Hal Roach employees Bebe Daniels, Mary Ann Jackson and William Bendix were all born on January 14 just like their boss. Each spent significant time working for Roach at different points in the career of the famed producer.
Popular Posts
Movie Star Biographies
Paul Muni’s 1932 – Multiple Projects Converge to Make Paul Muni a Huge Star
In 1932 I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang followed Scarface at the Strand Theater in New York while Paul Muni was then starring live on Broadway in Counsellor-at-Law. A major star is realized out of a huge year of work.
William Frawley Before I Love Lucy
A look at William Frawley in the years before he achieved his greatest fame as Fred Mertz on I Love Lucy. Special attention is paid to his baseball movies and his early days on the vaudeville circuit and Broadway. The article is illustrated with seven promotional photos from the 1939 film St. Louis Blues.
Richard Dix – His Life and Film Legacy
Five thousand words about the life of Richard Dix including a look at his most important movies: The Vanishing American (1925), Cimarron (1931) and The Ghost Ship (1943) plus, author’s choice, Ace of Aces (1933).
Humphrey Bogart Seeks Hollywood Party, Rises to Stardom
TCM examines Humphrey Bogart as major film star during their August 1 Summer Under the Stars presentation. Here we trace his stardom backwards from High Sierra down to a 1930 newspaper interview which finds Bogie on the hunt for a Hollywood party.
Stuart Erwin, Biography of ’30s “Comic Valentine” Turned Early TV Star
A biography of Stuart Erwin, best known for portraying comic bumblers on screen and later starring on TV with his wife, June Collyer, in The Stu Erwin Show.
Movie Reviews & Articles
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.
Larceny, Inc. (1942) starring Edward G. Robinson and Jane Wyman
Previewing Larceny, Inc. (1942) which airs on TCM tonight at 6:15 EST. Star-studded gangster comedy stars Edward G. Robinson and Broderick Crawford with Jane Wyman.
The Half Naked Truth (1932) Starring Lee Tracy and Lupe Velez
Lee Tracy takes Lupe Velez from carny hooch dancer to Broadway star in Gregory La Cava’s The Half Naked Truth (1932) for RKO. Also starring Frank Morgan and Eugene Pallette
Flesh (1932) Starring Wallace Beery and Karen Morley
John Ford directed Flesh (1932) for MGM with Wallace Beery starring as a German wrestler and Karen Morley giving an outstanding performance as the shady girl he loves. With Ricardo Cortez.
Clear All Wires! (1933) – Journalism in Classic Film Blogathon
MGM’s Clear All Wires! (1933) finds foreign correspondent Lee Tracy butting heads with the Soviet secret police in Russia, 1932. Una Merkel and Benita Hume co-star.
Tyrone Power and Alice Faye – In Old Chicago (1937), Alexander’s Ragtime Band (1938) and Rose of Washington Square (1939)
Tyrone Power and Alice Faye shared a May 5 birthday and shared early fame in hit movies In Old Chicago (1937), Alexander’s Ragtime Band (1938) and Rose of Washington Square (1939). This post looks at the hit Twentieth Century-Fox team and each of their three movies together.