THE BETTE DAVIS COLLECTION VOLUME 3 - April 1, 2008 (1 Viewer)

[Jefty]

You wouldn't see Power movies on TCM, because he worked for Fox. That's the only problem with TCM (aside from the fact that I can't get it in Montreal!)--they don't own the rights to show Fox, Paramount, or Universal
films (although it seems they HAVE been showing some Columbia movies of late).

I agree that Harlow IS known outside of Classic film buff circles--she pops up everywhere (i.e. Gwen Stefani played her in Scorsese's Aviator, and her portrait was a part of the set of Night Court throughout the eighties, etc.)

I'm surprised you don't know Edward G. Robinson though--his movies appear on TCM quite regularly.

 

[DanMel]

Yes I do know Edward G. Robinson but could not identify him by only his last name. imdb did a terrible job of finding actors and actresses with Robinson for a last name. Gangster movies are not some of my favorite movies and only own Key largo, High Sierra and maybe a few others I recorded off of tcm. I do own a bunch of the Bogart mystery type movies like The Maltese Falcon and others but none of them have Edward G. Robinson in them.

Also I don't get the Fox movie channel so I guess there is a good reason I have never seen any Tyrone Power movies.

 

[ReggieW]

Definitely!

Objectively speaking, I realize that Harlow is NOT as well known as Davis, Crawford or Monroe, but she is differently a notch above say Alice Faye, Wallace Beery, Marie Dressler, Joan Leslie and some of the others mentioned here who'll likely only be known by film buffs. Harlow was ranked #22 on the AFI "Legends" list and #10 in Playboy's 20th century poll. Christina Aguilera, Gwen Stefani, Courtney Love, Sharon Stone, Alison Eastwood (a HUGE Harlow collector) and a few others have spoken of her influence on them in interviews, and a few (Love & Eastwood) have tried to develop film bios on her to no avail (come on Scorsese!). I agree that she's at least as popular as Garbo & Dietrich, which is impressive once you consider Harlow's work only encompasses the years 1930-37. I often run into people who've heard of Harlow but have never seen any her films. I realize some of this is anecdotal, but in Los Angeles where I live, Harlow, Monroe, Mansfield, Dietrich & Judy Garland tend to be VERY popular among collector's with original photos of Harlow regularly selling on Ebay for thousands of dollars. She is one of the only stars who can consistenly command these prices.

I agree with Crawdaddy that I don't believe Mr. Feltenstein's statement was a stab at Fox - I stated this in my earlier post. However, I just think that this mindset is keeping some of the great titles we want to see, and have been requesting for over a decade now, off dvd. I simply concluded from his statment that if he feels this way about Power, then this is probably why there's been no Harlow or Spencer Tracy collection as of yet.

Btw, that Harlow image on Night Court by George Hurrell is considered to be his statement piece (I also have one that size).

 

[Miguel M Santos]

I agree - Davis and Monroe, especially Monroe are in a category of their own. But even accessing to some of their films in Europe is hard work - they aren't shown any longer on mainstream TV and TCM here is not the same as in the US. I'm waiting for my BD box to arrive to finally see ALL THIS, AND HEAVEN TOO, DECEPTION and WATCHER ON THE RHINE, all of which weren't included in a retrospective of Bette Davis in London 2 yrs ago. Joan Crawford is far more absent. Until a couple years ago I don't think I had seen more than one or two films with James Cagney. I discovered Myrna Loy entirely through DVDs. And believe when I say I watch loads of old movies, and have done so for most of my life (now aged 30). Simply I was conditioned to what was shown on TV/retrospectives at Cinemateques (first in Lisbon, now in London).

If Harlow does not get a boxset, I'd say it's highly unlikely that other slightly less know stars, such as Myrna Loy or Olivia de Havilland will (and I have hope!). I'd agree that Norma Shearer, Fredric March, Wallace Beery or Marie Dressler, huge as they were, great to watch as they are (although Shearer is far from a favourite), are hardly an easy sell. Much easier to sell them in Pre-code boxes, boxes for other stars, Oscar winners or themed boxes.

Some of the names mentioned here (Joan Leslie is to me the best example) are probably not even known outside the hard core of movie buffs - to be honest only when people mentioned her films did I put her face to the name.

 

[Jefty]

Just to be clear--I think Joan Leslie's only hopes of getting a boxed set rests upon her winning a presidential election, pronto!

Which reminds me--when do we get Ronald Reagan vol 2? There are tons of excellent Warner B's and A-minuses that could be liberated from the studio vaults by the man's later--noxious--political ascension!

my votes:
Voice of the Turtle
Brother Rat + Brother Rat & a Baby
Million Dollar Baby
Juke Girl
Desperate Journey
and maybe a Secret Service Triple feature disk

I also like GIRLS ON PROBATION a lot more than perhaps I ought to!

my point about Leslie was merely that a really good set of her films could be assembled, if the marketing angle was there (but of course it ain't)

 

[DanMel]

Myrna Loy has been in every single movie in two huge box sets with 6 films in the Thin man collection and 5 films in the Powell and Loy box set. That equates to 11 films and then she has had other films released such as Libelled Lady and a bunch more. According to this forum The Thin Man collection out sold every single other classic release that WB has released over the years. So if she wasn't very well known then, I am sure she is pretty well known now with all of these films out on the market selling like hot cakes. Why would Jean Harlow not getting a box set be related to Myrna Loy not getting one? If a box set is relesed, It should have included Test Pilot with Clark Gable and Spencer Tracy. This would sell to all the deprived Clark Gable and Spencer Tracy fans like myself. If it doesn't have this title then I may skip buying the box set as I'm not a real big fan of Myrna Loy.

 

[Miguel M Santos]

This part of the issue with the likes of Loy and de Havilland - most of their most famous titles can be packed with other stars (e.g. IN THIS OUR LIFE in a Bette Davis' box, TEST PILOT in Spencer Tracy's or TOO HOT TO HANDLE in Gable 2). Which means that their star vehicles like Loy's THIRD FINGER LEFT HAND or De Havilland's stuff without Flynn/Davis/Cagney doesn't have a home. By contrast, Harlow usually is the main force in her films unless she was paired with Gable.

 

[ReggieW]

Hold Your Man (1933) was the only film Harlow/Gable made together where she received top billing over him. By the time they were paired again in China Seas (1935), in which he received top billing, Gable had won an Oscar for It Happened One Night and Made Mutiny on the Bounty, where as Harlow had made Dinner at Eight, The Girl from Missouri & then went on strike over a pay dispute with L.B. Mayer. Harlow did receive top billing in Libeled Lady in 1936 over Loy, Powell & Tracy. At the time of her death in June 1937, she had finally become MGM's most bankable female star, which made her loss all the more tragic.

Regarding Myrna: Loy has had two box-sets with William Powell. I doubt we'll see a set of her solo vehicles, as her legacy is heavily tied to William Powell and the Thin Man series. They are one of the most popular duos in cinema history. I agree that Test Pilot will likely show up in a Tracy set. Btw, I love Myrna Loy! Her bio is also a great read if anyone is interested in what went down in those days.

 

[Robert Crawford]

I can see a Myrna Loy boxset if Warner wanted to do one. Also, some of those titles can be packaged in Tracy or Gable boxset(s). Lets remember that when Gable was the King of Hollywood, Loy was the Queen and the number one box office female draw.

• When Ladies Meet
• Topaze
• Penthouse
• Men in White
• Parnell
• The Animal Kingdom
• Test Pilot
• Whipsaw
• The Prizefighter and the Lady
• Too Hot to Handle

 

[DanMel]

I don't dislike Myrna Loy but there are about 10 actresses I like better. One of my favorite pictures in fact has Loy in it as well as Tracy and Gable in Test Pilot and Libeled Lady was a wonderful picture also with Tracy, powell and harlow in it.

 

[Miguel M Santos]

I can see it too, but whether or not they want to do it it's a different matter. A TCM Spotlight box seemed to be the perfect place for it, but they don't seem to have continued it after Esther Williams and Loy & Powell. As for PENTHOUSE, I think that its inclusion in the documentary in the Forbidden Hollywood set probably makes it a good candidate for a later volume, or is it just whisful thinking?

 

[Thomas T]

I'm quite surprised, DanMel, for someone apparently into classic cinema who has never seen a Tyrone Power film. Power has starred in some excellent and admired films like Witness for The Prosecution, Mark Of Zorro, Nightmare Alley, The Razor's Edge and Captain From Castile all readily available on DVD.

 

[Miguel M Santos]

And THE BLACK SWAN!

 

[Matt Hough]

And ALEXANDER'S RAGTIME BAND, IN OLD CHICAGO, THE EDDY DUCHIN STORY, THE SUN ALSO RISES, also all available on DVD.

 

[Rob_Ray]

I don't think there was the slightest hint of cattiness in what Mr. Feltenstein said regarding Tyrone Power. He was merely stating a regrettable truth which he bemoans as much as any of us film buffs.

The fact is, unless a star appears in one of the handful of classic films which transcend time and lives on in the culture at large, he or she will ultimately be forgotten by the general public (as opposed to movie buffs.) Gable has Gone With the Wind and maybe It Happened One Night to keep his name alive. Olivia DeHavilland was lucky enough to achieve a measure of immortality with the masses through her work in GWTW. Bogart and Ingrid Bergman will live forever because of Casablanca. Jimmy Stewart has It's a Wonderful Life and possibly Vertigo and Mr. Smith. Garland has The Wizard of Oz. Unfortunately, Tyrone Power never appeared in a film which anyone but we film buffs will watch.

Harlow may be a special case because of her untimely death. An early death certainly helped James Dean's reputation, although I'm not sure Carole Lombard benefited much from hers.

I'm not saying the likes of Lombard, Power, Norma Shearer, Alice Faye or Ronald Colman never made all-time classic films. They did. And often in films that were better than those that live on today. Colman made several and I'm a huge fan of Lost Horizon, Random Harvest, Prisoner of Zenda, the silent Beau Geste, etc. But few or none of their films has an impact on the public at large today.

All it takes is one generation without exposure to these films in the general marketplace, which is why it's so critical to get these films out there.

On a brighter note, I'd say Norma Shearer's star burns a little brighter today than it did in the 1960s when I was growing up thanks to TCM and Warner Home Video's Forbidden Hollywood series. Likewise, though at one time Lucille Ball's face was possibly the most recognized in the history of civilization, if I Love Lucy were to go off the air tomorrow, she'd be forgotten in a generation.

Fame is fleeting.

 

[Steve...O]

Rob Ray - you nailed it. Agree completely. Mr. Feltenstein's comments are simply stating the truth. Sometimes the truth hurts.

 

[ReggieW]

Rob Ray - You took the words right out of mouth.

As much as I love Harlow, she does not have a single film she made that'll really have much appeal outside of filmbuffs. Scorsese's The Aviator did help intoduce her to a new generation along with a renewed interest in Hell's Angels. I think Jean has remained popular/known simply because she was a tragic sex symbol and the first blond bombshell of cinema. Of course, we all know she made a few classic films, but when she is brought up in the mainstream, this is usually where the focus is. You can sometimes run into young celebrities today who fashion-wise copy Monroe, Harlow, Mansfield, etc, but admit that they've never seen one of their films! Gwen Stefani even admitted that she had never seen a Harlow film until Scorsese asked her to do The Aviator, though Gwen claims she knew who Harlow was and sometimes copied her look (Just another reason to get those dvd's out there).

I agree that Norma Shearer has grown in popularity the past decade thanks mostly to TCM. I am glad, because we all know that she and Garbo were the biggest & highest paid actresses at MGM in the 1930's, and Norma made a few classics. Being married to Thalberg certainly helped, but I do feel that Norma was a genuine talent in her own right. I don't like her as much a Bette, Joan, Garbo or Harlow, but would buy a boxset dedicated to Shearer in a heartbeat.

 

[Robert Crawford]

Reggie,
By the way, your signature with Jean's picture is beyond our HTF standards. Please, shrink it down to our guidelines. Thank you.





Crawdaddy

 

[ReggieW]

I'm really a novice at this stuff, but I'll give it a try!

I tried to replace the Harlow avatar yesterday with one of Timothy Carrey, and it simply didn't work.

UPDATE: Got It! Now for Tim Carrey.

 

[Corey]

Norma's popularity has really grown within the last two decades thanks to TCM and film revivals at theaters. I remember a decade ago, a local theater of mine had a Shearer festival and it was sold out. Watching her in Forbidden Hollywood is so thrilling and it makes me want to see more of her on dvd especially in Idiot's Delight, Barretts of Wimpole Street, and Strangers May Kiss.