Leonard Maltin — Film Noir Blonde

‘The Big Combo’ and ‘Pitfall’ to screen in downtown LA

February 6, 2012 by Film Noir Blonde

The Million Dollar Theater in downtown Los Angeles will show two classics of film noir on Wednesday night.

“The Big Combo” (1955) by Joseph H. Lewis
Cornel Wilde plays Police Lt. Leonard Diamond, a cop on a mission to nail a badass gangster (Richard Conte). Jean Wallace (Wilde’s real-life wife) plays the woman they both love. Lewis, the auteur of “Gun Crazy,” directed. Noir master John Alton (“T-Men”) was the cinematographer and David Raksin (“Laura”) composed the music. Leonard Maltin calls it “a cult item, stylishly directed.”

“Pitfall” (1948) by André De Toth
Murder is the last thing on John Forbes’ mind when he starts an affair with model Mona Stevens. He’s just bored with the insurance biz and married life. But this is film noir and things get complicated quickly, especially since Mona’s also involved with an embezzler.

“Pitfall” stars Dick Powell, Lizabeth Scott, Jane Wyatt as Mrs. Forbes and Raymond Burr as MacDonald, a nosy, lecherous ex-cop. MacDonald is one of noir’s slimiest villains and this is one of Burr’s best performances.

The show starts at 7:30 p.m. this Wednesday, Feb. 8. The theater is at 307 S. Broadway Ave., Los Angeles, 90013. Tickets are $10.

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Filed Under: Classic Noir Reviews, Noir Style Tagged With: André De Toth, Cornell Wilde, David Raksin, Dick Powell, film noir, Jane Wyatt, Jean Wallace, John Alton, Joseph H. Lewis, Leonard Maltin, Lizabeth Scott, Million Dollar Theater, Pitfall, Raymond Burr, Richard Conte, The Big Combo

Author Anthony Slide to discuss ‘Inside the Hollywood Fan Magazine’ as part of the Evening @ the Barn series

February 2, 2012 by Film Noir Blonde

Acclaimed author Anthony Slide will discuss his book “Inside the Hollywood Fan Magazine” at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 8, at the Hollywood Heritage Museum as part of the Evening @ the Barn series. The museum is housed in the restored Lasky-DeMille Barn (c. 1895).

Slide will explain how the fan magazines dealt with gossip and innuendo as well as how they handled the Hollywood scandals of the 1920s, World War II and the blacklist. Slide will show a PowerPoint presentation to accompany his talk.

Critic Leonard Maltin says: “For anyone who equates ‘fan magazines’ with supermarket tabloids, this book should come as a revelation. Tony Slide has done a formidable job of research to chart the birth, rise and fall of Hollywood fan magazines in the 20th century, their relationship to the industry they covered and the readers they served. It’s a colorful, well told history that’s full of surprises.”

“Inside the Hollywood Fan Magazine” will be on sale in the museum shop ($40) and Slide will sign books at the end of the program. Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times also had high praise for the book; you can read his September 2010 review here.

Tickets are $5 for members and $10 for non-members. The Hollywood Heritage Museum is at 2100 N. Highland Ave., Hollywood, CA 90068; 323-874-2276. You can buy tickets here.

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Filed Under: Noir Style Tagged With: Anthony Slide, Evening @ the Barn, Hollywood Heritage Museum, Inside the Hollywood Fan Magazine, Kevin Thomas, Lasky-DeMille Barn, Leonard Maltin

Palm Springs hosts 11th annual Arthur Lyons Film Noir Festival

May 6, 2011 by Film Noir Blonde

It’s been so hot and sunny this week, I’m in definite need of some cool darkness and poolside lounging. For me, that will come next week in the form of the 11th annual Arthur Lyons Film Noir Festival in Palm Springs. The fest runs May 12-15. I like the fact that when I was calling for info on accommodation, I was told repeatedly, “This is a desert town, of course we have a pool.”

Stefanie Powers will appear at the fest's opening night film, "Experiment in Terror."

Along with “an eclectic mixture of landmark and obscure vintage movies from the classic film noir era,” the festival will host a number of special appearances, such as actress Stefanie Powers, a star (along with Lee Remick, Glenn Ford and Ross Martin) of the opening night film “Experiment in Terror” from 1962, directed by Blake Edwards.

Critic Leonard Maltin gave the movie three stars, calling it “realistic, unsentimental, with convincing performances by Remick and Martin. Great Henry Mancini score, good use of San Francisco locations.”

Other fest guests include actress Julie Adams, actress/dancer Barrie Chase, actress Jeanne Cooper, actress Diane Baker and actor/producer Norman Lloyd.

The rest of the movies are: “The Underworld Story” (1950, directed by Cy Endfield); “Six Bridges to Cross” (1955, Joseph Pevney); “A Kiss Before Dying” (1956, Gerd Oswald); “Cape Fear” (1962, J. Lee Thompson); “99 River Street” (1953, Phil Karlson); “Plunder Road” (1957, Hubert Cornfield); “Loophole” (1954, Harold Schuster); “Mirage” (1965, Edward Dmytryk); “Crashout” (1955, Lewis R. Foster); “Saboteur” (1942, Alfred Hitchcock) and “The Damned Don’t Cry” (1950, Vincent Sherman).

Now I just need to come up with a few ensembles that qualify as desert chic. 😉

Stefanie Powers image from TV Guide.com.

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Filed Under: Noir Style Tagged With: 99 River Street, A Kiss Before Dying, Alfred Hitchcock, Arthur Lyons Film Noir Festival, Barrie Chase, Blake Edwards, Cape Fear, Crashout, Cy Endfield, Diane Baker, Edward Dmytryk, Experiment in Terror, film noir, Gerd Oswald, Glenn Ford, Harold Schuster, Henry Mancini, Hubert Cornfield, J. Lee Thompson, Jeanne Cooper, Joseph Pevney, Julie Adams, Lee Remick, Leonard Maltin, Lewis R. Foster, Loophole, Mirage, Norman Lloyd, Phil Karlson, Plunder Road, Ross Martin, Saboteur, Six Bridges to Cross, Stefanie Powers, The Damned Don’t Cry, The Underworld Story, Vincent Sherman

Highlights from TCM fest’s opening night

May 3, 2011 by Film Noir Blonde

A slew of celebrities walked the red carpet Thursday for the screening of “An American in Paris” at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre in Hollywood. The movie was the opening event for TCM’s Classic Film Festival.