Digging into Joe Donahue, talented vaudevillian dancer who replaced his late brother, Jack, opposite Marilyn Miller in the film version of Sunny. He also appeared in Expensive Women and two Dorothy Mackaill titles during his stay with First National, 1930-31. Piecing together some of the mysterious Donahue’s life and discovering, once and for all, the date he died.
Popular Posts
Movie Star Biographies
Helen Vinson Biography – A Socialite Specializing in Socialites
Born Helen Rulfs in Beaumont, Texas, this biography traces Helen Vinson’s life and career through Houston to New York, Hollywood, and beyond. Born to money, Vinson excelled at playing icy socialites in the movies. Married three times including her 1930s union with Wimbledon champ Fred Perry.
Chester Morris – Biography of the Boston Blackie Star
A biography of Chester Morris, Academy Award nominated actor for Alibi (1929), who starred in several pre-Code classics before going on to greatest fame in the Boston Blackie series of movies.
Ann Sheridan Biography
A biography of actress Ann Sheridan, best known from her days as Warner Brothers’ Oomph Girl from films such as They Drive by Night and Kings Row.
Milton Sills, The Mighty Two-Fisted He-Man of the Silent Screen
A biography of Milton Sills, stage and silent film actor with a philosophy background. Poised to make a hit in talkies when he died in 1930. Article also includes a synopsis of Sills’ most famous film, The Sea Hawk.
Suzanne Kaaren – Brief Bio of Bela Lugosi, Three Stooges Co-Star
A brief biography of original Rockette Suzanne Kaaren Blackmer, who played opposite Bela Lugosi and The Three Stooges and later battled Donald Trump in the courts.
Movie Reviews & Articles
Three on a Match (1932), A Second Look: Bogart, Action, Warren William
A second look at pre-Code classic Three on a Match (1932) includes an appraisal of early Humphrey Bogart movies, contemporary reaction, and a checklist of stars. Plus Warren William.
Piccadilly Jim (1936) Starring Robert Montgomery and Madge Evans
Looking at MGM’s 1936 adaptation of P.G. Wodehouse’s Piccadilly Jim starring Robert Montgomery and directed by Robert Z. Leonard. With Madge Evans, Frank Morgan and Eric Blore.
She Had to Say Yes (1933) Starring Loretta Young
She Had to Say Yes is a pre-Code film so outrageous that it’s bound to bother men and women alike. An expose on the life of the “customer’s girl,” the Depression era’s version of a high class call girl in business circles. Starring Loretta Young, who manages to be pawed by Regis Toomey, Lyle Talbot, and Hugh Herbert, all in the same movie.
Dr. Monica (1934) Starring Kay Francis, Warren William and Jean Muir
A look at Dr. Monica (1934), a pre-code Kay Francis film featuring a strong performance by Jean Muir. Also starring Verree Teasdale and Warren William.
Washington Merry-Go-Round (1932) with Lee Tracy and Constance Cummings
Lee Tracy stars in Washington Merry-Go-Round (1932), Columbia’s pre-Code precursor to Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939) with Constance Cummings, Alan Dinehart and Walter Connolly.
Behind the Green Lights (1935), Cops Vs. Mouthpiece in Mascot Indie
Based on a book by Captain Cornelius Willemse, the NYPD’s original “gang buster,” Behind the Green Lights pits the police vs. a crooked mouthpiece and features a romance between cop and lawyer. Easily found independent release is fast-paced and entertaining.