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The
Greatest Romantic of All Time...
"Tell
me, my leetle pigeon, where have I been all of your life?"
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Pepe LePew was one of the signature cartoon
characters of Chuck Jones. This skunk with an overactive libido did
not start out in the form that he is known today. In Odor-able Kitty
(Jones, 1945), the character |
is revealed to be a fraud, with a midwestern accent and a wife with two
kids. Jones wisely decided to bring back the character without these
handicaps, and the fetid Frenchman won Jones his only Oscar for a Warner-released
theatrical cartoon, "For Scent-imental Reasons" (1949) in spite of the
fact that Eddie Selzer, the producer, hated the character.
| While most of the Pépe cartoons tend
to look alike and have similar plots, there is enough fun in the fractured
French to liven up the shorts, preventing them from becoming mere Speedy
Gonzales cartoons in a different Romance |
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language (so to speak). A funny twist on the usual cat-gets-painted
routine comes in Dog Pounded (Freleng, 1954), in which Sylvester makes
a bid for Tweety disguised with white paint as a skunk. His ploy succeeds
in scaring away the dogs, but winds up attracting Pépe!
The character is partly a spoof, in both name and manner,
of Charles Boyer’s "Pépe le Moko" who appears in such films as "Algiers."
Pépe did, however, spoof Maurice Chevalier in at least one cartoon,
"Scent-imental Romeo" (1951).
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There is one somewhat unusual Pépe
cartoon, "Odor of the Day" (Davis, 1948), that has a practically silent
Pépe. The short makes no use of the “Franglais” dialogue that marks
the Jones efforts, though this does not, by any means, make it an inferior
cartoon. |
Most Pépe cartoons in which a locale is specified take
place either in France or a French-speaking area, such as New Orleans in
"Really Scent" (1959) or Algeria/Sahara in "Little Beau Pépe" (1952).
One cartoon, "Scent-imental Over You" (1947), takes place in New York City,
on the Upper East Side.
Pepe LePew is a reminder that there is indeed a humorous
side to romance. Most of us can relate to those experiences in our
lives where we were making our best attempt at being seductive or charming
and either blew it or ended up looking a bit rediculous. It's the
risk we take when trying to attract another person. However, unlike
Pepe, the vast majority of us will eventually catch our "Kitty" and go
on to enjoy a happy and fulfilling primary relationship. Still, wouldn't
it be better to make a few mistakes along the way rather than never really
know the joys of love and romance at all?
"Why, ma Cherie! Of course, for it is love,
darling, that makes the world go 'round, my leetle cupcake."
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Filmography
(all Jones unless otherwise noted)
Odor-able Kitty (1945)
Scent-imental Over You (1947)
Odor of the Day (Davis, 1948)
For Scent-imental Reasons (1949)
Scent-imental Romeo (1951)
Little Beau Pépe (1952)
Wild Over You (1953)
Dog Pounded (Freleng, 1954) cameo
The Cats Bah (1954)
Past Perfumance (1955)
Two Scents Worth (1955)
Heaven Scent (1956)
Touche and Go (1957)
Really Scent (Levitow, 1959)
Who Scent You? (1960)
A Scent of the Matterhorn (1961)
Louvre Come Back to Me (1962)
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Marilyn
Monroe
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The
Tragic Life of a Beautiful
Woman
Who Sought Love,
Found
It Again & Again,
Only
to Lose It and Her Life
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Norma Jeane Baker (her real name) spent most of her childhood
in foster homes and orphanages until 1937, when she moved in with a family
friend, Grace Goddard. When Grace's husband was transferred to the
East Coast in 1942, the couple couldn't afford to take 16-year-old Norma
Jeane with them. She had two options: return to the orphanage or
get married.
As a result, she wed her 21-year-old neighbor, Jimmy Dougherty,
whom she had dated for six months. By all accounts Norma Jeane loved
Jimmy and they were happy together until he joined the Merchant Marines
and was sent to the South Pacific in 1944.
After Jimmy left, Norma Jeane took a job on the assembly line
at a munitions factory. Several months later, photographer David
Conover saw her while photographing women who were contributing to the
war effort for Yank magazine. He couldn't believe his luck as she
was a photographer's dream. The camera loved Norma Jeane and within
two years she was a reputable model with many popular magazine covers to
her credit. She enrolled in drama classes with dreams of stardom.
However, Jimmy's return in 1946 meant Norma Jeane had to make another choice--this
time between her marriage and her career.
Norma Jeane made her decision and divorced Jimmy and signed
her first studio contract with Twentieth Century Fox on August 26, 1946.
She earned $125 a week. Soon after, Norma Jeane dyed her hair blonde
and changed her name to Marilyn Monroe (using her grandmother's last name).
Marilyn's first movie role was a bit part in 1947's The
Shocking Miss Pilgrim. She played a series of inconsequential characters
until 1950, when John Huston's thriller The Asphalt Jungle provided her
with a prominant role. She continued to take roles
in a series of more successful films.
However, it was her part in the movie Niagara which marked
her as a star, resulting in lead roles in films which became classics like
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and How to Marry a Millionaire. Photoplay
magazine voted Marilyn the Best New Actress of 1953 and, at 27 years old,
she was undeniably the best-loved blonde bombshell in Hollywood. |
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In early 1954, Marilyn married baseball superstar Joe DiMaggio
at San Francisco's City Hall. They had been a couple for two years after
Joe asked his agent to arrange a dinner date. "I don't know if I'm in love
with him yet," Marilyn said when the press got word of their relationship,
"but I know I like him more than any man I've ever met." During their
Tokyo honeymoon, Marilyn took time to perform for the service men stationed
in Korea. Her presence caused a near-riot among the troops, and Joe
was clearly uncomfortable with thousands of men ogling his new bride.
Unfortunately, Marilyn's fame and sexual image became
a theme that haunted their marriage. Nine months later, they divorced.
They attributed the split to a "conflict of careers," and remained close
friends.
In mid-1956, Marilyn wed playwright Arthur Miller. While
they were married, Arthur wrote the part of Roslyn Taber in 1961's The
Misfits especially for Marilyn. The movie co-starred Clark Gable and Montgomery
Clift. Sadly, the marriage between Marilyn and Arthur ended on January
20, 1961, and The Misfits was to be Marilyn's (and Gable's) last completed
film.
In a shocking turn of events on the early morning of August
5, 1962, 36-year-old Marilyn died in her sleep at her Brentwood, California
home. The world was stunned. Marilyn's vibrant spirit and beauty
made it impossible to believe she was gone. They mystery surrounding her
death as being either accidental, suicidal, or the result of a conspirecy
continues to be argued to this day.
During her career, Marilyn made 30 films and left one,
Something's Got to Give, unfinished.
She left her life and loves unfinished as well. |
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