sixties

LUNA LANDING

See below for a wonderful tribute to Film Fatale BarBara Luna one of the most versatile and busiest TV actresses of the 60s/70s. Included are clips from her memorable turns on The Wild Wild West, Mission: Impossible, Star Trek, and The Man from U.N.C.L.E. Below are some of Luna’s remarks about working on some of these TV shows:

The Wild Wild West
“Bob Conrad was adorable—very macho and very cute. We laughed a lot. I was married to Doug McClure at the time. I think because we were all buddies it made a big difference. In fact, he used to date Doug’s first wife who is one of my closest friends. I really liked Ross Martin too. He was a very caring human being. When he said, ‘Good morning. How are you?’ You knew he really meant it.”

Mission: Impossible
“I was personally disappointed in the episode because it was too much of me. But most of my scenes were with Martin Landau [Rollin Hand] who I loved working with. He is so funny—he’s Mel Brooks. I am friendly with him to this day and I tell him that all of the time.”

AND THE WINNER IS…MARLYN MASON!

A big congratulations to Drive-in Dream Girl Marlyn Mason who copped the grand prize for Best Screenplay at the Rhode Island International Film Festival for Model Rules last week. It brings a tear to my eye when one of my Sixties gals is recognized for their talent.

Click here to visit the festival’s web site.

MORE MARIANNA PLEASE!

My friend Shaun is always forwarding me interesting starlet-related news, web sites, and video clips. One of his favorite actresses is the multi-faceted Marianna Hill, profiled in my book Glamour Girls of Sixties Hollywood.

A flaxen-haired beauty who was a natural with dialects and made a career playing various ethnic types as a blonde, brunette or redhead, Marianna was one of the busiest and most versatile actresses to rise from minor decorative roles (New Interns, Roustabout) to second leads (a French tease in the racecar drama Redline 7000, an island cutie in business with Elvis in Paradise, Hawaiian Style) during the Sixties while guest starring on numerous TV shows.

Throughout the Seventies, Marianna played lead roles in a number of cult movies including exciting violent western El Condor (1970) as the often undressed mistress of General Patrick O’Neal; the bizarro The Baby (1973) as a wild-haired member of a wacko family of women who keep their adult brother in diapers and treat him as an infant; and the Clint Eastwood-directed western High Plains Drifter (1973) as a feisty town belle. Her chance for real stardom came when cast as Fredo’s volatile wife in The Godfather, Part II. However, Francis Coppolla cut most of her big scenes. Click below to see that we should have seen much more of Marianna in the movie and much less of the dull Talia Shire.

TALKING ABOUT TINA

There is more to Tina Louise than Gilligan’s Island and most fans forget that she was a real movie star before being stranded on that island sitcom. After achieving success as Appassionata Von Climax in the hit Broadway musical Li’l Abner, luschious redhead Tina went Hollywood and received more kudos for her film debut as the sexy farm nymph Griselda in God’s Little Acre (1958) even sharing a Golden Globe Award for Most Prmising Newcomer – Female.

She was one of the hottest actresses of the time and decided to go the dramatic route opting for three not-so-memorable films with Robert Taylor, Robert Ryan and Richard Widmark while turning down two of the biggest box office hits of 1959. She passed on reprising her role in the movie version of Li’l Abner (Stella Stevens stepped in to fill the cleavage and won a Golden Globe) and said no to being Cary Grant’s leading lady in the comedy Operation Petticoat (1959) because of the “boob jokes.” What were you thinking Tina!?! Fantasy Femme Joan O’Brien took her place as the busty nurse, the screenplay (boob jokes and all) received an Academy Award nomination, and the movie was one of the five highest grossing films of the year.

Thinking she could get better roles in Europe, headstrong Tina fled to Rome. Though she did a cameo in the great Roberto Rossellini’s film Viva l’Italia!, her starring roles were in cheapy peplum movies such as The Warrior Empress and Siege of Syracuse. However, Tina always rose above her material. Checkout the below to watch a tantalizing Tina get a rise out of toga-clad Rossanno Brazzi.