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.
Devil and the Deep (1932) Starring Charles Laughton and Tallulah Bankhead
A detailed look at Paramount’s Devil and the Deep (1932) starring Tallulah Bankhead and Gary Cooper, with Cary Grant and introducing Charles Laughton to American audiences as the paranoid submarine commander.
An Obit, Plus Odds, Ends, Stylin’, and some ABCs
RIP Farley Granger with a movie card image and some links to more coverage followed by some fun with the Stylish Blogger Award and my Pre-Code Cinematic Alphabet.
Employees’ Entrance (1933) starring Warren William and the Franklin-Monroe Department Store
A detailed look at First National’s Employees’ Entrance, an early 1933 pre-code release starring Warren William with Loretta Young and Wallace Ford. A look inside the Franklin-Monroe Department Store at a time when Hoover was a lame duck and the Great Depression was crushing the economy.
Alice White’s Bad Rap: Sex, Money or the Times?
A 1933 scandal is generally credited with ruining Alice White’s career, but period reporting seems to let her off the hook. Had Alice White already fallen out of style by 1933?
Mary Astor Stars in Smart Woman (1931); Screen Husband Robert Ames Dies Soon After Release
RKO’s 1931 Smart Woman starring Mary Astor. A look at the film as well as leading man Robert Ames who died within two months of Smart Woman’s release.
The Tip-Off (1931) with Eddie Quillan, Ginger Rogers and Turkey Mike Donlin
A pre-Code release from RKO Pathe, The Tip-Off (1931) features Ginger Rogers in an early role but most of the fun comes from its fresh-faced star Eddie Quillan.
Union Depot (1932) starring Douglas Fairbanks Jr and Joan Blondell
Douglas Fairbanks Jr is a hobo playing Gentleman for a Day in 1932’s Union Depot co-starring Joan Blondell and Guy Kibbee. A sweeping view of all classes during the Great Depression.
Peggy Hopkins Joyce, W.C. Fields, et al., in Paramount’s International House (1933)
International House, billed in its day as The Grand Hotel of comedy, found Eddie Sutherland directing a cast headed by W.C. Fields, Burns and Allen, and Bela Lugosi, with top bill actually going to socialite Peggy Hopkins Joyce in what was the final film of her sporadic movie career. The films’ everyman is played by […]
My Woman (1933) Starring Helen Twelvetrees and Wallace Ford
Brief notes are exactly that, just some stream of consciousness thoughts from my viewing of My Woman starring Helen Twelvetrees, Wallace Ford, and Victor Jory.