You're the top, you're a Berlin ballad

More house cleaning: another post I wrote a good while back - I don't even remember when. I was going to just delete it, but there were some useful links and I didn't want to lose them. Besides, I like being able to give publicity for other websites and blogs. So, here it is: a random post about favorite songwriters. Perhaps, some day, I'll do a series on them. Goodness knows they deserve it.

So, I was going to make a list of my favorite songs from Busby Berkeley musicals. I had watched a documentary on the musicals and discovered that most of the songs were written by writing team Al Dubin and Harry Warren. Well, I looked the two up and discovered that Harry Warren wrote a lot of really fantastic songs. So, then I decided to make a songwriters series and list my favorite songs from my favorite songwriters. But first, before I do that - here is a list of (some of) my favorite songwriters (in no particular order) :

• Cole Porter
• George and Ira Gershwin
• Irving Berlin
• Jerome Kern
• Harry Warren and Al Dubin
• Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby
• Rodgers and Hammerstein
• Rodgers and Hart
• Richard and Robert Sherman
• Arthur Schwartz and Howard Dietz

Did I miss anyone?

Who are your favorite songwriters? I am thinking in terms of film, mostly.

P.S. I found this great site the other day that offers song catalogs that you can peruse. This is how I discovered how very much Harry Warren had written. Quite impressive, really.
P.P.S. If you love these masters, I think you should definitely trot on over to Brian Solomon's blog, Standard of the Day
P.P.P.S I discovered a very useful site years and years ago that provides a whole flock of lyrics for such songs as these.
P.P.P.P.S And then, of course, you should definitely check out Emma's blog because she often does standards and some of my favorite renditions are by her.

Frankly, my dear

I'm currently reading Errol and Olivia: Ego and Obsession in Golden Era Hollywood by Robert Matzen. I'll spare you the critique for the moment as a) I haven't yet finished and b) I have something else on my agenda. In reading this book, I've found myself reconsidering Gone with the Wind. I watched the classic in high school when some people told me I'd love it (mostly because they knew I liked old movies). Well, I watched it and hated it. I hated the characters, I hated the plot; the only character I liked died and I was just so mad! This isn't to say that I'd say it was a bad movie - quite the contrary; I will gladly agree that it is a masterpiece; I just don't care for it. Well, in reading about Olivia de Havilliand's experience in the picture, I've started to wonder whether or not I should give GWTW another chance. So, today, I wanted to make a list post on movies that I didn't particularly care for. Again, not saying they aren't good. Of course they're good. I just didn't like them very much.

Photo found here.

1. Gone with the Wind
2. An American in Paris
3. Gigi
4. The Searchers
5. Meet Me in St. Louis
6. Show Boat
7. To Be Or Not To Be
8. Once Upon A Honeymoon
9. Dodge City
10. Roman Holiday
11. The Wizard of Oz
12. Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory

Ok. Now, please don't... um... kill me. There's a perfectly good reason for each and every one of those movies. I like to think that I'm not alone in this... What about you? Are there any classics that you didn't particularly care for? Any of these you agree on?

I'm laughing at clouds so dark up above

I actually had a whole blog post written but I changed my mind. After it rained all day (practically), I kept thinking of various rainy day songs so I've decided to make a list of my favorites.

• Singin' in the Rain - naturally.
• Isn't This A Lovely Day (To Be Caught in the Rain)
• A Fella With An Umbrella
• Pennies From Heaven
• April Showers

Okay, so it's a short list. Do any of you have favorite rainy day songs that I've missed?

And, while we're on the subject, here's a little something I made a while ago with one of the songs listed above:

Merry Christmas to all!

Merry Christmas, everyone!!

Well, it's that time! Time for a complete list of the 12 Days of Christmas blogathon participants!
Thank you to everyone for participating! This was so much fun!

So, here is the full and complete list. I've had a little bit of trouble figuring out how to organize the list. But I've decided to go in chronological order - according to when the films were released.


The Shop Around the Corner (1940)
by Meredith

Holiday Inn (1942)
by Sarah

The Man Who Came To Dinner (1942)
by Monty

Christmas in Connecticut (1945)
by Audrey

It's A Wonderful Life (1946)
by Clara

Holiday Affair (1949)
by Emm

The Lemon Drop Kid (1951)
by Java

Beware, My Lovely (1952)
by Jean Howard

White Christmas (1954)
by Sally

We're No Angels (1955)
by Frl Irene Palfry

Period of Adjustment (1962)
by Amanda Cooper



Thank you again to all who participated and who read and who passed on the word! This was my first time starting a blogathon and you all made it a success! Thank you all and Merry Christmas!




(P.S. Anybody who gets the slight weirdness/randomness of the semi-quote in my last statement gets bonus points)

My heart wants to sing every song it hears

I think I sort of lost focus on my whole list project. You see, it all started out as this thing where I'd make a list every month. Just one post. Just one list. And then, when I started listing out my favorite dancers and linking to all my favorite dances, it occurred to me that no one would have the time or the inclination to watch all of those dances all at once, but they might watch them if I posted one post on each dancer. Anyway, then it sort of worked its way into this huge project where I was posting practically every day, and at least every week on these lists and I think I may have gotten a bit carried away. I like lists. I think lists are fun. I like reading them and I enjoy writing them. The whole point of this was to take the memes of Favorite Actors and Favorite Actresses one step farther and start more lists. I had hoped that maybe other bloggers would participate and then we could be listing our favorites and it would be barrels of fun.

So, I think I'm going to go back to my original intent. I'm going to write a list a month and let it go at that. Every now and again, I may move back into multiple postings and, at that point, I'll let you know. But I think that, for the most part, I'd like to just stick with lists. So, here is my list for the month of June:

Favorite female singers in movies:

20. Irene Dunne
Favorite song: "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes" from Roberta


19. Jane Powell
Favorite song: "Goin' Cotin'" from Seven Brides for Seven Brothers


18. Shirley Jones
Favorite song: "Many A New Day" from Oklahoma


17. Kathryn Grayson
Favorite song: "I Hate Men" from Kiss Me Kate


16. Ann Blyth
Favorite song: "Baubles, Bangles, and Beads" from Kismet (song clip starts at 1:42)


15. June Allyson
Favorite song: "Thou Swell" from Words and Music


14. Judy Garland
Favorite song: "Mr. Monotony" from Easter Parade


13. Frances Langford
Favorite song: "Over There" from Yankee Doodle Dandy

12. Marni Nixon
Favorite songs: "I Feel Pretty" from West Side Story and "I Could Have Danced All Night" from My Fair Lady


11. Doris Day
Favorite song: "The Deadwood Stage" from Calamity Jane


10. Dolores Gray

Favorite song: "Not Since Ninevah" from Kismet (song clip starts at 2:11)
I love the way Dolores Gray belts. She has an awesome voice that is powerful and sultry at the same time. I'd like to see her in more films but I've only seen in her Kismet and It's Always Fair Weather. Any recommendations?


9. Rosemary Clooney
Favorite song: "Love, You Didn't Do Right By Me" from White Christmas


6. Annette Funicello
Favorite songs: "Strummin' Song" from The Horsemasters, "I Can't Do The Sum" from Babes In Toyland, and "I Think You Think" from Beach Blanket Bingo


7. Gloria de Haven

Favorite song: "My Mother Told Me" from Two Girls and a Sailor


6. Marilyn Monroe
Favorite songs: "Lazy" from There's No Business Like Show Business, "I Wanna Be Loved By You" from Some Like It Hot, "I'm Through With Love" from Some Like It Hot and... well, basically, I love her, so pretty much every song.

5. Ginger Rogers
Favorite songs: "I'm Putting All My Eggs In One Basket" from Follow the Fleet, "Let Yourself Go" from Follow the Fleet, "We're In The Money" from The Gold Diggers of 1933


4. Ann Miller

Favorite songs: "Prehistoric Man" from On The Town, "Too Darn Hot" from Kiss Me Kate (really weird vid, sorry! but the audio is good), and "Shakin' the Blues Away" from Easter Parade.


3. Lena Horne
Favorite songs: "Honeysuckle Rose" from Thousands Cheer and "Paper Doll" from Two Girls and a Sailor (I'm sorry that I have no YouTube vids to share. I couldn't find either of these online)


2. Fran Jeffries

Favorite songs: "Meglio Stasera" from The Pink Panther and "Sex and the Single Girl" from Sex and the Single Girl


1. Julie Andrews


Favorite songs: "I Have Confidence" from Sound of Music, "Feed the Birds (Tuppence a Bag)" from Mary Poppins, and "Thoroughly Modern Millie" from Thoroughly Modern Millie

Proving that the best things happen while you dance...

And now, for my completed list of favorite dancing couples...

1. Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers
Favorite dance: impossible to answer
2. Gene Kelly and Cyd Charisse
Favorite dance: the hoofer and the vixen from "Broadway Melody" in Singin' in the Rain
3. Danny Kaye and Vera Ellen
Favorite dance: "The Best Things Happen While You're Dancing" from White Christmas
4. Cyd Charisse and Ricardo Montalban
Favorite dance: "Dark Duet" from On An Island With You
5. Fred Astaire and Cyd Charisse
Favorite dance: "Dancing in the Dark" from The Band Wagon
6. Fred Astaire and Rita Hayworth
Favorite dance: "So Near, And Yet So Far" from You'll Never Get Rich
7. Vera Ellen and John Brascia
Favorite dance: "Abraham" from White Christmas
8. Bob Fosse and Carol Haney
Favorite dance: "From This Moment On" from Kiss Me Kate
9. Donald O'Connor and Mitzi Gaynor
Favorite dance: "It's Delovely" from Anything Goes
10. Shirley Temple and Bill Bojangles Robinson
Favorite dance: dance from The Littlest Rebel

Cyd Charisse and John Brascia
Favorite dance: "Frankie and Johnny" from Meet Me In Las Vegas
Ann Miller and Tommy Rall
Favorite dance: "Why Can't You Behave" from Kiss Me Kate
Fred Astaire and Jane Powell
Favorite dance: "How Could You Believe Me" from Royal Wedding
Gene Kelly and Rita Hayworth
Favorite dance: "Put Me To The Test" from Cover Girl
Donald O'Connor and Vera Ellen
Favorite dance: "Something to Dance About" from Call Me Madam


Thank you everyone for following with this list of dancers! I had a lot of fun making it! I'm going to start a new list in June. My schedule has been pretty darn crazy lately so I'm not sure if I'll be able to do the daily posts as much. It's been burning me out a bit. I hope no one minds me packing a few people into one post, like I did with this list. That worked out rather well and made the whole thing less stressful and more fun! So, that's what I'm planning to do with this coming list. I can't believe June is almost here already! It's all going by so fast! This is the first time I've been without school to sort of mile-mark the year for me. I feel as if I'm still in February or something. It's weird. Anyway, I hope everyone has a marvelous Memorial Day!

You're easy to dance with

The complete list of my favorite dancing ladies! Click on the link to read each individual entry.

1. Cyd Charisse
Favorite dances: "Frankie and Johnny" from Meet Me In Las Vegas, "Broadway Melody (The Hoofer and the Vixen)" from Singin' in the Rain, "Dancing in the Dark" from The Band Wagon, and "All of You (Reprise)" from Silk Stockings

2. Ginger Rogers
Favorite dances: "Let Yourself Go" from Follow the Fleet, "Pick Yourself Up" from Swing Time, "Hard To Handle" from Roberta, "The Carioca" from Flying Down to Rio, and "Night and Day" from The Gay Divorcee

3. Ann Miller
Favorite dances: "Too Darn Hot" from Kiss Me Kate, "Why Can't You Behave?" from Kiss Me Kate, "Prehistoric Man" from On the Town, and "Shakin' the Blues Away" from Easter Parade

4. Vera-Ellen
Favorite dance: "Minstrel Number" from White Christmas

5. Jane Powell
Favorite dance: "How Could You Believe Me" from Royal Wedding

6. Rita Moreno
Favorite dance: "America" from West Side Story

7. Julie Andrews
Favorite dance: "Elevator Dance" from Thoroughly Modern Millie

8. Mary Tyler Moore
Favorite dance: "Elevator Dance" from Thoroughly Modern Millie

9. Shirley Temple
Favorite dance: "On Account-a I Love You" from Baby, Take A Bow

10. Leslie Caron
Favorite dance: "An American in Paris Ballet" from An American in Paris

11. Ruby Keeler
Favorite dance: "42nd Street" from 42nd Street

12. Carol Haney
Favorite dance: "Steam Heat" from Pajama Game

13. Rita Hayworth
Favorite dance: tap duet from You'll Never Get Rich

14. June Allyson
Favorite dance: "The Young Man With A Horn" from Two Girls and a Sailor

15. Gwen Verdon
Favorite dance: "Who's Got The Pain?" from Damn Yankees

I think you show real tendency to terpsichorean excellence

First off, I'd like to give away the answer to the quote of the week. Sadly, nobody guessed it. The answer was Percy Blakeney in The Scarlet Pimpernel. I highly recommend this movie. It's really funny. Leslie Howard is hilarious in it and has Percy's character down to a T (to a tee?). Delightful!



As promised, here is my complete list of favorite male dancers. I'm linking to the posts so if you click on their names, you can read more about them and watch videos - in case you haven't done that yet and would like to. Thank you everyone for reading this list! I'd love to hear about your favorite dancers. I know I left a few out and I'd be curious to see what order you'd put each one in. But at any rate, here's mine:

1. Fred Astaire
Favorite solos: "Let's Say It With Firecrackers," from Holiday Inn "Don't Let It Bother You," from The Gay Divorcee and "The Hat Rack Dance" from Royal Wedding.
Favorite ever dance: "Pick Yourself Up" from Swing Time.

2. Gene Kelly
Favorite solos: "Singin' in the Rain," from Singin' in the Rain, "You Wonderful You" from Summer Stock and "Tra-La-La" from An American in Paris.
Favorite ever dance: The "Broadway Melody" jazz ballet from Singin' in the Rain

3. Bob Fosse
Favorite dances: "From This Moment On" from Kiss Me Kate, "Who's Got the Pain" from Damn Yankees, and his duet with Tommy Rall in My Sister Eileen.

4. Danny Kaye
Favorite dance: "The Best Things Happen While You're Dancing from White Christmas

5. Tommy Rall
Favorite dance: "Bless Yore Beautiful Hide" (barn dance) in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers

6. Ricardo Montalban
Favorite dance: "Dark Duet" from On An Island With You

7. Donald O'Connor
Favorite dance: "Make 'Em Laugh" from Singin' in the Rain

8. Bobby Van
Favorite dance: "Take Me To Broadway" from Small Town Girl

9. John Brascia
Favorite dance: "Frankie and Johnny" from Meet Me In Las Vegas

10. Dick van Dyke
Favorite dance: "Jolly Holiday" (the penguin dance) from Mary Poppins

11. George Murphy
Favorite dance: "We Should Be Together" from Little Miss Broadway

12. Russ Tamblyn
Favorite dance: "Dance at the Gym" from West Side Story

13. Buddy Ebsen
Favorite dance: "The Codfish Ball" from Captain January

14. Bill "Bojangles" Robinson
Favorite dance: the stair dance from The Little Colonel

15. Bert May
Favorite dance: "Get Happy" from Summer Stock



So, what did you think? Was this list entertaining? How did the daily posting thing work for you? You can be honest. I mean, please don't tell me it was the most boring thing you've ever read and you were sick and tired of hearing from me. But, if you liked it, please let me know. I think I gauge the success by the amount of positive responses I get. Basically, I'm wondering if I should do it again. I was planning on doing a list of top female dancers. Would you like to have another series of posts or do you prefer a tidy, short-and-sweet read? Let me know! And thank you!

You're a perfect lady. You're a regular guy. We should be together, you and I!

In January, I stated that I would like to a different list of favorites every month. I've already done Favorite Actresses and Favorite Actors. Now, in honor of February and Valentine's Day, I'd like to do Favorite Couples! I have a few disclaimers before I begin, however. First, there is a difference between a couple and a dance team. I'm specifically avoiding dance partners because I think they deserve a list all their own. So, these pairs are pairs because I like the way their chemistry while acting, sans dance (even if they happen to dance together, as is the case with #2). Also, I've carefully avoided doubling up on some actors. Each performer is listed only once (which is why you'll see no Cary Grant and Katharine Hepburn, who I do actually like, but I prefer the Cary Grant pairing I have below). Instead of having ninth and tenth couples, I have two honorary mentions. That is, two pairings that I love that have only been paired together once. I'm also including the films in which I like the performers' chemistry best; in the first three choices, I'm including two films. If you like this list or this idea, please feel free to consider yourself tagged in this listing process. I'd love to see what couples you like!

#1. William Powell and Myrna Loy
The Thin Man and I Love You Again


#2. Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers
Swing Time and Roberta


#3. Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland
The Adventures of Robin Hood and Captain Blood


#4. Cary Grant and Irene Dunne
The Awful Truth


#5. Gene Kelly and Kathryn Grayson
Thousands Cheer


#6. Ruby Keeler and Dick Powell
Footlight Parade


#7. Bobby Darin and Sandra Dee
That Funny Feeling


#8. Frank Sinatra and Betty Garrett
On the Town


Honorary Mentions:
#9. William Holden and Judy Holliday in Born Yesterday


#1o. Claudette Colbert and Don Ameche in Midnight




P.S. I'd like to thank Noir Girl for picking up the movie review chain! I can't wait to read her review!
P.P.S. Don't forget to vote on the poll! There are only two votes so far, which is making the competition a very slow neck-and-neck race.
P.P.P.S. Happy Valentine's Day!! I've picked one of my favorite onscreen kisses as a banner for the occasion!
P.P.P.P.S. (I promise, this is the last one!) Because it relates to the list and to the day, I'm going to do some shameless self-promotion and post one of my videos. I hope you like it! It features my top three couples! The song is written by and performed by the incomparable Emma Wallace of Emma's Music

A pretty girl is like a melody

When I wrote my list of favorite 20 actors, I had so much fun that I couldn't wait to make a list of 20 favorite actresses. And then I realized that I should stretch out the fun and let it last all year long! So, the new plan is: every month I'll feature a new list. If you like the list, then please feel free to consider yourself tagged and make your own. So below is a list of my favorite 20 actresses and my favorite of their roles. Enjoy!

Oh, and a brief disclaimer: This aren't really in any particular order. Basically, the top ones are my favorites and the bottom ones are slightly less favorite. The top 5 or 6 are my tip-top favorites (I'm numbering them so that I can keep track of how many I have).

(Also, a second brief disclaimer: Grace Kelly is not on my list, despite the photograph of her here for the simple and shameful reason that I've only seen her in 1.5 movies, same goes for Barbara Stanwyck, who I've only seen in 1 movie. I plan to remedy the situation in each, I promise!)

1. Audrey Hepburn
Funny Face and My Fair Lady


2. Ginger Rogers
Roberta and Monkey Business


3. Myrna Loy
The Thin Man and Libeled Lady


4. Claudette Colbert
Midnight and It Happened One Night


5. Cyd Charisse
The Band Wagon and Silk Stockings


6. Olivia de Havilland
The Adventures of Robin Hood and Captain Blood


7. Kathryn Grayson
Thousands Cheer and Kiss Me Kate


8. Judy Holliday
Born Yesterday and It Should Happen to You


9. Marilyn Monroe
The Seven Year Itch



10. Julie Andrews
Mary Poppins


11. Irene Dunne
The Awful Truth


13. Donna Reed
It's A Wonderful Life


14. Sandra Dee
That Funny Feeling


15. June Allyson
Two Girls and a Sailor



16. Katharine Hepburn
Bringing Up Baby


17. Shirley Temple (okay, I know she's little, but I love her!)
Little Miss Broadway


18. Ava Gardner
One Touch of Venus


19. Natalie Wood
The Great Race
20. Ruby Keeler
Footlight Parade