Well, a great Christmas Present came through our letterbox just four days before Christmas – the latest Winter Edition of Movie Memories – packed with articles, pictures and Readers Letters covering so many Films and Film Stars of that golden era – and how well it is presented – really impressive. It seems to get right to the heart of what we want to know and read – and uncovers such facts and introduces us to details of the stars we knew something about but maybe did not know well.

Please subscribe to this magazine and you will not be disappointed :  

moviememoriesmagine.com  

In this issue  Thoughts and Memories of Roger Moore, Adele Jurgens and Mari Blanchard,  RobertMontgomery, Merle Oberon, plus films like The Boys with Richard Todd, and a brilliant article on Lash LaRue as well as Dennis Price.  Snippets on films like The Band Wagon, Calamity Jane and The Quiet Man among many others. Plus there are many Readers Letters – readers from all over the world.

On the back cover of the magazine is a Film Poster for ‘Dark Waters’ starring Merle Oberon with Franchot Tone and Thomas Mitchell. Not a Fifties film really – released in 1944 – a dark brooding melodrama set in the deep South of America where a young girl who had survived a naval attack in World War 2 – had come back to live with her Aunt and Uncle to recover – little did she know what she had come back to !!!

If you wish to subscribe to this excellent magazine – and I think that every film fan should be – just go to the web site   :-

moviememoriesmagine.com  

Trucolor was preceded by Magnacolor – used mainly in Republic Pictures films. We have discussed TRUCOLOR on this Blog before, I know but it is quite fascinating.

Roy Rogers starred in Nineteen Trucolor films for Republic Pictures from 1947 up to 1950 but for whatever reason, even as early as 1952, some of these were re-issued in Black and White. It seems that by the  early fifties Television had really knocked the market for B Westerns at the cinema, so these were released in Black and White mainly to save costs Many Roy Rogers films were sold to TV in 1956 but with some cuts to the running time. That sadly meant that a lot of the original footage was discarded and thrown away – so unless a Private Collector has them – and they may well have a copy – then these would be lost.  

By the early Seventies it was discovered that some of the old Nitrate Colour Films were unstable and therefore unsafe and so they were destroyed. I do have a Video of the film Come Next Spring made in 1956 and this was in Trucolor and to be honest it was very good colour I thought. Other films in Trucolor – The Last Command (1955)  and   Montana Belle, a Western starring Jane Russell as outlaw Belle Starr in 1948. This film was made by  independent producer Howard Welsch for intended release by Republic Pictures but was bought back by RKO, to whom Jane Russell was under contract, and released by them in 1952. Republic also made a South Seas adventure Fair Wind to Java (1953)  Nicholas Ray made notable use of Trucolor for his  1954 western, Johnny Guitar, which starred Joan Crawford. Trucolor went on location to Europe as William Dieterle filmed the life of Richard Wagner in Magic Fire (1956) and  Lisbon (1956) directed by and starring Ray Milland.  However, John Ford refused to film The Quiet Man (1952) in Trucolor despite Republic’s head Herbert J. Yates insisting on the process, so Technicolor was used.

One of theTRUCOLOR films of Roy Rogers has recently come to light in its original uncut form – Sunset in the West :- Directed by William Witney Starring Roy Rogers, Estelita Rodriguez, Penny Edwards, Gordon Jones, Will Wright, Foy Willing And The Riders Of The Purple Sage

The availability, or absence, of the Roy Rogers Trucolor films of late 40s and early 50s is mentioned above – but here is some GOOD NEWS !!. The arrival of one of these FILMS in Colour and uncut is always worth celebrating — and we get this next one, Sunset In The West (1950), on DVD and Blu-Ray.

Another one is Bells of Colornado from 1950, again in Trucolor and the only Roy Rogers film in Trucolor to get an official DVD release at the time.

Also – just come across this Promotional Gift from the era which  is very colourful – as below :-

It is a Playing Card Set in a special tin box. It looks quite stylish.

This wonderful colour plate is from the 1954  F.Maurice Speed Film Review Annual

These Film Annuals were among my own favourites as they contained so much information on every film that had been released that particular Year with the Director, Cast and Release Date.   Also you would get a section on next year’s films – and one on the Walt Disney releases.  I once heard F.Maurice Speed  of the Film Review Annual, speaking on Radio 2 along with another Film Expert. He was very interesting and I could have listened to him for hours as he had so much information on the film era that I love.

The above picture is of course a Publicity Still from River of No Return