Remembering Natalie Wood: You Don't Know What You've Got 'Till It's Gone

For no particular reason, I have been thinking of Natalie Wood a lot lately and missing her. 

She was ever present in my life as a pre-teen, teenager and beyond. There was no doubt that she was a star, but she was rarely praised for her acting. During her lifetime she was frequently disrespected by the critics, but loved by her fans. 


Natalie Wood was one of the few child stars who made the successful transition to both teen and adult star. As a child she was adorable, but knowing. She certainly seemed like the smartest person in the room. As a teenager she was a high school goddess, the one the boys all wanted and the girls  imitated. As an adult, oh my, she was perfection: sophisticated, beautiful, elegant and approachable. Proud of her Russian heritage, Natalie (born Natasha Zakharenko and always called Natasha by her friends) was the beautiful girl of slightly exotic origin (she was an ethic all-purpose and,  during her career, played an Hispanic, Native American, Italian and Jewish girl). She was with us for so long, it seemed as though she was an eternal part of the Hollywood scenery. She was always there and, no matter what new faces came and went, she was permanent. Or so we thought.


Here are some of my favorite Natalie Wood films.


Childhood

"Miracle on 34th Street" is my favorite Natalie childhood film. Aside from the fact that it is a totally magical film in all ways, Natalie's Susan is the beating heart of this great movie. She is us, doubting, but secretly wanting to believe.

I love Natalie in "The Ghost and Mrs. Muir," too. She doesn't have a whole lot to do, but it is another magical film and she is just too cute.


Teenager

Every boy fell in love with Natalie after seeing "Rebel Without a Cause." As part of the troubled-teen trio with James Dean and Sal Mineo, Natalie's Judy showcased her growing talent and beauty in a landmark film. While the film belongs to Dean, Natalie's performance gives heartfelt and moving support.

I loved Natalie's performance in "Marjorie Morningstar." First, she gets to go to camp with friend Carolyn Jones and, while at camp and beyond, gets to have a mad affair with older man Gene Kelly (yum yum). That never happened to me at camp!! Then she gets to be an actress. Maybe not a great film, but it grabbed me from the get-go and I was rooting for Marjorie Morningstar (nee: Morgenstern) all the way. She is beautiful and affecting.

Plus, she wore a back metallic weave bathing suit that was killer.


Adult

Ah, "Splendor in the Grass." Natalie's breakout performance as an adult star and one of her very best. This is a beautiful film, one that has a special place in the hearts of so many filmgoers. Her raw-nerve performance as Deanie Loomis has been described as poetry and I think that's a fair assessment. Yet another film that seems to get better with each viewing.

Bells and banjos, indeed. This is the love that Natalie Wood's Angie Rossini wants from Steve McQueen in "Love with the Proper Stranger." Both stars are romantic (in a anti-romance kind of way) and breathtakingly young and beautiful. I saw this movie recently, and, seen from the rear view mirror of life, it made my heart both break and sing.

"Inside Daisy Clover" is not a great film, but it is one of my great guilty pleasures. First of all, Natalie is aces in this film - singing, cutting her hair and getting drunk and screwed over by everyone. Next, it has some of my favorite actors in support: Christopher Plummer being totally mean and sexy, a young and delicious Robert Redford being secretly gay, and the great Ruth Gordon as Daisy's nutty mama. Add a neat song ("You're Gonna Hear From Me," by Andre and Dory Previn) and lovely Edith Head costumes and I'm in. Can't help it - I love it , and I am placing this on my list of favorite Natalies instead of "West Side Story," as I think she looks kind of uncomfortable in the role of Maria.

The Great Leslie, Professor Fate, garters, furs and pies! "The Great Race" has it all. 

Natalie, as photojournalist Maggie DuBois gets to follow and join Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon in this over-the-top wonderful Blake Edwards extravaganza.

She look great in all of her wonderful costumes, including the garters, corsets, furs and pies. Silly, but another that gets better with every viewing. 


Movie Star

Most favorite is Natalie Wood as movie star. Always glamorous, she was the vision of a sixties movie star for the junior set. She graced those marvelous movie magazine covers for years. What girl didn't follow her romances, her fashions and her latest films?

And, who wasn't always rooting for her and RJ? Didn't your heart just melt when they married again?

Natalie Wood was a child of Hollywood. Her films and her performances were always professional. always made with that telltale gloss of the Hollywood product. She was dependably, reliably covered in stardust. So, take that all you nay-sayers. Natalie Wood was the real deal and her star burns ever brighter as the years go by. Miss you, beautiful girl.


EXTRA! EXTRA! Click HERE and check out these gorgeous Natalie Wood paper dolls at "Creme de la Creme."

Mary, Mae, Marlene and Doris: Industrial Strength Blondes

Twelfth in a series about strong women in film. Strong women are independent, beautiful, sexy, feminine and just want everything in life that a man wants and believe that they have every right to have it!

Blondes have a reputation. To have a "blonde moment" these days means something empty-headed and silly. The "dumb blonde" is a long-standing joke - she's sexy, but not very bright. Before the advent of one very sexy blonde by the name of Jean Harlow, blondes were also looked upon as pure and virginal (while the wicked and sinful woman was a brunette). Here are four movie blondes who took those stereotypes and stood them on their heads.

Mary Pickford: Girl Power

Mary Pickford was one of film's first superstars. "America's Sweetheart" stole the hearts of the world. Today, by those not familiar with her work, Mary Pickford is viewed as the virginal blonde, just a woman playing a little girl whose appeal belongs to the ancients. 


Well, that just couldn't be more wrong. Mary Pickford, in the days of Hollywood's infancy, was the embodiment of the all-confident, all-powerful spirit of the adolescent girl. Secure in her strength, no man, woman, child or force of nature can defeat the girl and the high esteem in which she holds herself. The doubts of maturity have not yet invaded her psyche. True to the times, she is morally beyond reproach, but she knows her power. The pre-Raphaelite hair, the sensuous hands, the luminous eyes all held out the promise of womanhood, but before the surrender. Mary was the girl who belonged to no man, only to herself. She was undefeatable. 

In real life, there was no woman in Hollywood more powerful than Mary Pickford. She crafted a career second to none and, along with her Charlie Chaplin, D.W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin and her husband, Douglas Fairbanks, founded United Artists. Her artistry, financial acumen and negotiating prowess were legendary.

Mae West: The Strength to be Fabulous

Is there any woman, blonde or otherwise, more powerful than Mae West? Posing as a 19th century woman of questionable virtue, she was really a very modern woman advocating the shocking notion that a woman had the right to enjoy her life. What a concept!


In the dark days of the Depression, Mae's joyful outlook was a tonic. The Queen of the Double Entendre, she battled the censors like a cat playing with a mouse. One could go on all day about this glorious blonde, but nobody can sings her praises better than Mae herself. Here's just a few a Mae's famous words of wisdom:


"A dame that knows the ropes isn't likely to get tied up."
"A hard man is good to find."
"An ounce of performance is worth pounds of promises."
"Anything worth doing is worth doing slowly."
"Give a man a free hand and he'll run it all over you."
"I believe that it's better to be looked over than it is to be overlooked."
"I never worry about diets. The only carrots that interest me are the number you get in a diamond."
"Whenever I'm caught between two evils, I take the one I've never tried."
"Too much of a good thing can be wonderful."
"Ten men waiting for me at the door? Send one of them home, I'm tired."
"I used to be Snow White, but I drifted."
"I'll try anything once, twice if I like it, three times to make sure."
"I've been in more laps than a napkin."
"It's not the men in my life that count, it's the life in my men."

Of course, Miss Mae did it with humor, but her confidence in her allure and her brains was a lesson to all those women who just couldn't help being sexy and smart. In real life she was a canny magician who made the illusion last long after the sun had set. To quote Mae once more, "You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough." 

Marlene Dietrich: 
The Strength to be Devastating

Did Marlene really have a choice? So seductive, mysterious and devastating to both men and women, what choice did this creature have but to be herself? Was it her fault that men worshiped her became her slaves? Was it her fault that women envied and admired her? I think not. Garbo shared the same cross, but Dietrich carried it with humor and flair. Garbo's cross at times seemed a heavy burden; Marlene's was light as a feather.


You see, Marlene was quite brilliant. Instead of fighting the inevitable, she embraced her power to devastate and reveled in it. Like a beautiful jungle cat, she simply is what she is and, if you don't like it, well, you're lying.

In real life, Marlene was a mass of contradictions. However, when it came to the courage of her convictions, she was a tower of strength. The bravery she demonstrated during World War II is legendary and helped add dimension to a femme fatale who seemed to have sprung from a fantasy.

Doris Day: The Strength to be 
Independent and Happy

If ever there was an actress whose reputation has been unjustly maligned, it's Doris Day. Anyone who thinks of her as the "professional virgin" who never said "yes" clearly does not know Doris' work. Aside from a few films, Doris was always a woman whose strength was on display. True to the times, if she said "no" (mainly because she didn't like a fellow or just didn't want to), it was interpreted by the rejected suitor as the response of a frigid woman. It was all done in jest, but the image stuck.

The fact is, at the height of her fame, the image Doris Day projected on film was that of an independent woman, many times a career woman, many times a common-sense housewife who was usually more than a housewife. She was well dressed, smart, crisp and honest. She was always sincere, honest and a straight shooter. There was a sureness about her and a competency in all of her characters that made you feel that, as long as Doris was in charge, all would be well.

In real life, Doris had one of the most successful and diverse careers in Hollywood and beyond. A star of radio, recordings, movies and television, Doris endured some private tragedies, but emerged  - well, just like Doris Day - triumphant. Not only has she devoted the last several decades of her life to her passion,  the Doris Day Animal League and the animals whose rights she protects and defends, but she also became the oldest recording artist to top the charts in the UK with an album of new material. At age 87 Doris has a hit album, My Heart, and it couldn't happen to a nicer person.

The Norma Desmond Chronicles: Norma's Halloween Seance

Hollywood's Busiest Medium: Madame Crackpotski

Chapter 5 of the Norma Desmond Chronicles.
Norma got off on a temporary insanity plea, did a short stint in a spa-like psych center and is now free in Hollywood. She's back and better than ever!

The last time we saw Norma, she was just beginning to get her life back together. She and Max were starring in the successful sitcom, "Max and Madame," the Hollywood community had embraced her, her fans had returned and Max (whose carpal tunnel syndrome had healed since he no longer had to write bogus fan letters) was getting closer to making his big romantic move. All of Norma's stars were aligned when word reached her that Joe Gillis was making appearances at seances all over town and was trashing her.

The old Norma would have been thrown by this and might have either reached for the gun or the razor, but the old Norma was dead. The new Norma decided to fight fire with fire and face her demons head on.

"Max! We will have a Halloween seance right here at Sunset Boulevard and invite Joe to tell his story to my face!"

Norma envisions a Hollywood-style seance.....

While Max did not relish the thought of Joe Gillis returning to the house - dead or alive - he acquiesced. After all, once Norma got a notion in her head there was no stopping her. He hired Hollywood's most expensive psychic medium, Madame Crackpotski, to conduct communication with the other side.

Norma assembled an "A" list guest list for her seance:

Mr. Sheldrake

Nervous that Joe Gillis would find out that "Bases Loaded" was
being made as a Betty Hutton

Naturally, the Waxworks

Buster wouldn't have "passed" up this opportunity!

HB Warner made sure he brought his own ashtray - just in case

Anna Q. Nilsson was curious. She never liked Joe.

Joan Crawford

Norma's BFF

Cary Grant

Well, Norma wasn't dead

Orson Wells

Orson knew his way around a magic act

Bogey and Bacall

Hollywood's most popular couple. Norma could use their support.

Billy Wilder

Billy had invited himself. He was VERY interested in this story.

Garbo was invited, but declined.

"Miss Garbo respectfully and regretfully declines your invitation."

Valentino was invited from the other side.

Not too concerned about Joe Gillis, but curious to see if the tiles were still tango-worthy

And - the most important guests of all: Hedda Hopper and Louella Parsons.

Norma was counting on these two blabber-mouths to set the record straight.

Word of Norma's seance spread all over town, and crowds of the curious, well-wishers and friends of Joe Gillis eagerly awaited the results.

As the guests settled in and held hands around the table, Madame Crackpotski made contact with the departed Joe. Here is an exclusive transcript of what transpired:

Madame Crackpotski (Aka MC): Joe Gillis. Come in Joe Gillis...

(the table levitates and an icy wind blows through the room as the organ wheezes).

Joe (through MC): it's me folks! I'm here.

Norma: Joe, Joe - why are you lying, saying that I killed you over Betty Schaeffer? Tell the truth Joe, tell the truth!

Joe: Sorry, Norma, but Sheldrake needs a good story, not the truth. I wanted to sell him the Bases Loaded story, but he just wouldn't budge. I was desperate!

Sheldrake: It was all Betty Schaeffer's fault! She said your stories were no good!

Norma: Joe, you didn't leave without the platinum cigarette case and the vicuna coat. You took them all, and my diamond tiara, and, on the way out, you threatened me with a gun. You lied and you stole from me and I shot you in self defense!

Joe: Sorry, Norma, I didn't want to look as though I was in it for the money. And besides, Betty wanted the tiara. She wanted the monkey, too, for some reason, but I didn't feel like digging him up. Norma, I guess I had it coming. 

Norma: Thank you, Joe.

Joe: Say hello to Max.....and thank him for all of the cocktails. Well, folks, goodbye. I've got a sweet deal of a story lined up. This town hasn't heard the last of Joe Gillis.I'm going to sell a story to Paramount even if it kills me. Oops - it already did!

Another cold wind blew through the room and Madame Crackpostki fell into a heap on the floor. Joe was gone and Norma was vindicated (sort of). Everyone congratulated Norma, who was positively glowing. Louella and Hedda promised to tell her story to the world and to CB De Mille.

CB will surely call now!

Max was happy for Norma, but he noticed that Billy Wilder had left early. Just what was he up to?

Keeping a watchful eye over Norma

To be continued...

Stay tuned for the final entry of "The Norma Desmond Chronicles."

Movie Masquerades: Stars Playing Stars

Playing dress up is fun, and it is one of the things I liked best about Halloween as a kid. Being scared? Not so much. Begging for candy? I never seemed to get the treats I liked. But dressing up as a princess, beatnik or witch? I was totally in for that and still am a sucker for the old-fashioned costume or masquerade party.

Portraying another real-life performer (either literally or a thinly-veiled version) in a movie is a kind of masquerade. Many have tried it, some are successful. Here are a few who I think managed to do a fine job. I also threw in a few stinkers (just for fun). 

Cate Blanchett as Katharine Hepburn: The Aviator

Cate was perfection. Her performance in "The Aviator" was about as close to Kate without being the real thing. Not only did she look right and sound right, but she moved like Hepburn and played her, not as a caricature (which would have been easy), but as a real woman. Our current "Great Cate" nabbed an Oscar for playing the legendary "Great Kate" and holds the distinction of being the only actress to win an Oscar for portraying an Oscar-winning actress.

Rating: A+

Robert Downey Jr. as Charlie Chaplin: Chaplin

Brilliant. My favorite current actor playing one of my favorite classic stars. Downey is impeccable - he is Charlie. Downey did much more than an imitation. Besides nailing Charlie's look, moves, facial expressions and entire being, Downey's Chaplin was full-blown human being.

Rating: A+

Fredric March as John Barrymore: The Royal Family of Broadway

Fredric March is so good in the part of Tony Cavendish, a character based on the flamboyant John Barrymore, that it's hard to think of him as not being cut from the Barrymore cloth. But March is a good actor who relishes the character and parodies the Great Profile's exploits with affection. A fun romp and a loving tribute.

Rating: A

Kim Stanley as Marilyn Monroe: The Goddess

Playing a Marilyn Monroe-type actress named Rita Shawn, Kim Stanley gives a fine performance in a cautionary tale of stardom, sex and emotional ruin. The film is good, not great, but I confess it doesn't work for me because, frankly, Kim Stanley, fine actress that she was, is just not pretty or sexy enough to be believable as a sexy blonde bombshell. If it wasn't a blatant tale of a star like Marilyn, maybe I wouldn't be thinking of her throughout the film.

Rating (as a Marilyn portrayal): B+


Jayne Mansfield as Marilyn Monroe: Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?

As sexy Rita Marlowe, Jayne hits a total home run. We see her, we hear her, but we are always thinking of Marilyn. Everything she does in this film, from the squeals to the walk to the movie queen lifestyle, is an exaggeration of Monroe, but it is done with affection and good humor. This is Jayne's finest movie hour. She adds sparkle and fizz to a very funny film. Funny how 2 Marilyn knock-offs were named Rita.

Rating: A


Anthony Dexter and Rudolph Nureyev as Rudolph Valentino: Valentino (1951 & 1971)

Yuck, yuck, and yuck. Dexter looks the part, but that's about it. Rudy N as Rudy V? Yuck. 'Nuff said.
Rating: Dexter's Rudy: D, Rudy N's Rudy: F


Carroll Baker and Carol Lynley as Jean Harlow: Harlow (1965)

2 films, a double murder. Such trash, my fingers can barely type about this. I suppose Carroll Baker bears more of a resemblance and Angela Lansbury did make a creditable Mama Jean, but I'm reaching here. Junk.

Rating: Carroll Baker version: F
Rating: Carol Lynley version: Z


Donald O'Connor as Buster Keaton: The Buster Keaton Story

While Donald O'Connor is not bad, he's not Buster. Added to this is the stinker script that was a total fantasy (which Buster approved for the money). We can  only hope that Buster's story will some day get the same respectful treatment as Chaplin. Johnny Depp did some very good Keaton routines in "Benny and Joon," but it's hard to imagine him as Buster.

Rating: B-

Kevin Spacey as Bobby Darin: Beyond the Sea

I liked Spacey immensely as Bobby. The fact that I have mad crushes on both men helps, I'm sure. It took Kevin a long time to get this film made, and consequently, he is just a tad too old for the role. But, he looks the part, acts the part and sings the part. This film was a labor of love for Spacey, who is a great admirer of the singer. And I'm so grateful for anyone that shines the spotlight on the great Bobby Darin.

Rating: A-

In case you were wondering, here's my Halloween costume:

Trick or Treat!