European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - March 21, 1986, Darmstadt, Hesse For 85 Oscar twentieth Century Fox Jack Nicholson As a hit Man in prizzi s by Bob Thomas associated press following Are capsule views of the Oscar nominees for Best picture of 1985 the color purple is based on Alic Walker s pulitzer prize winning novel. It is a panoramic Story entering on Celie a Georgia farm girl who gives birth to two children fathered by the Man she Calls a. The children Are taken from her and she is forced into a brutal marriage to a widower with four Bratty children. Celie s life is brightened Only by her dreams and the arrival of an outgoing blues Singer her husband is crazy about. At the end Celie finds her own identity and is reunited with her loved ones. Menno Meyjes adapted the script. Steven Spielberg directed the color purple As a departure from his action filled blockbusters. He chose As his Star the stand up comedienne whoops Goldberg nominated As Best actress in her first film. The color purple won a total of 11 nominations though none for Spielberg. The critics were generally Rae Dawn Chong and Bennet Guillory making a dramatic exit in a scene from the color Warner Bros. Kind to the film though some complained that it presented a Glossy View of the Black experience in the Rural South. Kiss of the spider woman stems from a novel by Manuel Puig about an Odd couple of prison inmates one a window Dresser who is openly homosexual the other a Macho revolutionary. The contrasting pair engage in fierce arguments interspersed with the homosexual s recounting of scenes from his favorite movies. Hector Babenco noted for his film of a 10-year-old criminal Piexote directed kiss of the spider woman from a script by Leonard Schrader. William Hurt nominated As Best actor plays the homosexual and Raul Julia is his Radical cell mate. The film Drew raves from critics and won a Best actor award for Hurt at the 1985 Cannes film festival. It received four Oscar nominations. Out of Africa was inspired by the life and works of the danish writer Isak Dinesen who went to Kenya in 1914 to marry her swedish Cousin Baron Bror Blixen. Their farming efforts fail As does the marriage complicated by his philandering and her fascination with a Soldier of Fortune Denys Finch Hatton. Drawing from Dinesen s biography As Well As her own stories Kurt Luedtke wrote the script and Sydney Pollack directed. The larger than life stars Are meryl Streep As the writer and Robert Redford As the adventurer with austrian Star Klaus Maria Brandauer playing the husband. Although some reviewers found fault with the script most admired Streep s performance and the sweeping views of the treeless african grasslands. The film received 11 Academy nominations. Prizzi s Honor has been described As a boy meets girl Story but in this Case the boy is an enforcer for a powerful Brooklyn mafia family and the girl performs murders for hire. That is the outrageous situation of the film written by Janet Roach and Richard Condon from his own novel. The director was 79-year-old John Huston who has had a Long fascination with underworld denizens the maltese Falcon key Largo the Asphalt Jungle. Jack Nicholson plays Charley Partanna the hit Man who enters the dangerous Liaison with the alluring blonde Kathleen Turner. Also in the cast William Hickey As the Wise old Don supporting actor nominee Anjelica Huston As his shrewd granddaughter supporting actress nominee plus mafia types Robert Loggia John Randolph and Lee Randolph. Prizzi s Honor which received eight Oscar nominations Drew Praise from critics for Huston s virtuosity. Witness contrasts the dangerous world of Philadelphia s Urban underworld with the 19th Century lifestyle of Amish Farmers in Rural Pennsylvania. Harrison Ford is a police Captain who uncovers corruption in the Force after an 8-year-old Amish boy witnesses a murder in a City train station. Ford is forced to flee in order to save his own life and those of the boy and his Mother Kelly Mcgillis. Critics praised Ford for breaking away from his Han Solo and Indiana Jones portrayals and witness was a suprise hit of Early 1985. William Kelley and Earl Wallace wrote the script. The director was australian Peter Weir who achieved notice with Gallipoli and the year of living dangerously. The movie received eight Oscar nominations. Reminisces by Vernon Scott United press International Dpi file photo 1980 buddy Rogers next to poster of his 1927 film out of Africa with meryl Streep and Robert Redford has been nominated for j1 Academy awards Page 14 the stars and stripes _. C Island alive inc. Director Hector Babenco Center with William of left Raul Julia while filming kiss of the spider Friday March 21, 1986 c Harles buddy Rogers a legendary Vieland figure who was part of the firs Academy awards 58 years ago will receive the Academy s Jean Hersholt humanitarian award this month. Rogers 81, was thrilled by the motion picture Academy s decision to Honor him. It s come As quite a Surprise he said at his ornate Home on the grounds of Pic fair the fabled mansion in which he lived for More than 40 years with his wife Mary Pickford until her death in 1979. Rogers sold Pic fair to sports entrepreneur Jerry Buss but built a new Home on their sprawling property for himself. Rogers was voted to be the 25th recipient of the Honor for his generous financial contributions to and work for the motion picture and television fund the jewish Home for the aged the Hollywood stuntman s Lupus foundation and the National conference of christians and jews. I knew Jean Hersholt Well Rogers said with a Grin. He played my father in Abie s Irish Hose at Paramount in 1928. He was a wonderful Man a Beautiful Rogers recalled that he reluctantly became an actor Back in 1926 when he was studying to become a journalist at the University of Kansas hoping to join his father in the newspaper business. I was helping pay my Way through school with a Little five piece College band Rogers said. One Day my father told me that Paramount pictures was looking for 10 boys and 10 girls from universities to make into movie actors. One of the stopping places was the University of Kansas. He said they would be making screen tests. I told dad i was t interested in becoming an actor. I was living in a fraternity House with a Bunch of football and basketball players and what would they think but dad was very insistent about my seeing the studio people so when they came to the Campus i agreed to do a screen test convincing myself i had nothing to worry about. I did t think i had a Chance. One week after the test i got a letter from Paramount saying i d made the Grade. So i left school and went to the Paramount studios on Long Island new York. There were nine other boys and 10 girls who had won the tests at their various colleges. The studio put us in their idea of a school for acting. But they really did t know what to teach us because nobody talked in those Days. There was no dialogue in pictures. All movies were silent. We Learned How to use our eyes and our hands and our bodies. I remember one of the exercises was to see if we could hold a kiss for three minutes without laughing. Naturally we All broke out laughing right the Paramount brass decided buddy Rogers would make a terrific Young leading Man and while he was still in new York they signed him to a contract and told him he would Star in Beau Geste with Ronald Colman. The Young Tyro was thrilled. He immediately reported to the studio wardrobe department in new York and was fitted out with several Snappy White French foreign legion outfits Complete with Dapper hat. It was a four Day four night trip from new York to los Angeles Rogers recalled and i got to Stop in lathe kan., my Hometown to see my . I spent two Days walking up and Down the Street of that Little town wearing my foreign legion outfits. When i arrived in Hollywood i was met by Jesse Lasky the head of the studio who told me i was t going to be in Beau Geste after All. I told him i was going Back to Olathe where men kept their but Lasky prevailed on the untried actor to Mick around Hollywood convincing him something to his advantage would surely turn up. Rogers appeared in fascinating youth and so s your old Man in 1926. However 1927 was the turning Point for re Ojers professionally and personally. Two major events took place in his life. He was cast in wings and he met America s sweetheart Mary Pickford wife of matinee idol Douglas Fairbanks. One Day i was offered the Opportunity to have lunch with director William Wellman who was making wings with Clara Bow Richard Arlen and Gary Cooper Rogers said. And i was to play a Young aviator. The picture went on to win the first Academy award As Best film. There was no Oscar in those Days. All of us in the cast were Given certificates and letters of commendation from the Academy at a luncheon at the Hollywood Roosevelt hotel. We were told we were the Best actors of the year and it was agreed wings had the Best director the Best script the Best the Academy award winning actors that first year however were Emil Jennings in the last command and Janet Gaynor in seventh heaven. Even More important than his recognition in wings was Young Rogers first appearance at United artists studios owned by Pickford Fairbanks and Charlie Chaplin. He remembers the event clearly. I was dropped at the studio and rang the Bell at the Entrance to a building he said. Mary answered the door. I d never seen her before. I told her i was there to make a screen test to play her leading Man in my Best girl. There were three other men testing that Day but Mary did t pay any attention to them. She seemed to want me for the role and helped me with the test. I got the part. It was just Fate i guess. We never did another picture together but eight years later we were Mary was 11 years older than her leading Man husband. Their marriage endured 45 years until her death. Rogers went on to appear in a number of movies including several silents and talkies such As follow thru take a Chance Best enemies and sing for your supper. His last film was the Parson and the outlaw m 1957. He interrupted his acting career during world War ii to spend four years As a Navy Pilot. He later produced pictures with Pickford and chaplain at United artists. The stars and stripes Page 15
