Showing posts with label birthdays. Show all posts
Showing posts with label birthdays. Show all posts
Thursday, November 17, 2016
Monday, September 05, 2016
"Va Va Voom" Star of the Day
Grace KellyToday let us highlight the Princess of Monaco.
Grace struck out on her own after high school, heading to New York's bright lights to try her luck. Grace worked as a model but made her acting debut on Broadway in 1949. She also had a brief stint in television. Not content with the work in New York, Grace moved to Southern California for the more prestigious part of acting -- motion pictures.
In 1951, she appeared in her first film Fourteen Hours when she was 22. It was a small part, but a start nonetheless. The following year she landed the role of Amy Kane in High Noon, a western starring Gary Cooper and Lloyd Bridges which turned out to be very popular. In 1953, Grace appeared in only one film, but it was another popular one, Mogambo. The film was a jungle drama in which fellow cast members, Clark Gable and Ava Gardner turned in masterful performances. It was also one of the best films ever released by MGM.
Friday, October 17, 2014
Friday, September 26, 2014
Happy Birthday, Julie!
Happy birthday today to our favorite sultry songstress Julie London!
For our previous Julie London posts, click here.
Wednesday, September 03, 2014
Happy Birthday, Alan Ladd!
We're crushing on birthday boy Alan Ladd today, who would be 101 years old!
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| Click to enlarge |
Monday, August 11, 2014
Happy Birthday, Norma!
We're a day late (and a dolla' short), but we're wishing the Queen of MGM, Norma Shearer a happy birthday!
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| Photo provided by Dr. Macro |
Check out our previous"Va Va Voom" post of this Hollywood legend.
Monday, June 07, 2010
Tuesday, May 04, 2010
Wednesday, April 07, 2010
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Monday, March 15, 2010
The Perfect Day
W
ell, since today is my $#@!&-th birthday, I thought I'd put together my best day. A day where everything went perfectly, and I got to do whatever I wanted.
First of all, I'd wake up next to Dyno. (Or maybe a young James Garner, if we're really wishing here.) He'd bring me a Starbucks café mocha, nice and hot, and we'd watch television in bed. Perhaps "Snapped" on Oxygen, or "Dog Whisperer" on NatGeo.
Then after a couple hours Dyno and I would finally get up and take my dog on a nice walk along the beach. (The dog wouldn't poop the entire time -- it'd be a miracle.) And it'd be a beautiful, sunny, and clear day, too. Oh yeah, and I'd be tan and weigh about 20 pounds less.
I come home and all the laundry is done, the house is clean, the dishes are out of the dishwasher, and a nice lunch of grilled ham and cheese sandwiches and pickles have been made. And a nice Manhattan to go with it all. I turn on the television to relax and eat, and the newest episode of "Survivor" is starting -- yes, even though it's Monday, and not Thursday.
Dean Martin, Joan Crawford, Errol Flynn, and Esther Williams call during the day to wish me a happy birthday and to ask what my plans are. I speak briefly with them, but really I just want to spend the day on the couch with Dyno. I fall asleep and end up napping until it's time for dinner, preempted by a few cocktails.
For dinner, Dyno takes me to the Playboy Club circa 1965, and I'm like Doris Day, wearing a beautiful gown with a matching coat, hat, and gloves. We sit and watch Bob Newhart do a stand-up routine, and then Mel Tormé comes out and croons to us. Dinner is a thick prime rib steak, lobster mashed potatoes, and a bold red wine.
I'm not going to go in to what happens after dinner. But let's just say (as they do in the old movies), the curtains flap in the wind and the camera pans left and then we fade out.
...And that's my perfect day!
ell, since today is my $#@!&-th birthday, I thought I'd put together my best day. A day where everything went perfectly, and I got to do whatever I wanted.First of all, I'd wake up next to Dyno. (Or maybe a young James Garner, if we're really wishing here.) He'd bring me a Starbucks café mocha, nice and hot, and we'd watch television in bed. Perhaps "Snapped" on Oxygen, or "Dog Whisperer" on NatGeo.
Then after a couple hours Dyno and I would finally get up and take my dog on a nice walk along the beach. (The dog wouldn't poop the entire time -- it'd be a miracle.) And it'd be a beautiful, sunny, and clear day, too. Oh yeah, and I'd be tan and weigh about 20 pounds less.
I come home and all the laundry is done, the house is clean, the dishes are out of the dishwasher, and a nice lunch of grilled ham and cheese sandwiches and pickles have been made. And a nice Manhattan to go with it all. I turn on the television to relax and eat, and the newest episode of "Survivor" is starting -- yes, even though it's Monday, and not Thursday.
Dean Martin, Joan Crawford, Errol Flynn, and Esther Williams call during the day to wish me a happy birthday and to ask what my plans are. I speak briefly with them, but really I just want to spend the day on the couch with Dyno. I fall asleep and end up napping until it's time for dinner, preempted by a few cocktails.
For dinner, Dyno takes me to the Playboy Club circa 1965, and I'm like Doris Day, wearing a beautiful gown with a matching coat, hat, and gloves. We sit and watch Bob Newhart do a stand-up routine, and then Mel Tormé comes out and croons to us. Dinner is a thick prime rib steak, lobster mashed potatoes, and a bold red wine.
I'm not going to go in to what happens after dinner. But let's just say (as they do in the old movies), the curtains flap in the wind and the camera pans left and then we fade out.
...And that's my perfect day!
Tuesday, June 09, 2009
Happy Birthday, Donald Duck!
He's officially a whopping 75 years old today! So enjoy this classic cartoon starring our favorite web-footed friend.
Tuesday, May 05, 2009
Friday, January 30, 2009
Monday, January 12, 2009
Friday, December 05, 2008
Happy Birthday, Walt!
Today Walt Disney would be 107 years old!
During World War I, a young man at age 16 lied about his age to join the American Red Cross. The boy was Walt Disney, and he returned home, where he won a scholarship to the Kansas City Art Institute. There, he met a fellow animator, Ub Iwerks. The two soon set up their own company. In the early 20s, they made a series of animated shorts for the Newman theater chain, entitled "Newman's Laugh-O-Grams". Their company soon went bankrupt, however.
The two then went to Hollywood in 1923. They started work on a new series, about a live-action little girl who journeys to a world of animated characters. Entitled the "Alice Comedies", they were distributed by M.J. Winkler (Margaret). Walt was backed up financially only by Winkler and his brother Roy Edward Disney, who would remain his business partner for the rest of his life. Hundreds of "Alice Comedies" were produced between 1923 and 1927, before they lost popularity. Walt then started work on a series around a new animated character, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. This series was successful, but in 1928, Walt discovered that M.J. Winkler and her husband, Charles Mintz, had stolen the rights to the character away from him. They had also stolen all his animators, except for Ub Iwerks. While taking the train home, Walt started doodling on a piece of paper. The result of these doodles was a mouse named Mickey. With only Walt and Ub to animate, and Walt's wife Lillian Disney (Lilly) and Roy's wife Edna Disney to ink in the animation cells, three Mickey Mouse cartoons were quickly produced. The first two didn't sell, so Walt added synchronized sound to the last one, Steamboat Willie (1928), and it was immediately picked up. It became the first cartoon to use synchronized sound. [source]
Walt went on to revolutionize the world of Animation, launching the first fully-animated film, developing new coloring, inking, and camera techniques, and building an empire -- all starting with a mouse. On Dec. 15, 1966, Walt Disney passed away.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Happy (Belated) Birthday, Mickey Mouse!
Mickey's birthday was yesterday...The Walt Disney Company celebrates his birth as November 18, 1928 (meaning that he would have turned 80 years old!).
According to the official legend, Mickey Mouse was the result of a brilliant burst of inspiration, which struck Walt Disney during a train ride from New York to Los Angeles. In New York, he'd just seen his popular character, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, hijacked by his distributor and farmed out to another animation outfit. By the time he arrived in Hollywood, he was ready to roll with Oswald's replacement. Whether Mickey was more a result of inspiration or perspiration, he first appeared in Plane Crazy (1928), and very soon eclipsed Oswald. [source]
Happy Birthday, big guy!
According to the official legend, Mickey Mouse was the result of a brilliant burst of inspiration, which struck Walt Disney during a train ride from New York to Los Angeles. In New York, he'd just seen his popular character, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, hijacked by his distributor and farmed out to another animation outfit. By the time he arrived in Hollywood, he was ready to roll with Oswald's replacement. Whether Mickey was more a result of inspiration or perspiration, he first appeared in Plane Crazy (1928), and very soon eclipsed Oswald. [source]Happy Birthday, big guy!
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Friday, October 17, 2008
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