"Va Va Voom" Star of the Day

Donald O'Connor

Donald O'Connor was born on August 28, 1925 in Chicago, Illinois, to a family of circus performers.  He entered the family business in the family's vaudeville act, becoming a featured dancer in low-budget musicals.  Ten months after O'Connor's birth, his 7-year-old sister Arline was struck by a car and killed. O'Connor's devastated father died of a heart attack weeks later.

During the Great Depression, the surviving O'Connor's traveled from city to city, performing for food if necessary.  His mother had become extremely overprotective of her remaining children, seeming never to completely recover from the shock of losing her daughter and husband.  Donald enjoyed being on stage, which served as escape from his domineering mother.

TBT: "Va Va Voom" Star of the Day

It's Throwback Thursday so I thought I'd keep on the Van Johnson kick and repost our previous "Va Va Voom" Star of the Day post from 2006, for those of you who missed it.  Enjoy!

Van Johnson
"Va va va Van!" Van Johnson had just started a 7-year contract with MGM in 1942 when he was in a major road accident which left him with a metal plate in his head. Ineligible to serve during WWII, the studio used his all-American boyish looks to become America's war film hero. He was usually opposite June Allyson (I love "The Bride Goes Wild") or Esther Williams (my personal favorite is "Thrill of Romance"), two 'all-American girls' that made movie-goers flock to theaters.

In the 1950s, as middle age and a heavier build set in, he was limited with his roles. MGM also began to crumble, and his film career has been irregular since 1960. His career in the 70's and 80's has consisted mostly of stage work which has kept him under the Hollywood radar.

Although his personal life has been racked with turmoil -- from undergoing treatment for skin cancer to rumors of homosexuality -- Van will always remain timeless and pure on the silver screen. His movies will keep him charming, handsome, and as a great symbol as "the all-American" hero of Hollywood, fighting for our country in World War II.

Update: Van Johnson passed away on December 12, 2008.

Happy Veteran's Day!

Thank you to all our servicemen and women, past or present!

Friday Photo Album: Working Girls

Here is the last in the series of my photo albums!  During the war, when I wasn't performing at the USO, I was a factory worker.  Here are some photos of the girls an' me at the factory!

It's tiring working at the plant, but I keep a smile on my face:

Friday Photo Album: Those USO Days

You probably didn't know that during World War 2 I helped at the USO by entertaining the troops!  Well here are some pictures from those good ol' days.  

Here is one of me standing with two soldiers from the 103rd regiment.

Sweepea's Book Review: Unbroken

Being a huge fan of anything about WWII, I was intrigued to read the novel "Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption."  The book, written by Laura Hillenbrand, outlines the true story of Louis Zamperini and his extraordinary life from Olympic runner to POW to international hero.

To say this man's life is interesting is an understatement.  He basically should have died about 5 different times.  His suffering is remarkable, because he survived through it all.

As a boy, he was out of control, wreaking havoc throughout his neighborhood. As a teenager, his brother encouraged him to run, and in doing so, Lou discovered that focusing on his running diverted his energy from bad to good. When World War 2 hit, he joined the Army Air Forces.  It was here that his already amazing life took a dramatic turn in to adventure, danger, and survival.

"Va Va Voom" Star of the Day

Carole Landis
Carole Landis had a difficult life, starting from her childhood. But her determination -- and a major change in her identity -- helped her rise to fame in the 1940's. Unfortunately, the tragic beginning would foresee an even more tragic end.

She was born Frances Lillian Mary Ridste in Fairchild, Wisconsin. Her father abandoned the family at an early age, two of her brothers died in childhood, and several sources claimed that her older brother molested her. By the age of 15, Landis quit high school, left the family, and married. But the marriage didn’t last long; it was annulled and she finally set her sights on making it in Hollywood.

She dyed her hair blonde and changed her name to "Carole Landis" after her favorite actress, Carole Lombard. She appeared in bit parts until she signed a contract in 1940 with 20th Century Fox, partly due to her relationship with Darryl F. Zanuck. She did many movies with unmemorable roles, but was honored with a star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame.

Landis became a popular pin-up with servicemen during World War II and toured with a USO troupe. Carole would spend more times visiting troops than any other actress, and nearly died from diseases she contracted while traveling. Landis' career seemed to disappear by 1948: she was plagued with health problems, she had four divorces and several failed romances behind her. Finally she entered into a doomed affair with actor Rex Harrison who was married to actress Lilli Palmer at the time.

Landis became increasingly depressed when Harrison refused to divorce his wife. Crushed by this latest failure, she committed suicide by taking an overdose of Seconal. Her final night alive had been spent with Harrison and it was he who found her body the next morning. She was only 29 years old.

Must-See Movie: Mister Roberts

Mister Roberts (1955)
Talk about one of the finest war films in cinematic history. Starring Henry Fonda, Jack Lemmon, and James Cagney, this award-winning comedy-drama is the quintessential guy movie. It's got war, it's got honor, it's got men being men. But mostly it has a lot of heart.

Mr. Roberts (Henry Fonda) is the cargo supervisor on the USS Reluctant (a.k.a. "The Bucket"), an American cargo ship lying stagnant in the Pacific Ocean during World War II. Roberts desperately wants to leave the tedium of his post to join in the action of war. Weekly he writes for a transfer, but the captain of the ship (James Cagney) is a tyrant over the crew, especially Roberts, and chooses to forward all of his letters with his stamp of disapproval. The Captain's only real pride is a palm tree that was given to him as reward for "his" hard work and effort in delivering cargo. The men all look up to Roberts and how he stands up to the Captain, but things change when Roberts somehow finagles a "liberty" for the men in a beautiful South Pacific port.

Also on board is Robert's cabin-mate Ensign Pulver (Jack Lemmon), who does all he can to avoid confrontation with the captain and instead bides his time buying and selling for hard-to-get items on the ship. He also spends time telling people how one day he's going to get even with the Captain's tyranny, whether it be putting marbles in his overhead or launching a firecracker under his bunk.

Also complimenting Ford and Lemmon's performances is William Powell, who plays Doc. He acts as Mr. Robert's sounding board, and also his voice of reason. This was Powell's last film before he retired from acting. The powerful accomplishments of the male cast make this film a great way to celebrate our war heroes, and masculinity!

This post is dedicated to my Dad, whose recent passing has put my blogging at a stand-still for a while. But this was his favorite movie, and would always bring a tear to his eye (and my eye, as well). I love you Dad, and I miss you. "Now what's all this crud about no movie tonight??"

Must-See Movie: The Fighting Sullivans

The Fighting Sullivans (1944)
I like war movies, especially about WWII. Not just because I'm fan of the clothes, hair, and music of the time. But there was a certain romantic patriotism during this era. Men stood up to fight for our country and the women stood by them. Our entire country stood by them!

What makes this film unusual is not that it's based on the true story of the Sullivan brothers, but that it focuses more on life before the war: family, mothers, fathers, loved ones, sisters, and brothers -- entire lives that are affected when our country is attacked at Pearl Harbor.

The Sullivan brothers grew up doing everything together: fishing, fighting, taking in stray dogs, mending old broken-down boats, and especially getting in to lots of trouble. So it was expected that they should all go to war together in 1941 and be assigned to the same boat. In fact, they insisted on it.

This film is not so much about how the five Sullivan brothers' lives ended, but how they lived: as a loving, supportive family that would do anything to be together. And it helps us all remember that each soldier that dies for our country has a life, a love, and a family that they've left behind.

Monday's This & That

Things are really ramping up around here... I'm getting ready for a well-deserved 2 1/2-week vacation, and that means cranking away at work to get all my shtuff done so I can get the hell outta Dodge! As a result, I haven't found much time to do anything fun lately, but I have found a few choice tidbits of frivolity here and there...

Lighters, handbags, coasters, and other goodies featuring pin-up girls, Cary Grant, Clark Gable, Frank Sinatra, and more retro characters are for sale at PinupgirlLighters.com. They're enough to make smoking cool again!

Go back in time by checking out these WWII posters...

And Wired provides us with Air Hostesses of Yesteryear. Fly the friendly skies with an air of nostalgia!

Well, back to my march... And remember, VOTES FOR WOMEN!

Must-See Movie: Up Periscope

Up Periscope (1959)
James Garner stars as a U.S. Navy frogman in this tension-filled submarine flick set in 1942. Lt. Kenneth M. Braden (Garner) has just asked the woman he loves to marry him, and she runs off in tears.

That night, he is called to duty to be smuggled into a Japanese-held island by the submarine "Barracuda" to photograph radio codes. He must put his personal life aside and focus on the dangerous mission, risking the lives of all 80 men on the submarine.

This was one of Garner's first big-time movies while he was in his heyday as "Maverick," and the promo even billed him as James "Maverick" Garner. However, this was not like any character of Garner's people had seen. Yes, he was the all-American, stunningly handsome charmer, but he was mostly calculated, serious, out-spoken, and driven. There are little to no moments of quick wit and cleverness to his character; he is extremely straight-forward. He does get a pretty good scene with three beautiful wahines, but finds them "expendable;" his first and only love is the woman he left at home.

I also found the character of Commander Paul Stevenson intriguing, played by Edmund O'Brien. This man has his own demons to deal with, but he also has the great responsibility of being in charge of the submarine and all the men it contains. None of the men know why Garner's character is on the submarine except for the Commander and his first exec, so the seamen speculate as to the Commander's bravery in battle. Although the Commander knows that his men doubt him, he keeps moving forward with the plan, at the risk of his own reputation.

Just experiencing what the men of WWII had to give up for their country, what they had to endure, makes this film worthwhile. You feel the claustrophobia of the submarine, you see their loneliness and anguish, you share their longing to be home with their families. To be reminded of those men who risked their lives with courage and patriotism is reason enough to rent this movie.

What You Didn't Know...

*YAWN* So it's already 9:00 AM and Pixie has tagged me. I've been tagged before, but I just hate answering these things. Then I thought to my self, "Self, you never reveal enough information about yourself. No one knows any details about your personal life." So here are 7 things about me that you may not know:

1. I am a graduate of St. Pyre's School of Technical Pyrotechnics in Fioria, Virgin Islands, majoring in Pyrotechnical Arts. I studied under Pietro Pierre, the great international flame thrower. A genius in the world of deflagration.

2. I spend at least 5 hours a day at work procrastinating. This mostly consists of surfing the internet, blogging, playing on my MySpace page, or tooling around in Photoshop.

3. I have a thing for trumpet players. Especially those named Harry who know how to play Hora Staccato.

4. I have an unusually long tongue. When I was born, the doctor suggested to my mother that I get the tip of my tongue chopped off. The very thought of this procedure made her cringe, so she declined. As a result, I can touch my tongue to my nose (as well as many other special talents that shall remain unsaid).

5. Before my work as a pinup girl and go-go dancer, I was a famous big band singer under the stage name Kitty Keller. I sang for our wonderful men in uniform during WWII for the USO, and had 12 very successful albums throughout the 30's and 40's. However, I strained my voice during a performance with Doris Day (okay, more of a shouting match, but that's another story for another day) and I lost my record deal.

5. I've dated many famous men, but Peter Lawford was the one who really broke my heart. I'm especially hurt since there is no record anywhere of our relationship, which leads me to believe that he never has revealed to anyone that we were lovers.

6. I'm a MySpace whore. If you ask to be my friend, I'll automatically just say yes. I don't care who you are, what you believe in, or what you look like. I just want you as a friend!

7. I tried to sleep with Irving Thalberg to get a movie deal at MGM, but Norma Shearer beat me to it. That bitch.

As far as tagging people...I don't really go to other people's blogs, but I do hang out around other people's MySpace pages and websites (see the list on the right). I think if I tagged someone they'd never do it back. And if you're hurt that you didn't get tagged, it's because I don't know what the hell your blog is! Leave your addy in the comments so I can put you in a post or on my links list. Stop lurking and start commenting!!

Oh yeah... the obligatory rules (that I really had trouble following)...
1. Link your tagger and list these rules on your blog.
2. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.
3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs.
4. Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

Photos, Photos, and More Photos!

If you still haven't become my friend on MySpace or visited the Lounge's MySpace page, then you probably haven't seen my wonderful collection of pictures. There's many albums of my fun adventures for you to graze through...

Be amazed by my travels around the world!
Laugh at the hilarious party photos!
See my experiences as a riveter!
Enjoy my days performing for the USO during WWII!
Be spellbound by my pool and beach days!
Marvel at my romance cheese and pinup pictures!

And most of all, add me as your MySpace friend!

"Va Va Voom" Star of the Day

Peter Lawford
Saturday morning I fell in love. I was watching the Esther Williams' flick On An Island With You, and her leading man was a tall, tan wonderful navy pilot. His soft voice, his big puppy eyes, his thick eyebrows, and his gleaming white smile made my heart melt. And I was completely transfixed by the 1948 version of Peter Lawford. (Don't we look cute together?)

British-born, Peter's parents were un-wed when he was conceived. This caused a scandal that drove the family to the United States, where they travelled constantly. Because of his family's travels, Peter was never formally educated, and his lack of education was a sore subject. It contributed to his feelings of inadequacy later on as a member of the Kennedy family (his brother-in-law was JFK), and throughout his adult life.

Injuring his arm in a childhood accident kept Peter from entering World War II, the greatest thing that could happen to his acting career. Hollywood was infatuated with heroic Englishmen and as war movies were being churned out by the dozens. Peter Lawford was just what America was looking for.

Once he signed with MGM, his mother insisted that studio head Louis B. Mayer pay her a salary as Peter's personal assistant. Mayer declined, so Mrs. Lawford responded by claiming her son to be homosexual and that he needed to be "supervised". When Peter learned of his mother's actions their relationship was never the same.

Perhaps to prove to everyone his sexuality, Lawford had a reputation as a ladies' man, even as he was married to Patricia Kennedy. He allegedly had many affairs with famous women, including Ava Gardner, June Allyson, Lana Turner, Janet Leigh, Rita Hayworth, Dorothy Dandridge, Lucille Ball, Judy Holliday, Judy Garland, Marilyn Monroe, Grace Kelly, Kim Novak, Jackie O, Nancy Reagan, and Elizabeth Taylor, to name a few.

These affairs made Peter more of a celebrity than a movie star, especially when he was made member of the "Rat Pack." Later in life, Lawford fell into drug and alcohol abuse. This plus strained relationships and financial difficulties caused a great deal of stress on his increasingly fragile health. Lawford died alone in a hospital in Los Angeles on Christmas Eve 1984 of liver and kidney disease culminating in cardiac arrest at the age of 61.

Interestingly enough, none of the Rat Pack members attended the funeral. This is possibly due to a falling-out between Frank Sinatra and Lawford over Peter's involvement with Ava Gardner.

"Va Va Voom" Star of the Day

Van Johnson
"Va va va Van!" Van Johnson had just started a 7-year contract with MGM in 1942 when he was in a major road accident which left him with a metal plate in his head. Ineligible to serve during WWII, the studio used his all-American boyish looks to become America's war film hero. He was usually opposite June Allyson (I love "The Bride Goes Wild") or Esther Williams (my personal favorite is "Thrill of Romance"), two 'all-American girls' that made movie-goers flock to theaters.

In the 1950s, as middle age and a heavier build set in, he was limited with his roles. MGM also began to crumble, and his film career has been irregular since 1960. His career in the 70's and 80's has consisted mostly of stage work which has kept him under the Hollywood radar.

Although his personal life has been racked with turmoil -- from undergoing treatment for skin cancer to rumors of homosexuality -- Van will always remain timeless and pure on the silver screen. His movies will keep him charming, handsome, and as a great symbol as "the all-American" hero of Hollywood, fighting for our country in World War II.

Memories of Steve McQueen

Steve Crump of the Twin Falls Times writes about some great Steve McQueen moments:

My wife and I spent a few days in Ketchum, celebrating our anniversary. It was very romantic — especially the part about Steve McQueen’s tractor.

Sitting in the parking of our hotel was a well-used Farmall. I know this because my dad used them in an always expensive and often futile attempt to till eastern Idaho. One of the employees of the hotel told us that this particular Farmall had been on the premises since it had been purchased from the estate of actor Steve McQueen, who died in 1980. The fellow explained that there had been longstanding plans to restore the machine, and he said some other stuff too. But I don’t remember much after he started talking about engines and Steve McQueen.

McQueen, you see, left behind a Porsche 917, a Porsche 908, a Ferrari 512, a Ferrari Lusso Berlinetta, a Jaguar-D and a Porsche 356 Speedster. And he was responsible for two of the defining moments in the lives of most American males born before 1955.

The first came in a 1963 movie called “The Great Escape” in which McQueen played an American prisoner of war in Germany during World War II. McQueen escapes and is cornered by soldiers against a barbed-wire fence along the Swiss border.

By backing up quite a long ways and making a good deal of noise, McQueen’s character tries to jump the fence to freedom. It doesn’t work out, but who cares? Cool was born that day.

Later, McQueen portrayed a California cop named Bullitt in a film of the same name. Frank Bullitt loved to drive muscle cars — it was 1968 — at high rates of speed over the largely vertical streets of San Francisco in pursuit of badder guys with even heavier feet.

The movie’s director, Peter Yates, recalled that he was riding with McQueen during one especially harrowing chase scene.

“Steve, we’re running out of room!” Yates shouted.

“Pete, we’re running out of brakes!” McQueen replied.

Suffice it to say that Steve McQueen could have been elected president six or seven times. And that 26 years after his passing, the mere mention of his name in connection with things that go fast is enough make the heart of a risk-averse, thoroughly tame 54-year-old Subaru Outback owner go pitter-patter.

At dinner that evening, Victoria caught me gazing out the window at the silhouette of the Pioneer Mountains in the setting sun.

“You’re not thinking about us!" she fumed. “You’re thinking about how tall a barbed-wire fence you could jump on Steve McQueen’s Farmall!”

Point taken, but it could have been far worse.

I didn’t actually have to sleep on the tractor that night.

Funeral for "The Great Escape" Hero

The inspiration for Steve McQueen's character in "The Great Escape" - one of my favorite movies - is buried.

A World War II hero who escaped from prison camps seven times and who died aged 102 was buried on Tuesday.

Squadron Leader Eric Foster is thought to have inspired Steve McQueen's character in the film "The Great Escape."

Mr. Foster, from Gloucestershire, was shot down in 1940 when he was a Flight Lieutenant with 38 Bomber Squadron.

Over the next four years he escaped seven times, but was recaptured on each occasion. He died at his home in Bishop's Cleeve in March.

Mr Foster's funeral took place in the Gloucestershire town on Tuesday afternoon.

[BBC News]

WTF is Daylight Savings About?

I know I'm a bit late on this, but it's still bugging me...I've been exhausted ever since Sunday. I've always wondered why we have Daylight Savings Time. If you ask most people, they say it's "because of the farmers." But actually that's not true.

History
The concept was originated by Benjamin Franklin in his humorous 1784 essay "An Economical Project." The idea was taken seriously and then advocated by William Willett in a pamplet entitled "Waste of Daylight." He was inspired when visiting a town, where he noticed many people's shades were drawn although the sun was shining outside. He proposed setting clocks ahead twenty minutes on four seperate Sundays in April. His idea introduced "British Summer Time" in 1916.

Energy-saving became big in the second World War. This time, clocks would be put ahead two hours in the summer, and it would be called "Double Summer Time." In the winter, the clocks would remain only one hour ahead throughout the winter war time.

1966 saw the Uniform Time Act put in to effect in the United States, establishing uniform summer and standard time settings. In 1986, legislation enforced the rules that we have now with every first April "springing forward" and every last Sunday in October "falling back."

So, you see, the farmers had nothing to do with it really. Most farmers oppose the idea, because the roosters don't realize there's a time change. It takes a rooster an average of 10 weeks to get synchronized with the new schedule. 70 days of listening to a rooster crow an hour off can be a little disconcerting.

The Pros
Okay, so it does save electricity. We go to bed earlier and therefore don't have our lights on as long as we would. According to sources, 25% of all the electricity we use is for lighting and small appliances, things we'd predominantly use when we get home from work. Studies done in the 1970's show that we cut our energy usage 1% each day during Daylight Saving time. That can add up to a lot of saved energy.

The Cons
It's easier to find opinions against DST than for, probably because negatives are a) more fun to talk about, and b) said more vocally. There is even a petition on the web to alter DST so that there are two permanent time zones, instead of four rotational ones. Can't tell you how it's going, though...

Some people say there are fewer accidents because of DST, but anyone who lives in the L.A. area can tell you that car accidents happen all times of the day, regardless of where the sun is shining. This cannot be a positive. I would think there are more accidents because people haven't adjusted well to the new schedule, thereby affecting their sleeping patterns.

The biggest complaint is that it's annoying to change your clocks back and forth, to remember what day it is that you do it. Or how embarassing it is to show up late for something because you forgot. Yes, that can be annoying. But so are a lot of things that we do in this country. Like paying taxes.

Conclusion
No, we didn't start DST because of the farmers, it really started to conserve energy during war times. So the question is, do we need to keep saving energy? Is the war that we are in now comparable to WWII and their energy crisis? Do we have to start having rubber and tin drives soon, too?

I'm not so sure. But neither side, for or against DST, has enough weight to sway me one way or the other. Except for the rooster thing. Now that would annoy me.

Sources
www.timeanddate.com - history, facts, pros
www.webexhibits.org/daylightsaving
www.timechange.com
www.standardtime.com - petition and cons
www.energy.ca.gov/daylightsaving.html - "Saving Time, Saving Energy" - pros and history

Thirsty Work!

Since I am a huge fan of WWII, propaganda posters, Photoshop, and beer, I thought this was the perfect thing for Friday.

[part of the Propaganda Photoshop Contest on Worth 1000.com]