. . . fleeing a Sioux uprising in Minnesota in 1862. Via True West magazine.
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Monthly Archives: June 2013
AN LP COVER FOR TODAY
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HOLLYWOOD
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WHAT I’M SPINNING NOW
When this album came out in 1963 Chet Baker played it over and over and over, according to his girlfriend at the time. Many jazzmen will name Sinatra as the greatest of all jazz singers, even though he’s not generally thought of as a jazz singer — but real jazzmen recognize his sublime and subtle mastery of swing.
This is not Sinatra at his swingingest, nor is it a “concert album” in the strictest sense. It was recorded on a movie sound stage, though it was done live, with no overdubs. Sinatra was backed by a huge orchestra, numbering up to 60 pieces at times, arranged by Nelson Riddle, who thought it was the best of Sinatra’s Reprise albums.
It’s not my favorite Sinatra album but it’s undeniably magnificent.
THE HILLS ARE ALIVE
Howard Terpning, who did the painting for the famous poster for Cleopatra, in 1963, contributed art work to many other iconic film posters, including the one for The Sound Of Music, above.
Later on, as the studios moved away from using original artwork for posters, Terpning turned to easel painting, concentrating on historical scenes of Native American life.
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JANUARYS
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A MARTIN LEWIS PRINT FOR TODAY
TWO-STEPPING
. . . at the upstairs bar, Lambert’s, Austin, Texas.
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AND GOD CREATED AVA GARDNER
A MOVIE POSTER FOR TODAY
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DRIVE-IN
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A HILDEBRANDT FOR TODAY
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JANTZEN BATHING SUITS
1954
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CLEOPATRA (1963)
Joseph Mankiewicz’s Cleopatra, from 1963, has a terrible reputation, and it’s richly deserved. It suffers primarily from the sin of good taste — from creatives choices meant to avoid excessive vulgarity, to suggest sophistication and intellect. God forbid! These are the last virtues one wants from an historical sword-and-toga epic. The Egyptian and Land Of the Pharaohs, stupendously vulgar movies, seem like great works of art compared to the vapid modesty of Cleopatra.
Mankiewicz was a decent writer but a stodgy director, good with actors but cinematically boring. He was the worst sort of director to assign to a troubled production like Cleopatra, which needed the steady hand of a studio veteran but also some style, some visual élan.
Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton were apparently having a lot of fun off-screen during the shooting of Cleopatra, but don’t seem to have had any at all while the cameras were rolling. In the film, the chemistry between them is non-existent.
The narrative is plodding, the dialogue is stuffy, the performances are, for the most part, perfunctory — although all of the principal players have their moments. The production values dazzle in the new Blu-ray edition, and they are enough to make the film entertaining, well worth a look — compelling the way a spectacular train wreck is compelling, although sadly this train wreck unfolds in excruciatingly slow motion.
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IN PROGRESS
. . . Jack Pierce’s make-up for Frankenstein.
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