Fall Clearance

As we toddle along with The Underworld, we're forever collecting pictures and bits of this and that, often with an eye toward future posts. Sometimes the pictures won't fit a regular post or the posts don't materialize and we're left with unsold merchandise, so it becomes necessary to hold a Clearance Sale! One that we held last winter went over quite well, so now we're doing one in the fall! As you can see from this first shot (of a pensive Mr. Tab Hunter), the leaves aren't the only things that have turned yellow in The Underworld!

We briefly toyed with the idea of a John Beck tribute (seen here with Joe Bologna in The Big Bus, 1976), of Flamingo Road, Dallas and several movies including Audrey Rose and The Other Side of Midnight (both 1977), but - even though we like him just fine - couldn't quite muster up the enthusiasm for it. Sorry, John!

So we offer up some favorite shots of him, including this one from the revered Battle of the Network Stars TV specials.

We love the camp scream The Other Side of Midnight and enjoy his unusually short(er) hair in it, too!

I never talk about her on this site, it seems, but my favorite contemporary actress is Julianne Moore. She got that way based upon one single job of hers and though she has rarely, if ever, done another part like it, I still enjoy her in almost anything she does. That job of course, was the supporting role of Marlene Craven (even the name is awesome!) in 1992's The Hand that Rocks the Cradle.

There is not one solitary frame of her performance in that movie that I do not WORSHIP! She made a lifelong fan of me by portraying the most dynamic, brittle, no-nonsense, stylishly-dressed lady I'd come across in a long time. (This was most welcome to me in 1992 as this was the era of washed out, casual looks and "grunge.")

My favorite contemporary actor, in case anybody's wondering or doesn't know from prior posts, has always been George Clooney, but he's in the doghouse right now following those world-famous nuptials! Ha ha!

I had intended at one time to do a post called "Silents, Please!" in which I put forth some of the handsome men of the silent era, but the wheels came off of that one before too long. Here is a photo of Charles Farrell, who was one of young Bette Davis' favorite idols of the silver screen.

One of our absolute favorites of "The Silent Era" (and beyond) is the dreamy George O'Brien, who, in his early days seemed to never bother putting clothing on for publicity portraits!

Here he is in the silent era disaster spectacle Noah's Ark (1928.) The flood effects were so realistic that three extras were drowned and nearly a dozen others were injured during it! Anyway, I'll take Georgie over Russell Crowe any time...

Speaking of Bette, here is a fun color photo of her from All About Eve (1950) a movie that was, of course, done in black & white. This iconic dress was meant to have the sleeves up on her shoulders, but during a fitting, it was too big and slid down, forming a sort of portrait neckline. She decided she preferred it that way and wore it as such in the film!

Many of you are familiar with the Blackglama fur ads that were done in the 1960s and 1970s (featuring an iconic actress or female singer swathed in fur with the tagline, "What becomes a legend most?") I have a book of these photos that I treasure, even though I do not advocate fur as fashion (these were done long before most folks delved into the innate cruelty of the fur industry.) Here is a rare contact sheet of shots for Judy Garland's turn before the camera, revealing a variety of poses she struck that day. (The one circled in red was selected, though several others of them would have been great, too!)

Big-screen Tarzan Lex Barker was one of the very earliest subjects here back in 2009 and his tribute is staggeringly brief compared to ones that came later. So, we often have photos of him to sprinkle here and there including these.

Scram, you tramps!

Imagine being at this circus or parade or whatever it was and finding Tarzan on an elephant with a snow white tan line popping out on each side! I always find it interesting that, back in the day, so much effort was put into covering up the navel, yet is was all right to have half an ass cheek in view! (The greatest example of this occurred when Buster Crabbe played Tarzan in an early serial.)

I can never get enough of Lex's sleek, golden face...

He's one of the 1940s stars whose looks transcend time and come off as almost contemporary. Really only the high-waisted (!) pants give him away.

And of course we're a sucker for pretty, baby blues eyes.

I wanted to do this next post so badly, but it just never happened. It was going to be a hooty one about inappropriate similarities in movie costumes. First up was Mr. Tom Tryon in The Cardinal (1963) and how, when he was done....

...he lent his hat to Miss Helen Hayes for her role in Airport (1970)!

Then there was Richard Burton wearing Indian drag in 1955's The Rains of Ranchipur, who put his turban on ice...

...until 1969 when he portrayed a gay man with an alleged head injury in Staircase!

Ted McGinley's tribute is long since past, but I can't resist sharing these two shots of him of him in lifeguard costume. I have always adored McGinley in virtually everything (though I purposely avoided Married with Children, on which he costarred from 1991-1997!)

I was going to do something with this selection of disaster movie airline pilots, but this, too, was an idea that fizzled. (You think after five years, I'm just running out of steam??  Could be...)

Dean Martin in Airport (1970)

Charlton Heston in Skyjacked (1972)

Efrem Zimbalist Jr in Airport 1975 (1974)

Jack Lemmon in Airport '77 (1977)

George Kennedy in The Concorde... Airport '79 (1979)

Alain Delon in The Concorde... Airport '79 (1979)

Around here, we're always on the lookout for the ultimate Clint Walker photo and we've yet to find it. But in the meantime, here are some enjoyable shots of him.

To us, the perfect Clint Walker photo is in color, with his face lit up and his blue eyes gleaming, while also capturing an expression and angle that conveys his incredible appeal. This capture below (that I made!) from None But the Brave (1965) is on the right track, but not of high enough quality, nor straight on facially enough, to qualify. Love his little blue cap, though!

This recently discovered portrait probably comes closest of all that I've seen thus far, but the search continues (and, hey... it's not like it's hard work or anything doing all that scavenging!)

Now, I think some of my classic movie fans with LOVE this next pic. I just never had anywhere good to include it. To get the full joy out of it, you'll have to open it in a new tab or window and magnify it to its full size. A WONDROUS collection of beautiful 1950s leading ladies.

On a far lesser scale is this smaller collection of actors and actresses, this time from the 1960s. Is it me or is Gregory Peck just a little out of place in this grouping?!

I love this photo of a young Gary Cooper. (Regular readers know I have a thing about very light eyes and Coop has 'em here!)

I also adore the eyes (and everything else!) of Jon-Erik Hexum, particularly in this photo.

Of course, in his case, it's sometimes hard to find which aspect one wants to focus on the most!

While we're gazing at some handsome men with pretty eyes, take a look at these two snaps of beautiful Robert Conrad during his days on The Wild Wild West (1965-1969.)

My favorite actress from the mid-'60s to the mid-'90s is Miss Faye Dunaway, someone I can never get enough of, so here is more! Love the detailing on this suit and her sleek expression.

These next four are from her debut in The Happening (1967) and I'm not sure if she was ever hotter, though the movie itself is a pretty big mess...

Here we find a languid, late-'60s Miss D. lounging outside on a bench for a magazine spread...

...and still rather tired, she's seen again sprawled on the floor in a sensational lace top.

She seems to have borrowed Karen Black's eyelashes for this one.

This hilarious close-up...well, colorful doesn't begin to describe it!

And in this shot from The Towering Inferno (1974), a movie that changed my life, we get to see her earrings nice and close up. 

What do y'all think of this gloomily gossamer gaggle from Eyes of Laura Mars (1978)??

A lot of my readers like Lyle Waggoner of The Carol Burnett Show (1967-1974) and Wonder Woman (1975-1979) and here he is at home with his family. Anyone want to be next to get (his or) her hair combed?

There are quite a few photos of The Green Hornet (1966-1967) costars and friends Van Williams and Bruce Lee playing on the beach together and so on for publicity purposes, but I also love this shot of them merely hanging out over a cup of craft services coffee. Williams worked hard to gain proper billing, screen time and character development for Lee on the show and Lee was thankful for that.

Here's a portrait of them in character (with the much-beloved by fans Wende Wagner) from the series.

Of course there's NOTHING that compares to Van in his slinky swim ensemble from his prior series Surfside 6 (1960-1962)!! Costarring Troy Donahue, Anthony Eisley and Underworld fave Diane McBain, just look at the oddball dynamic here... and Van's oddballs.

I looovve this photo of Surfside costars Van and Diane McBain.

Some of you long-term readers may recall the saga of The Underworld's favorite movie extra, Leoda Richards, who was a total mystery for the longest time until finally being identified. The woman shows up in seemingly every movie of the 1950s - 1970s, nearly always with primo position in the vicinity of the stars of the film in question. Now that I know her, it's so much fun to be watching a program and see her suddenly pop up! (It was fun before, too, but maddening since I couldn't figure out who she was!) During a recent screening of My Fair Lady (1964), I discovered that in that film, too, she appears prominently in both the dazzling Ascot scene and later at the Embassy Ball, nearly always within earshot of Rex Harrison, Audrey Hepburn and Gladys Cooper! Can you imagine being among the cast of both Lady and The Sound of Music the following year as well as in so many, many other movies?!

One of these days, I still don't know when, we're going to do a looonng overdue tribute to the divine Arlene Francis! I don't know why I never get around to her.

As we've already done a tribute to the marvelous Peyton Place (1957), there's no good place for this entertaining shot of Miss Lana Turner in a pivotal moment of the plot. I love that movie so much and this scene, too!

Poor Donna Reed had the horrible experience of replacing Barbara Bel Geddes on Dallas (1984-1985), something that really never should have happened as she was not the correct type, before being unceremoniously fired. I like Reed a lot and hate the way she was treated, but she was all wrong for this. Still, she remained a very attractive lady for someone who wasn't going to live even one more year as this portrait demonstrates.

Although I enjoy the work of James Dean, I'm not obsessed with him the way many folks are. I do really like this particular photo of him (and lord knows he was photographed plenty in his short life!) It's probably due to the fact that he seems very contemporary in it.

There's never going to be a Dennis Cole tribute here, though every once in a while we find ourselves taken with him. Here's an portrait of him taken in his heyday.

You know, Jaclyn Smith was married to Dennis Cole for a brief time in the late-'70s/early-'80s and they worked together fairly often. Less known, but longer (1968-1975), is her prior marriage to Roger Davis (of Alias Smith & Jones fame), seen here in a strange tense-tranquil pose.

Blonde cutie Doug McClure is another guy who I enjoy, but who is unlikely to get an in-depth tribute all his own. This is part of a magazine interview he did at the height of his popularity along with a cute photo.

When the wonderful columnist Liz Smith was in contact with me over this site, she expressed that it would be great if there were more posts involving Elizabeth Taylor (who despite many great roles also had a bad movie output that ought to have won her more attention here!) I've been negligent to that task, but I do have a selection of very beautiful portraits of La Liz. The last one is my very favorite, even though its black & white format doesn't allow her amazing eyes to come through in their full glory. I think the third one more than makes up for that, though!

I did a piece on Rome Adventure (1962) quite a while back, but only recently came upon this great shot of costar Angie Dickinson sizing herself up in the mirror.

I also like this slinky pose of Miss D.

Ooooh, I think fans of Richard Chamberlain are going to really enjoy this page from a magazine layout on him. 

NotFelixUnger, this one is just for you. I hope you don't already have it! (For the uninitiated, it's Gordon Thomson from Dynasty, 1982-1989.)

Earlier this year, we lost longtime movie and TV star James Garner. This is my favorite photo of him.

Another great star we lost not long ago was the wondrous Eleanor Parker. Here are two beautiful and differing portraits of her during her prime.

We've done a tribute to Brian Kelly before, but not long ago stumbled onto these photos from his movie Around the World Under the Sea (1966) with Lloyd Bridges, David McCallum and Shirley Eaton. Can you imagine being in a teensy underwater vehicle with the hirsute Kelly and Bridges?

Take in the burnished beauty of Ty Hardin during his days as a Warner Brothers contract player.

As we near the end of this clearance sale, I give you a mash-up picture I made for use as a Facebook cover photo for a little while. Just my warped sense of humor at work...

And with that (and Mr. Stuart Whitman from The Decks Ran Red, 1958), we've reached The End!