Godspeed Michael Anderson

Michael Anderson, who directed such films as The Dam Busters (1955), Around the World in 80 Days (1956), and The Quiller Memorandum (1966), died April 25 2018 at the age of 98.

Michael Anderson was born on January 30 1920 in London. He came from a theatrical family. His great aunt was stage actress Mary Anderson (who was billed as Mary Navarro during her career in silent films). His parents were stage actors Lawrence and Beatrice Anderson. It was through acting that his career in film began. He appeared as an actor in the film Housemaster (1938). Afterwards he served as an assistant director on such films as Spy for a Day (1940), Freedom Radio (1941), Jeannie (1941), and Unpublished Story (1942). He appeared as an actor in the film In Which We Serve (1942).

During World War II Mr. Anderson served in the Royal Signal Corps. It was during this time that he met actor Peter Ustinov. The two co-wrote what would be the first film on which Michael Anderson had credit as director, Private Angelo (1949). Following the war Michael Anderson served as assistant director on such films as Fame is the Spur (1947), Vice Versa (1948), One Night with You (1948), and Woman Hater (1948). As mentioned above, his first film as director was Private Angelo (1948). He also directed the film Waterfront (1950).

In the Fifties Michael Anderson directed the films Hell is Sold Out (1951), Night Was Our Friend (1951), The House of the Arrow (1953), Will Any Gentleman...? (!953), The Dam Busters (1955), 1984 (1955), Around the World in 80 Days (1956), Yangtse Incident: The Story of H.M.S. Amethyst (1957), Chase a Crooked Shadow (1959), Shake Hands with the Devil (1959), The Wreck of the Mary Deare (1959), and All the Fine Young Cannibals (1960). The Dam Busters, based on the true story of the RAF's 617 Squadron's attacks on the Möhne, Eder, and Sorpe dams during World War II, was both critically acclaimed and the biggest British film at the box office in the United Kingdom for the year 1955. Around the World in 80 Days was the second highest grossing film of 1956 (after the juggernaut that was The Ten Commandments). It earned Michael Anderson an Oscar nomination for Best Director and won the Oscars for Best Picture; Best Cinematography, Colour; Best Film Editing; Best Music, Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture; and Best Writing, Best Screenplay, Adapted.

In the Sixties Michael Anderson directed The Naked Edge (1961), Flight from Ashiya (1964), Wild and Wonderful (1964), Operation Crossbow (1965), The Quiller Memorandum (1966), and The Shoes of the Fisherman (1968).  In the Seventies Mr. Anderson directed Pope Joan (1972), Doc Savage (1975), Conduct Unbecoming (1975), Logan's Run (1976), Orca (1977), and Dominique (1979). He directed the television mini-series The Martian Chronicles.

In the Eighties Michael Anderson directed Murder by Phone (1982), Second Time Lucky (1984), Separate Vacations (1986), La bottega dell'orefice (1988), and Millennium (1989).  He directed the TV movie Sword of Gideon. In the Nineties he directed the TV movies Young Catherine, The Sea Wolf, Rugged Gold, Captains Courageous, and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. He directed the films Scales of Justice (1992), Summer of the Monkeys (1998), and The New Adventures of Pinocchio (1999).

Michael Anderson was a very talented director. Arguably he was at his best directing war films. The Dam Busters is not only a classic of the genre, but arguably one of the greatest films ever made. Yangtse Incident: The Story of H.M.S. Amethyst and Operation Crossbow also number among Mr. Anderson's best films. Of course, he could make films in other genres. Around the World in 80 Days stands out as one of his greatest achievements (it set the records for most camera set ups, most sets, most costumes, and most people shot in separate locations worldwide). His later work in television was often better than some of his work in feature films. Mr. Anderson did have some misfires in his career, but even when a particular movie's script might not be up to par, his direction was always excellent.

Paul Junger Witt R.I.P.

Paul Junger Witt, who produced such shows as The Partridge Family, Soap, and The Golden Girls, died today, April 27 2018, at the age of 77. The cause was cancer.

Mr. Witt was born in New York Ciety on March 20 1943. He graduated from the University of Virginia in 1963. He was an associate producer on the short-lived sitcoms Occasional Wife and The Second Hundred Years. He was a producer on Here Come the Brides and the first season of The Partridge Family.

In 1973 he left Columbia Pictures to work with Tony Thomas at Danny Thomas Productions. He also met his future wife and business partner, television writer Susan Harris. In 1975 Paul Junger Witt and Tony Thomas formed Witt/Thomas Productions. He served as an executive producer on the soap opera parody Soap and its spinoff Benson. In the Eighties he was executive producer on such shows as It's a Living, Hail to the Chief, The Golden Girls, and Beauty & the Beast. He served as a producer on the movies Firstborn (1984) and Dead Poets Society (1989).

In the Nineties he served as a producer on such shows as Empty Nest, The Golden Palace, Blossom, Herman's Head, Nurses, and The John Larroquette Show. He produced the movies Final Analysis (1992), Mixed Nuts (1994), and Three Kings (1999). In the Naughts he was a producer on the movie Insomnia (2002). In the Teens he served a producer on the movie A Better Life (2011) and the TV show Beauty and the Beast.

Happy Turner Classic Movies Classic Film Festival 2018

I will not be at the Turner Classic Movies Classic Film Festival this year, although I really wish that I could have gone. That having been said, I have plenty of friends who are going and I do hope all of them have a wonderful time. I am looking forward to the many blog posts and many posts on social media from the festival. Some time next week I will make a post with links to all of the blog posts on this year's TCMFF! Maybe next year I can actually make it to the festival!

John Stride R.I.P.

John Stride, who starred as solicitor David Main on the TV show The Main Chance and appeared in such movies as A Bridge Too Far (1977), died on April 20 2018 at the age of 81.

John Stride was born on June 11 1936 in London. He won scholarships to Alleyn’s School in Dulwich, where he discovered acting. Against this parent's wishes, he attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. He made his professional debut on stage in 1957 in Look Back in Anger at Liverpool Playhouse. He made his debut on the West End in Five Finger Exercise in 1959. Later in the year he appeared at the Old Vic in As You Like It, Richard II, and Henry V. He saw success playing Romeo in Franco Zefirrelli's stage version of Romeo and Juliet, playing opposite Dame Judi Dench as Juliet. On Broadway he appeared in Macbeth, played Romeo again in Romeo and Juliet, and appeared in The Lady of the Camellias.

John Stride made his film debut in Sink the Bismark! in 1960. In the Sixties he appeared in the movie Bitter Harvest (1963).  He made his television debut in an episode of ITV Play of the Week in 1959 and that same year appeared in an episode of Rendezvous. He starred in the TV series The Scarlet and the Black and on the TV series The Main Chance. He guest starred on such shows as Knock on Any Door, Love Story, Thirty-Minute Theatre, Detective, The Root of All Evil?, BBC Play of the Month, W. Somerset Maugham, and ITV Saturday Night Theatre. He was a storyteller on Jackanory.

In the Seventies he continued to star on The Main Chance and later in the decade starred on the TV show Wilde Alliance. He guest starred on such shows as Once Upon a Time, Heil, Caesar!, Play for Today, and ITV Playhouse. He appeared in the mini-series Love Among the Artists. He appeared in the films The Tragedy of Macbeth (1971), Something to Hide (1972), John Keats: His Life and Death (1973), Juggernaut (1974), Brannigan (1975), The Omen (1976), A Bridge Too Far (1977), and Oh Heavenly Dog (1980).

In the Eighties he starred in the TV show Diamonds. He appeared on such shows as Lytton's Diary, Agatha Christie's Poirot and TECX. He appeared in the mini-series Number 10, Imaginary Friends, and Chelworth. He appeared in the film Hanna's War (1988). In the Nineties he starred on the TV show Growing Rich. He appeared on the TV shows The Mixer and Alleyn Mysteries. He appeared in the mini-series The Old Devils.

John Stride was a very talented actor. This can be seen in his performance as David Main, the solicitor whose nonchalant attitude is at odds with his more constrained partner in Leeds, in the TV show The Main Chance. Over the years he played a number of roles that were quite different from David Main, including Alun Weaver in The Old Devils, Henry VIII in the TV movie The Famous History of the Life of King Henry the Eight, Keats in the film John Keats: His Life and Death, and Malcolm on stage in Macbeth. He was both versatile and capable of giving great depth to the various characters he played.

Naomi Stevens Passes On

Naomi Stevens, the actress who played Mrs. Dreyfuss in The Apartment (1960) and had recurring roles on shows from The Flying Nun to The Doris Day Show, died on January 13 2018 at the age of 92.

Naomi Stevens was born on November 29 1925 in Trenton, New Jersey. She made her television debut in 1956 on an episode of Medic. In the Fifties she appeared on such TV shows as Lux Video Theatre, Cheyenne, Whirlybirds, Playhouse 90, The Californians, Bronco, The Twilight Zone, and Bonanza. She made her movie debut in The Black Orchid in 1958. In 1960 she appeared as Mrs. Mildred Dreyfuss, the wife of Dr. Dreyfuss and C. C. Baxter's neighbour, in The Apartment.

In the Sixties Naomi Stevens had recurring roles on Dr. Kildare, The Flying Nun, The Doris Day Show, and My Three Sons. She guest starred on The Lawless Years, The Detectives, Have Gun - Will Travel, McHale's Navy, Rawhide, 77 Sunset Strip, The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, Wagon Train, The Jack Benny Program, The Big Valley, My Favourite Martian, The Man From U.N.C.L.E., Hogan's Heroes, That Girl, Adam-12, and Room 222. In the Sixties she appeared in such films as Convicts 4, The Art of Love (1965), Frankie and Johnny(1966), Valley of the Dolls (1967), The Shakiest Gun in the West, and The Hawaiians (1970).

 In the Seventies Naomi Stevens was a regular on The Montefuscos and Vega$. She guest starred on such shows as The Odd Couple; Nanny and the Professor; The Partridge Family; Love, American Style; The F.B.I.; Cannon; Ironside; Kolchak: The Night Stalker; and Barney Miller. She appeared in such films as Fly Me (1973), Superdad (1973), Hard Times (1975), and Hustle (1977).  In the Eighties she guest starred on such shows as Taxi, Hotel, Trapper John M.D., and Duck Factory.

Naomi Stevens was a wonderful actress. Through the years she mostly played ethnic mothers or motherly types, although she did on occasion play other sorts of roles. She was Sister Teresa on The Flying Nun and police Sgt. Bella Archer on Vega$. In the TV movie The Old Man Who Cried Wolf she played a woman who is convinced that a man whose friend was killed in an attack is crazy. While Naomi Stevens mostly played mother figures in her career, she was quite capable at playing other roles as well.

TCM Spotlight on Movie Series on Tuesday in May

Movie series are a concept familiar to modern day audiences. Among the many examples are the Star Wars series, the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and, most notably, the James Bond series. As common as movie series might seem now, they were even more common during the Golden Age of Hollywood. So great was the popularity of such series as that the Blondie series, The Cisco Kid, and yet others racked up a large number of entries over the years. With but a few exceptions (the entire Thin Man series and the early Tarzan entries), most films belonging to movie series were programmers or B-movies, the sort of movies that would occupy the bottom half of a double bill. Regardless, they proved very popular and were often guaranteed money makers for the studios that made them.

Next month the TCM Spotlight will be on movies series. Every Tuesday night and Wednesday night next month Turner Classic Movies will air a number of movies in series starting at 8 PM Eastern/7 PM Central. May 1 sees TCM airing entries in the Blondie and Mexican Spitfire series. On May2 TCM will air entries in the Maisie and Great Gildersleeve series.  On May 8 they are airing movies in the Tarzan series. May 9 viewers will be treated to entries in the Jungle Jim and Bomba the Jungle Boy series. On May 15 Turner Classic Movies is airing entries in the Andy Hardy series. On May 16 they'll be showing films from the Five Little Peepers and Dr. Kildare series. May 22 sees movies from the Nancy Drew series and the Miss Marple series. May 23 TCM will show the "Thin Man" movies and Perry Mason movies. On May 29 they will be airing movies in the Boston Blackie and Bulldog Drummond series. Finally, on May 30 TCM will show entries in the Lassie and Rusty series.

If you are a fan of the old movie series, then you will definitely want to tune into TCM on Tuesday nights next month!

Mystery Street (1950)

As a movie genre the police procedural reached prominence in the years following World War II. It was a period that saw the release of such films as Quai des Orfèvres (1947), The Naked City (1948), and He Walked By Night (1948).  Among the very best of the police procedurals was Mystery Street, in 1950. Indeed, in some respects Mystery Street could be considered revolutionary in that it incorporated a good deal of forensic science into its plot. It could quite rightfully be considered the forerunner of such TV shows as Quincy M.E. and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.

In Mystery Street a B-girl's skeleton (she was played by Jan Sterling) is found long after she was murdered. State Police Lt. Peter Morales (played by Ricardo Montalban) is assigned to the case. To make any progress on the case at all, he must enlist the help of Dr. McAdoo (played by Bruce Bennett) of the Harvard Department of Legal Medicine at Harvard University. Through a combination of Lt. Morales's detective work and the forensic science of Dr. McAdoo, the murderer is eventually revealed.

Mystery Street was based on a story by Leonard Spigelgass (for which he received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Writing, Motion Picture Story), who had previously wrote the screenplays for The Big Street (1942) and I Was a Male War Bride (1949). Mr. Spigelgass's story was adapted by Sydney Boehm (who had previously wrote the screenplay for the film noir The High Wall) and Richard Brooks (who would later write the screenplay for The Blackboard Jungle). It was directed by John Sturges, who would go onto direct such films as Bad Day at Black Rock (1955), The Magnificent Seven (1960), and The Great Escape (1963).

Mystery Street is significant as the first commercial film to be shot primarily on location in the Boston area, with scenes shot not only in Boston itself, but at Cape Cod and Harvard University as well. In fact, the film was initially going to be titled Murder at Harvard. MGM acknowledged the university in the credits, "Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer wishes to thank the president and fellows of Harvard College for their generous cooperation in the making of this motion picture." The on-location shooting makes Mystery Street much more realistic than if it had simply been shot on a Hollywood backlot.

Of course, Mystery Street is also significant as perhaps the first feature film to incorporate a good deal of forensic science into its plot. At one point in the plot Lt. Morales and Dr. McAdoo compare the photographs of 86 different women to the photograph of the victim's skull in an effort to identify her. In another sequence they examine the car in which she was murdered. This might not seem particularly exciting, but on screen it proves to be more riveting than the similar investigations seen on such TV shows as those in the CSI franchise. Earlier police procedurals painstakingly examined police procedure. Mystery Street may have been the first to examine forensic science.

This is not to say that Mystery Street's sole focus was on forensic science. Lt. Morales's family had only recently migrated to the United States, so there is also a bit of class conflict present in the film. This is particularly true in his dealings with James Joshua Harkley (played by Edmond Ryan), whose family arrived in North America in the 17th Century, before the United States was even founded. 

While Mystery Street was made on a relatively low budget (particularly for an MGM film), it still did not make a profit at the box office. In fact, it lost $284,000. That having been said, it did receive good notices from critics, with many applauding its attention to detail. It also received a nomination for Best Writing, Motion Picture Story for Leonard Spigelgass.

In many respects the poor showing of Mystery Street at the box office is regrettable. In many ways it is an incredible film, particularly in its use of forensic science and some very well done set pieces. As Lt. Morales and Dr. McAdoo, Ricardo Montalban and Bruce Bennett make a great team. Mystery Street could have easily provided the basis for a series of films or even, later in the Fifties, a TV show. Aside from Messrs. Montalban and Bennett, the film benefits from some great performances, from Jan Sterling to Elsa Lanchester. As might be expected of a film shot by John Alton, the cinematography is amazing. John Alton was the cinematographer on several films noirs, including He Walked by Night (1948) and Raw Deal (1948). His first film immediately following Mystery Street was Father of the Bride (1950) and he would later shoot Elmer Gantry (1960).

Mystery Street is overall a remarkable film, to the point that it is hard to believe that it was considered a B movie upon its initial release. In fact, I would say that it is one of the best films that John Sturges ever made. It is a must-see for any fan of film noir, police procedurals, or films featuring a good deal of forensic science.