Cockail Quote o' the Day

"The trouble with the world is that everybody is three drinks behind."

- Humphrey Bogart

"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.

Classic Quotes: Cocktail Edition

"What contemptible scoundrel stole the cork out of my breakfast?" - W.C. Fields

"The trouble with the world is that everybody is three drinks behind." - Humphrey Bogart

"Imagine getting up in the morning and knowing that's as good as you're going to feel all day." - Dean Martin

[source]

Mee-Yow Wednesday

About Bette Davis, Humphrey Bogart was quoted as saying:

"Even when I was carrying a gun, she scared the bejesus out of me."

Mee-Yow Thursday

Off the set, Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman hardly spoke during the filming of Casablanca. This is perhaps due to two reasons: (1) Bergman was taller than Bogart and perhaps he had an inferiority complex, or (2) Bogart's wife Mayo Methot continually accused him of having an affair with Bergman. Methot often confronted him in his dressing room before a shot, causing Bogart to come onto the set in a rage.

Classic Quote of the Day

"I should never have switched from scotch to martinis."

-- Humphrey Bogart

(widely attributed as his last words)

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."