Almost There: Anthony Hopkins in "The Lion in Winter"

by Cláudio Alves

As the Oscar nomination morning approaches, it seems certain that Anthony Hopkins is about to receive his sixth nod. Seeing as he's considered a wizened old thespian of stage and screen, it may be difficult to recall the days when he, like so many others, was a young actor. In 1968, Hopkins was nearing his 30th birthday when his second ever feature premiered. Thanks to that film, he got the first brush with film awards and might have even come close to an Oscar nomination. In Anthony Harvey's adaptation of James Goldman's The Lion in Winter, Hopkins plays Richard, future king of England, son of Henry II…

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The Furniture: Giulietta Masina's House of Spirits

"The Furniture," by Daniel Walber, is a series on Production Design. 

This week we mark the centennial of actress Giulietta Masina, which I consider an opportunity to do something a little different. The Furniture, as you might expect, is rarely a column about performance. I spend a lot of time trying to get screenshots without any actors present at all. Production design often works in support of performance, or in parallel, but rarely are they what you might call intertwined.

In the films of Federico Fellini, Masina’s husband and collaborator, design often threatens to overwhelm or absorb performance. Actors become moving props in his most extravagant productions, rotating like carousel horses around a central figure or two. And these protagonists are often ciphers of style themselves, particularly when they’re played by Marcello Mastroianni.

Not so with 1965's Juliet of the Spirits. Masina is the well from which the entire production springs...

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Showbiz History: Annie Get Your Gun and What We Do in the Shadows

6 random things that happened on this day, February 12th, in showbiz history...

1949 Annie Gets Your Gun starring Ethel Merman closes on Broadway after a nearly three year run. The troubled film adaptation directed by George Sidney (a replacement for Busby Berkeley who was fired) and starring Betty Hutton (a replacement for Judy Garland who was fired) arrives the following year. 

1959 The Black Orchid starring Sophia Loren and Anthony Quinn opens in theaters. Sophia Loren had won the Volpi Cup at the Venice Film Festival the previous summer...

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Showbiz History: Taxi Driver, Grammy Openers, and Globe Switcheroos

5 random things that happened on this day, February 8th, in showbiz history...

Julie Andrews in her infamous 'kill them with kindness' Globes speech in which she thanked the producer of... wait for it... My Fair Lady.

1921 One hundred years ago movie star Lana Turner was born. More on her later.

1965 The 22nd annual Golden Globe awards honoring the films of 1964 were held. Becket (drama) and My Fair Lady (comedy/musical) took the Best Picture prizes. And at the peak of the popularity of gigantic big screen musicals, it was the "comedy/musical" winners for acting that repeated on Oscar night with Rex Harrison (My Fair Lady) and Julie Andrews (Mary Poppins) both winning here first...

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Carol Channing Centennial: A Thoroughly Wacky Nomination

by Cláudio Alves

Carol Channing was a force of nature. The actress electrified the Broadway stages, originating such famous roles as Lorelei in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and the titular character in Hello, Dolly!, but the husky-voiced sensation with a mega-wat smile went on to find success in front of cameras too. Whether acting or just being herself, there's effervescent energy to Channing's screen presence, a frenetic joy that made her both a camp icon and an entertainment powerhouse whose fame persists to this day, long after her heyday and even her death. Throughout her legendary career, Channing won four Tony Awards, a place in the Grammy Hall of Fame, a Golden Globe, and even an Oscar nomination. Since we're all a bit Oscar-obsessed around here, the star's centennial celebration feels like a good time to reminisce about that achievement, its inherent weirdness, and wacky charm…

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