Tuesday, December 31, 2013

It's almost Midnight...

... and Ann Miller is marching with the last few minutes to the end of 2013!


Hoping to start the New Year with a Bang!

Marilyn Monroe and Ann Miller stand ready to help you start 2014 with a bang! However, I don't recommend following their lead as far as fireworks safety goes....




The Year is Rapidly Coming to a Close

The end of 2013 will soon be upon us! For some, the hands one the clock can't move fast enough past 23:59:59!


Friday, December 27, 2013

Marx Bros deliver 'Room Service'

Room Service (1938)
Starring: The Marx Bros, Frank Albertson, Donald McBride, Lucille Ball, Cliff Dunstan, Philip Wood, Alexander Asro, and Ann Miller
Director:  William Seiter
Rating: Seven of Ten Stars

A broke theatrical producer (Groucho Marx) engages in an increasingly desperate series of ruses to prevent eviction of himself and the cast of the play he is trying to secure financial backing for.


"Room Service" is the only Marx Bros. film that was not specifically written for them. It's an adaptation of a play that was hugely successful at the time, and many of the supporting actors (such as Donald McBride as the long-suffering hotel inspector) play the same roles the originated on stage. I assume it's a faithful adaptation, as the stage roots are so visible that the vast majority of the film takes place in a single room, with characters coming and going through its three different doors and one can even sense where the lights would dim and come up between acts.

The fact that the film is "stagey" doesn't hurt it, however, as running in and out of doors and verbal patter is the Marx Bros. stock and trade. I felt that the only weakness here over material tailor-made for the trio was that Harpo feels under-utulized, even if he gets to be at the center of the film's culmination and the conclusion of one of its funniest sequences--a prolonged fake suicide and impromptu memorial

While Groucho and Chico expertly deliver some superb lines, the aforementioned suicide scene and the aftermath with Harpo are the only parts that compare to the many great bits in "Duck Soup" or "A Day at the Races." The pacing of the film is solid and the comedy is top-notch, but in general only that the suicide sequence really felt like it could only have been done by the Marx Bros.

In some ways, this might be a film that even those who don't usually like Marx Bros. movies can enjoy. The story serves a greater function here than just moving us from comedic set piece to comedic set piece, and there isn't the sense that there's a single character that's the target of Grouch's abuse is also lacking. As stories go, the only weak point I felt was the romantic subplot between the playwright (Frank Albertson) and one of the hotel staff (Ann Miller); it added nothing whatsoever to the film.


Trivia: Ann Miller  was only 15 when she appeared in as the love interest in "Room Service", having lied about her age to be hired at RKO as a contract player.

Wednesday, December 25, 2013

Tuesday, December 24, 2013

It's Christmas Eve!

May Santa, or one of his helpers, bring you everything on your Wish List!


(And if you have a few days off, allow me to suggest you spend it gaming with family and friends! You can get all the NUELOW Games themed Christmas releases (edited and co-designed by yours truly) up to the most recent one bundled together in "A Christmas Box" by clicking here. The just-released 2014 Christmas Special is also available. Give yourself and your family and friends the gift of rollplaying this Christmas!)


Friday, December 20, 2013

The Louise Brooks Quarterly: A White Christmas


Louise Brooks would like to remind you that there's only four days until Christmas. Also, she wants to underscore the unifying theme of this blog.