Actors
Why Eli Wallach Was the Happiest Good Actor Ever
Eli Wallach was known as one of our most versatile performers. Though Jewish, he played Mexican, Italian, and assorted other ethnic characters with the same fluency and assurance.
Holidays
Anthony Hopkins: A Star Is Born on New Year’s Eve
Sir Anthony Hopkins, the scarily brilliant actor who played the scarily brilliant Hannibal Lecter in 1991’s “The Silence of the Lambs,” turns 80 this New Year’s Eve.
Actors
That Voice: How Laurence Olivier Romanced the Spoken Word
“Who’s the greatest actor of all time?” When that unanswerable question gets asked in my circles, I tend to hear four names repeated: Marlon Brando, Spencer Tracy, Laurence Olivier, and Daniel Day-Lewis.
Directors
Why George Cukor Was a “Woman’s Director,” and So Much More
It’s sad but true that the bygone film directors we tend to remember are those associated with specific types of films (think Hitchcock for suspense and John Ford for Westerns), while the more versatile players somehow get lost in the fog.
Actors
Golden Boy — The Dramatic Ups and Downs of Actor William Holden
It was Hollywood in early 1950, and legendary director Billy Wilder had a big problem. In two weeks, shooting would start on his next film, “Sunset Boulevard,” and his mercurial young star, Montgomery Clift, had just backed out of playing the lead.
Actors
What Made Alan Bates Such a Generous Talent
I have always been a huge fan of the late Alan Bates. His profound talent made him a joy to watch in most anything. Still, I’ve often wondered, why wasn’t he a bigger star? Eventually, I learned it was a matter of choice. He simply preferred to be a working actor.
Actors
Robert Donat: The Forgotten Man Who Stole Clark Gable’s Oscar
In 1939, right before World War 2 transformed the movie industry and the world, Hollywood produced the most copious output of outstanding films in a single year, titles that endure to this day.
Actors
Why 1939 Was the Year of Thomas Mitchell
Thomas Mitchell was one of the most admired and successful character actors of Hollywood’s Golden Age, but to most viewers today, his face is more familiar than his name. When you hear more about Mitchell’s amazing career, you’ll agree we should all know his name — and revere his memory.
Actors
Staying Power — The Wonder of Angela Lansbury
Roughly two years ago, I had the honor of dining with Angela Lansbury. It was at a private event, where we screened “The Manchurian Candidate” (1962), which features perhaps her most indelible film role, as the diabolically wicked mother of a would-be presidential assassin. Rarely have I met a more grounded, down-to-earth lady. She had no airs whatever. She might have been the British granny of anyone’s happiest dreams: smart, sensible, with a ready laugh and the confidence to listen.