News for today's 2018: 02/28/11

5 Ways to Botch a Phone Interview

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://emj.cbdr.com/artieimages/r1/ar5m0gf659vn3tj6s5r1.gif?time=9/22/2010%204:28:27%20pm" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://emj.cbdr.com/artieimages/r1/ar5m0gf659vn3tj6s5r1.gif?time=9/22/2010%204:28:27%20pm" /></a></div>Selena Dehne, JIST Publishing Phone interviews are a fairly fundamental part of the job search process. Yet many candidates fail to progress beyond this stage in their pursuit of a particular job. "Often, a candidate's failure occurs because he didn't treat the phone interview as seriously he would have a face-to-face meeting with a recruiter or potential employer," says Vicki Salemi, author of "Big Career in the Big City." In her book, Salemi pinpoints several phone interview faux pas, which include the following: Conducting the interview in your pajamas Even though you're not meeting with someone face-to-face, you should still wear clothes that make you feel confident and put together, Salemi says. In addition, she recommends candidates wake up at least 30 minutes before the interview, comb their hair and brush their teeth. "I can't tell you how many times I've conducted phone interviews with people who literally just woke up. This created the visions in my head about their unbrushed teeth, uncombed hair and overall inability to focus," she explains. Picking the wrong spot to talk Whenever you're talking with a recruiter or potential employer on the phone, it's best to do so in a place that's peaceful and quiet. Outside noise and too many distractions around you can make it difficult to concentrate on what you're being asked during the interview. Salemi suggests staying at home for the phone interview and talking on a land line instead of a cell phone. "This way, it's likely you'll have clearer reception and you reduce any risk that you'll lose the call in the middle of a sentence." Failing to take advantage of access to helpful resources right at your fingertips According to Salemi, the main advantage to a phone interview is that you can refer to a handful of helpful resources during your interview. For example, you can glance at a list of talking points or you can pull up the company's website on your computer so that it's in front of you while you're interviewing. Forgetting to let your smile shine It may feel silly to smile when no one's around to see it, but odds are strong that the person interviewing you will notice how much more pleasant your voice sounds when you're doing so. Salemi also suggests standing up during the interview. "You'll be able to project your voice more and sound more confident if you're standing as opposed to sitting down. Celebrities do this all of the time during radio interviews, so why not channel your inner rock star?" Neglecting to close on a strong note It's very important to close the phone interview just as you would an office interview, Salemi says. "Ask the interviewer about the next steps in the interview process, when you should follow up, and where they are in the process. Then say your cordial good-byes, hang up and immediately send a thank-you note." Selena Dehne is a career writer for JIST Publishing who shares the latest occupational, career and job search information available with job seekers and career changers. She is also the author of JIST's Job Search and Career Blog (http://jistjobsearchandcareer.blogspot.com/). Follow her on Twitter at http://twitter.com/SelenaDehne.

5 Ways to Botch a Phone Interview

Selena Dehne, JIST Publishing Phone interviews are a fairly fundamental part of the job search process. Yet many candidates fail to progress...

Blue Monday

I'm not in a happy place this morning. There are many reasons: 1. Still no sign of Hank (see yesterday's post below). Each time I check the live animal traps for him (three times in the last 12 hours, I feel my heart sink. I just can't believe this dog has gone through so much, was lucky enough to get adopted by a loving family in Taiwan, then loses everyone in a house fire. Then lucky enough to get shipped to the United States so he doesn't wind up on someones dinner table in Taiwan, and gets adopted immediately here in the States. Then this happens. He's lost ten minutes after being in his new home. It just breaks my heart. 2. I had an emergency call at midnight for a work problem. After fixing it I tossed and turned for what seem like forever. I was hungry (of course). I finally got up and ate strawberries with real whip cream (in a can but it's the real stuff, not light, and I ate a lot of it). I think I finally fell asleep around 2am with the alarm going off at 4:30am. I had to check Hank's traps at 5am then go to the gym. Of course the traps were empty. 3. My gym workout was lackluster to say the least. Probably because I'm so tired. I used the five-minute rule six times while I was on the Crossramp. Seriously, every five minutes I'd tell myself just five more minutes then I can leave. It was the longest 30 minutes of my life. Afterwards I did upper body weights which normally I love. I didn't seem to have any strength. It's like someone pulled the plug on my energy. After only four exercises (3 sets each), I gave up. Normally I do a minimum of six different exercises, three sets each. I just didn't have it in me this morning. 4. I have my performance review today at work It's not something I'm looking forward to. Especially because I'm so tired, and I never take constructive criticism well even under the best of circumstances. Given how I feel right now I'll probably wind up in tears. 5. It's snowing giant snowflakes right now. Thirty-five degrees with gray skies. Normally I love snow, but it makes me sad to think of poor Hank out there, alone, cold, hungry and scared. I know all this will pass and everything will be okay. No one is going to give up on Hank. I probably won't get fired from my job. So I had a bad workout this morning, it happens. I'm sure tomorrow will be a better day (heck, can't get much worse than how I feel right now).

Blue Monday

I'm not in a happy place this morning. There are many reasons: 1. Still no sign of Hank (see yesterday's post below). Each time I ch...

Platinum Blonde and Beyond

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiertslXgbvSKgk33eJ8Y_2iIiCoNTRLjJxznsDuQrvILuRgWqS6nmJH7hbjyC3t_BVRnlNlTykufu8tSo9twHwVg2vzrsqHO6PI9Je8JtUfzSlUHV-TiZFo6LE4CA7Tl9O2bPdBJYWKiHx/s1600/Jean+Harlow%255B1%255D+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="305" l6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiertslXgbvSKgk33eJ8Y_2iIiCoNTRLjJxznsDuQrvILuRgWqS6nmJH7hbjyC3t_BVRnlNlTykufu8tSo9twHwVg2vzrsqHO6PI9Je8JtUfzSlUHV-TiZFo6LE4CA7Tl9O2bPdBJYWKiHx/s320/Jean+Harlow%255B1%255D+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div> It was her trademark, her calling card and, in 1931, the name of a film for which she received third billing. Platinum Blonde had originally been intended as a vehicle for top-billed star Loretta Young but, by the time it was released, the film's title had changed and changed again until it was an outright reference to pale-haired co-star Jean Harlow. It was not Harlow's breakout picture, that had come with Hell's Angels (1930), nor is it generally cited as one of her great classics, but Platinum Blonde was pivotal - it proclaimed her stardom. <a name="more"></a> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSjZYEoJ-iK1sBE9rap6JPAPMzvhilDjaEvYqdjBj8wXBk_Fp1fHN9kLc5nC86Vx799P-ihSGtfdXSMmNPuTJupvT4Y1bRFsfbSq-zXNYVfKllXFtkRxhHM3E84bEfTz__ESJMue1_WDKx/s1600/6943_1%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" l6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSjZYEoJ-iK1sBE9rap6JPAPMzvhilDjaEvYqdjBj8wXBk_Fp1fHN9kLc5nC86Vx799P-ihSGtfdXSMmNPuTJupvT4Y1bRFsfbSq-zXNYVfKllXFtkRxhHM3E84bEfTz__ESJMue1_WDKx/s200/6943_1%255B1%255D.jpg" width="143" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Public Enemy (1931)</td></tr></tbody></table>In 1931, the 20-year-old starlet was still under an oppressive five-year contract with Howard Hughes, producer/director of Hell's Angels. She had proven her appeal in the film, but Hughes had no projects in the works for her and most Hollywood insiders believed he was mismanaging her career. Harlow's then-friend/future husband Paul Bern arranged for her loan to MGM for The Secret Six (1931) an underworld drama with Wallace Beery and not-yet-famous Clark Gable. Immediately after, she was loaned out to Universal for an unsympathetic role in The Iron Man (1931), a boxing drama with Lew Ayres. While still on that project, she went back to MGM for retakes on The Secret Six and began work on her next film, this time on loan to Warner Brothers for the gangster classic The Public Enemy (1931), with James Cagney. Her fourth film in five months was for Fox, Goldie (1931), a comedy with Spencer Tracy. Of these films only The Public Enemy was an unqualified hit, and it was a blockbuster, but it was Cagney who became the overnight star...Harlow's allure was noted, but her performance was widely panned. With an assist from New Jersey mobster Abner Zwillman who was involved with Harlow, a two-picture deal with Harry Cohn at Columbia Pictures was secured. Zwillman made sure the actress earned quite a bit more than what she eked out from Howard Hughes. Harlow's first film for Columbia was to be called "Gallagher" and was one of several films of the emerging "newspaper" genre. It was a romantic comedy about an everyman reporter who falls for a high living socialite and is blind to the love of his best friend and fellow reporter, a gal pal named Gallagher. <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC8PP1LNbwXSkjRwgYsmIQYE7qQGgA1F4hH3_48AU1sNw-xWPWeSYlbRy2XOBcbJ3DufD_tFOupmnaCRRMMEiA2q5xXNZmCDAZpYfRNo1-tobd2u-vjXFvKglsGuL-wD5pCmRNuLJ5DXgV/s1600/Loretta+Young%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" l6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC8PP1LNbwXSkjRwgYsmIQYE7qQGgA1F4hH3_48AU1sNw-xWPWeSYlbRy2XOBcbJ3DufD_tFOupmnaCRRMMEiA2q5xXNZmCDAZpYfRNo1-tobd2u-vjXFvKglsGuL-wD5pCmRNuLJ5DXgV/s200/Loretta+Young%255B1%255D.jpg" width="151" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Loretta Young</td></tr></tbody></table>Contracted to star as Gallagher was luminous Loretta Young, already a movie veteran at only 18. She'd started in pictures at age four with an uncredited bit part as a "Fairy" in The Primrose Ring (1917) starring Mae Murray. At eight she'd appeared as an "Arab Child" in Valentino's The Shiek (1921) and at 15 co-starred with silent screen legend Lon Chaney in Laugh, Clown, Laugh (1928). In 1929 she, along with her sister Sally Blane, Jean Arthur and others, was named one of Hollywood's "WAMPAS Baby Stars." By the time she came to "Gallagher" Young had already appeared in more than 30 films. "Gallagher" had begun as an assignment for director Edward Buzzell (At the Circus, Go West, Song of the Thin Man, Neptune's Daughter) and development of the project was nearly complete by the time Frank Capra, then a promising director at Columbia, took over. <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6e2-SS1j6iVDtpHwdkQF1woSLhtAXsKNJjjepNtvKYYihLwJIHursd5l3FqlYln9vJNO-_HE8R06xAuuGo8EsT7z0WRLWNTUuBpLlb6xvGnuADLRHearDvLLRJhwEDZ4slw2_eZJT1M6O/s1600/cohn+and+capra+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="148" l6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6e2-SS1j6iVDtpHwdkQF1woSLhtAXsKNJjjepNtvKYYihLwJIHursd5l3FqlYln9vJNO-_HE8R06xAuuGo8EsT7z0WRLWNTUuBpLlb6xvGnuADLRHearDvLLRJhwEDZ4slw2_eZJT1M6O/s200/cohn+and+capra+2.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Harry Cohn and Frank Capra</td></tr></tbody></table>Capra was on his way up in 1931, but still a few years away from the Oscar nominations and wins that would characterize his career. He had been scheduled to make Forbidden with Barbara Stanwyck but that project was shelved for the time being and he moved on to "Gallagher." Comparing the filmographies of Buzzell and Capra, this was fortuitous. On loan to Columbia from RKO-Pathé to co-star in Forbidden was recent Broadway-to-Hollywood transplant Robert Williams. With that film on the shelf, Williams was cast as the male lead, a down to earth newspaperman and charmer named Stew Smith, in "Gallagher." <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVfl26_yEAOM9qaHqGq836o9CiOLlovfqMzduyW_86TSgNjujZkH-geQzpKQ7SP0bfO7qe3nCCun4lMl9QL-JQQ2B31gROs6-dVlkz9Ehl4eVKwj_u586IkYiy1QY8jRFMNGnU5FhZJblC/s1600/platinum+blonde+dvd.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" l6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVfl26_yEAOM9qaHqGq836o9CiOLlovfqMzduyW_86TSgNjujZkH-geQzpKQ7SP0bfO7qe3nCCun4lMl9QL-JQQ2B31gROs6-dVlkz9Ehl4eVKwj_u586IkYiy1QY8jRFMNGnU5FhZJblC/s200/platinum+blonde+dvd.jpg" width="159" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Harlow and Williams</td></tr></tbody></table> Williams had been on the New York stage for nearly ten years when Hollywood beckoned. He'd starred in a great hit of the era, "Abie's Irish Rose," the longest running play in Broadway history up to that time. In 1930 he was cast in Donald Ogden Stewart's "Rebound," which was just a moderate success. But sound had  permanently arrived, and Hollywood was desperate for stage plays, actors and writers. When RKO-Pathé bought the film rights to the play, Williams repeated his role in Rebound (1931) opposite Ina Claire. He was quickly cast in two more productions, The Common Law (1931) with Constance Bennett and Joel McCrea and Devotion (1931) with Ann Harding and Leslie Howard, and was considered "a new comedy sensation" when tapped for "Gallagher." Another noteworthy contributor on the film was screenwriter Robert Riskin (It Happened One Night, Mr. Deeds Goes to Town, You Can't Take it With You, Lost Horizon) who, though credited only with the dialogue, reportedly penned the script that had captured Capra's attention early on. The combination of an appealing cast, an up-and-coming director along with well honed writing, delivered a box office hit - and a film that has been called Capra's most underrated. By the time the picture was screened for its final preview audience, it had been retitled "The Gilded Cage," referring to protagonist Stew Smith's predicament and shifting focus from the Gallagher character. At the same time, a PR-fueled craze for peroxide-blonde hair swept the country and further heightened interest in bombshell Jean Harlow, recently tagged "the platinum blonde." Within a week of the last preview, the film had a new and lasting title, Platinum Blonde, though the plot had nothing to do with haircolor... <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYN7mm3z2okENpQxmVIwIOXl2aVaL9vnrYEoAdOcEpdx_Ab66fKwVTocssufLZLBhdt18a3TWCNx-spXg-eJY8SVv3-Ih0z-iLUYwOICfLcTc-SxQfFefbzwa9K5ZcWXX7_0CjiPZeESW9/s1600/red+headed+woman+book+jacket.jpg+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: right; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" l6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYN7mm3z2okENpQxmVIwIOXl2aVaL9vnrYEoAdOcEpdx_Ab66fKwVTocssufLZLBhdt18a3TWCNx-spXg-eJY8SVv3-Ih0z-iLUYwOICfLcTc-SxQfFefbzwa9K5ZcWXX7_0CjiPZeESW9/s200/red+headed+woman+book+jacket.jpg+2.jpg" width="150" /></a></div>With Platinum Blonde Harlow became a star. A few months later The Beast of the City (1932) brought her first consistently good reviews and in April 1932, aided by the maneuvering of Paul Bern and Irving Thalberg, she signed a seven-year contract with MGM. Her first film for the preeminent studio was Red-Headed Woman (1932), and it was tailored to her style and personality with added emphasis on humor to soften the perception of overt sexuality. Jean Harlow made 13 more films for MGM, all of them popular, several of them classics, and was a top Hollywood star for the rest of her short life. Loretta Young's acting career covered more than 75 years, but her ascent to stardom only began in earnest when she signed with 20th Century Fox in the mid-'30's. She won a Best Actress Oscar for her performance in The Farmer's Daughter (1947) and later won three Best Actress Emmys for her 1950s TV anthology series. Capra and Riskin went on to make a string of classic films together. It's significant that the primary characters and themes of Platinum Blonde would be revisited and refined in their later collaborations. The two men next worked on American Madness (1932) and then came Lady for a Day (1933) bringing Oscar nods to each of them. It was the following year, with It Happened One Night (1934), that Capra's and Riskin's reputations were made. The film won five Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Writing/Adaptation. In his career, Riskin was nominated for a total of five Oscars, all were for Capra films. Capra was nominated for six Oscars and won three; all winning films were those on which he'd collaborated with Riskin. Their first success working together had been Platinum Blonde... <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis8-kMRfL5KOWQKD4dZLErBodUYpI5C7Q9qeJ8_R7DQUrabEFCKtmfHXnPjSFRGOq_EtaX3LDWDp6TeFmzX2-_wOa-WP56iQmKIltG0a-zBQ3k5X-kZ_zfHjuuvvSRjhGhP-60JWlZJnS7/s1600/Robert+Williams+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" l6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis8-kMRfL5KOWQKD4dZLErBodUYpI5C7Q9qeJ8_R7DQUrabEFCKtmfHXnPjSFRGOq_EtaX3LDWDp6TeFmzX2-_wOa-WP56iQmKIltG0a-zBQ3k5X-kZ_zfHjuuvvSRjhGhP-60JWlZJnS7/s200/Robert+Williams+2.jpg" width="138" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Robert Williams</td></tr></tbody></table> I realized on first viewing Platinum Blonde that the standout performance and the heart of the film was the male lead. I wondered who Robert Williams was and why I hadn't seen his name before. He was enormously talented, facile, charismatic...and attractive enough to make the grade - yet I'd never heard of him. There was a very good reason. When Platinum Blonde opened Williams received glowing reviews. He must have realized that he was about to break out, but he had little time to enjoy his new caché. Just as the film was opening, Williams took a trip to Catalina Island, a popular getaway for Hollywood folk in those days. While he was there his appendix ruptured and by the time he managed to return to the mainland and go into a hospital he'd developed peritonitis. He underwent surgery but died on November 3, four days after Platinum Blonde's release and on the same day Variety singled out his performance and predicted a promising future. There isn't much available on YouTube from Platinum Blonde, but the scene below provides a moment of pre-Code mischief (if some of the dialogue seems politically incorrect remember, this film is 80 years old)... <div style="text-align: center;">TCM will air Platinum Blonde on Tuesday, March 29, 11:30pm Eastern/8:30pm Pacific</div> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNsdq9Yih4oVXSqWy-HnE17DZSZ9jt38whexejCqdG6uLtV1PiFO68rR7LkNIzBnlHGef9kWv4EUtmixSejUFm0X_m1phXM96EBKMxRKRTCRuVK7Bvsw28IjbRtr1ccyncmRFTKfF4Xeg/s1600/platinum+blonde.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="293" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNsdq9Yih4oVXSqWy-HnE17DZSZ9jt38whexejCqdG6uLtV1PiFO68rR7LkNIzBnlHGef9kWv4EUtmixSejUFm0X_m1phXM96EBKMxRKRTCRuVK7Bvsw28IjbRtr1ccyncmRFTKfF4Xeg/s400/platinum+blonde.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Loretta Young, Robert Williams, Jean Harlow</td></tr></tbody></table> Darrell Rooney and Mark Vieira's new book Harlow in Hollywood: The Blonde Bombshell in the Glamour Capital, 1928 - 1937 (<a href="http://www.tcm.com/movienews/index/?cid=375118">click here</a> to learn more) is scheduled for release in  March from Angel City Press.

It was her trademark, her calling card and, in 1931, the name of a film for which she received third billing. Platinum Blonde had originall...

5 Ways to Botch a Phone Interview

Blue Monday

Platinum Blonde and Beyond

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