The Thin Man! I spent all of college trying to be Nora and find my Nick! I love you, Laurie.

I love the Thin Man! In the '90s I had a Thin Man party where we had to take a drink every time they did.

Needless to say, everyone had to spend the night.

you didn't name any cats "Asta?"

One of my all-time favorite movies, and I can completely relate to the marabou feathers. I've wanted a boa forever, but knew it would be a cat-toy within moments of crossing the threshold. I've always wanted to party with Nick and Nora (even though I'm not much of a party girl). That breakfast as I recall is around lunchtime, since they didn't get in until dawn. Civilized, darling, wouldn't you say?

We already had the herd firmly in place by the time I entered my Thin Man phase or else each one would be some variation of Asta LOL

That is my favorite movie ever! My brother got me the whole boxed set of movies for Christmas last year.

I love the one where they're on the train at the end of the movie and she's knitting a baby bootie and all of a sudden Nick realizes that she's pregnant--something she'd been trying to tell him through the whole movie. I can't figure out how it is she's knitting, it looks like the french method to me, but it sure looks cool!

I wanna talk about FOUNDATION. You think you have it hard, li'l Miss Peaches-n-Cream?! Try matching olive toned multi colors with any ONE foundation color! Add to that my inherent inability to spend the $30+ to get it from a fahncee make up counter (versus Target). Oy.

I think I'm gonna buy a burka and just be done with it.

The Thin Man. Just the title is unappealing.

Must check the TCM listings and buy some gin (for martinis). Woo Woo and new drinking game! Like I need a game.

Wait - Nick and Nora? Isn't that the loungewear line at Target?!?!!!

I loves me some Myrna Loy. She's just adorable. And Asta. What an intelligent pup. But Powell? Nah. I think the moustache looks like a misplaced eyebrow.

I loved The Thin Man. I always wanted to look like Nora and have a fabulous man like Nick.

Now, I'm tempted to go put on my floor length night dress and mule slippers so I can totally ensure that the Mr. and child think the Mommy has gone off the deep end.

i love the thin man -- i can't believe you maligned the moustache, june! shame on you! i own all the movies and me and my pup love to sit on the bed and watch nick & nora hyjinks. i think my pup is secretly in luv. i'm just not sure if it's with asta or nora! ;-)

Nick & Nora is a line of PJ's but I've never seen any that have the long nightgown with coordinating robe at Target - the shame. I would LOVE to have such a set but at 5' nearly nothing (3") I look the exact opposite of tall, thin, & sexy in such bedroom wear - the addition of feathers only helps to make me look more cartoonish. Sigh -
Now if someone had some of those kitten heeled mule slippers to match available in a "higher" heel - I might be able to make it work.....

monkeygurrl ... I have an awful time finding foundation! My skin is glow-in-the-dark pale, yes, but I'm not a pink/red with blue undertone like all makeup manufacturers seem to think blondes are. I'm an olive undertone. Plus, I have red cheeks so it just makes people in sephora try to steer me in the wrong direction. And I have freakishly sensitive skin, so I break out if the foundation irritates my skin at all.

I have given up and now I just use the cheapo cover girl tinted moisturizer from Rite-Aid. $6 baby! And it works.

>>It involves wearing evening gowns around the house at all hours...<<<

You make it sound like there's something wrong with that. I would tooootally live like that if I could. One of my dogs looks a little like Asta.

xo
~A

I am SO with you!
We nearly had a Thin Man themed wedding!
I yearn after Nora's elegance too....but then reality kicks in and I realize that before I buy that fabulous impeccably fit wardrobe of flowing negligees and fabulous fitted suits and dresses that I-
A- Need to either quickly inherit the gobs of money or make a jillion dollars- quickly- in order to even buy the fbric needed to make such gorgeous things

B- Need same said fortune to keep the kind of environment and staff needed to keep that wardrobe from being shredded in ten seconds flat.Think of it- can't scrub the toilet-- your flowy sleeves would "flow" into the bowl (yuck!)
can't change a diaper or play with junior on the floor- 'cuz the sleeves would get in the way and besides- who would keep the floor so immaculate that you would't destroy the fabulous silky things you're wearing???
((sigh)) And then I end up at the fancy soap shop to buy a grossly overpriced slice of scented luxury and to Target to buy something silky and low-priced. Because at least I can feel like Nora when I wash off all the housecleaning dirt AFTER I do all the things her nanny/chauffer/personal maid/cook/housemaid/gardener did!

i love the thin man. my favorite is the one where asta is romancing a scottie. (i have scotties.)

Crap! I knew I was missing the boat somewhere. This morning I sliced my bread.

Foundation? All I can say is I just started using Bare Minerals and I'm SUCH A SMITTEN KITTEN! People at work are looking at me suspiciously, commenting on how "rested" I look, trying to get me to admit having my face "tweaked", and I'm all smug and silent and loving my sounds-crazy-but-it-works powder foundation. Love. It. Lucky for me I can still have a crazy affair with it and stay married to my hubby.... (might I add here that bareminerals.com is having a sweet sweet sale right now which is why I finally broke down and got the stuff)

I think The Thin Man was on one of the movie channels (AMC or something...) and I didn't watch it because it sounded rather Stephen Kingish, and I wasn't in mood. Now I'll never see it mentioned again, so I'll just have to rent it--cause I'm dying to be in the know now....

My favorite Nora quote, when she catches Nick staring at the chest of an endowed bombshell: "The earrings are higher up."

My husband bought me the DVD box set of Thin Man movies for Hanukah last year...now we just need a dog named Asta.

Ah my GF has the whole Thin Man series on DVD, I am now going ot have to borrow them!

What the hell is a kitten heel? Am I embarrassing myself to death by not knowing this?

Bread actually keeps a lot better if it isn't sliced, plus you can hack off whatever size hunk you happen to want at the moment. This is easier if you have nice robust bread, not that squishy Wonder stuff.

And you think you've got troubles. I've got bread-related control issues.

I love all black and white movies. My husband always rushes past Turner Classic Movies when he's home because I might find something that he'll end up enjoying too! And Nick and Nora are the great team in the world. Did you know that the original movie is based on a book by Dashell Hammet? As was "The Maltese Falcon?" Might be an interesting read.

Bare Escentuals i.d. bare Minerals. Best. Foundation. Evah!

Seriously . . . you have to try it. It is a bit pricey, but the coverage is excellent and it is good for sensitive skin.

Laurie dear, the bread slicer was invented in my town, Bettendorf Iowa! We are famous...lol

I love the Thin Man movies as well. My neighbor has a little terrier - named Asta. Very sweet. So I just looked it up on IMDB and it looks like Asta (aka "Skippy") was in two other of my favorite movies -- The Awful Truth and Bringing up Baby. Go Asta!

Have you tried the Bare Minerals line of foundation? I, too, had an enormous problem finding a matching foundation and once I tried this the problem vanished. It's fabulous, very little transfer, easy to use...in short, I love it! You can get it at Sephora...

When I was a kid in N.Dakota, my stylish west coast auntie took me to a Thin Man movie. That film, and many other "B" movies of the '40's era, had a firm impact on my future attitudes. I aspired to be an art student, AND a "B" girl who flirted with disaster while dressed in bosomy cocktail dresses, had over-the-edge love affairs with questionable characters - etc. etc. Well, except for the bosom, I lived it. My love of creativity lives on. Occasionaly (generally after a couple (3) glasses of the grape, I indulge dress-up in one of my old 'Joan Crawford' dressing gowns while I do creative folding of my laundry. And, I'm still an art student.

Oh, also - Physicians Formula makes a mineral based loose powder, in 3 shades. I also like their eye shadows in beige shades which double-duty as blusher/shaper. Available at Fred Meyer on west coast. I suspect Target will carry it also.

I have a cookie recipe that my grandmother wrote out for me. After you mix up the batter, you put the dough in wax paper and store it overnight in the "ice box." Because, you know, they used "ice boxes" back then. Hard to imagine.

I also have a picture of my great-great-grandmother standing in front of the family outhouse. Kuh-lassy!

Origins has GREAT foundations. And Dr. Weil is working with Origins to make all sorts of skin loving potions. I know how you feel about Dr. Weil. ;-)

Man, I am so happy to hear there are other Nick 'n' Nora fans out there. My father-in-law is a dead ringer for William Powell. It was really weird to see him in "How To Marry a Millionaire" as the millionaire who almost marries Lauren Bacall.

By the way, I've been reading your blog for months now and you really rock. Thanks for writing!

Leslie

P.S. I'm Canadian.

I tried and like Physicians Formula Mineral Wear. It has helped to clear up my skin. Does Physicians Formula compare with Bare Minerals? I wanted to order the Bare Minerals but thought it was a bit pricey.

The Thin Man was the beginning of my life long affair with cocktails - martini anyone?

Try Philosophy's "The Supernatural". I just recently bought it off QVC and it is AWESOME! It is basically a loose powder, like bare minerals, but it has a sponge on top so there is no need for a brush. A mirror comes on top too!

I LOVE the thin man. I have quite a fondness for old movies

You should check out the book "High Balls and High Heels". It's drink recipe book with a lot of SASS. Just then thing for when you're wondering thru the house in your peignor feeling over so tired of martinis and wonder what you'll sip next! :)

LOL! It's amazing how foundation led you to a whole post about "The Thin man". Some minds work in mysterious ways! :D

The Thin Man by Dashiell Hammett is a great read, as are almost all of his books. Nick is NOT the Thin Man, by the way, so if I were to nit-pick, the title "The Return of the Thin Man" (and for that matter all of the titles other than the original) makes no sense at all. Still, I love them.

i didn't even make it 1/2 way through the post before i logged onto my blockbuster account and put 'nick & nora' at the top of my queue.
there might be a little nora in me, as i love a good chocolate martini ... while wearing the chocolate silk smoking jacket :)

Laurie - the only thing better is Singin' in the Rain - I love that movie too! Debbie Reynolds singing "Good Morning!" Thanks for the memory lane walk!!

You know, it really takes a special kind of mind to come up with a full post in order to talk about the invention of sliced bread. I am in awe.

Also, it probably takes another special kind of mind to be prompted by said post to actually do a google search to find out when sliced bread was invented. Want to know what I found??

Go here (and do a little find for sliced bread or just scroll down):
http://www.skeptics.com.au/quiz/0203.htm

Or you can read a blurb about the inventor here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_Frederick_Rohwedder

Me, I love to make my own bread, and I have often thought a bread slicer would be a nice kitchen gadget to have around. Too bad they take up so much room. Oh, and there's the money issue...

About 15 years ago, I saw a musical version of The Thin Man on Broadway. As I recall, all the dialog was sung, sort of like Les Miserables. It was in previews and closed before it officially "opened".

I love Nora and Nick!

I also love bare minerals!

Which of your kitties is Asta?

I third the bare minerals suggestion, but you absolutely positively HAVE TO use the mineral veil as well or it looks shiny. Buy the kit that has 2 colors of foundation (mixing is good), bronzer, mineral veil, this super-awesome stuff called barevitamins, three brushes and an instructional dvd. For $60. It is not expensive. I love it.

I'll watch that movie, for sure.

Clean Tint by Neutrogena and Bare Minerals are the only ways I can get out of the house some days.

Adult on-set acne... WHY?!

Stress. Bah!

Oh, and I'm uber-pale, too, Auntie and the Bare Minerals works for me. If you go thru QVC, you have 30 days to decide if it's for you or not.

Oh, and I'm 36 and still wanna grow up to be Nora.

I love how he describes the different tempos to shake drinks in the first movie--waltz, foxtrot, etc...

hey! the couple in that poster are posed in the exact same position as your kitties in "clean up in aisle four" post! too funny!

I have super-sensitive skin. I don't wear foundation most days, unless I'm getting really dressed up. Bare Minerals gives me zits, Aveda gives me zits, Physicians formula gives me zits.... there's a theme. The only foundation I've tried to date that doesn't result in breakouts is Lancome Adaptive and even then no more than 10 hours I HAVE to take it off and deep cleanse my skin.

I love The Thin Man. When I grow up I'd like to be a mix of Shirley Jackson, Nigella Lawson, and Nora Charles.

Also, once I went to the laundromat in an evening gown.

Nora Charles was my idol when I was younger. What girl wouldn't want to lounge around the house dressed like her? I always thought it was great that she was the rich one, not Nick. Favorite weekend guilty pleasure: A Thin Man marathon. I see one in my future.

Another vote for Bare Minerals.

I am unbelieveably pale year round. With freckles. So foundations that actually match my skin tone (sans freckles) wash me out even more.

So then I found Bare Minerals. Smooths out skin tone but I can still see my freckles. No shine. I can work out in this stuff, move furniture and impress boys with my ratcheting skills in my Bare Minerals, no shine!

I'm a Fairly Light all year round except this summer I managed a fair bit of sun and have moved to my darker shade.... Light.

:D Try it. You'll love it.

OMG...okay, I love the Thin Man movies and for Christmas I got all of them on DVD with a pair of Nick and Nora pj's from Target. How cute is that?

What really gets me about Nick and Nora are all the cocktail shakers they had. In one of the movies there is one in their bedroom and they are up in the middle of night having martinis. Life should really be like that, shouldn't it?

Dahling...you have such interesting friends! (I love it whenever I get a chance to use that line)

I don't remember the scene you mentioned, but I have the boxed set, so guess what's on the telly 2-nite!

I've got some good unsliced bread coming out of the bread machine in a couple of hours. Ever so much nicer than Wonder Bread, I'm telling you.

You know what does a number on my adult acne? Desitin. Seriously. The diaper rash stuff. Stroked on in a very, very light layer, so that it's invisible, at night. It's the zinc, I think, that does the trick.

I wonder what Myrna Loy used on her face?

You need a bread machine.

I'm apparently extra freakishly pale (though I do have the red-blue undertone, at least), because bare minerals does not even make a shade light enough for my skin.

However, I have to spread the word of what is, in my opinion, the most miraculous foundation EVER. It is Diorskin, the entire line (though I normally just use the compact because I'm lazy, I've tried it all, and it is all great). I can't vouch for the colors it comes in (I only ever try the lightest shade of any brand, and if that is too dark, I move on, so I have not idea what the rest of the spectrum looks like...), but Diorskin is totally amazing. And it did have something for me, so maybe it will have your shade.

Anyway, I have had horrible skin since I was in fourth grade, a grand total of 18 years of awful skin. So basically, never in my entire life has anyone ever complimented me on my skin. Because my skin is awful.

Until I found Diorskin. And now I get complimented all the time. Basically, using it is like airbrushing yourself. Seriously. Redness? Gone. Undereye circles? Gone. Pores? Gone. Scars? Gone. Something about the way it reflects light seems to trick the eye--even when I use it to cover horrifying pimples, they become really, really hard to see. Not just because it covers the redness--somehow it erases or deflects the shadow they make.

It's quite expensive ($40 or so for a compact) but I have never used anything else so totally worth the price. Nor have I ever bought any one makeup more than twice in a row, before finding it. I'm now on my seventh Diorskin compact and I don't think I will ever use anything else.

It's at least worth a try!

It is probably sad that I know the name of Nick & Nora's dog because I do a lot of crossword puzzles, despite never seeing the movie.

And we even have the movie right here at the library, on VHS and DVD, and I could check it out for free and watch it this very evening.

Also, when I was in England, my then-significant-other's mom used to buy bread that we had to slice, and I had a similar epiphany. And this was all the way in the 1990s.

So, when are we going to actually have a Stitch 'N Bitch, Wine 'N Dine, Nick 'N Nora, wear our satin dressing gowns with matching robe and kitten slippers, sashay around the patio with breezy elegance, (reference: "She Just Walks Around With It" blog), sample foundation, compare plastic containers, yard swap party?

No, really?

E-mail me on the foundation thing. I've tried every one out there. Seriously. In fact, I bought two this afternoon (really).

Oh, Laurie, please DON't reread
the AP manual! It's a style
manual, all right - LOUSY,
INCOMPREHENSIBLE style!

Dahling..

hi there from some exotic country in Europe. HERE you can find unsliced bread MOSTLY and sometimes, yes, it takes a while before you find a sliced one. This UNCUT version applies also to other kinds of food, such as cheese, sausage, ham etc... co you can always go and buy some incredible device for cutting things, like one of those nice IKEA knives for cutting cheese. Did you know that they've got like a separate knife for everything - different for bread, etc. so it's like a kosher kitchen or sth. Anyway, think about finding a foundation when you're snowy-white pale person (however, without her beauty; I think that when you're beautiful enough, no one would notice a zit the size of a mellon). BEst regards;)

For Lucia and others who may not know what a kitten heel is

Definition: The kitten heel -- popularized by the beyond-chic Audrey Hepburn -- is a femme little heel, usually 1 ½ to 2 inches high, with a girlie little curve to it. It's a perfect medium between flats (sometimes just way too flat) and high heels (can you say "pain?").

Best with an open toe and fresh pedicure.

No i'm not gay, just educated in things outside the normal scope of manhood. My wife loves that I can buy her clothes that fit and she wouldn't be afraid to wear in public or return saying it was the wrong size just so she can get what she really wanted.

I think it was Norwegian knitting when she was knitting the booties

I loved the Topper films just as well as the Thin man series. Quite good!

P.S. I'm usually a lurker but had to weigh in on this post.

The Thin Man is one of my all-time favorites, too.

My dad once put it on his Christmas list, and my brother and his wife thought he wanted to lose weight! Ha.

But the REAL bread mystery, to me, is why anyone would ever WANT to have pre-sliced bread. Not only does un-sliced bread keep longer and give you more options, as Lucia pointed out, but I've found that it's a universal law that bread that is not pre-sliced is always better than sliced bread. The difference between Wonder bread and a good European loaf (or anything homemade) is, of course, like the difference between Red Heart and hand-painted qiviut. But even the better, organic, tasty sliced breads don't compare to a decent unsliced loaf. I go so far with this as to always request that the loafs I buy from a Russian bakery in Brighton Beach not be sliced, even though they take the same loaf and either slice it or not, right in front of you.

Trust me. I've been to The Bread Museum. There is one (at least), in St. Petersburg, Russia, and I've been to it. It's a law - sliced=bad, unsliced=good.

Let me add to the chorus of "I love the Thin Man movies!" I adore William Powell and especially Myrna Loy. Actually, I like almost any movie from the 30s -- don't get me started on Clark Gable!

Now why didn't you tell them the doggies name? My dear I love those I rent them a lot. I found them when I was in my thirtys also the dogs name was ASTA. But when they said it you surly had to do that double listen didn't you .....

The best Alfred Hitcick from old days is one called THE ROPE if you havn't seen it put it on your list. Then there is always Splendor in the Grass I swore that was me when I had to divorce I would be forever heart broken.

My children were always a little confused at Grandma's because the bread was right there! Ready to eat! No need to find Mom to slice it! My 21-year-old still has Mom slice the bread, "because, it tastes better that way." Can you say Jewish Prince?

Oh, Myrna Loy! *swoon* Husband and I recently re-watched all of the Thin Man movies. I luuuurrrve Nick and Nora. I also find it funny that Little Nicky was played by Dean Stockwell, later of Quantum Leap. Can't you imagine Nora Charles, grown old and fretful? "Nicky, do stop jumping about through time. It makes my head ache dreadfully."

This just in...

I love Jerry*.

*In a we need to clone him and make him teach classes kinda way.

How they solved all those crimes when they drank all those cocktails I'll never know.

Best line ever comes from After the Thin Man. At the start when they are on the train - Nora is packing and Nick is drinking. She tells him to pack and then turns her back. A minute later she asks him if he is packing and he says "yes dear I'm packing, packing away this liquor." I love that!

Love, love, LOVE Nick and Nora! Always wanted to wear hers or Ginger Rogers' dresses (white satin with great big tulip skirts would be great if I didn't look like hell in something like that) and the kitten-heel mules would have to be gold with white fur or feathers on the instep. I'm sure they don't make those big enough for my foot, and with four flights of stairs I'd die trying to go somewhere in them anyway.

My DH is a consummate artisanal bread baker. I am solidly on the team with those who prefer their bread unsliced. Also, DH is the one who slices. I get the eggs. But he makes a much better omelette.

Oh, oh, oh--another adorable movie with great clothes and shoes I want: "It Happened One Night." Even my tough, non-romantic young boys will watch that.

Okay. You have convinced me to rent this for my Labor Day trip.

LOVE Nick & Nora!!! When I was a kid and had to stay home sick, mom would go down to the public library and check out whatever Nick & Nora movie was avalible. Then she would sit with me on the couch and stroke my hair and massage my temples oh so gently until I fell asleep.

Ha. Laurie, have you considered that your non-pooping dog may in fact be pooping and eating it. Thanks what I discovered when my Chihuahua started going for days without bowel movements
:-).

I was obsessed with Dashiell Hammett my freshman year of college. Read everything of his that I could get my hands on. Then I branched out into Lillian Hellman because she was his closest friend. Saw the movies. The titles still bother me, but that's because I read the book. Loved Nora though. I put her in the same category with Holly. Every woman should have a little Holly and a little Nora in her.

Similar characters were Pamela and Jerry North. They were radio characters that my mom loved. In college I came across a couple of novels featuring them. Of course, they had a cat instead -- named Martini. Too much fun.

I read your blog everyday, though never commented before. I named my first Nintendogs, Nick, Nora, and Asta. Now besides knitting, there is another connection. Thanks!

I remember my grandmothers and great-grandmother talking about sliced bread and how great a thing it was. Although, really, what I gathered was that mass-produced, inexpensive bread was the key thing. To hell with whether or not it was sliced, what was important was that it was one whole day every week when they didn't have to mix, punch, knead, and bake the darn stuff.

so nick and nora - like the gnome pajama people. right?

i'll have to rent the thin man now.

yes i have pajamas with gnomes on them.

Oh, Laurie!!! Thin Man!

That scene struck me the same way!

Nick and Nora were devine...

I LOVE those movies...I own all of them. I actually have a pair of satin pajamas with maribou slippers. They are my "thin man marathon" outfit.

You are so not right.

Is this where NICK AT NIGHT came from?

Pass me a gin and tonic. I am positively parched.

Must look up Thin Man in IMDB....
ciao

Those movies are officially going to the top of my netflix list! I love old movies for all their elegance. I like to pretend that one day I will walk into a restaurant or shop and everyone actually acts like that. I may never leave!

When I grow up I want to be Myrna Loy and I want to marry a stocky Dick Powell. I have a thing for stocky men. Except, instead of cocktails, we'll partake of wonderful microbrews*.

*Allergies prevent me from enjoying the traditional Thin Man cocktail ingredients.

A kitten heel is the same as a Sabrina heel, isn't it? And if you go to a Sephora & have the salesperson apply that BareMinerals stuff, don't be surprised if it settles into every line in your face that you had no idea you had...Scary! I still bought it, though; I know not to put it on with a trowel, TYVM. Now I may have to subscribe to Turner Classic Movies, it's not part of my overpriced cable package...

don't use foundation!!!! use powder (if you don't already)!!!! foundation tends to run in the heat!!!

btw your blog is great
i miss the knitting but the cinema updates are fab

Hmmm...intriguing. I'm putting that one on my NetFlix list.

I adore Nick and Nora!!!!!

I adore The Thin Man..

Want a drink?
What do you think?

Could you just move in next door? We'd have so much fun. Love Nick and Nora. I too am putting them on my Netflix list to so I can re-watch.
Such a simple time. I could do that, ya know. Long dresses (even nightgowns were elegant) and heels, drink and dog in hand.

DH just 'discovered' Nick & Nora/Thin Man this week on TCM...he asked if that's all people did in the 30's...have cocktail parties. Yes, he's a bit 'culturally challenged.'

TCM ROCKS! I often have it on all day & all night...

OMG!!!!!!!!!!!

nick and nora are the greatest movie couple ever!! and asta has to be the greatest movie dog...and gangsters should still be called "rocky", "slim", or " and end every sentence with "see...."!!!!!

3 cheers for Nick and Nora! (the movies AND the pjs-and matching sheets!) If you love the slap stickness of Nick and Nora, you should check out Murder By Death. It's a spoof done in the 70s I think, of all the classic detectives-Maggie Smith plays Dora Charleston, and David Niven plays Dick Charleston. It's a Truman Capote film, they play it on Turner Classics occassionally. It's a great film, especially if you love all the old black and white murder mysteries. Maggie Smith is simply divine in the movie. My favorite line is "where's my dicky??". She's a doll.

that post just totally made my day. :)

Yes, Nick and Nora are devine. If you like old movies, check out "The Lady Eve" (my favorite). Card-shark Barbara Stanwyck tries to con rich, befuddled Henry Fonda (this in the 1940s, so they were quite young), and falls for him in the process. The dialog is quick and some of the Edith Head costumes are wonderful.

I love Nick and Nora. It seems (no shock) that we have had similar influences.

Ahh... but Asta does indeed, um, answer nature's call. In the first movie there's a scene where Nick is walking down the street with Asta, but the dog is below the frame. Every time they pass a pole or signpost you see the leash go back because the dog is stopping at the pole. Very funny, subtle sight gag.

Return of the Thin Man! Such a great movie. I LOVE the scene in the bar when she's surrounded by made men (gangsters, criminals--whatever you want to call them). So funny!

Oooh, no. Not Return of the Thin Man, it's "After the Thin Man" that has the bar scene (and a rather young Jimmy Stewart). That's the best one.

Oooh, no. Not Return of the Thin Man, it's "After the Thin Man" that has the bar scene (and a rather young Jimmy Stewart). That's the best one.

you make me want to go out and rent the movie now.
oh, and doesn't everyone wear an evening gown around the house for no reason?

I must be the only one ;)

Ok, I've never seen The Thin Man, but now I think I know where a friend of mine got her online alias, Nora. LOL. I always wondered why she picked such a "plain" name, but from the descriptions, I'm pretty sure this is it!

My birthday is in less than a month... blah.

I love Willam Powell and Myrna Loy! And Asta, too!

I love Nick & Nora! Thanks for bringing back some good memories. :o) I was one of 'those little girls' that fantasized about wearing heels and pearls around the house, hair and makeup perfect as I managed the house and was firm but fair with "the staff"...then I grew up, or at least I'm trying...Hey, if you are ever in the mood for a friendly satire of them, check out "Murder By Death"...it's a spoof of the 'old' detectives, with David Niven and Maggie Smith as "Dick & Dora Charleston"...complete with dog, Peter Sellers, Peter Falk, and THE Truman Capote also appear...a bit cheesy but it always makes me giggle.

I love Jerry too! For good reason - he is the Nick to my Nora! Yes, Jerry is my husband and yes, he really IS like that. Am I the luckiest girl in the world or what?

And Laurie - try the Bare Minerals - the $60.00 trial kit available at Sephora isn't too expensive and it really does work! Nothing ever has for me before - big pores, uneven skin tone. Everything would settle into the pores and look horrible. Bare Minerals works great!

I also love the Nick and Nora films. I thought I was the only one who watched them, it's nice to know I'm in good company. I received the boxed set last christmas and have gotten a lot of knitting completed while watching them.

Always enjoy reading your blog. Thanks.

My husband coerced me into watching the first Thin Man movie. He didn't have any problems getting me to watch the rest, bless the TiVo. I'm not a big classic film fan, but there's something so fun about them, I can't resist. I've seen all but the second one.

His 50th birthday is tomorrow. Guess what he's getting? (Provided Amazon didn't screw me on the shipping time.) And we'll have 10 hours of TiVo recording time back.

bareminerals IS awesome!! i am pastier than casper, plus i have rosacea and melasma. bareminerals covers it all up and looks natural.
i love it cuz i can take a half-mile walk to the busstop in 100+ oklahoma heat (with 80% humidity) and not even be shiny.

LOVE Nick and Nora! Here's the L.A. note of interest about Myrna Loy. She actually attended Venice High School in L.A. Until a few years ago there was this statue of her right in front of the school on Venice Blvd. (close to A Mano Yarn Store). Due to vandalism, however, the statue was removed. Sigh.

"It involves wearing evening gowns around the house at all hours."

Hee! I have an Evanescence CD with concert footage and there is backstage footage of the makeup girl lounging (presumably alone, in the middle of the night) in an evening gown. Kindred spirits?

I know everyone has already commented on this, but I freaking LOVE that movie! My BF got the whole Thin Man movie set for me for Christmas, even though he can't stay awake through the whole thing!

I have to tell you about a girl in my high school class. She went to a different middle school, so I hadn't seen her until the first day of high school, where we were in the same English class. Her name was Lyrna Moy. I'm not kidding. Maybe she'll read your blog and my comment and come forward. Isn't this wild! I wonder if her parents knowingly named her Myrna Loy-transposed-initials, or if they were clueless. Imagine! Our English teacher was a very intelligent, interesting character, and he simply could not get over this poor girl's name.
Wacky what sticks with me over the years! That was in 1974!

Don't you just love it when you have one of these moments? Sliced bread ranks as one of my favorite things in the whole world as are movies from the 40's. I usually envision myself as anyone who stars opposite Cary Grant - my personal fav.

The Thin Man series is great! I just love William Powell. If you want another fabulous Powell movie, watch "My Man Godfrey". It is truly one of the funniest movies of all time. (really, it is listed with the top 100 comedies with the AFI) He costars with Carole Lombard in that one (at the time, his x-wife in real life).
Also, if you want another incredible glimpse into pre-sliced bread life, watch "Anna Christie", Greta Garbo's first talkie. In it you see her actually slice a loaf of bread for sandwiches. The effort that she has to put forth for that makes me ever so appreciative for the wonders of sliced bread.
(A great romance with William Powell is "One Way Passage" costarring Kay Francis. I just love William Powell! He and his costars are almost always wonderfully dressed. The clothing keeps me as interested as the stories do.)
Myrna Loy was awesome too. She was politically active in later years. SHe has some great movies.

Laurie,

Just found your blog today, and I've spent about two hours reading. It's great.

And then when I found out you were a Thin Man fan... I was meant to find you!!! I was so excited when they released the DVD set, and I happily watched the documentary/extra DVD on Nick and Nora. A great day for me involves The Thin Man and cross-stitch (I'm still looking for someone to teach me to knit...).

Also excited to see how many other people love The Thin Man from your comments. Maybe we could start an annual Nick and Nora convention.... Anyone game?

:-)

Dawn

Nobody invented elecricity. it was already there. and it's the greatest invention since before sliced bread. ;)