Temple Tuesday: Shirley and Cher

This post is a Shirley sandwich; two Temples wrapped around a Cher filling.

On October 14, 1940 “The Littlest Rebel” was dramatized as an hour-long play for Lux Radio Theater, with Shirley Temple (five years older than when she made the movie), Claude Rains, and Preston Foster. The radio show was performed in front of a weekly studio audience at the Lux Radio Playhouse located at 1615 North Vine Street in Hollywood.



I had vague knowledge that the theatre still existed, but never dug further to find out exactly where it was…until (here comes the Cher filling) I learned it was connected to one of my semi-guilty cinematic pleasures: “Burlesque.” Released in 2010, the film did well at the box office but was panned by critics for being clichéd. I agree that the dialogue doesn’t win any literary awards, but the performances are solid, the set design and cinematography are fantastic, and the musical numbers are off the charts. So there. Give it a break. The exterior location that was used as the Burlesque club that Cher owns in the movie is the (former) CBS Radio Playhouse, now known as the Montalbán Theatre.



The Beaux-Arts building (designed by architects Myron Hunt and H.C. Chambers) opened January 19, 1927 as “Wilkes’ Vine Street Theatre.” In March 1931, the theater was converted to a movie house, titled “Mirror Theatre,” part of a chain run by Howard Hughes and Harold B. Franklin. That company soon fell apart, and by the mid 1930s, the theatre was operating under the name “Studio Theatre.” CBS bought the theatre in 1936 and converted it to a live performance radio auditorium and radio studio for local affiliate KNX, under the name “CBS Radio Playhouse.” CBS’s Lux Radio Theatre moved there from New York that year (which is why some sources give the theatre’s name as Lux Radio Playhouse). This popular anthology show featured radio adaptations of stage plays and film scripts performed by well-known actors in front of a live audience; Cecil B. DeMille was for many years its producer and host. This was when Shirley performed “Rebel” there.



A&P heir and arts patron Huntington Hartford bought the theatre from CBS in 1953 and re-opened it as the “Huntington Hartford Theatre.” Hartford ran the theater successfully for ten years with high-profile productions featuring the biggest stars of the era, but he eventually lost interest in patronizing the arts and sold it to James Doolittle, who renamed it the “Doolittle Theatre.” Doolittle ran the theatre successfully for 20 years, after which it was acquired by UCLA. In 1999, the Ricardo Montalbán Foundation bought the theatre and re-opened it as “Ricardo Montalbán Theatre” in 2004. Which brings us to “Burlesque.”

In the film, Ali (Christina Aguilera) comes to Hollywood with dreams of stardom. After pounding the pavement and failing to get discovered, she stumbles upon something that makes her stop cold.



Just in case you weren’t sure that this is a mystical turning point in the film, there’s plenty of fog to clue you in.



Lo and behold, it’s the Burlesque Lounge.



Little Ali is like Alice in Wonderland; she must check out this rabbit hole!



I combined a few frames from a pan shot in the movie to get this image:



How the same area looks today:



If you’re looking for the location where Cher has a catfight with Kristen Bell in a parking lot (shown below), you’re too late. The parking lot is now a multi-level parking garage.



One more shot of the exterior for you. I parked illegally on a Friday afternoon in Hollywood just to get these photos with my dog barking up a storm as he waited not-so-patiently. The things I do for Temple Tuesdays!



While doing some research for this post, I stumbled upon a fun 10th anniversary article about “Burlesque” on the Entertainment Weekly website. Here are some of the highlights:

STEVEN ANTIN (writer-director): My sister…had a show that she created at the Viper Room [for] the Pussycat Dolls. They were becoming a popular thing, so she decided to do a bigger show at the Roxy.…I wrote a story for her show that loosely weaved together their musical numbers. The show exploded.…I got some cameras and shot the show over a few nights and edited together a little movie. That was the genesis.



AGUILERA: I wanted to make sure Burlesque felt right before confirming, so it was important to meet Steven in person. His warm and genuine nature encouraged me to confirm, along with him interweaving so many pieces of my love for Etta James [into the script], knowing my personal passion for Burlesque [on] my Back to Basics album, and also [with me having] performed in the original Pussycat Dolls stage show at the Roxy.

ANTIN: For the role of Ali, we wanted an actress with a very big voice. Christina was the choice. The role of Tess could’ve gone several ways. At first, I was interested in Queen Latifah or Michelle Pfeiffer. But Clint came up with and loved the idea of Cher. Amy really wanted Cher, and so did Clint. I liked the idea, too. So did Christina. I mean, hello. Cher. Enough said…. Cher was on a soundstage doing a voiceover for “Zookeeper.” Clint heard she was there. We camped outside of the stage and waited for her to exit. When she did, we introduced ourselves.

CLINT CULPEPPER (Screen Gems studio president): Cher called me to say she was on the lot [on a different stage] rehearsing her Vegas act, and to drop by. So, I did. Christina was on the other side of the lot rehearsing. I’d told Cher that Christina loved her so much: “You don’t understand, this chick would drink your bathwater!” Cher started laughing hysterically and said, "Well, I hope that doesn't become necessary!” When we met Cher, Christina was holding her kid on her hip, and we walked over…. Cher [saw us] and went, “Ok, everybody, take five!” It was so cute. Christina stuck her hand out and said “Hi, I'm Christina, the one who would drink your bathwater.” Cher grabbed her and gave her a big hug and a kiss.

AGUILERA: Cher definitely felt like my mama bear during shooting. In my experience of meeting and working with some of the greatest legends, the best ones usually are that way. They look out for you in a real way, and it was an honor to work alongside Cher. She gave me some good advice, shared some personal insight and stories on love, and also encouragement along the way when I needed to hear it! There were a few scenes we shared where I learned from her that being a supportive costar really helps to create something special, and motivating each other is what makes for a great outcome.



CHER: One of my favorite scenes is when I was helping Christina with her makeup. It was all very spontaneous. It reminded me of when I was a young girl and my mom and all her friends would put on makeup together.



Back to Shirley. What did she do after her 1940 “Littlest Rebel” radio performance? Celebrate at the Brown Derby with a milkshake!

See more Hollywood photos at my main website.

Christmas with Pee-Wee!

Lately, Pee-Wee Herman has been calling my name. I pulled out my blu-ray collection to watch “Pee-Wee’s Playhouse Christmas Special” and ended up viewing every episode in the series. They really hit the spot. If you’ve never seen Pee-Wee’s Christmas Special, it is the wackiest, most creative, and eye-popping holiday show you will ever see. Go ahead…disagree…and then please go away. This special episode of the Playhouse series debuted on December 21, 1988. After a leisurely camera pan around the exterior of the Playhouse itself, Pee-Wee leaps onto the screen with two Supremes-inspired backup singers (the one on the left is Niki Harris, backup dancer/vocalist from Madonna’s “Truth or Dare”) belting out his retro Christmas theme, “Pee-Wee’s Christmas.”



Paul Reubens (Pee-Wee) sent out a ton-o-letters to various celebrities to see if they’d want to be on his show. What he got was the kookiest assortment of up-and-comers and classic icons, like Annette Funicello, who is just as adorable as you would expect. 



The U.S. Marine Corps Choir serve as the backup dancers in the opening number. Well, actually, it’s the UCLA Men’s Choir filling in, as the Marine Corps were already booked.


“Playhouse” favorite Miss Yvonne (Lynne Stewart) appears, wearing an appropriately mile-high bedazzled Christmas hairdo and festive outfit. Stewart recalled that the original wig had lights on it, but the mechanism hidden under her dress began to spark and sizzle. That was the end of the lights...and almost the end of Stewart! Here she is bestowing the first of many Christmas fruitcakes upon Pee-Wee. The punchline of this running gag is not to be missed.



The tradition of Conky 2000 spewing out a secret word of the day is carried on, but this time Cher is on hand for it. Every time you hear the word “Year,” you need to scream real loud, ok?



The musical numbers are fantastic, with Grace Jones’ rendition of “The Little Drummer Boy”…



the “heavenly intonations” of the Del Rubio Triplets with “Winter Wonderland”…



K.D. Lang clowning to “Jingle Bell Rock”…



…and Charo’s “Feliz Navidad.”



When she hears the secret word, she gives her trademark “cuchi cuchi”!



Mrs. Renee (Suzanne Kent) appears with a Christmas fruitcake for Pee-Wee and also explains the Jewish holiday Hanukkah with assistance from Jambi as everyone sings the Dradel song.



This is one of the many things I love about the show. It educates the audience in a fun way about different ethnicities, cultures, and religions without beating the uninformed over the head as if they were the devil. Hey World....take note. THIS is the way you get people to understand how different people can coexist in peace and love.

There’s no singing from Little Richard, but plenty of wailing, as the legendary musician flails around the ice with a pillow on his rear to protect him from falling. According to the director, Richard asked if he should scream like a white woman or a black woman when he fell. You’ll have to be the judge as to which way he chose.



Santa makes a guest appearance just in time to assist with delivering the moral of this story…



which in true creative/fun Pee-Wee style is not like a sledgehammer over the head.

You can catch this episode on itunes for just $2.99 (no, I don’t get a cut of that!), and I guarantee that you will be very happy that you did. And if you’re not…then you probably don’t like this blog either.

For all those that celebrate, Have a VERY Merry Christmas, and I hope to see you in the New YEAR!!!! Scream real loud!

See more Pee-Wee Herman photos at my main website.

Cher Graduates

Exactly 4 years ago, I saw Cher's Farewell Tour. Considering I also saw her last week at the Honda Stadium in Anaheim, I am guessing that she has a different definition of "Farewell" than Webster's.

These first four shots show 64-year old Cher in Vegas, wowing the audience with her voice, bod, and costumes.



I thought it was a phenomenal show; paced perfectly, there was not a moment of wasted time. Cher entertained with her wit, and while she was changing her many costumes, the dancers kept the audience busy.



What 64-year old could get away with a costume like this and not get an "ick"?



Flash forward to 2014. Cher is now 68, and doesn't look a day over what she looked like 4 years ago. The woman is amazing. The voice is strong (no lip-synching from this one!) and the moves (which she still has) are those of a woman half her age.



She swore that this was absolutely her last tour, and then turned around to reveal her fingers crossed. I'm not complaining; she put on another amazing show that was different enough from the Vegas production to not make me feel like I had wasted my time by sitting through it. Instead, I was standing up the whole time along with the rest of the audience. The poor girl next to me had tears streaming down her face as she drunkenly confessed her adoration for Cher while apologizing for continually bumping into me.



Displaying a cheap cooler given to her by Dr. Pepper with "We love you Cher" written on it, she let it be known that this was not the proper gift for an icon. Once pronounced a diva, she let it be known that she had graduated to an icon.



A video clip of the show:

At the end of the show, Cher floated over the audience like an angel from on high, blessing the crazy fools below her.



It was a fantastic night that would be hard to top. Until her next tour perhaps…

See more Daveland Cher photos at my main website.

Traveling Thursdays: Viva Las Vegas! Pt. 1

Welcome to Sin City! I’m not a huge Vegas fan; I can count on one hand the amount of times that I have been there. I don’t gamble, not a drinker, and just walking through the casinos looking at the poor suckers flushing away their money makes me depressed. On a positive note...the entertainment there is outstanding; the food is stellar; and although I hesitate to call it architecture, the buildings & signs sure make for interesting photography.

This recent trip was my first time in Vegas with this particular camera, so it was almost like the virginal visit (insert laughter here). I’ve stayed at a different hotel each time so that I can experience the different theming provided and critique how well it is carried out. Caesars Palace was fun; on the kitschy scale it was fairly high (in a good way).





EVERYONE has seen photos of the statue of David by the great Michelangelo;



but how many have seen photos of the BACK of the statue?



The room itself was the only disappointment; not that it was bad...it was just blah. Nothing out of the ordinary or "cool." Just a plain ol' hotel room.



I did find a fave restaurant on this trip: Trevi, which is located inside of Caesar’s. Reminiscent of an indoor/outdoor Italian bistro, the nearby fountain and painted blue-sky make it easy to forget that you are actually indoors. It is hard to keep track of time in Vegas with its plethora of faux outdoor settings (thus keeping you at the slots much longer; ka-ching!)



Everytime I walked through the casino to get to the elevators, this changing-light trio of “ladies” begged me to take a photo. Naturally, I did.



For the ultimate in over-the-top, Caesars has about a gazillion pools. Some are for the poor everyday slobs like myself; others can be enjoyed for a nominal cover charge of $50. What do you get for that price? A slightly more private pool frequented by topless gals and Jersey-Shore type Guidos. Take your pick.





For a true blast from the past, don’t miss Cher’s FINAL tour (really...she means it this time. I’m sure she does). Gotta’ hand it to her; she looks fantastic and for the slightly-over-an-hour show, she kept the audience entertained.





Do you know anyone else in their 60’s who could pull this outfit off? Figuratively speaking, of course.



More Vegas tales next week. See more Las Vegas photos at my main website.