Who would make or would have made an ideal Cleopatra?

Producer Scott Rudin has bought the rights to Stacy Schiff‘s book Cleopatra: A Life and is working on a movie adaptation.  Rudin wants Angelina Jolie to star in it and has also confirmed that the adaptation is “being developed for and with Jolie.”

Schiff, the author agreed that “Physically, she’s the perfect look.”

Elizabeth Taylor was also the perfect look but, as it turns out, she was unconvincing as the bigger-than-life queen.  One colossal disappointment.  Of course, the lackluster dialogue and poor script flow may have had something to do with her rather clumsy performance.  As soon as she tumbled out of the smuggled carpet and started speaking, it was obvious she was not Cleopatra reincarnated.  She was most beautiful, most stunning, but inner passion and determination did not surface onto the screen.

She may not have been solid as the character she portrayed, but she and Burton were interesting to watch just because they were who they were--Dick and Liz.  The film is worth the four hours because of them and the scandalous romantic history which infiltrates.

In another version which was under direction by Cecil B. DeMille, Cleopatra (1934) starred Claudette Colbert.  Appealing as she has been in some dramas, her image is too sweet, her face a little too cute, and her smile too innocent for her to have been one's ideal image of a Cleopatra.

Susan Hayward, although too old for the 1963 version and too young for the 1934 version, had the combination of beauty, voice, mystery, and smoldering inner fire to have portrayed a cunning yet vulnerable queen.  Barbara Parkins is another actress who had those same qualities, though her persona did not have the intrigue of a Hayward or Taylor.

Hedy Lamarr was born in 1913 and was a few years too young for one version and not young enough for the other.  Her beauty and talent are undeniable, but it's hard to say if she could have tamed the role of Cleopatra convincingly.

The Marina Sirtis of twenty years ago would candidate well to portray the poised, self-willed, and quietly courageous queen.   How about a dark-haired Susan Oliver (sans green skin) or Stefanie Powers 40 years ago?

From the lot of famous actresses we have today, Angelina Jolie is as thrilling a choice as can be made (in view of the fact that Halle Berry can't act).  Hopefully, though, Jolie has learned something about accents since her days of Alexander. --
K.L.Kraemer

Lamarr,   Lollobrigida,         Lamarr

Darvi

Academy Awards//Movies of the 1940's

1940

Picture:  "REBECCA",
"All This, and Heaven Too", "Foreign Correspondent", "The Grapes of Wrath", "The Great Dictator", "Kitty Foyle", "The Letter", "The Long Voyage Home", "Our Town", "The Philadelphia Story"

Actor:  JAMES STEWART in "The Philadelphia Story",
Charles Chaplin in "The Great Dictator", Henry Fonda in "The Grapes of Wrath", Raymond Massey in "Abe Lincoln in Illinois", Laurence Olivier in "Rebecca"

Actress:  GINGER ROGERS in "Kitty Foyle",
Bette Davis in "The Letter", Joan Fontaine in "Rebecca", Katharine Hepburn in "The Philadelphia Story", Martha Scott in "Our Town"

Supporting Actor:  WALTER BRENNAN in "The Westerner",
Albert Basserman in "Foreign Correspondent", William Gargan in "They Knew What They Wanted", Jack Oakie in "The Great Dictator", James Stephenson in "The Letter"

Supporting Actress:  JANE DARWELL in "The Grapes of Wrath",
Judith Anderson in "Rebecca", Ruth Hussey in "The Philadelphia Story", Barbara O'Neil in "All This, and Heaven Too", Marjorie Rambeau in "Primrose Path"

Director:  JOHN FORD for "The Grapes of Wrath",
George Cukor for "The Philadelphia Story", Alfred Hitchcock for "Rebecca", Sam Wood for "Kitty Foyle", William Wyler for "The Letter"


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1941
Picture: "HOW GREEN WAS MY VALLEY",
"Blossoms in the Dust", "Citizen Kane", "Here Comes Mr. Jordan", "Hold Back the Dawn", "The Little Foxes", "The Maltese Falcon", "One Foot in Heaven", "Sergeant York", "Suspicion"

Actor:  GARY COOPER in "Sergeant York",
Cary Grant in "Penny Serenade", Walter Huston in "All That Money Can Buy", Robert Montgomery in "Here Comes Mr. Jordan", Orson Welles in "Citizen Kane"

Actress:  JOAN FONTAINE in "Suspicion",
Bette Davis in "The Little Foxes", Olivia de Havilland in "Hold Back the Dawn", Greer Garson in "Blossoms in the Dust", Barbara Stanwyck in "Ball of Fire"

Supporting Actor:  DONALD CRISP in "How Green Was My Valley",
Walter Brennan in "Sergeant York", Charles Coburn in "The Devil and Miss Jones", James Gleason in "Here Comes Mr. Jordan", Sydney Greenstreet in "The Maltese Falcon"

Supporting Actress:  MARY ASTOR in "The Great Lie",
Sara Allgood in "How Green Was My Valley", Patricia Collinge in "The Little Foxes", Teresa Wright in "The Little Foxes, Margaret Wycherly in "Sergeant York"

Director:  JOHN FORD for "How Green Was My Valley",
Alexander Hall for "Here Comes Mr. Jordan", Howard Hawks for "Sergeant York", Orson Welles for "Citizen Kane", William Wyler for "The Little Foxes"


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1942
Picture:   "MRS. MINIVER",
"The Invaders", "Kings Row", "The Magnificent Ambersons", "The Pied Piper", "The Pride of the Yankees", "Random Harvest", "The Talk of the Town", "Wake Island", "Yankee Doodle Dandy"

Actor:  JAMES CAGNEY in "Yankee Doodle Dandy",
Ronald Colman in "Random Harvest", Gary Cooper in "The Pride of the Yankees", Walter Pidgeon in "Mrs. Miniver", Monty Woolley in "The Pied Piper"

Actress:  GREER GARSON in "Mrs. Miniver",
Bette Davis in "Now, Voyager", Katharine Hepburn in "Woman of the Year", Rosalind Russell in "My Sister Eileen", Teresa Wright in "The Pride of the Yankees"

Supporting Actor:  VAN HEFLIN in "Johnny Eager",
William Bendix in "Wake Island", Walter Huston in "Yankee Doodle Dandy", Frank Morgan in "Tortilla Flat", Henry Travers in "Mrs. Miniver"

Supporting Actress:  TERESA WRIGHT in "Mrs. Miniver",
Gladys Cooper in "Now, Voyager", Agnes Moorehead in "The Magnificent Ambersons", Susan Peters in "Random Harvest", Dame May Whitty in "Mrs. Miniver"

Director:  WILLIAM WYLER for "Mrs. Miniver",
Michael Curtiz for "Yankee Doodle Dandy", John Farrow for "Wake Island", Mervyn LeRoy for "Random Harvest", Sam Wood for "Kings Row"


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1943

Picture:  "CASABLANCA",
"For Whom the Bell Tolls", "Heaven Can Wait", "The Human Comedy", "In Which We Serve", "Madame Curie", "The More the Merrier", "The Ox-Bow Incident", "The Song of Bernadette", "Watch on the Rhine"

Actor:  PAUL LUKAS in "Watch on the Rhine",
Humphrey Bogart in "Casablanca", Gary Cooper in "For Whom the Bell Tolls", Walter Pidgeon in "Madame Curie", Mickey Rooney in "The Human Comedy"

Actress:  JENNIFER JONES in "The Song of Bernadette",
Jean Arthur in "The More the Merrier", Ingrid Bergman in "For Whom the Bell Tolls", Joan Fontaine in "The Constant Nymph", Greer Garson in "Madame Curie"

Supporting Actor:  CHARLES COBURN in "The More the Merrier",
Charles Bickford in "The Song of Bernadette", J. Carrol Naish in "Sahara", Claude Rains in "Casablanca", Akim Tamiroff in "For Whom the Bell Tolls"

Supporting Actress:  KATINA PAXINOU in "For Whom the Bell Tolls",
Gladys Cooper in "The Song of Bernadette", Paulette Goddard in "So Proudly We Hail", Anne Revere in "The Song of Bernadette", Lucile Watson in "Watch on the Rhine"

Director:  MICHAEL CURTIZ for "Casablanca",
Clarence Brown for "The Human Comedy", Henry King for "The Song of Bernadette", Ernst Lubitsch for "Heaven Can Wait", George Stevens for "The More the Merrier"


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1944
Picture:  "GOING MY WAY",

"Double Indemnity", "Gaslight", "Since You Went Away", "Wilson"

Actor:  BING CROSBY in "Going My Way",
Charles Boyer in "Gaslight", Barry Fitzgerald in "Going My Way", Cary Grant in "None But the Lonely Heart", Alexander Knox in "Wilson"

Actress:  INGRID BERGMAN in "Gaslight",
Claudette Colbert in "Since You Went Away", Bette Davis in "Mr. Skeffington", Greer Garson in "Mrs. Parkington", Barbara Stanwyck in "Double Indemnity"

Supporting Actor:  BARRY FITZGERALD in "Going My Way",
Hume Cronyn in "The Seventh Cross", Claude Rains in "Mr. Skeffington", Clifton Webb in "Laura", Monty Woolley in "Since You Went Away"

Supporting Actress:  ETHEL BARRYMORE in "None But the Lonely Heart",
Jennifer Jones in "Since You Went Away", Angela Lansbury in "Gaslight", Aline MacMahon in "Dragon Seed", Agnes Moorehead in "Mrs. Parkington"

Director:  LEO MCCAREY for "Going My Way",
Alfred Hitchcock for "Lifeboat", Henry King for "Wilson", Otto Preminger for "Laura", Billy Wilder for "Double Indemnity"


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1945
Picture:  "THE LOST WEEKEND",
"Anchors Aweigh", "The Bells of St. Mary's", "Mildred Pierce", "Spellbound"

Actor:  RAY MILLAND in "The Lost Weekend",
Bing Crosby in "The Bells of St. Mary's", Gene Kelly in "Anchors Aweigh", Gregory Peck in "The Keys of the Kingdom", Cornel Wilde in "A Song to Remember"

Actress:  JOAN CRAWFORD in "Mildred Pierce",
Ingrid Bergman in "The Bells of St. Mary's", Greer Garson in "The Valley of Decision", Jennifer Jones in "Love Letters", Gene Tierney in "Leave Her to Heaven"

Supporting Actor: JAMES DUNN in "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn",
Michael Chekhov in "Spellbound", John Dall in "The Corn Is Green", Robert Mitchum in "The Story of G.I. Joe", J. Carrol Naish in "A Medal for Benny"

Supporting Actress:  ANNE REVERE in "National Velvet",
Eve Arden in "Mildred Pierce", Ann Blyth in "Mildred Pierce", Angela Lansbury in "The Picture of Dorian Gray", Joan Lorring in "The Corn Is Green"

Director:  BILLY WILDER for "The Lost Weekend",
Clarence Brown for "National Velvet", Alfred Hitchcock for "Spellbound", Leo McCarey for "The Bells of St. Mary's", Jean Renoir for "The Southerner"


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1946
Picture:  "THE BEST YEARS OF OUR LIVES",
"Henry V", "It's A Wonderful Life", "The Razor's Edge", "The Yearling"

Actor:  FREDRIC MARCH in "The Best Years of Our Lives",
Laurence Olivier in "Henry V", Larry Parks in "The Jolson Story", Gregory Peck in "The Yearling", James Stewart in "It's A Wonderful Life"

Actress:  OLIVIA DE HAVILLAND in "To Each His Own",
Celia Johnson in "Brief Encounter", Jennifer Jones in "Duel in the Sun", Rosalind Russell in "Sister Kenny", Jane Wyman in "The Yearling"

Supporting Actor:  HAROLD RUSSELL in "The Best Years of Our Lives",
Charles Coburn in "The Green Years", William Demarest in "The Jolson Story", Claude Rains in "Notorious", Clifton Webb in "The Razor's Edge"

Supporting Actress:  ANNE BAXTER in "The Razor's Edge",
Ethel Barrymore in "The Spiral Staircase", Lillian Gish in "Duel in the Sun", Flora Robson in "Saratoga Trunk", Gale Sondergaard in "Anna and the King of Siam"

Director:  WILLIAM WYLER for "The Best Years of Our Lives",
Clarence Brown for "The Yearling", Frank Capra for "It's A Wonderful Life", David Lean for "Brief Encounter", Robert Siodmak for "The Killers"


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1947
Picture:  "GENTLEMAN'S AGREEMENT",
"The Bishop's Wife", "Crossfire", "Great Expectations", "Miracle on 34th Street"

Actor:  RONALD COLMAN in "A Double Life",
John Garfield in "Body and Soul", Gregory Peck in "Gentleman's Agreement", William Powell in "Life With Father", Michael Redgrave in "Mourning Becomes Electra"

Actress:  LORETTA YOUNG in "The Farmer's Daughter",
Joan Crawford in "Possessed", Susan Hayward in "Smash Up - The Story of a Woman", Dorothy McGuire in "Gentleman's Agreement", Rosalind Russell in "Mourning Becomes Electra"

Supporting Actor:  EDMUND GWENN in "Miracle on 34th Street",
Charles Bickford in "The Farmer's Daughter", Thomas Gomez in "Ride the Pink Horse", Robert Ryan in "Crossfire", Richard Widmark in "Kiss of Death"

Supporting Actress:  CELESTE HOLM in "Gentleman's Agreement",
Ethel Barrymore in "The Paradine Case", Gloria Grahame in "Crossfire", Marjorie Main in "The Egg and I", Anne Revere in "Gentleman's Agreement"

Director:  ELIA KAZAN for "Gentleman's Agreement",
George Cukor for "A Double Life", Edward Dmytryk for "Crossfire", Henry Koster for "The Bishop's Wife", David Lean for "Great Expectations"


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1948
Picture:  "HAMLET",
"Johnny Belinda", "The Red Shoes", "The Snake Pit", "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre"

Actor:  LAURENCE OLIVIER in "Hamlet",
Lew Ayres in "Johnny Belinda", Montgomery Clift in "The Search", Dan Dailey in "When My Baby Smiles at Me", Clifton Webb in "Sitting Pretty"

Actress:  JANE WYMAN in "Johnny Belinda",
Ingrid Bergman in "Joan of Arc", Olivia de Havilland in "The Snake Pit", Irene Dunne in "I Remember Mama", Barbara Stanwyck in "Sorry, Wrong Number"

Supporting Actor:  WALTER HUSTON in "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre",
Charles Bickford in "Johnny Belinda", Jose Ferrer in "Joan of Arc", Oscar Homolka in "I Remember Mama", Cecil Kellaway in "The Luck of the Irish"

Supporting Actress: CLAIRE TREVOR in "Key Largo",
Barbara Bel Geddes in "I Remember Mama", Ellen Corby in "I Remember Mama", Agnes Moorehead in "Johnny Belinda", Jean Simmons in "Hamlet"

Director:  JOHN HUSTON for "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre",
Anatole Litvak for "The Snake Pit", Jean Negulesco for "Johnny Belinda", Laurence Olivier for "Hamlet", Fred Zinnemann for "The Search"


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1949
Picture:  "ALL THE KING'S MEN",
"Battleground", "The Heiress", "A Letter to Three Wives", "Twelve O'Clock High"

Actor:  BRODERICK CRAWFORD in "All the King's Men",
Kirk Douglas in "Champion", Gregory Peck in "Twelve O'Clock High", Richard Todd in "The Hasty Heart", John Wayne in "Sands of Iwo Jima"

Actress:  OLIVIA DE HAVILLAND in "The Heiress",
Jeanne Crain in "Pinky", Susan Hayward in "My Foolish Heart", Deborah Kerr in "Edward, My Son", Loretta Young in "Come to the Stable"

Supporting Actor:  DEAN JAGGER in "Twelve O'Clock High",
John Ireland in "All the King's Men", Arthur Kennedy in "Champion", Ralph Richardson in "The Heiress", James Whitmore in "Battleground"

Supporting Actress:  MERCEDES MCCAMBRIDGE in "All the King's Men",
Ethel Barrymore in "Pinky", Celeste Holm in "Come to the Stable", Elsa Lanchester in "Come to the Stable", Ethel Waters in "Pinky"

Director:  JOSEPH L. MANKIEWICZ for "A Letter to Three Wives",
Carol Reed for "The Fallen Idol", Robert Rossen for "All the King's Men", William A. Wellman for "Battleground", William Wyler for "The Heiress"


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