Silly Cinema: Lady on a Train (1945)

If The Parent Trap (1961) is my very favorite movie, then Lady on a Train (1945) is pulling into the station right behind it.  It is another film that I can watch time after time and find myself both comforted by the familiarity and still keenly invested in the story.

Lady on a Train (1945)
"Deanna...on a Man (Oh! Man) Hunt!"
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At its heart, Lady on a Train is a screwball comedy that also happens to be a musical, murder-mystery, film-noir, fashion-show romance.  As with many of my favorite films, Lady on a Train has a little bit of everything and every little bit is done well!

Like all classic pieces of cinema, this film was adapted from
the finest literary sources.  Actually, Lady on a Train might
be the exception that proves the rule; it is probably the one
time when the movie is better than the book!
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The movie stars Deanna Durbin as Nikki Collins, a daffy San Francisco socialite who is obsessed with pulp crime novels.  On her way to New York to visit relatives for the holidays, she witnesses a murder outside of her train window.  With no victim and little evidence, Nikki enlists the help of the police, an executive from her father's firm, her favorite novelist, and possibly the murderer himself to solve the crime.  Certainly, the story practically requires a winch to assist in all of the disbelief that viewers are expected to suspend; the magnetism of one of Hollywood's most underrated stars, however, is enough to carry the audience happily along to the very end.  Even if one is not sustained by the plot, the sets, the costumes, the music, and the cavalcade of character actors are more than enough keep any "Silly Cinema" fan entertained.

The only way this movie could've been better was if we were able to see it
in the Streamline Moderne opulence of Broadway's Loew's Criterion theater!
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From train compartment to elegant hotel suite, from industrial silo to luxury penthouse apartment, the sets in Lady on a Train are all fantastic and fully-realized.  They are but the stuff of community theater productions when compared to the brilliant, three-ring setting of the movie's biggest action, the Circus Club.

I'm not sure when things changed (or if there were ever such grand, themed night clubs outside of a Hollywood film), but how badly do I want to go to a circus-themed nightclub where the doorman is a giant, the emcee is a ringmaster, the foyer is a circus train carrying an animal band, the chorus line is Josie and the Pussycats, the waiters are dressed like Pagliacci, and all of the entertainment is performed under the acrobats' safety net?

I believe that Lady on a Train is Durbin's first film in which she appeared as blonde.  Growing up recognizing her as my grandfather's favorite chubby-cheeked brunette, it was a little jarring when I first saw Durbin in Lady on a Train.  After countless viewings, I'll willingly put her up against any "Hollywood blonde."  In fact, blonde is the perfect color for Durbin as idealized, post-War, noir-ish fashion plate.  Strangely enough, the film credits no one for the amazing costume designs.  It is particularly odd as Lady on a Train features a film-within-a-film moment when the main characters disrupt a theater full of movie-goers watching a film reel about forthcoming fashions (that incidentally features marionettes wearing miniature versions of the couture ensembles - wacky tacky gold).

Again, it is shocking that no credit can be assigned to a costume designer*.  Durbin's character has no less than one dozen distinct costume changes (plus a few variations), in a story that is set over the course of only a few days.  The costumes range from sight-gag rain slicker with Pippy-Longstocking braids to a bustled formal with peek-a-boo cut out at the back.  I call this movie part fashion show because within one scene, Durbin's character undergoes three dramatic costume transformations, all with equally dramatic and significantly-different hairstyles.  It is difficult to choose a favorite when the looks include a studded, cowhide jacket, a two-toned, hooded suit trimmed in fringe, an asymmetrical, cropped tweed jacket with one fur lapel, and an unbelievable chiffon-and-midnight-lace evening gown.

It was difficult but I managed to do it; my favorite ensemble in the film (and maybe in movie history) is this simple black suit.  The signature 1940s silhouette is achieved by a straight skirt and a jacket with a nipped waist and broad shoulders; the plume-covered hat with matching muff and the double-donut hair transform an otherwise elegant suit into something truly over-the-top and inspiring.

While the film is not a musical per se, there are a few beautifully integrated musical numbers that use Durbin's incredible voice to full advantage.  In spite of the fact that Durbin gained fame as the operatic counterpoint to Judy Garland's colloquial singing style, I much prefer when she lends her voice to more popular songs of the day, including a sultry rendition of "Gimme a Little Kiss."

"Gimme a Little Kiss" - Deanna Durbin from Lady on a Train

"Silent Night" - Deanna Durbin from Lady on a Train

"Night and Day" - Deanna Durbin from Lady on a Train

As if Deanna's charms aren't enough, Lady on a Train also boasts a roster that includes Ralph Bellamy, Dan Duryea, and David Bruce.  Yes, the stars shine in Lady on a Train but it is the supporting cast that truly brings the film to life.  As per usual, my favorite performances are delivered by the character actors.

William Frawley, Elizabeth Patterson, Allen Jenkins, and Edward Everett Horton are but four stand-outs amongst the film's unbelievable cast of supporting players.  These four are special because, whether series regular or guest star, each one of these character actors went on to appear on I Love Lucy.

Beyond the sets, the costumes, the music, and the cast, the most interesting part of Lady on a Train may very well be the marketing campaign.  The full-color movie poster at the beginning of this post makes it look like Nikki Collins (Durbin) is madcap man-trap who gets her fella by the point of a pistol and a goofy grin.  The below poster looks very much like an edge-of-your-seat noir thriller.  Much like the film itself, the ads for Lady on a Train are suffering from an altogether-entertaining identity crisis.

"A song on her lips - MURDER on her mind!"
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What is your favorite movie?  Have you ever seen Lady on a Train?  Have you watched any of our other "Silly Cinema" recommendations?  If you are a fan of film-noir, romance, mystery, drama, comedy, thriller, musicals (that just about covers all the bases), or simply "Silly Cinema," then I suggest booking first class accommodations with Lady on a Train.  If Walter Winchell says, "It's big-time," then you know it's good!

Cheers!

Mr. Tiny

*Thanks to the superior cyber-sleuthing skills of our pal, Lauren, at Wearing History Clothing/Patterns/Blog, we learned that the designer of Ms. Durbin's screen wardrobe was the inimitable Howard Greer, known for costuming other well-known screwball-comedies including Bringing Up Baby and My Favorite Wife.

Silly Cinema: The Girl Most Likely To... (1973)

It is a gift when enough time passes to allow one a new perspective on a traumatic event - or even an entire era.  That's kind of how it is with the 1970's.  Instead of making like most vintage enthusiasts and painting the decade as a burning tire fire of fuel shortages, political corruption, excessive body hair, bootie bumping, and - dare I utter the word - polyester, I choose to paint the 70's in finer brushstrokes.  Over forty years since the inception of that much-maligned decade, I think it is time to view those years as a triumph of a color, a triumph of cornball, and a triumph of revisionist history (think all those 1930's/40's silhouettes, think American Graffiti, think "Happy Days").  What better way to revise the past than to get a face-full of plastic surgery and create a future-full of vengeance?!!

Enter "The Girl most Likely To..."
a 70's, revenge-film spectacular
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Years ago, under the influence of an unhealthy dose of cough medicine, I watched a rerun of The Girl Most Likely to... (1973) in the wee hours of a sickbed morning.  Waking up the next day, I couldn't remember the name of the black comedy or many of the details; I did remember that I liked what I saw and that the star was a young Stockard Channing.  Some minor investigation (asking around and checking some of my movie-review books - this was pre-internet) resulted in not a single lead.  Cut to many years later when, on a search for something totally unrelated, I stumbled upon the DVD for The Girl Most Likely to...  Needless to say, I whipped out the old credit card and, quick as lightning, I was home enjoying this prime example of wacky tacky cinema all over again.

I had actually thought of the movie fondly and often
as the idea of "a beautiful person who had been
kidnapped by an ugly body" meting out merciless justice
to her tormentors provided a vicarious thrill.

I mean, how could you not love a movie with a tag line like, "They treated
her like a dog.  Now she's a fox.  And she's going to make them pay."

The story of The Girl Most Likely to..., an original made-for-TV movie, is about as straightforward as it gets.  Channing plays Miriam Knight, a lovelorn girl, heavy of body and brow, who must endure the stereotypical indignities and alienation associated with sub-standard beauty in America.

"'Miriam, don't worry.  Your turn will come.'"

Surviving not only the mistreatment of family, friends, and schoolmates, Miriam barely survives a catastrophic accident that results in full-body-and-facial reconstructive surgery.  Astoundingly, the surgery leaves her completely unrecognizable yet, thanks to skillful plastic surgeons, stunningly beautiful (or at least that is expectation of our suspended disbelief).  Her new appearance allows Miriam to exact her wildly-creative revenge on those richly deserving of their comeuppance.  If for nothing else, The Girl Most Likely to... is mandatory viewing for the hilarious scenes of retribution, played always to the slapstick-iest hilt.

It was time to start paying everyone back..."with interest."
It's pretty neat trick, managing to have hair and makeup done underneath the bandages!

Believe it or not, this tale of "an unloved, ugly duckling transformed by plastic surgery into a luscious, lovely lady," was written by that woman all-too-familiar with the surgeon's scalpel herself, Joan Rivers. 

Sometimes looking good is its own revenge, right Joan?
Am I right, Joan?  Joan?  Joan....
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I'll be the first to admit that the 70's are by far not my favorite years for fashion and culture but I would be lying if I said that I didn't have a soft spot for "The Brady Bunch," The Carpenters, Freaky Friday, and one Miss Miriam Knight, dog-turned-fox.  And, just for the record, I'm no snob when it comes to polyester either.

If you're thinking of creating a "new you" for the new year, might I suggest The Girl Most Likely to... (viewable in its entirety here) as a cautionary tale rather than a how-to guide.  Happy New Year! 

Cheers!

Mr. Tiny

Silly Cinema: That Darn Cat! (1965)

I can't collect records.  My collections are so varied and too numerous, that adding one more "collection" would qualify me for a very special, cross-promotional episode of "Intervention meets Hoarders."  It isn't that I don't buy records, of course I do.  I just refuse to admit to myself that it is a collection.  My motivation for buying records is limited, however, to nostalgia and an unbridled love of "Music to Strip By."

Really.
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A recent thrifting trip found me face to face with the soundtrack to one of my favorite movies, Walt Disney's That Darn Cat! (1965).  An ardent Hayley Mills fan, I just had to have this album.  I was a little disheartened, however, to only have the vinyl itself.  Fortunately, Mary, an inveterate digger, kept flipping through the remaining bins of records, and found the errant sleeve.

My favorite song/theme title might be "Take This and This and This"

As soon as I got home, I put the record on and was pleased to hear that every bit of the film score was included, even the music from the drive-in surf movie that the characters watch in a climactic scene.  The one confusing part of the record was the two renditions of the theme song, neither one of which was performed by Bobby Darin, the vocal talent which graces the opening credits of the film.  

"That Darn Cat!" - performed by Bobby Darin

The renditions on the record of the title song, penned by the inimitable Sherman Brothers, are sung by no musical slouches, namely Louis Prima and Bobby Troup.  I couldn't find a video of either version and I couldn't be bothered to make one of my own, so here is a totally unrelated clip of Louis Prima - except for the title, "Swing Cats Jamboree."

"Swing Cats Jamboree" - Louis Prima

The inspiration for this post was obviously the record.  Clearly, I got so distracted by the album, that I forgot this was a movie review.  Record review, movie review...what's the difference?  Anyhow, if you grew up on some remote, desert island where Disney movies could not be received by your primitive, coconut-shell, television antenna or you lived under an anti-American, fascist regime, then you won't be familiar with That Darn Cat!, the single-greatest masterpiece of American cinema.  Okay, the single-greatest masterpiece of American cinema released on December 2, 1965 starring Hayley Mills and Dean Jones as a precocious, teenage, amateur sleuth and a starched-shirt FBI agent, respectively.

That Darn Cat! (1965) Movie Trailer

If you didn't gather it from the trailer, That Darn Cat! tells the tale of D.C. (Darn Cat), a Siamese cat of superior intellect, who begrudgingly plays a major role in capturing villainous, bank robbing kidnappers.  I will admit, this film is much less "Fellini" than feline, feel good romp.  But if you're bored on a Sunday afternoon, I promise you nothing will get you in a better mood.

That Darn Cat! (1965)
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For such a mid-60's cornball movie, the cast in this film is really top notch.  We've mentioned in a previous post that wacky tacky icon, Elsa Lanchester, plays a supporting role along with William DeMarest.  A whole slew of 60's favorites round out the cast including an grown-up Roddy McDowall, Dorothy Provine, Neville Brand, Richard Deacon, and Frank Gorshin.

It seems like old Frank was always playing a baddy.
Here a bank-robbing kidnapper...

,

...and here as The Riddler from Batman

Did we mention that one of our favorite comedians/character actors, Ed Wynn, has a cameo as a German jeweler?  We didn't??!?!  Well, shame on us.

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If you're a lover of the Beach Party movies, or Gidget, or Hayley Mills, or wacky tacky, then you're sure love That Darn Cat!  Please feel free to share your reviews on here if you do decide to watch it, or if like us, you've watched it over and over and over again!

Also, don't forget to like us on Facebook, if you're so inclined!

Cheers!

Mr. Tiny

Silly Cinema: The Terror of Tiny Town (1938)

The 1930's was a strange time, to be sure.  The world languished in the fallout of the stock market crash as the far-reaching ravages of the Great Depression left everyone wondering if there ever would be "another cup of coffee" and "another piece of pie."  The hopelessness of the Dust Bowl epitomizes the desperation of the era, but I think we forget that the decade cannot be singularly represented by a Dorothea Lange photograph.  When I think of the 1930's, I think of Nick & Nora Charles, Busby Berkeley, Schiaparelli, The World's Fairs, and of course, all-midget, western musicals, like The Terror of Tiny Town. 

The Terror of Tiny Town (1938)
"A rollickin', rootin', tootin', shootin' drama of the great outdoors"
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The IMDb description for The Terror of Tiny Town reads as follows: "An evil gunslinging midget comes to terrorize the good little people of Tiny Town.  The townspeople organize to defeat him, and zany antics ensue."  Certainly there is more to the plot than that, but in a nutshell, it works.  It may seam a little flippant, but when it comes to a film populated entirely by little people, a nutshell actually seems perfectly proportioned for the job.

Boo!  Hissssss!
Little Billy as "The Terror of Tiny Town."

The Terror of Tiny Town is often referred to as an exploitation movie and I can't say I was entirely unaffected by the title card that read, "Columbia Pictures Corporation presents Jed Buell's Midgets."  But the headquarters of wacky tacky are found at the exact intersection of irreverence and political incorrectness.  Refusing to take oneself or any one subject too seriously is fundamental to the preservation of some true wacky tacky wonders.  As a wise man once said, "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."

 A tense moment in The Terror of Tiny Town
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Of course, there are moments in the film that employ the use of slapstick and sight-gags that trade on the petite stature of the cast, but at its core, the movie is really just a textbook western musical - white hats, black hats, cowboys, shootouts, horses (in this case, Shetland Ponies), chases, saloons, guitars, a boy and a girl.

Billy Curtis as the good guy, Buck Lawson, and Yvonne Moray as Nancy Preston.

I actually enjoyed this film; the novelty was there, but most of the songs were good especially "Down on the Sunset Trail."  The thing I really loved about this movie was that it was very watchable as it came in short (sorry, I had to) at just about one hour.  Before I looked it up, I was convinced that Terror of Tiny Town was filmed in the early 1940's - post-Wizard of Oz.  Mistakenly, I assumed that The Wizard of Oz set off a "muchkin frenzy" but apparently Jed Buell had already been brainstorming.  His films, mostly westerns, appeared to always be centered around a novelty cast whether all little people or all African-American actors.  He ended up launching the careers of many of his stars and made established vocalist, Herb Jeffries into a film star.

What did we do before youTube?

Here, you can watch the entire film.

If you have a free hour, I would heartily recommend the "Little Guys with Big Guns" in The Terror of Tiny Town.

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Cheers!

Mr. Tiny (yep)

Silly Cinema: What a Way to Go!

What a Way to Go! (1964)

Any kid growing up in Southern California in the 70's and 80's remembers Tom Hatten and his Sunday "Family Film Festival," on Channel 5.  He was host, cartoonist, and one of the first television personalities that I remember.  He would introduce family film staples like Pippi Longstocking and movies from the Jerry Lewis oeuvre.  During breaks, he would share behind-the-scenes information on the film and draw cartoons.  Sadly, it is the type of program that doesn't really exist on television anymore.  On Sundays, network television is a miasma of infomercials and sports programming.  I miss Pippi - call me old fashioned!

Hatten, a sailor man himself, was famous for his cartooning abilities - especially Popeye.

In waxing nostalgic about "Family Film Festival," I determined that this program, combined with the considerable influence of my paternal grandfather (a Hollywood aficionado), began my obsession with classic films.  I wondered what films I would choose if I ever hosted a wacky tacky film festival.  What a Way to Go! starring Shirley MacLaine would definitely be on the short list of contenders.

The original theatrical trailer

The film centers around the relationship woes of MacLaine's Louisa May Foster.  Louisa is a small-town girl who is looking for a sweet, small-town boy with whom to create a simple, small-town life - much to the chagrin of her mother (a vicarious, fortune hunter).  She is hounded by Leonard Crawley (Dean Martin), the swaggering, arrogant heir to the local department store fortune. 

She'll date him but she doesn't have to like it.

Louisa has not a mite of interest and instead falls for Edgar Hopper (Dick Van Dyke) proprietor of the local general store.  Louisa settles quickly into the simple life when Hopper becomes unintentionally obsessed with building his business.  He becomes a huge success before the fickle finger of fate intervenes.

Van Dyke goes money mad!

Louisa, left with a lot of money, decides that to find herself she must move to Paris and live the vie de boheme.  She meets Larry Flint (Paul Newman), a bohemian artist who shuns the bourgeois ideals of modern society.  Louisa dreams of their life in terms of a saucy foreign film but there is no happy ending.

Ah, la vie de boheme!

Resigned to the fact that her destiny is to live a life of wealth, Louisa takes her ever-growing bank account and falls for tycoon Rod Anderson, Jr. (Robert Mitchum) and settles in to a "Lush Budgett Production."  The love story comes to an abrupt halt with a hilarious (and shocking for its time) episode with a bull.

All of MacLaine's gowns were designed by Edith Head.  Dig the crazy, red, near fetish-inspired, Asian gown and the backless number....yowza!

Did Dita really think she was the first person to do it in a giant cocktail glass?

With her unlucky-in-love streak continuing, Louisa meets Pinky Benson (Gene Kelly), a struggling night club performer.  They fall in love but shortly thereafter, their world turns upside down when Pinky becomes a huge success and Hollywood star.

Totally unsatisfied to live in the lap of Hollywood luxury and left with an even larger fortune, Louisa decides to give it all away to the IRS.  Thinking that perhaps she has gone insane, she goes to see psychiatrist, Dr. Victor Stephanson (Bob Cummings) - big mistake!

Crazy, baby!

Without giving the ending away, Louisa eventually finds happiness with someone from her past but isn't let off of the hook that easily.  Needless to say, fate takes a hand! 

Mitchum, Newman, Martin, Kelly, Van Dyke & Cummings

What a Way to Go! is a wacky tacky classic because it was a decided break from the formulaic films of the 50's (which we also love) both in its sensibility and in its desire to spoof popular movie genres.  The stars, instead of looking and acting at the peak of their personal perfection, eagerly poked fun at stereotypes as well as their own studio-created personae.  The costumes, the musical numbers and fantasy sequences, especially the foreign film with MacLaine and Newman, are wacky tacky genius.  I guess if I could choose a way to die it would be watching amazing movies - what a way to go!

Cheers!

Mr. Tiny

Silly Cinema: Lady of Burlesque

When one is faced with a particularly-problematic dilemma, it is wise for one to remain calm, think about the situation objectively and make a prudent decision based on  the facts and a proper evaluation of the associated pros and cons.  I am anything but wise or prudent - especially when it comes to old movies.  That is why, when standing in the check-out line of the local grocery store, I bought Lady of Burlesque, starring Barbara Stanwyck.  As a rule, aside from the occasional pack of gum or mints, I generally refrain from impulse purchases at the register.  Since when are DVD's an impulse buy at Stater Bros. Supermarket?  Even though the DVD cover art appeared to be a child's crude, first attempt at Photoshop, I couldn't help myself.  As an rabid avid fan of old Hollywood, I have amassed a collection of close to 800 films.  Just when I thought I had seen everything, I hadn't.  In fact, there are so many movies that I haven't seen that my love affair with movies is sure to continue for a long time to come.

Barbara Stanwyck has never been one of my favorite stars - a little too pointy or something.  I enjoy some of her films - Ball of Fire, Double Indemnity, The Lady Eve - but I have never developed a connection to her as I have with other stars of Hollywood's Golden Era.  Maybe that is why I get some sort of subversive pleasure at the end of Sorry, Wrong Number.  Really, she kind of had it coming.  Am I right?  My favorite actresses tend to be wholesome stars like Deanna Durbin and Doris Day.  As I write, I realize that maybe my affinity for those particular female leads may have something to do with chubby cheeks and alliterative, "D" names.

Lady of Burlesque is based on The G-String Murders: 

The Story of a Burlesque Girl by Gypsy Rose Lee.

(I just bought a used copy on etsy!!!)

Lady of Burlesque is part murder mystery and part girly show.  Don't worry prudes, all the other good parts remain covered throughout the duration of the film!  Stanwyck plays Dixie Daisy, the most popular performer at The Old Opera House run by S.B. Foss.  She is the peace keeper with the Chinese restaurant next door, a rival of a couple of the "peelers" and mother hen to the rest, and the love interest of Michael O'Shea, a baggy-pants, burlesque comic.  "Everything's coming up roses" in Gypsy's ode to backstage burlesque until someone starts murdering the performers.  Everyone is a suspect and Dixie must play novice sleuth in order to save her own neck!  The proceedings are enjoyable and my admiration for Stanwyck actually grew as it is apparent that she sings all of her own songs and dances like a wiz!  That is why I love old Hollywood; the actors had to do more than look good.  Even straight, dramatic stars kept singing and hoofing in their proverbial "back pockets."

This clip shows the reprise of "Take it off the E-String."  Stanwyck, engaged in a "scene," and her fellow performers break into song to cover the backstage screams of another girl getting smacked around by her street-tough boyfriend.

Stanwyck as Dixie Daisy

Overall, Lady of Burlesque (1943) is the perfect movie for a rainy afternoon.  It incorporates wacky tacky elements like slapstick, great clothing (Dixie's costumes were designed by Edith Head) and strippin'.  It is a great, broad comedy and is a great comedy with broads!!!  It is reminiscent of Lady on a Train, another (and superior) movie from the same era that includes murder, mystery, comedy, amazing costumes and music.  Lady on a Train, stars who else, Deanna Durbin, and is one of my favorite movies of all time.  Both films employ some of Hollywood's finest character actors too.  If you like Lady of Burlesque, you are sure to like Lady on a Train, but don't take my word for it! 

Cheers!

Mr. Tiny