From Beneath the Hollywood Sign

"IT'S FATAL: WHAT IS FILM NOIR?" (PART III) (080) 3/24/2025 Welcome to the third and final installment of our series on Film Noir. As we have previously discussed the technical elements of noir and met the typical character’s of noir, we will now take a look at the creative aspects of the genre that help create that special brand of dark, sexy, deadly movies. We’ll discuss dialogue, and clever devices like voice overs, flashbacks, and dream sequences that enhance these dark, moody films. We’ll also look at the fatalistic themes that reigned supreme throughout the genre.  SHOW NOTES:  Sources: Film Noir (2017), by Alian Silver & James Ursini; Into the Darkness: The Hidden World of Film Noir 1941-1959 (2016), by Mark A. Viera; More than Night: film Noir in Its Contexts (2008), by James Naremore; Dark City: The Lost World of Film Noir (1998), by Eddie Muller; Voices in the Dark: The Narrative Patterns of Film Noir (1989), by J.P. Telotte; Film Noir: An Encyclopedia Reference to the American Style (1979), edited by Alain Silver & Elizabeth Ward; Wikipedia.com; TCM.com; IMDBPro.com; Movies Mentioned:  Impact (1949), starring Brian Donlevy, Ella Raines, Charles Coburn, Helen Walker, & Anna May Wong; Gilda (1946), starring Rita Hayworth & Glenn Ford; Gun Crazy (1950), starring John Dall & Peggy Cummins; The Brother's Rico (1957), starring Richard Conte, Diane Foster, & James Darren; D.O.A. (1950), starring Edmond O’Brien; Cape Fear (1962), starring Robert Mitchum, Gregory Peck, and Polly Bergen; Double Indemnity (1944), starring Barbara Stanwyck, Fred MacMurray, & Edward G. Robinson; Clash By Night (1952), starring Barbara Stanwyck, Robert Ryan, & Paul Douglas; The Man I Love (1947), starring Ida Lupino & Robert Alda; The Maltese Falcon (1941), starring Humphrey Bogart & Mary Astor; Dead Reckoning (1947), starring Humphrey Bogart & Lizabeth Scott; Detour (1945), starring Tom Neal & Ann Savage; Laura (1944), starring Gene Tierney & Dana Andrews; City That Never Sleeps (1953), starring Gig Young & Mala Powers; Sunset Boulevard (1950), starring Gloria Swanson & William Holden; The Killers (1946), starring Burt Lancaster & Ava Gardner; The Great Flamarion (1945), starring Erich von Stroheim & Mary Beth Hughes; The Locket (1946), starring Laraine Day, Robert Mitchum, & Brian Aherne; The Invisible Wall (1946), starring Don Castle & Virginia Christine; The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946), starring Barbara Stanwyck, Van Heflin, Lizabeth Scott & Kirk Douglas; The Dark Past (1948), starring William Holden, Nina Foch, & Lee J. Cobb; Murder My Sweet (1945), starring Dick Powell & Claire Trevor; The Woman On The Beach (1947), starring Robert Ryan & Joan Bennett; Spellbound (1945), starring Ingrid Bergman & Gregory Peck; Manhandled (1949), starring Dorothy Lamour, Sterling Hayden, & Dan Duryea; Scarlet Street (1945), starring Edward G. Robinson, Joan Bennett, & Dan Duryea; Moonrise (1948), starring Dane Clark & Gail Russell; Out of the Past (1947), starring Robert Mitchum, Jane Greer, & Kirk Douglas; In a Lonely Place (1950), starring Humphrey Bogart & Gloria Grahame; --------------------------------- http://www.airwavemedia.com Please contact [email protected] if you would like to advertise on our podcast. Episode Website Link: https://frombeneaththehollywoodsign.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

"STRANGE CHARACTERS: WHAT IS FILM NOIR? (PART II)" (079) Welcome to the second episode of our special 3-part series on Film Noir. In this episode, we’ll explore the iconic character types that define the genre—characters who live in the grey areas of morality, driven by desire, deceit, and danger. From the hard-boiled detective to the femme fatale, we’ll unpack the timeless archetypes that give film noir its signature edge. So, grab your trench coat, dim the lights, and join us as we explore the complex, shadowy figures who walk the fine line between good and evil in the world of noir cinema. SHOW NOTES:  Sources: Film Noir (2017), by Alian Silver & James Ursini; Into the Darkness: The Hidden World of Film Noir 1941-1959 (2016), by Mark A. Viera; More than Night: film Noir in Its Contexts (2008), by James Naremore; Dark City: The Lost World of Film Noir (1998), by Eddie Muller; Voices in the Dark: The Narrative Patterns of Film Noir (1989), by J.P. Telotte; Film Noir: An Encyclopedia Reference to the American Style (1979), edited by Alain Silver & Elizabeth Ward; Wikipedia.com; TCM.com; IMDBPro.com; Movies Mentioned:  Born To Kill (1947), starring Lawrence Tierney & Claire Trevor; Murder My Sweet (1944), starring Dick Powell & Claire Trevor; They Drive By Night (1940), starring George Raft & Ann Sheridan; Thieves Highway (1949), starring Richard Conte & Valentina Cortese; Body and Soul (1947), starring John Garfield & Lilli Palmer; The Killers (1946), starring Burt Lancaster & Ava Gardner; The Set-Up (1949), starring Robert Ryan & Audrey Totter;  Act of Violence (1948), starring Van Heflin, Robert Mitchum, Janet Leigh & Mary Astor; In a Lonely Place (1950), starring Humphrey Bogart & Gloria Grahame; Nightmare Alley (1947(, starring Tyrone Power & Coleen Gray; Leave Her To Heaven (1944), starring Gene Tierney, Cornel Wilde & Jeanne Crain; The Lady From Shanghai (1947), starring Orson Welles & Rita Hayworth; Out of the Past (1947), starring Robert Mitchum & Jane Greer; Scarlet Street (1947), starring Edward G. Robinson, Joan Bennett & Dan Duryea; Detour (1945), starring Tom Neal & Ann Savage;  Dead Reckoning (1947), starring Humphrey Bogart & Lizabeth Scott; Criss Cross (1949), starring Burt Lancaster & Yvonne DeCarlo; Gun Crazy (1950), starring John Dall & Peggy Cummins; The Killing (1956), starring Sterling Hayden & Coleen Gray; Impact (1949), starring Brian Donlevy & Ella Raines; Kiss of Death (1947), starring Victor Mature, Richard Widmark & Coleen Gray; Kansas City Confidential (1952), starring John Payne & Coleen Gray; Raw Deal (1948), starring Dennis O’Keefe, Claire Trevor & Marsha Hunt; Phantom Lady (1944), starring Ella Raines & Alan Curtis; They Live By Night (1948), starring Farley Granger & Cathy O’Donnell; Fallen Angel (1945), starring Dana Andrews, Alice Faye & Linda Darnell; White Heat (1949), starring James Cagney, Virginia Mayo & Margaret Wycherly; Night In The City (1950), starring Richard Widmark & Gene Tierney; The Big Combo (1955), starring Cornell Wilde, Jean Wallace, Richard Conte & Helen Walker; Pick Up On South Street (1953), starring Richard Widmark, Jean Peters, & Thelma Ritter; Too Late For Tears (1949), starring Lizabeth Scott & Dan Duryea: The Woman In The Window (1944), starring Edward G. Robinson, Joan Bennett, & Dan Duryea; Manhandled (1949), starring Sterling Hayden, Dorothy Lamour & Dan Duryea; Desert Fury (1947), starring Burt Lancaster & Lizabeth Scott; The Letter (1940), starring Bette Davis, Herbert Marshall, & Gale Sondergaard; --------------------------------- http://www.airwavemedia.com Please contact [email protected] if you would like to advertise on our podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

EPISODE 78 - “FILM NOIR - Part 1 - WHAT IS NOIR?” - 3/10/2025 Have you ever wondered what exactly is film noir? TCM’s EDDIE MULLER describes it this way: “Film Noir is all about treachery, deceit, and paranoia. You’re never quite sure what is going on, who you can trust, or what dreadful pitfall waits around the corner.” This dark and twisted film genre popped up after WWII as a quiet cynicism began to creep into the national consciousness. In film noir, there is always an underbelly of darkness that comes out to play. And within the darkness, the shadows, and the neon lights, lie many stories of crime, dishonesty, adultery, murder, and mayhem. This week, we present the first in a special three-part series that delves into the darkest of genres where crooked cops, gangsters, torch singers, barflies, and other seedy character’s live, love, and kill. Join us as we discuss Film Noir!  SHOW NOTES:  Sources: Film Noir (2017), by Alian Silver & James Ursini; Into the Darkness: The Hidden World of Film Noir 1941-1959 (2016), by Mark A. Viera; More than Night: film Noir in Its Contexts (2008), by James Naremore; Dark City: The Lost World of Film Noir (1998), by Eddie Muller; Voices in the Dark: The Narrative Patterns of Film Noir (1989), by J.P. Telotte; Film Noir: An Encyclopedia Reference to the American Style (1979), edited by Alain Silver & Elizabeth Ward; Wikipedia.com; TCM.com; IMDBPro.com; Movies Mentioned:  Leave Her To Heaven (1945), starring Gene Tierney, Cornell Wilde, & Jeanne Crain; Desert Fury (1947), starring Burt Lancaster & Lizabeth Scott; Niagara (1953), starring Joseph Cotten, Jean Peters, & Marilyn Monroe; Mildred Pierce (1945), starring Joan Crawford, Ann Blyth, & Zachary Scott; Johnny O'Clock (1947), starring Dick Powell, Evelyn Keyes, & Ellen Drew; Double Indemnity (1944), starring Barbara Stanwyck, Fred MacMurray, & Edward G. Robinson; Strangers On A Train (1951), starring Farley Granger, Robert Walker, & Ruth Roman; The Big Heat (1953), starring Glenn Ford & Gloria Grahame; I Wake Up Screaming (1941), starring Betty Grable, Victor Mature, Carole Landis, & Laird Cregar; Out of the Past (1947), starring Robert Mitchum, Jane Greer, & Kirk Douglas; Phantom Lady (1944), starring Ella Raines, Alan Curtis, & Franchot Tone; The Killers (1946), starring Burt Lancaster & Ava Gardner; The Spiral Staircase (1946), starring Dorothy McGuire, George Brent, & Ethel Barrymore; Suspicion (1941), starring Cary Grant & Joan Fontaine; The Amazing Mr. X (1948), starring Turban Bay, Lynn Bari, Cathy O’Donnell, & Richard Carlson; Two O'Clock Courage (1945), starring Tom Conway & Ann Rutherford; The Letter (1940), starring Bette Davis, Herbert Marshall, & Gale Sondergaard; The Third Man (1949), starring Joseph Cotten, Orson Welles, & Alida Valle; Kiss Me Deadly (1955), starring Ralph Meeker & Cloris Leachman; The Narrow Margin (1952), starring Charles McGraw, Marie Windsor, & Jacqueline White; The Dark Mirror (1946), starring Olivia de Havilland & Lew Ayres; The Woman In The Window (1944), starring Edward G. Robinson, Joan Bennett, & Dan Duryea; The Lady In The Lake (1947), starring Robert Montgomery & Audrey Totter; The Lady From Shanghai (1947), starring Rita Hayworth & Orson Welles; Night of The Hunter (1955), starring Robert Mitchum, Shelley Winters, & Lillian Gish; The Naked City (1948), starring Howard Duff & Barry Fitzgerald; Pick Up On South Street (1953), starring Richard Widmark, Jean Peters, & Thelma Ritter; He Walked By Night (1948), starring Richard Basehart, Scott Brady & Jack Webb; Impact (1949), starring Brian Donlevy, Ella Raines, Charles Coburn, Helen Walker, & Anna May Wong; The Asphalt Jungle (1950), starring Sterling Hayden & Jean Hagen; --------------------------------- http://www.airwavemedia.com Please contact [email protected] if you would like to advertise on our podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

"MARY BETH HUGHES - CLASSIC CINEMA STAR OF THE MONTH" - 3/03/2025 For those of you who don't know the charms of MARY BETH HUGHES, when she was under contract at MGM, she was dubbed "the poor man's LANA TURNER." It was a rather unfair assessment since MGM gave Lana all the plum roles, and Mary Beth got her hand-me-downs. But still, Mary Beth had great comic chops, and no one played bitchy, hard-boiled blondes as well as she. Despite her beauty and talent, she never managed to get out of B-pictures. She did have small parts in great films like The Women (1939) and The Ox-Bow Incident (1942). She played the good girl as often as she played the bad girl, but when she played bad....you were in for a treat. Her pouty lips, snappy dialogue, and petulant attitude lit up many a lackluster production. This week, we celebrate her as our Star of the Month. SHOW NOTES:  Sources: The Official Mary Beth Hughes Website; “Mary Beth Hughes, Born in Alton, Benign Groomed for Stardom in Movies,” January 4, 1939, Alton Evening Telegraph; “Mary Beth Hughes,” October 1971, by T.P. Turton, Films in Review; “Mary Beth Hughes Stars In A New Shampoo,” December 20, 1976, People Magazine; Mary Beth Hughes: She Never Gave Up,” December 2015, by Dave White, Classic Images; “The Look of Mary Beth Hughes,” June 6, 2019, www.grandoldmovies.com; http://www.briansdriveintheater.com/marybethhughes.html Wikipedia.com; TCM.com; IMDBPro.com; Movies Mentioned:  The Women (1939), starring Norma Shearer, Joan Crawford, & Rosalind Russell; The Ox-Bow Incident (1942), starring Henry Fonda, Harry Morgan, Dana Andrews, MBH, & Anthony Quinn; Broadway Serenade (1939), starring Jeanette MacDonald & Lew Ayres; Dancing Co-Ed (1939), starring Lana Turner & Richard Carlson;  These Glamour Girls (1939), starring Lana Turner & Lew Ayres: Fast and Furious (1939), starring Franchot Tone & Ann Sothern; Free, Blonde & 21 (1940), starring Lynn Bari, MBH, & Joan Davis; Star Dust (1940), starring Linda Darnell & John Payne; Four Sons (1940), starring Don Ameche, Alan Curtis, Eugenia Leontivich, & MBH; Lucky Cisco Kid (1940), starring Cesar Romero, Dana Andrews, & MBH; The Great Profile (1940), staring John Barrymore & MBH; Sleepers West (1941), starring Lloyd Nolan & MBH:  Ride on Vaquero (1941), starring Cesar Romero & MBHs; Charlie Chan In Rio (191410, starring Sidney Toler & MBH; Dressed To Kill (1941), starring Lloyd Nolan & MBH; Design For Scandal (1941), starring Rosalind Russell & Walter Pidgeon; The Cowboy and The Blonde (1941), starring MBH & George Montgomery; Blue, White, and Perfect, (1942), starring Lloyd Nolan & MBH; The Night Before The Divorce (1942), starring Lynn Bari, Joseph Allen, & MBH; Orchestra Wives (1942), starring Ann Rutherford & George Montgomery: Over My Dead Body (1942), starring Milton Berle & MBH; Timber Queen (1944), starring Richard Arlen & MBH; Men On Her Mind (1944), starring MBH; I Accuse My Parents, (1944), starring MBH & Robert Lowell; The Lady Confesses (1945), starring MBH & Hugh Beaumont; The Great Flamarion (1945), starring Erich von Stroheim, MBH, & Dan Duryea; Holiday Rhythm (1950), starring MBH & David Street; Young Man With A Horn (1950), starring Kirk Douglas, Lauren Bacall, & Doris Day; Highway Dragnet (1954), starring Richard Conte & Joan Bennett; Loophole (1955), starring Barry Sullivan, Charles MacGraw, & Dorothy Malone; Gun Battle At Monterey (1957), starring Sterling Hayden & MBH; How's Your Love Life? (1971), starring John Agar, Leslie Brooks, Grant Willians, & MBH; The Working Girls (1974), starring Sarah Kennedy, Laurie Rose, & Cassandra Peterson; --------------------------------- http://www.airwavemedia.com Please contact [email protected] if you would like to advertise on our podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

EPISODE 76 - “MEMORABLE OSCAR SPEECHES OF THE GOLDEN ERA OF HOLLYWOOD” - 2/24/2025 Winning an Oscar is a dream for most people who work in Hollywood. But you can’t just win the Oscar; you must have a good speech once your name is called to the podium. There have been some great ones — OLIVIA COLEMAN’s funny and cheeky speech hit the right tone, and who can forget JACK PALANCE’s one-arm push-ups or CUBA GOODING’s exuberance? There have also been some bad ones — don’t we all still cringe a little at SALLY FIELDS’ “You Like Me” speech? As we prepare to celebrate the 97th annual Academy Award ceremony, Steve and Nan reflect on some of their favorite Oscar speeches and why they resonate. So please put on your tux, don the gown and jewels, pop the champagne, and join us for a fun talk about … well, people talking.   SHOW NOTES:  Sources: “Five Times The Oscars Made History,” January 20, 2017, www.nyfa.edu; “Hollywood History: How World War II Forced the Academy to Rethink the 1942 Oscars,” April 16, 2021, Entertainment Weekly; “Charlie Chaplin vs. America Explores the Accusations that Sent a Star Into Exile,” October 24, 2023, byTerry Gross, www.npr.com; “The Most Memorable Oscar Speeches in Oscar History,” March 6, 2024, by Shannon Carlin, www.time.com;   Wikipedia.com; TCM.com; IMDBPro.com; www.Oscars.org; Movies Mentioned:  Stella Dallas (1938), starring Barbara Stanwyck, John Boles, Anne Shirley, & Alan Hale; Gone With The Wind (1939), starring Vivian Leigh, Clark Gable, Olivia de Havilland, Leslie Howard, Hattie McDaniel, Butterfly McQueen, Thomas Mitchell, & Barbara O’Neil; How Green Was My Valley (1941), starring Walter Pidgeon, Maureen O’Hara, & Donald Crisp; Sergeant York (1941), starring Gary Cooper, Joan Leslie, & Walter Brennan;  The Devil and Miss Jones (1941), staring Jean Arthur Robert Cummings, & Charle Coburn; Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941), starring Robert Montgomery, Claude Rains, & Evelyn Keyes; Ball of Fire (1942), starring Barbara Stanwyck & Cary Cooper; Double Indemnity (1944), starring Barbara Stanwyck, Fred MacMurray & Edward G Robinson; Key Largo (1948); starring Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Edward G Robinson, Claire Trevor, & Lionel Barrymore; All The King’s Men (1948), starring Broderick Crawford, John Ireland, Joanne Dru, & Mercedes McCambridge; Pinky (1949), starring Jeanne Crain, Ethel Waters, Ethel Barrymore, Nina Mae McKinney, & Wiliam Lundigan; Marty (1955); starring Ernest Borgnine. Betsy Blair, Joe Mantell, & Esther Minciotti; The King and I (1956), starring Yul Brenner, Deborah Kerr, Rita Moreno, & Rex Thompson; Elmer Gantry (1960), starring Burt Lancaster, Jean Simmons, Shirley Jones, Arthur Kennedy, Dean Jagger, and Patti Page; West Side Story (1961), Natalie Wood, Richard Beymer, Rita Moreno, George Chikiris, & Russ Tamblyn; Lillies of the Field (1963), starring Sidney Poitier;  In the Heat of the Night (1967)l starring Rod Steiger, Sidney Poitier, & Lee Grant; The Producers (1967), starring Zero Mostel & Gene Wilder; Rosemary’s Baby (1968), starring Mia Farrow, John Cassavetes, Ruth Gordon, & Charles Grodin; Faces (1968), starring Gena Rowlands, Lynn Carlin, Seymour Cassel, & John Farley;  The Heart is a Lonely Hunter (1968), staring Alan Arkin, Sondra Locke, Cecily Tyson, Stacey Keach, & Percy Rodrigues; The Last Picture Show (1971), starring Timothy Bottoms, Jeff Bridges, Cybill Shepherd, Ellen Burstyn, Ben Johnson, Cloris Leachman, & Eileen Brennan; Murder on the Orient Express (1974), starring Albert Finney, Lauren Bacall, Ingrid Bergman, Sean Connery, Martin Balsam, & Jacqueline Bisset; --------------------------------- http://www.airwavemedia.com Please contact [email protected] if you would like to advertise on our podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices