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At this year’s Tony Awards “Suffs” managed to win prizes for Best Musical Book and Best Score, both of which went to Shaina Taub. Historically, winning those two accolades in particular would bode well for a show’s chances at Best Musical. Yet in a shocking turn of events, the top award went to “The Outsiders.” But this is not the first time something like this has happened.

SEETony Awards: Every winner (and nominee) in all 26 competitive categories

In 1978 “On the Twentieth Century” won Tonys for Best Score and Best Book (Comden and Green). It also won Best Actor in a Musical (John Cullum), Best Featured Actor in a Musical (Kevin Kline), and Best Scenic Design (Robin Wagner). Yet Best Musical that year went to Murray Horwitz and Richard Maltby Jr.‘s revue “Ain’t Misbehavin’.” A tribute to the music of Fats Waller, it also won Tonys for Best...

The legendary Judy Garland, one of the greatest entertainers of the 20th century, would have turned 100 on June 10, 2022. To celebrate her career, tour our photo gallery looking back at her greatest film performances.

Known as the little girl (she was only 4’11) with the big voice, Garland was a rare true triple threat, holding her own with such great dancers as Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire, twice receiving Oscar nominations in acting categories, as well as leaving behind a legacy of record-breaking concerts, a Grammy-winning gold album and recordings of iconic songs that no one else has ever been able to capture in quite the same way.

Born Frances Ethel Gumm on June 10, 1922, in Grand Rapids Minnesota, Garland was the youngest of three girls. They would eventually form the vaudeville act “The Gumm Sisters” when baby Frances was only two years old. After almost a decade of touring with her sisters,...

Nine decades ago this December, moviegoers were witnessing the beginning of one of the most successful movie teams, as well as the demise of one of the most dramatic.

Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers made box office magic during the Depression-era 1930s in nine Art Deco musical comedy delights from Rko including 1934’s “The Gay Divorcee” and 1936’s “Swing Time.” Their chemistry was unmatched, and they literally made beautiful musical together introducing countless standards including the Oscar-winning “The Continental” and “The Way You Look Tonight.” And their dancing was robust, romantic and heavenly-just check out the “Never Gonna Dance” routine from “Swing Time.”

It was 90 years ago this week, their first pairing “Flying Down to Rio” opened at the Radio City Music Hall in New York City. One of the big surprises is that the duo aren’t the stars of the lightweight pre-Code musicals: Dolores Del Rio, Gene Raymond...

Veteran actress Noreen Nash, who starred in the films The Big Fix and The Red Stallion and TV shows such as The Lineup and Yancy Derringer, has died. She was 99. Nash’s passing was confirmed by The Neptune Society, revealing that she died on Tuesday, June 6, in Sherman Oaks, California. No other details were provided. Born Norabelle Jean Roth on April 4, 1924, in Wenatchee, Washington, Nash started her show business career in 1942 after winning the Apple Blossom Queen competition in her hometown. From there, she was contacted by Bob Hope‘s agent Louis Shurr, who helped her get a contract with MGM as a showgirl. That same year, she worked as a model alongside Marilyn Monroe. She made her on-screen debut in 1943 in the musical film Girl Crazy, opposite Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland. After a number of uncredited roles, Nash landed a part in Jean Renoir’s 1945 film The Southerner,...

Noreen Nash, a starlet of the 1940s and ’50s who appeared in such notable films as The Southerner, Giant and The Lone Ranger and the Lost City of Gold, has died. She was 99.

Nash died Tuesday of natural causes at her home in Beverly Hills, her oldest son, Lee Siegel Jr., told The Hollywood Reporter.

Nash worked on about two dozen features during her two-decade career, including several “B” pictures like Phantom From Space (1953), where she portrayed an abducted scientist in a movie shot at the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles.

The blue-eyed, dark-haired Nash also starred as the wife of an owner of a Palm Springs tennis club on the CBS summer replacement series The Charles Farrell Show — it stood in for I Love Lucy in 1956 — and appeared on episodes of Hopalong Cassidy, The Abbott and Costello Show, My Little Margie, Dragnet and 77 Sunset Strip.

Nash played the...

Sometimes it’s like they read your mind—or just notice upcoming releases as you do. Whatever the case, I’m thrilled that the release of Terence Davies’ Benediction played (I assume!) some part in a full retro on the Criterion Channel this June, sad as I know that package will make me and anybody else who comes within ten feet of it. It’s among a handful of career retrospectives: they’ve also set a 12-film Judy Garland series populated by Berkeley and Minnelli, ten from Ulrike Ottinger, and four by Billy Wilder. But maybe their most adventurous idea in some time is a huge microbudget collection ranging from Ulmer’s Detour to Joel Potrykus’ Buzzard, fellow success stories—Nolan, Linklater, Jarmusch, Jia Zhangke—spread about.

Criterion Editions continue with Bertrand Tavernier’s Round Midnight, Double Indemnity, and Seconds, while Chameleon Street, Karen Dalton: In My Own Time,...

Today in 1992, Crazy for You opened at the Shubert Theatre, where it ran for 1622 performances. Crazy for You is a musical with a book by Ken Ludwig, lyrics by Ira Gershwin, and music by George Gershwin. Billed as 'The New Gershwin Musical Comedy', it is largely based on the songwriting team's 1930 musical, Girl Crazy, but interpolates songs from several other productions as well. Crazy for You won the 1992 Tony Award for Best Musical. The Broadway production was directed by Mike Ockrent and choreographed by Susan Stroman.The cast included Jodi Benson as Polly, Harry Groener as Bobby Child, Bruce Adler as Bela Zangler, John Hillner as Lank Hawkins, Michele Pawk as Irene Roth, Jane Connell as Mother, and Beth Leavel as Tess.

8 random things that happened on this day, October 14th, in showbiz history

1930 The Gershwin musical Girl Crazy opens on Broadway, introducing the standards "Embraceable You" "But Not For Me" and "I Got Rhythm" into the American songbook. Future movie star Ginger Rogers was in the original cast! It was adapted to film twice, first in 1932 and then with Mickey Rooney & Judy Garland in 1943.

1960 Did you know that Doris Day didn't only make comedies? A thriller called Midnight Lace, was new in theaters that weekend with Doris in danger!

Rex Harrison, John Gavin, Myrna Loy, and Roddy McDowall co-starred and Doris Day was nominated for Best Actress, Drama at the Golden Globes. How about that? If you've seen it do tell...

“Money is just like women and popcorn: the more you get the more you want.”

Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney in Girl Crazy is currently available on Blu-ray From Warner Archive. Ordering info can be found Here

Mickey Rooney. Judy Garland. Gershwin music. And Tommy Dorsey to play it. Who could ask for anything more? From Garland’s rendition of “But Not for Me” to the grand finale of “I Got Rhythm,” Girl Crazy is one of the most buoyant tunefests ever put on-screen. Rich kid Danny Churchill (Rooney) has a taste for wine, women and song, but not for higher education. So his father ships him to an all-male college out West where there’s not supposed to be a female for miles. But before Danny arrives, he spies a pair of legs extending out from under a stalled roadster. They belong to the dean’s granddaughter, Ginger Gray...

Roger Horchow, a Cincinnati-born entrepreneur who parlayed a luxury mail-order fortune into a Tony Award-winning streak as a producer on Broadway, died Saturday in Dallas of cancer. He was 91.

The founder in 1971 of he Horchow Collection luxury mail-order catalog, Horchow sold the company to Neiman Marcus in 1988, and by 1992 had won his first Tony Award as producer of Crazy For You, a “new” George Gershwin musical inspired by 1930’s Girl Crazy. Directed by Mike Ockrent and choreographed by Ockrent’s future wife Susan Stroman, Crazy For You was a smash, garnering awards and audiences enthralled by its classic Gershwin score and refreshingly contemporary style.

Six years later Horchow and co-producer Roger Berlind mounted a revival of Cole Porter’s Kiss Me, Kate, starring Marin Mazzie, Brian Stokes Mitchell and Michael Berresse. It, too, was a hit, winning the Tony for Best Musical Revival.

Four other Broadway productions, each of exceptional taste and popularity,...

Renee Zellweger is poised to win her second Oscar on February 9 for uncannily transforming into Judy Garland for the biopic “Judy.” She notoriously never won an Academy Award, so Zellweger might be able to somewhat avenge that oversight. The film focuses on the final months in the life of the troubled multi-talent, as she performs to sold-out crowds in London in the winter of 1968. To celebrate, let’s take a look back at 20 of Garland’s greatest films, ranked worst to best.

Considered by many to be one of the greatest entertainer of the 20th century, Garland was indeed a triple threat. Known as the little girl (she was only 4’11) with the big voice, Garland also held her own with such great dancers as Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire although she had no formal training in that area, and was Oscar-nominated twice in acting categories.

SEERenee Zellweger movies: 15 greatest films...

“Sure he was great, but don’t forget that Ginger Rogers did everything he did. . . backwards and in high heels.”

This quote from a 1982 Frank and Ernest cartoon sums up one of the greatest dance duos in film history, the debonair Fred Astaire and the tenacious Ginger Rogers. For July 16, we celebrate the spunky Ms. Rogers on what would have been her 109th birthday.

She was born Virginia Katherine McMath in Independence, Missouri. Her parents divorced when she was young, and she moved to Texas with her mother. She never saw her birth father again, and when her mother remarried, she adopted her stepfather’s surname of Rogers. A young cousin had trouble saying “Virginia”, so she became “Ginger”. Her mother was a career woman, involved in show business, as a scriptwriter among other things, and was a huge influence on Rogers for all her life. She got her own...

“Sure he was great, but don’t forget that Ginger Rogers did everything he did. . . backwards and in high heels.”

This quote from a 1982 Frank and Ernest cartoon sums up one of the greatest dance duos in film history, the debonair Fred Astaire and the tenacious Ginger Rogers. For July 16, we celebrate the spunky Ms. Rogers on what would have been her 109th birthday.

SEEFred Astaire movies: 20 greatest films ranked worst to best

She was born Virginia Katherine McMath in Independence, Missouri. Her parents divorced when she was young, and she moved to Texas with her mother. She never saw her birth father again, and when her mother remarried, she adopted her stepfather’s surname of Rogers. A young cousin had trouble saying “Virginia”, so she became “Ginger”. Her mother was a career woman, involved in show business, as a scriptwriter among other things, and was a huge influence on Rogers for all her life.

Tony Sokol Jul 8, 2019

The official trailer for the upcoming Judy film shows Renée Zellweger in what might be her next Oscar nominated role.

The first official trailer for the upcoming biopic Judy looks like it might pull an Academy Award for Renée Zellweger, who channels the The Wizard Of Oz star at the close of her career.

"Winter 1968 and showbiz legend Judy Garland arrives in Swinging London to perform a five-week sold-out run at The Talk of the Town," reads the official synopsis. "It is 30 years since she shot to global stardom in The Wizard of Oz, but if her voice has weakened, its dramatic intensity has only grown. As she prepares for the show, battles with management, charms musicians and reminisces with friends and adoring fans, her wit and warmth shine through. Even her dreams of love seem undimmed as she embarks on a whirlwind romance with Mickey Deans,...

Stanley Donen, the director of such stylish and exuberant films as “Singin’ in the Rain,” “Funny Face” and “Two for the Road” and the last surviving helmer of note from Hollywood’s golden age, has died at 94.

The Chicago Tribune’s Michael Phillips tweeted that one of his sons had confirmed the news to him.

Confirmed by one of his sons this morning: Director Stanley Donen has died at 94. With Gene Kelly he brought On The Town and Singin’ In The Rain into the world; on his own, 7 Brides, Charade and Two For The Road. A huge, often neglected talent. #StanleyDonen

— Michael Phillips (@phillipstribune) February 23, 2019

Though he was never Oscar-nominated for any of the many films he directed, Donen received a lifetime achievement Oscar at the 1998 Academy Awards “in appreciation of a body of work marked by grace, elegance, wit and visual innovation.”

His films were known for their brisk pace,...

by Chris Feil

The Gershwin musical Girl Crazy was immortalized on screen by Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland in 1943, shortly after it arrived on Broadway and brought with it a handful of legendary numbers from the songwriting duo. George and Ira Gershwin are part of the American musical fabric, having crafted a treasure trove of a songbook where the source material has become irrelevant to the legacy of the songs themselves. Indeed, Girl Crazy would later be expanded and reconfigured to make one of the first jukebox musicals Crazy For You.

So even with screen legends like Garland and Rooney, the legendary tracks still only compare to decades of plentiful versions we have heard since. And while neither star (both carrying essentially the entire film’s musical weight) create definitive versions of these Gershwin songs, how could you? Part of the film’s charms from a contemporary perspective is how...

The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) today proudly announced that Bill Hayes and Susan Seaforth Hayes, stars of television, film and stage and Sid and Marty Krofft, two legendary television producers, will be honored with Lifetime Achievement Awards this year during the Daytime Emmy® Awards. The Krofft Brothers will be celebrated at the 45th Daytime Creative Arts Emmy Awards which will take place on Friday, April 27th, 2018, while Bill Hayes and Susan Seaforth Hayes will be celebrated on Sunday, April 29th, 2018 at the 45th Daytime Emmy Awards. Both presentations will take place at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in Southern California.

“I’ve been star-struck by the dynamic duo of Bill Hayes and Susan Seaforth Hayes for decades,” said David Michaels, Svp, Daytime Emmy Awards, NATAS. “The scope of their work across the television, film and stage landscape is amazing. Their continuing roles of almost 50 years on Days of our Lives,...

Charlotte Harrison Sep 15, 2017

A few words on letting happiness slip back into life...

It’s funny; I don’t think I ever imagined I’d be writing a piece about this.

See related Twin Peaks season 3: Kyle MacLachlan chats about the finale Looking back at Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me

As someone who battles with both depression and anxiety, to the extent I felt suicidal during one particularly low period of my life (I’ve written here before about this) it’s something that never felt really likely. I could tell you what it meant to be sad, truly sad, devoid of feeling and trapped by my own self-doubts. I could tell you what it meant to be nervous, crippled by uncertainty, trapped by self-doubt and riddled with self-loathing. Happiness felt so unlikely, far removed and truly out of my reach.

If happiness isn’t a destination, but...

From the very first and second issue of Tom King’s Batman I have not for once believed that Gotham and Gotham Girl were going to stay on as the heroes they claimed to be, for me I felt that there had to be a twist in there somewhere. Maybe their power source was going to manipulate them somehow, or maybe they were even just playing Batman the whole time in a bigger scheme. Leave it to Tom King to use a not very well known villain to bring out the worst in Gotham and Gotham Girl.

We begin this issue at the same place we left off just some time after. At this time Batman is walking through a mess of dead soldiers and a very scared Gotham Girl who is crying in a corner. Then we find Gotham somewhere else in the city re-creating a scene from an issue of All-Star Superman.

On Monday, July 26, famed rock producer, manager, and lyricist Sandy Pearlman died at the age of 72. His Wikipedia page says he "was the recipient of 17 gold and platinum records." He managed that despite not actually producing many bands, or even albums -- but he left a big imprint on every one he worked on.

Born in Rockaway (Queens), NY in 1943, he got a college degree at the State University of New York at Stony Brook on Long Island in 1966.

A year later, still in the Stony Brook area, he recruited a band so he could have a series of science-fiction poems he'd written (the Imaginos saga, about a group secretly controlling world history) set to music and performed. He named the band Soft White Underbelly after Winston Churchill's epithet for Italy, but changed its name to Oaxaca after Soft White Underbelly got a negative review at a big concert.

Anne Marie is tracking Judy Garland's career through musical numbers...

Throughout the 1930s, Mickey and Judy had been one of America's favorite musical duos. With Mickey in the lead and Judy providing musical support, the two young teenagers - with the help of the Freed Unit - dominated the box office, regularly grossing $1 million even during the Depression. However, by the beginning of the 1940s, both 21-year-old Judy and 23-year-old Mickey had grown past the simple comedies in which they'd made their names. While both continued to pull in the same amount at the box office, Mickey was moving into more serious roles - though he still had a few more Andy Hardy movies in his contract - and Judy was dropping her hems and trading in her hair ribbons for hats. So, at the end of 1943, Mickey and Judy starred in their last musical together.

The Movie: Girl Crazy...

Today in 1992, Crazy for You opened at the Shubert Theatre, where it ran for 1622 performances. Crazy for You is a musical with a book by Ken Ludwig, lyrics by Ira Gershwin, and music by George Gershwin. Billed as 'The New Gershwin Musical Comedy', it is largely based on the songwriting team's 1930 musical, Girl Crazy, but interpolates songs from several other productions as well. Crazy for You won the 1992 Tony Award for Best Musical. The Broadway production was directed by Mike Ockrent and choreographed by Susan Stroman.The cast included Jodi Benson as Polly, Harry Groener as Bobby Child, Bruce Adler as Bela Zangler, John Hillner as Lank Hawkins, Michele Pawk as Irene Roth, Jane Connell as Mother, and Beth Leavel as Tess.

Today in 1992, Crazy for You opened at the Shubert Theatre, where it ran for 1622 performances. Crazy for You is a musical with a book by Ken Ludwig, lyrics by Ira Gershwin, and music by George Gershwin. Billed as 'The New Gershwin Musical Comedy', it is largely based on the songwriting team's 1930 musical, Girl Crazy, but interpolates songs from several other productions as well. Crazy for You won the 1992 Tony Award for Best Musical. The Broadway production was directed by Mike Ockrent and choreographed by Susan Stroman.The cast included Jodi Benson as Polly, Harry Groener as Bobby Child, Bruce Adler as Bela Zangler, John Hillner as Lank Hawkins, Michele Pawk as Irene Roth, Jane Connell as Mother, and Beth Leavel as Tess.

Ted Sperling will conduct the New York Philharmonic and vocalists Laura Osnes and Santino Fontana in A Broadway Romance, a one-night-only Valentine's Day concert, Saturday, February 14, 2015, at 800 p.m. The program will feature songs from popular musicals ranging from Bernstein's West Side Story and Gershwin's Girl Crazy to Rodgers amp Hammerstein's Carousel and Stephen Sondheim's Company, woven together to tell a unified narrative of a romance from beginning to end, from meeting to first date to falling in love to marriage.

Ted Sperling will conduct the New York Philharmonic and vocalists Laura Osnes and Santino Fontana in A Broadway Romance, a one-night-only Valentine's Day concert, Saturday, February 14, 2015, at 800 p.m. The program will feature songs from popular musicals ranging from Bernstein's West Side Story and Gershwin's Girl Crazy to Rodgers amp Hammerstein's Carousel and Stephen Sondheim's Company, woven together to tell a unified narrative of a romance from beginning to end, from meeting to first date to falling in love to marriage.

Tim Doyle was asked by Matt Dye of Blunt Graffix to create a poster for the Bijou Metro’s screening of Robocop!

From Doyle- “Robocop is by far one of the most influential films in my little life. I saw it in the theater in 1987 when I was merely 10 years old, and it completely rewired my brain in new and dark ways. And I thank Paul Verhoven for it every single day of my life. Listening to Verhoven’s commentary, he pointed out that for him- Robocop is a Jesus allegory, calling it ‘The American Jesus.’ And in keeping with great American traditions, this Titanium Jesus raises from the grave not for forgiveness, but for revenge. It’s a bloody mess, and brilliant social satire that has yet to be eclipsed in my opinion. The design is obviously lifted from Dali’s Crucifixion Hypercubus- my favorite film meets my favorite Crucifixion depiction.

Mickey Rooney dead at 93: Four-time Oscar nominee, frequent Judy Garland co-star may have had the longest film career ever (photo: Mickey Rooney ca. 1940) Mickey Rooney, four-time Academy Award nominee and one of the biggest domestic box-office draws during the studio era, died of "natural causes" on Sunday, April 6, 2014, at his home in the Los Angeles suburb of North Hollywood. The Brooklyn-born Rooney (as Joseph Yule Jr., on September 23, 1920) had reportedly been in ill health for some time. He was 93. Besides his countless movies, and numerous television and stage appearances, Mickey Rooney was also known for his stormy private life, which featured boozing and gambling, some widely publicized family infighting (including his testifying in Congress in 2011 about elder abuse), his filing for bankruptcy in 1962 after having earned a reported $12 million (and then going bankrupt again in 1996), his eight marriages — including those to actresses Ava Gardner, Martha Vickers, and Barbara Ann Thomason...

The legendary Mickey Rooney died today, passing away at the age of 93.

The Brookyln-born actor was a child star who successfully transitioned into adult films. Boasting more than 300 credits to his name across eight decades, he also earned four Oscar nominations, two honorary Oscars, a Golden Globe, and Emmy, and a Tony nomination.

Amongst his most famous early works were the likes of "Blind Date," "Babies in Arms," and over a dozen film sin the Andy Hardy franchise. Other famous films included "The Black Stallion," "National Velvet, "The Bold and the Brave," "The Human Comedy," "Breakfast at Tiffanys," "Erik the Viking," "The Fox and the Hound," "Pete's Dragon," "Ace of Hearts," "Its a Mad Mad Mad Mad World," "Requiem for a Heavyweight," "Baby Face Nelson," "Boys Town" and "Girl Crazy". His acclaimed TV work included "Bill," "Mickey," "One of the Boys," "The Red Skelton Hour" and "The Mickey Rooney Show...

Actor to produce and possibly take lead role in film based on biography of celebrated choreographer and director

Ryan Gosling may star in a biopic of Hollywood legend Busby Berkeley, the choreographer and director who created some of the most famous dance routines in the history of film.

Gosling has signed on to produce a proposed movie from Warner Bros, which has optioned Jeffrey Spivak's biography Buzz: The Life and Art of Busby Berkeley. The studio plans to develop the project as a vehicle for the star of Drive and Blue Valentine.

Born in Los Angeles in 1895, Berkeley rose to fame in the 1930s with his work on dance routines for hit Warner Bros musicals 42nd Street, Footlight Parade and Gold Diggers of 1933 – all of which were released in 1933 – and the following year's Fashions of 1934. He was known for his use of kaleidoscope-style imagery incorporating showgirls and props to create elaborate fantasy motifs.

Today in 1992, Crazy for You opened at the Shubert Theatre, where it ran for 1622 performances. Crazy for You is a musical with a book by Ken Ludwig, lyrics by Ira Gershwin, and music by George Gershwin. Billed as 'The New Gershwin Musical Comedy', it is largely based on the songwriting team's 1930 musical, Girl Crazy, but interpolates songs from several other productions as well. Crazy for You won the 1992 Tony Award for Best Musical. The Broadway production was directed by Mike Ockrent and choreographed by Susan Stroman.The cast included Jodi Benson as Polly, Harry Groener as Bobby Child, Bruce Adler as Bela Zangler, John Hillner as Lank Hawkins, Michele Pawk as Irene Roth, Jane Connell as Mother, and Beth Leavel as Tess.

"There isn't any such thing in the world as a bad boy."

Even people who haven't seen "Boys Town" know Spencer Tracy's line, in character as Father Edward Flanagan, as the credo of the real Boys Town, the institution renowned for its care of orphaned and troubled kids. The classic movie, released 75 years ago this week (on September 9, 1938), was a huge hit, a milestone in the careers of Spencer Tracy and Mickey Rooney, and an inspiration to wayward kids and those who would help them, all over the country.

As beloved as the movie has been for generations, there's still plenty you may not know about it -- how it almost didn't get released, how Tracy's Oscar victory almost turned into a publicity nightmare, and how the movie almost did more harm than good to the real Boys Town.

Read on for 25 true tales behind the making of "Boys Town.

Mickey Rooney movie schedule (Pt): TCM on August 13 See previous post: “Mickey Rooney Movies: Music and Murder.” Photo: Mickey Rooney ca. 1940. 3:00 Am Death On The Diamond (1934). Director: Edward Sedgwick. Cast: Robert Young, Madge Evans, Nat Pendleton, Mickey Rooney. Bw-71 mins. 4:15 Am A Midsummer Night’S Dream (1935). Director: Max Reinhardt and William Dieterle. Cast: James Cagney, Dick Powell, Olivia de Havilland, Ross Alexander, Anita Louise, Mickey Rooney, Joe E. Brown, Victor Jory, Ian Hunter, Verree Teasdale, Jean Muir, Frank McHugh, Grant Mitchell, Hobart Cavanaugh, Dewey Robinson, Hugh Herbert, Arthur Treacher, Otis Harlan, Helen Westcott, Fred Sale, Billy Barty, Rags Ragland. Bw-143 mins. 6:45 Am A Family Affair (1936). Director: George B. Seitz. Cast: Mickey Rooney, Lionel Barrymore, Cecilia Parker, Eric Linden. Bw-69 mins. 8:00 Am Boys Town (1938). Director: Norman Taurog. Cast: Spencer Tracy, Mickey Rooney, Henry Hull, Leslie Fenton, Gene Reynolds, Edward Norris, Addison Richards, Minor Watson, Jonathan Hale,...

Mickey Rooney movies on TCM: Music and murder (photo: Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland ca. 1940) Mickey Rooney is Turner Classic Movies’ "Summer Under the Stars" star today, August 13, 2013. According to the IMDb, Mickey Rooney, who turns 93 next September 23, has been featured in more than 250 movies — in shorts and features, in Hollywood and international productions, in cameos and starring roles, in bit parts and second leads. You name it, Rooney has done it: comedies, dramas, thrillers, musicals, biopics, war movies, horse movies, horror movies. (Mickey Rooney: TCM movie schedule.) Mickey Rooney in a horror movie? Yes, in about a dozen of those. Scarier than World War Z, The Conjuring, The Exorcist, and Alien combined were A Family Affair (on TCM earlier today) and ensuing Andy Hardy movies. Creepy stuff. Nearly as frightening are Rooney’s musicals with Judy Garland, one of which TCM presented earlier this morning, Strike Up the Band (1940). Another,...

Today in 1992, Crazy for You opened at the Shubert Theatre, where it ran for 1622 performances. Crazy for You is a musical with a book by Ken Ludwig, lyrics by Ira Gershwin, and music by George Gershwin. Billed as 'The New Gershwin Musical Comedy', it is largely based on the songwriting team's 1930 musical, Girl Crazy, but interpolates songs from several other productions as well. Crazy for You won the 1992 Tony Award for Best Musical. The Broadway production was directed by Mike Ockrent and choreographed by Susan Stroman.The cast included Jodi Benson as Polly, Harry Groener as Bobby Child, Bruce Adler as Bela Zangler, John Hillner as Lank Hawkins, Michele Pawk as Irene Roth, Jane Connell as Mother, and Beth Leavel as Tess.

Today in 1992, Crazy for You opened at the Shubert Theatre, where it ran for 1622 performances. Crazy for You is a musical with a book by Ken Ludwig, lyrics by Ira Gershwin, and music by George Gershwin. Billed as The New Gershwin Musical Comedy, it is largely based on the songwriting team's 1930 musical, Girl Crazy, but interpolates songs from several other productions as well. Crazy for You won the 1992 Tony Award for Best Musical. The Broadway production was directed by Mike Ockrent and choreographed by Susan Stroman.The cast included Jodi Benson as Polly, Harry Groener as Bobby Child, Bruce Adler as Bela Zangler, John Hillner as Lank Hawkins, Michele Pawk as Irene Roth, Jane Connell as Mother, and Beth Leavel as Tess.

In the mid-1920’s, an up-and-coming young animator had a brief encounter with an up-and-coming child star. Although they only met in passing, Mickey Rooney remembers Walt Disney as “a very charming man.” More than 50 years later, in 1981, Rooney would find himself starring in one of Walt Disney Studio’s most beloved animated films, The Fox and the Hound. Rooney voiced the character of Tod, an orphaned fox cub who forms an unlikely friendship with Copper, a coonhound voiced by Kurt Russell. The film also stars Pearl Bailey, Pat Buttram and Jack Albertson. The Fox and the Hound and its sequel The Fox and the Hound 2 will be released in a 30th Anniversary 2-Movie Collection on August 9, 2011.

Although he is quick to deny it, Mickey Rooney is the definition of a Hollywood legend. With a career that spans nine decades, he has defied the odds in an industry that often typecasts performers.

The Lincoln Center and the Paley Center here in NYC have joined forces to celebrate the all-singing all-dancing legend that is Judy Garland! 

Shout 'Hallelujah', c'mon get happy!"

Once upon a time she was dubbed "The World's Greatest Entertainer." Few celebrities have ever earned their PR self-mythologizing titles the way Judy G did. There's just no beating her for musical pleasure and cathartic heartbreak. And as if her sensational singing and dancing weren't enough, she was a fine actress, too!

I missed the first week of the celebration being in Michigan but I'll see what I can catch for the remainder of the summer program which ends August 9th. If you're not in New York City, you can always follow along at home as best you can with an impromptu DVD festival.

 

Still to come in the festival are...

Young Judy:

Everybody Sing (1938), For Me and My Gal (1942), Presenting Lily Mars...

As Hollywood threatens to remake The Thin Man, Turner Classic Movies and Warner Home Entertainment are releasing a Thin Man collection as one of three new classic film collections being added to their Greatest Classic Films and Legends lines (The Thin Man, After the Thin Man, Another Thin Man, Shadow of the Thin Man), all starring the iconic screen couple William Powell and Myrna Loy as happily tipsy sleuths Nick and Nora Charles. The other two collections also feature Golden Age screen couples, but of the singer-dancer variety: young MGM-era Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland (Girl Crazy, Strike Up the Band, Babes in Arms, Babes on Broadway) and the second-tier Astaire and Rogers Volume Two (Flying Down to Rio [pictured], Follow the Fleet, The Story ...

Impressive retrospective of Judy Garland.s films will feature 31 titles including a presentation of seldom seen short films and rarities as well as a special .sing-along. screening of The Wizard Of Oz.

On the occasion of what would have been Judy Garland.s 89th birthday, the Film Society of Lincoln Center and The Paley Center have announced the details today for Fslc.s comprehensive retrospective of the peerless film icon.s work, All Singin., All Dancin., All Judy! which will screen at the Walter Reade Theater July 26 . August 9 and The Paley Center.s comprehensive retrospective of Garland.s television work,Judy Garland: The Television Years which will be presented July 20 . August 18.

With autumn marking the 75th anniversary of Judy Garland’s feature film debut (Pigskin Parade, 1936), the Film Society of Lincoln Center will screen 31 titles from July 26 . August 9, including each of her big-screen acting performances, to pay tribute to...

No 85 Judy Garland (1922-69)

She narrowly missed being "born in a trunk" on tour because her vaudevillian parents had gone off the road to manage a cinema with music hall acts in Grand Rapids, Minnesota. From taking the stage at the age of two, she remained in showbusiness up to her sudden death at 47 of an accidental drug overdose combined with illiberal use of alcohol while fulfilling nightclub engagements in London.

When she was four, her father had to relocate to Pennsylvania after importuning young male members of his staff. After working in a second-rate singing act with her older sisters and changing her name from Frances Gumm to Judy Garland, she was taken to Hollywood at the age of 13 by her fiercely ambitious mother (whom she later called "the real Wicked Witch of the West").

The biggest studio in town, MGM, added her to its roster of juvenile performers raised on the premises,...

Mr. Spock meet Mr. Gershwin. Following his breakout role as Spock in J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek reboot, Zachary Quinto is reportedly set to play iconic musician and composer George Gershwin in a biopic produced by Steven Spielberg.

In a recent interview with Wired, Quinto mentioned he’d be breaking from the limelight until it was time to promote Star Trek 2 and put on the pointy ears again -”no conventions, no anything for a while…wanting to venture into other areas and other styles of storytelling.”

Courtesy of Deadline Hollywood we now know that one of those areas involves him starring in the Steven Spielberg produced biopic about composer George Gershwin.

The story, written by Doug Wright, will span Gershwin’s life, from his humble beginnings in Brooklyn as the child of Russian immigrants to his death in Hollywood in 1937 at age 38.

George Gershwin composed music for both Broadway and the classical concert hall,...

"Star Trek" and "Heroes" star Zachary Quinto is set to play famed composer and pianist George Gershwin in a biopic of the man for Dreamworks Pictures reports Deadline Hollywood.

Gershwin composed 1924's instantly recognisable musical composition Rhapsody in Blue along with numerous other orchestral pieces and film scores. He and his brother Ira were responsible for more than a dozen Broadway shows from "Strike up the Band," "Funny Face," "Girl Crazy" and "Porgy and Bess" before George died of a brain tumour at 38. Quinto will receive accent and dialogue training for the role.

Doug Wright penned the script with Marc Platt and singer/pianist Michael Feinstein producing. The project is apparently one of three Steven Spielberg himself is considering as his potential next directing project. A shoot as early as April/May could be on the cards.

We're used to seeing Becki Newton's Amanda team up with Marc to scheme against Betty on television.  However, the Ugly Betty actress isn't just limiting herself to that role.  Last week, she made her theatre debut in the City Center Encores! production of the Gershwin musical "Girl Crazy."

Newton starred opposite her real-life husband Chris Diamantopoulous on the musical, and played the character Molly Gray.  The actress told TheatreMania about her debut, along with her plans to work onstage alongside her Betty co-star Michael Urie.

Girl Crazy, is the first Encores! production of the New York City Center season, starring Ana Gasteyer, Wayne Knight and Marc Kudisch running November 19 - 22. Girl Crazy, directed by Jerry Zaks and choreographed by Warren Carlyle with Guest Music Director Rob Fisher, has music and lyrics by George Gershwin and Ira Gershwin and book by Guy Bolton and Jack McGowan.

Their music became the soundtrack for the Twentieth Century and saw America through some of her darkest days of the Great Depression and the tumultuous years of World War II. George and Ira Gershwin, the song-writing brothers penned such standards as ?They Can?t Take That Away from Me,? ?Embraceable You,? and ?I Got Rhythm.? Unfortunately, the books behind the musicals for which they were writing could not hold a candle to the music. That is, until Ken Ludwig stepped in more than 50 years after George Gershwin died to rework the story behind the Gershwin?s Girl Crazy (1930). The result was the 1992 Tony Award winning?including Best Musical?Broadway smash hit musical Crazy for You, which will be on the Theatre at the Center stage, 1040 Ridge Road, Munster, Indiana, May 7 through June 14. Press opening will be May 14 at 8 p.m.

Girl Crazy, with music by George Gershwin, lyrics by Ira Gershwin and book by Guy Bolton and Jack McGowan, will open New York City Center's 2009-2010 Encores! season on November 19, 2009. The season will continue with Fanny, with music and lyrics by Harold Rome and book by S. N. Behrman and Joshua Logan, on February 4, 2010. Fanny will be the 50th Encores! production presented by City Center since 1994. The season will conclude with Anyone Can Whistle, Stephen Sondheim and Arthur Laurents' legendary 1964 musical, on April 8, 2010.

For Equity contract information, refer to our complete listings online at www.backstage.com/spotlight. If your company is not listed but you would like to be included in next year's list, contact Laura A. Butler, Research Editor, at Back Stage, at lbutler@backstage.com.California La Jolla Playhouse P.O. Box 12039 La Jolla, CA 92039 (858) 550-1070, fax (858) 550-1075 www.lajollaplayhouse.org Christopher Ashley, artistic director Casting: Casts productions in-house and through independent casting directors by invitation only. Send pix & resumes to above address, Attn: Casting. See website for more information. Internships available. Season: Mandell Weiss Forum Theatre: Continuous City (March 19 - 22). Future schedule Tba. Marin Shakespeare Company P.O. Box 4053 San Rafael, CA 94913 (415) 499-4485, fax (415) 499-1492 management@marinshakespeare.org www.marinshakespeare.org Robert S. Currier, artistic director Casting: Casts productions in-house. Send pix & resumes to: Robert Currier. Please see website for specific audition dates and information. Internships and/or apprenticeships available.