Around the Blogosphere This Week

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

...The series Samurai of the Screen: Films of Akira Kurosawa opens at the Egyptian Theatre this Friday night, January 15th. 10 films will be shown in the series, which concludes January 24th; all will be shown in 35mm. Titles include YOJIMBO (1961), SANJURO (1962), THE HIDDEN FORTRESS (1958), and HIGH AND LOW (1963).

...Also coming to the Egyptian this Thursday, January 14th: a 35mm 70th Anniversary screening of THE BIG SLEEP (1946).

...Susan King of the Los Angeles Times has written a column about Monday night's silent movie screenings at the Academy's Linwood Dunn Theater. The films are Clara Bow in GET YOUR MAN (1927) and Mary Philbin in THE BLAZING TRAIL (1921).

...My friend Cliff Aliperti has a brand-new book I'm looking forward to reading, HELEN TWELVETREES, PERFECT INGENUE, which is subtitled REDISCOVERING A 1930S MOVIE STAR AND HER 32 FILMS. It's available in paperback and Kindle editions at Amazon. Cliff is an excellent writer and dedicated researcher so the book is sure to be a good one.

...Lovely actress Anita Louise was born January 9, 1915. Theresa pays tribute to her at CineMaven's Essays From the Couch.

...TCM will pay tribute to the late Rod Taylor on his birthday on Monday, January 11th. Here's a look back at my 2014 birthday tribute to Taylor, as well as my memorial tribute at the time of his passing one year ago.

...Will McKinley has the latest streaming news regarding Turner Classic Movies and Sling TV.

...A 2010 WWII history recently recommended to me: CITIZENS OF LONDON: THE AMERICANS WHO STOOD WITH BRITAIN IN ITS DARKEST, FINEST HOUR by Lynne Olson.

...A pair of wonderful Westerns coming this week from the Warner Archive: ROUGHSHOD (1949) with Robert Sterling and Gloria Grahame and STATION WEST (1948) with Dick Powell, Jane Greer, and Burl Ives. I reviewed ROUGHSHOD in 2009 and STATION WEST in 2011. I hope to take a fresh look at the movies soon via the Warner Archive DVDs.

...The best Western DVDs and Blu-rays of 2015, at 50 Westerns From the 50s. I've very much enjoyed some of the titles on the list.

...Raquel has reviewed Dick Van Dyke's new book, KEEP MOVING, at Out of the Past.

...Longtime singing favorites Larry Gatlin and the Gatlin Bros. are being inducted into the Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame in Fort Worth on January 14th.

...Upcoming book: SLOW FADE TO BLACK: THE DECLINE OF RKO RADIO PICTURES is due out in March from the University of California Press. It's by Professor Richard Jewell of the University of Southern California, an expert on the studio's history. The book is a sequel to his RKO RADIO PICTURES: A TITAN IS BORN.

...And coming next summer: TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX: A CENTURY OF ENTERTAINMENT by Michael Troyan, Stephen X. Sylvester, and Jeffrey Thompson.

...Reviews, reviews, and more reviews: Jessica on Belita and Patricia Morison in SILVER SKATES (1943) at Comet Over Hollywood...Colin on SANTA FE PASSAGE (1955), starring John Payne, Rod Cameron, and Faith Domergue, at Riding the High Country...Glenn Erickson on Jane Powell as THE GIRL MOST LIKELY (1957) at DVD Savant (via Trailers From Hell, where he's been posting in recent weeks)...Kristina reviews SHOW THEM NO MERCY! (1935) at Speakeasy. It's a gangster "B" film with Bruce Cabot and Rochelle Hudson which inspired the Western RAWHIDE (1951) with Tyrone Power and Susan Hayward...Kristina has been blogging up a storm lately! I also especially enjoyed her take on Richard Conte and Joan Bennett in HIGHWAY DRAGNET (1955)...KC reviewed the WWII comedies THE DOUGHGIRLS (1944) and PILLOW TO POST (1945) at A Classic Movie Blog...Last month I enjoyed Jacqueline's post on the Christmas short STAR IN THE NIGHT (1945) at Another Old Movie Blog...and Caftan Woman's "One for January" choice on TCM is THE ABSENT MINDED PROFESSOR (1961).

...Coming to 50 Westerns From the 50s January 29-31: The Allied Artists Blogathon.

...For something completely different, here is a history of New Year's greeting cards in Japan.

...Here's links to year-end movie viewing and blogging roundups from Deb at Sidewalk Crossings, Elisabeth at The Second Sentence, Kristina at Speakeasy, Jandy at The Frame, and Will at Cinematically Insane.

..Local history: "Opulence Gone to Seed: The Pacific Coast Club of Long Beach" on the KCET website.

...This weekend I revisited THE VOICE OF THE TURTLE (1947), a charming romantic comedy with Eleanor Parker and Ronald Reagan which I reviewed here in 2008. It's the perfect film for a gray winter day, funny and heartwarming. Highly recommended. It's available from the Warner Archive.

...Noir City San Francisco starts on January 22nd with a double bill of REAR WINDOW (1954) and THE PUBLIC EYE (1992). It closes on January 31st.

...The Egyptian Theatre has announced that Noir City Hollywood will run from Friday, April 15th through Sunday, April 24th, ending just days before the TCM Classic Film Festival begins on April 28th. Noir City Hollywood usually runs over three long weekends; in response to my query to the Egyptian about the festival only being scheduled on two weekends this year, I was told that this year movies will be shown every day for the duration of the festival. Gulp!

...Terry of A Shroud of Thoughts created his own "In Memoriam" video for actors and other figures in pop culture who passed away last year.

...Notable Passings: Actor-businessman Wayne Rogers, famed for the early years of the TV series M*A*S*H, passed away on New Year's Eve at the age of 82. Since 2001 Rogers (seen at left) had been a panelist sharing his business expertise on the cable news show CASHIN' IN, which posted a video tribute to Rogers...Harlem Globetrotters star Meadowlark Lemon died December 27th, age 83. I was fortunate to see the Globetrotters play when I was young...Ruby Cavanaugh, for whom Southern California's Ruby's Diner restaurant chain was named, passed away December 27th, at the age 93. The chain has spread to four other states...Singer Natalie Cole, daughter of the great Nat King Cole, died on New Year's Eve, age 65.

Happy New Year, and have a great week!