Wonderland Burlesque's
Let's All Go To The Movies:
It's In His Kiss
Part XI
It's in his kiss.
Isn't that where it all begins?
A caress of the lips. A deep longing. Sharing a single breath?
On the silver screen such a kiss can be captured forever, frozen in time.
Or so these films would have us believe.
So, let's kiss and tell and spill the beans on these everlasting smacks, smooches, and snogs.
Yes, things can get pretty heated.
Chapstick exists for a reason, you know!
Grab a seat on the aisle.
Popcorn at the ready.
Pucker up and roll film!
- uptonking from Wonderland Burlesque
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The Deciding Kiss
(1918)
Eleanor Hamlin, a forlorn little orphan living with her grandparents in Cape Cod, is adopted by a wealthy New Yorker, Beulah Page, and her friends. Beulah does not love Eleanor, but her friends -- particularly Peter Bolling, a man she has chosen for herself -- are captivated by the girl. To get Eleanor out of the way, Beulah sends her to an upstate finishing school, but the plan backfires when Eleanor returns a refined and radiant young woman. Realizing that Peter is in love with Eleanor, Beulah tells her that she is engaged to him, and Eleanor sadly returns to her old Cape Cod home. Peter follows her but she eludes him, and although Beulah's deception ultimately is revealed, Eleanor informs her benefactors that she wishes simply to remain their child.
This silent American comedy was directed by Tod Browning and stars Edith Roberts, Winifred Greenwood and Hallam Cooley. Considered a lost film for decades, a print of this film was found in the French Film Archives.
Too hot for Kansas! The Kansas Board of Review demanded the elimination of one scene before it could be shown in that state: "Eliminate passionate embrace of Jimmie and Eleanor."
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The Stolen Kiss
(1920)
Felicia Day is brought up in seclusion by her affectionate but narrow-minded grandfather, Major Trenton. One day, Dudley Hamilt, a choirboy, throws his ball across the fence which separates the rectory from the Trenton yard and meets Felicia, from whom he steals a kiss. Trenton sees the children smooching and, shocked, sends Felicia to Canada. Years pass and Felicia, now an adult, decides to go to New York and make her living as a seamstress. She still yearns for Dudley but decides against seeing him because of her old-fashioned wardrobe. Possessing a natural talent for dancing, Felicia is offered a job by lecherous theatrical manager Allen Graemer, and she accepts. Dudley, attending one of her performances, recognizes his long-lost love and follows her home where he rescues her from Graemer's advances and admits his enduring love for the girl from whom he stole a kiss.
This American silent romance drama was directed by Kenneth Webb and stars Constance Binney, Rod La Rocque, George Backus and Bradley Barker.
Produced by The Realart Company, an affiliate of Paramount Pictures.
Once thought lost, a print was found and has been preserved at the British Film Institute, London.
Constance Binney
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The First Kiss
(1928)
The story of a decadent family along Maryland's Chesapeake Bay. A drama about a youth who turns picturesque river bandit for the honor of his family and the beautiful heiress who braves scandal and death in her great love for him.
Based on the short story Four Brothers by Tristram Tupper, this American romantic drama with sound was directed by Rowland V. Lee and stars Fay Wray and Gary Cooper.
The First Kiss was produced by Famous Players–Lasky and released by Paramount Pictures.
While the film has no audible dialog, it features a synchronized musical score with sound effects and a theme song.
The film featured a theme song entitled The First Kiss which was composed by Al Dubin and J. Russell Robinson.
While shooting a scene on a boat in the Chesapeake Bay with Gary Cooper, Fay Wray accidentally fell overboard. Cooper dove in and pulled her out.
While filming on location on the eastern shore of Chesapeake Bay, Fay Wray married writer John Monk Saunders. Gary Cooper served as Saunders' best man.
Considered a lost film.
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That Midnight Kiss
(1949)
In Philadelphia, the soprano Prudence Budell returns from Europe after a period of five years training in the best Europeans music schools. Her millionaire grandmother Abigail Trent Budell sponsors an opera company under the command of the famous maestro Jose Iturbi to give Prudence the opportunity to star in an opera. They hire famous tenor Guido Russino Betelli, but Prudence does not feel comfortable with him on the stage. When Prudence accidentally sees the American-Italian truck driver Johnny Donnetti singing opera, she convinces Jose Iturbi to give a chance to Johnny. They quickly fall in love, but when Prudence visits his workplace to tell him he got the part, she meets Johnny's co-worker Mary and is made to believe that Johnny is in love with his colleague. Complications ensue. Will the curtain fall or rise on this romance?
This Technicolor American musical romance film was directed by Norman Taurog and stars Mario Lanza and Kathryn Grayson. with Ethel Barrymore, conductor/pianist Jose Iturbi (playing himself), Keenan Wynn, J. Carrol Naish, Marjorie Reynolds and Jules Munshin.
Mario Lanza makes his film debut in this movie while, this is the final film appearance of José Iturbi. Iturbi left Hollywood because his movie appearances were damaging his career as a serious conductor and concert pianist, with music critics accusing him of "cheap exhibitionism" for appearing in Hollywood films.
For Mario Lanza's screen debut, producer Joe Pasternak created a romanticized version of the singer's own early career.
José Iturbi and Amparo Iturbi were brother and sister and have a scene playing twin pianos.
Patty Kate Johnston, the infant who appears with Kathryn Grayson in a park sequence, was Grayson's own newborn daughter.
Louis B. Mayer had signed the stage legend Ethel Barrymore a year earlier, hoping that her presence would lend prestige to the studio's films and featured her prominently at the studio's many charity events. That Midnight Kiss (1949) was only her second film under contract. After playing a Russian countess in the period drama The Great Sinner (1949), she finally got the full MGM glamour treatment, complete with lacquered hair, a Helen Rose wardrobe and glorious Technicolor. The role even bore a passing resemblance to her own life; just as her character had dreamed of being an opera singer in her youth, Barrymore had originally hoped to become a concert pianist before being drawn into the family business. Ironically, she had shot to stardom in the 1901 Broadway production of Captain Jinks of the Horse Marines, playing an opera singer.
According to MGM records this film earned $1,728,000 in the US and Canada and $1,449,000 overseas resulting in a profit of $173,000. So commercially popular, it was followed by The Toast of New Orleans (1950) - directed by Norman Taurog and starring Mario Lanza and Kathryn Grayson - which proved even more popular that the first.
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The Naked Kiss
(1964)
The setup is pure pulp: A former prostitute relocates to a buttoned-down suburb, determined to fit in with mainstream society. But in the strange, hallucinatory territory of writer-director-producer Samuel Fuller, perverse secrets simmer beneath the wholesome surface. Featuring radical visual touches, full-throttle performances, brilliant cinematography by Stanley Cortez, and one bizarrely beautiful musical number, The Naked Kiss is among Fuller's greatest, boldest entertainments.
This American neo-noir melodrama was written and directed by Samuel Fuller and starring Constance Towers, Anthony Eisley, Michael Dante and Virginia Grey.
A long time in the making; this film was in development under the title The Iron Kiss way back in 1954. It then bounced, along with Samuel Fuller, from RKO to Columbia Pictures to Allied Artists, where it was finally made.
Samuel Fuller wrote in his autobiography that Constance Towers actually shaved her head for the opening scene, "without any qualms." However, Towers denied this in an interview, and her bald cap can be clearly seen in some shots.
A little self promotion; when Griff and Kelly are talking on the park bench just after her arrival in town, she is reading The Dark Page, a 1944 novel by Samuel Fuller that was the basis for Scandal Sheet (1952). And when Kelly arrives in Grantville, a movie marquee displays the title of the film Shock Corridor (1963), Samuel Fuller's previous film. Also, Charlie the mannequin has a pith helmet with a 1st Infantry Division (aka The Big Red One) insignia. Director Samuel Fuller served in the Big Red One during the Second World War and later made a film by the same name - The Big Red One (1980) - based on his experiences. In addition, in Griff's apartment there is a plaque with the Blue Spade of the 26th Infantry Regiment, a unit of the 1st Infantry Division with which Fuller fought in World War II.
Both this and Samuel Fuller's previous movie Shock Corridor (1963) were rejected for UK cinema certificates and remained unavailable in the UK until 1990.
Variety's was quite positive: "Good Samuel Fuller programmer about a prostie trying the straight route, The Naked Kiss is primarily a vehicle for Constance Towers. Hooker angles and sex perversion plot windup are handled with care, alternating with handicapped children 'good works' theme. Towers' overall effect is good, director Fuller overcoming his routine script in displaying blonde looker's acting range." Critic Eugene Archer of The New York Times wrote that the film "has style to burn" and shows that Fuller is "one of the liveliest, most visual-minded and cinematically knowledgeable filmmakers now working in the low-budget Hollywood grist mill". However, Archer denounced the plot as "patently absurd" and "sensational nonsense", calling the film a "wild little movie."
The Naked Kiss was not a commercial success. Even with potential marketing support, it wouldn't have appealed to mainstream audiences due to its bleak themes, unconventional direction, and challenging subject matter. While some promotional efforts aimed to pique interest - Belmont released a paperback version of the film- the film's financial performance was limited.
You can watch this film in its entirety for free on YouTube.
Constance Towers
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And that's all for now, folks!
Tune in next time...
Same place, same channel.
(1949)
The Naked Kiss - Movie Trailer
(1964)
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