Revisit: Annie Get Your Gun

An MGM release 1950

Directed by
George Sidney

Writing credits:
Dorothy Fields (book)
Herbert Fields (book)
Sidney Sheldon

The story of the great sharpshooter, Annie Oakley (Betty Hutton), who rises to fame while dealing with her love/professional rival, Frank Butler (Howard Keel).



A musical plauged with production problems from the get-go, Annie Get Your Gun went through three directors and two lead actors before settling on a final cast and crew. Original director Busby Berkeley was also replaced, first by Charles Walters and finally by George Sidney; likewise, Annie was originally supposed to feature the reunion of Wizard of Oz stars Judy Garland and Frank Morgan before Morgan passed away and Judy was fired for poor health.

Normally I'd say Garland's presence would make any musical better, but thank god she dropped out of this one. I couldn't find it online, but if you rent the Annie DVD, there is lots of deleted footage from her scrapped performance and you could tell she was all hopped up on something - jittery, unfocused, really poor stuff. Plus she doesn't fit the role of Annie whatsoever.

Betty Hutton, on the other hand, was made for the part. Easily the most underrated, unseen talent of her time, Hutton had more punch and pep in her pinky finger than most stars today have in their whole lives. She really threw herself into every performance, using complete physicality to put on a fantastic, energized show. Every part of her body is accented, particularly her face, which alone was capable of literally hundreds of expressions. She had this wonderful, wacky spirit, and could throw her voice better than most singers to boot! Check out this clip of her and Fred Astaire from Let's Dance...



See? Hutton was a ball of energy waiting to explode; she was, as Bob Hope once put, a vitamin pill with legs. Unfortunately, Hutton's road to stardom wasn't an easy one, and she quit the business early. Recently, she did an interview with TCM host Robert Osborne that is worth checking out. But I highly suggest you to go out and see Annie Get Your Gun, if anything to pay tribute to this forgotten legend of song.

Remake Rumors

I hope to god that this is a rumor. Panic in the Streets is a tight little crime thriller directed by one of my favorites, Elia Kazan. It also marked the feature film debut of Jack Palance. It's a great film, one of the best of the genre, and I'd be really disappointed if they let Mel Gibson tinker with it. Hopefully this'll get debunked in a few days, along with those silly Ron Howard to remake Cache rumors.

This is also extremely unnecessary. And from the director of Saw, no less! How horrifying!

Revisit: All About Eve

A 20th Century Fox Production 1950
Written & Directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz

An ambitious wannabe actress (Anne Baxter) gets close to the great, but aging stage artist Margo Channing (Bette Davis) in a devious and manipulative attempt to blackmail her way to star billing.



Winner of 6 Oscars, including Best Picture, All About Eve is an irrefutable classic, the kind of film that actually lives up to the rock solid reputation its developed over the years. Bette Davis gives an iconic performance, but the real treat here is George Sanders, who plays an arrogant theater critic in the only Oscar winning performance. His deep voice and accent make him such an entertaining hoity member of the bourgeoisies. It’s interesting how films about Broadway so often glorify the live stage while denouncing their own medium – forget about TV. Keep an eye out for a young Marilyn Monroe, with razor sharp wit and looking hot as always.