The Devil's Work

"I could tell by the way he acted that Marty Ransohoff, the producer of Eye of the Devil, was...in love with [Kim Novak]. Kim refused to be under his control and had just run off and married Richard Johnson, her co-star in her previous film. Marty suddenly canceled all of the expensive costumes I had designed. He told me, 'Take her to the May Company [a low-priced department store] and get her some clothes off the rack.'" -- Costume designer Vicky Tiel

Kim Novak in Kiss Me Stupid (MGM, 1964)

"I can't recall what Marty said to upset Kim, or if it justified her reaction, but I have an indelible vision of her stubbing out a cigarette in his one good eye..." -- Co-star David Hemmings

"Kim Novak's back injury has forced the suspension of shooting on her current movie...The $3,000,000 production was only a few days from completion...Miss Novak said she injured her back in a riding accident while on location shooting for the movie...Reports circulated that MGM is looking for a replacement for Miss Novak." -- Associated Press, November 26, 1965

"Deborah Kerr is to take over the role that Kim Novak was unable to complete in the $3 million film Eye of the Devil..." -- Associated Press, November 29, 1965

"I hoped they might be able to suspend production until I was well enough to return, but it seems that [co-star] David Niven and [director] Lee Thompson have commitments that make that impossible..." -- Kim Novak to the Associated Press, December 14, 1965

"A horrid lady..." -- David Niven's comment about Kim Novak in a letter to a friend

Julie Andrews [the producers' original choice to replace Novak] in Star! (20th Century Fox, 1968)

Deborah Kerr in Eye of the Devil (MGM, 1966)

The Original Video Vixens

Oh, sure, it starts going downhill after 1970; but even by the time you get to The Three Degrees performing at some downmarket beauty pageant, it's still better than anything you'll see Beyonce or Rihanna perform at the VMA's.

Reconsidering Richard Crenna

RICHARD CRENNA
November 30, 1926 - January 17, 2003

It was easy to overlook Richard Crenna - or, at the very least, take him for granted. His rugged, reassuringly solid presence in every other TV movie of the 1980's (and, somewhat less nobly, the Rambo series) made him a familiar, if not terribly exciting, face and name. But digging deeper into his career and filmography is an eye-opening experience. For one thing, his list of leading ladies is nothing if not impressive. There was Gloria "I Married a Monster from Outer Space" Talbott in an episode of the western series Frontier (1956)...

...the Destitute Man's Gloria Grahame, Cleo Moore, in the pulpy neo-noir Over-Exposed (1956)...


...an even-wackier-than-usual Shirley MacLaine in the subversive spoof John Goldfarb, Please Come Home! (1965)...


...the luscious Ann-Margret, and even more luscious Louis Jourdan and Chad Everett, in Made in Paris (1966)...


...a terrorized Audrey Hepburn in her Hollywood swan song, Wait Until Dark (1967)...


...Dame Julie Andrews in the campy, cult-ish Star! (1968), in which they locked lips and clashed plaids...


...and the intense, drag queeny Janice Rule in the sub-Jackie Susann howler, Doctors' Wives (1971).


Clearly, a re-evaluation of Mr. Crenna's ouevre is in order. Oh, and as the deal clincher, we realized that, as the unfortunate husband of Kathleen Turner in Body Heat (1981), Crenna displayed an admirably lean physique at age 51; we would have kept him and dumped William Hurt who, frankly, always sort of freaked us out. Creepy dude.

Birthday Girls

"MAMA" CASS ELLIOT
September 19, 1941 - July 29, 1974

MISS FREDA PAYNE
September 19, 1942

TWIGGY
September 19, 1949

The Lady is a...

...Star! (1968)
Dir.: Robert Wise

Cast: Julie Andrews, Richard Crenna, Robert Reed (!)

Costumes: Donald Brooks

Found HERE

Girls With Guitars

DUSTY SPRINGFIELD: THE ACOUSTIC BEEHIVE (GREAT NAME FOR A BAND, NO?)

THANKS, PANCAKES BARBARA!

ROCK 'N' RHYTHM ROYALTY: NORMA JEAN RICHARDSON aka "DUCHESS"

SOPHIA LOREN AT HOME, 1964

MAE WEST: COME UP'N PLUCK ME SOMETIME

DORIS DAY, CHANNELING NANCY SINATRA

MAMIE VAN DOREN: THE GIRL WHO INVENTED ROCK & ROLL

KIM NOVAK AT HOME, 1964

SINGING NUN #1: JULIE ANDREWS

SINGING NUN #2: DEBBIE REYNOLDS

WANDA JACKSON, THE QUEEN OF ROCKABILLY

FRANCOISE HARDY: GALLIC GAL WITH GUITAR

Smooth Operator

One of our favorites: the heart-stoppingly handsome John Gavin. Often dismissed as cardboard or wooden, we think he's underrated; good-looking as he was, we're sure Kubrick and Hitchcock wouldn't have cast him in Spartacus or Psycho (both 1960) if they didn't think he could bring something to the table besides an utterly fabulous chest. Although, frankly, that would be enough for us.



Equally at home in the glossy environs of Imitation of Life (1959) and Back Street (1961) as he was on the dusty trails of his Western TV series, Destry (1964), Gavin also proved he could ably spoof his square-jawed matinee idol image in Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967) -- unlike Hitch or Kubrick, we think it's a fairly safe bet that Ross Hunter, who cast Gavin in five films (including the three mentioned above) was undoubtedly smitten.

JOHN GAVIN'S QUINTET OF ROSS HUNTER PRODUCTIONS, FROM TOP: IMITATION OF LIFE (1959) WITH LANA TURNER; MIDNIGHT LACE (1960) WITH DORIS DAY; TAMMY TELL ME TRUE (1961) WITH SANDRA DEE; BACK STREET (1961) WITH SUSAN HAYWARD; THOROUGHLY MODERN MILLIE (1967) WITH JULIE ANDREWS

Gavin's career faltered after Millie; he famously lost the role of James Bond when Sean Connery was lured back for Diamonds are Forever (1971). He turned his attention to the stage, appearing in, among other productions, Michael Bennett's See Saw (1973). Gavin replaced the original male lead, Ken Howard, in the original Broadway production with future Knots Landing star Michele Lee, and then toured the country with the show, opposite Lucie Arnaz.

After two terms as President of the Screen Actors' Guild, and a string of guest spots on such obligatory 1970's fare as The Love Boat and Fantasy Island, Gavin withdrew from entertainment and became the U.S. Ambassador to Mexico during the Reagan administration; he is currently retired, and, judging by the most recent photo below, looking just dandy.

We love the hat and the knit tie.

If the Lady's Chicer Than Chic...

Dame Julie Andrews came to us in a dream last night, complimenting us on our elegance, style, and good looks. Which proves (if proof were really needed) that we are not only gay, but also conceited and delusional.

Shout Hallelujah!

Dame Julie Andrews and Miss Peggy Lee

Practically Perfect

THANKS

The career triumphs of Dame Julie Andrews (October 1, 1934) are so staggering, they completely obliterate any missteps she may have taken. The Tamarind Seed (1974) and Little Miss Marker (1980) are easily forgotten in the shadows of Mary Poppins (1964) and The Sound of Music (1965), the latter being the most successful film of all time.

Andrews is, of course, also a Broadway legend; she was the original Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady, for which she was nominated for the 1956 Tony Award. Famously, Andrews was passed over for the 1964 film adaptation in favor of the more bankable Audrey Hepburn; ironically, Andrews made her film debut that same year in Mary Poppins, and took home the Best Actress Oscar in direct competition with Hepburn.

Even the small screen received the full Andrews treatment; a specially-mounted production of Cinderella (1957) by Rodgers amd Hammerstein (with Andrews in the title role, naturally) became the most-watched television special to date. Another special, Julie and Carol at Carnegie Hall (1962), teamed Andrews up with her close friend, Carol Burnett, and was another smashing success. Andrews' own variety program, The Julie Andrews Hour, only lasted for the 1972-73 season, but is much beloved by her fans, and earned an impressive 7 Emmy Awards.

In 1995, Andrews made a long-anticipated return to the Broadway stage in Victor/Victoria, based on her highly successful 1982 movie musical. The production, although wildly successful, was fraught with problems: Andrews famously declined her Tony nomination for the show, angered by the fact that the rest of her cast and crew had been snubbed by the nominating committee. Then, two years into the run, Andrews was forced to leave the show due to vocal problems. She had non-cancerous nodules removed from her throat; despite being assured by doctors that there would be no permanent damage to her voice, she was left unable to sing. In 1999, Andrews filed a lawsuit against the hospital and doctor who performed the operation.

In recent years, Dame Julie has slowly been regaining her singing voice after a long, arduous decade. Although it would be unfair and wrong to overlook all of her remarkable achievements in favor of a handful of highlights, there's no question that, had she only made The Sound of Music, or only ever appeared on stage once, in My Fair Lady, Julie Andrews' legend would still be assured. As it happens, we're lucky that she's graced us in so many mediums for so many years, appearing practically perfect in every way. Happy Birthday, Dame Julie Andrews! We adore you.