Summer Under the Stars

Every August, TCM does what they call Summer Under the Stars: each day is dedicated to one star, from 6am until 6am. They always play multiple films from The List.

This year, they are playing 37 films from The List.  I have seen 17 of these. I have not blogged about most of the ones I have seen. 

Every year, I have the intention of watching a bunch of the films, and every year, I some how manage to watch none of them or only a handful.  I'm hoping to watch a few this August, and hopefully I will then blog about them, for whatever readers I still have that haven't jumped ship a long time ago.

This mission to watch this list is one I will complete in my lifetime, I'm just not sure when......

Topper (1937)

#60 on Laughs

When a move opens with Cary Grant driving a car with his feet, (whilst singing) you know it is going to be good.

Seriously. With his feet. In a tux!

Cosmo Topper (Roland Young) is the president of a bank. George Kerby (Grant) is the largest shareholder in the bank.  The two could not lead more different lives.  Kerby and his wife are carefree, party goers.  Topper's life is micromanaged by his wife down to the second. Mrs. Topper is played by Billie Burke, who most of you know as Glinda from The Wizard of Oz.  

{I wonder if she always plays bossy people?  Topper don't run, Topper eat this for breakfast. Follow the Yellow Brick road. Figure out your problems for yourself, Dorothy. Nag nag nag.}

Topper takes a strange turn early in the film (no spoilers, so I'm not telling you what the turn is. If you really want to know, you can Google it).  The film is basically the story of how the Kerby's teach Topper to relax.

I feel like this is the definition of screwball comedy.  Because I see most of these wonderful films on TCM, Robert Osborne told me that this was Cary Grant’s first foray into screwball comedy. I'm so happy he continued in them after this, because he made some great ones. So if you are looking for a fun, slightly bizarre, film to watch, Topper is an excellent choice.


Cosmo Topper: My wife objects to drinking.
George Kerby: Then she shouldn't drink.
Cosmo Topper: She doesn't.
George Kerby: What's her objection?

~~~

O.M.G. A blog post!  I know it has been a while….a long while.  I apologize to the few readers I have if they are still around.  I got busy with work stuff, and to be honest I haven’t been watching movies from The List that often.  But now I am in the mad dash to meet my movie watching goal for the year, because I failed so spectacularly in the first 11 months of the year.   December is usually my annual “I need to watch films from the list because I was a slacker all year” time.  It is becoming sort of a tradition. 

Either way.  This (hopefully) means more blog posts, and more consistency here, at least for a little while.

Bad Blogger

So, it seems that I'm terrible about keeping this updated.   Right now things are hectic in my professional life, but that should be slowing down over the next two weeks.

I apologize for the radio silence here, and I shall return in two weeks with a (hopefully) awesome post about a great film from the list, or a stats post or something besides no post.