America’s Next Top Model Returns Tonight

Oh, joy, oh, rapture. America’s Next Top Model returns tonight, my equivalent of television junk food. It’s a show I know I should be appalled by as it helps perpetuate the idea that you’re not supposed to have curves to be sexy (I seriously doubt Christina Hendricks would make it pass the panel — or she’d be dubbed a “plus size”) and I could talk about the potential damage this could cause to the self-image of young women because it reinforces the often negative traits pushed by the media.

I could, but I won’t because it’s back and I really need a good laugh tonight. So I will be curling up on the couch to watch the Jays (and there’d better be more of Miss Jay in this cycle, damn it) and know that the cheese is strong.

Damn

Casanova passed through to the next round without having to face the judges. Just isn’t my day.

Watching the new episode of Project Runway, I am overcome with an almost overwhelming urge to reach through the screen and smack Casanova. Yes, quit, damn you!

::sigh:: I am probably doomed to disappointment. I may have to go and re-read Tom and Lorenzo’s brilliant description of Casanova’s judging during the first episode to console myself.

Notable Television: TCM’s Summer Under the Stars Celebrates Walter Pidgeon

When one things of Mrs. Miniver, the image that comes immediately to mind is that of the beautiful and luminous Greer Garson. Tonight, though, the movie airs in honor of Walter Pidgeon, who listed the role of Mr. Clem Miniver among his many accomplishments.

Pidgeon was one of the legion of marvelous actors toiling in the Hollywood dream factory who were stars in their own right, even if they didn’t necessarily occupy the same shimmering firmament as Fred Astaire, Clark Gable, Cary Grant, or Greer Garson. His film career began in the mid-1920s, spanning more than a hundred roles on both the big and small screen, with parts ranging from westerns to dignified comedies to moving drama to classic three-hanky “women’s pictures” — and even included some operettas in the early days of sound. My own first conscious memory of Walter Pidgeon was in the 1965 version of Rodger and Hammerstein’s Cinderella which was faithfully shown year after year during my childhood. Pidgeon played the King and shared a charming moment on the dance floor with Ginger Rogers as his queen, hinting as to why Prince Charming’s parents might be willing to put up with this foolishness of wanting to marry for love. (But, then, it’s a musical; reality and logic don’t necessarily apply.)

TCM, as is their wont, is showcasing the variety in Pidgeon’s career. There’s Mrs. Miniver, of course, as well as the SF classic Forbidden Planet and the bio-pic Madame Curie (also with Greer Garson), but there’s also lesser known fare, such as The Shopworn Angel (1938) and Sweet Kitty Bellairs (1930).

Tired of summer reruns? Pop over to TCM and scroll through the schedule. There’s bound to be something to pique your fancy.

Notable Television: TCM Monday

Turner Classic Movies is celebrating their annual “Summer Under the Stars” during August. Each day, a different star is featured for twenty-four hours with movies ranging from the instantly recognizable to the “I didn’t know they were in that.” As is usual with TCM, there’s something for everyone and films well worth setting the DVR for.

Monday, August 3: Marion Davies
Most people who think of Marion Davies remember Charles Foster Kane’s second wife in Citizen Kane, the one who couldn’t sing opera no matter how much money Kane sank into her career – if they think of her at all. The reality is that Davies was a brilliant comedienne, a fact very much on display in Show People (1928), airing 8PM ET/5PM PT. Even if you don’t usually care for silents, this is a brilliant parody of the the movie business, complete with Davies’ parody of Gloria Swanson and a classic pie fight.