From Beneath the Hollywood Sign

By: Steve Cubine & Nan McNamara
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  • Summary

  • If the Golden era of Old Hollywood is your thing, our podcast is for you! If you want TYRONE POWER instead of TOM HARDY, JENNIFER JONES instead of JENNIFER LAWRENCE, or ROBERT MITCHUM rather than ROBERT PATTINSON, then FROM BENEATH THE HOLLYWOOD SIGN is the gin joint for you. Each week, writer and producer STEVE CUBINE and actress and writer NAN MCNAMARA explore, discuss, and dissect the magical, mysterious, amusing, and sometimes bizarre tales of Old Hollywood. So sit back and revisit a time when the pictures were still big and everyone was ready for their close-up.
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Episodes
  • “MEHAR BABA BRINGS SPIRITUALITY TO OLD HOLLYWOOD” (075)

    “MEHAR BABA BRINGS SPIRITUALITY TO OLD HOLLYWOOD” (075)
    Feb 17 2025
    EPISODE 75 - “MEHAR BABA BRINGS SPIRITUALITY TO OLD HOLLYWOOD” - 2/17/2025 During the 1920s and 1930s, a spiritual movement swept through Hollywood. It seems the Hollywood elite were about more than just speakeasies, flappers, and decadence. Some were searching for inner-peace and often found it -- at least temporarily -- in these various religious movements that popped up. One spiritual leader who came to prominence was India’s MEHAR BABA, who believed that spirituality and metaphysics were interconnected. Stars like MARY PICKFORD, TALLULAH BANKHEAD, and MARIE DRESSLER were admirers. And when Baba visited Hollywood in May of 1932, you’ll never believe where he stayed! Get enlightened and listen to this fascinating story of spirituality in Hollywood. SHOW NOTES: Sources: The God Man (1964), by C.B.Purdom; Mehar Baba, www.meharcenter.org “Mehar Baba: A Brief Biography,” www.avatarmeharbabatrust.org; “Pete Townsend Speaks of Mehar Baba,” www.petetoensend.net; “Mehar Baba: The Compassionate Father,” www.ramdass.org; “Highest of the High: Full Message By Mehar Baba with Introduction,” YouTube,com; Wikipedia.com; Movies Mentioned: The Devil and the Deep (1932); starring Tallulah Bankhead, Gary Cooper, Charles, Laughton, & Cary Grant; Love Me Tonight (1932), starring Maurice Chevalier, Jeanette MacDonald, Charles Ruggles, & Myrna Loy; Grand Hotel (1932), starring Greta Garbo, John Barrymore, Joan Crawford, Lionel Barrymore, Wallace Beery, & Lewis Stone; --------------------------------- http://www.airwavemedia.com Please contact sales@advertisecast.com if you would like to advertise on our podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    26 mins
  • “SWEETHEARTS FROM THE GOLDEN AGE OF HOLLYWOOD" (074)

    “SWEETHEARTS FROM THE GOLDEN AGE OF HOLLYWOOD" (074)
    Feb 10 2025
    EPISODE 74 - “SWEETHEARTS FROM THE GOLDEN AGE OF HOLLYWOOD" 2/10/2025 As Cupid sharpens his arrows, and the candy and greeting card companies prepare to make bank, we celebrate Valentine’s Day. In this episode, we take a loving look at some of Hollywood’s most enduring real-life love stories. From JOEL McCREA and FRANCES DEE to JEAN HARLOW and WILLIAM POWELL, join us as we discuss their lives, films, and, most importantly, their beautiful love stories. SHOW NOTES: Sources: Ladies of the Westerns (2015) by Michael C. Fitzgerald and Boyd Magers; Joel McCrea: Ride The High Country (1992), by Tony Thomas: “William Powell: Hollywood Star, Detective Film Icon," Jan. 27, 2025, Britannica,com; Letters From Hollywood: Jean Harlow , January 21, 2023 by David Stenn, TCM.com; The Love Story of Jean Harlow and William Power: Hollywood’s Iconic Couple, Documentary (2023), Youtube.com; “McIntire and Nolan: A Romance Wright In Radio,” June 27, 2022, Travelanche; “12 Times Real Life Couple John McIntire and Jeanette Nolan Played a Couple Onscreen,” July 18, 2022, MeTV.com; “It Took Three Separate Actors To Bring Psycho’s Norma Bates to Life,” November 30, 2022, www.slashfilm.com; “John McIntire and Jeanette Nolan Mix Business With Pleasure,” 2022, by J. Johnson, www.vocal.media/geeks; “John McIntire & Jeanette Nolan: Life Together,” by Jerry Skinner, YouTube.com; “Mary Pickford,” April 5, 2005, American Experience, PBS; “Douglas Fairbanks,” American Experience, PBS; Life and Times of Mary Pickford, Documentary (1998), Youtube.com; Harlow: The Blonde Bombshell, Documentary (1993), directed by Tom McQuade; “William Powell,” The State Historical Society of Missouri, www.missouriencyclopedia.com; Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (Oscars.org): Mary Pickford; “William Powell, Film Star, Dies at 91,”March 6, 1984, by Peter B. Flint, New York Times; “Jeanette Nolan, Spouse Rough it in Montana Wilderness Home,” March 24, 1974, The Indianapolis Star; TCM.com; MaryPickford.org; McCreaRanchFoundation.org; IMDBPro.com; IBDB.com; Wikipedia.com; AcademyMuseum.com Movies Mentioned: JOEL MCCREA & FRANCES DEE: The Jazz Age (1929); The Silver Horde (1930); Playboy of Paris (1930); King of the Jungle (1930); An American Tragedy (1931); Caught (1931); Born to Love (1931); Bird of Paradise (1932); The Silver Cord (1933); One Man’s Journey (1933); Little Women (1933); Finishing School (1934); Of Human Bondage (1934); Gambling Lady (1934); Becky Sharp (1935); Barbary Coast (1935); These Three (1936); Come and Get It (1936); The Gay Deception (1936); Wells Fargo (1937); Dead End (1937); If I Were King (1938); Union Station (1939); Foreign Correspondent (1940); I Walked With A Zombie (1943); Four Faces West (1948); Ride The High Country (1962); JEAN HARLOW & WILLIAM POWELL: Man of the World (1931); Ladies Man (1931); Hell’s Angels (1930); Reckless (1935); Libeled Lady (1936); After The Thin Man (1936); Saratoga (1937); My Man Godfrey (1936); JOHN McINTIRE & JEANETTE NOLAN: The Ramparts We Watch (1940); Northside 777 (1948); MacBeth (1948); Words and Music (1948); River Lady (1948); Command Decision (1948); Top of The Morning (1949); No Sad Song For Me (1950); The Asphalt Jungle (1950); Winchester ’73 (1950); The Secret of Convict Lake (1951); The Happy Time (1952); The Big Heat (1953); Westward The Women (1951); Apache (1954); The Far County (1954); Flaming Star (1960); Summer and Smoke (1961); The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962); Rooster Cogburn (1975); The Rescuers (1978); True Confessions (1981); Cloak and Dagger (1984); Turner and Hooch (1989); The Horse Whisperer (1998); MARY PICKFORD & DOUGLAS FAIRBANKS: *** Please email us for list of Pickford & Fairbanks movies*** --------------------------------- http://www.airwavemedia.com Please contact sales@advertisecast.com if you would like to advertise on our podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    47 mins
  • "THE NICHOLAS BROTHERS: CLASSIC CINEMA STARS OF THE MONTH" (073)

    "THE NICHOLAS BROTHERS: CLASSIC CINEMA STARS OF THE MONTH" (073)
    Feb 3 2025
    "THE NICHOLAS BROTHERS: CLASSIC CINEMA STARS OF THE MONTH" The Nicholas Brothers, FAYARD and HAROLD, are arguably two of the greatest dancers to ever hit Hollywood. Born to musician parents, they learned their craft working the vaudeville scene and appearing at the famous Cotton Club during the Harlem Renaissance before landing in Hollywood. In Tinseltown, they made movie magic dancing in some of Hollywood’s biggest musicals. The brothers mixed tap dancing with acrobatics to perfect thrilling routines that we’re still in awe of today. They also had to endure the limits put upon them by the racism of the day. Join us this week as we celebrate these two dance icons, our Stars of the Month. SHOW NOTES: Sources: Brotherhood in Rhythm: The Tap Dancing of the Nicholas Brothers (2002), by Constance Valis Hill; Dorothy Dandridge: An Intimate Biography (1970), by Earl Mills; “The Nicholas Brothers, Fayard and Harold: Tap Dance Legends,” February 17, 2024, Dance Mogul magazine; “The Incredible Nicholas Brothers: A Classic Hollywood Black Dance Duo Everyone Should Be Obsessed With,” October 30, 2022, by Maureen Lee Lenker, Entertainment Weekly; “The Nicholas Brothers: Every Generations Dance Heroes,” February 17, 2020, by Najja Parker, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution; “Celebrating The Nicholas Brothers,” September 16, 2011, by Daniel Eagan, Smithsonian magazine; www.nicholasbrothers.com TCM.com; IMDBPro.com; IBDB.com; Wikipedia.com; AcademyMuseum.com Movies Mentioned: Pie Pie Blackbird (1932) - starring Nina Mae McKinney & The Nicholas Brothers; Stoopnocracy (1933), starring Budd Hulick & Harold Nicholas; The Emperor Jones (1933), starring Paul Robeson & Harold Nicholas; Kid Millions (1934), starring Eddie Cantor, Ann Sothern, & Ethel Merman; Jealousy (1934), starring Nancy Kelly & George Murphy; The Big Broadcast of 1936 (1935), starring Jack Oakie, George Burns, Gracie Allen, Bing Crosby, & Ethel Merman; Coronado (1935), starring Johnny Downs; My American Wife (1936), starring Francis Lederer & Ann Sothern; Don’t Gamble with Love (1936) starring Ann Sothern; Babes in Arms (1937), starring Mickey Rooney & Judy Garland; Down Argentine Way (1940), starring Betty Grable, Don Ameche, Carmen Miranda, & Charlotte, Greenwood; Tin Pan Alley (1940), starring Betty Grable, Alice Faye, Jack Oakie, & John Payne; The Great American Broadcast (1941), starring Alice Faye & John Payne; Sun Valley Serenade (1941), starring Sonja Henie & John Payne;\ Orchestra Wives (1942), starring George Montgomery & Ann Rutherford; Stormy Weather (1943), starring Lena Horne; Reckless Age (1944), starring Gloria Jean & Harold Nicholas; Carolina Blues (1944), starring Kay Kyser & Ann Miller; The Pirate (1948), starring Judy Garland & Gene Kelly; Botta e Riposta (1950); El Mensaje le la Muerte (1953); Musik I’m Blut (1955); L'Empire de la Nuit (1964); The Liberation of L.B. Jones (1970), starring Lee J. Cobb, Roscoe Lee Brown, & Fayard Nicholas; Uptown Saturday Night (1974), starring Sidney Poitier, Bill Cosby, Richard Pryor, Flip Wilson, Harry Belafonte, & Harold Nicholas That’s Entertainment! (1974); That’s Dancing (1985); Tap (1989); --------------------------------- http://www.airwavemedia.com Please contact sales@advertisecast.com if you would like to advertise on our podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    32 mins

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Profile Image for M. Customer

One of my favorite podcasts!

If you’re interested in classic movies and the stories about those making the movies or in the movies, this is one of the best podcasts I’ve heard. Much of the information and stories told in this podcast are those that aren’t as well known, so I learn a lot from each episode.

Steve Cubine and Nan McNamara know a lot about the film industry and their rapport and interaction with each other makes it a delight to listen to them. The performance and production value is elevated by Lindsay Schnebly’s editing, writing, etc.

I anticipate and look forward to the release of each new episode and a few times I’ve even gone back and relistened to episodes. That’s how much I enjoy this podcast.

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Something old is something new...

The stories behind Hollywood, both good and bad. Steve and Nan bring weekly interesting stories about the golden years of Hollywood's actresses, actors, players and movies. What you will notice is that each series flow very well and it doesn'tsound like they are just reading from a page. You will be searching on the internet after each podcast to check the names you just heard. Very easy to binge on this podcast.

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