This week on “Picture Perfect,” it’s an hour of top hats and crinoline, with music from movies set during the Victorian Era. Enjoy selections from “The Importance of Being Earnest” (Benjamin Frankel), “Oliver Twist” (Arnold Bax), “Champagne Charlie” (Lord Berners), and “The Great Train Robbery” (Jerry Goldsmith). Even the pianos wear skirts, this Saturday evening at 6:00 EDT, on WWFM – The Classical Network and wwfm.org.
Tag: Picture Perfect
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9/11 Anniversary Musical Tribute to NYC
This week on “Picture Perfect,” on the 20th anniversary of 9/11, it’s a multifaceted portrait of Manhattan.
Enjoy selections from “All About Eve” and “Street Scene” (both by Alfred Newman),” “Taxi Driver” (Bernard Herrmann), “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” (Henry Mancini), and “King Kong” (Max Steiner). Also, Oscar Levant will perform George Gershwin’s “Second Rhapsody,” from the 1931 film “Delicious.”
It’s a collage of realism and romance, tragedy and comedy, seediness and sophistication. Join me for “Indomitable New York,” on “Picture Perfect,” music for the movies. The Big Apple never falls, this Saturday evening at 6:00 EDT, on WWFM – The Classical Network and wwfm.org.
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Women’s Names On Film Picture Perfect
This week on “Picture Perfect,” a show built around movies with women’s names for titles permits us to travel across a broad of array of genres – contemporary drama, Regency Era comedy of manners, 1940s film noir, and 16th century costume picture.
In “Rachel, Rachel” (1968) Joanne Woodward plays a repressed, small-town schoolteacher, who learns to take control of her own life. The film marked the directorial debut of Woodward’s husband, Paul Newman. “Rachel, Rachel” was nominated for four Academy Awards, including those for Best Actress and Best Picture. Newman picked up a Golden Globe and a New York Critics Circle Award for his direction. The lovely Americana score is by Jerome Moross.
In “Emma” (1996), adapted from novel of Jane Austen, Gwyneth Paltrow plays a high spirited-though-somewhat-clueless matchmaker, who fails to recognize her own feelings or those of the men around her. Among the supporting cast are Alan Cumming, Toni Collette, Ewan McGregor, and Jeremy Northam. Screenwriter and director Douglas McGrath fell in love with the book while an undergraduate at Princeton University. Rachel Portman wrote the Academy Award-winning score.
Not surprisingly, the Otto Preminger film noir “Laura” (1944) also sports quite the cast, including Gene Tierney, Dana Andrews, Clifton Webb, Judith Anderson, and Vincent Price. The equally impressive theme, heard in multiple permutations throughout the film, was written by Philadelphia-born composer David Raksin. Outfitted with lyrics by Johnny Mercer, it went on to become the second most-recorded song during the composer’s lifetime, behind only Hoagie Carmichael’s “Stardust.”
Finally, “Diane” (1956) takes us back to 16th century France, with a plot concerning Diane de Poitiers, played by Lana Turner, a member of the court of Francis I, who becomes the mistress of the king’s son, Henri d’Orléans, a very young Roger Moore. Their illicit love unfolds against the backdrop of Medici intrigue and lust for power. Miklós Rózsa, MGM’s go-to-composer for historical spectacles, wrote the music.
I hope you’ll join me for “What’s in a Name?,” on “Picture Perfect,” music for the movies, this Saturday evening at 6:00 EDT, on WWFM – The Classical Network and wwfm.org.
PHOTO: Dana Andrews likes his women stiff, like his bourbon
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Olympic Music at Picture Perfect WWFM
Citius! Altius! Fortius!
This week on “Picture Perfect,” to coincide with the Summer Games in Tokyo, we’ll get the blood pumping, with selections from Olympic opening ceremonies and television broadcasts.
Featured composers with include Leo Arnaud (a Ravel pupil, who worked on “The Wizard of Oz” and went on to write THE classic Olympic theme), Angelo Badalamenti (David Lynch’s composer of choice), Basil Poledouris (composer of “Conan the Barbarian” and “The Hunt for Red October”), and John Williams (‘nuff said).
In addition, there will be a suite from the Olympic documentary “16 Days of Glory,” by Lee Holdridge (recipient of seven Emmys and a Grammy),
We’ll be downing our Wheaties and going for the gold, on “Picture Perfect,” this Saturday evening at 6:00 EDT, on WWFM – The Classical Network and wwfm.org!
FUN FACT: Today is also Arnaud’s birthday!
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Tudor Movie Music on Picture Perfect
This week on “Picture Perfect,” it’s an hour of tunes for the Tudors.
We’ll hear selections from “Young Bess” (1953), with Jean Simmons as the future Elizabeth I. The colorful and entertaining cast also includes Stewart Granger, Deborah Kerr, and most notably Charles Laughton, who reprises his memorable characterization of Henry VIII. Laughton was honored with an Academy Award for Best Actor for playing Henry in the 1933 film, “The Private Life of Henry VIII.” Miklós Rózsa’s score conjures the era of the great MGM Technicolor spectacles.
By the time of the events portrayed in “Mary, Queen of Scots” (1971), Elizabeth already wears the crown, albeit uneasily, due to the perceived threat of her first cousin once removed. Vanessa Redgrave is Mary and Glenda Jackson is Elizabeth, with a supporting cast that includes Timothy Dalton, Nigel Davenport, Patrick McGoohan, Trevor Howard, and Ian Holm. As seems to be the custom in dramatic interpretations of the historical events, the film features several fictitious encounters between the queens, even though in reality the two never met. The poignant score is by John Barry.
“Anne of the Thousand Days” (1969) tells the story of Henry’s doomed second wife, Anne Boleyn. This time Richard Burton plays the king. Anne is played by Genevieve Bujold. Despite mixed reviews, the film was nominated for ten Academy Awards and recognized for its exceptional costumes. Among the other nominees was Georges Delerue for his period-flavored music.
Finally, in a lighthearted change of pace from all the intrigue and execution, we turn to a big screen adaptation of Mark Twain’s “The Prince and the Pauper” (1937). Set in the time of Prince Edward (later Edward VI), Twain’s novel plays on the conceit that the heir apparent, at some point, becomes confused with a commoner, who happens to bear an uncanny resemblance to him.
Top-billed Errol Flynn is really a supporting player as the devil-may-care Miles Hendon, who throws in his lot with the scraggly-looking prince, though he hardly believes his claims. Though it would still be a year until the release of “The Adventures of Robin Hood,” Flynn was already well on his way to becoming the screen’s quintessential swashbuckler, thanks to his turn in “Captain Blood” (1935). He easily dominates the film, and it’s a treat to see him duel with his old pal Alan Hale.
Montagu Love plays Henry VIII, though he’s upstaged by a scheming Claude Rains as Edward Seymour, the Earl of Hertford. Composer Erich Wolfgang Korngold follows Flynn all the way, his music full of swagger and fun.
Help yourself to a joint of mutton, and hang on to your heads! It’s time for the Tudors, on “Picture Perfect,” music for the movies, this Saturday evening at 6:00 EDT, on WWFM – The Classical Network and wwfm.org.
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