Category Archives: 1944

1944 in Print — Hollywood News and Gossip by Louella Parsons, Sept. 4, 1944

Posted on September 4, 2014 by lmharnisch

Sept. 4, 1944 Danton Walter says: Brazil and Colombia plan to cut coffee exports to the U.S. if the OPA price ceiling isn’t lifted … FDR has requested James Byrnes to hold up his resignation until after election day … … Continue reading →

Posted in 1944, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on 1944 in Print — Hollywood News and Gossip by Louella Parsons, Sept. 4, 1944

‘Laura’ — The Making of a Film Noir Classic, Part 27

Posted on September 3, 2014 by lmharnisch

  Laura Hunt (Gene Tierney) and Shelby Carpenter (Vincent Price) in “Laura.” In case you just tuned in, I’m using Louella Parsons’ May 15, 1944, item on Rouben Mamoulian being replaced as the director of “Laura” to take a meandering … Continue reading →

Posted in 1944, Books and Authors, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on ‘Laura’ — The Making of a Film Noir Classic, Part 27

1944 in Print — Hollywood News and Gossip by Louella Parsons, Sept. 3, 1944

Posted on September 3, 2014 by lmharnisch

“Green Dolphin Street” wins MGM’s annual novel award. The movie was released in 1947, starring Lana Turner and Van Heflin, directed by Victor Saville with a script by Samson Raphaelson. Sept. 3, 1944 Louella Parsons is pushed off Page 1 … Continue reading →

Posted in 1944, Books and Authors, Columnists, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

‘Laura’ — The Making of a Film Noir Classic, Part 26

Posted on September 2, 2014 by lmharnisch

  An unidentified actress appears as Diane Redfern in “Laura.” In case you just tuned in, I’m using Louella Parsons’ May 15, 1944, item on Rouben Mamoulian being replaced as the director of “Laura” to take a meandering look at … Continue reading →

Posted in 1944, Books and Authors, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on ‘Laura’ — The Making of a Film Noir Classic, Part 26

1944 in Print — Hollywood News and Gossip by Louella Parsons, September 2, 1944

Posted on September 2, 2014 by lmharnisch

September 2, 1944 Danton Walker (who turns out to have been Alexander Woollcott’s secretary for a couple of years), says: Several magazines are racing to put out German editions which would be the first published works to give occupied Germany … Continue reading →

Posted in 1944, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, World War II | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on 1944 in Print — Hollywood News and Gossip by Louella Parsons, September 2, 1944

1944 in Print — Hollywood News and Gossip by Louella Parsons, Aug. 29, 1944

Posted on August 29, 2014 by lmharnisch

Aug. 29, 1944 You can never tell what our unpredictable movie heads are going to do when they decide they want a play. Jack Warner, for instance, has purchased the film rights to “The Visitor” before it even opened on … Continue reading →

Posted in 1944, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Horoscope | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on 1944 in Print — Hollywood News and Gossip by Louella Parsons, Aug. 29, 1944

1944 in Print — Life Magazine, Aug. 28, 1944

Posted on August 28, 2014 by lmharnisch

At a fashion show of fall college styles held about a fortnight ago at B. Altman & Co., New York, most startling among the novelties shown were the “pedal pushers,” in which Anne Scott appears on Life’s cover. These are … Continue reading →

Posted in 1944, Fashion, Film, Hollywood, Photography, World War II | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on 1944 in Print — Life Magazine, Aug. 28, 1944

‘Laura’ — The Making of a Film Noir Classic, Part 25

Posted on August 28, 2014 by lmharnisch

Ann Treadwell (played by Judith Anderson) is questioned by Detective Mark McPherson (Dana Andrews) in “Laura.” In case you just tuned in, I’m using Louella Parsons’ May 15, 1944, item on Rouben Mamoulian being replaced as the director of “Laura” … Continue reading →

Posted in 1944, Books and Authors, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , | 10 Comments

1944 in Print — Hollywood News and Gossip by Louella Parsons, Aug. 28, 1944

Posted on August 28, 2014 by lmharnisch

Aug. 28, 1944 I had just put down “The History of Rome Hanks and Kindred Matters” when — flash! — came the word that MGM had bought the Lt. Joseph Stanley Pennell novel for $60,000. Here, my friends, is a … Continue reading →

Posted in 1944, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Horoscope | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on 1944 in Print — Hollywood News and Gossip by Louella Parsons, Aug. 28, 1944

James Ellroy and the Remake of ‘Laura’: Doomed From the Start

Posted on August 27, 2014 by lmharnisch

  Imagine my surprise yesterday when the Hollywood Reporter announced that my onetime friend James Ellroy would be doing a remake of “Laura,” the subject of a meandering series of posts over the last few weeks. Perhaps my little project … Continue reading →

Posted in 1944, Books and Authors, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , | 6 Comments

‘Laura’ — The Making of a Film Noir Classic, Part 24

Posted on August 27, 2014 by lmharnisch

  Dorothy Adams as Bessie Clary, Laura Hunt’s maid, in “Laura.” In case you just tuned in, I’m using Louella Parsons’ May 15, 1944, item on Rouben Mamoulian being replaced as the director of “Laura” to take a meandering look … Continue reading →

Posted in 1944, Books and Authors, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

1944 in Print — Hollywood News and Gossip by Louella Parsons, Aug. 27, 1944

Posted on August 27, 2014 by lmharnisch

Aug. 27, 1944 Hollywood’s divorces and nightclub battles always manage to get on the front pages. It’s just too bad the public doesn’t get an equal chance to learn about the topic of conversation that really interests the stars. Go … Continue reading →

Posted in 1944, Books and Authors, Columnists, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

‘Laura’ — The Making of a Film Noir Classic, Part 23

Posted on August 26, 2014 by lmharnisch

  Lee Tung Foo, left, and Clifton Webb as Waldo Lydecker in a scene from “Laura.” In case you just tuned in, I’m using Louella Parsons’ May 15, 1944, item on Rouben Mamoulian being replaced as the director of “Laura” … Continue reading →

Posted in 1944, Books and Authors, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on ‘Laura’ — The Making of a Film Noir Classic, Part 23

1944 in Print — Hollywood News and Gossip by Louella Parsons, Aug. 26, 1944

Posted on August 26, 2014 by lmharnisch

Aug. 26, 1944 When William Bendix was broke and didn’t have a nickel to his name, his father-in-law, Henry Stafanotty, loaned him money to support his wife and child. Bill isn’t the kind who forgets and now he has opened … Continue reading →

Posted in 1944, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Horoscope | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on 1944 in Print — Hollywood News and Gossip by Louella Parsons, Aug. 26, 1944

1944 in Music — Oscar Levant and Leonard Bernstein at the Hollywood Bowl, Aug. 22, 1944

Posted on August 22, 2014 by lmharnisch

Aug. 22, 1944 The Times encourages readers to save copies of the paper for reuse in the war effort. Let’s hear it for recycling! Keith Hallock gets a kiss from Warner Bros.’ Joyce Reynolds for being the first to volunteer … Continue reading →

Posted in 1944, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Streetcars, World War II | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on 1944 in Music — Oscar Levant and Leonard Bernstein at the Hollywood Bowl, Aug. 22, 1944

1944 in Print — Hollywood News and Gossip by Louella Parsons, Aug. 22, 1944

Posted on August 22, 2014 by lmharnisch

Aug. 22, 1944 Danton Walker writes: High on a hilltop in Beverly Hills at the end of the Tower Road, a tortuous lane overlooking Benedict Canyon, is a hobgoblin castle straight out of a Walt Disney film; an edifice of … Continue reading →

Posted in 1944, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Horoscope | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

‘Laura’ — The Making of a Film Noir Classic, Part 22

Posted on August 21, 2014 by lmharnisch

“Antique Shop,” Third Avenue near 57th Street, New York, Oct. 8, 1936, by Berenice Abbott, part of the Federal Art Project, via the New York Public Library. ”From where I stood, the shop looked like a dark cavern. The antique … Continue reading →

Posted in 1944, Books and Authors, Film, Hollywood, New York | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on ‘Laura’ — The Making of a Film Noir Classic, Part 22

1944 in Print — Life Magazine, Aug. 21, 1944

Posted on August 21, 2014 by lmharnisch

The churning craft on the cover are amphibious tractors, sometimes called “alligators.” The alligator, armed with machine guns, is designed to carry small loads of troops through the water to an enemy beach and, if possible, to carry them through … Continue reading →

Posted in 1944, Film, Hollywood, Photography, Politics, World War II | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

1944 in Print — Hollywood News and Gossip by Louella Parsons, Aug. 21, 1944

Posted on August 21, 2014 by lmharnisch

Aug. 21, 1944 Today, we stumbled across a columnist named Danton Walker (d. 1960). We don’t know his name, but his prose is so familiar that we can recite by heart the stale, snide New Yorker’s boilerplate on Los Angeles. … Continue reading →

Posted in 1944, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Horoscope | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on 1944 in Print — Hollywood News and Gossip by Louella Parsons, Aug. 21, 1944

‘Laura’ — The Making of a Film Noir Classic, Part 21

Posted on August 20, 2014 by lmharnisch

828 Fifth Avenue, New York, via Google Street View. Susan Treadwell (renamed Ann Treadwell and played by Judith Anderson in the film) lives in a mansion on upper Fifth Avenue (Page 22). In case you just tuned in, I’m using … Continue reading →

Posted in 1944, Books and Authors, Film, Hollywood, New York | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments