A Salute to the Stalwarts !!!!

Usually when something comes up in our mind, like any term, we immediately relate it to something else . All this happens involuntarily . Like if the word love is mentioned or thought of, we immediately relate it to something. Might be friend / lover’s face or Sister / Brother / Mom & pop’s face [ lol, usually not the pop’s face ] , or your pet or something else in the world that has shown you the word’s [love] true meaning . Or if not the face atleast their name or something related to them . Like that, whenever I hear or think of the term “Acting” or “Hollywood” for that matter, some of the names that come up are [ Steven Spielberg for sure ] Then Jack Nicholson [ image as in Departed when he laughs in a satiric fashion ], Anthony Hopkins [ Silence of the lambs’ scary look, when he is brought in a plane and stares at Jodie Foster ] , Morgan Freeman [ image from Batman Begins ], Ridley Scott [ for Gladiator ] , Dustin Hoffman [ image from Kramer Vs Kramer, when he consoles his son with tears ] . The reason why these few images strike me on the thought of their name, is the extent to which their performances in those films mentioned, have been locked up in my mind forever. Not that , the names of Michael Bay / Christopher Nolan / Robert De Niro / Tom Cruise / Tom Hanks / Heath Ledger do not strike me. The ones I mentioned were just a few of the several names that struck me now , when I decided to write this. Some of the recent performances that amazed me were that of Dustin Hoffman from the movies – “Kramer Vs Kramer” & “The Graduate” . Simply Superb. I just saw the funny side of him in “Meet the Fockers”, but just witnessed his excellence in these movies, which he does it with such an ease. The next one – one of my favourites is Jack Nicholson’s satiric laughter. Particularly in the movies “Anger Management” & “The Departed”. But his performance in ”The Departed” interested me more. Because it’s a serious villain kinda role that he plays, and regardless of that, he laughs at the oddest of moments. My goodness, he is one example of an ever-chill attitude. But I somehow find Jack Nicholson and Anthony Hopkins so similar, except for their difference in attitudes. Anthony Hopkins shows more of a serious attitude, whereas even those serious roles are done in a satiric fashion by Jack Nicholson.

I particularly like this Freeman guy for the characters he chooses ; Scientist , Almighty, Sick old man ( Bucket List ),etc…. Apart from that, his deep majestic voice is something that I was always fascinated with. It makes the scene even more better , when he is in the frame. Now, coming to Ridley Scott . Ridley Scott is like one of my all-time favourite directors . He is a master in scripting , particularly when it comes to period films. And I strongly consider “A Good Year” as one of his best , which didn’t go well in the box office.

Lol, it might’ve struck some by now,
Why am I writing all this ?
Who needs to know what strikes my mind first ?
Its just about these stars, which many already know ; of course more than what I know.
& What’s so extra-special that I chose to write this here ?

Hmmm ….. Maybe from now on, whenever on the mention of “1937” , the first thing striking my mind would be the names of Jack Nicholson, Anthony Hopkins, Morgan Freeman, Dustin Hoffman & Ridley Scott , who have literally shown us the true colours of cinema . Cos’ that was the year, these 5 Gods of Hollywood touched Mother Earth. And I would indeed call the years following 1937 as the “Golden Era of Hollywood” .
Now I really feel so glad that I can proudly tell my grandchildren, that “Your grandfather lived in the times of J.Nicholson, A.Hopkins, M.Freeman, D.Hoffman & R.Scott !! “ :)

Facts [ Trivia ]:

Jack Nicholson ( April 22nd , 1937)
1.) Turned down the lead role in Close Encounters of the Third Kind , even though he knew the movie would be a hit as he felt that the special effects would overwhelm any actor in the movie
2.) Has the most Oscars by a male actor.
Best Quote :
“ When I read the part, I knew I'd win the Oscar for it." ( For the movie “Terms of Endearment” , 1983)

Sir Anthony Hopkins ( December 31st , 1937)
1.) Though Dyslexic, he always possessed a great memory for scripts .
2.) Reads each script 250 times out loud before filming .
Best Quote :
“ I am able to play monsters well. I understand monsters. I understand madmen ”

Morgan Freeman ( June 1st ,1937 )
1.) He is often called the greatest living actor in film, a title he humbly waves off and says he is just "lucky."
2.) Founded a new internet start-up allowing customers to download movies while they are still in the theaters (http://www.cstar.com/ )
Best Quote :
“ Is there a movie I think I should have won the Oscar for? Yeah. All of them “

Dustin Hoffman ( Aug 8th, 1937 )
1.) Entered into The Guinness Book of World Records as "Greatest Age Span Portrayed By A Movie Actor" for Little Big Man (1970) in which he portrayed a character from age 17 to age 121.
2.) He took an acting course because he was told that "nobody flunks acting."
Best Quote :
“ One thing about being successful is that I stopped being afraid of dying. Once you're a star you're dead already. You're embalmed. “

Sir Ridley Scott ( Nov 30th , 1937)

1.) Was working on the script for, "I Am Legend" in the early 90's itself . But this project was never finished by him .
2.) He cast his partner in life, Giannina Facio, in all of his films since Gladiator (2000).

Best Quote :

I think I have less patience, mainly because I'm so experienced. Because I'm so experienced I need the very best people around me. Because people say, "Well you don't need a terribly good camera" or, "You can go and do this," and I say, "No, no, no, no, you don't understand. I want the Earth. And I want the Earth in 10 minutes."

Dumb Facts :
“1937” = 1+9+3+7 = 20 = 2+0 = 2 , which is also my lucky number !!!! Hahahahahahaha .................