Magical Movie Mistakes
Year of Jane Russell: Day 181
Jane getting knocked into the pool at the end of “Ain’t There Anyone Here for Love,” was unscripted. The fella who did it was dismissed and the scene reshot, but the flubbed take was too good not to include in the final cut.
Ain’t There Anyone Here For Love?
Year of Jane Russell: Day 180
After Jane was cast in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, the part of Dorothy Shaw needed to be beefed up. Hoagy Carmichael and Harold Adamson were brought on to write additional songs and came up with the duet “When Love Goes Wrong, Nothing Goes Right,” and Jane’s show stopping “Ain’t There Anyone for Love?”
Working with Howard Hawks at Last
Year of Jane Russell: Day 179
When Howard Hawks was hired to direct Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, he immediately thought of Jane Russell for the role of Dorothy Shaw. Jane had longed to work with Hawks ever since his abrupt departure from The Outlaw in 1941 and agreed to do the part immediately (pending Howard Hughes’ approval.
Jane & Marilyn: Practice Make Perfect
Year of Jane Russell: Day 178
Jane and Marilyn started working on Gentlemen Prefer Blondes in October 1952, but before the cameras could roll, the pair rehearsed the musical numbers for weeks with Jack Cole and Gwen Verdon. Neither were dancers, so Cole choregraphed the numbers to fit their abilities, and it worked wonderfully.
It’s Time for “Blondes”
Year of Jane Russell: Day 177
We’ve reach the Gentlemen Prefer Blondes point in the Year of Jane Russell, and I hope you’re as big a fan as I am, because we’re spending the next month or so with Dorothy and Lorelei! Don’t you just love finding new places to wear diamonds?
Jane & Marilyn Cement-aversary
Year of Jane Russell: Day 176
Today marks 68 years since Jane and Marilyn Monroe were immortalized in cement when they sunk their hands and feet into the courtyard at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre. True to form, Jane wore her actual shoes, rather than opting for a smaller size like some before her.
Jane Triple Feature on TCM!
Year of Jane Russell: Day 175
TONIGHT, TCM is celebrating Jane’s centennial with a triple feature: The Outlaw at 5:00pmPST, The Paleface at 7:15pmPST, and His Kind of Woman at 9:00pmPST. Hooray for Jane!
Jane & Mitch
Year of Jane Russell: Day 174
Even though Jane and Robert Mitchum only made two films together, they became lifelong friends. Here they are sharing a light moment at a Palms Springs resort.
French “Outlaw” Poster
Year of Jane Russell: Day 173
This arrived in the mail today. Now that the research is complete and the book is out, did I really need to purchase this French Grande from The Outlaw? Probably not, but it was a great price and only Jane and Howard Hughes are listed, so I couldn’t resist!
Simply Jane
Year of Jane Russell: Day 172
As I recover from a packed Jane Russell book launch/centennial celebration weekend, here’s another lovely portrait of Jane from the stash of original 8×10 negatives I shared earlier in the year.