Tuesday, July 25, 2017

Still Quoting What You Said Last Summer...

Yep. One more in a long series of celebrity quotes with pics to go with as we wend our way through a cherished book on the subject. As we're now well into the S-es, it won't be long until we run out of these tidbits, but I hope you enjoy them in the meantime!
"I like very much Cybill Shepherd and Peter Bogdanovich. The problems grew when Peter wished to prove that he was right and the critics wrong when he pushed Cybill. All I hope now is that he won't use his next three films to prove that she's the equal of Anne Bancroft. That might perhaps be a mistake." - BURT REYNOLDS on CYBILL SHEPHERD & PETER BOGDANOVICH (with whom he worked on At Long Last Love, a considerable flop. The follow-up between Reynolds and Bogdanovich, Nickelodeon, was done without Shepherd. She claimed she turned it down, though it was also suggested that the project would only be green-lit if she didn't appear in it!)
"The leading lady of Angels with Dirty Faces was that lovely, talented gal, Ann Sheridan. So much to offer-and a three-pack-a-day smoker ... Years later when the lung cancer hit, she didn't have much of a chance, and what a powerful shame that was. A mighty nice gal, Annie." - JAMES CAGNEY on ANN SHERIDAN, his costar in said film as well as City for Conquest and Torrid Zone.
"I suppose it is fair to say that I fell hopelessly in love with Simone Signoret the very first time I clapped eyes on her in a modest Easling film called Against the Wind ... I placed her then on the very peak of her profession, and as far as I'm concerned she has never budged from it and I still love her dearly." - DIRK BOGARDE on SIMONE SIGNORET, with whom he never appeared on screen.
"She was one of the most undemanding, professional actresses I've ever worked with, but I could imagine what it must have been like to be married to tigresses like Crawford or Davis." - STEWART GRANGER on JEAN SIMMONS (who he was married to from 1950-1960 and with whom he costarred in Adam and Evalyn, Young Bess, Footsteps in the Fog, among other projects. Despite these protestations and the happy pics, their union was noted for many fiery conflicts, mostly stemming from Granger.)
"I'm just one of those who thought they could direct Sinatra. It's like being one of the girls who thought they'd get Howard Hughes to marry them ... Burt Lancaster is impossible and Kirk [Douglas] a pain in the neck, but when they argue their aim is to make a better picture, and I'm for that. Sinatra, on the other hand, only argues about how to shoot the scene quicker so he can get away." - ROBERT ALDRICH on FRANK SINATRA, who he "directed" in 4 for Texas.
"He's the kind of guy that, when he dies, he's going up to heaven and give God a bad time for making him bald." - MARLON BRANDO on FRANK SINATRA, with whom he costarred in Guys and Dolls.
"I enjoyed the film [Travels With My Aunt]. I think Maggie is a brilliant actress and was marvelous in parts. And if they had left in the footage that was needed to cover the eccentricity of the performance ... she would have been great. She can act and she can overdo. It is becoming the style, you know, to attack the overdoers; so we overdoers have to stick together. But she hadn't the script she needed to protect her." - KATHARINE HEPBURN on MAGGIE SMITH. (Hepburn was hired for the film, but refused to report to the set and finally quit 10 days before filming and after rewriting the script herself, most of which was retained in the finished film. She was denied on-screen credit, however, because she was not a member of the Screen Writers Guild.)
"Breathtakingly sinister. I was so lucky she was cast in the part [in The Letter] - BETTE DAVIS on GALE SONDERGAARD, who worked with her on said film. (Sondergaard also appeared in a prior Davis' film, Juarez.)
"Sly is a kisser-the best. I had to go home and lie to my husband and tell him that it's really hard to kiss people in the movies, that it was really embarrassing and uncomfortable. Sly is a great kisser." - DOLLY PARTON on SYLVESTER STALLONE (her costar in the unsuccessful Rhinestone.)
"I was lucky enough to make four pictures with Barbara. In the first I turned her in, in the second I killed her, in the third I left her for another woman and in the fourth I pushed her over a waterfall. The one thing all these pictures had in common was that I fell in love with Barbara Stanwyckm and I did, too." FRED MACMURRAY on BARBARA STANWYCK, who he costarred with in Remember the Night, Double Indemnity, The Moonlighter and There's Always Tomorrow.)
"I have never worked with an actress who was more cooperative, less temperamental, and a better workman, to use my term of the highest compliment, than Barbara Stanwyck. When I count over those actresses of whom my memories are unmarred by any unpleasant recollection of friction on the set, or unwillingness to do whatever the role required, or squalls of temperament or temper, Barbara's is the first name that comes to mind." - CECIL B. DEMILLE on BARBARA STANWYCK, her director on Union Pacific.)
"...nor did I find her sympathetic. Barbara Stanwyck, I mean. She was always so popular and everybody adored her, but I found her a cold person, and she was the only actress in my working experience who ever went home leaving me to do the close-ups ... with the script girl, which I thought was the most unprofessional. I was quite surprised. There, that's the only unkind thing that's ever been said about Barbara Stanwyck." - MAUREEN O'SULLIVAN on BARBARA STANWYCK, with whom she worked on All I Desire.
"But working with Rod Steiger was, well, different. He was into himself a lot. He was really W.C. Fields. I mean, really. And after the film was finished I just decided I didn't like the business anymore. I thought it wasn't fun and I don't believe in working if you don't enjoy it." - VALERIE PERRINE on ROD STEIGER, with whom with worked on W.C. Fields and Me.)
"Working with Jimmy Stewart in It's a Wonderful Life was very demanding. He's so natural, so realistic, that I never knew whether he was talking to me or doing the scene. He's the most demanding of all the actors I've ever worked with." - DONNA REED on JAMES STEWART, with whom she costarred on said film.
"I adored working with Jimmy. He's such an endearing character, a perfectionist at his job, but with a droll sense of humor and a shy way of watching you to see if you react to that humor." - JOAN CRAWFORD on JAMES STEWART, her costar in The Gorgeous Hussy and Ice Follies of 1939, the latter of which would have required a considerable sense of humor...!)

5 comments:

Gingerguy said...

At long last...more quotes! Kicking it off with Burt, I think he is very fair and sounds quite intelligent here about Cybill. I love Peter Bogdonavich but his 70's Svengali bit was really creepy. Cybill was really good in certain things. I recently saw her in "Taxi Driver" and she was perfectly cast. In a Cole Porte type musical, not so much.
Reading the Robert Aldrich quote on Frank Sinatra, I can't help but see things through the prism of "Feud". Everything I have read about him paints a temperamental performer. Coincidentally his widow just passed away today, Barbara Sinatra. Does anyone remember the Revlon ads where it looked like he was choking her with her pearls?
Dolly's quote is so sweet about Sly Stallone. They were very attractive together in "Rhinestone". I watched it recently and he was hot as heck, and just terrible in it.
Interesting from Valerie Perrine on Rod Steiger, she quit the biz AFTER she made "Can't Stop The Music"?
Let's Go! Ice Follies of 1939 only makes me think of the opening of "Mommie Dearest". I hope you never run out of these quotes Poseidon, they are super fun.

Johnny C said...

These quote posts make my day. I will defend Cybill too. I loved her sitcom. She was never going to be Anne Bancroft, but I thought she was perfect in Daisy Miller. Someone needs to bury that At Long Last Love movie in a hole.

Unknown said...

I really want to see At Long Last Love to see if it's as bad as they say. It's hard to imagine the guy who put together The Last Picture Show, What's Up Doc?, and Paper Moon (all in a row), could derail so spectacularly.

And summing it all up, Barbara Stanwyck is nice and professional, Sinatra is a pain, but I can't fault either one of them for wanting to leave work "early" which in Hollywood is probably after a 15 hour day...

joel65913 said...

Another round of marvelous reading Poseidon!

Poor Cybill, though she was probably complicit in that major push Bogdanovich gave her before she was ready. She's not an actress of limitless scope but as Moonlighting showed after she grew up a little she was a fine physical comedienne and an okay dramatic actress. Just too much too soon.

It's nice to read about a trio of actresses, Ann Sheridan, Jean Simmons and Barbara Stanwyck (LOVE all three) who were cooperative and kindhearted. So much of the perception of stars is that they are demanding fussbudgets who are imperious and remote. Of course you don't want them to be the girl next door, where's the mystery in that, but to me it is disappointing when you read they were really some sort of dragon off-screen like Joan Fontaine or Sinatra.

About the negative comment from Maureen O'Sullivan about Stanwyck. I believe when they were filming All I Desire her marriage to Robert Taylor was breaking up so she probably wasn't in the mood to socialize and rather than share her troubles in this instance stayed more to herself. I think it reflects poorly on O'Sullivan that she seemed so smug to be happy to share that antidote.

It makes you realize the traps of the contract system, though there were definite pluses as well, when you look at those Joan Crawford dogs Jimmy Stewart was required to participate in despite being a star of considerable wattage at the time. The Gorgeous Hussy had such potential to be interesting because of the story but was completely miscast, Joan in hoop skirts!! Just NO. But it's a masterwork compared to the complete stinkeroo that is Ice Follies of 1939! It's my candidate for Joan's worst film...or let me put it this way her worst film that was supposed to be a quality feature.

Poseidon3 said...

OMG, Gingerguy...! I didn't remember those ads, but I looked them up. Hilarious! They were a glamorous looking couple. I had trouble getting behind Sly's blow-dried, big hair in "Rhinestone" (though I confess I've never seen the movie.) I prefer the closer-cropped style in, say, "Demolition Man." LOL about Valerie Perrine. And I agree about "Ice Follies" and "Mommie Dearest!" Thank Jesus they didn't make Faye try to go out and actually skate!! (On her ankles, as JC would have said!)

Johnny, sometimes I like Cybill and other times not so much. And it seems like conflict follows her everywhere!! She and Bruce Willis, she and Christine Baranski. I think her voice is sometimes so flat and monotonal which only works for some projects.

Dave, I didn't really HATE "At Long Last Love" but it definitely fell short of being good. Probably one of the worst decisions PB made was to try to film the numbers "live" instead of letting the actors prerecord and then film against that. These were not exactly Broadway level singers and dancers, apart from Eileen Brennan who was already long past her "Hello Dolly!" Irene Malloy days. It's a pretty attractive looking movie IIRC.

Joel, I imagine Maureen got a tad tired of seeing how much the crew liked, admired and got along with "Missy" Stanwyck - her comments do smack a bit of sour grapes for whatever reason. I don't think Stanwyck must have walked out for her costars' close-ups too often or people wouldn't have remained so appreciative of her for that long. One thing she was rarely, if ever, criticized for was being unprofessional! What's sad about "Ice Follies" is that at times in it Joan looks really good (isn't that the one in which she borrowed Hedy Lamarr's hairstyle?), but it's all wasted on a rotten story/concept.