Star Of The Month-Dean Jagger

 

DEAN JAGGER

BIRTH: November 7, 1903

DEATH: February 5, 1991

AGED: 87 years

DIED FROM: Heart disease..he died in his sleep

MARRIED: 3 times to Antoinette DuPre Lowrence, Gloria Jean Ling and Etta Jagger

CHILDREN: I daughter with Ling

OSCAR WINS: 1 for Best-Supporting Actor for “12 O’Clock High

TALENT: His oratory style which left many captivated. Very early on, he won many competitions.

KNOWN FOR: Dean Jagger had a very noticeable lisp when he was not working. This lisp disappeared when he was on the stage or in front of a camera. I find this fascinating. 

I always liked this character actor whom we know from the Christmas favourite, “White Christmas” as the General who is in a financial crisis with his Inn and it is up to Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye( along with Rosemary Clooney and Vera-Ellen) to save the day. He did so many more films, mostly in supporting roles but he did do a few as the lead, which I still need to see. It was funny to learn that he wanted to be an actor since he was quite young, practising oratory to the cows on the farm he grew up on. He left school many times and, somehow ended up in college, only to drop out the 2nd year. Not only that and, not sure how, he ended up teaching all 8 grades in a grade school…yup, he became a teacher for a while but that wasn’t his calling ( no kidding!). He left so he could become an actor and started on the stage making quite the name for himself before going into film. He seemed perfect for  film and really made it when he starred as Brigham Young in the film of the same name. George D. Pyper was a consultant on the film and knew Young personally. He mentioned how Jagger not only looked like him but sounded like him and had similar mannerisms. This movie changed Jagger’s life who studied Young’s life and the Morgan faith finally becoming part of this faith in 1972. He was an intensely private man so we know that he married 3 times with the 3rd one, to a ballerina, lasting until his death. His 2nd marriage was to a Chinese lady but when they went to get married, they were denied due to a Californian law prohibiting a Caucasian from marrying someone of Mongolian descent….yup, racism, big surprise. They married in New Mexico but divorced 20 years later..oh well. The one blemish is his solid support behind Senator Joseph McCarthy to the point where he had a director, Joseph Losey, fired because Losey was being blacklisted by these horrible Witch hunts. This actor also appeared in many TV Shows starring in Mr. Novak, winning 2 Emmys as the Principal of this school ( I never heard of it). What’s funny is he talked about the demise of Television back in the 1960s…he must be spinning in his grave! This man gave stellar performances in many films and TV often creating heart at the centre of the films.

FILMS- I saw the first 6 and ranked them. The last 4 I chose as ones yet to see…but there are more

1. White Christmas-1954

2. 12 O’Clock High-1949

3. Bad Day At Black Rock-1955

4. The Nun’s Story-1959

5. King Creole-1958

6. Elmer Gantry-1960

7. I Escaped From The Gestapo-1943

8. Western Union-1941

9. Brigham Young-1940

10. It’s a Dog’s Life-1955

Yeah....just a few Cards

 

Addicted to Stamps-Any Occasion 

Alphabet Challenge- Nocturnal Animals

This is my Halloween card that I made by accident. To be honest, I can’t remember how I did the background. I know I brayered something and used this paper to get rid of the pink and the black but unsure how or why I had 3 “windows”  left. I came up with the idea of using those windows to showcase some Halloween images which I stamped in black ink. I glued it onto black cardstock and finished it off with some Victorian-looking beading. 

Tic, Tac, Toe- middle row- animal, glitter, square card tttc304

12 Months of Christmas- Anything Goes

Crafty Animals-Anything Goes with an animal 

52 Christmas Cards- Mini Scene with Shaped Dies

We bought a mini cake and the mini-cake was on this golden piece of cardboard. It looked pretty so I kept it and used it as the backing for my mini scene of the cardinal. I used my cuddlebug and embossed this image. I coloured it with these watercolour pastels. I glued it all in place and  applied it to this other background I happened to make by chance using paints and stencils. I cut it down and applied it to the cardstock to create my card.

Colourful Options- Fall Colours

We Love Stamping- Shades of Autumn

I tried something new and…it didn’t work but I still liked it. I used alcohol inks and a straw. I watched YouTube videos on how to create a flower by blowing the alcohol inks in a way that create a flower, like a lily. It didn’t work and I ended up with this but I still saw flowers in this and gently highlighted it with water marker and smudging it with my finger. I pasted on gold and black cardstock. I stamped the saying and attached it. I hope it works

CCAYR- V for Vibrant and W for Winter green and Warmth

Simon Says-Anything Goes 

Retro Rubber- Be-Leaf Me rrcb283

Sparkles Monthly- Use Dies/Die-Cutting

I loved that design stamp where I can put anything inside that frame. After stamping it and embossing it in green tinsel powder. I finally used my candle stamp that I bought 2 years ago. I coloured it with my tombow markers using it in a watercolour effect. I glued it onto the mirror card and used ribbon to set the card off nicely. 

Heart’s Quest Fantasy- Anything Goes Fantasy

Try It Tuesday-Make It Magical

I bought my fairy stamps a good 3 years ago and haven’t used them much. I decided to change that and create a Christmas theme with the fairy, bathed in glittery white (I stamped and heat embossed her in my snowflake white powder). Oh yes, I created the background using my powders… I forgot the name but you just take the small bottle and sprinkle a little powder onto watercolour cardstock. You spray water onto the card and watch the colours come alive! I used green, blue and even a bit of purple. It was shimmery so you can see it in the light which I can’t get here. I stamped trees and other grasses and holly. I took my stickles in red and added it to the trees and the holly berries. I took my Tim Holtz distress ink and sponged on some darker blues around the edges to create a vignette. I stamped my poinsettia 4 times, coloured them in and fussy-cut them out. I added it to the card to create a nice Christmas vision. 

Eerie…..

 

Boo! Of course I will  talk about some eerie films. They are not shock scary movies or gory which is not my bag anyway, but they are eerie. They bring a tension that evokes fear and so many questions and here are my 3..

1. VAMPYR-1932

This is about the eeriest film I have ever seen. It’s from the great Danish director, Carl Dreyer, who creates an unsettling, dream-like atmosphere with shadows and soft-focus lighting to enhance the eerie quality. There is very little dialogue and that works because it brings more tension and dark, fairytale quality to this film. A man wanders into an inn at the edge of a small town. In the middle of the night he is visited by an old man who brings him a box and leaves. The man follows the old man out and sees an old woman who seems to have control over other people who appear as if they are not part of their own bodies. This man ends up at a home, meets the old man and his 2 daughters one that is bedridden. The old man is killed and the police and doctor come. Soon, this man, who is a student of the occult, realizes there is more than just illness but as if something holds the town hostage. This film was not a success when it came out but, now, it is considered one of the best films ever made.

2. CARNIVAL OF SOULS-1962

This is a B movie made on a shoestring budget. Long forgotten, it is now considered a gem in the horror film franchise. We see girls in one car, boys in another and they decide to drag race and whoever makes it across the bridge first, wins. Unfortunately, the girls’ car ends up in the river below. From the river comes one survivor, who is, understandably, confused and muddy. She is an organist and gets a job at a nearby town as a church organist. Since, surviving the accident, she feels odd and keeps seeing this freakish man with a white face and menacing look. At times, she hears nothing and the silence freaks her out. She speaks to a psychiatrist about all these events and he is concerned for her. While playing music in the church, her playing deviates to a macabre number that sounds the opposite of holy. She is also drawn to this old palace by the seaside where she sees a bunch of people dancing but they all look like that man who keeps following her. This is one creepy, but excellent film.

3. HIGH PLAINS DRIFTER-1973

This is a Western film starring Clint Eastwood, who also directed the film, who comes into this sad looking town with all the townsfolk staring at him wondering who is this guy? He comes into mean, dusty and horny taking the town slut into the barn and, essentially, raping her but she doesn’t mind. He ventures to the barbershop for a bath and shave and, while in the bathtub, the slut shoots multiple times into the bathtub. Clint is unhurt and she is subdued. Oh yeah, he kills all the members of this gang and then takes his bath. This happens in the first 10 minutes of the film! From there, he takes over the town with the local midget, played so well by Billy Curtis, as his right-hand man. The townsfolk don’t like him and send word to convicts who are coming to this town. Clint just seethes with menace even though he has nightmares of the former sheriff whipped to death by these convicts as the town just watches. Clint prepares the town for these convicts by forcing the townsfolk to paint the town red and calling it Hell. This was a film I always wanted to see but never had a chance until 20 years ago and was floored when the film ended. It left me questioning, “What the Hell!?” It’s dirty, grimy and you dislike most of the people in the town save the midget and the wife of the hotel owner, who knows who this man with no name is. I think Billy Curtis should have been Oscar nominated for best supporting actor, but that’s just me.

What films do you find eerie? 

Marigolds and Cosmos

 

Positive energy and harmony are what Marigolds and cosmos are represent. This week, on Monday Music Moves Me, it’s all about these flowers and what they represent. OK, I  am not showing these flowers in my photo above but I do love this picture of my flowers. I could choose some typical songs but, I don’t want to. So here are some songs that represent these flowers, well, kind of…

1. THE BEST WAY TO TRAVEL BY THE MOODY BLUES-1968

I love The Moody Blues so I had to choose this
because they often explored the cosmos. Ok, not the flower but  the universe. This was written by Justin Hayward and is from their album, “ In Search of a Lost Chord.”

2. HIGHER AND HIGHER BY THE MOODY BLUES-1969

This is from their album, “To Our Children’s, Children’s Children” and was written by Graeme Edge. This is an homage and loving tribute to the Apollo missions and space exploration.

3. VETERAN COSMIC ROCKER BY THE MOODY BLUES-1981

My fav, Ray Thomas, wrote this song for the album, “Long Distance Voyager” with all these great motifs  used as only Ray can create. 

4. THIS OCTOBER SUNG BY  JULIE LONDON-1956

I have to showcase Julie London singing about October from her fun album, “ Calendar Girls”. I had to showcase this song.

5. MARIGOLDS SUNG BY GWEN STEFANI-2024

This newer song . Geoghegan. This so g uses the imagery of marigold to representhow difficultloce can be but triumph. 

I hope I met this week’s theme…have a great week.

I did 2 extra this time. Have a great day

L

Colourful

 

This is National Colour Day and it got me thinking about one of my favourite directors or, in this case a duo known for their use of colour to enhance the story. I am speaking about Mike Powell and Emeric Pressburger, 2 of the best directors who made some beautiful films, writing, directing and producing them. They loved creating film and using colour almost like a character in their films.

1. A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH-1946

This is such a different film even if it's a romance, fantasy, courtroom, drama-comedy. This film stars David Niven as a pilot during WW2 who's plane is going down. He jumps out without his parachute, but, instead if dying, he wakes up on the beach and realizes he's...alive. He meets up with June, the lady he was speaking to before he jumped from the plane, and they soon fall in love. Unfortunately, Niven is informed by his angel that he was supposed to die and must go with him. Niven disagrees and asks to be heard why he should live and why. A trial is set and we wonder if l9ve will triumph. In the States, this film is called " Stairway To Heaven" ( I wonder if Led Zeppelin  got their song title from this movie) because of the famous sequence where we see these wondrous stairs that, seamlessly, going on forever. I love Fantasy films and this is right up there especially using the colour sequences when they are on earth and heaven is in black and white. The colours are vibrant while on Earth with love, conviction and fight to live making us believe that Heaven is here on Earth. This is a timeless film and we'll with the watch.

2. BLACK NARCISSUS- 1947

Yeah, I spoke about this film more than once and here I go again. A group of nuns led by the beautiful Deborah Kerr decide to set up shop high up in the Himalayas in an old palace. The 4 nuns are taken in by the perfume of this place surrounded by mountains and the erotic paintings all over the walls if this old palace. It doesn't help that we have handsome hunk, with violet eyes, David Farrar, as a liaison of the British Government. He is one bad boy with a beautiful singing voice who doesn't give a F%#! What anyone thinks she he strides away on his donkey. Carnal thoughts abound around the luminescent surroundings. I swear I can smell Jasmine and incense while watching this. It's a great film. 

3. THE RED SHOES-1948

Talk about colour! This film is considered one of the best films ever made and I agree. It is the film debut of Moira Shearer as a ballerina( she was a ballerina in real life) who is hired by Boris, played by Anton Walbrook, as the head and owner of his premier ballet company. He hires Moira and a director, Marius Goring, to create their new ballet called "The Red Shoes" about a ballerina who wears these red shoes and must keep dancing until she dies. Soon, Moira and Marius fall in love much to Anton's fury. He wants to keep Moira as his ballerina, but can he and can she choose between the love if her life and the love of her life, her dancing. The colours and costumes come to life along with Shearer's delicate beauty and vibrant red hair. It is a superb film. With reality and fantasy taking charge just like the other 2 films. 

Have you seen these films? What colourful films come to your mind?

By the way, yesterday's who won the Oscar? The Muppet song won and Rio was nominated. Nothing else was nominated!! Only 2 which caused the rules to change or loosen. Apparently, the songs had to garner over 825 points or something like that. So Mary J. Blige's song wasn't even eligible! Neither was Madonna's for W. E. And others. Personally, I loved the song from " The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo". How did that Warren chick get nominated so many times then? 

Who Won The Oscar-2011

 

I can't believe 2011 is 15 years ago! I found so many great songs from the movies for this year and let's see which song won the Oscar, which was nominated and which came up with nuttin honey! I'm joining Monday Music Moves Me  which is freebie week so here we go.

1. THE LIVING PROOF SUNG BY MARY J. BLIGE

I love this movie which has taken some flack from the woke who really do not understand history! It is based on a true story so, shut up, and enjoy a film with superb acting  and writing. The head son was written by Mary j. Blige, Thomas Newman and Harvy Mason Jr.

2. REAL IN RIO SUNG BY AN ENSEMBLE 

This song, written by Carlinos Brown with lyrics by Siedah Garrett was in this animated film. This song was sung by Anne Hatheway, Jesse Eisenberg, Jamie Fox and George Lopez. 

3  MAN OR MUPPET SUNG BY A FOURSOME

I love the Muppets and am so behind watching these movies. I can't help but think of my dad who loved watching the Muppet Show back in the 70s and 80s. This song was written by Bret McKenzie and featured the voices of Jason Segal, Peter Linz, Bill Baretta and Jim Parsons. 

So which song won the Oscar, which was Nominated and which came up empty-handed?

Best Picture for 1956

 

What can one say about the year, 1956, when it comes to the big winner..one of the worst winners won most of the awards. Many do agree that this was one of the worst to win and, without further adieu, here is the list of 3, the one that won, the one that should have won and the one that was nominated.

1. AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS

This was a Mike Todd Production starring David Niven, as Phileus Fogg who wagers a bet tht he can circumnavigate the world in 80 days. Along with his trusty valet, Catinflas, and, later, Shirley MacLaine  as a rescued princess, who encounter all sorts of roadblocks along with many film cameos from Frank Sinatra to Marlene Dietrich, as they try to get back to the club before the 80 days gone bye bye. I love David Niven but this is one slog of a picture. In fact, every time I sit to watch this movie, I flake right out. I consider this the 2nd worst best picture ( the first is The Greatest Show On Earth) winner in Academy history. Zzzzzz

2. THE SEARCHERS

This is a great film, directed by John Ford, which stars John Wayne, who deserved the Oscar for this role, as Ethan, a man who visits his brother and his family. Soon after, while Wayne is gone, his brother’s home is raided by the Comanches headed by Scar. Wayne finds his brother and nephew dead as well as his brother’s wife, the woman he loved. The 2 girls have been taken so Wayne, along with the adopted son of his brother,  start a 5 year search for the girls. The older girl is found, dead, but the little girl is alive so they trek onwards hoping g to find her. The adopted brother wants to  rescue her but you don’t know if Ethan wants to rescue her or kill her since his hatred of  Indians is well known. This has a great story, well rounded characters, beautiful cinematography and excellent acting. This should have won the best picture, best actor( I mentioned that before), director and cinematography. Such a shame this film was so overlooked.

3. THE TEN COMMANDMENTS 

Yes, this epic string Charlton Heston as Moses who is woofed at by Anne Baxter who, in turn, is woofed at by Yul Brynner. Moses is making great strides creating a city making sure the downtrodden get every Sunday off and eat much better by going after the grain in The Priests’ possession. Moses finds out he is Hebrew and sent adrift into the desert. He doesn’t die but is found by a tribe which includes the chief’s 7 daughters. He takes Yvonne DeCarlo as his wife before venturing back to his home. He ends up in Battles with Yul  and, after the Angel of Death visits, his people are let go.  These bastards are not appreciating their freedom because they get into an uproar headed by Edward G. Robinson, ready to throw Moses to the wolves before being shown how the sea is separated allowing them to escape Yul’s clutches. Does that work? Nope! While Moses is receiving the 10 Commandments, the nut jobs are having a grand orgy worshipping a golden calf. This is a famous flick that we see each year around Easter and wouldn’t be the same without this movie.

Just so you know, the other films nominated that year were, “Friendly Persuasion”, “Giant”, and “The King and I”. 

Do you agree with this or would you choose another film? Let me know.