Showing results by narrator "Joan Fontaine" in All Categories

This radio dramatization of the classic movie originally aired on January 27, 1950.

When there really did seem to be more stars in Hollywood than in heaven, Hollywood Stage had them performing films as radio plays - on the sponsor's dime, of course. Classic films now become audiobooks, with many featuring the original stars from way back when. Here's The Plainsman starring Frederic March and Joan Fontaine.

Joan de Beauvoir de Havilland (October 22, 1917-December 15, 2013), known professionally as Joan Fontaine, was an English-American actress who appeared in more than 45 films in a career that spanned five decades. She and her older sister, actress Olivia de Havilland, had a well-documented rivalry. Fontaine won an Academy Award in 1941 for her role in the film, Suspicion. She and de Havilland remain the only siblings to win lead-acting Academy Awards. The following recording is from a 1977 television interview.

Film noir: the name comes from the French for “black” or “dark film.” It points to the central feature of the genre: mood. There is a darkness about film noir, a somberness accompanied by a thrill of dread and ever-present danger. This aura envelops wealthy heiresses, English aristocrats, tough-guy drifters, jazz musicians, drug dealers, and respected schoolteachers—all of whom have secrets to hide and much to lose if those secrets are unveiled.