Showbiz History: 'Let's Get Physical' with Mildred Pierce
Monday, September 28, 2020 at 9:00AM 9 random things that happened on this day, September 28th, in showbiz history:
1935 Comic actor Stan Laurel marries his second wife Virginia Ruth Rogers who will also become his fourth wife. Old Hollywood stars sure did get married and divorced and remarried a lot! The recent underseen biopic Stan & Ollie (2018) looked at Laurel & Hardy's final years after the heyday of their fame, with Steven Coogan as Stan Laurel and Nina Arianda giving yet another great supporting performance as Laurel's fifth and final wife Ida. When is Nina Arianda going to get her due in Hollywood?
1945 Seventy-five years ago today, noir classic Mildred Pierce starring Joan Crawford opened, reviving her career and winning her the Oscar. (The movie was nominated for 5 additional Oscars including Best Picture). It's a must-see.
Gregg Toland, Martin & Lewis, and Olivia Newton-John after the jump...
1948 One of the most important cinematographers of all time, Oscar favourite Gregg Toland dies in his sleep of a blood clot at the height of his career. He was just 44 but had already shot Wuthering Heights, Citizen Kane, The Little Foxes, Ball of Fire, The Grapes of Wrath, The Outlaw, The Best Years of Our Lives, among many more. Can you imagine?
1949 My Friend Irma a mostly forgotten comedy of seemingly little import gets its world premiere in NYC. But here's how it makes the history books. The final thought on its poster involves its fifth and sixth-billed stars ...
"and introducing Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis".
Martin & Lewis will become a hugely beloved comedy team and make 11 more movies together.
1961 Tony & Oscar winner Shirley Booth (of Come Back Little Sheba fame) moves to TV with her own show "Hazel" on NBC
1976 "Songs in the Key of Life" drops becoming a huge seller and instant classic for Stevie Wonder and wins Album of the Year at the Grammys in early 1977.
1981 Olivia Newton-John, who had just turned 33 two days earlier, releases the single "Physical". It will become the biggest selling single of her career and its year, spending 10 weeks at #1 (a record at the time). Its sucess will lead to a handful of awards the following year: 3 Billboard awards, a Grammy, and an American Music Award.
1994 Tim Burton's best (?) film Ed Wood opens nationwide. We celebrated its 25th anniversary last year.
Today's Birthday Suit:
Happy 48th birthday to Casper Andreas. Anyone remember him? He used to direct and occassionally write and star in his own low budget queer films in the Aughts (Citizen James, Slutty Summer, A Four Letter Word, and Violet Tendencies). It doesn't seem like he writes or directs anymore but he still acts occassionally (recently appearing in the lesbian comedy Wild Nights with Emily).
Other actors born on this day: Keir Gilchrist (28), Arnmundur Ernst Björnsson (31), Hana Mae Lee (32), Hilary Duff (33), Sarah Wright (37), Ranbir Kapoor (38), Ohad Knoller (44), Naomi Watts (52), Carré Otis (52), Mira Sorvino (53), Janeane Garofalo (56), Marshall Bell (78), and Brigitte Bardot. Happy 86th birthday to the French sex symbol today. Believe it or not she's still too young to make our list of the 200 oldest living screen actors of note !
Another birthday suit -- the legendary sex symbol Brigitte Bardot
Other showbiz types: musician St Vincent (38), Jackass Bam Margera (41), brilliant Lighthouse cinematographer Jarin Blaschke (42), and beauty Dita Von Teese (48), and Oscar nominated writer/director John Sayles (70).
Gone but Not Forgotten: Influential TV host Ed Sullivan (born on this day in 1901), Oscar winning Network star Peter Finch (born on this day in 1916), Italian superstar Marcello Mastroianni (born on this day in 1924), actress Janet Munro (born on this day in 1934), Oscar winning screenwriter Kurt Luedtke (born on this day in 1939), French star Pierre Clémenti (born on this day in 1942), actor J.T. Walsh (born on this day in 1943),and another brilliant cinematographer Harris Savides (born on this day in 1957).
Reader Comments (12)
Let's Get Physical with Mildred Pierce.
A lot of people did. :)
I somehow managed to get my parents to buy me Songs In The Key Of Life for Christmas 1976 and I consider it one of my greatest progressive personal triumphs of my teenage years. My favorite Aunt was with us for Christmas and she went on and on about the dangers of "jungle music" a direct quote. Sigh.
I had no idea that Gregg Toland died so young but it certainly explains why the greatest cinematographer of the 1940s just, well, stopped. What a loss for movie lovers.
Despite having such gems as Ed Wood and Edward Scissorhands in his filmography, Tim Burton's best film is clearly Big Fish.
Mildred Pierce deserved all those nominations but it seems incredible that Jack Carson didn't snag one for Best Supporting Actor. He adds so much as the slightly sleazy but still likable Wally Fay. He's another one of those reliably fantastic performers that somehow never received a nomination.
More on Mildred Pierce
Ann Blyth was 16 years old when she filmed the adaptation of James Cain’s Mildred Pierce. Joan Crawford wanted to play the successful business woman with a deeply troubled private life but was far down on the list of possible casting. Too proud to submit to a screen test, fading leading actress Crawford decided the best way to solve the problem was to ingratiate herself to a strong ingénue in the running for the role of the malicious, entitled daughter Veda Pierce. Crawford favored Blyth and offered to coach her. She even agreed to play Mildred in Blyth’s screen test which then creatively solved her own problem of not technically submitting to a screen test. The two were magic together on screen. Both were cast.
In her performance, Blyth embodies adolescent indignation. We can see her emotions of contempt and revulsion play across her face, though Mildred remains blind to what appears quite obvious. Veda’s petite body literally quivers with an anger she can scarcely contain. The most infamous scene in the film is the violent confrontation between Veda and Mildred on the stairs. Mildred speaks harshly, and Veda responds by viciously slapping her mother. The two actresses rehearsed diligently. Blyth has remarked on several occasions that Crawford encouraged her to find her inner rage. According to Blyth, the almost tangible vehemence was authentic. Both women went home exhausted after shooting the famed sequence
Dr Mistery -- 😂
James - fun anecdote!
J -- i take issue with "clearly" as it wouldn't even be in my top five Burtons ;)
Dave -- i didn't know that either until doing this post.
Tom Burton's best film is "Ed Wood"... you made me curious about his Casper Andrea person?
Today is the 75th anniversary of when Joan Crawford's legendary comeback in 'Mildred Pierce' had it's NYC premiere. And the rest, as they say, was history. Here's my look at what Mildred did! https://ricksrealreel.blogspot.com/2020/03/how-joan-crawford-became-mildred-pierce.html
I didn't konw John Sayles died.
John Sayles isn't dead. He just hasn't directed a film in 7 years and the last thing he took part of as a writer was The Alienist.
Cafg & The Void -- sorry about that. put him in the wrong column. fixed.
Jaragon -- well his movies aren't very good but still. you gotta admire total indie filmmakers who get multiple movies made and released without the mainstream ever hearing about them.
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