Bert & Morty

Did you know it is an old leap year tradition that on February 29, a woman is “allowed” to propose marriage to a man? 1964 was a leap year and in honour of that tradition, actress Angie Dickinson listed the ten most eligible bachelors in Hollywood. Her advice on how to go about catching one: “First you must have the desire to catch him. Next you must communicate with him; let him know that he belongs. Then, present the most eligible girls list of one – you.” Here are Angie’s picks…

	Warren Beatty Very talented, plays piano, sings. Impossibly unpredictable, moody… devilish… sensuous in his entire being.
	Richard Chamberlain A female Doris Day, cleancut, sexy and handsome… I don’t know him well, but I imagine he could be great fun. Seems very polite, but not too polite I hope.
	Alain Delon The most gorgeous man I know; I describe his to people who don’t know him as a cross between James Dean, Peter O’Toole and Elizabeth Taylor. Great vitality, mature and grownup.
	Vincent Edwards Tremendously exciting and sensuous… sings great. A girl would never know what to expect from him.
	Albert Finney He looks as if he has boundless energy. A tease, but very entertaining on a date. At ease in meeting strangers and can put strangers at ease.
	Cary Grant What can I say? Everybody knows why he is on the list. In spite of his romantic flavor, he’s very down-to-earth. His charm is not inbred or calculated; it is real.
	Rock Hudson Devilish; he can drive you crazy at a dinner table. Handsome, to say the least… warm eyes, and the eyes of a man can tell a great deal, if not all.
	Elvis Presley I don’t know him, but with those dreamy eyes, he’s got to be on the list… I also like his sense of humor, as evidenced in interviews. Seems like a terrific guy.
	Frank Sinatra Extremely warm, and loyal to his friends and his causes. Generous of his personality and time, and with gifts. Interesting and unpredictable. Mad!
	Efrem Zimbalist Jr. As charming as they come. Gentlemanly, well-mannered, really class… He has depth, yet he is lighthearted without any forced gaiety.

Source: Actress Lists Hollywood’s 10 Top Bachelors, Meriden Journal, Jan 27 1964, Page 2

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iFlLibZ4F8U&w=425]

This is Rock Hudson’s first screen test, filmed in 1949 when he was only 24 years old! Read more at The Rock Hudson Blog.

In 1961 while filming The Spiral Road, Rock Hudson was travelling through the Dutch colony of Curaçao. After dinner with friends he wandered out to the lobby to find a young man waiting at the front desk to be checked in. Rock tapped him on the shoulder and in an exaggerated gravel voice said, “GOO-OOD EVENING.” The young man turned around startled, then burst into laughter. The young man was Russian Yuri Gagarin, who had become the first man to orbit earth in a spacecraft, just a few weeks earlier. Rock invited Yuri to join his party and they all sat around the lobby, drinking and telling stories for the rest of the evening. Photographer Leo Fuchs, who was there that night, commented he was convinced Yuri was totally unaware of Rock’s celebrity and he thought he was just a crazy, if jovial, American.

Source: The Rock Hudson Blog
Photo: Flickr

Rock Hudson and Audrey Hepburn were originally cast in 1957s Sayonara. The parts eventually went to Marlon Brando and Miiko Taka.

Photo: Argentic Photo Collection

Even their failings are similar. Both of them forget about phone calls, are always late for appointments, careless about little things, and it’s a toss-up as to which is the worse procrastinator. Vera finished work for the day in Belle of New York, then takes a dancing lesson, loses all sense of time, and is an hour late for a date. Rock will wander into the gym at his studio and start boxing, and forget to show up. Always, the one who is kept waiting is furious, but can say nothing about it, for it would be a case of the pot calling the kettle black.

Source: Modern Screen Magazine (date unknown)