“YOU ASKED FOR IT” Sponsored, IIRC by Skippy Peanut Butter. Not their usual fare.
More than a touch of the Mid-Atlantic dialect required of show biz at the time.
If her eyebrows were not half an inch higher than normal…?
So once a day I hit the CNN website. There definitely has been subtle changes over the past 6 months. They aren’t even close to what CNN was back in the 80s, but there are more straight news stories showing up, and occasional one like this:
Even though the story says the WH is in a panic over the Saudis cutting production and its affect on gas prices here, no mention at all of how this could have been avoided due the result of the administration shutting down domestic production on day one.
She was an agreeable person in her mundane life, but I never found Audrey Hepburn attractive as a performer.
I loved that movie and have read about her life. She had bad luck with husbands but many actresses do.
It’s pretty clear that CNN is still a very long way from being a serious news network. Firing the sad potato and demoting the angry lemon is all well and good, but it amounts to just window dressing. They’ll continue to struggle until they get serious about addressing the deeper problems.
Euronews correspondent Shona Murray tweeted, “The end of Twitter as we know it is nigh.”
“Huge changes anticipated on this bird app after it goes private. Guardrails will be dropped, misinfo & conspiracy theories will thrive. No functional alternatives available, this is it: a complete destruction of the global public square. Been nice y’all,” BBC journalist Dickens Olewe wrote.
Roman Holiday is a terrific film. I had never seen it until about a year ago. I watched a trio of similar films. I forgot one of the other two, but one was Rome Adventure with Suzanne Pleshette. Rossano Brazzi was memorable in that one.
Roman Holiday was written and directed by Dalton Trumbo and William Wyler, so it is no wonder that it is great. It’s such a fun, light hearted movie unlike Rome Adventure (1962) where they were compelled to raise our social consciousness.
I’ve known of Edith Head for a very long time, but the film costume designer I was not aware of from a somewhat earlier era was Jean Louis.
There was a piece of legislation passed a while ago that created The National Film Registry at the Library of Congress and they have essays on each film.
Being the film noir nut that I am, I looked at the essay for Gilda (1946) featuring Rita Hayworth and was surprised to see it was all about Jean Louis and the ball room gown that Rita wore for her Put The Blame On Mame performance. She was a dancer too, though not ballet as far as I know.
One, in particular, is now iconic–the strapless black satin dress she wears to sing “Put the Blame on Mame.” Inspired by John Singer Sargent’s famous painting “Madame X,” [Jean] Louis captured the mood and mystery of the portrait for the character of Gilda. The gown was also a marvel of engineering in addition to its beauty. Audiences were in awe because it defied gravity. As Jean recalled,
“Inside there was a harness like you put on a
horse. Then we molded plastic softened over
a gas flame and shaped around the top of the
dress. No matter how she moved, the dress
did not fall down.”
Jean Louis also did the costume design to great effect for Kim Novak’s first serious film role in the noir film Pushover (1954). Not a great film, but decent and I like it very much. I believe she was 19 yo at the time but playing a relatively “experienced” woman in her late 20’s.
Probably the most influential film ever for American and maybe French filmmakers of the late 60’s through 2000 was Hitchcock’s Vertigo. The costuming of Kim Novak is done by Edith Head, but I think the black square neckline evening gown she wears early in the film is borrowed from Jean Louis’ choice/creation in Pushover.
If you haven’t seen Vertigo and have the slightest interest, don’t read the rest with spoilers. Go see it first, wait and think a week, and see it again. It is definitely a guy film about love, infatuation, and inferred sex.
I could not find a video clip of it, but Noah Baumbach’s docu. on Brian De Palma has a lengthy piece of De Palma analyzing Vertigo. He calls it one of the most “Brechtian” films (Bertolt Brecht) where the filmmaker creates a romantic leading lady and kills her off; and does it twice. And the second time he shows you exactly how she is created.
I was always amazed at how Novak as Madeleine is exceptionally seductive, but Novak as Judy, even when re-created exactly as Madeleine was, is weak tea by comparison. What is the difference? Demeanor?
Novak has a little fan website and she has written into it some. She stated that she didn’t think her acting performance in Vertigo was very good. Impossible, I thought. Maybe she didn’t like her performance as Judy, but I think Hitchcock intended that it be different and less. She obviously got great direction.
What fun. And part of the fun is the quality of the exposition by Edith Head of how —in the hands of experts— clothes can make such a difference.
As of now, there appear to be no real answers to what this phenomenon is–and unless there is someone somewhere, in an office under deep concealment, who has access to all the information that has been collected on the UFO Phenomenon and has come to some solid and definite conclusions–the UFO phenomenon is apparently baffling to everyone.
However, what is starting to become clear is that this phenomenon is both indisputably real and broader and much more complex than just physical UFOs; it also includes psychic and other components as well.
Thus, it is making some researchers rethink their ideas about the nature and role of consciousness.
In fact, the phenomenon of UFOs as physical objects—as some sort of highly advanced alien technology, and probably piloted by extraterrestrials or their AIs–seems practically tame and prosaic when compared to the other, much more “High Strangeness” phenomena which are associated with UFOs—things like midnight visitations by Aliens who can walk through walls, and forms of communication with them, Abductions, cattle mutilations, cryptids, portals, poltergeists, and hitchhiker effects.
Taken together, these phenomena appear to point to us as living in a different, multi-layered Reality in which we humans are, it may be, somewhere in the middle of a hierarchy—with conscious entities below us and conscious entities above us–and it is the visits from these other entities–slipping in and out of our consensus Reality and interacting with us humans—which, taken together with physical UFOs, apparently comprise this Phenomenon.
It strikes me that this possible view of Reality has some similarity to the way Medieval Christians viewed the world—a multi-level world and Universe of High Strangeness and miracles, populated by God, the Devil, angels, demons, and other entities–some Good, some Bad, and full of Spirit; a world and Universe full of “powers and principalities.”
And, thus, in some sense, our view of Reality may be reverting and coming back around, full circle.
I note that Hepburn refers to “bally” for “ballet:. I think that’s top-end English or something. Recall some woman very high in NYC drama circles sometime back referring to “bally” and the conductor’s BAtawn.
I suspect you have to practice to be that pretentious.
I love that Astaire/Hayworth Shorty George number. I’ve seen some of the other performances but not that one.
I had to refresh my memory on films that Leslie Caron had been in. I’ve maybe seen one or two.
I see she was in Valentino (1977) playing Alla Nazivoma, with Rudolph Nureyev playing Valentino. Alla Nazivoma, oh my. Now there was an independent and liberated woman. I want to see that one. Though Ken Russell, the director, always pushed the envelope too far. The IMDB rating is middling.
TommyJay:
Lili. Daddy Long Legs. Gigi. Fanny. An American in Paris.
I note that Hepburn refers to “bally” for “ballet:.
She emphasized the first syllable more than Americans do, but I hear BALL-ay.
She had quite a complicated upbringing. She did come from the upper crust. Her mother was a Dutch baronness. Her grandfather had been governor of Dutch Guiana. Her father had previously been married to a Dutch heiress and worked in multinational banking. The family bounced between Arnhem, the Hague, London, and Brussels.
During the 30s her father became active in the British Union of Fascists and stayed in London on that account. In 1939 her mother moved her back to Arnhem (the Netherlands) to avoid being in the path of Nazi attacks. Which is where Hepburn first studied ballet.
Of course, the Nazis did invade the Netherlands and Hepburn’s life became difficult and dangerous. She saw terrible things, supported the Resistance (as mentioned in video), suffered malnutrition, and basically crawled out of the rubble of WW II.
Which is why later, she became deeply involved with UNICEF and starving children.
I was always charmed by Hepburn and learning more about her did nothing to diminish my appreciation.
Thanks for that Neo. I skipped right past Lilli. Now I remember something about that one. Gigi & Am. in Paris of course. I may watch Lilli.
TommyJay and Neo: Caron also appeared–as a governess, not a dancer–in one of the episodes of “The Story of Three Loves”, a cinematic oddity from 1953. Three stories in one movie, starring James Mason and Moira Shearer; Caron and Farley Granger; and Kirk Douglas and Pier Angeli. Famous for its Miklos Rozsa score, which was based on a rhapsody by Rachmaninoff. Big hit for Mantovani in the late 1950s. Caron is still around, by the way. She’s in her 90s.
om clearly noted that Edith’s distinctive glasses were part of the model for Edna of the Incredibles.
Just last week we saw (in Slovak) the Italian film Enrico Piaggio: Vespa https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrBuSOvMGGg
Very interesting post-WW II Italian fighter plan manufacturing creating the motor scooter, plus a nice love story, plus how the making of Roman Holiday included using the Vespa, and saving the new factory. The Vespa, partially because of its Hepburn-film popularity, is now considered an Italian icon.
Was a good film.
Two comments from the video:
Michelle Germyn
7 years ago
My grandmother-Josie Miller-was Edith Heads main seamstress/supervisor. Her favorite was Audrey Hepburn. From what I remember my grandmother telling me that Edith did not sew. She did the art work for the gowns. Audrey loved grandma and gave her a broach made in a heart shape with pearls. Edith was quit a stickler to work for and many reason’s why she became the women she was-hard work and dedication. Josie also admired Elizabeth Taylor-a grand women to work on she would say.
and
Charles W
2 years ago (edited)
As a young girl, during WW2, Audrey Hepburn frequently pedalled her bicycle through German roadblocks. What the Germans didn’t know as they watched the pretty girl cycle by, but which Miss Hepburn knew full well, was that Audrey Hepburn had secret documents aiding the enemy hidden inside her bicycle. She made this dangerous trip through enemy lines many times. The consequences for her had the Germans found out was certain death, and much more besides. That’s always impressed me. She was a teenage war hero, but she never said a word about it to anyone. I think, for my penny’s worth, you can see a hint of that distress in her reaction to the question about the war at 1:42.
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Audrey was such a beauty.
But Edith had been captured by Edna:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=9Jd_X1zenj0
“YOU ASKED FOR IT” Sponsored, IIRC by Skippy Peanut Butter. Not their usual fare.
More than a touch of the Mid-Atlantic dialect required of show biz at the time.
If her eyebrows were not half an inch higher than normal…?
So once a day I hit the CNN website. There definitely has been subtle changes over the past 6 months. They aren’t even close to what CNN was back in the 80s, but there are more straight news stories showing up, and occasional one like this:
https://www.cnn.com/2022/10/04/politics/white-house-lobby-opec-oil-production-cuts-gasoline-prices-midterms/index.html
Even though the story says the WH is in a panic over the Saudis cutting production and its affect on gas prices here, no mention at all of how this could have been avoided due the result of the administration shutting down domestic production on day one.
She was an agreeable person in her mundane life, but I never found Audrey Hepburn attractive as a performer.
I loved that movie and have read about her life. She had bad luck with husbands but many actresses do.
It’s pretty clear that CNN is still a very long way from being a serious news network. Firing the sad potato and demoting the angry lemon is all well and good, but it amounts to just window dressing. They’ll continue to struggle until they get serious about addressing the deeper problems.
Te news of Musk closing the Twitter deal seems to have certain people upset
Roman Holiday is a terrific film. I had never seen it until about a year ago. I watched a trio of similar films. I forgot one of the other two, but one was Rome Adventure with Suzanne Pleshette. Rossano Brazzi was memorable in that one.
Roman Holiday was written and directed by Dalton Trumbo and William Wyler, so it is no wonder that it is great. It’s such a fun, light hearted movie unlike Rome Adventure (1962) where they were compelled to raise our social consciousness.
I’ve known of Edith Head for a very long time, but the film costume designer I was not aware of from a somewhat earlier era was Jean Louis.
There was a piece of legislation passed a while ago that created The National Film Registry at the Library of Congress and they have essays on each film.
https://www.loc.gov/programs/national-film-preservation-board/film-registry/
Being the film noir nut that I am, I looked at the essay for Gilda (1946) featuring Rita Hayworth and was surprised to see it was all about Jean Louis and the ball room gown that Rita wore for her Put The Blame On Mame performance. She was a dancer too, though not ballet as far as I know.
https://www.loc.gov/static/programs/national-film-preservation-board/documents/gilda.pdf
Put The Blame On Mame
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NY2IpSCV-Nk
She lays it on pretty thick IMO.
Jean Louis also did the costume design to great effect for Kim Novak’s first serious film role in the noir film Pushover (1954). Not a great film, but decent and I like it very much. I believe she was 19 yo at the time but playing a relatively “experienced” woman in her late 20’s.
Probably the most influential film ever for American and maybe French filmmakers of the late 60’s through 2000 was Hitchcock’s Vertigo. The costuming of Kim Novak is done by Edith Head, but I think the black square neckline evening gown she wears early in the film is borrowed from Jean Louis’ choice/creation in Pushover.
Here is that scene.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cJxM5rG82aA
If you haven’t seen Vertigo and have the slightest interest, don’t read the rest with spoilers. Go see it first, wait and think a week, and see it again. It is definitely a guy film about love, infatuation, and inferred sex.
Here is the NFR essay on it and the first para addresses its influence some. The rest is mostly a tedious synopsis.
https://www.loc.gov/static/programs/national-film-preservation-board/documents/vertigo.pdf
I could not find a video clip of it, but Noah Baumbach’s docu. on Brian De Palma has a lengthy piece of De Palma analyzing Vertigo. He calls it one of the most “Brechtian” films (Bertolt Brecht) where the filmmaker creates a romantic leading lady and kills her off; and does it twice. And the second time he shows you exactly how she is created.
I was always amazed at how Novak as Madeleine is exceptionally seductive, but Novak as Judy, even when re-created exactly as Madeleine was, is weak tea by comparison. What is the difference? Demeanor?
Novak has a little fan website and she has written into it some. She stated that she didn’t think her acting performance in Vertigo was very good. Impossible, I thought. Maybe she didn’t like her performance as Judy, but I think Hitchcock intended that it be different and less. She obviously got great direction.
What fun. And part of the fun is the quality of the exposition by Edith Head of how —in the hands of experts— clothes can make such a difference.
yep
https://www.zerohedge.com/political/be-afraid-be-actually-afraid-reporters-panic-thought-twitter-restoring-free-speech
The UFO Phenomenon
As of now, there appear to be no real answers to what this phenomenon is–and unless there is someone somewhere, in an office under deep concealment, who has access to all the information that has been collected on the UFO Phenomenon and has come to some solid and definite conclusions–the UFO phenomenon is apparently baffling to everyone.
However, what is starting to become clear is that this phenomenon is both indisputably real and broader and much more complex than just physical UFOs; it also includes psychic and other components as well.
Thus, it is making some researchers rethink their ideas about the nature and role of consciousness.
In fact, the phenomenon of UFOs as physical objects—as some sort of highly advanced alien technology, and probably piloted by extraterrestrials or their AIs–seems practically tame and prosaic when compared to the other, much more “High Strangeness” phenomena which are associated with UFOs—things like midnight visitations by Aliens who can walk through walls, and forms of communication with them, Abductions, cattle mutilations, cryptids, portals, poltergeists, and hitchhiker effects.
Taken together, these phenomena appear to point to us as living in a different, multi-layered Reality in which we humans are, it may be, somewhere in the middle of a hierarchy—with conscious entities below us and conscious entities above us–and it is the visits from these other entities–slipping in and out of our consensus Reality and interacting with us humans—which, taken together with physical UFOs, apparently comprise this Phenomenon.
It strikes me that this possible view of Reality has some similarity to the way Medieval Christians viewed the world—a multi-level world and Universe of High Strangeness and miracles, populated by God, the Devil, angels, demons, and other entities–some Good, some Bad, and full of Spirit; a world and Universe full of “powers and principalities.”
And, thus, in some sense, our view of Reality may be reverting and coming back around, full circle.
UFOs? I blame it (all) on the Bossanova.
but of course
https://twitter.com/AlexEpstein/status/1577713208655085568?cxt=HHwWgICg9bvzlOUrAAAA
TommyJay: “She [Rita Hayworth] was a dancer too, though not ballet as far as I know.”
She was indeed. Started her career as one of the Dancing Cansinos. Fred Astaire’s favorite partner, reputedly. Samples:
From “You Were Never Lovelier” (1942): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zxsVyKo0nNM
Ditto: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WUhhKELUxB0
And my favorite, from “You’ll Never Get Rich” (1941): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=peY2ZwsPMp0
Hubert; TommyJay:
Also Leslie Caron.
Great costume designer – Deborah Nadoolman who was married to John Landis.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deborah_Nadoolman_Landis?wprov=sfti1
Watch Coming to America.
I note that Hepburn refers to “bally” for “ballet:. I think that’s top-end English or something. Recall some woman very high in NYC drama circles sometime back referring to “bally” and the conductor’s BAtawn.
I suspect you have to practice to be that pretentious.
I love that Astaire/Hayworth Shorty George number. I’ve seen some of the other performances but not that one.
I had to refresh my memory on films that Leslie Caron had been in. I’ve maybe seen one or two.
I see she was in Valentino (1977) playing Alla Nazivoma, with Rudolph Nureyev playing Valentino. Alla Nazivoma, oh my. Now there was an independent and liberated woman. I want to see that one. Though Ken Russell, the director, always pushed the envelope too far. The IMDB rating is middling.
TommyJay:
Lili. Daddy Long Legs. Gigi. Fanny. An American in Paris.
I note that Hepburn refers to “bally” for “ballet:.
She emphasized the first syllable more than Americans do, but I hear BALL-ay.
She had quite a complicated upbringing. She did come from the upper crust. Her mother was a Dutch baronness. Her grandfather had been governor of Dutch Guiana. Her father had previously been married to a Dutch heiress and worked in multinational banking. The family bounced between Arnhem, the Hague, London, and Brussels.
During the 30s her father became active in the British Union of Fascists and stayed in London on that account. In 1939 her mother moved her back to Arnhem (the Netherlands) to avoid being in the path of Nazi attacks. Which is where Hepburn first studied ballet.
Of course, the Nazis did invade the Netherlands and Hepburn’s life became difficult and dangerous. She saw terrible things, supported the Resistance (as mentioned in video), suffered malnutrition, and basically crawled out of the rubble of WW II.
Which is why later, she became deeply involved with UNICEF and starving children.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audrey_Hepburn
I was always charmed by Hepburn and learning more about her did nothing to diminish my appreciation.
Thanks for that Neo. I skipped right past Lilli. Now I remember something about that one. Gigi & Am. in Paris of course. I may watch Lilli.
TommyJay and Neo: Caron also appeared–as a governess, not a dancer–in one of the episodes of “The Story of Three Loves”, a cinematic oddity from 1953. Three stories in one movie, starring James Mason and Moira Shearer; Caron and Farley Granger; and Kirk Douglas and Pier Angeli. Famous for its Miklos Rozsa score, which was based on a rhapsody by Rachmaninoff. Big hit for Mantovani in the late 1950s. Caron is still around, by the way. She’s in her 90s.
om clearly noted that Edith’s distinctive glasses were part of the model for Edna of the Incredibles.
Just last week we saw (in Slovak) the Italian film Enrico Piaggio: Vespa
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrBuSOvMGGg
Very interesting post-WW II Italian fighter plan manufacturing creating the motor scooter, plus a nice love story, plus how the making of Roman Holiday included using the Vespa, and saving the new factory. The Vespa, partially because of its Hepburn-film popularity, is now considered an Italian icon.
Was a good film.
Two comments from the video:
and