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Dec. 15, 2005 One of my favorite films is “Caged,” the story of a pregnant girl imprisoned for being an accessory to a crime committed by her husband. The girl, Marie Allen, was played by Eleanor Parker. Marie is mistreated and eventually broken psychologically by mean-spirited guard Emma Barber (played with a seemingly fiendish glee by Ellen Corby), and eventually young Marie’s bitterness turns her into a hardened, wannabe criminal. Agnes Moorehead, better known for her role as “Endora” on TV’s “Bewitched” gives a strong performance as the kindhearted prison warden Ruth Benton. For Parker it should have been a break out role that would put her among the upper echelon of the starlets of that era. But she never became the star that Bette Davis, Joan Crawford or even Claire Trevor became. One critic called the movie, “One of the most under rated movies of all time. Eleanor Parker really did deserve an Oscar for this performance.” However, Parker was nominated for an Academy Awards for Best Actress. She was bested by Judy Holiday, (“Born Yesterday”). Also nominated was Hope Emerson, who played Marie’s foil, Evelyn Harper. Emerson lost out to Josephine Hull (“Harvey”). Parker was born in June 26, 1922, in Cedarville, Ohio. She made her debut in, “Busses Roar” (1942), The Film Guild of America says about her, “Audiences never knew what to expect when they saw her. To Eleanor, creating interesting characters was more important than cultivating a star image. In over 50 films, she would earn the title, ‘The Woman of a Thousand Faces’...If she had conformed, and simply used her stunning beauty to rise to stardom, she might be canonized today. Thankfully, she did not conform. Eleanor instead became a serious actress who gave her roles a depth and understanding that few stars have ever matched.” This was followed by little known films where her performance was credible, including five films in 1944: “The Very Thought of You,” “The Last Ride,” “Crime by Night,” “Atlantic City,” (an uncredited part) and “Between Two Worlds.” She had a supporting part as Mildred Rogers in “Of Human Bondage” (1946). In 1950 she played Joan “Jo” Holloway and opposite Humphrey Bogart in the war story “Chain Lightning,” a film best known for plane flying scenes due to a weak script. Claire Trevor was born Claire Wemlinger on March 8, 1910, in Brooklyn, New York. Her career began in 1933 in “Life In The Raw,” and she also appeared in the John Wayne oater, “Stagecoach” (1939). During her career, which spanned sixty films, she earned the moniker, “Queen of Film Noir," for her plethora of “bad girl” roles. She earned three Oscar nominations for “Dead End” (19--, which also featured Humphrey Bogart and marked the debut of The Dead End Kids); “The High and the Mighty” (1954) and won Best Supporting Actress for her portrayal as the drunken girlfriend of an abusive gangster (Edward G. Robinson), in “Key Largo” (1948). Her other films include, “Murder, My Sweet” (1944) where Trevor played Velma, the missing girlfriend of a gangster. Dick Powell played the lead as detective Philip Marlowe. “Born To Kill” (1947); In 1948 she made three films--“Raw Deal” playing a gun moll who helps her gangster boyfriend escape from prison; “The Velvet Touch,” where she was cast as an actress accused of murdering her husband and then went against form in “The Babe Ruth Story” (1948). The former two films are considered fine examples of the Noir genre. She described that winning moment, saying "There's sort of an explosion which makes you half deaf and blind. Somehow you find yourself on the stage and you begin to hear the applause." Trevor also won an Emmy (1956) for her performance in “Dodsworth,” co-starring with Fredric March. She died April 8, 2000. Director John Houston was born August 5, 1906 in Nevada, Missouri. He went to Hollywood when his father Walter, another producer of note, gave him a job. He assisted with the writing on such hits as “Jezebel,” “High Sierra” and “Sergeant York.” He made his directing debut in 1941, directing Bogart, Lorre and Sidney Greenstreet in “Tha Maltese Falcon” for which he won an Oscar for writing. In 1948, Huston directed “The Treasure of Sierra Madre,” winning Oscars for writing and directing. His father won The Best Supporting Actor for his role in the movie. John Huston once called filmmaking, “a collaborative medium. rather than being a tyrant, i believe in getting ideas from as many sources as possible." He has worked with some of the biggest names of his era, including Humphrey Bogart, Edward G. Robinson, Claire Trevor, Peter Lorre, Jack Nicholson and Katherine Hepburn. His movies is a collection of classics: “The African Queen,” “Key Largo,” “Treasure of the Sierra Madre,” “The Maltese Falcon” and “Prizzi's Honor,” which starred his daughter Angelica and earned her a Best Supporting Actress honor. Many of the screenplays were written by Huston as well. He noted, “I don't make a distinction between writing and direction. But to write and to direct one's own material is certainly the best approach. The directing is kind of an extension of the writing." Huston also lensed an interpretation of “The Bible” (1966) and “The Red Badge of Courage” (1951). Lauren Bacall called him, "Daring, unpredictable, maddening, mystifying and probably the most charming man on earth." Katherine Hepburn said Huston was the “best piece of direction I have ever heard." Houston died August 28, 1987 from emphysema. Sources: John Huston profile, Wikipedia Claire Trevor profile, Wikipedia Martin Connors and Jim Craddock, “Videohound’s Golden Movie Retriever 2000” Eleanor Parker biography, IMDb.com “The John Huston interviews,” edited by Robert Emmet Long ------------ About the author: Timothy Stelly is a 46-year old California native with a wide variety of interests-from fishing to politics, which have a lot in common: Both require you to deal with worms and most of your time is spent idling. He is a former Democrat, believing that Party represents outdated ideas. He is officially registered as an Independent, choosing to keep his options open. Timothy is also the author of more than 80 screenplays and novels, two of which have been "published": "Tempest In The Stone" and "The Malice Of Cain", both available through PublishAmerica. He defines his writing style as "Hip-hop fiction; a cross between Richard Pryor and Richard Wright." His UK columns is written in a hard-edged style, but he is not yet a curmudgeon or a conservative. (Is that redundant?) After all, one of his favorite movies is "The Adventures of Milo and Otis." stellbread0.tripod.com Email: stellbread@yahoo.com Tell a friend about this site! ------------ All articles are EXCLUSIVE to Useless-Knowledge.com and are not allowed to be posted on other websites. ARTICLE THIEVES WILL BE PROSECUTED! |
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