Shirley MacLaine

photo snagged at Dr. Macro (excellent resource for classic film photos), photo had the header: Hollywood At Home - A Family Album 1950-1965. Photos by Sid Avery

“I don't need anyone to rectify my existence. The most profound relationship we will ever have is the one with ourselves.”

- Shirley MacLaine

Dietrich

“Darling, the legs aren't so beautiful, I just know what to do with them.”

- Marlene Dietrich

She was the original self-made icon. Long before Marilyn altered her voice, washed her face 12 times a day and wore vaseline to catch the light of the camera, Dietrich was crafting an image for herself. She knew exactly how she should be lit and demanded control over lighting and camera angles when being filmed or photographed. She knew the menswear angle worked for her, with her lithe frame, sharp features and deep husky rumble of a voice, and she ordered suits with trousers in every color at a time when no other woman was wearing slacks. In fact, she also sent pantsuits to other women (like Rosemary Clooney, whom she befriended early in the "girl singer's" career), encouraging them to follow suit. She oversaw every detail of her image, both onscreen and off. Couturiers spoke of how she not only made certain every thread was perfectly in place on the exterior of her clothing, but would have an article fit and refit until the seams in the lining were flawless and lay perfecty smooth. If she liked something, she bought it in every possible color and bought multiples so she wouldn't be without it. If she couldn't find something, she had it created. She was crafting an image both beautiful and completely unique unto her.

For whatever reason, that absolute control over her physical appearance and that minute attenton to detail fascinates me. She wasn't the most beautiful woman on screen. She was talented but she wasn't by any means the most talented actress around. And yet, somehow she not only became an enduring icon, but maintained that sultry image well into later life. She knew how to reinvent herself to follow the times. As Wikipedia puts it, "She managed to remain popular by continually re-inventing herself through her long lasting career. During the 1920s she began her work as a cabaret singer, chorus girl and film actress in Berlin. In the 1930s, she became a Hollywood actress, a World War II frontline entertainer, and lastly an international stage show performer from the 1950s to the 1970s. She accomplished the great achievement of managing to become an entertainment icon of the 20th century by the end of her career." For the cabaret routines of her later years, she had bodysuits made of sheer material in order to display her figure to it's best advantage under revealing costumes and present an illusion of ongoing youthfulness in her physique. Even the changes of age and time were things she sought and found new ways to control.

I cannot imagine the effort and energy that went into the image she created, but her life WAS her art. Her hard work and keen eye set an almost unattainably high bar for personal style and made her into a lasting cultural icon.

Anne Bancroft and Mel Brooks

Bancroft and Brooks around the time of their wedding, in 1964

"I fell in love with her then and there."

- Brooks, in an interview with Liz Smith, on first meeting Anne


Anne Bancroft and Mel Brooks met in 1961 when she was rehearsing for the Perry Como television show. The story goes that she was rehearsing the musical number, "Married I can Always Get." and wearing a white suit. Mel Brooks called from offstage, "I'm Mel Brooks." Brooks bribed one of the tv show's employees to find out where Anne was going to have dinner that evening so he could "happen" to show up at the same restaurant.

"When Mel told his Jewish mother he was marrying an Italian girl, she said: 'Bring her over. I'll be in the kitchen - with my head in the oven'."

- Bancroft


When they met, Miracle Worker had not yet been released and much of Bancroft's career had been in television. Although she had a respectable number of films to her credit and had already won her first Tony award (for appearing opposite Henry Fonda in the Broadway production of Two for the Seesaw), she had not yet become the marquee name we know her as today. Brooks was best known as a writer and comedian, his prolific years as an actor/writer/director were still ahead of him.

"He understands not only with his brain but with his heart. And that might be called love. Not quite sure, but maybe that's the key."

- Bancroft, on her husband Mel Brooks Associated Press interview (1997)


They were married on August 5, 1964 at the New York City Hall. They asked a passer-by to be the witness for their wedding. As one of Bancroft's obituaries aptly describes them: "He was the Borscht Belt spoofer who took comedy to delightful new lows in the bawdy Western satire Blazing Saddles. She was the Bronx-born daughter of Italian parents who won two Tonys. 'He makes me laugh a lot,' she said, explaining their attraction to the New York Daily News in 2000. 'I get excited when I hear his key in the door. It's like, Ooh! The party's going to start.'"

"First of all, you have to marry the right person. If you marry the wrong person for the wrong reasons, then no matter how hard you work, it's never going to work, because then you have to completely change yourself, completely change them, completely— by that time, you're both dead. So I think you have to marry for the right reasons, and marry the right person."

- Bancroft, on successful marriage. Associated Press interview (1997)



Brooks and Bancroft making an appearance in Larry David's fictional "Opening Night" in 2004

I just love their work. And I love the idea of them together. It's a union that always fascinated me.


I found a lot of interesting information in this profile of their marriage, which I recommend.

Happy Birthday, Elizabeth

“It is very strange that the years teach us patience - that the shorter our time, the greater our capacity for waiting.”

- Elizabeth Taylor

Elizabeth Taylor was born on this day in 1932. While I have never been a big "Liz" person, her power, magnetism and impressive body of work are undeniable. For decades she was the reigning queen of American cinema; the biggest name on the marquee, the headline in every movie magazine and gossip column and one of the few women whose attachment to a project could make that project happen. She combined acting with international celebrity in a way that few people did in her heyday, living larger than life and inspiring an enduring fascination in the hearts and imaginations of her public. There were scandals and health problems and a private life playing out all too publicly, but in the end I think she still inspires a great deal of love and admiration.

It's That Time Again

“I don't understand why Cupid was chosen to represent Valentine's Day. When I think about romance, the last thing on my mind is a short, chubby toddler coming at me with a weapon.”

-Anon.

Sorry for the unexplained absence. Just having a bout of writer's block / being too busy to pee much less blog / being too sick to convince myself that the long walk to the computer from the couch is a worthwhile investment of time and energy.

BUT it's that day again! And since I know so many of my fellow females struggle with this day, I just want to do my annual thing and remind you:

Whether or not you have a romantic interest in your life says nothing about your value and nothing about whether or not you are loved.

If you're feeling sad about a lack of flowers and candy this year, make better use of the time you might spend bah-humbugging this day and get flowers or candy for one of YOUR friends who might also being having a tough day.

LOVE isn't just sexual desire and romance. Love is what you share with your friends, your child, your parents (well, okay. sometimes. Depending on the parent), your siblings (most of the time), and a wide variety of other people who enrich your life. Tell THEM that you love them today. You can even make a little list of the people you haven't said that to often enough and call them up and let them know. If nothing else, catching up with people wll certainly be a distraction.

OR you can do what I do: Buy a big bag of Hershey's Kisses and hand them out to everyone you encounter today. If you want to be really classy like me you can hack and cough a little while holding out the bag. People LOVE that.

Greer Garson

“Starting out to make money is the greatest mistake in life. Do what you feel you have a flair for doing, and if you are good enough at it, the money will come.”

- Greer Garson


My friend Mal says I look like Greer Garson. I should be so lucky.

I'm no Greer Garson. The jawline and the large eyes and the signature red hair - there are some vague similarities. So that's kind of making my day. I'm going to rent Mrs. Miniver and the Olivier version of Pride & Prejudice tonight and, you know, sit there telling myself, "Oh, yeah. If I was taller and had a 25" waist and flawless skin I'd look EXACTLY like that. TOTALLY."

A little fantasy never hurt anyone.

Chocolate or Vanilla?

It probably goes without saying, but this image of Bette Davis is from All About Eve.

“Why am I so good at playing bitches? I think it's because I'm not a bitch. Maybe that's why Miss Crawford always plays ladies.”

- Bette Davis

Bette Davis and Joan Crawford were not fond of each other. Sometimes it's referred to as a feud but it seems to have been simply a natural dislike. They were different types of actors and it is said that their feelings for each other were not, therefore, caused over competition for roles. They only completed one film together, a set on which they were reportedly both professional and interacted without incident. By most accounts, they barely knew each other. Something in the two women was just so diametrically opposed that they were naturally inclined to dislike each other. They both had unflattering things to say about each other over the years (although it seems that Ms. Davis discussed this distaste publicly with more frequency than Ms. Crawford did).

Both were tremendously talented. I enjoy watching both of them on film. I've just always been particularly fond of Davis. I have a theory that it's a "chocolate or vanilla," "John or Paul," "Bert or Ernie" kind of thing. You can like both but you naturally skew one way or the other. I have no idea what it says about you, per se. I think it's just one of those things.

Incidentally: chocolate. John. Ernie. (and, yes, Bette)

We Now Return You to Your Regularly Scheduled Holiday Cheer

“Once again we find ourselves enmeshed in the Holiday Season, that very special time of year when we join with our loved ones in sharing centuries-old traditions such as trying to find a parking space at the mall. We traditionally do this in my family by driving around the parking lot until we see a shopper emerge from the mall, then we follow her, in very much the same spirit as the Three Wise Men, who 2,000 years ago followed a star, week after week, until it led them to a parking space.”

- Dave Barry

I love Dave Barry. In fact, he's just about the only person whose quotes I use on here who isn't a woman. I like him THAT much. Like he's an honorary woman on here. In spite of being almost as much unlike a woman as it's possible to be.

It's That Time Again

“In the old days, it was not called the Holiday Season; the Christians called it 'Christmas' and went to church; the Jews called it 'Hanukka' and went to synagogue; the atheists went to parties and drank. People passing each other on the street would say 'Merry Christmas!' or 'Happy Hanukka!' or (to the atheists) 'Look out for the wall!'”

- Dave Barry

Dorothy Thompson

“Courage, it would seem, is nothing less than the power to overcome danger, misfortune, fear, injustice, while continuing to affirm inwardly that life with all its sorrows is good; that everything is meaningful even if in a sense beyond our understanding; and that there is always tomorrow.”

- Dorothy Thompson

Mary Pickford

The formation of United Artists in 1919;
D.W. Griffith signs while his new partners Douglas Fairbanks (far left), Charles Chaplin (2nd from left) and Mary Pickford (at far right) look on.

“Make them laugh, make them cry, and hack to laughter. What do people go to the theatre for? An emotional exercise. I am a servant of the people. I have never forgotten that. ”

- Mary Pickford

Anne Bancroft

photo taken, I believe, during the shooting of The Miracle Worker, 1962. Her performance in the role of Annie Sullivan won her the Academy Award for Best Actress. This accomplishment was forever overshadowed, however, when she stepped into the iconic role of Mrs. Robinson in The Graduate only 5 years later.

“I am quite surprised, that with all my work, and some of it is very, very good, that nobody talks about The Miracle Worker. We're talking about Mrs. Robinson. I understand the world... I'm just a little dismayed that people aren't beyond it yet.”

- Anne Bancroft, 1931-2005

The Ageless Project

The website I am most recently fascinated with is "The Ageless Project," a site that links to widely varied participating blogs - all organized by the decade in which the blogger was born. It was brought to my attention after I made the aquaintance - online - of Savtadotty, a lovely lady whose blog is at Cousin Lucy's Spoon and has a link to The Ageless Project. I have barely begun to explore the various blogs linked to the project but my favorite find thus far has been Goldendaze. Goldendaze is the blog of a 74 year old woman living in South Carolina and in recent posts she recounts her memories of the McCarthy trials, seeing Fantasia as a child when it was first released in '41 and what airports were like in the 50's as well as musing on things more current in her life, like a woman she met in her AA meeting who had a profound impact on her. I'm absolutely hooked.

I know the Ageless project also links to blogs written by people my age and on down to young teens (the youngest is 13), but right now I am most fascinated with reading the first hand perspective of people who remember things that happened long before I was born.

“The process of maturing is an art to be learned, an effort to be sustained. By the age of fifty you have made yourself what you are, and if it is good, it is better than your youth.”

- Marya Mannes

Coco Chanel

Coco Chanel, photographed in 1935 by Man Ray
So timeless as to make her seem prescient.

“How many cares one loses
when one decides not to be
something but to be someone.”

- Coco Chanel

Rita Hayworth

“Every man I knew went to bed with Gilda...
and woke up with me.”

- Rita Hayworth

Hayworth is referencing her role as the the iconic, sultry title character in Gilda. The character became so indeliby imprinted in the public's image of Hayworth that it is felt to have overshadowed her in some ways, apparently in her personal life as well as in her career.

Bette Davis

“I've no time for broads who want to rule the world alone. Without men, who'd do up the zipper on the back of your dress?”

- Bette Davis

Hermione

Emma Watson, in her first outing as Hermione Granger in the film “Harry Potter and The Sorceror’s Stone,” 2001

“Are you sure that's a real spell? Well, it's not very good is it? I've tried a few simple spells myself and they've all worked for me. Nobody in my family's magic at all, it was ever such a surprise when I got my letter, but I was ever so pleased, of course, it's the best school of witchcraft there is I've heard - I've learned all the course books by heart of course. I just hope it will be enough - I'm Hermione Granger, by the way, who are you?”

Hermione Granger’s introduction to Harry Potter

There are a great many wonderful, interesting female characters in the Harry Potter series, but the young lady carrying the banner for feminism in the Potterverse is, unquestionably, one Miss Hermione Granger. I’ve enjoyed the series, I am going to miss these characters and Miss Granger in particular.

My younger sister has, in all fondness, suggested some alternate titles for “Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows” - which are, of course, funny only to those who have read it. One was “Harry Potter Does Nothing and Hermione Granger Saves the Day.” Which isn’t really accurate at all but it does feel that way at certain times. Hermione outdid herself in this latest and last installment in the series. She went above and beyond to basically enable plot points that would have been impossible if Rowling had not accounted for them by bringing all the organization, clever planning and superior ability of her young female lead to bear.

My favorite of my sister’s alternate titles was, incidentally, “Harry Potter and the Endless Camping Trip.”

Very funny girl, my sister.

On the bright side, We have at least another couple years of Emma Watson reprising her role as the fiery young witch on the big screen. She has matured as an actor and she has brought a great deal of depth to her portrayal of this now practically iconic character.


Emma Watson in “Harry Potter and Chamber of Secrets,” 2002

“Twitchy little ferret, aren't you, Malfoy?”

Emma Watson in “Harry Potter and Prizoner of Azkaban,” 2004

“I hope you're pleased with yourselves. We could all have been killed - or worse, expelled.”

Emma Watson in “Harry Potter and Prizoner of Azkaban,” 2004

“Just because it's taken you three years to notice, Ron, doesn't mean no one else has spotted I'm a girl!”

Emma Watson in “Harry Potter and Goblet of Fire,” 2005

"Hermione," said Harry, shaking his head, "you're good on feelings and stuff, but you just don't understand about Quidditch."

"Maybe not," she said darkly, returning to her translation again, "but at least my happiness doesn't depend of Ron's goalkeeping ability."

Emma Watson in “Harry Potter and Order of The Pheonix,” 2007

“You said to us once before," said Hermione quietly, "that there was time to turn back if we wanted to. We've had time, haven't we?”

I'm so sad it's over.

The Need to Create

“Sometimes you've got to let everything go - purge yourself. If you are unhappy with anything... whatever is bringing you down, get rid of it. Because you'll find that when you're free, your true creativity, your true self comes out.”

- Tina Turner

I have A LOT of projects at home that I was never able to finish these past few years. A quilt for a friend’s baby girl. A HUGE crocheted afghan blanket. A series of funky magnets to give as gifts. Dress patterns set aside when I lost the inspiration to sew them. A painting intended for this beautiful blank canvas that I just keep staring at. This new bread recipe I’ve been meaning to try. FOREVER.

I was very unhappy for... well, for almost two years. This blog is, in fact, the only thing I really accomplished during that time period that was even remotely creative. My ex and I would fight and I somehow felt angry at him and wanted to blame him for my lack of inspiration but somehow that felt absurd. Perhaps I wasn’t too far off. I mean, it’s not his fault I was WITH him, but I was miserable. That relationship ended and I had a creative voice again. I’ve been deeply entrenched in community theater for the past six months and now I am taking a break from the stage and remembering the blanket half finished in the back of my closet. And the gorgeous quilt squares. And the green fabric I bought for that dress pattern. And how long it’s been since I made homemade bread.

My fingers are itching to create something. And I can’t help but think it’s because I am happy and feel so unencumbered that I am free to create - whether it be a character on stage or paint on canvas. Tina knew what she was talking about, it's excellent advice.

Optimism

(Because what other choice do you have?)

“Love is an exploding cigar we willingly smoke.”

- Lynda Barry

Judy Garland

“I was born at the age of twelve on an MGM lot.”

- Judy Garland

“Be a first rate version of yourself,
not a second rate version of someone else”

- Judy Garland

“I can live without money,
but I cannot live without love.”

- Judy Garland

“In the silence of night I have often wished
for just a few words of love from one man,
rather than the applause of thousands of people.”

- Judy Garland

“You are never so alone as when you are ill on stage.
The most nightmarish feeling in the world is suddenly to
feel like throwing up in front of four thousand people.”

- Judy Garland

“I think there's something peculiar about me that I haven't died.
It doesn't make sense but I refuse to die.”

- Judy Garland

“I've always taken 'The Wizard of Oz' very seriously, you know.
I believe in the idea of the rainbow.
And I've spent my entire life trying to get over it.”

- Judy Garland



When I was very young, I wasn't allowed to watch very much television and we never went to the movies. Our ancient television set only got the four main network stations. A few times a year, The Wizard of Oz would be the Sunday night movie on one of those stations - usually with much fanfare - and I was allowed to watch it, even if it meant staying up past my bedtime. I loved Dorothy. To be honest, I wanted her to stay in Oz. I couldn't imagine why Kansas was worth going back to - no matter how much she might miss Aunty Em and Uncle Henry. I was an avid reader already, so no stranger to escapism, but The Wizard of Oz was my introduction to film as an escape and the first movie I really loved. It was the beginning of a lifelong obsession with film and an enduring appreciation for Judy Garland.

I found a few of these photos at The Judy Room. The set up for this site appears a little tricky to navigate at first, but a little exploring reveals it well worth the visit. Scroll down to the "jump to" menu and you will find that this site contains a wealth of information and gallery upon gallery of gorgeous photographs. I strongly recommend visiting The Judy Room - the expansive content far surpasses the simplicity of the layout, so give it a chance!