« Seeing what’s not there (yet) | Main | Who says print is dead? »
October 1, 2008
Close, but no cigarette
Have you seen the postage stamp issued in honor of Bette Davis on Sept. 18?
The United States Postal Service recognized the greatness of the screen legend and longtime resident of Westport with a weirdly photo-shopped still (right) from “All About Eve” in which Margo Channing’s signature cigarette was removed (leaving a hand gesture that makes little sense).
Movie buffs used to joke that the elimination of tobacco use from public spaces in this country might lead to a crackdown on Bette Davis movies since the lifelong smoker used those little coffin nails as a major prop for much of her career.
Indeed, most nightclub and TV comic impressions of the star always included the distinctive way Davis gestured with cigarettes in most of her roles.
Well, the censoring of Miss Davis’s screen persona has begun.
It’s one thing to shift away from cigarette smoking in modern films — both on the grounds of our growing awareness of the health hazard represented by smoking and as a realistic representation of the way cigarettes are no longer seen in hotel lobbies and restaurants and bars — but to go back and tamper with pop cultural history is unsettling and dangerous.
Cable czar Ted Turner caused a big stink 20 years ago when he decided to add color to some of the black-and-white movies he acquired in the purchase of the MGM and Warner Bros. film libraries. Ted said he wanted to bring those "old-fashioned" pictures of the 1930s and 1940s up to date.
Do you think someone is working on a new cable TV version of “All About Eve” in which Margo holds carrot sticks instead of cigs?
Posted by Joe on October 1, 2008 5:00 PM
