Biographical film: Night and Day(1946).

Night and Day(1946). Biographical film starring Cary Grant as American composer and songwriter Cole Porter. The movie was directed by Michael Curtiz. The music score by Ray Heindorf and Max Steiner was nominated for an Academy Award. The film features several of the best-known Porter songs, including the title song, "Night and Day", "Begin the Beguine" and "My Heart Belongs to Daddy".

Alexis Smith plays Linda Lee Porter, Porter's wife of 35 years. Monty Woolley and Mary Martin appear as themselves, and the rest of the cast includes Jane Wyman, Eve Arden, Alan Hale, Dorothy Malone, Donald Woods, and Ginny Simms.

The film is the fictionalized story of Cole Porter's life, as a Yale University law student who is more interested in making a living in the theater than the law. During the Christmas holidays, Cole travels home to Indiana with his law professor, Monty Woolley, and his friend, Ward Blackburn. Also.. visiting the Porter home is Cole's cousin Nancy and her wealthy friend, Linda Lee. At home, Cole tells his grandfather Omer that he wants to be a songwriter.

After returning to the city, Cole and Monty put together a show called "See America First", starring Gracie Harris. Nancy, Ward and Linda are in the audience on opening night, but Cole's family refuses to come. The Lusitania, is sunk by the Germans the same night, and Cole's show closes after only one performance.

Cole then joins the French army and is injured. While recovering in a French hospital, he finds Linda, working as a nurse. To lift Cole spirits, Linda locates a piano and Cole writes the song, "Night and Day." Linda invites Cole to join her in a villa on the Riviera, but.. Cole does not want to take her money anymore and makes plans to return to America to get back to his work.

In New York, Cole finds a job playing the piano in a music store. Tired of  the same old songs, Cole's partner, singer Carole Hill, sings one of his songs, which gives, Cole and Monty, the idea to produce another show, The New Yorkers .

Things are going well and Cole, is offered the opportunity to write a show in England. There he finds Linda, they marry and return to New York, where Cole begins working on another show. Cole makes many promises to Linda about taking a trip together, but it is one show after another. Linda becomes tired of Cole's promises and leaves for Europe on her own. Cole's mother telephones and informs him that his grandfather is dying, Cole flies back to Indiana, to make up with Omer. Cole, stays in Indiana after the funeral and, during a storm, is badly injured when he is thrown by a horse, and he loses the use of his legs. Cole makes Monty, promise not to tell Linda about his injury. Will Cole and Linda become reunited?

This is a beautiful, entertaining film with a fun dialogue and a splash of drama. If you are a Cary Grant fan, you will love this film.

Selena Royle(November 6, 1904 — April 23, 1983), parents were playwright Edwin Milton Royle and actress Selena Fetter.  She turned to acting despite the objections of her parents. Her first professional role was as Guinevere in her father's play, Lancelot and Elaine. Eventually she landed a part on her own in the 1923 Theatre Guild production of Peer Gynt with Joseph Schildkraut and became a Broadway actress. She made one film in the 1930s, Misleading Lady, but otherwise worked on the stage and on radio, starring on the shows Hilda Hope, M.D. and Kate Hopkins.

In the 1940s, she returned to film playing maternal characters such as Ingrid Bergman's mother in, Joan of Arc (1948). She also made several appearances on early television. However, in 1951, when she refused to testify about her alleged Communist sympathies before the House Un-American Activities Committee, her acting career came to a sudden standstill. She appeared in only two more films afterwards, including the low-budget, Robot Monster.

Great On Screen Couples: Jane Wyman & Jack Carson

For my next couple I chose a couple not too many people may realize how good they really were in the five films they made together. I'm speaking of Jane Wyman and Jack Carson. They co-starred in 5 films plus one more where Jane made a cameo as herself. They usually played either a married couple or boyfriend and girlfriend and always had the most engaging banter. Their first film together was 1942's Larceny, Inc which they were the supporting players to Edward G. Robinson. But they played boyfriend and girlfriend. I have yet to see this film so I can't really comment on it.

Now for their next film, Princess O'Rourke (1943), they did get to play a married couple. But once again they were secondary characters to stars Olivia de Havilland and Robert Cummings. But their chemistry was undeniable and they played well off one another. 

They would hit their stride with 1944's Make Your Own Bed and this time they were the leading stars. Jack would play a struggling detective looking to crack the big case so he could marry his long suffering girlfriend. Shades of Thin Man make this a memorable screwball comedy. The pair would team up again later on in the year for the extremely funny The Doughgirls which had them playing another married couple dealing with the wartime housing shortage in Washington, D.C and scads of colorful characters including Ann Sheridan, Alexis Smith, Eve Arden, and Charlie Ruggles. By now Jack and Jane were operating like a well oiled machine as The Doughgirls remain their best film that I've seen of them yet.

In  fact, the producers of The Doughgirls must have thought so because they pretty much reunited the entire cast for 1946's comedy/drama One More Tomorrow, starring Jane, Jack, Ann Sheridan and Alexis Smith once again. Dennis Morgan was the newcomer who joined in on the fun. I haven't seen this film as of yet either.

Then Jack Carson and Dennis Morgan would make the surreal comedy It's A Great Feeling trying to make a star out of Doris Day. This is the film where loads of Hollywood stars show up in cameos as themselves and Jane shows up early for her brief appearance. Jack would later appear on Jane's TV show, Jane Wyman Presents The Fireside Theatre in the mid 50's but as far as movies go, It's A Great Feeling would their last team up together. So while everyone may know the big couples like Bogie/Bacall, Tracy/Hepburn, and Gable/Harlow, do not miss out an underrated pair like Jane Wyman and Jack Carson. They truly deserve to be talked about and remembered just like the other couples.

Happy Birthday: Jane Wyman!

Jane Wyman (January 4, 1917 – September 10, 2007), was an singer, dancer, and character actress of film and television. Wyman was the first wife of Ronald Reagan, marrying him in 1940 and divorcing him in 1948.

At age 15, Jane worked as a manicurist and a switchboard operator to make ends meet, before landing small parts in films: The Kid from Spain (1932), My Man Godfrey (1936) and Cain and Mabel (1936). Her big break came when she received her first starring role in, Public Wedding(1937), a story about a bankrupt carnival staging a fake 'public wedding' in the mouth of a giant whale. But the 'bridegroom' takes off with the money, arranging a substitute and Flip Lane, finds herself married to a handsome stranger.

Jane was cast in another starring role, in Torchy Plays With Dynamite(1939). A couple try to nab a gangster by tracking his moll. In 1941, she appeared in You're in the Army Now, in which she and Regis Toomey had the longest screen kiss in cinema history: 3 minutes and 5 seconds.

Wyman finally gained critical notice in the film noir, The Lost Weekend (1945). She was nominated for the 1946 Academy Award for Best Actress for The Yearling (1946), and won two years later for her role as a deaf-mute rape victim in, Johnny Belinda (1948). She was the first person in the sound era to win an acting Oscar without speaking a line of dialogue. In an acceptance speech, Wyman took her statue and said only, "I accept this, very gratefully, for keeping my mouth shut once. I think I'll do it again."

She worked with directors: Alfred Hitchcock on, Stage Fright (1950), Frank Capra on Here Comes the Groom (1951) and Michael Curtiz on, The Story of Will Rogers (1952). She starred in The Glass Menagerie (1950), Just for You (1952), Let's Do It Again (1953), The Blue Veil (1951) (another Oscar nomination), the remake of Edna Ferber's So Big (1953), Magnificent Obsession (1954) (Oscar nomination), Lucy Gallant (1955), All That Heaven Allows (1955), and Miracle in the Rain (1956).

She replaced Gene Tierney in, Holiday for Lovers (1959) and next appeared in, Pollyanna (1960), Bon Voyage! (1962), and her final movie, How to Commit Marriage (1969).

TCM will be featuring the Jane Wyman films Listed below:

He Couldn't Say No (1938) .A timid advertising man learns to fight for the girl of his dreams. Cast: Frank McHugh, Jane Wyman, Cora Witherspoon. Dir: Lewis Seiler.

My Favorite Spy (1942) Bandleader Kay Kyser leaves his bride at the altar to help catch international spies. Cast: Kay Kyser, Ginny Simms, Jane Wyman. Dir: Tay Garnett.

Three Guys Named Mike (1951) A stewardess can't choose among three suitors. Cast: Jane Wyman, Van Johnson, Howard Keel. Dir: Charles Walters.

Johnny Belinda (1948) .A small-town doctor helps a deaf-mute farm girl learn to communicate. Cast: Jane Wyman, Lew Ayres, Agnes Moorehead. Dir: Jean Negulesco.



Stage Fright (1950) An acting student goes undercover to prove a singing star killed her husband. Cast: Marlene Dietrich, Jane Wyman, Michael Wilding. Dir: Alfred Hitchcock.



So Big (1953) . A schoolteacher-turned-farmer fights to save the land and her son. Cast: Jane Wyman, Sterling Hayden, Richard Beymer. Dir: Robert Wise.

 

Miracle In The Rain (1956) .When a lonely woman's wartime lover dies, her loneliness threatens her life. Cast: Jane Wyman, Van Johnson, Eileen Heckart. Dir: Rudolph Mate.

Let's Do It Again (1953) . A divorced couple finds it impossible to stay out of each other's lives. Cast: Jane Wyman, Ray Milland, Aldo Ray. Dir: Alexander Hall.

Pawsome Pet Picture: Jane Wyman.

Personal Quote:
I never go into anything except with both feet and a lot of enthusiasm.

Happy Birthday: Rock Hudson!

Rock Hudson( November 17, 1925 – October 2, 1985).  In 1959 playboy, Rock Hudson and girl next door Doris Day, were first paired for their trilogy of movies: Pillow Talk(1959), Lover Come Back(1961) and Send me No Flowers(1964). Perfect comedies with great performances by Hudson and Day.

The 6ft 5in tall actor was one of the most popular and well-known movie stars of his time. He completed nearly 70 films and starred in several television shows during a career that spanned over four decades. One of his first on screen successes was in the film: Magnificent Obsession(1954). Cast: Rock Hudson and Jane Wyman. Playboy Robert Merrick loses control of his speed boat and has a terrible accident. Rescuers send for the nearest resuscitator, located at Dr. Phillips's house on the lake. Unfortunately, Dr. Phillips has a fatal heart attack and dies. Merrick becomes a patient at Dr. Phillips's clinic, where the doctors and nurses all blame Merrick for Dr. Phillips's death.

Merrick finally learns why everyone dislikes him. He tries to run away, but .. faints,  in front of Helen's car and ends up back at the hospital. Fully recovered Merrick, tries to go back to his wild life style and leaves the party, drunk. After running off the road, Merrick ends up at the home of Edward Randolph, who recognizes him. Randolph shares with him how he and Dr. Phillips became so successful. As fate would have it, Helen steps into the path of a car while trying to run away from Merrick. She is blinded by accident and Merrick vows to become a doctor. He falls love with Helen and helps her adjust to her blindness under the name, Robby.

After many extensive tests, surgeons tell Helen there is no hope for recovery. Later, Robby confesses to being Merrick. Helen has already guessed this. Merrick asks Helen to marry him. Later that night, Helen realizes she will be a burden to him, disappears. Will Merrick ever find Helen and will she ever be cured. Also in the cast, Agnes Moorehead, who has some great moments in the film.

Hudson's popularity soared in the film, Giant, based on Edna Ferber's novel and co-starring Elizabeth Taylor and James Dean. Hudson and Dean both were nominated for Oscars in the Best Actor category.

Following the film, Something of Value (1957) was a moving performance in, A Farewell to Arms, which he turned down Marlon Brando's role in Sayonara, William Holden's role in, The Bridge on the River Kwai, and Charlton Heston's role in, Ben-Hur. Those films went on to become successful while, A Farewell to Arms was a huge flop.

He performed in the thriller, Seconds (1966). The film flopped but it later gained cult status, and Hudson's performance is often called one of his best. He also worked on the action film, Tobruk (1967), the lead in 1968's spy thriller, Ice Station Zebra, a role was his  favorite film, he also performed in the western, The Undefeated (1969) opposite John Wayne.

He starred in one of my favorite TV shows, McMillan and Wife opposite Susan Saint James from 1971 to 1977.  Hudson played police commissioner Stewart "Mac" McMillan with Saint James as his wife Sally.



He was in ill health while filming, The Ambassador. From December 1984 to April 1985, Hudson landed a recurring role on the ABC prime time soap opera Dynasty as Daniel Reece, the love interest for Krystle Carrington (played by Linda Evans) and biological father of the character Sammy Jo Carrington (Heather Locklear).