HAPPY BENDAY!!!!!!!!!!

The Great William Bendix was born on this day in 1906!

I hope you all have a HAPPY BENDAY!

How To Read Minds....

The Warren William way!

First and most crucial is...you MUST wear a bejeweled turban! Without it, no one will believe you have psychic powers!

Second, you MUST learn how to gaze intently into the magic crystal!

Third, you'll need to invest in a small metal urn with a trap door at the bottom!

You'll need the help of a trusted assistant to collect little slips of paper from your audience and drop them into the magic urn! These slips of paper have personal info written on them! They are vital because the psychic energies that flow from them are what you must tune into in order to be a successful mind reader!

Putting ones hands at the side of the required bejeweled turban will help focus your psychic powers! It will also help you to....

...better hear your other trusted assistant waiting under the stage as he speaks into the microphone and reads off whats written on the slips of paper that tumbled down through the trap door on your magic urn! If Allen Jenkins is unavailable (dont cry Ginger!) other good choices would be Frank McHugh, Guy Kibbee or Lyle Talbot, just make sure they lay off the sauce until after showtime!

With great power comes great responsibility! You must learn to focus while dolling out personal advice to your audience members, remember they are entrusting you with their lives!

But no matter how strong your powers and abilites may be, every once in a while you will have an unhappy customer! Hopefully it wont be Humphrey Bogart's wife like it was for poor Warren!

With enough practice and good word of mouth you may progress to dispensing your wisdom to rich society ladies who are intent on knowing who their husbands are running around with!

It will be a tremendous help if your trusted assistant Allen Jenkins is able to procure a job as chaufeur to one of these high society couples!...not only will he be privvy to inside information about his employers that is vital to your psychic powers but he will also be able to gather info from other chaffeurs!

But again, none of this will matter if you dont wear the Turban!!!!

*All screencaps are from WB 1933 production of "The Mind Reader" starring Warren William, Allen Jenkins, Constance Cummings and Mayo Methot and directed by the great Roy Del Ruth.

Arty Central...

Last month I redid my art studio to make it a more friendly a place to be in!

Some vintage as well as repro movie items tacked about, some of this stuff has been posted here before - now you know I wasnt lying about it!

I've had the Insert style poster for Nick Ray's "Party Girl' for over 20 years now.

Babydoll watches over my shit whil'e I'm at work.

I keep all my art and comic-related books on this shelf. Not much room left tho...

I store my meager comic collection in this small barrister case. That's my autographed Harley Quinn plate on display with my Billiken Ymir and Cyclops figures (Harryhausen anyone?).

Ya gotta have the comfy corner!

I hate blank walls.

Oh yeah there's where I draw. I need more pencils. I've had that Frankenstein trash can since I was 4!

My Puter desk and TV.

Movies, Movies, Movies...

I've been watching a shitload of movies lately, some new to me, others not seen in many years...most, but not all, have been WB films from the early to mid 30's. I figured I'd list a few and post some pics.

"Lily Turner" (1933) possibly my fave of all Ruth Chatterton's films, its a majorly downbeat but compelling William Wellman picture with a great supporting cast including Guy Kibbee, George Brent, Frank McHugh and a way-over-the-top Robert Barratt. Ruth was one of WB highest paid actresses at that time and I find it incredibly odd that they would put her in a film like this, tho I am glad they did! McHugh gives a sensitive performance as a hopeless drunk.

"Union Depot" (1932) - solid WB pre-code drama with Joan Blondell, Douglas Fairbanks Jr and Guy Kibbee.

"Massacre" (1934), A Modern Hero (1934) "Midnight Alibi" (1934) "Central Airport" (1933) and "Son of the Gods" (1930) - all WB films featuring the awesome Richard Barthelmess, "Massacre" was my fave of the lot, a solid, fast moving drama about the mistreatment of a group of native Americans at a reservation. Character actor Dudley Diggs played his usual unscrupulous scumbag. William Wellman's "Central Airport" is also quite good! John Wayne had a bit part towards the end.

"Flowing Gold" (1940) fast moving WB film starring John Garfield, Pat O'Brien and Frances Farmer. Its basically a re-re-re-re-hash of Howard Hawks' "Tiger Shark" (which was also rehashed as "Slim" and "Manpower" among others) but with that cast it's certainly watchable.

"Kid Galahad" (1937) The only teaming of Edward G Robinson and Bette Davis is reason enough to check this one out but add in Humphrey Bogart as a (big surprise!) crooked boxing manager named "Turkey Morgan" and Harry Carey Sr, plus solid drection from Michael Curtiz and it becomes a must-see!

"The Match King" (1932), "Expensive Women" (1931), "Employees Entrance" (1933), "The Dark Horse" (1932), "Day-Time Wife" (1939), "Times Square Playboy" (1936) "Beauty and the Boss" (1932) and "The Mind Reader" (1933) - all featuring my go-to guy of late, the outrageous Warren William! I LOVE that guy!!!!

"Gun Crazy" (1950) John Dall and Peggy Cummins play (you guessed it) a gun-crazy couple who go on a robbery spree. Low budget but very effective noir, this HAS to be a Tarantino favorite!

"Lilies of the Field" (1963) - Heavy religious stuff aside I really enjoyed this film. Best scene is when Sidney Poitier, after nearly starving for days eating nothing but Catholic breakfasts, and soup and bread for supper, orders a ridiculously huge breakfast at a roadside eatery. It was a near orgasmic experience for him!

"The St Louis Kid" (1934), "Snowed Under" (1936), "Boulder Dam" (1936) and "Rhythm in the Clouds" (1937) all featuring Patricia Ellis. The first 2 were the best with Pat being a good foil for Cagney in "St Louis Kid". "Snowed Under" stars George Brent and is quite hilarious.

"The Threat" (1949) rock solid film noir with great charactor actor Charles MacGraw in one of his few starring roles as a psychotic killer who just escaped from prison and is doing a hell of a good job avenging those who put him away! Very tense and well-acted by all, tho leading man Michael O'Shay is REALLY low-key!

"Jimmy the Gent" (1934) Hilarious Cagney vehicle co-starring Bette Davis, Alice White and WB perrenial dim-bulb Allen Jenkins.

"Broadway Babies" (1929) and "Showgirl in Hollywood" (1930) 2 early talkies directed by Mervyn LeRoy and starring WB answer to Clara Bow, Alice White. I enjoyed their crudeness and pre- code raciness. Alice is simply adorable in both!

"Fear and Desire" (1953) Stanely Kubrick's very first film is a rather pretentious, arty and amatuerish anti-war tale but its certainly interesting, especially in light of the fact that 2 cinematic masterpieces (The Killing and Paths of Glory) would follow in only a few short years.

"Super 8" (2011) its E.T. meets Cloverfield from the guys who made E.T. and Cloverfield.

"The Torrent" (1926), "The Single Standard" (1929), "A Woman of Affairs" (1928) "Love" (1927), "The Kiss" (1929) "Inspiration" (1931) and "Romance" (1930) all starred Greta Garbo. "The Torrent" is easily my fave of the bunch. Garbo is simply mezermising in her American silent film debut. Nearly as good is "A Woman of Affairs", one of several pairings with John Gilbert.

"Side Streets" (1934) and "Stranger in Town" (1932) 2 WB B-films featuring Ann Dvorak. "Side Streets" was a solid little picture with a rare starring role for character actress Aline MacMahon. "Stranger in Town" was a silly but fun Chic Sales vehicle.

"Sons-o-Guns" (1936) and "Three Girls About Town" (1941) both starred Joan Blondell, the first a rather limp Joe E. Brown vehicle that had a few good scenes, the second a hilarious comedy of errors that takes place in a hotel. I really enjoyed that one!

"Lilian Gish: The Actors Life for Me" (1988) completly absorbing documentary with the first lady of the silent screen sharing stories and anecdotes about her years with Griffith, the talkies and her philosophies about acting and life in general. Highly recommended!!!!