Movies about Sidewalk cafe
17575 Pacific Coast Highway
Architect: Mark Daniels
California Mediterranean, Spanish Colonial Revival with Moorish influences.
A rare example of a 1920s neighborhood commercial building in Pacific Palisades; one of a few examples remaining from this period. Built in 1928, it served as a shopping center for the nearby Castellammare housing development. In the early 1930s, actress Thelma Todd and her lover/business partner, movie producer Roland West, opened a restaurant on the ground floor of the building called Thelma Todd’s Sidewalk Cafe. She lived in an ocean view apartment on an upper floor; an exclusive Hollywood Club called Joya occupied the rest of the second floor. Thelma Todd appeared in over 40 films, including several with the Marx Brothers. The 1930’s beach side café named for the infamous actress and celebrity Thelma Todd, who’s mysterious death at this site has became an unsolved Hollywood legend.
Movies about Sidewalk cafe
Rocco and His Brothers (1960), Elevator to the Gallows (1958), In Bruges (2008), Head-On (2004), Midnight Cowboy (1969), Le passé (2013), Loving Vincent (2017), Pickpocket (1959) . Let’s take a look at the ranked list of the best Sidewalk Cafe movies.
#16. Paris, je t’aime (2006)
- Hodnocení: 7.3 / 10
- Délka: 2h
- Žánr: Komedie, Romantika, Drama
- Director: Olivier Assayas, Frédéric Auburtin|20 more credits »
Storyline: Paris, je t’aime is about the plurality of cinema in one mythic location: Paris, the City of Love. Twenty filmmakers have five minutes each; the audience must weave a single narrative out of twenty moments. The 20 moments are fused by transitional interstitial sequences and also via the introduction and epilogue. Each transition begins with the last shot of the previous film and ends with the first shot of the following film, extending the enchantment and the emotion of the previous segment, preparing the audience for a surprise, and providing a cohesive atmosphere. There’s a reappearing mysterious character who is a witness to the Parisian life. A common theme of Paris and love fuses all.
#17. Catch-22 (1970)
- Hodnocení: 7.2 / 10
- Délka: 2h 2min
- Žánr: Komedie, Drama, Válečný
- Režie: Mike Nichols
Děj: Bombardér ve druhé světové válce se zoufale snaží uniknout šílenství války. Někdy je však šílenství jediným rozumným způsobem, jak se vyrovnat s bláznivou situací. Hlava 22 je parodií na „vojenskou mentalitu“ a na byrokratickou společnost obecně.
#18. 5 to 7 (2014)
- Hodnocení: 7.1 / 10
- Délka: 1h 35min
- Žánr: Komedie, Drama, Romantický
- Director: Victor Levin
Storyline: In New York, an aspiring novelist has a cinq-a-sept affair with the beautiful wife of a French diplomat. Cultures, world views, personal ethics and dietary preferences clash as love deepens, with remarkable results. Romance, drama and comedy.
#19. Definitely, Maybe (2008)
- Hodnocení: 7.1 / 10
- Délka: 1h 52min
- Žánr: Komedie, Drama, Romantický
- Director: Adam Brooks
Storyline: Romantic comedy: Will Hayes, a 30-something Manhattan dad is in the midst of a divorce when his 10 year old daughter, Maya, starts to question him about his life before marriage. Maya wants to know absolutely everything about how her parents met and fell in love. Will’s story begins in 1992, as a young, starry-eyed aspiring politician who moves to New York from Wisconsin in order to work on the Clinton campaign. For Maya, Will relives his past as a idealistic young man learning the ins and outs of big city politics, and recounts the history of his romantic relationships with three very different women. On the campaign, Will’s best buddy is Russell McCormack. They not only have similar political aspirations, they share the same type of girl problems, too. Will hopelessly attempts a «PG» version of his story for his daughter ad changes the names so Maya has to guess who he finally married. Is her mother Will’s college sweetheart, the dependable girl next-door Emily? Is she his longtime .
#20. Body of Lies (2008)
- Hodnocení: 7.1 / 10
- Délka: 2h 8min
- Žánr: Akční, Drama, Thriller
- Režisér: Ridley Scott
Děj: Roger Ferris je agentem CIA na Blízkém východě; Ed Hoffman je jeho kontrola v Langley. Cynismus je všude. V Ammánu Roger spolupracuje s Hani Salaamovou, jordánskou šéfkou ochranky, jejímž jediným výrokem je „Nelži mi“. Američané pronásledují duchovního, který vede skupinu umisťující bomby po celé Evropě. Když Hani pokárá Edův požadavek, aby Jordan umožnil Američanům použít jednoho z Jordanových dvojitých agentů, Roger a Ed vymyslí plán, jak k nim duchovního přivést. Plán je komplikován tím, že je před Hani tajemstvím, a Rogerovou přitažlivostí k místní ošetřovatelce. Satelity a mobilní telefony, těla a lži: moderní válka.
#21. The Way We Were (1973)
- Hodnocení: 7.1 / 10
- Délka: 1h 58min
- Žánr: Drama, Romantický
- Director: Sydney Pollack
Storyline: The often unlikely joint lives of Katie Morosky and Hubbell Gardiner from the late 1930s to the late 1950s is presented, over which time, they are, in no particular order, strangers, acquaintances, friends, best friends, lovers and adversaries. The unlikely nature of their relationship is due to their fundamental differences, where she is Jewish and passionate about her political activism both in political freedoms and Marxism to an extreme where she takes life a little too seriously, while he is the golden boy WASP, being afforded the privileges in life because of his background but who on the most part is able to capitalize on those privileges. Their lives are shown in four general time periods, in chronological order when they attend the same college, their time in New York City during WWII, his life as a Hollywood screenwriter post-war, and his life as a writer for a New York based live television show. It is during college that Hubbell finds his voice in life as a writer, and .
#22. Everybody Knows (2018)
- Hodnocení: 7.0 / 10
- Délka: 2h 13min
- Žánr: Krimi, Drama, Mysteriózní, Thriller
- Režie: Asghar Farhadi
Storyline: Laura, a Spanish woman living in Buenos Aires, returns to her hometown outside Madrid with her two children to attend her sister’s wedding. However, the trip is upset by unexpected events that bring secrets into the open.
#23. I Love You, Man (2009)
- Hodnocení: 7.0 / 10
- Délka: 1h 45min
- Žánr: Komedie, Romantika
- Režie: John Hamburg
Storyline: Peter Klaven’s world revolves around his real estate work and Zooey, his soon-to-be fiancée. After he pops the question, she calls her best friends and they go into wedding planning mode. Peter has no male friends and that poses problems: will he turn out to be a clingy guy, and who will be his best man? Zooey, her friends, and Peter’s brother Robbie offer help that results in awkward moments. Then, at an open house Peter’s hosting, he meets Sydney, an amiable, low-key guy. They trade business cards, and Peter calls him to meet for drinks. A friendship develops that’s great at first but then threatens Peter’s engagement and career. Can guys be friends and couples be in love?
#24. I Was a Male War Bride (1949)
- Hodnocení: 7.0 / 10
- Délka: 105 minut
- Žánr: Komedie
- Režie: Howard Hawks
Storyline: In post-war, French Army Captain Henrí Rochard and US Army Lieutenant Catherine Gates, stationed in Heidelberg, West Germany, are often teamed on missions. Their personal relationship teeters from being friendly enough to Catherine not sure if she wants to spend any time with him, professionally or personally, as he is the type who will chase anything in a skirt, while she knows she ultimately wants to be with the type of man who only wants one «skirt», namely hers. Their latest mission, what will be their last together before he is decommissioned, is punctuated by them getting into one misadventure after another, and despite those mishaps, they come to realize that they love each other on the fact that they would never see each other again after their return to Heidelberg, and want to get married. That want starts the bureaucratic nightmare they face, ranging the gamut of military policies and civil laws in whatever jurisdiction they are in. That nightmare culminates when Catherine’s unit is being shipped back to the United States, the only way that Henrí can enter the United States as her spouse being under the War Brides Act. Henrí ends up being classified among one hundred thirty-nine other war brides, one hundred twenty-six children of war brides, nine dogs, three cats, two canaries and one parrot, none having as much trouble that he has despite he being «approved» as «Mrs. Henrí Rochard».—Huggo
#25. I’m Going Home (2001)
- Hodnocení: 7.0 / 10
- Délka: 90 minut
- Žánr: Komedie, Drama
- Director: Manoel de Oliveira
Storyline: The comfortable daily routines of aging Parisian actor Gilbert Valence, 76, are suddenly shaken when he learns that his wife, daughter, and son-in-law have been killed in a car crash. Having to take care of his now-orphaned grandson, he struggles to go on with his lifelong acting career like he’s used to. But the roles he is offered — a flashy TV show and a hectic last-minute replacement in an English-language film of Joyce’s Ulysses — finally convince him that it’s time to retire.—Markku Kuoppamäki
#26. Upstream Color (2013)
- Hodnocení: 6.7 / 10
- Délka: 1h 36min
- Žánr: Drama, Sci-fi
- Režie: Shane Carruth
Storyline: Kris is attacked one night, and hypnotized, using a grub with hypnotic properties, administered by a thief. She follows the thief’s instructions to give him everything, even taking out loans. After the worms are extracted, she wakes up to find her life ruined. She’s lost her job, her finances are destroyed. Years later, she meets Jeff whom she may have a lot in common with.
#27. Just Like Heaven (2005)
- Hodnocení: 6.7 / 10
- Délka: 1h 35min
- Žánr: Komedie, Drama, Fantasy, Romantika
- Režie: Mark Waters
Storyline: Elizabeth Masterson, a dedicated doctor in San Francisco, had almost no time for anything. When she gets into a tragic car crash and goes into a coma, a landscape architect moves into Elizabeth’s apartment for rent — where he meets her amnesiac ethereal form.
#28. Swimming Pool (2003)
- Hodnocení: 6.7 / 10
- Délka: 1h 42min
- Žánr: Krimi, Drama, Mysteriózní, Thriller
- Režie: François Ozon
Storyline: Sarah Morton is a famous British mystery author. Tired of London and seeking inspiration for her new novel, she accepts an offer from her publisher John Bosload to stay at his home in Luberon, in the South of France. It is the off-season, and Sarah finds that the beautiful country locale and unhurried pace is just the tonic for her—until late one night, when John’s indolent and insouciant French daughter Julie unexpectedly arrives. Sarah’s prim and steely English reserve is jarred by Julie’s reckless, sexually charged lifestyle. Their interactions set off an increasingly unsettling series of events, as Sarah’s creative process and a possible real-life murder begin to blend dangerously together.
#29. Ingrid Goes West (2017)
- Hodnocení: 6.6 / 10
- Délka: 1h 38min
- Žánr: Komedie, Drama
- Režie: Matt Spicer
Příběh: Ingrid Thorburnová je nespoutaná stalkerka na sociálních sítích s historií matoucích „lajků“ pro smysluplné vztahy. Taylor Sloane je na Instagramu známý „influencer“, jehož dokonale upravený, boho-chic životní styl se stává Ingridinou poslední posedlostí. Když se Ingrid přestěhuje do LA a podaří se jí proniknout do života hvězdy sociálních sítí, jejich vztah se rychle změní z #BFF na #WTF.
#30. Hlava v oblacích (2004)
- Hodnocení: 6.6 / 10
- Délka: 2h 12min
- Žánr: Drama, Romantika, Válečný
- Režie: John Duigan
Děj: Za deštivé noci roku 1933 vtrhne mladá, vzpurná a provokativní dědička francouzského šampaňského Gilda Bessé do klidného života nesmělého studenta Oxfordu Guye Malyona a překvapí ho. A než se naděje, Guy je zamilovaný a zachycený v pařížském bytě nyní slavné fotografky Gildy, žijící pod jednou střechou se svou múzou a španělskou politickou idealistkou Miou. Jak však Španělsko postupně podléhá nacionalistům, bude oddanost Mii a Guye věci Španělské republiky hrozit rozpadem jejich bohémského a téměř idylického soužití. Může nakonec, když se Adolf Hitler dostane k moci, válkou zničená Evropa tyto tři společníky navždy oddělit?
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Tag Archives: Thelma Todd’s Sidewalk Cafe
Aggie and the Ice Cream Blonde
Posted on December 16, 2023 by Deranged
Reporter Aggie Underwood devoted a chapter in her 1949 autobiography, Newspaperwoman, to movie stars. One star she covered was Thelma Todd. Thelma, nicknamed the Ice Cream Blonde, was a popular actress appearing in over 120 films between 1926 and 1935.
Thelma was born on July 29, 1906, in Lawrence, Massachusetts. She excelled in her studies and aspired to be a schoolteacher. Despite going to college after high school, her mother still pushed her to take part in beauty contests because of her looks. In 1925, she became “Miss Massachusetts” and entered the “Miss America” pageant. Despite not winning, Hollywood talent scouts took notice of her.
Among the stars with whom Thelma appeared during her career were Gary Cooper, William Powell, The Marx Brothers, and Laurel and Hardy.
In the late 1920s and early 1930s, various male comedy duos achieved success. Studio head Hal Roach saw the potential in pairing two women. Between 1931 and 1933 Thelma and Zasu Pitts appeared in over a dozen films, primarily two-reelers.
When it came time for contract renegotiation, Zasu and Thelma found out that Hal Roach had made certain that their individual contracts expired six months apart. He concluded the stars had less leverage individually than they would as a team. He’d pulled the same trick on Laurel and Hardy. Zasu’s bid for more money and a stake in the team’s films was a non-starter with Roach. They gave her a take it or leave it option. She left. Thelma’s new partner was wisecracking Patsy Kelly, and they churned out a series of successful shorts for Roach until 1935.
Thelma’s pleasant voice made her transition from silent to sound films an easy one. She had name recognition and with financial backing from her lover, film director Roland West, she opened the Thelma Todd’s Sidewalk Café. Thelma and Roland lived in separate rooms above the café. They had known each other for about 5 years. Thelma starred in West’s 1931 film Corsair, and that is when they embarked on a passionate affair.
West’s estranged wife, Jewel Carmen, lived in a home about 300 feet above the café on a hill overlooking the Pacific Ocean. It was an odd domestic arrangement, to be sure.
On Saturday, December 14, 1935, Thelma’s personal maid of four years, May Whitehead, helped to dress the actress in a blue and silver sequin gown for a party. At about 8 p.m. Thelma and her mother Alice were preparing to leave the Café together. Thelma had plans to attend a party at the Trocadero, where Ida Lupino and her father Stanley were the hosts.
As they were about to get into the limo driven by Ernie Peters (one of Thelma’s regular drivers) Roland approached Thelma and told her to be home by 2 a.m. Not one to be given orders, Thelma said she’d be home at 2:05.
When questioned later, West described his exchange with Thelma as more of a joke than a serious demand on his part. On that earlier occasion, Thelma had knocked hard enough to break a window and Roland let her in.
According to party goers, Thelma arrived at the Trocadero in high spirits and seemed to look forward to the holidays. She downed a few cocktails. Although intoxicated, none of her friends thought she was drunk. Thelma’s ex-husband, Pat Di Cicco, was at the Trocadero with a date, but he was not a guest at the Lupino’s party.
Very late in the evening, Thelma joined Sid Grauman’s table for about 30 minutes before asking him if he’d call Roland and let him know she was on her way home. Thelma’s chauffeur said that the actress was unusually quiet on the ride home, and when they arrived, she declined his offer to walk her to the door of her apartment. He said she’d never done that before.
It’s at this point that the mystery of Thelma Todd’s death begins.
On Monday, December 16, 1935, May Whitehead, had driven her own car to the garage, as she did every morning, to get Thelma’s chocolate brown, twelve-cylinder Lincoln phaeton and bring it down the hill to the café for Thelma’s use.
May said that the doors to the garage were closed, but unlocked. She entered the garage and saw the driver’s side door to Thelma’s car was wide open. Then she saw Thelma slumped over in the seat. At first May thought Thelma was asleep, but once she realized her employer was dead, she went to the Café and notified the business manager and asked him to telephone Roland West.
Once Thelma Todd’s premature death became public, local newspapers sensationalized it, hinting at foul play. The Daily Record’s headline proclaimed: “THELMA TODD FOUND DEAD, INVESTIGATING POSSIBLE MURDER”. The Herald’s cover story suggested that Todd’s death was worthy of Edgar Allan Poe:
“…if her death was accidental, it was as strange an accident as was ever conceived by the brain of Poe.”
The circumstances of Thelma’s death were puzzling, and upon receiving the news, her mother, Alice Todd, shrieked, “My daughter has been murdered!”
Whether Thelma’s death was a suicide, accident, or murder rested with the cops and criminalists. Thelma’s face bore traces of blood, and droplets of blood were present inside the car and on the running board.
According to the coroner, Thelma’s death likely occurred around twelve hours before they found her body. But a few witnesses came forward to swear that they’d seen, or spoken to, Thelma on Sunday afternoon when, according to the coroner, she would have already been dead.
The most interesting of the witnesses who had claimed to have seen or spoken with Thelma on Sunday was Mrs. Martha Ford. She and her husband, the actor Wallace Ford, were hosting a party that day to which they had invited Todd. She said that she received a telephone call and that she’d at first thought the caller was a woman named Velma, who she was expecting at the party; but then the caller identified herself as Thelma, and used the nickname Hot Toddy. Martha said that Toddy asked her if she could show up in the evening clothes she’d worn the night before to a party — Martha told her that was fine. “Toddy” also said she was bringing a surprise guest and said, “You just wait until I walk in. You’ll fall dead!” Mrs. Ford insisted the caller was Thelma.
Thelma Todd’s death evoked a massive outpouring of grief. Hundreds of mourners from all walks of life visited Pierce Mortuary where Thelma’s body was on view from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on December 19, 1935.
Patsy Kelly was said to have been so upset that she was under a doctor’s care. Thelma’s death devastated Zasu Pitts. She had been out Christmas shopping with her a few days earlier.
The sightings of Thelma on Sunday led to a multitude of theories, ranging from plausible to crackpot. Among the theories that have gained popularity over the years, even though unsubstantiated, is the rumor New York mobster Lucky Luciano put pressure on Thelma to host gambling at the Café. When Thelma said no, he had her killed.
Another theory is her ex-husband, Pat Di Cicco, murdered Thelma. He had a history of violence against women; but they found no evidence against him.
I have my own theory, of course. How could I not? Here’s what I believe happened.
On Saturday night as she was leaving for the Trocadero, Roland West told Thelma to be home at 2 am. He wasn’t joking with her as he’d said. Asserting herself, she told him she’d be home at 2:05—but at 2:45 or 3 a.m., probably to avoid an unplkeasant call, she asked Sid Grauman to phone West and let him know she was on her way.
Her chauffeur, Ernie, said they arrived at the café at about 3:30 a.m. and she declined his offer to walk her up to her apartment. I believe she declined because she expected an ugly scene with Roland about her late arrival home. She had a key in her evening bag, but the door to the apartment was bolted from the inside. Roland had locked her out again. She was tired, and she’d been drinking. Her blood alcohol level was later found to be .13, enough for her to be intoxicated but not sloppy drunk. She decided she didn’t have the energy to engage in an argument with Roland—it must have been about 4 am. The beach was cold that night as Thelma trudged up the stairs to the garage.
After opening the garage doors, she turned on the light. To stay warm, she started her car and turned on the engine. Within minutes, she fell asleep and succumbed to carbon monoxide poisoning. She fell over and banged her head against the steering wheel of the car, which caused a small amount of blood to be found on her body. Later, they tested the blood and found carbon monoxide in it, indicating that her injury happened inside the garage.
According to tests made by criminalist Ray Pinker, it would have taken about two minutes for there to have been enough carbon monoxide in the garage to kill her. He had even tested the car to see how long it would run before the engine died—the shortest time it idled was 2 minutes 40 seconds, the longest was 46 minutes 40 seconds.
What about the light switch and the open car door? I think that when Roland heard nothing from Thelma, he looked for her. He walked to the garage to see if she’d taken her car. He went inside and saw Thelma slumped over in the front seat, just the way May Whitehead would find her on Monday morning. The car’s motor was no longer running. He opened the driver’s side door to wake her up, only to discover she was dead. Shocked, he left, leaving the driver’s side door open, switching off the garage light and closing the doors. Then he returned to the apartment.
While West did not kill Thelma, I believe he felt responsible for her death. He never told a soul about that night; unless you believe the rumor that he made a death bed confession to his friend, actor Chester Morris.
What about Martha Ford’s alleged telephone conversation with Thelma? Was it Thelma on the phone? Maybe Ford was mistaken about the time. Another of the many loose ends in the mystery surrounding Thelma’s death.
Aggie was wrapping up her first year as a reporter for Hearst when Thelma Todd died. She had never attended an autopsy before. She knew her male colleagues brought her along to test her. They wanted to know if she had the stomach for it. She did. According to her memoir, by the end of the autopsy, only she and the coroner remained in the room; her colleagues had turned green and bolted for the door.
The last words are Aggie’s. Perplexed by mysteries surrounding Thelma’s death, she wrote in her memoir, “In crucial phases of the case, official versions as told reporters varied from subsequent statements. It was known where and what Miss Todd had eaten on Saturday night. Stomach contents found in the autopsy did not appear to bear out reports on the meal. There were other discrepancies, including interpretations of the condition of the body and its position in the automobile.”
For conspiracy buffs, Aggie talked about a detective she knew who worked to clarify some of the disputed information. She said, “…he was deeper in the mystery, receiving threatening calls…which carried a secret and unlisted number. He was warned to ‘lay off if you know what is good for you.’
“In his investigation, the detective stopped and searched an automobile of a powerful motion picture figure. In the car, surprisingly, was a witness who had reported that Miss Todd had been seen on Sunday. Near the witness was a packed suitcase. The investigator told me the owner of the car attempted to have him ousted from the police department.”
Aggie would not reveal the name of the detective. In summation, she wrote, “There’s a disquieting feeling in working some of these cinema-land death cases, whether natural or mysterious. One senses intangible pressures, as in the Thelma Todd story: After the inquest testimony, in which one sensational theory was that the blonde star, who died of carbon monoxide gas, was the victim of a killer, the case eventually was dropped as one of accidental, though mysterious, death.”
Over the decades, Thelma’s death has been the subject of books, movies, and TV shows; and attributed to everything from suicide to a criminal conspiracy.
I think it best if Aggie and I leave you to make up your own minds about what happened to the beautiful Ice Cream Blonde.
If you are curious, here is CORSAIR, starring Thelma Todd and Chester Morris
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