Around the Blogosphere This Week

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

...Coming from the Criterion Collection in April: ONLY ANGELS HAVE WINGS (1939), on DVD and Blu-ray. It has previously been released by TCM.

...GregFerrara writes about the magic of movies released in 1937 at the TCM Movie Morlocks site.

...Here's video of an interview with Leslie Caron which ran on CBS today. (Via Will McKinley.)

...And here's a recent interview with June Lockhart.

...New at Riding the High Country, a review of THE OUTCAST (1954) starring John Derek, Joan Evans, and Catherine McLeod, plus a bevy of favorite Western character actors.

...Coming January 23-24: Symbiotic Collaborations, The Star-Director Blogathon, hosted by Theresa at CineMaven's Essays From the Couch. I'll be writing about SCARLET STREET (1945), one of several films made by director Fritz Lang and actress Joan Bennett in the '40s.

...15 years on from OCEAN'S 11 (2001), George Clooney and Julia Roberts reunite in MONEY MONSTER (2016), opening May 13th. The trailer is at First Showing. Clooney also stars in the upcoming Coen Brothers film HAIL, CAESAR! (2016), due out February 5th. I saw the trailer for this film, which is set in classic-era Hollywood, and was intrigued by the concept of Scarlett Johansson playing a character clearly inspired by Esther Williams.

...I haven't yet written more than a few words about THE FORCE AWAKENS (2015), and I'm planning to do that when I see it a second time. As my friend Deb says at Sidewalk Crossings, it can be surprisingly difficult to write about movies which are deeply intertwined with our lives -- I won't even attempt it, for example, with THE SOUND OF MUSIC (1965) -- but despite that challenge she does a nice job capturing her love for the series in general and what she liked about THE FORCE AWAKENS in particular.

...Delaware North, which lost a bid to continue running Yosemite concessions, is trying to extort many millions of dollars from the National Park Service and its new concessionaire to use the names of historic Yosemite hotels. I don't have words to describe this low behavior; even if it turns out they have a legal leg to stand on, it's the principle of the thing. The Ahwahnee and Curry Village were there for decades before Delaware North ever had anything to do with the park. On top of which, Delaware North, which has run the park's restaurants and hotels since the early '90s, did a horrible job, as reflected in my 2008 trip review.

...On the resurgent popularity of vinyl records and Polaroid photos.

...Please visit ClassicFlix for my report on the Palm Springs Classic Science Fiction Festival held last October.

...This year's Arthur Lyons Film Noir Festival in Palm Springs will be held May 12-15, 2016. I had a fabulous time at the festival last year and hoped to return this year, but alas, I will be out of state that weekend. (It's for a happy reason, our son's college graduation!)

...Notable Passings: Actor Brian Bedford, the voice of Disney's ROBIN HOOD (1973), has passed on at the age of 80...Disney artist Frank Armitage has died at 91. He worked on many classic Disney films and was also an Imagineer whose work included the concept art for Le Chateau de la Belle au Bois Dormant at Disneyland Paris...Art director John Mansbridge, who was Oscar nominated for Disney's BEDKNOBS AND BROOMSTICKS (1971) and THE ISLAND AT THE TOP OF THE WORLD (1974), has died at 98. Early in his career Mansbridge was a draftsman working on CITIZEN KANE (1941). He spent over two decades at Disney. Sometime someone should do a study on Disney artists and Imagineers who lived into their 90s, as there are many!

...Don't forget, AGENT CARTER goes to Hollywood starting this Tuesday, November 19th. There's even going to be a character inspired by Hedy Lamarr!

...For many more recent classic film links, please visit last week's roundup.

Have a great week!