Katharine Hepburn Tagged Articles at Cinematical

Welcome to Girls on Film -- not as skin-laden as the Duran Duran song, but a new Cinematical column full of female-centric musing, rants, love, and aggravation.

There are two ways you can go with an introductory post -- you can either jump in randomly, or try for something all-encompassing. I was set on the latter, but the challenge is not just stating the obvious. We know that women struggle behind the camera, and we know what they get offered in front of it. But as much as gripes and arguments about women in film are necessary to improve the Hollywood landscape, they're only as good as the moments of praise and adoration. If we can't appreciate the good that's present today, and for that matter, was present yesterday, this cycle will never end because eyes set completely on the future never see the perks of the present.

It's a bad habit that pops up in any part of life -- so much energy is expended on the fight, and it's so easy to fall into an aggravation-filled rant, that we often forget the good. In the world of cinema, it's everywhere. We rant, rightly so, about remakes and sequels, but also forget when they transcend their mundane brethren to become a worthy feature. (The first Fly is wonderful, but can you imagine Hollywood without the remake?) When it comes to women, so much energy is thrown down the toilet ranting about talented women selecting crap -- Sandra Bullock's next dumb comedy, or another romcom about girls fighting over boys (I'm looking at you, Bride Wars) -- that we rarely chatter on about the good. And, if you follow that whole Law of Attraction thing, focusing on the absence is bad, but focusing on the good that's there brings more of it.

When you ask people to name their favorite holiday movies, the same answers crop up everywhere: It's a Wonderful Life, A Christmas Story, Miracle on 34th Street, and perhaps some version of A Christmas Carol (Muppet Christmas Carol and Scrooged seem most popular these days). A few people might try to be different and name Die Hard or Bad Santa, and a few traditionalists might reminisce about Meet Me in St. Louis. And of course there's the Silent Night, Deadly Night crowd. Personally, I would have to bring up Auntie Mame.

But the movies I'm about to mention have only a few fans these days. Most are widely available on DVD, and are not shown very often during the holiday season. Some are forgotten treasures, some date badly. One is a well-known Oscar winner that may be too depressing for some New Year's Eve viewers. But if you are tired of watching Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed, or have had enough of the leg lamp and the Red Ryder BB gun, consider some of these films for your holiday viewing ... if you can find them.

Some people like to air their private, dirty (or cleaned) laundry publicly -- Whitney Houston and Johnny Depp are two celebrities who have put undergarments up for auction (granted, for very different reasons). Some laundry, of the less-literal variety, stays hidden, or gets revealed by those hot, unauthorized biographies. And, just sometimes, the stories come out years after the star passes on. According to The Guardian, the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, a place I've been dying to visit, has gotten one heck of a collection of loot -- Katharine Hepburn's writings and theater memorabilia.

There's personal notes, fan mail from the likes of Judy Garland, Charlton Heston, Laurence Olivier, and Henry Fonda, receipts, stage dimensions, and records of some pretty funny stories. You see, people don't get in trouble with the law like they used to. These days, there's scary mugshots, racial slurs, and drunken craziness, but Kate, she knew how to handle a cop. Among the notes is her account of facing an Oklahoma state police officer: "She lambasted him for being a 'moron,' called him 'handsome in a dull sort of way,' and snapped that she was sorry she did not have a week to take off to deal with his complaint. Then she threatened that if she ever found an Oklahoma car in Connecticut 'I would flatten all the tyres.'" That lady had spunk. If you want to see the goodies for yourself, they'll go on display in February.

I am one of the world's worst gift wrappers. People look at the presents I give them, and ask if I let my niece or nephew wrap the gift for me. I admit I can't be bothered to spend a lot of time getting the ribbons to curl just so, and to make sure that the wrapping paper fits the present size before I start cutting it out. Over the years, I've learned to rely a lot on gift bags, which are reusable (good for the environment) and look very smart with some tissue paper and perhaps a little raffia used to attach the gift tag. The gift bags were also good for quick last-minute wrapping during the years when I used to take the plane to my parents' house for the holidays, because wrapped gifts aren't allowed on flights.

A big reason why my gift wrapping isn't fabulous, however, is that I don't pay much attention. I'm very fond of putting on a movie in the background while I'm wrapping presents. The idea is that the movie should be something I've seen before, so I am not tempted to put down the scissors and ribbons and watch closely. It's also nice to watch a movie with a holiday theme, to get me in the right spirit for all that gift wrapping.

Therefore, I've put together a list of seven movies that are my favorites for background watching while wrapping presents during the holiday season. Many of them are on TV during the holiday season, so if you're stuck in the back bedroom of someone else's house on Christmas Eve, frantically wrapping before anyone comes in to see what you're giving them, you might be able to find one of these movies on cable (Turner Classic Movies especially).

How many filmed adaptations of Little Women are there, anyway? At least a dozen, if you count made-for-TV movies and TV series based on the Louisa May Alcott novel. The best known are the 1933 adaptation, directed by George Cukor and starring Katharine Hepburn as Jo; the 1949 Technicolor version with a showy all-star cast, including June Allyson as Jo; and the 1994 version starring Winona Ryder as Jo, which I also consider the only version with an attractive Professor Bhaer (Gabriel Byrne). Some of the TV movies and series have such unbelievable casting that I wish I had the chance to see them; I am thinking particularly of the 1978 TV movie starring Susan Dey as Jo, Eve Plumb as Beth, Meredith Baxter Birney as Meg, and -- wait for it -- William Shatner as Prof. Bhaer. I'm sorry, I can't read that last sentence without bursting into giggles, every single time.

My favorite Little Women is the 1933 film (although I like the 1994 one too, and will have to dig up a suitable photo to post so I can tell you why). Hepburn is truly the best Jo of them all, and the most believably tomboyish. True, Laurie (Douglass Montgomery) is a bit too wimpy for my taste, and Paul Lukas isn't the most handsome Prof. Bhaer (but then he's not supposed to be, in the book), but Joan Bennett is an appropriately pert and lively Amy, and Edna May Oliver is a top-notch Aunt March.

I was reminded of the 1933 film because today is actress Frances Dee's birthday; she played the virtuous and sweet oldest sister Meg. Dee took supporting roles in a number of successful 1930s dramas, such as Of Human Bondage and Becky Sharp. She also had the Jane Eyre-ish lead role in the 1943 film I Walked with a Zombie. Dee was married to Joel McCrea and retired from acting in the 1950s to raise their children. She died in 2004. Dee is at the far right in the above photo; the other actresses portraying the March sisters in that photo are Joan Bennett, Jean Parker, and Katharine Hepburn.

Actress Lucille Ball's birthday is today; she was born 95 years ago, and died in 1989. I'm quite fond of watching the actress in her early films, with amusing supporting roles in movies like Dance, Girl, Dance and the 1937 film Stage Door. Stage Door was originally a Broadway play by Edna Ferber and George S. Kaufman, in which aspiring stage actresses fought the demon Hollywood to survive. The film adaptation retained very little of the play -- director Gregory La Cava (My Man Godfrey) was well-known for his "off-the-cuff" shooting style, and encouraged the team of actresses to contribute their own stories as part of the script. As a result, the ending is not typical or predictable.

Much of Stage Door's action takes place in a women's theatrical hotel, and the inhabitants include Katharine Hepburn and Ginger Rogers (both in the above photo), Constance Collier, Ann Miller (who was all of 14), and Eve Arden. Lucille Ball has a small role as an out-of-work actress from Seattle, considered a hick town back then. Hepburn is the new girl in town, determined to succeed as an actress by using logic and intellect, and constantly sparring with her wisecracking roommate Rogers.

The last time I watched Stage Door, I was surprised by the way that aspects of the plot still felt relevant: the unemployed women trying to survive with a sense of humor reminded me of high-tech workers at happy hour in Austin, for example. Some of the more melodramatic plot elements don't hold up as well, but Stage Door is still quite entertaining ... and available on DVD.

One of my all-time favorite films is the 1938 version of Holiday, the lesser-known of two movies adapted from Philip Barry plays that starred Katharine Hepburn and Cary Grant. The better-known film is The Philadelpha Story, which was filmed a couple of years later. I like Holiday better; it's less talky and artificial. The story—about a hard-working man who wants to quit big business after he earns enough money to support himself (and maybe a wife) so he can have a holiday and see what's going on in the world—isn't dated and in fact seems quite relevant today. The publicity shot above doesn't quite reflect the relationship Grant and Hepburn's characters share in the film: he's engaged to her sister, and she's the black sheep of her wealthy old family.

Holiday has been released on DVD in the U.S. for the first time on Tuesday as part of The Cary Grant Box Set from Sony. I hope it also will receive a single-disc release in this country soon. I've been waiting for years and years for an American DVD release for this movie, so you know exactly how I'm spending my entertainment-budget money this week. I am crossing my fingers for a decent DVD transfer. (Now, if only I could get the chance to see the 1930 adaptation of Holiday ... but since the only print is in the Library of Congress, I won't hold my breath.)