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I finally watched George Cukor's 1954 remake of A STAR IS BORN (starring Judy Garland and James Mason, natch) for the first time on Friday night. I'm still fond of William Wellman's 1937 original starring Janet Gaynor and Fredric March (Wellman not only directed that one, he was co-writer of the original story), but I enjoyed the remake very much.
As always. when watching an old movie, I was on the lookout for anthropological insights; I enjoy old movies as much for the window they offer into life as it was lived in the recent past as for their artistic merits.
In an early scene, Esther Blodgett (Garland), having quit her job as a singer for a big band at the suggestion of the utterly unreliable movie star Norman Maine (Mason), is reduced to carhopping at a drive-in restaurant.
These were the days before those backlit menus with the two-way speakers that have been a drive-in staple now for some forty years. In the early fifties, car hops still delivered paper menus to each car.
In the scene in question, Blodgett walks up to a convertible that's just pulled in and hands a menu to the driver.
Customer: What's good to eat today?Esther: Well, we have cheeseburgers, nut burgers, banana burgers, chicken burgers, lobster burgers, tuna burgers, chop suey burgers, and our own special super duper super burger.
Customer: Well, what's in that?
Esther: Everything in the place -- all burgered.
Now, my question is this: What the hell are nut burgers and banana burgers?
Even the mention of lobster burgers and tuna burgers struck me as a little anachronistic. Somehow, I just wouldn't expect an early 1950s drive-in to offer a tuna burger (much less a lobster burger).
Chop suey burgers don't throw me. You can get those even today at Nathan's on Coney Island (well, you can get chop suey on a bun, which I'm guessing is what a chop suey burger is).
But nut burgers and banana burgers? By those, I'm flummoxed.
Posted by brett at 12:33 AM | TrackBack