Hollywood Without Make-Up (1963)

To me, this movie is perfection.

Really Surprised!

Tells a fascinating and unsettling true story, and does so well, without pretending to have all the answers.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

IN KREEPING WITH the self-importance and self-congratulatory attitudes that are Hollywood, we have this cinematic smorgasbord of Ken Murray's "home" movies all strung together and interspersed with clips from (then) current productions, musical accompaniment and some rather maudlin narration.IT'S NOT THAT we intend to ridicule either Mr. Murray or the general mood of this film, it just that it seems just a tad too l-o-n-g-e-r than it should be. Perhaps breaking this concept down to episodes would avoid any chance of overdose.ON THE POSITIVE side of the ledger, Ken Murray manages to give the audience a different, if not truly candid, view of so many of our screen idols. The informal settings do give the films an unusual overall appearance, sometimes almost surreal.BOTH UNUSUAL AS well as unexpected was the time devoted to both newspaper publisher and Yellow Journalist, William Randolph Hearst and his self-created modern palace, San Simeon. Long both revered and feared by the denizens of Hollywood, Hearst left this world August 14, 1951. Apparently those folks in the movie colony feared that he still could make 'em or break 'em, even from the Next World.

Great fun for old movie fans. Seeing all those familiar names from the 30's and 40's at leisure, sometimes frolicking, sometimes mugging, is revealing. Murray's got an easy way about him that probably helped access. After all, clowning around can undercut screen image-- Cary Grant, Kirk Douglas, Irene Dunn, et.al. And get a load of the fabled San Simeon, William Randolph Hearst's palatial little get-away. Looks like a castle on a mountain top where his Hollywood friends luxuriated as guests. No wonder they appear happy and relaxed. Some of my favorites also appear—Bogart looking like Bogart, Mae West looking like Mae West, and Cary Grant acting like a torpedo fish. And furnishing a lot of eye candy, even minus studio make-up, are starlets like Jeanne Crain, Linda Darnell, Donna Reed, et. al. True, you do have to look quickly as some celebrities flash by. Also, the subjects and sites succeed one another in no particular order. But then this is supposed to be a "home movie", so I guess we have to recognize the value of the spontaneous. All in all, if you're like me, you tend to forget these screen stars are talented people but basically like everyone else. It's happily this kind of home movie that can furnish an entertaining reminder. So sit back and enjoy real folks behind the big names, along with Ken's relaxed commentary.

These are fun Hollywood home movies assembled by Ken Murray. Some of them are fascinating, such as film of stars at the Hearst castle, some are fun, like Kirk Douglas' appearance on television with Murray, and some for this viewer went on too long, such as the cowboy section. The clip of Murray introducing a young Marilyn Monroe is marvelous, however, and ends the film.Murray takes a drive down the old Hollywood Boulevard so we can see it as it was, and it sure has changed. There are clips of Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford, Cary Grant swimming, Charlie Chaplin playing tennis, and an almost unrecognizable Norma Shearer at an outdoor gathering. And Walt Disney takes Murray's daughters on a tour of his magic kingdom.This is worth picking up if you see it on ebay.

Even though it was released in 1950, Ken Murray offers a wonderful perspective on Hollywood. We're all used to the scandalous depictions so easily reported, but finally someone has done what has been truly needed from this wild town. Ken has assembled one-of-a-kind videos of some of Hollywood's elite, portraying fun-loving and even gracious stars in somewhat private settings, intimately revealing their more personal side. Your opinions of the old Hollywood will soften as Ken narrates his experiences with famous stars. Most memorable scenes are with Kirk Douglas and Walt Disney. Most notable and revealing is the presentation of the great mansion, the Hearst Castle. You'll enjoy watching the stuffy upper-crust goof-off in a way we all can relate with. If you can hear me, thank you Ken for sharing all those wonderful memories. Memories I too, now enjoy!