Classic Couple

Special Guest Blog By Caroline Lappetito, Raleigh/Cary TCM Backlot Chapter Member Ben-Hur! From the opening credits you are smacked right between the eyes and you know you are going to see something very, very special. The booming, soaring musical score, the iconic Sistine Chapel painting of Michelangelo’s God creating Man upon which the credits roll, […]

The Raleigh/Cary TCM Backlot Chapter recently went bicoastal. On Sunday, April 14, while some of us attended the 2019 TCM Film Festival, several chapter members attended the 60th Anniversary TCM Big Screen Classics presentation of Ben-Hur. The two groups texted one another during breaks. Chapter President Chris and “First Lady” Kami sent the group a […]

130 years ago today on April 16, 1889 Charlie Chaplin was born in Walworth, London. In a 75-year career he showed us what it means to be a comic genius and a true storyteller. My favorite quote attributed to him is, “A day without laughter is a day wasted.” I could not agree more.

Experience the evolution of slapstick comedy on film in three films released in 1914: Caught in a Cabaret released April 27, His Trysting Place released on November 9, and Tillie’s Punctured Romance released December 21. Keystone Studios served as production house, Mack Sennett worked as producer and Charlie Chaplin, Mabel Normand and Mack Swain starred […]

As the Raleigh/Cary TCM Backlot Chapter prepares to see the 60th Anniversary TCM Big Screen Classics presentation of Ben-Hur, I looked for some tidbits related to how the epic film came together. The visual magnificence and thundering action of this historic drama made it a record-setting winner of eleven Academy Awards, including Best Picture and […]

Indiscreet (1931) is described as a comedy, a drama and a musical. Indeed, it is all those things. A pre-Code morality tale, Indiscreet stars Gloria Swanson giving one of her most captivating performances of the 1930s. Available in April from The Film Detective, Indiscreet is a must-watch for those whose knowledge of Swanson is limited […]

The Raleigh/Cary TCM Backlot Chapter met up today to see the TCM Big Screen Classics presentation of To Kill a Mockingbird. I think I can speak for the entire group to say that this afternoon we were transported to 1932 and Harper Lee’s fictitious town of Maycomb, Alabama. Afterwards, we gathered for classic film chatter. […]

Preparing to see the TCM Big Screen Classics presentation of To Kill a Mockingbird, I read a lot of sources about the behind-the-scenes interactions between the actors. The tidbits that stood out to me were all about the relationships formed, many that lasted a lifetime. Characters from Real Life: The character Dill in the movie […]

On February 9, 2019 during the TCM 31 Days of Oscar, Now, Voyager (1942) starring Bette Davis aired. For me, it was a new classic discovery as a film I had never seen. Bette Davis’ Oscar-nominated performance held me captive, and I have been ruminating on the movie ever since. Davis portrays Charlotte Vale, a […]

John Wayne is a favorite actor of mine, especially in Westerns. Until I watched The Desert Trail (1935), available in March from The Film Detective, my knowledge of Wayne in Westerns began with his appearance in Stagecoach (1939). Working with director John Ford, Wayne got his big break portraying the Ringo Kid in the film, […]