Magic Tricks with Georges

The Vanishing Lady (aka "The Conjuring of a Woman at the House of Robert Houdin") (1896)
Starring: Georges Méliès
Director: Georges Méliès
Rating: Seven of Ten Stars

A magician gives a private performance where he makes a lady vanish and then reappear gradually.

Usually, I find the Georges Méliès films where he's just doing standard magician's tricks but using camera trickery to accomplish the illusion to be the most uninteresting of his works. However, "The Vanishing Lady" is one of the most impressive entries in that category, because the film stops are nearly undetectable, and the way he is takes steps to "prove" the magic is real almost appear like they are mistakes and are very well done.

For a bit of film that's some 125 years old is very impressive... and I suggest you take a minute (literally) to check it out right now.

 

Saturday Serial: Jenna of the Jungle

Continuing Don Hudson's "Jenna of the Jungle" (and including a random bonus jungle girl afterwards). Click on the panels for a larger image, and come back next Saturday for Part Three.


Jenna of the Jungle: Part Two
By Don Hudson

To Be Continued...

Girls of the Jungle

By Mike Hoffman

Doing a little recycling...

The art is by Richard Sala. The re-purposing of said art was done by yours truly, Steve Miller.

(The drawing originally appeared in "Peculia" (2002, Fantagrahics). Review coming soon!)

Firearms Friday with Grace McDonald

Born in 1918, Grace McDonald began her show-business career in vaudeville, but transitioned to film as world war was looming in 1940. She was a rising Hollywood star during the World War ii years, with an energetic and cheerful screen presence, as well as talent both as a dancer and an actress, that saw her fit equally well into musicals, comedies, and even dramas.

McDonald had grown to be a B-level star and mainstay at Universal--she received top billing in the 1944 remake of "Secret of the Blue Room", "Murder in the Blue Room"-- when she abruptly traded acting for married life. In 1945, McDonald married Ralph Green. They raised three sons together and remained married until her death in 1999.

(I really hope someone cleaned that gun after McDonald was done posing with it...)

The Swank Quarterly

Hilary Swank is looking outside and wondering--will I get to go anywhere in June?!

'Satan Met a Lady' is ruined by weak script

Satan Met a Lady (1936)
Starring: Warren William, Bette Davis, Marie Wilson, Porter Hall, Arthur Treacher, Maynard Holmes, and Alison Skipworth
Director: William Dieterle
Rating: Five of Ten Stars

A womanizing, crooked private eye (William) re-connects with his ex-partner (Hall) in time to start a new scam. Things quickly turn deadly as a woman as corrupt as he is (Davis) draws him into a murderous struggle over an 8th century artifact that legends hold is full of jewels.

"Satan Met a Lady" is one of three adaptations from Warner Bros. of Dashiell Hammett's "The Maltese Falcon", coming between "The Maltese Falcon" (1931) and "The Maltese Falcon" (1941) and it's both the one that's furthest afield from the source material as well as the weakest. The weaknesses don't arise so much from seemingly arbitrary cosmetic changes (the criminal mastermind is a fat woman instead of a fat man, the treasure-stuff McGuffin is a drinking horn instead of a falcon sculpture, the Sam Spade character is named Ted Shane, and so on), but from the characterizations and even some of the characterizations and the fact that this is either a comedy that's for the most part unfunny, or a mystery that's not terribly engaging..

The biggest problem with "Satan Met a Lady" is its 'hero', Ted Shayne (played by Warren William). Shayne is a man with absolutely no redeeming qualities--he's self-centered, arrogant, lazy, completely untrustworthy, and not half as witty as he thinks he is, and nowhere near as charming and handsome as the script makes all the ladies in the film think he is. Shayne such an unpleasant character that my favorite part of the film is the ending, which I won't comment on, because it'll spoil some of the few truly good minutes of the film.

It's a shame that the script isn't better--with either sharpened comedy or dramatic tension, and with more sensible reactions from most of the female characters, and at least one redeeming quality given to Shayne--because every cast member makes a fine accounting of themselves, given the shoddy material they are working with. William and Bette Davis are especially fun to watch together, since we have two perfectly cast actors, playing two equally vicious characters who recognize each other as the villains they are, and who know that each is just looking for a chance to mess with the other. If the script had been better, I suspect these scenes could have been absolutely brilliant. (William is so good here, in fact, that I am going to add the Perry Mason movies he starred in to my never-dwindling "To Watch" pile. Based on what I see here, he might just be the perfect actor to portray Mason.)

As for "Satan Met a Lady", it's not a terrible film... it's just not very good. It's also not going out of your way for. However, it's included in the three-disc Special Edition of The Maltese Falcon, together with the two good versions. In that case, it's an inoffensive "bonus" feature that you save for that day when you've got nothing else to watch.

Musical Monday with Goapele

Start the final week of May 2020 off right with a beautiful song by Goapele, "Play" from 2011, and the artful, sexy video that was made to sell it!

Saturday Serial: Jenna of the Jungle

In 2011, Don Hudson posted the "Jenna of the Jungle" tale on his blog, one panel at a time. It's a nice story that goes to unexpected places. Over the next many Saturdays, we're going to re-present Don Hudson's "Jenna of the Jungle" series (with a random bonus jungle girl appearing at the end of each installment). Click on the panels for a larger image.



Jenna of the Jungle: Part One
By Don Hudson

To Be Continued...

Girls of the Jungle

By Joe Rubinstein

Happy International Goth Day!

Is that right? Is it appropriate to say happy International Goth Day (or World Goth Day)? Hm... wow. I don't know! If everyone wasn't under house-arrest and hiding from the Coronavirus, I could have just walked outside my front door and asked one of the goths who are usually hanging out around the corner.

Oh well; one must stay home in order to save lives. I hope any Goths out there takes my well-wishes and this small gallery of photos and art celebrating their ways in the friendly spirit is was intended!

Tom and Jerry are cookin' with 'Pots and Pans'

Pots and Pans (1932)
Starring: Unknown Singers
Directors: John Foster and George Rufle
Rating: Seven of Ten Stars

Another day dawns at Tom and Jerry's Diner. Hash is slung and songs are sung.

"Pots and Pans" debuted in movie theaters on May 15, 1932, and it was the tenth installment in the "Tom and Jerry" series. Our heroes are engaged in yet another business venture in this one--they operate a diner inside a converted railroad car. Subsequently, all the gags and zany action revolve around short-order cooking and the odd characters who are demanding to be fed.

Like most "Tom and Jerry" cartoons, this is essentially an animated music video, with the songs being the main attraction. There is almost no spoken dialogue in the film, and there is one scene where it's disposed of with silent movie-style pantomime. Further, this installment is almost entirely plot-free, with the music and the diner setting serving to string together a series of more-or-less self-contained gags. It's a mostly swift-moving film, and if you have enjoyed other "Tom and Jerry" adventures, you'll enjoy this one as well. The animation is a bit more simplistic than the norm, and the pace falters a bit as the climax is building, but overall it's a solid bit of fun.

But don't just take my word for it... I've embedded "Pots and Pans for your viewing pleasure below!

Wonder Woman Wednesday

Welcome to another Wonder Woman Wednesday... the time when we once again celebrate everyone's favorite Amazon's with some of the best portraits and action shots that have ever been created.

This time around, we're displaying Wonder Woman's expertise in deflecting--bullets that is! So long as she's got her magic bracelets, she doesn't have to be faster than a speeding bullet, and she might just return it to sender!

By Jose Luis Garcia Lopez

By Bruce Timm

By Eddy Barrows

By Roy Gomes

By Jose Luis Garcia Lopez

What if...

… Donald Trump decided to do something different with what passes for his hairstyle?


Artist Don Hudson has some suggestions!

For more of Don's art, visit his blog.

Musical Monday with Ivy Levan

Ivy Levan is an American singer/songwriter/actress/model. This is the second time we're spotlighting her exuberant, quirky, over-the-top blusey stylings... and this second song is joined with a video that's equal parts thrilling and funny. Just like the last time around.

"Hot Damn" was the second track on Levan's debut EP, "Introducing the Lady" . This video is either a sequel, or perhaps a prequel, to the one for "Money", as it clearly features some of the same characters.



If you enjoyed "Hot Damn", I think you'll find Gin Wigmore's music and videos appealing as well. (And you should keep an eye out here; Levan will almost certainly be returning to these parts on future Musical Mondays.)

'Just Neighbors' is just a lot of fun

Just Neighbors (aka "Neighbors") (1919)
Starring: Harold Lloyd, Harry Pollard, Bebe Daniels, and Margaret Joslin
Directors: Harold Lloyd and Frank Terry
Rating: Seven of Ten Stars

Fighting breaks out between once-friendly neighbor couples (Lloyd & Daniels and Pollard & Joslin) after escalating damage happens to both homes following a failed attempt at one husband to help the other with a backyard construction project.

If one wanted a cinematic illustration of what "that escalated quickly" means, "Just Neighbors" fits that purpose exactly. From the point where the two husbands (Harold Lloyd and Harry Pollard) run into each other on their way home from work in the city through Lloyd's misbegotten attempt to show off his handyman skills, through to the property destruction and literal slap-fight across the backyard fence, this film is a string of small situations that get out of hand--and hilariously so.

While none of the gags in this film are going to surprise anyone--what we have here is sit-com territory that's been well-trod in the past 100 years--but they're economically delivered by a cast with perfect comedic timing, so the action is constantly moving and not a second of screen-time is wasted.

The only complaint I can mount about the film is that I would have liked to see some more situations where the wives fight with each other was well. Any movie where Bebe Daniels has more to do is a better movie!  (I think the film might have been more interesting if perhaps it had played up and on the class differences between the two couples... but that would have probably resulted in a different and much longer movie.)

But, thanks to YouTube, you can check out "Just Neighbors" right now and see if you agree or disagree with my take on it.

Firearms Friday with Stefanie Powers

Born in 1942. Stefanie Powers is an American actress who is best known for her role as the ever-cheerful and strongheaded Jennifer Hart across five seasons and eight made-for-television movies of "Hart to Hart", over a span of fifteen years. (The series ran from 1979 to 1984, and the movies were aired in 1993 and 1994. Powers was co-producer on the films.)

Powers began her professional acting career while still in her teens, and her first top billing came in the spy series "The Girl From U.N.C.L.E", which ran for two seasons 1966 and 1967.

In addition to the two aforementioned series, Powers had leading roles in 20 other television series and mini-series, and made guest appearances in more than 200 individual episodes of other shows, including a recurring role in "The Six Million Dollar Man" during the 1970s and 1980s.

A mainstay of American television during the 1970s, 1980s, and into the 1990s, Powers stopped acting on a regular basis after completing the final "Hart to Hart" film in 1994. While she continues to take the occasional role, most of her energy has been spent on conversation efforts and business ventures related to the William Holden Wildlife Foundation.

'A Crazy Composer' will brighten your day

The Crazy Composer (1906)
Starring: Georges Méliès
Director: Georges Méliès
Rating: Ten of Ten Stars

A composer suffering from a creative block is visited by Muses and other magical creatures that rekindle his creativity... or is he?

It may be over 100 years old, but I suspect more than a few of those of you out there who work in creative fields can relate to the "crazy composer" in this film. Heck, these days, we can probably all relate to this film's title character, in the sense that we're all going a little stir-crazy with the global pandemic keeping many of us housebound. It's even worse now that the weather is turning good in many places.

Another thing that makes me strongly recommend watching "A Crazy Composer" is that it's the best Méliès film that I've watched so far. The large cast of energetic dancers and musicians perform their bits with flawless precision, and the special effects trickery is so precisely executed that it's clear why Méliès is more than deserving of being called "The Father of SFX". As this film unfolds, the cast on screen keeps growing and the dance numbers keep getting more elaborate and funnier... and the execution remains flawless.

As good as the film itself is, the modern musical score that is featured in the version I've embedded below makes the viewing experience eve better. It's PERFECT and absolutely hilarious, and it proves that these films are so much better served when someone takes the time to actually score them instead of just using some random muzak trck.

I can't recommend "A Crazy Composer" strongly enough. Whether you're homebound, stuck working more than you'd like, or not working at all, due to the current global crisis, I think the four or so minutes you'll devote to this film will brighten the rest of your day tremendously.

Writer/Artist Richard Sala passes away at 61

Cartoonist, and creator extraordinaire of creepy comics, Richard Sala passed away last week, at the age of 61. We present this gallery of his drawings, as well as some pages excerpted from his "The Bloody Cardinal" graphic novel in his memory.

TRAIL OF THE CARDINAL

Richard Sala's 2017 graphic novel "The Bloody Cardinal" opens with was is presented as pages from the journal of the notorious and murderous madman know as the Cardinal. We offer those pages below. We encourage everyone who enjoys the sorts of mystery and horror films that are covered in this blog to get copy of this very excellent work by clicking here.

For more about Richard Sala, his works, and many more samples of the great art he has left behind for us to enjoy, you can visit his blog and his Tumblr pages. (You can also enjoy pages of the series he was working on when he passed away, "Carlotta Havoc versus Everybody".)