Reel Old Movies

Tinseltown celebrates movies at the 2023 Academy Awards on March 12, and if you can't get enough movie magic, consider a few more from the Golden Age of Hollywood.  Whether you want to pair up past and present for a double feature at home or are just looking for recommendations similar to your favorites, here are a few movie classic suggestions based on this year's Best Picture nominees.  What else would you suggest? Share with @ReelOldMovies on Instagram 2023 Best Picture nominee: "Top Gun: Maverick" Classic movie you might like: 1927's "Wings" The first Academy Award winner for best picture, “Wings” is the extravagant World War I production that is part drama, part comedy, part romance. This silent film from almost 100 years ago also features aerial dogfights, male bonding and a sassy and sexy leading lady.  2023 Best Picture nominee: "The Banshees of Inisherin"  Classic movie you might like: 1941's "How Green Was My Valley" Fr

The 2023 Academy Awards are Sunday, March 12, but the first decades of Oscar honors were fertile ground for history-making movies.  Take a look at a few of the best, some of the firsts and a couple of the mosts when it comes to the Academy Awards' golden statuette and the Golden Age of Hollywood.  The first best picture nominees The first Academy Awards took place in 1929, honoring movies made from mid-1927 to 1928.  It was also the only year that two categories for "best" picture were included: One was for "Unique and Artistic Picture" and the other for "Outstanding Picture." The Artistic Picture category was dropped the following year, and the Outstanding Picture would evolve into the Best Picture category today. The movies nominated in each of the categories included: Outstanding Picture: "Wings" ** Won "The Racket" "7th Heaven" Unique and Artistic Picture: "Sunrise"  ** Won ( Watch for free ) "Chang&quo

From understated flapper dresses to flamboyant frocks, the stars' fashion throughout almost 100 years of Academy Awards continues to inspire. As stars and movie fans gear up for 2023’s Oscars on March 12, look back at some of the attire worn at the earliest Academy Awards ceremonies through the 1970s, featuring fashion favorites such as Audrey Hepburn and Diahann Carroll. And because Edith Head and Givenchy aren’t designing custom creations for the masses, we’ve rounded up a few dresses inspired by the glamorous ladies of Old Hollywood so you’ll always be ready for your close-up! Audrey Hepburn in 1965 Audrey Hepburn lived up to her elegant reputation in this white satin Givenchy-designed gown at the Academy Awards ceremony in 1965, where she was a presenter. “My Fair Lady,” in which she starred with Rex Harrison, won for best picture. (Photo: Getty Images) A dress inspired by Hepburn’s … More dress details and where to buy Audrey Hepburn in 1954 So nice, she's on the list twic

It’s football championship season in the U.S., but classic movie lovers have football films all year long.  In classic movie land, football has been a favorite plot line for decades. Like the sport itself, football movies flourished in the 1920s and 1930s. As this list of football movies from Wikipedia shows , tried-and-true storylines keep getting repeated up to the present day: prison game matchups, nerd-becomes-hero, comeback from injury, the cost of winning and more.  Most lists concentrate on more modern movies, so we’ve rounded up a few pre-1960 football flicks that we’ve enjoyed.  So whether you’re looking for an alternative to the football talk or you just can’t get enough, here are a few choices that are touchdowns for classic movie lovers: The Freshman (1925) One of the biggest hits of comedian Harold Lloyd’s career, “The Freshman” follows Lloyd’s character as he attempts to be popular on a college campus, including participating in a slapstick football game that includes se

“Here’s looking at you, kid.” “We’ll always have Paris.” “Out of all the gin joints …” “Round up the usual suspects.” While today’s movies would be lucky to have one or two memorable quotes that permeate pop culture, 1942’s “Casablanca” is bursting with dozens of great lines that are woven into our language. I will argue it's the most quoted movie of all time – with many people ignorant that they’re actually quoting the movie! Not bad for a movie marking its 80th anniversary.  “Casablanca” is a staple for classic film buffs, but I encourage any Old Hollywood novice or fan of modern movies to watch for the first time. (Or if it’s been a while since you’ve seen it, re-discover it).  Don’t let the fact that it’s in black and white and decades-old deter you. The star power of Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman will certainly pull you in, but the allure of “Casablanca” is also rooted in its screenplay, a masterclass of a movie script.  Which goes to show us there is no formula or one-w

Angela Lansbury, everybody's favorite TV detective and star of an eclectic body of stage and film work, died Tuesday, October 11, 2022 , just shy of her 97th birthday.   Her long career began in the movies when the "Murder, She Wrote" actress was a teenager. She was just 17 when she got the role of sharp-tongued Cockney maid Nancy in 1944's "Gaslight."