Author Archives: Nancy Louise Rutherford
Give us your opinion!
It’s almost here. The Misfits have made their predictions, but what about you? Share! Be it one category or all of ‘em, we want to hear from you. Respond here, or, if you’re brave enough, contact us (818/574-6991, free when … Continue reading
Filed under Uncategorized
Richard Herd: Islander Guest and More (audio interview)
Hollywood is filled with stars, but these stars come in different forms. There are the stars who continuously burn strong and bright over the years and seldom disappoint (How ya’ doing, Meryl Streep?). There are the ones who explode dynamically … Continue reading
Filed under The Islander
The MGM Dogville Shorts
Produced at the dawn of the sound era, the Dogville films, through their very existence, reflect the insatiable appetite filmgoers at the time had for talking pictures. That’s clear enough from the films’ tagline, “All Barkies” (a play on the era’s ubiquitous “All Talkie” promotional slogan). Ironically, these shorts are, in one way, actually more watchable than many of the features of the day as the “actors” voices, and all other sounds, were dubbed, freeing the four-footed thespians from the movement restrictions that sound enforced on their two-legged contemporaries. They fly airplanes, drive cars, fight wars, go to nightclubs…all with a freedom of movement human actors on film had to wait years for. Continue reading
Filed under Cult, Movie Reviews, Podcast companion piece
Carleton Carpenter Video Clip
Here’s Carleton with Debbie Reynolds (in her film debut) in a number from the MGM musical Three Little Words (1950). Check out the podcast to hear Carleton discuss his Islander film choices as well as his career during the golden age of the Hollywood musical. Continue reading
Filed under Podcast companion piece, The Islander
Such a Character: Lee Patrick
In its heyday, Hollywood showcased dozens upon dozens of wonderful character actresses. As with their male counterparts, most of them fell into “types,” roles for which they were well suited and extremely competent and reliable. And that’s fine. It’s the way it should be. As an audience, we look to these women to fulfill a specific role with great competence and gentle dignity (yes, even the ditzy dames).
What we don’t often see is the onscreen growth from one type of character into another. And another. But that’s exactly the sort of metamorphosis that character actress Lee Patrick achieved throughout the course of her long tenure as a bona fide character actress in Tinsel Town. Lee Patrick may not have become the most recognizable of character actresses in film, but that’s a great part of what made her so special. Instead of playing to type, she could play many types, and she reliably did so in over 100 film and television appearances. Find Patrick’s name in a movie’s opening credits, and you are assured of a solid and satisfying performance – as well as one that just might surprise you.
Filed under Such a Charaacter
Films That Went Wrong: Davd Jacobs takes a look at The Chase, The Cotton Club, and Angela’s Ashes (audio clip)
When writer/producer David Jacobs joined me recently on “The Islander,” he had a lot to say about some of the films he loves, including why he is fond of them and what makes them stand-out cinematic achievements. In this bonus … Continue reading
Filed under The Islander
Such a Character: Gene Lockhart
What made Lockhart so special as a character actor was his ability to blend the two types for which he was famous, that of the overtly sinister villain and the bumbling nice guy, into a unique and compelling mix that never failed to delight. While Lockhart was known best for his work in film, he also had an impressive career on the stage, including his much-lauded performance as Willie Loman in the original Broadway production of Death of a Salesman (taking over from Lee J. Cobb). Continue reading
Filed under Such a Charaacter
Mark Lisanti, Marooned on “The Islander” (audio interview)
From it’s very inception, Defamer was a little bit of Brilliance. Lisanti worked anonymously at first, sort of as a joke, but it really didn’t matter. What did matter was the amazing quality of his posts, often as many as two dozen a day, which left the denizens of Hollywood gasping for air, and the underlings…the overworked personal assistants, underpaid production assistants, and yahoos like me…craving for more. Continue reading
Filed under The Islander
Holiday (audio review) Plus Backstory: Gertrude Sanford Legendre
Back in my years as a teenaged Cinema Misfit, I gobbled up any film that was made in the 1930s…romances, musicals, screwball comedies, gangster movies, even Paul Muni films…I saw and loved them all. Now, as I move into the sunset of my life (or at least the mid-afternoon), my ardor for some of these flicks may have waned a bit (I’m looking at you, “Bringing Up Baby”), but “Holiday” has always retained a hold on my heart. Continue reading
Filed under Movie Reviews
From the Trenches: A “Bad” Woman
couple of years ago, I taught a high school film history class to a group of particularly bright juniors and seniors. Some of them were a little skeptical at first (“Are you gonna make us watch black and white movies, Miss?”), but I made an initial plea with them to “give it a chance,” and, as luck would have it, they all did. Somehow, I thought that I absolutely had to show a Hitchcock film…like there was some sort of law…and I chose one of my favorites, North by Northwest. It was a mistake. A really BIG mistake. Continue reading
Filed under From the Trenches
Jim Rutherford
Nancy Louise Rutherford
Lou Aguilar
The Misfits
