………..Volume Two of Alice Faye and Betty Grable recordings available in February 2023 from Sepia Records (www.sepia records.com)

 

This is Vol.2 of rare recordings from Alice Faye never commercially released. The collection of songs on the 2 CD’s are from her 1940s movies, remastered from studio discs, and including songs performed by her costars such as Don Ameche, Betty Grable, John Payne, Carmen Miranda.

 

• Vol.2 of Betty Grable recordings are similarly from her 1940s musicals never commercially released before.
• Includes songs by June Haver, John Payne, Dick Haymes,Dan Dailey.

………….Re-watching NOCTURNE, I noticed Mack Gray (1905-1981) in a few scenes with George Raft – both playing cops. Turns out Mack Gray was a stand in for Raft and also appeared in  about 17 Raft films between 1933 and 1949!

Gray’s roles were generally minor – a Variety review of BROADWAY (1942) called him, “companion – bodyguard – shadow” to Raft. ( both played themselves in “Broadway”.)

 

Mack’ s brother, JOE GRAY (1912-1971) was a boxer who came to Hollywood and was a technical advisor on boxing  movies.  Joe was friends with Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra and he was in 32 Dean Martin films (a stunt double for Martin) and 10 of Sinatra’s films!

 

 

Mack Gray was a production associate on Dean Martin’s TV shows from  1974 to 1980.

 

………….A page from the San Diego Union,July,1947.

So much on one  page. I counted about 46 film titles.

It was the last day of THE TWO MRS. CARROLLS.

You could go to a double bill of THE SEA HAWK and THE SEA WOLF. or THE FARMER’S DAUGHTER and STALLION ROAD.

ODD MAN OUT  is held over  for a second week – and paired with Roy Rogers in HELDORADO.

Nice to see an ad for the opening of the La Jolla Playhouse production of “Night Must Fall”, with Dame May Whitty.

 

………….Jean Harlow ‘s 1933 Grauman’s hand and foot ceremony. Jean placed three new pennies as a good luck charm. They were pried out by souvenir hunters.

(From Harlowheaven on Instagram)

 

………….Great song by Hoagy Carmichael, Johnny Mercer. Huskily sung by Lauren Bacall,with Hoagy at the piano.

 

…………Drawings by Serbian artist, Aleksandar Radulovic (from his Instagram page.)

 

 

 

 

….……Due for release in June,2023, “Warner Bros.100 Years of Storytelling” by Mark A. Vieira celebrates the 100th anniversary of Warner Brothers. I don’t have much detail about the contents, but it runs to 368 pages and promises untold stories and rare images.

That’s enough for me!