TCM Schedule for Saturday, December 30, 2017 -- The Essentials: Frank Sinatra

[Staph]

Tonight's Essentials are films starring The Voice, Chairman of the Board, Ol' Blue Eyes, Swoonatra, The Sultan of Swoon, La Voz, Frankie, Francis Albert himself! (I love IMDB's nickname list!) Bizarre bit o' trivia: Sinatra's last wife, Barbara, was previously married to Zeppo Marx. Yep, brother of all those other Marxes -- Groucho, Chico, Harpo and Karl. The stories that she would have been able to tell (she passed away July 25, 2017). Enjoy!



7:30 AM -- GOLD OF THE SEVEN SAINTS (1961)
Two trappers fight to protect their gold from outlaws.
Dir: Gordon Douglas
Cast: Clint Walker, Roger Moore, Leticia Roman
BW-88 mins, CC, Letterbox Format

The film's company was based in Moab, Utah during the shooting, much of which took place inside nearby Arches National Park.


9:15 AM -- THE PHANTOM TOLLBOOTH (1970)
A bored boy enters a fantasy world where letters and numbers are at war.
Dir: Chuck Jones
Cast: Mel Blanc, Daws Butler, Candy Candido
C-89 mins, CC,

This film was actually made in 1968 but due to MGM's financial problems and frequently changing management, the film was not heavily promoted. When it was released in 1970, it was not a box office success.


11:00 AM -- THE WINDOW (1949)
A boy who always lies witnesses a murder but can't get anyone but the killer to believe him.
Dir: Ted Tetzlaff
Cast: Barbara Hale, Arthur Kennedy, Paul Stewart
BW-73 mins, CC,

Nominated for an Oscar for Best Film Editing -- Frederic Knudtson

In the 1950 Academy Awards, Bobby Driscoll won the Oscar for the most outstanding juvenile actor of 1949, in response to his work in this film as well as Disney's tearjerker, So Dear to My Heart (1948). The award was not given every year, but only when exceptional acting was performed by a child.


12:31 PM -- RIGHT OR WRONG? (1951)
In this short film, a young boy is arrested for breaking a window, and must decide between turning in his accomplices or taking the blame himself.
C-11 mins,


12:45 PM -- THIS WOMAN IS DANGEROUS (1952)
A female gangster learns she is losing her vision.
Dir: Felix Feist
Cast: Joan Crawford, Dennis Morgan, David Brian
BW-97 mins, CC,

Joan Crawford told the audience at the Town Hall Legendary Ladies show in 1972 that she considered this her worst film.


2:30 PM -- THE MAN BEHIND THE GUN (1953)
A cavalry officer sent to stop a rebellion helps found the city of Los Angeles.
Dir: Felix Feist
Cast: Randolph Scott, Patrice Wymore, Dick Wesson
C-83 mins, CC,

Includes some footage from the films San Antonio (1945) and Captain Horatio Hornblower R.N. (1951) -- the opening scene of a ship being unloaded.


4:00 PM -- THE BARKLEYS OF BROADWAY (1949)
A married musical team splits up so the wife can become a serious actress.
Dir: Charles Walters
Cast: Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Oscar Levant
C-109 mins, CC,

Nominated for an Oscar for Best Cinematography, Color -- Harry Stradling Sr.

This was the last film to co-star Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers; their first in ten years, since The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle (1939); their only film together in color; and the only one they made for a studio (MGM) other than RKO.


6:00 PM -- FOLLOW THE BOYS (1963)
Four Navy wives create mayhem as they follow their men around the Riviera.
Dir: Richard Thorpe
Cast: Connie Francis, Paula Prentiss, Dany Robin
C-95 mins, CC, Letterbox Format

Connie Francis released an LP called Follow The Boys, but of the 12 tracks on the album, only 5 or 6 were actually used in the film. Some of the tracks were instrumental.


7:46 PM -- RUPTURE (1962)
A man receives a breakup letter from his sweetheart. The pained lover decides to reply, yet his writing utensils conspire to thwart him.
Dir: Pierre Etaix
Cast: Pierre Etaix, Anny Nelsen, Anne-Marie Royer
BW-12 mins,



TCM PRIMETIME - WHAT'S ON TONIGHT: THE ESSENTIALS: FRANK SINATRA



8:00 PM -- MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE (1962)
A Korean War hero doesn't realize he's been programmed to kill by the enemy.
Dir: John Frankenheimer
Cast: Frank Sinatra, Laurence Harvey, Janet Leigh
BW-127 mins, CC,

Nominated for Oscars for Best Actress in a Supporting Role -- Angela Lansbury, and Best Film Editing -- Ferris Webster

In spite of his reputation, Frank Sinatra turned out to be, for the most part, a hard worker and pleasant and cooperative on the set. John Frankenheimer called him "one of the most charming human beings I have ever met." Janet Leigh was friends with the actor before filming began but still nervous about stories she heard from others who worked with him. She found him to be "a caring, giving actor, willing to rehearse indefinitely, taking direction, contributing ideas to the whole." George Axelrod said he was "a dream to work with" and called him "one of the best screen actors in the world...lyrically sensitive...magic." Most people agreed that Sinatra's attitude could be attributed largely to the fact that he had tremendous respect for his director and enthusiasm for the project.


10:30 PM -- ROBIN AND THE 7 HOODS (1964)
A Chicago gangster stumbles into philanthropic work during a gang war.
Dir: Gordon Douglas
Cast: Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr.
C-123 mins, CC, Letterbox Format

Nominated for Oscars for Best Music, Original Song -- Jimmy Van Heusen (music) and Sammy Cahn (lyrics) for the song "My Kind of Town", and Best Music, Scoring of Music, Adaptation or Treatment -- Nelson Riddle

Making this film should have been fun. Instead, by more than one account, it was a waking nightmare for all involved. John F. Kennedy was assassinated soon after filming started, casting a pall over the entire set. Not long after that, Frank Sinatra Jr. was kidnapped from his dressing room at Lake Tahoe, Nevada (Upon payment of a large ransom, he was released, unharmed, a few days later). Victor Buono, who played Deputy Sheriff Alvin Potts, later observed that it was a minor miracle that filming was completed at all.


12:45 AM -- THE TENDER TRAP (1955)
A swinging bachelor finds love when he meets a girl immune to his line.
Dir: Charles Walters
Cast: Frank Sinatra, Debbie Reynolds, David Wayne
C-111 mins, CC, Letterbox Format

Nominated for an Oscar for Best Music, Original Song -- Jimmy Van Heusen (music) and Sammy Cahn (lyrics) for the song (Love Is) The Tender Trap

The original Broadway production of "The Tender Trap" by Max Shulman and Robert Paul Smith opened at the Longacre Theater on October 13, 1954 and ran for 102 performances. The original cast included Robert Preston and Kim Hunter.


2:45 AM -- HE KNOWS YOU'RE ALONE (1980)
A killer stalks a brides-to-be.
Dir: Armand Mastroianni
Cast: Don Scardino, Elizabeth Kemp, Caitlin O'Heaney
C-94 mins, CC,

In the DVD commentary, director Armand Mastroianni said that horror fans frequently confuse this film with When A Stranger Calls (1979), because of their similarly threatening titles. Mastroianni also said coincidentally, 'He Knows You're Alone' and 'When A Stranger Calls' were both playing at a New York City theater at the same time. He said that the theater marquee read 'When A Stranger Calls He Knows You're Alone' as if it was all one big movie title.


4:30 AM -- DON'T OPEN THE DOOR! (1975)
A devoted grand-daughter takes care of her grandmother only to find herself trapped inside the house with a maniac.
Dir: S F Brownrigg
C-85 mins, Letterbox Format

Also known as Don't Hang Up!

[Mike Nelson]

1. I think I've seen...

...the ones with Sinatra. "Manchurian Candidate" was very good. The others on the list look much more interesting!