Month: July 2023

River of No Return is a 1954 American Western film directed by Otto Preminger and starring Robert Mitchum and Marilyn Monroe. The screenplay by Frank Fenton is based on a story by Louis Lantz, who borrowed his premise from the 1948 Italian film Bicycle Thieves.[4] The picture was shot on location in the Canadian Rockies in Technicolor and CinemaScope and released by 20th Century Fox. Directors Otto Preminger & Jean Negulesco

Music composed by Cyril J. Mockridge, Leigh Harline Distributed by: 20th Century Studios.

Set in the Northwestern United States in 1875, the film focuses on taciturn widower Matt Calder (Robert Mitchum), who has recently been released from prison after serving time for killing one man while defending another. He arrives in a boomtown tent city in search of his nine-year-old son Mark (Tommy Rettig), who was left in the care of dance hall singer Kay (Marilyn Monroe) after the man who brought him there, as Matt had arranged, abandoned him. Matt promises Mark, a virtual stranger to him, the two will enjoy a life of hunting, fishing and farming on their homestead. Kay’s fiance, gambler Harry Weston (Rory Calhoun), tells her they must go to Council City to file the deed on a gold mine he won in a poker game. They head downriver on a log raft, and when they encounter trouble in the rapids near the Calder farm, Matt and Mark rescue them. Harry offers to buy Matt’s rifle and horse so as to reach Council City by land. When Matt refuses, Harry knocks Matt unconscious and steals both horse and rifle.

Kay chooses to stay behind to take care of Matt and Mark, and the three are stranded in the wilderness. When hostile Indians attack the farm, the three are forced to escape down the river on Harry’s raft. That night they set up camp by the river, and Matt and Kay argue about the wisdom of pursuing Harry. Matt asks why Kay would choose to marry a man who had endangered a child, whereupon she reminds him that Harry never killed a man like Matt did. Mark overhears their discussion, and Matt is forced to reveal the truth about his past to his son, who is unable to comprehend why his father acted as he did. As the three continue their journey, Kay comes to appreciate Matt’s bravery and the tender way he cares for both her and Mark. Along the way, they are forced to deal with a series of trials and tribulations, including a mountain lion attack; gold prospectors Sam Benson and Dave Colby, who are after Harry for stealing their claim; and a second Indian war party. After a difficult ride through the worst of the rapids, the three arrive in Council City and confront Harry. Harry shoots at Matt, prompting Mark to shoot Harry in the back, using a rifle that he was inspecting in the general store. As a result, Mark comes to understand why his father had to shoot a man in a similar fashion so many years before. Afterwards, Kay finds a job at the local saloon. While she is singing there, Matt walks into the saloon and throws Kay over his shoulder to take her back to his farm along with Mark. She happily leaves with him. The final scene is Kay throwing her high heeled showgirl shoes from their buckboard into the street, a renunciation of her old life.

Click here to see my Photo Gallery of River Of No Return.

Cast

Robert Mitchum as Matt Calder

Marilyn Monroe as Kay Weston

Tommy Rettig as Mark Calder

Rory Calhoun as Harry Weston

Douglas Spencer as Sam Benson

Murvyn Vye as Dave Colby

Hank Mann as Townsman

Wikipedia

Click here to see my Photo Gallery of River Of No Return.

David Hockney!

Born in 1937, Hockney is a pop art legend whose depictions of pools, cherry blossoms and sausage dogs brighten up the contemporary art scene

When Andrew and I lived in West hollywood California we used to take our dogs to run in Laurel Canyon dog park. At that time David Hockney was having an exhibition at Los Angeles County Museum of Art. his art was everywhere. Each piece was magnificent. In one section of the exhibition was work that he did with Xerox Photocopying. As I mentioned before I was a paper man, selling paper ephemera. The Xerox art on the walls, there was one from interview magazine and I believe the other one was from life magazine. The narrative on the wall talked about him going to Laurel Canyon Dog park with his dachshunds. I went to the museum shop to see what they were selling and it was a poster from the show. I decided at that moment, I would search out the magazines that he put art in that were on the wall in the museum that he had made for the masses. It took me awhile but I found them in a store on Venice Blvd that sold all kinds of old magazines and books. It was one of my favorite stores to find paper ephemera. I left the magazines in the car knowing that I had made my mind up that I would take my dogs up to the park in hopes that he would be there with his dogs one day. Sure enough on the first day that I went, there he was. I was so elated that I almost could not contain myself. My dogs first played with his dogs and then I introduced myself. I told him the story I just told you here and he laughed and laughed. he told me to go to the car, get the magazines and he would sign the pages that had his xerox art in them. As he began to sign them, he began to doodle on them with a sharpie adding new detail and then signed them to Andrew and I. He laughed again and said you will be the only person in the world that will have these. I laughed back with him and said I could never afford your work and this is beyond anything I could have imagined. He gave me a hug and my wish came true. I had two pieces signed and doodled by the one and only David Hockney, one of the great modern artists.

Here are the pieces that David Hockney signed and doodled on to both of us.

Clotilde Hesme

Wikipedia,

The Grocer’s Son French Le Fils de l’épicier Directed by Éric Guirado Screenplay by Éric Guirado Florence Vignon [fr] Produced by Miléna Poylo Gilles Sacuto Cinematography Laurent Brunet Edited by Pierre Haberer Music by Christophe Boutin The Grocer’s Son (French : Le Fils de l’épicier) is a 2007 French drama film about a family that runs a grocery business in Provence, France; the business includes a single truck that travels the countryside making deliveries to customers. The director, Éric Guirado, had previously made television documentaries about traveling grocers in rural France. The film, released in France as Le Fils de l’épicier, was first presented as part of the 2007 Namur Francophone Film Festival.[3] It was sufficiently successful that in 2008 subtitled versions were released internationally. Synopsis It concerns Antoine (played by Nicolas Cazalé), who must leave Lyon to help his mother (Jeanne Goupil) who runs the family grocery store in a village in Southern France. His father (Daniel Duval), stricken with a heart attack, can no longer drive the grocery truck that supplies the isolated hamlets around the village. Antoine discovers the charm of these people, “bons vivants” (good living) ways and gradually comes to love his eccentric customers and finds the country of his childhood. He also discovers the joy of living and perhaps the joy of love with Claire (played by Clotilde Hesme). The film uses the beautiful landscape of Mont Sainte-Victoire as a regular backdrop.[4] Cast Nicolas Cazalé as Antoine Sforza (the Grocer’s son). Clotilde Hesme as Claire. Daniel Duval as Antoine’s father, the proprietor of Alimentation Générale (lit. Grocery). Jeanne Goupil as Antoine’s mother and the proprietress. Stéphan Guérin-Tillié as François Sforza (Antoine’s brother). Liliane Rovère as Lucienne (a customer). Paul Crachet [fr] as Le Père Clèment. Chad Chenouga [fr] as Hassan. Benoit Giros as Fernand. Ludmila Ruoso as Sophie