"I love Lucy": breaking Language & Cultural Barriers

(This post is part of the Loving Lucy Blogathon hosted by True Classics)

One of the things from I love Lucy that stand out for me, is the fact they included speaking another language, español in this case, as a recurrent situation. The fact that Ricky Ricardo is Cuban means that there's a cultural barrier between him and Lucy. But I like the way they approached to these barriers throughout the series: it was a problem for both of them, not just for one of them; it meant that Lucy wasn't able to speak a second language and that she didn't know much about her husband's country, and it meant that Ricky had to struggle to improve his English.

Many hilarious scenes were born from this subject. Remember when Lucy recreates "Cuba" for Ricky to feel at home? It's obvious that she mixed a lot of the general ideas about what Latin America is: ponchos, donkeys, Brazilian songs, lots of kids...

This is a common problem in a lot of American movies: the portray of different cultures is based on prejudice, stereotype and lack of research. Why I don't mind this in the case of I love Lucy? Because the screenwriters decided to make it evident by exaggerating the elements and turning it into something positive by showing that Lucy is making an effort to help her foreign husband.

Another of my favorite scenes is when Lucy meets her mother-in-law and then when she tries to explain her what they're having for supper. Here, both women are in the same situation, trying to help each other, because both have a lack of knowledge:

Another recurrent situation is Lucy making fun of Ricky's accent and difficulty to express correctly what he's trying to say (from 00.00 to 01.26):

But at the same time, there are many times where Lucy simply cannot follow her husband or his friends and she's equally lost and depends only on him to understand what the heck is going on:

In one episode they discuss their language problem. Lucy says she wants her child to speak perfect English; Ricky says his English is good, so Lucy tests him. Even when things start bad for poor Ricky, in the end, there's no winning figure: English's rules are weird sometimes.

In another episode, the Ricardos visit Cuba and the roles are reversed. Lucy meets her husband's family for the first time, but because she doesn't speak Spanish she feels uncomfortable and nervous. Little Ricky, on the other hand, enjoys the advantages of speaking more than a language:

So, at the end of the day what matters the most in this show, are those elements that bring people together, no matter where are they from. Another example of this is when Ricky tells the child The Little Red Riding Hood (La Caperucita Roja) and we all understand what he's saying, even when it's in Spanglish.

There are universal things that go beyond any language/cultural barrier. I love Lucy understands that and work on that with respect and fairness (and a great sense of humour), and I think that's one of  things that made it so successful around the globe.

The Scarlett O'Hara War (1980): guess who's who

I finally watched this movie! I was so curious to find out how was it like and how close were the actors playing Classic Stars. Well, one of the few good things about this movie --based on the novel Moviola by Garson Kanin-- is that at least it gives you an idea about the great crusade that meant looking for the perfect Scarlett O'Hara. The main characters are David O. Selznick --played by Tony Curtis-- and his brother, Myron Selznick.

The main events shown are: the conversations with Crawford and Paulette Goddard who really wanted the role (the other actresses are just shown briefly); parties given by David to promote the movie; castings in several cities; two random guys who made a parallel fake casting to get girls; screen test with many performers, including Tallulah Bankhead; a party were David reunited all the possible actresses to play Scarlett; Myron noticing Vivien and then the burning of Atlanta. 

I don't know too much about old Hollywood gossips, hope you can help me out here, but according to this movie Joan Crawford slept with David Selznick to try to get the role. I don't think that this is a good movie; I didn't like, for example, the way they made fun of Chaplin, showing him always doing exercises and looking stupid. Most of the characters were really a caricature, all their dialogs were unidimensional. There are also dialogs that sounds fake, like Mayer explaining Gable what happened when he showed his t-shirt in It happened one night. 

But it was fun to spot someone that was supposedly a Classic Star and to hear people mentioning famous movies, like at some point someone laughs about Mayer doing a crazy musical called The Wizard of Oz. Then they mention Rebecca (at the end Myron is looking the screen test and notices Vivien). Also Cukor talks with Crawford and other actresses about the idea of The Women. Chaplin would be doing a movie about Hitler (The great dictator).

I know, I know, you want to see famous people. Some of them are OK, the actress playing Joan Crawford for example had something; but there are some that are not remotely alike. My least favorite is Carole Lombard, gosh, did they see a picture of her before the casting?? Oh, I can't say if they talked like the original actors, because the only copy I got was dubbed in Spanish. Well, try to guess who's who before reading the caption:

David O. Selznick

Myron Selznick

Louella Parsons

Charles Chaplin

George Cukor

Louis B. Mayer

Katharine Hepburn

Paulette Goddard

Tallulah Bankhead

Joan Crawford

Joan Bennett and Margaret Sullavan

Miriam Hopkins and Jean Arthur

Lucille Ball

Carole Lombard...really.

Yeah...really. Carole Lombard and Clark Gable.

Laurence Olivier...I think.

Clark Gable

Vivien Leigh. The actress, Morgan Britanny, had played Vivien in Gable and Lombard. 

What do you think? Who's your favorite? And your least favorite?

PS: 101 people have decided to follow my blog so far. That means that I'll be celebrating this weekend, stay tuned!

In which I embed some entertaining Youtube vids

Because I'm too lazy to write a full post, these are some of the videos I've enjoyed lately:

Audrey Airlines:
My brother says the voice doesn't sound like Audrey's but in my opinion it really does, plus I think it isn't offensive or something like that. My favorite part is when Mary Poppins appears on the sky:

You can watch more of these at their channel, PunchyPlayers, like Judy's Cream of Wheat.

30 second Bunnies:

This is a great "show" in which films are compressed into 30 seconds and bunnies play the memorable characters (maybe you already got that by reading the title). Anyway, my favorites are the classic films parodies. Here's Gone with the wind:

There are a lot more listed, including the classics Wizard of Oz, Kink Kong, Casablanca & It's a wonderful life.

Lucy & Red Skelton Do The Freddy The Free Loader Sketch:

I had already seen this one, of course, but it happens to be one of my favorite Lucy's moments and I enjoyed re-watching it. I'd never seen Red on anything before (and after I must say), but this clip is just an awesome class of pantomime:

Just like Errol Flynn:

Do you know the band Satire? Well, me neither, but these guys played in the early 90's and this song has been stuck in my head the last few days:

New Poll: actresses that make you laugh the most?

This is my post # 200, so I decided to choose a joyful subject for my next poll.

I'd like to know which of the next actresses make you laugh the most (you can choose more than one option on the sidebar):

Carole Lombard
Lucille Ball
Ginger Rogers
Myrna Loy
Una Merkel
Jean Arthur
Rosalind Russell
Barbara Stanwyck
Marlene Dietrich
Rita Hayworth
Irene Dunne
Katharine Hepburn
Paulette Goddard
Marion Davies
Claudette Colbert
Eve Arden

I added people that are not mainly known for their comedy skills (like Marlene Dietrich and Rita Hayworth); people who generally played secondary characters (Eve Arden, Una Merkel); and left out some actresses like Marilyn Monroe, the Bennett sisters, Miriam Hopkins, Judy Holliday, etc, because it was too crowded already :) But you can comment and give them kudos.  

Yay, my books are finally here!

I love opening packages (well, who doesn't? ok, yes, maybe people that has to check if packages contains bombs or other menaces)...anyway, a month ago I decided to order new books about Classic Hollywood. My list was rather large and it was kind of difficult to reduce the number. I knew I really wanted "Love, Lucy" and "Ginger, My Story" (both recommended by Sophie from Waitin' on a Sunny Day). I also wanted to read about Carole Lombard's life, but since I couldn't find a proper bio I bought a novelized biography with great reviews, "Chasing Carole" by Barbara Washburn.
The fourth title kept changing: Maureen's O'Hara ultra recommended autobiography "Tis Herself", then Robert Mitchum's bio, then Errol Flynn's bio...finally I decided to buy a book reviewed by Raquelle from Out of the Past, "Leading Couples, The Most Unforgettable Screen Romances of the Studio Era" by Frank Miller. 

So finally my books are here. I leafed through "Leading Couples" and it's great, lovely design and great info like this one about Errolivia:

"After years of denigrating her films with Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland saw The adventures of Robin Hood in Paris in 1959 and remarked "Seeing Robin Hood after all these years made me realize how good all our adventure films were." De Havilland was so moved by the screening that she started to writing Flynn a letter, but then she tore it up, afraid he might find her too sentimental. Flynn died a couple of weeks later, and de Havilland later stated that she regretted not having sent the letter."

An useful guide to check. The first bio I started reading is Lucy's. I didn't know her childhood was that difficult, loosing her beloved father when she was only 3. So I'll be reading a lot the next few days. Keep rocking people.

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PS: The poll about your fave director will be closed this tomorrow. Last chances to give John Ford, John Huston or David Lean at least one vote, or trying to tie Wilder with Hitch, or whatever. I don't want you to accuse me of inducing your vote. 

My Top 10 Average|Bad Movies with Terrific Actors

After watching "The proud and the profane" the other day I thought: "with these actors they could have done a better movie". And then I thought: "hey, that's a good idea for a list!". I don't usually see movies that have low ratings and bad reviews, but I dared to watch some of these just because of the casting. Last thing: I would say that the top 3 qualifies as "bad" the rest is just "average":

10. Undercurrent (1946: Katharine Hepburn, Robert Taylor, Robert Mitchum): This movie starts OK (I got very interested), but ends ridiculously. Kate Hepburn marries an important guy (Taylor) with issues with a "bad" and missing brother (Mitchum). He talks about him so much that Kate gets interested. Finally, nothing is like it seemed and things get violent and creepy. The best of this film is this lovely theme by Brahms played all over the film.

9. Made for each other (1939: Carole Lombard, James Stewart, Charles Coburn): A couple marries the day after they met; Carole has problems with her mother-in-law because she disapproves her lack of housewife skills; then the couple has a baby that sleeps in the living room because the apartment is too small, etc. A not very well constructed movie, the main genre isn't properly suggested from the beginning which is disconcerting; the story is very basic (I mean, before the last 10 minutes their problems are not really that dramatic); the main actors are totally wasted, playing characters that don't have real chemistry. Has its moments though.

8. Once Upon a Honeymoon (1942: Cary Grant, Ginger Rogers): One of the two opportunities these two had to work together... in a film that doesn't make justice for such event. Ginger wants to have a better social position so she marries a German Baron. Cary, a reporter, is investigating this Baron because he's probably a Nazi. Ginger and Cary fall in love. There are some interesting and tense scenes, but overall this a forgettable movie.

7. Green Mansions (1959: Audrey Hepburn, Anthony Perkins): This movie was directed by Mel Ferrer, Audrey's husband at the time. The things you do for love. Audrey plays Rimma, the Bird Girl that lives in the jungle. Some natives believe she killed the son of the chief, so she has to hide with her "grandparent". She falls in love with Anthony Perkins, a prisoner of this tribe that was sent to kill her. They start a trip to visit the remains of her town, something that the grandpa was avoiding since always. It's not very well edited, the distances they cover don't feel right; most importantly, the story is not convincing and the ending is weird. Great song though.

 

6. The proud and the profane (1956: William Holden, Deborah Kerr, Thelma Ritter):  A disperse melodrama based on a novel that wants to be epic like "From here to eternity" and fails. Deborah Kerr is widower of a soldier. She wants to know all about his last minutes of life so she enlists to help. An aggressive Colonel with issues with his origins arrives to the base. Thelma Ritter, Deb's superior, founds the Colonel despicable but she manages to show him Deborah sunbathing on the beach. The editing is not very good and it loses tension half way trough the movie. The character of a chaplain is used to explain what's happening with the main characters and important info is given trough little characters that talk a lot. Everything gets more and more soppy and tragic. The end.

5. Dance, Girl, Dance (1940: Maureen O'Hara, Louis Hayward, Lucille Ball,  Ralph Bellamy): I didn't get it. Maureen wants to be a ballet dancer but she's stuck with a group of girls that dance in clubs. One of these girls, Sassy Lucille becomes famous and invites serious Maureen to dance ballet in her comical number just to laugh at her. Since her opportunity to meet an important ballet guy is lost after her teacher is run over (really), Maureen accepts. There are some characters that are not very well defined, at the point you don't know who they are. The ending is ludicrous.

4. Man of the World (1931: William Powell, Carole Lombard):  A con man (Powell)  falls in love with the nephew of one of the man he defrauded. This could have been great, but Carole's character was too good, simple and nice (and boring) for her and you forget the whole film after "The End" can be read on the screen.

3. Paris Blues (1961: Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward, Sidney Poitier, Louis Armstrong): Boring, boring, boring. Two girls go to Paris and fall in love with two musicians. They go to some endless jam sessions and talk a lot.

2. Man-Proof (1938: Myrna Loy, Rosalind Russell, Walter Pidgeon): Use it in case of insomnia. Myrna is in love with a terribly dull guy that marries Rosalind Russell playing an awfully plain character.

1. Bloodline (1979: Audrey Hepburn,Omar Sharif, James Mason, Romy Schneider): The worst movie I've ever seen. Avoid it. After Audrey's dad is killed, she becomes the president of a great company and the new target of...I don't know, some killer. I never liked Ben Gazzara as a “romantic” lead, he's so unattractive. The whole movie is awfully edited, it looks like a trailer: some scenes don't seem to have a real connection. It even has a flashback to early XX century that seems out of place. There are a lot of shocking scenes (sex and murder) that weren't really needed, and what's more stupid, they are repeated along the movie, when they could have been suggested. The story is really badly developed, at some points you really don't understand where it is going. Most of the characters are despicable and there are some plot holes (if you think that someone wants to kill you, and you have escaped from death in several occasions, would you go alone to dark and solitary places and expose yourself?). Well, the worst (and saddest) thing is to see great actors like Audrey and Omar Sharif in this... thing.

What do you think?  Do I need to re-watch any of these?

Day 19- Who’d you like to party it up with in the afterlife

William Powell and Myrna Loy of course (yeah, I'm thinking really in Nick and Nora Charles). And Clark Gable and Carole Lombard. Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz (he would be in charge of the music obviously). I'd invite Peggy Lee and Frank Sinatra to sing some of their hits. Gene Kelly, Fred Astaire, and Ginger Rogers to show some moves. Oh, oh, and Bette Davis and Joan Crawford :) I would go with Cary Grant so we two will laugh about all the craziness around, while S. Z. Sakall tell us some interesting gossip. Everyone would go —just like in Well, did you Evah? lyrics— "what a swell party this is!". 

Desilu: That Sunday, that summer

Thank you guys for all the laughs.

Lucille Ball & Desi Arnaz

Via: http://www.imdb.com/
Song: "That Sunday, that summer" by Nat King Cole.

More Photo[graphs] + Music:

• Marlene Dietrich: "It's here for you"
• Burt & Ava: "In the mood"
• Gregory Peck: "Can't help lovin' that man"
• Coolest.pic.ever: Errol Fever
• Clark & Carole: "Tea for two"
• Cary Grant: "When or where"
• Errol & Olivia: "Magic Moments"
• Paul & Joanne: "Twist and Shout"
• Gary Cooper: "Mercy"

I ♥ "I love Lucy"

 In this post I (obviously) talked about how great ILL is and foresaw that I would see all the seasons :) 

Bajé la primera temporada de la famosa sitcom de los 50s protagonizada por la actriz Lucille Ball y su marido Desi Arnaz (su matrimonio en la vida real se terminó en 1959). Y lo que primero parecía un "veamos qué onda", se convirtió en una maratón que me ha tenido pegada a la pantalla del pc por días...

La serie gira en torno a una peculiar ama de casa gringa, Lucy Ricardo (Ball) y su marido cubano y cantante Ricky Ricardo (Arnaz). Él  trabaja en un night club como líder de orquesta; ella se las arregla para siempre andarse metiendo en problemas y en las situaciones más enredadas. Además están los vecinos/arrendatarios/mejores amigos, Ethel y Fred Mertz, quienes pasan en su departamento y con quienes comparten líos y aventuras.
Por lo general, los episodios tienen la misma estructura. Lucy y Ricky se adoran, pero discuten continuamente. Él le dice que no haga algo ("Lucy, no espíes a los vecinos", "Lucy, no hagas de Cupido", "Lucy, no más pelambre"; etc etc), ella no lo pesca y comienzan los enredos. Lucy casi siempre se alía con Ethel para desarrollar sus alocados planes (y Ricky con Fred), y quien se salga con la suya será quien tenga más ingenio. Finalmente, Lucy y Ricky hacen las paces, y todos felices comiendo perdices.

Obvio, lo mejor, es Lucille Ball. Era terriblemente divertida. No tenía miedo de reírse de sí misma. Podía sacar carcajadas disfrazándose de payaso o vistiéndose ultra-elegantemente para desayunar; poniendo caras graciosas o respondiendo a sus interlocutores con sonidos guturales; burlándose del acento de su marido o intentando ella misma hablar español...

Así como voy, creo que terminaré viéndola completa.