Classic movie site with rare images, original ads, and behind-the-scenes photos, with informative and insightful commentary. We like to have fun with movies!
Archive and Links
grbrpix@aol.com
Search Index Here




Monday, October 14, 2013

Here's Where You Realize How Long Ago 1963 Was ...


Doris Day Trades R. Hudson For J. Garner in The Thrill Of It All

Better home and appliances as background to dated domestic comedy, producer Ross Hunter replacing 50's floral arrangment for 60's bathroom tile and electric ranges to die-for. Doris Day/James Garner show how an upper- middle couple got by in days when having a live-in maid was still conceivable (is that done anywhere anymore?). The plot matters less than accessories: Doris is a housewife who becomes a TV advertising sensation (for soap). What's interesting is her doing it on color television, that emphasized throughout Thrill via tie-in Zenith sets, a crisp/clear picture for once replacing lousy reception we usually see when movies depict home viewing. TV was near enough swallowing Hollywood to demand positive imagery for its hardware, and I can envision much patronage crossing streets from first-run The Thrill Of It All to first purchase of a color tube. Like Doris Day's previous Lover Come Back, Thrill celebrates advertising and big money it generates. For doing weekly ads, the Doris character gets $1500, her yearly $78,000 a neat emasculation of Dr. Garner, who must bring her to wifely heel by pretend-cheating with less ambitious partners, this an aspect moderns may find odious. Best to view Thrill through prism of luxury as defined by a gone Madison Avenue, Retroplex's HD broadcast like magazine ads from 1963 brought to colorful life.

5 Comments:

Blogger Mike Cline said...

First saw THRILL at Myrtle Beach in summer of 1963. Then saw it again when it came to the old home town. I still enjoy it. Edward Andrews and Reginald Owen are quite enjoyable. Zasu Pitts had to be replaced half-way through shooting via a fast re-write. She died shortly afterwards.

And I can't stand the security code hoops we must jump through to post a comment. Know you the host can't control that, but it's worse than taking shoes off at the airport.
Will I be lucky and slip through on the first attempt?

1:00 PM  
Blogger John McElwee said...

Were it not for that security code, Greenbriar would be deluged with spam comments filled with links to product and services of all sorts.

It's pretty much a no-win situation, but as you say, there's nothing the host can do about it.

1:13 PM  
Blogger Dave K said...

Just today, TRAILERS FROM HELL features the trailer for THRILL OF IT ALL. The feature I've seen many times (am always a sucker for any old pic hooked onto advertising and/or agencies) but I had never seen the slightly offbeat trailer before. Then again, the sixties were the golden years for offbeat coming attractions.

1:50 PM  
Blogger antoniod said...

The bit about Day and Garner's children being able to predict the stories of the TV dramas that Day was doing commercials on was taken from Reiner's own experience.

1:40 PM  
Blogger Jeff said...

Garner and Day are great, but this one has that extremely weird pre-credits sequence where Arlene Francis triumphantly announces she's pregnant. Not what one expects from the movie's poster. And Arlene, though charming, is at this point 56. A youthful 56--but still. Extremely weird.

8:58 PM  

Post a Comment

<< Home

grbrpix@aol.com
  • December 2005
  • January 2006
  • February 2006
  • March 2006
  • April 2006
  • May 2006
  • June 2006
  • July 2006
  • August 2006
  • September 2006
  • October 2006
  • November 2006
  • December 2006
  • January 2007
  • February 2007
  • March 2007
  • April 2007
  • May 2007
  • June 2007
  • July 2007
  • August 2007
  • September 2007
  • October 2007
  • November 2007
  • December 2007
  • January 2008
  • February 2008
  • March 2008
  • April 2008
  • May 2008
  • June 2008
  • July 2008
  • August 2008
  • September 2008
  • October 2008
  • November 2008
  • December 2008
  • January 2009
  • February 2009
  • March 2009
  • April 2009
  • May 2009
  • June 2009
  • July 2009
  • August 2009
  • September 2009
  • October 2009
  • November 2009
  • December 2009
  • January 2010
  • February 2010
  • March 2010
  • April 2010
  • May 2010
  • June 2010
  • July 2010
  • August 2010
  • September 2010
  • October 2010
  • November 2010
  • December 2010
  • January 2011
  • February 2011
  • March 2011
  • April 2011
  • May 2011
  • June 2011
  • July 2011
  • August 2011
  • September 2011
  • October 2011
  • November 2011
  • December 2011
  • January 2012
  • February 2012
  • March 2012
  • April 2012
  • May 2012
  • June 2012
  • July 2012
  • August 2012
  • September 2012
  • October 2012
  • November 2012
  • December 2012
  • January 2013
  • February 2013
  • March 2013
  • April 2013
  • May 2013
  • June 2013
  • July 2013
  • August 2013
  • September 2013
  • October 2013
  • November 2013
  • December 2013
  • January 2014
  • February 2014
  • March 2014
  • April 2014
  • May 2014
  • June 2014
  • July 2014
  • August 2014
  • September 2014
  • October 2014
  • November 2014
  • December 2014
  • January 2015
  • February 2015
  • March 2015
  • April 2015
  • May 2015
  • June 2015
  • July 2015
  • August 2015
  • September 2015
  • October 2015
  • November 2015
  • December 2015
  • January 2016
  • February 2016
  • March 2016
  • April 2016
  • May 2016
  • June 2016
  • July 2016
  • August 2016
  • September 2016
  • October 2016
  • November 2016
  • December 2016
  • January 2017
  • February 2017
  • March 2017
  • April 2017
  • May 2017
  • June 2017
  • July 2017
  • August 2017
  • September 2017
  • October 2017
  • November 2017
  • December 2017
  • January 2018
  • February 2018
  • March 2018
  • April 2018
  • May 2018
  • June 2018
  • July 2018
  • August 2018
  • September 2018
  • October 2018
  • November 2018
  • December 2018
  • January 2019
  • February 2019
  • March 2019
  • April 2019
  • May 2019
  • June 2019
  • July 2019
  • August 2019
  • September 2019
  • October 2019
  • November 2019
  • December 2019
  • January 2020
  • February 2020
  • March 2020
  • April 2020
  • May 2020
  • June 2020
  • July 2020
  • August 2020
  • September 2020
  • October 2020
  • November 2020
  • December 2020
  • January 2021
  • February 2021
  • March 2021
  • April 2021
  • May 2021
  • June 2021
  • July 2021
  • August 2021
  • September 2021
  • October 2021
  • November 2021
  • December 2021
  • January 2022
  • February 2022
  • March 2022
  • April 2022
  • May 2022
  • June 2022
  • July 2022
  • August 2022
  • September 2022
  • October 2022
  • November 2022
  • December 2022
  • January 2023
  • February 2023
  • March 2023
  • April 2023
  • May 2023
  • June 2023
  • July 2023
  • August 2023
  • September 2023
  • October 2023
  • November 2023
  • December 2023
  • January 2024
  • February 2024
  • March 2024
  • April 2024
  • May 2024
  • June 2024
  • July 2024
  • August 2024
  • September 2024
  • October 2024