Week in Review

Movies I Watched

• The Hobbit: the Desolution of Smaug (2013) - Pretty good.  Wish there was less C.G.I., but I suppose that is a useless wish in today's movies.
• Alice in Wonderland (1951) - Great.  Gotta love Disney classics!
• Doorway to Hell (1930)
• King of the Underworld (1939)
• Frosty the Snowman (1969)
• Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer (1964)
• Santa Clause is Comin' to Town (1970)
• How the Grinch Stole Christmas (1966)
• A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965)
• Twas the Night Before Christmas (1974)

*Christmas is Rankin Bass season.  I can't go a day without watching one of those classic specials.

Links of the Week

Letterology is a great site to find inspiration.  I especially find its posts near holidays intriguing.  So far this year there have been some great posts about Snowmen and Some Seasonal Samplings.

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.

Vintage Book of the Day - LBJ Barbecue Cook Book by Walter Jetton

For some great info on the Johnson Barbecues, check out Barbecue Diplomacy.

And of course these last two make the strange recipe list. I would definitely be one of the people turning these recipes down if Walter offered them. The thought of Beef Heart makes me ill.  And don't get me started on the Calf Fries. Would someone please let me know when eating animal private parts became a good idea? According to epicurious, there were recipes in Gourmet for them as far back as 1942.

Favorite Foods of Famous Stars Finale! Dorothy Wilson

Dorothy Wilson (Nov 14 1909 - Jan 7 1998) provides our farewell dinner to our 1934 Famous Stars. Dorothy prepares for us a delightful lunch which includes: Cream of Corn Soup, Croutons, New Chicken Salad, Cheese Crackers, Fresh Pineapple Shortcake, and Tea or Coffee. Sounds like a delicious meal. The salad sounds delicious. I can always go for soup and salad. Shortcake is always delightful. I'm not sure what makes it Pineapple Shortcake, unless it is because shortcake kind of looks like pineapple rounds.

Dorothy Wilson got into films quite accidentally. This Minneapolis, Minnesota born actress just wanted to travel, and she found herself in Los Angeles. Dorothy was a secretary at RKO, and quite happy to be so, when she was discovered. She even had a clause in her contract that if she was dropped from a film, she could return to her secretarial job.

Her first film was 1932's Age of Consent, in which she co-lead. She made 21 films during her Hollywood career. She would retire after marrying Oscar-winning scriptwriter Lewis R. Foster (His Oscar was for writing Mr. Smith Goes to Washington - Fantastic film by the way).

Some Dorothy Wilson Trivia:

She replaced Ida Lupino in 1935's The Milky Way

She was asked to test for the role of Melanie in 1939's Gone With the Wind. We all know the part went to Olivia de Havilland, but it would be interesting to see how Dorothy would have done. She is quoted as saying that was the only role that could have brought her out of retirement. I wonder what sort of career we missed out on because she lost the role . . .

Favorite Foods of Famous Stars: Margaret Sullivan

Oscar-nominated actress Margaret Sullavan (May 16 1909 or 1911 - Jan 1 1960) provides today's dish. And as the cookbook says, she will be dignifying the meat roll. I'm gonna assume it's like meatloaf (hoping at least). So with that said, here is her meal plan: Norge Luncheon Meat Roll, Buttered Green Beans, Sauteed Egg Plant, Crisp Lettuce Salad, Sullavan Fruit Pie, and the Beverage of your choice. I 'm surprised she didn't say Coffee like most of the other starlets. Margaret's meal sounds pretty good. I've never had Egg Plant, but I would probably eat this meal.

Margaret lead a troubled life. She grew up with a muscular weakness that kept her away from others until she was six. Wonderfully though, she became a social butterfly in middle school and high school. She got her start as part of the Harvard Dramatic Society, against her parents wishes. Margaret arrived in Hollywood May 16, 1933. Margaret appeared in several films, many of which involved her pairing with Jimmy Stewart. For a more in depth bio, check out: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Sullivan

Margaret had 4 husbands. I bet you've heard of at least one of them. They include: Henry Fonda, William Wyler, Leland Hayward, and Kenneth Wagg

Margaret Sullivan apparently had a really strong personality. It was said that she was one of the only people that made Louis B. Mayer quake in his boots. Her anger it was said by some contributed to the death of Sam Wood. Margaret and Sam had a violent argument, and he had a heart attack after it. Yikes!

Unfortunately this strong woman had a sad end. She overdosed on barbiturates on January 1, 1960. It was deemed accidental. As a macabre side note, two of her three children committed suicide, her daughter Bridget at age 21 only 8 months after her mother and her son Bill in 2008 at the age of 66. Poor troubled souls.

Favorite Foods of Famous Stars: Gloria Shea

Golly gee, another tough one today. This lovely lady is the gorgeous Gloria Shea (May 30 1910-Feb 8 1995). Gloria offers us a lovely luncheon of 1930s fare. It includes: Grape-Orange Cocktail, Moon Salad, Deviled Ham Sandwiches, and Ocean Foam Chocolate. The Ocean Foam Chocolate and the Grape-Orange Cocktail sound good. Again, the starlets offer something with mayo. Why must they always use one of my least favorite condiment?

The above is the only decent photo of Gloria Shea I could find. I will need to do a lot more research to do justice to this wonderful lady.

Some Gloria Shea trivia:

• She was 5'3"
• Gloria's real name is Olive Gloria Shea
• Gloria had 3 children and was married to only one man, Vice Admiral Robert J. Stroh from 1938 until her death. Can you believe it - an actor or actress with only 1 spouse?
• Unfortunately her career was cut short because of an auto accident
• Gloria was the sister of New York lawyer William A. Shea, the man who Shea Stadium was named after

We are coming down to the end. Only two ladies left!

Favorite Foods from Famous Stars: Ginger Rogers

The fabulous Ginger Rogers (July 16 1911 - April 25 1995) was the answer! This stunningly talented star provides us with her favorite dinner with a "continental piquancy". Her dinner includes: Tomato Ice, Baked Veal Birds, Parsley Buttered Potatoes, Broccoli with Hollandaise Sauce, Hot Rolls with Butter, Cranberry Matchstick Ring, Date Butterscotch Pudding, and of course Coffee. I think I might even try the pudding.



Wonderful Ginger also includes an additional dessert as well as a Midnight Snack (Yeah!). For dessert, Ginger chooses Fresh Strawberry Glace. Sounds delicious. I definitely will try this recipe! And for a Midnight Snack: Late Supper Salad, Peanut Parsley Sandwich, and Grape Mint Punch. I really like the Grape Mint Punch recipe and am intrigued by the Peanut Parsley Sandwich, but I'm not sure if the Late Supper Salad would agree with my tummy in the middle of the night.




I think it's pretty safe to assume that y'all know about Ginger, so I'll just give a little trivia:

Her great-great-grandfather was a doctor who discovered quinine, the cure for malaria

Turned down Donna Reed's role in It's a Wonderful Life (1946).

Was kind of related to my fav, Rita Hayworth. Ginger's aunt married Rita's uncle.

The Fabulous Ginger at Work

Favorite Meals of Famous Stars: Dorothy Peterson

The talented Dorothy Peterson (December 25 1897 - October 3 1979) offered our fair for today. The Hector, Minnesota actress creates a company dinner which includes: Chilled Tomato Juice, Chicken Drummond, Stuffed Baked Potatoes, French Endive Salad, Hollywood Rolls, Butter, Frozen Cheese Dessert, and Coffee.

I just have to say, I'm not sure I could have eaten in 1930s Hollywood. Just give me the rolls and Baked Potatoes. The Chicken Drummond sounds like a white gelatinous custard which nauseates me. And I don't even want to venture a guess as to what Frozen Cheese Dessert is!

Unfortunately there appears to be next to nothing in terms of info about Dorothy Peterson available. She played mostly maternal roles and was active from the 1930s-1960s in film and television. She appeared in many major motion pictures including: Mr Skeffington, Saboteur, Lillian Russell, Dark Victory, Treasure Island, and I'm No Angel (which is showing below)

On a side note, let's see if anyone can guess tomorrow's very famous star. I'll give you a few hints: she is most widely known in pop culture for being part of a team and was the highest paid star of 1942. Do you know who it is?

Favorite Foods of Famous Stars: Gail Patrick

Gail Patrick (June 20 1911 - July 6 1980) treats us to a delightful cold lunch today. It includes: Piquant Tongue Loaf, Cranberry Salad, Potato Chips, French Dressing, Chocolate Cream Chips, and Iced Tea.

Because of how picky an eater I am, I'm not sure I could eat Gail's lunch. Tongue Loaf just doesn't do it for me, Piquant or no. Understandably, this meal would not have been unusual for the time, so I understand it.

The Cranberry Salad sounds good, and it's fun to see a recipe for French dressing. Definitely would eat the Potato Chips (I'm a total salt addict), and Iced tea sounds refreshing. I thing the Chocolate Cream Chips sound good too, with obvious adjustment because the egg whites are not cooked.

Gail Patrick was in the Delta Zeta sorority, and donated $1 Million to them in her will. That's real sisterhood!

She designed Children's clothing for children of celebrities out of her home in the 1940's and 1950's

She was married to Robert Howard Cobb from 1936 to 1940, owner of the famous Brown Derby Restaurant and inventor of the Cobb Salad.

For info about the Cobb Salad, check out: http://www.kitchenproject.com/history/CobbSalad.htm

For some great info on Gail Patrick, check out the posts on one of my favorite blogs, Hollywood Dreamland

Gail Patrick posts: http://hollywooddreamland.blogspot.com/search/label/Gail%20Patrick%20Deco%20Dame

Hollywood Dreamland: http://hollywooddreamland.blogspot.com/

Favorite Foods of Famous Stars Colleen Moore

Colleen Moore (Aug 19 1900 - Jan 25 1988) offers a spread of Irish delights for us to try today: Cream of Green Pea Soup, Bread sticks, Shamrock Salad, Rolled Asparagus Salad, Sweet Gherkins, Green Olives, County Cork Ice Cream, Pistachio Mints, Irish Delights, and Coffee. Sounds like a reasonably good meal. Not quite sure why Vanilla Ice Cream with Peanuts is County Cork Ice Cream. Do they have a lot of peanuts or something?

Here is a simple recipe for Cream of Green Pea Soup:
Drain 1 can of peas or use 2 cups fresh peas, add slice onion, sprig parsley and mint, 1/8 bay leaf, 1 teaspoon sugar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and cook 20 minutes in 2 cups water. Blend with cream sauce and garnish with whole peas. A little pimento or tomato may be added to the whipped cream.

I first heard of Colleen Moore as a child when I read an article about her fairytale doll castle at the Museum of Science and Industry Chicago in American Girl magazine. As a total doll addict, I was totally enchanted with the idea of a real fairytale castle.

I mean how cool is it when the books are real, and the marble sink is real marble, and the gilded gold is real gold?

Here are a couple links about the castle:
http://www.msichicago.org/whats-here/exhibits/fairycastle/
http://jowaha.com/PPE/FairyCastle.htm

Not much of Colleen's Work survives, but here are a few facts about her:

• She came to Hollywood in 1917 because D.W. Griffith owed her uncle a favor
• Colleen was a 1922 WAMPAS baby star
• She had an affair in the 1920s with King Vidor
• She had one blue eye and one green eye
• Her fairytale castle cost $500,000
• Colleen discovered Loretta Young
• Her breakout role was in the 1923 film Flaming Youth (which is believed lost). She donated a copy of a film to a museum in the 1960s, but they forgot to restore it and it deteriorated
  
  

Here is a short clip of Colleen in Ella Cinders: