G.I. Blues (1960) - Star of the month... Juliet Prowse

"Gi Blues" is a 1960 musical comedy directed by Norman Taurog and starring Elvis Presley, Juliet Prowse and Robert Ivers with Letícia Román, James Douglas, Edson Stroll and Jeremy Slate.

Tulsa McLean (played by Elvis Presley) is an American singing G.I., based in Germany. Tulsa aspires to open his own nightclub in America, but to do this he must raise $600. In an attempt to raise the money, he makes a bet he can spend the night alone with local nightclub dancer Lily (played by Juliet Prowse), in her apartment. Lily has a reputation for playing hard to get, and is even referred to by one G.I. as a "steamboat on the outside, but an iceberg inside".

Musical program

The original soundtrack album for "G.I. Blues"

• "What's She Really Like" - performed by Elvis Presley
• "G.I. Blues" - performed by Elvis Presley
• "Doin' the Best I Can" - performed by Elvis Presley
• "Blue Suede Shoes" - performed by Elvis Presley
• "Frankfort Special" - performed by Elvis Presley
• "Shoppin' Around" - performed by Elvis Presley
• "Tonight Is So Right For Love" - performed by Elvis Presley
• "Wooden Heart" - performed by Elvis Presley
• "Pocketful of Rainbows" - performed by Elvis Presley & Juliet Prowse (her singing is dubbed by an unknown vocalist)
• "Big Boots" - performed by Elvis Presley
• "Didja Ever" - performed by Elvis Presley

Blink and you'll miss...

• A young Britt Ekland in a very small cameo as the red-head Britta (approx. 10 mins into the film)
• While Tulsa is singing "Doin' the Best I Can", another solider puts a coin into a juke box and plays a song called "Blue Suede Shoes" recorded by a singer called Elvis Presley
• The G.I.s are all wearing underwear in the shower
• The number of the sky lift at Rüdesheim which Tulsa & Lili ride is 76

Did you know...

• This was Elvis' first film after servicing two years with the army - the film prior to this was "King Creole" (1958)
• Juliet Prowse's singing was dubbed by an unknown vocalist
• Elke Sommer, Ursula Andress and May Britt were all considered for the role of Lili
• Anna-Maria Alberghetti was considered to play the role of Tina
• Russ Tamblyn, Frank Gorshin, Carleton Carpenter & Johnny Carson were considered for the role of Cookie - Carpenter was eventually cast but later replaced by Robert Ivers
• The film was primarily shot at Paramount Studios, Hollywood, with some pre-prodution scenery shot on location in Germany (prior to Elvis' release from the army) - Elvis was not involved in any location filming, with all his filming completed in Hollywood
• Tulsa's regiment is the 32nd armored, which was also Elvis' real life regiment with he was in the army
• The army tanks and vehicles were supplied by the U.S. Army, who appointed public information officer John J. Mawn as technical advisor
• Although panned by critics, the film was the 14th biggest box office grossing film of the year, grossing $4.3million
• A riot following a screening of "G.I. Blues" in Mexico City, resulted in the Mexican government banning Elvis movies
• The original title for the film was "Cafe Europa" - which is what the film is still called in some European countries (i.e.: Italy, Germany, etc.)
• The boat in the film ("Bonn"), is now located in Karlshamn, Sweden, and is used as a disco
• Michael Curtiz was originally intended to direct this film - Curtiz had directed Elvis' previous film, "King Creole" (1958)
• While filming the sky lift scene at Rüdesheim, director of photography Loyal Griggs fell out of his cart, plunging 30 feet - fortunately he was not seriously injured

Award nominations...

• Grammy Award nomination for Best Soundtrack Album
• Grammy Award nomination for Best Vocal Performance Album, Male (Elvis Presley)
• Writers Guild of America nomination for Best Written American Musical
• Golden Laurel Award 2nd Place (runner up) for Top Musical of 1960
• Ranked at #2 on the Variety Weekly national box office chart in 1960

Closing remarks

Although "G.I. Blues" is yet another awful entry in Elvis' filmography, there is something very exciting about this particular film... the presence of Juliet Prowse.

Juliet Prowse was an extraordinary dancer and a wonderful talent, who is unfortunately often forgotten today. Although she didn't make many films, she is still one of my favourite dancing actresses along with Ann Miller, Ginger Rogers, Cyd Charisse and Leslie Caron.

As usual, we get the standard-stock shallow plot, which follows the basic formula for almost of all Elvis' films... Elvis meets girl; girl plays hard to get; Elvis eventually gets girl. Along the way, Elvis sings all the songs from his latest album. 

Speaking of which, despite the myriad of Elvis songs in this film, the musical highlight for me is Juliet Prowse's solo dance number. I really like the way the camera focuses solely on Prowse for the entire sequence, and treats us with the opportunity to appreciate and enjoy her dancing talent. We are fortunate to also experience something similar with another of Elvis' leading ladies, Ann-Margret in Elvis' later film "Viva Las Vegas" (1964). 

Overall a weak and rather slow film - it takes approx. 30 mins for the storyline to kick off. That said, this film is one of a handful of Elvis' films I would recommend watching, solely to see Juliet Prowse's most memorable screen appearance. 

Samson and Delilah (1949) - Star of the month... Angela Lansbury

"No man leaves Delilah" - Hedy Lamarr (as Delilah in 'Samson and Delilah')


'Samson and Delilah' is a 1949 biblical epic produced and directed by Cecil B. DeMille. It stars Hedy Lamarr, Victor Mature, George Sanders, Angela Lansbury and Henry Wilcoxen with Fay Holden, Russ Tamblyn and George Reeves.

Hedy Lamarr & Victor Mature as Samson & Delilah

The story of Samson and Delilah is adapted from the Book of Judges in the bible. It tells of a Hebrew, Samson (played by Moore), who is engaged to be married to a Philistine woman, named Semadar (played by Lansbury). Semadar's sister Delilah (played by Lamarr) is in love with Samson, and sabotages the wedding. Consequently, Samadar is killed and Samson becomes a wanted man. Delilah, who's jealousy is deeper than her love for Samson betrays him on a number of occasions in order to punish him for not loving her.





Did you know...

Angela Lansbury posing in costume as Samadar

• Burt Lancaster was considered for the role of Samson, but was thought to be too young - he also had a bad back
• Henry Wilcoxon was considered for the role of Samson, but was thought to be too old
• Betty Hutton, Rita Hayworth, Lana Turner & Jean Simmons were all considered for the role of Delilah - MGM refused to loan Paramount Turner and Columbia refused to loan Hayworth 
• Phyllis Calvert was originally cast as Samadar, but due to illness was replaced by Angela Lansbury
• This is one of few pre-1950 films made by Paramount, which is still owned by Paramount
• When filming the scene where Samson kills the lion, Victor Mature refused to wrestle a tame movie lion; after Cecil B. DeMille advised him the lion had no teeth, Mature replied, "I don't want to be gummed to death, either" - the film shows a stung man wrestling the lion, with close ups of Mature wrestling a lion skin
• Cecil B. DeMille asked actor Groucho Marx what he thought of the film at the premiere, to which Groucho replied, "Well, there's just one problem, C.B. No picture can hold my interest where the leading man's tits are bigger than the leading lady's"
• In the film 'Sunset Boulevard' (1950), when the character played by Gloria Swanson (Norma Desmond) visits Cecil B. DeMille, he is directing 'Samson and Delilah' - the cast and crew can be seen briefly in 'Sunset Boulevard' taking a break
• Many of the smaller roles were played by Victor Mature's friends from Pasadena, including a young George Reeves as the Wounded Messenger
• The destruction of the Temple of Dagon had to be filmed on two attempts - during the first attempt, some of the dynamite didn't set off at the right time - the set was required to be built for a second attempt - the film features footage from both attempts
• 'Lux Radio Theatre' broadcast a 60 minute radio adaptation of the film on 19 November 1951, with Hedy Lamarr and Victor Mature reprising their film roles

Awards and nominations

• Academy Award winner for Best Art Direction/Set Direction - Color (Hans Dreier, Walter H. Tyler, Sam Comer & Ray Moyer)
• Academy Award winner for Best Costume Design - Color (Edith Head, Dorothy Jeakins, Eloise Jensson, Gile Steele & Gwen Wakeling)
• Academy Award nomination for Best Cinematography - Color (George Barnes)
• Academy Award nomination for Best Effects - Special Effects (Cecil B. DeMille Productions)
• Academy Award nomination for Best Music - Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture (Victor Yong)
• Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Cinematography - Color (George Barnes)

Closing remarks

Beautifully filmed in Technicolor, 'Samson & Delilah' is a biblical epic not to be missed. I wasn't familiar with the story of Samson & Delilah until I saw this movie, and it is by far one of the better biblical stories.

Beautiful screen siren Hedy Lamarr is brilliant as the vindictive Delilah. I shudder to think how bad this film would have been if Betty Hutton (although a great star) was cast as Delilah as originally intended.
George Sanders is also perfectly cast as the evil Saran of Gaza, giving one of his best performances. As much as I love Angela Lansbury, I don't think she was the right choice to play Semadar, particularly up against someone as beautiful as Hedy Lamarr.

Something which I found amusing was the line: "You know where he is, barbers know all the gossip". I guess, nothing much has changed there, as these days hair dressers are still the bearer of all gossip.

Keep your eyes open for a very young Russ Tamblyn as Saul.

My 3 reasons for watching this film:

• The stunning Hedy Lamarr in one of her most beautiful and memorable roles
• George Sanders in of his best sinister roles
• The spectacular toppling of the temple of Dagon - the special effects n this sequence are quite good for 1949

As Young as You Feel (1951)

Star of the Month... Marilyn Monroe

As Young as You Feel is a comedy starring Monty Woolley and Thelma Ritter, with Marilyn Monroe appearing in a brief role as Harriet, a secretary.

The film tells the story of John R. Hodges (played by Monty Woolley) who turns 65 and is forced to retire (or "fired for turning 65" as he describes it), from his job at Consolidated Motors. After determining no one in the organisation knows the name of the company President or what he looks like, John dyes his hair and whiskers black and poses to be the President of the company, in an attempt to change the "no workers over 65 policy".

Things get a little out of hand, and John ends up making a speech to the Chamber of Commerce which influences the American enconomy. Things seem to be going well until the real president of Consolidated Motors reads about a speech he allegedly made to the Chamber of Commerce.

Corporate satire

This film is a satire on the corporate world of the early 1950s. Watching this film in 2012 you get an appreciation for how the corporate world has evolved over time. An organisation would be taken to court for discrimination should they implement a HR policy to not hire anyone over the age of 65.

CEOs and company Presidents are now a lot more visible, with their names and photos plastered all over the internet and company intranets, making the premise of the film unrealistic in today's society. That said, it is still a lot of fun to watch.

Did you know...

• The characters in the film say "Consolidated Motors" 61 times during the course of this 77 minute film - that's almost once a minute
• This was the first of many films Marilyn made under her contract with 20th Century Fox

Concluding remarks

This is a fun and enjoyable comedy to watch. Monty Woolley is delightful as always, stealing the film along with Thelma Ritter. It is fortunate the film features Marilyn Monroe in an early role, otherwise it would have most likely been another forgotten B-grade comedy from the early 1950s. If you enjoyed Monty Wolley in this film, I also recommend watching 'The Man Who Came to Dinner', which is an even funnier film co-starring Bette Davis.