Around the Blogosphere This Week

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

...Wonderful news for fans of two great Rodgers & Hammerstein musicals: In coming weeks Fathom Events will host screenings around the country of SOUTH PACIFIC (1958) and THE SOUND OF MUSIC (1965). The 60th Anniversary presentation of SOUTH PACIFIC will take place on August 26th and 29th, with THE SOUND OF MUSIC following on September 9th and 12th. It would be hard to beat the 70mm screenings I saw of each film at the Egyptian Theatre back in 2012, but my love for these films just may reel me in! Click on the Fathom Events links to check for locations.

...Gal Gadot of WONDER WOMAN (2017) looks likely to play actress-inventor Hedy Lamarr in a Showtime miniseries, though at this writing the deal isn't finalized. Gadot, who also appeared in some of the Fast and Furious movies, was also just announced as a member of the voice cast of Disney's RALPH BREAKS THE INTERNET: WRECK-IT RALPH II (2018), coming to theaters in November.

...Great news from Capitolfest, which takes place each summer in Rome, New York, and is regularly attended by several of my friends: Next year Capitolfest 17 will jointly honor Joel McCrea and Frances Dee. The festival will take place August 9-11, 2019. The festival's main focus is silent and early sound films; titles will be announced beginning at the end of this year. Tickets are here. It's certainly tempting to think about traveling to NY next summer!

...Thinking about attending the TCM Classic Film Festival in Hollywood next year? Christy has just published a whole lotta pics from the 2018 fest at Christy's Inkwells, which will hopefully entice new attendees. Newcomers will find they instantly have people to talk to as everyone in the lines loves classic films! Based on recent past history, the 2019 dates and them should be announced by the end of August.

...Nerdist recently published a nice joint interview with Turner Classic Movies hosts Ben Mankiewicz, Alica Malone, Dave Karger, and Eddie Muller.

...After checking out Margot's review of HIGHWAY 301 (1950) at her blog Down These Mean Streets, I'm even more interested in seeing it. Steve Cochran and Virginia Grey star.

...My friend Raquel does an amazing job curating lists of upcoming film books a few times a year. Her latest list is now up at Out of the Past. I'm especially excited about Jeremy Arnold's new book CHRISTMAS IN THE MOVIES: 30 CLASSICS TO CELEBRATE THE SEASON, coming October 9th from TCM and Running Press. Jeremy is a very knowledgeable film historian -- and also quite a nice guy! -- and the TCM-Running Press books are usually beautifully produced, with glossy photos on heavy paper.

...Also of particular note for me on Raquel's list: EDMOND O'BRIEN: EVERYMAN OF FILM NOIR by Derek Sculthorpe from McFarland, which was due out last month but doesn't seem to be available yet; MADE IN MEXICO: HOLLYWOOD SOUTH OF THE BORDER by Luis I. Reyes from Applause Books, due September 19th; OLIVIA DE HAVILLAND AND THE GOLDEN AGE OF HOLLYWOOD by Ellis Amburn from Lyons Press, due out September 1st; and CLARENCE BROWN: HOLLYWOOD'S FORGOTTEN MASTER by Gwenda Young for University Press of Kentucky, to be published on October 22nd. There are many more interesting titles on Raquel's list so be sure to read the entire thing, and many thanks to Raquel for putting this list together and sharing it with everyone!

...And congratulations are also due to Raquel for having her article on the wonderful silent film LONESOME (1928) published on the Library of Congress website!

...The Justice Department is reported to be reviewing film distribution rules which have been in place in the United States since 1948. Along those same lines, there's word that Amazon may be looking to acquire the Landmark theater chain.

...Andy Wolverton shares thoughts on DVD and Blu-ray collecting, and the inevitable storage issues, at Journeys in Darkness and Light. While you're visiting Andy's site, check out some of his other posts, such as a new review of THE MAN FROM LARAMIE (1955).

...For Marvel fans: Marvel's 10th Anniversary Film Festival will take place on IMAX screens at select theaters from August 30th to September 6th, 2018. 20 films will be shown in order during the festival's first five days, followed by two days of "origin" and "team-ups" films and a final day of movies voted for by fans. Click on the accompanying photo for a closer look at the schedule.

...Attention Southern Californians: Disney's El Capitan Theatre will be hosting "Throwback" screenings of a personal favorite, ENCHANTED (2007), from September 6th to 9th, 2018. I have a ticket! This film, starring Amy Adams and Patrick Dempsey, inexplicably tends to be a bit ignored among Disney musicals, and there's no better place to see a Disney movie than the El Capitan, a beautifully restored vintage theater; a concert of Disney music on the big Wurlitzer organ usually precedes each screening.

...More for Southern Californians (or film fans who can travel to L.A. for Labor Day Weekend!): Be sure to check out my preview of the Cinecon Classic Film Festival, which runs August 30th through September 3rd in Hollywood.

...Notable Passings: Dancer-Choreographer Miriam Nelson, who was married to Gene Nelson from 1941 to 1956, has passed away at the age of 98. She's pictured here dancing with Gene. Though Miriam's career was focused on dancing, she also had small roles in a number of films, including playing Edward G. Robinson's secretary in DOUBLE INDEMNITY (1944). On Twitter Doris Day's Animal Foundation posted a photo tribute to Doris's friend of many decades...Cinematographer Richard H. Kline has died at 91. His father was Benjamin Kline, who filmed many minor "B" films, Westerns, and TV shows. Richard Kline's credits included STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE (1979) and BODY HEAT (1981).

...More Notable Passings: Boot Hill reports the recent passing of actress Meg Randall (seen at left), news the site picked up from Laura Wagner of Classic Images. Randall played Kim Parker Kettle in three MA AND PA KETTLE movies, was Helen in the noir classic CRISS CROSS (1949), and appeared with George Montgomery in LAST OF THE BAD MEN (1957). She was 91...Screenwriter Shinobu Hashimoto, a frequent collaborator with director Akira Kurosawa, has died at 100. His credits included RASHOMON (1950), SEVEN SAMURAI (1954), THRONE OF BLOOD (1957), and THE HIDDEN FORTRESS (1958)...Composer Patrick Williams has passed on at 79. He scored many TV series including THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW and THE BOB NEWHART SHOW...The great trombonist Bill Watrous died in early July at the age of 79.

...For additional recent links on classic movies and more, please check out my July 22 link roundup.

Have a great week!