My Favorite Actors

Hello Everyone!

     These are my nine favorite classic Hollywood men (in no particular order) and a favorite role. I've always wanted to compile a list of favorite actors, and (as you can see) I've finally done it! I also want to do a list of favorite actresses, but I am having a bit more trouble with that.  As far as the pictures go, I suddenly had a great idea to put a picture of Stany with each of my favorite actors, because that's how I roll....haha. Anyway, here they are:

Van Heflin

 

 Favorite Role: Mark Dwyer in "East Side, West Side" (1949)

Ray Milland

 

Favorite Role: Jonathon Trumbo in "California" (1947)

Gary Cooper

 

 Favorite Role: Longfellow Deeds in "Mr. Deeds Goes to Town" (1936)

 Charles Coburn

 

 Favorite Role: Colonel Harrington in "The Lady Eve" (1941)

Robert Taylor

 

Favorite Role: Terry Trindale in "Her Cardboard Lover" (1942)

Fred Astaire

 

Favorite Role: Jerry Travers in "Top Hat" (1935)

James Stewart

 

Favorite Role: Jefferson Smith in "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" (1939)

 Henry Fonda

 

Favorite Role: Charles Pike in "The Lady Eve" (1941)

Errol Flynn

Favorite Role: Mark Caldwell in "Cry Wolf" (1947)

Until Later On~

Photographs: Barbara Stanwyck

Hello you!

 

Tell me that dress isn't gorgeous.

 

One of my favorite pictures.

 

And a close-up. <3

Until Later On~

Wife Vs. Secretary (1936)

Hello There,

 

     I watched this one last night. It was pretty good. I must say, I had very high hopes for it at the beginning, it was so cute and witty and fun to watch; but then it sort of flopped and got depressing.

     As far as the cast goes, no one in the 30's could've asked for more: the king of Hollywood, Clark Gable; the queen of Hollywood, Myrna Loy; the original blonde bombshell, Jean Harlow; and my dear, Jimmy Stewart (still in his "character-roles" phase). I wouldn't put any of them on my top-favorites list (with the exception of Jimmy Stewart who is my all-time favorite male actor), but I really liked them all in this: 

     My deep respect for Clark Gable as an undeniably great actor was definitely increased by this movie, as he was fantastic in it. Also fantastic were his leading ladies namely, Jean Harlow and Myrna Loy. Although under most circumstances I would choose Myrna over Jean, I really liked Jean better in this. For a long time I never had anything really good to say on the subject of Jean Harlow. I've grown to like her though, and despite what I thought for so long, I don't think they only put her on screen because people liked to look at her (although that may have been part of it). She's actually a decent actress, and has got one of the most interesting voices. Myrna Loy was great as well (and what else did we expect from the queen of Hollywood?), her character got all of my sympathy. 

     Thanks to this movie I've finally figured out why Clark Gable and Myrna Loy were the kind and queen of Hollywood in the 30's - they're the cutest. couple. ever. Maybe that's a bit extreme, but they're getting right up there - right up there with Fred and Ginger, and Stanwyck and Fonda. Clark Gable and Jean Harlow are cute too, but not like Clark and Myrna. 

     The story is very simple. Clark Gable plays Van Stanhope a magazine publisher. Myrna Loy is his wife, Linda, and Jean Harlow is his secretary, Helen "Whitey" Wilson. Van and Whitey have a very close, but solely professional, relationship, and he depends on her for practically everything. Linda, despite many of her friends' and her mother-in-law's suggestions that she ought to keep her eyes on her husband, refuses to even entertain the idea that Van might not be being faithful to her. Later, certain misunderstandings come up and Linda starts to get suspicious. Then, Van and Whitey go on a business trip; Van gets busy and forgets to call, and when Linda calls him at two o'clock in the morning Whitey answers. So how do you think that looks?! Van and Whitey haven't done anything wrong, but Linda can't believe that and she decides to leave Van. Then Whitey, who happens to be in love with Van now, goes to see Linda to tell her that she shouldn't leave Van because no one else could make him really happy. Linda refuses to go back to him and Whitey comments "You're a fool, for which I'm grateful".  Then Linda has a change of heart...

   

     Then Linda has a change of heart... and I sit there saying "what on earth was that?". It's not that the ending was so terribly awful - both of the girls got their guys back; Myrna her Clark, and Jean her Jimmy - it's just that it was so sudden. Suddenly Clark was forgiven for something he never did in the first place. Suddenly Jean wasn't in love with him anymore. Suddenly Jean was in love with Jimmy. And there was Jimmy giving out his great advice as per usual with a definite "I've found this out, don't look for trouble where there isn't any, because if you don't find it you'll make it. Just believe in someone." A nice philosophical ending to the whole thing. ;) 

     All things considered I enjoyed it, but it wasn't what I expected. It was one part comedy, one part romance, and one part melodrama. Yet, at the same time is wasn't really anything in particular. I think they tried to squish two plots together and it came on rather mixed up (like a movie would be had they really taken two plots and smashed them into an hour and a half). I think they could've stuck with the secretary-falls-for-boss romantic comedy side (like His Girl Friday set in a magazine publisher's office), or just the tragic romantic drama side (you know what I'm talking about, yes? Sort of like East Side, West Side). I think that would've been better, but que sera sera (that's "what will be will be"). 

Best Movie Quote:

Whitey's Mother: All you have to do to get a divorce in this family is just say the word.

Whitey's Father: I know for the last ten years I've been trying to find that word... ;)

 

And there they are! Aren't they cute? 

Until Later On~    

P.S. I think this was a lot better than the reviews I've written lately. Anyone care to help me out by saying whether they agree or not? Thanks. :)

Awesome People for the Day: Rita Hayworth

Hello People!

     I seem to have found myself in a rut lately (like the city in The Mad Miss Manton if you know what I mean). I decided that, since I don't have a movie to review yet, I would do another Awesome People post because you all seem to enjoy these. I've stumbled upon some cute pictures of Miss Rita lately, so I decided to make Hayworth today's awesome person:

 

Rita and a huge spark-plug... Anyone care to question her awesomeness now? 

 

I've sadly never finished watching "Gilda" - I want to, but I've never gotten around to it. The only full Hayworth movie I've seen is "You'll Never Get Rich", but that was quite the movie!

 

Love this one.

 

Fixing her hair? Yes. Awesome.

 

She looks so little!

 

I don't know why I like this picture so much...

 

Rita on a bike! With someone I don't know! (although I think it kind of looks like whats-his-name from "Gilda").

    

 

And now she's decking the halls. Sure, it's not even Halloween yet, but I like this picture! And I just finished putting all my old Christmas music on my iPod so I thought it called for a celebration!

Until Later On~

Update:

Hello Everyone,

      I just wanted to say that, for anyone who was wondering, I put the film references for my "You Know You're Obsessed with Barbara Stanwyck When" list at the very bottom of that post. 
     That's pretty much all I had to say, sadly, but I DID find this picture of one of the cutest babies ever:

      Who turned out to be one of the most beautiful ladies ever: 

 

Miss Lovely Vivien Leigh. Ain't she gorgeous?

  

 Until Later On~

The Shopworn Angel (1938)

Hello Folks! 

     At the request of one of my most faithful commenters I am reviewing this, "The Shopworn Angel" (1938). I'm really just too happy to do it - especially as it's nice to know someone values my opinion on movies enough to request one (the fact that I love this movie helps too). 

 

"What's the use of worrying? It never was worth-while! So...

Pack up your troubles in your old kit bag; and smile, smile, smile!"

     This is a beautiful movie, in every way. If you were to disregard the fact it stars my all-time favorite actor, Jimmy Stewart; forget that Margaret Sullavan is another favorite of mine; and completely ignore the touching story - it would still be gorgeous. It's just beautiful to look at! The lighting and every movement - all of the things that I think are done by the director are beautiful - so, a round of applause to H. C. Potter. 

       

     To the beauty aforementioned, you add Margaret Sullavan: 

      

     Beautiful girl, just absolutely beautiful; and a good actress too! ...She had me in tears at the end. 

Her character, Daisy Heath, isn't what I consider a typical Sullavan character, but she's fantastic none-the-less. And you end up liking her because she's not as hard-boiled as she thinks she is.

     Then you add my love, Jimmy Stewart: 

 

     Best. Actor. Ever. I consider this movie as part of the beginning of his career as a leading man, and he's already great. No one - I repeat, no one! - plays a idealistic hick like Jimmy Stewart.  Although Jimmy's character is far less sophisticated than Margaret Sullavan's who do you think does learns all of this movie's lessons?

     When you put the two together, Maggie Sullavan and Jimmy Stewart are one of my favorite couples. "Chemistry" is the word isn't it? Well, whatever the word is, they've got it. 

     

     Hattie McDaniel is also in this, which makes any movie better. Hattie is my ALL-TIME favorite character actress - she's as good as they get. Here she plays Margaret Sullavan's maid,  Martha. :)  

*** 

     

      It's 1917.  America has just entered WWI and now hundreds of soldiers are coming into New York waiting to go overseas. 

One of those soldiers is Bill Pettigrew (Jimmy Stewart) who catches a ride with an actress named Daisy Heath (Margaret Sullavan) after she almost hits him with her car. After that incident Bill tells his army pals that she's his girlfriend. When his incredulous buddies meet Daisy, she goes along with the farce and offers to let Bill keep on pretending she's his girl. 

Despite Daisy's fiancee's advice and the fact that Daisy doesn't love Bill like he ends up loving her, she continues to lead him on, and he just falls more in love with her. 

Then it comes time for Bill to head overseas, and he goes AWOL to say goodbye to Daisy. They spend the rest of Bill's last day together, then Bill asks Daisy to marry him (how do you think her jealous fiancee feels about that?!). Daisy does realize that shes not the angel that Bill thinks she is, but she marries him anyway knowing that it will allow him to be happy in what may end up being his last days. So, Bill goes to France and Daisy remains his shining star until the end of the movie, by which point no one has gone without being changed...

Best movie quotes:


Daisy [after learning that sugar is being rationed]: What are they doing? Throwing sugar cubes at eachother?!

It's really a very simple story, and there's really only one word to describe the movie: beautiful.

Until Later On~

Photographs: Barbara Stanwyck Makes the Best Faces Ever! Part 1

Hello There! 

     Look! I'm talking about Babs again! I have considered putting a "Beware of Massive Amounts of Barbara-Stanwyck-Related Blogging" button on this blog somewhere, because I realize some people don't like Stany as much as I do.... I've also considered just talking less about Barbara Stanwyck in general. Maybe that's a good idea? Any thoughts? 

Well, until I hear back from someone, the Barbara Stanwyck stuff will keep going up (although I am going to try with all my might to think of interesting things to say about the rest of classic Hollywood...I have some ideas). 

     Tonight's post is something I've been thinking about doing for a while - just a few pictures of Barbara Stanwyck making fantastic faces. And here we go:

 

 

This is one of my favorites...

 

 

I also like this GIF of Stany

Until Later On~

I've a Few Things To Say...

Hello Everyone! 

     First of all, I got second in the FilmClassics Season 3 Review Contest! My new "trophy" is sitting in my sidebar now! Yippee! Have I ever told you I love these contests? Well, I do! :)
     I had tons of fun "battling" it out my two fellow teen-age bloggers this season. Thanks (as always) to David, who is nice enough to host these contests for me...okay, not for me, but he does host them and I do adore them - Thank you, David! And congratulations to Rianna @ Frankly, My Dear for her fantastic article which earned her first place; and Bette @ Bette's Classic Movie Blog who also wrote a fantastic article for the contest!  I'm already looking forward to next season which, sadly, doesn't start until November.  I'm keeping my chin up though, maybe I'll get first place next time! 

     Secondly, I started a new blog! Ever since I was accepted into the LAMB I've felt terribly guilty about posting anything not completely related to Classic Film. So, to calm my conscience, and allow myself to talk about whatever the heck I want at the same time I created "Lovely Nonsensities". 
     Since my movie blog has a music-related title I decided that my more musical blog should have a classic-film-related name (how's that for reasoning?). My friend and I decided upon "Lovely Nonsensities" which is from a quote in The Lady Eve. Please take a look at it! Of course, at the moment there's not much there, but soon there should be a mass of music and quotes and, well, other lovely nonsensities... ;)


     I'm also going to be in a few blogathons soon (click the photos to go to the blogathon page):

      I'm positive this is going to be buckets of fun. I'm super excited. 

 

Hopefully I'll have seen some more Bogie film by the time this comes around. 

It should be interesting no matter what.

 

The Great Citizen Kane Debate! And there are prizes! Of course, I have to watch the movie first, but that's happening tonight. Then I'll watch it a few more times and hopefully form an honest opinion to debate with.

     Let's see... was there anything else?...  I don't think so. Therefore, I shall leave you with a picture of dear Miss Crawford:

 

And a big dog! How fun is that? 

By the way, is anyone else ridiculously annoyed that her name is only associated with some maniac mother from Christina Crawford's imagination? Yeah...not cool.

 Until Later On~

You Know You're Obsessed with Barbara Stanwyck When...

Good Evening Folks, 

      In August Rianna @ Frankly, My Dear  wrote a post for her blog called "You Know You're Obsessed with "I Love Lucy" when...". That post is what inspired this, my take on one of those lists, Barbara Stanwyck version (of course). Hopefully you'll like it...and understand the examples. Anyway, you know you're obsessed with Barbara Stanwyck (and her movies) when/if:  

• You've seen 65 of her movies (I'm starting easy...)
• You read "May 14, 1948" in your history book and think "Hey! That would've been Barbara Stanwyck and Robert Taylor's 9th wedding anniversary!"
• You learned how to flip flop the flop-flips from Elizabeth Lane
• You know what a flop-flip is...
• You know the difference between a dress and a frock
• You know what "Yum Yum" means
• The song "Home on the Range" makes you think of Henry Fonda
• You've always wanted a pair of Phyllis Dietrichson's sunglasses (yup...)
• You say "Joe-Nathan" instead of "Jonathon"
• You think of Robert Taylor when you snap
• Violins and boxing are very closely associated in your mind
• Apple blossoms make you smile
• You see stars whenever you look at the ceiling
• You know the difference between beer and ale
• You say "Connect-i-cut" instead of "Connecticut"
• I say "occupation" you "bubble dancer"
• Watching "The Lady Eve" makes you cry
• You still wonder who Henry ill was
• Your favorite 3-letter word is "nix"
• Lying about being engaged is worse than lying about being married
• Standing in the wind makes you think of "The Lady Eve"
• You're always slightly suspicious of insurance salesman
• You've realized that being labeled "mad" isn't really a bad thing
• You think cabbages are beautiful 

     And last but not least, you know you're obsessed with Barbara Stanwyck if you understood any of those!... 

      I hope you enjoyed my list! And, if anyone wants explanations, leave a comment! I'm more than happy to tell you what movie they're from. :) Before I go, here's a picture I adore:

 

Poor, sick Henry Fonda and his doctor, Barbara Stanwyck, in a publicity shot from "You Belong to Me" (1941) which is an absolutely hilarious movie. 

Update (10/25/11): Film References

   3, 4, 20 Christmas in Connecticut (1945)

   5, 13 Ladies of Leisure (1930)

   6, 18 Ball of Fire (1941)

   7, 23 The Mad Miss Manton (1938)

   8, 22 Double Indemnity (1944)

   9 Breakfast for Two (1937)

   10 His Brother's Wife (1936)

   11 Golden Boy (1939)

   12 The Gay Sisters (1942)

   14, 15 The Lady Eve (1941)

   16 Remember the Night (1940)

   19 Shopworn (1932)

   24 So Big! (1932)

  

Until Later On~

It's Vintage Slang, Dear

Hello All! 

     Yesterday my friend Rianna @ Frankly My Dear (which, frankly, my dear, is an amazing blog) wrote a post about "Vintage Vocabulary". She highlighted many of the phrases and words that she repeatedly noticed coming from the mouths of some of our favorite film stars; things such as "dame", "heel",  etcetera. She also noted the word "darling" which is obviously contagious, because not only does she use it along with her friends, but so do my friends and I. 
     After reading her post, I decided that I would add some of the slang I've picked up here and there to the list. Before I start I want to mention "Ball of Fire" (1941), which is the movie to look up when considering vintage slang (not to mention it's just a lot of fun to watch Barbara Stanwyck makes suckers out of 8 people at one time, it's one of my favorite movies). Now, on with the list, and I will do my best explaining the expressions:


   Sister/Brother - as in "In a big way, sister", but they're not really your sibling. The term makes for some fun dialogue - for example, "Just a minute, sister!" "If I thought that were true I'd disown my parents" from My Man Godfrey.

   Nothing Doing - or "No way!" 


   What gives out around here? - What's going on around here? etcetera.

   On the level - Being "on the level" would imply being serious/sincere/trustworthy. Not being "on the level" would be being a phony and/or dishonest. I always think of Gary Cooper when I say this. 


   Hot - this word really has quite a few meanings. You can go "It's hot out here in the sun" or "That new kid is hot" (unnecessary use of the word as far as I'm concerned, but I'm trying to be thorough). Then, in classic film, you hear it used: "Is it hot?" as in stolen, or "Not so hot" like "My slang's not so hot" (not so great) or "I'm not doing so hot" (not feeling so well). 


   What's buzzin' cousins? or  What's knittin' kittens? - those are just undeniably fun to say. "What's up, guys?" just doesn't have the same ring.


   Corn - something hick, over-sentimental, or old fashioned . The adjective form of corny is one of my favorite words, but only when used in the right context: it's not corny as in corn out in a field, and it's not the modern form which is synonymous to "cheesy", it's purely for use in description of completely over-sentimental bunk. You can also say corn is "right off the cob", ect.


   Dizzy - nutty, loony, crazy. I like to use this word when referring to the mother of Irene Bullock. It's often said with "dame" like "she's just a dizzy dame".


   Kids - it's like "sister/brother" but more for use in a group (who aren't necessarily young).


   What's the fever? - Okay. I've only heard this once (in Ball of Fire, I'm telling you that movie has a monumental amount of fantastic slang in it) used like we would use "what's the hurry?" or "what's the rush?".


   To give something the brush - would be to ignore it and the like. Such as, "He gave her the brush" or in the case of the source (Ball of Fire) "Foo, I said, who am I to give science the brush?"


   Fried - angry. Heard in The Mad Miss Manton, "Boy, was she fried!".

   Racket - "a dishonest scheme, trick, business, activity, ect." says Dictionary.com. In classic film, the question is sometimes "what's your racket?" and the answer often "bootlegging" or "gambling", sometimes "nursing"...

   Begin the Beguine - or "get started". You could say,  "Let's begin the beguine right now". "Beguine the Beguine" is also a fantastic song sung by The Andrews Sisters and various other awesome people.

   Smackaroo - a dollar.

   Scrow, Scram, Scraw - see also: Get. Out. Of. Here. You can use them all together (and be all Barbara-Stanwyck-y) or use one at a time. 
 

     Now that I've assaulted your minds with my list of vintage slang, I'll "scraw" like Gary Cooper and leave you to consider the few phrases/words I've mentioned. There are a lot more that I could talk about, but for the sake of your sanity I've tried to pick out the best and most recognizable. Don't forget to read Rianna's list too! You can read it here.

  

Barbara Stanwyck in costume as our resident slang expert, Sugarpuss O'Shea. <3

Until Later On~

Dear Jean, It's Your Birthday!

It's Jean Arthur's birthday! 

     Now it's time for me to regret the lack of things I say about her on this blog [insert weeping]...enough of that - it's time to celebrate! 

 

     Jean Arthur was born on this day in 1900 with the name Gladys Georgianna Greene. For quite a while Jean Arthur was my number 1 favorite actress, and even now she holds a special place in my heart and second place on my list of favorites.

     It's very important to me that an actress be able to handle [terrifically] both drama and comedy. Jean can.  She positively sparkles in comedies such as: Easy Living (1937); and when it comes to drama she's wonderful.

 

     Whenever I think of Jean Arthur I imagine a smart working-class girl (with an adorable voice). More often than not I imagine her standing next to Jimmy Stewart who called her, "The finest actress I ever worked with."  Jimmy also said, "No one had her humor, her timing". 

     Sometimes she was a sarcastic newspaper woman, and sometimes a slightly eccentric secretary; but always that everyday girl that someone could relate to. Modest, idealistic, and good-hearted - those were the characters Jean played. She's the kind of girl you always want to win.

     But, despite her obvious talent and ability to win our hearts with one word, Jean is sadly underrated now. Even her biography has the title "The Actress Nobody Knew". I'll never understand why she isn't more popular now, for she deserves all the attention any other actresses get. 

     Adorable and charming. She was just Jean, and I love her for it.

 

LOVE this picture.

 

Happy Birthday Jean!

Until Later On~     

The Man with a Cloak (1951)

Hello All,

   
     This was Stanwyck #64!! No, I'm not obsessed with Barbara Stanwyck! Why would you think that? Silly... 
     
     I started watching this movie with absolutely no idea of what it was about. For all I knew, Barbara Stanwyck could've been an opera singer who fell in love with Joseph Cotten who happened to be an Italian cowboy that was married to Leslie Caron; but that isn't what happened, thank goodness. The real movie was much more exciting and quite a good deal less ridiculous. It was actually very intriguing - a good deal of suspense thrown in among the other worth-while what-not and wherefore. 

     Barbara Stanwyck, part of the worth-while what-not, was as suberb and beautiful, as always. Her acting was fantastic, but her character here was just about as selfish and heartless as anyone could ask for. It seems to me that after her perfection in "Double Indemnity" she got cast as, as many cynical femme fatale types as Hollywood could pound out. What? Her with her trickery and her wicked charms and that entrancing use of words and expressions. She's a perfect choice. Nevertheless, I prefer my Stanwyck with a heart of gold rather than this where, like most femme fatales, she's icy to the core. Did I mention she sings in this? Of course, it's not her (because you know when it is), but it's entertaining.
     Fine shows from the rest of the cast, most of whom were all new to me. I have seen Joseph Cotten in one other movie, and Louis Calhern in four other movies (although I don't remember seeing him in any of them). Leslie Caron was interesting to see for the first time. That very sweet-voiced French girl, the almost-victim of some sincerely sinister sinners (sorry, I had to stick with the s-i-n sounds). 

     The movie is set in 1848 in New York, at which time Miss Madeline Minot (Leslie Caron) arrives from France looking for her boyfriend's rich grandfather, Charles Theverner (Louis Calhern). She doesn't think she's got the right address though, so she goes to find someone to help her. She enters a bar and upon doing so meets Mr. Dupin (Joseph Cotten) who assures her that she's got the right address. She then wanders over to the grandfather's home and meets him and his servants: housekeeper, Lorna Bounty (Barbara Stanwyck), and butler, Martin. It's revealed to the viewer very quickly that Lorna and Martin are only there at the house waiting for the old man to die so they can get his money; but it takes Madeline a bit longer to catch on. When she finally does catch on she asks Mr. Dupin for help, which he readily gives. One night, a bit later, Mr. Theverner writes a brand new will, which everyone suspects is in favor of Madeline and Mr. Theverner's grandson. He is unable to tell anyone exactly where the will is hidden before he dies, but he does pass along a few hints to Mr. Dupin. As the movie nears it's close Mr. Dupin uses the clues to find the new will, which does indeed bequeath an entire fortune to Madeline's boyfriend (and only leaves the large house to Martin and Lorna on the condition they stick around). Then Mr. Dupin leaves mysteriously, leaving only an IOU with a bartender, to whom he owed quite a bit of money...
  

     Morally: It was made during the reign of the production code, which in most circumstances makes a movie completely watchable by anyone. In this case the PC leaves only 2 kisses for us to get technical about. 

     All things considered, it's highly worth the small amount of time you spend watching it, and you're definitely not going to get bored. 


Best Movie Lines: 

The Landlady: You know, it's the first of the month.
Mr. Dupin: I can understand your excitement, it only comes once every thirty days.


Dupin: The sleeping fox catches no poultry.
The Pharmacist: I'm not a fox.
Dupin: ...now you're no longer sleeping. Open up! This is vital, a matter of life and death. 

Until Later On~  

Fashion in Film Spin-off: Stella Dallas

Good Afternoon,

     If any of you remember the Fashion in Film Blogathon that was hosted last month at The Hollywood Revue  you may also remember my post on Stanwyck's work with Edith Head; at the beginning of that post you may also remember that I said I had a bunch of ideas for the blogathon, one of them being a post of Barbara Stanwyck's costumes in "Stella Dallas"... and that is where we're starting now: 

     "I've always been known to have stacks of style" says Barbara Stanwyck in her role as the title character of 1937's "Stella Dallas". Stacks of style is debatable, but it's interesting to watch anyway. Most of this movie's plot turns on the fact that Stella is constantly ridiculed for her sense of style (and lifestyle in general), thus the costumes (designed by Omar Kiam) had to be really fantastic*:

 

Because this is what amazing people wear when they're cooking dinner... 

 

*Fantastic: appearing as if conceived by an unrestrained imagination; odd and remarkable. 

 Look at her fuzzy footwear!

 

Polka dots, anyone?

 

Barbara in bangles and bows. Did you also notice she's a blonde here?

 

And the hair... oh... I want to cry...

 

Okay, from the top: crazy hat, frilly shirt, and fur coat made out of who knows what. This picture makes me really sad... (because of the part in the movie, not just the costume).

 

Sorry about the watermark, but this was a good shot of the whole... thing.

Also from "Stella Dallas", not quite as bad as the others...

     Alright, I'm done posting pictures. I hope I haven't ruined anyone's opinion of Barbara Stanwyck with this (I also hope that posting all these really sad pictures of Stany doesn't put me in the "horrid fan" category, because that would be even more depressing than this movie). 

     If I have ruined your opinion of the Stanwyck, it's probably because you don't understand why she's wearing these outfits because you still need to watch this movie! Stella Dallas is honestly one of my favorites; it's definitely one of Barbara Stanwyck's best performances (and her first Oscar nominated one). As far as the costumes go, I love them in this movie because without them the story wouldn't work; and I'm also proud of Babs for being brave enough to wear them... 

     And the moral of this blog is: I still love Barbara Stanwyck no matter what she's wearing, and that probably won't ever change.

Until Later On~