Tuesday, February 17, 2009

The Daring Young Man on the Flying Trapeze

TCM (Turner Classic Movies) has been coming in loud and clear for the last week. I'm completely hooked. I will watch almost any movie from the 30s, 40s, and 50s. This morning, Kirk Douglas was in The Story of Three Loves. I tuned in late and only caught the last Story: Kirk is a trapeze artist in Paris. From IMDB:

Pierre Narval is trapeze artist who gave it up when his partner died doing a dangerous stunt at his bidding. He rescues Nina, a beautiful young woman, after she throws herself into the Seine, and convinces her to become his new aerial partner. Her husband had been killed by the Nazis during the war, and she blames herself. They fall in love, which is tested when Nina must perform the stunt which killed Pierre's former partner.
I have always had a little thing for Kirk Douglas. I'm pretty sure it's the dimples. He started out as much of a scenery-chewing hambone as most of his peers, although he looks better in tights. I think he grew/matured into a really outstanding actor, and a reasonably good writer. (I know, I know, his books are probably 90% ghost-written.)
I've always had a little un-thing for his son, Michael. I don't get it. He's nowhere near as handsome, and radiates arrogance rather than confidence. And sex appeal? Well, he sure doesn't do it for me. It's some intergalactic coincidence, some cosmic karmic hiccup, that he's married to Catherine ZJ, who is one of the sexiest, most beautiful actresses ever.

Likewise Martin Sheen (hot) and Charlie Sheen (not). Maybe...I'm just into Old Guys. That's probably a good thing: if I ever decide to strap on my dating spurs again, I'm going to have to go for 70-year olds in order to be a hot young chick. Yikes. That's enough to make me want to pull the covers up over my head.

And now back to TCM: Carefree, a frothy Astaire-Rogers 1938 number with just enough silly plot to patch several musical numbers together.

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