Happy Birthday Kay Francis

Nobody wore clothes better than Kay Francis. At Warner Brothers, there was no other star who was better dressed than she. Orry-Kelly's gowns clung to Kay like a second skin. She glided through the films with an air of confidence and style that was hard to beat. I love Kay Francis.

Today, January 13th is Kay's birthday, TCM is celebrating with a lineup of films. Pity I did not take the day off to enjoy them.

In honor of Kay, take the 62 or 91 minutes to enjoy one of her many films this evening. I suspect I will plunk Mandalay in the DVD player, Kay is marvelous as Tanya, aka Spot White, a delicious pre-code. No, wait, you can't go wrong with Jewel Robbery, either. That is Kay and William Powell at their most appealing. Yes, Jewel Robbery, that's the ticket!

I raise a glass to salute one of my favorite stars of the golden age. Here's to Kay!

YouTube is curiously bereft of clips of Kay, sadly no preview of Jewel Robbery. There are some lovely and hilarious bloopers out there saved from the annual Warner Brothers gag reels. Here's one of them, short and sweet.





One of the best spots for anything related to the Divine Kay can be found here.




Happy Birthday Kay!