Anatomy of a Classic
The Best Years of Our Lives opened on November 21, 1946 and became an instant classic. Critics lavished praise. Moviegoers mobbed...
top of page
Oct 30, 20222 min read
Films of 1962: Days of Wine and Roses
Walter Matthau was Jack Lemmon’s frequent co-star and best friend. Lemmon gave the eulogy at Matthau’s funeral, and a year later, was...
7 views0 comments
Oct 14, 20222 min read
Films of 1962: The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
Brain vs. brawn. Good guys vs. outlaws. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance may focus on a fatal duel, but it’s definitely not a typical...
11 views0 comments
Sep 29, 20222 min read
Films of 1962: To Kill a Mockingbird
As a writer, I’ve always marveled at people who adapt books for the screen. On the upside, the scriptwriter gets the benefits of an...
9 views0 comments
Sep 14, 20222 min read
Films of 1962: The Miracle Worker
When I was a child, my mother’s Aunt Irene would sometimes visit us. Irene was deaf, but she communicated by reading lips and speaking in...
9 views0 comments
Jul 30, 20223 min read
Films of 1952: High Noon
They say High Noon is popular with presidents: Reportedly, it was the favorite movie of Ronald Reagan, G.W. Bush, and Bill Clinton, who...
7 views0 comments
Jun 14, 20223 min read
Films of 1947: Body and Soul
I’ve seen more classic boxing movies than matches in my lifetime. Golden Boy, The Set-Up, Champion, The Harder They Fall, Rocky, Raging...
12 views0 comments
Mar 30, 20222 min read
Films of 1942: Mrs. Miniver
Troops, tanks, bullets, bombs. They’re all essential wartime tools. But in 1942, world leaders acknowledged that a mere movie called Mrs....
13 views0 comments
Mar 14, 20223 min read
Films of 1942: Casablanca
Humphrey Bogart told Orson Welles that he was shooting “the worst picture I’ve ever been in.” Ingrid Bergman pleaded with director...
8 views0 comments
Jan 31, 20222 min read
Films of 1932: Most Wanted "Fugitive"
Studios during Hollywood’s Golden Age were often typecast, just like their actors. MGM specialized in high-gloss escapism. Universal...
7 views0 comments
Jan 15, 20222 min read
Films of 1932: Grand Hotel
In 1932, MGM invented a new concept in filmmaking. At the time, studios rarely assigned more than two big names to the same script. They...
7 views0 comments
bottom of page