Food Fight

Production photo from Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)

Stanley Kubrick had originally planned to end Dr. Strangelove with a pie fight in the War Room. Kubrick even went so far as to film the sequence, but changed his mind after viewing the footage. Presumably, he thought the result was too satirical. Only photos remain of that sequence.

“Another reason for cutting the custard pie fight at the end of the film was that at one point, President Muffley took a pie in the face and fell down, prompting Gen. Turgidson to cry, ‘Gentlemen! Our gallant young president has just been struck down in his prime!’ Stanley Kubrick had already decided to cut the pie fight by the time of President John F. Kennedy’s assassination, but this line (or possibly even the whole sequence) would certainly have been cut anyway due to its eerie similarity to real events.”

– Source: Internet Movie Database

Dr. Strangelove

Major T. J. “King” Kong: Survival kit contents check. In them you’ll find: one forty-five caliber automatic; two boxes of ammunition; four days’ concentrated emergency rations; one drug issue containing antibiotics, morphine, vitamin pills, pep pills, sleeping pills, tranquilizer pills; one miniature combination Russian phrase book and Bible; one hundred dollars in rubles; one hundred dollars in gold; nine packs of chewing gum; one issue of prophylactics; three lipsticks; three pair of nylon stockings. Shoot, a fella could have a pretty good weekend in Vegas with all that stuff.

– Dialogue from Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)

Le Voyage dans la Lune

Here’s a link to stream the classic silent short: Le Voyage dans la Lune (1902). Created by pioneer filmmaker Georges Méliès, Le Voyage dans la Lune (A Trip to the Moon) is filled with fanciful images and ideas relating to space travel.

The sequence where the space capsule crashes into the Man in the Moon is one of earliest examples of stop-motion photography. That technique was the basis for many of the special effects in 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) and Star Wars (1977).

If you prefer to download this public domain short, you can visit here.

First Science-Fiction Film

What was the first science-fiction film? It would have to be Le Voyage dans la Lune (A Trip to the Moon), written and directed by Georges Méliès. Released in France in 1902, it even provides a glimpse of the moon’s inhabitants, the insect-like Selenites.

According to Wikipedia, “Méliès had intended on releasing the film into the United States to profit from it; however, Thomas A. Edison’s film technicians had secretly made copies of it and distributed it throughout the country, thus putting money into Edison’s pocket. Méliès never profited from it and eventually went broke.”

Mahatma Kane Jeeves

Ever see the name Mahatma Kane Jeeves in the credits of a W.C. Fields movie? Fields adopted this strange sounding name, as well as the names of Otis Criblecoblis and Charles Bogle, when he didn’t want to receive credit for writing his own material. “Mahatma Kane Jeeves” is meant to suggest an aristocrat who says to his butler when walking out, “My hat, my cane, Jeeves.”

It’s a Gift

Insurance Salesman: Do you know a man by the name of LaFong? Carl LaFong? Capital L, small a, Capital F, small o, small n, small g. LaFong. Carl LaFong.
Harold: No, I don’t know Carl LaFong — capital L, small a, capital F, small o, small n, small g. And if I did know Carl LaFong, I wouldn’t admit it!

– Dialogue from It’s a Gift (1934)

Last Hollywood Silent?

What was the last Hollywood silent? It depends on how you define a silent film. Sunrise (1927) is considered to be one of the greatest silent films, even though it was released with a synchronized music track.

Because Modern Times (1936) used title cards for its dialogue, you could make a strong case for it being Hollywood’s last major silent production. Chaplin’s Tramp does sing, though in keeping with the silent tradition of the character, the lyrics are unintelligible. The Tramp’s final words in the film are a fitting tribute to the end of an era: Buck up – never say die! We’ll get along.

Just Borrowing

“France’s Tobis Studios sued Charles Chaplin for plagiarizing the conveyor belt sequence [in Modern Times] from René Clair’s À nous la liberté (1931) but dropped the suit when Clair declared himself honored by the tribute, saying, ‘I have certainly borrowed enough from him.’”

–Source: Internet Movie Database

Meet John Doe

Here’s a link to stream the classic social drama: Meet John Doe (1941). Though it can be more heavy handed than Frank Capra’s other films (such as Mr. Deeds Goes to Town, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, and It’s a Wonderful Life), this one is a cut above similar social dramas from the time period.

If you prefer to download this public domain feature, you can visit here.

The Lady Eve

Jean Harrington: You know Charles?
Sir Alfred McGlennan Keith: Oh, is he the tall backwards boy always toying with toads and things? Yes, I think I have seen him skulking about.
Jean Harrington: He’s not backwards. He’s a scientist.
Sir Alfred McGlennan Keith: Oh is that what it is? I knew he was, mm… peculiar.

– Dialogue from The Lady Eve (1941)