This Day in History July 23, 1894

Have you ever heard of this actor?  I actually have.  And on this date in 1984, Arthur Treacher was born.  Although you may not be familiar with his name, I will bet you actually have seen one of his movies.  He was English-born and a WWI veteran who came to this country in 1928 as a part of a musical-comedy revue.  He often played a butler in countless films.  He was only married once (what a novel idea!), and he was still married upon his death December 14, 1975.

You might know him as the police officer of Disney's Mary Poppins.  When butlers went out of style, he returned to his first love-the stage.  He was known as the announcer of the Merv Griffin Show until 1970 when he retired.  He also allowed his name to be used for the Fish and Chips shops that sprung up on the East Coast.

Do you wonder why I know of his name?  Well, I am one of those weird people who grew up watching old films and looking at the names of various actors on the credits.  I think I first saw him in Mary Poppins, and then he showed up Little Princess with Shirley Temple.  I began to realize that he was a lot of Hollywood films, and I knew he was normally the butler.  I remembered his name, and I knew immediately who he was when I was checking out information for today.  Isn't it nice to know that useless information actually can help you in times like this?

For more information, please check out:
http://www.famousbirthdays.com/people/arthur-treacher.html
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0871546/bio
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur_Treacher
http://projects.latimes.com/hollywood/star-walk/arthur-treacher/
Picture source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Arthur_Treacher_in_Bridal_Suite_trailer.jpg

This Day in History February 29, 1940

What a way to end Black History Month (since I didn't really celebrate it this year--I always used to when I taught regularly).  It was on this date in 1940 that Hattie McDaniel became the first African American to win an Academy Award.  Gone With the Wind walked away with 8 Oscars, and I am so glad she was one of them!  And isn't it ironic that we just saw the second African American woman in history to get Best Supporting Actress for The Help (Go Octavia Spencer!).

I didn't realize that she was more talented than just playing Mammy.  She was the first African American singer on the radio, and she appeared in over 300 films (only received screen credit for about 80).  She was born to former slaves, and she did a lot to elevate black characters in films.  And you know, it is true.  Think about Gone With the Wind if you have seen it.  Who is smarter--Mammy or Scarlet?  I think we can easily say that Mammy was extremely quick-witted and sharp.  She often oversteps her bounds.

So for more information than I have shared here, please check out:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hattie_McDaniel
http://www.walkoffame.com/hattie-mcdaniel
http://www.reelclassics.com/Actresses/McDaniel/mcdaniel.htm
http://www.biography.com/people/hattie-mcdaniel-38433

This Day in History February 24, 1890

Did you ever watch a Ma and Pa Kettle film?  I have seen a couple.  The actress who played her, Marjorie Main, was born on this date in 1890.  I first saw her in Meet Me In St. Louis since I was quite a Judy Garland fan as I was growing up.  She starred in a great number of films.

Mary Tomlinson was her original name, and she was an Indiana native.  Since her father was a minister, she took a stage name so she did not embarrass him as she appeared in vaudeville, the circus, Broadway, and finally film.

Here's something interesting.  She donated most of her paychecks over the years to schools.  Go figure!  And she only married one man, and she lived as a widow for a good portion of her life.  I always enjoyed her roles because she was "no nonsense."  And she played characters that were strong and in charge.  You just didn't argue with her character unless you wanted a lot of turmoil!

She died of lung cancer April 10, 1975 at the age of 85.

For more information on this wonderful lady, please check out:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marjorie_Main
http://humor.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?site=http://www.imdb.com/Name%3FMain%2C%2BMarjorie

This Day in History January 8,

I was totally shocked to discover this story.  Maybe because I have memories of the film that is featured on this day in history today.  I have some unusual memories concerning the film Citizen Kane.  Sometimes my ex-husband got some interesting ideas into his head about films we should see.  I actually watched Dr. Strangelove or How I Learned to Love the Atomic Bomb.  I know that is not the focus of today's story, but if you ever want to look up a strange film, check it out.  Equally as strange is the film Citizen Kane that he decided we needed to watch.  I first heard of this film when I was growing up watching Columbo reruns.  One of Columbo's cases involves a key phrase from the film "Rosebud."  My ex did not actually like this film--it is very dark, but it is definitely a classic.

I had no idea that when this film was to be released, there were some major issues surrounding it.  William Randolph Hearts, a newspaper tycoon did not find this film very appealing--mainly because the film was based loosely on his life.  And it didn't paint him nor his second wife in a nice light.  To make matters worse, Orson Welles was very young and not well-respected in Hollywood (he had already made a name for himself  on radio--you might know of his notorious War of the Worlds broadcast that casued nationwide panic). But Hollywood was not quick to accept him.

Once the Hollywood screening took place, Hearst got mad, and it was on this date in 1941 that he effectively stopped advertisements for this film.   Hearst made a lot of accusations against those involved with the film, and Louis B. Mayer, head of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios, even offered RKO (the studio who made the film) $842,000 if the president of the studio would destroy the original negatives and all prints of the film.  In retaliation, the president refused and threatened to sue the Fox, Paramount, and Loewes Theater chains when they refused to distribute the film.  Time published the story, and the theaters somewhat relented, but in the end, the film barely broke even.

Amazingly, the film was nominated for nine Academy Awards (only won for Best Screenplay), and Orson Welles and the film were actually booed at the Academy Awards ceremony in 1942!  Later on, Welles and the president of the studio were pushed out of the studio, and the film returned to the archives.  It took another 25 years before it received its rightful honors and is now hailed as one of the best films ever made.

I think the thing that sticks with me from this film are two things.  The beginning and ending are poignant as the main character--Kane--calls out Rosebud.  I don't want to ruin the film for you if you have never seen it, so I won't say any more on that point.  The other thing that has stuck with me is the camera angles that Welles used.  He was truly ahead of his time, and I think that we have a lot to thank him for.  The way in which it is filmed only adds to the macabre nature of the story.  If you ever get a chance to look it up, please do.  It was a film way ahead of its time!

For more information, please check out this site:
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/william-randolph-hearst-stops-citizen-kane-ads