TCM Remembers 2024

Today Turner Classic Movies released their 2024 edition of TCM Remembers, their annual in memoriam for those who have died in the past year. In some ways TCM Remembers 2024 is one of the more dififcult to watch, given how many beloved stars died this year. In fact, I only made it to Barbara Rush, fairly early in the video, before I began to tear up. So many of my favourites died this year. In addition to Barbara Rush, we lost Roger Corman, Donald Sutherland, Bob Newhart, James Earl Jones, Mitzi Gaynor, and Teri Garr. I suspect there aren't many, if any, classic film buffs who will make it through this year's edition without shedding a few tears.

The 60th Anniversary of the TV Special Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer was not the first animated Christmas special, but it has aired longer than any other on broadcast network television. It has aired every single year on a broadcast network since its debut on December 6 1964, over sixty years ago. So popular is the special that. I imagine there are a few who think Rudolph originated with the TV special. Still more might think that he originated with the classic song written by Johnny Marks. In truth, Rudolph's origins go back to a Montgomery Ward advertising campaign.

In 1939 Montgomery Ward asked copywriter Robert L. May to develop a a holiday tale that they could give away to shoppers. May came up with the idea of a reindeer named Rudolph who was an outcast because of his red nose. May's story differed considerably from both Johnny Marks's song and the Rankin Bass TV special. Rudolph was not one of Santa's herd of reindeer and did not grow up at the north pole. Since Rudolph was not one of Santa's reindeer, he did not pick Rudolph out from his herd on that foggy Christmas Eve. Instead Santa found Rudolph when he was delivering presents at Rudolph's home. Santa thought that the nose could help him finish his deliveries in the thickening fog and adopted the reindeer. Regardless, Rudolph the Reindeer was a hit. Unfortunately, May saw none of the money from the merchandising of the character, whose copyright belonged to Montgomery Ward.

Eventually, in 1947, Montgomery Ward's president Sewell Avery gave May the copyright to his creation. May had copies of the original story printed in 1947 and 1948 saw a 9 minute theatrical cartoon based on the tale, produced by the great Max Fleischer. It was 1949 that really brought the Red Nosed Reindeer to fame. May's brother in law, songwriter Johnny Marks, wrote the famous song based on the story, changing it considerably in the process. After being turned down by a number of artists, the song was finally recorded by Gene Autry in 1949. It became Autry's biggest hit and the 2nd best selling song at the time (only to "White Christmas").

This brings us to the Sixties and the TV special. In 1955 Arthur Rankin Jr. and Jules Bass founded Videocraft International, later renamed Rankin/Bass. Initially they produced television commercials, although they wanted to expand into both feature films and TV shows. In 1960 they did exactly that, producing a series of 130 stop motion cartoon shorts under the title The New Adventures of Pinocchio. They followed this in 1961 with a series of limited animation shorts entitled Tales of the Wizard of Oz, based on the works of L. Frank Baum.

As it so happened, Arthur Rankin Jr. was a neighbour of Johnny Marks. It was Rankin who suggested to Marks that the song could be adapted as a TV special produced using stop motion animation. Marks was reluctant, fearing that the special could endanger the success of his biggest hit song, but eventually Rankin won him over. In fact, Marks even wrote new songs for the special, including "We Are Santa's Elves," "Holly Jolly Christmas" and "Silver and Gold."An instrumental version of Johnny Marks's hit "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree," originally recorded by Brenda Lee, even appears in the special.  The script, written by Romeo Muller, drew upon Marks's song for inspiration, and expanded on the story considerably.

The hour long Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer special took a year to make, with many hours devoted even to the shortest of sequences. While still in production, Rankin pitched the special to sponsor General Electric. General Electric bought time on NBC. It debuted on NBC in 1964 under the title The General Electric Fantasy Hour: Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. The special was an immediate hit and aired on NBC every year until 1972, when it moved to CBS. This year Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer returned to NBC for the first time in 53 years.

Considerable changes would be made to Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer over the years. The original version that aired in 1964 included a scene towards the end of the special in which Yukon Cornelius discovers a mining vein of peppermint. At the same time the original version of the special did not include the sequence in which Santa rescues the toys from the Island of Misfit Toys. A writing campaign convinced Rankin-Bass to change the ending and it was altered so that Santa did indeed save the Misfit Toys. As result, the scene in which Yukon Cornelius discovers a peppermint mine was cut from the special due to time constraints.

This would not be the only change made to Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer for its airing in 1965. The song "We're a Couple of Misfits," sang by Rudolph and Hermey the Elf, was replaced with the song "Fame and Fortune," although it still used much of the same animation. Over the years, snippets of the special would be cut to make room for commercials, including the instrumental bridge for the song "We are Santa's Elves" and some of Sam the Snowman's dialogue. It was in 1998 that many of these cuts were restored and "We're a Couple of Misfits" replaced "Fame and Fortune" in the special. While it still aired on CBS, in 2019 the cable channel Freeform also began airing Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Freeform reintroduced even more of the material that had been cut or changed over the years, including the scene in which Yukon Cornelius finds peppermint. When Freeform first aired it in 2019, it was then the first time in 55 years that the peppermint mine scene was seen on television. This year NBC would follow Freeform's lead in including the scene in which Yukon Cornelius discovers peppermint.

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer has aired on broadcast network television every year since its debut in 1964. Along with Frosty the Snowman, it is the only Christmas special to have aired each year on a broadcast network without interruption. I have to think people will still be watching it sixty years from now.

The Thin Man (1934) Turned 90

Dashiell Hammett's best known work may be The Maltese Falcon, but his most successful work could well be The Thin Man. The 1933 novel The Thin Man led to the 1934 movie of the same name. The Thin Man (1934) would prove to be a hit at the box office and would lead to five sequels, a radio show, and still later a television show. The Thin Man (1934) was released on May 25 1934, so that the movie is now ninety years old.

Like the novel upon which it is based, The Thin Man (1934) is set at Christmastime. It centres on retired private detective Nick Charles, who is hired by Dorothy Wynant (Maureen O'Sullivan) to investigate the disappearance of her father, Clyde Wynant (Edward Ellis). Nick finds himself, sometimes unwillingly, assisted by his wife Nora (Myrna Loy), a socialite who finds Nick's detective work exciting. Also helping Nick is the Charles's wire terrier Asta (Skippy).

As mentioned earlier, The Thin Man (1934) was based on the novel of the same name. The novel's beginning go back to 1930, when Dashiell Hammett started a manuscript that he abandoned. In that original manuscript, the hero was a private eye called John Guild, who is searching for a missing scientist in a small community in San Francisco. The style of the manuscript was hard-boiled, much like his work for the pulp magazine Black Mask. When Dashiell Hammett returned to the book, he had decided to move away from the hard-boiled style. The West Coast setting was tossed out in a favour of Manhattan. John Guild was no longer the novel's protagonist (although Hammett kept the name for a homicide detective in the novel), but instead retired private detective Nick Charles and his socialite wife Nora. The project had gone from another hard-boiled work to a sophisticated comedy of manners. As to Nick and Nora, they were based on Dashielll Hammett himself and Lillian Hellman, with whom he was then in a relationship.

The Thin Man was published in a condensed form in the December 1933 issue of Redbook (which was not yet a women's magazine). It was in January 1934 that the book was published by Alfred A. Knopf. While Hammett never wrote a follow up to The Thin Man, the novel would not be the last time that people saw Nick and Nora Charles. It was nearly as soon as the novel was published that MGM bought the film rights for $21,000 (which would be $501,920.68 today).

MGM did not have to look far for a director for The Thin Man. Director W. S. Van Dyke was a fan of murder mysteries and conceived a film version of The Thin Man as soon as he learned MGM had bought the rights to the novel. It was W.S,. Van Dyke who was responsible for the inspired idea of casting William Powell and Myrna Loy as Nick and Nora Charles. He had just directed the two actors in Manhattan Melodrama (1934). Despite this, MGM had their doubts about William Powell and Myrna Loy. MGM thought that William Powell might be too old and too strait laced to play Nick Charles. As to Myrna Loy, prior to The Thin Man she had primarily played "exotics" and femme fatales.

Producer Hunt Stromberg hired husband and wife team Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett to write the screenplay. W.S. Van Dyke's instructions to the screenwriters was to concentrate on the witty banter and Nick and Nora more than the murder mystery itself. While The Thin Man was made before the MPAA began more strictly enforcing the Production Code on July 1 1934, Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett still had to clean up some of the book's content for the film adaptation.

MGM apparently regarded The Thin Man simply as another programmer. Not only did it only have a budget of $231,000, but it was shot over eighteen days. As it turned out, The Thin Man proved to be a roaring success. It was released on May 25 1934 to positive notices. Variety liked the film, noting, "What appears to have been the most successful part of the Hackett-Goorich team's adaptation is that they captured the spirit of the jovial, companionable relationship of the characters, Nick, retired detective, and Nora, his wife." Film Daily also gave a positive review, writing, "The screen seldom presents a more thoroughly interesting piece of entertainment than this adaptation of Dashiell Hammett's popular novel. The rapid fire dialogue is about the best heard since talkies, and it is delivered by Powell and Miss Loy to perfection." The New York Times included The Thin Man on their list of the ten best films of 1934 at the end of the year. Audiences loved The Thin Man as well. It made $1.4 million at the box office.

The success of The Thin Man would lead to five sequels, the first being After the Thin Man in 1936 and the last being Song of the Thin Man in 1947. The success of the "Thin Man" films would also lead to a radio show.The Adventures of the Thin Man debuted on NBC on July 2 1941. Les Damon was the original voice of Nick Charles, and was followed by Les Tremayne, Joseph Curtin David Gothard, and Bill Smith. Claudia Mrogan voiced Nora for the whole of the run. The radio show ultimately ran until September 1 1950. The success of the movies would also lead to a television series, The Thin Man, starring Peter Lawford and Phyllis Kirk. It ran for two seasons on NBC.

While The Thin Man is often counted among the greatest movies ever made, it is not often counted among the greatest Christmas movies ever made. Despite this, it is very much a Christmas movie. Nick makes reference to waiting for Nora to finish her Christmas shopping. The movie features a Christmas Eve party and the next day we get to see Nick and Nora celebrate Christmas morning together, with the two exchanging presents and giving Asta one. The Thin Man also takes place for nearly the whole of the Christmas season, starting not long before Christmas and climaxing on New Year's Eve.

Regardless of whether one thinks of The Thin Man as a Christmas movie, it is certainly one of the most influential films of all time. It established both William Powell and Myrna Loy as stars. It also started an entire franchise, that included movies, a radio show, and a TV show. It was added to the United States National Film Registry in 1997. Even today Nick and Nora Charles are still many people's favourite movie couple.

The 70th Anniversary of White Christmas (1954)

For many people the movie musical White Christmas (1954), starring Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney, and Vera-Ellen, has become a holiday tradition. Not only does the film air regularly on such TV outlets as AMC, but it is also widely available on streaming. There can be no doubt that many families make a point of watching White Christmas (1954) at least once during the Yuletide. White Christmas (1954) premiered on October 14 1954 in New York City, making the film seventy years old.

White Christmas (1954) owes its existence to another movie or, more precisely, a song from another movie. The film takes its title from the hit song "White Christmas"from the movie Holiday Inn (1942). According to columnist Erskine Johnson in the December 21 1954 issue of the Los Angeles Mirror, Irving Berlin wrote the melody for what would become "White Christmas" in August and then shelved it until he was signed to compose the songs for Holiday Inn. According to Irving Berlin in the December 14 1954 issue of the Los Angeles Examiner, he wrote "White Christmas" for a revue he was considered producing, changed his mind, and then shelved it until it was used in Holiday Inn (1942).

Bing Crosby performed the song well before the release of Holiday Inn, first performing it on Christmas Day on The Kraft Music Hall. He later recorded  the song on May 18 1942 at Radio Recorders, Inc. in Los Angeles with the John Scott Trotter Orchestra and the Ken Darby Singers. It was released on July 30 1942 as part of a set of six 78 rpm discs titled Song Hits from Holiday Inn. Neither Irving Berlin nor Bing Crosby initially had high hopes for the song. In fact, it was generally believed that "Be Careful, It's My Heart (the Valentine's Day song from Holiday Inn) would be the big hit from the movie. Despite this, "White Christmas" started to take off. It reached the top spot on Your Hit Parade in October 1943. It spent eleven weeks at no. 1 on the Billboard charts. In the end it proved to be the biggest selling single of all time.

Such success did not go unnoticed, and it was as early as 1948 thar composer Irving Berlin suggested a movie based on the song "White Christmas." Paramount, which had produced and distributed Holiday Inn, liked the idea and the studio was preparing White Christmas (1954) as early as 1949.  The plan in the beginning was reunite the stars of Holiday Inn (Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire) for another musical with songs by Irving Berlin. From Holiday Inn Irving Berlin took the idea of an inn as a setting for White Christmas (1954). For other inspiration Irving Berlin drew upon an unproduced musical, Stars on My Shoulders, that he had written with Norman Krasna.

Paramount's hopes for a Holiday Inn reunion would be dashed. Fred Astaire turned down the film. The role of Phil Davis (which would have been played by Fred Astaire) then went to Donald O'Connor. It was not long before production was set to begin, that Donald O'Conner fell ill and had to quit the film. He was then replaced by Danny Kaye. Initially Bing Crosby turned down the role of Bob Wallace in White Christmas as well, as he was mourning the death of his wife Dixie Lee, although he relented after only a few weeks. It was Bing Crosby who  suggested singer Rosemary Clooney for the role of Betty Haynes. She had already had several hits, including "Come On-a My House" and "Half as Much." It was choreographer Bob Alton who suggested Vera-Ellen be cast. She had already demonstrated her talent as a dancer in movies from The Kid from Brooklyn (1946) to On the Town (1949).

The opening titles announces White Christmas (1954) as the first film shot in VistaVision, a widescreen format that Paramount had developed. VistaVision was not an anamorphic process like CinemaScope and some other widescreen formats, but instead used a flat widescreen system. Paramount would follow White Christmas with several more films shot in VistaVision, including Artists and Models (1955), The Court Jester (1956), Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, Vertigo (1958), and others. Vistavision would decline in the late fifties and Paramount's last movie shot in VistaVision would be One-Eye Jacks (1961).

White Christmas (1954) premiered at Radio City Musical Hall on October 14 1954 at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. It opened in Los Angeles on October 27 1954 and went into wide release in November. It became the highest grossing movie of 1954. Made for $2 million, it made $12 million at the box office. It also became the highest grossing musical at the time. When it was re-released in 1961 it also performed very well.

For the most part White Christmas (1954) received mixed reviews. There were several positive reviews. Kate Cameron in the New York Daily News called it, "...first class entertainment." Philip K. Scheuer of the Los Angeles Times also gave White Christmas (1954) a good review, referring to it as a "great, big, physically glittering, two-hour Technicolor musical that sounds like a dream production with a dream cast." Harrison's Reports gave White Christmas a more mixed review, noting that it was",,a pleasing entertainment," while at the same time noting there were "...spots where it becomes quite slow and boresome." The notorious New York Times critic Bosley Crowther gave White Christmas (1954) an overly negative review, writing, ""s. Director Michael Curtiz has made his picture look good. It is too bad that it doesn't hit the eardrums and the funnybone with equal force."

Of course, White Christmas (1954) would eventually find its way to television. It made its television premiere on NBC Saturday Night at the Movies on December 19 1964. For the remainder of the Sixties it became a nearly annual event on NBC's movie anthologies. Afterwards White Christmas would enter syndication and would air on many local television stations every holiday season. It has since aired on such cable channels as the Family Channel, WGN, and AMC (which still airs it). White Christmas was first released on VHS in 1986 and then first released on DVD in 2000. It is currently widely available on streaming.

The continued popularity of White Christmas (1954) would result in a stage version of the film, which premiered at the Muny in St. Louis in 2000. It retains Irving Berlin's songs, with a book by David Ives and Paul Blake.

Some have called White Christmas (1954) a remake of Holiday Inn (1942), although I do not think that is necessarily the case. Among the few things White Christmas has in common with Holiday Inn are an inn as a setting, songs written by Irving Berlin, and star Bing Crosby. Sadly, one thing that White Christmas (1954) has in common with Holiday Inn is a degree of racism. Holiday Inn features the notorious "Abraham" segment, performed by Bing Crosby and Marjorie Reynolds in blackface. White Christmas (1954) lacks anything that blatant, although it includes what is known as "the Minstrel Number," including the songs ""I'd Rather see a Minstrel Show" and "Mister. Bones." While the number is not performed in blackface, expressing nostalgia for minstrel shows is culturally insensitive nonetheless. Of course, it must be kept in mind that both Holiday Inn (1942) and White Christmas (1954) are very much movies of their times.

Regardless, White Christmas (1954) remains one of the highest grossing films of all time and has come to be regarded as a Christmas classic. It may not have as high a profile as such holiday classics as It's a Wonderful Life (1946) or Miracle on 34th Street (1947), but it remains a beloved Yuletide movie for many.

The 80th Anniversary of Glenn Miller's Disappearance

It was eighty years ago today that the plane on which Glenn Miller flew, a single-engine UC-64 Norseman,, disappeared over the English Channel. To this day his disappearance remains a mystery. While there have been plenty of conspiracy theories (none of which are worth considering), given the weather that day and the type of plane in which Major Miller was flying, the most likely explanation is that the fuel intakes simply froze, leading to the plane's crash.

Today many do not realize how huge Glenn Miller was as a musical artist. He had more top ten singles than either Elvis Presley or The Beatles. In 1942 he was making anywhere from $15,000 a week (that would be $301,426.43 today) to $20,000 a week (that would be $401,901.91 today). With the United States' entrance into World War II, Glenn Miller decided that he wanted to serve his country. At 38 he was too old to be drafted and so he volunteered for the U.S. Navy. They told them that they had no need of him. Fortunately the Navy's loss would be the Army's gain. He convinced the United States Army to take him so that he could "...be placed in charge of a modernized Army band."

He entered the Army with the rank of Captain. Eventually he would form the 50-piece Army Air Force Band. He would also be promoted to the rank of Major. It was then in 1944 that Major Glenn Miller and the Army Air Force Band were sent to England. There they not only gave several performances, but they also made propaganda recordings for the Office of War Information at Abbey Road Studios in London. Glenn Miller's music would be broadcast on the Armed Forces Network, which used the BBC's facilities. Major Miller's contributions to the war effort should not be underestimated, as they helped the troop's morale as well as countered any German propaganda. No less than General Jimmy Doolittle of the United States Army Air Force told Glenn Miller, "Next to a letter from home, Captain Miller, your organization is the greatest morale builder in the European Theatre of Operations."

To this day Glenn Miller remains remembered for both his music an the sacrifice he made for his country. Here is one of Glenn Miller's biggest hits, his version of "Stairway to the Stars,"

Why I Won't Sign Up for Threads

Ever since Twitter changed ownership in October 2022, users have been leaving the microblogging service for other social media services. I joined Mastodon, then a few months later Spoutible and finally Bluesky (it was still by invitation then). Following the election and changes to Twiter's (I refuse to call it "X") terms of service, even more people left. Many left for Bluesky. I abandoned Twitter entirely and devoted myself almost entirely to Bluesky. One microblogging service I have never considered and still won't is Threads, Meta's take on microblogging.

Now Meta has fixed some of the objections that I had when Threads first launched in July 2023. While one still needs an Instagram account (which I already have) to use Threads, your Instagram account is no longer deleted if you delete your Threads account. One can also now access a chronological feed on Threads. While these problems have been fixed, Threads still has one major problem which prevent me from ever signing up for Threads.

The first is that Threads does not have hashtags per se. I have always found this curious, given both Instagram and even Facebook have hashtags, even though few people I know actually use them on Facebook. I have no idea why Meta decided not to allow the use of hashtags on Threads, particularly given hashtags originated on Twitter and are part of nearly every other microblogging service out there. Of course, while Threads do not have hashtags, they do have what they call "tags." Now Thread's tags do have one advantage over hashtags in that one can actually tag phrases in which the words have spaces between them. Unfortunately, that is about the only advantage they have over hashtags. Indeed, one can only use one tag per post. For example, if one were watching Out of the Past (1947) on Noir Alley on TCM, they might hashtag any live posts they made to Bluesky "#TCMParty #NoirAlley #OutOfThePast." On Threads they would have to choose only one of these tags for their post. Many people I know who live post movies on Bluesky generally use more than one hashtag per post. They will post a hasthag for the channel or show they are watching the movie on (for instance, #TCMParty or #Svengoolie) and the name of the movie (for instance,#Frankenstein). This is impossible on Threads.

Beyond limiting users to one tag per post, there is also a petty irritation regarding tags on Threads. Quite simply, tag searches are sorted by algorithm by default. and I am not sure there is any way to sort tag searches chronologically. Even if one can sort tags chronologically, the fact that they are sorted by algorithm by default is unappealing. Even on Twitter as it is now, one can click on "Following" and almost never see the algorithm sorted feed. I have to think Threads, being a Meta product, sorting tag searches chronologically is probably a bit more bit tricky. Of course, on Mastodon, Spoutible, and Bluesky there is no algorithm....

Ultimately, it seems clear that Threads is not for me, nor was it ever designed for people like me. Indeed, I have to wonder if Meta even meant for Threads to compete with Twitter and other microblogging services. It certainly seems different given its use of an algorithm and its use of "tags"instead of hashtags. At any rate, regardless of how much Meta might try to promote it in Instagram from time to time, I am not signing up for it.

A Merry Little Christmas: Essays on Christmas in Film & Television

On November 10 of this year my latest book was published. It's titled A Merry Little Christmas: Essays on Christmas in Film & Television. It contains essays on  movies from It's a Wonderful Life to Love Actually and television specials from A Charlie Brown Christmas to Bing Crosby's Merrie Olde Christmas. You can order it on Amazon here.

Michael Cole Passes On

Michael Cole, who played Pete Cochran on The Mod Squad, died yesterday, December 10 2024, at the age of 84.

Michael Cole was born on July 3 1940 in Madison, Wisconsin. He did not know his biological father. As a young child he lived with his mother and his older brother in his maternal grandmother's house. When he was 16 he dropped out of high school and married his girlfriend, who was already pregnant. They would have another child before they divorced when Michael Cole was 20. Michael Cole left Wisconsin for Las Vegas, where he worked as a bartender. It was on the advice of Bobby Darin that he moved to Los Angeles. There hew as homeless for a time. Fortunately he met acting coach Estelle Harman. She let him sleep on a bed on her stage at her workshop and gave him acting lessons for free.

Michael Cole made his film debut in 1961 in Forbid Them Not, starring Jose Ferrer. He made his television debut in 1966 in an episode of Gunsmoke. Aaron Spelling offered him the role of Pete Cochran on The Mod Squad after Michael Cole came to the attention of a casting director after he had read a scene from Picnic with another one of Estelle Harman's students. Initially Michael Cole turned down the role, not particularly wanting to play a young person who informed on other young people to the police. At last Michael Cole relented and he would spend five seasons on the show. In the Sixties Michael Cole also appeared in the movies The Bubble (1966) and Chuka (1967). He guest starred on the show Run for Your Life.

In the Seventies Michael Cole continued to appear on The Mod Squad. He guest starred on the shows Get Christie Love!, Police Story, Wonder Woman, Flying High, The Eddie Capra Mysteries, The Love Boat, CHiPs, The Littlest Hobo, and Beyond Westworld. He reprised his role as Pete Cochran in the TV reunion movie The Return of the Mod Squad. He appeared in the mini-series Evening in Byzantium.

In the Eighties he appeared in the movie Nickel Mountain (1984). He guest starred on the shows Fantasy Island; Vega$; CHiPs; and Murder, She Wrote. He appeared in the two-part TV movie IT (1990), based on the Stephen King novel fo the same name.

In the Nineties he had a recurring role on the soap opera General Hospital. He guest starred on the shows Shades of LA, Good Sports, Acapulco Bay, Diagnosis Murder, and 7th Heaven. He appeared in the movie The Apostate (2000). In the Naughts he guest starred on the television movie series Mystery Woman and the TV series ER. He appeared in the movie Mr. Brooks (2007).

Michael Cole will probably always be remembered as Pete Cochran on The Mod Squad, the rebellious son of a wealthy Beverly Hills family who winds up working for Police captain Adam Greer (Tige Andrews). Much of the show's success was probably due to Michael Cole's performance, as well as those of his co-stars Clarence Williams III and Peggy Lipton. Of course, he also appeared in other roles during his career. He appeared in two episodes of Murder, She Wrote, playing Earl Tuchman in the episode "Murder, She Spoke" and Police Lieutenant John Meyerling in the episode "The Big Show of 1965." In the Get Christie Love! episode "Deadly Justice" he played a police academy dropout who begins killing criminals. Michael Cole would play a wide variety of roles, and played all of them well.

Godspeed Julie Stevens

Julie Stevens, who played John Steed's partner Venus Smith on The Avengers and co-presented the British children's how Play School from 1966 to 1979, died on December 5 2024 at the age of 87. She had been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2019.

Julie Stevens was born Julia Bulias on December 20 1936 in Prestwich, Lancashire. There she attended Philips High School. She trained as a nurse at the Manchester Royal Infirmary. When she was twenty a talent contest led to her signing with former broadcaster ABC Weekend TV. She made her television debut in 1958 as the voice of a secretary in an episode of the TV series Armchair Theatre. In 1959 she appeared in two episodes of the show All Aboard.

In the Sixties she was cast as Venus Smith, a nightclub singer who was also a partner of secret agent John Steed, in the second series of The Avengers. She began co-presenting Play School, a BBC2 programme aimed at preschool children, in 1966 and continued to do so until 1979. In 1967 Miss Stevens presented the long-running children's show Watch with Mother. Towards the end of the decade and the first part of the Seventies, she was one of the stars of the sitcom Girls About Town. She guest starred on the shows Our House, The Human Jungle, Z Cars, and Friday Night. She played the hand maiden  Gloria in the movie Carry On Cleo (1964).

In the Seventies she continued as a presenter on the show Play School and also appeared on its sister program Play Away, which was focused on older children. She provided vocals on songs for the children's show Look and Read from 1978 to 1992. She was one of the regular performers on the children's show Cabbages and Kings. Julie Stevens later vocals for songs on the children's show Through the Dragon's Eye. She made her last appearance on television in a guest appearance in an episode of Holby City in 2001.

Julie Stevens also served as the personal manager of Sir Harry Secombe for many years.

On The Avengers Venus Smith was not a particularly demanding role, but Julie Stevens made the character more interesting than she might have otherwise been and also got to show off her singing voice.In Carry On Cleo she got to display a more comedic side than she had on The Avengers.  She certainly had an impact on a generation of British children co-presenting Play School. Brits who grew up with Play School, as well as fans of The Avengers and the "Carry On..." films paid tribute to her on social media. Julie Stevens was clearly beloved, and she will always be remembered as John Steed's first female partner and the co-presenter of Play School.

A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) Turns 40

This post is part of the John Saxon Bloghaton hosted by RealWeedgieMidget Reviews and Cinematic Catharsis)

On November 9 1984 a film went into limited release in the United States that would forever change horror movies. Although often classed as a "slasher film," A Nightmare in Elm Street (1984) could better be described as a supernatural horror movie with some characteristics of a slasher movie. The film would spawn an entire franchise, not to mention several imitators.

In A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) a group of teenagers find themselves targeted by the malignant spirit of a child killer named Freddy Krueger (Robert Englund), who has their ability to enter their dreams and kill them there. Twenty years earlier Freddy Krueger had been captured, but then released on a technicality after having killed 20 children. A lynch mob then hunted them down and burned him alive in the boiler room of the power plant at which Krueger had worked. It is up to one of the teenagers, Nancy Thomposn (Heather Langenkmap) and her father, Police Lieutenant Don Thompson (John Saxon), to put an end to Krueger's killing spree.

A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) was written and directed by horror legend Wes Craven. By the time he made A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984), Mr. Craven had already made such movies as The Last House on the Left (1972), The Hills Have Eyes (1977), and Deadly Blessing (1981). Inspiration for A Nightmare on Elm Street came from multiple sources. One was a story he read in The Los Angeles Times regarding a child who was a refugee from the Cambodian genocide who refused to go to sleep for fear that he would not wake up. Sadly, he died not long after he finally went to sleep. This was not an isolated incident with regards to refugees from Southeast Asia, as several died due to mysterious circumstances. Most often they were young Hmong men who had fled Laos following the Vietnam War. In the October 15 2008 issue of Cinefantasique, Wes Craven commented, "t was a series of articles in the LA Times; three small articles about men from South East Asia, who were from immigrant families and had died in the middle of nightmares—and the paper never correlated them, never said, 'Hey, we've had another story like this."

Wes Craven also drew inspiration for A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) from Eastern religions and the 1975 song "Dream Weaver" by Gary Wright. The synthesizer riff used in the movie stems from that song. As to the villain, Freddy Krueger, his name was taken from a boy named Fred Krueger who had bullied him as a child. Inspiration for the character of Freddy Krueger was also taken from Wes Craven's childhood. Once when outside his home, young Wes Craven saw a man in a battered fedora who seemed to be looking right at him. The man frightened Wes Craven very badly.

Other elements of the character of Freddy Krueger stemmed from an effort to make him different from other antagonists in horror movie of the time. Wes Craven observed that many horror villains of the time, such as Michael Myers in the Halloween movies and Jason in the Friday the 13th movies, wore masks. Wes Craven thought Freddy should wear a mask, but he should also be able to talk and express himself. It was because of this that Freddy Krueger had a disfigured face. Wes Craven also observed the most villains in horror movies of the time used knives. Initially Wes Craven had considered having Krueger use a sickle, but then decided he use a glove with steak knives sewn into it.

Wes Craven would have some difficulty selling A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984). As hard as it may be to believe, Walt Disney Productions was the first to show interest in the script, but they wanted Wes Craven to soften the movie's content so it could be rated PG-13 by the MPAA ratings board. Paramount Pictures turned down A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) because they thought it was too similar to Dreamscape (1984), which was already in pre-production. Universal Studios also turned him down.

Wes Craven was finally able to find a studio produce the film in the form of New Line Cinema. At this point New Line Cinema had only produced a few movies, most notably Polyester (1981), having primarily served as a distributor for films produced by others. New Line Cinema was unable to provide all of the financing for A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984), but fortunately they were able to find other investors.

By far the most famous member of the cast of A Nightmare on Elm Street was John Saxon, who played Lt. Don Thompson. Although John Saxon had started his career as a teen idol in such movies as Rock Pretty Baby (1956) and The Restless Years (1958), he made a name for himself in a wide variety of movies from the Sixties into the Seventies, from Queen of Blood (1966) to Enter the Dragon (1973). Ten years before A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984), John Saxon had played another police lieutenant in another horror movie, Kenneth Fuller in the early slasher movie Black Christmas (1974). Having played in a wide variety of movie genres and having played a number of heroes in movies, John Saxon was ideal as Don Thompson, the police lieutenant who initially fears for his daughter's sanity, but then helps her stop an undead killer.

As to the role of Freddy Krueger, David Warner was initially cast, but he had to drop out of the film due to conflicts in his schedule. Wes Craven considered several different actors before casting Robert Englund in the role. Robert Englund had made several guest appearances on television and appeared on such movies as Big Wednesday (1978) and Galaxy of Terror (1981). The roles of the teenagers in the film were filled by unknowns, although one would soon become famous. A Nightmare on Elm Street marked the film debut of Johnny Depp. Johnny Depp went with his friend Jackie Earle Haley to an audition. It was ultimately because of Wes Craven's daughters that Johnny Depp got the role. Wes Craven had pictured the role of Glen as  a jock, but it was Johnny Depp's headshot that Wes Craven's daughters chose out of the headshots he showed them.

A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) would run into trouble with the MPAA ratings board. Two cuts to the movie had to be made before they would give it an R-rating. Oddly enough, it was released in the United Kingdom, which is sometimes stricter on horror movies than the MPAA, uncut.

A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) went into limited release on November 6 1984 in the United States and then into wide release on November 16 1984 in United States and Canada. Most critics at the time gave A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) positive reviews. Paul Attanasio in The Washington Post wrote of the film, "The genre has built-in limitations--the immediate reaction is to say you've seen it all before last Friday the 13th, so that there's constant pressure on the director's inventiveness....But Wes Craven faces the challenge admirably. A Nightmare on Elm Street is halfway between an exploitation flick and classic surrealism." In The Monthly Film Bulletin, Kim Newman called A Nightmare on Elm Street, "...a superior example of an over-worked genre."

Audiences loved A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) as well. During its opening weekend in limited release, at only 165 theatres across the United States, it grossed $1,271,000." It eventually made $25,504,513 at the US and Canada and  $57 million worldwide. A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) proved to be one of New Line Cinema's earliest successes, so much so that the studio was sometimes referred to as "the House that Freddy Built."

The success of A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) would lead to seven sequels. A remake,directed by Samuel Bayer, was released in 2010. There was also a TV series spun off from the film. Freddie's Nightmares was an anthology series with Robert Englund as Freddy Krueger serving as its narrator. It ran for two seasons in syndication. There have also been novels, comic books, video games, and other merchandise inspired by the movie.

The reasons for the success of A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) aren't hard to find. The movie has a particularly good cast. John Saxon, as Lt. Don Thompson, stands out as the father and police officer who finally realizes the threat of Freddy Krueger. It was Robert Englund's performance as Freddy Krueger that made the character one of the most famous movie monsters of all time. The younger cast, including Helen Langenkamp as Nancy Thompson and Johnny Depp as Glen, also deliver solid performances. The cast make the events of A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) all the more believable.

Of course, Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) also benefits from a very sophisticated script. In fact, the film works on multiple levels. In the above cited Cinefantastique article, Wes Craven said,"...the notion of the screenplay is that the sins of the parents are visited upon the children, but the fact that each child is not necessarily stuck with their lot is still there." Even at the time of its release, some critics saw A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) as a very Freudian work. In the February 1985 issue of Films in Review, Roy Frumkes saw Wes Craven's earlier works, such as The Hills Have Eyes, as Freudian, and wrote of A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984), "...and, here, in its latest incarnation, John Saxon and Ronee Blakeley are the untending parent of a daughter, whose nightmares have red claws, and whose pleas for help go unanswered."

What might be the strongest theme in the film is one that Wes Craven's script and direction capitalize upon: the borderlines between reality and fantasy.In A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) the characters, and hence the audience,can often not distinguish between reality and dream. It can easily be argued that being able to determine what is and is not a dream is central to the defeat of Freddy Krueger in the movie.

A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) would have a lasting influence on the horror genre and launched a franchise that still sees merchandise between produced to this day. The movie often makes lists of the greatest horror films ever made. It can be safe to say audiences will be watching A Nightmre on Elm Street (1984) forty years from now.

The Centenary of Wally Cox's Birth

It was 100 years ago today that Wally Cox was born in Detroit. He became famous playing the title character on the sitcom Mister Peepers, but is perhaps best known to younger Baby Boomers and the whole of Generation X as the voice of Underdog and a regular on the game show Hollywood Squares. Wally Cos also guest starred on shows from The Beverly Hillbillies to McMillan & Wife and appeared in such movies as Spencer's Mountain (1963) and Fate is the Hunter (1964).

Wally Cox began his entertainment career in stand-up in 1948, his act consisting of a monologue and often stories and songs. In 1949 he appeared on the radio show Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts. That same year he made his television debut on Fireside Theatre. By 1950 he was appearing on Broadway in the revue Dance Me a Song. He continued to appear in night clubs and appeared on such television shows as The Ford Theatre Hour, Danger, Suspense, and Goodyear Television Playhouse.

It was in July 1952 that Mister Peepers debuted. The show starred Wally Cox as Robinson J. Peepers, the shy, quiet science teacher at Jefferson Junior High. Much of the rest of the cast would also become well-known, including Tony Randall as history teacher Harvey Weskit, Marion Lorne as English teacher Mrs. Gurney, and Jack Warden as athletic coach Frank Whip. Mister Peepers originated as a summer replacement for Ford Festival, but proved to be so popular that NBC brought the show back after the new show Doc Corkle proved to have miserable ratings.

Mister Peepers typecast Wally Cox, much to his dismay. and for much of his career he played soft-spoken, mild mannered characters. To a degree what might be his most famous role is an exception to this. On the Saturday morning cartoon Underdog, Wally Cox played Underdog's alter ego Shoeshine Boy as soft-spoken and mild-mannered. Indeed, Shoeshine Boy was described as "humble and lovable." Wally Cox gave Underdog a lower voice (pretty much Mr. Cox's natural speaking voice) and the character was as brave and courageous as one would expect a superhero to be. Underdiog proved to be a success. It ran for nine years on the broadcast networks (eight on Saturday, one on Sunday) and had an extremely successful syndication run.

Of course, many Baby Boomers and Gen Xers will also remember Wally Cox as resident of the upper left square on Hollywood Squares. Wally Cox on Hollywood Squares also offered a sharp contrast to the meek characters he often played. On Hollywood Squares not only did Mr. Cox display considerable wit, but often biting sarcasm. It seems likely that Wally Cox's persona on Hollywood Squares was closer to Mr. Cox in real life that the mild-mannered characters he played. In real life Wally Cox was very athletic and even rode motorcycles. He also possessed considerable skill as a handyman. According to an article in Popular Science in the Fifties, Wally Cox had a small workshop in his dressing room on Mister Peepers. In his memoir Backstage with the Original Hollywood Square, Hollywood Squares host Peter Marshall said that Wally Cox installed the wiring in his own home.

Aside from Mister Peepers and Underdog, Wally Cox played the lead in one other series. The Adventures of Hiram Hollliday was a sitcom that aired on NBC during the 1956-1957 season. The series centred on Hiram Holliday, a newspaper proofreader who actually possessed considerable skills in firearms, physical combat, and many other areas of knowledge. After saving his publisher from a potential lawsuit, his publisher awarded him with a trip around the world. Each week then saw Hiram Holliday on a different adventure, from solving crimes to thwarting spies. Although the show lasted only for one season, it would develop a cult following.

Of course, in addition to the shows on which he regularly appeared, Wally Cox also made numerous guest appearances. In two episodes of The Beverly Hillbillies  he played birdwatcher Professor P. Caspar Biddle. In the Wagon Train episode "The Vincent Eaglewood Story" he played the title character, a school teacher from the East. On Car 54, Where Are You? he played master pickpocket Benny, who proves better at catching thieves than the NYPD. Wally Cox was a frequent guest star on television shows from the Fifties to the Sixties, and guest starred on such classics as The Loretta Young Show, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, 77 Sunset Strip, Burke's Law, Mission: Impossible, Ironside, and The Odd Couple. He had a notable role in the sequel to the TV movie The Night Stalker and the second Kolchak television movie The Night Strangler, playing researcher Titus Berry, who assists Carl Kolchak in his investigation.

While Wally Cox is best known for his work in television, he also appeared in several movies throughout his career. He played Preacher Goodman in Spencer's Mountain (1963). In The Bedford Incident (1965) he played Seaman Queffle, who detects a Russian submarine on sonar while the U.S.S. Bedford is patrolling the coast of Greenland. In the Sixties he also appeared in the movies State Fair (1962), Fate is the Hunter (1964), The Yellow Rolls-Royce (1964), A Guide to the Married Man (1967), The One and Only, Genuine, Original Family Band (1968), Up Your Teddy Bear (1970), The Cockeyed Cowboys of Calico County (1970), and The Boatniks (1970). Wally Cox's last feature film was The Barefoot Executive (1971). During his career, Wally Cox only got to play the male lead once. Unfortunately, that was in the obscure, but not particularly well-received sexploitation film Up Your Teddy Bear, playing opposite Julie Newmar.

Sadly, Wally Cox died when he was only 48 on February 15 1973. The cause was a heart attack caused by a coronary occlusion. His last work on film was a guest appearance on the television series Search that aired only a few weeks before his death.

The death of Wally Cox is one of the earliest celebrity deaths I remember. Even at that tender age I knew he was the voice of Underdog, and I also recognized him from his many guest appearances on television. It is the mark of a truly great performer that even a young kid can recognize him from many different roles. Wally Cox was remarkable in many ways. While he mainly played milquetoasts, he was capable of playing other roles. He was one of the best-loved celebrities on Hollywood Squares, where his many quips about the game show. On the 100th anniversary of his birth, Wally Cox is still one of the best loved television performers of the mid-20th Century.

"It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas"

Most Christmas songs seem to be written about Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, or the season as a whole, but one song seems to have been written especially for this time of year. "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas"was written by Meredith Wilson, now best known for the musical The Music Man. Indeed, the song mentions such things as the five and ten store "glistening once again," "toys in every store," "the tree in the Grand Hotel," and so on. I have always thought it was written about that time of year that stores and individuals first start decorating for the Yuletide.

Like The Music Man, "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas" could have been inspired by Meredith Wilson's hometown of Mason City, Iowa. There is a theory that the"Grand Hotel" mentioned in the song could have been inspired by the Park Inn Hotel in downtown Mason City. The hotel was designed by none other than Frank Lloyd Wright himself and is the last remaining hotel in the world that he designed. It takes its name from Mason City's Central Park, which it overlooks. Making the idea that the Park Inn Hotel could have served as the inspiration for the Grand Hotel in "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas" is that the park is immediately mentioned after the hotel in the song: "There's a tree in the Grand Hotel, one  in the park as well..."

"It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas" by Perry Como and The Fontane Sisters with Mitchell Ayres & His Orchestra was released on September 18 1951. The song proved to be a hit, peaking at no. 12 on the Billboard chart. It has since charted every holiday season over they years. In 1951 Bing Crosby also recorded his own version of the song. It has since been recorded by such artists as Kate Smith, Johnny Mathis, Dionne Warwick, Dean Martin, and Michael Buble.

Jim Abrahams Passes On

Writer, director, and producer Jim Abrahams, who was part of the filmmaking team of Zucker, Abrahams, and Zucker, died on November 26 2024 at the age of 80. He had leukaemia.

Jim Abrahams was born on May 10 1944 in Shorewood, Wisconsin. Jim Abrahams knew David and Jerry Zucker when the three of them were children. They attended the same synagogue, their father's were business colleagues, and the three of them attended both Shorewood High School and the University of Wisconsin at Madison.

It was in 1971 that Zucker, Abrahams, and Zucker founded a sketch comedy troupe known as  the Kentucky Fried Theatre in Madison, Wisconsin. The Kentucky Fried Theatre would lead to the first movie scripted by Zucker, Abrahams, and Zucker, The Kentucky Fried Movie (1977). The film was essentially a collection of movie parodies, sketches, and spoofs of television shows and movies. Zucker, Abrahams, and Zucker would meet with enormous success with the first movie they both wrote and directed, Airplane! (1980).

Following Airplane!, Zucker, Abrahams, and Zucker created the television series Police Squad!, starring Leslie Nielsen. While the show received low ratings and lasted for only six episodes, Police Squad! was well received by critics and nominated for two Emmy Awards. It also developed a cult following, and would lead to the series of Naked Gun movies. After Police Squad!, Zucker, Abrahams, and Zucker wrote and directed the movie Top Secret! (1984).

Afterwards Jim Abrahams directed his first movie on his own, Ruthless People (1986), In the late Eighties he also directed Big Business (1988) and Welcome Home, Roxy Carmichael (1990). He co-wrote The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988) with the Zucker Brothers. In the Nineties Jim Abrahams wrote and directed Hot Shots! (1991), Hot Shots! Part Dieux (1993), and Jane Austen's Mafia! (1998). He later co-wrote Scary Movie 4 (2004) with Craig Mazin and Pat Proft.

Jim Abrahams and his wife Nancy founded The Charlie Foundation To Help Cure Pediatric Epilepsy.

As both a writer and director, Jim Abrahams had a gift for zany, off-the-wall comedy. The gags often came fast and furious and a viewer would often have to pay careful attention to catch all of the sight gags, puns, and jokes. It was in this way that Zucker, Abraham, and Zucker produced such comedy gold as Airplane! and the TV series Police Squad!. Of course, Jim Abrahams also directed movies without the Zucker Brothers, including Ruthless People and Big Business. While he would have the occasional misfire, Jim Abrahams was an enormous talent.

Godspeed Earl Holliman

Earl Holliman, who played the cook in the science fiction classic Forbidden Planet (1956), Jim Curry in The Rainmaker (1956), and Sgt. Crowley on the TV series Police Woman, among many other roles, died on November 25 2024 at the age of 96.

Earl Holliman was born on September 11 1928 in Delhi, Louisiana. His biological father died six months before Earl Holliman's birth, and he was placed in an orphanage. He was adopted when he was a week old. Earl Holliman wanted to be an actor even as he was growing up. After his father died, when Earl Holliman was only 14, he hitchhiked to the outskirts of Hollywood from a relative's house in Texarkana, Texas. Earl Holliman was convinced to return home and he attended Oil City High School. He was elected president of his senior class and was a tackle on the school football team.

Earl Holliman served in the United States Navy during World War II before studying acting at the Pasadena Playhouse. He made his screen debut in an uncredited role in Destination Gobi (1953). That same year he appeared in uncredited roles in The Girls of Pleasure Island (1953), the Martin & Lewis movie Scared Stiff (1953). His first credited role was in Devil's Canyon in 1953. During the Fifties he appeared in the movies East of Sumatra (1953), Tennessee Champ (1954), Broken Lance (1954), The Bridges at Toko-Ri (1954), The Big Combo (1955), I Died a Thousand Times (1955), Forbidden Planet (1956), The Burning Hills (1956), Giant (1956), The Rainmaker (1956), Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957), Trooper Hook (1957), Don't Go Near the Water (1957), Hot Spell (1958), The Trap (1958), Last Train from Gun Hill (1959), and Visit to a Small Planet (1960).

During the Fifties Earl Holliman starred on the short-lived Western Hotel de Paree. He guest starred on the TV shows Matinee Theatre, Playhouse 90, Kraft Television Theatre, Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse, Studio One, and The Twilight Zone (the premiere episode "Where is Everybody?").

During the Sixties Earl Holliman starred on the short-lived television series \Wide Country. He guest starred on The Dick Powell Show, Westinghouse Presents, Bus Stop, Checkmate, General Electric Theatre, The Great Adventure, Bonanza, Dr. Kildare, Slatterly's People, The Fugitive, The Virginian, 12 O' Clock High, The F.B..I., Custer, Judd for the Defense, Gunsmoke, It Takes a Thief, and The Wonderful World of Disney. He appeared in the movies Armored Command (1961), Summer and Smoke (1962), The Sons of Katie Elder (1965), A Covenant with Death (1967), and The Power (1968).

In the Seventies Earl Holliman played Sgt. Crowley on the TV series Police Woman. He guest starred on the shows The Wonderful World of Disney, Alias Smith and Jones, The F.B.I., Ironside, Medical Center, The Rookies, The Streets of San Francisco, Gunsmoke, Police Story, and CHiPs. He appeared in the movies Duel (1971), The Biscuit Eater (1971), and I Love You...Goodbye (1973).

In the Eighties Earl Holliman appeared on the mini-series The Thorn Birds. He guest starred on the shows Hotel and Empty Nest. He appeared in the movies Sharkey's Machine (1981). In the Nineties Earl Holliman was a regular on the shows P.S. I Luv U, Delta, and Night Man. He had a recurring role on Caroline in the City as the title character's father, Fred. He guest starred on Murder, She Wrote; In the Heat of the Night; and Chicken Soup for the Soul. He appeared in the movies Bad City Blues (1999) and The Perfect Tenant (2000).

Earl Holliman also had a brief recording career starting in 1958. He released such singles as "Don't Get Around Much Anymore"/"A Teenager Sings the Blues," "In the Mood for Love"/"No Other Love," and "Road to Nowhere"/"There'll Be No Teardrops Tonight."

As an actor Earl Holliman was a great talent. He was capable of playing a wide variety of roles. As the cook on Forbidden Planet he served primarily as comic relief (he persuaded Robbie the Robot to make booze for him), and he played the role wonderfully. In sharp contrast to the cook on Forbidden Planet was the murderous Rick Belden in Last Train from Gun Hill. Earl Holliman also played impetuous younger brother, Jim Curry, in The Rainmaker, Bick Benedict's (Rock Hudson) son-in-law Bob Dace in Giant, and Matt, the quietest of the Elder brothers, in The Sons of Katie Elder. Earl Holliman was equally impressive on television. He played astronaut Mike Ferris, who slowly loses his min din a deserted town, in the premiere episode of The Twilight Zone "Where is Everybody?." In the Bonanza episode "The Flannel-Mouth Gun," Earl Holliman played ruthless range detective  Sherman Clegg. In the Marcus Welby, M.D. episode "Neither Punch Nor Judy," he played an asthmatic priest. Throughout his career Earl Holliman gave many great performances.

Christmas Movies on TCM in December 2024

The Hallmark Channel may start showing Christmas movies in October, but when it comes to showing classic Yuletide movies in their proper season, Turner Classic Movies is the channel to watch. Every December TCM shows several of the greatest classic holiday movies of all time. This December is no different. Below is a schedule of the Christmas movies airing on TCM in December. All times are Central.

Sunday, December 1:
5:00 PM The Bishop's Wife (1947)

Saturday, December 7:
3:00 PM It Happened on Fifth Avenue (1947)
5:15 PM Holiday Affair (1949)

Sunday, December 8:
10:45 AM A Christmas Carol (1938)

Saturday, December 14:
3:00 PM The Shop Around the Corner (1940)
5:00 PM The Man Who Came to Dinner (1942)

Sunday, December 15:
6:45 AM Meet John Doe (1941)
3:00 PM In the Good Old Summertime (1949)
5:00 PM Christmas in Connecticut (1945)

Monday, December 16:
9:30 PM Metropolitan (1990)

Friday, December 20:
9:00 PM In the Good Old Summertime (1949)
11:00 PM The Shop Around the Corner (1940)

Saturday, December 21:
1:00 AM Bachelor Mother (1939)
6:30 AM The Curse of the Cat People (1944)
8:00 AM Tenth Avenue Angel (1948)
9:30 AM A Christmas Carol (1938)
11:00 AM On Moonlight Bay (1951)
3:15 AM Susan Slept Here (1954)
5:00 PM Fitzwilly (1967)
7:00 PM It Happened on Fifth Avenue (1947)
9:15 PM The Man Who Came to Dinner (1942)
11:16 PM We're No Angles (1955)

Sunday, December 22:
1:15 AM Miracle on Main Street (1939)
2:45 AM The Silent Partner (1978)
9:00 AM The Lady in the Lake (1947)
11:00 AM 3 Godfathers (1949)
1:00 PM The Holly and the Ivy (1952)
7:00 PM Christmas in Connecticut (1945)
9:00 PM Remember the Night (1940)
11:00 PM Christmas Past (1925)

Monday, December 23
1:15 AM Mon Oncle Antoine (1971)
3:15 AM My Night at Maud's (1971)
7:30 AM I Wouldn't Be in Your Shoes (1948)
9:00 AM My Reputation (1946)
11:00 AM The Man I Love (1947)
1:00 PM Larceny, Inc. (1942)
3:00 PM Backfire (1950)
5:00 PM Period of Adjustment (1962)
7:00 PM Holiday Affair (1949)
8:45 PM Desk Set (1947)
10:45 PM Meet John Doe (1941)

Tuesday, December 24:
1:00 AM The Thin Man (1934)
2:45 AM Cover Up (1949)
4:15 AM A Carol For Another Christmas (1964)
5:45 AM Three Godfathers (1936)
7:45 AM Christmas Eve (1947)
9:15 AM Bundle of Joy (1956)
1:00 PM It Happened on Fifth Avenue (1947)
3:15 PM Christmas in Connecticut (1945)
5:15 PM The Shop Around the Corner (1940)
7:00 PM The Bishop's Wife (1947)
11:00 PM A Christmas Carol (1938)

Wednesday, December 25:
12:30 AM Beyond Tomorrow (1940)
2:00 AM Hell's Heroes (1929)
3:30 AM Kind Lady (1951)
5:30 AM Never Say Goodbye (1946)
7::30 AM All Mine to Give (1957)
9:15 AM The Great Rupert (1950)
1:15 PM In the Good Old Summertime (1949)
3:15 PM Holiday Affair (1949)
5:00 PM The Man Who Came to Dinner (1942)

Thursday, December 26:
9:15 AM Love Finds Andy Hardy (1938)

Tuesday, December 31:
8:15 AM The Thin Man (1934)
7:00 PM The Apartment (1960)

I don't consider the following to be Christmas movies. In all good conscience, I felt I could not include them in the above list of holiday films. There are some people who do consider some of these movies to be Christmas movies, so I am including them in their own schedule as a courtesy to anyone who might disagree with me.

Sunday, December 1:
3:00 PM Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)

Saturday, December 14:
11:00 Mame (1974)

Monday, December 16:
7:00 PM Auntie Mame (1958)

Friday, December 20:
7:00 PM Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)

Saturday, December 21:
2:30 AM Penny Serenade (1941)
4:45 AM Blossoms in the Dust (1941)
1:00 PM Little Women (1949)

Sunday, December 22:
5:00 AM Boy's Town (1938)
7:00 AM Our Vines Have Tender Grapes (1945)
2:30 PM Going My Way (1944)
4:45 PM The Bells of St. Mary's (1945)

Monday, December 23:
5:30 AM The Daughter of Rosie O'Grady (1950)

Tuesday, December 24:
11:00 PM Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)
9:00 PM Room For One More (1952)

Wednesday, December 25:
11:00 AM Little Women (1933)

Happy Thanksgiving 2024

As someone who is part Cherokee, I recognize the fact that many Native Americans find the holiday of Thanksgiving objectionable. After all,  the Wampanoag, who legend has it dined with the Pilgrims, suffered greatly for their contact with the British colonists. There are then those Native Americans who view Thanksgiving as a celebration of the genocide of Native Americans at the hands of European settlers and observe it as a day of mourning. As I see it, the problem with Thanksgiving is that its mythology has traditionally been tied to that of the Thanksgiving celebrated by the Pilgrims in Plymouth, Massachusetts. That mythology is false on many levels, the least of which is the fact that the Thanksgiving celebrated by the Pilgrims was not the first Thanksgiving celebration in North America by a long shot. Indeed, various Native American tribes had their own Thanksgivings. The Seneca have Thanksgiving rituals that last four days.

For me then, the answer is not to do away with the holiday of Thanksgiving, but to divorce it from the imagery of the Pilgrims. We should stop celebrating the Pilgrims, who ultimately brought grief to the Wampanoag. Ultimately, my point of view on the holiday is best expressed by Wilma Mankiller, the first woman to serve as Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation, who said of the holiday, "We celebrate Thanksgiving along with the rest of America, maybe in different ways and for different reasons. Despite everything that's happened to us since we fed the Pilgrims, we still have our language, our culture, our distinct social system. Even in a nuclear age, we still have a tribal people." I think it is important to set aside a day to express gratitude. We just have to make sure that we are not celebrating genocide when we do so.

Keeping this in mind, I will observe Thanksgiving with the usual vintage Hollywood pictures I usually do on A Shroud of Thoughts.

First up is Jeanne Craine, who has a large pie ready.

Next Marie McDonald, who is hunting and gathering for her Thanksgiving dinner.

Next is Olga San Juan with a pet turkey.

And here's Leila Hyams, who also has a turkey friend.

On the other hand, Shirley Temple seems startled by a turkey.

And, last but not least, here's Ann Miler and her turkey.

Happy Thanksgiving!

The 100th Anniversary of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

The Underdog balloon in 1965

For many Americans watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on television is a Thanksgiving tradition. And I have to think that going to see the parade in person is a Thanksgiving custom for many people in New York City. The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade has become very much a part of American popular culture, It was one hundred years ago on this day, on November 27 1924, that the first Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade took place, although it originally it was called the Macy's Christmas Parade.

It should come as no surprise that the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade originated as a bit of promotion for the Macy's department store in New York City. It was earlier in the year that a Seventh Avenue addition was made to Macy's Herald Square. This made what Macy's had proclaimed as early as 1895 to be "the world's largest store." The store's executives wanted to celebrate this achievement and as  a result Macy's advertising manager James A. Goold came up with the idea of the Macy's Christmas Parade. Of course, the fact that it could boost holiday sales for Macy's was never far from his mind. It was James A. Goold who directed that first parade. As is still the case today, the store's employees played a large role in the parade.

That first parade at 9:00 AM Eastern Time at 145th Street and Convent Avenue in Harlem. It was lead by an escort of mounted police. The parade then made its way to Broadway and then to 34th Street. It was at 34th Street that the parade ended. The first parade featured such floats as "The Old Woman Who Lived in the Shoe," "Three Men in a Tub,"  and "Little Miss Muffet," As has always been the case, it ended with the arrival of Santa Claus in his sleigh. Animals from the Central Park Zoo also appeared in the parade, and included elephants, tigers, bears, and donkeys.

The Macy's Christmas Parade proved to be such a success that it was held again in 1925 and again in 1926. The animals from the Central Park Zoo would be a part of both the second Macy's Christmas Parade in 1925 and 1926. They would not return for the parade in 1927. The zoo animals had proven problematic from the beginning. The large crowds who came to watch the parade meant many people could not even see the animals. On top of this, after the long six-mile parade route, many of the animals would become restless. The growls, roars, and snarls of many of these restless animals would then scare children.

Zoo animals no longer being featured in the parade would not be the only change that would be made for the fourth parade in 1927. It was that year that the Macy's Christmas Parade was finally given the more fitting name of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. It was also in 1927 that the first giant balloons were introduced. The very first character balloon was popular cartoon character Felix the Cat. Originally, at the end of the parade the balloons would be released into the sky. That would end in 

Starting in 1928  puppeteer and illustrator Tony Sarg and his apprentice Bill Baird designed balloons and balloons for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Among the notable balloons he designed for the parade were the Katzenjammer kinds in 1929, Eddie Cantor in 1934, Donald Duck in 1935, the Tin Man from The Wizard of Oz in 1939, and the original Superman balloon in 1940. Tony Sarg designed his last balloons for the parade in 1941 and he died the following year.  As might be expected, the release of the balloons at the end of the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade did cause problems. When the balloons were first released, they  all exploded before they reached the top of the Macy's building because helium expands as it gets higher in the atmosphere. The balloons would be released the following year, but safety valves were added to prevent them from exploding. Macy's offered a $25 reward to anyone who captured a balloon and returned it. As might be expected, this created its share of problems. n 1932 a woman learning to fly tried to capture a giant cat balloon. Instead she collided with the balloon. She and her instructor survived, but the balloon did not.. Macy's then stopped releasing the balloons at the end of the parade, which would actually work out for the best. The balloons could be deflated and reused the next in the next parade.

Starting in 1928 the balloons in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade would be made by Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company. They would continue to make balloons for the parade until 1980, with their final balloon being the third Superman balloon. Since then Kemp Balloons Inc. (1981-1984) and then Raven Aerostar Industries would make the balloons. for the parade. Over the years famous characters have been licensed for balloons in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, including Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Mighty Mouse, Bullwinkle, Underdog, Smokey Bear, Kermit the Frog, and yet others. Over the years there would be accidents involving the balloons. In 1956 the Mighty Mouse balloon went down before it even reached Columbus Circle, and in 1975 the Underdog balloon collided with a light pole. Sadly, some of the balloon accidents would cause injuries. Among these was an incident in 1997 in which he Cat in the Hat balloon actually knocked a lamppost into a crowd of spectators and injured a woman. Afterwards the City of New York passed laws restricting balloons to a size of 70 feet high, 78 feet long, and 40 feet wide and requiring more handlers.

Marching bands and other performers have been a part of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade from its earliest days. For instance, the New York 71st Regiment Marching Band performed at the parade in 1926. The parade also featured its share of dancers and drill teams, the most famous of which may well be the Radio City Rockettes, who have become a tradition at the parade. They first performed at the parade in 1958. Originally, the Rockettes walked the entire length of the parade along the other acts, the floats, and the balloons. Fortunately, this would eventually change so that the Rockettes would the opening act of the parade. While the past few decades the Rockette have usually been the opening act of the parade, there would be two exceptions. In 2020 and 2023 they served as an honor guard of sort for Santa Claus.

Beyond the Rockettes there have been many other celebrity performers in the history. The first celebrity performance during the parade occurred in 1958 (the same year the Rockettes made their debut) was given by the Benny Goodman sextet. Since then such performers as Connie Francis, Paul Anka, Dionne Warwick, Brenda Lee, Rick Springfield, Shari Lewis, The Muppets, Patti LaBelle, Chicago, Kool & the Gang, Lou Bega,  Good Charlotte, Kiss, and others.

The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade would continue to grow throughout the Thirties, as would its fame. The parade was first broadcast on radio in 1932 by local New York City stations. Because of World War II the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade would not be held from 1942 to 1944. It would return in 1945 and afterwards would become even more famous It was in 1947 that a classic movie would be give the rest of the world its first real tastes of the parade. The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade figured prominently in the movie Miracle on 34th Street (1947), as did the department store itself. The parade would first be broadcast nationally on television in 1948, although strangely enough it would not be on NBC, the television home of the parade for decades. Instead, it would be CBS. It was in 1953 that NBC became the official broadcaster of the parade and it has remained such ever since.

Over the years broadcasts of the MAacy's Thanksgiving Day Parade have been hosted by various people. Among the longest running and among the most familiar to Baby Boomers and Gen Xers are Lorne Green and Betty White, who hosted the parade from 1963 to 1972. Ed MacMahon of The Tonight Show fame hosted the parade with various co-hosts form 1974 to 1981. It was in the late Eighties that personalities from NBC's Today Show started hosting the parade, and they have done so ever since.

Of course, here it must be pointed out that the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade was not the first Thanksgiving Day Parade. The oldest Thanksgiving Day parade is actually the one held in Philadelphia. It began in 1920 and sponsored by one of Macy's rivals, Gimbals. Gimbals continued to sponsor it until 1986 when the department store folded. Since then it has had various sponsors. There are also parades in  Chicago, Detroit, Seattle, St. Louis, and other cities.

The Macy's Thanksgiving Day has long since become a part of popular culture, well beyond being featured in Miracle on 34th Street (1934). The parade appears towards the beginning of the 1966 The Man From U.N.C.L.E. episode "The Jingle Bells Affair." The parade would also appear in a 1973 television movie remake of Miracle on 34th Street. Props from the parade appear in the climax of the comedy Somebody Killed Her Husband, which takes place in the basement of Herald Square. The parade figures in the movie Broadway Danny Rose (1984). While the parade does not appear in the Friends episode "The One Where Underdog Gets Away," first aired in 1994. In the episode the Underdog balloon is accidentally released (here it must be mentioned that the Underdog balloon was retired in 1984. It was also in 1994 that the parade was referenced in the Seinfeld episode "The Mom and Pop Store." "Macy's Day Parade" is also the title of a Green Day song and the first single from their 2000 album Warning. The song is essentially a protest against consumerism.

The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade has undergone many changes over the years. Its fame has grown since it began, and it has since become a Thanksgiving Day institution. It is safe to say that it will continue as Thanksgiving tradition in many years to come.

DC Comics Character Johnny Cloud Navajo Ace

Like many comic book publishers, DC Comics (then officially known as National Comics Publications) entered the field of war comics in early 1952. Initially, DC Comics' war comic books were anthology titles of the truest forms. Each issue featured several standalone stories. This began to change in the late Fifties and early Sixties, when DC Comics began adding continuing series to their war comic books, including Sgt Rock in Our Army at War and Gunner & Sarge in Our Fighting Forces. It was in All-American Men of War no. 82 (December 1960) that a character who was rather more unique first appeared. Lt. Johnny Cloud was not only set apart from DC Comics' other continuing war characters in that he was a fighter pilot, but in the fact that he was Native American.

This made Johnny Cloud a rather historic character. Native American characters with their own series were very rare in American comic books of the time. At DC Comics the only important Native American character prior to Lt. Johnny Cloud was Pow Wow Smith, who appeared in both Detective Comics and Western Comics. Of course, while Johnny Cloud was a historic character at DC Comics, that did not mean that the portrayal of Diné culture was particularly accurate.  Johnny Cloud was created by writer Rob Kanigher and artist Irv Novick.

In Johnny Cloud's first appearance, we are given some of his background and how he became a pilot. His father named him "Flying Cloud" after seeing a cloud formation that brought to his mind a man riding a horse. As an adult Flying Cloud enlisted in the United States Air Force during World War II. He then became a P-51 Mustang pilot. It was at this point that Flying Cloud was given the more English-sounding name John Cloud. While the portrayal of Navajo culture in the "Johnny Cloud" feature may not have been accurate, sadly the racism that Johnny Cloud was. It was after he took out a whole squadron of Nazi bombers by himself that Johnny was given command of his own patrol, which was given the code name "the Happy Braves."  Beginning as a lieutenant, Johnny Cloud would later be promoted to captain.

Ultimately, the Johnny Cloud series was a product of its time. It was pioneering in featuring a Native American lead character. It was also pioneering in portraying the racism that Native Americans faced. The portrayal of racism against any ethnicity, let alone Native Americans, was not particularly common in comic books of the Fifties. Unfortunately, the Johnny Cloud series also included several Native American cliches and outright stereotypes. Johnny Cloud and other Native American characters in the series were generally portrayed as stoic. The vision of a cloud which Johnny's father saw is portrayed as a Plains Indian wearing a war bonnet riding a horse. Johnny's first plane bears the image of a Plains Indian atop a horse along with the words "Flying Chief."

While the Johnny Cloud series was not a particularly accurate portrayal of Diné culture and it did include various cliches about Native Americans, ultimately it can be considered a positive portrayal of a Native American for its time. Johnny displays courage, loyalty, and intelligence. He is handsome and identifiably Native American. This made Johnny Cloud an important character at a time when many Native Americans in Western movies and Western comic books were still being portrayed as savages.

Johnny Cloud continued to be the star of All-American Men of War until no. 117 (September-October 1966),  the final issue of the title's initial run. While he was still appearing in All-American Men of War, Johnny Cloud appeared in The Brave and the Bold no. 52 (March 1964), in which he teamed up with Sgt. Rock (star of Our Army at War) and the Haunted Tank (star of G.I. Combat).

While Johnny Cloud's series ended with All-American Men of War no. 117, he did not disappear from comic books entirely. It was in G.I. Combat no. 138 (October 1969) that Johnny Cloud teamed up with Captain Storm (a PT boat commander who had his own title from 1964 to 1967) and Gunner & Sarge to form the group known as The Losers. The Losers received their own series with Our Fighting Forces no. 123 (January-February 1970). They continued as the stars of Our Fighting Forces no. 181 (September-October 1978), the final issue of the title. Johnny Cloud would later appear in The Losers Special no. 1 (August 1985) and still later in DC Universe Legacies no. 4 (October 2010).

Johnny Cloud was very much a character of his era. On the one hand, the series leaned heavily into such tropes as the stoic American Indian and Native American mysticism. On the other hand, Johnny Cloud was a positive portrayal of a Native American at a time when Native Americans were still being portrayed as savages. The series also portrayed racism against Native Americans at a time when racism was rarely portrayed in American comic books. Ultimately, Johnny Cloud would pave the way for more accurate portrayals of Native Americans in comics.