Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on January 29, 2012

Dorothy Sebastian, Joan Crawford, and Anita Page. I love Joan Crawford’s pre-Code work. She was in so many memorable features from this era – Possessed, Grand Hotel, Letty Lynton, Sadie McKee. But I think my favorite is Our Blushing Brides. It’s got so much going for it. Entertaining performances fr   read more

Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on January 19, 2012

Patricia Neal was talented, striking, ambitious, versatile, alluring. But, perhaps, above all, Patricia Neal was endurance personified. The willowy, husky-voiced actress was an Oscar, Tony, and Golden Globe winner, and appeared in such noteworthy films as A Face in the Crowd, The Day the Earth Stood   read more

Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on January 11, 2012

If you don’t know about the real-life 1927 case that inspired James M. Cain to write Double Indemnity (and The Postman Always Rings Twice, for that matter), pick up A Wild Surge of Guilty Passion by Ron Hansen (Simon and Schuster, 2011).  In fact, whether you know everything or nothing...   read more

Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on January 6, 2012

John Ireland was not your standard movie actor – his background, his looks, his Hollywood career, and his life behind the screen all represented an individual who was outside the realm of the norm. During Ireland’s Hollywood heyday, he was seen in such classic fare as My Darling Clementine (1946)...   read more

Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on January 2, 2012

In light of Loretta Young’s wholesome screen image in the 1940s and 1950s, it has been a real kick for me to discover her pre-Code films. I’ve already discussed two of them at Shadows and Satin – Born to Be Bad and Employees Entrance – and I’m also fond of...   read more

Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on January 1, 2012

“Uh uh — can look, but mustn’t touch. Say, listen — just because you’re a customer, I don’t have to let you move in, body and soul, do I? Now you be a good little boy, and take your little kiddie car, and go on home before your wifey finds...   read more

Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on December 14, 2011

According to John Hodiak, his film career was sheer luck. “I’ve always been a firm believer in the Fates,” he once said. But luck was not on his side when Hodiak, hailed near the start of his career as “another Gable,” went from leading man to supporting player in a matter...   read more

Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on December 6, 2011

With appearances in nearly 100 films, most of which are scarcely remembered today, Lloyd Nolan was known as the actor who gave “A” performances in “B” films.  However, the respected character actor was not only seen in such notable features as Guadalcanal Diary (1943), A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (1945   read more

Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on November 24, 2011

You gotta love the language of film noir. Hard-boiled, cynical, straight to the point and unmistakable — this era of filmmaking offers some of the best quotes in all cinema. Here, I offer for your consideration, Part 2 of my favorite noir quotes — and these ain’t no idle threats . . ....   read more

Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on November 24, 2011

When I think of film noir fatales, Jane Russell is not necessarily the first name that springs to mind. Known mainly for her singing and comedic talents, as well as her voluptuous figure and coal black mane, Russell nonetheless made her mark in the realm of film noir, appearing in...   read more

Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on November 13, 2011

When I read about the great Citizen Kane debate that was raging through cyberspace (and hosted by True Classics), I had a hankering to lend my voice. But as you know, Shadows and Satin is devoted to my two cinematic passions – film noir and pre-Code. Citizen Kane, released in 1941,...   read more

Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on November 11, 2011

At long last, in response to a request from a Shadows and Satin subscriber (Hello, Jörn!), I’ve finally managed to compile another list of Top 10 films noirs – not the better-known features like the ones I covered here, but the lesser-known gems. These are the movies that are not...   read more

Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on November 9, 2011

In "Mr. Skeffington." Talented, suave, and distinguished, the great Claude Rains was born 122 years ago, on November 10, 1889. He was seen in a wide variety of classic films, from Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and Now Voyager, to The Sea Hawk and Lawrence of Arabia. Rains also starred in tw   read more

Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on October 29, 2011

I started this post with grand plans to outline some of the films noirs and pre-Code features coming in November on Turner Classic Movies, but after I opened my trusty Now Playing movie guide and prepared my yellow highlighter for business, I stopped short. For there, listed on the very...   read more

Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on October 26, 2011

Every now and then I come across a scene in a pre-Code film that literally leaves me with my mouth open. Beauty and the Boss (1932), starring Warren William, David Manners, Mary Doran, and the lovely Marian Marsh, contains such a scene. I haven’t yet seen the entire movie, but...   read more

Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on October 22, 2011

Joan Fontaine: Happy birthday! One of our last living cinema legends from Hollywood’s Golden Age, Joan Fontaine, celebrates her 94th birthday on October 22, 2011! Born Joan de Beauvoir de Havilland in Tokyo, Japan, Fontaine is the baby sister of actress Olivia de Havilland, and enjoyed a screen care   read more

Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on October 16, 2011

Film noir, arguably, offers some of the best quotes in all cinema. Along with noir’s distinctive characters, shadowy presentations, labyrinthine plot tangles, and cynical, hopeless tone, it is the hard-boiled dialogue that makes it such a fascinating era of filmmaking. Here’s Part 1 of m   read more

Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on October 10, 2011

Our film begins. I find it hard to believe that, as much as I love The Big Heat, and as many times as I’ve seen it this year alone, I’ve yet to write about it (except to fittingly include it in my list of top 10 films noir). This great...   read more

Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on September 27, 2011

Baby Face (1933) is one of the first pre-Code movies that I saw after I learned what pre-Code was. And it turned out to be a perfect example of these wonderful, fascinating, oh-so-scandalous films. Starring Barbara Stanwyck (who, I believe, comes just after Bette Davis and Joan Crawford in my list...   read more

Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on September 25, 2011

The cad you love to hate. Smooth-talking, darkly handsome and effortlessly sophisticated, Zachary Scott excelled at roles that depicted him as the charming cad you love to hate. In most of his nearly 40 Hollywood features, Scott was cast as the villain who achieved his nefarious ends through the use   read more