ZCpLYJhe_N_79h1vwXiiwI1QvUT4_C3uIOd_47dQlqT7WxEQmqoKQcJ0_aTEbUK5sADndc5HweV0z16-y3OI0CtpYs40Afi-BRukp_tpg7LQ2ALEu/s200/we're+not+promising+anything.jpg" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyoyAHIe7bz1FvfWljviADjo05K_aHLKGESajRx6OygfX0kq_wgd-vwEiPaXyQU_B77u_cw1N3YX4h6_07XKhTZrO_rafedQBEgL0_4g0Cq4dCjWseRr_5JzzkMZHz8KmMy467uMG9w3g5/s1600-h/The+Fighting+69th+JAMES+CAGNEY+GUINN+BIG+BOY+WILLIAMS.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5416592008980907026" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 159px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyoyAHIe7bz1FvfWljviADjo05K_aHLKGESajRx6OygfX0kq_wgd-vwEiPaXyQU_B77u_cw1N3YX4h6_07XKhTZrO_rafedQBEgL0_4g0Cq4dCjWseRr_5JzzkMZHz8KmMy467uMG9w3g5/s200/The+Fighting+69th+JAMES+CAGNEY+GUINN+BIG+BOY+WILLIAMS.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>And since it's almost Christmas, I thought it'd be appropriate if I added that in one scene, during what seems to be Christmastime, the soldiers, except for Cagney, are in a church singing Christmas carols, and they sing "O Come All Ye Faithful" in Latin. Now I've studied some Latin but I've forgotten most of it, unfortunately. So I could only translate some of the lyrics they were singing. I didn't really watch the battle scenes because I thought they were too dramatic, especially the scene where Cagney gets wounded in a German bomb blast and later dies. I would recommend this film for any James Cagney fan who loves watching him in dramatic war films. <em><strong>Happy commenting!!<br /></strong></em><a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_Dawdlingjpg/photo/6935830/66470.html"></a><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5416591110481293682" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 149px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj9yJedZrvvrHhHap6Hl2cYCVjUyMLac9dUEszR6BbsDstaEMJ-HTCevUqPIDPowARTRSMGLL9V6usR6kBKTo5HSY2yb7kThwa3_G7NwGNUYL8Wyc4P9SERwsfYu8OALb1WfRenFwegi5r/s200/JAMES+CAGNEY+PHOTO+the+fighting+69th+film+photograph.jpg" border="0" />(Next blog: <em>The Bride C<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaYdVRUmg4cO4DJes9vbNUAJyEE1pzOc_qncOarP408vbPJjaKIarA91hsWBTQtEIPOY8sixFosl4m2HRTJLIViDg93G5fPHfefBJJMPN895KOOXap6pVyuV8r18jYzdzbJa8E3LIggMUN/s1600-h/THE+FIGHTING+69TH+original+photo+JAMES+CAGNEYALAN+HALE.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5416592011408289154" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 160px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaYdVRUmg4cO4DJes9vbNUAJyEE1pzOc_qncOarP408vbPJjaKIarA91hsWBTQtEIPOY8sixFosl4m2HRTJLIViDg93G5fPHfefBJJMPN895KOOXap6pVyuV8r18jYzdzbJa8E3LIggMUN/s200/THE+FIGHTING+69TH+original+photo+JAMES+CAGNEYALAN+HALE.jpg" border="0" /></a>ame C.O.D</em> [1941])<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6gdmnNCN9EEt62-ek2LcLSNkkAePkgAlNAXr2h_94xDC9_qxPU-xO5kKK-QA9i_lPeEAKO_RMbEr1K6cX842wTKFNbK4pfzIsgr_IpbprS8N-2Dwo7nkkcDHIVHGSPqP_PnSzOuI4p1-8/s1600-h/With+Director.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5416592874545690434" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 160px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6gdmnNCN9EEt62-ek2LcLSNkkAePkgAlNAXr2h_94xDC9_qxPU-xO5kKK-QA9i_lPeEAKO_RMbEr1K6cX842wTKFNbK4pfzIsgr_IpbprS8N-2Dwo7nkkcDHIVHGSPqP_PnSzOuI4p1-8/s200/With+Director.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#99ff99;">Clips from <em>The Fighting 69th</em>: </span><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/7SgTBqKNPL0&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x2b405b&color2=0x6b8ab6"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/7SgTBqKNPL0&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x2b405b&color2=0x6b8ab6" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/-DxHvrxka2k&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/-DxHvrxka2k&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object></div></div>cagneyfan2008http://www.blogger.com/profile/09370117899423931277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114108144634000275.post-40929683462507027752009-12-10T17:52:00.000-08:002009-12-10T20:02:51.270-08:00Boy Meets Girl (1938)<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAExc4AI5XmFKWM4i27KsydBQpPPyALGyetBTXsw5SR69U4JmRX7zy4ANwpNk6VbjAjEcH8pndHGbBEtTrXj9_RjUjXHS-HX3mbwlp36w6_eguqDKRiR9nT2_kdPYal_oK0YJLpYpP4IY0/s1600-h/Boy+Meets+Girl+(1938).jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5413795904026231218" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 251px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAExc4AI5XmFKWM4i27KsydBQpPPyALGyetBTXsw5SR69U4JmRX7zy4ANwpNk6VbjAjEcH8pndHGbBEtTrXj9_RjUjXHS-HX3mbwlp36w6_eguqDKRiR9nT2_kdPYal_oK0YJLpYpP4IY0/s320/Boy+Meets+Girl+(1938).jpg" border="0" /></a>I just recently watched the 1938 James Cagney movie <em>Boy Meets Girl</em> for the first time, and it was kinda weird. James Cagney was crazy as Robert Law, a lazy screenwriter brought to Hollywood from Vermont and is partners with Carlisle Benson (Pat O'Brien). Pat O'Brien was also pretty crazy, but James Cagney was more flamboyant and therefore caught my attention. Since the two real-life best friends are both <strong>down-to-earth</strong> actors, it's hard imagining them playing such wild and eccentric guys. And the pregnant commissary waitress really does fit the dumb blonde stereotype. Another thing in this movie that caught my attention was that future US President Ronald Reagan (who was an actor in his pre-President days) played the announcer at the fictional movie premiere. The main thing I liked about this movie was how it went behind the scenes of movies, and being a film student, I like learning how films are made. Cagney also dances a little in this film but in a very cocky way.<br /><em></em><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5413796787243981394" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 207px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLdvbFcGfSc0B_BwEBPr6aI7TBnNsJcsBFRr4m2RTLX2qU1ijYiqtSfHPtK5UrMkt8x5yNuRQBRfX5cc6b4-XbtzmDoj4W0aRVuMQ0gI2GfK8mINLRZYJKqIHc_0NpLQRqqK_mNw5klxGz/s320/Kissers.jpg" border="0" /><em>Boy Meets Girl</em> (1938) is a perfect example of why Warners' contract actors and directors were called The Warner Bros. Stock Company. The film marked James Cagney's eighth time working with director Lloyd Bacon (they would make nine movies total). It was also<a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_serenadejpg/photo/6914442/66470.html"> </a>Pat O'Brien's eighth picture (out of ten) with Bacon. And for pals Cagney and O'Brien, Boy Meets Girl made for a fifth film collaboration the two would make nine movies together, including both stars' last feature Ragtime (1981). Also joining the group was Ralph Bellamy on his second film with both Cagney and Bacon. Because of their close working relationship, it's no wonder that Cagney, O'Brien and Bellamy became friends off-camera as well and eventually the three actors formed a social clique that also included <em>Boy Meets Girl</em> co-star Frank McHugh as well as Spencer Tracy and Frank Morgan; they met for dinner every Thursday and called themselves "The Boys Club."<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhftqOveGob6fprXT4cn4Y3EKhMe6a7jBTq1isO6Y3HTCLEyCwtpPcdovMSGT-pzM614F6aHuvij-YubZBYpZqfl_w0tATH3DA0C9_Xs4zmVEBgk-sHr4UyT7n0GeviXd-7As16EKfmB72O/s1600-h/commissary.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5413797585825258818" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 253px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhftqOveGob6fprXT4cn4Y3EKhMe6a7jBTq1isO6Y3HTCLEyCwtpPcdovMSGT-pzM614F6aHuvij-YubZBYpZqfl_w0tATH3DA0C9_Xs4zmVEBgk-sHr4UyT7n0GeviXd-7As16EKfmB72O/s320/commissary.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br /><div>As well as Ronald Reagan, several Warner newcomers are also showcased in <em>Boy Meets Girl</em>. Penny Singleton, who made a few films for Warners before moving to Columbia to star in the <em>Blondie</em> series, plays the manicurist (she was later the voice for Jane Jetson in the animated series, <em>The Jetsons</em>). And Carole Landis turns up as the commissary cashier. There's also Marie Wilson, who got her start in the Laurel and Hardy vehicle <em>Babes in Toyland</em> (1934), as Susie. </div><br /><br /><div>The role of Susie was originally intended for Marion Davies. There are several accounts as to why Davies, the longtime mistress of newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst, did not appear in the film. Some say Hearst objected to Davies playing Susie a pregnant <strong><em>(and <a href="http://i1010.photobucket.com/albums/af230/cagneyfan2008/Family%20Guy/The%20Cleveland%20Show/BoyMeetsGirl1938--What.gif"><img style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 98px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 86px" alt="" src="http://i1010.photobucket.com/albums/af230/cagneyfan2008/Family%20Guy/The%20Cleveland%20Show/BoyMeetsGirl1938--What.gif" border="0" /></a>husbandless)</em></strong> waitress. Others cite the timing of Hearst pulling his financially strapped Cosmopolitan Pictures off the Warners lot. While other accounts claim Davies was displeased with casting changes (the comedy team of Olsen & Johnson were originally to have played the screenwriting team portrayed by the less comedic Cagney and O'Brien) and by the size of her role. The part of Susie was reduced even further after Davies was replaced by Marie Wilson. Regardless of the reason, Davies never made another film. <em>Ever Since Eve</em> (1937) would stand as her Hollywood swansong. </div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYYXQdg4r3UyBMuFAvLUAYyAvE2zK9W7-YQM_tyJbz6N_WOLJCV45p0jHVccNBHnR20zc2dqQmVgLXaob-jAIKaxJnpJV21gxHuWZKtelVpOGoBVhPBNo_FDsrqtCzEEnA9QBtAa8NgEzc/s1600-h/98441_8x10_boy_meets_girl_zA00064_122_872lo.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5413797580739618834" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 258px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYYXQdg4r3UyBMuFAvLUAYyAvE2zK9W7-YQM_tyJbz6N_WOLJCV45p0jHVccNBHnR20zc2dqQmVgLXaob-jAIKaxJnpJV21gxHuWZKtelVpOGoBVhPBNo_FDsrqtCzEEnA9QBtAa8NgEzc/s320/98441_8x10_boy_meets_girl_zA00064_122_872lo.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><em></em></div><br /><div><em>Boy Meets Girl</em> was based on the hit Broadway play by Sam and Bella Spewack. The characters played by Cagney and O'Brien on film were supposedly based on real life screenwriters Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur. And it's been suggested Bellamy's part as Studio Supervisor was based on Fox's Darryl Zanuck. Sam and Bella Spewack would go on to great success penning the screenplay for <em>My Favorite Wife</em> (1940) and the book for the musical <a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_boymeetsgirljpg/photo/6914428/66470.html"></a><em>Kiss Me Kate</em> (for which they would also win the Tony Award), but the film version of <em>Boy Meets Girl</em> failed to live up to its stage popularity. </div><br /><br /><div>Cagney for one thought the film's pacing was too fast (and so did I). After screening rushes one day, he reportedly said to Bellamy, "would you tell me what I just said? I couldn't understan<a href="http://i1010.photobucket.com/albums/af230/cagneyfan2008/Family%20Guy/The%20Cleveland%20Show/BoyMeetsGirl1938--dramaking.gif"><img style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 97px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 114px" alt="" src="http://i1010.photobucket.com/albums/af230/cagneyfan2008/Family%20Guy/The%20Cleveland%20Show/BoyMeetsGirl1938--dramaking.gif" border="0" /></a>d a word." (He was speaking what I thought while watching this movie.) It was evidently a moment in his career that Cagney never forgot. Cagney also brought up <em>Boy Meets Girl</em> twenty-three years later when tackling another comedy, <em>One, Two, Three</em> (1961). This time, director Billy Wilder put Cagney's fears to rest, assuring him the pacing wouldn't be too fast at the expense of dialogue. Funnily enough, Cagney apparently never saw <em>Boy Meets Girl</em> until years later on TV and he found it much better than he remembered.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1dCkaOWtG6rH5tOoc2vYfe28F1O6U71teB2HuSSrOsbptFk55Xf4mEX1g07tPjW5jrYsVSUl4NIWTy1UzVtGR9QwDc9D4HElJXZPM26G9aYTNmEcLDvaHQQDVaGIy04pe_TBCulaUZHLr/s1600-h/Trying+his+patience.png"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5413819984086916274" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 239px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1dCkaOWtG6rH5tOoc2vYfe28F1O6U71teB2HuSSrOsbptFk55Xf4mEX1g07tPjW5jrYsVSUl4NIWTy1UzVtGR9QwDc9D4HElJXZPM26G9aYTNmEcLDvaHQQDVaGIy04pe_TBCulaUZHLr/s320/Trying+his+patience.png" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><em>Boy Meets Girl</em> made good use of Warners sound stages, back lots and front offices, so it's an interesting behind-the-scenes look at the studio. Also, for an inside joke, check out the marquee behind Ronald Reagan at the film premiere. The film's title is <em>The White Rajah</em>. This was the name of a script penned by Errol Flynn years earlier which was deemed too weak to film. Lloyd Bacon came across the script while looking for a title for <em>Boy Meets Girl</em>'s fictional film premiere. Flynn was reportedly <em><strong>not</strong></em> amused. </div><br /><br /><div>The first three-quarters of the film was like a painfully unfunny <em>Simpsons</em> episode, but the last quarter of the film got very exciting, like a very good ABC drama show, when the comedy and slapstick shenanigans calmed down. Indeed, the problem with <em>Boy Meets Girl</em> is the out-of-control, rapid-fire dialogue, much of which is untelligible (we all know that Cagney talked fast but this was just ridiculous). And some of the lines that are discernible are delivered in such an obnoxious manner (by both Cagney and O'Brien) that they are <em><strong>painful</strong></em> to the ear (I'<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRf3i417t8in4gPGCxtQXaHMVbiz9MW4DfbTa7-EaxuOOpFjMZJuUT9luwTg3P-VwpWSZg4Oe1joQSpjRn1lHeKVhSec7O1ydpC-KHSiRgn2gbourVqFfxzV8-ATk5MDu91kx5uocruRqX/s1600-h/Stirring+up+Indians.png"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5413819978239627762" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 241px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRf3i417t8in4gPGCxtQXaHMVbiz9MW4DfbTa7-EaxuOOpFjMZJuUT9luwTg3P-VwpWSZg4Oe1joQSpjRn1lHeKVhSec7O1ydpC-KHSiRgn2gbourVqFfxzV8-ATk5MDu91kx5uocruRqX/s320/Stirring+up+Indians.png" border="0" /></a>ll say)! The film is <strong>approximately</strong> one-quarter charm and three-quarters<strong> torture</strong> (no wonder I was so reluctant to watch it). Most of it resembles a Poverty Row production, rather than an A film released by a major studio (and it seemed pretty low for Warner Brothers plus it was more like a Marx Brothers film). </div><br /><br /><div>Following this embarrassing effort, Cagney and O'Brien would collaborate on their greatest Warner Bros. film as a team, <em>Angels with Dirty Faces</em> (which I'm pretty much sick of by now, no offense). This farce was something new for Cagney. According to the book "James Cagney: A Celebration" by Richard Schickel: </div><br /><br /><div><br /><blockquote><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:85%;color:#66ff99;">For Cagney, <em>Boy Meets Girl</em> represents a complete novelty. He had never before<br />played in a pure farce, but in this form he was as expert as he ever was on the<br />screen. The speech and precision of his speech pattern, the inventive no-waste<br />choreography of his movements are superbly calculated. And he makes a masterful<br />lead dancer for O'Brien, setting the tone and place for their intricate and<br />dizzying verbal exchanges--and their pratfalls--with his pal following with<br />perfect professionalism and adding a few neat improvisations of his own. But it<br />is the suggestion of cold reasonableness that Cagney brings to his performance<br />that is a revelation. In is way Robert Law--wonderfully ironic name--is as much<br />an anarchist as Tom Powers ever was. Perhaps so, since as a literate man he<br />would be familiar with that word, understan its meaning and its application to<br />his behavior. He may be, then, even less moral that the instinct-driven<br />gangster. Cagney conveys that self-conciousness, that air of the put-on--which<br />is not entirely dissimilar to what Groucho Marx used to imply in his<br />work--without ever choking off any of his laughs. [I love how he smiles, in a<br />happy, mischievous sort of way.]</span> </blockquote><br />I would & wouldn't recommend this farce for any James Cagney fan, but if any Cagney fan would love to see their idol in all of his movies, then this is the film for them. After all, it is a far cry from his normal roles, which is what I like about it. Personally, this was one of Cagney's 1930s films that I wasn't so crazy about seeing, but since I'm so interested in seeing all of his '30s movies (and seeing the cute, baby face he had during this period), I saw this movie anyway, just like I intend to see <em>The Frisco Kid</em>, <em>Winner Take All</em>, etc. (And keep your shirts on: I will see <em>White Heat</em>.) <strong><em>Happy Commenting!!!</em></strong><br /><br />(Next blog [for sure]: <em>The Fighting 69th</em> [1940])<a href="http://i1010.photobucket.com/albums/af230/cagneyfan2008/Family%20Guy/The%20Cleveland%20Show/BoyMeetsGirl1938--BANG.gif"><img style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 144px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 93px" alt="" src="http://i1010.photobucket.com/albums/af230/cagneyfan2008/Family%20Guy/The%20Cleveland%20Show/BoyMeetsGirl1938--BANG.gif" border="0" /></a><a href="http://i1010.photobucket.com/albums/af230/cagneyfan2008/Family%20Guy/The%20Cleveland%20Show/BoyMeetsGirl--weirdfaceCagney.gif"><img style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 91px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 92px" alt="" src="http://i1010.photobucket.com/albums/af230/cagneyfan2008/Family%20Guy/The%20Cleveland%20Show/BoyMeetsGirl--weirdfaceCagney.gif" border="0" /></a><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 95px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 87px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://i1010.photobucket.com/albums/af230/cagneyfan2008/Family%20Guy/The%20Cleveland%20Show/BoyMeetsGirl19382.gif" border="0" /></div></div><br /><br /><br /><p><span style="font-family:courier new;color:#ffcc66;">Clips from <em>Boy Meets Girl</em>: </span></p><br /><p><span style="font-family:Courier New;color:#ffcc66;"></span><br /><br /><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/qT9oVH-LONU&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/qT9oVH-LONU&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOwz_fPUGriVJiXT2i-fouUxEg6jBbPtFewAVW7lhQsuESdWceal2ppJKvN0lPOAhvVNo4azU2jGB76htdearB42Fq6I4pU3fa4QOLFxQYRwfdFyfNSu4ezmjO5avtrXbyy6xTEhpnPMwo/s1600-h/clowns.png"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5413819972360133522" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 241px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOwz_fPUGriVJiXT2i-fouUxEg6jBbPtFewAVW7lhQsuESdWceal2ppJKvN0lPOAhvVNo4azU2jGB76htdearB42Fq6I4pU3fa4QOLFxQYRwfdFyfNSu4ezmjO5avtrXbyy6xTEhpnPMwo/s320/clowns.png" border="0" /></a></p><br /><br /><br /><br /><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/XLk7iMrM8Uw&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><br /><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/XLk7iMrM8Uw&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br /><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/h6-YItumWfA&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x3a3a3a&color2=0x999999"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><br /><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/h6-YItumWfA&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x3a3a3a&color2=0x999999" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5413822313971924226" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8W0YnHZSjBNdxyI2lsAUFzMqsfe3CFJYntb44-r9jntKdKAay-lGmJFC5f5X7YXllOj6ZDDkFjqTIlJfw_QRa7-H5cSAhR4BYwE7P6J3kjQtVaHZmRebOhJWIIRshlJFpuJuLBsfZLjD5/s400/boy+meets+girl+vhs.jpg" border="0" />cagneyfan2008http://www.blogger.com/profile/09370117899423931277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114108144634000275.post-7128958841990927802009-12-08T19:01:00.000-08:002009-12-08T19:45:27.246-08:00Great Guy (1936)<div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVO_QA5xM7U2dQywOalMgdK2mKcIZJ31shawjv8dEwyfA5B8J-CHpI1qnZn7p8zwDgOojo8jPzwLSHZRhhK3DdZnfHMjHNCrKSHqdf0LHTPwqwTei7798lxooYiblBuQu3Zx3CFtt90Xfg/s1600-h/great+guy.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5413070699773342146" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 247px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVO_QA5xM7U2dQywOalMgdK2mKcIZJ31shawjv8dEwyfA5B8J-CHpI1qnZn7p8zwDgOojo8jPzwLSHZRhhK3DdZnfHMjHNCrKSHqdf0LHTPwqwTei7798lxooYiblBuQu3Zx3CFtt90Xfg/s320/great+guy.jpg" border="0" /></a>I just recent watched the 1936 James Cagney movie <em>Great Guy</em>, and it was okay but the film quality was poor and grainy and so was the sound. James Cagney was good as Johnny Cave, a deputy in the New York Department of Weights and Measures who chases crooks and cheats. It is, to say the least, a comedown from the FBI. There is a difference in one's level of involvement when one is watching public enemies being run to the ground, and when one is watching petty crooks, like butchers who put their thumb on the scale or gas station attendants who give short measure to their customers, being brought to justice. Cagney's character is congealed by the desire to not resort to violence or even a wisecrack in fulfilling his duty for the public's well-being.<br /><div></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5413070710788045586" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 160px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 110px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLvf2kzOVT-j2LHNvGzfxjxnoh5oe3Yc3B3IkR1H0ntu9ygwWtV4pmtbY1gDODPAcISMXwcFaI3MtZmaKK1QThaTnVCZQYaQE6wrlowvGgBY07VO_CLYW0MhAN-7uRGw6bVysiq9gib5px/s320/Great_Guy_00000014.jpg" border="0" />Mae Clarke, who was his leading lady in <em>The Public Enemy</em> (1931) and <em>Lady</em><a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_JAMES-CAGNEY-GREAT-GUY-1936-ORG-PHOTO-STILLjpg/photo/6865598/66470.html"><em> </em></a><em>Killer</em> (1933), is back as his girlfriend in this film and even though I'm jealous of any Cagney romance, I'm not jealous of this one. Rather I'm relieved for her, as she does not get pushed around or bullied by Jimmy Cag<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0Mu4JdGgLLeuPkhHDZJc40Ay3D0tRPgFo4qAKBxnKum5d-pSwfDkeqQWXhx_6cF4XaaNriAUcqfXrGeu47GDM8mM_4OME4Mz07maAiTxzDpH8hJZ5T6ttqUJehl5LKn3JtxBJTLz30fzh/s1600-h/Great_Guy_00000034.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5413071532779085586" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 160px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 110px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0Mu4JdGgLLeuPkhHDZJc40Ay3D0tRPgFo4qAKBxnKum5d-pSwfDkeqQWXhx_6cF4XaaNriAUcqfXrGeu47GDM8mM_4OME4Mz07maAiTxzDpH8hJZ5T6ttqUJehl5LKn3JtxBJTLz30fzh/s320/Great_Guy_00000034.jpg" border="0" /></a>ney. After getting smashed in the face by a grapefruit and being dragged across the room by the hair by Cagney, Clarke<em><strong> finally</strong></em> gets to <strong>bully</strong> him so it's sort of <strong>revenge</strong> on her part! She is the straight-laced girlfriend who insists that they eat in a cafeteria less fancier t<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvDcMPcx06wRj7_E27Bw5y9LNaXDsnN-DASwMK1c2CPNi9na720BazfzfcfbcYvuFag3LS7kLglCZndNXJHoL1rjFmQ_-5TqH4tlUK-UvkTUF-e1Pcr4zFvfgUC-hOKbrXkLx4cLUFQNAe/s1600-h/James+Cagney+and+Mae+Clarke.bmp"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5413072729084411602" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 246px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvDcMPcx06wRj7_E27Bw5y9LNaXDsnN-DASwMK1c2CPNi9na720BazfzfcfbcYvuFag3LS7kLglCZndNXJHoL1rjFmQ_-5TqH4tlUK-UvkTUF-e1Pcr4zFvfgUC-hOKbrXkLx4cLUFQNAe/s320/James+Cagney+and+Mae+Clarke.bmp" border="0" /></a>han the Ritz so they can save money for their stash (and during the Depression, it was very wise to do so). This, like most of their other scenes, amounts to premarital nagging, and one gets the impression that if any grapefruit is going to be thrown in this relationship, she will be the one doing the throwing. I especially like the scenes where they kiss and talk on a sofa that looks like it's in their home but is actually in a <strong><em>furniture store!!</em></strong> That is so like <em>The Simpsons</em> and <em>Family Guy</em>, where it seems like they're doing one but they're actually doing another.<br /><br /><div>As for the supporting cast, they are adequate, but they are generally overshadowed rather easily by Cag<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcq4ZXurILO5YAnJa7H5QbyY4zXM5TxnL2ZM0kHn9PzXXldqlle6gglbHCWPYRBE5XN-OEpTcQbtDoESvapVQybMiogNnE6dde94ntYBO-D1QJve_eWs1CZ5zrQ9K4-s0K9jr_FIE15PIk/s1600-h/Great_Guy_00000056.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5413071541232979202" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 160px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 110px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcq4ZXurILO5YAnJa7H5QbyY4zXM5TxnL2ZM0kHn9PzXXldqlle6gglbHCWPYRBE5XN-OEpTcQbtDoESvapVQybMiogNnE6dde94ntYBO-D1QJve_eWs1CZ5zrQ9K4-s0K9jr_FIE15PIk/s320/Great_Guy_00000056.jpg" border="0" /></a>ney. Mae Clarke is relatively appealing as Cagney's fiancée, but she mostly has to react to situations, since the script and dialogue don't give her much more to work with. The movie as a whole largely follows a familiar pattern, and with a lesser star it would have been a rather routine affair. Cagney brings it up a couple of notches, and his own performance certainly won't disappoint anyone either. And of course, the Cagney acting style is unchanged. All the gestures are in place, but particularly the floating, air-sculpting hands, this time not overdone. In later years the use of his hands as dramatic punctuation dimishing considerably, but in this yet early phase of his career they are deftly and fascinatingly employed. (But I swear to God, they annoy me in general. I heard that he uses them all the time in <em>Hard to Handle</em>.) He seems to b<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhim10IOOr3elVrC7zLVo6dW9ggLNX18Jm4TdU4DT9ERV_WqI7WcZfUAaSv-oZVb0JNHY2gPEVKDeK54oG-tp580XyOjgAwXDBRp4EGTTU2b8jo6g9fBtxogjcl8tmwJ1QeDDCGKNgd_vW6/s1600-h/James+in+a+dramatic+scene+from+Great+Guy.bmp"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5413072734832699618" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 244px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhim10IOOr3elVrC7zLVo6dW9ggLNX18Jm4TdU4DT9ERV_WqI7WcZfUAaSv-oZVb0JNHY2gPEVKDeK54oG-tp580XyOjgAwXDBRp4EGTTU2b8jo6g9fBtxogjcl8tmwJ1QeDDCGKNgd_vW6/s320/James+in+a+dramatic+scene+from+Great+Guy.bmp" border="0" /></a>e at ease and enjoying himself tremendously--the performance turned in here is intelligent and crackles with his unique energy and surefire charisma. Mae Clarke's presence lends a definite Warner's feel to the overall production, and the story moves along smartly after a rocky introduction that seems to begin three or four reels into the story. </div><br /><br /><br /><div></div><div>James Cagney made this movie after winning a contractal battle with Warner Brothers. According to the book "The Complete Films of James Cagney" by Homer Dickens (or Simpson?):</div><br /><br /><div><blockquote><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="color:#66cccc;">When <em>Great Guy</em> was released in, in December 1936, Cagney had been off the screen<br />for one year. During this time he and Warner Bros. battled in court, with Jimmy<br />finally becoming victorious. This was his first picture (in a two-picture-a-year<br />deal) with the independent outfit Grand National, and was based on the "Johnny<br />Cave Stories" by James Edward Grant that had been appearing in the Sunday<br />Evening Post. John G. Blystone neatly directed on a shoestring budget, which was<br />all too apparent, since a Warners picture had definite production values that<br />were missing here. But, despite the budget, <em>Great Guy</em>, or <em>Pluck of the Irish</em> as<br />it was called in England, was a nifty an exciting melodrama. It was fun seeing<br />Mae Clarke back in a Cagney picture.</span> </span></span></blockquote></div><div>I didn't really watch the fighting scenes because they were too dramatic. I would recommend this film for any James Cagney fan who likes watching him in melodramas. <em><strong>Happy commenting!!!</strong></em> <img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5413070706630325394" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 160px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 110px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOEAULBX6_soPkjpz5Iaefwa5Bdvn3cxXb6bMauMctP6dZA1Dzq409CKbbPRCAid7vdxzs7gb_SmV8qeLFNrRsIQ-5UMN62dc6dTAuWvVvBzHmHQzQqE9k6myUidD8SXR7Q9Yaq40zT9G_/s320/Great_Guy_00000009.jpg" border="0" /><br /><a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_JAMES-CAGNEY-GREAT-GUY-1936-ORG-PHOTO-STILL2jpg/photo/6865602/66470.html"></a>(Next blog: <em>The Fight<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivJPqNY-s2FZz-tlZ72ohW0lrmmr71OI4tGx0xYZGJ1V_vDqp75sC2VBqsXMuV2mh_-uB8aL2dnN8RWYmr3PiR1WzQw2DweUqTtp_oBO5wBXQ5vrzzXLyQgGZktkXw1eQgAuB3zVapxcnI/s1600-h/Great_Guy_00000017.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5413071528899383298" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 160px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 110px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivJPqNY-s2FZz-tlZ72ohW0lrmmr71OI4tGx0xYZGJ1V_vDqp75sC2VBqsXMuV2mh_-uB8aL2dnN8RWYmr3PiR1WzQw2DweUqTtp_oBO5wBXQ5vrzzXLyQgGZktkXw1eQgAuB3zVapxcnI/s320/Great_Guy_00000017.jpg" border="0" /></a>ing 69th</em> [1940])<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyQ7Sq7T8rIM0lY9NxQl7l2Gno0jpL-O0NKpGFVioxxdIDW6O4f7G7ZD_K1Akxo4gkzCzUAUGFFNyMMrG033p6DGYvuBHAwvea_xhY7OSHowvJFoEmWe5ehMGSYLEL1fiXrNpkspErEwLS/s1600-h/James+Burke,+Cagney+and+Mae+Clarke+in+the+cafe+which+isn%27t+the+Ritz.bmp"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5413072723214905986" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 253px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyQ7Sq7T8rIM0lY9NxQl7l2Gno0jpL-O0NKpGFVioxxdIDW6O4f7G7ZD_K1Akxo4gkzCzUAUGFFNyMMrG033p6DGYvuBHAwvea_xhY7OSHowvJFoEmWe5ehMGSYLEL1fiXrNpkspErEwLS/s320/James+Burke,+Cagney+and+Mae+Clarke+in+the+cafe+which+isn%27t+the+Ritz.bmp" border="0" /></a></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:lucida grande;color:#ffcc00;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSKbbGXpvpWNf_5_aF5s7bBIcKs7LgXrZxLuE9bWNBuS-ZRtu6GpyGeqyAht8vWNhxUloAwP-HLo1PznADzva-d2OcxKgGtri1yDAU8X44xCgtxDo4iCQHFc08DJ6_ZfILWGgMa3PYl2fn/s1600-h/great+guy+movie+poster.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5413073850269698866" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 329px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 259px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSKbbGXpvpWNf_5_aF5s7bBIcKs7LgXrZxLuE9bWNBuS-ZRtu6GpyGeqyAht8vWNhxUloAwP-HLo1PznADzva-d2OcxKgGtri1yDAU8X44xCgtxDo4iCQHFc08DJ6_ZfILWGgMa3PYl2fn/s400/great+guy+movie+poster.jpg" border="0" /></a></span></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div><span style="font-family:lucida grande;color:#ffcc00;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:lucida grande;color:#ffcc00;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:lucida grande;color:#ffcc00;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:lucida grande;color:#ffcc00;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:lucida grande;color:#ffcc00;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:lucida grande;color:#ffcc00;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:lucida grande;"><span style="color:#ffcc00;">Clips from <em>Great Guy</em>: </span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSKbbGXpvpWNf_5_aF5s7bBIcKs7LgXrZxLuE9bWNBuS-ZRtu6GpyGeqyAht8vWNhxUloAwP-HLo1PznADzva-d2OcxKgGtri1yDAU8X44xCgtxDo4iCQHFc08DJ6_ZfILWGgMa3PYl2fn/s1600-h/great+guy+movie+poster.jpg"></a></span></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div><br /><object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/X0_R5HV0M1Y&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x006699&color2=0x54abd6"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><br /><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/X0_R5HV0M1Y&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x006699&color2=0x54abd6" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object><br /><br /><object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/lqt1kGRsbt0&hl=en_US&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><br /><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/lqt1kGRsbt0&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object></div><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAWtX0uUeQ3S4iFdem5QDo0-XTb4f3FRb8UH3SrMhEEWas2dNuJsyA2JSHGZRrVcVZOVYXaA6vT_G-KsAO3ZXWQeREPN8N9_1k7L2VWdgZ0wGHrk5UabI6rwcqW2EETYubpqEcXqf8W5h1/s1600-h/i+wanna+kiss+you.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5413076518216896962" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 318px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAWtX0uUeQ3S4iFdem5QDo0-XTb4f3FRb8UH3SrMhEEWas2dNuJsyA2JSHGZRrVcVZOVYXaA6vT_G-KsAO3ZXWQeREPN8N9_1k7L2VWdgZ0wGHrk5UabI6rwcqW2EETYubpqEcXqf8W5h1/s400/i+wanna+kiss+you.jpg" border="0" /></a></div>cagneyfan2008http://www.blogger.com/profile/09370117899423931277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114108144634000275.post-92159339575435783062009-12-03T15:03:00.000-08:002009-12-04T18:42:48.413-08:00Jimmy the Gent (1934)<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRoJBG6pWnEc6i3AKJLYla1-iUOgwTBSP_ZluRYI71RETcjhmWUMhOiM3LLF1YfVtOOnpnRzJ5b67zyZGLNYtje0MC1GMo-Q_SvVM_-kBKXhmT2PYmbixNhtVo_kX3VaB0EEPDYr_BW5XL/s1600-h/cagney93.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5411152100037493986" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 206px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRoJBG6pWnEc6i3AKJLYla1-iUOgwTBSP_ZluRYI71RETcjhmWUMhOiM3LLF1YfVtOOnpnRzJ5b67zyZGLNYtje0MC1GMo-Q_SvVM_-kBKXhmT2PYmbixNhtVo_kX3VaB0EEPDYr_BW5XL/s320/cagney93.jpg" border="0" /></a>I just recently the 1934 James Cagney movie <em>Jimmy the Gent</em> for the first time, and I loved it! James Cagney was great as Jimmy Corrigan, the unscrupulous genealogist--as he liked to call himself but I think the term is too fancy for him--who locates the missing heirs to fortunes, and when he can't find the true heir, he's not above concocting a fake one for a 50 percent cut of the estate. Bette Davis is his erstwhile love interest, a former employee who has gone to work for an outwardly more respectable <strong><em>"genealogist,"</em></strong> although it's soon apparent she still carries a torch for Jimmy and it's only his shifty ways that keep them apart. Davis is attractive and appealing in the role, matching Cagney line for line in verbal wit and dexterity. We even get an early glimpse of the trademark Davis intensity, as she clutches her new boss, who has offered to marry her, practically screaming into his ear, "Make me love you, make me love you!" But in this film, Jimmy Cagney has a shaved head (he had it shaved before filming started), and when they said it <a title=""view Jimmy the Gent '34" " href="http://fan.tcm.com/_Jimmy-the-Gent-34/photo/4753735/66470.html"></a>was the <strong>worst</strong> haircut in his career, they <strong>weren't</strong> kidding! I <em><strong>literally</strong></em> couldn't take him seriously with that silly buzz cut; it was like he was cut in half or something.<br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5411152108818998674" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 254px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8G1ILHRbNiL0ZmeqQIppAiqRHNGw2W-Yg-iKgsxEMJbHToKZw4Fld0XbL2_vTXdCiUqI-npVk4qDgZ1xD09XhBHPaYzNGsSBSabYlnKTVZdD0YnCqT9fxRu603QK1s2k17LwK2K9_48ug/s320/cagney372.jpg" border="0" />The stunt likely did not sit well with his leading lady Bette Davis either. She and Cagney were actually on the same wavelength at the time, both determined to get better parts, although apparently they did little commiserating over their common lots during filming. In later years, they would be quick with praise and admiration for each other's work and integrity (and would appear together again, in <em>The Bride Came COD</em>, 1941). But at this point Davis was angry about her studio assignments and eager to get this assembly line "quickie" out of the way so she could honor her loan out to RKO for <em>Of Human Bondage</em> (1934), the film that finally earned her respect as an accomplished actress. With all that on her mind, Davis was not amused by the antics of Warners' bad boy and refused to pose with him for publicity stills. Whatever her attitude may have been during the filming, she had high regard for her co-star, believe it or not.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoM-Jq966EKYZrxYsvzpYviRWHDUe_YK5hIFsFHtw_va3IKF9d6Op_QbVQS_SAXhgVzW0T2VDDuPCWXAvgYFPj-z6H8TSf_KnjP5wC8GUFqEWezVcwXc2Rm9cVdXvePEyPjcHpIyID4ZLR/s1600-h/cagney510.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5411152906054641362" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 250px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoM-Jq966EKYZrxYsvzpYviRWHDUe_YK5hIFsFHtw_va3IKF9d6Op_QbVQS_SAXhgVzW0T2VDDuPCWXAvgYFPj-z6H8TSf_KnjP5wC8GUFqEWezVcwXc2Rm9cVdXvePEyPjcHpIyID4ZLR/s320/cagney510.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div>Seen today, <em>Jimmy the Gent</em> hardly seems the throwaway picture Cagney and Davis considered it, and in retrospect, there is nothing for them to be ashamed of. The picture provides Cagney with the opportunity to demonstrate his comedic skills while still giving audiences the scrappy, shady type of character that brought the actor his early <a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_Jimmygent/photo/4778005/66470.html"></a>success. Davis, as in all her early Warners films in which she plays a "type," gives a thoroughly likeable performance. Perhaps the most distinguishing aspect of her character is the fact that she goes upside Cagney's head, while he (much to his satisfaction during production) breezes through an entire film without striking a woman. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjQ9R5OAMoEApxGvGsuEaa2C0WuF1Q5bIjel2BM_oaGkSSIYc1_3_gZlOWyKH_U97QM96P4wOb9QWmXMpo5UPpXalDWKn9ptNoIspWjrix8gKNH7icEw5bqqvrCxchbCmCOmAlND73l4XV/s1600-h/with+Bette+Davis+in+Jimmy+the+Gent.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5411153791713712322" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 308px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjQ9R5OAMoEApxGvGsuEaa2C0WuF1Q5bIjel2BM_oaGkSSIYc1_3_gZlOWyKH_U97QM96P4wOb9QWmXMpo5UPpXalDWKn9ptNoIspWjrix8gKNH7icEw5bqqvrCxchbCmCOmAlND73l4XV/s320/with+Bette+Davis+in+Jimmy+the+Gent.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><br /><br /><br /><div><em>Jimmy the Gent</em> performed well at the box office, and reviewers liked it, too. <em>Variety</em> called it "good for plenty of laughs...at breakneck speed," and even three years after its release, critic Otis Ferguson was writing about it, "If this wasn't the fastest little whirlwind of true life on the raw fringe, then I missed the other one." This was first film Michael Curtiz directed James Cagney in. He would later direct him in <em>Angels with Dirty Faces</em> (1938), <em>Captains of the Clouds</em> (1942), and <em>Yankee Doodle Dandy</em> (1942).<br /></div><br /><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div>Like <em>Ceiling Zero</em>, I so desperately wanted to see this Cagney film and once again, I cannot tell y<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR8DAuqJ0sFZU-nRAAAtSjD020tTk7E0YeIFvzbyKboKVk3G5DnpRDVBrRU1EHIN4eOaB5y2qy4LB9asU5WBDcIr8edw3qXlaSPBmIwjK8lKsZpF4P9gy-CEObrO5baCv__wpnHTn7oh-z/s1600-h/cagney701.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5411155314466421634" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 149px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR8DAuqJ0sFZU-nRAAAtSjD020tTk7E0YeIFvzbyKboKVk3G5DnpRDVBrRU1EHIN4eOaB5y2qy4LB9asU5WBDcIr8edw3qXlaSPBmIwjK8lKsZpF4P9gy-CEObrO5baCv__wpnHTn7oh-z/s200/cagney701.jpg" border="0" /></a>ou folks how ecstatic I am to have <em><strong>finally</strong></em> seen it!!! I name this film as one of my favorite Cagney films (my other favorites are <em>Footlight Parade</em> and <em>Taxi!</em> and my soon-to-be favorites [as soon as I see them] are <em>Hard to Handle</em>, <em>Here Comes the Navy</em>, and <em>Devil Dogs of the Air</em> [maybe]). It had so many funny scenes, like in the beginning <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizl38O-5NPWMfNTmf74H3NY1s1Hk4zw8X0gJ-KyfkprIeeCCq4DFSWEi7yhYbN64FBPqWXMZNaCCjbrW1AElt2vYlQBycP9TciyCZoarf1gslcV7MWrmyswZPOOw-ynhcrqfqlD3nyECx8/s1600-h/cagney866.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5411155592602426738" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 195px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizl38O-5NPWMfNTmf74H3NY1s1Hk4zw8X0gJ-KyfkprIeeCCq4DFSWEi7yhYbN64FBPqWXMZNaCCjbrW1AElt2vYlQBycP9TciyCZoarf1gslcV7MWrmyswZPOOw-ynhcrqfqlD3nyECx8/s200/cagney866.jpg" border="0" /></a>of film, when Allen Jenkins goes into James Cagney's office and the glass in the door <strong>immediately</strong> breaks since Jenkins arrives late!! (Is it just me or does Allen Jenkins also remind you folks of Gomer Pyle?) And another scene that cracked me up is when Cagney sits<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBgiF2nfhPjCeHXh1bz7KGAtG2oKSsYSfTWEYZV5KAGy-IWC49BINXC4lCSYcpmIZN3qQiRfxFWlq6hPbFTinR5epWNurlrpCLrYwYBXugwDV-HaCHr9B_j5oHrdkJudiCCbs_2dsrw8RX/s1600-h/cagney866.jpg"></a> in the waiting room of his competitor's office to see his former secretary Bette Davis, he is served tea and he coughs when he first sips it (what's more funny is how awkwardly he drinks it [which just goes to show you how little class he has] and how much sugar he makes the servee put in it). The running gag here is how Jimmy is constantly served tea whenever he has to wait to be called in see his former assistant. And I love how Cagney slaps poor Jenkins around instead of slapping a woman around! I would recommend this film for any James Cagney fan! <img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5411154631974483314" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 142px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe1ZgRsMR_2OS6CfhmD00T8Q1pbQXh68s2w75XxIsdpKzCqgutoBph_X7EPsyn4tEDHFG3e5-N5rpSeA4rbX5QNdDzJFv53YKCGPJR3wk4xZo4KFamm7nIXi05Lk4iBdp1kS7Pdkxu85nB/s200/cagney94.jpg" border="0" />(Next blog [for sure]: <em>Great Guy</em> [1936])</div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwpf1ran83e2JiF9AlhiMT5T0Xj1WXeZbb15X98XXF3ALCK_zjfYkMj86EFlHlFaZh29ub0G6s57Hc-yVJcPmc8mj8nKqxdZuHS4ps4hTiqTR9TYMSN25nfZ_aRfdUehXEtQABBiM_sY8M/s1600-h/cagney833.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5411152921438511138" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 242px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwpf1ran83e2JiF9AlhiMT5T0Xj1WXeZbb15X98XXF3ALCK_zjfYkMj86EFlHlFaZh29ub0G6s57Hc-yVJcPmc8mj8nKqxdZuHS4ps4hTiqTR9TYMSN25nfZ_aRfdUehXEtQABBiM_sY8M/s320/cagney833.jpg" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkDWD3P_jXt4Me52LBnArNwH4zrIl2CUrThfC9LdRbKbuTVATKMNji_zXNsYxjyZIhyphenhyphenf6Db1UFXThv0wheqEe8TLUfjC8mRBNlHkEFmDdPQkR1SAJ9GrLeYQo9m1Gcmij4QFRLSLwEfsfn/s1600-h/cagney865.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5411153784320453202" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 221px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkDWD3P_jXt4Me52LBnArNwH4zrIl2CUrThfC9LdRbKbuTVATKMNji_zXNsYxjyZIhyphenhyphenf6Db1UFXThv0wheqEe8TLUfjC8mRBNlHkEFmDdPQkR1SAJ9GrLeYQo9m1Gcmij4QFRLSLwEfsfn/s320/cagney865.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#ffcccc;">Clips from <em>Jimmy the Gent:</em></span><br /><object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/UzdcgHdB8j8&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x006699&color2=0x54abd6"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/UzdcgHdB8j8&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x006699&color2=0x54abd6" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object><br /><object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/MuD5iNtfAlY&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/MuD5iNtfAlY&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object><br /><object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/LivEwuJk9_Y&hl=en_US&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/LivEwuJk9_Y&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object><br /><img alt="Webfetti.com" src="http://ak.webfetti.com/assets/glitter/0/907.gif" border="0" /><br /><a href="http://www.webfetti.com/dl/index.jhtml?partner=ZKzeb031_ZSYYYYYYYYUS&utm_campaign=wf_glitter&utm_source=20011446&utm_medium=wf_blogger"><img height="18" src="http://t.webfetti.com/images/nocache/tr/wf/rds/gl/bl/20011446.gif" width="160" border="0" /></a><br /><img alt="Webfetti.com" src="http://ak.webfetti.com/assets/glitter/0/909.gif" border="0" /><br /><a 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/></a>cagneyfan2008http://www.blogger.com/profile/09370117899423931277noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114108144634000275.post-63446582454665721982009-12-02T23:35:00.000-08:002009-12-02T23:48:59.997-08:00Videos Related to Something to Sing About<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJoPZM-XKGIi0eC3_EWDn8BlvZC0-o3Q8NhoB_Pq9LeiNUSymBhvnlhaOcoa1gtQHqJdVHbcjTCnzvk_NvIV3GtsTBiAF4DV3LKu7eeyRvd008TKMwXW5t5Vn-07IPsIysipvTtu4aBv5B/s1600-h/Something_to_Sing_About_Cagney_Frawley_Windheim.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5410913357314563698" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 264px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 198px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJoPZM-XKGIi0eC3_EWDn8BlvZC0-o3Q8NhoB_Pq9LeiNUSymBhvnlhaOcoa1gtQHqJdVHbcjTCnzvk_NvIV3GtsTBiAF4DV3LKu7eeyRvd008TKMwXW5t5Vn-07IPsIysipvTtu4aBv5B/s320/Something_to_Sing_About_Cagney_Frawley_Windheim.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsc4tPNWs47UArkEntj0Fy9Ds19hBePYz_okC9b1N76G2JdFY18-R3Xla4A2y2c-6JHNlRw0ULcoBBxHyIBjVOHGdkh9BpaAabtElxr2sFEtEAM-uJCgokgrLjyS_gMw_spLb7E07QQ38r/s1600-h/Something_to_Sing_About_Cagney_Ahn.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5410912674638233138" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 270px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 192px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsc4tPNWs47UArkEntj0Fy9Ds19hBePYz_okC9b1N76G2JdFY18-R3Xla4A2y2c-6JHNlRw0ULcoBBxHyIBjVOHGdkh9BpaAabtElxr2sFEtEAM-uJCgokgrLjyS_gMw_spLb7E07QQ38r/s320/Something_to_Sing_About_Cagney_Ahn.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div><br /></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;color:#ffcc99;"></span> </div><div><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;color:#ffcc99;">Clip from <em>Something to Sing About</em>: </span><br /><object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/GpD4BM8AEug&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/GpD4BM8AEug&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object><br /><a href="http://plugin.smileycentral.com/http%253A%252F%252Fwww.smileycentral.com%252F%253Fpartner%253DZSzeb008%255FZSYYYYYYYYUS%2526i%253D36%252F36%255F15%255F9%2526feat%253Dprof/page.html" target="_blank"><img alt="SmileyCentral.com" src="http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/36/36_15_9.gif" border="0" /><img src="http://plugin.smileycentral.com/http%253A%252F%252Fimgfarm%252Ecom%252Fimages%252Fnocache%252Ftr%252Ffw%252Fsmiley%252Fsocial%252Egif%253Fi%253D36%252F36_15_9%2526uiv%253D3.0/image.gif" border="0" 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src="http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/8/8_2_96.gif" border="0" /><img src="http://plugin.smileycentral.com/http%253A%252F%252Fimgfarm%252Ecom%252Fimages%252Fnocache%252Ftr%252Ffw%252Fsmiley%252Fsocial%252Egif%253Fi%253D8%252F8_2_96%2526uiv%253D3.0/image.gif" border="0" /></a><a href="http://plugin.smileycentral.com/http%253A%252F%252Fwww.smileycentral.com%252F%253Fpartner%253DZSzeb008%255FZSYYYYYYYYUS%2526i%253D36%252F36%255F15%255F7%2526feat%253Dprof/page.html" target="_blank"><img alt="SmileyCentral.com" src="http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/36/36_15_7.gif" border="0" /><img src="http://plugin.smileycentral.com/http%253A%252F%252Fimgfarm%252Ecom%252Fimages%252Fnocache%252Ftr%252Ffw%252Fsmiley%252Fsocial%252Egif%253Fi%253D36%252F36_15_7%2526uiv%253D3.0/image.gif" border="0" /></a><a href="http://plugin.smileycentral.com/http%253A%252F%252Fwww.smileycentral.com%252F%253Fpartner%253DZSzeb008%255FZSYYYYYYYYUS%2526i%253D36%252F36%255F15%255F17%2526feat%253Dprof/page.html" target="_blank"><img alt="SmileyCentral.com" src="http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/36/36_15_17.gif" border="0" /><img src="http://plugin.smileycentral.com/http%253A%252F%252Fimgfarm%252Ecom%252Fimages%252Fnocache%252Ftr%252Ffw%252Fsmiley%252Fsocial%252Egif%253Fi%253D36%252F36_15_17%2526uiv%253D3.0/image.gif" border="0" /></a><a href="http://plugin.smileycentral.com/http%253A%252F%252Fwww.smileycentral.com%252F%253Fpartner%253DZSzeb008%255FZSYYYYYYYYUS%2526i%253D28%252F28%255F4%255F9%2526feat%253Dprof/page.html" target="_blank"><img alt="SmileyCentral.com" src="http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/28/28_4_9.gif" border="0" /><img src="http://plugin.smileycentral.com/http%253A%252F%252Fimgfarm%252Ecom%252Fimages%252Fnocache%252Ftr%252Ffw%252Fsmiley%252Fsocial%252Egif%253Fi%253D28%252F28_4_9%2526uiv%253D3.0/image.gif" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#ff9966;">A video montage about the steamy kissing scenes in Cagney's movies, which has nothing to do with this movie but has a few clips from it: </span><embed src="http://images.multiply.com/multiply/multv.swf" width="480" height="420" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" flashvars="first_video_id=igvmyslf1000pts:video:129&base_uri=multiply.com&is_owned=1&security=3QOZJ9AaycUm5a3w6OyWiQ" allowfullscreen="true" wmode="transparent" quality="high"></embed><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjL532_04Z2rt0dMf1PJLw_ZsafWM32AwrZUe-zfALO2YDFM9KJp1F8DEbcMk-55mFGBl436ObslZj3FvI6IlnRh6HWM06g9qIIgq0oqThqKfMEvp_DKlxYTDkmF_95mg5katJLJZYj1ow/s1600-h/Something_to_Sing_About_Cagney.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5410912666842783762" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 293px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjL532_04Z2rt0dMf1PJLw_ZsafWM32AwrZUe-zfALO2YDFM9KJp1F8DEbcMk-55mFGBl436ObslZj3FvI6IlnRh6HWM06g9qIIgq0oqThqKfMEvp_DKlxYTDkmF_95mg5katJLJZYj1ow/s320/Something_to_Sing_About_Cagney.jpg" border="0" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs_UImdVpI2-alv-wteEfZhQJSxg_ZG-RakZD_Ra9echj0s2VqgJQpUb3LU8bt5IGdxH10tXZDXXONZ9HnYj0vSuYPGLDaDRbwBN4yiOOEYbyLGnsXm7aWr9AvoaXsmlSmBIqABS5fDNHX/s1600-h/Something_to_Sing_About_Cagney_Daw.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5410913348675742034" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 262px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs_UImdVpI2-alv-wteEfZhQJSxg_ZG-RakZD_Ra9echj0s2VqgJQpUb3LU8bt5IGdxH10tXZDXXONZ9HnYj0vSuYPGLDaDRbwBN4yiOOEYbyLGnsXm7aWr9AvoaXsmlSmBIqABS5fDNHX/s320/Something_to_Sing_About_Cagney_Daw.jpg" border="0" /></a></div></div></div>cagneyfan2008http://www.blogger.com/profile/09370117899423931277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114108144634000275.post-25172554113812797992009-12-02T22:16:00.000-08:002009-12-02T23:26:53.876-08:00Something to Sing About (1937)<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9jTbq81eUwH9_KDM8YmYRAuBV9OwD-SxVJXwIHiwS0JySU9OU3ePtUHV8ZNFEd65d6sZjRvWJJphKYmv4aSLXkyzCGzyXa25xEdCkHswkHdMOR9GFDYEPXYwd3Wfj_yyW6jXeyL-l8ngj/s1600-h/acrobatics.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5410895563325403746" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9jTbq81eUwH9_KDM8YmYRAuBV9OwD-SxVJXwIHiwS0JySU9OU3ePtUHV8ZNFEd65d6sZjRvWJJphKYmv4aSLXkyzCGzyXa25xEdCkHswkHdMOR9GFDYEPXYwd3Wfj_yyW6jXeyL-l8ngj/s320/acrobatics.jpg" border="0" /></a>I just recently watched the 1937 James Cagney film <em>Something to Sing About</em>, and I didn't really like it. James Cagney was good as Terry Rooney, the New York bandleader who goes to Hollywood and becomes an overnight sensation, but takes off for the South Seas with his new bride after completing his first film, convinced he's a flop. I had a couple of nitpickings about this films, such as it was too sweet for my taste--<strong><em>sweeter</em></strong> than a Shirley Temple movie. I much prefer the comically cynical <em>Footlight Parade</em> to this movie. Furthermore, in his performance, Cagney sometimes acts like one of those annoying adults. Yet, despite my many nitpickings, there are a few scenes I kinda liked, such as the scene where Cagney dances with two guys on the ship during his honeymoon and the ending scene where Jimmy Cagney comes back to the nightclub where his band plays.<br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5410895567623335202" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 187px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO6TJ06PIrdz84nPzXqgEpXtyxhoP0hxknZ2YgyWmdsiXvNaEQNxgLpWeTVWFFt0j3kDys89cgBeLpr5P6xWQANU3chMdnExFCISHxlDmStL0UtzbvrFyCqG0wMaRqg5vBBkZLMxw-sZGE/s320/cagney299hz9.jpg" border="0" />By 1936, James Cagney was one of the <em><strong>top ten moneymaking stars in Hollywood</strong></em>. He was also one of Warner Bros.' <strong>most versatile</strong> stars, equally effective in musicals, gangster films, and comedies. But he was unhappy with the studio's recent choice of material, and its demand that he make five films a year instead of the four his contract stipulated. So he took them to court, won, and walked out, shocking Hollywood <a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_James-Cagney-Gotta-Dance/photo/6802169/66470.html"></a>by signing with Grand National, a newly formed independent company. His first Grand National film, <em>Great Guy</em> (1936) was well received. His second was <em>Something to Sing About</em> (1937), Cagney's first musical since <em>Footlight Parade</em> (1933).<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBVcDoAoRzU-Wq6AwDrZiwwp7jiLdExSj1wKaWzPfDE5y8HdwNs1n2h0TmJrmZp2sPe8ykqF03jl3IGL4AcMnRBiR6Q-xeUZiZWB_bQ5yCC7I0BAEASSWq3cFV6ohZPnFoL0jtC3iF-lh3/s1600-h/singabout1937fo5.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5410896518068012514" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 239px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBVcDoAoRzU-Wq6AwDrZiwwp7jiLdExSj1wKaWzPfDE5y8HdwNs1n2h0TmJrmZp2sPe8ykqF03jl3IGL4AcMnRBiR6Q-xeUZiZWB_bQ5yCC7I0BAEASSWq3cFV6ohZPnFoL0jtC3iF-lh3/s320/singabout1937fo5.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><div>Playing opposite Cagney was Evelyn Daw, a 20-year-old newcomer from South Dakota with a terrific soprano voice. Daw made only one more film before disappearing from the screen, although she continued to work in theater and opera. Standouts in the supporting cast are William Frawley (the future Fred Mertz for those of you who are <em>I Love Lucy</em> fans) as a publicist, and Gene Lockhart playing the studio boss, a conniving blowhard who cons Cagney's character into an unfair contract. Some Hollywood insiders noted the resemblance to Jack Warner. Sure I did enjoy the many satirizations of Hollywood but they weren't satirical enough to fit my tastes. </div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMtzxsKbuHitvo9j7ghbLKy4CfSTccd0aEzzQ1fXbSUL8Wvy4ZBagasFMl-dzgt4dtS5uHKWolaYqb7YbIJQwLch_u8a30vukP8PcgAgt-WFtO8D9F9F3EMziycYVeunHDWqWKb9MeT2si/s1600-h/somethingtosingabout193wn8.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5410897687901460338" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 239px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMtzxsKbuHitvo9j7ghbLKy4CfSTccd0aEzzQ1fXbSUL8Wvy4ZBagasFMl-dzgt4dtS5uHKWolaYqb7YbIJQwLch_u8a30vukP8PcgAgt-WFtO8D9F9F3EMziycYVeunHDWqWKb9MeT2si/s320/somethingtosingabout193wn8.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div></div><div> </div><div>Critics were glad to see Cagney back in tap shoes, and playing a romantic lead for a change. Otis Ferguson of the <em>New Republic</em> gave <em>Something to Sing About</em> points for effort, saying "much can be done by good people who break away and bring the industry up short by independent accomplishment." But in spite of all the freshness and energy that Cagney and his colleagues brought to the film, they couldn't overcome the fact that the budget for <a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_Music-Maestrojpg/photo/6791068/66470.html"></a><em>Something to Sing About</em> was skimpy (it was all the fledgling studio could afford), the music <strong>wasn't memorable</strong>, and the film didn't receive wide distribution. This film was no <em>Singin' in the Rain</em> or <em>Anchors Aweigh</em> since it didn't have any memorable scenes as well. (I always get <em>Anchors Aweigh</em> and <em>On the Town</em> mixed up: is the scene where Gene Kelly dances with the cartoon mouse in <em>AA</em> or <em>OTT</em>?) In an era of studio domination, an independent didn't have a chance (a proven point of the phrase "There's just no room for the little guy"). </div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBP_hzHoR_NNKK4QYCcnz65fM3jAT2SW0t2rEA96DZuGKvkF3ZDlqza_cUG-c4PGmR0IVQw5q0cJ6yiO_BIiymTY-0NEbzTV2OyuBLwkVjdKTvmXvpr91fnNipAkpX5woz1mMmYOYZfdjm/s1600-h/JAMES+CAGNEY,+DAW+1937+VINTAGE+MOVIE+PHOTO+1337.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5410896515663031570" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 278px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBP_hzHoR_NNKK4QYCcnz65fM3jAT2SW0t2rEA96DZuGKvkF3ZDlqza_cUG-c4PGmR0IVQw5q0cJ6yiO_BIiymTY-0NEbzTV2OyuBLwkVjdKTvmXvpr91fnNipAkpX5woz1mMmYOYZfdjm/s320/JAMES+CAGNEY,+DAW+1937+VINTAGE+MOVIE+PHOTO+1337.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div></div><div>If <em>Something to Sing About</em> can be said to have any interest at all, other than as a curiosity in a great star's career, it is for the <strong>conscious analogies</strong> it permits one to draw between Terry Rooney's fictional movie career and Cagney's genuine one. Cagney walked out on Warner Bros. many times, like his character in this film did once, but he always came back and signed a new contract, just like his character in this film signs a seven-year contract (which also says that he has to be a bachelor in case his <em><strong>many female fans wanna sleep with him</strong></em> [sorry if that was a little off-color but it was implied] but that really has no connection with Cagney's film career). And if any of you have seen this movie, you'll know that Terry Rooney's real name is Thaddeus MacGillicudy and if ur also an <em>I Love Lucy</em> fan, u'll know that Lucy Ricardo's maiden name is MacGillicudy. So u can see that this movie has some connections with I Love Lucy, with the future Fred Mertz and the name MacGillicudy. </div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ6CMY0cwIIjaxgReoE0WgrdK5htfFVeHSOrAEswUY9ovC26mejNIk6SZfIB9V6DWPW6CvyahlpLXuDkaXMeJgQV1lx4ATt0wsqUJ_EFY2q0FE0Ah2ZlZjEfJ_cADd_ieCQJm9qiarMY5l/s1600-h/somethingtosingdr3.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5410897695473221874" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 255px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ6CMY0cwIIjaxgReoE0WgrdK5htfFVeHSOrAEswUY9ovC26mejNIk6SZfIB9V6DWPW6CvyahlpLXuDkaXMeJgQV1lx4ATt0wsqUJ_EFY2q0FE0Ah2ZlZjEfJ_cADd_ieCQJm9qiarMY5l/s320/somethingtosingdr3.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div>This movie also offers a glimpse of some of Cagney's comedic ability that we never really got to see. According to the book "Cagney" by John McCabe:</div><br /><br /><div><br /><blockquote><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="color:#ff0000;"><span style="font-family:arial;">One of Cagney's key characteristics as a performer is too briefly and<br />tantalizingly touched on in <em>Something to Sing About</em>: his essential status as a<br />comedic actor. There is no performance in the first two thirds of his career<br />that is marked by comedy, even if sardonic and bitter. In the present film, as<br />he and his wife are walking down the street, he is explaining film comedy and<br />brilliantly illustrates five of its staples: a double take, a triple take, and a<br />triple take with a slow burn and one-eyed fadeaway, this last done in the style<br />of its great master, Jimmy Finlayson, Laurel and Hardy's prime stooge. Cagney<br />then caps these with veteran Keystone comic Charlie Murray's famous<br />mouth-ends-down grimace, which causes a lady passing by to scream in fright.<br />With regrettable brevity we glimpse Cagney the Clown, of whom, alas, we see<br />little in his career.</span><br /></span></span></blockquote></div><br /><div>I would recommend this film to any James Cagney who likes seeing him in musicals. <strong><em>Happy commenting!! And have a wonderful holiday season!! </em></strong></div><a href="http://plugin.smileycentral.com/http%253A%252F%252Fwww.smileycentral.com%252F%253Fpartner%253DZSzeb008%255FZSYYYYYYYYUS%2526i%253D8%252F8%255F2%255F102%2526feat%253Dprof/page.html" target="_blank"><img alt="SmileyCentral.com" src="http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/8/8_2_102.gif" border="0" /><img src="http://plugin.smileycentral.com/http%253A%252F%252Fimgfarm%252Ecom%252Fimages%252Fnocache%252Ftr%252Ffw%252Fsmiley%252Fsocial%252Egif%253Fi%253D8%252F8_2_102%2526uiv%253D3.0/image.gif" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div>(Next blog: <em>Great Guy</em> [1936]<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHPSNAAxKc1fvflxbIvWdMe0cHOETGsTYR91qZT0S2C4-WduVXHqIy-Rt9JuvDkTaNZDjnwS4P4QIlnYao7Vu9FQKaetcza8VD2YtVMT3v-odM7WSIGEQRScey-GnZRg7uXnZdlJokInKB/s1600-h/i'm+dancing+he+says.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5410896507394783506" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 265px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHPSNAAxKc1fvflxbIvWdMe0cHOETGsTYR91qZT0S2C4-WduVXHqIy-Rt9JuvDkTaNZDjnwS4P4QIlnYao7Vu9FQKaetcza8VD2YtVMT3v-odM7WSIGEQRScey-GnZRg7uXnZdlJokInKB/s320/i'm+dancing+he+says.jpg" border="0" /></a>) <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibX9CMH5hXkNURryly-AUlEJv6I3d9Di5LavFfdo3Z-2Ho3lBb3-B8_JyqrZg-LlVhccbrmQSFODxHNT8qL22snDl5EPgigazbysy77PRV41znD_1a8HV8eLbaBmUQ_xoHdQ5akVTGoGEU/s1600-h/Something-to-Sing-About-27365-57.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5410897689329694034" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 226px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibX9CMH5hXkNURryly-AUlEJv6I3d9Di5LavFfdo3Z-2Ho3lBb3-B8_JyqrZg-LlVhccbrmQSFODxHNT8qL22snDl5EPgigazbysy77PRV41znD_1a8HV8eLbaBmUQ_xoHdQ5akVTGoGEU/s320/Something-to-Sing-About-27365-57.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5410904942140932866" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 214px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 307px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj62oxMUwgDlo5qKNz_9AbTD4Qx88zigzDF-hsDUlFwin9rYHOxTFbtmoi4dP5G4scyNJ4wSoYaOH8hWPsD-wlBs7rU5wDL3lGrevqwsyYzN9QKOdhvVje9ipQN_TjUrpEM6I1c1cbG9Ikq/s320/stsa+dvd.jpg" border="0" /><br /><div><span style="font-family:courier new;color:#ffcc66;">Clips from <em>Something to Sing About</em>: </span><br /><object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/lTbE5KGjQXI&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x2b405b&color2=0x6b8ab6"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/lTbE5KGjQXI&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x2b405b&color2=0x6b8ab6" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object><br /><object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Oqwvt-h0V6s&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Oqwvt-h0V6s&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object><br /><object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/HsA65-YACQY&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x3a3a3a&color2=0x999999"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/HsA65-YACQY&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x3a3a3a&color2=0x999999" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object></div>cagneyfan2008http://www.blogger.com/profile/09370117899423931277noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114108144634000275.post-41767231125161021542009-11-26T11:58:00.000-08:002009-11-26T19:17:04.320-08:00Happy Thanksgiving!!<div align="center"><object id="tt" codebase="http://fpdownload.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=" height="200" width="430" align="middle" classid="clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000"><param name="_cx" value="11377"><param name="_cy" value="5292"><param name="FlashVars" value=""><param name="Movie" value="http://ak.webfetti.com/assets/fonts/swf/tt_ji_kwanza.swf?"><param name="Src" value="http://ak.webfetti.com/assets/fonts/swf/tt_ji_kwanza.swf?"><param name="WMode" value="Transparent"><param name="Play" value="-1"><param name="Loop" value="-1"><param name="Quality" value="High"><param name="SAlign" value=""><param name="Menu" value="-1"><param name="Base" value=""><param name="AllowScriptAccess" value="always"><param name="Scale" value="NoScale"><param name="DeviceFont" value="0"><param name="EmbedMovie" value="0"><param name="BGColor" value=""><param name="SWRemote" value=""><param name="MovieData" value=""><param name="SeamlessTabbing" value="1"><param name="Profile" value="0"><param name="ProfileAddress" value=""><param name="ProfilePort" value="0"><param name="AllowNetworking" value="all"><param name="AllowFullScreen" value="false"><embed src="http://ak.webfetti.com/assets/fonts/swf/tt_ji_kwanza.swf" width="430" height="200" name="tt" align="middle" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" flashvars="t=Happy%20Thanksgiving%0D%0A&s=500xcc9900"></embed></object><br /><a href="http://www.webfetti.com/download.jhtml?partner=ZKzeb160_ZSYYYYYYYYUS&utm_campaign=wf_11&utm_source=1124017&utm_medium=wf_myspace"><img height="25" src="http://t.webfetti.com/images/nocache/tr/wf/rdsgen/st/my/1124017.gif" width="214" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:180%;"><span style="color:#ff9900;">FROM</span> <span style="color:#cc6600;">JAMES</span> <span style="color:#ff6600;">CAGNEY!!!</span></span><br /></div><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408505313752778082" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 326px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 298px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWOWhd7wzj_XvOfxNqd0lRRLAuMIU9S53JPazh5tUKuA_NtOjTcOmasG9tiGxPGxJ-nYBvPBu5z6k02HkvQv7MGDN2XhJVwsDPwV_nR-Id8bsvdW4m8s2n-vDlBnftzhVW4rWOzyMjdasT/s400/Turkey+cutter.jpg" border="0" /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#ff0000;"><span style="color:#33ff33;">AND</span><object id="tt" 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target="_blank"><img alt="SmileyCentral.com" src="http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/8/8_2_111.gif" border="0" /><img src="http://plugin.smileycentral.com/http%253A%252F%252Fimgfarm%252Ecom%252Fimages%252Fnocache%252Ftr%252Ffw%252Fsmiley%252Fsocial%252Egif%253Fi%253D8%252F8_2_111%2526uiv%253D3.0/image.gif" border="0" /></a>cagneyfan2008http://www.blogger.com/profile/09370117899423931277noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114108144634000275.post-15191702808475882902009-11-25T19:25:00.000-08:002009-11-26T01:48:40.454-08:00Ceiling Zero (1936)<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrt6G65daty5u-9pe5nrUmzd1E257PidsYZdEdoBm6lj_Zyh-86Y_ggnGlhMYoqG14oZSQo6KOSieCDZzHBIK0dQeGwyDyWt_nAAN_85BCUGfvf0zjcoLiRYUwMcUed3nU13T9IV7buFPQ/s1600/Wortkaskadendauerfeuer.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408344414046556354" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 150px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrt6G65daty5u-9pe5nrUmzd1E257PidsYZdEdoBm6lj_Zyh-86Y_ggnGlhMYoqG14oZSQo6KOSieCDZzHBIK0dQeGwyDyWt_nAAN_85BCUGfvf0zjcoLiRYUwMcUed3nU13T9IV7buFPQ/s200/Wortkaskadendauerfeuer.jpg" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjudnZ1brQmlWXgs4VY7eEtMPLwx2pPVoHVGdpnc7mznusnX06xZiDr6TILrBxpXyqLgpKAbQ408Xpq_pk4LFMmY1m1iStnGHumNtWPhV7bXVVHbwH-93oazf6mFaEYSD7KhF14-HBwx6ns/s1600/ceilingzero1936vhs.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408338234189865010" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjudnZ1brQmlWXgs4VY7eEtMPLwx2pPVoHVGdpnc7mznusnX06xZiDr6TILrBxpXyqLgpKAbQ408Xpq_pk4LFMmY1m1iStnGHumNtWPhV7bXVVHbwH-93oazf6mFaEYSD7KhF14-HBwx6ns/s320/ceilingzero1936vhs.jpg" border="0" /></a>I recently watched the 1936 James Cagney movie <em>Ceiling Zero</em>, and it was kinda good. James Cagney was great as Dizzy Davis, the playboy aviator who creeps me out. But he was annoyingly cocky to the point where I couldn't stand him. He wore that stupid mustache again and it drove me crazy! He was also pretty weird. But still, I couldn't stop looking at him for some reason. Pat O'Brien was also pretty good as the head pilot and the paterfamilias of James Cagney; I think I liked him better than James Cagney in this movie, which isn't really unusual because he's my favorite of Jimmy's male co-stars!<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBkDjNDbRYTAyKvZPvStAuxPFMjHl-3tpvsHG3AYhHzY3haZpXwu4xrmNC0uqqqUFIkZBwUBW3j1njJo7PRh0_lsCJjjvZCF-7kFBYFWU4AQeY07AQ33PIi5IlC746hyphenhyphenush9mCrzifXccv/s1600/airline+romance.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408340440785461522" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 252px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBkDjNDbRYTAyKvZPvStAuxPFMjHl-3tpvsHG3AYhHzY3haZpXwu4xrmNC0uqqqUFIkZBwUBW3j1njJo7PRh0_lsCJjjvZCF-7kFBYFWU4AQeY07AQ33PIi5IlC746hyphenhyphenush9mCrzifXccv/s320/airline+romance.jpg" border="0" /></a><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408339484135293682" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 260px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm-sF37QqQ9WWwRd5DpeSGPzVgs6ZaApzmhKomE5hQgY8Q9jQxK4qHC4-Q5e6P0a9iOP8HoN5F9k4rhXZW0Pyn4NMFR3yCz6vyDy4B4YLoELZcttqILP0MD6vWfiJrXT5wDAv6I1S8ael-/s320/on+the+set.jpg" border="0" /><em>Ceiling Zero</em> was a successful Broadway play and the film version was directed by Howard Hawks. Hawks, himself a pilot with combat experience win WWI, selected <em>Ceiling Zero</em> for its nostalgic appeal. The film's action is chiefly the changing weather. "Ceiling zero" meant total fog or similar atmospherics that prevented flight but that some daring flyers ignored, usually to their peril. One such is Dizzy Davis (Cagney), who is chief pilot and frequent heartache for Federal Airlines and <a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_High-flying-Dizzy-Davis-James-Cagney-in-Ceiling-Zero/photo/5051898/66470.html"></a>is underling of old flying comrade Jake Lee (Pat O'Brien), head of the company's Newark, New Jersey airfield.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJr9KaykbHRUSjKcSSmpm_bNO26MaY6_C7eYxt3H45oMs-GbVMpunAK9JM65ipRw90trox02H91xjON0Sf3D6bByLmKAIZQ0MjxCGHl3ZYpGdg_e_i3PuHbC6z56wkEoFcA6SJx7lhde-2/s1600/A+lobby+card+from+the+film+Ceiling+Zero.bmp"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408340428487233250" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 251px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJr9KaykbHRUSjKcSSmpm_bNO26MaY6_C7eYxt3H45oMs-GbVMpunAK9JM65ipRw90trox02H91xjON0Sf3D6bByLmKAIZQ0MjxCGHl3ZYpGdg_e_i3PuHbC6z56wkEoFcA6SJx7lhde-2/s320/A+lobby+card+from+the+film+Ceiling+Zero.bmp" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div>The critics ranked <em>Ceiling Zero</em> as n<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFNjHC7yDqZO9Csc7Z3DpxGdOa78NFWcRSqu-jxBp0oVb9TdpQjmTETIVWZuGGQ35MVWawbCfCFLKrXepQCLyS6S1fsI2B1V6gD9ShoKElqTLMl0ZqZkSyt-6IjHGvSwNpT9FaqiwFCWWh/s1600/looking+at+plans.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408344410717349970" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 162px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFNjHC7yDqZO9Csc7Z3DpxGdOa78NFWcRSqu-jxBp0oVb9TdpQjmTETIVWZuGGQ35MVWawbCfCFLKrXepQCLyS6S1fsI2B1V6gD9ShoKElqTLMl0ZqZkSyt-6IjHGvSwNpT9FaqiwFCWWh/s200/looking+at+plans.jpg" border="0" /></a>ear-prime Cagney and certainly a good example of its genre. A forerunner to Hawks' <em>Only Angels Have Wings</em> (1939), <em>Ceiling Zero</em>, though dealing with aviation, is a very stagebound exercise primarily confined to an <strong>unconvincing</strong> airport control room. (God, was that set fake! You could easily tell it was shot in a studio or on the backlot! But I don't really care because that at <strong><em>least</em></strong> tells me how or where the film was made. Remember that I like learning how films are made; I don't, however, like learning about the literary symbolism in a film.) Frantically parrying loads of the original production's <a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_Look-him/photo/5107497/66470.html"></a>dialogue at each other, Cagney and (especially) O'Brien nearly chew the bad set to its very foundations. </div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwF14ncoT5Sb2Cg3ZiNHYOrdx4PqrdbxijwFYEeN4lWLvOhuVyIvNqP0LsMcaMgBX5pz4CP63ZdtkjZIdwZuqxMpZZn0NWY3t8GTo44OB4kexFORxtI5ij4MSTSVfTtGDHDh73UIzcWVts/s1600/James+Cagney+and+Pat+O%27Brien.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408343457916247266" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 156px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwF14ncoT5Sb2Cg3ZiNHYOrdx4PqrdbxijwFYEeN4lWLvOhuVyIvNqP0LsMcaMgBX5pz4CP63ZdtkjZIdwZuqxMpZZn0NWY3t8GTo44OB4kexFORxtI5ij4MSTSVfTtGDHDh73UIzcWVts/s200/James+Cagney+and+Pat+O%27Brien.jpg" border="0" /></a><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408342418290932530" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 127px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgirS4eBJ8cI9ZJKm6f1Jh-wXjD8TjonKl_bbxbtIlKZmtdJ0IuvHHGRzmBIaoGLutgskxLhcKESUEyC32q0voF6luLDV3POJpleWUBopMUKiv-regDkRUW2o9rLskQUEeS8jmkGUr82agM/s200/James+Cagney.jpg" border="0" />James Cagney's characters was also pretty childish. According to the book "James Cagney: A Celebration" by Richard Schickel:<br /><br /><br /><blockquote><span style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-size:85%;color:#ff6600;">Actually, that pencil-thin mustache [that Cagney wore] spoke, if not<br />volumes, then paragraphs, about Dizzy Davis, the dashing flyer he portrays.<br />Cagney was trying to vary the characters he had been doing since Here Comes the<br />Navy, draining it of heroic overtones, and the facial decor said something about<br />the childishness of his vanity. So did the inveterate womanizing the script<br />called upon him to undertake. So did a line Cagney insisted on writing into a<br />scene where O'Brien, as usual representing maturity and responsibility, is<br />dressing him down. The script permits him to expose the fact that, without<br />family, and given the wandering nature of his barnstorming career, the<br />characters played here by O'Brien and Stu Erwin constitute the only family he<br />has [ever] known. 'I'd cut my heart out for you,' the script has him say. After<br />which comes the line, lovely in the simplicity with which it reveals the<br />permanent childishness of his nature and which, the minute he heard it, Hawks,<br />himself an inveterate scribbler [of] improvised dialogue on the set, told<br />Cagney to write in. It is: 'Please don't be mad at me.' And it is, of<br />course, a line most of us start practicing on our parents almost as soon as we<br />can talk, but which we hesitate to use once we've grown-up. To hear it here, in<br />this bustling, bristling all-male world is a shock. And a subtle blow for<br />psychological truth in a unlikely context.</span><br /></span></span></blockquote><br /><br /><div>I didn't really watch the crashing scenes because I thought they were too dramatic. And I did find one scene real amusing; it's James Cagney's introductory scene where he jumps out of his plane when he lands at the airport after doing some aerial acrobatic stunts. In a joy<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNbE5Mju_5ydpa4pUiuSI-BsB5w-pMmEZR7mQHHhyphenhyphenmk21fKap_bDdZNqhqSwVZr6eQEJfmNZv3KvWzgPrC0Coq9GRPTIytapT885M7VhwvbyLZqM_kiJlEptjndwFjcpn-RXE7GAj-_VOu/s1600/cagney702.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408341550185860066" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 176px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNbE5Mju_5ydpa4pUiuSI-BsB5w-pMmEZR7mQHHhyphenhyphenmk21fKap_bDdZNqhqSwVZr6eQEJfmNZv3KvWzgPrC0Coq9GRPTIytapT885M7VhwvbyLZqM_kiJlEptjndwFjcpn-RXE7GAj-_VOu/s320/cagney702.jpg" border="0" /></a>ous reunion, he is tossed around like a football by the other pilots for hugs. I found that pretty funny; I'd toss him around like a football any day. I didn't feel for Cagney when his friend's widow yelled at him for how his irresponsiblility and recklessness caused her husband's death (he faked a heart attack<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8J9NO5PAGg77_Geqb53u_J01CMLznCl1Eh4H839TgwTXIB66H-1xSZwObX5WvV5XDe57pUJXUi2IgQv7i6BOzPIQLkKAf6mGtolbbS01DpPrKb7T0f8eUYviqf2JKZY7rJOtKHYRLjOZs/s1600/Look+up+at+the+rooftops+and+you%27ll+see+hypocritical+family+members.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408343463698215154" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 132px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8J9NO5PAGg77_Geqb53u_J01CMLznCl1Eh4H839TgwTXIB66H-1xSZwObX5WvV5XDe57pUJXUi2IgQv7i6BOzPIQLkKAf6mGtolbbS01DpPrKb7T0f8eUYviqf2JKZY7rJOtKHYRLjOZs/s200/Look+up+at+the+rooftops+and+you%27ll+see+hypocritical+family+members.jpg" border="0" /></a> get out of a mail run to Cleveland so his friend volunteered to take over for him) but I did feel sorry for him when he lost his license. This is one of the James Cagney movies I desperately wanted to see and I can't tell you folks how happy I was I first watched this film: <strong><em>I was overcome with euphoria!!</em></strong> Anyway, I would definitely recommend this film for any James Cagney fan--unless you hate seeing him in a mustache. <strong><em>Happy commenting!!!</em> </strong>And have a Happy Thanksgiving and a Happy Holiday season!!<br /><a title=""view Just Hangin' Around the Phone" " href="http://fan.tcm.com/_Just-Hangin-Around-the-Phone/photo/5051945/66470.html"></a><a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_Kiss-the-Girl/photo/5051939/66470.html"></a><br /><a title=""view Just Hangin' Around the Phone" " href="http://fan.tcm.com/_Just-Hangin-Around-the-Phone/photo/5051945/66470.html"></a><a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_Kiss-the-Girl/photo/5051939/66470.html"></a><a title=""view Talkin' on the Phone" " href="http://fan.tcm.com/_Talkin-on-the-Phone/photo/5051943/66470.html"></a><a title=""view Talkin' on the Phone" " href="http://fan.tcm.com/_Talkin-on-the-Phone/photo/5051943/66470.html"></a><br />(Next blog [for sure]: <em>Something to Sing About</em> [1937])<a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_Airline-official-his-lady/photo/5107502/66470.html"> </a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrpsZE6WoEoP-DCHEQZGZMneclniwokTlhKXCKAL9jN7RuXb_3NJv_Sdmw59vAYjmFourSrmgGf54SKH2tSWJNAJpKQ81JBBNkuvCKyVAHYlyFjY_hzshyphenhyphenPrWG5ew2JMvqI9-on93MWcOt/s1600/airline+pilot.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408340436461683154" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 253px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrpsZE6WoEoP-DCHEQZGZMneclniwokTlhKXCKAL9jN7RuXb_3NJv_Sdmw59vAYjmFourSrmgGf54SKH2tSWJNAJpKQ81JBBNkuvCKyVAHYlyFjY_hzshyphenhyphenPrWG5ew2JMvqI9-on93MWcOt/s320/airline+pilot.jpg" border="0" /></a><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408339481590560754" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 190px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsw7JfQG0YldquCsrjYYS3MJQGlV6UO_m_1TRrimRHewJ7l6pI1NS4khk1MDMtVmT7HlJ8r9TboZ59u15lZPMVn-fCK0ZAp_2SZu0iV5EYgDGbL_g1p2FNnAakRk8IyG1rPslg5C038TdZ/s320/82674_ceilingzero__122_131lo.jpg" border="0" /><a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_Airline-official-his-lady/photo/5107502/66470.html"></a><a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_Airline-official-in-love/photo/5107493/66470.html"></a><a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_Ceiling-Zero-Poster/photo/5051937/66470.html"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIR73moS0lM_AfhgYryduvbkacuJ_dj6ozZY9_DpeGa8ytbUbO7XUAb7BiF40geVr1GntRLgSfHsfRCbPPXZKqGYZ_5DirkE22y0WIJcx5PWglMgjbVzuNta67e2X4KhyKv5C3MRkKJdpE/s1600/cagney424.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408341551057033154" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 254px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIR73moS0lM_AfhgYryduvbkacuJ_dj6ozZY9_DpeGa8ytbUbO7XUAb7BiF40geVr1GntRLgSfHsfRCbPPXZKqGYZ_5DirkE22y0WIJcx5PWglMgjbVzuNta67e2X4KhyKv5C3MRkKJdpE/s320/cagney424.jpg" border="0" /></a><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408342412151696722" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 111px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYK76kgTY0hlUkadLsK_HYH09Pe2qoig4gqFVHbHFpnHxtLlYD7SlmAuuwpZY-RpcGP52MkXNOA6Fq3HkKl-ksplWDRd1lBSFPguzlT0z7feYB1AdM9oYVvWAmUJCT6TBxnjuaIbRyFnH7/s200/ceiling+zero+dvd.jpg" border="0" /><span style="font-family:times new roman;color:#ccccff;">Clips from <em>Ceiling Zero</em>: </span></div><br /><object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/ri2jNvuUiug&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ri2jNvuUiug&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object><object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/HLRO54WfedE&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xcc2550&color2=0xe87a9f"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/HLRO54WfedE&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xcc2550&color2=0xe87a9f" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object>cagneyfan2008http://www.blogger.com/profile/09370117899423931277noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114108144634000275.post-28689327651044235202009-11-23T11:33:00.000-08:002009-11-23T15:14:53.063-08:00He Was Her Man (1934)<div><div><div><div><div><div><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQXw9DlyfXKTJkRweTnK_xzbRlEJyLgsbj-ctwJUjqO-_-Nl1ZoHbZ5X3ZaHFE4B2P1b2OP9bPvWnEOab2picJhMsRi7TN2NJbxU2AMq0RQqNouRF-yF-YdaqIPG57Y_m5edMf7sc9Ff9U/s1600/cagney656.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5407435176618123522" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 234px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQXw9DlyfXKTJkRweTnK_xzbRlEJyLgsbj-ctwJUjqO-_-Nl1ZoHbZ5X3ZaHFE4B2P1b2OP9bPvWnEOab2picJhMsRi7TN2NJbxU2AMq0RQqNouRF-yF-YdaqIPG57Y_m5edMf7sc9Ff9U/s320/cagney656.jpg" border="0" /></a>I just watched the 1934 James Cagney movie <em>He Was Her Man</em>, and it wasn’t very good. James Cagney was kinda boring as Flicker Hayes, the completely reformed safecracker who goes on the lam to San Francisco and its outskirts; he didn’t really yell or punch anybody! Again, he wore that stupid mustache but it didn’t bother me as much as it did in <em>Ceiling Zero</em>. Joan Blondell was also pretty good but she seemed pretty sad throughout the film, like I am when I get preoccupied. Alas, this would be their last film together—and this was kinda a bad excuse of a film to end their seven-film partnership. (I wish their on-screen partnership gained as much recognition as Tracy and Hepburn’s, Astaire and Rogers’, and Bogart and Bacall’s.)<br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5407435183416799474" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 254px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7oszAiVpDBXmeOY_PmktAG6la30bt6Z3b7q-d2Yppo2OicbS-WgSjol4hPZOvV4pIz29XAbCsJ7xo3odP9fFYcoIBpkPEA5fcTqQtl7rxybf6TQtOf9L2LfxG6Q_PivlTHQWNC4b938yW/s320/cagney831.jpg" border="0" />This film was the first to bump off James Cagney since <em>The Public Enemy</em>, and the characters and the endings could not be more dissimilar. Flicker Hayes was Cagney’s first ex-criminal to reform completely. After doing his time, he returns to society to put the finger on mobsters, aid a young woman in distress, act with consideration toward others and—ultimately—sacrifice his love and life. Perhaps Cagney’s constant complaining [for better scripts] finally resulted in this script; and though he again plays a cocky wiseguy, he achieves true redemption by the film’s end. James Cagney actually commits no real criminal acts in this film; he only flees to San Francisco since the gang he formerly worked with conspires to kill him.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNjMnel9w4qgVmBelF4ZsUPeJXMBW9voI2ChKYx5eLuLAHaQVzzdyOLNmR-VZDSH-tuEfl3HesWEmGI5d_geOaRJgowtWBCncAa8i9OCrSbj0CvaUWXUR2nep1HUVTKHy17vXDpYYjJ74i/s1600/cagney867.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5407436266994487442" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 258px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNjMnel9w4qgVmBelF4ZsUPeJXMBW9voI2ChKYx5eLuLAHaQVzzdyOLNmR-VZDSH-tuEfl3HesWEmGI5d_geOaRJgowtWBCncAa8i9OCrSbj0CvaUWXUR2nep1HUVTKHy17vXDpYYjJ74i/s320/cagney867.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div></div><div>At least <em>He Was Her Man</em> worked a few changes on the gangster formula. Much of the film is set in a California fishing village where Cagney hides out and much of the action revolves around his flirtation with a reformed streetwalker engaged to one of the fishermen. At least Cagney made his character, Flicker Hayes, noticeably different from the cocky gunmen who had made him a star. Since Hayes spends much of the film in hiding, Cagney toned down his performance, only allowing the occasional sneer to remind viewers that he was playing a man living outside the law. He also grew a mustache for the role. </div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVTdtCWAkOfKbc48LoKJozZTziXfZuY7S4lbfNUZlVPwGKL_T4q33pjHDFM4JT5vS-NLzi-3BjFdJMYLovXuYnBcugPlJoQ86Y2hZ-nGO_fXU580QgqlG5XcHzlZOK4LL0zmxoDzLFXZu9/s1600/Cagney+in+Robe.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5407437020709565298" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 248px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVTdtCWAkOfKbc48LoKJozZTziXfZuY7S4lbfNUZlVPwGKL_T4q33pjHDFM4JT5vS-NLzi-3BjFdJMYLovXuYnBcugPlJoQ86Y2hZ-nGO_fXU580QgqlG5XcHzlZOK4LL0zmxoDzLFXZu9/s320/Cagney+in+Robe.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Providing strong support in <em>He Was Her Man</em> was Victor Jory, who had moved into character roles after being unsuccessfully groomed for stardom at Fox (where, admittedly, he played leading roles primarily in low-budget films). Jory’s role as the decent fisherman who almost loses Blondell to Cagney was different from the more villainous roles, like Jonas Wilkerson in <em>Gone with the Wind</em> (1939), for which he would be best remembered. </div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjljtEv33WZOknlxb3BKM3VG8c5V-s8u5lNi4dpGtl56ZUyBRb6VeBLJxO9jpd44b0y0f1hdzdPnZdgkyJI9t795TdR3LPRhElfv4j2pA4iNGQhz2NBLpYDL0NVkAouvFUKxpLTfrzbsIbG/s1600/cagneyblondell17.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5407438509092743490" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 172px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjljtEv33WZOknlxb3BKM3VG8c5V-s8u5lNi4dpGtl56ZUyBRb6VeBLJxO9jpd44b0y0f1hdzdPnZdgkyJI9t795TdR3LPRhElfv4j2pA4iNGQhz2NBLpYDL0NVkAouvFUKxpLTfrzbsIbG/s200/cagneyblondell17.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div>Despite the talent assembled, <em>He Was Her Man</em> was not among Warner’s or Cagney’s most successful films. Critics were decidedly mixed, many complaining that Cagney’s new mustache was far from flattering. <em>He Was Her Man</em> would fade from public view quickly, though not because of the mixed reviews. It was released in May 1934, just three months before the industry agreed to stricter enforcement of their self-censoring Production Code. The film’s clear depiction of Blondell’s character as a prostitute was a violation of the Code, which would keep Warner Bros. from re-issuing the picture after its initial run. It also kept the film off television for years, depriving fans of a chance to see Cagney in a different type of gangster role. I wouldn’t really recommend this film for any James Cagney fan since it’s so bleak and depressing and a real turkey. <strong><em>Happy commenting!!</em></strong> </div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5407437954666483026" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 124px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbJT3rnSDToV0gLBXxHGkjlJJTRdKquFoVimYaGxC9iH_w3-EkYGlLg3vInHJdcawb0g3GYhvLRUeACiNIhXcmRhvZrP119PrSuZXvCSV4wzOKlHy9DGqOWDAJjKdDLIXRNtY7hZ11FF5u/s200/wanted.jpg" border="0" />(Next blog: <em>Something to Sing<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvmqQRwldjkFJvWNGck_6AGe-qWWVBG0FWcpbLNP4Nm68Fh5MLPqp-HOTQg7umuMHn2cAnkA1TwEeLHJtPv9Z8AY0ZtSN0MOAO3UUWoIYVVJlR89ZPDXj2Syi8nt_OMw4mgqHLIz4nV2Gy/s1600/cagneyblondell16.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5407436265461937442" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 274px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvmqQRwldjkFJvWNGck_6AGe-qWWVBG0FWcpbLNP4Nm68Fh5MLPqp-HOTQg7umuMHn2cAnkA1TwEeLHJtPv9Z8AY0ZtSN0MOAO3UUWoIYVVJlR89ZPDXj2Syi8nt_OMw4mgqHLIz4nV2Gy/s320/cagneyblondell16.jpg" border="0" /></a> About</em> [1937]) <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAZN88-Hn49sImuvUkqh8UarG3Tf4jjdZY3ow2-y6XM_9G60jWvD-iUwlLEtvktU2qopQlpTIwWPYZqifhYcmowQzFMGrbNiquJ-JoRgZ39ixxdPPH3vQRPSRmBna6GtB4k8-3UV6Z5Plf/s1600/Cagney+with+a+Mustache.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5407437493883572962" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 265px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAZN88-Hn49sImuvUkqh8UarG3Tf4jjdZY3ow2-y6XM_9G60jWvD-iUwlLEtvktU2qopQlpTIwWPYZqifhYcmowQzFMGrbNiquJ-JoRgZ39ixxdPPH3vQRPSRmBna6GtB4k8-3UV6Z5Plf/s320/Cagney+with+a+Mustache.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div><span style="font-family:times new roman;color:#33ffff;"><em>He Was Her Man </em>trailer: </span></div></div></div></div></div></div></div><object height="285" width="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/fhqZzK4532Q&hl=en_US&fs=1&border=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/fhqZzK4532Q&hl=en_US&fs=1&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="340" height="285"></embed></object>cagneyfan2008http://www.blogger.com/profile/09370117899423931277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114108144634000275.post-23588048080176013492009-11-14T09:53:00.000-08:002009-11-14T10:03:16.028-08:00Videos Related to Yankee Doodle Dandy<span style="font-family:courier new;color:#ffff66;">A video montage about James Cagney and love, which has nothing to do with this film but has a few clips from it (the song's from the musical <em>Chicago</em>): </span><object height="285" width="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/hUAl1hELqz0&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xcc2550&color2=0xe87a9f&border=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/hUAl1hELqz0&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xcc2550&color2=0xe87a9f&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="340" height="285"></embed></object><br /><br /><span style="color:#ffccff;">A news profile about James Cagney from 1986, when he died, which is not related to this film but its star:</span><object height="285" width="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/v6z8V9kFrgY&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01&border=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/v6z8V9kFrgY&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="340" height="285"></embed></object>cagneyfan2008http://www.blogger.com/profile/09370117899423931277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4114108144634000275.post-605266174280761432009-11-14T08:13:00.000-08:002009-11-14T09:50:48.712-08:00Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942)<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCN3coskOdW-OJINm-267TWdb4E1tog_gqpjCiTYJ_bppEk9rsmnSPVWfFGkUsed8Qd-SVsyLpx-H1b49Rnkyge2loQEnKe0ACuo5pov89CevwZZv6JlfsxLRJdhvc8zSFM62hYviI9iFQ/s1600-h/yankeedoodledandy.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404013325476149410" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 130px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCN3coskOdW-OJINm-267TWdb4E1tog_gqpjCiTYJ_bppEk9rsmnSPVWfFGkUsed8Qd-SVsyLpx-H1b49Rnkyge2loQEnKe0ACuo5pov89CevwZZv6JlfsxLRJdhvc8zSFM62hYviI9iFQ/s200/yankeedoodledandy.jpg" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0PDYZrxtTaJfV5oSV6oGriovjDYYKdZP1ze6n7qVJPU2YDb6l6mfQHJ00hUYwONzvngzGtaqyBZHf1b55-ERX6UZlsrTheit42PYZ2Qf2tbJ5qX-ORASEkvkLk9lrxVobXoPPJpTUHT7v/s1600-h/1942_m.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5403999026212715890" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 264px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0PDYZrxtTaJfV5oSV6oGriovjDYYKdZP1ze6n7qVJPU2YDb6l6mfQHJ00hUYwONzvngzGtaqyBZHf1b55-ERX6UZlsrTheit42PYZ2Qf2tbJ5qX-ORASEkvkLk9lrxVobXoPPJpTUHT7v/s320/1942_m.jpg" border="0" /></a>I just recently watched the 1942 James Cagney movie <em>Yankee Doodle Dandy</em>, and it was quite fun. James Cagney was bravura as George M. Cohan, the famous patriotic song-and-dance man who gave us such songs as "Yankee Doodle Boy" and "You're a Grand Old Flag." Cagney won his only Oscar™ for Best Actor for this role (and I'm proud of him). One of my favorite songs in this film is "Harrigan" but only because of the way Cagney sings it—with an Irish brogue. I love it when he uses an Irish accent!<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmOfUyuJiLLcZzPhU6UShUzDttuamJ9skHA_Du5DxqBw0p1PTZvhTrZ8nmlyQgylF_kp2LutioHXRoSg27uElAFSXUagKvhAhU_pQ0e5kdr5dpfYTnVuJmew_CjS50Xd5RiIA-v4Gu4rrC/s1600-h/virginia.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404011056932409746" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 160px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmOfUyuJiLLcZzPhU6UShUzDttuamJ9skHA_Du5DxqBw0p1PTZvhTrZ8nmlyQgylF_kp2LutioHXRoSg27uElAFSXUagKvhAhU_pQ0e5kdr5dpfYTnVuJmew_CjS50Xd5RiIA-v4Gu4rrC/s200/virginia.jpg" border="0" /></a><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5403999033782217874" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 244px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh99evvR4t05XV0Oifd8qfYrcZSTtFYcOHqPVadNRsFPbaXIhMK5gw9f7L0FJcer-qoguS7Xo5VQUV9AyLxSA1b8KPHGeBPGAewOHck_qdNwzTFeQ8VK2fPlWmL0PAYeSXx1rrcm-bff6T8/s320/grand+old+flag.jpg" border="0" />Although he now seems the only logical choice, Cagney would have missed out on his big chance if a deal between Cohan and MGM to make a film to be called The Four Cohans hadn't fizzled out. Covering the years when Cohan had toured with his father, mother and sister, the movie would have starred Mickey Rooney as the young Cohan. The deal collapsed after studio head Louis B. Mayer refused to allow Cohan the right to final cut on the proposed film. The next movie mogul to show an interest in the project was Samuel Goldwyn, who had a commitment to make a film starring Fred Astaire. When Astaire refused the role of Cohan as not right for him, the rights were picked up by Warner Bros., who cast resident star Cagney in the role with <a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_Harrigan/photo/6593019/66470.html"></a>Cohan's blessings. (And it's a good thing too! Can u imagine Mickey Rooney or Fred Astaire playing George M. Cohan?) Cagney, in particular, was eager to play Cohan because he was, at the time, suspected of being a communist sympathizer due to his union activities (he was president of the Screen Actors' Guild) and because of his open support of the New Deal. He wanted to show his patriotism on screen, and the George M. Cohan story was the perfect vehicle to do this.<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8-DEGzIpKoQMsjU28Lzp2DrS-jDcy_il_d8M6hiEhWSRrAad9ylQuO83jiYO7X2h3NYGcbcO3nSEJYsxI_2uTmvIpFozzM82U1JSmHts7DdDrRO7Iq6La7YPMbpBiDPz3nUVZ8IWVhzz8/s1600-h/yankee.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404014721886157538" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 148px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8-DEGzIpKoQMsjU28Lzp2DrS-jDcy_il_d8M6hiEhWSRrAad9ylQuO83jiYO7X2h3NYGcbcO3nSEJYsxI_2uTmvIpFozzM82U1JSmHts7DdDrRO7Iq6La7YPMbpBiDPz3nUVZ8IWVhzz8/s200/yankee.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPUmxDWQgiirqdeSChJrbVnLcmcaZLB5PkpA7E4P7FvJH1ubBFjU1yWqpcMCtcBHJMj6A1AvNdjgiYPQRV8HlJ2OlcHkOl6FMioZQgKFg1aXZoLoKJmUd4bAn0VWCsEFVfTZpQ6-c2_-zz/s1600-h/doodle4.gif"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404001687174163426" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 206px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPUmxDWQgiirqdeSChJrbVnLcmcaZLB5PkpA7E4P7FvJH1ubBFjU1yWqpcMCtcBHJMj6A1AvNdjgiYPQRV8HlJ2OlcHkOl6FMioZQgKFg1aXZoLoKJmUd4bAn0VWCsEFVfTZpQ6-c2_-zz/s320/doodle4.gif" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><em></em><br /><br /><br /><em></em><br /><em></em><br /><em>Yankee Doodle Dandy</em>, with its many flag-waving musical numbers, proved just the ticket for World War II-era audiences and became the top-grossing movie of its year, as well as Warners' top-grossing movie to that time. It was nominated for Academy Awards in eight categories, including Best Picture and Director (Curtiz), and won three Oscars, including one for Cagney as Best Actor. I also find it amazing that Joan Leslie, who played Cohan's wife Mary, was younger than me when she made this film (she was <strong>17</strong>). <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQbgH5QE1_Er8I0K6-Bspd5DDDOzKaGUTmUOZz0hpuhorYelTeLG5vAOpmai-G0LtBm5GeExEPQO9roEj_X2HF2Y8q3vCKFlkzbyujuJm9eZ0vNB803lvScuVpc6IvjgQAuQT8DfmsNu3h/s1600-h/Yankee+Doodle+Dandy5.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404013321186306706" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 152px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQbgH5QE1_Er8I0K6-Bspd5DDDOzKaGUTmUOZz0hpuhorYelTeLG5vAOpmai-G0LtBm5GeExEPQO9roEj_X2HF2Y8q3vCKFlkzbyujuJm9eZ0vNB803lvScuVpc6IvjgQAuQT8DfmsNu3h/s200/Yankee+Doodle+Dandy5.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWHTae09XfS-8wfWJZqXPxulsykS6nneayE8OZ-yl1Uv1DjeajTW279jXW6phW5jAgwY_U0Y0D2xMqQpg0jx0YISG7gRnRcG1nKo-mUic6jSzIJkXfLYuP5nvSrqHg2fqUDL_fuPBn2SjO/s1600-h/harrigan2.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404001691823390210" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWHTae09XfS-8wfWJZqXPxulsykS6nneayE8OZ-yl1Uv1DjeajTW279jXW6phW5jAgwY_U0Y0D2xMqQpg0jx0YISG7gRnRcG1nKo-mUic6jSzIJkXfLYuP5nvSrqHg2fqUDL_fuPBn2SjO/s320/harrigan2.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />The problem with biopics is that they are often fictionalized for dramatic effect (Hollywood is <strong>very</strong> notorious for these sorts of things), and this one is no exception! I <a title="'" href="http://fan.tcm.com/_My-mother-thanks-you-my-father-thanks-you-my-sister-thanks-you-and-I-thank-you/photo/6435748/66470.html"></a>could hardly tell what was fact and what was fiction when watching this movie. Let <em><strong>that</strong></em> be a lesson: Never attribute anything you've learned to a Hollywood movie or TV show. (I think I'm being a bit hypocritical when I say that because I usually attribute everything I've learned to <em>The Simpsons</em> or <em>Family Guy</em>, which are not the most reliable sources for information .)<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikAmPf7MWbPzK5_UHl7zsCaf5bnyPgWk21iXxQGnvZAv0E-4rhFVxo1nv5kZlo_XOKiKEiIi0eoReyqdK9CVtaNVXA5XM5b4Sd5CxdbA1-78KZTst94CqW8TgZc5cmr4xGQTB-nCclLHrm/s1600-h/James+Cagney+in+Yankee+Doodle+Dandy1.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404003087509543890" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 250px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikAmPf7MWbPzK5_UHl7zsCaf5bnyPgWk21iXxQGnvZAv0E-4rhFVxo1nv5kZlo_XOKiKEiIi0eoReyqdK9CVtaNVXA5XM5b4Sd5CxdbA1-78KZTst94CqW8TgZc5cmr4xGQTB-nCclLHrm/s320/James+Cagney+in+Yankee+Doodle+Dandy1.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCkVi_5bODWye-EtStOQSAHrTJHyGC6XuAW6EplAjg31zdkYkDL-zmCoyiORhE6LwMhCMWtAal8_fLUlnVqn_4kA_VKBf6MuG8ISeEKuAsE8H-Osp4exgptQVuBaabCBIW24-uo2UP-wuQ/s1600-h/RETROSPECTIVE+ON+JAMES+CAGNEY2.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404011050534068418" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 134px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCkVi_5bODWye-EtStOQSAHrTJHyGC6XuAW6EplAjg31zdkYkDL-zmCoyiORhE6LwMhCMWtAal8_fLUlnVqn_4kA_VKBf6MuG8ISeEKuAsE8H-Osp4exgptQVuBaabCBIW24-uo2UP-wuQ/s200/RETROSPECTIVE+ON+JAMES+CAGNEY2.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />One of Curtiz' keys to success was the decision to allow Cagney free rein in his scenes, permitting the actor to improvise as the cameras were rolling. A prime example, and reportedly Cagney's favorite moment in the film, is when he suddenly breaks into a tap-dance as he comes down the stairs in a scene at the White House where Cohan has met with President Franklin Roosevelt. The ordinarily hard-boiled Curtiz was so moved by the scene in which Cohan bids farewell to his dying father (Walter Huston) that he reportedly ruined a take with his loud sobs. (I didn't really cry at that scene, which surprised me, but I've cried at scenes that were more emotionally powerful, like one scene in a Shirley Temple film.)<br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404009341050755922" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 196px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpMxuLsuSGDIbHEV8ezvrXMCXvlKIoyv6qH4b7yrm7Sog2iD9oEV8Xj1erkDz3pfiIjXED3aHqfvGHfMoQQmFFLJbhNkvvYb_sKw6P5BMXRk_GvvbkN_rinuzovqamKJxd6U_KTxTg_rBm/s200/randomcags02.jpg" border="0" />Walter Huston was especially great in this film; he would later be in the Humphrey Bogart film <em>Treasure of the Sierra Madre</em> (1948), which was directed by his son, John Huston. (Little trivia question: Who is Walter Huston's granddaughter?) He earlier appeared in an uncredited role in another Bogart film <em>The Maltese Falcon</em> (1941), which was also directed by his son.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuoSW-A5SpPPNW0zsso2A-f7JDku2uPyJca1yo-xbQDSadFj1QQBAqRvtrJbzLdsVDCZbaaIadVLzyDH1qsXtgEYq7JMEt9HF1rFsZWUlncEcWrnJtq2UabLCZltlg8pXGNSS99GY89VVy/s1600-h/yankdandyplane.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404015072683138146" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 150px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuoSW-A5SpPPNW0zsso2A-f7JDku2uPyJca1yo-xbQDSadFj1QQBAqRvtrJbzLdsVDCZbaaIadVLzyDH1qsXtgEYq7JMEt9HF1rFsZWUlncEcWrnJtq2UabLCZltlg8pXGNSS99GY89VVy/s200/yankdandyplane.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6Jj-S8fJNMkhJZJaqfwtYqz_H2OdFP3RbDvXsCvgtHXR_vZltFKJaVshDqXR-LrS6dQN8gVhCXs4I5Kqit_adco3RhJSh-SslETKy6uY4N0RQWfEdN7DPjh0kkDTZlZxS1BpH9SsssDou/s1600-h/James_Cagney_in_Yankee_Doodle_Dandy_trailer_2up.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404003093080236418" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 248px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6Jj-S8fJNMkhJZJaqfwtYqz_H2OdFP3RbDvXsCvgtHXR_vZltFKJaVshDqXR-LrS6dQN8gVhCXs4I5Kqit_adco3RhJSh-SslETKy6uY4N0RQWfEdN7DPjh0kkDTZlZxS1BpH9SsssDou/s320/James_Cagney_in_Yankee_Doodle_Dandy_trailer_2up.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Makeup effects play a big role in the film, especially in the simulated aging of the actors who play the Cohans (sorry, I can't think of a better way to say it) to show the effects of the ravages of time. Despite being an avid James Cagney fan, this film is not my most favorite of his films—as much as I like seeing Cagney dance. Being a world traveler, who is not very cosmopolitan but has international interests, I find the vulgar flag-waving in this film too much for my tastes. (And I almost forgot to add that I enjoyed the "Little Johnny Jones" musical number.)<br /><br />Anyway, this film is a must for any James Cagney fan, no matter how universal their interests are! <strong><em>Happy commenting</em></strong>! (Oh, and I almost forgot to mention that James Cagney's sister Jeanne Cagney is in this film. You can totally see the resemblance between them. She's almost like a female version of him. So it's pretty cute that they're always "together" in the scenes of the Cohans' dancing numbers.)<br /><br /><br /><div>(Next blog: <em>He Was Her Man</em> [1934])<br /></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4GMrbo6aGCyfhrBdB7EtvwmGfKk7e6Iap3sgzG0RZSOP6Dlb6MQm7obvo8f2XqiyaHLuEkCMzmZNw1mMvp8RejA2Zb2s5saPUSk57zM9nt7fHl0lwI3M-pxhdFxUwzj-5Jbl1lEhT_oj8/s1600-h/James+Cagney+in+Yankee+Doodle+Dandy.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404001695823717906" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 245px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4GMrbo6aGCyfhrBdB7EtvwmGfKk7e6Iap3sgzG0RZSOP6Dlb6MQm7obvo8f2XqiyaHLuEkCMzmZNw1mMvp8RejA2Zb2s5saPUSk57zM9nt7fHl0lwI3M-pxhdFxUwzj-5Jbl1lEhT_oj8/s320/James+Cagney+in+Yankee+Doodle+Dandy.jpg" border="0" /></a><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5403999029950005346" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 253px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6D5KfWTCitGW_A23ShQKsOhGUDR8DV_7fKjO4bcHALWSknDT4v8kHnjFjlbKN9abSozh-zNR8E3wFyOfHyx2Eu1L65JR_335kCwzqiO9jrQ9cvVhYB0H76tV1S8GCixxuSj5bl8QrSF-A/s320/CAGDOO.jpg" border="0" /><br /></div><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi07E5gsJO7jti0r_gmDYKWCilnf56yWjm4BsqulothDUnIaC8yWYRjK0oUGmedsN3FaF9TFsx2k-6Qb-uquyZNGavbm3tiZqEQDNCxioBL82_PDe2LJFoNSUJBMTxAw6fOL1d16KVHybF-/s1600-h/Over+there.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404003094366688562" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 253px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi07E5gsJO7jti0r_gmDYKWCilnf56yWjm4BsqulothDUnIaC8yWYRjK0oUGmedsN3FaF9TFsx2k-6Qb-uquyZNGavbm3tiZqEQDNCxioBL82_PDe2LJFoNSUJBMTxAw6fOL1d16KVHybF-/s320/Over+there.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ff9900;">Clips from this film (sans the rendition of "Yankee Doodle Boy" by Mickey Rooney & Judy Garland in the first video): </span><object height="285" width="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/wlPR97oYOBA&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x2b405b&color2=0x6b8ab6&border=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/wlPR97oYOBA&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x2b405b&color2=0x6b8ab6&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="340" height="285"></embed></object><br /><object height="285" width="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/TfWl5FrNcGQ&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca&border=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/TfWl5FrNcGQ&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="340" height="285"></embed></object>cagneyfan2008http://www.blogger.com/profile/09370117899423931277noreply@blogger.com0