1975 Gas Attack at Julie Harris Movie Premiere

An unfortunate incident occurred at the world premiere of highly-anticipated film The Hiding Place, which starred the late great Julie Harris.

The film was based on a best-selling autobiography of Corrie Ten Boom, a member of the Dutch resistance who hid Jews in her home when the Nazis invaded Holland in 1940.

Julie Harris played Ten Boom's sister, who was killed in a concentration camp.



The premiere was held at the Beverly Theater in Los Angeles on September 25, 1975.  The film's stars and other celebrities and guests attended the event.

When the theater was filled, an unknown perpetrator threw a tear-gas canister into the building, apparently as an anti-semitic gesture. Gas filled the air. The crowd had to evacuate the building. Firemen came. Outside on the street -  blocked off for the event - preacher and co-producer of the film Rev. Billy Graham lead the crowd in a prayer. ¹

No one was injured in the attack.

The multitude of people waited for the building to air out, but the stench was too much. The film screening had to be cancelled that night, and the premiere was postponed.

What could have been a night of desperation turned into a night of inspiration.

An impromptu outdoor concert followed, featuring the singing of Gospel and Hebrew songs.

In attendance that evening was Corrie Ten Boom herself. She was 83 years old at the time. Later, she wrote about the attacker and the virtue of forgiveness.

"People asked me tonight, 'What did you feel about this bomb [a tear-gas canister] that was falling?' I was touched. I was sad. Do you know why? Not only because there was in some way disappointment for people who had hoped to see the film but because on that bomb was the Hakenkreuz, the swastika. What we have to do is love these people who hate us - love them, pray for them. These people are wounded people who have hate in their hearts. They need forgiveness." ² 

The film's premiere was held the following night, without an incident.

Above: Corrie Ten Boom speaks to the crowd.

REFERENCES

¹ Just As I Am: The Autobiography of Billy Graham
By Billy Graham
c) 1997 Harper Collins Worldwide

² Life Lessons from The Hiding Place: Discovering the Heart of Corrie ten Boom
 By Pamela Rosewell Moore
c) 2004 Chosen Books/Baker Publishing Group

2013 Honorary Oscars

It has been announced that this year's Honorary Academy Awards ("Oscars") will go to 3 deserving candidates for a lifetime's achievement in film -  Angela Lansbury (a 3-time nominee), costume designer Piero Tosi (a 5-time nominee), and Steve Martin a 3-time Oscar host and cinematic comedy legend for over 30 years.  

There was a time when the Academy only awarded 1 honorary Oscar per year ( I was not a big fan of that practice). Nowadays, the Academy is not as stingy as they used to be.

I think it would be great if they gave out 4 or 5 Honorary Oscars per year.

While I'm on an Oscar rant, why not bring back the Juvenile Oscar? For the outstanding performer under 13 years old.

Also, how about some new categories? What about Best Stunt Coordination? Best Casting? Best Credit Sequence? Best Voice-Over Performance?

Centennial Summer (1946)

Centennial Summer is a sweet, Technicolor period musical (set in 1876) starring Jeanne Crain and Linda Darnell, who play sisters vying for the affection of Cornel Wilde's character, a Frenchman visiting Philadelphia during the World's Fair.

Dorothy Gish plays the mother of Jeanne & Linda; her character has most of the comical moments in the film. Walter Brennan plays her husband, a railroad worker who dreams of new inventions and loves to argue politics and rip on Republicans. Dorothy has funny lines to say such as "put your pants on!" to a pajama-clad Brennan walking around the house. Unfortunately, Ms. Gish's screen time is limited, and she often has to compete with Constance Bennett who plays her socialite sister and tends to be a scene-stealer, saying things like "I'm simply livid with envy over your heavenly family!".  But Dorothy brings the most to her matriarch character, and is very down-to-earth and supportive.

In one of the best scenes in the film, U.S. President Ulysses S. Grant comes to Philadelphia and speaks to a large crowd. Dorothy Gish and her family are all way in the back of the crowd where nobody can can hear a thing (no microphones yet!). It was one of the moments that remind you of the setting and time.

This film is the most lighthearted film I've ever seen by director Otto Preminger, primarily known for his edgy films. The "edgiest" moments in gleeful Centennial Summer  include a single woman visiting an obstetrician and a scene where characters call each other "stupid asses".

In the 1946 New York Times review of the film, the reviewer said this film was "an obvious attempt to copy "Meet Me in St. Louis"" and that it "limps along heavily and slowly ".

I wont't be that harsh on the movie, but I did think it could have used a bit more of Dorothy Gish, and a bit more comedy, too.

But the costumes and music are good, including the Oscar-nominated song "All Through The Day" (by Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein). Another song, "I Woke Up with the Lark This Morning", is the sunniest, happiest, pie-in-the-sky song you may ever hear. Another snappy musical number - "Cinderella Sue", performed by a black family led by Cotton Club singer Avon Long - is one of the film's highlights.

Recommended! Available to watch on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_NSxrXh4vNg

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This post is a contribution to The Gish Sisters Blogathon
hosted by Movies Silently and The Motion Pictures