Hot Fun in the Summertime: The 2018 Summer Classic Film Book Challenge
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Sep 16, 2018
Outdoor concerts. Noir City Chicago. Cold lemonade on the back porch. And the Summer Reading Classic Film Book Challenge! I am delighted to share that I’ve been participating in this awesome event, the brainchild of Raquel over at Out of the Past, for six straight years now! And I’m here to tell read more
The 2018 Turner Classic Movies Film Festival: Still More Adventures in Paradise — Part II
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Aug 16, 2018
Cicely Tyson. Legend. It’s about that time . . . time for the next installment of my coverage of the Turner Classic Movies Film Festival 2018! One of the many memorable events from my festival experience this year was the hand and footprint ceremony for actress Cicely Tyson, held in the forecourt read more
Audrey Totter Day: TCM Summer Under the Stars
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Aug 1, 2018
Day 6: Miss Audrey Totter All things considered, I have to say that August is one of my favorite months of the year. The weather is still undeniably warm – nary a hint of the Chicago winter lurking just around the corner. There’s the slightest bit of calm before the storm at my job, before the new read more
The 2018 Turner Classic Movies Film Festival: Still More Adventures in Paradise
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Jul 6, 2018
The participants in this year’s ‘So You Think You Know Movies’ contest. You can see me on the left, with a white shirt and a hat. read more
List o’ the Week: Movies I Don’t Get
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Jun 16, 2018
A few weeks ago, I ran into an old friend, who happens to be one of my (very) few “real-life” friends who has any interest whatsoever in classic movies. We got to talking about some films he’d seen recently, which had been recommended to him – The Third Man and How Green Was My Valley. He gave read more
Pre-Code Crazy: The Animal Kingdom (1932)
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Jun 3, 2018
Harding, Howard, and Loy I think I’ve made it clear on these pages that I’m a big Ann Harding fan. Her performances in Double Harness and When Ladies Meet rate among my all-time favorites. And she delivers again in my Pre-Code pick for this month, The Animal Kingdom (1932), co-starring Leslie Howard read more
Pre-Code Crazy: Mary Stevens, M.D. (1933)
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on May 8, 2018
The opening scene of Mary Stevens, M.D., my pre-Code pick of the month, offers a perfect illustration of the bad-ass pre-Code dame. As the film begins, an ambulance is called to a tenement apartment on a crowded, bustling street. A frantic resident (Harold Huber) stands at the top of the stairs, urg read more
Cinematic Paradise: The 2018 TCM Film Festival
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Apr 22, 2018
It’s hard to believe that in just a few short days I’ll be winging my way to Hollywood for my sixth trip to the Turner Classic Movies Film Festival – but it’s true! As always, I’ll be sending out messages during the event via Facebook and Twitter, and providing year-round coverage with monthly read more
Little-Known Gems: Wicked Woman (1953)
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Apr 16, 2018
Don’t you love this shot? You’re going to love this movie even more. Even classic film lovers who aren’t film noir aficionados have heard of such classics as Double Indemnity, Laura, and Out of the Past, am I right? But what of those low-budget Bs that no one ever talks about? The ones read more
The 2017 Turner Classic Movies Film Festival: Revisiting Adventures in Paradise: Part VIII
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Mar 22, 2018
Dick Cavett during his interview — er, conversation — with Illeana Douglas. In a little over a month from now, I’ll be making my way to Hollywood to attend my sixth Turner Classic Movies Film Festival! So, while I wait for more films to be announced, and try to figure out the perfect war read more
Pre-Code Crazy: The Eagle and the Hawk (1933)
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Mar 11, 2018
If you tune in to The Eagle and the Hawk (1933) on March 24th because you’re a huge Carole Lombard fan, let me give you a tip. Lombard is in the film, but her role is small; she’s on screen less than 10 minutes, tops. But if you want to see a riveting pre-Code starring two first-rate actors read more
The 2017 TCM Film Festival: Revisiting Adventures in Paradise — Part VII
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Feb 25, 2018
Gene Tierney was an outstanding Laura — but she wasn’t the first choice. As the rapidly passing days on the calendar would indicate (can you believe it’s nearly March already?!??), it’s almost time for this year’s Turner Classic Movies Film Festival – and time for another installment read more
List o’ the Week: My Favorite Pre-Code Actresses
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Feb 18, 2018
Can’t get enough of Norma Shearer and The Divorcee. Today’s List o’ the Week is an easy one – my Top 20 favorite pre-Code actresses. Because I couldn’t possibly rank them in order of how much I love them (Stanwyck vs. Crawford vs. Blondell vs. Shearer!?!? Come ON!), I put them in alphabetical read more
The 2017 TCM Film Festival: Revisiting Adventures in Paradise — Part VI
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Jan 24, 2018
The anticipation builds . . . It’s about that time – time for another installment in my monthly look at the 2017 Turner Classic Movies Film Festival! And this month I’m taking a look at one of my favorite experiences of the festival – the Hand and Footprint Ceremony featuring Carl Reiner and read more
Pre-Code Crazy: Millie (1933)
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Jan 15, 2018
I don’t remember the first time I heard the name “Helen Twelvetrees,” but for many years she was, for me, just an unfamiliar actress from the 1930s with an interesting name – like Gwili Andre or Jobyna Ralston. I never really thought about seeing her in a film, or even trying to. And then came read more
The 2017 TCM Film Festival: Revisiting Adventures in Paradise — Part V
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Dec 30, 2017
As 2017 comes to a close, it’s the perfect time for my next entry in my ongoing look at this year’s Turner Classic Movies Film Festival. And what better topic than one of the first events I attended – “Remembering Robert,” which was presented on April 6, 2017, exactly one month read more
Pre-Code Crazy: Two Seconds (1932)
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Dec 7, 2017
Before I decided to choose Two Seconds (1932) for this month’s Pre-Code Crazy pick, I’d only seen the first five minutes of it – I’d never made it any further. Boy, was I a dope. This is a really good one, y’all. Trust me. What’s it about? To be honest, it was really hard for me to read more
Day 30 of Noirvember: Trivia Tidbit Thursday
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Dec 1, 2017
Young Ava. It’s hard to believe that another Noirvember has come and gone – it flew by like a bird on the wings of night. For my final post of this year’s month-long shadowy celebration, I’m serving up some trivia about some of our favorite noir performers. I hope you’ll lear read more
Day 29 of Noirvember: The Battling Bogarts
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Nov 29, 2017
The beginning. Every film noir lover knows about the era’s favorite couple, Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall. They’re like shadowy elegant royalty, with almost a dozen noir credits between them. But before Bacall, there was Mayo – Mayo Methot, that is, Humphrey Bogart’s third wife, to whom read more
Day 28 of Noirvember: Armored Car Robbery (1950)
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Nov 28, 2017
A noirish conversation if I ever saw one. The more I see William Talman, the more I like him. That is, the more I see him outside of a courtroom with Perry Mason. That’s where I first met this actor and first grew to view him with equal parts dislike and disdain. But boy, his film noir performances read more