CMBA Comedy Classic Blogathon: 'Pillow Talk'

In a few weeks, I’m hosting a “Pillow Talk” pizza party for three couples who have not seen this classic Doris Day/Rock Hudson romp.

Whenever I show or recommend this film from 1959, the response is always enthusiastic. My sister-in-law proclaimed it her new favorite movie upon seeing it several years ago.

You would think a sex comedy made during the censorship years featuring America’s favorite squeaky-clean actress would be an impossible task. But somehow it all works, starting with a script that is creatively risqué without being crass. It also helps that Day and Hudson have oodles of chemistry, a sense of playful fun and great looks that complement each other. This is the first of their three films together – and most people think they made many more, a testament to their popularity. It would also begin Day’s reign as the biggest box office star in the country.

She plays interior designer Jan Morrow, who lives in a chic Manhattan apartment and desperately wants her own phone. Until that happens, she’s forced to share a party line with amorous songwriter Brad Allen. (For those who don’t know what a party line is, it’s when two or more unrelated customers share the same telephone line.) Unfortunately, Jan rarely gets a chance to use her line as Brad is on it all the time. It doesn’t help that Jan disapproves of cad Brad, who is continually cooing to different women each time he’s on the phone.

But fate steps in when Jan ends up at a nightclub with Tony (Nick Adams), the intoxicated son of a client, whom she is trying to fend off with no luck. Brad happens to be in the next booth and overhears her name, knowing her to be the shrew on the other end of his party line. But when he turns to look at her, he likes what he sees. However, knowing she would probably slap his face if she knew his identity, he assumes a Texas accent and comes to her rescue as Rex Stetson, disposing of Tony and escorting Jan home.

Jan is smitten with Rex, while Brad is taken with his own genius and plots to seduce her, unwittingly falling for her as time passes.

The genius of “Pillow Talk” comes in many forms, starting with the original, Oscar-winning script from Stanley Shapiro, Maurice Richlin, Russell Rouse and Clarence Greene. The story breathlessly moves from one situation to another, the jokes work and the characters are fleshed out. The mistaken-identity plot is nothing new and while improbable, it is believable enough.

I love how you can hear Jan and Brad’s inner thoughts at times, often her being dreamy about him and he comically worried about keeping up the deception. There’s also the hilarious double entendre-laden diner conversation late in the film between Jan and friend Jonathan (the glorious Tony Randall), in which other patrons mistakenly race to defend her.

Another genius is that supporting cast. Randall appears in all three Day/Hudson films and here his character knows both parties, with Tony increasingly jealous of a Rex Stetson he has not met, unaware that Brad is Rex. The marvelous Thelma Ritter plays Alma, Jan’s soused housekeeper, who milks comic gold out of her relatively small and stereotypical “funny drunk” part. Her encounter with Brad late in the film is hilarious, and she earned Oscar nomination number five for her efforts.

The plush late-‘50s sets and costumes are a visual treat today, and the innovative use of split screens results in now-classic scenes such as the leads talking on the phone while each is taking a bath, leg up on the wall and feet seeming touching. This is why the film MUST be viewed in its wide-screen format; otherwise, the split screen technique cannot be fully appreciated.

But what makes “Pillow Talk” so much fun is the pairing of Day and Hudson. They are an ideal screen pair. When you look at Hudson’s 1950s output, his best roles are either in serious drama (“Giant”) or melodrama (“All That Heaven Allows,” “Magnificent Obsession”). He clearly has a flair for romantic comedy and has the perfect foil in perennially perky Day, whose reactive expressions alone are priceless. In the end, each actor makes you like their characters, which in Hudson’s case should be difficult to do, considering what Brad is doing to Jan, while Day must be sexy without being overt about it. It’s worth nothing that Day’s only Oscar nomination came for fine comedic work in this film.

Throw in a few songs sung by Day, and “Pillow Talk” maintains every laugh today. The plot was so popular that it’s essentially recycled in “Lover Come Back,” the second Day/Hudson film that’s even more outrageous that this one. But “Pillow Talk” is the best of the three. And in a few weeks, I will convert six more people into “Pillow Talk” fans.

Comedy Classics Blogathon Starts Sunday

Hi all! The Classic Movie Blog Association is going to make 'em laugh with is Comedy Classics Blogathon that begins tomorrow. Rather than have 40 blog posts over three days, CMBA is stretching it out to six days, meaning it will be easier to keep up with all the great entries.

I will be posting about one of my favs "Pillow Talk" on Tuesday. Looking forward to reading everyone's entries and I hope you stop back on Tuesday!

Here's a link to the participating blogs.

Bogart: 'Dr. Clitterhouse'

In my intermittent look at Humphrey Bogart’s early career, here’s the intriguing “The Amazing Dr. Clitterhouse” from 1938.

At first glance, this seems like one of Warner Brothers’ biopics of the 1930s, like “The Story of Louis Pasteur” or “The Life of Emile Zola.” As the credits roll, the opening reveals a research lab with things boiling, which is reminiscent of Universal’s monster movies.

But Dr. Clitterhouse is not a mad scientist nor a prominent figure. He’s a doctor who is also a criminal in order to research and write about the medical aspects of the criminal mind. Edward G. Robinson plays the good doctor, with Bogart as one of the criminals. The story opens with Clitterhouse and a jewel robbery; he’s calm, cool and collected as he manages to leave the scene of the crime undetected. He then asks his nurse to keep an eye on his bag and meets with Inspector Lane (Donald Crisp), who tells the doctor that he “mustn’t forget his bag of tricks” without knowing the jewels are in that bag.

Dr. Clitterhouse eventually sets up a criminal clinic in London with a group of thieves that includes Jo Keller (Claire Trevor), Rocks Valentine (Bogart) and Tug (Ward Bond). Of Rocks it is observed that his “entire personality is distorted.” Dr. Clitterhouse gains the trust of everyone except Rocks, who believes he should be in charge and begins to plot against Dr. Clitterhouse.

One of the screenwriters is John Huston, and there are some elements – particularly in a tense showdown between Dr. Clitterhouse and Rocks toward the end – that feel like a Huston film because of the wordplay between the two.

However, there’s not much to say about this film except that it’s surprisingly entertaining with a good cast, led by a cool Robinson who’s filled with charm and guile as Dr. Clitterhouse.

As for Bogart, in watching the progression of his career during the 1930s, it would be easy to wave your hand at yet another tough guy role. But he’s growing as an actor. These portrayals have similar elements but I really liked how Bogart handled his showdown with Dr. Clitterhouse with a coiled intensity rather than an expected flashpoint explosion of anger.

Unfortunately, the film’s climax is odd, going for a broadly comic tone that doesn’t fit with the rest of the story and jarringly ends the film.

Several radio broadcasts of “Dr. Clitterhouse” aired during the 1940s with Robinson reprising his role, a testament to the popularity of the piece. It’s still an enjoyable film today and one I would recommend.

A Month of 'Vertigo' at The Lady Eve's Reel Life

The Lady Eve is hosting an in-depth blogathon during the month of January examining the Alfred Hitchcock classic "Vertigo."

Later this month, I will contribute a piece on Jimmy Stewart to the blogathon, but please read all of the excellent posts. I am a big admirer of The Lady Eve and am honored to be participating.

Check out The Lady Eve's Reel Life!

Favorite Audrey Movie Fashions: #1

The black dress – short or long – became a fashion staple after “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.”

The first scene of the 1961 film shows Audrey as Holly Golightly emerging from a taxi in the early morning and walking up to the window display at Tiffany’s. She’s wearing a gorgeous yet simple black dress and gloves, a singular figure on the sidewalk. She then nibbles on a Danish, making her more one of us – a dreamer who prefers a Danish to caviar.

Later she wears a simpler little black dress. While Coco Chanel may have invented the little black dress, Audrey immortalized it in this film with Givenchy’s help.

It seemed like everything she touched in “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” became stylish, whether it’s wearing a men’s shirt (and nothing else) or the oversized sunglasses or the long cigarette holder.

But that’s Audrey. Forever stylish.

Favorite Audrey Movie Fashions: #2

I loved this dress the moment I saw it in 1954’s “Sabrina.”

It’s designed by Hubert de Givenchy, who I mentioned in earlier posts would form a lifelong fashion partnership with Audrey. They met when Billy Wilder, director of “Sabrina,” suggested that Audrey fly to Paris for some clothes that Sabrina would wear after her transformation. Audrey did so and made an appointment with Givenchy, who had established his business in 1952 with clothes featuring modern lines.

He later noted that when the time came to meet Hepburn, he actually thought he was doing so with Katharine Hepburn. He really didn’t have an idea who Audrey was, but from that first meeting they forged a partnership that created Audrey’s distinctive look.

Givenchy was uncredited in “Sabrina,” with famed designer Edith Head winning an Oscar for her work on the film. But Givenchy created some of Audrey’s most memorable clothes in the film – the traveling suit that Sabrina wears when she returns to the U.S., the black dress with what would become known as the “Sabrina neckline,” and this stunner of a gown.

But it’s more than just a dress. Wilder wisely uses the dress as Sabrina’s entry into the upper class. Up until then, she’s only watched the society gatherings of her father’s employer from a distance. That dress gets her noticed, and once she’s invited by William Holden onto the patio for a dance, she glides into place. She’s now the stunner, not just the dress.

I read recently that Hepburn was never overwhelmed by Givenchy’s fashions, and that is so true. This dress could be overwhelming, but she wears it with grace and beauty.

Favorite Audrey Movie Fashions: #3

It’s a perfect movie fashion moment from "Funny Face."

Audrey the fashion model is in the Louvre, hiding behind the Winged Victory statue. She yells down for photographer Fred Astaire to tell her when to start, and when he does so, she emerges in this magnificent red stunner, gliding down a staircase in a scene so perfectly composed that it’s a moment to always remember.

The 1957 musical is about fashion, so what better movie to showcase Audrey and Hubert de Givenchy, who was her designer and friend for 40 years? She’s lovely from beginning to end, but what works about this moment is that the merging of Audrey and fashion builds to this point, where Audrey’s character Jo finally owns the fact that she’s a model. Her emergence is symbolic of the character and the freedom she feels.

I’m not quite done with Givenchy, but you’ll have to wait just a little longer for more. Pretty much every outfit in this movie belongs on this list, but this is the one that I remember and love the most.