Hollywood’s Greatest: Then and Now – Dustin Hoffman Part 3

Posted on March 29, 2012 by Josh Kaye

Where Is He Now?

It’s easy to answer the question “where is Dustin Hoffman now?” since he hasn’t stopped making movies at all. Since 1985, Hoffman has appeared in at least one movie every year (except for one: 2000). 1997, in particular, proved to be a big year for Hoffman. He was awarded the Golden Globe’s Cecil B. Demille Award, which is an honorary Golden Globe for “outstanding contributions to the world of entertainment.” He was the 45th recipient of the award, winning the year after Sean Connery and the year before Shirley MacLaine. That year, for his performance in Wag the Dog, he also received his seventh Academy nomination for Best Actor.

In 2004, Hoffman would appear in five different movies: Freedom2speak v2.0, Finding Neverland, I Heart Huckabees, Meet the Fockers, and Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events. For Finding Neverland, he was included in the nomination for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture by the Screen Actors Guild. For his role as Bernie Focker in Meet the Fockers, he was awarded the MTV Movie Award for Best Comedic Performance. While the MTV Movie Awards really mean little to nothing in my opinion…it’s still something.

And then, in 2007, Hoffman appeared in, what I personally believe, is one of the best children’s movies of all time: Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium. Hoffman plays the eccentric Mr. Edward Magorium, and it’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. If you look back up at the picture posted above, you’ll see Hoffman as Mr. Magorium. It’s amazing, and while it may be a silly movie, I recommend that everyone see it.

2008 was an easier year for Hoffman as he never actually appeared on-screen in any movie but instead lent his voice to three animated films: Kung Fu Panda, Horton Hears a Who!, and The Tale of Despereaux. Being the most successful of the three, Kung Fu Panda gave Dustin Hoffman the Annie Award for Best Voice Acting in an Animated Feature Production. He would go on to reprise his role as Master Shifu in the sequel, Kung Fu Panda 2, which appeared in theaters in 2011.

In 2011, Hoffman also appeared in the HBO television series, Luck, which was recently cancelled. Hoffman played the lead role as Chester “Ace” Bernstein, a lifelong mobster who has recently been released from a three year prison sentence.

For the future, Hoffman is rumored to appear in possibly three movies: The Song of Names with Anthony Hopkins; Very Good Girls with Anton Yelchin and Dakota Fanning; and The Giver with Jeff Bridges. All three are in the pre-production stage so nothing is completely confirmed, but either way, you can expect Hoffman to appear in at least one film during 2012. Can’t wait!

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Hollywood’s Greatest: Then and Now – Dustin Hoffman Part 2

Posted on March 28, 2012 by Josh Kaye

One of the greatest actors on the stage, in film, and on television, Dustin Hoffman wasn’t someone who had plans to be an actor. But thankfully, plans tend to change, and all of us have been rewarded over the past 50+ years with some of the most memorable characters that Dustin Hoffman has portrayed throughout his career. Born on April 8, 1937 to Lillian and Harry Hoffman, Dustin began his life in Los Angeles, California. Spending his teen life there, he graduated from Los Angeles High School in 1955 and had plans to study medicine at Santa Monica College. But after one year, Hoffman decided to drop medicine and went on to join the Pasadena Playhouse.

Hoffman didn’t exactly break into the business right away. After spending two years at the Pasadena Playhouse alongside fellow Oscar-winner Gene Hackman, the two traveled to New York City in an attempt to find acting jobs. This didn’t exactly go as planned and Hoffman, to support himself, found himself taking some odd jobs. A couple of these jobs were working at a restaurant coat checking and stringing Hawaiin leis. While only really getting support television roles, Hoffman had to take a break from acting and went on to teaching for a bit.

In 1966, he finally got his big break as director Mike Nichols chose Hoffman to star in his film, The Graduate. Hoffman would receive his first Academy Award nomination for his role and would go on to bigger projects from there. Hoffman headed to Broadway in December of 1968 to appear in the musical Jimmy Shine, which gave him a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Performance. Within the next few weeks, Hoffman would be on the set of his next major film, the Academy-Award winning Midnight Cowboy.

Dustin Hoffman finally won his first Academy Award in 1979 for his role as Ted Kramer in Robert Benton’s Kramer vs. Kramer. The film would go on to win five Oscars including Hoffman’s win for Best Actor. The other awards included Best Picture, Best Directing, Best Screenplay, and Best Actress in a Supporting Role for the wonderful Meryl Streep. From here, Hoffman’s roles only got better and better, and he went on to win another Oscar for his role as autistic savant Raymond Babbitt in Rain Man.

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Hollywood’s Greatest: Then and Now – Dustin Hoffman

Posted on March 26, 2012 by Josh Kaye

Dustin Hoffman

Prominent Roles
The Graduate (1967) as Benjamin Braddock (First Academy Nomination for Best Actor)
Midnight Cowboy (1969) as Enrico “Ratso” Rizzo (Second Academy Nomination for Best Actor)
Lenny (1974) as Lenny Bruce (Third Academy Nomination for Best Actor)
All the Presidents Men (1976) as Carl Bernstein
Marathon Man (1976) as Babe Levy
Kramer vs. Kramer (1979) as Ted Kramer (First Academy Win for Best Actor)
Tootsie (1982) as Michael Dorsey/Dorothy Michaels (Fifth Nomination for Best Actor)
Death of a Salesman (1985) as Willy Loman
Rain Man (1988) as Raymond Babbitt (Second Academy Win for Best Actor)
Hook (1991) as Captain Hook
Wag the Dog (1997) as Stanley Motss (Seventh Academy Nomination for Best Actor)
Finding Neverland (2004) as Charles Frohman
Stranger than Fiction (2006) as Professor Jules Hilbert
Kung Fu Panda (2008) as Master Shifu
Last Chance Harvey (2009) as Harvey Shine
Luck (2011-2012) as Chester “Ace” Bernstein
Josh Kaye for Classic Movie Hub
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Hollywood’s Greatest: Then and Now – Shirley MacLaine Part 3

Posted on March 17, 2012 by Josh Kaye

Where Is She Now?

As Shirley MacLaine gets closer to her 80’s, she seems to be getting busier and busier by the year. Since 2000, MacLaine has appeared in 14 different movies or TV shows. In 2000, Shirley MacLaine made her directing debut with the film Bruno. At the time, she was 66 years old, which is around the time most people would be retiring!

Of the 14 films that she recently appeared in, nine were feature films, most notably: In Her Shoes, Rumor Has It…, Valentine’s Day and Bewitched. She picked up a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actress for In Her Shoes. The other five films were TV movies: These Old Broads (2001); Hell on Heels: The Battle of Mary Kay (2002); Salem Witch Trials (2002); Coco Chanel (2008); and Anne of Green Gables: A New Beginning (2008). She would go on to receive an Emmy nomination for Coco Chanel (Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie), as well as Golden Globe nominations for both Hell on Heels and Coco Chanel (both for Best Performance by An Actress in a Mini-Series or a Motion Picture Made for Television).

On April 27 of this year, Shirley MacLaine can be seen starring in the Richard Linklater film, Bernie, as wealthy widow Marjorie Nugent. Also, later on this year, MacLaine will be appearing as a regular in the award winning British series, Downton Abbey, as Martha Levinson, Cora’s mother. Aside from this, rumor has it (forgive the pun) that MacLaine will possibly appear in seven different movies between 2012 – 2013. Six of the seven films are still in pre-production and are only rumors, but she is officially confirmed to star with Christopher Walken in Lian Lunson’s The Boom Boom Room. These could be two extremely exciting years for one of the world’s greatest living actresses, and if you’re like me, you won’t want to miss out on what comes next.

 

Josh Kaye for Classic Movie Hub

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Hollywood’s Greatest: Then and Now – Shirley MacLaine Part 2

Posted on March 15, 2012 by Josh Kaye

Actress. Singer. Dancer. Author. Activist. There seems to be nothing that Shirley MacLaine can’t do. Shirley MacLaine Beaty was born April 24, 1934 in Richmond Virginia to Ira Owens Beaty and Kathlyn Corinne. Shirley was performing in front of people at a young age, first beginning with ballet. Unfortunately, many of her roles were boys’ roles because there were no boys in her ballet class and she was the tallest girl available. While warming up backstage before a performance as Cinderella’s fairy godmother, she broke her ankle — but this didn’t stop her from going out there and performing the role anyway. Within time however, MacLaine realized that ballet wasn’t for her, and she instead pursued Broadway dancing — and then acting.

After high school graduation, MacLaine headed to Broadway, and a year later she was chosen to be Carol Haney’s understudy in The Pajama Game. In an ironic turn of events, Haney would end up breaking her ankle, and MacLaine would fill in for her. A few months later, MacLaine would again fill in for Haney — this time, the same night that well-known film producer Hal B. Wallis was in the audience. Impressed with MacLaine’s performance, he signed her to work for Paramount Pictures.

MacLaine’s feature film debut was Alfred Hitchcock’s The Trouble with Harry (1955), which won her a Golden Globe for New Star Of The Year. I apologize for breaking the fourth wall here, but if Hitchcock sees enough talent in a person with no film experience to feature them in his film, then this person must be fantastic. A year later, MacLaine would star in Some Came Running, for which she received her first Academy Award nomination for Best Actress. Her second Best Actress nomination would come two years later with The Apartment, but she lost to Elizabeth Taylor. When speaking about her chances, she said, “I thought I would win for The Apartment, but then Elizabeth Taylor had a tracheotomy”.

Nomination three of five came in 1963 for the film Irma la Douce, which reunited her with Billy Wilder and Jack Lemmon. Again, she would lose Best Actress, this time to Patricia Neal for her performance in Hud. In the 70’s, MacLaine would be nominated two more times, one for Best Documentary, The Other Half of the Sky: A China Memoir, and the other for Best Actress in The Turning Point. In The Turning Point, MacLaine portrays a retired ballerina, which was probably a role all too familiar to her.

In 1978, MacLaine won the Women in Film Crystal Award, which is awarded to outstanding women who helped expand the role of women within the entertainment industry. In 1983, MacLaine finally won her first Best Actress Academy Award for her role as Aurora Greenway in the James L. Brooks film Terms of Endearment. The film would also win Best Picture, Director, Adapted Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor for Jack Nicholson.

 

Josh Kaye for Classic Movie Hub

Visit CMH’s BlogHub for more posts about Shirley MacLaine by Veteran and Emerging Classic Movie Bloggers.

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Coming To A Theater Near You — Casablanca / Hollywood’s Greatest: Then and Now – Shirley MacLaine

Posted on March 14, 2012 by Josh Kaye

Before I go on to talk about fantastic actress Shirley MacLaine, I wanted to let you know about a wonderful event happening on Wednesday, March 21st — Casablanca will be re-released in select theaters around the country. As you already know, Casablanca is, in my opinion, the best film to ever win Best Picture, which of course makes it one of the best films to ever be created. And now the chance to watch this film on the big screen is here! So if you’re available March 21st, make sure you don’t miss this fantastic event. Just go here for more details and to see which theaters are showing Casablanca.

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Hollywood’s Greatest: Then and Now – Christopher Plummer Part 3

Posted on March 10, 2012 by Josh Kaye

Where Is He Now?

Plummer seems to be becoming more famous now than he ever has been before, not just appealing to those who knew him as Captain Von Trapp, but becoming popular to a younger audience as well. His rise to fame to us younglings began with his appearance in Michael Mann’s Oscar-nominated film The Insider in 1999. Many predicted that Plummer would be nominated for an Oscar, but it did not happen. Plummer would go on to appear in Ron Howard’s Academy Award-winning film A Beautiful Mind in 2001 as Dr. Rosen.

Plummer’s best roles seem to have come over the past 3 years, beginning with the Best Animated Film of 2009, Up. Plummer voiced the role of villain Charles Muntz, which he describes as “an absolutely marvelous movie.” In the same year, he would also go on to appear in Shane Acker’s animated film 9, Terry Gilliam’s marvelous fantasy film The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (playing the lead role of Doctor Parnassus), and Michael Hoffman’s The Last Station. The Last Station provided Plummer with his very first Oscar Nomination for his portrayal of Leo Tolstoy. He would go on to lose the Best Supporting Actor award to Christoph Waltz for his role as Colonel Hans Landa in Inglorious Basterds.

At the ripe, young age of 82, Christopher Plummer has become the oldest actor to ever win an Academy Award for his supporting performance in the film Beginners. It was the 84th edition of the Oscars ceremony, which prompted Plummer to say to the award, “You’re only two years older than me, darling. Where have you been all my life?” Plummer would go on to win numerous other awards for Best Supporting Actor as well, such as the Golden Globe award, BAFTA award, and numerous Critics awards. Plummer will next be seen in Stephen Frears’ Muhammad Ali’s Greatest Fight, which focuses on Ali’s battle against the U.S. Government.

 

Josh Kaye for Classic Movie Hub

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Hollywood’s Greatest: Then and Now – Christopher Plummer Part 2

Posted on March 8, 2012 by Josh Kaye

With a career that spans seven decades, Christopher Plummer is one of the most important actors of our time. Plummer was born on December 13, 1929 in Toronto, Ontario to Isabella Mary and John Orme Plummer. Through his mother, Plummer is a great-grandson of the third Prime Minister of Canada, Sir John Abbott. Before developing a love for acting, Plummer has been studying to be a concert pianist. But after watching Laurence Olivier’s film Henry V (1944), Plummer began to develop a love for the theater and began to act in high school.

Before going into film, Plummer made his name known on the stage, gaining experience travelling with the Canadian Repertory Theatre from 1948-1950, appearing in 75 roles. Beginning in 1952, he began acting in the Bermuda Repertory Theater. Plummer made his Broadway debut in 1953 with the play The Starcross Story. Unfortunately for him, it was a flop and closed after one night. Plummer would go on to appear in 15 other Broadway plays, the highlight being Elia Kazan’s production of Archibald Macleish’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play, J.B. Plummer would go on to be nominated for his first Tony Award as Best Actor in Play.

1958 marked the year where Plummer first appeared on the big screen in Sidney Lumet’s film Stage Struck as a young writer. During that year, he also appeared in Nicholas Ray’s Wind Across the Everglades as Walt Murdock, which would be Plummer’s first leading role. After this, he did not appear in film again for six years until Anthony Mann’s The Fall of the Roman Empire, which Plummer played the Emperor Commodus. With his next film, Plummer became a household name that everyone would know, as he would star as Captain Von Trapp in The Sound of Music.

It’s important to note that Plummer’s first preference would always be the theater. In an interview with NPR, Plummer says,

“You see, I loved the theater and I stayed in the theater most of my life and I was a bit snobbish about it. I made a lot of movies through the ’60s and ’70s which were pretty awful, but then most of the movies in the ’60s and early ’70s were pretty awful. The quality wasn’t always there, unfortunately, but the money was. And I was grateful for that because I could afford to then do what I wanted to do in the theater.”

While he may have not enjoyed The Sound of Music (often referring to it as The Sound of Mucus), Plummer does say that he is grateful for the film “because it certainly was famous and put me in the public eye and I could help fill a theater when I was doing the great works.”

 

Josh Kaye for Classic Movie Hub

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Hollywood’s Greatest: Then and Now – Christopher Plummer

Posted on March 5, 2012 by Josh Kaye

After paying tribute to some of the greatest award-winning films to ever hit the big screen, it’s only fair to pay tribute to some of the greatest Classic Movie actors and actresses who are still living and working today. These living legends will forever be idolized by today’s upcoming actors and actresses, as they paved the way for everyone else to follow. And what better way to begin this list then with an actor who just won his first Academy Award this year? That’s right. Some of you know him as Captain Von Trapp. Me? I know him as Charles Muntz. I know him as Leo Tolstoy. I know him as Hal Fields. But we all know him as the legendary — Christopher Plummer

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2011 Best Picture Winner – The Artist

Posted on February 28, 2012 by Josh Kaye

2011 Best Picture Winner – The Artist

Other Nominated Films:
The Descendants, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close, The Help, Hugo, Midnight in Paris, Moneyball, The Tree of Life, War Horse

When I first decided to do my Best Picture Countdown, my original plan was to take the Best Picture winner of 2011 and compare it to the #1 ranked film on my list. I didn’t expect to be handed a gift like this though, so I’m changing my original plan. Instead of doing a comparison to Casablanca, I’ve decided that it would only be fair to give The Artist its own personal moment like every other film on this list. I admit, this may not have been the case if the winning film was Hugo or The Descendants, but The Artist is different in so many ways. The Artist is the first silent film to win Best Picture since the very first winner of the award in 1929, Wings. The Artist is also the first completely black-and-white film to win Best Picture since 1960, when the award went to The Apartment. When watching some of the great silent films, I would always wonder what it would be like to see a silent film in theaters. The Artist has given us all that chance — a chance to experience the magic of cinema in the way it had begun. The story of The Artist takes place in Hollywood between the years 1927 and 1932, which, if you know your Classical Film history, is around the time that talkies started to rise and silent films began to fall. The Artist focuses on the career of fictional silent film star George Valentin (Jean Dujardin). The film opens as Valentin is backstage during the premiere of his latest film, A Russian Affair. The crowd loves the film, and he takes the stage to bow and happily accept their accolades. After the premiere, Valentin is outside the theater posing for the adoring press, when unexpectedly, a young woman (Bérénice Bejo) bumps into him as she attempts to pick up her bag that had accidentally fallen to the ground. The two stare at each other, unsure of what to do next, when George laughs it off and the two begin posing together for the press. At one point, she kisses George on the cheek — a photo of which ends up on the front cover of Variety the next day with the headline, “Who’s That Girl?” On a bus the next day, the girl is reading the paper, keeping the front page visible for all to see in the hopes of being recognized as “that girl.”  She arrives at Kinetograph Films, the studio that produces the films of George Valentin, where she is hoping to audition as an extra.  At the audition, she sits next to The Butler (Malcolm McDowell) and shows him the front page of the paper. The Butler opens the paper in its entirety focusing on the question in the headline, “Who’s That Girl?”, and reminds her that no one knows who she is. A man then comes out of a door looking for three females who can dance, and it’s here where she shows her skills and gets the part. As she’s walking away, she looks back at The Butler and says, “The names Miller. Peppy Miller!” I don’t want to ruin the rest of the story for you, so I’m just going to stop here. When creating a silent film, it’s important that you have the right actor for the right role, especially if you’re attempting to make a silent film in today’s era of blockbuster cinema. I can honestly say that Jean Dujardin is the perfect actor for this movie. Jean has one of the most expressive faces that I’ve ever seen in any movie in any era. I remember when he won the Golden Globe for Best Actor (Motion Picture Musical or Comedy) — he showed off his expressive face by moving his ‘independent’ eyebrows in all directions. I was in awe. And that was just his eyebrows!  That being said, Jean is able to show so much emotion with just the slightest movement, and it’s amazing. I also want to comment on the music of Ludovic Bource. A silent film is never, of course, completely silent, as there is always a musical score accompanying the film. Bource was able to create a score that was, at times, festive and fun while at other times, nostalgic and romantic — a score that any silent film composer would be proud of. I expect that there will be a resurgence of silent films over the next few years. I don’t expect them all to be amazing, but that’s okay. It’s okay since it’s about time people remember and pay homage to the roots of cinema…where it all came from and how it all began. With The Artist, Michel Hazanavicius shows us just how much of a romantic he is — by channeling his love and admiration for the Vintage Hollywood Classics by creating a Modern Day Classic.  Congratulations to the 2011 Best Picture Award Winner, The Artist.

 

Nominated for 10 Oscars, Winner of 5
Best Achievement in Costume Design – Mark Bridges (WON)
Best Achievement in Directing – Michel Hazanavicius (WON)
Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score – Ludovic Bource (WON)
Best Motion Picture of the Year – Thomas Langmann (WON)
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role – Jean Dujardin (WON)
Best Achievement in Art Direction – Laurence Bennett (production designer), Robert Gould (set decorator)
Best Achievement in Cinematography – Guillaume Schiffman
Best Achievement in Film Editing – Anne-Sophie Bion, Michel Hazanavicius
Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role – Bérénice Bejo
Best Writing, Original Screenplay – Michel Hazanavicius

George Valentin: Look at what you’ve become. You’ve become proud! You’ve become stupid!


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