Well, dear readers, isn’t it fascinating? Isn’t WHAT fascinating and given that it’s fascinating, perhaps I should tell you what I find fascinating because, after all, I have a fascination with the fascinating. What I find fascinating are connections. Yes, you heard it here, dear readers, I find connections fascinating. For example, last night I watched a movie called I Was a Shoplifter, a Universal movie starring Scott Brady, Mona Freeman, Andrea King, Anthony Curtis, and others. It’s about a shoplifting ring in Los Angeles, California. I suppose you could call it a noir of sorts. It was directed by Charles Lamont, who directed a few movies – like over 200 of ‘em. Very prolific was Mr. Lamont. He directed nine of the Abbott and Costello movies, many Ma and Pa Kettle movies, and obviously tons of others, including Carolina Cannonball starring Judy Canova, which I saw at the Picfair Theater. He began making films in 1922, comedy shorts for Mack Sennett. First off, you have to love any film who’s opening shot is the exterior of Ohrbach’s department store on Wilshire Boulevard. In fact, the entire opening sequence was shot inside Ohrbach’s. The writing isn’t very good, but its seventy-three minutes moves along very quickly. I thought it was some bottom of the bill thing, but no, it had top of the bill and played nice theaters – the Ritz on Wilshire (which is on view in one of the movie’s process shots), the Vogue in Hollywood – not top rank but nice theaters, nonetheless. Here’s the opening day ad.
It’s actually quite well directed, you get some nice shots of Tijuana, and a few L.A. locales. Here’s where the fascinating kicks in. Star Scott Brady’s real last name was Tierney – his brother was tough guy actor Lawrence Tierney. Isn’t that fascinating? Brady did quite a few movies and a whole ton of television. There there’s Anthony Curtis who, just one film later would drop the formality of his first name down to Tony. Also in the movie, unbilled in a two-line role was someone who’s fourth tiny role it was – a guy named Rock Hudson. Isn’t that fascinating? Then there’s sultry Andrea King, who I saw many times on Channel Nine’s Million Dollar Movie when it showed The Beast with Five Fingers. After her movie career fizzled, she did what all actors back then did, became a prolific presence on TV. She also became an author of children’s books. Fascinating. But the most fascinating thing in I Married a Shoplifter was Miss Mona Freeman. I’d never seen her in anything prior to last night’s viewing and I was completely taken with the twenty-three-year-old her. Beautiful, decent actress, her first big thing was being named the second Miss Subways in New York in 1941 at the ripe old age of fourteen. Some articles say she was the first and one says she was the second but has no information on the first, so who knows. Here she is as Miss Subways.
Isn’t that fascinating? But that’s the least of it. She became a teen actress and acted in several good movies of that era. Of course, like many, after her appearance in Otto Preminger’s Angel Face, movie roles dried up and she moved into TV and did quite a bit of that. But that’s the least of it. Mona Freeman was also a painter and she painted quite a bit. In fact, I guarantee you you’ve seen her most famous painting. Guaranteed. Turns out, she painted the iconic portrait of Mrs. Mary See of See’s Candy, the one you’ve seen in every See’s store anywhere. THAT is fascinating. But it keeps going. She had a daughter who was born in the year of my birth, about six weeks prior to my entering the world, said daughter’s name was Mona Nerney. Flash forward to 1972. I’d done the pilot for Young Love, the spinoff of The Doris Day Show in 1971 and had become really good friends with its male lead, Michael Burns. Michael did the second production of my musical Start at the Top and I remember vividly that right after we closed he got the male lead in a TV movie he would start right after – entitled Gidget Gets Married. Gidget was played by an up-and-coming actress named Monie Ellis. I’m sure you can see where this is going. Yes, Mona Nerney changed her first name to Monie and, at the time, she was briefly married to a man named Ellis. She only did a handful of TV shows and that was it. How’s that for fascinating. As far as I can tell, Monie is still with us. End of fascinating things I discovered after watching I Was a Shoplifter.
Earlier, I’d slept eight or nine hours, got up, answered e-mails, went to the mail place and picked up a couple of small necessities, went to Gelson’s and got a quarter pound of turkey and roast beef, some French rolls, and a teeny-tiny half-rack of five teeny-tiny ribs. I came home and ate the ribs, which were fine. Later in the day I had one roast beef and one turkey sandwich – that was the food o’ the day. I watched several irritating videos on YouTube, did a little writing, and then sat on my couch like so much fish and watched I Was a Shoplifter. And here we are.
Today, I’ll be up when I’m up, I’ll prepare for tomorrow’s work session for the Kritzerland show, I’ll eat something light but fun or perhaps something fun but light, I’ll do whatever needs doing, I’ll have a few telephonic calls, and then I can watch, listen, and relax.
Tomorrow is our work session for the Kritzerland show – shouldn’t take more than an hour or so. Then the rest of the week is more of meetings and meals and telephonic calls and the like, and then, believe it or not, we’re into the Kritzerland rehearsal week.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, be up when I’m up, prepare for the work session, eat, do whatever needs doing, have some telephonic calls, and then watch, listen, and relax. Today’s topic of discussion: What are some of the most fascinating things you’ve found through six degrees of separation or connections? Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, having had a fascinatingly fascinating evening finding out fascinating things.