Movie myths busted.

[Svengoolie 3]

Cleopatra 1963.

Myth: the movie was such a bomb it early killed 20th century fox and forced it to sell some of its property to survive.

Fact: Cleopatra was the highest grossing movie on the year.  

Fox was selling its  excess property 3 years before it was made due to the skyrocketing real estate value in the area. Twentieth Century Fox purchased a large property in the hinterlands near Beverly Hills in 1926. By the 1950s, studio chief Spyros Skouras realized the city had grown around the land and that a fortune could be made selling off 280 acres for development. Sales began in 1957, three years before the movie was  made.

The movie broke even in the early 70's at which point fox  ceased to record profits for it to screw people  who had contracted for a share of he profits out of money they were  owed.  Its actual profits are not  known.

Fox did cancel a couple of movies including one starring marylin Monroe due to the financial losses Cleopatra initially suffered.  Cleopatra seems to have become a universal scapegoat as Monroe's later suicide was blamed on it by some.

One side note: roddy McDowell would likely have won an oscar for his role as octavian,  unfortunately a clerical error on the studios part made him ineligible for the nomination.

[RCMerchant]

Nobody ever said "He'll be back." or "C'mon Bela, quit putting us on" at Lugosi's funeral.

[Pacman000]

A stunt man was not run over & killed filming the chariot race in Ben Hur (1959); the shot of a man being run over was done with a spring-loaded dummy.

[Trevor]

Charlize Theron was not the first SA person to win an Oscar.

[RCMerchant]

Charlize Theron was not the first SA person to win an Oscar.

Who was? I looked-I can't find it? Perhaps a cinematographer?
You got me!
Oh yeah MONSTER is a fantastic film.
A modern classic, and I don't say that about a lot of movies.

[Svengoolie 3]

Nobody ever said "He'll be back." or "C'mon Bela, quit putting us on" at Lugosi's funeral.

But he was buried in his cape, right?

[Trevor]

Charlize Theron was not the first SA person to win an Oscar.

Who was? I looked-I can't find it? Perhaps a cinematographer?
You got me!
Oh yeah MONSTER is a fantastic film.
A modern classic, and I don't say that about a lot of movies.

Virtual karma: he was a cinematographer. 

Ted Moore BSC (1914 - 1987) who won for A Man For All Seasons.

[Svengoolie 3]

Popular silent movie star Roscoe Arbuckle, known by the hateful nickname "fatty", was believed to have raped and murdered a young actress and used a bottle (coke or champagne) on her and between the bottle and his weight he inflicted fatal internal injuries on her that she died of.

The aspiring actress, named virginia rappe, actually died of a combination of peritonitis, alcohol, venereal disease and a botched abortion. The story of her being raped by Arbuckle, a married man, was made up by her agent and friends to avoid  a scandal. At the time the concept of abortion was so horrific to the social moores of the day many news services would not mention or describe it at all. Arbuckle was arrested, charged and tried 3 times, 2 mistrials and a final conviction.

The public, having not bee told the offensively shocking and unacceptable truth about the victim by a media more concerned with not offending the public that the truth, still considered him guilty. His career and life were destroyed.

The myth that Arbuckle "beat the rap" were completely false, tho it did him no good. In later years people came forward with the truth, piece by piece, exonerating him posthumously.

[Rev. Powell]

Popular silent movie star Roscoe Arbuckle, known by the hateful nickname "fatty", was believed to have raped and murdered a young actress and used a bottle (coke or champagne) on her and between the bottle and his weight he inflicted fatal internal injuries on her that she died of.

The aspiring actress, named virginia rappe, actually died of a combination of peritonitis, alcohol, venereal disease and a botched abortion. The story of her being raped by Arbuckle, a married man, was made up by her agent and friends to avoid  a scandal. At the time the concept of abortion was so horrific to the social moores of the day many news services would not mention or describe it at all. Arbuckle was arrested, charged and tried 3 times, 2 mistrials and a final conviction.

The public, having not bee told the offensively shocking and unacceptable truth about the victim by a media more concerned with not offending the public that the truth, still considered him guilty. His career and life were destroyed.

The myth that Arbuckle "beat the rap" were completely false, tho it did him no good. In later years people came forward with the truth, piece by piece, exonerating him posthumously.

We'll never know the entire truth about the Arbuckle-Rappe case, but there was no firm evidence of rape. Most of the evidence that led police to arrest Arbuckle seems to be circumstantial speculation coming from Maude Delmont, who never testified to her story under oath. The defense brought up Rappe's alleged abortions, but those were really just rumors: it's not like hospitals were keeping records of illegal abortions in the 1920s. I think all we know for sure is that Rappe died of a ruptured bladder after a Hollywood drinking party, and someone tried to pin it on Arbuckle. It's not even 100% clear why Arbuckle would be the "fall guy," but the public at the time was convinced that Hollywood actors were a bunch of degenerates (probably not too far off) and the gossip rags loved the lurid story.

[Svengoolie 3]

Rev, trust me. Fat people are very easy scapegoates, there is a lot ofhate and bigotry against them. Arbuckle was playing a steppin fetchit type character the audience lovesd to see portrayed as an object to laugh at. As soon as rubber meets the road, the hate comes out. I know.

[RCMerchant]

Nobody ever said "He'll be back." or "C'mon Bela, quit putting us on" at Lugosi's funeral.

But he was buried in his cape, right?

Not only in his cape, but the whole costume.

[Svengoolie 3]

Nobody ever said "He'll be back." or "C'mon Bela, quit putting us on" at Lugosi's funeral.

But he was buried in his cape, right?

Not only in his cape, but the whole costume.

I've heard that tom baker might want to be buried in his dr. who scarf.

[RCMerchant]

Nobody ever said "He'll be back." or "C'mon Bela, quit putting us on" at Lugosi's funeral.

But he was buried in his cape, right?

Not only in his cape, but the whole costume.

I've heard that tom baker might want to be buried in his dr. who scarf.

I have a Dracula cape. I wanna be buried in it.

[RCMerchant]

Lugosi was NOT a herion addict for 35 years. He was a moriphine addict for about 5 years. He drank more than he did anything. Scotch or wine. The only reason he became infamous as a drug addict because he was the first movie star to come out publicly and entered rehab. Which I thought was a brave thing to do.

Also- the film Ed Wood shows Lugosi swearing like a sailor. Lugosi never used profanity in public.

[Allhallowsday]

Nobody ever said "He'll be back." or "C'mon Bela, quit putting us on" at Lugosi's funeral.

But he was buried in his cape, right?

Not only in his cape, but the whole costume.

I've heard that tom baker might want to be buried in his dr. who scarf.

I have a Dracula cape. I wanna be buried in it.

I have a Dracula cape too !      Mine has a hole in it.. I lent it out...