TCM Schedule for Thursday, February 18, 2020 -- What's On Tonight: Kiss Connection

[Staph]

In the daylight hours, TCM has a birthday salute to Adolph Menjou, born on February 18, 1890, in Pittsburgh, PA. From IMDB:

The words "suave" and "debonair" became synonymous with the name Adolphe Menjou in Hollywood, both on- and off-camera. The epitome of knavish, continental charm and sartorial opulence, Menjou, complete with trademark waxy black mustache, evolved into one of Hollywood's most distinguished of artists and fashion plates, a tailor-made scene-stealer, if you will. What is often forgotten is that he was primed as a matinée idol back in the silent-film days. With hooded, slightly owlish eyes, a prominent nose and prematurely receding hairline, he was hardly competition for Rudolph Valentino, but he did possess the requisite demeanor to confidently pull off a roguish and magnetic man-about-town. Fluent in six languages, Menjou was nearly unrecognizable without some type of formal wear, and he went on to earn distinction as the nation's "best dressed man" nine times.

Then in prime time, it's the third week of a new February celebration call the Kiss Connection. Tell us more, Roger!

Kissing has provided a touch of titillation to the movies since the early days of the cinema. One of the first movies ever shown commercially to the public was The Kiss, an 1896 snippet of film showing John Rice bussing May Irwin in a now-quaint scene from the stage musical The Widow Jones. Since then, almost all movie romances have been sealed with kisses. So, we thought it might be fun to play a kind of “One Degree of Separation” game in which we connect a number of stars by smooching partners they have in common. Hence The Kiss Connection, in which we trace a trail of osculation in movies of the 1930s-60s that begins and ends with Irene Dunne.

Shown below are the star kissers and the films that link them, along with anecdotes about specific scenes.

February 18: In The Tender Trap (1955) Sinatra kisses Debbie Reynolds, who in Singin’ in the Rain (1952) kisses Gene Kelly, who in Brigadoon (1954) kisses Cyd Charisse, who in The Band Wagon (1953) kisses Fred Astaire, who in Carefree (1938) kisses Ginger Rogers, who in The Primrose Path (1940) kisses Joel McCrea.

Fred Astaire was famously averse to “mushy love scenes” with his leading ladies. He was said to have preferred that any ardor between him and Ginger Rogers, his celebrated partner in 10 movie musicals, be expressed through their dancing. At best, they exchanged quick pecks onscreen.

But, perhaps to quell rumors that he didn’t like Rogers or that his wife didn’t want him to do kissing scenes, Astaire made an issue of giving Rogers a major smooch in Carefree. Playing a psychiatrist and his patient (!), the famous pair teases the idea of a passionate embrace throughout the film, including one smooch that takes place behind a door.

Astaire finally delivers the goods at the end of the number “I Used to Be Color Blind.” In this dream sequence, with Rogers trailing yards of chiffon, they share a graceful dance photographed partly in slow motion. After Astaire serenades Rogers, he finally plants a lingering kiss that goes on for several seconds. Astaire said later he felt it made up “for all the kisses I didn’t give Ginger over the years.”

. . .

Enjoy!


6:00 AM -- The Milky Way (1936)
1h 28m | Comedy | TV-G
A mild-mannered milkman stumbles onto a career in the boxing ring.
Director: Leo Mccarey
Cast: Harold Lloyd, Adolphe Menjou, Verree Teasdale

When producer Samuel Goldwyn bought the rights to the property in the mid-'40s for his remake, The Kid from Brooklyn (1946) (with Danny Kaye in the lead role), he also bought the original negative and almost all existing prints, and destroyed them. After that time the copyright was not renewed, and the title apparently fell into public domain, and, as a result, numerous VHS and DVD dealers, not having access to original material, included it in their inventories, offering vastly inferior copies. Harold Lloyd, however, had preserved his own original nitrate release print, which became the source for the new digital video transfer used by TCM and subsequent DVD releases.


7:45 AM -- New Moon (1930)
1h 8m | Romance, Drama, Musical, Adaptation | TV-G
A Russian lieutenant falls in love with a beautiful princess.
Director: Jack Conway
Cast: Lawrence Tibbett, Grace Moore, Adolphe Menjou

When first sold to television in 1957, this film was retitled Parisian Belle in order to avoid confusion with New Moon (1940), which was also in the same package of over 700 MGM titles. However, whereas Parisian Belle would have been an appropriate title for the 1940 version, which followed more closely the original story, it was a misnomer for this 1930 version whose locale had been moved to Russia, and whose heroine, the Parisian Belle of the stage play and 1940 version, had now become a Russian princess. But it was so seldom broadcast at that time that nobody seemed to notice or care. Its first, and perhaps only telecast in New York City occurred on the Late, Late Show Monday 22 September 1958 on WCBS (Channel 2); in San Francisco it first aired Tuesday 1 March 1960 on KGO (Channel 7). Since that time, its original title has been restored, and its safely housed in the Turner Classic Film Library, from which it is occasionally aired on Turner Classic Movies.


9:15 AM -- Morning Glory (1933)
1h 14m | Drama, Silent | TV-G
A stage struck girl travels to New York determined to make it on Broadway.
Director: Lowell Sherman
Cast: Katharine Hepburn, Douglas Fairbanks, Adolphe Menjou

Winner of an Oscar for Best Actress in a Leading Role -- Katharine Hepburn (Katharine Hepburn was not present at the awards ceremony.)

The four portraits that Eva sees in the theatre are of Maude Adams, Ethel Barrymore, Sarah Bernhardt and John Drew. Bernhardt is well-known in her own right even now. The portrait of John Drew is likely to be of John Drew Jr. (1853-1927) rather than John Drew Sr. (1827-1862) (an American actor of the early 1800s). John Drew Jr. was a renowned American actor of the late 1800s, the leading matinée idol of his time. Maude Adams (1872-1953) was one of the most popular American actresses of the 1890s and early 1900s, achieving great fame in J.M. Barrie's plays. Drew Jr. and Adams worked together for five years from 1892, achieving great success and making Adams a star. Ethel Barrymore (1879-1959), with brothers Lionel Barrymore and John Barrymore, was one of the Barrymore siblings who achieved greatness on the American stage and in films. The Barrymore siblings were the niece and nephews of John Drew Jr.


10:45 AM -- That's Right--You're Wrong (1940)
1h 33m | Comedy | TV-G
A band leader has to overcome a film studio head's hatred to make it on the big screen.
Director: David Butler
Cast: Kay Kyser, Adolphe Menjou, May Robson

In the movie, Kay Kyser mentions having come from Rocky Mount, North Carolina. That was his real home town, and also the birthplace of modern jazz musician Thelonious Monk.


12:30 PM -- The Great Lover (1931)
1h 11m | Romance | TV-G
A womanizing opera star falls in love with his innocent young protegee.
Director: Harry Beaumont
Cast: Adolphe Menjou, Irene Dunne, Ernest Torrence

The play opened on Broadway in New York City, New York, USA on 10 November 1915 and closed in June 1916 after 245 performances. The opening night cast included playwright Leo Ditrichstein, Cora Witherspoon and William Ricciardi, who was also in the 1932 Broadway revival.


1:45 PM -- Friends and Lovers (1931)
1h 16m | Drama | TV-G
A society woman and her husband blackmail the men who flirt with her.
Director: Victor Schertzinger
Cast: Adolphe Menjou, Lily Damita, Laurence Olivier

Nichols (Sir Laurence Olivier) makes a comment to Roberts (Adolphe Menjou) along the lines of "The Old Guard dies, but never surrenders its shower". This is a reference to the famous quote by one of Napoleon's Generals, popularly attributed to General Vicomte de Cambronne, on June 18, 1815, to the Duke of Wellington's demand for a French surrender at Waterloo. Cambronne said afterwards that his reply was, "Merde," (sh*t). For years afterwards, the word "merde" was referred to by the French as "le mot de Cambronne" (Cambronne's word).


3:00 PM -- Father Takes a Wife (1941)
1h 19m | Comedy | TV-G
A famous actress has to win over her ready-made family when she weds a shipping magnate.
Director: Jack Hively
Cast: Adolphe Menjou, Gloria Swanson, John Howard

First screen appearance for Gloria Swanson in seven years since Music in the Air (1934). It would be another nine years until her next feature film - Sunset Blvd. (1950).


4:30 PM -- Stage Door (1937)
1h 23m | Drama | TV-G
Women at a theatrical boarding house try to make their big break happen.
Director: Gregory Lacava
Cast: Katharine Hepburn, Ginger Rogers, Adolphe Menjou

Nominee for Oscars for Best Actress in a Supporting Role -- Andrea Leeds, Best Director -- Gregory La Cava, Best Writing, Screenplay -- Morrie Ryskind and Anthony Veiller, and Best Picture

The photograph that Anthony Powell (Adolphe Menjou) presents as his pretend wife is actually a photograph of actor Menjou's wife in real life - actress Verree Tealsdale.


6:15 PM -- The Front Page (1931)
1h 41m | Comedy | TV-G
A crusading newspaper editor tricks his retiring star reporter into covering one last case.
Director: Lewis Milestone
Cast: Adolph Menjou, Pat O'brien, Mary Brian

Nominee for Oscars for Best Actor in a Leading Role -- Adolphe Menjou, Best Director -- Lewis Milestone, and Best Picture

The last line of the stage play had to be partly obliterated in the film version by the sound of a typewriter being accidentally struck because the censors --even of that day--wouldn't allow the phrase "son-of-a-bitch" to be used in a movie.



WHAT'S ON TONIGHT: PRIMETIME THEME -- KISS CONNECTION



8:00 PM -- The Tender Trap (1955)
1h 51m | Comedy | TV-PG
A swinging bachelor finds love when he meets a girl immune to his line.
Director: Charles Walters
Cast: Frank Sinatra, Debbie Reynolds, David Wayne

Nominee for an Oscar for Best Music, Original Song -- Jimmy Van Heusen (music) and Sammy Cahn (lyrics) for the song &quot Love Is) The Tender Trap"

Debbie Reynolds and Frank Sinatra became good friends and during production he took her to lunch and said, "Sweetie, don't get married. Don't marry a singer. We're nice guys but we're not good husbands." Reynolds was engaged to Eddie Fisher at the time, who ultimately left her for Elizabeth Taylor.

Sinatra was kissed by Grace Kelly in High Society (1956), and here he kisses Debbie Reynolds ...


10:00 PM -- Singin' in the Rain (1952)
1h 43m | Musical | TV-G
A silent-screen swashbuckler finds love while trying to adjust to the coming of sound.
Director: Gene Kelly
Cast: Gene Kelly, Donald O'connor, Debbie Reynolds

Nominee for Oscars for Best Actress in a Supporting Role -- Jean Hagen, and Best Music, Scoring of a Musical Picture -- Lennie Hayton

Just before Donald O'Connor sings "Make 'Em Laugh", he and Gene Kelly are seen walking and talking together as they pass by the shoulder-to-shoulder silent film sets of several productions being shot at the same time. As we will see, this style of filmmaking will soon pass into history as sound requires separate stages. One of the movies features a college football game. The red-and-white football uniform worn by one actor appears to have been re-used from MGM's college musical Good News (1947), also set in the 1920s.

Debbie Reynolds kisses Gene Kelly ...


12:00 AM -- Brigadoon (1954)
1h 48m | Musical | TV-G
Two New Yorkers, on a hunting trip to Scotland, stumble upon the legendary and magical village.
Director: Vincente Minnelli
Cast: Gene Kelly, Van Johnson, Cyd Charisse

Nominee for Oscars for Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Color -- Cedric Gibbons, E. Preston Ames, Edwin B. Willis and F. Keogh Gleason, Best Costume Design, Color -- Irene Sharaff, and Best Sound, Recording -- Wesley C. Miller (M-G-M)

Actor Gene Kelly and director Vincente Minnelli both wanted to film Brigadoon (1954) on location in Scotland but, in a cost-saving move, the studio insisted that it be shot entirely within the studio's confines. Minnelli later admitted that this decision drained any enthusiasm he had for the project which led to a cursory, paint-by-numbers transcription of the Broadway show. Indeed, when it was released, critics noted the staged 'studio feel' of the movie. The same cost-cutting measures befell Stanley Donen's Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954) that same year, also forced to shoot indoors. But Donen believed so much in his project that he managed to overcome the obstacle, which Minnelli did not, despite having had double the budget of Donen's film.

Gene Kelly kisses Cyd Charrisse ...


2:00 AM -- The Band Wagon (1953)
1h 52m | Musical | TV-G
A Broadway artiste turns a faded film star's comeback vehicle into an artsy flop.
Director: Vincente Minnelli
Cast: Fred Astaire, Cyd Charisse, Oscar Levant

Nominee for Oscars for Best Writing, Story and Screenplay -- Betty Comden and Adolph Green, Best Costume Design, Color -- Mary Ann Nyberg, and Best Music, Scoring of a Musical Picture -- Adolph Deutsch

At the beginning of the movie, the auctioneer in an effort to sell Tony Hunter's top hat and cane, declares it be the same hat and cane Hunter had used in a movie called 'Swinging Down to Panama'. This is an obvious in-joke reference to Fred Astaire's real 1933 movie 'Flying Down to Rio', which had been his first with Ginger Rogers.

Cyd Charisse kisses Fred Astaire ...


4:00 AM -- Carefree (1938)
1h 20m | Comedy | TV-G
A psychiatrist falls in love with the woman he's supposed to be nudging into marriage with someone else.
Director: Mark Sandrich
Cast: Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Ralph Bellamy

Nominee for Oscars for Best Art Direction -- Van Nest Polglase, Best Music, Original Song -- Irving Berlin for the song "Change Partners and Dance with Me", and Best Music, Scoring -- Victor Baravalle

Astaire's golfing sequences were filmed April 14th and 15th, the month before principle photography began, at an improvised range at the RKO Ranch. He performed just to a piano - the orchestral score was added in post-production.

Fred Astaire kisses Ginger Rogers ...