Posts from A Girl Named Jen in thread „Maureen O'Hara- Biography & Discussion“

Yes, DakotaSurfer, they do get involved in politics. Wouldn't it be nice sometimes if they would just leave well enough alone?

I speak from personal experience when I suggest that it's best to try not to get too worked up about off-screen lives of actors. I've been guilty of idealizing people I admire in the past and have wound up being very disappointed in what I find out about them when I learn more. Then I found myself enjoying that person's contributions less. I've learned to separate that which I appreciate about the person from who that person might have been when he or she wasn't on camera. But naturally you're free to feel however you choose. :regular_smile:

I'm a little disappointed to hear that Jimmy Stewart may have been less than gracious and generous as an actor. But even if it's true, it doesn't diminish how danged good he was, and how much I like to watch him. Now if I found out that he tore the wings off of butterflies to be mean, or plucked whiskers from kittens, or boiled babies, I might have to stop watching.

I've heard a lot about the Irish temperament, and while I would have no cause to deny any of Maureen O'Hara's statements about Jimmy Stewart, I think we should take them with a grain of salt. Who knows how it happened? Ultimately, who really cares? The off-screen lives of actors don't really belong to us, anyway. We can only lay claim to what we see on-screen and how we respond to it.

I love Jimmy Stewart. He could act in anything and acted pretty much everyone else off the screen. I do have to admit that sometimes he could be a little hammy and chomp on a little scenery while he was acting, and some scenes in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance come to mind when I mention this...

I happen to be a big fan of all the Capra films, but I can appreciate that we all have different tastes around here. Those who didn't like some of the "Capra-corn" films might like Lost Horizon. It's got a different mood and feel from all the lovely (but schmaltzy) Mr. Smith/George Bailey/You Can't Take It with You type of stuff.

I would also find it surprising. I've never heard anything negative about Jimmy Stewart - not even one word. I haven't spent a lot of time studying him, but you get ideas about people from seeing them on screen, and when those ideas are largely borne out by what you hear over the years you sort of form a pretty solid opinion of a person. I thought everyone liked him.

Of course, it's hard to tell what you mean by Jimmy Stewart not being inspiring to her. Please clarify, and give us some facts, if you can. :smile:

Hi datagrant:

As Tbone has indicated, I wouldn't waste my time asking her about the secret whisper. It'd be so lovely to know, but she's been asked many many times and sworn up and down just as many times that she's taking it to the grave. It was something special between she and Duke & Pappy Ford and she feels it's the only thing left in the entire film that really belongs to her and her alone. I kind of like it that way myself and would be somewhat disappointed if she ever spilled the beans - even as a part of me is terribly curious.

Being of the feminine and somewhat romantic persuasion, I'd want to ask her about her favorite & least favorite cinematic kisses. Those kinds of stories can be fun to hear. Clark Gable, one of the all-time great sex symbols, supposedly had horribly bad breath. Kathryn Grayson said that kissing Frank Sinatra was like kissing a monkey. The two kisses Maureen shares with Duke in The Quiet Man are some of my all-time favorites. I like DakotaSurfer's question as well.

You might also ask her what her most treasured memory is from all her years in film.

But you must be a pro and therefore have some good ideas of your own!