Tag Archives: Joan Crawford

I Lollygagged About Making My Resolution

Some people are making New Year’s Resolutions.  Others are loftily saying they refuse to have self-improvement dictated by a calendar; when they see something that needs fixing, they fix it.  Still others feel they are already perfect (you know who you are).  Of course, everybody must do what works for themselves.  Personally, I believe in making a New Year’s Resolution right around Thanksgiving.  Then you have a perfect excuse to overindulge during the subsequent holidays:  “I can eat these cookies; I’m going on a diet January 1st!”  Alas for me, I neglected to do so and had to overindulge with no excuse.

Random picture to denote passage of time while I get more coffee.

What could be more festive that Joan Crawford with an ax?  At least candy is seasonal.  For accuracy’s sake, I point out that I am nobody’s mommy.  I was Mama Q to the boys in my national guard unit, back in the early ’00s, but that was a long time ago.  But I digress.

I think New Year’s Resolutions can be a useful tool.  New year, new beginnings, new hopes.  They don’t always work, of course, but then nothing works all the time in every case. What a lot of pressure to put on a little bitty resolution, not to mention to our own psyches.   “I WILL improve my life, starting on this arbitrary date, and if I do not, I am clearly dirt!”  To me, that is not a helpful way to do it.  Then again, “I will NOT make a New Year’s Resolution, because they clearly do not work!  I will stay just the way I am, so there!”  Well, that is fine if you are one of those perfect people I mentioned earlier.  A friend once said she had some goals.  I like that.  Words matter, and to some of us, having a goal can seem much more attainable than a Resolution (the song about “A Resolution! On Independency!” from 1776  is playing in my head).

Some people have no perception.

I guess this has been a whole lot of half-baked philosophy, more worthy of Lame Post Friday.  Then again, many people find themselves confused about what day it is this time of year.  As regular readers know, I am no stranger to confusion.    I would like to just mention I have made this entire post with a whanging headache (autocorrect thought I meant “changing.”  I would like it to change!) (and autocorrect seems to think autocorrect is not a word, but does not change it) (again, I digress).  Thus I prove to myself that I can so make a blog post when I have a headache.  There goes another excuse!

My skull is screaming.

I close with a shot from The Screaming Skull, another beloved cheesy horror movie, with or without robot heads.  I see I am over 400 words.  Wow!  That must be some good coffee I made!

 

The Old Broad Blogs Lame

It is still Friday, that is Lame Post Friday, and I am having a very hard time coming up with anything to say.  It was opening night of Four Old Broads on the High Seas, the play I am in at Players of Utica (perhaps you read some of previous blog posts about it). The performance went pretty well.  The audience laughed a lot.  Is there much more to say about it?

Three out of Four Broads surveyed said we rock!

This is a previously used photo.  I think technically I am supposed to delete all the pictures I take during performances, since photography and video recording is prohibited by law.

Here are all four Broads!

I show a photo from an earlier rehearsal, just for the sake of showing all four broads.  Joan Crawford was famously insulted at being referred to as an old broad.  That was after the success of Whatever Happened to Baby Jane.  I must admit, it is not my favorite thing to be described as, but one must take the parts one can get in the theatre.

A different kind of an old broad, perhaps.

This is a picture of me in my last stage appearance, at Ilion Little Theatre in Prescription: Murder.  I guess I was an old broad then too, but nobody referred to me as such.  However, my husband was anxious to trade me in for a younger model. I find that even more insulting than being referred to as an old broad, quite frankly.

I forgot where I was going with this post.  Nowhere in particular, I suppose, because it is Lame Post Friday. The important thing (to me, at any rate) is that I am over 250 words.  Score!  I have blogged another day.  Once again, I thank you for tuning in.

 

Is It Saturday Already?

The late posts continue with a Late Lame Post Friday post.  At least I have coffee, if not much brain power or motivation.

Like I’ll ever be this skinny!

I did have a couple of Mohawk Valley adventures yesterday and remembered to take pictures.  Unfortunately the pictures are in my phone, which is across the room being charged.  I may bestir myself to get more coffee, but otherwise I am staying comfortably lounged on the couch.

My allergies are becoming quite tiresome lately.  I thought the frosts we had would help, but I reckoned without my indoor allergies.  I posted on Facebook that I am allergic to cleaning.  Some might argue that it is all the dust, but I stand by my statement.  Regular readers may recall that my house is in a terrible mess and has been for some years.  I continue to make progress in bits and pieces.  I even clear away some of the dust I stir up.

Joan Crawford and Bette Davis, there could be no possible objection.

I was searching my Media Library for a picture of my messy house but got tired of it so decided to share an old favorite.  It is a publicity shot for Hush… Hush, Sweet Charlotte, which was to have been a kind of a follow-up to Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?  Unfortunately, Crawford dropped out (long story, but pretty interesting).  Olivia de Havilland stepped in, and the resulting movie is one of my favorites.  Unpopular opinion: I’ve  never been a fan of Baby Jane.

Well now I’ve rattled on for over 250 words.  I call that respectable.  I hope you all had a lovely Friday, and I hope your Saturday is equally as swell.

 

I Need More Monsters

I feel so ill-used when I oversleep and still feel so tired when I wake up.  I was dreadfully tired when I went to bed last night, too, but managed to put on coffee for the morning, so I can be mildly functional now.  But enough whining from me, on with my late Monstrous Monday post.

You can’t see the monsters, but it is a scary shot nonetheless.

In a previous post I used a shot from Invasion of the Body Snatchers but foolishly did not identify it.  I remedy the omission with another shot from that movie.   It is a pretty good flick, but I confess my favorite scenes are early on, when the menace threatens in an undefined manner, and the characters are drinking martinis.  I like martinis.

Watch your head!

Here is a monster of the human variety, Joan Crawford in StraitJacket.  That is one of my go-to movies.  William Castle was a highly entertaining producer and director.  I love his stuff.

Why is she so horrified? I forgot.

I continue this rather disjointed post (Non-Sequitur Monsters?) with a shot from a silent movie that doesn’t get a lot of attention, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari.  I have not seen it in a while but remember liking it.  I will have to watch it one day while running in place on the mini-tramp.  That is my usual way of watching silent movies.  Otherwise I want to knit and crochet while I watch, and you really need to keep both eyes on a silent movie.

Now I am over 250 words, so that is enough trolling my Media Library for today.  I hope to get some new monsters to share one day soon, but you know me: No promises.

 

I Run a Gamut on Wrist to Forehead Sunday

Hello and welcome to another Wrist to Forehead Sunday post, the day when I swoon, dramatically posed with the back of one wrist to my forehead.  Alas that I have no chaise lounge to swoon upon.  One must make do.  It is only a metaphorical swoon anyways.

Peter Falk and coffee, what more could I ask?

I am once again watching Columbo on DVD.  I do enjoy Columbo on a Sunday afternoon or evening.  I am not, however, drinking coffee.  I enjoyed that this morning.

My view earlier today.

This morning I went running for the first time since March.  One of the places I ran was the path over what used to be a hydraulic canal.  The fun painted things are getting a little faded.  I hope whoever is responsible freshens them up soon.  I would like to take my great nephew and niece, Sheppy and Evie, for a walk there on one of the nice days we occasionally get.

Crawling, slimy things? Bring it!

I share the picture of The Brain Eaters because I feel as if something has eaten away my brain.  I guess not having a brain is becoming a chronic condition with me (cue jokes about how I never had much brain to begin with).   I haven’t seen a cheesy horror movie in a while.  I wonder when I will get a chance to see one.  Maybe after the current episode of Columbo.

Is this cheerful enough?

As it was becoming increasingly clear I have not much of substance to say, I looked for a cheerful picture to close with.  This was the first to catch my eye.  It is a publicity photo for a version of Hush… Hush, Sweet Charlotte that was never completed.  Joan Crawford was to have starred opposite Bette Davis but was replaced with Olivia de Havilland.  I am currently re-reading The Divine Feud: Bette and Joan, which tells all about it.

So this post has run the gamut from Columbo to running to Bette and Joan, with a detour into Brain Eaters.  That seems like a lot for one weekend.  I look forward to what Monday brings.

 

Lame Old Me

Last night I felt too tired to make my Lame Post Friday post, and I am justly served for my laziness, because I have a dreadful headache this morning.  Two lousy glasses of Chardonnay!  I feel most ill-used.  Sorry to bitch about it, but you know how it is.

Pretty!

I looked for a cheerful picture in my Media Library to counteract my whining.  These are my Black-Eyed Susans in August 2017.  The patch does not look nearly as nice this year, but I was happy to get at least some blooms.  I have fallen down dreadfully in the yard and garden department these past few years.  Little by little, I try to improve the situation.

Me, trying to improve the situation.

I used this illustration before with the caption, “Me, hacking away at the overgrowth.”  It amused me so much, I thought I would repeat it for the benefit of anybody that missed it the first time.

Actors at work.

I was looking for a summer activity, so I could also make this a preview of coming attractions.  I found this from when a few members of LiFT, Little Falls Theatre Company,  met at Mangia Macrina’s Pizza in Little Falls, NY to run lines for Love’s Labour’s Lost.  I had actually started to go home, but turned around and joined them.  Alas, no LiFT or Shakespeare appear to be in my near future, but theatre is.  And possibly a pizza from Mangia Macrina’s.

OK, one more Shakespeare picture.

 

Dracula, Joan, It’s Lame Post Friday!

I was thinking about making my Lame Post Friday post late once again, but I decided not to be so lame as all that. Earlier  I thought I would have a lazy, relaxed Friday night, so I am lounged on the couch in pajama pants, sipping Sauvignon Blanc and looking at movies.  I just watched Taste the Blood of Dracula then put in Sudden Fear.  Christopher Lee to Joan Crawford.  Why not?

Dracula likes Friday.

I have been watching too many DVDs since I got rid of cable.  Of course I have a somewhat extensive collection, mostly curated by my late, beloved husband Steve.  My problem is, I have to be in the mood for a particular movie, and I seem to have watched all the movies I am currently in the mood for.  I wish I could change moods as easily as I change DVDs.

There’s the right picture for the movie I watched.

Maybe I should stop being in the mood to watch a movie and try to get in the mood to clean this house.  I know, I need to clean my house regardless of mood.  I’ll work on that tomorrow.

Two of the people in this picture are up to no good.

I like this movie, Sudden Fear, but it starts so slowly.  I figured that was all right, because I intended to make my blog post while I watched.  Unfortunately it took me so long to find the pictures I wanted, the movie has started to heat up.  No matter.  I’ve seen it before.

So this is my Friday night.  I am enjoying it and hope you are enjoying yours.

 

Welcome To My Quagmire

Sometimes I have a To Hell With It Day on Monday.  OK, most weeks I do. I often feel that if I just get through Monday, I have done enough.  That is why I usually do a Monstrous Monday Post.  It is all I want to manage.  And some Mondays, I just go to bed and leave it for Tuesday.

I am trying not to do that today.  I already sloughed off fixing my lunch till tomorrow.    I almost sloughed off putting out garbage till next week but at the last minute put out what little I have.  Full disclosure: I felt self-conscious about being the only house on the block without containers out front.  Then I felt ridiculous for being self-conscious about such a thing.  For heavens’ sake, why should I care what anybody thinks about me putting out garbage every other week?   Additionally, why should I flatter myself that anybody even notices? What do I think they say? “That crazy old lady in the yellow  house, she doesn’t even put out garbage every week. Does she just let it pile up in her kitchen?  Eeww!”

A neighbor giving me the side-eye because of my garbage habits.

I thought I would throw in a picture, to get myself out of the quagmire of the previous paragraph.  That is a good word: quagmire.  I think it describes many of my blog posts and much of my life.  At least my mind, much of the time.

I seem to have lost my head.

I was looking for a suitably quagmirish photo but could not find one.  I settle for Joan Crawford in StraitJacket. “She’s insane! She’s insane!”  I just don’t imagine I’m that bad.

Side note:  I am actually finishing and posting this early Tuesday morning.  I add this in the interests of accuracy.

 

Who Says You Can’t Get A Head?

An exceptional cast!

Yesterday I decided at have a severed Head Sunday.  Today I thought I would write about it in lieu of my usual Monstrous Monday Post.  I began with Hush… Hush, Sweet Charlotte with Bette Davis, Olivia de Havilland, Joseph Cotten, Agnes Moorehead, Victor Buono, and Mary Astor.  Just to name everybody.

One of my favorite shots.

I love Hush, Hush but do not pop it in very often, because it is so long.  I guess I have a short attention span, but I do enjoy watching several movies of 90 minutes or less.

She feels strongly about it.

A few days ago I was disappointed to be unable to find my DVD of StraitJacket (starring Joan Crawford,  of course). Yesterday I had better luck.  In fact, I was surprised I had not found it before, because it was not that far out of alphabetical order.  However, I feel it was just as well I had not watched it before, because it fits so well with my Severed Head theme of the day.

And here are a couple of the heads!

It seems this post is longer on pictures than words, but that is not necessarily a bad thing.  I’m not even sure it can count as a Severed Head Sunday since I only watched two movies with severed heads.  Full disclosure:  my first movie was Rope, which features a strangulation, but the victim’s head remains attached (that did not require a spoiler alert; it happens in the very first scene).

No matter.  It is Monday, and it has not been as monstrous as it might have been.  Once again, I thank you for tuning in.

 

Throwback? Non-Sequitur? It’s a Mystery!

Wordless Wednesday turned out pretty good (or do I flatter myself?), so I thought I would go for a Throwback Thursday Post. I’ve had those before. If I throw back to something I have thrown before, sorry.

A couple of suspicious individuals.

Here is an appropriate memory: a murder mystery dinner theatre which benefited the Herkimer County Historical Society. It was titled Secrets at Suiter House. It is appropriate, because I am currently writing and recruiting actors for another murder mystery, as yet untitled.

This is not how this looks today, but tomorrow…?

I am having a great deal of trouble navigating my Media Library, as indeed I did yesterday. As a matter of fact, yesterday I sought but did not find a picture of snow. Now I was looking for another murder mystery picture and found snow. No matter. I can just bill this as a Non-Sequitur Thursday Post.

I hate to play the illness card again, but can I just say I am still not feeling the least bit well. What the hell, body? I have things to do and blog posts to write! Can I find one more picture to pull this post together?

I loves me some Bette and Joan.

This picture is appropriate for both a Throwback and Non-Sequitur Thursday Posts. It is a publicity shot from when Joan Crawford and Bette Davis were set to star in Hush… Hush, Sweet Charlotte in 1964. Crawford subsequently left the production. That is pretty far back. Come to think about it, it is not a complete non-sequitur, because the movie is a murder mystery. It’s a good movie. I highly recommend it.

I am not sure I can recommend this blog post, but you’ll have that. If only I could think of a title…