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12-03-2019 06:00 PM
@Oznell wrote:Good question, @golding76.. I've only read short accounts, but there must be something more comprehensive.
Oddly enough, of all people Candice Bergen wrote a piece on him that I read ages ago, if memory serves. At one time I think she went around as a "photo journalist" and I think was highly amused by him...
I had read that Candice Bergen was to interview Oscar Levant. And his wife went up to get him and she found out that he had passed away. He was 65 years old.
12-03-2019 06:04 PM
Yeah, I read that too, @drizzellla. It confused me though-- I'm thinking she must have known and interviewed him at least once before that last, fateful time, since clearly he wouldn't be talking on that occasion....
12-04-2019 10:52 AM - edited 12-04-2019 10:52 AM
Thanks so much for posting this, Humoresque was one I had never deen before, loved it and loved the Karger/Feinstein talks too before and after. Even watched the Levant interview, he was truly a very interesting man, You could see all his emotional pain in his face at the time in1958. Leonard Maltin says this is Crawford's finest hour, even better than Mildred Pierce.
12-04-2019 11:21 AM
Joan looked glorious in Humoresque, I believe the height of her beauty. And that hair style contributed greatly (much as Bette's did as Margo Channing!)
Unfortunately, her "look" during the 50s became much more severe and mannish.
12-04-2019 11:58 AM - edited 12-04-2019 12:01 PM
Testimony to the powerful magnet that this film is occurred after I "dropped in" on it not too long after it started and then could not turn away. Yes, it caught me for my 21st (or so) viewing. And yes, Joan looked gloriously beautiful in this film, and yes, I loved her hair in this movie.
I began my taped Oscar Levant interview a bit after midnight so I did not finish it. Never having read anything about him (not even Wikipedia) prior to oznell's posting alert, I was surprised that my sense of his emotional fragility was so on the mark. BUT, I had no idea he was that tortured. Poor soul. I think I wish to read more about him, but I don't want to be distressed by what I will eventually read.
His line about genius was priceless: "There's a fine line between genius and insanity, and I erased it."
I'm looking forward to viewing the remainder of this rare interview with Levant.
12-04-2019 12:21 PM
I saw this movie for the first time last night. I also saw the Oscar Levant interview. Very interesting man. I remember Oscar from the movie 'Rhapsody in Blue". Yes, Joan did give a great performance!
12-04-2019 02:41 PM
Karger noted that the only Oscar nom this film got was for musical score, said it deserved much more than that.
Such a similar ending to A Star is Born. This one was even more melodramatic.
12-04-2019 03:22 PM
Bette Davis was shooting Deception at Warners at the same time Joan was working on Humoresque. We know that they hated each other, particularly Bette viewing Joan as the interloper from MGM.
Joan, to get into the mood for Humoresque, would play classical records in her dressing room. Annoyed, Bette, in an adjoining dressing room, would play current boogie-woogie records. Joan turned up her volume...Bette turned up her volume...and so on and so forth.
After this went on for several days in a row the story is that Oscar Levant went into each dressing room and cut the cords on each record player.
(I don't know if this story is true, but it would be terrific fun if it were!)
12-04-2019 03:35 PM
It just HAS to be true, @Johnnyeager -- it's perfect and it sounds so much like each of them!
12-04-2019 05:02 PM
@Oznell wrote:It just HAS to be true, @Johnnyeager -- it's perfect and it sounds so much like each of them!
Not to mention how much it sounds like Levant!!
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