What a dish! And she did a good job of it -- considering the material -- in this thankless role.
The solid character actor, Frank Gerstle, couldn't keep his hands off of her. Every chance he gets he has his mitts on her!
And whatever became of her? She seems to have gone the way of David Love.
Yeah -- I meant to comment on your comment about Ms. Bestar on the other thread.
I've checked out her credits here and if I recall she seems to have dropped from sight before 1960. Few films, mostly TV. Not even a birth date. My guess is she's probably 80, give or take, if she's still with us. (Born I'd say 1928-30 or so -- ?) She was cute. When I saw this as a kid I assumed she was a well-known star (as I assumed everybody in these things was a well-known star). Like I said, delusional.
Frank Gerstle, God rest his soul, had the oddest build I've ever seen on an adult -- like a full-grown dwarf, a comment that will doubtless incur the wrath of various organziations. But you know what I mean -- he had those really long arms and a wide but kind of stubby torso, seemingly short legs, and he looked to be about 5'1". He was in lots of stuff, often uncredited bits (e.g., The Bad and the Beautiful), and played one of the doctors who gives Edmond O'Brien his death sentence in D.O.A. But, yeah, he seemed to like grabbing BB -- she was the closest one in the movie to his size!
And did anyone ever do weirder close-ups than W. Lee? But as I recall only of the men -- Graves, Gerstle, James Seay, Steve Pendeleton -- but not Barbara Bestar (maybe a single, inconsequential, one). What could he have been thinking? If indeed my use of the word "thinking" as regards this film is applicable. I mean, he could have had a shot of her poolside -- this was Nevada, after all, and Babs looked very tanned and sexy.
Yes, she was a regular doll face and a sport! She was wearing that cloak/coat thing looking glamorous and running around and up and down the stairs
with all of the fellows at the end.
I wonder what happens to capable actresses like her and why they never seem to make it above the line or achieve the recognition I think they deserved. Buster Keaton used to ask prospective crew members if they played baseball and if they did they were hired. Maybe Ms Bestar didn't play ball in Hollywood.
I've commented on Frank Gerstle before on his own IMDb page. He was a solid performer. I suppose his acting range was limited -- he always played Frank Gerstle! -- but he was very good.
Your observation about Mr. Wilder's use of close-ups is interesting. I'll have to remember it the next time I watch his little classics.
I'm glad to see that "Killers from Space" has garnered many comments. It sounds as if everyone had fun watching this particular title.
I've never visited Frank Gerstle's IMDb board -- in fact, there's something vaguely funny about his having an IMDb board (okay, okay, I know every actor does). I'll have to check it out. (And the Steve Pendleton board, for that matter.)
So, is there any activity on the Barbara Bestar board? Maybe we should post a comment or two for the sake of justice and humanity. You first!!
OK, my friend. I got Ms Bestar's page on first. I must count on you to bring it on home.
shareDone, after a fashion, old friend. As you will see, I decided to add a second thread to begin building up her board, on which yours was the very first entry...I was disappointed but not surprised to see. Basically I could do no more than restate what you had already written much more eloquently and elegantly, but I wanted to make our efforts more conspicuous by expanding the number of separate threads.
You'll also note that I decided to begin a new thread on this site, inviting people to direct their attention to BB's own message board, in hopes of drawing more visitors there...and maybe one day learning some more information about her. We'll see.
Yours truly was a beautiful post.
Thanks and, again, I know I can count on you for a dose of good thinking. Creating the second thread is yet another fit of genius on your part.
I suppose it would seem a bit silly to present such tributes, but so what? Some people tip their Postal Carriers on Christmas for doing their job!Tipping the hat to this or any other actor is appropriate for a job well done.
(I just read hobnob53's entry and it is well-worth the time to go to that page and read. Years ago, my Dad, twenty years gone now, told me of a story about a kindness that comedic lengend Bob Hope did for him. I was always grateful to Mr. Hope for his actions.
Once I had the opportunity to thank him personally and, for reasons I wish I knew, failed to say anything to him and the moment passed. Even as I write this, I regret doing so. What would it have meant to Mr. Hope? I don't know. He had many awards and much reknown. But maybe it was for me that it needed to be expressed. I was grateful and I should have told him I was, regardless if he soon forgot about it)
About your Bob Hope story -- don't we all know that feeling? Many things I wish I'd had the thought or wit or courage to say, but let the moment pass. But, we move on, and hopefully, learn.
Actually, I like to think that sometimes someone connected with the subject of an IMDb site does look in on these boards. For example, I've seen posts from the grandchildren of such lesser-known and disparate performers as Peter Ronson (whose sole film appearance was as Hans in the 1959 Journey to the Center of the Earth, reporting on his death on that film's site in 2007) and actor Dewey Martin, who reported on his site about his grandfather's health, reasons for quitting acting, etc. So as they say about the lottery, you never know.
And you know what? Even if no one linked to Miss Bestar ever sees any of this, other people will, and what we've tried to do is right and fitting.
To cite an exchange from another so-so sci-fi movie from the fabulous 50s (so of course I love it), From the Earth to the Moon: after Joseph Cotten tells George Sanders that they can make a landing on the moon, Sanders says, "But what's the difference, we could never get back home anyway." "We'd have done it!" replies Cotten. "That's all that matters. Whether anyone else knows or not, we'd know."
An apt, and applicable, philosophy, that.
Well said, hobnob.
I went through the listings of Ms Bestar's work and noticed that she had worked on a TV show with Ruta Lee. Ms Lee was one of the big moments from my youth and I was fortunate enough to meet her years later and years ago. She had told many wonderful stories about the shows she'd done and had some recollections of many of her co-stars. Well, what do we have to lose? I wrote her a note and asked her if she could possibly remember Barbara Bestar and would she know what became her. Old Hollywood was a fairly small community so I'm hoping Ms Lee either kept in touch or heard things through the grapevine about Ms Bestar.
And I remember "From the Earth to the Moon" (courtesy of CBS-TV's afternoon movie showcase The Early Show). I circled it in the Sunday TV Guide and awaited it with bated breath as I was a big fan of all things Jules Verne.
Well, I was deeply disappointed. The spacecraft looked like it had been made out of parts from a propane stove. Unlike the superior "First Men in the Moon" , this title had no humor, little excitement, or much else. I should like to see it again as I might have a better appreciation for it now.
Thanks for bringing it up and the very appropriate quotation.
Hey! Great thought about contacting Ruta Lee. Maybe we will find something out, or at least get a lead.
I mostly remember her from TV, but she was Tyrone Power's real love interest in his last film, Witness for the Prosecution. She's also the last survivor of that movie, as far as I know. I'll bet she has some interesting stories about that shoot.
Anyway, let's keep our fingers crossed that Miss B. is still alive and well and that maybe we can hear some good news.
Oh, if I recollect, I have various musings on From the Earth to the Moon on its site. Overall, it's not very good, but it still has some saving graces and actually isn't bad (if rather lumpy and illogical) prior to the journey to the moon; good cast and music, dreadful effects (supposedly due to budget cutbacks as RKO folded). Weak as it is, something about it still captures my imagination. (So much for the intellect!) Plus, on its IMDb site, I got to post an awful lot of goofs for that one! TCM runs it every so often, and it may be worth a fresh look.
Onward!
shareUpward! (to the moon) - Downward! (for the cast's careers)
(I wonder if those are the commands June Cleaver gave her husband during sex?)
And, since you mention it, "Mrs. Cleaver" appeared with the Barbara Bestar in "Two Dollar Bettor" (1951)
And, by the by, I took a look at the long list of Goofs for "From the Earth to the Moon". I'd guess your trained eye caught all of them!
Now that's the catch of a seasoned pro! Two Dollar Bettor? I don't think even Alpha Video would stoop to issue that one. This officially makes you the president of the Barbara Bestar Fan Club.
Can I get to be treasurer of the BBFC? We can split the membership dues, and if Babs is still with us, send her a cut as well. I'm guessing, of course, but her cut might equal the budget for KFS.
I wonder...might that other Barbara, Billingsley, know anything about Ms. Bestar's whereabouts?
No, I can't quite claim credit for all the goofs for From the Earth to the Moon. Nine out of 15: the sixth one down, then the rest from the eighth on, including the one below the "Here Be Spoilers" yellow warning section. I just went nuts after one broadcast.
But, I checked earlier, and they've already added all 10 of the goofs I submitted for Killers!! (The last ten on the list; actually, the last 11 on the list are mine, but the first of those, about the atomic bomb outside the window, I submitted long ago.) Plus, they removed another supposed goof, for which I sent in a delete message because the so-called goof, indeed the entire scene described, doesn't exist in the movie. (Someone claimed Dr. Martin ran out of the hospital barefoot but then had slippers on in the cave. I pointed out that he in fact had slippers on when he ran out of the hospital, and in any case never went from there to the cave, but to the powerhouse; his journey to the cave was earlier, when he was fully dressed.) Ah, the benefits of a classical education. My path of destruction goes on!
Update: I just went back to correct a misspelling (committed twice) in my goofs: in both references to the alien school crossing guard leader, Denab, I accidentally rendered his name "Deneb". I hope they make the changes. You know, the A-D's speak and apparently read all Earth languages, and that guy Tala might still be floating around on one of those platforms someplace.
By the way, they also accepted my Trivia (not Goof) submission for W. Lee's estimable successor film, The Snow Creature. Like the hot dog said, I'm on a roll.
Yet another update: (And this is my third editing job on this post!) Anyway, my humble apologies for my flippant remark vis-a-vis Two Dollar Bettor: it is indeed available, courtesy...Alpha Video! (Natch.) With a very garish, in-your-face, over-the-top cover, I might add: John Litel clenching his cash and having a stroke as he loses the family fortune yet again. No BB in sight. Maybe he sold her to pay for his habit? Hmmm...just possibly a movie worth a look after all...?
Regarding this title, I had submitted a bit of Trivia -- although the point may have been just a coincidence. Since it may be baseless IMDb chose not to include it. Still, it may be of interest to you:
"The wall map of the United States during the conversation between Peter Graves and his secretary is the same Santa Fe Rail Road map used in the Pentagon scene in Ed Wood, Jr.'s "Plan 9 from Outer Space" (1956)"
Oh, well, Plan 9 was released in 1959, not '56, so there's your problem.
How do you know it's the same map? That's quite a pick-up!
BTW, I decided to buy Two Dollar Bettor after reading your post. It's already winging its way from Amazon. Or maybe it's being flown in from the real Amazon. I'll alert you after I see it and perhaps we can add to its message board. The few comments I read over there make it seem not bad. Good cast, anyway. Certainly it'll be the usual poor Alpha V. print, but in public domaindom you take what you can get. Like Killers From Space, come to think of it.
Did Barbara B. ever do a movie that didn't end up in public domain?
I don't know about the map for sure. I suspect those sort of things were in every low-budget movie and tool shed in the West. I believe the one in "Plan 9 from Outer Space"had the Santa Fe name Greeked out or had a piece of what looked like friction tape over it. The one in "Killers from Space"has no shame.
Wow -- you bought "Two Dollar Bettor". I think qualifies that you to move up to Mr. President of the Barbara Bestor Fan Club!
The Barbara who Club??! I suggest you revisit your previous post and correct that egregious typo before I send Tala with his giant brpppping lizard after you! In a '53 Studebaker yet!
shareYou're only right, hobnob. I suppose I mashed Bestar and Bettor for the worst!
My apologies to Ms Bestar! Call off the Invasion!
Not unexpected since Ruta Lee and I were hardly drinking buddies, and she's still a very active woman and certainly not going to drop everything over one bit of correspondence. Anyway, her web-site had sent this:
Thank you for your email. Ruta travels so much and is unable to get back to everyone. Please be patient with us.
If you simply want to know how to get a personalize autograph, please send your check or money order to:
Ruta Lee
c/o Egk, Inc
264 South LaCienega Blvd #439
Beverly Hills, CA 90211
That last line is humorpus.
Like I said, Ms Lee had quite a memory and knew a lot of the Hollywood set. I hope she has a handle on Ms Bestar though she apparently only worked once with her.
Have you received "Two Dollar Bettor" yet?
Hi -- As I posted over on TSC yesterday, I have indeed received and, now, watched Two-Dollar Bettor. I just finished posting a very long (moi?!) review of it over on its site...the first-ever post for that movie. Gee, now there's a surprise. Anyway, if you've got a spare 15 minutes, take a leisurely look. Actually, it's not a bad film at all, and you'll want to read my paragraph about Ms. B.
Of course, if you do plan on reading that post, you'll first have to send a check or money order.......
Two dollars to show.
shareWell, hobnob, I still have no reply from my old buddy, old pal Ruta Lee. It is possible she is still on the road -- I think I shared with you the form letter I received from her site saying she goes on tour quite a bit and answers her e-mails as often as she is able to do so -- or she read my note and forwarded it to the FBI.
Either way, still nothing new on Ms Bestar.
I've got Agent Briggs on her tail, and we all know how sharp a tack he is.
shareOnly 2 stalwarts cared to write about this now moldering "beauty"; so rich! I've just stared at her this very afternoon watching the Film Crew savagely trash what can only be called a less than stellar space opera. Frank Gerstle was all gristle when he was in Babs presence. Far duller than Mr. Wood's epics, at least his were fun.
Let it be unsaid: insignificance is the locus of true increpation.