TCM Schedule for Friday, February 7, 2020 -- 31 Days of Oscar: 360 Degrees of Oscar

Last edited Mon Mar 23, 2020, 06:43 PM - Edit history (1)

More of 31 Days of Oscar, with the actors or actresses that connect the films added after a break at the end, in case you want to guess. Enjoy!


7:00 AM -- BLOSSOMS IN THE DUST (1941)
True-life story of Edna Gladney, who fought for orphans' rights in Texas.
Dir: Mervyn LeRoy
Cast: Greer Garson, Walter Pidgeon, Felix Bressart
C-99 mins, CC,

Winner of an Oscar for Best Art Direction-Interior Decoration, Color -- Cedric Gibbons, Urie McCleary and Edwin B. Willis

Nominee for Oscars for Best Actress in a Leading Role -- Greer Garson, Best Cinematography, Color -- Karl Freund and W. Howard Greene, and Best Picture

The child who portrayed Tony in the movie was a 4-year-old named Pat Barker. It was only when Pat came to Fort Worth to celebrate the movie's premiere that the world discovered that Pat was actually Patricia.


8:45 AM -- MADAME CURIE (1943)
The famed female scientist fights to keep her marriage together while conducting early experiments with radioactivity.
Dir: Mervyn LeRoy
Cast: Greer Garson, Walter Pidgeon, Henry Travers
BW-124 mins, CC,

Nominee for Oscars for Best Actor in a Leading Role -- Walter Pidgeon, Best Actress in a Leading Role -- Greer Garson, Best Cinematography, Black-and-White -- Joseph Ruttenberg, Best Art Direction-Interior Decoration, Black-and-White -- Cedric Gibbons, Paul Groesse, Edwin B. Willis and Hugh Hunt, Best Sound, Recording -- Douglas Shearer (M-G-M SSD), Best Music, Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture -- Herbert Stothart, and Best Picture

Originally planned for Greta Garbo and Spencer Tracy to star in. However, Ève Curie, who wrote the memoir of her mother on which the film was based, thought Garbo was "too glamorous." Her contract gave her star approval, and she used it to insist that Greer Garson be cast.


11:00 AM -- SUNRISE AT CAMPOBELLO (1960)
After a bout with polio, future president Franklin Roosevelt fights to save his political career.
Dir: Vincent J. Donehue
Cast: Zina Bethune, Tim Considine, Alan Bunce
C-144 mins, CC, Letterbox Format

Nominee for Oscars for Best Actress in a Leading Role -- Greer Garson, Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Color -- Edward Carrere and George James Hopkins, Best Costume Design, Color -- Marjorie Best, and Best Sound -- George Groves (Warner Bros. SSD)

Greer Garson wanted Marlon Brando star as Franklin D. Roosevelt. He declined, saying that he was unwilling to be in a wheelchair again after The Men (1950). He also felt they'd be laughed off the screen, as he was too young and she was too Republican for such a Democrat as Anna Eleanor Roosevelt.


1:30 PM -- SINGIN' IN THE RAIN (1952)
A silent-screen swashbuckler finds love while trying to adjust to the coming of sound.
Dir: Gene Kelly
Cast: Gene Kelly, Donald O'Connor, Debbie Reynolds
C-103 mins, CC,

Nominee for Oscars for Best Actress in a Supporting Role -- Jean Hagen, and Best Music, Scoring of a Musical Picture -- Lennie Hayton

In the looping sequence, Kathy Selden (Debbie Reynolds) is seen dubbing the dialogue for Lina Lamont (Jean Hagen) because Lina's voice is shrill and screechy. However, it's not Reynolds who is speaking, it's Jean Hagen herself, who actually had a beautiful deep, rich voice. So you have Jean Hagen dubbing Debbie Reynolds dubbing Jean Hagen. And when Debbie is supposedly dubbing Jean's singing of "Would You?" the voice you hear singing actually belongs to Betty Noyes, who had a much richer singing voice than Debbie.


3:19 PM -- CRASHING THE WATER BARRIER (1956)
This short documentary follows the exploits of Donald Campbell, who attempts to set a water speed record on Lake Mead.
Dir: Konstantin Kalser
C-10 mins,

Winner of an Oscar for Best Short Subject, One-reel -- Konstantin Kalser

Campbell's record of 216.20 mph was set on 16 November 1955.


3:30 PM -- THE UNSINKABLE MOLLY BROWN (1964)
Musical biography of the backwoods girl who struck it rich in Colorado and survived the Titanic.
Dir: Charles Walters
Cast: Debbie Reynolds, Harve Presnell, Ed Begley
C-129 mins, CC, Letterbox Format

Nominee for Oscars for Best Actress in a Leading Role -- Debbie Reynolds, Best Cinematography, Color -- Daniel L. Fapp, Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Color -- George W. Davis, E. Preston Ames, Henry Grace and Hugh Hunt, Best Costume Design, Color -- Morton Haack, Best Sound -- Franklin Milton (M-G-M SSD), and Best Music, Scoring of Music, Adaptation or Treatment -- Robert Armbruster, Leo Arnaud, Jack Elliott, Jack Hayes, Calvin Jackson and Leo Shuken

As with most Hollywood biopics, there are differences with the real story, most notably in that Margaret (Molly) and J.J. never reconciled. They separated in 1909 although they remained good friends who cared deeply for each other until his passing. She was also not quite the social outcast as depicted in the film. Other aspects of her life that were missing from the movie: they had two children, a son and daughter. Margaret Brown was a passionate social crusader and philanthropist; she was a champion of women's rights, including education and getting the vote. She also championed worker's rights, historic preservation, education and literacy, and child welfare, including being instrumental in founding the modern juvenile court system. After the sinking of the Titanic she was noted for her efforts in having the heroism of the men aboard the ship commemorated. After WWI she was also a leader in helping rebuild France and aiding wounded soldiers, and received the French Legion of Honor. She also ran twice for the U.S. Senate. She died in 1932.


5:45 PM -- SWEET BIRD OF YOUTH (1962)
A young gigolo returns to his southern hometown in search of the lost love of his youth.
Dir: Richard Brooks
Cast: Paul Newman, Geraldine Page, Shirley Knight
C-120 mins, CC, Letterbox Format

Winner of an Oscar for Best Actor in a Supporting Role -- Ed Begley

Nominee for Oscars for Best Actress in a Leading Role -- Geraldine Page, and Best Actress in a Supporting Role -- Shirley Knight

Longtime MGM hair stylist Sydney Guilaroff appears in the movie, uncredited, doing Geraldine Page's hair. He was extremely well respected, serving as chief hair stylist at MGM from 1934 until the late 1970s. Although he did not receive onscreen credit, he designed Judy Garland's hair styles for The Wizard of Oz (1939), and dyed Lucille Ball's hair red for Du Barry Was a Lady (1943), the color she kept for the rest of her life.



TCM PRIMETIME - WHAT'S ON TONIGHT: 31 DAYS OF OSCAR: 360 DEGREES OF OSCAR



8:00 PM -- INTERIORS (1978)
Three sisters fight to adjust to their parents' divorce and their father's re-marriage.
Dir: Woody Allen
Cast: Maureen Stapleton, Diane Keaton, E. G. Marshall
C-92 mins, CC, Letterbox Format

Nominee for Oscars for Best Actress in a Leading Role -- Geraldine Page, Best Actress in a Supporting Role -- Maureen Stapleton, Best Director -- Woody Allen, Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen -- Woody Allen, and Best Art Direction-Set Decoration -- Mel Bourne and Daniel Robert

This film was originally to be called "Windows", and windows form a visual motif for the film. However, Diane Keaton suggested that the film be titled "Interiors" instead, which Woody Allen felt worked better.


9:37 PM -- THE LUCKIEST GUY IN THE WORLD (1946)
A man destroys his life through gambling debts and stealing company funds in this short film.
Dir: Joseph Newman
Cast: Nolan Leary, Robert Emmett O'Connor, George Travell
BW-21 mins,

Nominee for an Oscar for Best Short Subject, Two-reel -- Jerry Bresler

Released over a year after its predecessor, Purity Squad (1945), this was the final entry in the long and successful Crime Does Not Pay 2-reel series.


10:00 PM -- ANNIE HALL (1977)
A comedian and an aspiring singer try to overcome their neuroses and find happiness.
Dir: Woody Allen
Cast: Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, Tony Roberts
C-93 mins, CC, Letterbox Format

Winner of Oscars for Best Actress in a Leading Role -- Diane Keaton, Best Director -- Woody Allen (Woody Allen was not present at the awards ceremony. Co-presenter King Vidor accepted the award on his behalf.), Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen -- Woody Allen and Marshall Brickman (Woody Allen was not present at the awards ceremony.), and Best Picture

Nominee for an Oscar for Best Actor in a Leading Role -- Woody Allen

Woody Allen and Diane Keaton had trouble keeping a straight face when working together. An example of the uncontrollable laughter between the two was the lobster dinner scene. It was the first scene shot for the movie and neither Woody nor Diane had to do much acting for the scene, for their laughter was completely spontaneous.


11:45 PM -- THE FRONT (1976)
A bookie agrees to put his name on scripts by blacklisted writers.
Dir: Martin Ritt
Cast: Woody Allen, Zero Mostel, Herschel Bernardi
C-95 mins, CC,

Nominee for an Oscar for Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen -- Walter Bernstein

Final physical appearance of actor-comedian Zero Mostel in a theatrical feature film though Mostel does voice the Kehaar character in the later 1978 film Watership Down (1978).


1:30 AM -- A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM (1966)
Madcap musical set in ancient Rome, where a clever slave connives to win his freedom.
Dir: Richard Lester
Cast: Zero Mostel, Phil Silvers, Buster Keaton
C-97 mins, CC, Letterbox Format

Winner of an Oscar for Best Music, Scoring of Music, Adaptation or Treatment -- Ken Thorne (Don Black accepting the award.)

Zero Mostel and Jack Gilford reprised their roles from the original Broadway production. Phil Silvers had been offered the role of Pseudolus on Broadway, but turned it down because he couldn't wear his glasses, and feared an on-stage accident. Silvers went on to play Pseudolus in a 1972 revival.


3:30 AM -- MISTER BUDDWING (1966)
A man suffering from amnesia confronts a series of women in his search for his memory.
Dir: Delbert Mann
Cast: James Garner, Jean Simmons, Suzanne Pleshette
BW-99 mins, CC,

Nominee for Oscars for Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Black-and-White -- George W. Davis, Paul Groesse, Henry Grace and Hugh Hunt, and Best Costume Design, Black-and-White -- Helen Rose

In his memoirs "The Garner Files" (2011), James Garner rated this as his worst movie. His comment about it: "I'd summarize the plot, but to this day, I have no clue what it is. Worst picture I ever made. What where they thinking? What was I thinking?" (page 256).


5:15 AM -- THE RED DANUBE (1949)
A Russian ballerina in Vienna tries to flee KGB agents and defect.
Dir: George Sidney
Cast: Walter Pidgeon, Ethel Barrymore, Peter Lawford
BW-119 mins, CC,

Nominee for an Oscar for Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Black-and-White -- Cedric Gibbons, Hans Peters, Edwin B. Willis and Hugh Hunt

Konstantin Shayne (Professor Bruloff) and Tamara Shayne (Helena Nagard) played husband-and-wife characters, but in reality, the two were siblings.



















Don't scroll any farther if you don't want to know who the connecting actors and actresses are!



















None Shall Escape (1944)
Marsha Hunt
Blossoms in the Dust (1941)
Madame Curie (1944)
Greer Garson
Sunrise at Campobello (1960)
Jean Hagen
Singin' in the Rain (1952)
Debbie Reynolds
The Unsinkable Molly Brown (1964)
Ed Begley
Sweet Bird of Youth (1962)
Geraldine Page
Interiors (1978)
Diane Keaton
Annie Hall (1977)
Woody Allen
The Front (1976)
Zero Mostel
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1966)
Jack Gilford
Mister Buddwing (1966)
Angela Lansbury
The Red Danube (1949)
Louis Calhern
Juarez (1939)