Lover of anything vintage.
I spend my free time looking at antiques,watching and collecting classic films,and reading some of the greatest literary classics known to man.This blog is just my way of sharing my interests with other people.
We hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving yesterday.
This post is just a reminder that A Very Vintage Christmas starts exactly one week from tomorrow, onDecember1st. We are so excited for another successful year of our Christmas campaign, and we hope you will join us for it.
We do have a scheduleset up for it and it is much like last year:
Thursdays will be for classic Christmas tunes.
Saturdaysand Sundays will be for Christmas films.
And there will be other posts in between on Christmas literatureand traditions.
So, as you can see, we went ahead and changed the layout on out homepage (here) and our Twitter and Facebook pages (links below), just to give you a little teaser of what you have to look forward to this Christmas season.
With that, we'll be signing off for another week, because I think we all need to rest and recover from Thanksgiving festivities.
But we hope to see you back here next Saturday,December1st, for A Very VintageChristmas!
I'd like to keep this post short and to the point, because I know I've got some wonderful friends and tasty turkey waiting for me, and I'm sure you do as well.
"...Ah! On Thanksgiving day, when from East and from West,
From North and from South comes the pilgrim and guest;
When the grey-haired New Englander sees round his board
The old broken links of affection restored,
When the care-wearied man seeks his mother once more,
And the worn matron smiles where the girl smiled before,
What moistens the lip and brightens the eye?
What calls back the past, like the rich pumpkin pie?..."
-Excerpt from "The Pumpkin" by John Greenleaf Whittier
We truly do hope that you have a wonderful thanksgiving, with fantastic food, and the even better opportunity to be surrounded by people you love.
And we'd also like to remind you to truly meditate on what you are thankful for, because no matter what you are going through, grace always abounds.
Not only that, but we'd like to share a challenge with you: today, when you sit down at your table for your Thanksgiving meal, look around you at all of the people sharing this day with you, and don't just be thankful for them, but love them as well.
If you've been a follower of Think Classic for the last year or so then you will be familiar with what we're about to share with you, and if you're new or just joining us then by all means, tag along. This week is Thanksgiving week, if you are from the United States or Canada, and I know many of you are not, but regardless, we will do a blip of a post later this week in honor of Turkey Day, and then a week from Saturday, December1, will be the official start of our second annual seasonal special, A Very Vintage Christmas. We ran A Very Vintage Christmas last year with enormous success, so we have decided to do it again. For those of you who do not know, A Very Vintage Christmas is everything Christmas combined with everything you want that is classic, or antique. We do songs, movies, TV shows, radio programs, etc. Last year we set up a kind of tentative schedule for our Christmas special, and this year **we will be sticking to a schedule.** I know that the first version of this announcement said there would not be a set schedule, but everything runs much more smoothly if there is one, so there will be a schedule, and it will be more or less the same as last years'. That means that on Thursdays, there will be posts on classic Christmas music/songs/or albums. And on Saturdays and Sundays there will be posts on classic Christmas films, and then there will also be posts on classic Christmas traditions and their origins and some classic Christmas literature as well, meaning that there will be a total of 12 posts for A Very Vintage Christmas throughout the month of December. So, we hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving, and if you do not celebrate Thanksgiving then we hope you have a wonderful week doing whatever it is that you do. We will see you on December 1st! And be sure to check our Twitter, Facebook, and the Think Classic homepage for a Very Vintage Christmas theme once Thanksgiving has passed! Thanks! And happy holidays to you and yours, Anna Snell Think Classic Administrator
Starring Ingrid Bergman, Jose Ferrer, Francis L. Sullivan and J. Carrol Naish
Released on this day in 1948, the Victor Fleming film Joan of Arc tells the story of the life of famous 19 year old French heroine and now canonized saint. It begins with a scene in a cathedral,with a voice reading out the official proclamation for the canonization of Jeanne d'Arc, Maid of Orleans (Bergman). It then jumps into the story of her life, beginning at the time when she believed that God had called her into action through a holy vision, to drive the English out of the region, help escort Charles VII to his coronation, and help put a stop to the Hundred Years'War. Joan claimed to be around the age of 12 when she first saw three other saints in a divine vision.
By use of family connections, after previous failed attempts, Joan managed to come in contact with Charles VII, then nothing more than a Dauphin or royal prince. She told him of her plans and her visions and how she wished she could be of help to him, citing God as her leader and inspiration, and therefore turning the page of the war to a more religious setting. Charles was very interested in what she had to say and wished to let her proceed with her plans, as some of her predictions had already come to pass. He could not act too hastily, however, because if he should follow her lead and achieve coronation without having her religious background confirmed, then it could lead to disaster with the people saying he inherited his position from the devil. So, a background check, of sorts, was done and word was received saying that all evidence supported that Joan was a humble, honest, Christian young lady.
It is said that she had the idea and desire of her own to ride into battle as a knight, or any good man. But she did not have the means to make her own armor, so she depended on donations for all of her necessities. There are accounts that say that she then took the initiative to actually lead the armies into battles, and thanks to her holy visions, they achieved many great victories which simultaneously paved the road for the Dauphin to his coronation and changed the tide of the war. She was known for persevering despite the odds and showing great courage to those she worked with, which is why they viewed her as one of the last fragments of hope they had left. She approved of an aggressive approach at a time when they were afraid to approach the enemy, she captured a fort with the aid of only one other, and during one battle she was wounded in the neck by an arrow but soldiered on and returned to the front lines to lead the final charge. She eventually used her influence with Charles VII to take over the position of co-commander of the army. On March 23, 1430, just about a year after her participation in the first siege, Joan was captured after a battle with the English. At first she adamantly refused to surrender.
She was put on trial for heresy, and although it was an unfair trial with the appointed bishop lacking judicial authority over her case, the trial was opened for political reasons without any adverse evidence, and Joan (who was illiterate) was forced to sign an official abjuration document without knowing what it was. Nonetheless, she was convicted of heresy and sentenced to death. She was burned at the stake on May 30, 1431 and her ashes were thrown into the Seine.
This 1948 adaptation of the story of the French heroine was one of the first extensive American productions of the entire story of her life, rise to fame, capture, and death. The film won the Academy Award for Best Costume Design in Color, and Best Cinematography in Color; it was nominated for Best Actress, and Best Supporting Actor. The film was fairly well received but audiences and the film studio were outraged to learn of Ingrid Bergman's affair with Roberto Rossellini shortly after it's release, and because of this, the film was edited or "butchered" before it was sent out for general release. Much of the content that was cut was feared to have been lost, and the film was not fully recovered in total and put back together for almost 50 years.
Starring Olivia de Havilland, Leo Genn, Mark Stevens, and Betsy Blair
Juniper Hill State Hospital is a large ward for mental patients. One of it's patients, VirginiaCunningham (de Havilland), originally comes from a wealthy background. She has a loving husband and a lovely home, but she was sent to the mental institution supposedly for schizophrenia. She hears voices, and eventually gets so that she cannot keep track of reality, so she is sent to Juniper Hill for safety and healing.
When she is first admitted, Virginia is so lost that she does not even know who her own husband, Robert (Stevens) is. Virginia's doctor, Dr. Mark Kik (Genn), works with her to try and bring to light what it is that unhinges her. Through the use of shock therapy, and hypnotherapy among other things, they begin to make good progress. She tells him about traumatic events from her childhood, a previous failed engagement, and about how she met her husband.
The hospital is split into 12 different wards, Ward 1 being the best and 12 being the worst. Dr. Kik manages to get Virginia a place in Ward 1, believing that as she continues to progress, it would be beneficial for her to be away from less critical patients. Virginia undoubtedly would have continued to improve even more, but one of the nurses in the new ward believes that Dr. Kik coddles her too much, so she is very strict, harsh, and even brutal towards Virginia. Eventually she torments Virginia so much that Virginia has a breakdown and is sent away from Ward 1 in a straight jacket. Dr. Kik hears what happens and knows that unless she is given special attention very soon, Virginia will have a full setback, so he begins to work with her more extensively again. Virginia improves once more, but she is now in the 12th Ward, and she knows she has a lot of work ahead of her still. In order to leave the hospital, she has to have a full interview in order to be sure that it is safe to release her. When Virginia gets to the point where going home becomes a possibility, she is terrified that she will have a relapse and that she will not be able to leave. In the end, her husband Robert comes to take her home, and she is successfully discharged.
The Snake Pit was a film adaptation of a novel of the same name by successful author Mary Jane Ward. The story was allegedly written by Ward as a commentary on the state of psychiatric facilities at the time, urging for reform. The 1948 film was a delicate masterpiece. Olivia de Havilland portrayed Virginia Cunningham, a character which was the polar opposite of the roles she was usually cast in. But de Havilland's hard work payed off, because the film was very well received. The film won the Academy Award for Best Sound Recording and was nominated for Best Picture and Best Writing Adapted Screenplay; de Havilland, who had already won an Academy Award the previous year, was also nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role.
"It was strange, here I was among all those people, and at the same time I felt as if I were looking at them from some place far away, the whole place seemed to me like a deep hole and the people down in it like strange animals, like...like snakes, and I've been thrown into it...yes...as though...as though I were in a snake pit..."
Ruth Lee Jones was born in August of 1924 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Soon after her birth, her family relocated to Chicago, so the majority of her upbringing took place in the windy city.
Even as a child she had an ear and talent for music. She was a very gifted pianist, and played for many church and school functions while she was still in elementary school. By the time she reached high school she was running the show and directing her church choir. In 1940, the famous Mother of Gospel Music, Sallie Martin, formed the first female gospel group known as the Sallie Martin Gospel Singers, and Ruth Jones was one of it's lead singers.
At the young age of 15, Ruth felt she had gotten enough encouraging feedback on her talent that she began to sing in night clubs, then she progressed to jazz clubs and even hotels. In 1942, a friend took her to hear the legendary Billie Holiday perform at the Garrick Stage Bar. She could hear instrumentalists upstairs playing I Understand and she began to sing along. Staff heard her and were so impressed that she was offered a job. She spent a year working at the Garrick Stage Bar, and it was during this time that she fully transformed and developed her stage name, Dinah Washington. In 1943, jazz instrumentalist Lionel Hampton came to hear Dinah sing, and he liked what he heard enough to present her with an offer. She began to work as his female vocalist later that year.
Two years later she began working for KeynoteRecords, and she had much promise, but the company was shut down in 1946. But Dinah wasn't about to give up--she went and won herself a record deal with Mercury Records as a solo artist. She started off with a bang, her first single to be released being Ain'tMisbehavin'. Between the year of 1948 and 1955, Dinah released 27 top ten hits. She had made it big, and she was one of the most popular artists of the time period. Her 1948 single Am I Asking Too Much? even made it to #1 on the R&B chart. She continued to crank out what would be come some of the most popular songs of the day, like What A Difference A Day Makes, Manhattan, and Is You Is or Is You Ain't My Baby? She had a style all her own and a very distinct voice--salty, gritty, yet more high pitched than one might expect. She became known for her versions of torch songs, one of her most popular being Smoke Gets In Your Eyes.
To go along with her hectic career which seemed to have blossomed overnight, her home and personal life also lacked stability. She was married seven times, her last marriage was to pro football player Dick "Night Train" Lane, and she had two sons. She struggled with weight gain on and off for many years, feeling self conscious when performing in front of people. She even went through bouts of depression. In 1963, at the age of 39, Dinah Washington apparently accidentally overdosed with a lethal combination of drugs used for sedatives and to combat insomnia.
Here are some of her more famous ballads, for your enjoyment:
