Golden Age of Hollywood Book Club discussion
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quaint customs
message 251:
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Spencer
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Feb 12, 2022 09:31AM
Cross my heart and hope to die, it's just a guess...but I think they're probably still a thing in the prostitute and fetish communities.
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You are probably right, Spencer. For some unknown reason, they were considered sexy but they are just downright ugly.
I have been trying to remember what men in early film wore when they were casual. In modern times, we have khakis, jeans, corduroy, etc slacks but it seems that men in early film just came home, took off their suit coats, removed their ties, and that was it. What am I missing?
There were quite often the "tennis outfits,"men in white sweaters and slacks, stripped coats. There were also the short pants and sweater look. Women wore kinda the sack dress/flapper-like gown
I was aware of the "tennis" outfits but those were usually reserved for the "upper class". I was just thinking more about the usual casual clothes that men wore.
When did house coats start and stop as a fad? I remember my paternal grandmother used to wear them around the house all the time.
They were specially popular on television shows with older women in the 50s. Landladies in movies and on TV seemed to love them.
Along with house coats, there were house dresses. Really ugly.
How about cleaning house in a dress and high heels. I call it the "June Cleaver" syndrome. It was more of a 1950s thing.And when was the last time you saw a man in a bowler hat? They are so ugly and I can't think of one actor who looked good in one.
The housecoats and Robes on the bed, and everyone grabs one when they have to get up from sleeping. I mean, how does it stay on the bed, perfectly laid out, all night? I mean I'd have kicked that thing across the room while sleeping. The covers also always look hardly rumpled while they're sleeping. My bed covers looks like I was spinning circles.
And all the women with attractive negligees. No plain old flannel night gowns with disreputable robes.My bed looks like a war zone when I get up, and I rarely make my bed, but they're always neat in the movies.
It doesn't matter if someone is screaming for help, the person in bed always puts on a robe and slippers before they go to help. I would hate to depend on them in an emergency!!
I know...I'm always amazed when the burglar or murderer breaks-in, the victim always makes sure they are properly attired in the right bedclothes before they are attacked! Gawd forbid the police find your body without a robe on!
I suppose the nightgowns were made more for style than comfort, but they were quite beautiful. Of course it helps to have a waifish figure to show them off!
I agree, Tara. Some of those nightgowns could be worn to a dance. Do they still make them?And there were also high-heeled slippers. I thought bedroom slippers were supposed to be comfy and those couldn't have been.
I've probably mentioned it before, but the ascot and the smoking jacket. Pepe LePew sported that look well.
We did mentioned that earlier, Spencer, but is worth repeating.I don't know if you would call this a quaint custom but it was always repeated in early films. A woman in high heels is being chased by the bad guy and never once does she take off those shoes. Ever try to run in high heels? Take off those shoes, ladies, and you will find that you can run a lot faster!!
Or, they break off the heel and have to take them off to run. Oh, and one that really bugs me is that whenever a man and a woman run together, she inevitably falls down (even if she has flats on), and he has to help her to save themselves.
There's nothing better to boost a male ego than a damsel in distress... ;) Talking about the saviour complex here
Yeah, gotta give the male ego a pat. And then of course, she needs to scream along with it. I wonder whether they test women for their screams in monster/horror pictures? 🤐
I remember watching the movie "Scream" in the theater and there's a scene where the murderer corners a woman in the garage. She has all these tools and saws at her disposal to fight this person off, but NO she tries to crawl through the cat door. Well, that wasn't successful.
She'd have to be small to get through a cat door or a contortionist!
The running woman syndrome........women carried those big purses in those films, not shoulder bags. The purse seems to disappear while they are escaping but when they get away ((and they always do) the purse reappears. How does that happen? I love continuity errors.And screaming.....do people really scream at the drop of a hat? Like Betsy, I wonder if they have screaming "doubles" since all screams in films are high pitched and piercing. Not everyone sounds like that when they scream, if we scream at all.
Scream is kind of a parody, right? So it's probably supposed to be funny. Still haven't seen the film. I think I'd enjoy it if I was in the right mood.
Spencer, I remember hearing it was a parody and I feel it was marketed as such, so my boyfriend at the time was shocked I wanted to go see it. He didn't mind horror movies, and knowing that I can't watch them (I have horrible nightmares), he kept trying to convince me not to go. Well, I said it was going to be fine because it was a parody. I was wrong, it is gory and scary, and has guts hanging out of people. While I was covering my eyes and freaked out he kept asking if I wanted to leave, but I was not about to admit I was wrong and he was right! HA.Needless to say, I missed the parody part! It was just a regular HORROR film with the usual tropes in it!
Scream (1996) was presented as a parody(I guess) but I can understand your reaction, Laura........gory, bloody, nasty. I thought it was just a slasher film and one that made you hide under the seat. I saw it once and that was enough for me!
Another action that was present in older films.......a woman is upset, crying, hysterical and is offered a glass of water! How does a glass of water make one calm down? She should be offered a shot of whiskey instead!
Brandy was sometimes offered to hysterical (?!) women, but alcohol was some miracle cure-all for men. Especially gunfighters and detectives.
Continuity errors are most evident in scenes with cigarettes or burning candles. They yo-yo back and forth from long to short. Fun to watch.I'm still amazed at scenes that were filmed weeks or even months apart from one angle to another but manage to look seamless.
I love continuity errors. We talked about these a couple of pages ago. They are so obvious that it sometimes surprises me that they aren't addressed in the final cut of the film.
I suppose its like typos or grammatical errors in print. It seems obvious to fresh eyes, but if you've seen it dozens of times, its harder to spot.
One of the funniest continuity errors I have "scene" recently, was in a Dutch tv show called, "The Coroner." It's a really intense moment in the show, and you can see the 2nd cameraman and (perhaps) director over the shoulder of the M.C. I mean it's SUPER obvious! I paused it and took a picture with my phone, because it was such a BAD error. BTW it's a great series.
That's a dandy,Laura! Since I assume that the show is not filmed live, I wonder why they didn't do a second take. But I often wonder that about big continuity errors in film.
Women with handkerchiefs. Every one had either a hankie in their hand or in their purse. Does anybody do that anymore.......who wants to use a piece of cloth with dried nose residue on it? Men are another story.
I should start carrying them for when I run into ladies under emotional duress.
(Snort laugh, Spencer)
We talked at one point about people never eating or barely eating their food in a scene where a meal is taking place. But another thing which also happens in older film is....never finishing a drink. Someone buys the character a drink in a restaurant/bar and s/he might take one sip but never more. And usually just leaves it. If I were the person that bought it, I would not be particularly pleased.
That's very true. Then there are the boozers who practically gulp it down. Of course booze was cheaper then and they didn't really use booze.
Yeah! if I spent $13 to $25 on a fancy cocktail, just to not finish it! Grrrr... let alone all the beers/wine not finished.Maybe that's why the cowboys always did shots...they knew they wouldn't get to finish their drink before dying.
This reminds me of hip flasks. Those used to be quite the thing but does anybody use them anymore?
Actually, I have a couple (They were prizes for hotel scavenger hunts). I have used one once when I went to an outdoor concert.....I bought a pop there and made my own cocktails! Too cheap for a watered-down expensive drink!I also use them in a couple of shows. I told the props folks not to buy one, I already had one. Mine aren't really the squared rounded to fit your hip (Truly, a hip flask). Mine are small maybe 2-3 inch in diameter, silver circle flask.
Somebody, besides Laura, must use hip flasks because you see some fancy ones sold.
I also have a hip flask. Not that I use it a lot, but it makes me feel I'm old school in the nicest possible way.
Hahahaha, technically I only have a flask, but I did use it once. It's not a regular thing.
We are all rather quaint, aren't we???
Big ball parks and colosseums for big rock shows and sporting events are crazy about allowing only see-through bags, etc. and will search anybody. Harder to get away with hip flasks these days, though there's always smaller music venues, which I prefer, anyway. But I feel guilty for bringing outside alcohol to a place I really like.
People have some innovative ways to get liquor into those events!!
I own a few flasks, which were all gifts since I'm known for mixing up cocktails and sipping aperitifs. I think I've only used them a handful of times, although I plan on bringing one to a weekend trip with my SIL just to maintain my sanity!
That sounds like a good idea, Tara. Sometimes the 'nearest and dearest' can be the most trying. That has been the theme of movies for years.
Remember leisure suits??? They were hideous and made of that fake material in strange colors. I used to work with a doctor who wore them with a tie!!! One of the ugly old styles that I hope never becomes stylish again.
Golden Age of Hollywood Book Club
Books mentioned in this topic
The Hat on the Bed (other topics)The Gentleman's Book of Etiquette and Manual of Politeness (other topics)
The Book of the Courtier (other topics)
