Who says a horror movie has to be scary? 1932's The Old Dark House sure isn't. Any horror is purely coincidental. Any real plot is purely coincidental as well. But danged if it isn't fun as all get-out. It all opens on a dark and stormy night, of course, with Philip Waverton (Raymond Massey), his wife, Margaret … Continue reading Welcome To the Fun House
Poverty Row Tries Horror (Or Something)
Here we go... When I picked my movie for Kristen's latest Spooky Classic Movie Blogathon, I thought Torture Ship sounded suitably menacing. I went into it knowing absolutely nothing about the movie except that it was released in 1939 and was about a ship where criminals were tortured. It should have been at least a little … Continue reading Poverty Row Tries Horror (Or Something)
It’s All In Your Head
One of the most highly successful series of the mid-thirties and early forties was Dr. Kildare, which paired a young Lew Ayres with an older Lionel Barrymore. The clash of generations and an older doctor mentoring a younger one never failed to land. The third movie in the series was 1939's The Secret of Dr. Kildare, … Continue reading It’s All In Your Head
Little Edith Cortright
Off we go... I don't know why I thought 1936's Dodsworth was based on a Charles Dickens novel. Maybe it's because the name sounds very British. But no, the novel was written by Sinclair Lewis, published in 1929, and includes Lewis's favorite recurring character, the ever-dependable, ever-surprising midwestern town of Zenith (Some English BA I … Continue reading Little Edith Cortright
My Favorite Shirley Temple Movie
Here we go... I've never been a huge fan of Shirley Temple's early films, but The Little Princess is one of my favorites (Another is Heidi). No offense to anyone who likes them, but they're just not my taste. In 1939 Shirley Temple turned eleven, no longer a poppet but not yet a teenager, although she … Continue reading My Favorite Shirley Temple Movie
Bela Lugosi, Action Hero
Who's ready for adventure? Bela Lugosi, is, of course, best known for playing Dracula, as well as starring in various other creature features, but Dracula was both his blessing and his curse, and Lugosi spent the rest of his life trying his hardest to get away from it. One of his more successful attempts seemed … Continue reading Bela Lugosi, Action Hero
Calling Barranca
As we all know, 1939 was certainly jammed with classic hit movies, and one of the quieter ones in my opinion is Only Angels Have Wings. I first became aware of this film via the Lux Radio Theater version, but the movie itself is well-worth a watch, has a great cast, and is full of some … Continue reading Calling Barranca
Ronald the Rapscallion
Early talkies are rather infamous, as we all know. Actors often huddled around a microphone, in some cases stiff and wooden, afraid to move too much lest they mess up the take or the mikes pick up weird sounds. 1930's The Devil To Pay is a typical early talkie, but it's also pretty danged funny. The … Continue reading Ronald the Rapscallion
During World War Two: 1939 Movie Recs
To wrap up the "During World War Two" series, and I can't believe we're wrapping it up because I LOVE it, I thought it would be nice to pick my Top Ten or Top Twelve recommendations for every year of the war. These will be in chronological order, so ranking won't be a thing. I'll … Continue reading During World War Two: 1939 Movie Recs
Meet William Cagney
Hangin' out with the family... James Cagney is a familiar and beloved face in Classic Movie World. His younger brother, William is not quite as familiar, but he still made his mark on film in his own way. William, along with his four brothers and sister Jeannie, moved out to Hollywood together in the early … Continue reading Meet William Cagney
Good Cop, Not Cop
Ah, Poverty Row. And ah, Amazon Prime. Gotta love system algorithms, right? A bunch more Poverty Row movies have popped up in my Recs, and by "a bunch," I mean a virtual snow flurry. One of these is 1936's Step On It, which was filmed as programming for the then-burgeoning TV industry, and according to IMDb, the … Continue reading Good Cop, Not Cop
Crooning Cowboys and Low-Cost Capers
Saddle up, everyone... Westerns are a notoriously cheap genre, and I don't mean that in a bad way. It's just that they always have a lot of the same design and story elements. Horses. Dusty streets. Weathered buildings with board sidewalks. Open spaces. Various firearms. A saloon. A bar brawl or a shootout, possibly both. Maybe … Continue reading Crooning Cowboys and Low-Cost Capers
I’m Your Huck Finn
What's in a name... Huckleberry Finn is by far Mark Twain's most infamous and incorrigible character, and from the time Twain published The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn in 1884 no one has ever been indifferent to young Finn. There was, however, one time when he came very close, and that was the 1939 film adaptation starring … Continue reading I’m Your Huck Finn
Schmidt, You Build Us A Shapel
Opposites attract...or do they? Lillies of the Field is a pretty significant movie. While it was low-budget, it doesn't look it, and it helped its male lead, Sidney Poitier, win a Best Actor Oscar, the first such achievement for a black man. It's also a pretty personal movie for a lot of people. I've grown … Continue reading Schmidt, You Build Us A Shapel
Stage To Screen: Grand Hotel
"Grand Hotel. Always the same. People come. People go. Nothing ever happens." So intones the lonely and forgotten Doctor Otternschalg as he watches guests and former guests mill around in the lobby of Berlin's Grand Hotel. For him, a former First World War military doctor and burn victim, nothing ever does happen. No one writes … Continue reading Stage To Screen: Grand Hotel
Where’s Miss Froy?
Back to Britannia... In 1938 Alfred Hitchcock was really hitting his stride as a filmmaker, and The Lady Vanishes is a great example of his unique talent for presentation coming together. It was his next-to-last British film before moving to America and the next stage of his career. The movie starts in Bandrika, a fictional European country … Continue reading Where’s Miss Froy?
Stage To Screen: Babes In Arms
We all know that before there was Rodgers and Hammerstein there was Rodgers and Hart, and their 1937 hit, Babes In Arms became Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney's third movie and first musical together, not to mention the first of their famous barnyard musicals. It was also Arthur Freed's first official producer credit and Busby Berkeley's first … Continue reading Stage To Screen: Babes In Arms
Taking Up Room 