Johnny Cool (1963)

by Kimberly Lindbergs | September 10, 2010

Categories | Movie Reviews, American Cinema, Actresses, Crime, TCM

Elizabeth Montgomery (1963)

I neglected to mention that I wrote a brief piece about the movie Johnny Cool (1963) for Turner Classic Movies last month. It’s an interesting crime film with a standout performance from actress Elizabeth Montgomery who is mostly remembered as the witch with the twitchy nose in Bewitched. Episodes of that popular television series and Johnny Cool were both directed by the same man, Elizabeth Montgomery’s husband William Asher. Unfortunately Johnny Cool isn’t available on DVD yet but it occasionally plays on TCM so keep an eye out for it.

- Johnny Cool (1963)

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The Museum of Uncut Funk

by Kimberly Lindbergs | September 2, 2010

Categories | News, Actresses, Blaxploitation

Pam Grier in Coffy (1973)

This week I’m taking a mini vacation. I can’t afford to go anywhere but I’m planning on unplugging at home and relaxing. Before I disappear I thought I’d mention a new website that I recently linked to: The Museum of Uncut Funk. The site is run by Sista ToFunky who shares her vast collection of Blaxploitation memorabilia with visitors. She runs numerous blogs and even manages an online lounge where fans can gather together and celebrate ’70’s Black Culture. If you’ve got some spare time this weekend I highly recommend making a visit to The Museum of Uncut Funk.

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Courage Conquers Death

by Kimberly Lindbergs | August 19, 2010

Categories | Movie Reviews, American Cinema, Actresses, Romance, Movie Morlocks, TCM

Katharine Hepburn in Christopher Strong (1933)

On Friday, August 20th, TCM is devoting the day to the celebrated actress Katharine Hepburn as part of their ongoing Summer Under the Stars event. I really enjoy Summer Under the Stars and this year some of my favorite actors and actresses have been featured. I thought it would be fun to highlight one of my favorite Katherine Hepburn films this week, Dorothy Arzner’s action filled melodrama Christopher Strong (1933). It’s a wonderful early talkie featuring Hepburn in one of her most interesting roles. The cast is excellent and I love Roy Webb’s uncredited but impressive score. If you haven’t had the opportunity to see Christopher Strong yet you can catch it on August 20th when it plays on TCM. It’s well worth a look just to see young Katherine Hepburn strut around in the amazing costumes that were designed for her by Howard Greer and Walter Plunkett. The movie is full of wonderful eye-candy and also features some notable horror film actors such as the talented Colin Clive (Frankenstein; 1931, Bride of Frankenstein; 1935 and Mad Love; 1935) and young Helen Chandler (Dracula; 1931). It plays in the early morning hours so you may have to record it if you want to see it but I think it’s well worth the effort. You can find my piece about Christopher Strong over at TCM’s Movie Morlocks Blog.

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Summer Under the Stars: Julie Christie

by Kimberly Lindbergs | July 30, 2010

Categories | Movie Reviews, Horror, British Cinema, Actresses, Science Fiction, Donald Cammell, Julie Christie

Julie Christie in an early promo shot for Billy Liar (1963)

I recently wrote a lengthy piece about Donald Cammell’s science fiction thriller Demon Seed (1977), which has been published at the Turner Classic Movies site. My article coincides with TCM’s annual Summer Under the Stars event that celebrates the careers of various actors and actresses all summer long. This year many of my favorite screen stars will be represented in TCM’s lineup including Steve McQueen, Errol Flynn, Gene Tierney, Elizabeth Taylor, Peter O’Toole and the lovely ’60s icon, Julie Christie. Demon Seed will be shown on August 2 along with many other terrific Julie Christie’ films such as The Go-Between (1971), Doctor Zhivago (1965), Far From the Madding Crowd (1967), Billy Liar (1963), Darling (1965) and Petulia (1968). You can read my piece on Demon Seed as well as articles about all the other Julie Christie films being shown on August 2 at the TCM site.

- Summer Under The Stars - August 2/2010: Julie Christie

Julie Christie in Demon Seed (1977)

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Before They Were Stars

by Kimberly Lindbergs | July 29, 2010

Categories | Actresses, Movie Morlocks, TCM

Before she was a star:
Ali MacGraw models for Heublein (1969)

Over at the Movie Morlocks I’ve posted a brief piece about the early modeling careers of a handful of Hollywood starlets including Tippi Hedren and Ali MacGraw. You might be surprised to discover that both actresses posed for toothpaste advertisements in the 1950s before they started acting. To find out more please visit TCM’s Movie Morlocks Blog.

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Happy 4th of July!

by Kimberly Lindbergs | July 2, 2010

Categories | News, Actresses

I hope all my US readers enjoy the holiday weekend!

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The Glamorous World of Paul Hesse

by Kimberly Lindbergs | June 24, 2010

Categories | Actresses, Elizabeth Taylor, Movie Morlocks, TCM, Bette Davis, Ava Gardner, Gene Tierney

Four of my favorite actresses photographed by Paul Hesse
Top: Gene Tierney and Elizabeth Taylor
Bottom: Bette Davis and Ava Gardner

Like most film buffs, I absolutely love old Hollywood glamor photography. I’m an amateur photographer myself so I own a lot of photography books and some of my favorites are jam-packed with beautiful photos of classic Hollywood film stars. In the ’70s the practice of taking glamorous head-shots of the stars and hiring photographers to shoot on sets seemed to quietly fade away. Studios didn’t want to spend money on it and the public became more interested in fashion photography, rock stars and realistic portraits. But from roughly the ’30s to the ’60s movie magazines around the world were overflowing with glamorous photographs of movie stars. One of the most interesting photographers working during this period was Paul Hesse who helped pioneer the use of color film in commercial art. His colorful and hyper-realistic portraits of celebrities still grab my attention every time I come across one. Hesse had a very distinct style that is still noticeable today. If you’d like to learn more about Paul Hesse or just enjoy some of his other photos you can read my brief write-up about the man and his work at TCM’s Movie Morlocks Blog.

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Talking With Trina

by Kimberly Lindbergs | June 17, 2010

Categories | Movie Reviews, Spies & Secret Agents, Comedies, Actresses, Blaxploitation, Interviews, TCM

Trina Parks in Diamonds Are Forever (1971)

I recently had the opportunity to interview the actress Trina Parks who appeared in the James Bond film Diamonds Are Forever (1971) and the fascinating blaxploitation movie Darktown Strutters (1975). Trina was really fun to talk to and I learned a lot about her during our exchange. You can read my interview with Trina Parks over at TCM’s Movie Morlocks Blog. Darktown Strutters will be playing on TCM Underground tomorrow night (June 18th) and if you haven’t had the opportunity to see the movie yet I highly recommend giving it a look. I guarantee that it’s unlike anything you’ve seen before.

- Talking with Trina @ TCM’s Classic Movie Blog

Recommended Links:
- Super Sisters On Cycles! - My review of Darktown Strutters (1975).
- Trina Parks Tribute

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The Navy vs. The Night Monster

by Kimberly Lindbergs | May 20, 2010

Categories | Movie Reviews, American Cinema, Actresses, Science Fiction, Movie Morlocks, TCM

Mamie Van Doren

I’ve been really busy lately so I haven’t had a lot of free time to update but I just posted a little piece about a ’60s science fiction thriller called The Navy vs. The Night Monsters (1965) over at the Movie Morlocks.

I first saw The Navy vs. The Night Monsters on television when I was a kid and the movie fascinated me. It had acid spewing tree monsters, spectacular Navy air battles and starred the beautiful Mamie Van Doren. The movie was recently released on DVD for the first time so I watched again but it didn’t exactly live up to my expectations. It’s still a fun low budget movie that might appeal to fans of Day of the Triffids (1962) or The Thing from Another World (1951). The production suffered from time constraints, financial woes and creative difficulties and it shows in the final product but imaginative viewers might be able to spot some remnants of what could have been a great film in The Navy vs. The Night Monsters.

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