Lauren Bacall at 19 years old in To Have and Have Not (1944)

via The Sleepy Peach

A couple weeks ago I watched 1944's To Have and Have Not, 19 year old Lauren Bacall in her movie debut.  I knew the whole time that she was 19, but I kept forgetting. She just doesn't act or look like any 19 year old I ever saw.

via Dr. Macro

via DamesMercury

Can you imagine playing opposite Humphrey Bogart at 19? Bogart had just starred in Casablanca, a film nominated for eight Oscars. It won three of them, including best picture. I think playing opposite Bogart in your very first picture at 19 years old must have been intimidating, but you'd never know that by watching Bacall. She is fantastic, she plays her role like a mature and seasoned actress.

Here are my favorite scenes in To Have and Have Not (Hoagy Carmichael is the piano player in both scenes, I adore him).

I often complain because people assume I am 19 and not 25 years old (when I tell people that I just graduated I have clarify that it was from a university or they assume it was high school). Next time someone mistakes my age for 19, I will assume they were thinking of 19 year old Lauren Bacall as she dances out of that final scene in To Have and Have Not.

via Fanpop

Frank Sinatra's Strangers in the Night from 1966

via cdandlp.com

So earlier in the month I thought I might die when I realized this album wasn't on my shelf and I didn't know where it was. It's my favorite Sinatra album. Very favorite. I spent several days racking my brain trying to figure out where I could be. Since I don't normally loan out my vinyl (I'm not stingy, no one ever asks), I had forgotten that I had loaned some of my favorite albums (including this one, Ella Fitzgerald sing Gershwin, two of my favorite Dean Martin albums and a few others) to my brother in law. I'm so glad I remembered. I was really sad when I thought I'd lost this one.

Anyway the album is fantastic. Here is the track list:

1. Strangers in the Night
2. Summer Wind
3. All or Nothing at All
4. Call Me
5. You're Driving Me Crazy!
6. On a Clear Day (You Can See Forever)
7. My Baby Just Cares for Me
8. Downtown
9. Yes Sir, That's My Baby
10. The Most Beautiful Girl in the World

My favorites out of the favorites are "Strangers in the Night", "Summer Wind", "Call Me", "On a Clear Day", "Downtown" and "Yes Sir, That's My Baby."

Give it a listen:



Which are your favorites? 

Zipper Trouble + Ella Fitzgerald

So yesterday I was getting dressed for church and my zipper didn't go up easily so I zipped it down and up a couple times just to wiggle it up (you know what I'm talking about right?). Well the sound the zipper made while going up and down sounded like the beginning of an Ella Fitzgerald song.
The song is Crying My Heart Out for You and I had it in my head all day. It was lovely.

 

via 100 Best

Doesn't she sound so young here? I love it. 

By the Time I Get to Phoenix

Another song that is on Frank Sinatra's Cycles that I didn't know Frank sang is By the Time I Get to Phoenix. Guess what? It's also on Dean Martin's Gentle on My Mind. I actually really like both versions. I'm having a hard time deciding which one I like best.

What do you think?

Frank's version:

 

via The Frank Sinatra

Dean's version:

via Amazon

Here is the problem: I listen to Frank's and think "I love this. This is the better one." But then I listen to Dean's and I think "Wait. No, this is definitely better." Pretty much I just go back and forth like that.

So chime in, which is better? Or are you like me? 

Gentle on My Mind

So today I decided to listen to one of my Frank Sinatra albums that I've never listen to before (I probably haven't listening to 80% of the vinyl albums I own. Don't judge me.) It is called Cycles and it's really good. The most interesting song on there was Gentle on My Mind. I had no idea that Frank had ever done that song. I also have an album of Dean Martin's called Gentle on My Mind. It's one of my favorite albums (there is something about Martin doing country...).

Here is Frank's version:  

 

via The Frank Sinatra

Here is Dean's version:

via Amazon

Which one do you like better? 

I like Dean's better.

Are there versions of Gentle on My Mind that you like better than Frank and Dean's?