The Not-So-Wild West :)

Hello Everyone!

In May 1955, Jack Kelly starred in an episode of Cavalcade of America, a TV series which dramatized inspiring historical incidents from the lives of real-life Americans.

JK was cast as "James E. West", an attorney and advocate for children. Born in Washington, D.C., in 1876, West spent most of his own childhood in an orphanage after his parents died. 

While in the orphanage, West was diagnosed with a tubercular hip, which left him with one leg shorter than the other. He wore a leg brace until he was strong enough to use crutches. 

Unable to do physically demanding work like the other boys, West was relegated to the orphanage's sewing room with the girls. But, he longed to attend school. He was eventually permitted to attend classes and later graduated with honors from high school. 

West taught himself to ride and repair bicycles, and attended law school while working at various administrative jobs. He passed the bar in Washington, D.C., and in 1902 was appointed by President Theodore Roosevelt to the Board of Pension Appeals in the Department of the Interior. 

It's during this phase of West's life that the plot of "Sunrise on a Dirty Face", JK's episode of Cavalcade of America, begins. 

"HAPPY HOMECOMING--Marion West (Lois Collier) welcomes her attorney husband, James (Jack Kelly) from his visit with Theodore Roosevelt in the White House in a scene from 'Sunrise on a Dirty Face' on Cavalcade of America on ABC-TV. "

One day, a youngster named Jeremy Haggott is caught stealing coal from a bin at West's home. West declines to press charges, but the boy is taken into custody: 

"'BUT YOU PROMISED ME'...Jeremy Haggott (Peter Reynolds, right) voices his ire to James E. West (Jack Kelly) as he is taken into custody by a constable in 'Sunrise on a Dirty Face'. "

When Jeremy ends up in court, West serves as his attorney. He's appalled by how badly juvenile delinquents are treated by the court. West successfully lobbies to establish the juvenile court system in America. 

In reality, a young man stole West's car and it was that incident which prompted the attorney to ensure that juvenile offenders would be treated fairly in court. West also pushed for reform in the child care system, working to dismantle the orphanage model and encouraging foster care. From 1911-1943, he served as Chief Scout Executive of the Boy Scouts of America. West died in 1948.

Cavalcade of America, sponsored by Du Pont, became Du Pont Cavalcade Theater the following season and focused on more contemporary events. However, "Sunrise on a Dirty Face" must have been rerun that season, because the second photo above is promoting Du Pont Cavalcade Theater and is dated May 1956. 

West? East? Which direction will TDS go next? Please stay tuned and find out! 

A Danish "Basket" :)

Hello Everyone,

In the midst of this turbulent time of social distancing, working from home and panic buying, here's a little diversion from Denmark:

This is the cool cover of the Danish program for the episodic 1956 Mexican film Canasta de Cuentos Mexicanos, or, A Basket of Mexican Tales. As you can see, Jack Kelly (with co-star Mari Blanchard) is featured prominently on the cover. Strangely though, Ms. Blanchard gets top billing above the photo, but JK's name is a no-show.

He is mentioned in the cast list, albeit with sixth billing:

There are two more pix of JK in the section of  the program about his episode in the film ("Kurven" or "The Basket"):

The synopsis (roughly translated via Google) reads:

"Gladys and Eddie Winthrop are vacationing in Mexico. They buy some inexpensive but beautiful hand-woven baskets and take them home to New York. A chocolate maker sees one of the baskets and decides it would make excellent packaging for his goods. He places a large order for baskets with the Winthrops. They immediately return to Mexico to start production. However, they encounter an unexpected obstacle: the Indian from whom they purchased the original baskets explains that while he's not interested in becoming wealthy, the more baskets he and his family weave, the more it will cost the Winthrops because of the detailed work involved. The Winthrops realize their dream of making a quick profit from cheap labor isn't viable and reluctantly return to New York. Eddie gets a clerk job and Gladys returns the mink coat she bought thinking the basket money would pay for it."

Well, I hope this brightened your day a bit. Please stay tuned for more basketsful of fun with TDS. :)

Remembering...

Doris Day

1922-2019

Doris Day acted with Jack Kelly in the 1956 feature film Julie (shown above). They also appeared in The West Point Story (1950), although they had no scenes together. Rest in peace, Ms. Day.

Look Out!

"Monday's coming!"

But, don't worry JK, because Monday means a brand new week--and some brand new posts in TDS! So, hang in there, and watch out for le diabolique Monsieur Benton*...that's what you really need to worry about!

 

 

*Le Diabolique Monsieur Benton is what the 1956 film Julie was called in France, which is where this fantastique still came from. :)

Jack Kelly in "State Trooper"

Hi!

Here's a yummy YouTube find: Jack Kelly in "Jailbreak at Tonopah", a 1956 episode of the syndicated TV series State Trooper, starring big ole (6' 5") Rod Cameron as Nevada lawman "Lt. Rod Blake".

JK plays small-time hood "Johnny Bledsoe". Apparently taking a cue from "Cody Jarrett" in White Heat, Bledsoe gets a splitting headache whenever he's stressed out. He gets really stressed out when he drops his box camera in a diner and a concealed weapon pops out. Lt. Blake just happens to be in the diner and suspects that Bledsoe wasn't going to "shoot" only pictures. He puts Johnny in the pokey when it turns out the hood doesn't have a permit for the gun.

Blake also checks Bledsoe's rap sheet and discovers he's tied to a robbery in Philadelphia. He visits Johnny in jail to grill him about the crime. Johnny isn't a model prisoner--the elderly guard tells Blake, "He [Bledsoe] doesn't have a headache--he is a headache".

Blake also notices a bulldozer moving earth next to the jail. The operator gives Blake a story about leveling the ground for a new drugstore, but the lawman thinks something else is afoot. He's right: the operator is actually one of  Bledsoe's cohorts and he and Bledsoe's wife (K.T. Stevens) plan to use the dozer to break Johnny out of jail. But, perhaps Mrs. Bledsoe isn't acting solely out of wifely concern...

Will Johnny get sprung from the hoosegow? Will he reveal the whereabouts of the robbery loot? Will he finally get some Excedrin? Watch the video and find out! :)

Incidentally, Tonopah NV is still a tourist attraction today. It's famous for its mining history. Because of its distance from city lights, it's also known as a perfect place to stargaze. "Jailbreak at Tonopah" is a perfect place to gaze upon our favorite star, Jack Kelly. He gives a great performance as "Johnny Bledsoe". He looks great, too.

Please stay tuned for much more about JK in TDS. :)

Life's A Beach With JK! :)

¡Hola!

Well, October's nearly over and it's finally feeling like Fall. You may have turned the furnace on to keep the house cozy. However, you may need to switch back to the air conditioner when you see this muy caliente German lobby card for Canasta de Cuentos Mexicanos (a.k.a. A Basket of Mexican Tales), with Jack Kelly and co-star Mari Blanchard enjoying some fun in the sun:

Have a wonderful weekend and, as always, please stay tuned for more fun with JK and TDS! :)

A Smile and a Profile :)

Hola!

Here's another rare color German lobby card for Jack Kelly's 1956 Mexican film Canasta de Cuentos Mexicanos (a.k.a. A Basket of Mexican Tales). Love that JK smile and profile! :)

Your Morning "Danish"! :)

¡Buenas Dias!

Here's another rare treat from the wonderful world of Jack Kelly movie Kellectibles: a colorful Danish poster for the 1956 Mexican film Canasta de Cuentos Mexicanos, or, A Basket of Mexican Tales:

¡Olé! A close-up of JK and co-star Mari Blanchard that's even hotter than this July's weather:

Coming soon in TDS:

• More JK movie moments!
• A bundle from Brazil!
• And more--please stay tuned! :)

"Forbidden" Funny :)

 

"I knew we should have taken that left turn

at Alpha Centauri!"



JK's Sunday Sermonette :)

Hello!

A very special Jack Kelly performance has found its way into the Kellection. It's in a charming episode of Jane Wyman Presents The Fireside Theatre titled "Kirsti". It originally aired on Valentine's Day in 1956.

I made some screencaps, but unfortunately the copy I have of "Kirsti" isn't the greatest, picture-wise. But, I hope you'll enjoy them nonetheless. :)

JK portrays a young pastor (not a "parson", he insists) named "Raeburn Stone". Pastor Stone has just returned to his New England town with "Kirsti", his winsome Norwegian-born bride.
She's always quoting her "Papa" (hmm, I wonder if she has some American relatives named Maverick?)

 Kirsti can't wait to hear Raeburn preach, until he explains that he's only an assistant pastor who doesn't usually deliver the sermons in his church.

 That's the job of "Dr. Cutler" (Charles Coburn), the senior pastor. Raeburn takes care of more mundane tasks such as typing Dr. Cutler's messages. However, he also writes a few of his own messages, just in case he needs to fill in for Dr. Cutler some day.

After reading one of Raeburn's sermons, Kirsti thinks it deserves to be heard.

And, it looks like it will be, since Dr. Cutler has come down with a bad cold and has asked Raeburn to spell him in the pulpit.

But, then Dr. Cutler starts to feel better. He decides to preach after all and asks Raeburn to type his sermon. 

The next day, Dr. Cutler prepares to preach a recycled sermon full of  hellfire and brimstone. However, it seems someone has pulled the old switcheroo with his notes, and Dr. Cutler ends up sharing Raeburn's gentler message instead. This leads to a big change in the church, but not as big as the change the Stones will soon be dealing with at home.

JK is delightful as Raeburn. And, Jane Wyman is so loveable as Kirsti, it's hard to believe this is the same woman who played nasty "Angela Channing" in the 1980's prime-time soap Falcon Crest. But, that just shows what a fine actress Ms. Wyman was.

Just about a month after "Kirsti" aired, JK and JW co-starred in another Fireside Theatre presentation titled "Scent of Roses". And, in a April 1956 newspaper article, Ms. Wyman mentioned JK as one of several talented young Fireside Theatre co-stars in whom she took pride (others included tough guy Neville Brand and actress Betty Lynn, who later appeared as "Thelma Lou" in The Andy Griffith Show).

"Kirsti" had been available for viewing on YouTube, but unfortunately it has since vanished. Well, keep the faith, and maybe it will return some day. :)

UPDATE! In the meantime, here's a promo for repeats of Fireside Theatre which ran on ABC-TV in the early 1960's. It includes a snippet from "Kirsti":

 

Can You See JK? You Sure "Canasta"! :)

Hola!

Here's something you don't see every day:

A German lobby card for a Mexican film! (Canasta de Cuentos Mexicanos, or, A Basket of Mexican Tales).

This gorgeous card, which recently joined the Kellection, shows smilin' Jack Kelly (as "Eddie Winthrop"), Mari Blanchard (JK's future She Devil co-star as "Gladys Winthrop"), and a Mexican actress in a segment of the film titled "Canasta". The Winthrops are American tourists who discover some beautifully hand-woven baskets while vacationing in Mexico. But, when they try to cut a deal with the basket-maker to have the canastas mass-produced for sale north of the border, their plans for quick riches quickly unravel.

Like each segment in this episodic 1956 film, "Canasta" was based a short story by the enigmatic author B. Traven, probably best known for The Treasure of the Sierra Madre. Traven's story "Assembly Line" is the basis for "Canasta". 

Here's something else you don't see every day--JK in a bathing suit:

 

You can enjoy the rest of this scene (and the entire "Canasta" segment) here:

 

Now, be sure to travel back to TDS, because a basketful--well, a mailbox-full--of other Kellectibles also arrived with the lobby card, including a DVD and some photos (hmm... ;>). Plus, bloodhound Bartista is on the scent of something really cool and hopefully I'll be able to share it with you here soon, too. So, stay tuned amigos! :)

Sci-Fi Saturday! :)

Howdy!

With Forbidden Planet airing in the US on TCM tomorrow (5/22 at 4:30 pm ET), I thought it would be a great time to share some of the FP items in the Kellection.

Since it's one of the most popular sci-fi films of the past 60 years, it's hard to find images and items from FP which everyone hasn't seen 500 times already. But, I'm gonna give it a try. :)

First off, here's an original ad for the film with the now iconic image of Robby the Robot from a 1956 movie magazine:

This next item is in bad shape so it didn't scan very well, but I wanted to include it because it shows Jack Kelly twice as "Lt. Jerry Farman". It's the cover of the April 12, 1956, issue of Junior Scholastic, a "national magazine for junior high and upper elementary grades published monthly during the school year". The funny thing is, they call the robot "Bobby" in the photo captions.  

"Anywhere in the galaxy this is a nightmare." Doc (Warren Stevens) grimly sums it up for Lt. Farman and Commander Adams (Leslie Nielsen) in this still as they examine a plaster cast of enormous tracks left by a mysterious monster:

Now, let's flash forward to 1992. That's when a company called Innovation Comics published a series of four graphic novels officially adapted from Forbidden Planet:

As the series' author, David Campiti (who also founded Innovation), explains in his introduction, "The Forbidden Planet you see before you isn't a strict adaptation of the film. Beyond the hindsight of 36 years since the movie's creation, we have been given access to set designs, the original screenplay, background details, and more. As a result, fans will be treated to scenes and snippets of dialogue they never got to see in the finished film. Even when scenes were identical from screenplay to celluloid, actual dialogue sometimes changed; we've tended to select what seemed to be the more interesting wording. From an artistic standpoint, [artist Daerick Gross, Sr.] decided to keep things as fresh as possible; his pacing is based more on the screenplay than the finished film, and his staging of scenes is his personal brand of storytelling, for the most part. Daerick also wanted to 'open up' the story and show more of the planet, so his visual device of displaying it in a series of double-page-spread backgrounds presents, perhaps, for the first time such an approach has been carried this far, through so many pages."

In other words, this is Forbidden Planet presented as a dream-like epic on a canvas of glossy paper.

Because of the adaptation's stylized approach, the drawn characters don't strictly resemble the actors in the film, but Lt. Farman still looks a lot like JK:

 

Many of Farman's scenes in Forbidden Planet are also in the adaptation, including his famous kissing scene with the ethereal Altaira:

And, his untimely demise caused by the "Id" monster:

Finally, did you know there was a different theme for Forbidden Planet, written by famed composer David Rose? The film's innovative electronic score was created by Bebe and Louis Barron, and Rose's otherworldly theme wasn't used. I have it on a 45, and here it is from YouTube:

Lights! Camera! Grimace! :)

Happy Friday Everyone!

Three marvelous movie posters recently joined the Kellection. Although they all show Jack Kelly (of course!), are from the 1950's, and two of them are foreign, the trio also has something else in common: the expression on JK's face. Let's call it "Variations on A Grimace".

First, there's this moody Belgian poster for The Night Holds Terror (1955). JK grimaces in anger and fear as he's abducted by three hoods:

Next, we have a French poster for Julie (1956), starring Doris Day. JK (at lower right) grimaces in pain as he's shot by Julie's psychotic husband, a.k.a. "Le diabolique Monsieur Benton" (played by Monsieur Louis Jourdan):

Finally, I've saved the best for last. JK flashes an evil grimace--twice!--on this incredible (and huge) poster for 1955's Double Jeopardy:

You won't find his name on the poster, but JK is pictured more prominently than the film's nominal star, Rod Cameron! I've seen different versions of this poster and most are illustrated with drawings. I like this version the best because it uses photographic illustrations of JK. I think it's my favorite poster in the Kellection so far. :)

I hope JK's grimaces have brought a smile to your face. Stay tuned for more of the expressive Mr. Kelly! :)

BREAKING NEWS: Look What I Just Found! :)

Hello All!

We'll return to 1960 and Hidden Valley shortly, but in the meantime, here's a fantabulous Jack Kelly performance from 1963. It's "Shadow of a Man", an episode originally broadcast on Kraft Mystery Theater which co-stars Broderick Crawford, Ed Begley and many other recognizable faces. By the way, if the names of JK's and Crawford's characters sound familiar, they were also used by Fred McMurray and Edward G. Robinson in the 1944 Billy Wilder film Double Imdemnity. Apart from the insurance investigator angle, though, "Shadow of a Man" has little in common with that famous film noir. It's still a blast to watch--enjoy! :)




 BUT WAIT--THERE'S MORE!!!

Bloodhound Bartista is on a hot streak tonight. I also found JK's segment ("La Canasta") from the episodic 1956 Mexican film Canasta De Cuentos Mexicanos (A Basket of Mexican Tales). In "La Canasta" ("The Basket"), based on a story by B. Traven of The Treasure of the Sierra Madre fame, a clever Mexican basketweaver outsmarts a gringo couple. JK's wife is played by Mari Blanchard, with whom he later co-starred in She Devil. The clip is in Spanish without subtitles, but JK is muy bueno in any language. :)