A fascinating conversation between British director Michael MacOwan and his friend, the incomparable actor, director, composer, and playwright Noel Coward, circa 1965:
As it happens, the other night I came across a 1956 live television production of Coward's classic celestial fantasy, Blithe Spirit, starring Coward himself, Claudette Colbert, Lauren Bacall, Mildred Natwick (who played Madame Arcati in the first Broadway production, 1941), and Marion Ross (of later Happy Days fame) as the frenetic maid. Unlike the luscious 1945 Technicolor version starring Rex Harrison, this one is in black and white, but a real treat for drama queens lovers, anyway.
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5 comments:
I ought to watch the whole video before commenting - what a terrific interview. Remarkable. And my previous comment - I saw Blithe Spirit in London many years ago, but I can't recall the actors... Oh to have seen Mildred Natwick!
Mildred is wonderful; so is Margaret Rutherford giving a very different performance in the 1945 film. I saw the play done at university ages ago with a young but very talented cast, and loved it.
What a joy to hear two people speaking the Queen’s English.
You mean MacOwan and Coward? Oh yes indeed - delightful, isn't it?
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