Donald Tries to Take it WIth Him

Donald O'Connor and Marilyn Monroe

Donald O’Connor Looking worn from overwork, was warned again that he couldn’t take it with him “No,” said he, “but it’s fun trying.” (Source: Movieland; Feb 1955)

Donald and Francis the Mule take a Break

Donald O’Connor
Says he has no time for serious romance these days. His idea of relaxing evening is to catch two western feature pictures. Don is not so wealthy as most people imagine because until he clicked in “Singing in the Rain,” he worked for practically nothing – as stars go. His first Universal-International contract, which ran for seven years, paid him $200 a week. Donald doesn’t intend to do any more pictures with his pal, Francis the Mule unless U-I comes up with a good script and an interesting salary offer.

(Source:Movieland; 1955)

Painting Pillars, Fabulous Costumes, and 1951 Meals

Started off the morning watching a film I haven't seen yet, 1954's There's No Business Like Show Business on Fox Movie Channel. I adored the costumes, but I am not a huge Ethel Merman fan (I know, sacrilege). Loved this pink and white number on Marilyn.

Donald O'Connor and Marilyn Monroe

in There's No Business Like Show Business

I've been trying to make a point of doing some cleaning every day, so hopefully my house will be clean soon. Unfortunately I went downstairs and saw the pillar in the picture below. The paint chip just started bothering me so much I had to take care of it. Sometimes I just get so fixated on something, that I have to take care of it right away - regardless of the task I should be working on.

The Offending Pillar

So I ended up spending the afternoon dusting, washing, and painting my basement pillar. I can't imagine a lot of you were doing the same thing :)

So when dinner came around, I was at a loss. I decided to check out a few of my vintage pamphlets. Econo-Meals sounded pretty good since I have been out of work over a month and scrounging for meals, and it turned out the good people at Crisco came to the rescue.

I went with Meal #3, Frankfurters with Barbecue Sauce and Potato Pancakes. This was actually pretty filling by itself, so I didn't make the Cabbage Salad or Spice Cake. This 1951 meal was actually pretty good. Fairly easy, but loads of cleanup.

Barbecued Frankfurters in Famous Dave's Classic Barbecue Sauce

No, I didn't take the time to make my own barbecue sauce (I'm not that ambitious). I just used my personal favorite sauce from my favorite restaurant, Famous Dave's.

My first attempt at Potato Pancakes. Not too bad for a first try, huh?


More cleaning tomorrow, and hopefully I will be able to think of something to make for dinner.

What 100 Stars Want in 1956 - Mitzi Gaynor

Mitzi Gaynor (born September 4, 1931). Born Francesca Marlene de Czanyi von Gerber, Mitzi is best known for her performance in South Pacific. What did Mitzi wish for in 1956?


1. "Personally, just let me stay happy with Jack Bean". - Mitzi and Jack Bean were married on November 18, 1954 and remained so until his death on December 4, 2006.

2. "Professionally, I've been so fortunate in 1955 doing pictures with Bing Crosby, Donald O'Connor and George Gobel that I only hope my luck holds in 1956". - What fabulous co-stars! How could one not be pleased?

3. "As a citizen, I wish we had more time to understand each other." - Me too.

Up next - Kathryn Grayson and Charlton Heston