That's Old News! (#12)

Below are links to ten historic entertainment news articles:

• "Merle Oberon's Marriage Stranger Than Fiction"

St. Petersburg Times - July 29, 1945

Source

Famed columnist Louella Parsons didn't seem too enthusiastic about Merle Oberon's marriage to cinematographer and DP, Lucien Ballard. This union was Oberon's second marriage. Click the link above to read the article.

• "Hal Boyle Writes...Cantinflas Explains What Makes a Comedian" 

The Nevada Daily Mail - September 20, 1960

Cantinflas with Bing Crosby in Pepe (1960) - Source

Just as the article's title says, comedy legend, Cantinflas, explains to Hal Boyle what makes a good comedian. He also explains why he never took on a "serious role". 

• "You Can't Help Liking Ethel Waters, Her Hearty Laugh, Sparkling Eyes"

Ottawa Citizen - February 23, 1954

Accompanied photo in Ottawa Citizen

Radio and television editor for the Ottawa Citizen, Claude Hammerston, made a trip to Toronto just to interview the legendary Ethel Waters. He had a nice chat with her about her career, her opinion on television, her religion, and more. 

• "Howe Observes His 50th Year"

Toledo Blade - December 31, 1967

Source

James Wong Howe celebrated his 50th year as a Hollywood cinematographer while shooting The Heart is a Lonely Hunter (1967) in Selma, Alabama. 

• "Eartha Kitt Casts Strange Spell On Stage"

Palm Beach Daily News - December 26, 1954

Even at the age of 26, Eartha Kitt had a confidence, frankness, and maturity that was well beyond her years. Click the link above to read her rags-to-riches story as originally told to the International News Service.

• "Sunshine Sammy: He Tells How He First Got Into the Movies"

The Afro American - February 4, 1933

Accompanied photo in The Afro American

Ernest "Sunshine Sammy" Morrison not only told The Afro American how he got his start in movies, but also how he got the nickname "Sunshine Sammy". He also talked about his love for the stage and what (at the time) kept him from returning to Hollywood. 

• "Theresa Harris on "Hollywood Hotel""

The Afro American - August 28, 1937

Source

Singer/actress Theresa Harris was a busy woman in 1937! Not only did she appear in four films released that year (one, Bargain with Bullets, aka Gangsters on the Loose is mentioned in the article), but one could also hear her voice in a radio adaptation of One Mile from Heaven. 

• "Nicholas Brothers: 50 Years of Footwork"

Schenectady Gazette - June 20, 1987

Source

Click the link above to take a short journey through Fayard and Harold Nicholas' 50-year career in show business.

• "New York to Call Anna Chang In Spring"

The Gridley Herald - November 19, 1924

Anna Chang pictured with Cary Grant in Singapore Sue (1932) (Source)

The Gridley Herald reported that the "Chinese Songbird of San Francisco", Anna Chang would be joining Irving Berlin's Music Box revue in Spring of 1925! Get all of the details in the link above.

• "Spencer Williams Back to Hollywood"

Washington Afro-American - January 24, 1950

Source

After spending ten years in Texas making independent pictures, Spencer Williams made his return to Hollywood in 1950. It's possible that he was returning to prepare for his new role in the Amos 'n' Andy TV series. Click the link above to view the small news story!

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I hope you found this installment of "That's Old News!" to be very informative! :)

Movie of the Week: PINKY (Review)

Pinky was the featured film for the week of April 28-May 5.

From Wikipedia

Pinky, a light skinned black woman (played by Jeanne Crain), returns to her grandmother's house (Dicey Johnson, played by Ethel Waters) in the South after graduating from a Northern nursing school. Pinky tells her grandmother that she has been "passing" for white while at school in the North. In addition, Pinky has fallen in love with a young white doctor, Dr. Thomas Adams (William Lundigan), who knows nothing about her black heritage. Pinky says that she will return to the North, but Granny Johnson convinces her to stay and treat an ailing white woman, Miss Em (Ethel Barrymore). Meanwhile, Dr. Canady (Kenny Washington), a black physician from another part of the state, visits Pinky and asks her to train some African American students, but she declines. Pinky nurses Miss Em but is resentful because she seems to feel that she is doing the same thing her grandmother did. Pinky and Miss Em slowly develop a mutual respect for one another. Mrs. Em leaves Pinky her property when she dies, but relatives of the deceased woman contest the new will in court. [IMDb Plot Summary - remainder contains spoilers]

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I was going to do a video review for Pinky, but I know I would be better at getting my irritations and frustrations out in writing.

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Story/Writing

*Warning: Mention of Rape/Attempted Rape & Harassment* 

To be honest, there were a few moments in this film that I found to be unrealistic (like Pinky's white boyfriend holding her close in a courtroom full of racist white people without as much as a "gasp" from them), but overall, this was a really good story and I was not expecting it to be as good as it was. It stirred so many emotions for me--sadness, anger, pity, rage. Pinky goes places that I did not expect a 1949 film to go--in the same way that I didn't expect No Way Out to go to some of the places it went. 

My only problem with the writing is the erasure of Pinky's blackness (or her history as a black woman). To me, it seemed as though the writers of this film made the assumption that mixed race black people (or fair enough to "pass" black people) were incapable of relating to or understanding the (Southern) black experience. It would have been one thing if Pinky had grown up passing for white her entire life, or if she'd gone her entire life not knowing that she was black. Not the case! Pinky was born and raised by her grandmother, Dicey (played by Ethel Waters) in a shack on what I believe used to be a plantation, but for some reason, when she returned from nursing school, she was completely out of the loop about how the "Colored section" of the community lived. The character wasn't defiant or rebellious, but she was unwittingly doing and saying things that would have immediately lead to imminent danger for a darker person:

For example, early in the film, a stressed Pinky thought it would be a good idea for her to "take a walk" along the road of a racist town by herself--at night. She would soon be harassed by two white men in a car--because she was a woman. When she informed the men that she was black, they turned up the hostility--chasing her in their car and almost raping her. This goes to show that if Pinky were a dark or brown-skinned black woman, (she probably wouldn't have been walking along the road by herself at night, for starters), chances are, these men would have assaulted her immediately. Light or not, a black woman would not have been walking up a dark country road by herself in Mean White People Town unless she was a "bad mother--shutyomouf!". Pinky was nowhere near it. 

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Characters/Acting

Jeanne Crain

I can't say that I was able to "overlook" Luise Rainer as "O-Lan" in The Good Earth or Susan Kohner as "Sarah Jane" in Imitation of Life (1959), but I can say that I their performances were good enough for me to "tolerate" them. For me, Jeanne Crain's performance wasn't good enough for me to "tolerate" her as 'Pinky'. Whenever she mentioned being "colored" or "Negro" I couldn't restrain myself from rolling my eyes. She didn't make me (almost) believe her. Don't get me wrong, her performance was good, but it wasn't standout (and certainly not worth an Oscar nomination, in my opinion). 

The majority of supporting cast, however, gave very memorable performances--a rare occurrence in my previous viewings and reviews. 

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Jake and Rozelia

First of all, I was a bit saddened to witness Hollywood's first black Leading Lady playing such a small role twenty years after her big debut (in fact, Nina Mae McKinney's second Hollywood role--only a year after her debut--was uncredited). I was also irritated that Jake Walters and Rozelia--the only other black characters (besides Pinky, Dicey, and Dr. Canady, who we only see in two scenes) were two of the movie's most despicable characters. Nonetheless, Ms. McKinney and Frederick O'Neal (as Jake, a man whose actual profession I'm still clueless on--he owed (and stole) a lot of people's money, that's all I know) played their roles well enough to stay embedded on the audience's brain. At least mine.

Frederick O'Neal (photographed by Carl Van Vechten)

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Judge Shoreham

This character (played by Raymond Greenleaf) really didn't become significant until near the film's end. In fact, his "shining" moment (more like Mr. Greenleaf's) was his last moment on the screen--and I will tell you, what he says and does will cut you like the sharpest of knives.


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Melba Wooley

This character annoyed and frustrated me to no end--and you know what I always say: If a character makes you mad, then the actor did their job. Evelyn Varden did an amazing job as "Melba Wooley"--Miss Em's greedy and trouble-making cousin. You will not forget this character or the actress!

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Dicey & Miss Em

Ethel Waters

Ethel Waters and Ethel Barrymore both received the Oscar-nomination for 'Best Supporting Actress' for their work in this film, and the nominations were well deserved. Of course, the character of "Dicey" is your typical "mammy" stereotype--she does domestic work for Miss Em and is painfully devoted to the woman. Nonetheless, like most of the actresses who played these kinds of characters, Ethel Waters played Dicey Johnson seamlessly. 

Ethel Barrymore (photographed by Carl Van Vechten)

Miss Em is an ailing, no-nonsense woman who's actually beloved for her sharp tongue. This was the first time I'd seen a film with Ethel Barrymore in it, so as a first time observer of her work, I thought to myself: "Either Ethel Barrymore was as strict as Miss Em in real life, or she was extremely good at what she did..." I'm going to assume that the latter is the answer, especially since she was a member of acting dynasty known as "the Barrymore Family".


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Overall Thoughts

Overall, I thought Pinky was a well-written story. There were some moments that made me yell "Oh, come on, really, Pinky?!", but then, there were a lot of moments that were absolutely real and realistic--moments that filled me with anger and sadness because I knew that something like that, whatever it was, happened often in Southern communities of the time (and sometimes, still happens today). 

Of course, it was especially disappointing to not see a black actress playing this part. Black Hollywood's "it girl", Lena Horne campaigned for the role, as did the blossoming starlet, Dorothy Dandridge, but of course, neither actresses would win the role. Fredi Washington, Hollywood's go-to actress for "passing" roles had long left Hollywood for good, plus, she was 46 years old at the time of the film's release. Even the movie's own Nina Mae McKinney could have been a good candidate, but I guess that 37 would have been a bit too old for a recent college grad, as well. The studio could have gone for a big name like Lena or unknown, but to avoid controversy and violating miscegenation laws, Fox Studios decided that it would be "best" to cast a white actress, and that they did (the film still met some "miscegenation violation" trouble, anyway). The majority of Jeanne Crain's lukewarm performance (that even director Elia Kazan commented on) pained me to watch and the whole time, all I could think was "Lena Horne...Lena Horne...Lena Horne...".


However, what's done is done. I do recommend that people watch this movie for both historical and entertainment purposes.


*Watch Pinky on Youtube*



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All photos used in this post were obtained from Wikipedia. They are being used for informational purposes only. If the rightful owner(s) of any of these photos wishes to have them removed, please contact me, and I will do so immediately. (Adrienne)

That's Old News! (#5)

For April 2014--here is the fifth official installment of That's Old News! I hope you find these vintage newspaper articles informative.

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From The Pittsburgh Press: 

"Actress to Star in Chinese Hollywood"

Iris Wong with Victor Sen Yung in 1941 [from Soft Film]

On April 17, 1943, The Pittsburgh Press reported that Iris Wong (an actress best known for her work in some of the 'Charlie Chan' films) would be leaving Hollywood for China after the war's end to star in movie musicals. [Read about it here]

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From The Nevada Daily Mail:

"Hal Boyd Writes"

(From LA Times) Mario "Cantinflas" Moreno

In September of 1960, Hal Boyd talked to comedy legend, Cantinflas about his life, career, and what it takes to be a comedian. [Read the article]


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From Ottawa Citizen:
"You Can't Help Liking Ethel Waters, Her Hearty Laugh, Sparkling Eyes"

Ethel Waters (from Wikipedia)

Radio and Television Editor, Claude Hammerstein gushes over entertainment legend, Ethel Waters in this 1954 article from the Ottawa Citizen. [Read it here]


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From The Evening News: 
"First American Screen Appearance"

(From Wikipedia) Sessue Hayakawa

In this May 24, 1916 article, The Evening News discusses Japanese film star, Sessue Hayakawa's first appearance in American Cinema. 

*Warning, this article contains a racial slur.*  
[Read the article here]

*Note: You will have to scroll 'up', click and grab the newspaper scan, and move your mouse to the right to read the article in its entirety*


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From The Afro American:
"He Knows All, Stage Star Tells Afro"

Isabel Washington (from TVRage)

In a January 1933 article in The Afro American, entertainer Isabel Washington addresses rumors and controversy surrounding her engagement to a popular, young clergyman named Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. [Click here to read the article]


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If Ethel were Chick...

Ethel [Waters] could have had her first starring role in MGM's Hallelujah!, which was released on August 20, 1929. She was the first choice of the film's director, King Vidor, but lost the part to a sixteen year old chorus girl named Nina Mae McKinney when "the talent man King Vidor went East to wave gold bags at me was stalled on the job by the colored theatrical people unfriendly, to me." Consequently, it was Nina, not Ethel, who was given the chance to be the first black actress to play a leading role in a Hollywood film. [From Ethel Waters: Stormy Weather, Stephen Bourne (2007)]

While Hollywood was casting dark-skinned black women in all of their "happy-to-be-serving" supporting (or uncredited) roles, they were also laying foundations for their (few) black Leading Ladies. Nina Mae McKinney would arguably (see page 181 for criticism of Oscar Micheaux's casting) set the blueprint for Hollywood's future black Leading ladies (Lena Horne, Dorothy Dandridge, etc.)--and the character of "Chick" would lay the foundation for the "tragic" roles that these women were often offered (characters that would eventually fade away by the late 50's/early 60's, though).

However, I don't want to get into the intricacies of color-coded casting--that's another subject for another day. Instead, I would like to pose a question with the hope of encouraging a lot of discussion in the 'Comments' section. Before I ask this question, keep the following things in mind: The "look" of Chick (and Nina Mae McKinney) is believed to have set the standard for Hollywood's next black Leading Ladies, but while the black community has revered these women--Nina Mae, Lena Horne, Dorothy Dandridge, etc.--there has also been criticism of the roles that they've played (tragic mulattoes, "harlots"). With that in mind, I now pose this question:

In your opinion, how would the casting of Ethel Waters in Hallelujah! have changed the course of American history for black women (of all shades and complexions) in Film, Television, Music, and perhaps society in general? 

Ethel Waters