1939: A Celebratory Celebration!

Attention all West Coast (specifically southern CA) classic film lovers! Starting May 18, The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is doing an ode to Hollywood’s greatest year, 1939, with a 10 film tribute (all 10 films nominated for the 1939 Best Picture Oscar). Starting off with the mother of all 1939 movies, Gone with the Wind!

Hooray for Hollywood!

THE FILMS:

Gone with the Wind
Stagecoach
Wuthering Heights
Dark Victory
Love Affair
Goodbye, Mr. Chips
Ninotchka
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
Of Mice and Men
The Wizard of Oz

WHERE: The Samuel Goldwyn Theatre | 8949 Wilshire Blvd | Beverly Hills

WHEN: Monday nights at 8 pm starting May 18, 2009

HOW MUCH: $25 for entire film series//$20 with a student ID

Tickets go on sale on April 27, be sure to grab yours in time!

I think you can guess which two I’ll definitely be at, hope to see you there!

London Day 12

I’m at my friend Katie’s house in Pinner, in west London. It’s been such a good time and her family is so nice! Her mom even gave us a proper English desert of bread and custard, mmm!

I’m so glad I’ve checked out of that hostel and had a proper shower, lol. THAT’S what I’ve missed from home. But i’ll be sad to leave as I love Europe so much. However, as I’ve told people already, I feel like this has definitely been the best trip of my life and I feel like I got the most out of it. Looking back, I really feel lucky that so MUCH happened in only 2 weeks. I met just about everyone I’d always wanted to meet regarding Larry and Vivien, and they couldn’t have been more kind and hospitable, and there I was worried that they’d think I was stupid because I’m so young or something. I guess with enough determination, you really can do anything! Now when i get back I have a task I’ve set out to do and I fully intend to make it happen one day. It’s nice to have people’s support.

I also met some amazing people that I knew through vivandlarry.com, and it was so fabulous to talk to people in person who actually like the same things as I do and love talking about it! So, Kasia, Katie, Elizabeth, and Meg, thanks for meeting up and for being so nice! And tomorrow I’m meeting up with Adeline (who does those amazing drawings in the vivandlarry.com gallery), so that’s exciting! It’s like Larry and Vivien really DO bring together people from around the world.

Yes, this has definitely been the best trip of my life, and I’m glad I came alone and had my own adventure because I got to meet so many amazing people and have such amazing and enlightening conversations, and just do my own thing on my own terms. It’s empowering and fun and I couldn’t have asked for more, really.

I’ll miss it here, but I’ll be back again some day. Only one more day

London Day 11

I went to York today–I took the train from King’s Cross–and met my livejournal friend, Elizabeth-Anne. We took a taxi to Castle Howard! IT WAS AMAZINGLY GORGEOUS! Especially because of all the snow there. The house wasn’t open but the grounds were and we traipsed across snowy fields, saw the Atlas Fountain and the Temple of the Four Winds. Castle Howard was used as the location for Brideshead in both versions of Evelyn Waugh’s Brideshead Revsisted. This, of course, made me think of Larry who was in the mini series, and there are some great behind the scenes photos of him sitting on the steps leading up to the castle.

The fountain wasn’t running but it was amazing to see it filled with snow, especially when you think of Matthew Goode and Ben Wishaw swimming naked in it in the film haha. but really the whole place is amazing and so HUGE. We tried to be adventurous and climbed this fence by the Temple of the Four Winds to go across the bridge (which looks very much like the one Kiera Knightley runs across in the rain in <i.Pride and Prejudice which was why I thought part of it was filmed there. But it wasn’t. Anyway, there was a sign on the fence that said “Beware of Bull”. We were like wtf? It was interesting. I didn’t see any animals there except ducks and an owl, but no cows or anything of the sort.

It was so fun but my boots aren’t waterproof so they got soaked (they’re still wet, actually). We had to go back to the info center and dry our socks on the radiator behind the information desk! The employees were very kind about it though, thankfully!

There were a lot of peacocks outside in the snow. I tried to chase one and imitate their calls so they would open their tail feathers. I failed. Haha!

I wish we had those sorts of old stately homes in America–that’s what I love about Europe, everything is so OLD!

I really enjoyed meeting you, Elizabeth, because you know so much about Larry and Brideshead and EVERYTHING! You’re awesome!

Thumbs up.

Photos to come later. I can’t believe my time here has gone by so fast This really has been the best trip of my entire life!

London Day 9

I can’t believe my 2 weeks in London are almost up I want to stay for ever and ever! I had a lovely day today though. I woke up and went over to the British Library to look at some more photos and such. Anyway at the BL today I found the most amazing things! Larry is amazing for keeping all of this stuff but part of me wonders why Suzanne Farrington doesn’t have it instead. For example there’s an entire scrapbook full of never before-seen GWTW photos most of Vivien playing around on set and such behind the scenes. They’re wonderful and so so gorgeous! There’s also a cool album of Titus Andronicus tour photos, Candids of Larry and Viv in the early 1950s etc. My favorite thing though was a little framed photo about 4 x 6 of Vivien at Notley with her cat New (aka Satan everyone’s favorite Siamese that’s in all of her pics) and this gorgeous dog that looked like a lab/huskie mix or something. Her hair is kind of mussed up as if it were really windy or she just woke up from a nap. I recognized it from a photo in a magazine–Larry used to keep it on his dressing room table, and it’s SOOOO gorgeous! I think I might splurge and get a print of it for a ridiculous price. But I think it’s my new favorite photo because it’s so candid and she was so lovely. ♥

Then i went to Charing Cross and got some photos at the National Portrait Gallery, got lunch and happened upon the Westminster Reference Library, where I leafed through some old Vogue UK mags and found some new Larry and Viv photos inside–so I copied them for 10 pence a piece!! WHEEE.

But then after that I went and saw a lovely concert at St Martin-in-the-fields. It was a string concert group and they played Bach concertos and Mozart’s Eine Kleine Nachtmusic by candlelight. It was so so so beautiful (except for the mental crazy guy sitting behind me. he threw a paper airplane into my pew and was talking to himself. No joke.)! We never have this sort of thing around where I live. A bit of culture–good! I just kept thinking that that was where Vivien Leigh’s memorial service was and remembered reading how Larry slipped in and stood in the back. I’m obsessed, yah. Lol. But it was amazing and tomorrow they’re doing Vivaldi’s 4 Seasons!!! I think my friend Katie and I are going to go! It’s only £12! Ohh you guys, I love it here so very much. *Sigh*

London Day 8

This morning I took a train from London Marylebone to Haddenham and Thame Pkwy. I mistook someone’s directions and took the wrong road, which meant I was walking for miles–literally and and had to stop for directions. But the man who pointed the way was so nice and put me on the right path. It took me an hour to get there (when I could have been there in 10 minutes haha). But anyway, Notley is BEAUTIFUL. That’s really all I can say about it because that’s what it is. It looks smaller than I imagined on the outside but once inside it’s enormous! No wonder they had so many parties, two people would get lost in there! The river was flooded from all the snow but it was kind of neat. Actually, I walked along Larry’s lime walk drive and saw someone taking photos outside. I thought she worked there or something but she said “I think I know who you are.” And it turns out it was someone who had visited vivandlarry.com and who had emailed me a couple weeks ago about visiting London. I wasn’t expecting to meet with anyone but the owners (who I didn’t actually end up meeting…) but, hi Meg, it was nice to meet you!

The grounds were gorgeous and so medieval, but it was a shame it’s been so modernized inside. Larry and Viv’s L-shaped room was lovely and had nice views from the windows. I could just picture them speeding up the drive in their Rolls on the way back from a show in London!

It really was beautiful and so fitting for them and their otherworldliness. Many, many more photos to come when I get home!

London day 7

I think today can be summed up in one word: Superfabulous.

I went to Westminster Abbey this morning and got a pic of Larry’s grave on the sly. As I was looking around Poet’s Corner I noticed two boquets of flowers on Charles Dickens’ grave and it was from 100 of his direct descendants for his birthday on the 7th. That was sweet.

Then I met up with Kasia again at Euston station and we got coffee at Starbucks and talked about Tarquin and Joan and Larry and Viv and everything. It’s so fun meeting other people who like talking about the same things you do!

Then at 6 I took the tube back to Kensington, annnnnd I just got drunk with Hugo Vickers. And by that I mean I got drunk, I don’t think he did, but it was amazing. We also ate chicken soup and a TV dinner and lemon cheesecake and polished off a bottle of wine, it was so awesome, lol, and it was rather delicious. YOU GUYS, he’s just like he is on the tv! He has the nicest voice and he’s so kind! He told me all the inside info about when he was researching his Vivien book and who he met, etc. He showed me the manuscript for the re-issue of his book which IS being published some time this year. He doesn’t like Larry very much so he jokingly referred to him as my friend, lol, and I said “Whatever, I love that guy!” But we both definitely agree that Vivien was the number one for Larry. He’s so full of good stories. We talked about everything from Vivien Leigh to David Niven to Facebook to Greta Garbo to Silence of the Lambs to Kate Winslet, and he’s so nice and laid back and sooo British.

I think he’s my favorite. He couldn’t have been more sweet or interesting! He left a really nice message in my book and we talked for 5 hours.

WIN.

Notley tomorrow, hopefully it’s not raining so I can walk from the station!

I’m so tired right now but the French kids in my room are so noisy and watching TV on someone’s computer. *sigh*

London Day 6 (”You have bewitched me body and soul, and I love, I love, I love you”)

Monday Feb 11, 1963

Darling Darling Larry–

You cannot ever know how very much your letter meant to me today–How really adorable of you to take time to write–when you have such a fearsome amount on your plate at this time. It was so lovely to have such a lot of news of you. I have been so really worryingly low and with your dear letter with me my spirits took a leap.
Thank you darling so very much.
There is an awesome amount of work to be done on ‘Tovarich’ some of it has not been written yet. The though of new (something) naturally alarms me dreadfully. It’s not a very POOR voice, darling I am told it’s in tune! I hardly drink at all either. That’s a good thing isn’t it? You are the wonderful one to be getting on all these committees–how fortunate they are to have you. I am sorry your piece was a disappointment after all your labour to give tells me you are just brilliant in it but they don’t seem to like the play…

I send you all my love my darling. My thoughts are with you at the very least one hundred times a day and my dearest wishes, always.
God bless you my love

Vivien

This is basically a rehash of my LJ post but I went to the British Library today for a few hours and saw 4 folders from the Olivier Archive. let me just say that I didn’t think it was possible to adore them any more than I already do but what I’ve seen today has both made me love them more and broken my heart into pieces. Larry saved everything. I viewed two clippings folders that covered their whole relationship as well as the letters Vivien wrote to him. I was most astonished to see so many obituaries for Vivien in this collection. There must have been at least 50 and they all came with a tag stapled to them from some archive or something in and around London, all addressed to Sir Laurence Olivier or Lord Olivier. I gather from this that he must have asked this company to send him all of this stuff. There was a Vivien obit from like every newspaper in the UK, it was astonishing and sad.

I also pulled the folders with Vivien’s letters. He kept everything from little notes to actual long letters to telegrams. There were so many from when he was in the fleet air arm and she was in North Africa in 1943, and even drafts of telegrams Larry sent out to her. They were so amazing!! They had so many little names for each other: Baba, Vivling, Puss, Vivien Flavonia, Sweetheart, Darling, Larry Boy, My lamb, My love, My heart’s darling, etc. But some of them were very sad, especially toward the end of their marriage. I wrote down everything I could decipher, which was unfortunately just a fraction, but here are a couple of examples (the rest will be uploaded when i get home next week)

1943 VL Rock Hotel Gibraltar

Darling owing extraordinary delay all previous wires the following is roughly what I sent Saturday STOP. My love have spoken to Elsie and I feel you man have felt awkward on my account at thought of postponing return yet another week STOP. But I want you to know if you feel you really should play Sun sites I shall understand STOP. But if you are really too exhausted to continue then think only of how much I want you home STOP. I am worried you may misunderstand this Baba I worship you and long for you but want you to feel alright your boy

LO

Nov 2 1958

My dearest Larry–

This is the third letter I have written you today. You must forgive the fact that I make quick decisions. I believe they are the only true and instinctively correct way for people such as I am to express their feelings. Because I have had a day almost entirely on my own in bed & able to think without interruption of our whole situation I have come to the conclusion (a fearfully painful one) that a clean and ABSOLUTE break is the only path to follow. So I intend to divorce you on the grounds of desertion–mental and physical–as soon as both out present chores in the theatre & television are over and we are in any case separated. I did not want to have to do this until you had finished your work here but our telephone conversation tonight led me to think I was talking to a complete stranger–which is what you have CHOSEN to become. Your first letter has made is almost impossible for me to carry out my present arduous contact but I shall persevere to the best of my strength and ability.

I think our lives will lie in quite different directions. I feel confident I shall make my own life–you have ALWAYS made yours. I am sorry if this upsets your plans.

They just break my heart!! I adore them so much and it just doesn’t seem like many people have passion like this anymore, which is why I love them so and find them so sad and interesting. The ending must have been so painful for both of them and yet, I think it says a lot that he still wrote he after they divorced (as seen at the top). She never let go, but I don’t think he did either.

I can’t even express how much they affect me when I read about them, they just make me so happy and then make me want to cry because they were so passionate and interesting and ultimately tragic. No one else in Hollywoodland even comes close. I don’t think they should ever fade from people’s memories, they win so hard.

I still have a lot to view–photos mostly. I saw a preview and it’s brilliant.

London Day 5

Today was pretty chill and not very exciting. I decided to just take it easy and sleep in and then find something to do because I wanted to go to Westminster Abbey to visit Larry’s grave but it was closed on account of it being Sunday and being used for actual church services. There is what looks like a really cool exhibit going on at a museum down the road. It’s called War + Medicine and it looks a bit creepy/awesome at the same time.

But I didnt go see it, lol, maybe another day. I did, however, go to Picadilly Circus and found the Vintage Magazine shop, and I kind of…well I cleaned out about half their Oliviers stash, lol. Then I cam back and napped and then came to this net cafe. That’s about all, I’m tired and sorry this one was boring. I hope to have some good stories about library adventures tomorrow

Gotta run

London Day 3 & 4 (Friday and Saturday)

This trip is turning out to be one of the richest experiences I’ve ever had! Yesterday (Friday), I woke up early and took the 8:44 train to Hither Green, a suburb of London. There I met Richard Mangan who works at the Mander and Mitchenson Theatre Collection. Richard has been a serious collector of Olivier memorabillia for about 40 years and his collection is the most glorious thing I’ve ever seen. Literally. As I said on LJ, it took me 7 hours to look through it all and it was mind boggling. he has so many things i never even knew existed! I definitely have a ton to look out for if I’m ever going to have anything nearly as amazing! On top of this, he was a stage manager at the National and worked with Larry. He had some wonderful stories, and it sounds like Larry was a really good guy, a very professional man, and he was awesome! Just as I suspected! I adore Larry, as you know.

Richard and his wife couldn’t have been more kind or hospitable and I LOVED looking at his collection! Thanks, Richard (if you read this), I had a wonderful time! You’ve done good, real good!!

I stopped by David Drummnd’s shop afterword and picked up some fun things for my collection

+++

So today I woke up at…5:30 am? I know, wtf, when was the last time that happened? (Answer: a looooong time ago). I have been going to bed early and rising early because I’m determined to see EVERYTHING I want to see. I left at 6:30 and my face and hands almost froze off, seriously, it’s SO COLD here. It didn’t help that I mispaced my gloves. I took the train to Leicester Square and walked over to Covent Garden, got some coffee and a croissant, and then took some photos and walked back to Trafalgar Square and had breakfast with Mr Horatio Nelson and his lions in front of the National Gallery. The streets were practically deserted, it was lovely!

Then I wandered with my freezing hands over toward Westminster, and across Jubilee Bridge to Waterloo again for another Old Vic tour with a man named Ned who let me join in with a tour group of some sort. I was disappointed that there was only one Olivier name drop but it was still interesting!

Afterword I grabbed tea at the National Theatre coffee shop and then met Katie (sassygirl on LJ) at the Larry statue (a good meeting place!). We got pizza at Waterloo and then headed to Chelsea to see the famous Vivien leigh places of residence. After walking around in vain for about an hour we weren’t able to find Lowndes Cottage, but we did go to Eaton Square (which is still under construction unfortunately). I got a pic of Viv’s bench over the fence and a rather bitchy lady with her dogs walked into the garden but refused to let us in to snap a photo. No biggie, it turns out I’m rather glad she didn’t let us in…But we were standing in front of 54 Eaton Square when this Asian girl walks up to the door and starts to go in. I asked if she lived there and she said yes, she helps Louise (Rainer, Oscar winner for The Good Earth). She said she didn’t know much about Vivien which made me sad. But it was cool to see someone go in there. I don’t think she totally understood what we were saying. Oh well.

Then we walked over to Christchurch Street and saw Durham Cottage–much better in the daylight. We were loitering across the street when GUESS WHAT HAPPENED?! A man walked up and went in the gate!! Katie went over (I was scared) and told him I was a Vivien fan and asked if we could take some photos! He said yes (Way to go, Katie!!)! So he let us in the gate and we got some nice ones of the garden walkway and everything! He was so nice and pretty cute too. I asked if he lived there and he said his godfather did, whom he helps because he has alzheimers. He said his godfather bought the house from Vivien Leigh. I about died! WHAT LUCK! If the bitchy woman from Eaton Square had let us in we would have missed catching the boy (Max, I think he said) at Durham Cottage! He said he’d have invited us in but his godfather has alzheimers and gets really confused with new faces. We said it was okay, we were just happy be lucky enough to catch him coming back from the grocery store! He also said he’d met Tarquin and I asked if he was nice, and he said yes. Amazing times! Katie, it was lovely to meet you finally!

The reason I asked if Tarquin was nice was because I was to meet him later (I just got back and en route to the tube from his house I stopped in this internet cafe). Anyway, so I was really nervous walking to the Olivier flat, but not so much after meeting him (He’s my fave, by the way, I always said if I could meet anyone who knew Larry and Viv it would be him). He looks so so so much like Larry (was wearing the signet ring Larry wore and has the same eyes–GRAy for the record, like Larry’s!!) and had nothing but wonderful things to say about Vivien and fun stories about his dad. And in case you were wondering (as I was for a long time), yes, he is still friends with “Suzy” who also lives in London.

I love that he adored Vivien and said he was never bitter about Larry’s leaving Jill for her because he always loved her, as he says in his book My Father Laurence Olivier (READ IT! It’s wonderful!). Viv was exciting and she and Larry were very much in love (my theory was confirmed!!!) even though it was sometimes really hard because of her illness. He said Viv told him once that she and Larry were “Mentally and physically in love but never spiritaully in love” because they knew that their relationship was made from hurting other people and they both felt guilty about it (Larry always it seems from what I’ve read). Anyway, Tarquin is very nice and seems to love talking about Larry and Viv (as you guessed, Lyndsy!) and I really enjoyed talking to him and still can’t believe I got the opportunity! It was a total dream come true! And he had some good stories about David Niven at Notley since I brought him up and said David was my favorite of Larry and Viv’s friends. Apparently Hjordis knew very little English and used to go around saying “WOOOONDERFUL!” all the time. But she was a bitch, as I learned recently when reading the authrized biography, Niv, and was terrible to poor David. And then I got kind of sad because Hjordis and David used to be my third fave couple. BOOO, Hjordis!!

Tarquin used to hang out with Christina Crawford at Joan Crawford’s house. And he showed me his stamp collection from when Thomas Mann used to live next door to them in Hollywood, and the stuff Larry sent him from Australia in 1948.

Anyway, he had to run after a bit and I still had so many questions to ask! I guess I will over email, but it was so amazing to meet him in person!! YAY!

I’m so tired now so I think I’ll go pay and go to sleep soon. Tomorrow I’ll take it easy. Then Monday I’m off to start my adventures at the British Library (You don’t know how excited I am!)!

Good night!

London–Day 2 (Thursday)

dfidzrrgaeufyeruigsuigsu!! Yesterday might have been one of the coolest days of my life! I woke up at 8:30, got dressed, ate some corn flakes and drank tea, and then took the tube to Waterloo Station. I was to meet author Terry Coleman (he wrote the authorized Laurence Olivier biography called Olivier) at noon in the foyer of the Old Vic theatre. I had a couple of hours to kill first so I wandered around the South Bank…it was so nice and quiet–barely any people were out for a while. There was still some snow on the ground and I got some good foggy pics of Parliament and St Paul’s. I saw the Larry statue out front of the National Theatre. I said to myself “Oh, Larry, why doesn’t this statue look very much like you? And why are you so short looking?” Then I remembered hew as 5′10″ and everyone said his presence made him look larger than life. WELL, but it was so nice to see it, something dedicated to him and his genius!

Then I walked over the the Old Vic and met Terry Coleman and his wife, Vivien (no, not named after Vivien Leigh, although i told her that if I were named that, I’d say I was name dafter Vivien Leigh anyway, haha). They were both lovely and so nice! Vivien has worked at the Old Vic since Larry’s time there with the National Theatre Company in the 60s. She said he used to remind her of a banker with the way he dressed…this was after his sharp wardrobe when married to Viv. But they said hew as nice. Terry told a great story about how he was covering this trial where Kenneth Tynan wanted to put on an obscene play at the national and Larry testified for him in court (wtf, censorship?). Terry said he looked around the whole court room and didn’t see Larry, until he was called up to the witness stand. He was sitting in the back amongst a bunch of lawyers, and he definitely was like a chameleon when he wanted to be because he didn’t even know Larry was there! So larry gets up on the stand and they ask his name, and then ask his profession and he said “Sir. I am an ACTOR. I run the national Theatre.” LOL, he would say that. But they showed me around backstage and everything and I got some good photos. There’s even an Olivier private box there where Joan Plowright sits every time she comes to see a play. They’ve rearranged the entire place because of a new kind of play they’re putting on where the stage is in the center and the seating is all around it, as opposed to all of the seats facing the stage in the front. Vivien got me into a spacial backstage tour of the place that’s on Saturday!

Anyway, they took me to lunch at the Turkish restaurant down the road that’s the hang out for the Old Vic crew (Kevin Spacey now) and it was so lovely, and they had so many stories of Larry. Terry signed my copy of his book and they really liked the photos I brought along from my collection.

Afterword, I went back over the the Larry statue, called my dad and then went and bought a soccer scarf for my friend Cathy and a hat for my dad. Then I met up with Kasia from Poland and we went over to the North Bank and took some pics along the Strand of Larry/Vivien-related places like the Aldwych Theatre and the Savoy Hotel (which is under construction (wtf, construction?!). We walked around trying to find David Drummond’s ephemera shop in Leicester Square (much easier when it’s daylight out but alas, it was dark). He sold the photos he had showed me 3 years ago, but funny enough he asked if I had written to him about them and I said I had, so he said he’s got another stash somewhere and will call me if he finds them. he has SO MUCH AMAZING LARRY AND VIVIEN THEAtRE/FILM STUFF! And he’s interesting to talk to. Will have to go back. We stopped in St martin-in-the-fields where an orchestra was rehearsing Bach for a concert. It was beautiful but made me sad because I was reminded of Vivien and how they held her funeral there.

Then we hopped on the tube to Sloane Square and went and saw Durham Cottage. OMG, it’s so amazingly adorable and totally out of place to the surrounding architecture of Christchurch Street. Someone lives there and we wanted to knock but were afraid it was too late. Will have to go back in the daytime.

But yesterday was so amazingly fun! And it was so amazing to meet someone who is equally as passionate about the Oliviers as I am and who loves talking about them! Kasia, you’re AWESOME!

Well, I’m off to eat breakfast, then I have a train to catch. I’m going to see Richard Mangan’s private Olivier memorabilia collection. He runs the Mander and Mitchenson Theatre Archive in Greenwich. So excited!!!

That’s all for now.

Thanks for the well wishes!