Around the Blogosphere This Week

Miscellaneous bits of news and fun stuff from around the Internet...

...Thanks to Will for the great tip that THE CHISHOLMS is coming to DVD. THE CHISHOLMS was a 1979 Western miniseries starring Robert Preston, Rosemary Harris, and Ben Murphy which was followed by a short-lived series without Preston. Episodes of the series were the first thing I ever owned on videotape (Beta!), back in 1980. One of the things I remember best about the show was its evocative opening credits set to Aaron Copland's "Appalachian Spring." TV Shows on DVD says it will be out June 10th.

...The Roku Streaming Stick is generating buzz.

...Turner Classic Movies will join the U.S. Postal Service honoring Charlton Heston with a stamp dedication ceremony during the upcoming TCM Classic Film Festival. Heston's family will be in attendance.

...TCM has released a video celebrating the network's 20th anniversary.

...Will McKinley interviewed the senior VP of programming of the new channel getTV, an "over-the-air" channel which is airing classic films 'round the clock, albeit with commercial interruptions.

...My latest article for ClassicFlix is a biographical sketch of a favorite actor, Robert Montgomery, along with a dozen recommended DVD titles.

...This week's YouTube find: THE FIGHTING LADY (1944), narrated by Lieut. Robert Taylor, USNR. William Wyler did uncredited directing work. It won the Oscar as Best Documentary.

...Here's a fascinating close-up look at a Joan Bennett costume from THE MAN IN THE IRON MASK (1939). (Via Classic Movies.)

...Also at Classic Movies, KC has made a list of film books from her shelves to read this year. A nice idea! I'm happy to say I've read four of the seven books on her list.

...Kristina posted a very interesting interview of the WWII film THE PIED PIPER (1942) at Speakeasy. It stars Monty Woolley, Anne Baxter, and Roddy McDowall.

..."A Hike to the Hollywood Sign."

...Over at Greenbriar Picture Shows, John McElwee has terrific photos of Dick Powell in MURDER, MY SWEET (1944). I also enjoyed his brief look at George Brent and Brenda Marshall in YOU CAN'T ESCAPE FOREVER (1942), which I enjoyed earlier this year.

...There's an official Guy Madison website, put together by his daughter -- whose godfather was Rory Calhoun.

...Culver Studios, which was once the home of David O. Selznick's production company, was recently sold, but happily, fears that the building would be demolished to make way for condos proved to be unfounded. It will continue to operate as a film studio.

...Steven Spielberg is said to be mulling a remake of WEST SIDE STORY (1961). Ummm, no.

...Los Angeles has more "antenna" (non-cable) viewers than any other major market, yet because of the new cable TV deal made by Dodgers ownership, the team is now the only one in the country with zero games available over "free" TV. Add to that the exorbitant pricing of the new cable deal, plus package owner Time Warner's refusal to allow the Dodgers to be part of "tiered" packages purchased only by those who want the games, and well, it's not a pretty picture. At a time when more people than ever are "cutting the cord" and going to streaming, cable providers are reluctant to buy a sports package which would necessitate a steep price hike on all their customers. One has to wonder if the Dodgers are shooting themselves in the proverbial foot cutting off fan access to seeing games, which could ultimately affect attendance and merchandise sales, even with the team having had a great year in 2013.

...Continuing in a sports vein, I was sorry to learn this week of the passing of the great Dr. Frank Jobe at 88. Jobe's "Tommy John" surgery revolutionized sports medicine, saving not only the careers of Dodgers pitchers Tommy John and Orel Hershiser, but countless other players. Steve Dilbeck offers a tribute in the Los Angeles Times, saying "It could easily be argued that Jobe is the greatest orthopedic surgeon in history...His impact is unprecedented."

...More Notable Passings: Producer Stanley Rubin (THE NARROW MARGIN) has died at 96. Survivors include his wife, actress Kathleen Hughes, who I was fortunate to see at the Loretta Young Tribute in Glendale earlier this year. Raquel has a lovely tribute to Rubin at Out of the Past...Multitalented performer Sheila MacRae, who was married to Gordon MacRae for many years and was the mother of PETTICOAT JUNCTION actress Meredith MacRae, has passed on at 93. MacRae published a memoir, HOLLYWOOD MOTHER OF THE YEAR, in 1992...Gail Gilmore, the leading lady of two Elvis Presley films, has died at 76. She also acted under the name Gail Gerber.

Have a great week!