#wc fields
W. C. Fields in Santa Claus mode... The photos may have been taken during production of “The Big Broadcast of 1938” . The girls seen were :
1.) Carole Parker
9.) Joyce Mathews
3.) Lola Jensen
8.) Alma Ross
Also a 1946 Christmas card drawn by Fields himself…. (with a cotton ball glued to the hat!) Fields died on Christmas day 1946.
I’d like to think the theme of my new Grand Old Movies post–called DINNERS FROM HELL, and just in time for Thanksgiving!–might be a bit of schadenfreude for all those nervous turkeys out there: a way of saying, “It’s nice to see that others can also suffer at this time of year.” In keeping with the festive spirit of eating, I look at a series of cinematic dinners that, contrary to expectations, don’t bring out the best in either the situation or us. Featured in this cornucopia of frazzled feasting, blotto banquets, manic meals, and disastrous dining are Laurel & Hardy, James Stewart, Jean Arthur, Henry Fonda, Lucille Ball, Geraldine Page, Glenn Ford, W.C. Fields, and Moe, Larry, and Curly bringing up the rear with pies (lots of pies). If nothing else, it might inspire us to finally start that diet. Please click here to read my post. And Happy Thanksgiving.
W.C. Fields: Dealing yourself the fifth Ace.
W.C. FIELDS demonstrates a DIY cigar-box hack.
IF I HAD A MILLION (1932). W.C. Fields and Gary Cooper star in an early anthology about 8 people who randomly receive a million dollars.
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On this day in 1893, a screen legend was born. Paying respect to the one and only Miss Mae West!(b.Mary Jane West, August 17, 1893 - November 22, 1980)
“You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.”
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10 chub actors from the 1940s that didn’t make my first 2 lists. This is a combination of lead actors and character actors.
1. Oliver Hardy. Laurel and Hardy were on the decline in the 40s, although they still did 9 feature length films.
2.Walter Slezak. This was Walter’s best decade for movies. He was in 15 and featured in all of them. His best films were the early ones when he was used in dramas.and he played German Military, like Lifeboat and This Land is Mine.. In the late 40s in was the protagonist in comedies. I suspect he wanted to shed the Nazi image and picked comedies on purpose.
3.Alan Carney was featured in 14 movies, 7 times he was paired with Wally Brown in movies directed toward the military during WWII. He and Wally played rookie recruits who do everything wrong. I first saw him in It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World and he was one of the many actors in that movie who I didn’t know but now I do.
4. Francis L. Sullivan was a rotund British actor often compared to Sydney Greenstreet. He was featured in 16 films, often playing Military Officers in the early part of the decade. He was the ideal Dickensian character, playing in both Oliver Twist and Great Expectations in the 1940s.
5.Laird Cregar was an excellent actor and had some memorable roles in the 14 films he was in before his death in 1944 after a radical crash diet and surgery. He wanted to increase the roles he was offered which compelled him to lose 100 lbs. Laird was also a gay man and, again, an excellent actor.
6.Chris-Pin Martin, part Mexican-part Native American and a lazy eye. He often played Mexican sidekicks or Mexican servants in Western settings. Late in the 40s he became a regular in the Cisco Kid series as Pancho.
7.Howard Freeman was in 49 films in the 40s but his name only appeared on 7 posters. One of those guys that got important roles but nobody knew his name.
8. Cy Kendall was another. 54 films and only 3 posters. His likeness appeared on more posters than his name. He wasn’t really that good of an actor but his large presence and stone face could be intimidating.
9.Charles Kemper started his film career in 1947 but did his name on 9 posters of the 16 films he was in. He gave many memorable performances. Including The Southerner and Scarlet Street. His career was cut short in 1950 when he was killed in a road accident.
10.W.C. Fields didn’t make many movies in the 1940s. But they were 3 classics.My Little Chickadee, The Bank Dick and Never Give a Sucker an Even Break.
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