Love Letters to Old Hollywood

When the American Film Institute constructed their list of the 100 best heroes and villains in cinema, obviously they couldn't include everyone's favorites. However, in my opinion, they did have one glaring omission: Ms. Hildegarde "Hildy" Johnson from 1940's His Girl Friday. She wasn't even nominated! As a film fan, I adore Hildy because she is simply one of the funniest, sharpest characters you'll meet. As a woman, I love Hildy because she is such an accurate portrayal of womanhood: fierce, clever, sensitive, hilarious, tough... She embodies one of the most difficult juxtapositions people have, something that doesn't always appear in cinematic female characters -- the ability to have and express emotions without sacrificing strength, confidence, and capability. When making their selections, the AFI had a set of criteria to follow, criteria that I think Hildy certainly represents. Let's go down the list, shall we? Feature-Length Fictio...

When you're an I Love Lucy nut like me, you have a lot of favorite episodes. I honestly kept putting off writing this post because I couldn't decide which delectable episode to pick. Do I go with something irresistibly sweet like "Lucy is Enceinte," or something wacky like "Lucy Thinks Ricky is Trying to Murder Her"? I adore the Hollywood episodes, and The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour is more than deserving of some love. In the end, though, I had to go with the episode that kept popping into my head: season one's "The Adagio." We open on the aftermath of one of Lucy's delicious dinners. For Ethel, however, the meal isn't over as she obnoxiously finishes her third piece of cake. (Can we all just agree we're secretly Ethel?) Once she is done, she and Lucy leave the room to go "put on a new face," i.e. fix their make-up. When Fred crosses his fingers, we get this hilarious exchange: Ricky: "What's that for?"...

Christmas has come early! Today starts the three-day celebration of icons Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, whose contributions to TV, film, and comedy in general are still being felt today. Bloggers, please comment below with your link(s) and I'll add them to the roster as soon as I can. And if you're not participating by writing a post, please read others' entries and support them by leaving a comment! Without further ado... I kick things off with my article The "I" in I Love Lucy , a look at Desi's incredible legacy as a Latino in front of the camera and behind the scenes. MovieMovieBlogBlog brings us one of Lucy and Desi's best moments in the I Love Lucy episode "Lucy Does the Tango." Wendy joins with a delightful post on the 65th anniversary of I Love Lucy . The Midnite Drive-In writes about all of Lucy's fun appearances (including one with Desi!) on What's My Line? One Gal's Musings brings Rock Hudso...