Olivia de Havilland – Radio Tribute

Olivia de Havilland is a treasure we hold dear and when she celebrates a birthday on July 1st it’s a holiday for all of her admirers.

Happy birthday, dear lady.

There is so much to admire about Olivia de Havilland.  From her beauty to her talent to her sheer guts off-screen this legend never ceases to fascinate.  I can easily spend days discussing the career of one of the premiere leading ladies of the Golden Age and the oldest living Academy Award winner, but it’s already been done in style so I encourage you to visit the Self-Styled Siren who wrote a fantastic 100th birthday tribute to Olivia de Havilland for the July issue of Sight & Sound.  Also, you should be on the lookout for other de Havilland tributes throughout the blogosphere and in your local theaters as the world celebrates the life and career of this regal talent.

Here are a few de Havilland happenings of note:

•  TCM’s Star of the Month tribute to Olivia with a total of 39 de Havilland films on Fridays in July starting on her birthday.

• In Houston visit the Museum of Fine Arts for 35mm and digital restorations of several of her films.

• The Egyptian Theater in Hollywood is screening Gone With the Wind on July 2nd in de Havilland’s honor.

As for me – I will be on the road on July 1st and therefore unable to attend a special screening or watch the TCM tribute, but I plan on the next best thing, which is to listen to Ms. de Havilland on the radio.  I have compiled a fantastic collection of old-time radio shows featuring de Havilland, 26 hours of audible goodness to accompany me on my journey.  And as I like to do now and again I’m sharing a few of those radio shows here in tribute to this great star and a favored medium.  Ms. de Havilland didn’t need a camera for her extraordinary talent to shine through and there’s not a loser in this lot.

 

On the radio…

 

 

Lux Radio Theater presents Robert Taylor and Olivia de Havilland in “Saturday’s Children”

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This Lux Radio Theater entry features Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland in “Captain Blood” with Basil Rathbone, Henry Stephenson and Donald Crisp in support.

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Till it’s over over there Olivia appears in this episode of “Command Performance”

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Next is The Broadway Playhouse production of “The Heiress” starring Olivia with Louis Calhern and Van Heflin.

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Here is The Golf Screen Guild Show production of “Three Days March” with a fantastic cast supporting Olivia de Havilland.

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Yet another Screen Guild Theater entry, this one featuring Olivia with James Cagney and Jack Carson in “The Strawberry Blonde”

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Now Olivia plays Kitty Foyle in a Screen Guild Theater adaptation of the 1940 film.  Although it’s difficult to imagine anyone other than Ginger Rogers playing this role this is a terrific version of Christopher Morley’s story.

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Olivia pairs with Cagney once again in this The Screen Guild Show production of “Next Time We Live.”

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Now Olivia tackles Suspense alongside Reginald Gardner in “Voyage Through Darkness.”

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Finally, Olivia reprises her role in Elliott Nugent’s The Male Animal (1942) opposite Joel McCrea with Jack Carson as an added bonus for this radio gem.

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