Team Experience has been celebrating Esther Williams Centennial with a three part miniseries. Previously we featured Thrill of a Romance and Neptune's Daughter.
by Cláudio Alves
In some ways, Million Dollar Mermaid is both the quintessential Esther Williams movie and a departure in the screen siren's career. During the 1940s, Williams achieved cinematic stardom through self-knowing exercises in romantic silliness and musical extravagance, lighthearted productions that wore their escapist possibilities as a badge of honor. One can often feel the screenwriter's strain, trying to shoe-horn swimming scenes in stories that could function just as well without them. Even the baseball comedy Take Me Out to the Ball Game had to be retrofitted into having an out-of-place pool number where Williams gets to lip-sync while swimming under the gaze of Busby Berkeley's camera. Consequentially, MGM never presented Williams as a great dramatic actress, preferring to exhalt her natural charms, radiant presence,...
by Cláudio Alves
In some ways, Million Dollar Mermaid is both the quintessential Esther Williams movie and a departure in the screen siren's career. During the 1940s, Williams achieved cinematic stardom through self-knowing exercises in romantic silliness and musical extravagance, lighthearted productions that wore their escapist possibilities as a badge of honor. One can often feel the screenwriter's strain, trying to shoe-horn swimming scenes in stories that could function just as well without them. Even the baseball comedy Take Me Out to the Ball Game had to be retrofitted into having an out-of-place pool number where Williams gets to lip-sync while swimming under the gaze of Busby Berkeley's camera. Consequentially, MGM never presented Williams as a great dramatic actress, preferring to exhalt her natural charms, radiant presence,...
- 8/11/2021
- by Cláudio Alves
- FilmExperience
Australia, 1957. Esther William's turn as Australian swimming legend Annette Kellerman has made it out here to the segregated suburbs. From polio to the pool, Kellerman is a foundational figure in synchronised swimming. Her musical biopic Million Dollar Mermaid is the inspiration for the title. Even adjusting for inflation there's some disparity.
Two Bob Mermaid was Darlene Johnson's debut short. Carrie Prosser, who plays protagonist Koorine, and Tessa Leahy, who plays her mother, were similarly new. The story is a simple one, but bound up in the Australian aboriginal experience. In a film that's not shy in its depiction of racist language and attitudes, the consequences of Koorine's ability to pass as white are explored.
This is uncomfortable viewing. Not just because of the language, nor the era. That 1957 is only slightly more than half again as far as 1996 is from today is a different kind of discomfort. There are.
Two Bob Mermaid was Darlene Johnson's debut short. Carrie Prosser, who plays protagonist Koorine, and Tessa Leahy, who plays her mother, were similarly new. The story is a simple one, but bound up in the Australian aboriginal experience. In a film that's not shy in its depiction of racist language and attitudes, the consequences of Koorine's ability to pass as white are explored.
This is uncomfortable viewing. Not just because of the language, nor the era. That 1957 is only slightly more than half again as far as 1996 is from today is a different kind of discomfort. There are.
- 4/15/2021
- by Andrew Robertson
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Rotten Tomatoes has introduced its new archival hub, which will house and preserve editorial content related to classic and historic film. The staff of the Rt Archives has worked to uncover lost and incomplete films from the silent and early sound era, as well as create Tomatometer scores for older films, resurface forgotten or shuttered press outlets, and give recognition to pioneering film critics. What did the critics say about your favorites when they were brand new? Take a deep dive into the Rt Archives and find out.
Assets include writings of famed film critic Pauline Kael, whose biting insights on film are often hard to find on the internet, the story of pioneering aquatic star Annette Kellerman, what critics said about the world’s first feature-length film “The Story of the Kelly Gang” from 1906, and the story of the Lon Chaney monster that inspired Jennifer Kent’s cult classic “The Babadook.
Assets include writings of famed film critic Pauline Kael, whose biting insights on film are often hard to find on the internet, the story of pioneering aquatic star Annette Kellerman, what critics said about the world’s first feature-length film “The Story of the Kelly Gang” from 1906, and the story of the Lon Chaney monster that inspired Jennifer Kent’s cult classic “The Babadook.
- 11/21/2020
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
“Who cares what a lot of females wear on the beach, as long as I can keep you in a one-piece bathing suit? Baby, you’re a swimmer. You belong in the water. Wet, you’re terrific. Dry, you’re just a nice girl who ought to settle down and get married.”
Esther Williams in Million Dollar Mermaid (1952) is available on Blu-ray From Warner Archive. Ordering information can be found Here
James Sullivan works the carny circuit, promoting the likes of a boxing kangaroo or grappling bear. Then the wheeler-dealer meets a million-dollar idea: beautiful swimming champ Annette Kellerman. She’ll churn through a River Thames PR stunt. Cause a bathing-suit scandal among Boston bluebloods. Headline New York’s Hippodrome. And become a Hollywood swimsation as cameras roll and Rin Tin Tin looks on. Glamorous, amphibious Esther Williams portrays the real-life aquatic star in a splashy biopic costarring Victor Mature...
Esther Williams in Million Dollar Mermaid (1952) is available on Blu-ray From Warner Archive. Ordering information can be found Here
James Sullivan works the carny circuit, promoting the likes of a boxing kangaroo or grappling bear. Then the wheeler-dealer meets a million-dollar idea: beautiful swimming champ Annette Kellerman. She’ll churn through a River Thames PR stunt. Cause a bathing-suit scandal among Boston bluebloods. Headline New York’s Hippodrome. And become a Hollywood swimsation as cameras roll and Rin Tin Tin looks on. Glamorous, amphibious Esther Williams portrays the real-life aquatic star in a splashy biopic costarring Victor Mature...
- 7/14/2020
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
In today’s TV news roundup, Courteney Cox and Lisa Kudrow are among the celebrity contestants on “25 Words or Less.” Also, Ruby Rose, Sarah Snook and Dacre Montgomery will be honored at the Australian in Film Awards.
Castings
Fox TV announced Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Chelsea Handler, Jane Lynch and Rick Fox are among the celebrity contestants to appear on new game show “25 Words or Less.“ The half-hour game show is produced by Dino Bones Prods. and executive produced by Kudrow, Dan Bucatinsky, Mary McCormack, Michael Morris, Michael Canter (who also showruns) and Bruce Sterten. Two teams comprised of celebrities and civilians are pitted against each other as they compete to see who will win the top prize of $10,000. Hosted by Meredith Vieira, “25 Words or Less” will debut Sept. 16.
Renewals
Food Network has renewed “Delicious Miss Brown” for a 13-episode second season. Starring Kardea Brown, the daytime series, shot on-location in South Carolina,...
Castings
Fox TV announced Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Chelsea Handler, Jane Lynch and Rick Fox are among the celebrity contestants to appear on new game show “25 Words or Less.“ The half-hour game show is produced by Dino Bones Prods. and executive produced by Kudrow, Dan Bucatinsky, Mary McCormack, Michael Morris, Michael Canter (who also showruns) and Bruce Sterten. Two teams comprised of celebrities and civilians are pitted against each other as they compete to see who will win the top prize of $10,000. Hosted by Meredith Vieira, “25 Words or Less” will debut Sept. 16.
Renewals
Food Network has renewed “Delicious Miss Brown” for a 13-episode second season. Starring Kardea Brown, the daytime series, shot on-location in South Carolina,...
- 9/11/2019
- by BreAnna Bell
- Variety Film + TV
Ruby Rose.
Ruby Rose, Sarah Snook, Dacre Montgomery, Anthony Maras and Bill Draper are among those who will be honoured at the 2019 Australians in Film (AiF) Awards, to be held in La in October.
Rose, who plays the lead CW’s upcoming series Batwoman, will be presented with the Create Nsw Annette Kellerman Award, which recognises a screen industry figure who has been a trailblazer for Australian women. Previous winners of the award, introduced in 2016, include Hannah Gadsby, Kate Dennis and Rebel Wilson.
Rose said: “I am so proud to receive this award. As an Australian woman who also had to carve her own path to get to where I am today, I can only imagine the barriers Annette Kellerman had to break to accomplish what she did. Thank you to AiF for this incredible honor.”
Actors Snook and Montgomery and director Maras will each be honoured with the Screen Australian Breakthrough Award,...
Ruby Rose, Sarah Snook, Dacre Montgomery, Anthony Maras and Bill Draper are among those who will be honoured at the 2019 Australians in Film (AiF) Awards, to be held in La in October.
Rose, who plays the lead CW’s upcoming series Batwoman, will be presented with the Create Nsw Annette Kellerman Award, which recognises a screen industry figure who has been a trailblazer for Australian women. Previous winners of the award, introduced in 2016, include Hannah Gadsby, Kate Dennis and Rebel Wilson.
Rose said: “I am so proud to receive this award. As an Australian woman who also had to carve her own path to get to where I am today, I can only imagine the barriers Annette Kellerman had to break to accomplish what she did. Thank you to AiF for this incredible honor.”
Actors Snook and Montgomery and director Maras will each be honoured with the Screen Australian Breakthrough Award,...
- 9/10/2019
- by jkeast
- IF.com.au
Amy Adams (Photo: Gage Skidmore via Flickr.)
Monica Lewinsky, actress/producer Amy Adams, producer, director and writer Simon Kinberg and Ausfilm CEO Debra Richards will hand out the prizes at Australians in Film’s 7th annual awards gala in Los Angeles.
Supporting AiF’s mission to help introduce Australian talent into the international market and to provide educational and career development programs, the awards will be doled out at Paramount Pictures Studio at 6 pm on October 24.
The fundraising event will be hosted by actor, producer, director and writer Josh Lawson, who was nominated for an Academy Award this year along with director Derin Seale for their short film The Eleven O’Clock, which he starred in, wrote and produced.
In her capacity as a social activist and Vanity Fair contributing editor, Lewinsky will present Hannah Gadsby with the Create Nsw Annette Kellerman Award. In her Netflix special Nanette Gadsby explored...
Monica Lewinsky, actress/producer Amy Adams, producer, director and writer Simon Kinberg and Ausfilm CEO Debra Richards will hand out the prizes at Australians in Film’s 7th annual awards gala in Los Angeles.
Supporting AiF’s mission to help introduce Australian talent into the international market and to provide educational and career development programs, the awards will be doled out at Paramount Pictures Studio at 6 pm on October 24.
The fundraising event will be hosted by actor, producer, director and writer Josh Lawson, who was nominated for an Academy Award this year along with director Derin Seale for their short film The Eleven O’Clock, which he starred in, wrote and produced.
In her capacity as a social activist and Vanity Fair contributing editor, Lewinsky will present Hannah Gadsby with the Create Nsw Annette Kellerman Award. In her Netflix special Nanette Gadsby explored...
- 10/16/2018
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
Hannah Gadsby.
Damon Herriman, Hannah Gadsby, Keiynan Lonsdale and Eliza Scanlen are among those to be honoured at the upcoming in Australians in Film (AiF) Awards, to be held La in October.
Herriman, who was recently cast as Charles Manson in Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon A Time in Hollywood, will receive the Qantas Orry-Kelly Award, which celebrates an Australian who has contributed to the national identity with their body of work and has created opportunities/inspiration for other Aussies abraod.
Damon Herriman.
Previous recipients include Tim Minchin, film executive Greg Basser, producer Bruna Papandrea, directors Baz Luhrmann and John Polson, and filmmaking collective, Blue-Tongue Films.
Herriman said: “I’m incredibly humbled to be the recipient of the 2018 Qantas Orry-Kelly Award. When I look at the previous recipients I feel even more so. Thank you to Australians in Film for this wonderful honour. Having experienced Los Angeles before AiF, I...
Damon Herriman, Hannah Gadsby, Keiynan Lonsdale and Eliza Scanlen are among those to be honoured at the upcoming in Australians in Film (AiF) Awards, to be held La in October.
Herriman, who was recently cast as Charles Manson in Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon A Time in Hollywood, will receive the Qantas Orry-Kelly Award, which celebrates an Australian who has contributed to the national identity with their body of work and has created opportunities/inspiration for other Aussies abraod.
Damon Herriman.
Previous recipients include Tim Minchin, film executive Greg Basser, producer Bruna Papandrea, directors Baz Luhrmann and John Polson, and filmmaking collective, Blue-Tongue Films.
Herriman said: “I’m incredibly humbled to be the recipient of the 2018 Qantas Orry-Kelly Award. When I look at the previous recipients I feel even more so. Thank you to Australians in Film for this wonderful honour. Having experienced Los Angeles before AiF, I...
- 9/26/2018
- by jkeast
- IF.com.au
Courtney Gibson..
Courtney Gibson has departed her role as Screen Nsw CEO ahead of the establishment of Create Nsw; a new agency that will merge Screen Nsw and Arts Nsw.
In a statement, Deputy Secretary, Justice Services, Arts & Culture, Samantha Torres said Gibson had led the agency through a period of .remarkable growth and renewal. and had achieved a great deal for the sector.
This included tripling project funding available for local and international production with introduction of the $20 million Made in Nsw fund, and increasing Nsw.s share of Aussie TV drama and features from 39 per cent in 2014-15, to 55 per cent in 2015-16 - with "an even higher share" expected in 2016-17, she said.
.Under Courtney.s leadership Screen Nsw has made unparalleled strides towards full gender equity with dramatic increases in the number of roles accorded female key creatives, and driven the creation of initiatives such as...
Courtney Gibson has departed her role as Screen Nsw CEO ahead of the establishment of Create Nsw; a new agency that will merge Screen Nsw and Arts Nsw.
In a statement, Deputy Secretary, Justice Services, Arts & Culture, Samantha Torres said Gibson had led the agency through a period of .remarkable growth and renewal. and had achieved a great deal for the sector.
This included tripling project funding available for local and international production with introduction of the $20 million Made in Nsw fund, and increasing Nsw.s share of Aussie TV drama and features from 39 per cent in 2014-15, to 55 per cent in 2015-16 - with "an even higher share" expected in 2016-17, she said.
.Under Courtney.s leadership Screen Nsw has made unparalleled strides towards full gender equity with dramatic increases in the number of roles accorded female key creatives, and driven the creation of initiatives such as...
- 1/11/2017
- by Jackie Keast
- IF.com.au
Grant Page accepts the Screen Nsw Award from George Miller..
Screen Nsw has gifted its inaugural annual award to legendary stuntman Grant Page, who has coordinated stunts for the likes of Mel Gibson and Jackie Chan.
Page was presented the $10,000 award, designed to .honour an individual to whom both screen audiences and the industry owe a significant debt., by George Miller. The director first worked with Page on the original Mad Max, as well as Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome.
.Working, under fierce and extraordinary circumstances, on the first Mad Max,.I came to know the calibre of Grant Page. A masterful and innovative stuntman, he has a deep and elegant intelligence. He taught me a lot about filmmaking but even more about life. Inspirations which have sustained me ever since. Grant is heroic in every sense of the word,. said Miller.
Courtney Gibson, CEO of Screen Nsw, said: .When the director yells .action. on set,...
Screen Nsw has gifted its inaugural annual award to legendary stuntman Grant Page, who has coordinated stunts for the likes of Mel Gibson and Jackie Chan.
Page was presented the $10,000 award, designed to .honour an individual to whom both screen audiences and the industry owe a significant debt., by George Miller. The director first worked with Page on the original Mad Max, as well as Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome.
.Working, under fierce and extraordinary circumstances, on the first Mad Max,.I came to know the calibre of Grant Page. A masterful and innovative stuntman, he has a deep and elegant intelligence. He taught me a lot about filmmaking but even more about life. Inspirations which have sustained me ever since. Grant is heroic in every sense of the word,. said Miller.
Courtney Gibson, CEO of Screen Nsw, said: .When the director yells .action. on set,...
- 12/5/2016
- by Inside Film Correspondent
- IF.com.au
Rebel Wilson.
Rebel Wilson is set to receive the inaugural Screen Nsw Annette Kellerman Award.
Kellerman was born in Marrickville, Sydney in 1887, learning to swim as a teen in order to regain the use of her legs, having suffered from rickets..
She became an endurance swimmer and diver, then became a vaudeville star before embarking on a career in Hollywood, where she starred in The Mermaid (1911), A Daughter of the Gods (1916), Queen of the Sea (1918) and Venus of the South Sea (1924)..
Esther Williams portrayed Kellerman in the biopic Million Dollar Mermaid in 1952. Kellerman died in 1975, aged 89.
The new award will be presented annually by Screen Nsw, in a partnership with Australians In Films and Vogue Australia, to "a screen industry figure who has been a pioneering role model for Australian women."
.Rebel Wilson's blazed her own unique trail in Hollywood and.—.like Annette Kellerman before her.—.she's a complete original; a superstar without peer,...
Rebel Wilson is set to receive the inaugural Screen Nsw Annette Kellerman Award.
Kellerman was born in Marrickville, Sydney in 1887, learning to swim as a teen in order to regain the use of her legs, having suffered from rickets..
She became an endurance swimmer and diver, then became a vaudeville star before embarking on a career in Hollywood, where she starred in The Mermaid (1911), A Daughter of the Gods (1916), Queen of the Sea (1918) and Venus of the South Sea (1924)..
Esther Williams portrayed Kellerman in the biopic Million Dollar Mermaid in 1952. Kellerman died in 1975, aged 89.
The new award will be presented annually by Screen Nsw, in a partnership with Australians In Films and Vogue Australia, to "a screen industry figure who has been a pioneering role model for Australian women."
.Rebel Wilson's blazed her own unique trail in Hollywood and.—.like Annette Kellerman before her.—.she's a complete original; a superstar without peer,...
- 10/7/2016
- by Staff Writer
- IF.com.au
Keep up with the glitzy awards world with our weekly Awards Roundup column.
– Diane Keaton will receive the 45th American Film Institute Life Achievement Award, its highest honor for a career in film. Keaton will receive the award at a gala tribute on June 8, 2017 in Los Angeles.
“Diane Keaton is one of the most beloved leading ladies of American Film,” Howard Stringer, Chair of the AFI Board of Trustees, said in a statement. “Peerless in her mastery of both comedy and drama, she has won the world’s heart time and again by creating characters of both great strength and vulnerability. Her career as a director and producer is even further evidence of her passion for the art form and her seemingly boundless talents.”
Recent winners of the award include Mel Brooks, Jane Fonda, Morgan Freeman, Shirley MacLaine, Steve Martin and Mike Nichols.
Read More: Awards Roundup: Academy Names Nicholl Fellows,...
– Diane Keaton will receive the 45th American Film Institute Life Achievement Award, its highest honor for a career in film. Keaton will receive the award at a gala tribute on June 8, 2017 in Los Angeles.
“Diane Keaton is one of the most beloved leading ladies of American Film,” Howard Stringer, Chair of the AFI Board of Trustees, said in a statement. “Peerless in her mastery of both comedy and drama, she has won the world’s heart time and again by creating characters of both great strength and vulnerability. Her career as a director and producer is even further evidence of her passion for the art form and her seemingly boundless talents.”
Recent winners of the award include Mel Brooks, Jane Fonda, Morgan Freeman, Shirley MacLaine, Steve Martin and Mike Nichols.
Read More: Awards Roundup: Academy Names Nicholl Fellows,...
- 10/6/2016
- by Graham Winfrey
- Indiewire
Australians in Film (AiF) has announced the opening of a bespoke hub for the Australian film-making community in Los Angeles, offering a multi-purpose, communal workspace for its industry members to conduct business, collaborate and network..
The space is named .Charlie.s. after Charlie Chaplin and is located at the historic Raleigh Studio in Hollywood, where Chaplin and Douglas Fairbanks made films and frequently played cards. .Charlie.s. has been co-funded by Screen Queensland, Screen Nsw, Aftrs and Film Victoria. . AiF chairman Simonne Overend said it was an essential part of AiF.s mission to provide career opportunities and nurture a vibrant community for Australians working in Los Angeles.. ..Charlie.s. provides a supportive workspace for both up-and-coming and established Australian content creators to cultivate their ideas in an environment that is inspiring and encouraging. AiF has provided a sense of community and a home-away-from home for over a decade through...
The space is named .Charlie.s. after Charlie Chaplin and is located at the historic Raleigh Studio in Hollywood, where Chaplin and Douglas Fairbanks made films and frequently played cards. .Charlie.s. has been co-funded by Screen Queensland, Screen Nsw, Aftrs and Film Victoria. . AiF chairman Simonne Overend said it was an essential part of AiF.s mission to provide career opportunities and nurture a vibrant community for Australians working in Los Angeles.. ..Charlie.s. provides a supportive workspace for both up-and-coming and established Australian content creators to cultivate their ideas in an environment that is inspiring and encouraging. AiF has provided a sense of community and a home-away-from home for over a decade through...
- 6/17/2016
- by Staff Writer
- IF.com.au
'Sorrell and Son' with H.B. Warner and Alice Joyce. 'Sorrell and Son' 1927 movie: Long thought lost, surprisingly effective father-love melodrama stars a superlative H.B. Warner Partially shot on location in England and produced independently by director Herbert Brenon at Joseph M. Schenck's United Artists, the 1927 Sorrell and Son is a skillful melodrama about paternal devotion in the face of both personal and social adversity. This long-thought-lost version of Warwick Deeping's 1925 bestseller benefits greatly from the veteran Brenon's assured direction, deservedly shortlisted in the first year of the Academy Awards.* Crucial to the film's effectiveness, however, is the portrayal of its central character, a war-scarred Englishman who sacrifices it all for the happiness of his son. Luckily, the London-born H.B. Warner, best remembered for playing Jesus Christ in another 1927 release, Cecil B. DeMille's The King of Kings, is the embodiment of honesty, selflessness, and devotion. Less is...
- 10/9/2015
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
Rod Taylor dead at 84: Actor best known for 'The Time Machine' and 'The Birds' Rod Taylor, best remembered for the early 1960s movies The Time Machine and The Birds, and for his supporting role as Winston Churchill in Quentin Tarantino's international hit Inglourious Basterds, has died. Taylor suffered a heart attack at his Los Angeles home earlier this morning (January 8, 2015). Born on January 11, 1930, in Sydney, he would have turned 85 on Sunday. Based on H.G. Wells' classic 1895 sci-fi novel, The Time Machine stars Rod Taylor as a H. George Wells, an inventor who comes up with an intricate chair that allows him to travel across time. (In the novel, the Victorian protagonist is referred to simply as the "Time Traveller.") After experiencing World War I and World War II, Wells decides to fast forward to the distant future, ultimately arriving at a place where humankind has been split...
- 1/9/2015
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
Tom Hanks recently amazed audiences in the Academy Award-nominated Captain Phillips, and it was 30 years ago that the actor's first major movie set sail. Splash hit the big screen on March 9, 1984. Starring Hanks and Daryl Hannah, this fishy romantic comedy tells the tale of a man who meets an enchanting mermaid named Madison during his childhood. Years later, Madison (Hannah) seeks out Hanks's character, Allen, on the mean and dry streets of NYC. Allen falls for Madison and they become entangled in a series of adorable misunderstandings. If you thought relationships were hard, try dating a woman who is fluent...
- 3/9/2014
- by Kelli Bender
- PEOPLE.com
By Mark Pinkert
Contributor
* * *
This is the third article in a three-part series.
Though many Academy Award Best Picture nominees contain—or are predominantly about—sex and relationships, very few have been about sex issues in law and politics. In recent years there has been Milk (2008), the biopic of Harvey Milk, a California politician and gay rights activist, and otherwise not much else. Even in the late 1980s and early 1990s, when the AIDS epidemic was a hot button issue, few films of this genre made it to the Best Picture ticket (remember, Philadelphia was snubbed from the category in 1993). Sexual issues topics, though, have been more popular within the documentary medium: there was Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt (1989), which won for Best Documentary, and which was the first AIDS-related film to win an Oscar, the The Times of Harvey Milk (1984), which also won Best Documentary, and How to Survive a Plague...
Contributor
* * *
This is the third article in a three-part series.
Though many Academy Award Best Picture nominees contain—or are predominantly about—sex and relationships, very few have been about sex issues in law and politics. In recent years there has been Milk (2008), the biopic of Harvey Milk, a California politician and gay rights activist, and otherwise not much else. Even in the late 1980s and early 1990s, when the AIDS epidemic was a hot button issue, few films of this genre made it to the Best Picture ticket (remember, Philadelphia was snubbed from the category in 1993). Sexual issues topics, though, have been more popular within the documentary medium: there was Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt (1989), which won for Best Documentary, and which was the first AIDS-related film to win an Oscar, the The Times of Harvey Milk (1984), which also won Best Documentary, and How to Survive a Plague...
- 12/11/2013
- by Mark Pinkert
- Scott Feinberg
She was a record breaker, a film star, a bestselling author and an entrepreneur – but her greatest achievement, in her own eyes, was popularising the modern swimming costume
Rihanna and her barely-there outfits? Pfoo. Katy Perry and her constant cleavage? Whatever. And Cheryl Cole's rosy bottom? Not even fighting in the heavyweights. If you want provocative, the blueprint was drawn up a century ago, by an Australian swimmer called Annette Kellerman.
Born in 1886 in the Sydney suburb of Marrickville, Kellerman had such weak legs that until the age of six or seven, she wore steel braces for support. To help her muscles develop, Kellerman's parents began taking her to the local pool. "Only a cripple can understand the intense joy I experienced," she later said. "After I learned, I'd go swimming anywhere, anytime."
It soon became clear that Annette was not only a natural-born swimmer, but also a natural performer.
Rihanna and her barely-there outfits? Pfoo. Katy Perry and her constant cleavage? Whatever. And Cheryl Cole's rosy bottom? Not even fighting in the heavyweights. If you want provocative, the blueprint was drawn up a century ago, by an Australian swimmer called Annette Kellerman.
Born in 1886 in the Sydney suburb of Marrickville, Kellerman had such weak legs that until the age of six or seven, she wore steel braces for support. To help her muscles develop, Kellerman's parents began taking her to the local pool. "Only a cripple can understand the intense joy I experienced," she later said. "After I learned, I'd go swimming anywhere, anytime."
It soon became clear that Annette was not only a natural-born swimmer, but also a natural performer.
- 11/8/2013
- by Paul Mason
- The Guardian - Film News
Swimmer who found movie fame in a string of MGM musicals
Esther Williams, "Hollywood's Mermaid", who has died aged 91, swam her way through more than a dozen splashy MGM musicals in the 1940s and early 50s. While smiling at the camera, she was able to do a combination of crawl, breast and backstroke, and was forever blowing bubbles under water, seemingly having an inexhaustible supply of air.
Like the starlets Lana Turner, Kathryn Grayson and Donna Reed before her, she started out for MGM in a Hardy Family picture, Andy Hardy's Double Life (1942) – though one that allowed her to swim with Mickey Rooney. After being billed 19th in A Guy Named Joe (1943), she shot to stardom in her third film, Bathing Beauty (1944).
It started out as an average Red Skelton vehicle, first called Mr Co-Ed, then Sing and Swim, but Esther's superb figure and pretty features were heightened by Technicolor...
Esther Williams, "Hollywood's Mermaid", who has died aged 91, swam her way through more than a dozen splashy MGM musicals in the 1940s and early 50s. While smiling at the camera, she was able to do a combination of crawl, breast and backstroke, and was forever blowing bubbles under water, seemingly having an inexhaustible supply of air.
Like the starlets Lana Turner, Kathryn Grayson and Donna Reed before her, she started out for MGM in a Hardy Family picture, Andy Hardy's Double Life (1942) – though one that allowed her to swim with Mickey Rooney. After being billed 19th in A Guy Named Joe (1943), she shot to stardom in her third film, Bathing Beauty (1944).
It started out as an average Red Skelton vehicle, first called Mr Co-Ed, then Sing and Swim, but Esther's superb figure and pretty features were heightened by Technicolor...
- 6/7/2013
- by Ronald Bergan
- The Guardian - Film News
Esther Williams: Swimwear-garbed star of MGM Technicolor musicals dead at 91 Esther Williams, known for her swimming skills and ability to smile and keep her makeup and coiffure intact underwater in several MGM Technicolor aqua-musicals of the ’40s and ’50s, died in her sleep earlier today at her Beverly Hills home. Williams, who in recent decades launched a successful swimwear line, was 91. (Photo: Esther Williams publicity shot ca. 1945.) Born on August 8, 1921, in the Los Angeles suburb of Inglewood, Esther Williams began honing her swimming skills at the Los Angeles Athletic Club. Following several victories in swimming competitions, she looked forward to taking part in the 1940 Olympics. World War II, however, interfered. In the early ’40s, she was reportedly discovered by an MGM scout while appearing as a "bathing beauty" at the World’s Fair in San Francisco. The swimming champion would write in her 1999 autobiography The Million Dollar Mermaid that...
- 6/6/2013
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
Movie star and champion swimmer Esther Williams passed away today at the age of 91. To remember her Hollywood career, Turner Classic Movies (TCM) will be airing a 24-hour movie marathon of many of her most famous films from the 1940s and ’50s beginning June 13 at 8pm Et. Included in the Esther Williams movie marathon, which TCM says will feature 13 titles, are her film debut in Andy Hardy’s Double Life (1942); her first starring vehicle, Bathing Beauty (1944); the colorful musical Neptune’s Daughter (1949); the biopic of swimmer Annette Kellerman, Million Dollar Mermaid (1952); the romantic comedy Easy [...]
The post TCM to remember Esther Williams with 24-hour movie marathon appeared first on Channel Guide Magazine.
The post TCM to remember Esther Williams with 24-hour movie marathon appeared first on Channel Guide Magazine.
- 6/6/2013
- by Jeff Pfeiffer
- ChannelGuideMag
Million Dollar Mermaid (1952)
Star of the silver screen and in the swimming pool, actress Esther Williams has passed away at the age of 91. Williams died early today in her sleep, according to her longtime publicist Harlan Boll.
Million Dollar Mermaid (1952)
Turner Classic Movies (TCM) will pay tribute to legendary film star and swimmer Esther Williams with a 24-hour marathon of films beginning Thursday, June 13, at 8 p.m. (Et). TCM’s tribute will feature 13 of Williams’ films, including her film debut in Andy Hardy’s Double Life (1942); her first starring vehicle, Bathing Beauty (1944); the colorful musical Neptune’s Daughter (1949); the biopic of swimmer Annette Kellerman, Million Dollar Mermaid (1952); the romantic comedy Easy to Wed (1946); and the Hawaii-set musical Pagan Love Song (1950).
The following is a complete schedule of TCM’s June 13-14 tribute to Esther Williams:
Thursday, June 13
8 p.m. – Bathing Beauty (1944)
10 p.m. – Neptune’s Daughter (1949)
11:45 p.m.
Star of the silver screen and in the swimming pool, actress Esther Williams has passed away at the age of 91. Williams died early today in her sleep, according to her longtime publicist Harlan Boll.
Million Dollar Mermaid (1952)
Turner Classic Movies (TCM) will pay tribute to legendary film star and swimmer Esther Williams with a 24-hour marathon of films beginning Thursday, June 13, at 8 p.m. (Et). TCM’s tribute will feature 13 of Williams’ films, including her film debut in Andy Hardy’s Double Life (1942); her first starring vehicle, Bathing Beauty (1944); the colorful musical Neptune’s Daughter (1949); the biopic of swimmer Annette Kellerman, Million Dollar Mermaid (1952); the romantic comedy Easy to Wed (1946); and the Hawaii-set musical Pagan Love Song (1950).
The following is a complete schedule of TCM’s June 13-14 tribute to Esther Williams:
Thursday, June 13
8 p.m. – Bathing Beauty (1944)
10 p.m. – Neptune’s Daughter (1949)
11:45 p.m.
- 6/6/2013
- by Movie Geeks
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Esther Williams, the bathing beauty who tantalized Hollywood in the aquatic Technicolor musicals of the 19402 and 19502 has died. She was 91. According to her longtime publicist, Harlan Boll, the swimming champion turned actress known as the Million Dollar Mermaid died early Thursday in her sleep. Awww.
So long Ms. Williams and thanks for the Technicolor dreams!
Here's more info on Williams' life from Wiki:
Esther Jane Williams (August 8, 1921 . June 6, 2013)[1][2] was an American competitive swimmer and MGM movie actress.
Williams set multiple national and regional swimming records in her late teens as part of the Los Angeles Athletic Club swim team. Unable to compete in the 1940 Summer Olympics because of the outbreak of World War II, she joined Billy Rose's Aquacade, where she took on the role vacated by Eleanor Holm after the show's move from New York City to San Francisco.
While in the city, she spent five months swimming...
So long Ms. Williams and thanks for the Technicolor dreams!
Here's more info on Williams' life from Wiki:
Esther Jane Williams (August 8, 1921 . June 6, 2013)[1][2] was an American competitive swimmer and MGM movie actress.
Williams set multiple national and regional swimming records in her late teens as part of the Los Angeles Athletic Club swim team. Unable to compete in the 1940 Summer Olympics because of the outbreak of World War II, she joined Billy Rose's Aquacade, where she took on the role vacated by Eleanor Holm after the show's move from New York City to San Francisco.
While in the city, she spent five months swimming...
- 6/6/2013
- by Manny
- Manny the Movie Guy
Swimmer-turned-actress Esther Williams has died, aged 91.
Her publicist Harlan Boll has confirmed that Williams passed away in her sleep earlier today (June 6) in Beverly Hills, CA.
Williams first gained fame while setting swimming records with the Los Angeles Athletic Club both nationally and regionally, but missed out on the 1940 Olympics due to the outbreak of World War II.
The athlete transitioned into the film industry and became famous for appearing in many Technicolor movie musicals in Hollywood's golden era.
Williams is perhaps best known for her roles in Easy to Wed, Dangerous When Wet, Bathing Beauty and Take Me Out to the Ballgame.
She also famously played swimming champion Annette Kellerman in the hit 1952 film Million Dollar Mermaid, which was choreographed by Busby Berkeley.
Williams was one of the most successful box officers stars of the early 1950s, but stepped away from the spotlight a decade later.
She was married four times throughout her life,...
Her publicist Harlan Boll has confirmed that Williams passed away in her sleep earlier today (June 6) in Beverly Hills, CA.
Williams first gained fame while setting swimming records with the Los Angeles Athletic Club both nationally and regionally, but missed out on the 1940 Olympics due to the outbreak of World War II.
The athlete transitioned into the film industry and became famous for appearing in many Technicolor movie musicals in Hollywood's golden era.
Williams is perhaps best known for her roles in Easy to Wed, Dangerous When Wet, Bathing Beauty and Take Me Out to the Ballgame.
She also famously played swimming champion Annette Kellerman in the hit 1952 film Million Dollar Mermaid, which was choreographed by Busby Berkeley.
Williams was one of the most successful box officers stars of the early 1950s, but stepped away from the spotlight a decade later.
She was married four times throughout her life,...
- 6/6/2013
- Digital Spy
Los Angeles — Esther Williams, the swimming champion turned actress who starred in glittering and aquatic Technicolor musicals of the 1940s and 1950s, has died. She was 91.
Williams died early Thursday in her sleep, according to her longtime publicist Harlan Boll.
Following in the footsteps of Sonja Henie, who went from skating champion to movie star, Williams became one of Hollywood's biggest moneymakers, appearing in spectacular swimsuit numbers that capitalized on her wholesome beauty and perfect figure.
Such films as "Easy to Wed," `'Neptune's Daughter" and "Dangerous When Wet" followed the same formula: romance, music, a bit of comedy and a flimsy plot that provided excuses to get Esther into the water.
The extravaganzas dazzled a second generation via television and the compilation films "That's Entertainment." Williams' co-stars included the pick of the MGM contract list, including Gene Kelly, Frank Sinatra, Red Skelton, Ricardo Montalban and Howard Keel.
When hard...
Williams died early Thursday in her sleep, according to her longtime publicist Harlan Boll.
Following in the footsteps of Sonja Henie, who went from skating champion to movie star, Williams became one of Hollywood's biggest moneymakers, appearing in spectacular swimsuit numbers that capitalized on her wholesome beauty and perfect figure.
Such films as "Easy to Wed," `'Neptune's Daughter" and "Dangerous When Wet" followed the same formula: romance, music, a bit of comedy and a flimsy plot that provided excuses to get Esther into the water.
The extravaganzas dazzled a second generation via television and the compilation films "That's Entertainment." Williams' co-stars included the pick of the MGM contract list, including Gene Kelly, Frank Sinatra, Red Skelton, Ricardo Montalban and Howard Keel.
When hard...
- 6/6/2013
- by AP
- Huffington Post
Los Angeles, Calif. - Esther Williams, the swimming champion turned actress who starred in glittering and aquatic Technicolor musicals of the 1940s and 1950s, has died. She was 91.
Williams died early Thursday in her sleep, according to her longtime publicist Harlan Boll.
Following in the footsteps of Sonja Henie, who went from skating champion to movie star, Williams became one of Hollywood's biggest moneymakers, appearing in spectacular swimsuit numbers that capitalized on her wholesome beauty and perfect figure.
Such films as "Easy to Wed," ''Neptune's Daughter" and "Dangerous When Wet" followed the same formula: romance, music, a bit of comedy and a flimsy plot that provided excuses to get Esther into the water.
The extravaganzas dazzled a second generation via television and the compilation films "That's Entertainment." Williams' co-stars included the pick of the MGM contract list, including Gene Kelly, Frank Sinatra, Red Skelton, Ricardo Montalban and Howard Keel.
Williams died early Thursday in her sleep, according to her longtime publicist Harlan Boll.
Following in the footsteps of Sonja Henie, who went from skating champion to movie star, Williams became one of Hollywood's biggest moneymakers, appearing in spectacular swimsuit numbers that capitalized on her wholesome beauty and perfect figure.
Such films as "Easy to Wed," ''Neptune's Daughter" and "Dangerous When Wet" followed the same formula: romance, music, a bit of comedy and a flimsy plot that provided excuses to get Esther into the water.
The extravaganzas dazzled a second generation via television and the compilation films "That's Entertainment." Williams' co-stars included the pick of the MGM contract list, including Gene Kelly, Frank Sinatra, Red Skelton, Ricardo Montalban and Howard Keel.
- 6/6/2013
- by CP
- Huffington Post
Esther Williams, the swimming champion turned actress who starred in glittering and aquatic Technicolor musicals of the 1940s and 1950s, has died. She was 91.
Williams died early Thursday in her sleep, according to her longtime publicist Harlan Boll.
Following in the footsteps of Sonja Henie, who went from skating champion to movie star, Williams became one of Hollywood’s biggest moneymakers, appearing in spectacular swimsuit numbers that capitalized on her wholesome beauty and perfect figure.
Such films as Easy to Wed, Neptune’s Daughter, and Dangerous When Wet followed the same formula: romance, music, a bit of comedy and a flimsy plot that provided excuses to get Esther into the water.
The extravaganzas dazzled a second generation via television and the compilation films That’s Entertainment. Williams’ co-stars included the pick of the MGM contract list, including Gene Kelly, Frank Sinatra, Red Skelton, Ricardo Montalban and Howard Keel.
When hard times signaled the end of big studios and costly musicals in the mid-’50s, Williams tried non-swimming roles with little success. After her 1962 marriage to Fernando Lamas, her co-star in Dangerous When Wet, she retired from public life.
Williams died early Thursday in her sleep, according to her longtime publicist Harlan Boll.
Following in the footsteps of Sonja Henie, who went from skating champion to movie star, Williams became one of Hollywood’s biggest moneymakers, appearing in spectacular swimsuit numbers that capitalized on her wholesome beauty and perfect figure.
Such films as Easy to Wed, Neptune’s Daughter, and Dangerous When Wet followed the same formula: romance, music, a bit of comedy and a flimsy plot that provided excuses to get Esther into the water.
The extravaganzas dazzled a second generation via television and the compilation films That’s Entertainment. Williams’ co-stars included the pick of the MGM contract list, including Gene Kelly, Frank Sinatra, Red Skelton, Ricardo Montalban and Howard Keel.
When hard times signaled the end of big studios and costly musicals in the mid-’50s, Williams tried non-swimming roles with little success. After her 1962 marriage to Fernando Lamas, her co-star in Dangerous When Wet, she retired from public life.
- 6/6/2013
- by Associated Press
- EW - Inside Movies
Welcome to BroadwayWorld.com's newest photo series 'Photo Blast From the Past'. Featuring some of the collected theatre gem's of BroadwayWorld's own senior photographer Walter McBride, the series will feature images from his archives of theatre and Hollywood related gems.Today, we bring you MGM movie musical star Esther Williams circa 1985. After appearing in several small roles, alongside Mickey Rooney in an Andy Hardy film, and future five time co-star Van Johnson in A Guy Named Joe, Williams made a series of films in the 1940s and early 1950s known as aquamusicals, which featured elaborate performances with synchronized swimming and diving.In 1952, Williams appeared in her only biographical role, as Australian swimming star Annette Kellerman in Million Dollar Mermaid, which would go on to become her nickname while at MGM.
- 5/11/2012
- by Walter McBride
- BroadwayWorld.com
TCM has put out some great vintage film collections in the last few years. The collections usually have a fair collection of winners and so-so contenders who need the better films to make them palatable and Esther Williams: Volume 2 is no exception. However, to the volume’s credit, it has a better ratio than most sets with 4 good to great films supporting 2 mediocre ones. The set could very well help reel in some younger viewers as the films in this volume have a surprisingly modern feel to them all. This one maybe good, but it might still qualify as “for collectors only”.
Thrill of a Romance (1945)
Directed by Richard Thorpe and written by Richard Connell and Gladys Lehman.
Co-starring Van Johnson and Henry Travers.
Summary: Two lovebirds get swept up in a whirlwind romance; one a girl looking for love and one a celebrated veteran, the two find their...
Thrill of a Romance (1945)
Directed by Richard Thorpe and written by Richard Connell and Gladys Lehman.
Co-starring Van Johnson and Henry Travers.
Summary: Two lovebirds get swept up in a whirlwind romance; one a girl looking for love and one a celebrated veteran, the two find their...
- 10/8/2009
- by Lex Walker
- JustPressPlay.net
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