Happy Independence Day 250 -- July 4, 2026

Motion Picture Magazine, August, 1928

Happy Fourth of July to all.

Actress Myrna Loy, one of my favorites, ignores the sign prohibiting fireworks.

Zane Grey Week -- Riders as a Talkie -- June 6, 2021

Motion Picture News, 21-May-1921

Zane Grey was a popular Western novelist in the first half of the Twentieth Century. I had read about movies made from his stories, so I took a few novels out from the Anza Branch Library. It turns out that he was not a very good writer, but he did produce interesting characters and descriptions.

I thought I might join with producer Benjamin B Hampton and have a Zane Grey Week.

One of the books that I read was his most popular, Riders of the Purple Sage. It introduced Lassiter, a classic Western hero. Aside from some startling anti-LDS business, Riders of the Purple Sage has a good story. 

Fox produced Riders, its sequel and two other Zane Grey movies in the late Teens and early 1920s with William Farnum playing the hero. Not many years later, Fox filmed the same set of stories starring Tom Mix. Then came the talkies. 

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Fox had adopted the Movietone sound-on-film system, which made it easier to shoot out-of-doors than  did the Warner Brothers' Vitaphone sound-on-disk system. Fox began to produce talkie Westerns like In Old Arizona, the first Cisco Kid movie. This made it natural for Fox to look again at its Zane Grey properties. 

Variety, 19-June-1929

Fox started with The Lone Star Ranger. "Zane Grey's first talking picture. Out-door recording which only Fox Movietone has successfully achieved..." 

Screenland, April, 1930

Buck Duane was played by George O'Brien, a big, well-built guy who was perfect for Westerns. His father was a former San Francisco Chief of Police. George was an excellent horseman. Leading lady Sue Carol later became a talent agent and married Alan Ladd.

New Movie, January, 1930

Not only was The Lone Star Ranger shot with sound and shot outdoors, but parts of it were shot on location in Utah.

Motion Picture News, 31-May-1931

Fox followed The Lone Star Ranger with another adaption of The Last of the Duanes, also starring George O'Brien. Myra Loy was there, but she was not the leading lady. What were they thinking?

Washington Evening Star, 18-May-1921

George's leading lady was Lucile Browne. I would have gone for Myrna Loy.

Motion Picture Herald, 26-September-1931

Fox followed The Last of the Duanes with another adaption of Riders of the Purple Sage. George's leading lady Marguerite Churchill had been in John Wayne's first starring picture, The Big Trail.

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Following its standard process, Fox then filmed the sequel to Riders, The Rainbow Trail, also starring George O'Brien. leading lady Cecilia Parker later played Andy Hardy's sister in the M-G-M series.

Washington Evening Star, 07-September-1930

Watuga Democrat, 28-September-1933

In 1933, one year after The Rainbow Trail, Fox starred George O'Brian in its third adaption of The Last Trail. George played Tom Dane. I can't find much promotional material for it. This was its last appearance as a movie.

Publishers Weekly, 30-April-1921

Tomorrow: Another George Plays Lassiter

Zane Grey Week -- June 2-9, 2021

June 02, 2021: Zane Grey Week
June 03, 2021: Zane Grey Week -- Fighting Blood
June 04, 2021: Zane Grey Week -- Riders of the Purple Sage and Others
June 05, 2021: Zane Grey Week -- Tom Mix Takes Over
June 06, 2021: Zane Grey Week -- Riders as a Talkie
June 07, 2021: Zane Grey Week -- Another George Plays Lassiter
June 08, 2021: Zane Grey Week -- Riders on Television
June 09, 2021: Zane Grey Week -- The Man of the Forest

Grauman's Chinese -- William Powell and Myrna Loy -- March 1, 2017

In July, 2012 we paid a return visit to Hollywood and Grauman's Chinese Theater.  Sid Grauman was a San Francisco showman who came to Los Angeles and built three major houses, the Million Dollar, the Egyptian, and the Chinese. The theater has hosted many film premieres, but is most famous for the hand and footprints (and hoofprints and nose prints and other types of prints) in the forecourt.

William Powell and Myrna Loy played together in many movies, including the Thin Man series.   They both left their hand and foot prints on 20-October-1936.  This was around the time of the release of Libeled Lady with Powell, Loy and Jean Harlow.

Powell's "Sid old boy, I am happy to put my foot into it for you" sounds very much like something he would say in a movie.  Loy's "To Sid who gave me my first job" remembers her time performing in live action prologues at Grauman's Egyptian up the street.

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Happy Independence Day, 2016 -- July 4, 2016

Motion Picture Magazine, August, 1928

Happy Fourth of July to all.

Actress Myrna Loy, one of my favorites, ignores the sign prohibiting fireworks.

Nick Charles -- June 19, 2016

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Happy Fathers' Day to all my fellow fathers. I miss my dad.  And I miss my father-in-law. I haven't had anyone to buy a card for for a long time. 

I think my favorite movie dad is William Powell's Nick Charles in the Thin Man series, inspired by Dashiell Hammett's novel. Nick and Nora really loved each other. Nick had some points in common with my dad: He was very smart, he could be very sarcastic, and he always enjoyed a martini.

The Best Years of Our Lives -- November 11, 2015

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Happy Veterans Day, everyone. Veterans of the Second World War thought very highly of The Best Years of Our Lives, which was produced by Samuel Goldwyn and directed by William Wyler. 

Three men meet while returning home after separation from the service. 

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Frederick March played Al, a middle-aged banker who joined the army to do his part.  He wound up as an NCO.  His wife Milly was Myrna Loy, a favorite of mine and his daughter Peggy was Theresa Wright.  I don't remember much about his son.  Al felt out of place at home and at work.  He made a loan to another vet who had little collateral and got shot down for it. 

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Dana Andrews was Fred, who had been a bombardier in the Army Air Force.  He found that his wife was no longer interested in him, and he suffered from nightmares caused by PTSD.  He was a soda jerk before the war and wanted something better after.  Fred and Peggy were attracted to each other.  Al told Fred to leave her alone. 

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Harold Russell was Homer, who had lost his arms while serving in the Navy.  He went through a long period of rehabilitation before he got home.  His parents didn't know what to do and he tried to push away his fiancee Wilma, who was played by Cathy O'Donnell.  Cathy persisted in wanting to stay.  The hooks are real. 

Fred encouraged Homer to marry Wilma, and he won the love of Peggy.  The marriage scene makes me cry. 

Fred gets a job building housing out of salvaged aircraft aluminum. 

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And the movie has Hoagy Carmichael as Homer's Uncle Butch, a bar keep.  Any movie is better with Hoagy Carmichael. 

The movie won nine Academy Awards and was nominated for one more. 

Harold Russell made only two more movies and appeared in a couple of television shows, but was very active in AMVETS, serving as National Commander. 

In 1992, to raise money for his wife's medical expenses, he sold his Best Supporting Actor Oscar.  This was controversial, but I understood.  I remember when he died in 2002.

Nick and Nora -- May 10, 2015

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Happy Mothers' Day, everyone.  I'm grateful for my mother and my wife and my mother-in-law and sisters-in-law and cousins and friends. All excellent mothers.
One of my favorite movie moms was Myrna Loy  in the Thin Man series, inspired by Dashiell Hammett's novel. Nick and Nora really loved each other.