Midnight Lace

[vinton-webmaster]

I just watched Midnight Lace on cable and I enjoy it more every time I see it. Doris's schock when she learns Tony is the killer and says why? Tony Replie coldly with a sick grin, Money My Dear!

I hope this film comes out on DVD soon. Anyone know if it is? That with Storm Warning and a few others would make for a good boxed set. Midnight was predictable but stylish and love the London setting though filmed here. A real pea souper kind of feel!

(Wrote Vinton)



http://www.dorisday.net/midnight_lace.html

[Ken C]

This was such a big hit I can't understand why it isn't out on dvd.I'm sure we will be seeing it soon on dvd.

[ray]

Midnight Lace has always been one of my favorite DD flicks even with flaws. Its cult classic like Storm Warning and Caprice.

[Peter Flapper]

Hi all,

I know that Doris didn't find this film an nice experience. But I love her in it. I wish she made more thrillers. Her acting is very good an believable.
Midnight lace is a fine treasure to watch... and I'm a treasure hunter... who'd loved to see more...

Peter

[Jas1]

I rate Midnight Lace as good - very good! The script could have been better but I loved seeing Doris with all those great co-stars and even drinking in an English pub! Also, she never looked lovlier - I adore her hair style in this and her clothes (By Irene) were magnificent - espeically the black outfit in the lift/ elavator/ pub.

[Ralph]

"Midnight Lace" was a tremendous hit. Movie-goers were lined around the block to get in to see the film, very much like "Psycho." The movie ads were incredible and Doris Day was at her zenith at the boxoffice.

On the Tonight Show, Johnny Carson told Doris that he felt that she deserved an Oscar nomination for the picture. She smiled and said, "oh, Johnny, thank you..."

Her performance was good, but the role (thanks to the script) was a "one note Johnny." Each scene was a set up for the next "accident." A better screenplay could have made this one spectacular.

It was all filmed beautifully. Day in Irene's fashions, a great Myrna Loy as her "Aunt Bea" (Miss Loy was once the Queen of the Movies!), John Gavin, Herbert Marshall (borrowed from Bette Davis?) and John Williams playing the same English inspector he played in many films, including "Dial M For Murder."

Day did what she could with the material, but should have been more demanding about a better script! With a heavier script and tighter direction, she might have been nominated for the Oscar. But her performance was flawed as it was in "Love Me or Leave Me" by inserting intermitant slices of "cuteness" where it wasn't needed. She became 'Laurie Tuttle" at times: "oh, I just love presents!" (smiling broadly)

Too much smiling in a dramatic picture breaks character. Doris' directors didn't seem to know that.

CHECK OUT DORIS DAY WARDROBE TEST FOR MIDNIGHT LACE HERE:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=risKXOGvFOs

[jmichael]

I gave this film a "good" rating but the high end production values, the clothes and the strong ensemble cast make it an enjoyable escapist film. Doris was fine in her role although she did go over the top in a few scenes. I put the blame on the director for not reigning her in or directing her to tone it down a bit. Still she is quite convincing when it comes to conveying fear and frustration when no one believes her story.

The supporting cast (once again) was outstanding. How great to have Doris, Rex Harrison, Roddy McDowell and Myrna Loy all in the same film.

This is another Doris film that I can watch over and over again without getting tired of it.

[Ralph]

If an actress today could play that elevator/terror scene half as well as Doris Day, they'd get an Oscar nomination. Today, the Academy seems to be doleing out Awards to the most popular, or well-covered actresses from the tabloids.

Halle Berry, Nicole Kidman, Rene Zellwegger (didn't she win one?), Katherine Zita-Jones, Gwenth Paltrow, Charleze Theron, Julia Roberts...who's next? Brittney Spears?

Doris was nominated for a Golden Globe and other awards, but back in the '60s, she was considered a "comedy actress," and these awards were handed out to "serious" actresses. Things have changed, however, and comedy people are getting more nominations. I think if any actress today was #1 at the boxoffice, consistently, like Doris, she'd get an Oscar and the appreciation for the good to excellent work she was doing.

If Helen Hunt could get an Oscar for "As Good As It Gets," Doris should have won for "The Thrill of It All."

[nelson]

Maybe some comfort can be taken by the fact that most of the snickerers have passed deservedly into obscurity while Doris still sells CDs and DVDs in quite respectable numbers.

The Hollywood power brokers that continue to ignore Doris simply can't forgive her for being ever popular with the 'little people in fly over land,' who are staying away from their current film offerings in droves.

[jmichael]

Doris made it look so effortless and easy that many critics wrongly concluded she was just playing herself. Knowing what we do now about her troubled personal life we can see that she was anything but a consistently light hearted person who sailed through life on a smile. Over time I think critics and Hollywood have come to realize that Doris was one of the most versatile and naturally gifted actresses in movies.

Now I just wish the Academy would get over themselves, let go of their elistist attitudes and give Doris an honorary Oscar for her impressive range of work in film.

[Ralph]

When the American Film Institute, Kennedy Center Honors, Grammys and Academy Awards ran out of legends to honor (after years of ignoring Doris Day), they contacted her and offered to "honor" her. She turned them down flat!

I and others had written to AFI and the KCH asking "why are you passing up Doris Day?" AFI and Kennedy finally e-mailed me back and informed me in effect: "we have offered to honor Miss Day on several occasions, but she has declined the offers."

That's why these organizations started honoring people like Lauren Bacall, who was just a leading lady to male stars, not a boxoffice giant on her own. She has received both the Kennedy Center Honor and the Cecil B. DeMille Award!

The top ten boxoffice list is where all movie stars want to end up. The only living stars from Hollywood's Golden Age that have appeared on this list are Doris Day, Shirley MacLaine, Debbie Reynolds, Tony Curtis, Barbra Streisand, Elizabeth Taylor, Jerry Lewis, Paul Newman.

[nelson]

The sad part is that if any organization really wanted to honor Ms. Day and would work with her to allow her to accept without a personal appearance, she might consider it. She won't leave the kids and has always disliked being on display in large auditoriums.

She still does interviews on topics of interest to her but she likes her anonymity and does not want to be seen or photographed. Maybe after 65+ years of people mobbing her wherever she goes, she relishes being able to fade into the backgound as 'another' little elderly lady going shopping.

Part of the respect of the honor would be to let her accept it her way with a voice over or other technique that would allow her to accept with gracious thanks but not require the travel or personal distress that being in front of an audience causes her.

The Academy and others have made allowances for others in the past. As one of the top $ making female stars of all time and someone whose work is still loved and respected by a remarkable number of people of all generations, the organizations truly commited to honoring talent really should work with her to acknowledge her talents and contributions in a way that she would appreciate.

Maybe she feels insulted that they have waited so long and they are insulted that she has turned them down in the past. Could be time for both to extend the olive branch and work together to honor a gracious lady who has deserved the honor for 30 years or so in a way that she would consider appropriate.

While she was unwilling to have any fuss about the Medal of Freedom, she did graciously accept it but then she was allowed to accept it her way.

It would be so much better to honor her while she is still alive. It really comes down to if they really want to do it, they'll find a way to make it work for her.

[Ralph]

I agree. These awards should have been offered to Doris Day when she was still in the public eye. During the '70s thru the 80's, she was still the butt of ridicule and these organizations bypassed her.Everyone saw her honored at the Globes with the Lifetime Achievement Award, and then they decided (after they had run out of legends), "let's ask Doris Day!"

Day said, "no thanks." If I had had the kind of career Doris had and been the top female boxoffice star of all time, I'd be pissed too! But, Day should realize that she got the C. B. DeMille Award before Audrey Hepburn and Shirley MacLaine, two of her major peers.

In her 80s, I'm sure she doesn't want to walk out at the Oscars like Deborah Kerr! But, like Myrna Loy, she could get herself together and film a personal "thank you" to be shown on the show. Same with the Grammys. The AFI doesn't honor dead legends, only people who will show up, ala Lauren Bacall.

[nelson]

Ralph

EXACTLY. They have a precedent to allow accommodations due to age or inability to travel. Ms. Day could then control the situation within her comfort zone and it could be done in an exceptionally classy manner befitting both Day and the Awards organization. But for that to happen, both have to put the past in the past and work together.

Tastes and fashion do change. People who once ridiculed Day now find themselves on the other side with respect to the younger generation, while Day gains respect due to her talent with that same younger generation.

Let's hope that voices of reason and compromise will be listened to on both sides and that something can be worked out to make them happen. The awards are deserved and are long overdue. But it will be the organization that has to approach Day in the spirit of making it work for her. As you said, after being treated badly by many for years, it's rather unlikely that she would campaign in any way for such recognition.

People said many hurtful things about Day during the 60's and 70's. She's had to endure the pain of being a timeless legend of a prior generation as the boomers came of age and rejected at the top of their lungs everything their parents earned, worked for or respected. She's still here. It's the right thing to do. It just needs to be done.

It's really simple in my mind. If the members of these organizations are unable to recognized Day's talent when it's endured for 65+ years and continues to find new converts, how can one possibly believe that any film or actor they do recognize is worth the ticket price to see the film?

I take the money I am NOT spending on movie tickets, on on products of the sponsors of the Awards shows, and send the Doris Day Animal Foundation or Doris Day Animal League a check for that amount. Dollars for the Animals probably means more to her than a statuette anyway.

[Jas1]

I agree 100 per cent with the recent posts. I think if they worked with Doris perhaps [perhaps perhaps!] something could be worked out.

Doris could accept from Carmel in a pre-taped interview and the Institute could sweeten her with big air coverage re-animal issues that obviously still works (as per the recent radio show).

I have no doubt too Doris could still wow em (if only she had the inclination to)!

[jmichael]

First time I've read the entire thread and there are many great points here. Like many others I feel Doris has been wrongly overlooked for major film and arts honors while other stars of lesser importance and talent have been recognized for their lifetime achievements. However unfair and frustrating that is I still respect Doris enormously for declining the honors and living life on her own terms. She is one of the rarest of actors who can leave the fame game and appreciate a deeper life doing good works for others.

[Debbi Austen]

Getting back to the film, today was the first time I saw it in it's entirety. I saw the ending before and I think that might have ruined it for me. But I agree with Ralph and others - Doris looked great, her costumes were beautiful, high production values and I loved seeing her with Rex Harrison, Mryna Loy, and Rodney McDowell. I rated it good.

Now, back to her awards. Doris is a beautiful woman with a wonderful voice and a sunny disposition. Does hollywood take her seriously? Everyone knows that there are a lot of great stars out there that didn't win Oscars.

I am proud that she won her 1 Oscar, her Cecil B. De Mille Award (1989), Her 5 Henrietta Awards (World Film Favorites), her nomination for 6 golden globes, (including Best Preformance for this picture). 1959 - 1966: Made the annual exhibitors' poll of top ten boxoffice stars eight years in a row, more than any other female star since the start of the poll in 1932 except for Betty Grable (who made it ten years in a row from 1942-1951)

Topped the annual exhibitors' poll of top ten boxoffice stars three years in a row, a records among adult female stars (child star Shirley Temple was Number 1 for four years in a row 1935-1938)

[Ralph]

Debbi wrote:

I am proud that she won her 1 Oscar, her Cecil B. De Mille Award (1989), Her 5 Henrietta Awards (World Film Favorites), her nomination for 6 golden globes, (including Best Preformance for this picture). 1959 - 1966: Made the annual exhibitors' poll of top ten boxoffice stars eight years in a row, more than any other female star since the start of the poll in 1932 except for Betty Grable (who made it ten years in a row from 1942-1951)

Topped the annual exhibitors' poll of top ten boxoffice stars three years in a row, a records among adult female stars (child star Shirley Temple was Number 1 for four years in a row 1935-1938)
______________________________________________

Debbi, I think you meant 1 Oscar nomination. But, if you do the math, Doris Day comes out the #1 Female Boxoffice Star of All Time, despite the strong showing by Betty Grable and Shirley Temple. This, with John Wayne as the #1 Male.

[Debbi Austen]

Thank you Ralph for setting the record straight.

[It's Magic]

I was a bit disappointed with this film,as I guessed that Tony was the killer by the middle of the film. It was fun to watch,anyhow,but I wasn't on the edge of my seat,as I was expecting I would be. Doris was simply WONDERFUL in it,though. Jack Carson was right:she should have won an oscar for that role. It rated this movie good.

[Ralph]

I was a bit disappointed with this film,as I guessed that Tony was the killer by the middle of the film. It was fun to watch,anyhow,but I wasn't on the edge of my seat,as I was expecting I would be. Doris was simply WONDERFUL in it,though. Jack Carson was right:she should have won an oscar for that role. It rated this movie good.

"To set the record straight," it was Johnny Carson, not Jack Carson.

[howard]

I'm pretty sure it was MacLean Stevenson, not Johnny, and certainly not Jack who made the statement when Doris appeared the night MacLean hosted the show.

[It's Magic]

I was a bit disappointed with this film,as I guessed that Tony was the killer by the middle of the film. It was fun to watch,anyhow,but I wasn't on the edge of my seat,as I was expecting I would be. Doris was simply WONDERFUL in it,though. Jack Carson was right:she should have won an oscar for that role. It rated this movie good.

"To set the record straight," it was Johnny Carson, not Jack Carson.

I thought that Jack Carson was Johnny Carson....I thought it was a nickname for him or something....could someone please set the record straight for me?

[Ralph]

I'm pretty sure it was MacLean Stevenson, not Johnny, and certainly not Jack who made the statement when Doris appeared the night MacLean hosted the show.

Howard:

One one of Doris Day's appearances on the Tonight Show, Johnny Carson asked her about her favorite films. Doris answered, "well I really loved 'Calamity Jane.' It had a great score...and I liked 'Love Me or Leave Me'"(the audience started applauding) and Day, trying to be heard yelled "thank you." Johnny then said, "I thought you should have gotten an Oscar for 'Midnight Lace'. Doris thanked him.

This happened the night that that dippy blond actress came out, I can't remember her name. Teresa Ganzel, that's her name. She tried to start something after Day started talking about stray dogs by blurting out, "I don't like animals. I think they should stay outside and not be in the house." Doris turned and gave her the only stare. Day then said, "that's okay. She has a right to her opinion..."

[webmaster]

Click on the link below to view TCM Trailer of "Midnight Lace" - high melodrama!:

http://www.tcm.com/video/WindowsMediaMe ... ction=300k

Set up for Windows Media.