Star of the Month-Mitzi Gaynor

 

MITZI GAYNOR

BIRTH: September 4, 1931

DEATH: October 17, 2024

AGED: 93 yrs

DIED FROM: Natural Causes

REAL NAME: Francesca Marlene De  Czanyi Von Gerber

NICKNAME: Mitzi

MARRIED: Once, to Jack Bean, talent Agent and her manager, until he died. 52 yrs.

CHILDREN: None

FRIENDS: Bob Mackie, Liza Minnelli

TALENT: singing, dancing, knew how to entertain

KNOWN FOR: her perky demeanour. Knew how to calm a situation ie. Ethel Merman was fuming when Marilyn Monroe was late or would not come out of her trailer. Mitzi would give a wink making Merman believe Monroe was having a sex time with someone. This would neutralize Merman’s anger.

Known for her perky and effervescent personality, this sweet gal wished she could be known for her sexiness so she could get some roles that went to Marilyn Monroe but she did pretty good for herself, regardless. She is, actually, from Hungarian aristocracy ( sorry Zsa Zsa but she really is aristocracy)on her father’s side, who was a classical violinist and music director and her mom was a dancer, so her talents were inherited. Her nickname, “Mitzi” is a German endearment from the name “Maria” and she was called this since she was a child. When she came to Hollywood, a talent scout( I think), decided to change her last name to Gaynor, from the film actress, Janet Gaynor, which was fine by Mitzi who loved the actress.  Her biggest time in film, were the 1950s with, her last film, being in 1963 when she realized her natural talents would be better utilized on stage. She began appearing in Las Vegas to sold out shows and she would often appear in Vancouver, BC- Canada, to try out a new show and loved the city and the people. She brought the house down during the 1967 Oscars when she sang the Oscar nominated song, “Georgy Girl” receiving a standing ovation that did not stop. The execs had a hard time to get the audience to stop clapping so they could continue on with the show. Mitzi, and her husband, who was her manager,  had many TV specials during the late 60s and 79s where she won many Emmys and other awards. She knew how to stop the show especially in her famous Bob Mackie gowns. She continued to perform, on stage, well into the 1990s before she semi retired. She still would dance every day even into her 80s and kept her gorgeous figure. A fun note, she appeared on the Ed Sullivan show when the Beatles performed back in 1964. Afterward, she went out to dinner with them and they asked for her autograph! I love that:)

I’m going to list her film from my favourite on down but the last 4, I did not see but want to.

FILMS

1. South Pacific-1958

2. Les Girls-1957

3. Anything Goes-1956

4. Were Not Married-1952

5. The Joker Is Wild-1957

6. For Love Or Money-1963

7. Happy Anniversary- 1959

8. Surprise Package-1960

9. The Birds And The Bees-1956

10. The “I Don’t Care” Girl-1953

3 Movies All the Same…Kinda

 

I think film land, at least Hollywood, is relying too much on remakes or, if the film is a hit, you will see a 2nd, 3rd or in the case of Fast and Furious, #350 in the series. There are some original films out there but, usually, they are made on a small budget. I just watched the latest version of a film based on a book by Erich Maria Remarque who fought in World War 1. So there are 3 versions based on his book, there may be others, but these films have the same title as the book. Here are the 3…

1. ALL QUIET IN THE WESTERN FRONT-1930

This is the first and, to me, the best version of this classic war novel that stars Lew Ayres as the young Paul who, along with his friends, get riled up by their school teacher into patriotic furor and join the German army in 1914. They must go through training with the trainer being their old postmaster who feels he is the next 5 star general and lords it over the kids. Soon enough, these young boys are in the trenches, terrified at the horrors facing them. Over time, one by one is killed until Paul is left alone in the trenches. This is an early sound film and was actually made as a silent until the higher ups realized that it must be a sound film. Sound is used to great effect from the machine gun blitzing the enemy like ducks in a game. The cinematography, by Arthur Edison, is stellar making the black and white come alive. Lewis Milestone is the director who understood what the book was about and knew how to end the film in a great way using his own hand at the very end. By the way, Lew Ayres was so affected by this film that he stated he was a conscientious objector during WW2 and faced taunts and threats. What many did not know is that he joined in the hospital medic field and was truly heroic coming to the aid of soldiers.

2. ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT-1979

I’d love to see this version again which was a TV film that spanned over 3 nights. I had already seen the 1930 version so I was ready to be unimpressed by a tv movie but, I was wrong! This is an excellent adaptation that stars Richard Thomas ( John Boy from The Waltons) as Paul and Ernest Borgnine as the I,Der soldier that takes Paul under his wing. You also have the great Donald Pleasance as the tough commander faced with whipping these kids into shape. Donald Pleasance was in the war and was a prisoner of war for the last couple of years  of WW2. It is well acted and the first movie filmed in the former Czechoslovakia, a Communist held country at that time. I hope, one day, you can see this version which, to me, is not quite as good as the original but it’s so worthy.

3. ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT-2022

I just watched this newest take of this classic book and film versions that stars Felix Kammerer as Paul who, along with his friends, join in the last 2 months of the war so they can be war heroes. They learn very quickly that there are no heroes only mud, blood, tanks and death. The bloody scenes are quite realistic and I will not get the image of one soldier, flattened by a tank, out of my mind any time soon. The grittiness and horrors are very realistic and almost too much but I was left wishing for more. Whoever decided to change the time and have it start near the end of the war made me feel like I was gyped. They cut out the scenes when they were being trained and when they visited some French girls. Here it was just one soldier who left and came back with a scarf. Again, I felt like I was cheated and I never felt the real warmth for the characters like I felt in the first film nor the 2nd. The editing, especially at the beginning, left me a bit confused and the friends died so quickly that I just didn’t ….care. This did win many awards and, if I didn’t know the book nor the other 2 films, it might have done more for me but I just didn’t fall in love with the characters like the first one. In the first film, when the first dies and you see another wearing his boots, you feel bad for that boy and icky that his friend took his boots but you understood why. In this film, they omitted the hospital scene but dealt with the footwear in a different way…which I have already forgotten.

Which films have you seen all the versions and which do you like the best? You have Superman, Spiderman, Dune but you have Love Affair as well. Maybe you prefer the first Dune film and, if you do, you might need some shock treatments:)

The Purple Heart

 

Yes, I’m Canadian and proud of it but I always liked the Purple Heart which we don’t have in Canada otherwise my Dad would have one. The theme this week, over at Monday Music Moves Me, is about the theme of Honour or the colour Purple and since most chose Purple, I went a different route and hope you like it.

1. SHUTTERS AND BOARDS SUNG BY DEAN MARTIN-1962

This song was written by Audie Murphy with music by Scott Turner and you wonder…how is this appropriate? Audie Murphy is the most decorated American soldier ever. He was small in size, which is why he was not accepted by the Marines and the Paratroopers, but it was the Infantry’s gain. You need to read about him because he was in more than one skirmish with the battle of Anzio being the most famous. He was wounded but, in a burning tank, held off a German attack with a machine gun. He was known to have killed close to 300 German soldiers in battles he was in. After the war, he wrote the book, “To Hell and Back” which was later made into a movie starring Audie Murphy. He did become a film star, mainly in Westerns and was a better than average star but he also suffered from crippling PTSD and was an alcoholic. He wrote many pieces of music as well with this song being one. Sadly, he died in a plane crash in 1971 at the age of 45. To red more bout Audie Murphy, you can go here

2. THEME FROM M.A.S.H.  SUNG BY THE RON HICKLIN SINGERS-1970

This song was written by Johnny Mandel with lyrics by Michael Altman and the instrumental version was the theme for the great TV show M.A.S.H. in fact, you see the Purple Heart given a few times in the TV show. It does show Ferret Face…aka Frank Burns put in for a Purple Heart because he stubbed his toe ( I am certain things like this truly did occur) but, the Purple Heart finds its way onto a baby who survived being shelled by friendly fire. James Garner, from Maverick and The Rockford Files fame fought in the Korean War and received 2 Purple Hearts one in combat and one due to Friendly Fire.

3. DOES ANYBODY KNOW I’M HERE SUNG BY THE DELLS-1968

This song made me think of the Late Senator John McCain, who earned 2 Purple Hearts plus other medals during his time in Vietnam. He was severely wounded in the legs and chest and was taken by the enemy in 1967. The North Vietnamese tortured him, beat him severely and he suffered from dysentery. He was in this hellish condition until 1973 when there was a POW swap. He could have left earlier, but he gave up his freedom, more than once, to have his fellow comrades who left for freedom. When he returned he suffered from PTSD and physical issues where he could never lift his arms over his head. He became a senator for the Republican Party and was a vocal opponent to the Cheesy ( who treated this courageous and honourable man atrociously) but, sadly, he died from cancer. He is a true hero. I never thought I’d say that about. republican:)

What songs spring to your mind when you think of songs of valour?

Let’s Imbibe, shall we?

 

Today, I have, what I call, my sippy cup which is filled with 1 part orange juice and 3 parts soda water which has been my go to drink for decades now. Of course, back in the day, I would  imbibe …often and have been cut off in more than one bar but those are other stories for another day. I loved the summers for hanging out with my friends, dancing every weekend with a screwdriver in my hand. There have been many films where the drinks are free flowing starting with the Thin Man series which I love, but I chose 3 other films that fit the bill.

1. SWING TIME-1936

I love musicals ( duh!) and the Astaire/Rogers musical is a great one with many gob-smacking dance numbers. Along for the ride are the staples that appeared in many of their films which included Helen Broderick, Edward Everett Horton and the supreme, Eric Blore. Astaire plays a famous dancer ( again…Duh!) and gambler who wants to marry but her dad won’t allow it unless he can come up with $25,000. His friends don’t want him to marry and do whatever it takes to screw things up. Astaire meets Rogers and sparks fly which goes the usual route of boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl back. In the meantime, you love how his friends do whatever they can to screw things up for him and Blore does it with great aplomb while holding a drink in his hand all the time. I love this character actor who deserves better recognition these days. He is so, so funny as the always inebriated friend.

2. MY MAN GODFREY-1936

Talk about a screwball comedy! This is one of the best that stars William Powell who is picked up by Carole Lombard, in the city dump as a homeless man for the Scavenger hunt her elite, rich friends are having. Before you can say, Holy insensitive, rich a-holes, Carole hires Godfrey as their Butler and he is now living at the wacky household that can make anyone go insane. The mother is constantly pixelated, Carole’s sister is a bitch, the dad is trying to keep things together and deal with his wife’s musical protege who is enjoying his freeloading ways. Carole is the younger daughter who knows Godfrey loves her and does everything to get him to admit this. During one party scene, Godfrey imbibes while serving drinks and it is quite hilarious. Carole is luminous and it’s always sad to know she won’t live much longer dying in a plane crash in 1942. This is a zany comedy that I enjoy watching.

3. THE PARTY-1968

Never mind when I was in my 20s, I would love to go to this party today! I think all 3 of these films are politically incorrect today but, I don’t care because they are funny especially this film that stars Peter Sellers as a bumbling, would be Indian actor( from India not Native American), who destroys a film set costing thousands. Somehow, he gets invited to a Hollywood party which is a party that is wild, to say the least. You have a very funny dinner scene, dancing, drinking, elephants, romance and Steve Franken as one of the butlers who keeps drinking the left over wine becoming quite drunk. This character actor, from film and TV is hilarious in a basic silent role stealing the scenes from Peter Sellers, not an easy feat. It’s a party I would go to in a minute especially when there are suds galore.

What party scenes can you think of?

Which Song Won The Oscar-1995

This is 1995, 30 yrs ago! I can't believe it because it seems so modern. I'm joining in for freebie week over at Monday Music Moves Me. Let's see if you can guess which song won the Oscar  which one was nominated and which came up empty-handed in all areas..here are the 3...

1. CANCION DEL MARIACHI BY LOS LOBOS AND ANTONIO BANDERAS

This is from a fun flick, "Desperado" starring Antonio Banderos and Selma Hayek and it includes a lot of great music. When you look back, Hollywood always had a love for Mexican music starting in the 1940s. I love this soundtrack.

2. COLORS OF THE WIND SUNG BY JUDY KUHN

This song is from Pocahontas, with music by Alan Menkin and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, which depicts a nice sweet gal without any tattoos unlike the real Pocahontas who was covered in them and, died at 21 from, I believe, smallpox or pneumonia or TB…they are not sure.  

3. YOU'VE GOT A FRIEND IN ME SUNG BY RANDY NEWMAN

This was written by Randy Newman for "Toy Story", a funny and endearing animated movie that we all know well. Frankly, there's something about Randy that just makes me want to bitch slap him upside the head. 

On that lovely note, which song won the Oscar, which was nominated and which came up empty-handed. 

Who Should Have Won Best Actress-1941

 

1941 was a big year for “ WTF won” due, mainly, to Citizen Kane not winning in almost every category and I do agree but I am going to talk about Best Actress because this is the year Joan Fontaine won over her sister, Olivia De Havilland. I can’t stand Joan Fontaine. As an actress, she is good, but the actress is a self righteous snot who portrays herself as  someone who always took the high road but she didn’t. I can’t stand say this because I read her autobiography and I just wanted to bitch slap her. I worked with someone like her and she was good at portraying a caring person but they are clearly narcissistic. These 2 sisters are famous for their hatred of one another and their competitive natures came out big time this year. Olivia was the expected winner so it was an upset when Fontaine won and as she made her way to the podium, Olivia stood to congratulate her but Fontaine snubbed her as she headed up to claim her Oscar. Needless to say, you know I won’t be choosing her as the winner, in my book.

1. BARBARA STANWYCK IN BALL OF FIRE

I easily could have gone with Bette Davis for her brilliant performance in “ The Little Foxes” but as I kept thinking about the roles, I felt that Stanwyck’s performance in this film and in “The Lady Eve” were stellar and much more nuanced in her role as a gangster’s moll who holds up in a place where the cops could not find her, a group of old professors except for a bewildered and innocent man, Gary Cooper, who, also, lives there. He went to her club to learn the slang of the day since he is writing a book on slang terms not knowing that she is in with a big mobster. As she stays within those walls, her hard heart begins to soften for the elderly men and she begins to feel something more for Cooper when in comes her Mobster boyfriend. Stanwyck can play a hardened gal but also a softened girl and she makes it believable. She was the best in this film and in “The Lady Eve” which she was equally excellent but wasn’t nominated for that role opposite Henry Fonda. 

2. IRENE DUNNE FOR PENNY SERENADE

Irene Dunne is one of the best actresses to never have won an Oscar and she was nominated many times but, strangely, not for this tear jerker Romance film  co-starring Cary Grant who plays her husband. The 2 meet in Japan, marry and are happy to learn she is pregnant but before you can say, uh-oh, an earthquake hits and she loses the baby. They move back to California and, at the suggestion of their friend, they decide to adopt. There are some humorous moments like when they have no idea how to change a diaper but also some gut wrenching scenes that showcases Grant’s acting ability as much as Dunne’s. She was so good in this film and helped evolve her character into substance creating a melodrama that I really enjoy watching.

3. JOAN FONTAINE IN SUSPICION

Yes, Joan won for her role in Suspicion  directed by Alfred Hitchcock and, don’t get me wrong, she is good as the wife of potential killer, Cary Grant but she didn’t deserve the Oscar as the nervous wife of cad, Cary Grant who can’t seem to hold down any job. In fact, I think Hitchcock should be recognized for his ability to make this actress look good in her role here and in “Rebecca”. Here, she goes against rich daddy and marries schemer, Cary Grant who, annoyingly, calls her monkey face. As time goes on, she believes her husband could be a murderer and becomes more on edge wondering when he will make his strike against her. The film is good despite the ending but, it was the time of the studios who had the last say, so I can forgive their oversight. I love Cary Grant who always delivers and Fontaine was able to capture a very nervous woman who just needs a good bitch slap.

Have you seen these films? Do you agree or would you pick someone different? 

Mid Summer Times

 

FYI- This is my friend's cute little doggie, not mine nor my pool:). It is mid summer, although I always think of July as mid summer, and summer seems to last into September when it used to be getting rather rainy and colder when I was young…I hate climate change which does exist, sadly. Right now, we have been having temperatures at 32-34C( 89.6-93.2F) but with the bloody humidity it feels more like 44C or 111F. My glasses fog up and I have a hard time breathing…I hate this weather. Anyways, venture over to Curious As A Cathy who co-hosts Monday Music Moves Me…here are my choices:

1. STEAM HEAT SUNG BY CAROL HANEY WITH BUZZ MILLER AND KENNETH LEROY-1957

It is mid summer, although I always think of July as mid summer, and summer seems to last into September when it used to be getting rather rainy and colder when I was young…I hate climate change which does exist, sadly. Right now, we have been having temperatures at 32-34C( 89.6-93.2F) but with the bloody humidity it feels more like 44C or 111F. My glasses fog up and I have a hard time breathing…I hate this weather. Anyways, venture over to Curious As A Cathy who co-hosts Monday Music Moves Me…here are my choices:

1. STEAM HEAT SUNG BY CAROL HANEY WITH BUZZ MILLER AND KENNETH LEROY-1957

Carol Haney originated her role in the original Broadway version of “The Pajama Game” ( Shirley MacLaine was her understudy and was able to go on, one night, when Haney was ill, creating quite the splash starting her career) and kept her role for the film version starring Doris Day and John Raitt( yes, the dad of Bonnie Raitt). This is a great dance routine created by Bob Fosse who danced with Haney before in “Kiss Me, Kate”. Haney was a favourite of Gene Kelly who would dance with him in other films but, sadly she died of pneumonia at age 33 brought on by diabetes and alcoholism.

2. WE’RE HAVING A HEAT WAVE SUNG BY MARILYN MONROE-1954

I consider this one of the lesser versions of this classic song but Marilyn sounds like she’s in heat during a heatwave and, well, I have no idea why I said this because I just don’t think about lust when I am not in air conditioning ( thankfully, we have air air conditioning). The song was written by Irving Berlin and Monroe just can’t help singing it like this and she did sing but, from what I read, in my musical books, she sang the song ( all her songs even Dimonds are…) many times, and the editors pieced the best together so it sounds good all the way through. She wasn’t a bad singer, but she could hit some notes flat or slightly off so they had no choice but to piece it together. Carol Haney originated her role in the original Broadway version of “The Pajama Game” ( Shirley MacLaine was her understudy and was able to go on, one night, when Haney was ill, creating quite the splash starting her career) and kept her role for the film version starring Doris Day and John Raitt( yes, the dad of Bonnie Raitt). This is a great dance routine created by Bob Fosse who danced with Haney before in “Kiss Me, Kate”. Haney was a favourite of Gene Kelly who would dance with him in other films but, sadly she died of pneumonia at age 33 brought on by diabetes and alcoholism.

2. WE’RE HAVING A HEAT WAVE SUNG BY MARILYN MONROE-1954

I consider this one of the lesser versions of this classic song but Marilyn sounds like she’s in heat during a heatwave and, well, I have no idea why I said this because I just don’t think about lust when I am not in air conditioning ( thankfully, we have air air conditioning). The song was written by Irving Berlin and Monroe just can’t help singing it like this and she did sing but, from what I read, in my musical books, she sang the song ( all her songs even Dimonds are…) many times, and the editors pieced the best together so it sounds good all the way through. She wasn’t a bad singer, but she could hit a flat note or miss one.

3.  SUMMER IN THE CITY SUNG BY THE LOVIN’ SPOONFUL-1966

I have a feeling this will be popular, but this was the first song that came into my head and it is a classic song by this American-Canadian band that had a few great hits during the 60s. I always loved this song and seems to be perfect for a summer song.

What songs can you think of?