The 60th Anniversary of A Hard Day's Night (1964)

It was sixty years ago today that The Beatles movie A Hard Day's Night (1964) premiered at the Pavilion in London. I have already written a good deal about A Hard Day's Night on this blog, so for now I will leave you with the opening of A Hard Day's Night, featuring the legendary song of the same name.

Godspeed Robert Towne

Robert Towne, who received the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for Chinatown (1974), died on July 1 2024 at the age of 89.

Robert Towne was born Robert Schwartz on November 23 1934 in Los Angeles. He grew up in the San Pedro neighbourhood. His father ran a ladies clothing store called the Towne Smart Shop and later became a real estate developer. His family eventually moved to Rancho Palo Verdes. Robert Towne attended Chadwick Prep School and Redondo Union High School. He attended Pomona College, where he studied English literature and philosophy. He graduated in 1956. He studied acting under actor Jeff Corey, among whose other students was Jack Nicholson.

It was through the legendary Roger Corman that Robert Towne began his career. His first screenplay was for the Corman film Last Woman on Earth (1961). He also appeared in the movie as an actor, playing Matin Joyce using the stage name Edward Wain. The following year he appeared in Corman's Creature from the Haunted Sea (1961), playing Sparks Moranaja (Agent XK150), again using the name Edward Wain. In the Sixties he wrote several episodes of The Lloyd Bridges Show, as well as episodes of the TV shows Breaking Point, The Outer Limits, and The Man From U.N.C.L.E. He also wrote screenplays for the movies The Tomb of Ligeia (1964) and Villa Rides (1968). He also worked as a script doctor, doing uncredited work on Bonnie and Clyde (1967).

In the Seventies Robert Towne wrote the movies The Last Detail (1973), Chinatown (1974), The Yakuza (1974), and Shampoo (1975). He did uncredited work on Drive, He Said (1971), McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971), Cisco Pike (1971), The New Centurions (1972), The Parallax View (1973), The Missouri Breaks (1976), Orca (1977), and Heaven Can Credit (1978). As an actor he had appearances in The Zodiac Killer (1971), Drive, He Said (1971), and Shampoo (1975).

In 1982 Robert Towne made his directorial debut with Personal Best. He also directed Tequila Sunrise (1988). He wrote the films Personal Best (1982), Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes (1984), Tequila Sunrise (1988), Days of Thunder (1990), and The Two Jakes (1990). He did uncredited work on Deal of the Century (1982),8 Million Days to Die (1986), Tough Guys Don't Dance (1987), and Frantic (1988). He appeared as an actor in The Pick-Up Artist (1987).

In the Nineties he wrote the movies The Firm (1993), Love Affair (1994), Mission: Impossible (1996), Without Limits (1998), and Mission: Impossible II (2000). In the Naughts he served as a consulting producer on the TV show Mad Men. He directed the film Ask the Dust (2006), for which he also wrote the screenplay. As an actor he appeared in the movie Suspect Zero (2004). In the Teens he wrote an episode of Welcome to the Basement.

Robert Towne was certainly a versatile writer. In television alone he wrote for multiple genres. He wrote an episode for the medical drama Breaking Point, an episode for the sci-fi anthology series The Outer Limits, and the spy series The Man From U.N.C.L.E. His screenplays for movies were similarly diverse. He wrote The Tomb of Ligeia, generally considered one of the best of Roger Corman's Edgar Allan Poe movies. He wrote the classic and Academy Award winning neo-noir Chinatown. He wrote the comedy-drama The Last Detail. Robert Towne worked in multiple genres of film and television, and he did all of them well.

Happy 4th of July 2024

I want to wish my fellow Americans a happy 4th of July. As I usually do every July 4th, I am sharing with you some vintage, patriotic pinups. I do hope you appreciate them.

First up is Cyd Charisse, who is celebrating the 4th of July with Tom and Jerry.

And here is Helen Twelvetrees riding a bottle rocket.

You might say Rita Moreno is a real firecracker.

Joan Dixon is ready to light a rather large firecracker.

And here is a patriotically dressed Ann Miller!

Happy 4th of July!

The Late Great Martin Mull

Actor and comedian Martin Mull, who starred on the TV show Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman and played Colonel Mustard in the cult classic Clue (1985), died on June 27 2024 at the age of 80. He had been suffering from a long illness.

Martin Mull was born on August 18 1943 in Chicago. His father was a carpenter while his mother was an actress and director. When he was two years old his family moved to North Olmstead, Ohio. He was 15 years old when his family moved to New Canaan, Connecticut. He wanted to be a painter and graduated from the Rhode Island School of Design with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in 1965. In 1967 he earned a Master of Fine Arts from the same school. He paid his way through college by forming bands, which is how he entered the entertainment industry.

In fact, for the first part of the Seventies he was best known as a musical comedian. He wrote the country song "A Girl Named Johnny Cash" for Jane Morgan. In 1972 his self-titled, debut album was released. During the Seventies he released several more albums, including Martin Mull and His Fabulous Furniture in Your Living Room (1973), Normal (1974), Days of Wine and Neuroses (1975), I'm Everyone I Ever Loved (1977), Sex and Violins (1978), and Near Perfect/Perfect (1979).

He made his acting debut on television in 1976 playing Garth Gimble and later his twin brother Barth on Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman. He continued to play Barth on the Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman sequels Fernwood 2 Night and America 2 Night. In the Seventies he guest starred on the shows Wonder Woman, Laugh-In, and Taxi. He made his move debut in FM in 1978. He appeared in the moves Serial (1980) and My Bodyguard (1980).

In the Eighties Martin Mull starred on the sitcom Domestic Life, which he also  co-created with Steve  Martin, Howard Gerwirtz, and Ian Praiser. He made several appearances as himself on It's Gary Shandling's Show and starred in the sitcom His & Hers. Martin Mull guest starred on the TV shows Square Pegs, George Burns Comedy Week, Tall Tales & Legends, Fast Times, D.C. Follies, The Magical World of Disney, TV 101, and The Golden Girls. He appeared in the movies Take This Job and Shove It (1981), Private School (1983), Mr. Mom (1983), Flicks (1983), Growing Pains (1984), Clue (1985), O.C. and Stiggs (1985), The Boss' Wife (1986), Rented Lips (1987), Home is Where the Heart Is (1988), Cutting Class (1989), Think Big (1989), Ski Patrol (1990), and Far Out Man (1990).

In the Nineties he starred on the TV shows The Jackie Thomas Show, Roseanne, and Sabrina the Teenage Witch. He was a regular voice on the animated series Family Dog. He guest starred on the shows Get a Life, Dream On, Parker Lewis Can't Lose, The General Motors Playwrights Theatre, The Larry Sanders Show, L.A. Law, Burke's Law, Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, The Drew Carey Show, Life...and Stuff, Over the Top, The Simpsons, The Nanny, Sin City Spectacular, Family Guy, The Wild Thornberrys, Twice in a Lifetime, Recess, Just Shoot Me!, and The Geena Davis Show. He appeared in the movies Ted & Venus (1991), The Player (1992), Dance with Death (1992), Miracle Beach (1992), Movies Money Murder (1993), Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), Mr. Write (1994), Eddie & Pen (1996), Jingle All the Way (1996), Zack and Reba (1998), and Attention Shoppers (2000).

In the Naughts Maritn Mull  was a voice on the animated series Teamo Supremo, Danny Phantom, and American Dad!. He was a regular on the show The Ellen Show and 'Til Death. He guest starred on the shows Dexter's Laboratory, Kristin, Less Than Perfect, Greeting from Tucson, Reba, Life with Bonnie, Half & Half, Reno 911!, Crumbs, Thick and Thin, The War at Home, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Gary Unmarried, My Boys, and Eastwick. He appeared in the movies The Year That Trembled (2002), Come Away Home (2005), Relative Strangers (2006), and Killers (2010).

Two and a Half Man, Dads, Veep, Life in Pieces, I'm Sorry, Arrested Development, The Cool Kids, and The Ranch. He guest starred on the shows Working Class, Mad Love, Franklin & Bash, Psych, Community, NCIS: Los Angeles, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Bless This Mess, and Bob's Burgers. He appeared in the movies And They're Off (2011), and A Futile and Stupid Gesture (2018).

In the Twenties Martin Mull guest starred on the shows Grace and Frankie, Maggie, Not Dead Yet, and The Afterparty.

Martin Mull was a remarkable talent. While many actors will be best remembered for one or two roles, Martin Mull played so many brilliant roles that it is like that each individual person will remember him for something different from other people. On Mary Hartman Mary Hartman he played the rather unpleasant, abusive Garth Gimble and his twin brother,, talk show host Barth Gimble on the show's two sequels. He was Colonel Mustard in the movie Clue, a military officer who had engaged in war profiteering. On Arrested Development he played incompetent private detective Gene Parmesan who regularly worked for Lucille Bluth. (Jessica Walter). One of his many guest appearances I best remember is the one he made in the Golden Girls episode "Snap Out of It," in which he played an aging and agoraphobic hippie named Jimmy. Martin Mull certainly had a gift for comedy. Furthermore, he could play a wide variety of characters.

An Update

As I mentioned in my prior post, it was Wednesday might that my desktop computer started making a lot of noise. What is more, I don't think it is the fan. For that reason, I started using my phone for most of my social media stuff. Unfortunately, it is difficult to do a blog post on a phone. For that reason, I only made three posts last week.

Anyway, we have an old laptop that still works fine, so the past few days I have been getting things moved over to it. I completed that task today, so I am ready to go. Tomorrow I will eulogize the late, great Martin Mull. I am so thankful to be able make blog posts again.