Obligatory Christmas Post No. 1

Anita Page shows off her considerable, ah, Christmas cheer.

Our Dancing Daughters Revisited

Long-time readers--if there are any--will note that I have fawned over 1928's Our Dancing Daughters (and to a lesser extent, its two pseudo-sequels) more than a few times in the past. Thus far, however, I've not really offered any detailed comment on the picture, at least not beyond the usual obtuse references. Now that I have seen the picture for a second time, I think it's time I gave it a proper review.

Our Dancing Daughters revolves around the romantic foibles of three well-to-do young ladies -- Diana (Joan Crawford), Beatrice (Dorothy Sebastian) and Ann (Anita Page). Diana and Ann have both set their sights on Ben Blaine (Johnny Mack Brown), but Ann manages to snatch him up first, much to Diana's chagrin. Melodrama ensues.

Diana is very much a character of the era -- the seemingly wild flapper who is actually quite virtuous. Ann, meanwhile, is a dipsomaniac and a gold-digger, interested in Ben for his money as much as his good looks. Of the three girls, however, it is Beatrice who is the most interesting. She is a faithful friend to Diana and very much in love with a dashing young fellow named Norman (Nils Asther), but at the same time she is haunted by certain misdeeds in her past (it isn't revealed precisely what these misdeeds are, but we may infer with some confidence). Beatrice does marry Norman, although her troubled past causes some difficulty for the married couple. While it's true that the primary focus of the picture is the Diana-Ben-Ann love triangle, the Beatrice sub-plot is intriguing in its own right (it's unfortunate that it was not fleshed out a little more, I think). In any event, Diana and Ben do eventually wind up together, after Ann is removed from the picture by means of a drunken tumble down a flight of stairs.

With all of that said, the question remains -- is it a good picture? In all honesty, it probably depends on your criteria. As you might imagine from the synopsis offered above, Our Dancing Daughters is a bit thin in terms of character development and plot. On the other hand, it's certainly a well-photographed picture, and the art direction is top-notch -- everything from the set design to the costumes is absolutely lovely, oozing with 1920s awesomeness. Indeed, the very fact that it is such a product and such a relic of its time is what makes Our Dancing Daughters so interesting to watch (notwithstanding the fact that it features three of my favorite actresses). Perhaps it isn't a classic masterpiece of American cinema, but I enjoyed watching it, and I imagine most others interested in the era would enjoy it as well. If nothing else, Our Dancing Daughters must rank highly on my list of guilty pleasures.

An Interview With Anita Page

From the distant past of 1993, here is an interview in three parts with Anita Page conducted by interviewer Skip E. Lowe (who seems like a native son of Fabulon, if you know what I mean). For a woman of eighty-three years, Anita still seems as sharp as the proverbial tack here. Particularly entertaining is the bit about starring alongside Joan Crawford. Also, I was especially overjoyed that she name-drops Dorothy Sebastian (I almost jumped through the ceiling out of sheer delight!).

Part 1:

Part 2:

Part 3:

It really is hard to believe that it was only last year that Anita Page finally gave up the ghost. A special thanks to YouTube user Aaron1912 for posting this interview.

Enchanted Faces

A few of my favorites from illustrator Bob Harmon's Enchanted Faces series of portraits.

The Godflatmate

Some time later, she was found floating in Long Island Sound.

In Pace Requiescat, Anita Page

1910-2008

I was afraid I was going to have to make this post sooner or later. Anita Page, one of the very few living silent stars, has gone to the great gig in the sky. With her loss, we are even further removed from the golden age. This turn of events makes me much sadder than it perhaps ought to. Chorus angelorum te suscipiat, Anita, et æternam habeas requiem.

Addendum: A quality obit at the Washington Post, and another from the New York Times (it took them long enough, didn't it?).

[image sauce]

98 Years of Anita Page

Happy birthday to Anita Page, who is 98 years old today. To celebrate, here's a photograph from back in the day of Miss Page and a small, fuzzy marsupial companion. This is one of the most mind-numbingly cute pictures I have ever seen. Originally found here, where an artificially colorized version may also be found.

Vignettes of Absurdity: Poverty Row Luncheon

Poverty Row, c. 1935Dorothy: Wait a minute, are we really going to eat a puppy?

Anita: Well, it's either that or McDonald's again.

Dorothy: Ugh. McDonalds. No thank you.

Anita: Really. And besides, Garbo threatened to call the cops if she found us going through her trash again.

Dorothy: Couldn't we just mooch off of Joan for a while longer?

Anita: Dot, I know Joan's been a real sport about letting us crash on her couch since 1934, but I think she's gotten a bit tired of us. Every time she brings home a virile young man, there we are, stinking of gin and playing Mario Kart until all hours.

Dorothy: Yeah, you're right. And I think Joan's still secretly pissed at me for downing her entire bottle of Johnnie Walker Blue Label in a single night.

Anita: You might say that.

Dorothy: Ah, the good old days.

Anita: Oh man, I can't wait to eat this puppy. Say, what goes best with puppy, red wine or white?

Dorothy: Well, considering we only have a bottle of Night Train and two forties of Olde English 800, I'm gonna say red.

Anita: It's gonna be an Easter weekend to remember!

(fin)

Relevant to my Interests, Ep. 10

Dorothy Sebastian, Joan Crawford and Anita Page show off the goods in a promotional shot from 1928's Our Dancing Daughters. I need to see this film before I die. Not necessarily because it is a masterpiece of cinema, mind you, but because I am a terrible fanboy. If I have to buy a VCR just so I can watch it on VHS, then so be it. It's a sacrifice I'm willing to make, dammit.

At this juncture I am so very tempted to analyze the significance of Joan's character being named Diana, after the Roman goddess of the hunt (who was also a virgin, by the way). I am equally tempted to engage in an unnecessary exegesis of Dorothy's playing a character named Beatrice (the name of the woman with whom Dante Alighieri, the greatest poet in all of western literature, was smitten throughout his life). Despite those temptations, I will refrain. I needn't give the reader any further evidence that I am truly crazy.

Anita Page and the Ideal Screen Type

Was Anita Page the perfect movie star? Benito Mussolini certainly thought so. We all know by now where my loyalties lie, but this graph nevertheless makes a compelling argument. Not that I need any convincing that Miss Page was quite the looker in her day, mind you. On the other hand, it does remind me of some strange sort of eugenics. While we're on the subject of genes, Anita must have good ones, as she is still alive today at the ripe old age of 97.

In any event, it's rather a good thing that Anita never took up Mussolini on his offer of marriage. Just look at what happened to Clara Petacci.

Just so credit is given where credit is due, the above image was originally found here. I cropped it a bit, that I might save some space.

Relevant to my Interests, Ep. 2

Anita Page in period football garb on the cover of the December 1928 issue of Motion Picture magazine. Perhaps the Chicago Bears ought to give her a call. Granted, she's pushing 100 these days, but it's not as thought she could do any worse than Rex Grossman.