Today we’re showing you pictures of seven of the most popular stars ever produced by Hollywood.

These (count today’s photos) seven have been honored by having a U.S. Postage stamp released with their likeness on it. All of them are, of course, first class.

Hello, everybody.  Joe Morella and Frank Segers, your classic movie guys, back with this very special numismatic quiz for our readers.

For better or worse, many famous people are now on our postage stamps.  At first, of course, only politicians and statesmen were represented.

Then, in the 20th Century, the government started to put artists and writers on our stamps. The Mark Twain stamp was released in 1940. In 1973, George Gershwin was honored with a stamp.

But what of our seven?

Today’s quiz — who came first?

Who is the last?

In short, what was the order of release for stamps commemorating Ethel Barrymore, Judy Garland, W.C. Fields, Bob Hope, Will Rogers, Vivien Leigh, and John Wayne?

Here’a a clue.

Until very recently only people who were deceased could be depicted on a U.S. postage stamp.

As popular as it justifiably remains among classic movie fans — it’s one of those movies you can enjoy over and over — 1949′s The Third Man remains a subject of persistent debate among some critics and cineastes.  It seems to be too enjoyable to be a really great movie.

Hello, everybody. Joe Morella and Frank Segers, your classic movie guys, here to report that we love the picture without the slightest qualification.

Director Carol Reed’s handling of novelist Graham Greene’s serialized original story and screenplay — with a superb cast of Joseph Cotten as Holly Martins, Trevor Howard as Major Calloway, Orson Welles as Harry Lime and Alida Valli as Anna Schmidt, Limes’ paramour with a questionable past — makes the picture, in our view, one of the best ever.

Who can disagree?  One critic for The New York Times, no longer with the paper, complained about The Third Man’s signature musical score — by lone zither player Anton Karas.  Heresy, we say!

Welles biographers blithely credit the  movie’s excellence to his presence both in front and in back of the camera. Writes author David Thomson: a good case can be made for attributing the ‘authorship’ of the movie to Welles. We don’t go along with that, and we’ll cover that point in our quiz.

Who can resist The Third Man’s marvelous evocation of war torn Vienna, its superb cinematography by Australian-born Robert Krasker (who justifiably won an Oscar for his work), its dramatic chase scenes shot in the Vienna sewers and, especially, its unexpectedly ambiguous final shot.

OK, you get the point.  Let’s get to our quiz.

1) Yes, the official credits say Greene is the The Third Man’s screenwriter, but didn’t veteran producer David O. Selznick really mastermind the whole movie? True or False?

2) The Third Man was originally considered a dull title for such an interesting thriller, and other titles were considered.  Which of the following alternatives were seriously mulled? 1) European Intrigue; 2) Night In Vienna; 3)  Four-Power Foul Play; or 4) Get Harry Lime?

3) Included in The Third Man cast are superb character actors from several countries.  One went on to become popularly identified by a continuing role in the James Bond movies.  Which one?  1) Wilfrid-Hyde White; 2) Paul Horbiger (3) Bernard Lee; or 4) Erich Ponto?

4) Joseph Cotten complained about the name of the character he played, and asked that it be changed.  Was it changed?  Yes or no?  If so, what was the character’s name changed to?

5) The Third Man posed a real financial opportunity for chronically spendthrift Orson Welles? He blew it, though by:  1) not negotiating for a large salary upfront; 2) not receiving a portion of the movie’s box office receipts; 3) not getting a slice of the production’s merchandising rights; or 4) none of the above.

6)  Trevor Howard, playing a British major in the movie, got into serious trouble with four-powers police in Vienna during The Third Man shooting.  What happened?   1) he confessed to being a member of the Communist Party; 2) he had an off-camera punch up with Orson Welles in a local restaurant; 3) found himself a suspect in a string of small-time burglaries; or 4) got blind drunk in public while wearing his military uniform costume?

7) Who actually wrote the movie’s memorable Ferris Wheel scene including the line about peaceful Switzerland’s sole contribution to the world as ‘the cuckoo clock?’ 1) Greene; 2) Green with director Carol Reed; 3) Orson Welles; 4) Welles with Joseph Cotten?

8) Can you identify the nationality of actress Alida Valli?  Was she 1) Austrian ; 2) American; 3) Italian; or 4) Croatian?

9) The Third Man marked the screenwriting debut of novelist Greene? True or false?  If not, can you name his first film?

10) The movie’s marvelous ending in a frozen Viennese cemetery was dreamed up by Joseph Cotten.  True or false?

Answers soon, so please check in with us daily.

Hello, everybody.  Joe Morella and Frank Segers, your classic movie guys, here today to announce how pleased we are that many of you enjoyed our recent The Wizard of Oz quiz published on May 10 with answers following on May 15.

But not everyone was totally thrilled.

Your “Wizard of Oz” quiz was fun but there are errors, wrote reader Robert Waters, who went on to make several points in an insightful email to us that we feel deserves further airing.

First, Robert maintains that the property (L. Frank Baum’s children’s story) was purchased with Garland in mind for the role of Dorothy.

We researched both author Aljean Harmetz’ 1977 book The Making of the Wizard of Oz as well as producer Mervyn LeRoy’s 1974 memoir Take One, and came up with differing accounts of who bought what for whom.

The Baum book was acquired on June 3, 1938 by MGM on the order of studio boss Louis B. Mayer, who paid Samuel Goldwyn $75,000 (providing a $35,000 profit to Goldwyn) for the movie rights. LeRoy was assigned producer.  Mayer insisted that his close associate and loyal underling, Arthur Freed, be named LeRoy’s assistant.

Harmetz reports that it was Freed who early on envisioned a 15-year-old Judy Garland for the role of Dorothy. LeRoy contradicts that.

For the leading role, Dorothy, the MGM brass was unanimous — they wanted Shirley Temple.  I was the only one who didn’t. I had seen my Dorothy… when I caught a low-budget Fox musical ‘Pigskin Parade’ (with Garland participating as an MGM loan out). Garland…had the quality I wanted for Dorothy. LeRoy adds that it took him some time to finally convince Mayer to go along with me.

In his email to us, Robert adds: The studio was hesitant and wanted insurance for such an expensive film. They briefly considered Shirley Temple (as Dorothy) but realized that the role’s demands were beyond Temple’s abilities.  We are not sure who the ‘they’ is but LeRoy insists that he was responsible for Garland’s casting.

Also, Harmetz’ book points out that when Mayer tried to borrow Temple from home studio 20th Century Fox, studio boss Daryl Zanuck refused to loan her out. So despite its best efforts and whatever doubts it may have had about Temple’s suitability as Dorothy, MGM was unable to land Temple.

Next, Robert makes this point:  Filming of “Oz” began in October, 1938. Judy Garland turned 16 years old on June 10, 1938. She was 17 by the time the film premiered in August/September 1939.

Harmetz reports that Garland was 15 when she was cast as Dorothy, with six movies behind her in her two-and-a-half years at the studio (beginning Sept. 27, 1935, three months after her 13th birthday). She was indeed 16 when The Wizard of Oz started production Oct. 12, 1938, and was 17 when the movie classic opened in Los Angeles  (Aug. 15, 1939 at Grauman’s Chinese Theater) and two days later at New York’s Capitol Theater.

Next, Robert asserts that signature song “Over The Rainbow” was briefly cut from “Oz” because the studio thought the song slowed down the film. Producer Mervyn LeRoy fought to have the song restored.

LeRoy writes in his memoir that after Oz’s San Bernadino, California preview, some of the MGM executives said, ‘that song has to go.’… L.B. (Mayer) didn’t say anything, but he listened to me, (lyricist E.Y.) Harburg, (composer Harold) Arlen and Freed on the one side, and to the anti-’Rainbow’ faction on the other. Finally, after he had heard about ten minutes of discussion, Mayer spoke. ‘Okay, Mervyn,’ he said. ‘You win. ‘Over the Rainbow’ stays in the picture.’…I hate to think of what would have happened if those other men had won out that night in San Bernadino.

Finally, Robert points out that there were actually FOUR directors who influenced “The Wizard of Oz”. Richard Thorpe began the production, George Cukor took over and revamped the costumes and approach of the film, Victor Fleming filmed most of the movie but was called away to rescue troubled “Gone With The Wind” and finally King Vidor directed the Kansas sequences which were filmed last.

He’s right, but Harmetz puts some perspective on this when she reports that Thorpe directed Oz for two weeks, Cukor for three days, Fleming for four months and King Vidor for 10 days.

Thanks, Richard, for emailing and keeping us on our toes. Keep reading and keep writing in.

Rare is it that a prime-time television comedian — and a huge tube star to boot — successfully makes the transition to movies as a dramatic actor of power, subtlety and versatility.

But that’s exactly what Jackie Gleason accomplished.

Hello, everybody.  Joe Morella and Frank Segers, your classic movie guys, here to celebrate (on the 25th anniversary of his death) one of the best under-appreciated actors in recent Hollywood history.

Eddie Cantor, George Burns and Jack Benny, among many other comedians, made pictures that largely played off their funny routines.  But Gleason didn’t. He took on heavyweight roles, standing toe-to-toe with such dramatic stalwarts as Paul Newman and George C. Scott.

‘The Great One’ was most definitely a Star of Television. But Gleason was also a skilled actor who started his career in vaudeville and burlesque, segued briefly into movies in the 40s, then hit his stride on TV in the 50s.

His Honeymooners series, though filmed for only one season is still in re-runs. His Variety Shows allowed him to create other memorable characters as well. He was a fixture on television from the 1950s to the 1970s.

He ended his illustrious career onscreen. He made only about 25 features but his performances in just about every one had impact, and stand up today.

Best remembered, of course, is director Robert Rossen’s 1961 drama The Hustler with Newman as a young pool hustler challenging veteran champ, Minnesota Fats, played with incisive authority by Gleason.

He received an Oscar nomination for his portrayal, which he tossed off with seeming ease, betraying none of the Method-induced acting agonies of Newman and costar Scott. (Newman won an Oscar for his interpretation of a Minnesota Fats-type character in director Martin Scorsese’s 1986 update, The Color of Money.)

A Golden Globe nomination came two years later for Gleason’s title role in Gigot, a comedy of sorts filmed in Paris about an adult mute who befriends a little girl, the daughter of a prostitute. Despite the picture’s melodramatic overtones, Gleason delivers a solid performance in the title role without speaking a word.

In Columbia’s Requiem For A Heavyweight, Rod Serling’s 1962 saga of a battered but principled boxer (Anthony Quinn) sold out by his duplicitous manager (Gleason), Jackie shines. He’s pictured below with co-star Mickey Rooney.

And who can forget how as  blustery Southern sheriff Buford  J. Justice he carried the three Smokey and the Bandit caper movies ?

Director Garry Marshall was able to lure Gleason out of retirement for his last film, Nothing in Common, by chiding him: “you don’t want to be remembered as Buford J. Justice, do you?”

Although today Nothing in Common is marketed as a comedy (because of names like Gleason, Marshall and Tom Hanks) it is nothing of the sort.  It is a serious film about children dealing with aging and ill parents with whom they have difficulty relating.  It’s a remarkable film and a great performance by Gleason.  See it.

In addition to films and TV, Jackie Gleason was a Broadway star.

Gleason lived large. “How sweet it is,” was his catchphrase. One had the feeling that although a TV colossus, he never regarded himself as a big movie star.  He was a working film actor, and an excellent one. Gleason died on June 24, 1987, at the age of 71.

They said it was her husband’s car, but in the late 1930s no one really knew for sure if Paulette Goddard and Charlie Chaplin were really married.  In fact, it was only when they divorced in 1942 that they confirmed they’d ever wed.

The car is a Rolls Royce.

Anita Loos, the actress-writer behind the comic novel, stage version and screen edition of “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes” – and a woman who knew a thing or two about luxurious living — put it best. In her 1954 memoir Fate Keeps On Happening, Loos wrote this about one of her closest friends: “To Paulette, no occasion is festive without champagne and caviar.”

Hello, everybody, Joe Morella and Frank Segers, your classic movie guys, here today to appreciate that Rolls-driving Goddard, one of the most financially savvy actresses Hollywood ever spawned. (Chaplin was no dope in the money-management department either.)

Paulette was born Pauline Marion Levy, the only child of a Long Island couple whose marriage rapidly fell apart. She and her mother were financially pressed, and moved around a good deal when she was very young.

A child model by 13,  she soon found herself cast in producer Flo Ziegfeld productions, including the 1927 musical Rio Rita in which she was widely noticed perched on a cutout of the moon being serenaded by a the baritone leading man. Her movie career actually began in New York in 1927, when she appeared in a four shorts for Ziegfeld.

From the beginning — and perhaps because of her beginnings — Goddard had a finely developed taste for luxury, jewelry, clothes, cars, the works. At 16, she married a Palm Beach socialite who undoubtedly catered to her expensive tastes.

The marriage was short lived, and at its conclusion in 1929, Goddard was awarded a $100,000 settlement — worth about $1.3 million in today’s dollars.

After her divorce Paulette arrived in Hollywood and in 1932, she appeared as a blond “Goldwyn Girl” in The Kid From Spain starring radio personality Eddie Cantor.

Goddard’s stunning good looks caught the attention of a 43-year-old Charlie Chaplin that same year, and their romance began.  Chaplin was intrigued not only by her seductiveness but by her keen business sense, unusual for a young starlet.

He co-starred her in 1936′s Modern Times, and then somewhere, somehow, they secretly married. The couple separated in 1940, and divorced two years later.

Paulette subsequently married Erich Maria Remarque. The “All Quiet on the Western Front” author and the beautiful — and very smart — actress began their 12-year, later-in-life marriage in 1958. He was 60. She was said to be 48, although estimates of her age varied since throughout her life (which ended in 1990) Goddard never came clean about her actual  birth date.

By most accounts the Remarque-Goddard union was a success.  It lasted until the author’s death in 1970. She was gregarious and a gadabout.  He was sedentary but understanding. Both were rich.

By this stage of his life, Remarque — a man of many affairs in every sense who once romanced fellow German Marlene Dietrich – was “bored by the physical and more interested in a woman’s mind.”

DISCLOSURE – That last quote comes the 1985 biography “Paulette: The Adventurous Life of Paulette Goddard,” co-authored by Edward Z. Epstein and Classic Movie Chat’s own Joe Morella. If I may say so (Frank speaking) the book is a wonderful read, and an essential reference on Goddards’s adventurous life.