In The Balcony With Laughing Gravy

Cliff Weimer has a passion for all kinds of classic movies; cartoons, shorts, serials and feature films made during the golden age of Hollywood.
The spell was cast in 7th grade when he experienced Charlie Chaplin’s silent masterpiece Modern Times on the big screen. “It changed my life,” says Weimer. “It opened a window to a world that I didn't know existed.”

For eight years he wrote for other movie-related sites, but yearned for the freedom that would come with being his own editor. Two years ago he started IN THE BALCONY, a wonderful website loaded with info geared to lovers of vintage films. His ambitious site is teeming with announcements and reviews of new DVD cartoon and short subject compilations, releases of cliffhanging serials long locked away in studio vaults, and help in finding obscure and long forgotten film treasures. “It’s a site where people who know and love movies can get together and read about them and talk about them” said Weimer, who keeps the conversation buzzing in multiple forums.

On the site, Weimer is known by his alter ego, Laughing Gravy - known to Laurel & Hardy fans as the duo’s shaggy dog first introduced in Hal Roach’s classic 1931 L&H short “Laughing Gravy.” The dog was also featured in Our Gang (The Little Rascals) and other Hal Roach comedy shorts.

In 1986 Weimer was motivated to begin a series of weekly movie nights for family, friends and neighbors, which would become the inspiration for IN THE BALCONY. At that time, the latest Star Wars movie was all the rage and his sons, age 5 and 7, were big fans. Anticipating yawns, Weimer nonetheless showed the boys a chapter from 1940’s Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe to a surprisingly enthusiastic response - and Friday Night Frights (FNF) was born.

The programs consisted of monster and sci-fi films, with some cartoons, comedy shorts and serials slipped in. The kids in the audience grew to love the older films and wanted more. “To see a 10 year old fall off the couch laughing at a black & white Abbott & Costello film is worth everything to me,” Weimer said. “The key with kids is to first show them The Little Rascals. All kids love the Rascals. Then show them Laurel & Hardy, and follow with Charlie Chase or Edgar Kennedy.”

To add to the fun, he often programs thematic movie nights, like slumber parties, beach movie nights, drive-in or double feature movie nights, etc. Posters and lobby cards related to the show are posted and a snack bar featuring nickel and dime candy is available. Sometimes a potluck or pizza dinner is on the bill. And when admission is charged, it's yesterday’s prices: 25 cents for adults and 15 cents for kids.

Studios are beginning to open their vaults and make available films that have been hidden away or neglected for years. Digital technology and the power of the internet have made rare and seldom seen films more accessible than they've been at any time in the past. In light of all this it's no wonder that LG claims “This is the golden age of classic movies.”

BijouBob and Laughing Gravy are kindred spirits, each in their own way bringing classic films to light, introducing them to new audiences, and uniting people with a shared enthusiasm for them. We're proud to announce that Laughing Gravy has graciously agreed to write for The Bijou Blog on a regular basis. We can't wait to see what he's going to do next.

Deborah Kerr: High-Minded, Long Suffering, White-Gloved and Decorative

Screen star Deborah Kerr, a Bijou favorite, died in England on Tuesday Oct 16th. The elegant leading lady made memorable an impressive range of characters in 51 roles spanning 50 years Originally from Scotland, her film career began in England in 1939 with an uncredited bit part in Contraband, and accelerated upon release of her first American film, the Hucksters, in 1946. MGM promoted their new “British” find as “Deborah Kerr: Her Name Rhymes With Star”

In contrasting her transatlantic filmmaking experiences to that of the Hollywood studio system, Ms. Kerr was once quoted as saying: "I came over here to act, but it turned out all I had to do was to be high-minded, long suffering, white-gloved and decorative".

An engaging way to remember Deborah Kerr is to attempt to select her top three films from her distinguished filmography. Give it a try...it's harder than you might expect. Consider she was nominated for six Academy Awards, won none, but was awarded an honorary Oscar in 1994. Then consider her many co-starring performances with such great leading men as Cary Grant, Burt Lancaster, Frank Sinatra, Robert Mitchum, Clark Gable, Spencer Tracy, Gary Cooper, Gregory Peck, Charles Laughton, Peter Ustinov, David Niven, Yul Brynner, Robert Taylor, Stewart Granger and Walter Pigeon.


Three obvious titles would top most lists: An Affair to Remember, From Here to Eternity and The King and I. But then consider The Sundowners, Black Narcissus and The Innocence. How about Tea & Sympathy, The Grass is Greener, Night of the Iguana, Separate Tables, King Solomon’s Mines and The Razor’s Edge? The list goes on.

Why not leave a comment and share your own favorite Deborah Kerr role. And remember a new Mini-Matinee at the Bijou starts Wednesday, Oct 24. Check back for titles and descriptions.

Who Is Bijou Bob?

Back when this blog was initiated, we began a string of posts written by “Bijou Bob”. In fact, the articles published here have been written by a number of people working on the Matinee at the Bijou series. So … who IS Bijou Bob? Well, now might be as good a time as any to introduce the Bijou inner circle who, together, write as Bijou Bob, and who work tirelessly behind the scenes to create the sequel series.

The team is comprised of a handful of talented TV veterans who were part of the original series, combined with an extended group of film and media experts and enthusiasts...and yes, as you will see, there is a Bob involved. (Careful readers will recall that in our post “Bijou Bob Answers Back" we showed Bijou Bob as a monkey at a typewriter. Actually, we don’t have a typing monkey on our staff, but when we get funded we mean to acquire one.)

Let’s meet the Bijou Bob crew, beginning with members of the original team:

BOB CAMPBELL
Bob is co-creator and producer of the original series which aired on PBS from 1980-88. He is a former front-row kid, a lifetime film buff, and recognized as a leading authority in classic American movie history and content. In addition to the Matinee series, Bob created and c0-produced an anthology film series called The Uncle Sam Movie Collection. Producing credits include a Disney series called The Fabulous Fleischer Folio, among many others. Bob grew up in southern California and has lived in southern Oregon since 1977.

SAM HARRISON
Sam directed seasons 4 and 5 of the original Matinee series, and returns to helm the sequel. He's a graduate of UCLA’s Theatre Arts Film School, with over 30 years experience directing, producing and writing over 200 film and video productions. Having enjoyed directing the likes of Ned Beatty, Rip Torn, Aldo Ray and James Mason, Sam is looking forward to the opportunity of working with our talented host, Debbie Reynolds. Sam and his wife Jeanne reside in Carmel, California.

RICH MENDOZA
Rich created “At the Bijou” the theme song for the original Matinee at the Bijou, and is currently composing a new theme song to be performed by Ms. Reynolds. Rich left Grey Advertising Worldwide in 1999, after serving 20 years as VP/Associate Music Director, to launch his own music production company, Amazing Tunes. In addition to writing and singing on hundreds of jingles, he’s very active in childrens’ television. Among the shows he’s written for are Schoolhouse Rock (ABC), The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss (Nickelodeon), The Book of Pooh, PB&J Otter and JoJo’s Circus (Disney). His work in advertising and tv have given him the opportunity to work with the likes of Johnny Cash, The Muppets, John Malkovich and Mike Nichols. (You can read Rich’s reminiscences of working with Rudy Vallee in an earlier post.) In addition to his maestro role, Rich is an executive producer on the series this time around and manages The Bijou Blog.

MARK DuMOND
Mark is president of The Chudwig Group, Inc., which owns Matinee at the Bijou. He, along with Bob and Peter Bedell, are producers on the sequel series. Mark is an Emmy award winning producer, director and writer, and was a director and producer of The Uncle Sam Movie Collection series. He recently completed a 20 year career as general manager of what is now known as Pilot Rock Productions, one of the Pacific Northwest’s premier media production facilities. Mark recently launched Media Du Monde, Inc., a media production company based in the Seattle area. He and his wife Sheri live in Renton, Washington.

TOM WINMILL
Tom is a Chudwig Group principal and an executive producer of the sequel series. He is a successful marketing executive, and a producer of The Uncle Sam Movie Collection series. Tom is the sales and marketing director for COBI Digital HD. He and wife Debbie are longtime residents of Ashland, Oregon

RON HALL, GREG LUCE, CONRAD SPROUT
Founder-owners respectively of Festival Films, Sinister Cinema and Hollywood Select Video, each is an executive producer of Matinee at the Bijou and brings to the series a lifetime of knowledge and experience in locating and acquiring rare cinematic treasures - many of which will be showcased on upcoming episodes. Ron was profiled in an earlier entry, and we will have much more to say about Greg and Conrad in future posts.

PETER BEDELL
Pete is a multi-talented editor and video artist, with decades of multi-media experience. In 1995, the Matinee series underwent an extensive makeover for a domestic re-release and international distribution. Pete produced a new opening sequence and edited the re-release versions. Currently he operates a Discreet “Smoke” High Definition post production suite at Medford’s COBI Digital HD, where much of the production of the sequel series will take place.

LARRY ADDINGTON
Larry art directs the print and online presence of Matinee at the Bijou, and often weighs in on other creative and biz aspects of the show. He’s a supremely talented artist, designer, architect and musician and runs his own venerable artistic design business called 20/20 Design, based in Ashland, Oregon.