tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post8554578961874643152..comments2024-02-05T21:23:49.249-08:00Comments on Lady Eve's Reel Life: Father of the Bride (1950)...and a reflection on mid-century Hollywood...The Lady Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11963115499930520653noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-53953634616737125582011-04-30T10:51:46.565-07:002011-04-30T10:51:46.565-07:00I love Jack Benny and I had no idea he was origina...I love Jack Benny and I had no idea he was originally thought of for the part of Stanley Banks! Benny, the most famous tightwad, would have made an interesting Banks. But, Tracy is another favorite and his characterization is classic. The scene where Tracy gets stuck making cocktails for everyone at the party is hysterical.Robby Cresshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00535820211830339224noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-26632565153344690642011-04-22T23:49:41.453-07:002011-04-22T23:49:41.453-07:00Hello Dawn and Filmboy, so glad you both had a cha...Hello Dawn and Filmboy, so glad you both had a chance to read my opus on "Father of the Bride" and that you're both fans of this great film. Irene Mayer Selznick's memoirs are fascinating. Would love to have met her. What an intelligent, perceptive and strong woman she was. To expand on a comment she made: she survived Louis B. Mayer and David O. Selznick...and lived to tell about it. I haven't read "Boom and Bust" but will see if I can find it - thanks for the recommendation.The Lady Evehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11963115499930520653noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-82326061783559455212011-04-22T10:44:12.124-07:002011-04-22T10:44:12.124-07:00Great post, Eve. So much wonderful history about a...Great post, Eve. So much wonderful history about a movie that I really love. Also, in one of your comments, you said you had read Irene Mayer Selznick's autobiography, which I read last year. Don't you wish you could have met her? I do. I think her take on Hollywood during the 1930s and 1940s was unvarnished and honest. I'm also wondering if you've read "Boom and Bust," a great history of the business of moviemaking during the 1940s.Classicfilmboyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01278928051994100842noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-25159958837863412702011-04-21T12:19:54.612-07:002011-04-21T12:19:54.612-07:00Ladyeve, Please forgive me for dropping by so late...Ladyeve, Please forgive me for dropping by so late. All I have to say is WOW!! What a great article and that I really love the classic film, Father of the Bride. I thought one of the cutest scenes is when, Spencer Tracy wakes his wife and tells her how worried he is that their daughter's, fiance, is basically a stranger to the family.Dawnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03476174860119487509noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-33967808932633535922011-04-17T09:41:51.940-07:002011-04-17T09:41:51.940-07:00Eve, this thoroughly enjoyable blog post is good e...Eve, this thoroughly enjoyable blog post is good enough to be a chapter in a great book! I was fascinated by the treasure trove of information about the making of FATHER OF THE BRIDE and its effect on everyone involved. I've always wondered why Katharine Hepburn put up with the often-ornery Spencer Tracy (there was even a wry gag about him in HOLLYWOODLAND), but I guess, as Woody Allen once said, "The heart wants what it wants." :-) While I thought the casting was perfect all around, I must admit it would have been fun to see how Jack Benny would have tackled the role.DorianTBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01357778472575080022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-79847912526018829502011-04-12T23:26:45.062-07:002011-04-12T23:26:45.062-07:00Becky...the other day I lost a comment twice and o...Becky...the other day I lost a comment twice and on the third try decided to write it in Word & cut & paste to the blog (sigh)! Btw, it was Newton Minnow who, I think, was chairman of the FCC at the time who was concerned that TV would become a "vast wasteland" (he was as prescient as Paddy Chayefsky was in writing "Network").<br /><br />'Gypsy...apparently Jack Benny agreed to doing a screen test for the part. It didn't convince...Pandro Berman and Minnelli were concerned that Benny's performance would consist mostly of his "schtick," endearing as it was, and that was not what they wanted.<br /><br />I sometimes feel blessed that I was part of a generation that grew up with TV - but also with seeing movies in theaters (Sat. matinees, drive-in theaters, the gamut)...I was just talking with a friend about how large flat-screen HD TV has supplanted the theater experience. Theaters seem only to screen micro-targeted mainstream fare these days - and, even less appealing, in a thin-walled multiplex environment. The times they are a-changing (again)...The Lady Evehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11963115499930520653noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-48154967846978900752011-04-12T16:31:52.699-07:002011-04-12T16:31:52.699-07:00Dear Jack Benny, bless his heart, I simply can’t s...Dear Jack Benny, bless his heart, I simply can’t see him in the role that Spencer Tracy made his own. He created a character that was the calm, stable center of an American family experiencing confusion and growing pains. Your description of “that mid-century moment” . . . “caught as if in amber” is lovely and lyrical, and places the film in the moment of many of the country’s transitions. The shift from entertainment supplied outside the home, to entertainment that appeared in the home, was both bittersweet and groundbreaking. Unlike my parents’ generation, I grew up in the flickering shadows of a television screen, and often wish for a time when the shadows flickered only on a movie screen.whistlingypsyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06126688373252306609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-43517383965998757962011-04-11T14:14:38.905-07:002011-04-11T14:14:38.905-07:00I left a long, well-thought out comment, Eve, and ...I left a long, well-thought out comment, Eve, and Blogger threw it out! I'm so mad! Well, this was a really marvelous review of not just a movie, but its background, the interesting facts about getting it made, the effect of the 50's on the studios (which I always thought was a huge mistake, as far as destroying the system that had created such fine movies), and the impact of what my Dad used to call the "idiot box", TV. I can't remember who said it, but one far-seeing writer at the advent of TV said it would turn out to be "a vast wasteland." I have to agree. Kudos for a fabulous piece of writing Eve.ClassicBeckyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03591715859057540467noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-83921302567356056092011-04-10T19:35:57.921-07:002011-04-10T19:35:57.921-07:00trueclassics - how did that escape me with my own ...trueclassics - how did that escape me with my own nerdy, movie-loving heart?!? Yes, the two classic Amys as mother and daughter. Great observation.The Lady Evehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11963115499930520653noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-72843512673333632332011-04-10T14:24:10.058-07:002011-04-10T14:24:10.058-07:00Brilliant post! As you point out, this is an inter...Brilliant post! As you point out, this is an interesting film to consider in the broader context of what was happening in the film industry (particularly MGM) at the time. On a side note, it bears mentioning that the original version is so highly superior to the tepid 1990s remake--poor Steve Martin tries his best, but no one can step into Tracy's formidable shoes. <br /><br />On another side note: it always tickles my nerdy, movie-loving heart that Father of the Bride features two cinematic Amy Marches: Bennett from the '33 version of Little Women, and Taylor fresh off the '49!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-82115522622835146352011-04-09T19:42:30.393-07:002011-04-09T19:42:30.393-07:00I’ve always loved Father of the Bride, it’s beauti...I’ve always loved Father of the Bride, it’s beautifully made and, I think, reflects so well America’s post-war aspirations…<br /><br />I was reading Irene Mayer Selznick’s autobiography - was curious about the woman who was L.B. Mayer’s daughter, David Selznick’s 1st wife and who produced Tennessee Williams’ “A Streetcar Named Desire” on Broadway. That book led me to a bio of her father…which is essentially a history of movies from pre-Hollywood to the demise of the studio system. When I decided to write about Father of the Bride, everything I’d been reading about MGM and the film industry began to seep through. But for this piece specifically, I referenced bios on Minnelli, Tracy and Taylor, David Halberstam’s The Fifties, etc. So, yes, there was research, but I enjoy the process and I’m glad those who’ve read this piece like the result.<br /><br />Why did Katharine Hepburn put up with Spencer Tracy’s drinking? Good question – because she put up with it for a long time. When Spencer Tracy died, according to one bio, “His will was a puzzle.” He left everything to his wife and children except his clothes, paintings and cars - they went to his brother. “Katharine Hepburn was not mentioned. She kept his old hat.”The Lady Evehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11963115499930520653noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-71321567031301382852011-04-09T16:30:59.359-07:002011-04-09T16:30:59.359-07:00Eve, this was a fantastic read! I love the way you...Eve, this was a fantastic read! I love the way you incorporate the effect the film had on each cast member's career. Very informative!Jean Howardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02946708463034019345noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-11252821817727719782011-04-09T04:31:24.617-07:002011-04-09T04:31:24.617-07:00Eve, you did a tremendous amount of research for t...Eve, you did a tremendous amount of research for this article. What a great read--informative and entertaining at the same time. Tracy was such a great actor and he does a wonderful job playing Stanley in this film. Somewhat off topic, I always wondered how Hepburn put up with his drinking. She always seemed like the type of person who could not tolerate human weakness.Kimberly J.M. Wilsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09078951928157843937noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-68849821936119305252011-04-09T03:11:10.538-07:002011-04-09T03:11:10.538-07:00First let me say, that your background information...First let me say, that your background information is thoroughly fascinating. I was totally unaware that Jack Benny sought the role of the father. I love Benny's persona, and think he would have been terrific in the role, though it is hard to imagine anyone but Tracy as the cranky put out Dad. Taylor was such a beauty in those days, what guy would not have wanted to marry her. Admittedly, I have not seen the film in quite a few years but your mesmerizing article has whet my appetite to check it out again.Johnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01808503055317962289noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-86508961534650503282011-04-08T23:09:40.271-07:002011-04-08T23:09:40.271-07:00Eve,
Thanks so much for letting me know this was ...Eve, <br />Thanks so much for letting me know this was posted! I'm almost speechless right now and as you know thats pretty hard to achieve! : )<br /><br />WOW! This is such a well researched and interesting post on the film. I love the fact that you included interesting trivia on each star and the movie.<br /><br />As we discussed, I've always adored this film because it was Tracy at his best and his comedic timing stole the film, Taylor was beyond adorable then Bennett was perfectly cast as the approachable wife, mother we can all relate to. <br /><br />Posts like this make me very proud to be included in such an amazing group of writers!<br /><br />Thanks for linking back to my Tracy post.<br />PagePagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15063277863578004836noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-1388660538534794032011-04-08T22:56:34.966-07:002011-04-08T22:56:34.966-07:00great post, eve...1950..great year for films (almo...great post, eve...1950..great year for films (almost as good as 1939) and the year of my birth...I think the studios were anticipating that momentous event...hahaha!!!doctor sabelotodohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17753057330165133638noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-86124633251357864502011-04-08T22:45:18.101-07:002011-04-08T22:45:18.101-07:00What a fantastic essay, Eve! You not only describe...What a fantastic essay, Eve! You not only describe how the film came together but also its context in American pop culture history and what makes it important, as well as its place in each principal player's career. Really informative and entertaining!Carolinehttp://garbolaughs.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.com