The Echo of a Distant Time

Sunday, November 17, 2024

Hell to Eternity (1960, Allied Artists)

Hell to Eternity is a profoundly moving cinematic work recounting the true story of Pfc. Guy Gabaldon (played by Jeffrey Hunter), a U.S. Marine who, having been adopted as a boy by a Japanese-American family, finds himself serving in Japan during World War II. While war films hold a particular fascination for me, they are a challenge, as my misophonia renders the cacophony of gunfire and explosions almost intolerable. Otherwise, I tend to love the genre. This film also features the enchanting Patricia Owens (below), who delivers a captivating and sultry performance in a truly magnificent scene.

Copyright 2024, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on X, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, BLUESKY - @arthurnewhook.bsky.social. DONATIONS GRATEFULLY ACCEPTED at https://tinyurl.com/ArthurNewhook.

Sunday, October 6, 2024

Born #OTD 1922: Teala Loring

Noted for her appearances in several ‘poverty row’ films of the mid-1940s for Monogram Pictures, Teala Loring (née Marcia Eloise Griffin) grew up as the daughter of a vaudeville performer. Her three siblings, including Debra Paget, also achieved varying degrees of success in the entertainment business. Unfortunately, those B-movies were not typically well-received by critics or audiences, and Ms Loring – who also went by the name ‘Judith Gibson’ – left Hollywood for good after marrying in 1950. She passed away at the age of 84 in 2007 and is interred at Houston National Cemetery.

Saturday, October 5, 2024

#OTD 1927: 'The Jazz Singer' premiers, the first major motion picture to utilize sound

'The Jazz Singer', starring Al Jolson. 1927, Warner Bros.

The Jazz Singer: Starring the always entertaining, though quite politically incorrect by today's standards, Al Jolson. This film's success arguably was the beginning of the end of the silent era of cinema, and it's importance cannot be overstated.

#OTD 1969: The distinguished Protestant theologian Harry Emerson Fosdick did depart at the ripe age of 91

A sagacious and honourable man of humanity who fervently and boldly opposed the schemes of the fundamentalists and nationalists who perpetually pervert the Christian faith. Truth be told, American Christianity needs individuals such as he in these dire and most unholy times.

Thursday, October 3, 2024

#OTD 1929: the tragic passing of Jeanne Eagels

Photo: Library of Congress

3 October 1929: The esteemed stage and film actress Jeanne Eagels (nee Eugenia Eagles) tragically perished at the tender age of 39 in New York City, her death being attributed to ‘an overdose of the chloral hydrate'.

Tuesday, October 1, 2024

Quotables 1 October 2024: Jayne Mansfield on sex, war, and God

‘I love sex.... It should be animalistic, it should be sadistic, it should at times be masochistic.... There are few rules and moral conventions.’

‘War is a foolish, childish, animalistic, unthinking, unintelligent way of trying to accomplish a purpose.’

‘I guess a lot of people think that a girl who shows her bosom and wears tight dresses can't be close to God. God has always been close to me. Only He knew what was in my heart.’

Quotes via https://www.azquotes.com/author/9408-Jayne_Mansfield

John Amos, 1939-2024

Rest in peace, John Amos. A supremely talented actor, he masterfully portrayed the role of working-class family patriarch James Evans on the ’70s sitcom Good Times. It was a poignant portrayal he left when it became clear that audiences were more interested in the comedic antics of co-star JJ Walker than in the overarching story of an inner-city Chicago family trying to get by. Shortly after leaving Good Times, however, he gained public acclaim and earned an Emmy for his role as the adult Kunta Kinte in the 1977 blockbuster mini-series Roots. Mr Amos’s résumé is second to none. From the Mary Tyler Moore Show to Coming to America to the Broadway stage, John Amos was a respected fixture of his profession for many decades, and he will be dearly missed.

Born #OTD 1938: Stella Stevens

Stella Stevens, 1 October 1938 – 17 February 2023. Pictured here in 'The Nutty Professor' (1963), produced by Paramount Pictures.

Sunday, September 29, 2024

Keri Russell in Esquire magazine, circa 2010

Keri Russell. Girly Pics of Yesteryear: Everlasting Loveliness and Timeless Grace on Facebook. Join today

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Ukrainian beauty Tetyana Piskun

Olivia Newton-John

Olivia Newton-John. Girly Pics of Yesteryear: Everlasting Loveliness and Timeless Grace on Facebook. Join today

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Brigitte Bardot

Girly Pics of Yesteryear: Everlasting Loveliness and Timeless Grace on Facebook. Join today

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Girly Pics of Yesteryear: Everlasting Loveliness and Timeless Grace on Facebook. Join today

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Friday, September 27, 2024

#OTD 1972: the noted actress Gwyneth Paltrow is born in Los Angeles

Photo: Architectural Digest

Gwyneth Paltrow, born on 27 September 1972. I do not believe I have watched a single one of her films; for some reason, I was mistakenly under the impression that she was English-born. No matter, she is certainly a most exquisite lady.

#OTD 1066: the Norman Conquest of England begins

Illustration via Historic UK

Complete tomes cannot recount the narrative, let alone a mere one or two sentences, of how profoundly this invasion transformed the entire framework of the English nation and populace. Read more via Historic UK.

Wednesday, September 25, 2024

Born #OTD 1894: Gladys Brockwell, a luminary of the silent era who met a sudden and tragic end just as the age of the 'Talkies' was dawning

Photos by Albert Witzel

A Brooklyn-born beauty, Gladys Brockwell (née Lindeman), was touring the country in theatrical productions as early as age seven. Over the course of two decades, she starred in numerous silent films and was 'regarded as one of the finest character actresses of the day who not only adapted to sound films but excelled in them.' However, as this bold new era of sound in cinema was gaining momentum, tragedy struck on 27 June 1929. Ms Brockwell was involved in a horrific car crash that sent the vehicle over a 75-foot embankment on the Ventura Highway, trapping her beneath the wreckage. Despite four blood transfusions, she succumbed to internal injuries and sadly departed this cruel earth on 2 July 1929, at just 34 years of age.

Born #OTD 1947: Cheryl Tiegs, America’s first supermodel

SI 1975

The resplendent Cheryl Tiegs, pictured here in 1975 and 1983, is a fair maiden of Minnesota, born of German lineage. She shall forever be renowned as one of the most prolific Sports Illustrated swimsuit beauties, and was the first to grace the covers of the publication's annual swimsuit editions on multiple occasions. Although she revealed as much skin as others in her trade, she always maintained a wholesome, 'girl next door' aura that few, if any, have been able to emulate.

1983

Quotables 25 September 2024: On the 44th anniversary of his passing, John Bonham reflects on the importance of maintaining one’s drum kit and what neglecting it equates to

Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham. Photo: Neal Preston

‘Mistreating your drum set is just one step below child abuse’. - John Bonham, 31 May 1948 to 25 September 1980.

Quote via https://www.azquotes.com/author/1636-John_Bonham

Marilyn Monroe seated in a Jeep, basking in the summer sun

Shaw Family Archives/Getty Images

Marilyn Monroe, captured by Sam Shaw on Long Island, 1957. Commanding the scene as she always did with her radiance.

Tuesday, September 24, 2024

Quotables 24 September 2024: Orwell on the increasing ‘slovenliness’ of the English language and its impact on thought

Photo: BBC

‘A man may take to drink because he feels himself to be a failure, and then fail all the more completely because he drinks. It is rather the same thing that is happening to the English language. It becomes ugly and inaccurate because our thoughts are foolish, but the slovenliness of our language makes it easier for us to have foolish thoughts’. - George Orwell, ‘Politics and the English Language’, 1946.

Born #OTD 1944: 1968 Playmate of the Year Angela Dorian (née Victoria Vetri)

Photos copyright of Playboy

Behold her in all her radiant splendour, as captured by the lens of Carl Gunther. The Italian-American beauty, known by law as Victoria Vetri, yet famed as Angela Dorian, was chosen as the Playmate of the Month in September 1967, and later crowned Playmate of the Year for 1968. In her teenage years, she was considered for the role of Maria in ‘West Side Story’; this part, of course, ultimately went to Natalie Wood.

Monday, September 23, 2024

Rest in Peace, Benny Golson

Photo: Joseph Berg

Benny Golson, the esteemed tenor saxophonist who performed and recorded with numerous jazz luminaries, departs at 95. {AP 23 September}

Wednesday, September 18, 2024

Born #OTD 1905: the melancholy Swedish screen goddess, Greta Garbo

Photo: Ruth Harriet Louise, circa 1926

‘Life would be so wonderful if we only knew what to do with it’. - Greta Garbo, 18 September 1905 to 15 April 1990.

Tuesday, September 17, 2024

Quotables 17 September 2024: Myrna Loy on her lack of success in marriage

Actress Myrna Loy in ‘A Connecticut Yankee’, 1931, Fox Film Corporation

JD Vance and the rest of the extreme natalists and zealous pro-marriage advocates in today’s Republican Party would be appalled: ‘Some perfect wife I am. I've been married four times, divorced four times, have no children, and can't boil an egg’.

Quote via https://www.azquotes.com/quote/630966

Photo: actress Myrna Loy in 1931’s ‘A Connecticut Yankee’, adorned in sumptuous attire befitting a queen. Her elaborate and resplendent crown rests upon her brow like a circlet of stars, glittering with jewels that seem to capture the very light of the heavens. Her gown, richly embroidered with fine threads of gold and silver, cascades down her form, while a necklace of exquisite gems graces her neck. Her steady and serene gaze suggests both wisdom and power, as though she commands dominion over all she surveys. A vision of majesty and grace, Myrna Loy embodies the very essence of royalty.

#OTD 1931: the illustrious actress Anne Bancroft is born in New York

Embassy Pictures

While most assuredly famed for her portrayal of the bold Mrs Robinson in ‘The Graduate’ (1967), Anne Bancroft’s accomplishments in the craft of acting are as worthy as those of any other esteemed performer. She was also the wife of Mr Mel Brooks.

Friday, September 13, 2024

Born #OTD 1977: Fiona Apple

Fiona Apple, a slender maid of fair skin and a rich alto voice that might stir the soul of Etta James herself, emerged at the tail end of a brief yet glorious age in the 1990s, when the mainstream media and, to some degree, the general public embraced rock-based artists of merit and integrity. Her excellent first album from the year 1996, ‘Tidal’, did find great success in the marketplace; indeed, the lead single, ‘Shadowboxer,’ still sends chills down my spine. Yet her later works, though most worthy, have been wholly cast aside by a public and an industry that only cares about the trifles of shallow pop and country singers. In a better world, Fiona Apple would be a household name, though I strongly suspect she cares little for such fleeting fame or riches.

Born #OTD 1903: Claudette Colbert

Actress Claudette Colbert in ‘The Sign of the Cross’, 1932, Paramount Pictures

Born in Saint-Mandé, France, on 13 September 1903, the future Hollywood goddess Claudette Colbert (née Émilie Chauchoin) emigrated to Manhattan with her family in 1906, just before her third birthday. She grew up bilingual in French and English. With her precise, aristocratic Mid-Atlantic accent and sharp sense of humour, Ms Colbert enchanted Hollywood audiences during her tenure with Paramount in the 1930s. In 1935, she won the Academy Award for Best Actress for ‘It Happened One Night’, and received two further nominations, in 1936 and 1945.

A Chesterfield cigarette ad starring Claudette Colbert

After 1940, she left Paramount to become a freelancer, an uncommon path in the film industry at the time, and continued to be a box office success. As late as 1987, she was awarded a Golden Globe for her role in the television mini-series ‘The Two Mrs. Grenvilles’. Claudette Colbert was also known as an avid Republican, though methinks she would not find a place in today’s MAGA-leaning, Christian nationalist GOP, as she was a childless woman who lived life on her own terms. She departed this ungrateful world at the age of 92 at her vacation home in Barbados, having lived a full and independent life.

Claudette Colbert in 'Bluebeard's Eighth Wife', 1938 Paramount