My Hutton House Lecture series, 1939 In Technicolor continued yesterday, with a discussion on, and screening of Michael Curtiz’ The Private Lives of Elizabeth And Essex, starring Bette Davis and Errol Flynn, with Olivia DeHavilland, Donald Crisp, Vincent Price, and a very young Nanette Fabray in supporting roles. The backstory of the film is just as entertaining as the film itself. First, Davis and Flynn HATED working with each other.  Davis wanted to work with Laurence Olivier, since she felt Flynn was not the best man for the role. Flynn disliked Davis’ attitude throughout the shooting, especially when she strikes him during one scene. In reality, Flynn saw stars. Then, there was the problem with the title of the film: the film is based on Elizabeth The Queen, a play by Maxwell Anderson. At first, the title of the film was going to be, The Knight And The Lady. To which Davis squawked, “What, are you out of your minds, The Knight And The Lady? I am playing the Queen of  England. Then, the title was switched to The Lady And The Knight, to which Flynn was annoyed since he was not getting top billing. Davis would constantly storm into Jack Warner (the head of Warner Brothers) and complain. Jack sometimes did not want to be bothered, so he would hide in the men’s room, which was connected to his office, until Davis would go away. Warners could not title the film, Elizabeth And Essex, since that was already a copyrighted title of a book. Thus, they went with The Private Lives of Elizabeth And Essex. Next week, I present the first of two sessions on GONE WITH THE WIND.

This March, I will be returning to the 92nd Street Y Tribeca branch in lower Manhattan, where I will be presenting The Great Jewish Entertainers, which will run on three consecutive Tuesdays. The three entertainers I will focus on will be Al Jolson (March 13th), Jack Benny (March 20th), and Eddie Cantor (March 27th). All programs will run from 2PM to 3:30pm. For more details, please click on the following link:

http://www.92y.org/Tribeca/tickets/Tribeca/Subscription/Great-Jewish-Entertainers.aspx

It’s been awhile since I have lectured at the Elmont Public Library, in Elmont, NY. I will be returning to the Elmont Library on May 16th, when I will be presenting my lecture program, New York On Film, which includes clips from Speedy, 42nd Street, King Kong, On The Town, West Side Story, Breakfast At Tiffanys, Superman: The Movie, and others. Lecture is scheduled for 1pm.

This Friday, January 20th, at 1pm,  my Hutton House Lecture series, 1939 In Technicolor continues at Long Island University: C.W. Post campus, with Victor Fleming’s MGM production of The Wizard of Oz, starring Judy Garland, Ray Bolger, Jack Haley, Sr., Bert Lahr, and Margaret Hamilton. We will focus on the genesis and production of the film, a screening of the classic, and some visual and audio surprises, including Scarecrow’s Dance (directed by Busby Berkeley), and an unusual version of “If I Were King of The Forest”, which includes a chorus of the song not included in the film.   Lots of other surprises!  We will meet “Over The Rainbow” at 1pm at Lorber Hall, on the C.W. Post campus.

This Thursday evening, I will be presenting my Astaire and Rogers program, Let’s Face The Music And Dance: The Films of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, at the Barry and Florence Friedberg Jewish Community Center, in Oceanside, NY, at 7:30PM.

As a film historian who lectures and teaches all over the New York area, I am constantly being asked, “Do you have a website? Do you have a blog.” Well, now I have a blog, which is my rehearsal stage for a full fledged website, which will come later. Right now, I want to get the word out about the lectures and classes I am involved with through July of 2012. More dates will be added.

Philip Harwood