REBECCA!

And the birthdays keep coming!

My little dear granddaughter REBECCA is 7 years old today, so...

 

MY FAVORITE CARY GRANT

 Cary Grant made 73 films from 1932 to 1966. His thematic range went from high adventure, action thrillers, and screwball comedies, to romance and drama. He is chiefly remembered for his collaboration with Alfred Hitchcock on four of his best films: SUSPICION, NOTORIOUS, TO CATCH A THIEF and NORTH BY NORTHWEST, and also from his screwball comedies of the late thirties and early forties. Some of his best works combined romance, drama and comedy, such as HIS GIRL FRIDAY, ONLY ANGELS HAVE WINGS, GUNGA DIN, PENNY SERENADE and CHARADE and in all of them, the unmistakable Cary Grant persona and sophisticated charm always came through.

Out of his enormous output, I have chosen these 30 films, which are the ones I revisit and enjoy over and over again.

MY FAVORITE CARY GRANT list on IMDb:

https://www.imdb.com/list/ls557970806/

THE JAMES BOND FILMS: My Personal Ranking.

 

I went to see my first Jame Bond movie on the big screen around 1964. It was GOLDFINGER, and later I had the chance to see the first other two on a double feature at a local second run theater. I saw THUNDERBALL early in 1966 at the height of the spy craze. The movies and TV shows at the time, were full of secret agents and cloak-and-dagger themes. I loved the Bond films and all its imitations, including OUR MAN FLINT, MATT HELM, THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E., I SPY, GET SMART, MISSION:IMPOSSIBLE, and all the rest of the lesser known spin-offs. 

The spy craze faded as the 70s began but 007 held its ground and became one of the movies' longest running and most successful franchises.  James Bond himself went into several transformations, as different actors succeeded Sean Connery in the role.  When Roger Moore bid farewell to the role, back in 1985, James Bond entered into a very different path, as actors like Timothy Dalton and Pierce Brosnan struggled to make Bond up to date and more palatable to modern audiences.  Daniel Craig entered the scene when the world was changing radically as the 21st century began to see a major turn in morals, attitudes and popular culture. 

The Bond of old suddenly seemed out of place in the era of #MeToo and PC bylaws. Craig and the producers of the James Bond franchise made the necessary adjustments to place 007 in a contemporary setting without disturbing the prevailing status quo. Bond became an angry man, often going rogue and ditching his job with Her Majesty's Secret Service.  His personal life and background began to take precedence in the stories and he stopped being the dashing, womanizing, elegant debonair spy with a license to kill.  He was now made more human, more sentimental, more caring, more down to earth and less elegant. He became a mixture of Jason Bourne, Ethan Hunt and Peter Parker. 

Frankly, that's not the Bond I knew nor the Bond I want to see on the screen. My Bond is an entirely larger than life, fictitious character,  mysterious, enigmatic, easy-going, hard-hitting but classy and elegant with knowledge of the better things in life and somehow, kind of a superhuman. His past is sketchy and not too clear. That is the James Bond we all wanted to be back in the 60s. However, we now live in  a different era. The Bond of old has vanished and the franchise producers are taking a different path to accommodate this day and age's tastes.  So now, sadly, it's farewell to the old James Bond we knew back in 1962, when it all started...

This is my personal ranking of the James Bond films. I love them all but I do play favorites. Not an official list but as far as I know none of them are, as this is purely a matter of taste and done just for fun, which means that no other criteria applies. You may certainly disagree with the ranking positions but again, this is just a very personal choice.

My James Bond rankings on IMDb:

https://www.imdb.com/list/ls011236085/   

ALMUDENA!

It is always with great joy and pride that I wish happy birthday to any of my grandkids! 

This time it's little ALMUDENA's turn. She's 3 years old today! 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DARLING!

 

NO TIME TO DIE...

 Just came back from watching NO TIME TO DIE. What a huge disappointment!!!! The theme song, unremarkable, dull and forgettable.  Brings you completely down.  The villain is pathetic. Blofeld has no weight whatsoever in the plot. Ana De Armas is easily the best thing in the entire movie. It’s obvious the producers are taking 007 into a very different direction, one that I am not interested in following. Good bye 007, and good riddance!  I’ll keep watching Sean Connery and Roger Moore over and over till I die!!

My Son RICARDO Is Celebrating Another Birthday!

 

It's been a wonderful journey watching my one and only son grow and prosper. He now has a family of his own, yet, I still regard him as my fun-loving, mischievous little kid!  He's been a blessing in my life! 

My Grandson EMILIANO Turns 10 Years Old Today!

 

Has it been that long already?

REMEMBERING SEAN CONNERY

                                                                 Born August 25th, 1930

 

BACK ISSUE!

This morning's mail brought a very nice and quite unexpected surprise: Number 129 of Back Issue Magazine featuring an article by Mark Arnold on the Pink Panther which included a mention of my Spanish language issues done for Western Publishing Company through their Latin American affiliate, Novaro Publishers.

Thank you, Mark Arnold and TwoMorrows Publishing!

https://www.twomorrows.com

WORST TRIP EVER!

 The trip I try to forget but keeps haunting my nightmares:

One week in Los Angeles with my decrepit old father, who still insisted on sitting at the driver's seat in spite of being obviously unfit to drive. The times we almost crashed, ran over pedestrians or hit stationary objects were too numerous to recount. And when I was not having a heart seizure inside the car, we were wandering aimlessly inside every 99 cent and bargain store the old man could find. 

I never went on another trip with him until he finally kicked the bucket.

SEPTEMBER SONG by SINATRA

This is one of my all-time favorite songs and the lyrics become more and more relevant as the years go by!

When I was a young man courting the girls

I played me a waiting game

If a maid refused me with tossing curls

I'd let the old Earth take a couple of whirls

And as time came around she came my way

As time came around, she came.

Oh, it's a long, long time from May to December

But the days grow short when you reach September.

When the autumn weather turns the leaves to flame

One hasn't got time for the waiting game

Oh, the days dwindle down to a precious few,

September, November.

And these few precious days I'll spend with you

These precious days I'll spend with you

September, November.

And these few precious days I'll spend with you

These precious days I'll spend with you.

Listen here:

Thank Heaven For All My Family and Friends!

To all my family and friends who sent me good wishes on my 70th birthday...

You all made my day a very memorable one!

TURNING 70 TODAY...

Turning 70 is an important milestone not just for me but I guess for anyone who is lucky enough to get this far in life. I thank my lucky stars in looking after me all these strenuous years where I've had my ups and downs, like everybody else, but where I've also managed to keep my sense of humor, my sanity, my health and my family and friends who have tolerated me for lo, so many years!

Hopefully, this elevator will still keep climbing a few more floors above!

About the JAMES BOND film franchise.

 I'm a big fan of all the James Bond films but after 1971, I always regret it's not Sean Connery who's playing 007.

Somehow, the image set in my mind of how should James Bond look and act, is of Sean Connery which is understandable, since my first encounter with Ian Fleming's super spy was in the film DR. NO, in 1962. As I read Fleming's novels, I always pictured Sean Connery as Bond and whenever I heard the James Bond theme, it was the image of Connery that popped into my mind.  When he retired from the role, it became apparent that no one would ever replace him.  And to this day, James Bond still looks like Sean Connery to me!

Happy Father's Day!

 

Remembering STAN LAUREL

 

Stan Laurel along with his partner Oliver Hardy, were the greatest comedy team ever to grace the silver screen and on this date, I always honor Stan's memory by listening to the music from his films and watching several of his best shorts and long features. I've been repeating this ritual for several years and I never get tired of admiring Stan's artistry and comic genius, over and over again!

THE LONGEST DAY

The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as D-Day, it was the largest seaborne invasion in history. The operation began the liberation of France (and later western Europe) and laid the foundations of the Allied victory on the Western Front. 

D-Day 1944, has inspired many films since then, including SAVING PRIVATE RYAN and to me, the best of all, THE LONGEST DAY, released in 1962.

I remember watching this movie around 1964 (back then, movies took that long to be released in Mexico) and, of course, my biggest interest was in watching Sean Connery's brief appearance, since by then, I had seen DR. NO and FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE and was eagerly awaiting for the premiere of GOLDFINGER.

Sean Connery asked that his scenes be filmed quickly so he could get to Jamaica in time to star in Dr. No (1962).

In addition to Sean Connery, who made his debut as James Bond the same year this movie was shot, two other actors in this movie were Gert Fröbe and Curd Jürgens, future Bond villains. Also appearing is longtime Bond actor Walter Gotell, who first appeared as the SPECTRE agent Morzeny in From Russia with Love (1963), and later appeared in six Bond films starring Roger Moore and Timothy Dalton, in the role of Gen. Anatol Gogol, head of the Soviet KGB.