#jim backus

[citizenscreen]

Thurston and Lovey Howell in 1966.

#jim backus #natalie schafer #gilligan’s island #classic tv

[weirdlookindog]

Macabre (1958)

#macabre #macabre 1958 #william prince #christine white #jim backus #1958 #1950s horror #1950s movies #william castle #horror movie poster

[oldshowbiz]

Jim Backus said the audience never realized that Paul Lynde and Wally Cox were wasted drunk.

#booze #hollywood babylon #jim backus #wally cox #paul lynde #hollywood squares

[of-fear-and-love]

Outfits from Friday Foster (1975)

#patterns!!! so many patterns #friday foster #pam grier #yaphet kotto #eartha kitt #carl weathers #jim backus #godfrey cambridge #paul benjamin #julius harris #1975 #1970s film #70s movies #blaxploitation #arthur marks #live-action adaptation #70s fashion #70s hair #costume design

[letterboxd-loggd]

Rebel Without a Cause (1955) Nicholas Ray

March 24th 2024

#rebel without a cause #1955 #nicholas ray #james dean #natalie wood #sal mineo #jim backus #ann doran #edward platt #rochelle hudson #juvenile story #the blind run

[aboutoriginality]

#mr magoo #jim backus

[erstwhile-punk-guerito]

#The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm #Laurence Harvey #Claire Bloom #Karlheinz Böhm #Barbara Eden #Walter Slezak #Oscar Homolka #Yvette Mimieux #Russ Tamblyn #Jim Backus #Beulah Bondi #Terry-Thomas #Buddy Hackett #Henry Levin #George Pal #1962

[arconinternet]

Hello Down There aka Sub-A-Dub-Dub (Video, 1969)

A comedy-adventure film about an underwater home. You can watch it here.

#internet archive #video #videos #movie #movies #film #films #obscure movies #obscure films #1960s movies #60s movies #60's movies #1960s films #60s film #tony randall #janet leigh #jim backus #ken berry #roddy mcdowall #merv griffin #1969 #1960s #60s

[loveboatinsanity]

#jim backus

[georgybutt]

#alan hale #jim backus

[citizenscreen]

Remembering Jim Backus, born on February 25, 1913 #botd

#jim backus

[weirdlookindog]

Macabre (1958)

#macabre #macabre 1958 #william prince #christine white #jim backus #1958 #1950s horror #1950s movies #william castle #horror movie poster

[oldshowbiz]

Decades before the Austin Powers films, an episode of Gilligan’s Island featured a secret agent spy parody with a bald Jim Backus as “Mr. Evil.”

#Jim Backus #Character Actors #secret agent craze #gilligan’s island #mike myers #austin powers

[of-fear-and-love]

Title cards for Friday Foster (1975)

#friday foster #title card #1975 #1970s film #70s movies #pam grier #godfrey cambridge #yaphet kotto #thalmus rasulala #eartha kitt #jim backus #arthur marks #starring

[princesssarisa]

A Christmas Carol Holiday Season: "Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol" (1962 animated musical)

Now we reach a pop culture landmark: the first animated Christmas special ever produced for American television. Before A Charlie Brown Christmas, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, or any other similar classics, there was this 1962 cartoon musical from the UPA animation studio, starring their most famous cartoon character, Quincy Magoo. A character rarely seen on TV today, because the comic mishaps caused by his weak eyesight aren't politically correct by modern standards. But this special, with songs by legendary Broadway composer Jule Styne (Gypsy, Funny Girl, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, and more) and lyricist Bob Merrill (Funny Girl), has never lost its popularity.

The framing device of this Christmas Carol is that Mr. Magoo is starring as Scrooge in a Broadway musical of Dickens' tale. While the opening scene of Magoo's arrival at the theatre and the final scene of the curtain calls feature the standard Magoo slapstick, the Christmas Carol itself is played surprisingly straight, with only a few small gags hinting that Scrooge needs glasses. For the most part, it's a faithful, if abridged version of the story. There are only two really notable changes: (a) the character of Fred is cut, and (b) the order of the first two ghosts' visits is reversed, so that the Ghost of Christmas Present (voice of Les Tremayne) comes first, and then the Ghost of Christmas Past (portrayed as an androgynous golden-colored child, voiced by Joan Gardener). I can only assume the latter change was made because the Christmas Past sequence is more emotional for Scrooge than Christmas Present, so they were re-ordered to create a "rising line of tension," so to speak.

The result is a Carol that's both funny and emotionally effective, which both children and adults can enjoy. Especially worth appreciating is its poignant emphasis on Scrooge's lonely childhood, since so many other versions downplay or cut that plot point. UPA's impressionistic style of animation, simple yet colorful and vivid, suits the tone of the production well, and the voice cast is first-rate too. Jim Backus, Magoo's iconic voice actor since 1949 (also known as Thurston Howell III on Gilligan's Island and James Dean's father in Rebel Without a Cause), is a vivid, engaging Scrooge throughout every stage of his character development. Meanwhile, standouts in the supporting cast include Jack Cassidy as a warm, rich-voiced Bob Cratchit, Royal Dano as an imposing Marley's Ghost, Jane Kean as a touching Belle, and Joan Gardener doubling as an ethereal yet wry Ghost of Christmas Past and an adorable Tiny Tim (who looks like another popular UPA character, Gerald McBoing-Boing). Last but not least, Styne and Merrill's songs – "It's Great to Be Back on Broadway," "Ringle, Ringle," "The Lord's Bright Blessing" (a.k.a. the "razzleberry dressing" song), "Alone in the World," "Winter Was Warm" and "We're Despicable" – are all memorable and strike an excellent balance between childlike simplicity and Broadway quality.

The first-ever Christmas cartoon special is still one of greatest.

@ariel-seagull-wings. @thealmightyemprex, @reds-revenge, @faintingheroine, @thatscarletflycatcher

#a christmas carol holiday season #mr. magoo's christmas carol #1962 #animation #upa animation #animated special #mr. magoo #jim backus

[thinkbolt]

Destination Magoo (UPA, 1954) - dir. Pete Burness

#Mister Magoo #UPA #Jim Backus #1950s #classic cartoon #golden age animatiion #Youtube