The year is 1896, and the world of the Victorians was one of all things genteel and moral. Well, at least, on the surface, for some. Around this time, Thomas Edison purchased the rights to a motion picture projector which C. Francis Jenkins and Thomas Armat had invented. The projector was later renamed the “Vitascope,” and on April 23, 1896 , it made its debut. The “Edison” Vitascope’s most popular film that...

The Jazz Age always conjures up all sorts of thoughts for me. The flapper, prohibition, gangsters, silent movies, and stardust dreams. There are several silent movie stars I think of, Mary Pickford, Gloria Swanson, Louise Brooks, but one stands out to me, and that is Clara Bow. The only thing you ever hear about Bow, is her inability to transition from silent to talkies. Her story is always told with some sense of sadness. And I guess when...

Have you ever watched a classic movie and wonder how on earth some of the actors or actresses were able to keep up with lines. The witty lines and the speed by which they said them has always impressed me. Now, do you ever think of your favorite classic stars as making mistakes while on the set? Can you ever imagine any one of them cursing on the set when bloopers were committed? I suppose we are all tempted to believe that the starlets...

  The second horror movie I recommend you see is the silent horror movie, “Nosferatu.” Although it was done back in 1922, it is still gripping. Out of all the vampire movies I’ve  seen, I find this one to be the scariest. The movie takes place in an eerie and sleepy town in Germany. The story is based on Bram Stoker’s novel, “Dracula.” There were some copyright issues and so a lot of the names of...

Freaks 1932 Halloween is coming and I’d like to feature one or two movies per week this month of must see horror classics. I have a lot I love, but certain ones stand out in the crowd, and in my opinion you must see them. Today’s horror flicks are full of awful violence, f-bombs, and sex, but no substance whatsoever. There are a few exceptions of course. Classic horror used sound, lighting and music to scare their audiences...

If you’ve ever seen “Dinner at Eight,” you know Marie Dressler. She played the funny role of Carlotta. I’ve always been very curious of Marie for a couple of reasons. One, she was a famous actress in her 60′s, at an age when most movie stars careers are dead. She wasn’t the prettiest, but you can’t help falling in love with her. She makes us all laugh with her facial expressions of outrage, boredom,...