Month: December 2019

DECEMBER ON TCM

Can you believe we’ve come to the end of 2019 and the 2010s?!

STAR OF THE MONTH: JOAN BLONDELL (THURSDAYS IN DECEMBER)

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The folks at TCM Backlot chose Joan Blondell as December’s Star of the Month over another Joan, Bennett.  This is the first time that Blondell has been chosen to be SOTM.  This month’s 29-film tribute spans from her debut in 1930 to the 1960s.  Today’s audiences probably know Joan from the 1978 musical Grease, which was one of her final theatrical films.

Rose Joan Blondell was born in Manhattan in 1906 to a vaudeville family who called themselves “The Bouncing Blondells.”  She made her stage debut at four months.  During Joan’s teenage years, she entered beauty pageants and started acting on the stage, culminating in co-starring with James Cagney on Broadway in Penny Arcade.  The duo reprised their roles in the film version, now called Sinner’s Holiday (December 5 @ 8PM/7PM).

Blondell’s studio, Warner Bros., kept the actress busy over the next several years, for example, she made NINE films in 1932!  By the mid-1930s, Joan Blondell became one of the highest-paid artists in Hollywood.

By the late 1930s, Joan came to the conclusion that her home studio wasn’t making the best use of her talents.  In 1939, she left Warner Bros. to freelance.  Some of her later films won Blondell critical acclaim such as A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, The Blue Veil for which she was nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Oscar, and The Cincinnati Kid (December 26 @ 8PM/7PM).

So stop by on Thursdays and watch some Joan Blondell, I promise you will not be bored.

 

TCM SPOTLIGHT: REMAKES (MONDAYS IN DECEMBER)

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Today many complain about sub-par remakes and reboots.  Even though remakes have been a part of cinema since the beginning.  Every Monday this month, TCM takes a look at the original and the remake, airing back-to-back and discussing why a studio decided it was time to remake a film.

The festival starts on December 2 with silent original films which were then remade when sound came in.  Films on the docket include Scaramouche, The King of Kings, and Ben Hur (not the 2016 version).

December 9 contains original films which were then made into musicals.  Films airing include Goodbye Mr. Chips, The Philadelphia Story and High Society (Bing and Frank sing!), and Gigi.

December 16 is all about literary remakes including the 1933 and 1949 adaptations of Little Women.  Also included is Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and Anna Karenina.

December 23 features a day of crime remakes and an evening of Christmas remakes.  Films airing this day include Gaslight, The Maltese Falcon, and Three Godfathers.

Finally, the fest closes out with films that had been made more at least three times.  So say hello to The Prisoner of Zenda, A Star is Born, and Show Boat.

CHRISTMAS DOUBLE FEATURE (SUNDAYS IN DECEMBER)

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TCM presents its annual Christmas fest with a double dose of Christmas classics each Sunday night, preceded by a Sunday afternoon of Christmas movies.  Without further ado, on December 1st it’s the 1951 adaptation of A Christmas Carol and then The Bishop’s Wife.  December 8 it’s It Happened on 5th Ave and then The Holly and the Ivy.  December 15 is a night of Christmas romance with Holiday Affair and  Remember the Night.  Finally, on December 22, it’s a night with Bing Crosby’s Father O’Malley in Going My Way followed by the sequel The Bells of St. Mary’s.

TCM SPECIAL THEME: PETS ON SETS (WEDNESDAYS IN DECEMBER)

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Lassie, Asta, Flipper, Rin Tin Tin.  These are some of the most famous animal stars in cinema history.  TCM’s Ben Mankiewicz will be joined by Carol and Ted Tresan, who own Animal Casting Atlanta and some pets including mini-horse Lark.  December 4 and Christmas Day will feature stories about dogs, December 11 are all about cats and horses, and December 18 features a variety of animals including Flag the Deer in The Yearling (8PM/7PM) and two films featuring Flipper.

THE ESSENTIALS (SATURDAYS @ 8PM/7PM)

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The Essentials will be taking most of December off with repeats except on December 6, when George Stevens 1959 drama The Diary of Anne Frank will air.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY FRANK SINATRA (DECEMBER 12-DAYTIME)

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TCM celebrates The Voice’s birthday with a day of his films including the 1960 version of Ocean’s Eleven (3PM/2PM).

GONE WITH THE WIND 80TH ANNIVERSARY (DECEMBER 13)

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On December 15, 1939, Hollywood descended on Atlanta, Georgia for the premiere of the most anticipated film in history.  The city of Atlanta proclaimed a three-day festival where some 300,000 citizens and visitors arrived a day early like it was a Black Friday sale.  Don’t believe me, watch this video.  Following GWTW, it’s the 1989 making-of documentary where you will be amazed the film even got made.

IN MEMORIAM (DECEMBER 17)

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TCM remembers those who have left us in 2019 with a night of films.  The stars in remembrance this night include:

  • Julie Adams (died February 3 at 92) in Creature from the Black Lagoon (8PM/7PM)
  • Al aka David Hedison (died July 18 at 92) in The Fly (9:30PM/8:30PM)
  • Carol Channing (died January 15 at 97) in Thoroughly Modern Millie (11:15PM/10:15PM)
  • Tim Conway (died May 14 at 85) in McHale’s Navy (2AM/1AM)
  • Rutger Hauer (died July 19 at 75) in Eureka (3:45AM/2:45AM)
  • D.A. Pennebaker (died August 1 at 94) in Monterey Pop (6AM/5AM)
  • Bibi Anderssen (died April 14 at 83) in Wild Strawberries (7:30AM/6:30AM)
  • Franco Zeffirelli (died June 15 at 96) in The Taming of the Shrew (9:30AM/8:30AM)