Editors Notes: Teacher of a lifetime Oct 10, 2008
The other is the 1940 screwball comedy His Girl Friday which portrays wisecracking reporters trying to get the story, whether it s true or not ... The first time I saw His Girl Friday was in a news-writing seminar I took when I was a student at Clark University. (Pembroke Mariner, MA)
H.A.L. - Hollywood's Aggregated Links Oct 3, 2008
HAL - Hollywood's Aggregated Links on Variety. Choose the one that's best for you. (Variety)
"How to Lose Friends and Alienate People" Oct 3, 2008
Instead, the movie, based on Toby Young's scathing memoir of his stint at Vanity Fair, aims to be both a satire of celebrity and a "His Girl Friday" romance. The tacked-on love story is an unfortunate display of lack of confidence because, as proved, the insanely surreal world of celebrity culture is all the dumb fun an audience could ask for. (Salon)
Common Sense (Where Is Thomas Paine When You Need Him) Sep 25, 2008
Last Updated on Tuesday, Sep 16, 2008 - 04:42:38 pm CDT. By Baffled Published/Last Modified on Tuesday, September 16, 2008 4:42 PM CDT. (New Iberia, LA)
'Sex in the City' slips into video stores Sep 21, 2008
While it hardly has the dialogue of a "His Girl Friday," it's performed at a rapid clip. Its leading lady is a feisty reporter; its battles are down and dirty. (Sioux City Journal, IO)
Film Reviews: 'Burn After Reading' and 'Jerichow' Aug 28, 2008
Clooney is lustily convincing as Pfarrer, who, to quote Hildy Johnson in "His Girl Friday," is "quite charming in a loathsome kind of way." Pfarrer has a certain amount in common with Everett in "O Brother," but is a much more dangerous and darker character - if being dark is compatible with being this daft. Swinton is tremendous as a woman who has everything and is almost permanently enraged - a state of mind reflected in her lurid copper-colored coiffure that could only have been achieved with... (International Herald Tribune -- Arts)
Actresses Who Never Won an Oscar Jul 14, 2008
In a nearly 40 year career, the talented Russell ran the acting gamut from comedy-dramas (The Women, 1939), to screwball comedies (His Girl Friday, 1940) to bio-pics (Sister Kenny, 1946) to musicals (Auntie Mame, 1958, and Gypsy, 1962) to enjoyable family fluff pieces (The Trouble with Angels, 1966). During this time, Russell was nominated as best actress four times for My Sister Eileen (1942), Sister Kenny, Mourning Becomes Electra (1949) and Auntie Mame without a win. (Suite101.com)
Critics' Picks Jul 13, 2008
A smart, storklike dame who accentuated her height with towering hats, Russell had a wised-up smile and a near-masculine swagger that was seen to best advantage in 1940's "His Girl Friday," maybe the finest farce ever committed to American film. Even lesser Russell is worth watching: the scarily repressed spinster of "Picnic," the educated woman drawn helplessly to Robert Montgomery's killer in "Night Must Fall." Russell's most legendary role, "Auntie Mame," is a bit stagebound for my tastes,... (Salon)
Making sense of the AFI's 'Top 10 Films in 10 Genres' list Jun 19, 2008
Better than Ninotchka, Trouble in Paradise, The Lady Eve, The Miracle of Morgan's Creek, Some Like It Hot, or His Girl Friday ... Also missing from Romanic comedies was His Girl Friday , Bringing up Baby and An affair to Remember ... BUT Best Romantic Comedy was ludicrous - where were all the classic Romantic Comedies of the 30s and 40s - The Awful Truth, Ninochka, His Girl Friday, The Lady Eve. (Entertainment Weekly)
AFI names top 10 films in 10 genres: Did they get it right? Jun 18, 2008
Not to mention His Girl Friday, The Apartment and Some Like It Hot, which were all SHUT OUT completely ... 369 HIS GIRL FRIDAYColumbia, 1940. (Seacoast New Hampshire)
Pioneer sportswriter Marjorie Kinder dies Jun 2, 2008
After college, her son said, she spent one year as a news service news reporter in San Francisco, covering the crime beat, much like the character Hildy Johnson in the 1940 movie "His Girl Friday." She then took a job reporting in Vallejo. On Dec. 7, 1941, she happened to be checking a news service machine when reports of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor started coming in. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Crime)
Throw the screwball May 30, 2008
Ask him to list the sort of "caper" films he wanted to emulate with Leatherheads and he mentions a Grant signature comedy, His Girl Friday (1940), which pitted him against Rosalind Russell as the woman who's on to him ... " It's one thing to get that Grant halo but another if your political polemics define you. In his acting, Clooney has always balanced his serious projects (Michael Clayton, The Good German) with the jaunty (Ocean's 11, 12, 13, Intolerable Cruelty). Leatherheads gives his... (Sydney Morning Herald -- Entertainment)
Leatherheads’ fails as a homage film Apr 18, 2008
And now, of course, we have Leatherheads, a movie that would like to be considered one of the screwball comedies of the 1940s, a reference to films like His Girl Friday, Bringing Up Baby, and It Happened One Night. With the exception of Leatherheads, which just opened, these movies have more in common than just their stylistic tendencies none of them have made very much money. (Chippewa Falls Chippewa Herald, WI)
Playing ballRenee Zellweger touches down to talk up Clooney comedy Apr 13, 2008
What Clooney was after, she said, was a screwball comedy in the tradition of such vintage classics as The Philadelphia Story and His Girl Friday. "He wanted to do an old-fashioned film where the storytelling was simple and witty and stylistically very different from what it is today. "And I'm glad, because it was a lot of fun to play around with. (BBC News -- Entertainment)
Make football, not war Apr 10, 2008
Jennifer Lopez in "Out of Sight." Catherine Zeta-Jones in "Intolerable Cruelty." Julia Roberts in "Ocean's 11." His repartee with Zellweger is light and fun in a "His Girl Friday" meets "It Happened One Night" kind of way. (I enjoyed their train car scene. (Seacoast New Hampshire)
Chilled in Winnipeg Apr 5, 2008
Leatherheads, which opened yesterday, makes use of Zellweger's kewpie-doll looks and reverence for the rapid-fire dialogue of such films as Bringing Up Baby and His Girl Friday. I had to be on my toes, she said, because if you ever had to think about what you were supposed to say, you'd already blown it. (Globe and Mail)
THERE WILL BE MUD Apr 5, 2008
Clooney is trying for an homage to classics such as "His Girl Friday," but he often fumbles the necessary breathless pace in a film that ideally would have been something like 20 minutes shorter. The star-director and his credited screenwriters - Duncan Brantley and Rick Reilly of Sports Illustrated - don't seem to have ended up on the same page, though they've been developing it together for something like 10 years. (New York Post -- Entertainment)
'Leatherheads': Semipro Life, By Kurt Loder Apr 5, 2008
Lexie seems pretty clearly modeled on Hildy Johnson, the wisecracking reporter played by Rosalind Russell in Hawks' 1940 screwball classic, "His Girl Friday"; and Zellweger displaying an unexpected gift for drawling sarcasm (as well as convincing romantic chemistry with Clooney) is given some near-Hawksian wisecracks to deliver. (Told by a pickup artist she's rebuffed that "I didn't come here to be insulted," Lexie cracks back, "Where do you usually go?") Dodge Connelly doesn't equate with... (VHI.com -- Music News)
'Leatherheads': Football follies Apr 4, 2008
The movie's obvious model for Lexie (and her hat) is Russell in Howard Hawks's "His Girl Friday." But where's the vinegar. The dialogue in Duncan Brantley and Rick Reilly's script doesn't pop or zing out of the actors' mouths. (Boston Globe)
Throwback comedy 'Leatherheads' is a real winner Apr 4, 2008
It's an amiable homage to such films as His Girl Friday and It Happened One Night, and, to director Clooney's credit, there are no obvious anachronisms. The production design, language and general attitudes stay faithful to the era. (USA Today -- Life)
Illegal Use of Hands Apr 4, 2008
It's a perfectly passable, if instantly forgettable, date movie, lushly shot by Newton Thomas Sigel and with a script intelligently versed in American classics like His Girl Friday and Hail the Conquering Hero. Maybe Clooney has just raised our expectations too high with his uninterrupted ascent from "that dude on E.R." to respected lefty director/producer (by way of and ). (Slate)
"Leatherheads," Apr 4, 2008
He's happy to have the chance to reference pictures like "His Girl Friday" and "It Happened One Night," and he's clearly having a lot of fun revisiting, and refreshing, some of the things we've come to think of as clich;s. Actually, most of these conventions are so ancient, and so lost in today's movie vocabulary, that they no longer even qualify as clich;s: Dodge and Lexie -- who've only recently met and who, of course, have taken an instant dislike to one another -- find themselves sharing the... (Salon)
Review: `Leatherheads' Lacks Game Plan Apr 2, 2008
In a nod to the fast-talking journalists of such screwball-comedy classics as "The Philadelphia Story" and "His Girl Friday," Zellweger's Chicago Tribune reporter Lexie Littleton comes on the scene to ferret out the real story of golden boy Carter. Touted as a World War I hero who single-handedly forced the surrender of a trench full of Germans, Carter seems the ideal poster boy to sell football tickets. (Waterloo Courier, IO)
George Clooney plays two roles in screwball comedy Apr 1, 2008
Clooney is a huge fan of the legendary director whose great gift for action drama (Red River, Only Angels Have Wings) was balanced by an equally memorable enthusiasm for the high-flying comedy of His Girl Friday and Bringing Up Baby. I stole from Howard Hawks and Preston Sturges in a big way. (Canada.com)
Clooney drops the ball with "Leatherheads" Mar 29, 2008
Zellweger is the "His Girl Friday" news hen, Lexie Littleton, who is assigned to suss out the real story behind the war-hero act. In the process, she seemingly falls for both Dodge and Bullet, if only for their names alone. (Reuters)
Can Kutcher and Diaz save the rom-com? Mar 26, 2008
Jennifer Jason Leigh can probably tell Zellweger what a thankless job it is to spend a movie imitating Rosalind Russell circa His Girl Friday. The sports-centric romantic comedy just seems like a lose-lose scenario audience-wise. (MSNBC -- Movies)
Spark snuffed by hopeless romantics Feb 15, 2008
This premise is no more laughable - or perhaps no less laughable - than the leopard on the loose in Connecticut in Bringing Up Baby or the pairs of squabbling journalists or politicians in His Girl Friday or State Of The Union. And it would be unfair of me to prejudice you against Fool's Gold more than I have. (Sydney Morning Herald)
A BLOODY VALENTINE'S DAY TO ALL Feb 10, 2008
For something completely different, check out BAM Rose Cinemas' Valentine's Day show, "His Girl Friday" (1940), unreeling Thursday at 6:30 and 8:30 p.m.. Howard Hawks' hilarious, gender-bending version of "The Front Page" features Cary Grant, Rosalind Russell and Ralph Bellamy. (New York Post -- Entertainment)
ROMANTIC COMEDIES: A fine romance, my friend, this is Feb 5, 2008
Now, this premise is no more laughable or perhaps I mean no less laughable than the leopard on the loose in Connecticut in "Bringing Up Baby" or the pairs of squabbling journalists or politicians in "His Girl Friday" or "State of the Union." And it would be unfair of me to prejudice you against "Fool's Gold" more than I already have. But if you have seen "27 Dresses," or last year's "Because I Said So," let's say, or the other Mandy Moore wedding-theme comedy that came out in 2007, or any of the... (International Herald Tribune)
Newspapers have always headlined Hollywood's best works Jan 6, 2008
The Front Page (1974) In this re-conceptualization of His Girl Friday (see below), Jack Lemmon is a disenchanted reporter ready to turn in his typewriter ... His Girl Friday (1940) A comic remake of a 1931 film version of the Broadway play called The Front Page, this quintessential newsroom film features a crafty editor (Cary Grant) scheming to keep his ace reporter and ex-wife (Rosalind Russell) from leaving the paper and him for good. (San Diego Union-Tribune)
Critic's Corner chat Dec 11, 2007
For TV, I'd say "Black Adder," "Mary Tyler Moore," "thirtysomething," "NYPD Blue" and "The Wire." As for movies, we'll assume you need cheering up and go with "His Girl Friday," "Duck Soup," anything by Preston Sturges, and anything with Betty Hutton. Mission, Kansas: Will the plot of 'Lost' suffer because of the planned 4th season mid-season rewrite. (USA Today -- Life)
Drawn to film by pain and Pauline Sep 26, 2007
" Byrnes takes pride in championing unfashionable films that find an audience, most recently the Swedish charmer As It Is In Heaven, which has run at the Cremorne Orpheum for 43 weeks. But when he lists his favourite films, it's a different era that comes to mind: Red River, His Girl Friday, Sullivan's Travels, The Seven Samurai, Bringing Up Baby, Singin' in the Rain, The Wizard of Oz and his all-time favourite, Vertigo. "I'm an absolutely huge fan of westerns," he says. "I like most things that... (Sydney Morning Herald -- Entertainment)
What to watch Monday Aug 20, 2007
One of those rare stars who could be warm or cold, comic or dramatic, glamorous or villainous, Russell is showcased tonight with three of her best comedies, His Girl Friday (6:15 ET/3:15 PT), My Sister Eileen (8 ET/5 PT) and Auntie Mame (10 ET/7 PT); one of her last hits, The Trouble With Angels (12:30 a.m. ET/9:30 p.m. PT); and her very last film, the rarely shown Mrs. Pollifax Spy (2:30 a.m. ET/11:30 p.m. PT). VIDEO: TRANSCRIPT. (USA Today -- Life)
When films portray journalists, they often are black and white Jul 16, 2007
It's as if the films containing them aren't just films but documents of an industry I grew up in _ an industry that, at least from a critic's romanticized perspective, has offered real-life glimmers of "President's Men" and of the best comedy ever made about newspaper folks, His Girl Friday. Sometimes it's even offered shadings of Citizen Kane (that was a really controlling boss). (The Star Online, Malaysia)
Was the last decade of movies THAT bad? Jun 23, 2007
The AFI list already lacks many earlier classics like "Laura" (1944), "Out of the Past" (1947), "His Girl Friday" (1940), "Notorious" (1946), "McCabe Miller" (1971), "Manhattan" (1979) and "Dog Day Afternoon" (1975). The truth is, the last 10 years may deserve only a few spots on the top 100 list. (The Advocate -- Entertainment)
That's a wrap Jun 13, 2007
From there, I followed the essence of gumshoe over to investigative journalists like Rosalind Russell in His Girl Friday, then (and I m not ashamed) to Julia Roberts s character in I Love Trouble. They may not have been ethical journalists, per se, but they rated high on the tenacity scale. (San Antonio Current, TX)
Review: In 'Ocean's Thirteen' Soderbergh's Vegas hits a jackpot Jun 8, 2007
In the "Ocean's" trilogy, you enter an enchanted realm where Clooney and Pitt are the world's prettiestloveliest, luckiest hucksters and sparring partners, heirs to Paul Newman and Robert Redford in "The Sting," as well as Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell in "His Girl Friday.". Working inside the box and out, Soderbergh has learned to go against the grain while also going with the flow. (International Herald Tribune -- Arts)
Is George Clooney the new Cary Grant? Jun 3, 2007
I wish, therefore, that we could see Clooney playing the parts Grant played in films such as The Awful Truth, Bringing Up Baby, Holiday, Only Angels Have Wings, My Favourite Wife, His Girl Friday, The Philadelphia Story, Suspicion, Talk of the Town, Notorious, I Was a Male War Bride and People Will Talk. Yes, that list is 12 films, all of which fall within the genres of screwball, romantic comedy or comic adventure, most of which are in the category of masterpiece, and all of which were made... (Sydney Morning Herald -- Entertainment)
Silence is captivating May 19, 2007
While bantering dialogue have proved to be enjoyable under the rare, skillful hands of Billy Wilder (Love in the Afternoon, Witness for the Prosecution), Howard Hawks (His Girl Friday) and, in a lovelorn way, Richard Linklater (Before Sunrise/Sunset), it is often the case that fewer -- or a complete lack of -- words are needed to bring out true human emotions. Take for example, the anger Sissy Spacek conveys in slapping Marissa Tomei in In the Bedroom, the exhilarating, giddy satisfaction Diane... (Jakarta Post, Indonesia -- Features)
'Arsenic,' 'Lonely Heart' ... (Gary Arnold) Apr 19, 2007
Cary Grant achieved stellar distinction as a romantic-comedy lead in "The Awful Truth" in 1937, then promptly reinforced it with "Bringing Up Baby" and "Holiday" in 1938 and "The Philadelphia Story" and "His Girl Friday" in 1940. Similar credibility as a swashbuckler -- either boisterous or hard-bitten -- caught up with him in 1939 with "Gunga Din" and "Only Angels Have Wings." Mortimer Brewster might have been less harassed than the scholar bedeviled by Katharine Hepburn in "Bringing Up Baby,"... (Washington Times, DC)
Shoreline scores classics Apr 13, 2007
Shoreline Entertainment has bought the 2,000-title Worldvision Cinema library, which features a mix of genre and classics such as "The 39 Steps," "His Girl Friday," "The Outlaw" and "Little Shop of Horrors.". Shoreline topper Morris Ruskin made the deal with Lee Sands during the recent Hong Kong film market and was able to close several license sales to territories before the mart ended. (Variety)
Everything old is new again and again Apr 7, 2007
"Take His Girl Friday, which was made in 1940 and was a remake of The Front Page, which was made nine years earlier. Cecil B. DeMille's epic The Ten Commandments was a remake of his own silent film," she says. There are exceptions to the rule The Godfather II, perhaps but movies with numbers at the end of their title are not known for auteur-driven integrity. (The Age)
Rose McGowan shoots from the hip in 'Grindhouse' Apr 2, 2007
In person, McGowan speaks very, very fast, as if the metronome on the set of "His Girl Friday" were ever-present in her head. She also seems to rethink every situation four or five times before it even registers with anyone else. (calendarlive.com)
Small replica is big on old grandeur Mar 1, 2007
And this week he has been taking paying customers for the first time for a 1940s program of the national anthem, cartoons, newsreels and the classic comedy His Girl Friday as part of the Adelaide Film Festival. Thiele, wearing a monogrammed vest and bow-tie, has been joined by three usherettes, including one in her 80s wearing a recreation of her 1940s Regent uniform. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Entertainment)
Scorsese joins the club Feb 26, 2007
"There were a lot more new ideas in 'Some Like It Hot' or 'His Girl Friday' than dozens of supposedly important Oscar winners," says Thomson. "Those comedies are about human nature in a much more profound way than the big statement films.". (Los Angeles Times)
Community Calendar Feb 22, 2007
LASALLE This month s Movies at the Mansion event will feature His Girl Friday, starring Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell, at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Hegeler Carus Mansion, 1307 Seventh St., LaSalle. The movie is free to the public. (Princeton Bureau County Republican, IL)
She loves me... Feb 14, 2007
Walter Burns and Hildy Johnson of His Girl Friday. Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell make the dance of love constantly arguing verbally as Walter is an editor of a newspaper and Hildy a reporter an interesting game of cat and mouse. (The Star Online, Malaysia)
The year that 'Rocky' won (but why?) Jan 24, 2007
The academy can be proud that it managed to at least nominate "Taxi Driver," "All the President's Men" and "Network." Some very well-regarded movies were never nominated at all, among them Howard Hawks' "His Girl Friday" (1940) and John Ford's "The Searchers" (1956). Despite the questionable victory by "Rocky," 1976 remains an impressive class for American films, which most years -- 2006 included -- would have difficulty living up to. (CNN -- Showbiz)
The secret is out: 'Chick flicks' make guys look good Jan 7, 2007
Meyers wants to spread the word about classic romantic comedies like "His Girl Friday" and "The Lady Eve" - farces that people the eternal erotic runaround with men and women of equivalent charm, wit and velocity. She also loves those '70s films in which hurt or angry women find comfort with individualistic and attractive fellows such as Kris Kristofferson in "Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore" and "Blume in Love," or Alan Bates in "An Unmarried Woman.". (Buffalo News -- Entertainment)
Cary Grant - The Burden of Image Jan 7, 2007
There are endless examples, some good - His Girl Friday - some bad - Arsenic and Old Lace. Here, then, are the in-between. (Suite101.com)
