A Fourth Sunshine Blogger Award for The Wonderful World of Cinema!
- Trinity Auditorium
- Jul 3, 2024
- 7 min read
Last April, the lovely Ari from The Classic Movie Muse had the extreme kindness of honouring my blog with a Sunshine Blogger Award, making it the fourth one for The Wonderful World of Cinema! I’m forever grateful for that recognition that allows blogs to stay on the map and be discovered or rediscovered. A huge thanks, Ari!
For those who don’t know what a Sunshine Blogger Award is, it’s simple. When you are nominated, you follow these steps to “accept” the award:
Display the award’s official logo somewhere on your blog.
Thank the person who nominated you.
Provide a link to your nominator’s blog.
Answer your nominator’s questions.
Nominate up to 11 bloggers.
Ask your nominees 11 questions.
Notify your nominees by commenting on at least one of their blog posts.
It’s a way to honour other blogs and let people know more about yourself and your film tastes. All in fun! I was a bit busy with other blogging assignments in April to accept it right away. But now that I’ve completed the series of blogathons I subscribed to this Spring and that I’m on vacation, I thought I’d finally take the time to answer Ari’s questions. I don’t remember what they are, so I’m impatient to discover them as I go along!
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Without further ado, here we go!
Ari’s 11 questions:
1- Who is your favourite comedian/comedienne?
I’m always a bit confused by that word because in French, “un comédien” or “une comédienne” is just a synonym of “actor”, but it more often designates a stage player. In English, I think we are talking about someone who is funny and plays comedy. Right? I feel it can also be pretty broad and include people who are often associated with comedy, the film genre, and/or who do stand-up comedy, but not necessarily both. I have no choice but to go with Carry On actors. I love British comedy, and they were the perfect representation of it. Kenneth Williams would be my choice and, although he is not necessarily labelled as a comedian, Kenneth Connor too ( I can’t leave him behind. I love him too much). Oh, and now that I’m thinking of it, the Monty Python gang is pretty much worth mentioning as well (my favourite one probably being Michael Palin).
2- How did you discover classic movies?
For what it’s worth, it’s actually all explained in that old article.
3- You are hosting a splashy surprise party in the heydey of the studio era. Who is it for and who’s on the guest list?
It’s funny because, a long time ago, I wrote an article on what would be my idealistic movie star party! It wasn’t only focused on the Studio Era, tho. If we keep it 1927-1948, more or less, I would definitely keep Vivien Leigh to help me co-host. She would also be joined by Carole Lombard (and Clark Gable) because she was also a legend at organizing parties. Since we need people with great chemistry, James Stewart and his buddy Henry Fonda would be there (reminding us that we can have fun without talking politics). We’ll need some great dancers to keep things lively, such as Eleanor Powell, Fred and Ginger and even James Cagney! Alfred Hitchcock will, once again, be there with the wine, and Joan Fontaine and her cooking skills could help with a delicious meal. I feel people like Red Skelton would be the party clown. And we need one. And well, we don’t want to leave anyone from the Lady Be Goodcrowd behind. So, why not bring Ann Sothern and Robert Young as well? I feel I would get along well with him. I’ll need someone cute to look at. So, Gregory Peck would also be a guest (and 40s Gregory Peck is YUMMY). Joseph Cotten seemed to be a fun person at parties who liked to play practical jokes. Since he was not really established in Hollywood at the time, William Holden would be there to get to know more people and would bring fireworks. We’ll need a music duo. Take newcomer Doris Day and Oscar Levant to accompany her beautiful singing.
I also want underrated people like Marion Davies and the Bennett Sisters. Joan Bennett would come with her friend and lookalike Margaret Lockwood, who happens to be in Hollywood. Olivia de Havilland and her friend Bette Davis would be there (we’ll make sure there’s not too much drama with Joan Fontaine). William Haines would help me decorate. AND SO MANY OTHER PEOPLE. But this paragraph is getting long. That would be a surprise party for Ingrid Bergman’s birthday because she was THE QUEEN. All things considered, I think that would be a late 30s-early 40s party.
4- Who is your favorite screen team?
Charters and Caldicott (Basil Radford and Naunton Waynes) hands down!
5- You have an opportunity to travel back in time and attend a special event. Do you choose a movie premiere or Oscar ceremony. Which premiere or ceremony do you choose and why?
Oh, that’s an excellent question! This may sound cliché, but I think I would go with Gone with the Wind premiere. We know how historical that was. Imagine the craze of seeing a four-hour colour film at a time when colour was still not in the standards. I also could have gone with The Wizard of Oz, for that matter, but it’s never been a favourite of mine. Or, although it’s not my favourite Hitchcock film, I think the premiere of Psycho would be a great choice, too. From what I’ve read, it was quite an event for its contemporary audience!
6- If you could travel back in time and be the assistant to a director, who would it be and why?
Billy Wilder, who is a huge favourite of mine, because I feel I could learn a lot from him both as a director AND a screenwriter and, to be honest, it’s the latter that would interest me the most. But I would also love to work with a female director from the classic era like Ida Lupino.
7- What is a film that makes you laugh out loud no matter how many times you’ve seen it?
Oh, Little Miss Sunshine is a pretty good choice.
8- If you could add a movie costume to your own wardrobe, which one would you choose? I love that question! It’s tough to choose only one! Since I love collecting coats (unintentionally), I think I’ll go with the beautiful Givenchy yellow coats worn by Audrey Hepburn in Charade. I could have gone with an evening gown, but why not pick something you can wear more regularly?
9- What is a film set that you’d like to live in?
Oh, any film set from a screwball comedy because there are always big beautiful houses. Since we also need a fun and cosy place from time to time, I’ll go with the mansion in Holiday because there’s the playroom.
10- What is your favorite period in history as depicted in film? Name a film that beautifully reflects this period.
That’s a though question. There are many! To name one, I’ve always liked films that take place during the 19th century (yeah, that’s broad). I think Jane Eyre (the 1943 version with Joan Fontaine) and The Man in Grey were great depictions of that.
11- What is an underrated film you wish more people knew about?
Give Us the Moon (Val Guest, 1944). Give Us the Moon. Give Us the Moon. I repeat: Give Us the Moon. Did I mentioned Give Us the Moon?
That was fun to answer!
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Now, I would like to honour the following blogs with the Sunshine Blogger Award !
Make sure to discover their blogs!
I will keep it to seven for the moment because I’ve already nominated many people for a Sunshine Blogger Award in the past!
And now, on with my question for the nominees :
1- You have to exchange life with an Old Hollywood star. Who do you choose?
2- Tell us a fun fact about the film or movie star industry you’re pretty sure not a lot of people know about.
3- You are offered to adopt a pet, but it has to be a pet from a film. Which one do you choose? Asta the dog? Cat from Breakfast at Tiffany’s? Baby the leopard? The lovebirds from The Birds? Tell us!
4- That isn’t really film-related, but I’ve always dreamt of asking that question. What would be your “Desert Island Discs” picks? For those who don’t know, Desert Island Discs is a radio program broadcast on BBC 4 since the 40s (and it’s still ongoing). Each week, the host receives a celebrity guest who picks eight audio recordings they would bring to a desert island while talking about their life and career. They can also choose one book and one luxury item. They received a plethora of guests like Grace Kelly, Alec Guinness, Bob Monkhouse, and more recently, Daniel Radcliffe or Cillian Murphy. I highly recommend it! You can listen to old episodes on Apple Podcast! Anyway, suppose you were a castaway on a desert island. Which eight songs would you bring with you, along with a luxury item and a book? Choose wisely! I could have asked which eight films you would choose, but I also love to learn about people’s music tastes.
5- You can be invited to a dinner (or any meal of the day) that takes place in a film. Which one do you choose?
6- Suppose you’re a famous film star, and Hedda Hopper published some salacious gossip about you in a magazine. What is your reaction?
7- You are a mixologist and create a cocktail honouring a movie star. Who do you honour, and how do you make your cocktail? It can be without alcohol!
8- Who is your favourite Old Hollywood dancer?
9- What are your top three favourite films directed by a woman? It can be from any era.
10- What do you think was the most deserving Best Picture Oscar, and why?
11- Is there a film you think could have been made into a tv series as well? (Like M*A*S*H* or Fargo)?
And that’s it! I’m very impatient to read your answers! A huge congrats again to the nominees and thanks again to Ari for nominating me!
See you soon!
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