If It's Tuesday, It Must Be Belguim

I'm not sure what prompted me to watch this again, I saw it at the drive-in when I was a wee lass, but I did. IITIMBB is a terrible movie. Terrible, but like a three-headed baby, I couldn't tear my eyes away. A group of very predictable stereotypical Americans go on an 18 day tour of Europe via Whirlwind Tours - Charlie Cartwright (Ian McShane) is the very mod Brit tour guide. Charlie has a beauty in every city; drop dead beauties at that. Suzanne Pleshette (I did not know she had passed way) is Samantha Perkins, an American fashion executive who needs time to consider whether she should marry some guy named George. Honestly, I can't imagine spending money on a trip like this in real life.

Hokey smoky script aside, I must admit there were some hidden gems. I loved seeing all the 35mm SLR cameras. There were some cameo appearances by two of my fav actors from that time period Ben Gazzara (didn't know he died this year) and Robert Vaughn. Charlie's beauties proved a mystery to me - who in the world were these extraordinary looking women? Another thing to note - Suzanne P was almost never seen standing up - she was either sitting at a table or sitting on the bus. Charlie's beauties were always shown standing up - full body. I imagine that Suzanne was not quite as thin and leggy as these beauties, so we were never shown her full body. Her dresses were really bunchy in the waist and hung below the knee. That pretty face was her greatest asset.

Back to Charlie's beauties:
Elsa Martenelli
Catherine Spaak

Heart throb guys from popular television and music were represented too.

Luke Halpin who would later become famous for his sun bleached hair and deck shoes in Flipper.

Donovan makes an appearance in a youth hostel. He sings Lord of the Reedy River which is a classic psychedelic pop number. He wrote the title song, but he didn't sing it. Someone named J P Rags is given credit. Anyone think that's a fake name?

Last, but not least, a few words about Ian McShane. The guy really can act. He takes this throw away role and gives it his all. Everyone else seems to be going through the motions - let's get through this already. I really liked his Al Swearengen character in Deadwood. What a role!

I've always had a thing for the way Europeans hold cups, silver ware, bottles, etc. It's a very sexy way of holding these very ordinary items. They have this touch that Americans just don't have. The Charlie character does the same thing throughout this movie. Just watch how Charlie effortlessly twirls the fondue fork during the Fondue Fling scenes. Check out this picture of Charlie pouring coffee in a cup for Samantha. Purrrrrrrr........