Keeper of the Flame (1943).

Keeper of the Flame (1943). Cast: Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy. Directed by George Cukor from a screenplay by Donald Ogden Stewart.

When a famous hero Robert Forrest, is killed in a car accident, journalist Stephen O'Malley returns from Europe to write his biography. During his funeral, he sees his friends and fellow reporters, Jane Harding and Freddie Ridges. Forrest's widow, Christine, does not want to speak to the reporters. So, O'Malley, finds a way to become friends with Jeb, the son of the gatekeeper, who allows him onto the estate. Christine, still refuses to help with her husbands biography. After O'Malley leaves, Forrest's private secretary, Clive Kerndon, convinces Christine to help so she can protect her husband's memory.

As time goes on, O'Malley thinks, that some "big secret", is being kept from him. He soon learns that Forrest's elderly, mentally ill mother is living in a separate house on the property. He manages to speak with her and finds out more valuable information.

When O'Malley, finds Robert Forrest's office, he sees smoke coming from the chimney. When he asks Kerndon about the office, he tells him it is used for storage and O'Malley, not believing him decides to investigate on his own. There he finds Christine burning what she says are love letters, but.. he thinks that she is also, not telling the truth. Later, Kerndon telephones a unnamed person and tells them that he will take care of the situation.

When O'Malley, tells Christine that he is in love with her, she tells him the truth. Her husband was corrupted by power and was plotting to take over the United States, by turning one group against another.

She said "while out riding that she saw that the bridge had washed-out and that she could have warned her husband, but decided that a "clean death", was the best thing that could happen to Robert Forrest". O'Malley convinces her to help him write a book exposing Forrest's plot against the United States.

Kerndon, over hears them and locks the door and then sets the building on fire. Will they be able to escape the flames and write their book exposing her husband's plot?

Fun Facts:

Louis B. Mayer was very unhappy about the film's political content, thinking it noncommercial. Katharine Hepburn too felt that the storyline was too dull and needed to be pepped up with some romance. She complained to producer Victor Saville about this but he ignored her comments, so Hepburn went directly to Mayer who was only too happy to make the film into a more conventional Hollywood romance.

Van Johnson was driving to a special screening of Keeper of the Flame when he was involved in the road accident that left him with a metal plate in his forehead.

According to Hepburn biographer Alvin H. Marill, Hepburn was very vocal in critiquing the direction of long-time collaborator George Cukor during filming. After Cukor filmed a fire scene, she questioned his handling of the actors, " I don't think they would have to be told about the fire. They would smell the smoke." Cukor finally Spoke up to his star, "It must be wonderful to know all about acting AND all about fires."

Keeper of the Flame, maybe the only film noir that Tracy with Katherine Hepburn, teamed up in. The story, I thought was very intriguing, with fine performances from the supporting cast: Forrest Tucker, Darryl Hickman, Howard da Silva and Percy Kilbride.

Margaret Wycherly (26 October 1881 – 6 June 1956), was mostly a stage actress, performing in one silent film. In 1929 she performed in her first talkie, The Thirteenth Chair, based on the 1916 play by her husband in which she had starred. Twelve years later, Wycherley performed in, Sergeant York(1941). She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for the role of Mother York, though perhaps her best remembered screen role was as "Ma Jarrett", the mother of gangster, Cody Jarrett, in White Heat (1949), with James Cagney. Her other films include: Keeper of the Flame, The Yearling, Forever Amber and Johnny Angel .

Dawn's Favorite Movie actresses and their films of the "60's".

These are my top 10 movie actresses of the 60's and the films that they performed in:

Katharine Hepburn:
1962 Long Day's Journey Into Night
1967 Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
1968 The Lion in Winter
1969 The Madwoman of Chaillot

By the 1960′s Katherine Hepburn had been making films for over 30 years, with 8 Academy Award Nominations and one win. In 1960 she was nominated a 9th time for Best Actress in the film, Suddenly Last Summer, opposite Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift. In 1963, she again was nominated for a tenth Oscar as Mary Tyrone in the film, Long Day’s Journey Into Night(1962). Then in 1968 and 1969, Kathrine won her second and third Oscar for Best Actress in, Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, and The Lion in Winter. The 1960′s introduced her to a whole new group of fans.

Video is from: (1969) The Madwoman of Chaillot, which is based on a Giraudoux play about modern society endangered by the forces of power and greed.

Fay Dunaway:
1969 The Extraordinary Seaman
1969 The Arrangement
1968 A Place for Lovers
1968 The Thomas Crown Affair
1967 Bonnie and Clyde
1967 The Happening
1967 Hurry Sundown

Her first film was in 1967 in, Hurry Sundown, but that same year, she got the leading female role in, Bonnie and Clyde (opposite Warren Beatty) which won her an Oscar nomination. Very few actresses started off their Hollywood careers with Oscar nominated roles.

It would be another ten years before she won her Oscar, but in my opinion her greatest role was that of Bonnie Parker in, Bonnie and Clyde.

Audrey Hepburn:
1967 Wait Until Dark
1967 Two for the Road
1966 How to Steal a Million
1964 My Fair Lady
1964 Paris When It Sizzles
1963 Charade
1961 The Children's Hour
1961 Breakfast at Tiffany's
1960 The Unforgiven

Audrey Hepburn, best work may have been in the 1960′s with one of her best known roles as Holly Golightly in, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, or Eliza Doolitle in, My Fair Lady (even though her voice was dubbed in the singing parts). Beautiful, elegant, Hollywood.. had very few actresses like, Audrey.

Audrey's work with UNICEF, made the organization a household name.

Elizabeth Taylor:
1969 Anne of the Thousand Days
1968 Secret Ceremony
1968 Boom!
1967 The Comedians
1967 Reflections in a Golden Eye
1967 Doctor Faustus
1967 The Taming of the Shrew
1966 Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
1965 The Sandpiper
1964 Becket
1963 The V.I.P.s
1963 Cleopatra
1960 BUtterfield 8
1960 Scent of Mystery

In the 1960′s Taylor was known for her beauty, but she also was very talented. She was the winner of the 1960 Best Actress award in the film, Butterfield8 as a prostitute and in 1963′s Cleopatra and in 1966 she won the Best Actress award for the second time for her performance in, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolfe. Based on the controversial play by Edward Albee, this noir-ish 1966 drama stars former real-life couple Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor, which maybe their best performances.

Video: 1960 BUtterfield 8 movie Trailer.

Jane Fonda:
1969 They Shoot Horses, Don't They?
1968 Barbarella
1968 Spirits of the Dead
1967 Barefoot in the Park
1967 Hurry Sundown
1966 Any Wednesday
1966 The Game Is Over
1966 The Chase
1965 Cat Ballou
1964 Circle of Love
1964 Joy House
1963 Sunday in New York
1963 In the Cool of the Day
1962 Period of Adjustment
1962 The Chapman Report
1962 Walk on the Wild Side
1960 Tall Story

Her stage work in the late 1950's help prepared her for her film career in the 1960s. She averaged almost two movies a year throughout the decade, starting in 1960 with Tall Story, in which she recreated one of her Broadway roles as a college cheerleader pursuing a basketball star, played by Anthony Perkins. Period of Adjustment and Walk on the Wild Side followed in 1962. In Walk on the Wild Side Fonda played a prostitute, and earned a Golden Globe for Most Promising Newcomer.

Fonda's breakthrough came with the film, Cat Ballou (1965), in which she played a schoolmarm turned outlaw. This comedy Western received five Oscar nominations. Soon after she performed in the comedies, Any Wednesday (1966) and Barefoot in the Park (1967).

In 1968 she played the lead role in, Barbarella, directed by her French film director husband Roger Vadim. The film, They Shoot Horses, Don't They? (1969) earned her first Oscar nomination. Fonda was very selective by the end of the 1960s, turning down lead roles in Rosemary's Baby and Bonnie and Clyde.

Video from: Barefoot in the Park.

Marilyn Monroe:
1960 Let's Make Love
1961 Misfits
1962 Something's Got to Give

Marilyn, had no real acting techniques. It was only Marilyn, a "star" and "sex symbol" of the "60's".

Her last completed film, The Misfits, was directed by John Huston and costarring Clark Gable, Montgomery Clift, Eli Wallach and Thelma Ritter. Shooting taking place in the hot Northern Nevada desert. Monroe was frequently ill and unable to perform. Making the film was a difficult experience for all the actors; in addition to Monroe's illness, Montgomery Clift had frequently been unable to perform and by the final day of shooting, Thelma Ritter was in hospital suffering from exhaustion. Gable, commenting that he did not fell well, left the set without attending the wrap party. Within ten days Gable had died from a heart attack. Gable's widow, Kay, commented to Louella Parsons that it had been the "eternal waiting" on the set of The Misfits that had contributed to his death.

In 1962 Monroe began filming Something's Got to Give. It was to be directed by George Cukor, and co-starred Dean Martin and Cyd Charisse.

On May 19, 1962, she attended a birthday celebration of President John F. Kennedy at Madison Square Garden, at the suggestion of Kennedy's brother-in-law, actor Peter Lawford. Where Monroe performed "Happy Birthday".

Monroe returned to the set of, Something's Got to Give and filmed a scene in which she performed nude in a swimming pool. Commenting that she wanted to "push Liz Taylor off the magazine covers", she gave permission for several partially nude photographs to be published by Life. Monroe was dismissed and was replaced by Lee Remick, and Dean Martin refused to work with any other actress.

Following her dismissal, she gave an interview to Cosmopolitan and was photographed at Peter Lawford's beach house sipping champagne and walking on the beach. She next posed for Vogue in a series of photographs that included several nudes. Published after her death, they became known as "The Last Sitting".

In the final weeks of her life, Monroe was planning future film projects, and to continue negotiations on the film, Something's Got to Give.. Among the projects was a biography of Jean Harlow filmed two years later with, Carroll Baker. Starring roles in, Irma la Douce and What a Way to Go! were also discussed. A film version of the Broadway musical, A Tree Grows In Brooklyn, and an unnamed World War I–themed musical co-starring Gene Kelly were also discussed, but the projects were never to be.

Brigitte Bardot:
1969 Les femmes
 1968 Shalako
1968 Spirits of the Dead
1967 Two Weeks in September
1965 Dear Brigitte
1965 Viva Maria!
1964 Agent 38-24-36
1963 Contempt
1962 Love on a Pillow
1962 A Very Private Affair
1961 Famous Love Affairs
1961 Please, Not Now!
1960 The Truth
1960 It Happened All Night

Brigitte's, "sex kitten" beauty took the US by storm. In 1965 she performed as herself  in, "Dear Brigitte" (1965) with James Steward (she only appeared in one scene).



She prefers life outside of stardom. The Paparazzi constantly hounded her with their cameras. After her life in the spotlight, Brigitte went on to become a leading spokesperson for animal rights and started the "Foundation Brigitte Bardot".

Goldie Hawn:
1969 Cactus Flower
1969 Five the Hard Way (unconfirmed)
1968 The One and Only, Genuine, Original Family Band.

Hawn, began her acting career as a cast member of the comedy Good Morning, World during 1967-1968, her role was the girlfriend of a radio disc jockey, with a stereotype "dumb blonde" personality. Her next role, was as one of the regular cast members on the 1968-1973 comedy show, Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In. On the show, she would break out into giggles in the middle of a joke, and deliver a perfect performance a minute later. Hawn, was known as the "60s It" girl.

Hawn's Laugh-In personaiity was used in the film, Cactus Flower. Hawn had made her feature film debut in a bit role as a giggling dancer in the 1968 film, The One and Only, Genuine, Original Family Band, in which she was billed as "Goldie Jeanne", but in her first major film role, in Cactus Flower (1969), she won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress as Walter Matthau's suicidal fiancée.




 

Sharon Tate:

Sharon Tate had performed only bit parts, but was considered a beautiful and rising actress. Tate met film director Roman Polanski then starred in Valley of the Dolls, followed by, The Wrecking Crew with Dean Martin.

1969 The Wrecking Crew
1967 Valley of the Dolls
1967 The Fearless Vampire Killers
1967 Don't Make Waves
1966 Eye of the Devil

Ava Gardner:
1968 Mayerling
1966 The Bible: In the Beginning...
1964 The Night of the Iguana
1964 Seven Days in May
1963 55 Days at Peking
1960 The Angel Wore Red

Ava Gardner, is thought of as one of the most beautiful actresses of Hollywood's Golden Age. In 1966, Gardner tried out for the role of Mrs. Robinson in the film, The Graduate (1967).

In 1968, she made what some consider to be one of her best films, Mayerling, in which she played the Austrian Empress Elisabeth of Austria opposite James Mason as Emperor Franz Joseph I.

Happy Birthday: Katharine Hepburn!

Katharine Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003),received good reviews for her performance on stage in 1932 which brought her to the attention of Hollywood. After a few early film successes, including her first Academy Award, for Morning Glory, Hepburn performed in a few movies that did not do so well, which led to her being voted "box office poison". She asked playwright Philip Barry to write a play with her in mind, one that improved her public image. This play, The Philadelphia Story, turned out to be a huge success on Broadway. Securing the film rights for herself with the help of Howard Hughes, Hepburn sold them to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer on the condition that she perform in the leading role as Tracy Lord.

Throughout her six-decade career, Hepburn is best known for her films: Bringing Up Baby, Holiday, The Philadelphia Story, The African Queen, Rooster Cogburn, Love Among the Ruins and On Golden Pond. Her most successful pairing was with Spencer Tracy, with who she made a many pictures, starting with: 1942's Woman of the Year. The last of their nine films together was Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967).

Hepburn holds the record for the most Best Actress Oscar wins with four out of 12 nominations. She won an Emmy Award in 1976 for her lead role in the film, Love Among the Ruins(1975). A British television film directed by George Cukor and starring Katharine Hepburn and Sir Laurence Olivier.

Please click here to read more about Katharine Hepburn.

Great On Screen Couples: Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn.

Katharine Hepburn made her first performance with Spencer Tracy in the film, Woman of the Year (1942), directed by George Stevens. A romantic comedy film. The movie is about a independent woman, who is chosen "Woman of the Year" and her co worker-turned-husband try to find a life of happiness.



Woman of the Year won an Academy Award for Best Writing, Original Screenplay and was nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role. Behind the scenes the couple fell in love and would soon become one of Hollywood's most famous romances. Even though Tracy was married at the time.

When Joseph Mankiewicz, first introduced them, Hepburn, was wearing heels said, "I'm afraid I'm too tall for you, Mr. Tracy." Mankiewicz said, "Don't worry, he'll soon cut you down to size." As The Daily Telegraph observed in Hepburn's obituary, "Hepburn and Spencer Tracy were at their most seductive when their verbal fencing was sharpest: it was hard to say whether they delighted more in the battle or in each other."

Keeper of the Flame (1942). A dramatic film. Hepburn plays the widow of a famous civic leader who, just before his death, was planning against the government of the United States. Tracy plays a former war correspondent who is planning to write a biography, only to learn about his evil plans. The film was directed by George Cukor. Katharine Hepburn, wanted to add some romance to the film. She went to producer Victor Saville, about this but he ignored her comments, so Hepburn went directly to Mayer, who was happy to make the film into a Hollywood romance.

Without Love(1945). Romantic/comedy. Directed by Harold S. Bucquet. The story begins when a lonely widow Jamie Rowan, marries a military research scientist, Patrick Jamieson, who has set up his lab in her house. They both believe that a marriage can be a success without love. But as a romantic comedy goes... you know what happens.

The Sea of Grass(1947). Western/drama film. It was directed by Elia Kazan and based on the novel of the same name by Conrad Richter. Kazan was reported so embarrassed by the film that he urged people not to see it. Hepburn, plays a woman from St. Louis moving to New Mexico to marry a rancher, who does not want other ranchers using the government-owned range at all costs.

State of the Union(1948). Directed by Frank Capra. The story is about how Kay Thordyke loves Grant Matthews and helps him become Republican nominee for President. The Republicans, begins to worry as Grant begins to speak for himself...

Please click here to view State Of the Union(1948) movie review.

Adam's Rib (1949). Directed by George Cukor. Judy Holliday, in her first substantial film role. The music was composed by Miklós Rózsa, except for the song "Farewell, Amanda", which was written by Cole Porter. The story begins when, Prosecutor Adam Bonner, is assigned the case against a woman who tried to scare her adulterous husband and his lover by shooting at them, hitting him in the shoulder. Bonner's wife, Amanda, also a lawyer, decides to defend the woman in court. As the two try and win the case, the courtroom battle continues on at home..

Pat and Mike (1952). Comedy. The movie was directed by George Cukor, who also directed The Philadelphia Story and Adam's Rib. The story is about Pat Pemberton, is a talented golfer, except when her over baring fiance is around. He wants them to get married and forget her golf career, but she cannot give up on her dreams. She meets up with Mike Conovan, sports promoter and before they know it they become involved with mobsters and a jealous boxer.

Desk Set (1957). A romantic comedy film, directed by Walter Lang. The film begins at the "Federal Broadcasting Network". With Bunny Watson, is hard at work researching and answering questions on all types of subjects. The network is merging with another company, but.. is keeping it secret until the network head ordered two computers. Richard Sumner, the inventor of the computer, is brought in to see how the library works. The employees jump to the conclusion that the machines are going to replace them when they all receive pink slips.

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967), for which Hepburn won her second Academy Award for Best Actress. The story begins when, Joey Drayton brings her fiance, Dr. John Prentice, home to meet her parents.



After a romantic period, it became, a close friendship. But, when Tracy became ill, Hepburn took five years off from her career, following completion of the film, Long Day's Journey Into Night, to care for him. Out of consideration for Tracy's family, Hepburn did not attend his funeral. She was too heartbroken to ever watch the film, Guess Who's Coming to Dinner.