11 March 1958 - R.K.O. kept its campaing of saturation of Diana Dors' sex-appeal in 'A Venus de carne' (I married a woman) with old-timer (66 year-old) Nazi-sympathizer Adolphe Menjou plays a supporting role.
Monday 26 November 2018
1 9 5 8 - Diana Dors enters the scene...
Thursday 1 November 2018
1 9 5 8 (2nd) - 'Round the world in 80 days' / 'Die Trapp-Familie' / 'Sissi'
1st June 1958 - a milder version of rock'n'roll was personified by Pat Boone! He had a good voice, a goody-too-shoes appearance and could swing & rock just a little. Even though he covered Black rhythm'n'blues for Dot Records his most successful singles were ballads like 'April love' - that became the movie 'Primavera do amor' - or his cover of Gene Austin's 1931 hit 'Love letters in the sand'.
Shirley Jones & Pat Boone in 'April love'.
1st June 1960 - Released in 1956 as 'Totó, Peppino e i fuorilegge' (Totó, Peppino e os foras-da-lei) where Peppino de Filippo, shares top-billing with Totó. In Brazil though De Filippo was simply erased from the title due to his not being as well known. It would be something like erasing Stan Laurel's name from the Oliver & Laurel partnership. Suave singer Teddy Reno plays himself. Watch out for Dorian Gray who is the female lead, not Oscar Wilde's famous character that never got old.
Totó, Teddy Reno & Peppino de Filippo.
9 June 1958 - Victor Lima's 'De pernas p'ro ar' with Ankito, Grande Otelo, Renata Fronzi, Renato Restier and the usual gang...
15 June 1958 - Based on a novel published in 1900 by Hans Heins Ewers 'Alraune' (Mandrágora) was released in October 1952 in Germany making Hildegard Knef an overnight sensation. She plays this woman created by a scientist (Erich von Stroheim) who is beautiful and yet soulless, lacking any sense of morality.
15 June 1958 - Mike Todd's super-production of Jules Verne's 'Round the world in 80 days' (A volta ao mundo em 80 dias) introduced Mexican comedian Cantinflas to the non-Spanish-speaking world. Released in the USA in October 1956, it was voted best movie by the Academy of A & S.
29 June 1958 - Second production of independent Hecht-Lancaster 'The flame and the arrow' (O gavião e a flecha) released on 9 July 1950, was the highest-grossing film of year for Warner Brothers.
29 June 1958 - Herbert Richers' 2nd production having circus clowns Carequinha & Fred topping a large cast. Comedian Costinha is catapulted to second-billing forming actually a trio instead of a duo. See rock'n'roller Carlos Imperial and his 'Calypso Rock' and 'bad men' Hamilton Ferreira and Wilson Grey playing the usual villains.
29 June 1958 - 'A familia Trapp' (Die Trapp-Familie) was eagerly awaited by the masses... while Ankito & Grande Otelo's next flick 'De pernas p'ro ar' was trumpeted to the 4 winds...
6 July 1958 - Maria Bagaglia's 'O pão que o diabo amassou' is a story about sordidness: a loan shark (played by Jayme Costa), his side-kick (Italo Rossi), his adult son (Egydio Eccio) who's unemployed and on the verge of being nabbed by the police for having stolen the store he worked, daughter (Elisabeth Henreid) who's married to an Italian migrant (Carlos Zara) who can't find work as a lawyer due to his Italian diploma being invalid in Brazil. At a certain point, Ana starts doing a little prostitution to help the family along. Wolfgang Liebeneiner's 'Die Trapp-Familie', released in Germany in October 1956 draws crowds to recently opened Cine Olido.
13 July 1958 - Frank Sinatra still riding his 'come-back phase' started with 'From here to eternity' in 1953. This time he shares the big screen with Mitzi Gaynor and Jeanne Crain in 'The Joker is wild' (Chorei por você). It is about Joe E. Lewis, the popular singer & comedian who was a major attraction in nightclubs in the 20s, 30s & 40s. It won the 1957 Academy Award for Best Original Song, for 'All the way' by Jimmy Van Heusen & Sammy Cahn. When the film was re-released some years later, the title was changed for a period to 'All the Way' due to the huge popularity of the record which peaked at #2 on Billboard on 28 October 1957.
16 July 1958 - Yet another rock'n'roll sensation... it didn't mean much for Brazilians as 'Sing, boy, sing' (Cantando levo a vida) started as a sensational TV show in January 1957, was shot in record time by Fox and released a year later with disappointing returns.
Tommy Sands became an overnight sensation and instant teen-idol when he appeared on Kraft Television Theater in January 1957 as 'The singin' idol' where he played the part of a singer was was very similar to Elvis Presley, with guitar, pompadour hair, and excitable teenage fans. The song from the show, 'Teen-age crush' reached #2 on 23rd February 1957, at the Billboard charts for 2 weeks. 'Sing, boy, sing' was shot by Fox and released in the USA in February 1958, to positive reviews, but, surprisingly, it turned out to be a financial failure.
20 July 1958 - José Carlos Burle's 'O cantor e o milionário' starring Anselmo Duarte in his first film after blockbuster 'Absolutamente certo'. Duarte plays a singer and is dubbed by the voice of Almir Ribeiro who tragically died in February just after the completion of the film.
20 July 1958 - Yet another Hammer Film production, this one in black-and-white before it became such a successful independent company. The plot follows the exploits of a British scientist (Peter Cushing) who joins an American expedition led by a glory-seeker adventurer (Forrest Tucker) to search the Himalayas for the legenday Yeti. 'O monstro do Himalaia' (The abominable snowman of the Himalayas).
27 July 1958 - These were the most popular films in July 1958, according to a survey done by daily 'Folha de São Paulo'.
3rd September 1958 - Geraldo Vietri's 'Dorinha no soçaite' with Vera Nunes as a social climber; see Zé Fidelis the king of song-parodies; Carlos Gonzaga sings Paul Anka's 'Diana', his greatest hit ever. The ad says: 'She climbed higher than the Sputnik. From a shy hick to a lady-of-the-hour!'
6 July 1958 - Charlie Chaplin's 12 short classsics he shot at the Mutual studios in 1916 and 1917.
Romy Schneider as 'Sissi' takes the whole world's breath away...
31st August 1958 - It took almost 3 years for 'Sissi' - released in Austria on 22 December 1955 - to reach the shores of South America... It made Romy Schneider (1938-1982) famous the whole wide world. For the first time since Hitler's botched appearance in 1933, it looked like Germans & Austrians were not such a heartless people after all. 'Sissi' was so successfull that Ernst Marischka directed 2 more instalments about Empress Elisabeth of Austria (1854-1898), who was known to her family as 'Sissi' - 'The young empress' and 'Fateful years of an empress'.
7 September 1958 - Universal Hit Parade: at Art Palacio: 1954's 'Bengal Brigade' (Rifles para Bengala); at Majestic: 1954's 'The black shield of Fallworth' (O escudo negro de Fallworth) with Tony Curtis & Janet Leigh: at Cine Joia: 1953's 'Wings of the hawk' with Van Heflin & Julie Adams; at Cine Universo: 1947's 'Song of Scheherazade' (Sedução) with Yvonne De Carlo, Brian Donlevy & Jean-Pierre Aumont; at Cine Brasil: 1954's 'Yankee Pasha' (Escravas do harem) with Jeff Chandler & Rhonda Fleming: at Cine Anchieta: 1953's 'The man from the Alamo' (Sangue por sangue) with Glenn Ford & Julie Adams; at Cine Estrela: 1954's 'The far country' (Região do ódio) with James Stewart & Ruth Roman.
Brian Donlevy & Yvonne De Carlo.
14 September 1958 - Circus clowns Carequinha & Fred first flick, 'Com água na boca', released in 1956 is back at Cine Broadway. Adalgiza Colombo, future Miss Brazil 1958, plays a walk-on part.
21st September 1958 - 'Mariti in città' or 'Êsses maridos!' opens Cine Coral, the newest cinema house in town on Rua 7 de Abril, 381. Just like Cine Boulevard, on Rua Antonio de Godoy, Cine Coral would especialize in Franco-Italian films.
28 September 1958 - at Cine Broadway - always a double-featured attraction that kept unemployed busy for part of the day... shows 'The challenge of Rin-Tin-Tin' (O desafio de Rin-Tin-Tin) with Lee Aaker (born on 25 September 1943) & Jim L.Brown plus 'Crash landing' (Salvo das ondas) with Bette Davis' ex-husband Gary Merrill and Nancy Davis who would become Nancy Reagan. This was Nancy's last film, though she continued to work in TV for some years thereafter. 'Crash landing' was based on Pan Am flight 6, a real-life ditching at sea...
Nancy Reagan in her last movie appearance in 1958.
23rd November 1958 - Watson Macedo's 'Aguenta o rojão' is Zé Trindade's 4th movie for 1958, which proves he was King. See Reginaldo Farias playing the romantic lead role.
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