Not A Faithful Remake Of KING KONG

The 2005 "remake" of KING KONG was not a faithful remake, despite claims to that effect. In this movie, Kong is even shown as picking up and throwing away a girl who appears to represent Fay Wray in the original movie.






Fay Wray had been tied between two stakes as a sacrifice to Kong in the original movie. Something that was not done in the 2005 version.



In the original movie the heroine screamed and struggled to get away from the monster, but in the 2005 movie the girl decides to side with the monster against the world, something which appears to have been taken from the 1976 version. There are a number of other discrepancies. I could go on, but I didn't catch them all I didn't actually watch the thing.

The special effects in the 2005 movie failed to live up to all the hype. I didn't think the computer animated monsters were very well done.


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Hal Roach Comedies Baseball Sextette

Hal Roach's comedies baseball sextette. Left to right, they are: Blanche Menaffey, Kathleen Collins, Martha Sleeper, Fay Wray, Katherine Grant and Marjorie Whiteis. (1926).

Special thanks to Jorge Finkielman for providing us with this picture. 



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Bicycles In The Movies

Bicycles and the people who ride them.


Reblogged from http://ridesabike.com/


                                  Molly Picon, Jay Velle and Vitaphone showgirls ride bikes.

1929 Chester Conklin, Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Chester Morris, Gertrude Olmstead, Sally Eilers, SHOW OF SHOWS

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bert Wheeler and Robert Woolsey

 

 

 

 

The Three Stooges

 

 

 

 

W. C. Fields and Bathing Beauties

 

 

 

Fay Wray

 

 

 

 

 

Shirley Temple

 

 

 

 

 

 

Martha Raye

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rita Hayworth

 

 

 

 

 

Anne Gwynne

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Joan Davis and Constance Moore

 

 

 

 

Gil Perkins, Lou Costello, Judith Brian, ABBOTT AND COSTELLO MEET DOCTOR JEKYL AND MR HYDE

 

 

 

 

 

 

Betty Garrett, Frank Sinatra, Esther Williams, Gene Kelly, Jules Munshin, TAKE ME OUT TO THE BALL GAME

 

 

Rosalind Russell

 

 

 

 

 

Kathryn Grayson

 

 

 

 

 

 

THE TOY TIGER

 

 

 

 

 

Ann Miller

 

 

 

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KING KONG Review Compares Fay Wray To Thelma Todd

A reviewer of the original KING KONG was so impressed with Fay Wray's ability to come through it all unscathed that he said she'd surpassed even Thelma Todd's ability to absorb punishment at the hands of slapstick comedians in her own movies.

Originally published March 31, 1933 in THE INDIANAPOLIS STAR



Nightmares Lose Their Terror After An Exciting Session With "King Kong"

By Corbin Patrick

WE WERE THANKFUL for the daylight and the solid foundation of North Illinois street as we emerged from a "Poetic" flight of the imagination in the screening room at the RKO film exchange yesterday afternoon. We had seen "King Kong," which has the mark and stamp of a thrill picture to end all thrill pictures. No more shall we be discreet about that  midnight snack, for nightmares have lost their terror. The bogey man who disturbs sleep is like a child with a cap pistol compared with King Kong.

We had followed an adventurous movie producer from New York to an uncharted island in unexplored seas where superstitious natives worshipped a mighty being from which they protected themselves by a tremendous wall. Beyond that wall they discovered Kong- fifty feet high, a gigantic ape who could hold a human being in the palm of his hand.

The huge beast captures the pretty leading lady and carries her away to his mountain retreat through swamps infected with dinosaurs, dragons, and other prehistoric monsters. Most of the men who follow to save her are destroyed like flies. While Kong is defending prize against a great bird of prey, one of those who escaped carries her away. Kong follows in a rage, back to the very edge of the sea, where the producer and members of the crew who had remained behind overcome him with gas bombs and hope to make a fortune with him as "the eighth wonder of the world".

                                                         *            *             *

THEY RETURN to New York and exhibit him on Broadway. Then the excitement really begins. Maddened by the sight of the woman who had eluded his grasp, Kong breaks his mighty bonds and runs amuck, carries her to the top of the Empire State Building. Airplanes spin about his head and pepper him with machine gun bullets He slaps one down as you would a sparrow. But the weapons of man finally take effect, and Kong crashes from the pinnacle to the earth. He had put his captive down to fight these strange mechanical birds and she is rescued, none the worse for her experience. That's the end of it.

THIS IS THE MOST amazing heroine in all screen history. It is the most remarkable feature of this very remarkable picture that she not only is alive but still in her right mind when the menace is finally removed. We have always admired the capacity of Thelma Todd, as foil for slapstick comedians, to absorb punishment, but she never suffered as Fay Wary suffers in "King Kong". Do they make it look real? Don't ask.




                                                 *                             *                            *


Author Corbin Patrick must have been a Thelma Todd fan, although I don't remember him writing a lot about her for this paper even during that period. He continued to work for THE INDIANAPOLIS STAR for many years and was still at it when I was a young man. But at length he did retire, and I imagine he has since retired from this plane of existence as well.






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Chester Morris was in the movie CORSAIR with Thelma Todd ( as "Alison Loyd" ). Among other things.

Chester Morris

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

      

Chester Morris
in Corsair (1931)
Born	John Chester Brooks Morris (1901-02-16)February 16, 1901 New York City, New York, U.S.
Died	September 11, 1970(1970-09-11) (aged 69) New Hope, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1917–1970
Spouse(s)	Lillian Kenton Barker (1940-19??; 1 child) Suzanne Kilborn (1927-1939; 2 children); divorced

Chester Morris (February 16, 1901 – September 11, 1970) was an American actor, who starred in the Boston Blackie detective series of the 1940s.

• 1 Career
• 2 Personal life
• 3 Partial filmography
• 4 References
• 5 External links

Career

He was born John Chester Brooks Morris in New York City, the son of Broadway stage actor William Morris and the performer Etta Hawkins. He made his Broadway debut at 17 in Lionel Barrymore's The Copperhead. At 17, he billed himself as "the youngest leading man in the country". His film career began in 1917 in An Amateur Orphan. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor for Alibi (1929) directed by Roland West. He also starred in The Bat Whispers (1930) and Corsair (1931), both directed by West.
He starred in the early prison film The Big House (1930). His career gradually declined in the late 1930s, with roles in B-movies such as Smashing the Rackets with Edward J. Pawley (1938) and Five Came Back (1939). His career revived when from 1941 to 1949 he played the character Boston Blackie in 14 low-budget movies produced by Columbia Pictures, starting with Meet Boston Blackie, and one season of radio shows.
Morris was also well known as a stage magic enthusiast. He often performed as a magician during the personal appearance tours in theaters promoting his latest films. Unlike many stars who simply greeted audiences with a few words before the screening of their film, Morris was comfortable on stage and presented an entire vaudeville magic act, featuring live animals and larger stage feats such as nearly severing an audience volunteer's head in a prop guillotine*. During World War II he performed hundreds of free magic shows for the U.S.O. at army and navy camps, war bond drives and hospitals. In 1944, a B-24 "Liberator" airplane was christened "The Chester and Lili Morris" in honor of him and his wife, and their contributions to the United States war effort. Morris also contributed original tricks to magician's journals and often incorporated magic into his film performances, including "Boston Blackie and The Law" (1946.)
Through the 1950s and 1960s, Morris worked mainly in television, with a recurring role as detective Lieutenant Max Ritter in the CBS summer replacement series, Diagnosis: Unknown, which aired from July to September 1960. He also made occasional forays into regional theatre, and a few films, notably a role in the science-fiction film The She Creature, where he played Dr. Carlo Lombardi. It was reported in Variety that Morris's Brylcreem expenses exceeded any other item in the film's budget.^{[citation needed]} After his last Boston Blackie movie, he performed in only three more films, including his final role in The Great White Hope (1970) which was released after his death.

Personal life

Morris was married to Suzanne Kilborn from September 30, 1927 to their divorce in November 1939. They had two children, Brooks and Cynthia. He married Lillian Kenton Barker on November 30, 1940. They had a son, Kenton.
Morris was dying of cancer when he committed suicide in room 202 at the former Holiday Inn of New Hope by taking an overdose of barbiturates in 1970.^[1] At the time of his death, he was appearing in a stage production of The Caine Mutiny Court Martial at the Bucks County Playhouse in New Hope, Pennsylvania.^[2]

Partial filmography

• Alibi (1929)
• Woman Trap (1929)
• She Couldn't Say No (1930)
• The Divorcee (1930)
• The Big House (1930)
• The Bat Whispers (1930)
• The Case of Sergeant Grischa (1930)
• Corsair (1931)
• The Miracle Man (1932)
• Red-Headed Woman (1932)
• Blondie Johnson (1933)
• Infernal Machine (1933)
• Tomorrow at Seven (1933)
• The Gay Bride (1934)
• Public Hero No. 1 (1935)
• Three Godfathers (1936)
• Flight From Glory (1937)
• Smashing The Rackets (1938)
• Blind Alley (1939)
• Five Came Back (1939)
• Thunder Afloat (1939)
• Pacific Liner (1939)
• Meet Boston Blackie (1941)
• Confessions of Boston Blackie (1941)
• No Hands on the Clock (1941)
• Alias Boston Blackie (1942)
• Boston Blackie Goes Hollywood (1942)
• After Midnight with Boston Blackie (1943)
• Aerial Gunner (1943)
• Tornado (1943)
• The Chance of a Lifetime (1943), a Boston Blackie film
• Gambler's Choice (1944)
• Double Exposure (1944)
• One Mysterious Night (1944), a Boston Blackie film
• Boston Blackie Booked on Suspicion (1945)
• A Close Call for Boston Blackie (1946)
• Boston Blackie and the Law (1946)
• Blind Spot (1947)
• Boston Blackie's Chinese Venture (1949)
• Unchained (1955)
• The She Creature (1957)
• The Great White Hope (1970)

References

1. ^ Veteran Actor Chester Morris is Found Dead UPI. The Times-News - Sep 12, 1970
2. ^ Veteran Actor Chester Morris is Found Dead UPI. The Times-News - Sep 12, 1970

Boston Blackish and the Law 1946

External links

Biography portal

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Chester Morris.

• The Chester Morris Web
• Chester Morris at the Internet Movie Database
• Chester Morris at the Internet Broadway Database
• Chester Morris at Find a Grave

* I would assume that this was a magic trick, although they made it sound as if an actual guillotining had somehow been unsuccessful.        *                          *                          *

Chester Morris had made ALIBI and THE BAT WHISPERS for Roland West, and they were hits, but when they made CORSAIR it was not a success. Not only that, but because Roland West would not allow him to make DRACULA for Universal, he missed out on a chance to be in one of the most famous classic movies of all time. But Boston Blackie was one of Columbia's most profitable movie series during the period it was in production. So Chester Morris' place in movie history is assured, even if he is primarily associated with B movies.


                                                                     CORSAIR

 

 

 

 

With "Alison Loyd", as Thelma Todd was billed in this movie.

With Thelma Todd and Frank McHugh.

 

 

 

 

 

With Thelma Todd

 

 

 

 

 

With Thelma Todd

 

 

 

 

With Mae Busch in ALIBI ( 1929 )

 

 

Note whose name was actually on the bottom of the picture.

 

 

 

 

With Fay Wray in THEY MET IN A TAXI, 1936

 

 

 

 

With Victor McLagen and Jean Rogers in ROUGH, TOUGH, AND READY. 

 

 

 

 HIGH EXPLOSIVE

 

Jean Parker worked with Laurel and Hardy.

 

 

 

 

Boston Blackie

 

 

 

 

BOSTON BLACKIE:
http://bostonblackie.com/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boston_Blackie

https://archive.org/details/OTRR_Boston_Blackie_Singles


CORSAIR:
http://benny-drinnon.blogspot.com/2012/11/corsair.html

http://benny-drinnon.blogspot.com/2013/11/corsair-items-from-fan-magazines.html

http://benny-drinnon.blogspot.com/2014/02/corsair-herald.html

http://benny-drinnon.blogspot.com/2013/11/corsair-promotion.html


DRACULA:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dracula_(1931_film)


Chester Morris:
http://bostonblackie.com/morrisbio.html


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Patsy Kelly Photos

Here are some more Patsy Kelly pictures. She made many other movies besides the Thelma Todd and Patsy Kelly series, but I don't think I saw many of the other movies.



                                                            1935 publicity photo.

 

 

 

 

 

 THE GIRL FROM MISSOURI ( 1934 )

 With Jean Harlow.

 

 

 

 

EVERY NIGHT AT EIGHT

                                                               EVERY NIGHT AT EIGHT

 With Frances Langford, Alice Faye, and George Raft.

 

 

 

 

GO INTO YOUR DANCE ( 1935 ) 

 

 With Al Jolson

 

 

NOBODY'S BABY

 

 With the Avalon Boys and Lyda Roberti.

 

 

 

                                                                  NOBODY'S BABY

 

With Lyda Roberti. 

 

 

 

 

NOBODY'S BABY

 

 

Mae Whitehead ( left ) used to be Thelma Todd's maid. After her employer's death, Mae went to work for Patsy Kelly. The hairdresser is Peggy Zardo. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 PICK A STAR ( 1937 )

 

 With Lyda Roberti, Rosina Lawrence, Jack Haley, Stan Laurel, and Oliver Hardy.

 

 

 

THE COWBOY AND THE LADY ( 1938 )

 

 

 

 

 

A new "Todd and Kelly" resulted from teaming Mabel Todd with Patsy Kelly.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PIGSKIN PARADE ( 1936 )

 

 

With Jack Haley,  Stuart Erwin, Judy Garland, Johnny Downs, and Betty Grable. This was Judy Garland's first appearance in a feature film.

 

 

 

 

THERE GOES MY HEART

 

 

Patsy Kelly, Norman Z. Mcleod, and Virginia Bruce between shots.

 

 

 

 

 

THE COUNTESS OF MONTE CRISTO

 

 

With Fay Wray of KING KONG fame.

 

 

 

 

 

 MY SON, THE HERO

 

 Carol Hughes is best remembered for having played Dale Arden in the last Flash Gordon serial.

 

 

 

 

 

DANGER - WOMEN AT WORK

 

 

 Patsy Kelly and this blonde look as if they're supposed to be another version of the Thelma Todd and Patsy Kelly team.

Thelma Todd and Patsy Kelly films:
http://www.lordheath.com/index.php?p=1_1328_Todd-Kelly-series


Patsy Kelly.com:
http://www.patsykelly.com/

Patsy Kelly:
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0446763/





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"Growing Up In Hollywood" By Whitney Williams

This article was originally published in MOVIE CLASSIC of September 1936.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Early in her career Fay Wray was an extra at the Roach studio.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Harry Langdon's star was in decline when this article was written, but he was still making movies.  

 

 

 

 

 "The Spider Girl" was a circus attraction in which a girl appeared to be a spider: as in many such tricks, it was all done by mirrors.

 

 

 

 

 

The Black Hand was a system of extortion, rather than an organization as was sometimes believed. A number of movie stars were the victims of extortionists in this period, including Thelma Todd.

 

Actor Fritz Leiber was the father of the writer of the same name.

 

 

 

 

Black Hand:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Hand_(extortion) 

 

 

Spider Girl:

http://www.deceptology.com/2013/01/spidora-woman-with-body-of-spider.html 

 

 

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