Old Hollywood - Blog Posts
Greta Garbo in THE MYSTERIOUS LADY 1928 | Fred Niblo
"Your days off are sure brutal on your lingerie" Jean Harlow as Lola Burns Bombshell 1933
Marilyn Monroe on the set of Some Like it Hot in Los Angeles, California, 1958. Photo by Richard C. Miller.
Night Train (1959), dir. Jerzy Kawalerowicz
Music in Film: Take Me Out to the Ball Game (1949) dir. Busby Berkeley
𝘢 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘺 𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘰𝘭 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘦𝘱𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘶𝘭𝘦, 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘭𝘬 𝘢𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨, 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘦
okay let's get into my thoughts of each track based on the titles: Track 1 - Fortnight (ft. Post Malone) POST MALONE??? i swear, i'm not joking, i had like a dream or a thought a little while ago that was like "lmao what if taylor collaborated with post malone what would that be like- she would never tho that would be crazy" so ig i manifested it?? ngl i don't listen to post malone and i haven't heard many of his songs. except i think that one song about circles that was on the radio a lot a while ago when i would listen to the radio all the time was his song. it was fine, kind of annoying tho once i heard it too much. i'm really not sure what to expect with the song, but i do like the title. a fortnight is two weeks so i'm curious if time will have a significance in this track, let alone the album. she wore a clock choker last night and kept asking Tree if her watch was set correctly, apparently to midnight, so i have a feeling time may be a theme within the album. idk but fortnight just gives me middle ages castle vibes so i'm curious if this song will have modern vibes, old hollywood vibes, or like ancient vibes when it comes to setting.
Track 2 - The Tortured Poets Department the titular track!! okay i genuinely have no ideas whatsoever for what this song could be about. maybe another anti-hero/yoyok type song? or even like a mastermind/labyrinth type love song? tbh idk- im really curious to hear other theories or opinions on this track so pls share !!
Track 3 - My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys 101% about a bf who once treasured and loved their relationship starts letting it die (cough joe cough). that phrase is so powerful because it provides the perfect imagery to show "yeah he loved me a lot, but he also hurt me" whether or not he knew it, he did it. this title definitely gives me like poetry title vibes so i'm curious what not only the lyrics will be but what the actual musical element will sound like.
Track 4 - Down Bad OH BOY A DELUSIONAL TRACK YES PLEASE. i can already tell that a running theme within this album is like wanting someone you can't have or loving someone too much that it's an issue. oh boy am i ready for the down bad delusional song this track will give us. i'm really hoping it'll be more of a happy delusional than a sad unrequited love delusion because i could see it going in that direction and as clever as that is i would like to be supported in my delusions. i'm really excited for this song.
Track 5 - So Long, London I HAVE BEEN WAITING TO TALK ABOUT THIS ONE OMG. THIS IS THE WHOLE REASON IM MAKING THIS POST. OH BOY. OKAY SO. the parallel to London Boy is CLEAR. bye bye joe. FAREWELL. we are officially done and over. there is no way in which i can look at this track title and not think "this is about joe" because it just so clearly is and i am HERE for it. i am curious if it's going to be a bad bitch call-out track or a sad mourning track...we'll just have to wait and see ig! (just realized it's a track 5 so it could be more emotional, but maybe she'll go a different route this time? i don't know but it'll be great fs)
Track 6 - But Daddy I Love Him OH MY GOD. as a lesbian it's frustrating that i'm sure many of these songs will be heavy on the "he's a boy" so it'll be harder for me to sing along earnestly, BUT that being said...i CANNOT WAIT for this track. i honestly don't know what the vibe will be for it but i'm sure it's phenomenal and i can't wait to hear it.
Track 7 - Fresh Out the Slammer is this a phrase? am i out of the loop? hold on lemme look it up..okay all i've learned is that there are several other songs with this same name. truly have no clue what this could be.
Track 8 - Florida!!! (ft. Florence + The Machine) i. i don't even know what to expect. i think i might just expect nothing because that way i'll definitely be surprised and delighted.
April 19 🤍 store.taylorswift.com
“We all got totally soused somewhere on the West Side, and I remember Monty shouting to Liz, ‘You are the only woman I will ever love,’ and Elizabeth slumped in a chair staring at him with those magnificent violet eyes and crooning, ‘Baby, oh baby,’ over and over again.” -Ed Foote on his last memory of Montgomery Clift.
“What man is suitable, doctor? She’s never found one. What man would ever look at me and say, ‘I want you.’? I’m fat. My mother doesn’t approve of dieting. Look at my shoes. My mother approves of sensible shoes. Look at the books on my shelves. My mother approves of good solid books. I’m my mother’s well-loved daughter. I’m her companion. I am my mother’s servant. My mother says! My mother. My mother! MY MOTHER!” Bette Davis as Charlotte Vale in Now, Voyager (1942) dir. Irving Rapper
Though nothing can bring back the hour Of splendour in the grass, of glory in the flower, We will grieve not, rather find Strength in what remains behind;
SPLENDOR IN THE GRASS (1961, dir. Elia Kazan)
sandwiches of the stars, 1929
the clara bow sandwich: jumbo sardines with vinegar mixed with chopped hardboiled eggs on rye, with a pickle ($0.50);
the charlie chaplin sandwich: camembert, roquefort, and sierra cheese on buttered rye ($0.60);
the pola negri sandwich: creamed chicken on toast with parmesan cheese and paprika ($0.75);
the gloria swanson sandwich: egg and sweet corn omelette between buttered toast ($0.40);
the virginia lee sandwich: chicken and tomato on toast with mayonnaise and french dressing ($0.65)
"But how can you compare Harlow and Garbo, Swanson and Shearer, or Gable and Tracy with any luminary today? Maybe it's just an old timer's sentiment. But today's faces lack depth of feeling. Two world wars and many minor ones have almost changed the face of the globe itself. Why not our actors? As I watch on television many of the stars I once photographed, I look at them as one might old paintings. Some can't stand up to today's demanding audience; others will be as magnetic a hundred years from now. I am sure the Mona Lisa and the face of Greta Garbo will inspire and puzzle for all time." —Clarence Sinclair Bull, photographer
(From Hollywood in Kodachrome: 1940–1949 by David Wills and Stephen Schmidt, 2013)
Natalie Wood in Griffith Park, Los Angeles, 1957, photo by Charlotte Brooks