Underwater! (1955).

Underwater!(1955). Adventure. Directed by John Sturges. Cast: Jane Russell, Gilbert Roland, and Richard Egan.

The story begins when, while diving Johnny Grant, comes across a ship wreck and reports back to his business partner, Dominic Casada. They go back to the ship wreck sight and begin collecting artifacts they find near the ship. When they surface, they are greeted by shark hunter Rico Arrera, who is curious about what they are doing.

Later, Johnny and Dominic show Johnny's wife Theresa, their treasures, which date back to the early seventeenth century. Theresa at first, does not agree with their plan to sell their boat, in order to raise money they need for a sunken treasure expedition.

Dominic, stops by the yacht of an American millionaire where he finds Gloria Warner, the millionaire's secretary abandoned on the boat, Dominic convinces her to become his partner.

Later at a nightclub, Gloria and Dominic run into Johnny and Theresa, who tell them that they sold their boat to finance the expedition.The crew are joined on the yacht by Father Cannon, a priest and historian. Once at sea, Father Cannon tells Dominic, that one of the treasures could only have come from a big ship that fled Panama, with a gold statue of the Madonna, which sank during a hurricane.

During Johnny and Theresa's dive the next day they find a second ship, a man o' war. When they get back, the group discusses the location of the treasure ship, where they  have their first encounter with pirates who also have their eyes on treasure.

This was the last picture that Howard Hughes, would produce with Jane Russell. In 1955, scuba diving were of great interest to the public. There is some exciting scenes which makes this a great Classic Film.

Fun Facts:

Partially filmed on location in Mexico and Hawaii, Underwater! was completed in a newly-constructed underwater tank in an RKO Radio sound stage. It was the first RKO film released in Superscope.

For its world premiere, the film was projected on a submerged movie screen at Silver Springs, Florida, and the invited guests were encouraged to don aqualungs and bathing suits so that they could watch the picture while swimming.

The song Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White featured in the film became a major hit.

At a promotional event for the movie, a young Jayne Mansfield was one of several swimmers participating in a underwater skit when the top of her bathing suit came off, which obviously drew attention to her, and not the movie. It is believed that she let this happen on purpose for the free publicity.

First video of 8.

Lori Nelson(born August 15, 1933). She landed her first role as Marjie Baile in the film, Bend of the River(1952). Many of her roles were mostly in 1950s B-movies. She recently performed in the film, The Naked Monster. She costarred with Barbara Eden in the series, How to Marry a Millionaire (1957–1959). She is also remembered in the role as Mara, the Mayor's daughter, opposite Van Johnson, in the 1957 made-for-TV musical film, The Pied Piper of Hamelin.

Happy Birthday: Jane Russell!

Fun Fact:
(June 21, 1921 – February 28, 2011). Was one of Hollywood's leading sex symbols in the 1940s and 1950s.Went to high school with James Dougherty, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953) co-star Marilyn Monroe's first husband.

Please click here to learn more about Jane Russell.

In Memory: Jane Russell. (June 21, 1921 – February 28, 2011).

Jane Russell (June 21, 1921 – February 28, 2011), after she moved to California, she signed a seven-year contract with Howard Hughes and made her first film, The Outlaw (1943), a story about Billy the Kid that showcased her curvy figure. She was not in another movie until she played Joan Kenwood in the film the, Young Widow(1946).

She performed in many movie roles such as, Calamity Jane, opposite Bob Hope in, The Paleface (1948), Son of Paleface (1952), Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953) opposite Marilyn Monroe.



She performed in two movies with Robert Mitchum, His Kind of Woman (1951) and Macao (1952).

Please click to view "Great On Screen Couples" Robert Mitchum and Jane Russell.

She also performed in the films, Double Dynamite (1951), The Las Vegas Story (1952), Foxfire (1955) and she performed with Clark Gable and Robert Ryan in, The Tall Men (1955).

In the Howard Hughes film, The French Line (1954), the movie showcased Russell in a very sexy one-piece bathing suit, performing a then-provocative musical number, "Lookin' for Trouble."

In 1955, Russell and her first husband, former Los Angeles Rams quarterback Bob Waterfield, formed Russ-Field Productions. They produced Gentlemen Marry Brunettes (1955), The King and Four Queens (1956) starring Clark Gable and Eleanor Parker, Run for the Sun (1956) and The Fuzzy Pink Nightgown (1957). We have lost another wonderful actress.

Remembering Jane Russell...

In Memoriam

1921-2011

Jane Russell, who personified beauty and sexuality to the nation’s greatest generation during World War II and also reigned during the era of Hollywood moguls, died Monday (Feb. 28) at her home in California. She was 89.

Russell passed from respiratory failure, surrounded by family members at her home in the central coast city of Santa Maria.

Survivors include her children, Thomas K. Waterfield, Tracy Foundas and Robert “Buck” Waterfield, along with six grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.

Russell lived a full life, from her days as a wartime pin-up girl to her Hollywood career and to her retirement years, where she was a philanthropist and active churchgoer, according to family member Etta Waterfield, a daughter-in-law.

“She always said I’m going to die in the saddle, I’m not going to sit at home and become an old woman,” Waterfield told The Associated Press . “And that’s exactly what she did, she died in the saddle.”

Although she was widely known as a wartime pin-up queen, she ruled in Hollywood under the tutelage of billionaire Howard Hughes, who was determined to make Russell a star of the first order in Tinseltown.

She reflected the post-war era of prosperity and more free-wheeling lifestyles as Hughes promoted her relentlessly throughout World War II.

He went so far as to buy a Hollywood studio, the then failing RKO Films and signed her to a two-decade film contract that paid the princely sum, at the time, of $1,000 a week.

He also bought the ailing RKO film studio and signed her to a 20-year contract that paid her $1,000 a week.

She was known for her voluptuous figure and ample breasts, and Hughes featured her in a series of movies as a sexy siren that pitted her against the leading men of the day.

Among the films were “His Kind of Woman,” with Robert Mitchum, “Double Dynamite,” with Frank Sinatra and the “The Las Vegas Story” with Victor Mature.

Perhaps her best remembered film was “The Outlaw,” a movie over which Hughes battled censors and Director Howard Hawks. The former he fought to get the film into wide release and the latter to get the picture made.

Russell also appeared in “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes,” a 1953 musical that cast her opposite Marilyn Monroe, another sex siren of the era.

By the 1960s, however, her film career was in eclipse, as Hollywood move away from the Big Mogul Era and films became more influenced by the 1960s counter culture.

In mid-life, she became a spokeswoman for Playtex bras, which featured here well supported bosom.

Her 24-year marriage to UCLA and pro football quarterback Bob Waterfield, which kept her out of major Hollywood scandals during the ’50s and free-wheeling ’60s, ended in bitter divorce in 1968. She was married two other times after that.

Great On Screen Couples: Robert Mitchum and Jane Russell.

This dynamite pair only made two films together, 1951's His Kind Of Woman and 1952's Macao, but they are regarded as one of Hollywood's premiere screen couples. Thanks to Howard Hughes, the pair joined forces for the film noir His Kind Of Woman and generated undeniable screen chemistry. Actually the duo would have made three films together when Hughes considered casting Russell opposite Mitchum for 1949's The Big Steal. This film was rushed into production after Mitchum's arrest for smoking marijuana. Hughes didn't want to risk teaming Russell with him, fearing it would taint her career. Instead, Hughes gave the role to Jane Greer, his former flame he wanted to punish for having rejected him. Regardless, we have two solid films with the pair definitely in their element.

His Kind Of Woman had gambler Dan Milner (Mitchum) in Mexico and comes across a gangster (Raymond Burr) who is trying to get back into America after being deported and a lovely singer named Lenore (Russell). There are twists and turns aplenty in this entertaining film.

Russell's and Mitchum's second film Macao has Mitchum as a man on the run trying to redeem himself by capturing an international crime lord. Russell is cast once again as a singer and has a grand time delivering her lines with spunk and sass. Macao also co-starred Gloria Grahame. It's a shame this duo only made these two films together as you can tell they had a great connection and worked well with one another. They made their mark as one of cinema's sexiest teams.

His Kind of Woman (1951).

His Kind of Woman (1951).Cast: Robert Mitchum and Jane Russell. With supporting roles by: Vincent Price, Raymond Burr, and Charles McGraw. Directer: John Farrow.

Gangster Nick Ferraro, who has been living in Naples since his deportation from the United States, wants to return to the States to put his business back together. First he must change his identity. He and his partners pick out a gambler named Dan Milner, whose weight and height match Ferraro's. They offer him $50,000 to go to Mexico for a year, without revealing who is paying him. Down on his luck, Dan accepts partial payment and travels to Nogales, Mexico. While waiting for his plane, Dan meets Lenore Brent, an heiress and singer. To his surprise, he and Lenore board the same small plane, which Dan learns is headed for Morro's Lodge in Baja California. At the resort, owner José Morro asks Dan about himself, while Myron Winton, shares with him information about some of the lodge's other guests. Dan becomes concerned about Krafft and Thompson and confronts them, who assure him that he will find out more information from a man who is on his way to the lodge. The next day, Dan comes the conclusion that Lenore is having an affair with Mark. Lenore is really Liz Brady, who is posing as an heiress in order to marry Mark, who is separated from his wife Helen. In one of my favorite scenes of the movie, soft-hearted Dan helps Jennie's husband Milton beat Myron at poker. He then asks Morro about the man he is supposed to meet. Morro pretends that he does not know what he is talking about, then tries to discourage pilot, Bill Lusk, from landing at the resort, during a huge thunderstorm. The next day, Bill confesses to Dan that he is an undercover agent and informs Dan, that he has sold his identity to a gangster, who has hired Krafft, an ex-Nazi plastic surgeon, to change his face to look like his. You will have to watch to see who comes to Dan's rescue, you will be surprised.

This is a fun Noir/comedy/adventure with Robert Mitchum and Jane Russell, beautifully teamed together. Vincent Price supplies many of the laughs and is a very interesting character in this film.
Video: Robert Mitchum's Studio Days Part 3 (about filming the movie His Kind of Woman(1952).



Charles McGraw, became popular in the film noirs during the late 1940s and 1950s. His gravelly voice and rugged looks was perfect in the noir genre and he performed in many roles as cop or gunman.

Introduced with William Conrad as the two hit men terrorizing a small town diner in the film The Killers(1946), McGraw's best known perform aces include: Roadblock(1951), in the noir "B" movie, The Narrow Margin (1952), Spartacus, Armored Car Robbery (1950) and A Boy and His Dog (1975).

Happy Birthday Jane Russell !

Born Ernestine Jane Geraldine Russell, in Bemidji, Minnesota, she was eldest child and only daughter of the five children of Roy William Russell.

Her father was a First Lieutenant in the U.S. Army and her mother was a former actress with a road troupe. Her parents spent the early years of their marriage in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. For her birth her mother temporarily moved back to the U.S. to make sure she was born a U.S. citizen. Later the family moved to the San Fernando Valley of Southern California. They lived in Burbank in 1930 and her father worked as an office manager at a soap manufacturing plant.

Russell's mother arranged for her to take piano lessons. In addition to music, she was interested in drama and performed in stage productions at Van Nuys High School. Her dreams were to be a designer, until the death of her father at forty-six, when she went to work as a receptionist after graduation. She also modeled and at the urging of her mother, studied drama and acting with Max Reinhardt's Theatrical Workshop and with famed Russian actress Maria Ouspenskaya.

In 1940, Russell was signed to a seven-year contract with Howard Hughes and made her first movie, The Outlaw (1943), a story about Billy the Kid that went to great lengths to show her figure.


One of my favorite Jane Russell movies is:
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes(1953).Director: Howard Hawks.Cast: Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell, with Charles Coburn, Elliott Reid, Tommy Noonan, Taylor Holmes, and Norma Varden in supporting roles. The screenplay by Charles Lederer. Music of songwriting teams Hoagy Carmichael and Harold Adamson and Jule Styne and Leo Robin. The songs by Styne and Robin are from the Broadway show, while the songs by Carmichael and Adamson were written for the film.

The movie is a comedy with musical numbers. Russell is down-to-earth, with a sharp wit. Monroe role is the gold-digging Lorelei Lee for which the film is best remembered. Who can forget Monroe's performance of the song "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend"!




This video is for Bec.:D

Macao(1952)

Macao (1952). Film noir/ adventure film. Director : Josef von Sternberg and Nicholas Ray. Producer Howard Hughes fired director von Sternberg during filming and hired Nicholas Ray to finish it. Cast: Robert Mitchum, Jane Russell, Gloria Grahame and William Bendix.

After a New York undercover detective is killed during his investigation, the police in Hong Kong notifies the New York police about the murder. Later, on a boat headed for Macao passenger Nick Cochran rescues Julie Benton from a guy trying to pick her up, instead of being thankful she picks his pocket. When they arrive in Macao, Nick informs the Macao police that his passport and money were stolen and that his only identification is his Signal Corps discharge papers. Sebastian shows Vincent Halloran, the owner of the Quick Reward casino, a photo of Nick because he thinks he is undercover cop..

Nick, knows that Julie picked his pocket and goes to her hotel room to confront her. At first Julie denies the accusation but when Sebastian arrives, looking for Nick. She gives him back his money. Soon, Julie finds a  job singing with Halloran, Nick also asks Halloran for work. But Halloran refuses to hire him and tries to bribe him to leave Macao. The next day, Trumble shows Nick a large diamond and asks him to sell the necklace. Halloran agrees to cross the three-mile limit that legally protects him and goes on to Hong Kong. Where he takes Nick prisoner. Now, Nick's life is in danger and needs to find away to escape.

This is the first time I have seen the Movie Macao. Being a a huge Robert Mitchum fan, I loved this movie and would watch it again.. Jane Russell and Gloria Grahame were also wonderful in their performances. One of my favorite characters in the film was the old blind man.