Ughhh…my poor friend continues to get slammed by crap from every side. Now her children treated her horribly yesterday taking her out of an important meeting at work scaring her and when she got home, laughing and saying she got punked. Her idiot estranged husband, came in and took more things including a small cabinet that belonged to her parents. It is one of the few things she had from her dad, but the jerk took it. I pleaded with her to get the U-Haul truck for tomorrow, my hubby will drive it and get. Her stuff out of there because he will take her bed, her clothes and whatever else he can grab just in spite. I am very upset for her and very disappointed in her girls. I’m crazy at work and blah blah blah. I do enjoy writing here but I can’t find the time to read and comment. I am sorry.
Ok, enough of that, I am choosing all the way back to 1940 when you had some strong women up for best actress like Bette Davis for “The Letter”, but you also had miss nervous, irrigating Joan Fontaine in “Rebecca”. Here are 3 ladies, one who won, one nominated and one not nominated but should have won.
1. ROSALIND RUSSELL IN HIS GIRL FRIDAY
This film is one rapid fire, non stop, hilarious, with some serious undertones, film that stars Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell as 2 newspapermen ( yes, I use this on purpose) who used to be married but are now divorced with the Russell character leaving the newspaper business to marry a nice Ralph Bellamy ( who handles himself with great aplumb and hold himself well up against these 2 firecrackers) who will never have a chance. Grant will pull all the stops to keep her with his newspaper bringing back into the fray of a stellar story involving a man who escapes custody claiming he is innocent. The dialogue never stops with most characters talking over other characters. This mayhem is conducted by the great director, Howard Hawks. Rosalind Russell is a powerhouse who can hold her own and overtake the acting of Grant and the many character actors. She never loses her femininity and you wonder how she could memorize all that dialogue but, I read, that she and Grant were allowed to adlib. I think she deserved the award but was not even nominated.
2. KATHERINE HEPBURN IN THE PHILADELPHIA STORY
Katherine Hepburn was excellent as the haughty Tracy Lord who comes from the rich, elite society planning to marry a man who is as exciting as the colour taupe. Her ex husband, played to great delight, by Cary Grant, crashes the big party and you have the reporter and his camera lady played with much glee by James Stewart who won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor and Ruth Hussey is the fellow reporter who loves the big lug. It is sophisticated and quite a funny screwball type of comedy. Hepburn played Tracy on stage and made sure she had the rights to making this film. She wanted Spencer Tracy for the role of her ex husband but she got Grant and she made sure she got Stewart as the cynical newspaper guy. She shines in this role and is equal parts, rich bitch, romantic girl, ditzy nut and quite beautiful. She earned the nomination and, if Rosalind didn’t give such a great powerhouse performance as Hildy, Kate would have received my vote as the best actress.
3. GINGER ROGERS IN KITTY FOYLE
Ginger Rogers got rid of her blond look and stopped dancing to appear in this drama about a honest working girl from the poor side of town who meets up with an upscale man who launches his own magazine, using his family’s money ( hmm JFK Jr. anyone?). Of course, his family is not into their son falling for this lower class gal. She ends up leaving and going to NYC meeting up with a good but poor doctor. Hmm, who will win her over?? This plot seems to be pretty basic but Ginger’s performance elevates this film but, I don’t think she deserved the Oscar. Looking at these 3 now, you wonder how the industry can get this so wrong but maybe Katherine would have won if only she donned. Blonde wig.
Well, time to go to bed, but do you agree or would you choose someone else for another role that does not get the love it should?
Your friend really needs to get out of there before she loses everything.
ReplyDeleteHi Birgit,
ReplyDeleteI feel for your friend and am appalled at the lack of support from her kids! Even if she’s not ready to make a move she should get a storage unit and put everything she genuinely wants to protect in there. It will be one less hurdle, even if it’s not the most convenient. Hope she navigates her way through the mire soon.
1940 is one of the great years for female performance in film so this weak line up (in the context of what was available) is frustrating. From what I’ve read Ginger Rogers was incredibly surprised when she won and after watching Kitty Foyle so was I! She’s not terrible but considering the immense quantity of quality to choose from that an okay performance was awarded the prize is a bitter pill.
Kate Hepburn is wonderful in Philadelphia Story but of the women in actual competition the award should have gone to Bette Davis hands down. Leslie Crosbie is a venal dragon hidden behind a placid exterior and Bette weighs her performance exactly right, never letting too much of the poison show while making sure the audience knows it’s there.
I’m mystified how Roz Russell was shut out of a nomination, though I’d guess studio politics played a role-she being a Metro girl who made the film on loan out to Warners, so she didn’t get the studio push. She’s utterly brilliant and as much as I like Martha Scott, Joan Fontaine and Ginger, Rosalind belonged there far more than they did.
There was a slew of worthy work that was overlooked, Joan Crawford in Strange Cargo, Irene Dunne in My Favorite Wife, Norma Shearer in Escape, Ann Sheridan in Torrid Zone and Barbara Stanwyck in Remember the Night among others, but there are two I’m incredulous about.
The first is Margaret Sullavan in “The Shop Around the Corner” but even though she was an MGM girl at the time, with “The Mortal Storm” a big prestige success the same year, if even Frank Morgan couldn’t score a nomination in Supporting Actor for what should have been his winning performance than the Academy just wasn’t feeling the film. Hindsight of course has proved them wrong.
But the real slight and oversight is Vivien Leigh in Waterloo Bridge. Maybe because she had deservedly won the previous year it was felt that she had been rewarded but she’s just heartbreakingly great in the movie and while this would be one of the most difficult years to choose a winner in an open field for me it would be between Rosalind Russell and her for the win. I would hand it to Vivien by a razor thin edge, but a tie would be okay too.
I've never seen 'Kitty Foyle' but, regardless, my vote would go to Rosalind Russell in 'His Girl Friday'. That's one of my all-time very favorite screwball comedies. It even includes one of my very favorite instances of 'breaking the 4th wall', with Cary Grant's description of the Bruce Baldwin character. GOL!
ReplyDelete~ D-FensDogG
None of these films made much of an impact on me apparently, but maybe I didn't see all of them. Can't think of an actress in that go around so I guess I have no opinion.
ReplyDeleteLee
Your poor friend! I feel so bad for her. I've seen Kitty Foyle. Hepburn and Russell were superior to Rogers in their roles. Maybe I'm wrong, but I always thought Jimmy Stewart won best actor, not supporting actor, for The Philadelphia Story. He should have won the year before for Mr. Smith Goes To Washington.
ReplyDeleteLove,
Janie
Your friend's kids are awful. Yikes. She needs to cut them out of her life, too, if they're doing that sh**.
ReplyDeleteYeah, Kitty Foyle isn't that great, but I suppose they wanted to award Rogers.