Calling all classic movie bloggers... join the flock of LAMBs!

So, I was finally getting around to making my nominations for the 2009 LAMMY Awards when I discovered a somewhat disappointing thing: several of the blogs I was wanting to nominate are not LAMBs and are therefore ineligible!

You may be asking, what is this LAMB stuff all about, anyway? Well, the acronym stands for the Large Association of Movie Blogs. The LAMB is a place for film bloggers of all sorts to connect. Different blogs are spotlighted, there are a variety of events to participate in, and readers searching for movie blogs can make some great blog discoveries.

The purpose of my post is twofold. First, I want to highlight some movie blogs that I don't see on the LAMB list, but that I really enjoy reading. (Since I couldn't give them LAMMY nomination love I figure I can at least give them linky love.) Here some great blogs to check out:

Another Old Movie Blog -- Excellent, insightful writing.
Asleep in New York -- Not just for Dana Andrews lovers.
Cinema Coquette -- Emphasizing the chic in chick flicks!
Cinema Splendor -- Natalie Wood fan with a perky perspective.
Classic Film Oasis -- Has me ready to petition for great films to be released on DVD.
Classic Forever -- Classic movie photos delivered daily.
Classic Hollywood Nerd -- Currently going on about favorite movie dancers.
Fire and Music -- Wonderfully written reviews that start with a quote and end with illumination.
Hollywood Dreamland -- We often seem to be on the same movie page.
Self-Styled Siren -- The siren is good enough to get away with writing about herself in the third person.
Silents and Talkies -- For the very cute classic movie-inspired art.
The Film Doctor -- Smart, savvy reviews and sensational links.
Wonders in the Dark -- Counting down movies decade by decade.

Second, I want to encourage more movie bloggers to join the LAMB. Especially you classic movie blogs -- the LAMB needs a better balance of classic film lovers on board. Come on, it's free. Think about it!

If I were a TCM guest (fan) programmer...

Jealous. That's how I feel every time I see a TCM guest programmer introducing his or her favorite movies. And while it's bad enough that TCM has guest programmers that aren't me, now they have fan programmers that aren't me either. How fun would that be, chatting about some lovely film with movie know-it-all (in a good way) Robert Osborne?

Stacia at She Blogged by Night has an interview with one of the chosen fan programmers explaining what the experience was like. She was asked to pick 10 films that meant something to her for TCM to narrow down.

What would my picks be?

The Maltese Falcon - A favorite. I especially love watching Sam's little laughs at Brigid's lies and his interactions with the fat man.

The Third Man - Another favorite. Besides the classic ferris wheel scene, there's also the great buildup to the reveal of Orson Welles' character. And you just have to sympathize with Holly Martins and his situation: "That sounds like a cheap novelette." "Well, I write cheap novelettes."

The Philadelphia Story - For the dialogue and characters.

The Muppet Movie - Because Kermit was too modest to mention it when he was a TCM guest programmer. This is also a movie I remember fondly from my childhood, when I used to watch it on our RCA SelectaVision VideoDisc Player (I can still hum the opening music it had before every movie, and I often remember from the movies we owned the scene when we had to flip to the other side of the disc). I also love seeing all the guest stars, particularly Mel Brooks, Steve Martin, and Edgar Bergen with Charlie McCarthy. How can you not love a movie about friendship and dreams? "Life's like a movie, write your own ending, keep believing, keep pretending..."

Father of the Bride - Spencer Tracy reminds me of my dad, who got me into classic movies in the first place. When I got married, he quoted some lines from this movie that made me cry.

The Hustler - Incredible performances. (And I could also talk semi-intelligently about the novel.)

The Long Hot Summer - More Newman, which is always nice, and a great look at all different kinds of relationships. Particularly interesting is the pressure on Clara to find a husband to satisfy both her heart and head.

Holiday - One of my Overlooked Oldies, which fits right in with the idea of TCM introducing people to classics they should know.

It's Always Fair Weather - I grew up on musicals, and this is a unique one that I think deserves some more attention.

The Major and the Minor - If I could only pick one film to talk about on TCM, it might very well be this one. It's the first movie I brought up in my Overlooked Oldies for a reason. Not only do I find the whole thing charming, but I also think it's significant as Billy Wilder's debut as a Hollywood director. Imagine if it hadn't gone well, what other movies we might be missing out on -- The Apartment, Some Like it Hot, Sunset Blvd. I find it incredible that he was able to write so well in what was not his first language. He manages to satirize and make fun of people while still getting you to sympathize and care for them. Pretty amazing.

What film(s) would you pick if you had the chance to go on TCM? An all-time favorite, even if it was well-known? A lesser-known movie with a lot of personal meaning? A really obscure gem to show off your film knowledge and try and one-up Mr. O? Share your thoughts, maybe TCM is listening for next time...

(And by the way, happy 15th anniversary, TCM.)

More of what you want

It's fun browsing my blog statistics to see what crazy things people are searching for when they find me. Sometimes I'm not sure how I matched up, sometimes I've got amazingly exact matches to keyword searches. In an effort to give the people what they want, here's a few popular searches and some bonus material along the same lines.

One of my most popular hits is Tom Hardy. Tom as Ramount and/or in Marie Antoinette, Tom linked with Brando, and just plain Tom Hardy. Here's my original ramblings about the boy, and another picture as a bonus. (I know, right? Go watch The Virgin Queen.)

My Book vs. Movie posts also get a lot of love. In particular the searches seem to focus on Jane Eyre and The Grapes of Wrath. Students with book reports due, maybe? One thing that might be leading to disappointment is searching for The Grapes of Wrath ending, which I only hinted at in my post comparing the book and movie. But here it is as your bonus: *SPOILERS* After Rose of Sharon delivers a stillborn baby, she ends up breastfeeding a starving man. For real. *SPOILERS END* Can't imagine why that didn't make it into the movie.

I'm quite encouraged to see the number of people searching for witty women, including this very positive affirmation: witty WOMAN IS the best. I quite agree. Stage Door has an unusual number of witty women in it, but for other movies with witty women/dialogue I'd recommend the following: The Thin Man, The Philadelphia Story, The Big Sleep, and All About Eve.

Now's your chance to weigh in with what you haven't found searching here and what you've liked that's left you wanting more. I'll be happy to oblige.