Academy Award – Frank Capra

A romantic comedy "Lady for a Day" (1933) not only brought popularity to American film director Frank Capra (1897 - 1991), but also a nomination for an Academy Award.

Capra was seriously convinced that he will win the American Academy Award for that film, and before the ceremony, he even wrote a short speech, which he intended to hold after he receives the Oscar.

The host of the event was Will Rogers. When the time came to announce the Best Director, Will, who thought that it would be interesting, said:

“Common Frank. Come and get it”

Convinced that he is the winner, Frank Capra ran towards the stage and pulled out a written speech from his pocket. At that point, he noticed a strange expression on the host’s face. Will Rogers stammered:

“The winner is Frank…Lloyd!”

Embarrassed, Frank Capra came down from the stage. He swore that he will never again attend the Academy Award ceremony. 

But never say never.

Next year, Capra's film "It Happened One Night" won five Academy Awards, including the award for Best Director.  Frank came and received the Oscar.

In his career, Capra won a total of six Academy Awards.

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Interrupted kiss – Alfred Hitchcock

At the time when Alfred Hitchcock (1899-1980) was making  the movie "Notorious", and that was in 1946, the Motion Picture Production Code (in other words - censorship), popularly known as Hays Code (after Hollywood's chief censor of the time, Will H. Hays) prohibited scenes of a kiss longer than three seconds.

However, Hitchcock wanted for the kissing scene of the main characters in this film, actress Ingrid Bergman and actor Cary Grant, to go into the history as the most beautiful movie kiss, and also the longest movie kiss, so he decided to extend that kiss with any means possible.

Finally, cunning Hitchcock edited that kiss like this: Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman are kissing for three seconds, then they are saying something to each other for a few seconds, then they are kissing again for three seconds, then they break away for just a second, then kissing again for three seconds, then they are whispering something to each other on the ear, and then again kissing for three seconds, and so on…

Their kiss lasted for two-and-a-half minutes, and it is perhaps the most intimate and erotic movie kiss ever.

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Opera is not a thriller – Alfred Hitchcock

“What is drama but life with the dull bits cut out”, claimed famous British film director Alfred Hitchcock (1899-1980).

When he was asked why he never wrote some operatic piece, the creator of "Psycho" answered:

- “Well, after the second act all the main characters would certainly have been murdered. Who would then remain to sing?”

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Blue Blood – Alexander Korda

Alexander Korda (1893-1956), renowned British director and producer of Hungarian-Jewish origin, was knighted in 1942 because of his contribution to British cinema.

Shortly after that, Korda, who was a passionate gambler, won $10,000 playing poker with the famous American film producer Samuel Goldwyn. The next day Goldwyn sent a check to Korda, written in red ink, and a letter in which he wrote:

- Bloodsucker, I signed this check with my own blood!

Shortly afterwards, Korda played again poker with Goldwyn. This time the British director lost approximately the same amount of money that he previously won. The next day he sent a check to Goldwyn written with ordinary, blue ink, with a note:

"Bloodsucker, this check is signed in my blood to. Knight Korda.”

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Stick to your own business – Peter Sellers and Blake Edwards

During the shooting of the film comedy "The Return of Pink Panther", in the middle of the night the phone rang in the room of director Blake Edwards. It was Peter Sellers, lead actor who, for several days, couldn’t do right a certain scene...

"Imagine what happened to me!" Peter Sellers shouted, all excited, into the receiver. "I just talked to God and he told me exactly how to do that damn scene!"

The next morning, on the set, Sellers was even worse than the day before...

"Peter, the next time you talk with God, tell him to stay out of our business, " Blake Edwards said, tapping him on the shoulder.

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Thank God!

Celebrated Spanish film director Luis Buñuel (1900-1983) reporters once asked whether his artistic destiny was crucially influenced with his Jesuit education, which was a wish of his very pious parents.

"Not at all!" Replied Buñuel. "I am an atheist, thank God."

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