Curio: Iconic Eyes

Alexa here. I was so sad to hear of Lena Horne's passing on Sunday. She defined iconic, with her distinctive voice and beauty ("seen in doe-like eyes set against perfectly chiseled cheekbones"). Heck, I was proud to name my daughter Lena. Maybe it was the combined influence of Nathaniel's great eulogy and his eyeball first and last that made me snap up this little pouch at Brooklyn Quilting Exchange yesterday, featuring Lena's unmistakable eyes:


Lori of the shop has made many more pouches featuring iconic eyes, and I'm loving them all. Can you identify these other stares? (You can find them all here, but no cheating!)

Till the Links Roll By

Antagony & Ecstasy - churns up a summer appropriate top ten list: best performances in comic-based films. Impeccable choices really (especially the top tier) and fine write ups (especially the two on Superman).
MNPP wants this Fright Night remake (another vampire movie?) immediately thanks to the wonderful-on-paper cast
Erik Lundegaard - is making a thorough, interesting trek through past Robin Hood films. Something I wanted to do but never found time for. Argh.
Sunset Gun "How Little We Know" a fine piece on the cinema of Wong Kar Wai, Days of Being Wild specifically


/Film has a lengthy word for word interview with Justin Theroux. Sadly it's only about Iron Man 2. I hope he acts again. David Lynch where are you???
By Ken Levine "The Truth about Lady Gaga". This article makes me want to watch Man in the Moon again. Remember that one? The one that was supposed to net Jim Carrey an Oscar nomination?
Deviant Art has a pretty amazing Pulp Fiction graphic, displaying the film chronologically. Something the film never displays don'cha know
popbytes Cynthia Nixon covers The Advocate
Just Jared Winona Ryder and Channing Tatum to play lovers in Ron Howard's Cheaters. Hmmm, strangely I like the idea, well, except for the Ron Howard part
A Socialite's Life John Barrowman as Alladin? Fun pics but why no more Torchwood? *sniffle*
Boing Boing Here's an interesting one for you small screen enthusiasts. This is a list from a tv executive explaining 12 reasons why certain shows get picked up by networks.

my favorite goodbyes to Lena Horne
Guardian David Thomson refuses to talk about Lena for 671 words
The Sheila Variations wonderful personalized tribute to Lena here
Time Magazine Richard Corliss kicks off their tribute with a 'shoulda been' obituary
Variety Ted Johnson has the Obama family's statement
The Auteurs Daily collects the online tributes and obits

Lena Horne (1917-2010)

♫ Keeps raining all the time...
Keeps raining all the time...



Legendary songbird Lena Horne passed away yesterday at ninety-two years of age. Her big career essentially began at sweet sixteen while in the chorus of The Cotton Club in Harlem. She made her movie debut at only twenty-one in The Duke is Tops (1938). By twenty-six she was both a star actress (if not a movie star) and a hit recording artist headlining Stormy Weather (1943) and scandalizing Hollywood with her flirtations from the bubble bath in Cabin in the Sky (1943).

She moved away from the cinema rather quickly, though, and it's easy to understand why. Despite her spirited presence, dazzling smile and those best-selling pipes -- key ingredients of many movie musical superstars -- Hollywood kept marginalizing her, keeping her in small parts or famously passing her over for lead roles. The one that probably stung the most was the romantic mixed-race lead of the musical Show Boat (1951), which she reportedly wasn't even considered for. Ava Gardner got the part. By the start of the 50s, Lena had smartly moved on to concentrate on music, television and the stage though she would make infrequent trips back to the movies. In her last film role she took on an immortal oft-interpreted character "Glinda the Good Witch" for The Wiz (1978)

Lena as Glinda

For all of her gifts, Lena Horne didn't exactly ease on down Hollywood's road. Like many talented performers, she struggled to forge a career in the face of ingrained prejudices and Hollywood's conservativism about rocking any boats. It's hard to look at her few screen performances now and wonder how anyone once thought she was inappropriate for romantic leads. Even if she weren't so talented... there's the beauty alone to consider! Nevertheless Lena forged a remarkable career spanning several decades. I love this righteous quote:

In my early days I was a sepia Hedy Lamarr. Now I'm black and a woman, singing my own way.

She's one of countless blacktresses over the years who Hollywood has struggled to understand or properly utilize. Things have gotten a lot better but it's still, strangely in 2010, a trouble spot for Hollywood. Even the few who do make it to leading roles (like the great Angela Bassett in the 90s) end up back in disappointing supporting roles before long. But change takes a long time and it doesn't happen without the slow cumulation of forward momentum from trailblazers like Lena.

Lena's husband and son died before her but she is survived by her daughter Gail Lumet Buckley (One of Lena's granddaughters, Jenny Lumet, wrote the great Rachel Getting Married)

Goodbye Lena. Thank you for the music.

*
Here's another couple gorgeous song performances to send you on your way. In the first she does a subtle rendition of a song by another actor/singer (Kris Kristofferson) called "I've Got To Have You" in the 1970s and in the second, a very early clip, she does flirtatious empowerment with "Unlucky Woman"



Related Post: Cabin in the Sky (1944)

October's Musical: Cabin in the Sky

It's the "Musical of the Month"

On the 6th of each month I'm writing about one hand-picked musical. Anybody who loves the genre is invited to join in by screening, commenting, or publishing their own take on it. I started the series with three goals in mind: reacquaint myself with films I haven't seen in a long time, promote rental ideas for readers, enjoy films I've never seen (there are many) from within my favorite genre. Cabin in the Sky (1943), Vincent Minelli's first full directorial effort and a rare all-black musical from Hollywood's early days, falls into the latter camp. I am so pleased that you chose it from the list offered. It's a delight.

The story of gambler Little Joe (Eddie "Rochester" Anderson) and his ever-praying wife Petunia (Ethel Waters) is a riff on the classic Faust tale. It's one in a long line of literary and filmed entertainments that deal with Heaven and Hell's eternal battle for our souls. Some are heavy dramas but often they're comedies. The premise lends itself to goofy sets, outre performances and good triumphs over evil uplifts. Early in the film Joe nearly dies and the forces of Heaven & Hell agree to give him six more months on earth: repentance and good behavior wins him that dreamy 'cabin in the sky', more of the same wicked lifestyle will trap him in "H-E-double toothpick" as me mum used to say.

The last movie I personally remember seeing with this out-of-fashion premise was that awful Olivia Newton-John & John Travolta flop from 1983 Two of a Kind though I know there've been others since then. Anyone remember that film? It gave the world Olivia Newton-John's last big hit "Twist of Fate" and not much else worth mentioning.


Anywayyyyy.... Little Joe is a sinner who can't resist the dice or one of the devil's favorite gals "Georgia Brown" (the legendary Lena Horne). His wife Petunia prays and prays and prays for him to change and renounce both gambling and Georgia. And then she prays some more. Early in the film, Joe is shot in the local club Jim Henry's Paradise by a ne'er do wells he owes money. As he lay dying, the battle-lines for his soul are drawn (that six month contest) between Lucifer Jr's squad and some rather uptight angels. While convalescing Joe expresses bewilderment that Petunia is so confident that he won't stray again.

Little Joe when you're good, something in here [*points to heart*] starts singing.

And the lord seems to say, 'All my angels are playing beautiful music because they feel so happy for you. Can you hear it down there?' And I listen and sho' nuff I hear it as plain as if I was up in heaven myself. They were teaching me their prettiest tunes. Then I realized that's the Lord's way of telling me to be happy.

She then sings Joe this musical's gorgeous title song, beaming with both romantic and spiritual love all the while. Ethel's voice is expressive, nuanced and mature. Here's the way I see it/hear it: Musicals make the world beautiful. I hear them as plain as if I was up in heaven myself. They've got the prettiest tunes. Musicals are the Cinema's way of telling me to be happy.

There's a lot to enjoy in the film: Ethel Waters voice and performance were rich, the songs --many of them famous -- were quite good and Eddie Anderson's comic timing and inimitable screech in the song "Consequence" provided much amusement as he tries to ward off the advances of Georgia Brown. Though the film was obviously difficult to finance due to its risky all-black status in a racist era (many theaters wouldn't show the film in the 40s), there's still a bit of variety and ingenuity in the limited sets that are utilized. I loved the freezer burn detail on the air conditioned devil's office. Funny. For a musical it's skimpy on costume changes as well, but once Georgia and Petunia face off at Jim Henry's Paradise it's a feathery, glittery event that you wish you could see in full color. For film buffs there's some amusement to be had in the recycling of cast members from Gone With the Wind (1939) and sets and special effects direct from The Wizard of Oz (1939).

Yes Cabin in the Sky made me happy despite the odd warning or "disclaimer" that ran before the movie started.


That warning indicates "films" as in this is a stamp that's been placed on other films too? But unless I missed something (which is possible as a white boy) there wasn't all that much to be offended by on the race front. More troubling was the sexism but you'd never see a warning placed on a film from this era about that, now would you? And, what's more, the kind of sexism that Cabin in the Sky trades in --very popular in 40s movies, especially noirs, with seductive women painted as dangerous destroyers -- isn't all that dated, cinematically speaking. Both of the female characters are blamed for Joe's sins. Georgia Brown is blamed for seducing him (Men have NO CHOICE about who they sleep with, don't you know?! He says sarcastically) And later even Joe's devout patient wife is blamed for his tailspin when she fails to 'stand by her man' at one crucial point. Little Joe somehow wins points for Petunia's good deeds but she loses some for his free fall??? Heaven Can Wait ...for feminism apparently.

I leave you with the lovely Lena Horne's cut song "Ain't it the truth" which was deemed too scandalous what with Lena singing gleefully whilst enveloped in a decadent bubble bath.



Isn't she a honey?

Musical of the Month'ers
Movies Kick Ass 'Heaven... I'm in Heaven'
StinkyBits - finds this movie "fascinating, strange, well worth watching."
Criticlasm thinks Ethel Waters rules the piece
StinkyLulu -profiles Lena Horne's famous role as "Georgia Brown"
If you write about it, send me the link...

Next Episodes
November 11th (delayed) -Nov 6th marks the exact 10th anniversary of the release of Todd Hayne's glam rock oddity Velvet Goldmine (1998). It was a big moment in the careers of Toni Collette, Ewan McGregor and Jonathan Rhys Meyers. Lots of angles to be explored by any willing bloggers.
Dec 6th ~'Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas' with Judy Garland in the classic Meet Me in St. Louis (1944).