Virtual Virago Posted by Jennifer Garlen on April 30, 2014

Tyrone Power is best remembered today as a swashbuckling hero, but in Nightmare Alley (1947) the star gets to revel in his darker side, using his good looks and intense charisma to chilling effect as a callous heel whose con games inevitably catch up with him. Directed by Edmund Goulding,...   read more

Virtual Virago Posted by Jennifer Garlen on April 28, 2014

The second in a series of movies that began with The Broadway Melody (1929), The Broadway Melody of 1936 (1935) depends on a familiar combination of thin show business plot and upbeat musical numbers, both elements that reliably appealed to Depression Era audiences. For many modern viewers, these li   read more

Virtual Virago Posted by Jennifer Garlen on April 28, 2014

The second in a series of movies that began with The Broadway Melody (1929), The Broadway Melody of 1936 (1935) depends on a familiar combination of thin show business plot and upbeat musical numbers, both elements that reliably appealed to Depression Era audiences. For many modern viewers, these li   read more

Virtual Virago Posted by Jennifer Garlen on April 28, 2014

The second in a series of movies that began with The Broadway Melody (1929), The Broadway Melody of 1936 (1935) depends on a familiar combination of thin show business plot and upbeat musical numbers, both elements that reliably appealed to Depression Era audiences. For many modern viewers, these li   read more

Virtual Virago Posted by Jennifer Garlen on April 23, 2014

Inspired by David Misch's Funny: The Book, I asked people on Facebook and Twitter to name their favorite funny movies. I wanted to know which movies made them laugh the most, and I was hoping to get some interesting responses. What I ended up with was a list of some...   read more

Virtual Virago Posted by Jennifer Garlen on April 21, 2014

David Misch, a TV and movie writer whose work includes Mork & Mindy, Duckman, and The Muppets Take Manhattan (1984), is a big fan of classic movie comedies, which shows in his book-length contemplation of comedy, Funny: The Book (2012). Although not targeted specifically at classic movie fans, F   read more

Virtual Virago Posted by Jennifer Garlen on April 21, 2014

David Misch, a TV and movie writer whose work includes Mork & Mindy, Duckman, and The Muppets Take Manhattan (1984), is a big fan of classic movie comedies, which shows in his book-length contemplation of comedy, Funny: The Book (2012). Although not targeted specifically at classic movie fans, F   read more

Virtual Virago Posted by Jennifer Garlen on April 21, 2014

David Misch, a TV and movie writer whose work includes Mork & Mindy, Duckman, and The Muppets Take Manhattan (1984), is a big fan of classic movie comedies, which shows in his book-length contemplation of comedy, Funny: The Book (2012). Although not targeted specifically at classic movie fans, F   read more

Virtual Virago Posted by Jennifer Garlen on April 19, 2014

This post is part of the Great Villain Blogathon hosted by Ruth of Silver Screenings, Karen of Shadows & Satin, and Kristina of Speakeasy — see all the movie baddies at any of these three blogs. The Fox studio heads were certain that Laird Cregar was born to play villains,...   read more

Virtual Virago Posted by Jennifer Garlen on April 19, 2014

This post is part of the Great Villain Blogathon hosted by Ruth of Silver Screenings, Karen of Shadows & Satin, and Kristina of Speakeasy — see all the movie baddies at any of these three blogs. The Fox studio heads were certain that Laird Cregar was born to play villains,...   read more

Virtual Virago Posted by Jennifer Garlen on April 19, 2014

This post is part of the Great Villain Blogathon hosted by Ruth of Silver Screenings, Karen of Shadows & Satin, and Kristina of Speakeasy — see all the movie baddies at any of these three blogs. The Fox studio heads were certain that Laird Cregar was born to play villains,...   read more

Virtual Virago Posted by Jennifer Garlen on April 18, 2014

This colorful MGM musical includes all the bonnets and fancy new outfits one might expect from a movie called Easter Parade, but the chief attraction of the 1948 film is the pairing of two of the genre’s biggest stars, Fred Astaire and Judy Garland, as a song and dance team...   read more

Virtual Virago Posted by Jennifer Garlen on April 18, 2014

This colorful MGM musical includes all the bonnets and fancy new outfits one might expect from a movie called Easter Parade, but the chief attraction of the 1948 film is the pairing of two of the genre’s biggest stars, Fred Astaire and Judy Garland, as a song and dance team...   read more

Virtual Virago Posted by Jennifer Garlen on April 18, 2014

This colorful MGM musical includes all the bonnets and fancy new outfits one might expect from a movie called Easter Parade, but the chief attraction of the 1948 film is the pairing of two of the genre’s biggest stars, Fred Astaire and Judy Garland, as a song and dance team...   read more

Virtual Virago Posted by Jennifer Garlen on April 14, 2014

First published in 2001, Mick LaSalle's Complicated Women: Sex and Power in Pre-Code Hollywood is primarily a feminist consideration of Pre-Code actresses and the roles they were able to play before Joseph Breen threw a big, wet blanket on the Tinseltown party in 1934. Although it is probably not an   read more

Virtual Virago Posted by Jennifer Garlen on April 14, 2014

First published in 2001, Mick LaSalle's Complicated Women: Sex and Power in Pre-Code Hollywood is primarily a feminist consideration of Pre-Code actresses and the roles they were able to play before Joseph Breen threw a big, wet blanket on the Tinseltown party in 1934. Although it is probably not an   read more

Virtual Virago Posted by Jennifer Garlen on April 14, 2014

First published in 2001, Mick LaSalle's Complicated Women: Sex and Power in Pre-Code Hollywood is primarily a feminist consideration of Pre-Code actresses and the roles they were able to play before Joseph Breen threw a big, wet blanket on the Tinseltown party in 1934. Although it is probably not an   read more

Virtual Virago Posted by Jennifer Garlen on April 13, 2014

This post is part of the James Stewart Blogathon hosted by the Classic Film & TV Cafe. You can view the complete blogathon schedule here. If we come to Jimmy Stewart as a Western star looking back from the present, we peer through a history that makes his appearance in...   read more

Virtual Virago Posted by Jennifer Garlen on April 13, 2014

This post is part of the James Stewart Blogathon hosted by the Classic Film & TV Cafe. You can view the complete blogathon schedule here. If we come to Jimmy Stewart as a Western star looking back from the present, we peer through a history that makes his appearance in...   read more

Virtual Virago Posted by Jennifer Garlen on April 13, 2014

This post is part of the James Stewart Blogathon hosted by the Classic Film & TV Cafe. You can view the complete blogathon schedule here. If we come to Jimmy Stewart as a Western star looking back from the present, we peer through a history that makes his appearance in...   read more