"It's pronounced Fronkensteen" (Day 2 of the 2012 TCM Classic Film Festival)

On to day 2 of the 2012 TCM Classic Film Festival.  It started bright and early with a screening of Cover Girl at the Chinese 6, introduced by Gene Kelly's widow, Patricia Ward Kelly and Robert Osborne.  Patricia came into the theater and introduced herself and shook hands with almost everyone in the theater.  She was very personable and seemed very excited to be there.  While walking around she mentioned that she had added 5 years to her age on their wedding license.  She also made jokes about looking like Jamie Lee Curtis and she certainly did.  She was full of energy and it was very interesting to see and hear speak.

 

 Robert Osborne said that he was most excited to see this movie and was happy to see a full house, and that he had wished that Rita Hayworth were alive to see this kind of reception.  He also mentioned that if he were able to stay and watch a whole movie at the festival that Cover Girl would be it.  He also discussed Gene Kelly's career and suggested that MGM didn't know what to do with Gene Kelly, since he wasn't taken care of or treated properly.  He also said that he had the chance to see Gene Kelly on his last day on an MGM set.  I'm a huge Gene Kelly fan and it's always a treat to see him on the big screen.

Up next was Funny Face at Grauman's Chinese.  There was an interview with Stanley Donen by Robert Osborne before the screening.  I always enjoy a nice Stanley Donen interview, he's very candid and doesn't sugar coat anything.  He means what he says and says what he means, shoots from the hip.  In regards to Funny Face he candidly told us that it was a challenge, he didn't have theater people, or show people, what he had was Audrey, Fred and Paris and the challenge was to fill the space and hold the interest, while also not going over budget. He also talked about his love of film and fascination with the screen.  He thinks of film as an elastic medium and that they can be so many different things.

They also surprised Stanley with a birthday cake!

We all sang Happy Birthday and Robert asked him if he found any significance in the piano design, Stanley immediately said the 88 keys for his 88th birthday.  There was also a wonderful video tribute to Stanley Donen.  Seeing Fred Astaire dance on the big screen is always a treat and it was fun to introduce my mom to another movie she hadn't seen before.  Her first comment after the movie, "wasn't Fred Astaire a little old for her?"  Yes mom, but that's when we suspend our disbelief and focus on the pretty costumes, music and dancing.

After this it was time to head back to the Chinese 6 for Nothing Sacred starring Carole Lombard and Fredric March, it was introduced by Deborah Nadoolman Landis.  Before the movie, Landis talked about the amazing Carole Lombard and the costumes and beautiful NY sets.  I believe this was the first technicolor film shot in New York.  I found this movie to be very humorous and a great showcase of Carole Lombard's talents.  This was a fun movie to get to see for the first time at the festival.

My mom and I then rushed back to Grauman's to catch the screening of Vertigo that was to be introduced with a Kim Novak interview.  I was very excited for this screening and interview.  I'm a HUGE fan of Hitchcock (in case you haven't noticed) and was so thrilled that Kim Novak who had been out of the spotlight for such a long time would be there to discuss both her career and work in the movie.

I found Kim Novak to be a little nervous and slightly guarded, while still kind and willing to discuss working with Alfred Hitchcock and the movie.  She was interviewed by Robert Osborne who, as always, was a very calming presence.  She said that she liked working with Hitchcock and that she was able to give up control when it was necessary.  Robert asked about the very famous suit that she wore throughout the movie and Kim said that it felt like a strait-jacket and that it didn't feel comfortable, but she used that discomfort and made it work.  She determined that it was good and right for the character.

 It was quite an experience to see this movie in Grauman's Chinese theater, every detail, every moment of suspense and intrigue was heightened.  About half way through the movie I noticed that Kim Novak was sitting about 2 rows diagonally in front of me, which was pretty much the most surreal experience I can imagine (thanks TCM Classic Film Festival).  Occasionally throughout the movie I would try to see her reactions to the film, she seemed to be enjoying it.

My final movie of the first full day of the festival was Young Frankenstein, co-written and directed by the one and only Mel Brooks.  He was also on hand for an interview before the movie.  I had the enormous pleasure of getting to see The Producers at the first TCM Film Festival and hear Mel Brooks speak before the screening and knew that I had to see him again.  He is so funny and engaging, he's what I always imagined a grandfather would be like (one of my grandfathers passed away before I was born and the other passed away when I was less than a year old).  He kept saying how ridiculous we all were for staying up late and paying to watch his little movie, in fact to quote him, " you're fans, you're nuts."  But I couldn't imagine a better way to end the day.

Mel started off the conversation by talking about having seen Frankenstein in 1931 when he was about 5 years old with his mother.  When he got home from the movie he was he was so terrified of the monster he wanted to close all the windows so the monster wouldn't come and bite him, eat him and kill him.  But his mother said that it was too hot to close all the windows in the apartment, and he explained again that he was scared the monster would come and bite him, so his mother sat him down and explained that, if the monster wanted to come and find him he'd have to take a train from Transylvania and find his way to Williamsburg, I guess humor ran his family.

The interview was equal parts entertaining and informative.  He talked about the meetings he had at Columbia and their reaction to wanting to film it in black and white (they were not thrilled).  He also talked about Gene Wilder having written the premise for Young Frankenstein, on the condition that he wouldn't also star in the movie (that did not come to pass).  And he also let us know that the movie is 1/2 comedy and 1/2 tribute to James Whale, it's always great to discover an amazing contributor to the film industry is himself a fan and wants to honor the past.

it's (almost) alive!

Having the opportunity to watch the movie in a PACKED theater (the Egyptian Theater, no doubt) was an amazing experience, the laughter was almost non-stop, the crowd was so into the movie and made the viewing experience that much better.  And what a cast! Gene Wilder, Madeline Kahn, Marty Feldman, Peter Boyle, Cloris Leachman, Teri Garr, Kenneth Mars, and a Gene Hackman cameo! Such a great film.

Weird to see them in color

All in all this was another fabulous day at the TCM Classic Film festival. Going back through the pictures and trying to remember everything that happened is so wonderful and makes me even more excited (if that's even possible) for the next TCMFF. 
Up next: Day 3 which includes: Auntie Mame, first thing in the morning, Snow White and Seven Dwarfs, Counsellor at Law, Singing in the Rain, and Marathon Man!

TCM Classic Film Festival- (Part 2 of probably many)

Alright, on to Day 2 of the Film Festival.  I decided to try to take advantage of some panels and events that were going on at Club TCM in the Roosevelt Hotel on the second day.  Part of the motivation for that decision may have also been my own way of protesting having to choose between so many amazing movies on Friday morning.  So I went to the Location, Location, Location panel, which was about the trials and tribulations of shooting on location as opposed to shooting on comfortable sets.  It was held upstairs in the Roosevelt Hotel.  It was a very informational panel, with very interesting and conversational panelists...I'm blanking on their names right now, but I know one of them was a Line Producer who worked with Jerry Bruckheimer and on 'The Kingdom' with Peter Berg, another worked on Steel Magnolias and  I think his first name was Frawley and the third panelist filled in for someone who couldn't make it and he had worked with Tim Burton on Mars Attacks and Clint Eastwood on Shawshank Redemption.  Oh! Found their names on the TCM Festival Site, the first guy was Steve Saeta, a line producer, he talked about making budgets work and how he had to fight for a trip to check out a location and being challenged by Jerry Bruckheimer when he was working on 'The Island.'  He also shared with us how he got actors on top of Mount Rushmore (even Alfred Hitchcock couldn't do that) by continually asking, "well, why not?"  It was a very effective technique for him.  Frawley Becker was the location scout who had found the beautiful house for Steel Magnolias, he shared some fun stories about making handshake deals and proving himself to directors and he also promoted safety for actors and especially children on the set.  Kokayi Ampah had worked with Clint Eastwood and Tim Burton, he shared some great stories and experiences.  One of his most memorable experiences was arranging to have tanks and military storm the White House for Mars Attacks.  Overall it was a wonderful panel and I'm glad I got to hear these men talk about their jobs and hear what location shooting is all about.

After that I headed downstairs to Club TCM to check out the 'Conversation between Leonard Maltin and Peter Bogdanovich.'  I was excited to here Peter Bogdanovich speak (especially after meeting him the night before) and I was looking forward to seeing Leonard Maltin cause I had taken a class from him while I was at USC.  So double whammy (well a positive whammy).  Anyway, the interview was wonderful.  Peter Bogdanovich told so many wonderful stories and did so many great impersonations.  He did, Orson Welles, John Ford, Alfred Hitchcock...I feel like he did some others, but I can't remember them now, I should've taken notes.  And he told so many great stories, about how he went about casting 'The Last Picture Show,' what it was like to work on 'Paper Moon,' how he was able to get 'The Last Picture Show' filmed in black and white (Orson Welles helped him with that).  And he also shared his time and experiences interviewing John Ford, Jerry Lewis, Orson Welles, and Fritz Lang.

Leonard Maltin commented that it was amazing that Peter could recall all these amazing stories as if it happened yesterday and that at the time he couldn't have known that these would be momentous experiences and I have to say I fully agree with Mr. Maltin.  The way Peter recalled each phone call and each meeting.  He talked about casting Cybill Shepard in 'The Last Picture Show,' he saw her on the cover of a magazine and decided he wanted her in his movie, he interviewed her in his hotel room and knew she was right for the part by the way she flicked a flower that was in a vase.  I thought that was cute.  One story that was especially funny was when Orson Welles was staying with him and Cybill Shepard.  Cybill smelled something burning in Orson's room and went to investigate but when she knocked on the door to find out what was going on Orson insisted that she leave him alone and that everything was fine.  She kept trying, but didn't have any luck.  He didn't mention the incident again.  A few months later it was revealed that Orson had put a cigar in the pocket of his robe which caught on fire, he then put the robe in the bathroom to put it out, but instead the bathroom rug caught on fire.  There was a little more to the story, but again I should've taken notes!  It was just funny to hear him share a story like that.  I'm so glad I decided to go to this interview.  

After that I met up with my friend Ryan (Hi Ryan!).  We grabbed lunch at Mel's Diner.  It was so great to catch up with Ryan (we hadn't seen in each other in over a year).  And then we went to see The Producers and to see an interview with Mel Brooks (I just realized how funny it was that we went to Mel's and then saw Mel).  Anyway, his interview was a lot of fun, he talked about casting the film and the origin of the title for the movie.  It was originally going to be called 'Springtime for Hitler' but oddly enough everyone thought it would be too controversial.  He talked about how Dustin Hoffman was originally cast as the Nazi playwright, but was called to audition for 'The Graduate,' Mel never thought Dustin Hoffman would get the role in 'The Graduate' so they continued filming and thought they'd pick back up whenever Dustin returned...as we all know he did in fact get cast in 'The Graduate' and did not return.  Mel Brooks also talked about the studio offering him $50,000 to get rid of Gene Wilder!! Can you imagine that movie without Gene Wilder?!!  I love him in that movie, he makes me laugh so hard.  I'm glad Mr. Brooks did not take the offer to get rid of him.  He also talked about the movie initially being a flop; which is always sad to hear and very hard to imagine.  Especially after getting the experience of seeing the movie in a theater; it was so exciting, but I guess that's what happens sometimes.  I loved that everyone applauded when names like Zero Mostel, Gene Wilder and Mel Brooks came on the screen and I don't think I've ever laughed so hard in my entire life.  It's one thing to watch a movie like 'The Producers' at home, by yourself and quite another to share in the experience with a packed theater full of fans.

After 'The Producers' and bidding farewell to my friend Ryan I went back to my hotel to unwind and to get ready for 'Top Hat' at 9:30.  I also did some tourist-y sight seeing things and took pictures of the hand prints/foot prints/signatures in front of Grauman's Chinese Theater.  I was surprised that my feet were not that much smaller than Sylvester Stallone's. ------>



At this point in the festival I was very over-anxious and tried to make it to the screenings at least an hour beforehand (when I could), I was also fearful of not getting into the screenings.  So I got in line for Top Hat around 8:30 and ended up having a nice discussion about LA, roomates, and classic film with the girl in line behind me.  That's one of the things I loved about this festival; meeting people who love classic movies as much as (or more than) me.  And everyone I spoke to was so nice and genuine.  So we eventually were let into the theater, I found a seat (my line buddy ended up sitting much closer than I could stand, so I sat further back in the theater) and ended up sitting next to another nice person who worked at the Director's Guild and shared some stories with me.  Eventually the lights dimmed and we were all surprised by an introduction to the movie by none other than Robert Osborne (The Film Festival Rock Star).

He told us that we had made an excellent choice, by coming to see 'Top Hat' that evening, that seeing Fred and Ginger on the big screen is a treat.  He also told us that 'Top Hat' was the first movie where a screenplay was written intentionally for Fred and Ginger.  In the past they had just been cast in the movies, but after so much success as a pair the studio put this one together just for them.  He mentioned that this script was quite similar to 'The Gay Divorcee' but when you see Fred and Ginger dance and hear the songs you forget that the plots are similar.  He also shared a nice story about the beautiful Blue (who knew that it was blue?!) Ostrich feather dress that Ginger wore in the 'Cheek-to-Cheek' number.  Ginger had insisted on wearing the dress even though the feathers flew off and got everywhere, in the air, in Fred's mouth, on Fred's tux, because of this Fred nicknamed her 'Feathers.'  He also told a lovely story of seeing Fred and Ginger at an event in Hollywood when they were both older and Ginger was helping Fred get to his feet and walk and even then he called her 'Feathers.'


The movie was stupendous on the big screen!!  The dances were beautiful and again, it was so great seeing the movie with a crowd.  Everyone applauded when names appeared on the screen, or when actors made their entrances, everyone laughed at all the right places.  I didn't remember the movie being that funny, but there was so much laughter and so many clever lines.  And Edward Everett Horton was hilarious.  This was a wonderful way to end a wonderful day.


So there's Day 2- April 23, 2010...I'll hopefully get Day 3 posted soon.