LIEBSTER AWARD

I’d like to thank my friends and family and, well…you know who you are. Apparently in the world of blogging, you can win stuff. Who knew? And now that I’ve won this award…I just do not know what to do with myself.

 Well a good place for me to start would be for me to thank one of the Queens of the blog-gers, Karen of Shadows and Satin for nominating me for this Award. Now I could just pull up my beach chair and bask in the sun beaming with pride, but there are duties I must fulfill as recipient of this award:

          I.  Nominate up to 11 other bloggers to receive the coveted award.
         II.  Answer 11 questions from the blogger who nominated you.
        III.  Tell your readers 11 random facts about yourself.
        IV.  Give the nominees 11 questions to answer on their blog when they post their nomination.

So, to quote Katharine Hepburn in “The Philadelphia Story” – “Oh we’re going to talk about me now, are we? Goody!” See, that’s how Kate and I roll…

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I.  Nominate up to 11 other bloggers to receive the coveted award.

Here are the blogs I nominate for this prestigious award. You can click on their site to see what they’re all about. We can learn more about them should they choose to accept the Liebster.

BLOG OF THE DARNED – LAURA’S MISCELLANEOUS MUSINGS – OUTSPOKEN & FRECKLED – CLASSIC REEL GIRL – A CLASSIC MOVIE BLOG – BNOIRDETOUR – PAULA’S CINEMA CLUB – GIRLS DO FILM – CLASSICFILMTVCAFE – CARY GRANT WON’T EAT YOU – ONCE UPON A SCREEN

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II. Answer 11 questions from the blogger who nominated you.

1. On your perfect viewing day, what five films would air back-to-back on TCM?

Don’t get me wrong…I can have high-brow tastes. ( HA! ) But if I’m being really honest with you, I could chill with some popcorn, Jack Daniels & Coke and watch:

Darn it. I’ve lost your respect after the first question! No nutritional value, but goes down so easy. Here, let me step it up a notch:

 

I love soap operas from the 50’s.

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2. What’s your favorite movie-related book?

I’ve got two books I love. I have Eddie Muller’s book to feed my “Noirish” soul. As for Master photographer George Hurrell…Lord knows I have poured over his stunning photography, drowning in its beauty. I’ve included sample photos from the Mark Vieira book:

  

    

( I will never see John Payne the same way ever again. Never. )

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3. Name an underrated film that you’d recommend?

  

I don’t see this film mentioned a lot but it’s a good one. Josef von Sternberg, excessive, over-the-top. It’s casino owner Ona Munson, against spoiled heiress Gene Tierney who has a gambling addiction. It’s Victor Mature as a gigolo who loves to get the ladies strung out. It’s Walter Huston, out for a night on the town with no idea he’s about to deal with a woman scorned. I love its set design, its pace. I love seeing Tierney sloppy, unkempt, and out of control. You ought to check this one out. Only in von Sternberg’s world will you see Mike Mazurki play a Chinese rickshaw boy.

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4. What movie do you watch every time it comes on TV?  

This is my go to movie. Maybe I don’t sit facing the tv to watch it. It now serves as company while I’m working on my computer. I’ll turn around during pivotal moments. It’s like Gothic noir. It’s dark and gloomy; very few scenes happen outdoors. The cast is just perfect. Well…now it is, now that I’ve grown up and seen what a fine actor Van Heflin is. Kirk Douglas ( in his screen debut ) is mousey enough, Heflin is tough enough. Lizabeth Scott is damaged enough, and then there’s Stanwyck, striding into the movie, head up, shoulders back, every inch the star, ready to kick A$$ and ask questions later. If it’s on tv, I have it on. Whether I’m at my house…or yours.

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5. What’s your favorite western?

This is such a many layered western that touches on a couple of issues. A town hires two gun-slingers to clean up their place, but when they’re done, they now fear the gun-slingers. What makes a hero? When do you
leave your old gang to change your life, your values? When does your love for a friend, turn to resentment? This is not a ‘cowboys & Indian’ thing. It’s thought provoking, and there’s a subtext between the two powerful actors that I don’t think I’m imagining. I’d like to give an Honorable Mention to my second favorite western: “Duel At Diablo.”

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6. If you had Aladdin’s lamp, what three wishes would you make?

1. To fall deeply in love and be loved in return
2. To be a successful filmmaker ( a la Hitchcock–Wyler–Wilder ) telling stories I want to tell
3. To have wealth…a comfortable enough wealth ( from my filmmaking ) to be able to have homes where I want and travel as I wish

Now I ask you Aladdin, is THAT too much to ask?!!!!

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7. What movie have you seen more often than any other?

I’m afraid it’s something easy to love. Very easy to watch with not a thought in my head. In NYC we had Million Dollar movie, a tv program where films were repeated twice a day, all week. ( Imagine a young African-American girl in Harlem, in the 60’s, singing Al Jolson and Eddie Cantor tunes all week. Ida, Ida idolize-ya… )

I know. You’ll never believe me as a serious cineaste again! 😦

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8. Name one thing you believed as a child that turned out not to be true.

I believed my parents were perfect and omniscient. I learned they are only human; fallible human beings. Now that I know this, I understand them a whole lot better.

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9. What is your favorite guilty pleasure movie? 

What the heck, have I really just never grown up? Please…give me the action adventure of the Vikings vs. the Moors in the 1964 film “The Long Ships.” My family saw this movie when it was first released. There were sword fights and breaking into the King’s harem, and ships and sand. The music was rousing. The Mare of Steel was frightening. This is just a good time all around for a big kid like me. Give me a sword, somebody. I want an adventure!! You can watch the trailer for this 1963 film here or just listen to the theme song here. My gosh, I have goose bumps. I want to travel. I want a handsome Viking to sweep me away. I want the Moor to fight to get me back. Uh oh. TMI?? ( Give me “Jason & the Argonauts” too. ) Or maybe I should just bite the bullet and go on the next TCM festival cruise? That’s an idea.

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10. Name a movie that it seems everyone has seen except you.

Meh. I know it’s held up as a beacon, and I have seen the movie, but…

I don’t SEE it.  …And I liiiike George Stevens.

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11. Humphrey Bogart or Robert Mitchum? 

Bogart is a legend…no doubt. Towering. Bogie could introduce me to “A”-list stars. We’d need no reservations to walk right into the Brown Derby, El Morocco, the Formosa or the swankiest of swanky restaurants. All studios would welcome us with open arms. With that said, I’m going to have to go with Mitchum.

His intensity makes me swooon, and I think I’d be in good hands, if you know what I mean. That is what you mean, right? No? Uhh boy!

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 III.  Tell your readers 11 random facts about yourself.

1. I rode a motorcycle for six years.

2. My two-hour indie film appeared in film festivals in NYC, London and Berlin in 2001.

3. I use too much salt and sugar in my food and have difficulty curtailing it. ( I should be keeling over any second now. )

4. We have lots of 8mm silent color Kodak home movies of myself as a child.

5. I do not know how to cook. I am not a scientist, but I have literally scorched an egg I was boiling and could not peel off its shell. What the…

6. Oldest of three kids.

7. Two of my friends today, are friends I’ve had since 1967.

8. This is only part of my collection of Fall Preview TV guides. ( Those Fall Preview tv guides range from 1969 –  2004 ).

  9. I’ve loved classic movies since before I can remember. I love classic movies more than food.

10. I’ve been growing out my hair naturally into locs for 20 years. ( No, they are not called dreadlocks. )

11. I play a mean game o’ Scrabble, Bid Whist and will challenge you to any movie trivia game. You goin’ down!

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IV. Give the nominees 11 questions to answer on their blog when they post their nomination.

1. You’re a casting agent. Tell me, what two stars who never acted together would you most like to see in a film?

2. What is your favorite line in a movie?

3. What is your favorite Alfred Hitchcock film, and briefly…why?

4. Clark Gable or Cary Grant? Why?

5. What movie should never EVER become a re-make?

6. What classic film star would you like to interview? Full disclosure. They’d hold nothing back during your interview.

7. What movie or actor or actress ( pick one ) was absolutely, positively, unequivocally robbed of an Academy Award? For what film? Briefly, why should he/she/it have won?

8. What classic film star, at the height of his or her fame, would you like to show up with you at your prom?

9. Which endings resonate MORE with you: movies with happy endings or movies with sad endings? ( Do NOT say, “that depends” ). Name the film. And why?

10. What actor or actress do you find too hyped up and over-rated OR what actor or actress do you find totally under the radar, and should be much more well-known? Tell us why.

11. If you didn’t have classic films in your life, where else would your passion lie? What would your hobby be?

I am looking forward to reading all your answers, and again, I want to thank Karen of “Shadows and Satin” for bestowing the Liebster Award to me.

(  H O M E  )

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