Saturday, February 25, 2023

Was Alfred Hitchcock Gay?

 It has been asked several times. In different formats. I have read it in books about Alfred Hitchcock but I have also read it online. It is said that one time he stated “I would have been gay if it weren’t for Alma” Alma was Hitchcock’s wife. I don’t think that is exactly what he said, but it was along those lines. So is it possible that Hitchcock was gay? Here is why I imagine that he is, first, he was very dainty according to some peoples representation of him. Secondly, he said that he would have been gay if it wasn’t for Alma. Third, he loved using gay actors. He also made movies that were about gay people. And lastly, he wasn’t very nice to his actresses, which, my sister in law guessed that maybe he took out his anger towards women because he didn’t want to be with them. He also, according to another source, said that he did not like having sex with his wife. Which could also make him A-Sexual but very unsure, maybe he was gay. Which would not have been that big of a deal as a lot of celebrities back then were gay. I read that about a lot of actors and actresses. That they believed they were gay, that there’s signs and obvious things about them that makes them believe they are gay. 

Tuesday, February 28, 2017

Alfred Hitchcock Quotes

His Amazing Speches:



There is a dreadful story that I hate actors. Imagine anyone hating James Stewart...Jack Warner. I can't imagine how such a rumor began. Of course it may possibly because I was once quoted as saying that actors are cattle. My actor friends know I would never be capable of such a thoughtless, rude and unfeeling remark, that I would never call them cattle... What I probably said was that actors should be treated like cattle.

Discussion on his cameos: One of the earliest of these was in The Lodger (1927), the story of Jack the Ripper. My appearance called for me to walk up the stairs of the rooming house. Since my walk-ons in subsequent pictures would be equally strenuous - boarding buses, playing chess, etc. - I asked for a stunt man. Casting, with an unusual lack of perception, hired this fat man!

The length of a film should be directly related to the endurance of the human bladder.

To me Psycho was a comedy, it had to be.

Always make the audience suffer as much as possible.

Drama is life with the dull bits left out.

When he received his Irving Thalberg Award, he made this incredible long speech: Thank you!

When he accepted the American Film Institute Life Achievement award: I beg permission to mention by name only four people who have given me the most affection, appreciation, and encouragement, and constant collaboration. The first of the four is a film editor, the second is a scriptwriter, the third is the mother of my daughter Pat [Patricia Hitchcock], and the fourth is as fine a cook as ever performed miracles in a domestic kitchen. And their names are Alma Reville.

Some films are slices of life, mine are slices of cake.

I was an uncommonly unattractive young man.

It's only a movie, and, after all, we're all grossly overpaid.

There is nothing quite so good as a burial at sea. It is simple, tidy, and not very incriminating.

From his film Topaz (1969): Claude Jade is a brave nice young lady. But I don't give any guarantee what she will do on a taxi's back seat.

You can't direct a Laughton picture. The best you can hope for is to referee.

The paperback is very interesting but I find it will never replace the hardcover book -- it makes a very poor doorstop.

Film your murders like love scenes, and film your love scenes like murders.

I am a typed director. If I made Cinderella (1937), the audience would immediately be looking for a body in the coach.

If it's a good movie, the sound could go off and the audience would still have a perfectly clear idea of what was going on.

A good film is when the price of the dinner, the theater admission and the babysitter were worth it.

In feature films the director is God; in documentary films God is the director.

Discussing The Birds (1963): You know, I've often wondered what the Audubon Society's attitude might be to this picture.

Cary Grant is the only actor I ever loved in my whole life.

Walt Disney has the best casting. If he doesn't like an actor he just tears him up.

Blondes make the best victims. They're like virgin snow that shows up the bloody footprints.

I am scared easily, here is a list of my adrenaline-production: 1: small children, 2: policemen, 3: high places, 4: that my next movie will not be as good as the last one.

When an actor comes to me and wants to discuss his character, I say, "It's in the script". If he says, "But what's my motivation?", I say, "Your salary".

I don't understand why we have to experiment with film. I think everything should be done on paper. A musician has to do it, a composer. He puts a lot of dots down and beautiful music comes out. And I think that students should be taught to visualize. That's the one thing missing in all this. The one thing that the student has got to do is to learn that there is a rectangle up there - a white rectangle in a theater - and it has to be filled.

To make a great film you need three things - the script, the script and the script.

North By Northwest: Our original title, you know, was "The Man in Lincoln's Nose". Couldn't use it, though. They also wouldn't let us shoot people on Mount Rushmore. Can't deface a national monument. And it's a pity, too, because I had a wonderful shot in mind of Cary Grant hiding in Lincon's nose and having a sneezing fit.

I made a remark a long time ago. I said I was very pleased that television was now showing murder stories, because it's bringing murder back into its rightful setting - in the home.

Discussing his lifelong fear of eggs (medical term "ovophobia"): I'm frightened of eggs, worse than frightened, they revolt me. That white round thing without any holes... have you ever seen anything more revolting than an egg yolk breaking and spilling its yellow liquid? Blood is jolly, red. But egg yolk is yellow, revolting. I've never tasted it.

Fear isn't so difficult to understand. After all, weren't we all frightened as children? Nothing has changed since Little Red Riding Hood faced the big bad wolf. What frightens us today is exactly the same sort of thing that frightened us yesterday. It's just a different wolf. This fright complex is rooted in every individual.

Psycho Discussion: It has been rumored that Psycho is so terrifying that it will scare some people speechless. Some of my men hopefully sent their wives to a screening. The women emerged badly shaken but still vigorously vocal.

All love scenes started on the set are continued in the dressing room.

The man was a joker and here is why ;):  I once gave a dinner party, oh many years ago, where all the food was blue.

Psycho had a fake torso that squirted blood: But I never used it. It was all unnecessary because the cocking of the knife, the girl's face and the feet and everything was so rapid that there were 78 separate pieces of film in 45 seconds.

I wanted once to do a scene, for North by Northwest (1959) by the way, and I couldn't get it in there. I wanted it to be in Detroit, and two men walking along in front of an assembly line. And behind them you see the automobile being put together. It starts with a frame, and you just take the camera along, the two men are talking. And you know all those cars are eventually driven off the line, they load them with gas and everything. And one of the men goes forward, mind you you've seen a car from nothing, just a frame, opens the door and a dead body falls out.

AFI Lifetime Achievement Award Speech (well part of it): Had the beautiful Ms. Reville [his wife Alma] not accepted a lifetime contract without options as Mrs. Alfred Hitchcock some 53 years ago, Mr. Alfred Hitchcock might be in this room tonight, not at this table but as one of the slower waiters on the floor.

Reality is something that none of us can stand, at any time.

I like stories with lots of psychology.

Everything's perverted in a different way.

Cartoonists have the best casting system. If they don't like an actor, they just tear him up.

The length of a film should be directly related to the endurance of the human bladder.

Four people are sitting around a table talking about baseball or whatever you like. Five minutes of it. Very dull. Suddenly, a bomb goes off. Blows the people to smithereens. What does the audience have? Ten seconds of shock. Now take the same scene and tell the audience there is a bomb under that table and will go off in five minutes. The whole emotion of the audience is totally different because you've given them that information. In five minutes time that bomb will go off. Now the conversation about baseball becomes very vital. Because they're saying to you, "Don't be ridiculous. Stop talking about baseball. There's a bomb under there." You've got the audience working.

1955 Alfred Hitchcock Presents: For those of you watching this show in the year 2000, write us a letter and tell us how things are going where you are.

If you've designed a picture correctly, the Japanese audience should scream at the same time as the Indian audience.

Tuesday, February 21, 2017

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Wednesday, May 25, 2016

Don Knotts

Don Knotts
Born: July 21, 1924
Died: February 24, 2006 (aged 81) He died of Pulmonary and Respiratory Complications



     Don Knotts is most famous for his role in The Andy Griffith Show. But have you ever watched his skits? He did this one on a nervous Weather Man. You should YouTube it. I absolutely love him. He is so charming and sweet. He could have totally shot his own foot off in the Andy Griffith Show. He knew how to make his audience laugh. He also has a scene in No Time for Sergeants. Which is a cute movie he did with Andy Griffith, his best friend. He was also in The Incredible Mr. Limpet and The Ghost and Mr. Chicken. I also recommend watching these films. They are cute and funny.



     Don Knotts was also a veteran of WWII he enlisted at the age of 19, he was awarded the World War II Victory Medal, Philippine Liberation Medal, Asiatic- Pacific Campaign Medal, Army Good Conduct Medal, Marksman Badge, and Honorable Service Lapel Pin. He was born in Morgantown, West Virginia. He was the youngest of four brothers. His father was a troubled man, threatened his mother with a knife and spent time in a mental hospital. His brother Earl, nicknamed Shadow because of his thinness, died of asthma in 1942 when Knotts was still a teenager. Could you imagine Don as a chicken plucker? He did that as one of his earliest jobs because he was told that he would never become an actor. He never retired from acting. He actually received a Bachelor's degree in Education from West Virginia University in Morgantown, West Virginia in 1948.



     I enjoy watching him in The Andy Griffith Show. My favorite personal episode is in season 2 where Barney joins the choir. He can't sing a lick. It is said that Don Knotts sang off key on purpose, you can actually hear him sing on key in the third episode where he sings with the guest star, James Best, and his guitar. Barney was recognized as the Good Ol' 14A. LOL. Please watch this episode, it is truly my favorite. I love me some Don Knotts!

Tuesday, May 24, 2016

The Best Years of Our Lives

The Best Years of Our Lives
Released Date: June 17, 1947
Director: William Wyler
Actors: Fredric March, Dana Andrews, Myrna Loy, Teresa Wright, Virginia Mayo, Cathy O'Donnell, Hoagy Carmichael, and Harold Russell




     I don't usually cry during movies, but this one got me. It is so inspiring. The director wanted a real war hero in this movie and he got Harold Russell. Mr. Russell lost both hands during WWII. He was truly amazing. He won Best Actor in a Supporting Role in 1947 and well deserved it. He also won a special award that same year for his bravery. It was called the Honorary Award, he won it for bringing hope and courage to his fellow veterans through his appearance in The Best Years of Our Lives. This movie actually won 8 Oscars. Best Picture, Best Actor (Fredric March), Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Harold Russell), Best Director (William Wyler), and more. This movie is truly great. I would recommend it to anyone, and especially to Americans. This movie also holds great actors. Myrna Loy is one of my personal favorites. She was a great actress. And Teresa Wright, who is very underrated. But she was in some of the best movies I have ever seen. Such as; The Little Foxes, Mrs. Miniver, The Pride of the Yankees, Shadow of a Doubt and this one. These were in her first six movies she ever made. What are the chances of being in five hits in your first six movies? She was also in a movie with Gary Cooper called Casanova Brown which was the movie she made before The Best Years of Our Lives. I hope everyone watches this, I highly recommend it.



     Al Stephenson (Fredric March), Fred Derry (Dana Andrews), and Homer Parrish (Harold Russell) are returning home after serving in WWII. Al is returning home to his wife, Milly (Myrna Loy) and two children, Peggy (Teresa Wright) and Rob (Michael Hall). Fred is returning to his wife Marie (Virginia Mayo). And Homer is returning to his girlfriend, Wilma Cameron (Cathy O'Donnell). The three men share a private plane ride home. And become great friends in that short period of time. Having the same town they lived in common. They even share a taxi home. Dropping off Homer first, who has a hard time hugging Wilma. Then Al, who gets a warm welcome from his wife and two children. And Fred, who goes home to his mother and father, who are happy to have him back but are scared to tell him about his wife who left the nest. The three men meet up later at a bar that Homer's uncle (Hoagy Carmichael) owns. Can Al return back to normal life? Can Fred rekindle his relationship with Marie? And will Homer marry his high school sweetheart? Find out by watching. You can catch it on TCM, or buy the DVD, which is well worth it in my opinion.

 

Friday, April 24, 2015

Eddie Albert

Sorry I haven't been on in so long. I was working really hard at work and then taking time for myself, as we all need. No need to have a mental break down, am I right? Anyways my friend Desiree always expresses how much she loves this cute man. He saved a lot of men while being under attacked and he is truly a hero. I'm going to start making some changes. I want to start helping more and making things appreciated by God, my friends and family. I hope his courage will bring you courage too. :)

 

Friday, January 16, 2015

Vivian Vance

Vivian Vance
Born: Vivian Roberta Jones on July 26, 1909
Died: August 17, 1979 (70 years old)

We all love Lucy. Naturally, talented and hilarious, and humble. What is not to love about Lucy? We also love the neighbors, Fred and Ethel Mertz. Who have lighted up our lives for many years and who happen to be America's favorite neighbors. What surprises the world, is that America's favorite team, was the teams least favorite people. Meaning? Vivian Vance and William Frawley hated each other. I always wondered, is "Hate" too strong a word for the way they felt about each other? The fact remain, that William Frawley was okay with making another series, a spin-off and it would have been their own show. The Mertzs show. But Vivian Vance said no and  that was that. Although both went their own ways, they will always be remembered as the Mertzs. 



Vivian Vance became a star through her home town. Appearing in plays, she was a great singer, but an even more fantastic actress. She appeared onstage in Albuquerque, New Mexico. While William Frawley was a stage man too, the both never crossed paths. But then again, she was onstage as a singer and actress, he was in vaudeville. She was married a few times, and also suffered from depression. A disease most common in America. But she persevered and became a well known TV actress. She was married to a man most people would recognize at a drop off a hat. His name was Philip Ober. You might know him from such classics as From Here To Eternity and also a little scene from Hitchcock's classic, North by Northwest. The scene in which Cary Grant is in the United Nations Building, and the man he is talking to all of a sudden has a knife thrown into his back? You know that scene... That's Philip Ober. In From Here To Eternity, he is Burt Lancaster's boss. 



But though he was someone what appeared in such classics, he was awfully jealous when Vivian Vance became a huge success in I Love Lucy. He began beating her, and would often stalk her. I know that sounds so odd, a husband stalking his wife. But he would literally sit in the audience and laugh loudly while Vivian was working. Some say he loved the sound of his own voice. And would watch the episodes and knew when he was laughing. Though, nobody else knew either. Lucille Ball was aware of his abuse and one day told Vivian Vance "if you don't divorce that man, I will." She eventually did, and was better for it. I can't imagine anyone hating Vivian Vance, or William Frawley for that matter. But I guess that happens.

She died of cancer. Breast and bone cancer. While sick, even though at the beginning of I Love Lucy, she did not love Lucy at first and even said "if this show takes off, I'll learn to love that bitch." But while she was sick, Lucille Ball went to visit Vivian in  her home. They laughed and talked and reminisce on old times. That was a great day for both women. And a deserved time.

I hope you enjoyed reading about Vivian Vance. I enjoyed writing it. I enjoy her very much and enjoy her comedic side.