Tag Archives: academy award nomination

Shirley MacLaine – Style Icon

Posted on by

Are you obsessing over the possibilities of how incredible “Downton Abbey” is going to be because of Shirley MacLaine?  I know you are.  I love her in “Trouble With Harry” and “Sweet Charity” and “Postcards from the Edge” and “Terms of Endearment” and “Steel Magnolias” and on and on and on.NAME: Shirley MacLaine
OCCUPATION: Film Actress, Theater Actress, Television Actress, Ballet Dancer, Singer, Journalist
BIRTH DATE: April 24, 1934 (Age: 77)
PLACE OF BIRTH: Richmond, Virginia
ORIGINALLY: Shirley MacLean Beaty

BEST KNOWN FOR: American actress Shirley MacLaine is well known for leading role in the 1983 film Terms of Endearment, as well as her beliefs in reincarnation.

Shirley MacLean Beaty (known professionally as Shirley MacLaine; April 24, 1934) is an American film and theater actress, singer, dancer, activist and author, well-known for her beliefs in New Age spirituality and reincarnation. She has written a large number of autobiographical works, many dealing with her spiritual beliefs as well as her Hollywood career. In 1983, she won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her role in Terms of Endearment. She was nominated for an Academy Award five times before her win. Her younger brother is Warren Beatty but they have never appeared in the same film.

MacLaine made her film debut in Alfred Hitchcock’s The Trouble with Harry (1955), for which she won the Golden Globe Award for New Star Of The Year – Actress. In 1956, she had roles in Hot Spell and Around the World in Eighty Days. At the same time she starred in Some Came Running, the film that gave her her first Academy Award nomination – one of five that the film received – and a Golden Globe nomination.

Her second nomination came two years later for The Apartment, starring with Jack Lemmon. The film won five Oscars, including Best Director for Billy Wilder. She later said, “I thought I would win for The Apartment, but then Elizabeth Taylor had a tracheotomy”. She starred in The Children’s Hour (1961) also starring Audrey Hepburn, based on the play by Lillian Hellman. She was again nominated, this time for Irma la Douce (1963), for which she reunited with Wilder and Lemmon. Don Siegel, her director on Two Mules for Sister Sara (1970), in which she starred opposite Clint Eastwood, once said, “It’s hard to feel any great warmth to her. She’s too unfeminine and has too much balls. She’s very, very hard.”

In 1975, she received a nomination for Best Documentary Feature for her documentary film The Other Half of the Sky: A China Memoir. Two years later, she was once again nominated for The Turning Point co-starring Anne Bancroft, in which she portrayed a retired ballerina much like herself. In 1978, she was awarded the Women in Film Crystal Award for outstanding women who, through their endurance and the excellence of their work, have helped to expand the role of women within the entertainment industry. In 1980, she starred in A Change of Seasons alongside Anthony Hopkins. The pair famously didn’t get along and Hopkins said “she was the most obnoxious actress I have ever worked with.” In 1983, she won an Oscar for Terms of Endearment. The film won another four Oscars; one for Jack Nicholson and three for director James L. Brooks. In 1988, MacLaine won a Golden Globe for Best Actress (Drama) for Madame Sousatzka.

She continued to star in major films, such as Steel Magnolias with Julia Roberts and many other stars. She made her feature-film directorial debut in Bruno, MacLaine starred as Helen in this film, which was released to video as The Dress Code. In 2007, she completed Closing the Ring, directed by Richard Attenborough and starring Christopher Plummer. Other notable films in which MacLaine has starred include Sweet Charity (1968), Being There (1979) with Peter Sellers, Postcards From the Edge (1990) with actress Meryl Streep, playing a fictionalized version of Debbie Reynolds with a screenplay by Reynolds’s daughter, Carrie Fisher, Used People with Jessica Tandy and Kathy Bates, Guarding Tess (1994) with Nicolas Cage, Mrs. Winterbourne (1996), with actress and talk show host, Ricki Lake and actor Brendan Fraser, Rumor Has It… (2005) with Kevin Costner and Jennifer Aniston and In Her Shoes with Cameron Diaz.

MacLaine has also appeared in numerous television projects including an autobiographical miniseries based upon the book Out on a Limb, The Salem Witch Trials, These Old Broads written by Carrie Fisher and co-starring Elizabeth Taylor, Debbie Reynolds, and Joan Collins, and Coco, a Lifetime production based on the life of Coco Chanel. She also had a short-lived sitcom called Shirley’s World. She will be appearing in the third series of the British drama Downton Abbey as Martha Levinson, mother to Cora, Countess of Grantham.

MacLaine has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1165 Vine Street.

Related articles

James Dean – Style Icon

Posted on by

NAME: James Dean
OCCUPATION: Film Actor
BIRTH DATE: February 08, 1931
DEATH DATE: September 30, 1955
EDUCATION: University of California at Los Angeles
PLACE OF BIRTH: Marion, Indiana
PLACE OF DEATH: Paso Robles, California

BEST KNOWN FOR: American motion picture actor James Dean became a symbol of the confused, restless, and idealistic youth of the 1950s.

James Byron Dean (February 8, 1931 – September 30, 1955) was an American film actor. He is a cultural icon, best embodied in the title of his most celebrated film, Rebel Without a Cause (1955), in which he starred as troubled Los Angeles teenager Jim Stark. The other two roles that defined his stardom were as loner Cal Trask in East of Eden (1955), and as the surly ranch hand, Jett Rink, in Giant (1956). Dean’s enduring fame and popularity rests on his performances in only these three films, all leading roles. His premature death in a car crash cemented his legendary status.

Dean was the first actor to receive a posthumous Academy Award nomination for Best Actor and remains the only actor to have had two posthumous acting nominations. In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked Dean the 18th best male movie star on their AFI’s 100 Years…100 Stars list.

American teenagers at the time of Dean’s major films identified with Dean and the roles he played, especially in Rebel Without A Cause: the typical teenager, caught where no one, not even his peers, can understand him. Joe Hyams says that Dean was “one of the rare stars, like Rock Hudson and Montgomery Clift, whom both men and women find sexy.” According to Marjorie Garber, this quality is “the undefinable extra something that makes a star.” Dean’s iconic appeal has been attributed to the public’s need for someone to stand up for the disenfranchised young of the era,[40] and to the air of androgyny that he projected onscreen. Dean’s “loving tenderness towards the besotted Sal Mineo in Rebel Without a Cause continues to touch and excite gay audiences by its honesty. The Gay Times Readers’ Awards cited him as the male gay icon of all time.”

Dean is mentioned or featured in various songs, which include titles such as “Allure” by Jay-Z, “American Boy” by Chris Isaak, “American Pie” by Don McLean, “A Young Man is Gone” by The Beach Boys, “Bla bla bla (Blah Blah Blah)” by Perfect, “Chciałbym umrzeć jak James Dean (lit. I Wish to Die Like James Dean)” by Partia, “Come Back Jimmy Dean” by Bette Midler, “Daddy’s Speeding” by Suede, “Electrolite” by R.E.M., “Famous” by Scouting for Girls, “Five Years Time” by Noah & The Whale, “Just Like a Movie Star” by The 6ths, “Flip-Top Box” by Self, “Girl on TV” by LFO,[43] “Hello my Hate” by Black Veil Brides, “Jack and Diane” by John Mellencamp, “James Dean” by Bonnie Tyler, “James Dean (I Wanna Know)” by Daniel Bedingfield, “James Dean” by That Handsome Devil, “James Dean” by the Eagles, “Jim Dean of Indiana” by Phil Ochs, “Jimmy Dean” by Icehouse,[44] “Lost on Highway 46″ by Sham 69, “Choke On This” by Senses Fail, “Mr. James Dean” by Hilary Duff, “My Kind of Girl” by Collin Raye, “My Shine” by Childish Gambino, “Peach Trees” by Rufus Wainwright, “Picture Show” by John Prine, “Rather Die Young” by Beyoncé, “Rock On” by David Essex, “Rockstar” by Nickelback, “Speechless” by Lady GaGa, “Teenage Wildlife” by AJ McLean of the Backstreet Boys, “These Days” by Bon Jovi, “Under the Gun” by The Killers, “Vogue” by Madonna, “Walk on the Wild Side” by Lou Reed, and “We Didn’t Start The Fire” by Billy Joel.

In addition, he is often noted within television shows, films, books and novels. In an episode of Degrassi: The Next Generation, the character Liberty likens the rebellious, anti-social Sean Cameron to James Dean. On the sitcom Happy Days, Fonzie has a picture of Dean in his closet next to his mirror. A picture of Dean also appears on Rizzo’s wall in the film Grease. On the American version of the TV series Queer as Folk, the main character Brian Kinney mentions James Dean together with Cobain and Hendrix, saying, “They’re all legends. They’ll always be young, and they will always be beautiful”. In the alternate history book Homeward Bound by Harry Turtledove, Dean is stated to have not died in a car crash and to have made several more films, including Rescuing Private Ranfall, based on Saving Private Ryan.

Dean’s estate still earns about $5,000,000 per year, according to Forbes Magazine.

What You Need To Know

  •     James Dean wardrobe staples include white tees, denim and a leather jacket.
  •     He wore dressier duds like the shawl collar jacket that he is recognized for having resurrected.
  •     His rebellious look marked a definite departure from predominantly preppy styles.

Why He’s A Style Icon

James Dean, who himself was a man of few words, requires little explanation when it comes to discussing his status as a style icon. He was the king of cool.

Dean’s first television experience came in the form of a 1950 Pepsi commercial — a far cry from his first big-screen debut five years later in Elia Kazan’s East of Eden. His role as the angsty outcast Cal Trask was a prelude to achieving full-blown stardom in Rebel Without a Cause. The brooding young actor gained international fame playing Jim Stark, a teenager who, as the title implies, can’t seem to stay out of trouble. Dean had a classic greaser look with slicked-back hair, jeans and a tight white T-shirt that was capped off not with a black leather jacket but a red windbreaker, and of course, a cigarette dangling from his mouth. It may not seem cutting-edge by today’s style icon standards, but his rebellious look marked a definite departure from predominantly preppy and buttoned-up midcentury styles.

Life imitated art with James Dean carrying that brazen image into his everyday existence. A taste for fast cars was conveniently accompanied by fame and fortune that allowed him luxuries like a Porsche 356 Speedster, which he later traded in for the more exclusive — and faster — 550 Spyder model. Not surprisingly, Dean had a habit of racing his pricey investments. It was the natural complement to his all-American bad boy persona. But as luck would have it, life in the fast lane ultimately led to an untimely demise at the ripe young age of 24.

Dean’s legacy, however, far outlives his short time on Earth for one simple reason: He embodied the essence of cool. He was one of the first male actors who garnered as much attention from women as he did from men. And while James Dean’s sexual past remains shrouded in mystery to this day, one thing is clear: Everyone either wanted him or wanted to be like him.

Dress The Dean Way

It is indeed possible to be almost as irresistible as Dean without putting your life in danger. His immortal sense of style is easy to infuse into your wardrobe, and the truth is, you’re probably already halfway there (everyone has a T-shirt and jeans; they just have to be cut right). Dean’s look comes from an era when clothes fit properly by hugging the body rather than hanging and bunching with enough extra fabric to outfit a family of four.

There is more, however, to Dean’s look than understanding denim and a white tee. He is credited with popularizing the vest as part of his Texas oil tycoon role in the posthumously released film Giant. Dean also had his hands on dressier duds like the shawl collar dinner jacket that he is recognized for having resurrected. From the familiar to the formal, James Dean was a timeless trendsetter — and an undeniably cool one at that.

Related articles

James Garner – Style Icon

Posted on by

Happy Birthday James Garner!  It is no surprise that “Rockford Files” is one of my all time favorite TV shows, and a huge part is due to his contribution.  Ladies and gentlemen, James Garner.  Style Icon.

NAME: James Garner
OCCUPATION: Film Actor, Television Actor
BIRTH DATE: April 07, 1928 (Age: 84)
EDUCATION: Hollywood High School, University of Oklahoma
PLACE OF BIRTH: Norman, Oklahoma
ORIGINALLY: James Scott Bumgarner

BEST KNOWN FOR: James Garner is an American actor who is famous for playing the role of Bret Maverick in the popular TV Western series Maverick.

James Garner (born James Scott Bumgarner; April 7, 1928) is an American film and television actor, one of the first Hollywood actors to excel in both media. He has starred in several television series spanning a career of more than five decades. These included his roles as Bret Maverick, in the popular 1950s western-comedy series, Maverick; Jim Rockford, in the popular 1970s detective drama, The Rockford Files; and the father of Katey Sagal‘s character on 8 Simple Rules following the death of John Ritter. He has starred in more than fifty movies, including The Great Escape (1963), Paddy Chayefsky‘s The Americanization of Emily (1964), Blake Edwards’ Victor Victoria (1982), Murphy’s Romance (1985), for which he received an Academy Award nomination, and The Notebook (2004).

Garner is married to Lois Clarke, whom he met at an “Adlai Stevenson for President” rally in 1956. They married 14 days later on August 17, 1956. “We went to dinner every night for 14 nights. I was just absolutely nuts about her. I spent $77 on our honeymoon, and it about broke me.” According to Garner, “Marriage is like the Army; everyone complains, but you’d be surprised at the large number of people who re-enlist”.

Garner is a strong Democratic Party supporter, contributing over $7,500 to Democrats running for Federal office the past seven years, including Dennis Kucinich (for Congress in 2002), Richard Gephardt, John Kerry, Barbara Boxer, and various Democratic committees and groups. Since 1982 Garner has given at least $29,000 to Federal campaigns, of which over $24,000 has been to the Democrats.

Related articles

Doris Day – Style Icon

Posted on by

If you see nothing else that Doris Day has done, see “The Man Who Knew Too Much.”  It gives you everything you could ever want from her.  If you feel like going deep, watch “The Doris Day Show,” it is amazing.  Ladies and gentlemen, Doris Day.  Style Icon.

NAME: Doris Day
OCCUPATION: Animal Rights Activist, Actress
BIRTH DATE: April 03, 1924 (Age: 87)
PLACE OF BIRTH: Cincinnati, Ohio

BEST KNOWN FOR: Doris Day was a singer and actress most popular in the 1950s and early-1960s. She starred in a television sitcom called “The Doris Day Show” from 1968-1973.

Doris Day (born Doris Mary Ann Kappelhoff; April 3, 1924) is an American actress, singer and, since her retirement from show business, an animal rights activist. With an entertainment career that spanned through almost 50 years, Day started her career as a big band singer in 1939, but only began to be noticed after her first hit recording, “Sentimental Journey”, in 1945. After leaving the Les Brown & His Band of Renown to try a solo career, she started her long-lasting partnership with Columbia Records, which would remain her only recording label. The contract lasted from 1947 to 1967, and included more than 650 recordings, making Day one of the most popular and acclaimed singers of the 20th century. In 1948, after being persuaded by Sammy Cahn, Jule Styne and her agent at the time, Al Levy, she auditioned for Michael Curtiz, which led to the lead in Romance on the High Seas, her first film with close friend, Jack Carson.

With a legendary Hollywood “girl next door” image and capable of delivering comedy, romance as well as heavy drama, she appeared in 39 films, released 29 albums, spent 460 weeks in the Top 40 charts and eventually became one of America’s most beloved entertainers. She received an Academy Award nomination for her performance in Pillow Talk, won three Henrietta Award (World Film Favorite), a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, Presidential Medal of Freedom, Legend Award from the Society of Singers, Los Angeles Film Critics Association‘s Career Achievement Award and, in 1989, received the Cecil B. DeMille Award for lifetime achievement in motion pictures.

Day’s strong commitment to animal rights began in 1971, when she cofounded the “Actors and Others for Animals”. She started her own non-profit organization in the late 1970s, the Doris Day Animal Foundation and, later, the Doris Day Animal League. Establishing the annual observance Spay Day USA in 1994, The Doris Day Animal League now partners with the Humane Society of the United States and continues to be a leading advocacy organization. In 2004 she received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President George W. Bush in recognition of her distinguished service to the country. President Bush recognized Miss Day’s work on behalf of animals by saying, “It was a good day for our fellow creatures when she gave her good heart to the cause of animal welfare.”

Day was ranked the biggest box-office star for four years (1960; 1962–1964) and ranked in the top 10 for 10 years (1951–1952; 1959–1966). She became the top-ranking female box-office star of all time and ranked sixth among the top 10 box-office performers (male and female), as of 2009.

Related articles