175. GRACE KELLY Coloring Book

Grace Kelly (November 12, 1929 – September 14, 1982) was a true Hollywood royalty as she became a princess in real life. She bcame an actress at age 20 and won an Academy Award for "The Country Girl". This very desirable 1954 coloring book of her, made by Whitman, was printed at the peak of her career and designed to appeal to starstruck kids. At age 26, she met and married Rainier III, Prince of Monaco and retired from her movie career to fulfill her duties as Princess Grace. The royal couple had three children: Caroline, Albert, and Stéphanie. She also retained her American roots, maintaining dual US and Monégasque citizenships. On September 14, 1982, she lost control of her automobile, crashed and died after suffering a stroke. Daughter Stéphanie, who was in the car with her, survived the accident. In June 1999, the American Film Institute ranked her #13 in their list of top female stars of American cinema.

174. Seeing Stars: 1951 SONG-MOVIE MAGS

Then and now, weekly entertainment magazines enjoyed wide readership among movie and radio fans, who avidly read the latest activities about their favorite actors. These well-thumbed copies from the early 50s--Literary SONG-MOVIE Magazine--gave the reader updates on the latest movies-in-the-making, happenings in the lives of stars like Efren Reyes, Tita Duran, Lilia Dizon, Rogelio de la Rosa, Lota Delgado and Cesar Ramirez via chatty columns and interviews all for 40 centavos. Colored full-page close-ups of the glamor stars were included in these magazines for collecting and scrapbooking.


Today of course, you can learn about any star's shenanigans not just through printed magazines but also through Twitter, google and facebook. You can watch their sex videos, read about their escapades, illicit affairs and vices with just a click of the mouse. Why, you can even stalk them online! Times may have changed but not our preoccupation with the life and times (and dirt) of popular movie stars.

173. Hey, hey it's: THE MONKEEMOBILE

"Hey, hey we're the Monkees!"
In 1967, the American-assembled boy band, THE MONKEES, was launched on TV and took the teen world by storm. Mickey Dolenz, Peter Tork, Mark Nesmith and the diminutive Davy Jones became instant bubblegum celebrities and their songs and music became known worldwide--from "Last Train to Clarksville", "Daydream Believer" and "I Wanna Be Free" (which we used to sing to death in our high school songfest).

Aside from their hit records, there were Monkees lunchboxes, Monkees puppets, Monkees books, Monkees Viewmaster---and Monkeemobiles-- toy replicas of their funky tour car. The more common ones were the small diecast Corgi toys made in 1966, but rarer still is this 1968
tin batter- operated and friction 1968 Pontiac GTO Monkeemobile car made by ASC of Japan.
Unfortunately, this Monkeemobile--found in a Cubao junk shop, has lots of missing parts. Of the band members, only the vinyl body of the driver remains. The car used to have a plastic windshield and comes with soft rubber tires with chrome hubcaps. There also used to be a battery operated sound box, which when switched, plays the TV show theme song. One example of this rare Monkeembolie in pristine condition and with box intact sold for a whopping $1, 191.78 in an auction! Why, I can buy a real, driveable car with stereo for that amount!

172. SHIRLEY TEMPLE Crayon Book

Another nice example of Shirleyana---inspired by the child star Shirley Temple, who turned 83 this year! Unbeleivebale how time flies. One day she' "On the Good Sip Lollipop", the next, she's the U.S. Ambassador to Ghana and Czechoslovakia! But before her career shift, little Shirley regaled us with such hit movies as "Bright Eyes", "Curly Top" and "Heidi". Her years as a child star spawned merchandise of such variety---from the most expensive child-size Shirley Temple dolls with their own doll buggies to more affordable paper items such as this "Shirley Temple Crayon Book"--whose only connection with Shirley is the diecut photo cover. The inside pages feature blank pages for doodling, sketching and scrawling. But maybe you need a little drink of Shirley Temple first--for a bit of creative inspiration..

171. PHILIPPINE MOVIE STARS FAN PHOTOS

Real photo fan photos that doubled as postcards were very popular during the early '50s and were sold in shops, news stands and photo stores all over the country. One could also write the studio or the actor himself to request for a photo complete with dedication. These examples, bought from a Philippine ebay seller, are a few examples--portraits of some of the most popular stars during the Golden Age of Philippine cinema.

From LEFT TO RIGHT: Lucita Goyena (late 30s star who was a favorite leading lady of Fernando Poe Sr.), Corazon Noble (known today as Jay Ilagan's mother) and Elsa Oria ("Singing Sweetheart of the Philippines who starred in many musicals).


From LEFT TO RIGHT: Leopoldo Salcedo ("The Great Profile", Lionel Barrymore of the Phils.), Fernando Poe Sr. (FPJ's father who died of rabies in 1953) and Rogelio de la Rosa (Philippines' most famous actor of the 50s, future ambassador and senator).

170. BEWITCHED Fun and Activity Book

This popular, award-winning comedy show that had for its premise an ad executive marrying a witch who can't resist using her magic to solve problems--was created by Sol Saks in 1964. The stellar cast headed by Elizabeth Montgomery (as the witch-wife, Samantha Stephens), Dick York (the original Darrin, the harried ad man, replaced later by Dick Sargent), Agnes Moorhead (as the catty, meddling mother-in-law Endora who does not approve of her mortal son-in-law), George Tobias and Sandra Gould 9as the suspicious neighbors, the Kravitz) and David White (as the slave driver boss, Larry Tate). Tabitha, the Stephens' daughter who also had some powers, was portrayed alternately by twins Erin & Diane Murphy.

In its successful 8 year run, "Bewitched" won 4 Golden Globes, plus a couple of acting Emmys. The series was the basis of many TV collectibles including a Samantha Stephen doll, pocketbooks, coloring and activity books such as this one. In 2005, Nicole Kidman reprised the role of Samantha Stephens in the movie version of "Bewitched", but the original 1964 series held more magic for the show's millions of spellbound fans.

169. PAT BOONE PAPER DOLLS

Pat Boone (b. June 1, 1934) was one of the most successful pop singers in the United States during the '50s and early '60s. Hesang black artists' songs but sold more copies than them--like "Long Tall Sally", "Ain't That A Shame", "Tutti-Frutti", "Two Hearts, Two Kisses" and I Almost Lost My Mind". He sold over 45 million albums, had 38 Top 40 hits and appeared in more than 12 Hollywood movies, and, according to Billboard, was the second biggest charting artist of the late 1950s, behind only Elvis Presley but ahead of Ricky Nelson and The Platters.

In a poll, Boone was nearly the "two-to-one favorite over Elvis Presley among boys and preferred almost three-to-one by girls...". Today, Pat Boone continues to perform and pursue his other interests like politics, basketball, religion and writing. This 1950s paper doll of him by Whitman is proof of his widespread popularity in the rock 'n roll era--despite his old-fashioned values!