Monday's This & That

Whilst I deal with Monday's "dog-eat-dog" feeling, how's abouts we see what's floating around the interwebs?

Let's start with this article of some "secrets" of Lucy and Ricky...you have to click a billion times to get them all, but hey - you had nothing better to do, right?

Here are 25 cocktail recipes that apparently everyone should know.  Study them all for the test on Friday (when you can drink yourself in to oblivion over the weekend).

So you like to read about grisly deaths on set, do you?  Well then this article is for you...some you may have heard of, others not so much.  Unfortunately, most deaths are from dear stuntmen just doing their job.

And lastly, here's a list of 10 Audrey Hepburn Quotes with fabulous photos of her to peruse. #3's about makeup is particularly inspirational.

Enjoy!

"Va Va Voom" Star of the Day

I can't believe I haven't featured William Holden yet, after all the other posts about him...so here he is, our star of the day:

William Holden
William Franklin Beedle, Jr. was born in O'Fallon, Illinois in 1918. His family moved to South Pasadena when he was three. After graduating from South Pasadena High School, Holden attended Pasadena Junior College, where he became involved in local radio plays. He was spotted by a talent scout from Paramount Pictures in 1937 while playing the part of an 80-year-old man, Marie Curie's father-in-law, in a play in a small private theatre. His first film role was in Prison Farm the following year.

He was renamed William Holden after his talent scout Harold Winston's ex-wife, Gloria Holden. Holden's first starring role was in Golden Boy (1939), costarring Barbara Stanwyck, in which he played a violinist-turned-boxer. This gave him the eternal nickname in Hollywood of "Golden Boy."

After a few more film roles and a stint in the army during World War II, he made his name known when he landed the quintessential role in Billy Wilder's Sunset Boulevard (1950).  Initially the role was to go to Montgomery Clift, but luckily Holden snagged it, earning a Best Actor Oscar nomination.

Happy Birthday, Audrey Hepburn!

Our "Funny Face" would be 81 years old today!

Monday's This & That

As I enjoy the nice Spring weather, let's take a peek at what's around the 'net.

HBO is casting for their mini-series Mildred Pierce, that will star Kate Winslet in the role that won Joan Crawford a Best Actress Oscar. HBO did really well with the 're-imagining' of Grey Gardens starring Jessica Lange and Drew Barrymore. Let's hope this one does Ms Crawford justice, as well. Not familiar with Mildred Pierce? See a (hilarious) dubbed over part of the film featured in a previous post.

And speaking of unnecessary remakes, Dermot Mulroney is in talks to star in a 'reboot' of The Rockford Files TV series, taking over James Garner's famous role. Also to star is Beau Bridges. House creator David Shore will be a part of the 70s remake, and Steve Carell will executive produce.

Apparently Disney is making their newest fairytale flick "less princessy." They've changed the title from the classic "Rapunzel" to Tangled in an attempt to attract more boys to theaters. We'll see if it works. Critics speculate that its animation will be the real test, as the film is being done using traditional hand-drawn style animation, and critics say the style is of something that this generation of kids may not be accustomed. A teaser trailer is appearing on The Princess and the Frog DVD for the Fall release, but you can see it here, as well.

And the role previously thought to be taken by Keira Knightley may now be going to Carey Mulligan. The role? In another remake, of course. This one being My Fair Lady. The role Mulligan is close to signing was originally perfected by Julie Andrews on stage and Audrey Hepburn on film.

Got any NEW ideas, Hollywood?

Rare Audrey Hepburn stamp fetches $93,000 at auction

A rare stamp portraying Audrey Hepburn from Breakfast at Tiffany's sold for $93,800 at an auction in Germany today.

As the Daily News reports:
Only five copies of the 2001 stamp are known to exist.

The print run was ordered destroyed after Hepburn's son, Sean Ferrer, objected to the cigarette holder dangling from the "Breakfast at Tiffany's" star's mouth and refused to grant copyright.

Thirty proof copies escaped incineration. Most probably ended up in the trash can, but a few have wound up in the hands of collectors.

"We can only guess that whoever took the Hepburn stamps from Deutsche Post didn't realize their value, thought they would save 55 cents and just used them on normal letters," auctioneer Andreas Schlegel said.

Hepburn died of colon cancer in 1993. Her son said he hoped the stamp seller would use his windfall to benefit cancer research or an anti-smoking campaign.

Happy (Belated) Birthday, Audrey Hepburn!

She would have turned 80 years old yesterday!

"My Fair Lady" Remake Planned

The Fabulous Audrey Hepburn blog has reported that there will be yet another Hollywood remake, this one taking the classic My Fair Lady and casting Keira Knightley in the Audrey Hepburn role of Eliza Doolittle. Daniel Day-Lewis is on the producers' wish list to play the role of Henry Higgins.

I know the 1964 film was a remake of a Broadway play that was based on a Greek myth, but this is ridiculous. Must Hollywood make another remake?? Are there no original ideas out there anymore? I mean, why did the writers strike when all it seems like they're doing is recycling old ideas?

And once again a classic film is being "updated." Please, we're not that stupid that we can't interpret old movies to our time period.

Update: Speaking or remakes (especially ones we've already harped on), as for recent news on Race to Witch Mountain, the producers announced who the kids will be: AnnaSophia Robb and Alexander Ludwig. My favorite part...they're calling it a "modern reimagining" of the earlier film. It's called a remake, people!!

Must-See Movie: Paris - When it Sizzles

Paris - When it Sizzles (1964)
Playboy screenwriter Richard Benson (played by William Holden) has been paid to write a screenplay for his boss. In his arrogance he's squandered his time in Paris drinking, tanning, and doing just about anything but writing a screenplay. Two days before the script is due he hires Gabrielle Simpson (the adorable Audrey Hepburn) to type the script. Richard and Gabrielle come up with various off-the-wall scenarios for his screenplay, called The Girl Who Stole the Eiffel Tower. As the screenplay they write slowly develops, romance blooms between them.

This movie was filmed a decade after Hepburn and Holden's affair (during the filming of Sabrina) and apparently Holden wanted to pick things up where they left off. However, there is still visible chemistry between them.

The movie was later remade as Alex & Emma, starring Luke Wilson and Kate Hudson.

Here's the TCM trailer:

Audrey Hepburn Days: Video Tribute

Continuing with our celebration of Audrey's birthday this Sunday, May 4th, here is a video tribute made for her. Enjoy, and have a great weekend!

Audrey Hepburn Days: Websites to Visit

Continuing with our celebration of Audrey Hepburn's birthday on Sunday, here are some websites that you should browse...

The Fabulous Audrey Hepburn News blog gives you the scoop on everything Audrey, from handbags to Unicef.

AudreyHepburn.com has news about her Children's Fund, great photos, and links to merch.

Read all about her on the Audrey Hepburn Wikipedia page.

..And don't forget to check out the Lounge's Audrey Hepburn posts from the past, which contain video clips, books, quotes, trivia, and more!

Audrey Hepburn Days!

Audrey Hepburn's birthday is this Sunday, May 4th, so we at the Lounge are going to celebrate over the next few days! First off, is a nice video clip from the documentary "Breakfast at Tiffany's: The Making of a Classic". Enjoy!

Monday's This & That

So let's dive in to the latest floating around the internet...

More classics being redone... ContactMusic.com reports:
A musical version of the classic Audrey Hepburn movie "Roman Holiday" has been staged in London. The 1953 film was Hepburn's first starring role and earned her a Best Actress Oscar for her performance alongside Gregory Peck. And now the movie has become the latest legendary picture to be transformed into a West End show, with the story interspersed with the classic songs of Cole Porter. "Roman Holiday"'s London debut follows the musical version of "Gone With The Wind," which opened there earlier this month.

Music by Cole Porter? Has to be good...

Joan Crawford's arch-rival Bette Davis gets her own box collection released on DVD. The set includes "All About Eve," "Phone Call from a Stranger," "The Virgin Queen," "Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte," and "The Nanny." (Available on Amazon.com for $36.99 as of this posting.)

...And Disney's going green with their new film label Disneynature, which will produce nature documentaries about environmentalism. (If you've ever been to Walt Disney World and ridden on some of the rides, you'll see this was a long time coming.) The first of seven films that are to revive the classic nature documentary style will be Earth, set for release on Earth Day (April 22, 2009). "The movie focuses on a yearlong journey of three mothers -- a polar bear, elephant and humpback whale with their offspring." Awwww.....

WWAD?

When faced with tough fashion, acting, or philanthropic dilemmas, do you ever ask yourself What Would Audrey Do? Well, Pamela Keogh does, in the book that doles out lessons in beauty, grace, and loveliness. Amazon.com describes:

• Dating and romantic advice from a woman who enjoyed romances with John F. Kennedy, William Holden [yum!!], and Albert Finney

• A primer on what made Audrey the icon she is today, and how to apply her style choices to twenty-first-century clothes, makeup, and accessories

• Raising children, raising husbands, and making home life balanced in every way

• St. Audrey: Long before Angelina and Bono got all the press, Audrey Hepburn did invaluable work for UNICEF, teaching us much about extending ourselves to others.

In an era fraught with selfishness, artifice, and sensational headlines, the reality and tranquility of Audrey is precisely what the world needs now.

And Amen to that! You can pre-order this book now.

Tuesday's This & That

Sorry we've been distant for a while. But let's look into the crystal ball and see what's going on around the internet...

Disney is going to be expanding their web content, featuring some of their vintage television shows for full viewing on their site. Chief executive Robert Iger didn't reveal which shows in particular, but they own the rights to shows like "Zorro," "Davy Crockett," and "The Mickey Mouse Show." They've already provided some of their shows from ABC and Disney Channel to iTunes for purchase, but this would make them accessible for free!

Also in Disney news, the Pixar movie "Toy Story" will be made in to a musical, featured for now only on the Disney cruise line. This is after turning their other movies in to musicals ("Lion King", "Beauty & the Beast," "Mary Poppins," and the latest "The Little Mermaid"). What's even funnier (or stupider) is that besides re-releasing old movies "from the vault," Disney has begun making their stage musicals back to a feature film live-action musical. (There have been hints that Disney is making the stage musical of "Beauty and the Beast" in to a live-action version, featuring Anne Hathaway as Belle.) Okay, Disney, are you ready for any original ideas yet?

Enough about Disney. Target has some great Audrey Hepburn items for sale to decorate your home. Some cheap, some not-so-cheap. But you can't beat Target prices, right?

And the Joan Crawford Collection, Vol. 2 is now available, featuring five discs of our favorite diva. The set also comes with a couple of documentaries, cartoons, and vintage shorts.

Get Your Audrey Bags!

At the fabulous company AudreyBag.com, you can purchase an assortment of adorable bags with Audrey Hepburn's likeness and/or autograph. Their motto "Finally something to go with that little black dress" is perfect, as each of these bags make a great accessory with your classic Audrey look.

Let's just say, I want one!

80 years of Women in Film

A little MySpace movie showing the transformation of women throughout history. See if you can find our favorites: Norma Shearer, Rita Hayworth, Joan Crawford, Ava Gardner, Marilyn Monroe, Grace Kelly, and Audrey Hepburn (they're all in the beginning).
Women In Film


[Thanks to SorryIGotDrunk]

Friday's This & That: The X-Rays Show...

As I get over the chill of this exam table, here's what's going on in the world:

Jose Luis de Vilallonga, author, aristocrat and actor who starred as the dashing Brazilian multimillionaire in “Breakfast at Tiffany’s,” died Thursday at his home on the island of Mallorca at the age of 87. A colorful character in Spain’s high society, Vilallonga had worked as a journalist and wrote an official biography of Spain’s King Juan Carlos. A high point in Vilallonga’s acting career came when he was in Blake Edwards’ classic 1961 movie "Breakfast at Tiffany's," playing Jose da Silva Pereira, whom Hepburn’s Holly Golightly planned to marry.

Two new DVD sets are out that you should definitely buy! The Esther Williams Collection gives you five films: "Bathing Beauty," "Easy to Wed," "On An Island With You," "Neptune's Daughter" and "Dangerous When Wet" -- all of my favorites! Among the co-stars are Red Skelton, Peter Lawford, Lucille Ball, Van Johnson, Jimmy Durante, and Ricardo Montalban. These movies also contain some fantastic performances from Helen Forrest, Xavier Cugat, and others of the swinging era of the golden age. (We've discussed many of these movies in previous posts of Van Johnson, Peter Lawford, Helen Forrest, and the Mermaid herself.) Waves of extras include outtakes, cartoons and classic shorts. (Warner)

The Elvis Collection stars the King with a bevy of beauties in this four-disc set. Elvis portrays a boxer, riverboat entertainer, and good-ole-boy in "Follow That Dream," "Frankie and Johnny," "Clambake" and "Kid Galahad." (MGM)

Mee-Yow Thursday

Orson Welles was quoted as calling Audrey Hepburn
"The Patron Saint of Anorexics." Funny, as how he is widely known (pun intended) as
being overweight for most of his career.

What a grouch.

Sweepea-TV: Weekend Recap

Finally here it is. Saturday I looked for apartments (seeing as how my time is limited at the Lounge). Then I went to Hollywood to see "Lion King" at the Pantages Theater. It was my second time going, but I still enjoyed it. On the way I spotted Audrey Hepburn's star and I had to stop to snap a pic.There it is! The big marquee. And hardly any traffic. Huh.
My New Year's was spent with Dyno, Guitar Joe, and his gal in a cabin at Big Bear. Relaxed, easy-going New Year's. Hope you have a great 2007! Cheers.

Mee-Yow Thursday

More on the Audrey Hepburn kick...

Humphrey Bogart didn't get along with co-star William Holden, but he was particularly unhappy that Audrey Hepburn got the title role in Sabrina, because he wanted his wife, Lauren Bacall.

When asked how it was working with Hepburn, Bogie answered, "It's great, if you like taking 20 takes."
While filming the love scenes, Bogie was so stiff and cold with his performance (which is how he always performs, IMO) that director Billy Wilder was heard to have said, "One of the most beautiful women in the world and he looks like he's forcing himself to kiss her."