Jack Pierce makes up Karloff as the Frankenstein monster (Photo by Jhayne) When I was growing up, I loved horror movies -- especially monster movies. I don't mean the gorefests that populate the screen today; the ones that substitute shock for real psychological terror. No, I loved the Universal monster movies that featured the Wolf Man, the Invisible Man, Dracula, and, most of all, Frankenstein’s monster (or just "Frankenstein," as we called him in those days). Most of the reason for that love was Boris Karloff. In spite of how many people he murdered, tortured, or terrorized on camera, it was obvious that, behind the character, there was a decent and funny man who projected a real humanity. Karloff was born on November 23, 1887, as William Henry Pratt. As a child, it was expected he'd follow his brother into the British Foreign Service, but he developed a love of acting that took him first to Canada, then finally to Hollywood, where between gigs acting in silent films, he worked as a ditch digger and truck driver to pay the bills. When sound films came along in the late 1920s, his stage training (and British accent) helped him make the transition to talkies, but he was still mired in supporting roles like "Rev. T. Vernon Isopod" or "Sport Williams." Finally, in 1931, the role of a lifetime -- the Frankenstein monster -- came along, and even though he was unbilled at the time (the credits showed the Monster as being played by "?"), he had achieved screen immortality, becoming one of the few actors to be so well known as to be billed with just one name: "Karloff." It took Universal a bit of time to realize what an asset they had in Karloff. They lent him out to Warner Bros. for a memorable turn as a cadaverous gangster in the original "Scarface" and to MGM to star in the insidious Dr. Fu Manchu. But once the box-office returns came in ($12,000,000 -- nearly $200 million today... that's before adjusting for the 25 cents audiences paid in 1931!), they took full advantage of him in such classics as "The Old Dark House," "The Mummy," "The Black Cat," and (best of all) "The Bride of Frankenstein" -- some 42 features over the next ten years. In 1941, Karloff left Hollywood to appear on Broadway in the comedy "Arsenic and Old Lace," playing another homicidal maniac -- one who’d had plastic surgery and now looked like -- Boris Karloff. Over the next three decades, Karloff alternated between stage, screen, radio, and television, shifting easily between comedy and drama. His integrity and talent were such that, even after the many times he had kidded his "horror star" image, he was still utterly believable when he did a straight role that would scare the pants off audiences. When he died at the age of 81 in 1967, his name was still the gold standard for the genre, (an accomplishment that no one else -- in any film genre -- has ever matched) and for some of us, it still is. Suggested Sites... Karloff.com - official site of the Karloff family, dedicated to the memory of the Master of Horror. "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" - excerpt from one of Karloff's last great roles, narrating and playing the Grinch. Celebrating Boris Karloff, the Monster and the Man - introduction to a retrospective of Karloff's film career. Universal Studios Monster Movies - overview of the studio's horror films of the 1930s. Frankenstein Films: The Universal Pictures Series - reviews and synopses of the series that rocketed Karloff to stardom.

Directory categories: Boris Karloff, Horror Movies, Classi Hollywood Actors, Frankenstein, Actors

Archived under: 1930s, 1940s, Actors, Biographies, Birthdays, Boris Karloff, Celebrities, Entertainment, Horror, Horror Films, In Character, Monsters and Creatures, Movies

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Kurt Vonnegut in 1990 (Photo by Don Cochrane) During his lifetime, Kurt Vonnegut always felt unappreciated -- much like his fictional alter-ego, Kilgore Trout in "Breakfast of Champions." The literary establishment may have looked down its nose at him, but Vonnegut's fans in the counterculture considered him a prophet and visionary, a humanist who used his absurdist novels and stories to try to make sense of a universe that seemed random and absurd. Born on November 11, 1922, Vonnegut's life was indeed full of randomness and absurdity. His mother committed suicide on Mother's Day, 1944. Some years later, within days of each other, his brother-in-law was killed in a horrific train accident and his sister Alice died of cancer. During World War II, he was held as a P.O.W. in a slaughterhouse during the Dresden firestorm, an experience that he worked into his celebrated novel "Slaughterhouse Five." After the war, he worked in a string of odd professions that included managing the first Saab dealership in the United States. In a graphic sense, Vonnegut's life was his work. In such novels as "Cat's Cradle," "Mother Night," and the short story collection, "Welcome to the Monkey House," Vonnegut explored the way humans retain their humanity even in the face of uncontrollable and catastrophic events. His concerns -- dehumanizing technology, the need for connection under mindless bureaucracy and violence -- mark him as one of the 20th century's great humanist writers. Suggested Sites... Vonnegut.com - official site, dedicated to Kurt Vonnegut's life, works, and philosophy. Kurt Vonnegut Quotes - quotes by Vonnegut from his writings and interviews. The Vonnegut Web - critical bibliography and an in-depth summary of Vonnegut's life. Vonnegut Art Works - drawings and paintings by Kurt Vonnegut

Directory categories: Kurt Vonnegut, Science Fiction and Fantasy Writing, 20th Century People, World War II Prisoners of War, Humanism

Archived under: Authors, Biographies, Birthdays, Counterculture, Fiction, Literature, Science Fiction, Writers, Writing

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Ross in his prime. You wouldn't think a guy with hair like that would be such a cultural icon. In the 1920s, only one American city was the center of art and commerce: New York. And in that city, only one magazine kept track of it all: "The New Yorker." And in that magazine, only one person mattered: founder and editor Harold Ross. Ross was born November 6, 1892, in Aspen, Colorado, and soon developed printer's ink in his blood. By 13, he had dropped out of school to work at the Denver Post, and by 25 he had worked for six other newspapers, from San Francisco to Atlanta. During World War I, Ross' talents got him a job in Paris, editing the Army newspaper, "Stars and Stripes." His fellow staff members included drama critic Alexander Woollcott and New York columnist Franklin P. Adams -- both of whom would go on to play roles in Ross' plans. After the war, he settled in Manhattan, where he worked on those plans -- to create a weekly magazine that would analyze, comment on, and play a role in the cultural life of the city. It would not, Ross insisted, be a magazine for "the old lady in Dubuque." It would be sophisticated and urbane -- but not snobby. It had standards, but if a reader was witty or informed enough, he or she would be a member of the club. In the depths of the winter of 1925, the first issue of "The New Yorker" rolled off the presses. Despite some glitches, such as a joke ("Pop: A man who thinks he can make it in par. Johnny: What's an optimist, Pop?") that ran with the set-up and punchline reversed -- a error reprinted in every anniversary issue for years -- the magazine was an instant hit. In the decades since, it has come to be considered the gold standard of American magazines. That respect is due almost entirely to Ross. He personally edited virtually every word that appeared in every issue until his death in 1951, and, despite his own poor spelling, his meticulousness for precise grammar, clarity, and good writing attracted such notables as Vladimir Nabokov, John Updike, Ernest Hemingway, John Hersey, Ann Beattie, John Cheever, Roald Dahl, Alice Munro, John O'Hara, Philip Roth, J.D. Salinger, Robert Benchley, Dorothy Parker, Irwin Shaw, Woody Allen, James Thurber, E.B. White (whose own prose style was crucial in setting the magazine’s voice and tone), and even Marlon Brando. But the literary aspect of "The New Yorker" was only part of the package. Each issue was filled with cartoons by artists like Charles Addams, Peter Arno, George Booth, Roz Chast, George Price, Saul Steinberg, William Steig, and Thurber again. So good were (and are) the cartoons, that many readers never get past them and are still satisfied they got their money’s worth. Despite Woollcott describing him as looking like "a dishonest Abe Lincoln," Ross' contributions to the culture of Manhattan and America are impossible to calculate. His sensibilities shaped the ways plays were written, movies received, and books were published, and it's almost impossible to imagine American -- and world -- culture without him. Suggested Sites... Wikipedia: Harold Ross - overview of Ross' life and career. The New Yorker - bringing the world to New York -- and vice versa -- since 1925. The New Yorker Cartoon Bank - pretty near every cartoon ever seen in the magazine, yours for the asking. Harold Wallace Ross - biography of The New Yorker's founder. Harold Ross: The History - the BBC takes a look at Ross and his magazine.

Directory categories: Harold Ross, The New Yorker, E.B. White, Magazines, Manhattan

Archived under: 1920s, Authors, Biographies, Birthdays, Cartoons, Journalism, Literature, Magazines, Media, New York, Society and Culture, The New Yorker

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Larry Fine looking stunned, undoubtedly by some unexpected turn of events People who work in comedy know the "Rule of Three." That is, when writing jokes or creating a comedic movie, TV show, play, or even a skit, writers know how to establish a situation, confirm it, and then overturn it. If you look for it, you'll see it all the time: "A priest, a minister, and a rabbi walk into a bar ..."; "an Englishman, an Irishman, and a Scotsman were arguing ..."; "a genie grants a man three wishes ..." With that rule so well-known, it makes us wonder why there are so few three-man comedy teams. There's the Ritz Brothers (who few remember nowadays), the Marx Brothers (who originally were a quartet), the Three Stooges -- and that’s about it. We were reminded of this apparent paradox today in noting that October 5 marks the birthday of our favorite Stooge, Larry Fine. Every Stooge fan has his favorite. (We use the pronoun "his" deliberately here, since it's well known that women just don't get -- or even like the Stooges.) Some prefer the outright lunacy of Curly; some think Shemp is the ne plus ultra of wackiness; there are undoubtedly those who think the antics of Joe or Curly Joe cannot be bettered; and we're sure Moe brings delight to many for his attempts to bring order out of chaos. But Larry is, for us, the essential Stooge. His "normalcy" (at least in terms of Stoogedom) provides the necessary grounding between Moe's masochism and Curly's flights of fancy. The Trinity of Stooges has been compared to Sigmund Freud's theory of the unconscious (no, honestly), what with Moe's controlling force representing the ego, Curly the uncontrollable id, and Larry, the superego that strives for organization and peace. Larry Fine himself was an unassuming man. He was born Louis Feinberg in Philadelphia in 1902, and after a childhood accident (he burned his arm with acid), he took up the violin, a choice that led to a career in vaudeville, where a chance meeting with comedian Ted Healy (who had originally hired the Howard Brothers -- Moe, Shemp, and Curly -- to accompany him on stage) led him to join Healy's act as the third Stooge, a role he would hold for the next four decades, until a debilitating stroke forced him to retire. Larry's contribution to the act is invaluable. He provides an entry point for the viewer, allowing us to put Moe's harshness and Curly's craziness into context. Without him, Stooge fanatics would be left only with an authoritarian beating up on a lunatic. And every so often, Larry will say or do something so off the wall that it confirms his own existence as a Stooge. Director Peter Farrelly has been threatening to make a new "Three Stooges" movie for years. While this may not seem a good idea at first blush (Benicio Del Toro as Moe? Sean Penn as Larry?), his views on Mr. Fine give Larry-philes reason for hope (while also providing a fine epitaph): "Growing up, first you watched Curly, then Moe, and then your eyes got to Larry. He's the reactor, the most vulnerable. Five to fourteen, Curly; fourteen to twenty-one, Moe. Anyone out of college, if you're not looking at Larry, you don’t have a good brain." Suggested Sites... Larry Fine.com - dedicated the most important Stooge of them all. IMDb: Larry Fine - film credits, biography, and photos. Wikipedia: Larry Fine - good overview of his life and career. Stooge World: Larry Fine - illustrated biography. Farrelly Brothers' Three Stooges Saga: The 13-Year Backstory - is the lack of a movie a good thing or a bad thing?

Directory categories: Larry Fine, The Three Stooges, Comedy Teams, Comedy, Actors

Archived under: 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, Actors, Biographies, Birthdays, Comedians, Entertainment, Humor, Men, Movie History, Movies, Musicians, The Three Stooges, Vaudeville

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Chuck Jones's "Feline Frame-Up" On this day in 1912, Chuck Jones, one of the most celebrated directors from the Golden Age of animation, was born. So we celebrate his work today, to honor what wonderful, hilarious, and most importantly, timeless pieces of work that Charles M. Jones accomplished. Known mostly for his "Looney Tunes" animated shorts, including popular gems such as "One Froggy Evening," "Duck Amuck," "What's Opera, Doc?," and the "Hunting Trilogy." My personal favorite, however, is a much lesser-known short titled "Feline Frame-Up," which, in my opinion, has more hilarious gags that each hit their mark than any other animated short I can recall. Starring Claude Cat, Marc Antony the bulldog, and Pussyfoot the adorable little kitten, this was the third short starring Marc Antony and Pussyfoot ("Feed the Kitty" being the most famous of the three). In "Feline Frame-Up," Claude Cat, who had a decent career in several of Jones's shorts, plays the villain in the story, committing some pretty serious crimes, such as assault and battery against a minor (kicking little Pussyfoot right out of her bed), suffocation (dropping Pussyfoot down into a very tall glass vase), and blackmail (placing Pussyfoot into Marc Antony's mouth while he was sleeping, to make it look like he ate the cat, which then gets the dog kicked out of the house). Marc Anthony has his way with Claude, however, and gets the house back in the end. Another favorite Chuck Jones short of mine also stars Claude Cat, titled "No Barking." This one pairs Claude up with Frisky Puppy, a young, very jolly, pup that often, but unwillingly, scares the bejeezus out of Claude by sneaking up behind him and barking -- often sending the cat straight up in the air from shock. What's your favorite Chuck Jones short? If you're not sure which ones were his, just think of a funny Looney Tunes cartoon and, chances are, Chuck Jones directed it. Suggested Sites... ChuckJones.com - official site of the late and great legend. Wikipedia: Chuck Jones - his Wiki entry. Chuck Jones: The Greatest of All Time - nice tribute fan page. Senses of Cinema: Chuck Jones - detailed analysis about why he was "the most influential individual in the history of animated film." Wikipedia: Michael Maltese - because he wrote all of Chuck Jones's masterpieces, he deserves a mention.

Directory categories: Chuck Jones, Looney Tunes, Looney Tunes Characters

Archived under: Animation, Birthdays, Cartoons, Directors, Entertainment, Looney Tunes, Movies

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