In 1934 they knew they had the biggest and the tiniest star on their hands... At five years old she was making $1,250 a week. At first glance, this is a photo of a beloved child star being presented with a "Resolution of Appreciation and Affection" by my great-grandmother Ida Mayer Cummings on behalf of … Continue reading To Shirley Temple with “Appreciation and Affection”
"She was driven, passionate and unstoppable. It is uncanny to me how alike she and LB were in sheer determination..." It dawned on me recently as I looked at photos of my grandmother Mitzi and my great-grandmother Ida Mayer Cummings that I was looking at me in a few decades. The resemblances are uncanny in … Continue reading What I Will Look Like in 40 Years
“He was the right rabbi in the right temple in the right city at the right moment in time. If he had not presided over our B’nai B’rith, God and Louis B. Mayer - whose overpowering presences tended to overlap - would have had to create him. Or maybe they did." Budd Schulberg, screenwriter and … Continue reading Rabbi Magnin and the Moguls
I am fascinated by amber that contains a trapped primordial insect inside. One moment it is minding its own business on a tree, the next, it is captured in a rolling drop of sticky sap. A millenia later we can hold this same moment in time as fossilized amber in our hands. For me, my … Continue reading Mitzi Transformed by Wizard of Oz Make-up Artist Jack Dawn
Oh, that smile... My grandmother Mitzi is probably in her early 20s in this photo and appears to be signing in at MGM's employee entrance. From the smile, and with a photo to document the occasion, she may very well be doing this for the first time. There's naturally a fine line between nepotism and … Continue reading Mitzi Joins the MGM Star Factory
UPDATE: 2 June, 2012 - When I initially added this post I didn't know who the other man is sharing uncle Louis' desk in his office at MGM. Thanks to my aunt who emailed me recently, I now know this is William Powell, a major star who was nominated for the Academy Award for Best … Continue reading Hot-desking with Louis B Mayer
Bob Hope once said about my great-grandmother, Ida Mayer Cummings, that she was the only woman he knew who could reach down the phone and grab a man by the lapels. Where her brother Louis B Mayer was a force in filmmaking, Ida was a force in fundraising for the Jewish Home for the Aged in Los Angeles. Ironically, my grandmother and grandfather spent their last days there. But I look at this photo and see the fun, laughter and scheming to ensure money flowed from Hollywood and beyond to ensure comfort for the elderly.
My great-grandmother Ida Mayer Cummings was Louis B Mayer's sister and best friend. They were the middle children of five - Yetta, Ida, LB, Gerald and Ruben. Louis B Mayer's legacy was MGM, AMPAS, the Oscars, the MPAA and other major achievements. What is not as known is that his sister was the same mover and shaker in fundraising, and to this day an event she founded (the same year as LB founded the Academy Awards) is still a fixture in Los Angeles today. She was also the mother of four children, one of whom, Jack Cummings, went on to be a film producer in his own right.
At the Asia Pacific Screen Awards (APSAs) in 2010 with my partner. I served four years as Vice Patron of the APSA Academy and resigned this year. Click photo to be taken to my resignation press release. It was an honor and deeply disappointing all at the same time.
The Film Colony ♛ 
You must be logged in to post a comment.