Ever since there have been movies, there have been movie stars – and becoming one of the world’s greatest actors involves being able to be many things at once. For one, you have to be able to act – to really inhabit a character’s deepest emotions, to step into their skin so that the words on the page come across as lived and felt. Plus, you have to be able to take that technical mastery and apply it across multiple genres, from quiet character dramas to epic action-packed blockbusters. And on top of that, you have to have that thing that can’t really be learned, or taught – a charisma, a command of the camera, an energy that enlivens even the most stellar script, and makes audiences flock to the multiplex in their droves.
For Empire’s February 2023 issue, we asked readers to vote for the best actors of all...
For Empire’s February 2023 issue, we asked readers to vote for the best actors of all...
- 12/20/2022
- by Ben Travis, Sophie Butcher, Nick de Semlyen, James Dyer, John Nugent, Alex Godfrey, Helen O’Hara
- Empire - Movies
1953 was an important year for Marilyn Monroe. She'd been appearing in films since 1947, but '53 is when she became a star. That year, she appeared in three films for 20th Century Fox and one of them stands tall as defining her legendary screen persona: director Howard Hawks' "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes."
Monroe plays Lorelei Lee, the titular blonde and one of the film's two co-leads; the other is her brunette best friend Dorothy Shaw (Jane Russell). Lorelei is a bit ditzy and not shy about her expensive tastes (in men and otherwise), but there's no more loyal friend around.
Earlier that year, Monroe starred in the technicolor thriller "Niagara" as the murderous Rose Loomis, who conspires with her lover (Richard Allen) to murder her husband (Joseph Cotton). Hawks' film, though, was a musical comedy. Since she was playing a totally different type of character, Monroe needed to show a different side of herself.
Monroe plays Lorelei Lee, the titular blonde and one of the film's two co-leads; the other is her brunette best friend Dorothy Shaw (Jane Russell). Lorelei is a bit ditzy and not shy about her expensive tastes (in men and otherwise), but there's no more loyal friend around.
Earlier that year, Monroe starred in the technicolor thriller "Niagara" as the murderous Rose Loomis, who conspires with her lover (Richard Allen) to murder her husband (Joseph Cotton). Hawks' film, though, was a musical comedy. Since she was playing a totally different type of character, Monroe needed to show a different side of herself.
- 9/26/2022
- by Devin Meenan
- Slash Film
David Crow Feb 7, 2020
We unpack one of Birds of Prey's best moments, and what evoking Marilyn Monroe means for both Harley Quinn and Margot Robbie.
For nearly 70 years, it’s been an evocative image. The woman and alleged object of all men’s desire stands atop a stage surrounded by admirers. Dressed in pink and with blonde hair that’s just so chic, she hums something about diamonds, the comfort they afford, and also, in a way, about the power dynamic between men and women. It was eye-catching when Marilyn Monroe did it in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953) and it has sharper edges for Margot Robbie in Birds of Prey and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn.
Robbie’s Marilyn Monroe homage has been at the center of Warner Brothers’ Birds of Prey marketing, from trailers to official clips. After all, what else says this ain’t your typical...
We unpack one of Birds of Prey's best moments, and what evoking Marilyn Monroe means for both Harley Quinn and Margot Robbie.
For nearly 70 years, it’s been an evocative image. The woman and alleged object of all men’s desire stands atop a stage surrounded by admirers. Dressed in pink and with blonde hair that’s just so chic, she hums something about diamonds, the comfort they afford, and also, in a way, about the power dynamic between men and women. It was eye-catching when Marilyn Monroe did it in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953) and it has sharper edges for Margot Robbie in Birds of Prey and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn.
Robbie’s Marilyn Monroe homage has been at the center of Warner Brothers’ Birds of Prey marketing, from trailers to official clips. After all, what else says this ain’t your typical...
- 2/6/2020
- Den of Geek
by Chris Feil
If you want to look to reinforcement of traditional gender roles in the movies, sadly you can look to the history of movie musicals for consistent examples. It’s a genre that consistently returns to tropes and archetypes for its structure, but that just makes it all the more rewarding when there are examples to the contrary. Take Gentlemen Prefer Blondes for example - no seriously, take it and watch it on a loop because it is perfect cinema.
The film gives us two unique musical heroines in Jane Russell’s Dorothy Shaw and Marilyn Monroe’s Lorelei Lee, a team on the stage and in dealing with men. They are two ingenues that subvert genre tropes and traditional images of women looking for love on screen, and you can see how they do so in their solo songs...
If you want to look to reinforcement of traditional gender roles in the movies, sadly you can look to the history of movie musicals for consistent examples. It’s a genre that consistently returns to tropes and archetypes for its structure, but that just makes it all the more rewarding when there are examples to the contrary. Take Gentlemen Prefer Blondes for example - no seriously, take it and watch it on a loop because it is perfect cinema.
The film gives us two unique musical heroines in Jane Russell’s Dorothy Shaw and Marilyn Monroe’s Lorelei Lee, a team on the stage and in dealing with men. They are two ingenues that subvert genre tropes and traditional images of women looking for love on screen, and you can see how they do so in their solo songs...
- 3/13/2019
- by Chris Feil
- FilmExperience
“Laughter is much more important than applause. Applause is almost a duty. Laughter is a reward.” — Carol Channing
If anyone has heard her share of both gaffaws and clapping, it would be Channing, who died on Tuesday 16 days shy of her 98th birthday. The Seattle native broke out on Broadway in 1949 in as Lorelei Lee, an irrepressible man-crazy gold-digger from Little Rock, Arkansas, in “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.” She performed the showstopper, “Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend,” which would be memorably warbled in the 1953 film version by Marilyn Monroe and influenced Madonna‘s 1985 music video for “Material Girl.”
Her unique voice, willowy stature and bigger-than-life personality proved to be a plus but also a minus, since she always fused her traits into her characters. In a cover story for Life magazine, she was described as “an over-grown kewpie” who sang like “a moon-mad hillbilly.” Still, Channing had out-sized talent...
If anyone has heard her share of both gaffaws and clapping, it would be Channing, who died on Tuesday 16 days shy of her 98th birthday. The Seattle native broke out on Broadway in 1949 in as Lorelei Lee, an irrepressible man-crazy gold-digger from Little Rock, Arkansas, in “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.” She performed the showstopper, “Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend,” which would be memorably warbled in the 1953 film version by Marilyn Monroe and influenced Madonna‘s 1985 music video for “Material Girl.”
Her unique voice, willowy stature and bigger-than-life personality proved to be a plus but also a minus, since she always fused her traits into her characters. In a cover story for Life magazine, she was described as “an over-grown kewpie” who sang like “a moon-mad hillbilly.” Still, Channing had out-sized talent...
- 1/15/2019
- by Susan Wloszczyna
- Gold Derby
Broadway legend Carol Channing, who starred in such Golden Age hits as Hello, Dolly! and Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, died Tuesday at her home in California, The New York Times reports. She was 97.
Channing’s publicist, B. Harlan Boll, confirmed her death, saying Channing had suffered two strokes over the past year. In a statement shared with People, Boll said, “It is with extreme heartache, that I have to announce the passing of an original Industry Pioneer, Legend and Icon – Miss Carol Channing,” the statement said. “I admired her before I met her,...
Channing’s publicist, B. Harlan Boll, confirmed her death, saying Channing had suffered two strokes over the past year. In a statement shared with People, Boll said, “It is with extreme heartache, that I have to announce the passing of an original Industry Pioneer, Legend and Icon – Miss Carol Channing,” the statement said. “I admired her before I met her,...
- 1/15/2019
- by Jon Blistein
- Rollingstone.com
Carol Channing, a Broadway legend who was known for her signature lead role in Hello, Dolly! and continued performing well into her 90s, has died of natural causes at her home in Rancho Mirage, CA. She was 97.
B Harlan Boll, Channing’s publicist, confirmed the news to multiple news outlets. “It is with extreme heartache that I have to announce the passing of an original Industry Pioneer, Legend and Icon – Miss Carol Channing,” Boll said in a statement to Broadway World. “I admired her before I met her, and have loved her since the day she stepped … or fell, rather … into my life.”
A native of Seattle, Channing’s distinctively gravelly enunciation, lanky, energetic frame and carefree laugh marked her many decades in show business. Along with her remarkable 4,500 performances in the title role of Hello, Dolly!, she appeared in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, The Vamp and Lorelei. On movie screens,...
B Harlan Boll, Channing’s publicist, confirmed the news to multiple news outlets. “It is with extreme heartache that I have to announce the passing of an original Industry Pioneer, Legend and Icon – Miss Carol Channing,” Boll said in a statement to Broadway World. “I admired her before I met her, and have loved her since the day she stepped … or fell, rather … into my life.”
A native of Seattle, Channing’s distinctively gravelly enunciation, lanky, energetic frame and carefree laugh marked her many decades in show business. Along with her remarkable 4,500 performances in the title role of Hello, Dolly!, she appeared in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, The Vamp and Lorelei. On movie screens,...
- 1/15/2019
- by Dade Hayes
- Deadline Film + TV
Carol Channing, who originated the role of Dolly Levi in “Hello Dolly!” and Lorelei Lee in “Gentlemen Prefer Blonds” on Broadway, has died at age 97.
The Oscar-nominated actress died early Tuesday morning at her home in Rancho Mirage, Calif., just weeks before what would have been her 98th birthday, her publicist B. Harlan Boll told TheWrap.
Channing came to national prominence as the star of the Broadway musical “Hello, Dolly!” in 1964. Her performance as matchmaker Dolly Levi won her the first of three Tony Awards (including one for lifetime achievement) for Best Actress in a Musical.
She appeared in two revivals of “Hello, Dolly!,” performing the role more than 5,000 times, missing only one show due to food poisoning.
Also Read: Carl Reiner Is the Oldest Emmy Nominee Ever at 96, but He's Still Got Work to Do (Video)
Channing is also known for her role of Lorelei Lee in “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.
The Oscar-nominated actress died early Tuesday morning at her home in Rancho Mirage, Calif., just weeks before what would have been her 98th birthday, her publicist B. Harlan Boll told TheWrap.
Channing came to national prominence as the star of the Broadway musical “Hello, Dolly!” in 1964. Her performance as matchmaker Dolly Levi won her the first of three Tony Awards (including one for lifetime achievement) for Best Actress in a Musical.
She appeared in two revivals of “Hello, Dolly!,” performing the role more than 5,000 times, missing only one show due to food poisoning.
Also Read: Carl Reiner Is the Oldest Emmy Nominee Ever at 96, but He's Still Got Work to Do (Video)
Channing is also known for her role of Lorelei Lee in “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.
- 1/15/2019
- by Itay Hod
- The Wrap
“You know I think you’re the only girl in the world who can stand on a stage with a spotlight in her eye and still see a diamond inside a man’s pocket.”
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes screens Friday February 23rd through Sunday February 25th at Webster University’s Moore Auditorium (470 East Lockwood). The movie starts each evening at 7:30pm.
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes is the sparkling 1953 musical comedy based on the Broadway musical that made Carol Channing a star and here does the same thing for another blonde…namely Marilyn Monroe. Monroe shines in the ultimate dumb blonde role: Lorelei Lee, who along with best pal Dorothy Shaw (Jane Russell) are a couple of showgirls being tailed by a private detective hired by the father of Lorelai’s latest beau, to get the goods on her. The razor-thin plot is so not the issue here. The issue is the...
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes screens Friday February 23rd through Sunday February 25th at Webster University’s Moore Auditorium (470 East Lockwood). The movie starts each evening at 7:30pm.
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes is the sparkling 1953 musical comedy based on the Broadway musical that made Carol Channing a star and here does the same thing for another blonde…namely Marilyn Monroe. Monroe shines in the ultimate dumb blonde role: Lorelei Lee, who along with best pal Dorothy Shaw (Jane Russell) are a couple of showgirls being tailed by a private detective hired by the father of Lorelai’s latest beau, to get the goods on her. The razor-thin plot is so not the issue here. The issue is the...
- 2/19/2018
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
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