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| Janet Leigh in Psycho |
When most guys see an attractive woman, they want to bed her. When I see an attractive woman, I want to be her. And where am I most likely to see attractive women who I want to be – on the movie screen.
Film actresses are often hired because they are good looking; if they are also good at acting, that’s just icing on the cake. (I know that isn’t politically correct, but that’s the way it is.) So, I am more likely to see an attractive woman in a film who I want to femulate rather than on the street or at work or at Hamvention.
In addition to showcasing women I want to be, films also have encouraged me to femulate. When I saw gents like Tony Curtis in Some Like It Hot or Christopher Morley in Freebie and the Bean successfully portraying women, they showed me that I might be able to successfully portray a woman, too.
Back in the day, actresses Suzanne Pleshette, Jacqueline Bisset, Tippi Hedren, Janet Leigh, Eva Marie Saint and Grace Kelly were the women I wanted to be. Instead, I became my mother.
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| Wearing Edith Head. |
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| Jonny Beauchamp (left) in a 2015 episode of television's Penny Dreadful. |
Me too.. In the late 50s and early 60s, I remember being transfixed by the likes of Doris Day and co in their little suits and heels. Or those big swirling skirts full of petticoats.. (think Grace Kelly in 'Rear Window')
ReplyDeleteI couldn't take my eyes off them for the same reason as Stana - I desperately wished I could be like them.
Where did all that come from? I had no idea then - and I still don't now.
http://www.shakespearetheatre.org/multimedia/shrew-15-16-photo-gallery/
ReplyDeleteThe women you mentioned, back in the day, always presented as nicely dressed, made up and you always simply knew that under their outer clothes were wonder unmentionables. I may want to add a few TV women to your list of film stars. Some of those ladies set the standard of the day.
ReplyDeleteSeems like there is quite a few of us out there who "Femulated" in the same manner. In addition to the ones you mentioned Stana, I also wanted to be Annette Funicello, Sandra Dee, and I just loved Marilyn Monroe. In fact I still do and often wish to emulate her but do use your term "femulate" instead. Sometimes now I also wish to be Christopher Matthews or the others, young actors and older actors, who have been blessed with the ability to be seen on TV shows and in movies on a more regular basis. Loved the episodes of Dan Tanner and others who used these ladies regularly.
ReplyDeleteThe ones that I would still love to Femulate would be Virginia Mayo, Anne Francis, and Karen Steele. In a way I was stuck in the 50's because of the beautiful clothes that so many women of that ear wore.
ReplyDeleteSorry, late to the discussion... since movies were the primary visual entertainment of my generation (in my 60s now) I so remember well the beautiful dresses and gowns worn by the ladies of films. How I wished I could have worn some of those dresses! On a few occasions I would hint around what it would be like to wear them to some of them to other boys my age... their response told me I did not want to pursue the matter any further. So subject was quickly dropped! Guess that was when I found out I just might be wired a little differently.
ReplyDeleteMary:me and mother always looked at marilyn monroe films,mother almost looked a bit like doris day,she always admire marilyns skirts dresses an asked my opinion about them..
ReplyDeleteShe always talked to me about female things :all about fashion clothing items etc etc