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437,533 | 306,861 | 25,966 | 10 |
Misses Oliver & Burke Spark Forgotten Screwball Comedy
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A once affluent Santa Barbara family , hounded by persistent creditors , hope to rejoice ' WE'RE RICH AGAIN ' if they can marry their oldest daughter off to a very wealthy twit . Then a pretty little country cousin shows up to complicate everything . . . This sadly neglected screwball comedy from the 1930's offers manifold delights arising from its farcical plot & wonderful cast . Only a decade of over-abundant cinematic riches could afford to forget a perfectly fine film such as this . While not a great classic of its genre , such as BRING UP BABY or NOTHING SACRED , it still has much amusement to offer the lucky viewer . Edna May Oliver & Billie Burke , both unforgettable & utterly irreplaceable , are delightful as the two stars of the film . Wisecracking , polo-playing granny Oliver , frequently found in the company of her gaggle of young men , utters sardonic comments on the plot & the behavior of the other characters . Vague , fluttery Burke , perpetually in a state of mental abstraction , adds her own brand of kookiness to the story line . Olympic medalist Buster Crabbe is hilarious , spoofing himself as a champion swimmer who wears nothing but swimming trunks the entire film , even while attending a fancy garden wedding . Edgar Kennedy , as a process server unable to proceed past the driveway , gets to display his famous ' slow burn ' to great advantage . The other supporting players ( Reginald Denny , Grant Mitchell , Marian Nixon & Joan Marsh ) all ably assist with the general pandemonium .
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437,663 | 306,861 | 35,404 | 10 |
Mangled Melody
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A Walt Disney MICKEY MOUSE Cartoon . Mickey and his pals are all set to make their orchestral debut on the Macaroni SYMPHONY HOUR - not knowing that Goofy has virtually destroyed their instruments . Many younger viewers may not realize that this very funny little film is set during the broadcast of an old-time live radio show . John McLeish is the program's announcer ; Mickey's musicians consist of Donald Duck , Goofy , Clarabelle Cow , Horace Horsecollar and the marvelous Madame Clara Cluck , who inexplicably is given only a few seconds of screen time and was about to disappear from Disney cartoons altogether for forty-one years . Pete is hilarious as Sylvester Macaroni , the program's sponsor . Walt Disney ( 1901-1966 ) was always intrigued by pictures & drawings . As a lad in Marceline , Missouri , he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper ; later , as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War , he drew comic figures on the sides of his vehicle . Back in Kansas City , along with artist Ub Iwerks , Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters . Always the innovator , his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe . Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923 , where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor . When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor , the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination , ensuring Disney's immortality . The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut , STEAMBOAT WILLIE ( 1928 ) , a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music . The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared , and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color , illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development , an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable . Mickey's feisty , naughty behavior had captured millions of fans , but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions : temperamental Donald Duck , intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto . All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films . Against a blizzard of doomsayers , Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White , Pinocchio , Dumbo , Bambi & Peter Pan . Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse , or that childlike simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off .
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437,186 | 306,861 | 18,179 | 10 |
Chaney's Double Triumph
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The terrible trial of MR WU begins with his daughter's first love . Lon Chaney once again gives scope to his prodigious talent , this time portraying a wealthy Mandarin who is compelled to commit the ultimate crime to avenge his family honor . Chaney inhabits the role , making every glance & gesture perfect for his portrayal of the character . Even while performing despicable acts , Chaney makes the viewer experience his private pain in an almost visceral way . Chaney also portrays ancient Grandfather Wu in the film's opening scenes , exhibiting an astonishing make-up transformation that is practically preternatural . Much of the screen time is given over to Chaney's younger costars . French actress Renée Adorée provides a beautifully poignant portrayal of Wu's lovely , tragic daughter . Englishman Ralph Forbes , one of the most under-appreciated actors of his generation , gives a stalwart performance as her handsome Western lover . The tender romance of their scenes provides the film with its softer , more sentimental moments . Louise Dresser plays Forbes ' patrician mother , a woman somewhat isolated by her social status who is suddenly , violently , brought into confrontation with Wu's implacable vengeance . Holmes Herbert does well with his short role as her bigoted husband . Delicate Anna May Wong portrays Miss Adorée's faithful servant girl . The silent film is given excellent production values by MGM , with the beautiful sets being especially noteworthy .
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437,371 | 306,861 | 31,945 | 10 |
Blue Ribbon Winner
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A Walt Disney MICKEY MOUSE Cartoon . A proud Mickey takes Pluto to the SOCIETY DOG SHOW , where romance , ridicule & high adventure all await . . . This is an excellent little film , made during Disney's Golden Age - the animation , gags , and exciting climax are all first rate . Fifi only appeared in a mere handful of cartoons as Pluto's heartthrob ; she gives her most playful performance here . Walt Disney supplied Mickey with his squeaky voice . Walt Disney ( 1901-1966 ) was always intrigued by pictures & drawings . As a lad in Marceline , Missouri , he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper ; later , as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War , he drew comic figures on the sides of his vehicle . Back in Kansas City , along with artist Ub Iwerks , Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters . Always the innovator , his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe . Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923 , where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor . When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor , the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination , ensuring Disney's immortality . The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut , STEAMBOAT WILLIE ( 1928 ) , a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music . The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared , and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color , illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development , an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable . Mickey's feisty , naughty behavior had captured millions of fans , but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions : temperamental Donald Duck , intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto . All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films . Against a storm of naysayers , Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White , Pinocchio , Dumbo , Bambi & Peter Pan . Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse , or that childlike simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off .
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438,205 | 306,861 | 37,868 | 10 |
A Pup Tale With Coyote
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A Walt Disney PLUTO Cartoon . The tremendous battle between sheep dog Pluto & old Bent-Tail the varmint is part of THE LEGEND OF COYOTE ROCK . The animation & story are both fairly routine in this little film . This was the first of four cartoons to feature Bent-Tail as Pluto's desertland nemesis . Walt Disney ( 1901-1966 ) was always intrigued by drawings . As a lad in Marceline , Missouri , he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper ; later , as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War , he drew figures on the sides of his vehicle . Back in Kansas City , along with artist Ub Iwerks , Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters . Always the innovator , his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe . Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923 , where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor . When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor , the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination , ensuring Disney's immortality . The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut , STEAMBOAT WILLIE ( 1928 ) , a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music . The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared , and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color , illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development , an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable . Mickey's feisty , naughty behavior had captured millions of fans , but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions : temperamental Donald Duck , intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto . All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films . Against a blizzard of doomsayers , Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White , Pinocchio , Dumbo , Bambi & Peter Pan . Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse , or that simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off .
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437,187 | 306,861 | 24,238 | 10 |
Sinning Stanwyck Sizzles
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The hard-boiled dames locked up at San Quentin State Penitentiary are some of the LADIES THEY TALK ABOUT . Barbara Stanwyck stars in this very enjoyable pre-Code crime drama which takes a Hollywood look at women's lives behind bars . The acting is strictly of the ham variety , with a few histrionics , some heart-string tugging and a surprisingly large dollop of comedy thrown in . Some of the plot developments are absolutely ludicrous , but the viewer should never get bored . Stanwyck is terrific as the female member of a small-time gang of crooks . Prison gives her a chance to get really tough in order to deal with her situation , but the audience always knows that just a few moments with the right man will have her ( rather unconvincingly ) melting like butter . Whether brawling with a vicious inmate , assisting in an escape attempt , or going gunning for the guy she thinks betrayed her , Stanwyck is always right on the money for entertainment value . Three female costars give Stanwyck some great support in the prison scenes . Lillian Roth , as the lighthearted inmate who befriends Barbara , nearly steals the show with her perky personality ; she gives the movie one of its brightest moments when she croons ' If I Could Be With You ' to a fan photo of comic Joe E . Brown . Frowzy Maude Eburne is a hoot as a bawdy former madam who likes to reminisce about her old ' beauty parlor ' from the comfort of her rocking chair . Good-natured Ruth Donnelly is a nice addition , in a small role , as an Irish matron with a big white parrot . Preston Foster , as a reform revivalist who remembers Stanwyck from their childhood together in Benicia , California , gives an earnest performance , stalwart & steady . Lyle Talbot and Harold Huber appear as members of Stanwyck's gang . Elderly Robert McWade makes the most of his performance as Los Angeles ' wily District Attorney . Movie mavens will spot some fine character actors appearing unbilled : rotund DeWitt Jennings as a cagey police detective ; Helen Ware as the no-nonsense prison head matron ; Madame Sul-Te-Wan as Mustard , the sassy prisoner who's terrified of parrots ; Robert Warwick as San Quentin's stern warden . And that's dear Mary Gordon who appears for only a few scant seconds as a laughing white-haired inmate in the Visiting Room .
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437,057 | 306,861 | 18,183 | 10 |
The End Of An Era For America's Sweetheart
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A spunky stock girl in a large department store falls in love with the handsome son of the owner , who is working there incognito . Their ripening romance is threatened , however , by the antics of their two families . Wonderfully warm & witty , MY BEST GIRL was Mary Pickford's last silent film . In it she bids farewell to the flickering shadows which made her the world's most famous celebrity . Fortunately , as her silent swan song , it is a very good picture , with excellent production values and equal dollops of comedy & heartbreak . Mary's face , and especially her eyes , express her every mood . This was the face of the shrewd & powerful woman who in a significant measure had created the motion picture industry - and who so soon would be leaving it . Her co-star is young Charles ' Buddy ' Rogers , who would score a huge success this same year of 1927 as the star of the epic WINGS , winner of the first Oscar for Best Picture . Here he displays the charm for which he became famous . Although 12 years younger than Mary in real life , he was a good knight to her lady in distress , protecting & loving her through her final silent film . The rest of the cast is also very good : Lucian Littlefield as Pickford's tiny , ineffectual father ; Sunshine Hart as her massive , emotional mother , a woman whose greatest delight is going to strangers ' funerals ; and Carmelita Geraghty as her flapper sister . Hobart Bosworth gives dignity to the role of Rogers ' father . Comic Mack Swain appears as a harried judge . Movie mavens will recognize Nigel De Brulier in a poignant role as a crippled match seller . The film has been restored and given an evocative new score . It will delight fans of Pickford & the silent cinema for years to come . After MY BEST GIRL , Pickford made four talkies and even won an Academy Award , but she retired from the screen in 1933 , very wealthy , her legend intact , and involved herself in various good works . Her divorce from Douglas Fairbanks came in 1936 and she married ' Buddy ' Rogers in 1937 , becoming , in truth , his best girl . For the next 42 years he cared for her , as age and alcohol took their toll on Little Mary . Pickford became increasingly secluded in Pickfair , rarely leaving the upper floors of her fabled mansion in her last years . She did not want her fans to see the old woman she had become . Surprisingly , she did make a TV appearance for a few moments in 1976 when she accepted an Honorary Oscar . Then it was back into the shadows . America's Sweetheart died in May of 1979 at the age of 87 . Never a great movie star , but a very well-loved gentleman , ' Buddy ' Rogers involved himself with charities & various humanitarian causes . He died in 1999 , at the age of 94 .
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438,007 | 306,861 | 18,451 | 10 |
A Silent Classic
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Freed from the strictures of the Karlsburg royal palace to attend University , THE STUDENT PRINCE IN OLD HEIDELBERG experiences true love for the first time . This wonderful , exuberant , heartbreaking film - one of the last major movies of the Silent Era - is a scintillating example of the artistry of director Ernst Lubitsch . Filled with wry humor & aching pathos , Lubitsch tells a tale which is a persuasive paean to the power of the talkless film . MGM had great faith in this movie & gave it excellent production values , with crowds of extras and picture-perfect sets & costumes . Based in part on the Wilhelm Meyer-Förster novel & the operetta by Sigmund Romberg , the film revels in romanticism . Ramon Novarro , always eager to please his audience , brings great charm to the title role . Although about 10 years too old to be playing a typical university freshman , he nonetheless brings tremendous enthusiasm to the role . It was this essential boyishness which encouraged MGM to continue giving him roles which were too young for him ( in 1932's HUDDLE he would play a Yale freshman ) . The Studio also insisted on giving their Mexican star a wide range of ethnic parts , everything from Chinese to Arab . He played them all well , but none better than here in STUDENT PRINCE . It is a shame that Hollywood would not reciprocate by giving him topnotch assignments . Norma Shearer is radiant as Kathi , the vivacious & lovely barmaid who is beloved by the Prince . She gives a wonderful performance in what was considered a breakthrough role for her . She married MGM executive Irving Thalberg the same year STUDENT PRINCE was released and her stardom at the Studio was firmly established . She earned her celebrity through hard work and honest talent , however , not by noodling with the boss . Jean Hersholt , as the Prince's gentle tutor , puts his own stamp on the kind of sympathetic role with which he would become associated . Miles removed from his villainous portrayals in TESS OF THE STORM COUNTRY ( 1922 ) or GREED ( 1925 ) , Hersholt here is the very embodiment of benevolence . Gustav von Seyffertitz as the cold King , Edmund Connelly as the stern Prime Minister & Bobby Mack as an old rustic retainer all add very fine support . Movie mavens will recognize Lionel Belmore as a boisterous student & Charles K . Arthur as a drowsy inebriate , both unbilled . Carl Davis supplied one of his typically bravura scores for the home video reissue of the film . He conducts the English Chamber Orchestra . While Karlsburg is a fictitious Teutonic kingdom , Heidelberg is a very real city located in the German state of Baden-Württemberg . As ancient capital of the Rhenish Palatinate , its electoral counts - always a branch of the Wittelsbach royal family of Bavaria - played a significant role in the history of both the Holy Roman Empire and Central Europe . Although originally Roman Catholic , political vicissitudes brought about a change to Protestantism centuries ago . Heidelberg University was founded in 1386 by Count Rupert I & chartered the same year by Pope Urban VI . After a period of dissolution , it was revitalized in the 19th Century as a center of the sciences , law & philosophy . Town & gown are both overlooked by Heidelberg Castle , one of Europe's mightiest fortresses , where it sits on its hill 330 feet above the Neckar River . Its cellars contains the fabled Heidelberg Tun , a prodigious 18th Century wine cask capable of holding 49 , 000 gallons - surely a source of wonder to the Student Prince & his classmates . . .
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437,278 | 306,861 | 29,659 | 10 |
Smooth Skating With Sonja Henie
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The skating instructor at a luxury Swiss hotel finds herself on THIN ICE when she is linked romantically with a handsome foreign prince . Sonja Henie was Norway's ice queen when she won Olympic gold medals in 1928 , 1932 & 1936 . Quickly going professional , she began a celebrated movie career at 20th Century Fox in 1936 . Beautiful & talented , as well as being a natural in front of the cameras , she carved out her niche during Hollywood's Golden Age . Although Henie's ice routines may look antiquated by comparison to modern champions , there was nothing antique about her dazzling smile or sparkling personality . Some of today's snowflake princesses could still learn a great deal from her . The plot of THIN ICE is utterly ludicrous , but this was never meant to be anything but escapist fare . All that's required of Sonja is that she smile & skate , which she manages very nicely . Her routines based on themes inspired by Old Russia & ' The Tales of the Vienna Woods ' are particularly pleasing . Tyrone Power , 20th Century Fox's young prince , plays Sonja's love interest . He exhibits much of the boyish charm which was about to make him a major celebrity . Supporting the two stars is a flurry of wonderful character actors : stiff-upper-lipped Arthur Treacher , conniving Raymond Walburn , blustery Alan Hale , frantic Melville Cooper , Sig Rumann , George Givot & Greta Meyer . Slapstick comedienne Joan Davis surfaces long enough to sing a couple of wacky songs , most notably ' I'm Olga From The Volga . ' Ultimately , though , this is Sonja's show . She glides into the viewer's heart , while balancing on a thin edge of silver over frozen water .
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437,038 | 306,861 | 29,658 | 10 |
Masterly Crime Drama
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A hideous crime rocks a Deep South community and those who exploited it know THEY WON'T FORGET the part they played in the shame & violence that ensued . Of all the hard-hitting dramas produced by Warner Brothers Studio in the 1930's , this was one of the most powerful . Absolutely no holds are barred in showing the aftermath of the murder of a pretty college girl and how events took on a life of their own - crushing the innocent lives who got in the way of the town's thirst for revenge . The film starts whimsically with six ancient Confederate veterans - among them Harry Davenport , Harry Beresford & Edward McWade - on a park bench , reminiscing upon the dim past & wondering if their contributions will be remembered . Poignantly , evil is about to reemerge and the old men will soon disappear , the dead ashes of the past engulfed by the passionate flames of the present . An urgent plea against sectarian hatred & mindless violence , the film sweeps the viewer along to its ultimate shattering climax . Claude Rains gives a knock-out performance as the local politician who sees the murder as a chance to sweep him into the State Senate . Using his considerable vocal talent - even with his somewhat bizarre idea of a Southern accent - Rains steamrollers over nearly everyone else in the cast , deftly showing his character's utter fixation on prosecuting the case . Kudos should also be extended to Edward Norris as the Northern teacher accused of the murder ; Lana Turner as the victim ; Elisha Cook Jr . as her strangely nervous boyfriend ; and especially Clinton Rosemond as the terrified black janitor who discovers the crime . Although Warners is at pains at the outset to deny any connection the story might have with an actual occurrence , the film is roughly based on the notorious 1913 murder of Atlanta factory worker Mary Phagan .
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437,474 | 306,861 | 29,652 | 10 |
Hugh Herbert Sparks Comedy / Drama
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An eccentric gentleman helps a pair of young lovers get started in life . The gentle , whimsical humor of Hugh Herbert highlights THAT MAN'S HERE AGAIN , a little tale of romantic difficulties . Always enjoyable to watch , particularly in a big film with seasoned costars with which to interact , here Herbert is not given quite enough to satisfy his fans . Not until the closing sequence is his zany quirkiness given fuller rein and he turns what has been essentially a drama into light comedy . It's worth the wait . Tom Brown & Mary Maguire play the elevator operator and maid whose happiness Herbert determines to ensure . Brown portrayed the stalwart juvenile lead in many movies during the 1930's and he always turned in a good performance . Miss Maguire , with her charming Australian accent , is radiant ; a real joy to watch . It is a shame major Hollywood stardom eluded her . The title obviously refers to Herbert , but otherwise is meaningless . Interestingly , the mystery surrounding Miss Maguire's past is never explained - - a surprising loose end considering the requirements of the Production Code .
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438,109 | 306,861 | 40,181 | 10 |
Pluto & Dem Dry Bones
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A Walt Disney PLUTO Cartoon . Pluto discovers that the BONE BANDIT who's been stealing his snacks is a feisty garden gopher . This is another in a lengthy series of rather routine - but enjoyable - cartoons in which Pluto is confronted by a critter much smaller than himself , the difference here being that the gopher is quite bellicose and very willing to get tough with the Pup . Walt Disney ( 1901-1966 ) was always intrigued by drawings . As a lad in Marceline , Missouri , he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper ; later , as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War , he drew figures on the sides of his vehicle . Back in Kansas City , along with artist Ub Iwerks , Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters . Always the innovator , his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe . Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923 , where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor . When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor , the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination , ensuring Disney's immortality . The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut , STEAMBOAT WILLIE ( 1928 ) , a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music . The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared , and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color , illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development , an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable . Mickey's feisty , naughty behavior had captured millions of fans , but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions : temperamental Donald Duck , intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto . All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films . Against a blizzard of doomsayers , Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White , Pinocchio , Dumbo , Bambi & Peter Pan . Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse , or that simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off .
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437,351 | 306,861 | 20,919 | 10 |
William Haines & Marie Dressler Hilarious in Early Talkie Comedy
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1930 . Silents were dead , talkies were king & it was William Haines golden Hollywood year . His pictures - he starred in 3 - made enough money at the box-office to make him the top male movie star of that year . THE GIRL SAID NO is one of those films . It is very much a typical Haines comedy , with lots of silliness based on his boyish character ( although he was 30 , he plays a college kid ) . His wealthy father dies , leaving his family penniless and Haines in need of finding money . The plot revolves around his attempts to make good in a new job , where he tries to impress Leila Hyams , the pretty secretary he meets there . Also in the cast are Francis X . Bushman , Jr . as Haines ' rival ; Clara Blandick ( Auntie Em in THE WIZARD OF OZ 9 years later ) ; and the ubiquitous Polly Moran . The inimitable & irrepressible Marie Dressler appears in only one scene , but it's a dandy . She plays a very rich potential client who mistakes Haines for her new doctor , which generates a hilarious slapstick sequence . With this one 10-minute segment , talkie comedy was off to a very good start .
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436,990 | 306,861 | 22,827 | 10 |
Beware The Full Moon & What It Brings !
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A creepy laboratory where eccentric doctors engage in bizarre experiments . An intrepid reporter & a beautiful young woman involving themselves in terrible danger . And a fiendish strangler who only strikes during the full moon . . . DOCTOR X does have an absurd plot , but it is undeniably entertaining to watch . Much of the credit for this must go to the look of the film . Art Director Anton Grot designed some very spooky interior sets . The Max Factor make-up is striking . And both elements are enhanced because this was one of the first movies to be shot in two-strip Technicolor . Lee Tracy , one of the most enjoyable actors of the early 1930's , plays another in his long line of fast-talking wise-crackers - this time a newspaperman out to get a big story . Fay Wray is lovely as always & gets to use her famous scream ( a year before KING KONG ) . Lionel Atwill hams it up a bit as the instigator of many of the more unusual elements in the plot .
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438,132 | 306,861 | 38,006 | 10 |
Tracking The Culprit
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A Walt Disney PLUTO Cartoon . Rookie police dog Pluto is on the trail of poor Ronnie , THE PURLOINED PUP , dognapped by the evil Butch . This funny little film features plenty of action as Pluto & Butch chase each other throughout a deserted mansion and an industrial pipe yard . This was only one of a tiny handful of cartoons in which Ronnie appeared . Walt Disney ( 1901-1966 ) was always intrigued by pictures & drawings . As a lad in Marceline , Missouri , he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper ; later , as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War , he drew comic figures on the sides of his vehicle . Back in Kansas City , along with artist Ub Iwerks , Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters . Always the innovator , his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe . Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923 , where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor . When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor , the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination , ensuring Disney's immortality . The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut , STEAMBOAT WILLIE ( 1928 ) , a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music . The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared , and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color , illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development , an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable . Mickey's feisty , naughty behavior had captured millions of fans , but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions : temperamental Donald Duck , intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto . All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films . Against a storm of naysayers , Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White , Pinocchio , Dumbo , Bambi & Peter Pan . Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse , or that childlike simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off .
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437,077 | 306,861 | 25,340 | 10 |
Miss Blondell & Miss Farrell Are At It Again
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Two smart dames must take it on the lam when a jealous hoodlum goes out of control . KANSAS CITY PRINCESS was the sort of ephemeral comic frippery which Warner Brothers Studio produced almost effortlessly during the 1930's . Well made & highly enjoyable , Depression audiences couldn't seem to get enough of these popular , funny photo dramas . Joan Blondell & Glenda Farrell are perfectly cast as the sassy , fast-talking females who use their wiles to get them all the way to Paris . Unlike their other films , the gals have an even parity here , equally sharing the wisecracks and what little romantics the plot tosses their way . Robert Armstrong does very well as the somewhat dense petty gangster who precipitates the girls ' flight . Hugh Herbert , wacky & whimsical as ever , appears as a hapless millionaire who befriends Blondell & Farrell , making use of them in a hilariously inept plan to catch his faithless wife . Smaller roles are very nicely filled by T . Roy Barnes & Hobart Cavanaugh as two free spirited aldermen who happily assist the girls when they need it most ; and Ivan Lebedeff as the wily Russian doctor who is cuckolding Herbert . Movie mavens will recognize Arthur Houseman as a inebriate getting a manicure from Blondell ; and Lillian Harmer as the formidable Girls of America leader , both unbilled . While never stars of the first rank , Joan Blondell ( 1906-1979 ) & Glenda Farrell ( 1904-1971 ) enlivened scores of films at Warner Bros . throughout the 1930's , especially the eight in which they appeared together . Whether playing gold diggers or working girls , reporters or secretaries , these blonde & brassy ladies were very nearly always a match for whatever leading man was lucky enough to share equal billing alongside them . With a wisecrack or a glance , their characters showed they were ready to take on the world - and any man in it . Never as wickedly brazen as Paramount's Mae West , you always had the feeling that , tough as they were , Blondell & Farrell used their toughness to defend vulnerable hearts ready to break over the right guy . While many performances from seven decades ago can look campy or contrived today , these two lovely ladies are still spirited & sassy .
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437,796 | 306,861 | 22,834 | 10 |
A Fine John Gilbert Talkie
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Karl , the new chauffeur , is dissatisfied with his situation as a DOWNSTAIRS servant in the Baron's Austrian castle . Completely immoral , he uses sexual blackmail to get what he wants - which is mostly money & power . But when he forces his attentions on Anna the maid , the butler's bride , he sets the stage for a confrontation even he can't handle . According to cinematic legend , all the talkie MGM films starring John Gilbert were dreadful - the result of a bitter hatred between Gilbert ( the highest paid star in Hollywood , with a $1 . 5 million contract ) & studio boss Louis B . Mayer . A determination on Gilbert's part to fulfill the contract , and a campaign instituted by Mayer to destroy Gilbert's career - including spreading the rumor that Gilbert's voice was ' high & feminine ' , culminated in several unwatchable movies . Not entirely true . The Studio had a huge financial investment in Jack Gilbert and was not going to completely cut its own throat by showcasing him in nothing but dreck . Of the 8 talkies in which he appeared as solo star ( 1929 - HIS GLORIOUS NIGHT ; 1930 - REDEMPTION ; WAY FOR A SAILOR ; 1931 - GENTLEMAN'S FATE ; THE PHANTOM OF PARIS ; WEST OF BROADWAY ; 1932 - DOWNSTAIRS ; 1933 - FAST WORKERS ) most were certainly rather ghastly . DOWNSTAIRS , however , was quite decent , and , indeed , fully representative of the material the studio was producing in 1932 . It is even based on Gilbert's own original story , and features good atmosphere & fine camerawork . Gilbert is perfectly cast as the anti-hero of this pre-Production Code film . His smarmy charm is just right in a role which gives him very little sympathy from the audience . Paul Lukas , the fine Hungarian actor , is the real hero as Albert the butler . He effectively underplays his scenes & garners much of the attention from Gilbert . The rest of the cast offers excellent support : Virginia Bruce as Lukas ' innocent wife ; Reginald Owen as the oafish Baron ; Olga Baclanova as the stunning Baroness , one of Gilbert's victims ; Bodil Rosing , most effective as the plump , aging cook infatuated with Gilbert . Hedda Hopper has a tiny role as a Countess who has run into Gilbert before , to her cost . Movie mavens will recognize Karen Morley , uncredited at the very end , as Gilbert's new employer . Finally , about The Voice . There was nothing at all strange or unnaturally high about Gilbert's speaking voice . As a matter of fact , it was of medium range and rather cultured & refined . Which was the crux of the problem , of course . While it is possible that no voice could have ever matched the perfect one viewers heard in their minds while watching his strong , virile silent roles , the reality was very different from what they wanted to hear ( imagine Robert Montgomery's voice coming out of Clark Gable's mouth . ) Gilbert was doomed from his first scene in his debut talkie ; his war with Mayer only intensified the agony . He would die in 1936 , forgotten by most of his former fans , at the age of only 36 .
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437,989 | 306,861 | 22,844 | 10 |
Hunting Up Trouble
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A Walt Disney MICKEY MOUSE Cartoon . Mickey finds THE DUCK HUNT he's taken Pluto on will become a most surprising experience . With a sparse plot and action driven almost completely by the soundtrack , this is an amusing black & white cartoon . Once again , the Disney animators indulge themselves with numerous underwear / posterior gags . Walt Disney supplies Mickey's voice . Walt Disney ( 1901-1966 ) was always intrigued by drawings . As a lad in Marceline , Missouri , he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper ; later , as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War , he drew figures on the sides of his vehicle . Back in Kansas City , along with artist Ub Iwerks , Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters . Always the innovator , his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe . Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923 , where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor . When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor , the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination , ensuring Disney's immortality . The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut , STEAMBOAT WILLIE ( 1928 ) , a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music . The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared , and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color , illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development , an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable . Mickey's feisty , naughty behavior had captured millions of fans , but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions : temperamental Donald Duck , intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto . All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films . Against a blizzard of doomsayers , Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White , Pinocchio , Bambi , Peter Pan and Mr . Toad . Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse , or that simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off .
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437,896 | 306,861 | 31,580 | 10 |
One More Triumph For Our Shirley
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A small child , affectionately known as THE LITTLE PRINCESS , must endure great hardship after her father is killed in the Boer War . Shirley Temple had her last great box-office triumph in this splendid Technicolor adaptation of the Frances Hodgson Burnett childhood classic . No longer a tiny tot - she turned eleven the year THE LITTLE PRINCESS was released - but still a little trooper , Shirley exhibits once again the tremendous charm & talent which made her Hollywood's top box office draw . With wrinkled brow & tremulous lip or bouncing curls & joyous smile , she adeptly displays just the right mood or mannerism to keep the focus of the audience's attention firmly grasped in her chubby fists . The supporting players ' roster is abundantly well cast : stalwart Ian Hunter appears as Shirley's soldier father - this very fine actor wisely uses his acting skills to keep from being completely upstaged by the mighty moppet ; handsome Richard Greene & lovely Anita Louise play the riding master & teacher who befriend Shirley - their roles aren't terribly significant , but they fill them quite well . Mary Nash is once again cast as Shirley's tormentor , this time playing the evil-spirited headmistress of an exclusive girls ' seminary . This accomplished actress did not appear in many films , but she could generally be counted on to provide a vivid performance - notice the relish with which she essays her small part in the medieval fantasy sequence ( ' I know my rights , I know the law and what I say I saw , I saw ! ' ) . Long-legged , adenoidal Arthur Treacher plays her henpecked brother ; he is a delight during his two romps with Shirley to the music hall ditty ? Knocked ? Em In The Old Kent Road . ' Cesar Romero quietly portrays an Indian servant in a small , but important , role ; Miles Mander & E . E . Clive both appear as hardhearted , crusty old gentlemen - only one is regenerated by film's end . Sweet Beryl Mercer makes the most of her few moments as a stately , kindhearted Queen Victoria - while Eily Malyon is a true fright as the school's slatternly cook . Marcia Mae Jones participates in one of the film's most memorable moments , when , as a particularly vile teenager , she receives a face full of fireplace ashes , courtesy of sweet Shirley . Special attention should be given to ten-year-old South African Sybil Jason , who plays the wistful waifish charmaid who idolizes Shirley . In her American film debut , Warner's LITTLE BIG SHOT ( 1935 ) , she proved wonderfully winsome & winning , but the storm of attention surrounding Miss Temple ( exactly 19 months older than Miss Jason ) tends , at this remove , to swamp the boats of the other female child stars of the period . However , delightful Sybil deserves to be remembered & appreciated for her own accomplishments . The Stolen Kiss , a lavish fantasy dream sequence , provides a welcome few minutes change of pace for Temple , Nash , Louise , Greene , Treacher & Romero .
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437,693 | 306,861 | 20,902 | 10 |
Buster Keaton's Talkie Debut
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A FREE AND EASY , hapless young man escorts Miss Gopher City , Kansas & her unspeakable mother out west to Hollywood , where they hope to make her a big time movie star . Fate , however , in the shape of a handsome movie actor , intervenes . . . With the end of the Silent Era , and Keaton no longer in control of his own career , FREE AND EASY was to be his first talking picture . While certainly not a classic , it has a certain small charm of its own and Keaton does a valiant job to provide both laughs & pathos . It is really not fair to compare Keaton's sound films with his silent masterpieces . They were two very different art forms . It is great fun to watch Buster stumble about the MGM lot , leaving chaos in his wake wherever he goes . Although there are awkward moments of staging , due largely to the restrictions of the microphone , Keaton's genius still shines through . He is given wonderful support from mammoth vaudeville veteran Trixie Friganza , as the ghastly stage mother . With her booming voice & facile face , she is able to steal scenes even from Keaton . They are hilarious together in their ' Oh King ! Oh Queen ! ' musical number . Lovely Anita Page , as Miss Gopher City , gets small chance to do anything here besides look lovely . But Robert Montgomery , as the movie actor , gets to show-off some of the charm that would very soon make him a major star . Verisimilitude is added to Keaton's chaotic adventures in Hollywood by peppering the scenes with real celebrities from the era appearing as themselves . Movie mavens should have fun spotting them : directors Cecil B . DeMille , Fred Niblo & Lionel Barrymore , as well as Jackie Coogan , Karl Dane , Dorothy Sebastian , John Miljan , Gwen Lee and 1930's top box office male , William Haines . That's Edward Brophy as the Stage Manager .
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436,995 | 306,861 | 25,335 | 10 |
Will Rogers ' Dixie Drama
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Will Rogers stars in this backward glance at life in a small town of the deep South at the end of the 19th century , with its pleasures & joys , bigotries & suspicions . Will is the local judge & champion of the social pariahs , not hesitant to stick his neck out to make a point or puncture a pompous ego . His unique brand of homespun humor is given ample scope to tickle our funny bone . This is one of three films Will made with director John Ford , a remarkable collaboration . Others in the cast include Henry B . Walthal , Hattie McDaniel , Tom Brown , Anita Louise , Stepin Fetchit , Berton Churchill , Charley Grapewin & Rochelle Hudson . There is some racial stereotyping in the film , not at all unusual for 1934 Hollywood .
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437,886 | 306,861 | 243,928 | 10 |
Through The Land Of The Bluegrass
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An MGM TRAVELTALK Short Subject . In this film we are treated to a few GLIMPSES OF KENTUCKY . Starting at the Cumberland River , we visit reconstructed Fort Harris , a reminder of the days of the Indian Wars . We are then taken to see the Henry Clay Monument and the grave of Daniel Boone . We also view the log cabin which was the inspiration for Stephen Foster's ' My Old Kentucky Home ' - as well as the gracious mansion which hosted the composer . Finally , during a visit to the Bluegrass Country , we are shown beautiful examples of Kentucky horseflesh , culminating with an appearance by Man O ' War , the greatest racehorse of them all . This is one of a large series of succinct travelogues turned out by MGM , beginning in the 1930's . They featured Technicolor views of beautiful & unusual sights around the globe , as well as vivid , concise commentary . These films were produced & narrated by James A . FitzPatrick .
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438,106 | 306,861 | 40,163 | 10 |
Soap & Suds
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A Walt Disney GOOFY Cartoon . Dolores the elephant tries every means possible to get away from THE BIG WASH which circus handler Goofy has promised her . This enjoyable little film was the second of three in which the hefty Dolores appeared for Disney . Although eager to please , the pulchritudinous pachyderm would have only a very short movie career . Walt Disney ( 1901-1966 ) was always intrigued by drawings . As a lad in Marceline , Missouri , he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper ; later , as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War , he drew figures on the sides of his vehicle . Back in Kansas City , along with artist Ub Iwerks , Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters . Always the innovator , his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe . Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923 , where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor . When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor , the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination , ensuring Disney's immortality . The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut , STEAMBOAT WILLIE ( 1928 ) , a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music . The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared , and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color , illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development , an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable . Mickey's feisty , naughty behavior had captured millions of fans , but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions : temperamental Donald Duck , intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto . All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films . Against a blizzard of doomsayers , Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White , Pinocchio , Dumbo , Bambi & Peter Pan . Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse , or that simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off .
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437,820 | 306,861 | 38,008 | 10 |
Sinister Voyage
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Holmes & Watson endure a PURSUIT TO ALGIERS whilst assisting a young king to evade assassins . Basil Rathbone & Nigel Bruce appeared as Sherlock Holmes & Dr . Watson on screen for the twelfth time in this enjoyable fast moving film . Not the best of the series by any means , it still offers the two wonderful actors adding nuances to the classic characters : Holmes seems a tad more human and enjoys a kiss from a pretty female , while Watson raises his voice to sing Loch Lomand . The plot , which has the intrepid duo escort a college boy monarch ( Leslie Vincent ) on a dangerous cruise from Britain to North Africa , is a bit silly , but it does serve to introduce some intriguing characters , including a frightened singer ( Marjorie Riordan ) , a strident fresh air fanatic ( Rosalind Ivan ) , a nervous little fellow with a big knife ( Martin Kosleck ) , and a strangely obliging steward ( Morton Lowry ) . This film followed THE WOMAN IN GREEN ( 1945 ) and preceded TERROR BY NIGHT ( 1946 ) .
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438,230 | 306,861 | 14,142 | 10 |
Medieval Menace
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Deaf and half-blind , THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME , feared & rejected by the people of Paris , becomes the unlikely protector of a poor gypsy girl . Lon Chaney , master of disguise , solidified his celebrity with his portrayal of Quasimodo , the deformed bell-ringer , who is forever cut off from any semblance of a normal life . Although his makeup is certainly horrific , Chaney's role is not really monstrous : he is a lonely human desperately misused by Fate . Chaney's face speaks for him , communicating the tormenting anguish of his soul . While not quite as poignant as Charles Laughton's interpretation 16 years later , Chaney still makes of the role a Silent hallmark which has stood the test of time . There are fairly lengthy segments in which Chaney does not appear and plot elements not explored in the longer Laughton version . Here the story dwells on the gypsy dancer Esmeralda , played by Patsy Ruth Miller , and her burgeoning romance with the brave Phoebus , Captain of the Guard , played by Norman Kerry . Both performers do very well with their ' normal ' roles - - her innocence contrasting well with his initial lust - - even though the viewer is doubtless anxious for the return of the Hunchback . A handful of excellent character actors from the era add their assistance : gaunt Nigel de Brulier as the saintly Archdeacon , defender of the Hunchback ; beefy Ernest Torrence as Clopin , King of Thieves , ruling over the Court of Miracles ; prissy Raymond Hatton as the effete poet Gringoire ; and feeble Tully Marshall as a suspicious Louis XI . Special mention must be made of Universal's splendid attention to detail which they lavished on the film . Most especially commendable is the representation of Notre Dame's West Facade , the only real angle from which the Cathedral's exterior is depicted . To see Chaney clamber down , swinging from pinnacle to gargoyle to statue ; or , to watch Quasimodo defend Esmeralda from the crowd of beggars he thinks has come to kill her , dropping stones , beams and molten metal on their heads below from the Cathedral's ramparts , is to enjoy two of Silent Cinema's great visual moments .
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438,108 | 306,861 | 37,958 | 10 |
A Duck Tale With Tree Nibblers
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A Walt Disney DONALD DUCK Cartoon . The protection of OLD SEQUOIA , a huge & venerable tree , becomes the primary concern of Forest Ranger Duck . In this humorous little film Donald is confronted by a pair of rapacious beavers , whose completely unintelligible dialogue makes them adequate temporary replacements for Chip ' n ' Dale . Clarence " Ducky " Nash supplies Donald's own unique voice . Walt Disney ( 1901-1966 ) was always intrigued by drawings . As a lad in Marceline , Missouri , he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper ; later , as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War , he drew figures on the sides of his vehicle . Back in Kansas City , along with artist Ub Iwerks , Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters . Always the innovator , his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe . Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923 , where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor . When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor , the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination , ensuring Disney's immortality . The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut , STEAMBOAT WILLIE ( 1928 ) , a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music . The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared , and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color , illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development , an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable . Mickey's feisty , naughty behavior had captured millions of fans , but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions : temperamental Donald Duck , intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto . All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films . Against a blizzard of doomsayers , Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White , Pinocchio , Dumbo , Bambi & Peter Pan . Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse , or that simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off .
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438,227 | 306,861 | 20,891 | 10 |
From Another Era
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A rich young man woos THE FLORODORA GIRL of his dreams - - but is he sincere ? For nearly 20 years , no other actress in America was the recipient of so much effort to make her a big movie star than Marion Davies . As mistress of the powerful media mogul , William Randolph Hearst , Davies appeared in one lavish film production after another . Hearst's seemingly bottomless pockets spared no expense and Marion lived like a queen both on screen and off . ( Their huge California mansion , now called Hearst Castle , crowned a coastal estate of unstinted extravagance , while the saltwater sequence for FLORODORA GIRL was filmed in the waters in front of the enormous Santa Monica beach house Hearst built for her . ) Never one to put on airs , Davies won the hearts of her fans and the other Hollywood stars with her warm generosity and good spirits . On the screen Hearst preferred seeing her in heavy historical romances , but she much more enjoyed light comedy fare which better displayed her talents . Which is exactly what she does in FLORODORA GIRL , getting to sing & dance a little , playing a member of the famed sextet , looking for love with the right boy but not willing to compromise her morals in the search . Davies had been a Ziegfeld Follies Girl before being carried off by Hearst ; the film poses a few questions about love and success which must have given Marion something to ponder . Lawrence Gray , an important MGM musical comedy star at the beginning of the Sound Era , does well in his role as the vivacious society boy who learns a few things about maturity while wooing Davies . He had partnered with Marion before , in Silent & Sound pictures , and they have a good on-screen chemistry . The supporting cast provide a few laughs : Walter Catlett , Louis John Bartels & Claud Allister as well-heeled stage door Johnnies ; Ilka Chase & Vivian Oakland as aging , tough-as-nails Florodora Girls ; Jed Prouty as Marion's alcoholic father ; and George Chandler as her big-toothed cigar store boyfriend . That's Anita Louise who shows up very briefly as one of Gray's younger sisters . MGM gave the film a nice feeling of the 1890's with its horseless carriages , puffed sleeve fashions and frequent songs . The early Technicolor with which the film closes is most pleasing to the eye .
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438,130 | 306,861 | 11,922 | 10 |
Puttin ' On The Ritz
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A Hal Roach HAROLD LLOYD 3-Reeler . AMONG THOSE PRESENT at a lavish country house weekend is a penniless young hat check attendant impersonating a British aristocrat . Harold has some very funny moments in this highly enjoyable film . Whether regaling the snobs with imaginary fox hunting exploits , attempting to ride the killer horse Dynamite , or madly scrambling about the estate in search of his missing pants , Harold is never anything less than hilarious . Aggie Herring & James Kelly are lots of fun as a grand society dame and her down-to-earth Irish husband . Lovely Mildred Davis plays their daughter , a sweet Girl unimpressed by her parents ' wealth . Robert Israel has composed an excellent film score which perfectly complements Harold's antics on the screen .
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437,736 | 306,861 | 25,290 | 10 |
Miss Blondell & Miss Farrell Request The Pleasure Of Your Company
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A harried switchboard operator & a ditzy medium get involved with a couple of brash telephone repairmen & a dangerous gang of thieves . . . I'VE GOT YOUR NUMBER was the sort of ephemeral comic frippery which the Hollywood studios produced almost without effort during the 1930's . Well made & highly enjoyable , Depression audiences couldn't seem to get enough of these popular , funny photo dramas . Joan Blondell & Glenda Farrell are perfectly cast as the fast - talking female leads . Although Joan gets both top billing and the romantic scenes , - and they share no screen time together in this early pairing - both gals are as talented & watchable as they are gorgeous . Pat O'Brien , obnoxiously cocky & self assured , appears as Blondell's persistent suitor . Whether tapping wires or tackling crooks , he is equally jaunty . Behind him comes a small parade of character actors - Allen Jenkins , Eugene Pallette , Henry O'Neill , Hobart Cavanaugh , Louise Beavers - all equally adept at delighting an audience . Much of the dialogue & plot development indicates this film made it just under the wire before the imposition of the Production Code . While never stars of the first rank , Joan Blondell ( 1906-1979 ) & Glenda Farrell ( 1904-1971 ) enlivened scores of films at Warner Bros . throughout the 1930's , especially the eight in which they appeared together . Whether playing gold diggers or working girls , reporters or secretaries , these blonde & brassy ladies were very nearly always a match for whatever leading man was lucky enough to share equal billing alongside them . With a wisecrack or a glance , their characters showed they were ready to take on the world - and any man in it . Never as wickedly brazen as Paramount's Mae West , you always had the feeling that , tough as they were , Blondell & Farrell used their toughness to defend vulnerable hearts ready to break over the right guy . While many performances from seven decades ago can look campy or contrived today , these two lovely ladies are still spirited & sassy .
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437,255 | 306,861 | 20,888 | 10 |
Quick Glimpse At Depression Era Domestic Life
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A VITAPHONE VARIETIES Short Subject . Living only FIVE MINUTES FROM THE STATION , a lowly clerk takes the Big Boss home for dinner . His determined wife sees this as an opportunity to campaign for her husband's promotion . Realistic & sensible , this little 3-character drama deals forthrightly with some of the pressures & dreams of an average young married couple in the early months of the Great Depression . Celebrated actress Sylvia Sidney makes one of her first screen appearances . Lynne Overman plays her husband ; and Berton Churchill as the boss presents the sort of character he would portray many times in the next ten years .
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437,152 | 306,861 | 20,885 | 10 |
Mickey Enters The Hot Spot
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A Walt Disney MICKEY MOUSE Cartoon . Chief Mickey & Horace Horsecollar are two of THE FIRE FIGHTERS who respond to save Miss Minnie from a blazing conflagration . A fun , rather frantic , little black & white film . Music mavens will recognize " There'll Be A Hot Time In The Old Town Tonight " as the engine speeds to the fire . Walt Disney supplies Mickey's voice ; look fast to spot Clarabelle Cow among the bystanders . The Disney artists deliver the requisite number of udder & bloomer gags . Walt Disney ( 1901-1966 ) was always intrigued by drawings . As a lad in Marceline , Missouri , he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper ; later , as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War , he drew figures on the sides of his vehicle . Back in Kansas City , along with artist Ub Iwerks , Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters . Always the innovator , his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe . Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923 , where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor . When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor , the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination , ensuring Disney's immortality . The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut , STEAMBOAT WILLIE ( 1928 ) , a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music . The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared , and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color , illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development , an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable . Mickey's feisty , naughty behavior had captured millions of fans , but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions : temperamental Donald Duck , intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto . All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films . Against a blizzard of doomsayers , Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White , Pinocchio , Bambi , Peter Pan and Mr . Toad . Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse , or that simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off .
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437,227 | 306,861 | 29,682 | 10 |
Ghostly Encounters - - Act One
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Cosmo TOPPER has his stuffy , henpecked life turned upside down by the interference of two recently deceased friends . The folks at Hal Roach Studios fashioned this popular supernatural comedy . Intended to be at the opposite extreme from the typical ghost thriller , there are no sudden chills or eerie ectoplasms here - - just lots of good humor and a few ( well done ) special effects . Owlish Roland Young plays the bemused recipient of his dead friends ' good deeds . No matter how drastically the intentions backfire , leading to arrest & scandal , Young remains a decent chap bent on regaining some equanimity in his life . ( What is most impressive about his performance are his hilarious physical contortions when under the invisible influence of the ghosts . ) Dear Billie Burke is wonderful , as usual , as Young's slightly bewildered wife , who has relinquished the role of lover to be mother hen to her husband - - hoping her control over him assures their acceptance by high society . As the Kerbys - - living and dead - - Constance Bennett & Cary Grant have plenty of star power & charm to spare and their spirits are certainly blithe , but a frank examination of their characters reveals some flaws . There is nothing funny about alcoholism or reckless driving , both of which contribute to their demise , and they are fortunate they kill only their own silly selves and not anyone else . That being said , they certainly do make a pair of great-looking spooks . The rest of the cast adds to the fun : Alan Mowbray once again plays a butler with an attitude ; young Arthur Lake appears as a hapless hotel employee ; elegant Hedda Hopper does well with her single scene as an unstuffy society doyenne ; J . Farrell MacDonald plays a no-nonsense cop ; and corpulent Eugene Pallette has fun with his role as a suspicious hotel detective . Composer Hoagy Carmichael appears as himself and Ward Bond plays a taxi driver , both uncredited . This was the first of a 3-film series and was followed by TOPPER TAKES A TRIP ( 1939 ) and TOPPER RETURNS ( 1941 ) .
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437,313 | 306,861 | 36,348 | 10 |
Into The Shadows
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SHERLOCK HOLMES FACES DEATH while stalking an egomaniacal murderer in an ancient English manor house . Basil Rathbone & Nigel Bruce return again as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's beloved creations , Sherlock Holmes and Dr . Watson . This time they become involved in an Old Dark House murder mystery , investigating crimes at the decrepit stately home-turned-convalescent hospital where Watson is looking after four officer patients . The film is fun , including elements such as a hidden crypt , a bloodthirsty raven and an antique ritual of the beleaguered Musgrave family intertwined with an unusual chess game . There is perhaps a bit too much plot - - the old clock tower that strikes 13 is never explained - - but this never gets in the way of enjoying the picture . To say that Rathbone & Bruce remain perfect in their roles is but to state the obvious ; by this point in the series the old pros were working together like the gears in an antique clock . They are given fine support by elderly Halliwell Hobbes as the manor's eccentric butler and Minna Phillips in the role of the Musgrave's sinister housekeeper . Dennis Hoey is back as the dogged , but inept , Lestrade of Scotland Yard . Milburn Stone has a minor part as an American captain suspected of being the killer . Other small roles handled well are essayed by Frederick Worlock , Gavin Muir & Hillary Brooke as the unfortunate Musgraves ; Gerald Hamer , Vernon Downing & Olaf Hytten as the invalided officers ; and Arthur Margetson as Watson's hospital assistant . Movie mavens will recognize Norma Varden as the barmaid at The Rat and Raven ; seaman Peter Lawford as one of her clientele ; and dear Mary Gordon making her brief obligatory appearance as Mrs . Hudson , all uncredited . Based very loosely on Conan Doyle's short story The Musgrave Ritual , the film follows SHERLOCK HOLMES IN WASHINGTON ( 1943 ) and precedes SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE SPIDER WOMAN ( 1944 ) .
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437,730 | 306,861 | 18,471 | 10 |
Lon Chaney - Semper Fidelis
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A tough-as-shoe-leather sergeant patiently molds a rambunctious , rowdy youth into a sturdy Marine . Available again after decades of obscurity , TELL IT TO THE MARINES is a wonderful , rousing paean to America's famous fighting force . Produced with the full cooperation of the Corps , it surges with heartfelt emotion & genuine excitement . It is the kind of film which should be shown to skeptics who doubt the power of silent cinema to satisfy a modern audience . Lon Chaney is beyond praise as the hard-boiled Sergeant O'Hara , who loves the Corps and all that is stands for , but still has a tender heart and a good soul hidden beneath his rough exterior . This was Chaney's favorite role and he plays it without any of the extravagant make-up for which he was so famous . A superb character actor , Chaney became the parts he played . Completely believable , he fascinates the viewer into forgetting that this is an actor they are watching . His early death robbed him from rightfully enjoying the accolades & acclaim which other actors , like Chaplin , reaped in old age . TELL IT TO THE MARINES provided the celebrity-making role for young William Haines and in it he practically revels in the silly billy antics that would dominate the rest of his movie career . In 1930 , only 4 years after the release of this film , Chaney would be dead at the age of 47 and Haines would be the industry's top box office male . Things move fast in Hollywood . Eleanor Boardman is perfect as the crisp Navy nurse who harbors tender feelings for both men . Carmel Myers is the exotic , albeit flea ridden , native girl who tempts Haines . Warner Oland has a small , flashy role as a despicable Chinese bandit . Movie mavens will recognize Willie Fung unbilled as a servant translating for Oland . And what was the Marines ' reaction to this film ? They loved it , and especially Chaney's performance in it and he became the first actor to be awarded an honorary membership in the Corps . The film's shipboard sequences were filmed on the mighty USS California , later to be sunk in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor . Where was Lon Chaney when they needed him ? TELL IT TO THE MARINES has been restored to pristine condition & given a rousing new score by Robert Israel .
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437,759 | 306,861 | 36,349 | 10 |
Holmes ' American Adventure
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Searching for an invaluable microfilm , SHERLOCK HOLMES IN WASHINGTON encounters as much danger as ever he did in old London . Basil Rathbone & Nigel Bruce return as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's beloved characters Sherlock Holmes and Dr . Watson in this unpretentious but enjoyable film . Although not based on any particular tale from the Canon , there is still enough mystery and intrigue to keep detective fans well satisfied . Of course , with Rathbone all cerebral intellect and Bruce ever the good-natured bumbler , the viewer knows that God's in His Heaven and all's right with the world . Henry Daniell & George Zucco , two of the series ' finest villains , appear in this entry . They both specialized in making menace delightfully subtle and sophisticated . This time they portray German agents intent on retrieving an enormously important British document . Others in the cast include the lovely Marjorie Lord ( who's quite grotesque with a cigarette dangling from her lips ) as a young socialite pulled into the nefarious scheme ; Holmes Herbert as a senior civil servant in London ; and Thurston Hall as a blustery United Stated senator . Movie mavens will spot several fine actors in uncredited roles : Gerald Hamer as a hapless British agent ; elderly Margaret Seddon as a train traveler with mice ; dear Mary Gordon as Holmes ' landlady , Mrs . Hudson ; Mary Forbes as a spy's loving mother ; and Ian Wolfe as a slightly sinister antiques store clerk . Especially notable is the always entertaining Clarence Muse , appearing as a club car porter , who does the almost impossible by stealing a scene from Rathbone . This film followed SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE SECRET WEAPON ( 1942 ) and preceded SHERLOCK HOLMES FACES DEATH ( 1943 ) .
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438,327 | 306,861 | 175,090 | 10 |
Hillbilly Humor
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A VITAPHONE Edgar Bergen & Charlie McCarthy Short Subject . It's a PURE FEUD carried out between the McCarthys and the Jenkins into which city boy Edgar Appleby inadvertently stumbles . This was one of a series of short films highlighting the remarkable talent of ventriloquist Edgar Bergen . His wisecracking dummy , Charlie McCarthy , effortlessly steals the show . Movie mavens will recognize Shemp Howard as one of the McCarthy kin . Often overlooked or neglected today , the one and two-reel short subjects were useful to the Studios as important training grounds for new or burgeoning talents , both in front & behind the camera . The dynamics for creating a successful short subject was completely different from that of a feature length film , something akin to writing a topnotch short story rather than a novel . Economical to produce in terms of both budget & schedule and capable of portraying a wide range of material , short subjects were the perfect complement to the Studios ' feature films .
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438,015 | 306,861 | 27,204 | 10 |
Aline MacMahon Shines In Murder Mystery Movie
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WHILE THE PATIENT SLEPT in the creepy old house , his alert nurse looks for clues that will help catch a killer . . . Fast-moving & fun , this is another example of the comedy crime picture that Warner Brothers was so expert at producing . Casts & plots could be shuffled endlessly , with very predictable results . While this assembly line approach created few classics , audience enjoyment could usually be assured . Intricately plotted , the film boasts excellent production values & a finely sustained spooky atmosphere . Clutching hands , hidden passageways , resentful relatives , suspicious servants & sudden death all make this a prime entry into the Old Dark House genre of suspense films . However , there are enough solid laughs to help lighten the mood . Aline MacMahon , as a starched no-nonsense nurse , shows once again why she was one of the finest character actresses of Hollywood's Golden Age . Her facial expressions & body movements are perfectly controlled and constantly entertaining to watch . Arch & angular , she has the right riposte for any situation , but she is also warmhearted & fearlessly brave . From her very first scene , Miss MacMahon puts the picture in her pocket & walks off with it . Chubby Guy Kibbee & loudmouthed Allen Jenkins both add considerably to the entertainment as the cops assigned to the murder case . The suspects consist of a whole gaggle of cousins , including pretty Patricia Ellis , stalwart Lyle Talbot , prissy Hobart Cavanaugh & spiteful Dorothy Tree - as well as mysterious butler Brandon Hurst & the family lawyer , Henry O'Neill . The MacMahon & Kibbee characters reappear in THE PATIENT IN ROOM 18 ( 1938 ) and MYSTERY HOUSE ( 1938 ) , although portrayed by other performers .
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437,205 | 306,861 | 11,909 | 10 |
Tragic Wallace Reid In DeMille Comedy
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THE AFFAIRS OF ANATOL , which are really only his attempts to help unhappy or wayward women , has left his own marriage in a very precarious predicament . During the 1920's , director Cecil B . DeMille became famous for two types of film - the lavish historical spectacle & the elaborate , somewhat salacious , social comedy . ANATOL is an example of the latter . While its plot is insignificant ( and faintly ludicrous ) , it is still quite enjoyable to watch , and can boast of fine performances & superior production values . In the title role , Wallace Reid acquits himself very well as the hapless rich chump whose noble deeds always seem to backfire . Good-natured & affable , he is only too susceptible to damsels in distress . But even this worm can turn , and his violent scenes - laying waste the apartment of a mendacious maiden , crashing into his wife's locked boudoir - show the energy & passion of which this nearly forgotten star was capable . Gloria Swanson , as Reid's lively spouse ; Wanda Hawley as a millionaire's courtesan ; Agnes Ayres as a duplicitous country wife ; and diabolic Bebe Daniels as the ultimate vamp , all add greatly to the enjoyment of the proceedings , slinking about in fashions ( all except Miss Ayres ) only crazy movie folk of the 1920's could ever truly get by with . Movie mavens will have no trouble spotting the irrepressible Polly Moran as a zany nightclub orchestra leader . A Wallace Reid film is a rather rare & wonderful thing now , as most of them seem to have vanished long ago . Reid , immensely popular in his day , was the epitome of the American Hero . Tragically , his story became a living nightmare . Injuries received while on location in Oregon in 1919 left him seemingly unable to complete his role . The Paramount Studio doctor was dispatched to plug him full of morphine and put him back in front of the cameras . It worked , but already weakened by alcoholism , Reid now became a helpless morphine addict . His problem was an open secret in Hollywood , but instead of the real help he desperately needed , he was given more of the deadly drug . His box office returns were considered too valuable , and the Studio pushed him through an insufferable number of films - 7 in 1921 , 8 in 1922 . After ANATOL , in which it was becoming obvious that his good looks were beginning to decay , Reid made 11 more films in increasing agony . His death on January 18 , 1923 , was officially attributed to the influenza which finally overcame the body debilitated by alcohol & drug addiction . Wallace Reid was only 31 years old .
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437,473 | 306,861 | 20,876 | 10 |
One More Climb Up The Building With Mr . Lloyd
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A stock clerk falls FEET FIRST in love with a shoe tycoon's pretty secretary . Silent comedian Harold Lloyd made his second foray into talking films in this very enjoyable slapstick movie . Consisting in large part of a series of often hilarious sight gags , it proves Lloyd's mastery of the new medium . Quickly learning how to make sound work for him , Harold firmly embraced the technology which ruined the careers of many other stars . He also benefited from using the same writers , directors , gag men & character actors who had made his silent films such a success . Appreciating their skills & loyalty , Lloyd's production company kept these individuals on the payroll even when making only one picture every other year , a routine he would begin starting with FEET FIRST . Ever generous , Harold took his cast & crew to Hawaii , thus allowing for the filming of some very funny sequences on board the ship at sea . Interestingly , while the opening scenes of the film are presumably set in Honolulu , absolutely nothing is done to create an Hawaiian ambiance with the sets or characters in any way . The movie's climactic moments involve forcing Harold to dangle from the side of a very tall Los Angeles building . This will invite invariable comparisons with his classic human fly sequence in SAFETY LAST ( 1923 ) . This is somewhat unfair , as the scenes in FEET FIRST are wonderfully funny and vertiginous all on their own . Even with the assist in the long shots from master stuntman Harvey Parry , there was real danger involved for Lloyd ( notice that there's only a couple of seconds of rear projection used and that's during Harold's final fall ) who once again gets to display his remarkable athletic agility . Pretty Barbara Kent plays the object of Harold's affections . Robert McWade is her grumpy boss , with plump Lillian Leighton playing his suspicious wife . Noah Young , a welcome face from Lloyd's silent days , portrays a hapless sailor . Arthur Housman gets to play ( what else ? ) a humorous inebriate and slow-moving Willie Best is marvelously adept in hindering Harold's progress up the side of the building . Movie mavens will recognize an unbilled James Finlayson , long the nemesis of Laurel & Hardy , as one of the painters on top of the skyscraper .
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438,233 | 306,861 | 351,075 | 10 |
A Real Howler
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An MGM ALL BARKIE Short Subject . The romance that starts at Dogville's Bow-Wow-Inn between a HOT DOG and a lonely wife , ends in the courtroom with a case of murder . This very unusual little film is literally the sort that they just don't make anymore , with its rather solemn canines being dressed-up and jerked about with invisible wires . However , it is very funny , with its speakeasy sequence - full of dancing dogs , melodious musicians & gossipy patrons - a particular standout . Often overlooked or neglected today , the one and two-reel short subjects were useful to the Studios as important training grounds for new or burgeoning talents , both in front & behind the camera . The dynamics for creating a successful short subject was completely different from that of a feature length film , something akin to writing a topnotch short story rather than a novel . Economical to produce in terms of both budget & schedule and capable of portraying a wide range of material , short subjects were the perfect complement to the Studios ' feature films .
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437,389 | 306,861 | 27,215 | 10 |
A Little Larceny Goes A Long Way
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A proper Englishman & an American crook help THE WIDOW FROM MONTE CARLO retrieve her stolen love letter . Fast-moving & fun , this is another example of the comedy crime picture that Warner Brothers was so expert at producing in the 1930's . Casts & plots could be shuffled endlessly , with very predictable results , and while this assembly line approach created few classics , audience enjoyment could usually be assured . This very amusing little film - only an hour long - fits the mold perfectly ; it's slick plot quickly transporting the viewer from Monaco to Cannes , London and Margate . With a fine cast and plenty of lively humor , it's a shame that it is almost completely forgotten . Lovely Dolores Del Rio , in the title role , plays a woman straining under the constraints of nearly a year's mourning for her noble husband . She is at her most vulnerable when she is swept up by sophisticated Warren William , who sees what he likes and goes after it . The two stars , with their very different personas , work well together and give a definite sparkle to the story . For such a short film there is an unusually rich supporting cast . Louise Fazenda stirs up lots of laughs as a fiercely aggressive social climber ; as her marmalade manufacturing spouse , Herbert Mundin gives her unassuming , affable support . Together , they enjoy the movie's most hilarious scene when they attempt to follow Del Rio & William through Margate's Dreamland fun house . A fastidious Colin Clive plays Del Rio's stuffy fiancé ; Warren Hymer is very amusing as the American tough guy who takes a shine to the two lovers ; E . E . Clive , Mary Forbes & Eily Malyon glow in their tiny roles as Del Rio's overly protective aristocratic in-laws ; Olin Howland sports a British accent as a gambling butler . Movie mavens will recognize an uncredited Billy Bevan as an English constable with a black eye .
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437,672 | 306,861 | 27,212 | 10 |
Delightful Disney Whodunit
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A Walt Disney SILLY SYMPHONY Cartoon Short . A dapper young redbreast trilling his song to his lady love is shot with an arrow . WHO KILLED COCK ROBIN ? The judge at the murder trial gets a rather surprising answer . . . A very colorful and amusing cartoon , highlighted by caricatures of a few Hollywood stars : Bing Crosby , Harpo Marx , the Keystone Kops and , in the unedited version , Stepin Fetchit . The character of Jenny Wren is a splendid spoof of Mae West . The SILLY SYMPHONIES , which Walt Disney produced for a ten year period beginning in 1929 , are among the most interesting of series in the field of animation . Unlike the Mickey Mouse cartoons in which action was paramount , with the Symphonies the action was made to fit the music . There was little plot in the early Symphonies , which featured lively inanimate objects and anthropomorphic plants & animals , all moving frantically to the soundtrack . Gradually , however , the Symphonies became the school where Walt's animators learned to work with color and began to experiment with plot , characterization & photographic special effects . The pages of Fable & Fairy Tale , Myth & Mother Goose were all mined to provide story lines and even Hollywood's musicals & celebrities were effectively spoofed . It was from this rich soil that Disney's feature-length animation was to spring . In 1939 , with SNOW WHITE successfully behind him and PINOCCHIO & FANTASIA on the near horizon , Walt phased out the SILLY SYMPHONIES ; they had run their course & served their purpose .
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438,036 | 306,861 | 25,301 | 10 |
A Film Ahead Of Its Time - For All Time
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A black mother worries that her light skinned daughter will have only an IMITATION OF LIFE if she continually tries to pass for white . Let it be stated unequivocally that this is one of the most remarkable films of the 1930's - unique in that it deals squarely with aspects of the racial question decades before it became common to do so . After becoming accustomed to the casual racism of most Hollywood movies of the era , this honesty is quite astonishing . As the black mother , Louise Beavers is heartbreaking in the simple power of her performance . Joyously serving up love & pancakes , or devastated by her daughter's rejection of their race , Miss Beavers makes her audience feel her every emotion . This was the finest role of her film career , and she makes the most of it . However , the movie over , the studio system returned her to mammy parts . This is a tremendous blot on Hollywood's record . Beautiful Claudette Colbert is scintillating , as always . Playing a tenderhearted maple syrup saleslady who first employs Miss Beavers , and later befriends her , Miss Colbert adds a distinct touch of class to the film . But she is also sympathetic to the concerns of the story and helps to quietly push along the plea for racial equality . Elegant actor Warren William , he of the sophisticated profile , brings his considerable talents to the role of Miss Colbert's ichthyologist boyfriend . Refreshingly , he plays a solid , decent fellow - instead of the rake or cad which he portrayed so often & so well . His involvement is a definite asset to the film . The rest of the cast adds to the overall excellence of the production : acerbic Ned Sparks as Miss Colbert's business manager ; lovely Rochelle Hudson as her ready-for-love daughter ; Henry Armentta & Alan Hale as businessmen cajoled by Miss Colbert's charms ; and especially Fredi Washington , memorable as Miss Beavers ' daughter , a stranger inside her own skin . Movie mavens will spot Clarence Wilson as the pancake shop's landlord , Franklin Pangborn as a party guest & Paul Porcasi as a restaurant manager , all uncredited . IMITATION OF LIFE preached a powerful sermon on racial justice & equality , but the Hollywood congregation was not paying attention . It would be a very long time before black performers & black roles would be treated with the dignity they so desperately deserved .
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438,139 | 306,861 | 36,336 | 10 |
Fighting A Never Ending Battle For Truth & Justice
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A SUPERMAN Cartoon . A pretty , blonde SECRET AGENT has the paperwork to prove the guilt of an evil group of Nazi saboteurs . On the run , with her life in terrible danger , only Superman can help her now . . . This was another in the series of excellent cartoons initially created by Max Fleischer for Paramount Studio . They feature great animation and taut , fast-moving plots . Meant to be shown in movie theaters , they are miles ahead of their Saturday Morning counterparts . Bud Collyer is the voice of Superman ; Lois Lane does not appear in this story .
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437,643 | 306,861 | 29,667 | 10 |
Foolin ' The Doctor With The Little Rascals
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An OUR GANG Comedy Short . Spanky , Buckwheat & Alfalfa are THREE SMART BOYS . If they can get a doctor to agree they've caught an epidemic , the school will have to be closed . So , with bloated bellies & speckled faces they head for the nearest medical man - who happens to be a veterinarian with a wacky sense of humor . . . A funny little film - short & to the point . Highlight : Buckwheat & the monkey . That's Rosina Lawrence as the teacher .
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437,267 | 306,861 | 29,664 | 10 |
Mickey & Judy Start Their Long Date
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Left insolvent in America by the death of his grandfather , a young English lad learns that THOROUGHBREDS DON'T CRY . Now it's time for his new buddies , an irrepressible girl & an excitable jockey , to help him make his race horse a winner . This little film , with a horse race plot both contrived & convoluted , is mere entertainment fluff . Its real significance is that it was the first movie to co-star Mickey Rooney & Judy Garland . Rooney is hyper-energetic & Garland exhibits her wide-eyed exuberance ; together they hint at much better films to come in the future . Ronald Sinclair receives equal billing with them , and he does a good job with his role , but up against the Dynamic Duo he never really stood a chance . His celebrity would prove to be rather transitory . Forrester Harvey does fine in a small performance as a jolly horse trainer . Wonderful old Sir C . Aubrey Smith lends a touch of class to his role as an English gentleman . But it is the inimitable Sophie Tucker who steals the film as Garland's mother , a big sharp-tongued woman you wouldn't want to trifle with . For some unfathomable reason , the script gives her no chance to sing . Unbelievable ! At the very least , a Tucker / Garland duet could have made the film truly memorable . Movie mavens will recognize Lionel Belmore as a butler & Elisha Cook , Jr . as a jockey , both unbilled . A ' pookah ' , by the way , is an Irish ghost horse .
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437,452 | 306,861 | 18,515 | 10 |
A Return To The Thrills Of Yesteryear
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Like TWO ARABIAN KNIGHTS , a couple of American soldiers attempt the daring rescue of a Middle Eastern princess from a loveless betrothal . Producer Howard Hughes became a Hollywood power with the very successful release of this , his third motion picture . Thought lost for decades , this wonderful silent comedy has recently been rediscovered & restored and given a splendid orchestral score by Robert Israel . Directed with verve by Lewis Milestone and greatly benefiting from William Cameron Menzies ' art direction , the high jinks & high adventure of this antique buddy film are once again ready to delight the viewing audience . Clean-cut private William Boyd and plug-ugly sergeant Louis Wolheim battle Germans , Arabs and each other across Europe , the Mediterranean and into Palestine . They make a terrific comedy duo , constantly involved in one-upmanship and dangerous exploits whether in a POW camp , on a prisoner train , aboard a tramp steamer , or in a Moslem souk and emir's palace . Wolheim , with his hilariously expressive face , has a slight advantage in the scene stealing category , while Boyd has the upper hand in the romantics department . Mary Astor , as the endangered princess , is the willing recipient of Boyd's attentions . Her role doesn't give her a great deal to do except look lovely & alarmed , but these she carries off admirably . In the supporting cast , Michael Visaroff is the black hearted ship's captain who comes into conflict with Boyd & Wolheim ; look fast for Boris Karloff as his purser . Dashing Ian Keith nicely plays the young Arab chieftain who will stop at nothing to make Astor his bride . At various points throughout the movie the viewer will notice the deterioration of the film stock , showing that TWO ARABIAN KNIGHTS was indeed rescued , like the princess , just in time .
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437,676 | 306,861 | 42,864 | 10 |
No Catnap For Pluto
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A Walt Disney PLUTO Cartoon . Two mangy alley cats , Milton & Richard , decide to turn the estate Pluto is guarding into a PUSS CAFE . The animation is routine , but the story is humorous & lively in this little film . This was one of only two cartoons Milton the cat would appear in ; Richard disappeared immediately . Walt Disney ( 1901-1966 ) was always intrigued by drawings . As a lad in Marceline , Missouri , he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper ; later , as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War , he drew figures on the sides of his vehicle . Back in Kansas City , along with artist Ub Iwerks , Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters . Always the innovator , his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe . Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923 , where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor . When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor , the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination , ensuring Disney's immortality . The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut , STEAMBOAT WILLIE ( 1928 ) , a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music . The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared , and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color , illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development , an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable . Mickey's feisty , naughty behavior had captured millions of fans , but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions : temperamental Donald Duck , intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto . All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films . Against a blizzard of doomsayers , Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White , Pinocchio , Dumbo , Bambi & Peter Pan . Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse , or that simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off .
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438,312 | 306,861 | 194,282 | 10 |
On The Green With Mr . Jones
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A Warner Bros . Vitaphone Short SubjectBobby Jones , the world's greatest amateur golfer , gives valuable advice on how to improve one's putting skills . This was the first in a series of short films in which Warner Bros . lured this all-American athletic hero in front of the cameras to reveal his playing secrets in an entertaining manner . Celebrities from the Studio's roster would be trotted out to interact with Jones ; in this initial endeavor we see silent screen star Richard Barthelmess , comic actor Joe E . Brown , and character actor / playwright Frank Craven ( best remembered as the Stage Manager in OUR TOWN , 1940 ) . The poor sound quality is an annoyance in this early talkie , but not an insurmountable one . Robert Tyre Jones , Jr ( 1902-1971 ) began playing golf at the age of six and was entering competitions at the age of fourteen . He triumphed in many of these during his short amateur career and became the only person in history to win golf's Grand Slam ( British & American open and amateur tournaments ) in one year , 1930 . Shortly afterwards he retired at the age of twenty-nine . He never went pro and played only a few championships thereafter , but worked as a lawyer in Atlanta , Georgia . Jones helped organize the first Masters Tournament in 1934 in Augusta , Georgia . In 1958 , Bobby Jones was created an honorary burgess and guild brother in Scotland's St . Andrews , the traditional birthplace of golf . Sadly , ill health and paralysis caused this remarkable sportsman to spend his last years confined to a wheelchair . Often overlooked or neglected today , the one and two-reel short subjects were useful to the Studios as important training grounds for new or burgeoning talents , both in front & behind the camera . The dynamics for creating a successful short subject was completely different from that of a feature length film , something akin to writing a topnotch short story rather than a novel . Economical to produce in terms of both budget & schedule and capable of portraying a wide range of material , short subjects were the perfect complement to the Studios ' feature films .
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437,382 | 306,861 | 247,692 | 10 |
Spanish Rambles
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An MGM TRAVELTALK Short Subject . With the assistance of this little film , the viewer will be SEEING SPAIN as it was in the 1950's . The brisk tour takes us to the cities of Granada , Seville , Toledo & Madrid , showing us parks , palaces & cathedrals . Some colorful Spanish dancing is also featured . This is one of a large series of succinct travelogues turned out by MGM , beginning in the 1930's . They featured Technicolor views of beautiful & unusual sights around the globe , as well as vivid , concise commentary . These films were produced & narrated by James A . FitzPatrick .
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437,742 | 306,861 | 27,188 | 10 |
Blondell & Farrell Are At It Again
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Two lady process servers will stop at nothing to do their job - but then one falls in love with the man they are stalking . . . WE'RE IN THE MONEY was the sort of ephemeral comic frippery which the studios produced almost effortlessly during the 1930's . Well made & highly enjoyable , Depression audiences couldn't seem to get enough of these popular , funny photo dramas . Joan Blondell & Glenda Farrell are perfectly cast as the fearless , fast-talking females who will try anything to serve their subpoenas . Although Joan gets both top billing and the romantic scenes , both gals are as talented & watchable as they are gorgeous . Ross Alexander plays Blondell's love interest and he does a very nice job . Remembered now chiefly for his appearance in the classic A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM ( 1935 ) , this talented young man from Brooklyn was gifted with the good looks & acting skills which should have made him a major Hollywood star . Instead , Alexander ended up in mostly forgettable parts in obscure films . Tragically , Ross Alexander died a suicide in 1937 , at the age of only 29 . Hugh Herbert , whimsical & wacky as ever , appears as the girls ' boss . Whether driving a stolen car or piloting a speeding motorboat , he is equally hilarious . Behind him comes a rank of character actors - Henry O'Neill , E . E . Clive , Lionel Stander , Hobart Cavanaugh - all equally adept at wringing every smile out of any situation . Sharp-eyed movie mavens should spot an unbilled Walter Brennan as a witness at the wedding . While never stars of the first rank , Joan Blondell ( 1906-1979 ) & Glenda Farrell ( 1904-1971 ) enlivened scores of films at Warner Bros . throughout the 1930's , especially the eight in which they appeared together . Whether playing gold diggers or working girls , reporters or secretaries , these blonde & brassy ladies were very nearly always a match for whatever leading man was lucky enough to share equal billing alongside them . With a wisecrack or a glance , their characters showed they were ready to take on the world - and any man in it . Never as wickedly brazen as Paramount's Mae West , you always had the feeling that , tough as they were , Blondell & Farrell used their toughness to defend vulnerable hearts ready to break over the right guy . While many performances from seven decades ago can look campy or contrived today , these two lovely ladies are still spirited & sassy .
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438,221 | 306,861 | 45,037 | 10 |
A Christmas Caper With Chipmunks
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A Walt Disney MICKEY MOUSE Cartoon . PLUTO'S CHRISTMAS TREE arrives in Mickey's living room with Chip ' n ' Dale still living in it . . . This enjoyable little Holiday film matches the frustrated Pup against the cunning Chipmunks , with all the props & paraphernalia of Christmas Eve adding extra interest . Mickey has only a supporting role ; Goofy , Donald & Minnie have a quick cameo at the end of the cartoon as carolers singing ' Deck The Halls . ' Walt Disney ( 1901-1966 ) was always intrigued by pictures & drawings . As a lad in Marceline , Missouri , he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper ; later , as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War , he drew comic figures on the sides of his vehicle . Back in Kansas City , along with artist Ub Iwerks , Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters . Always the innovator , his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe . Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923 , where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor . When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor , the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination , ensuring Disney's immortality . The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut , STEAMBOAT WILLIE ( 1928 ) , a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music . The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared , and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color , illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development , an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable . Mickey's feisty , naughty behavior had captured millions of fans , but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions : temperamental Donald Duck , intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto . All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films . Against a blizzard of doomsayers , Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White , Pinocchio , Dumbo , Bambi & Peter Pan . Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse , or that childlike simplicity of message and lots of hard work will always pay off .
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437,423 | 306,861 | 25,249 | 10 |
Showin ' Up The New Kid With The Little Rascals
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An OUR GANG Comedy Short . Although the Gang tries to be friendly with a snooty new rich kid - ' HI-NEIGHBOR ! ' - it's obvious he disdains them all . And when his spiffy fire engine impresses Jane , it's time for the Rascals to build their own competition vehicle . Some good laughs here . The building of the contraption , especially Spanky helping Stymie put on the wheels , is hilarious . Highlight : the race down the very steep hill .
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438,049 | 306,861 | 20,979 | 10 |
Aerial Antics With Mr . Laurel & Mr . Hardy
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A LAUREL & HARDY Comedy ShortNo matter how Ollie pretends to be the master of his own home , ferocious Mrs . Hardy will put up with no more procrastination from him . She demands he attach the radio antenna to the roof - now ! Things turn HOG WILD when Ollie asks Stan to help him . . . Lots of slapstick in this funny little film . Highlight : Ollie & the runaway ladder . Never let these Boys up on your roof !
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438,086 | 306,861 | 25,250 | 10 |
Rapid-Fire Newsroom Comedy
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Forced to write the Heartthrobs column , the former managing editor of a big city paper finds himself exposing a story of murder & political corruption . Fast-moving & fun , HI , NELLIE ! is another example of the comedy crime picture that Warner Brothers was so expert at producing . Casts & plots could be shuffled endlessly , with very predictable results . While this assembly line approach created few classics , audience enjoyment could usually be assured . Here , the look & feel of the paper's busy newsroom is smack on the mark and the performances , even with a script that's too plot heavy , never fail to entertain . Consummate actor Paul Muni gets a rare chance at comedy here and pulls it off brilliantly , adding just the right amount of drama from time to time . Whether he's trashing his office in a fury , fighting with his boss or going nonchalantly into the headquarters of the enemy to collect information , Muni is never less than fascinating . He is teamed with the equally watchable Glenda Farrell , playing another one of her hard-boiled dames with a heart of gold . It is obvious from the script that their two characters were once lovers , but refreshingly no time is wasted with rekindling the flames - they are just chums , wary & respectful . Their unromantic chemistry adds much to the fun of the film . A fine cast of character actors helps move the story along . Ned Sparks plays his usual acerbic self as an investigative reporter loyal to Muni . Little Donald Meek is equally good as an aged office clerk who provides assistance on the hectic news floor for Muni & Farrell . Berton Churchill as the paper's publisher & Douglass Dumbrille as Muni's rival both score in their roles . Robert Barrat , Harold Huber & Edward Ellis all play dangerous bad guys who must be dealt with . Frank Reicher , fresh from his double stint as the captain in the KONG movies , here plays a none-to-savvy lawyer . Movie mavens will recognize an uncredited John Qualen as a tenement custodian .
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437,964 | 306,861 | 27,194 | 10 |
Suspense Movie Milestone
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A famed British botanist , fearful he is becoming the WEREWOLF OF London , struggles to retain control of a rare Tibetan flower , reputed to be an antidote for lycanthropy . This succinct film , supposedly Hollywood's first to deal with werewolfery , is a tidy little thriller which deserves a wider reputation among those who enjoy the Universal movies of this genre . Good production values & a plot that moves right along are two of its chief values , but genuine moments of fright are also not lacking - although the story is admittedly ludicrous & the shocks are rather tame by today's standards . Henry Hull does a fine job as the wretched protagonist , in agony as to his cruel fate . Warner Oland is properly sinister & mysterious as the Eastern doctor with too much personal knowledge of the arcane sciences . Pretty Valerie Hobson is given little to do except look exasperated or frightened . Somewhat unexpectedly , four elderly character actresses grab much of the attention . Spring Byington is quite funny as a flighty , tart-tongued society hostess . Aged Charlotte Granville has a few good moments as a plain speaking dowager . Best of all , Ethel Griffies & Zeffie Tilbury are hilarious as a couple of drunken old crones who have an unexpected encounter with one of the ' children of the night . ' ( Miss Griffies would eventually live long enough to become the oldest working actress in the British theatre , dying in 1975 at age 97 . ) It would not be until the release of THE WOLF MAN in 1941 that werewolves and all their assorted esoterica of full moons , silver bullets & very hairy gentlemen with long canine teeth would really begin to become a Hollywood horror staple .
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437,555 | 306,861 | 22,890 | 10 |
More Than A Mouthful
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A small-town fireman and inventor with a whiz of a pitching arm suddenly finds himself signed to play for the St . Louis Cardinals . Rubber-faced comic Joe E . Brown dominates FIREMAN , SAVE MY CHILD , a very pleasant little film which examines the adventures of a small-town rube as he deals with the machinations of big city baseball & women . Brown's good-natured grin and physical comedy never fail to bring a laugh . Whether presiding over the immolation of a sauerkraut factory , calmly creating a conflagration in the office of a powerful business executive , or coolly surmounting the pitching mound in the final inning of a World Series game , Brown is always in firm control of the humor . Evalyn Knapp as Brown's hometown sweetheart & Lilian Bond as the gold digger out to ruin him both play their parts well . Popular character actor Guy Kibbee keeps his particular plot pot boiling as the Cardinals ' harried manager . Movie mavens will recognize OUR GANG's Dickie Moore , uncredited , as a young ball fan . The film was given fine production values , with the fire fighting & baseball sequences both entertaining & believable . The title is a Melodrama catch-phrase ; there are no children to be saved from fires in this movie . This was the first of Brown's ' Baseball Trilogy ' and was followed by ELMER , THE GREAT ( 1933 ) & ALIBI IKE ( 1935 ) .
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437,552 | 306,861 | 36,231 | 10 |
AWOL With Private Duck
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A Walt Disney DONALD DUCK Cartoon . It becomes THE OLD ARMY GAME when Donald tries to sneak back onto base without Sergeant Pete catching him . . . Here is another of Donald's wartime cartoons , with lots of laughs and physical comedy . Pete has finally found his perfect niche as a military noncommissioned officer . The legendary Carl Barks was one of the writers involved in this little film ; Clarence Nash provides the Duck with his unique voice . Walt Disney ( 1901-1966 ) was always intrigued by pictures & drawings . As a lad in Marceline , Missouri , he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper ; later , as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War , he drew comic figures on the sides of his vehicle . Back in Kansas City , along with artist Ub Iwerks , Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters . Always the innovator , his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe . Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923 , where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor . When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor , the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination , ensuring Disney's immortality . The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut , STEAMBOAT WILLIE ( 1928 ) , a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music . The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared , and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color , illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development , an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable . Mickey's feisty , naughty behavior had captured millions of fans , but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions : temperamental Donald Duck , intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto . All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films . Against a blizzard of doomsayers , Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White , Pinocchio , Dumbo , Bambi & Peter Pan . Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse , or that childlike simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off .
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437,729 | 306,861 | 25,254 | 10 |
Mr . Wheeler & Mr . Woolsey Invite You To Join Them In A Little Light Entertainment
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Two zany scam artists find it's all HIPS , HIPS , HOORAY ! when they meet the curvaceous owner of Maiden America Beauty Products and her lovely female employees . Wheeler & Woolsey ( Bert Wheeler is the short guy with curly hair ; Robert Woolsey is the bespectacled fellow with the cigar ) star in this often hilarious film . The Boys were a perfect comedy duo and their movies are always great fun to watch ( here they try to promote flavored lipsticks and get involved in a cross-country auto race , while keeping one jump ahead of the law ) . It is indeed a pity that these very talented comics are all but forgotten now . Cute little Dorothy Lee returns as Wheeler's perennial love interest . The beautiful & tragic Thelma Todd , a very gifted comedienne in her own right , puts the spark in Woolsey's eye . Movie mavens will spot an unbilled Bobby Watson , who gets one funny line as a Dance Director . Director Mark Sandrich keeps the plot moving at a frantic pace throughout . Some of the sights & situations push the borders of good taste in this pre-Production Code movie . The Boys , Miss Lee & Hot Toddy do a wild burlesque of Diaghilev during their performance of ' Just Keep On Doing What You're Doing ' . Singer Ruth Etting drops by long enough to trill ' Keep Romance Alive ' at a radio broadcast featuring ungarmented bathing models . And , yes , those really are frogs climbing out of the race car's radiator . . .
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437,288 | 306,861 | 25,272 | 10 |
George Arliss in Another Bio Epic
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Five brothers , born & raised in a Jewish ghetto at the end of the 18th Century . Taught by their parents in the ways of international finance & commerce , but above all in living a life of dignity as Jews . Five brothers who grew to establish banks wielding enormous power from the five great European capitals - Frankfurt , London , Paris , Vienna , Naples - yet who always worked together for the common goal of peace in Europe & the destruction of tyranny . Five brothers united as THE HOUSE OF ROTHSCHILD . In this lavish film , Mr . George Arliss gives yet another splendid history lesson and this time the old fellow gets to play two roles : Mayer Amschel Rothschild , the founder of the dynasty ; and eldest son Nathan Rothschild , who established the London branch of the family . As always , Arliss is fascinating to watch , his every twitch conveying significance & meaning . It is a shame he is almost forgotten today , as he was a marvelous actor . But he does not act alone here . Indeed , his co-stars are quite accomplished . As in so many of his films , his real-life wife Florence Arliss plays his ( Nathan's ) spouse and is charming , as usual . The somewhat obtrusive romantic subplot is handled by the two Youngs , Loretta & Robert , who look lovely & handsome respectively . Helen Westley is exceptional as Mayer's wife Gudula , the matriarch of the family . Also on hand are Reginald Owen , Alan Mowbray , Ivan Simpson , Ethel Griffies & wonderful old Sir C . Aubrey Smith as the Duke of Wellington - it is a particular treat to watch his scenes with Arliss . A rather subdued & urbane Boris Karloff is the villain of the film , playing a Prussian nobleman who delights in being anti-Semitic . Pains are taken to show the evils inflected upon Continental Jewry during the age of repression & pogroms and it is important to remember that this film was produced in 1934 , as Evil was once again raising its head in Central Europe . The ideas of men in the 19th Century , such as Karloff portrays here , would lead inexorably to the gas chambers & furnaces of Nazi Germany in the 20th . Forget Frankenstein's Monster . This was Karloff's most horrific role . In the last 4 minutes , the movie turns from black & white to beautiful early Technicolor , a delight to the eyes . There are a couple of glaring historical inaccuracies in the movie that must be pointed out . Nathan was not the elder of Mayer's sons - in fact he was the 3rd born . And it was not he , but his grandson , another Nathan , who was raised to the peerage to become Baron Rothschild in 1885 , 49 years after the death of his grandfather . Trifling , yet significant .
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437,963 | 306,861 | 29,577 | 10 |
Beery & Rooney Propel Shipboard Drama
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In 1860 , a mutinous crew forces the captain of a former SLAVE SHIP to return to Africa for another highly profitable human cargo . Sadly neglected , this is a film with some very good elements indeed . Stirring action , a little romance , a dose of humor and a social conscious are among its strengths . Although the opening shipyard scenes have a rather lean feel to their production values - with the sparse crowd of extras and the rear projection - once the plot moves to shipboard & Africa the film's quality kicks into high gear . The climax , with its gunplay & explosions , is especially exciting . The tying of the slaves to the anchor chain - a horrendous scene - anticipates AMISTAD by about 60 years . The acting is quite good . Warner Baxter nicely underplays his role as the slaver captain who reforms upon marrying lovely Elizabeth Allan . Rumpled Wallace Beery as the First Mate & spunky Mickey Rooney as a disillusioned cabin boy are a great acting team and tremendous fun to watch . Beery was an actor who could steal a scene from anyone ( except the late Marie Dressler ) , but he almost meets his match in Rooney . The Kid shows the vivacity & talent which would soon catapult him to Hollywood's top box office star . Joseph Schildkraut scores in a flamboyant role as a foreign slave trader . Jane Darwell is funny in her few moments as Miss Allan's tough old mother . George Sanders plays a sophisticated mutineer & Edwin Maxwell is a nervous auctioneer . The massive Jane Jones is striking - literally - as a Virginia saloonkeeper who refuses to take nonsense from anyone . In unbilled roles , movie mavens should recognize Lon Chaney , Jr . as a most unfortunate dock worker , and young Matthew ' Stymie ' Beard , of OUR GANG fame , as a boy on the wharf . It is ironic , even with the film's sentiment for decent behavior towards Blacks , that 1930's Hollywood was still utterly racist and did not promote equal treatment for African-American performers ( Asian actors fared little better ) . The Studios were still very segregated , Black & White stars rarely socialized on an equal footing , and racial stereotypes abounded in the movie plots . Only occasionally did Black performers ' names appear in the credits and then usually at the bottom of the list . SLAVE SHIP preaches a good sermon , but the Hollywood congregation still needed to wake up & deal with its own intolerant behavior .
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437,001 | 306,861 | 42,849 | 10 |
Romantic Rival For The Pup
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A Walt Disney PLUTO Cartoon . Dinah , PLUTO'S HEART THROB , enjoys flirting with both the Pup & Butch the bully bulldog . While amusing , this little film is scarcely different from several other cartoons also depicting Pluto's romantic difficulties . Perhaps Disney was thinking this as well - this cartoon was nearly the end of the road for both Dinah & Butch's movie careers . Walt Disney ( 1901-1966 ) was always intrigued by drawings . As a lad in Marceline , Missouri , he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper ; later , as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War , he drew comic figures on the sides of his vehicle . Back in Kansas City , along with artist Ub Iwerks , Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters . Always the innovator , his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe . Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923 , where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor . When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor , the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination , ensuring Disney's immortality . The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut , STEAMBOAT WILLIE ( 1928 ) , a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music . The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared , and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color , illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development , an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable . Mickey's feisty , naughty behavior had captured millions of fans , but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions : temperamental Donald Duck , intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto . All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films . Against a blizzard of doomsayers , Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White , Pinocchio , Dumbo , Bambi & Peter Pan . Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse , or that childlike simplicity of message and lots of hard work will always pay off .
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437,024 | 306,861 | 22,899 | 10 |
Disney's Very Colorful Tale
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A Walt Disney SILLY SYMPHONY Cartoon Short . One beautiful Spring morning , the FLOWERS AND TREES awake to rise & shine . Two young trees , swept away by leafy bliss , carry on an arboreal romance which is threatened by the arrival of an evil-hearted old stump . . . This cartoon has a cute little story , but its significance lies in the fact that it was the first cartoon produced in Technicolor . Walt had cannily entered into an exclusive contract for the use of the procedure , only the latest of a string of risky innovations he would brave . Technicolor proved to be a sensation , and FLOWERS AND TREES pointed the way to the future . It would be three more years before Mickey Mouse took the Technicolor plunge - his films were so profitable he didn't need to abandon black & white just yet - but eventually virtually all cartoons would appear in one of a handful of competing color processes . The SILLY SYMPHONIES , which Walt Disney produced for a ten year period beginning in 1929 , are among the most fascinating of all animated series . Unlike the Mickey Mouse cartoons in which action was paramount , with the Symphonies the action was made to fit the music . There was little plot in the early Symphonies , which featured lively inanimate objects and anthropomorphic plants & animals , all moving frantically to the soundtrack . Gradually , however , the Symphonies became the school where Walt's animators learned to work with color and began to experiment with plot , characterization & photographic special effects . The pages of Fable & Fairy Tale , Myth & Mother Goose were all mined to provide story lines and even Hollywood's musicals & celebrities were effectively spoofed . It was from this rich soil that Disney's feature-length animation was to spring . In 1939 , with SNOW WHITE successfully behind him and PINOCCHIO & FANTASIA on the near horizon , Walt phased out the SILLY SYMPHONIES ; they had run their course & served their purpose .
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438,197 | 306,861 | 55,393 | 10 |
A Tuneful Tale From The Old West
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A Walt Disney Cartoon . The fanciful plans of a Yankee sea captain to sail the Kansas prairie in a highly modified Conestoga wagon are related in THE SAGA OF WINDWAGON SMITH . This is an enjoyable little film , which makes good use of the limited animation format . Rex Allen is a fine choice as both narrator and the voice of Smith . The Sons Of The Pioneers back him up with their own special singing talents . Walt Disney ( 1901-1966 ) was always intrigued by drawings . As a lad in Marceline , Missouri , he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper ; later , as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War , he drew figures on the sides of his vehicle . Back in Kansas City , along with artist Ub Iwerks , Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters . Always the innovator , his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe . Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923 , where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor . When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor , the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination , ensuring Disney's immortality . The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut , STEAMBOAT WILLIE ( 1928 ) , a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music . The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared , and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color , illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development , an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable . Mickey's feisty , naughty behavior had captured millions of fans , but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions : temperamental Donald Duck , intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto . All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films . Against a blizzard of doomsayers , Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White , Pinocchio , Dumbo , Bambi & Peter Pan . Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse , or that simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off .
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437,138 | 306,861 | 37,945 | 10 |
Two Saps At Sea
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A Walt Disney DONALD & GOOFY Cartoon . Donald Duck finds himself stranded in a tiny boat with NO SAIL , in shark-infested waters - and doltish Goofy as his companion . This humorous little film garners its laughs from the dichotomy between the two characters ' personalities - the blustery , temperamental Duck and the easygoing , simpleminded Goof . Place them in a perilous situation , surround them with danger and you've got the potential for a great little comedy . Clarence Nash provides Donald with his unique voice . Walt Disney ( 1901-1966 ) was always intrigued by pictures & drawings . As a lad in Marceline , Missouri , he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper ; later , as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War , he drew comic figures on the sides of his vehicle . Back in Kansas City , along with artist Ub Iwerks , Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters . Always the innovator , his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe . Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923 , where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor . When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor , the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination , ensuring Disney's immortality . The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut , STEAMBOAT WILLIE ( 1928 ) , a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music . The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared , and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color , illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development , an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable . Mickey's feisty , naughty behavior had captured millions of fans , but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions : temperamental Donald Duck , intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto . All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films . Against a blizzard of doomsayers , Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White , Pinocchio , Dumbo , Bambi & Peter Pan . Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse , or that childlike simplicity of message and lots of hard work will always pay off .
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437,863 | 306,861 | 25,268 | 10 |
Playin ' Rough With The Little Rascals
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An OUR GANG Comedy Short . Pampered rich kid Wally is delighted to find Stymie , Spanky & the Gang playing in an alley with their donkey Algebra . Bringing them all back to his home , they engage in rambunctious play . But when Algebra gets into the mansion , everyone is soon involved in playing HONKY-DONKEY to get rid of the recalcitrant creature . A funny little film , with some good moments watching the Rascals at play . Willie Mae Taylor portrays the part of ' Buckwheat ' .
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437,902 | 306,861 | 25,270 | 10 |
Boisterous Brothers Behave Badly
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A Ritz Bros . Short Subject . Hired as the new manager , house detective and bellhop , the Ritz Brothers pull out all the stops in an effort to ensure that no customer ever checks out of the HOTEL ANCHOVY . Fans of Al , David & Jimmy Ritz will particularly enjoy this little film , which abounds in slapstick humor . Seekers after sophistication will search elsewhere . Often overlooked or neglected today , the one and two-reel short subjects were useful to the Studios as important training grounds for new or burgeoning talents , both in front & behind the camera . The dynamics for creating a successful short subject was completely different from that of a feature length film , something akin to writing a topnotch short story rather than a novel . Economical to produce in terms of both budget & schedule and capable of portraying a wide range of material , short subjects were the perfect complement to the Studios ' feature films .
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437,582 | 306,861 | 42,860 | 10 |
On The Prowl With Pluto
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A Walt Disney PLUTO Cartoon . Primo , Pluto's ' primitive instinct , ' comes alive and instructs the clumsy Pup in the ways of tracking food - including a ferocious bear . . . PRIMITIVE PLUTO is a humorous , but routine , Pup film . Voice Master Paul Frees does the honors for Primo . Walt Disney ( 1901-1966 ) was always intrigued by drawings . As a lad in Marceline , Missouri , he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper ; later , as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War , he drew figures on the sides of his vehicle . Back in Kansas City , along with artist Ub Iwerks , Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters . Always the innovator , his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe . Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923 , where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor . When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor , the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination , ensuring Disney's immortality . The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut , STEAMBOAT WILLIE ( 1928 ) , a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music . The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared , and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color , illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development , an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable . Mickey's feisty , naughty behavior had captured millions of fans , but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions : temperamental Donald Duck , intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto . All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films . Against a blizzard of doomsayers , Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White , Pinocchio , Dumbo , Bambi & Peter Pan . Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse , or that simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off .
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437,873 | 306,861 | 40,101 | 10 |
Affectionate Film Debut For Kathleen Freeman
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An MGM JOHN NESBITT'S PASSING PARADE Short SubjectOur Swedish hired girl ANNIE WAS A WONDER in those long ago days before the First World War . This Oscar-nominated gem is a tribute to the European women who came to America looking for work - $15 a month , 84 hours a week , 14 hours a day - in the years preceding World War One . Warmhearted & utterly charming , it is also a showcase for character actress Kathleen Freeman ( 1919-2001 ) , starring as Annie Swenson . A talented performer of stage , screen and television , Miss Freeman continued to entertain audiences right up until her death at age 82 . Often overlooked or neglected today , the one and two-reel short subjects were useful to the Studios as important training grounds for new or burgeoning talents , both in front & behind the camera . The dynamics for creating a successful short subject was completely different from that of a feature length film , something akin to writing a topnotch short story rather than a novel . Economical to produce in terms of both budget & schedule and capable of portraying a wide range of material , short subjects were the perfect complement to the Studios ' feature films .
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437,019 | 306,861 | 27,183 | 10 |
Disney Visits The Water Babies
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A Walt Disney SILLY SYMPHONY Cartoon Short . The WATER BABIES emerge from their flowery beds to spend another day frolicking with the pond creatures or romping in the forest . There's virtually no plot in this little cartoon , but its action / reaction animation is pleasant enough . Aside from the title , there's no connection with Charles Kingsley's classic book . The babies are all naked ( and apparently sexless ) , thus giving the Disney artists much scope for their favorite bare bottom gags . MERBABIES ( 1938 ) , a forthcoming Symphony , would bare a striking resemblance to this film . The SILLY SYMPHONIES , which Walt Disney produced for a ten year period beginning in 1929 , are among the most fascinating of all animated series . Unlike the Mickey Mouse cartoons in which action was paramount , with the Symphonies the action was made to fit the music . There was little plot in the early Symphonies , which featured lively inanimate objects and anthropomorphic plants & animals , all moving frantically to the soundtrack . Gradually , however , the Symphonies became the school where Walt's animators learned to work with color and began to experiment with plot , characterization & photographic special effects . The pages of Fable & Fairy Tale , Myth & Mother Goose were all mined to provide story lines and even Hollywood's musicals & celebrities were effectively spoofed . It was from this rich soil that Disney's feature-length animation was to spring . In 1939 , with SNOW WHITE successfully behind him and PINOCCHIO & FANTASIA on the near horizon , Walt phased out the SILLY SYMPHONIES ; they had run their course & served their purpose .
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437,752 | 306,861 | 25,226 | 10 |
Serious Entertainment From Cagney & Blondell
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A young San Francisco woman , who's lived rough , is torn between the Portuguese fisherman she admires & the petty criminal she adores . HE WAS HER MAN is a particularly good example of the sort of crime drama which Warner Bros . did so well in the early 1930's . Intelligent romantic dialogue and gentle humor , in addition to some very fine performances , are all ingredients which make this film a solid success - even though it is nearly forgotten now . This picture was produced just before the implementation of the Production Code and the climax , while completely appropriate , will surprise some viewers . Jimmy Cagney is entirely irrepressible , strutting through each scene like a banty rooster , shouting attention to himself without ever having to raise his voice . As a fellow on the lam from vicious mobsters who want him dead , Cagney plays a character not in control of his own circumstances - a rarity for him , which makes him at once more vulnerable and more human . Joan Blondell nicely underplays her part as the tough luck lady he befriends , avoiding any of the sass & sizzle from her comedic films which would be out of place here . At the other end of the spectrum from the grim roles with which he would become associated , Victor Jory is excellent as the quiet , decent fisherman who deeply loves Blondell . His performance is one of the major assets of the film . Bradley Page , Russell Hopton , Harold Huber & Ralf Harolde play various Manhattan crooks & killers , with Frank Craven especially good as a genial , albeit sinister , shadow . Solid support is given by Sarah Padden as Jory's exuberant old-world mother & John Qualen as the local delivery man . Outdoor location shooting took place around Monterey , California . While the film's setting , the seaside village of Santa Avila , is completely fictional , the Monterey Bay area has long enjoyed a strong Portuguese contingent as part of its fishing industry .
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437,155 | 306,861 | 11,984 | 10 |
Mr . Keaton Sees The Sea
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A BUSTER KEATON Silent Short . THE BOAT which Buster's family builds and launches immediately tries to kill them . This funny little film is an unusual one for Buster , in that he's already quite domesticated - with wife & children - when the story commences . The viewer is supposed to read Buster's lips to get the film's final joke . Born into a family of Vaudevillian acrobats , Buster Keaton ( 1895-1966 ) mastered physical comedy at a very early age . An association with Fatty Arbuckle led to a series of highly imaginative short subjects and classic , silent feature-length films - all from 1920 to 1928 . Writer , director , star & stuntman - Buster could do it all and his intuitive genius gave him almost miraculous knowledge as to the intricacies of film making and of what it took to please an audience . More akin to Fairbanks than Chaplin , Buster's films were full of splendid adventure , exciting derring-do and the most dangerous physical stunts imaginable . His theme of a little man against the world , who triumphs through bravery & ingenuity , dominates his films . Through every calamity & disaster , Buster remained the Great Stone Face , a stoic survivor in a universe gone mad . In the late 1920's Buster was betrayed by his manager / brother-in-law and his contract was sold to MGM , which proceeded to nearly destroy his career . Teamed initially with Jimmy Durante and eventually allowed small roles in mediocre comedies , Buster was for 35 years consistently given work far beneath his talent . Finally , before lung cancer took him at age 70 , he had the satisfaction of knowing that his classic films were being rediscovered . Now , well past his centenary , Buster Keaton is routinely recognized & appreciated as one of cinema's true authentic geniuses . And he knew how to make people laugh . . .
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437,932 | 306,861 | 22,854 | 10 |
Another Sterling Performance From Marie Dressler
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Watching after her rich employer's motherless brood , elderly housekeeper EMMA finds love in a very unexpected place . But an accusation of murder is only one of the burdens she'll have to bear on her weary old shoulders before she finds a way to be useful again . At the time she made this film , Marie Dressler was Hollywood's greatest star . An unlikely celebrity sensation , with her homely face & shapeless body , Dressler was nonetheless adored by the American public who could sense her basic decency & goodness . For a few brief years she became the nation's grandma , someone with whom the public could feel completely comfortable . Dressler seemed to typify the virtues of hard work & plainspoken honesty - attributes which counted for much in the Great Depression's darkest days . This in no way is meant to denigrate Dressler's talents as an actress ; she earned her accolades . She had complete command of her craft , mobilizing her pliable face & large body into capturing & holding first the audience's attention & then their admiration , followed quickly by their deep affection . Marie Dressler was a unique cinematic phenomenon ; she stands alone , never replicated , duplicated or effaced - except by the vagaries of fickle time . Today in this new millennium , when her special earthy benevolence is needed more than ever , she is virtually unknown to any but the oldest or most nostalgic of movie mavens . As sole star , and with a script penned by her dear friend Frances Marion , Dressler is given free rein to beguile in EMMA . Whether dealing with tragic death , or engaged in comedic high jinks ( Dressler in an airplane simulator run amuck or chasing her lingerie-disgorging suitcase across a crowded train station is nothing less than hilarious ) she is as completely unforgettable as she was to prove utterly irreplaceable . Firm support is given by gentle Jean Hersholt as Dressler's kindly employer . As his son , Richard Cromwell gives an energetic performance . Lovely Myrna Loy , not-quite-yet a star , is strangely awkward as Hersholt's spiteful daughter . John Miljan is effective in the role of a relentless District Attorney .
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437,207 | 306,861 | 36,268 | 10 |
Helping Americans Understand The Nazi Mind Set
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A MGM Short Subject . At the end of World War One , a Munich general turned professor begins to develop Germany's PLAN FOR DESTRUCTION for the next global conflict . This fascinating little film will serve as a primer to the Nazi theory of geopolitics , by which they hoped to control all the lands around them & bring about their eventual domination of the entire world . A very interesting sidelight shows how the Nazis went about gathering massive amounts of information about their potential enemies . MGM's fatherly Lewis Stone is the Host / Narrator ; Frank Reicher does a fine job playing Professor Karl Haushofer . After Pearl Harbor , Hollywood went to war totally against the Axis . Not only did many of the stars join up or do home front service , but the output of the Studios was largely turned to the war effort . The newsreels , of course , brought the latest war news into the neighborhood theater every week . The features showcased battle stories or war related themes . Even the short subjects & cartoons were used as a quick means of spreading Allied propaganda , the boosting of morale or information dissemination . Together , Uncle Sam , the American People & Hollywood proved to be an unbeatable combination .
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437,322 | 306,861 | 204,824 | 10 |
Excellent adaptation of classic . . .
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In this , the first live-action version of Orwell's classic , all the elements come together to make a first-rate TV film . The special effects are terrific & it's often hard to tell the real animals apart from the Jim Henson robotic creations . A few liberties with the novel have been taken , but more than enough of the original story has survived intact to give a robust flavor of Orwell's genius . It should be pointed out that Orwell wrote his satire after returning from a sojourn in the Soviet Union , much disillusioned by the evil & corruption he saw there . He wanted to express his views in the form of a fantasy and hence , ANIMAL FARM was born . So , Farmer Jones is a symbol of the Czar , Old Major is Marx , Napoleon is Lenin , Snowball is Trotsky & Squealer is Stalin . All the other animals are symbols of the Russian people . This version of the story has excellent production values & a fine group of players . Pete Postlethwaite is a great drunken Jones and the voice cast includes Patrick Stewart , Paul Scofield , Sir Ian Holm & Sir Peter Ustinov .
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437,769 | 306,861 | 20,945 | 10 |
Wheeler & Woolsey Go AWOL For Laughs
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Paris - 1918 . Two zany American doughboys are AWOL and on the run from the Army MP's . When one of them falls in love with the youngest daughter of a philandering colonel , lunacy really erupts . If they're not careful , the Boys may find themselves HALF SHOT AT SUNRISE . This was Wheeler & Woolsey's fourth film teaming , but actually the first in which they are the solo stars . ( Bert Wheeler is the short , curly-haired one ; Robert Woolsey is the skinny one with the glasses . ) They are always fun to watch and know how to give a gag its full worth . Dorothy Lee , their frequent co-star , is still kewpie doll cute . The inimitable Edna May Oliver , generally so excellent , is given little more to do here than give an occasional disapproving sniff . The Boys were unusually fortunate in having good musical numbers in their films - their songs & dances are always a highlight . This movie is no exception . Besides the Wheeler & Lee duet ( ' Whistling the Blues Away ' ) , Woolsey gets to spoof Nijinsky ( ' Nothing But Love ' ) , while dancing in his underwear . A bit bizarre , but effective .
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437,276 | 306,861 | 226,795 | 10 |
More Safety Sense From Disney
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A Walt Disney I'M NO FOOL Cartoon . I'M NO FOOL IN WATER when I follow the rules of only swimming when & where it is safe . This is one of a short series of little films in which Disney helped to inform viewers about basic safety concerns and the foolish ways in which lackadaisical folks can hurt themselves . The interesting history of man's relationship to water & his learning the various swimming strokes is also discussed . Jiminy Cricket , as voiced by the inimitable Cliff Edwards , is the perfect pedagogue . Walt Disney ( 1901-1966 ) was always intrigued by pictures & drawings . As a lad in Marceline , Missouri , he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper ; later , as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War , he drew comic figures on the sides of his vehicle . Back in Kansas City , along with artist Ub Iwerks , Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters . Always the innovator , his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe . Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923 , where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor . When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor , the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination , ensuring Disney's immortality . The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut , STEAMBOAT WILLIE ( 1928 ) , a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music . The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared , and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color , illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development , an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable . Mickey's feisty , naughty behavior had captured millions of fans , but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions : temperamental Donald Duck , intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto . All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films . Against a blizzard of doomsayers , Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White , Pinocchio , Dumbo , Bambi & Peter Pan . Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse , or that childlike simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off .
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437,685 | 306,861 | 42,843 | 10 |
A Pup Tale With Coyotes
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A Walt Disney PLUTO Cartoon . A couple of PESTS OF THE WEST - father & son coyote - attempt to raid the hen-house guarded by the ever vigilant Pluto . The plot has been reworked many times , but the results are enjoyable . This was one of a handful of little films to feature Bent-Tail the coyote and his dimwitted offspring , Bent-Tail , Junior , as The Pup's antagonists . Walt Disney ( 1901-1966 ) was always intrigued by drawings . As a lad in Marceline , Missouri , he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper ; later , as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War , he drew figures on the sides of his vehicle . Back in Kansas City , along with artist Ub Iwerks , Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters . Always the innovator , his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe . Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923 , where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor . When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor , the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination , ensuring Disney's immortality . The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut , STEAMBOAT WILLIE ( 1928 ) , a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music . The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared , and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color , illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development , an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable . Mickey's feisty , naughty behavior had captured millions of fans , but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions : temperamental Donald Duck , intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto . All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films . Against a blizzard of doomsayers , Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White , Pinocchio , Dumbo , Bambi & Peter Pan . Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse , or that simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off .
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438,198 | 306,861 | 226,794 | 10 |
More Safety Tips From Disney
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A Walt Disney I'M NO FOOL Cartoon . It's easy to prove that I'M NO FOOL AS A PEDESTRIAN if I pay close attention to Jiminy Cricket's admonitions . This is one of a short series of little television films in which Disney helped to inform viewers about basic safety concerns and the foolish ways in which lackadaisical folks can hurt themselves . The story of man's locomotion since caveman days is discussed - did you know Paris had the first sidewalks built for walkers in 1781 ? Jiminy Cricket , as voiced by the inimitable Cliff Edwards , is the perfect pedagogue . Walt Disney ( 1901-1966 ) was always intrigued by drawings . As a lad in Marceline , Missouri , he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper ; later , as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War , he drew figures on the sides of his vehicle . Back in Kansas City , along with artist Ub Iwerks , Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters . Always the innovator , his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe . Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923 , where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor . When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor , the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination , ensuring Disney's immortality . The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut , STEAMBOAT WILLIE ( 1928 ) , a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music . The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared , and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color , illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development , an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable . Mickey's feisty , naughty behavior had captured millions of fans , but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions : temperamental Donald Duck , intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto . All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films . Against a blizzard of doomsayers , Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White , Pinocchio , Dumbo , Bambi & Peter Pan . Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse , or that simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off .
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437,447 | 306,861 | 25,223 | 10 |
Slow Waltz For Two
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A crippled dancer and a brash ice cream man show they HAVE A HEART when they become the answer to the other's romantic dreams . This unfortunately obscure little film starts off as a lively comedy , but quickly takes a turn into very serious drama before finally settling into its final shape as a gentle love story - - with a bit of crime action thrown into the mix . The movie will be more than acceptable to those viewers looking for a soap opera with a bit of a punch . Jean Parker is terrific as the valiant young lady whose life is changed forever as the result of a terrible fall . Love finds her in the unexpected form of James Dunn , very good as the quick tempered but good natured fellow who woos her without knowing of her disability . They make a fine on-screen team , each character filling the void in the other's life . Pretty Una Merkel , the Southern belle whose prickly presence perked up many a film project in the 1930's , shines as Parker's tart-tongued friend . Laid-back Stuart Erwin is funny as her card-cheating boyfriend . Samuel S . Hinds plays Miss Parker's kindly doctor . Movie mavens will recognize an uncredited Edward Brophy as Dunn's pal at the ice cream factory .
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438,250 | 306,861 | 226,796 | 10 |
A Safety Lesson From Disney
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A Walt Disney I'M NO FOOL Cartoon . I'M NO FOOL WITH A BICYCLE shows in how I maintain my bike and follow the safety rules of the road . This is one of a short series of little films in which Disney helped to inform viewers about basic safety concerns and the foolish ways in which lackadaisical folks can hurt themselves . The interesting history of self-propelled locomotion is also discussed . Jiminy Cricket , as voiced by the inimitable Cliff Edwards , is the perfect pedagogue . Walt Disney ( 1901-1966 ) was always intrigued by drawings . As a lad in Marceline , Missouri , he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper ; later , as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War , he drew figures on the sides of his vehicle . Back in Kansas City , along with artist Ub Iwerks , Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters . Always the innovator , his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe . Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923 , where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor . When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor , the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination , ensuring Disney's immortality . The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut , STEAMBOAT WILLIE ( 1928 ) , a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music . The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared , and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color , illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development , an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable . Mickey's feisty , naughty behavior had captured millions of fans , but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions : temperamental Donald Duck , intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto . All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films . Against a blizzard of doomsayers , Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White , Pinocchio , Dumbo , Bambi & Peter Pan . Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse , or that simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off .
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437,756 | 306,861 | 20,950 | 10 |
A Sneak Peek At Spencer Tracy
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A Warner Brothers VITAPHONE Short Subject . Hit by the Depression , THE HARD GUY has to find any means to get food for his wife and tiny daughter . This very brief film is notable only for its look at a young Spencer Tracy , who manages to make something of even this almost evanescent role . Katherine Alexander plays his beleaguered spouse . Often overlooked or neglected today , the one and two-reel short subjects were useful to the Studios as important training grounds for new or burgeoning talents , both in front & behind the camera . The dynamics for creating a successful short subject was completely different from that of a feature length film , something akin to writing a topnotch short story rather than a novel . Economical to produce in terms of both budget & schedule and capable of portraying a wide range of material , short subjects were the perfect complement to the Studios ' feature films .
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436,991 | 306,861 | 20,938 | 10 |
A Very Fine George Arliss Performance
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A small plane is forced down somewhere near the Himalayas . On board are an English major , his young wife and their doctor friend . The plane lands in the tiny Princedom of Rukh , ostensibly under the British Viceroy , but actually ruled by a curiously deranged old Raja . The three visitors find themselves at the mercy of the Raja and are caught up in his lustful plots & plans . This very early talkie is an interesting little curio and still fun to watch . George Arliss is a fascinatingly sardonic Raja . His every word & gesture entertain the imagination . Mr . Arliss was a very important & distinguished English actor working in Hollywood in the 1930's , although now he's sadly neglected . This was his first talkie - ( but was released after DISRAELI ) . All of his Warner Brothers movies are very entertaining , if you can find them . In the supporting cast are Ralph Forbes as the heroic doctor ; H . B . Warner & Alice Joyce as the callous Major & his estranged wife ; gaunt Nigel de Brulier as a suspicious temple priest ; and Ivan Simpson as the Raja's wicked butler .
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437,808 | 306,861 | 18,528 | 10 |
Chaney Masterpiece
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A circus performer ventures into THE UNKNOWN regions of fate when he allows love to be twisted by hatred . Master actor Lon Chaney and his friend , acclaimed director Tod Browning , took their love of the macabre and fashioned this weirdly entertaining & suspenseful little silent film , made wonderful by Chaney's powerful over-the-top performance . Playing the armless wonder in a gypsy circus , Chaney's face is a casebook of emotions as he longs for the chieftain's daughter . After making a tremendous , indeed , outrageous , sacrifice for her , he discovers it is all an utter waste . Chaney's agony is horribly apparent as he feels his life crumble around him . The actor uses his superb physical conditioning to great effect , his feet as facile as any hands - - the extreme punishment undergone to play the part enormously impressive . In an important early film role , Joan Crawford is both sultry & disarming as the object of Chaney's desires ; her intense neurotic phobia concerning men's hands certainly makes her character more interesting . Norman Kerry is affable & tender as the circus strong man who also loves Crawford . John George as Chaney's dwarf accomplice and Nick De Ruiz as the brutal circus chief are quite effective in their colorful roles . MGM gave the film fine production values , especially in the circus scenes - - a milieu dear to Chaney's heart .
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437,211 | 306,861 | 42,820 | 10 |
One Trick Too Many
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A Walt Disney DONALD DUCK Cartoon . While pruning a large tree , Donald finds himself OUT ON A LIMB after his foolishness finally exasperates Chip ' n ' Dale . This is an amusing cartoon , but there's nothing new in the plot . Clarence Nash provides the Duck with his unique voice ; the Chipmunks are largely unintelligible . Walt Disney ( 1901-1966 ) was always intrigued by pictures & drawings . As a lad in Marceline , Missouri , he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper ; later , as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War , he drew comic figures on the sides of his vehicle . Back in Kansas City , along with artist Ub Iwerks , Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters . Always the innovator , his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe . Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923 , where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor . When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor , the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination , ensuring Disney's immortality . The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut , STEAMBOAT WILLIE ( 1928 ) , a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music . The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared , and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color , illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development , an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable . Mickey's feisty , naughty behavior had captured millions of fans , but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions : temperamental Donald Duck , intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto . All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films . Against a storm of naysayers , Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White , Pinocchio , Dumbo , Bambi & Peter Pan . Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse , or that childlike simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off .
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437,646 | 306,861 | 1,072 | 10 |
Early Griffith Holiday Film
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A Biograph film . On Christmas Eve , two children set A TRAP FOR SANTA , with somewhat surprising results . . . Film legend D . W . Griffith directed this little film . If it is rather heavy-handed with the pathos - drunken father , desperate mother , hungry children - it is simply an indication that Griffith was learning to master his trade as he went along . Within a few more years he would be at the top of his profession - as would cameraman Billy Bitzer , who photographed this film . Movie mavens should probably recognize Henry B . Walthall as Arthur , the father & Mack Sennett as an unfriendly bartender , both uncredited . Al Kryszak provided the score for the video compilation A Christmas Past , in which this film appears .
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438,129 | 306,861 | 36,278 | 10 |
Pluto Meets His Match
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A Walt Disney PLUTO CartoonPRIVATE PLUTO must guard a pillbox against saboteurs - but what he discovers instead are a couple of crafty chipmunks using it to hoard their nuts . This humorous little wartime cartoon is notable chiefly as the film debut of those mischievous wee rodents , Chip ' n ' Dale . ( Their appearances would significantly alter , but they would remain , as here , largely unintelligible . ) The pattern was immediately set , perhaps unknowingly , for all of their subsequent films in that no matter who their antagonist , Pluto or Donald Duck , the Chipmunks would always get the upper paw in the end . Walt Disney ( 1901-1966 ) was always intrigued by pictures & drawings . As a lad in Marceline , Missouri , he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper ; later , as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War , he drew comic figures on the sides of his vehicle . Back in Kansas City , along with artist Ub Iwerks , Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters . Always the innovator , his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe . Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923 , where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor . When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor , the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination , ensuring Disney's immortality . The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut , STEAMBOAT WILLIE ( 1928 ) , a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music . The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared , and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color , illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development , an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable . Mickey's feisty , naughty behavior had captured millions of fans , but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions : temperamental Donald Duck , intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto . All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films . Against a storm of naysayers , Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White , Pinocchio , Dumbo , Bambi & Peter Pan . Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse , or that childlike simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off .
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437,914 | 306,861 | 29,604 | 10 |
You're Invited To Eat Lamb Stew With The Girls At The Footlights Club Tonight
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New York City . The Footlights Club is a theatrical boarding house where young women wait for the chance to make it big on Broadway . To deal with the disappointment & bitterness that can set in , they engage in wisecracks & gossip . Fiercely loyal to their friends , they can be wickedly spiteful to those that cross them . Always before them is their dream - to capture elusive success at the STAGE DOOR . A wonderful film , fresh & sparkling , with great dialogue infusing its wit & drama . The rapid-fire cross talk is still a real treat for viewers - as is the chance to see several fine young actresses early in their careers . The entire cast is excellent . Brash Katharine Hepburn is the new girl who quickly meets the ' regulars ' : feisty Ginger Rogers , cynical Lucille Ball , wisecracker Eve Arden , lively Ann Miller , snobbish Gail Patrick & sweet Andrea Leeds . While the young ladies certainly get most of the attention , be sure not to overlook Constance Collier , terrific as Miss Luther the has-been actress . Growing old on bittersweet memories , she is a constant reminder to the others what , even with success , they still might become . Adolphe Menjou gives his usual vivid performance as an immoral producer , while Samuel S . Hinds is good as Hepburn's father . Film mavens will enjoy spotting several familiar faces in uncredited roles : Jack Carson as a Seattle lumberman ; Grady Sutton as a butcher's helper ; Frank Reicher as a stage director ; Franklin Pangborn , hilarious as a butler ; and Ralph Forbes in the role of Hepburn's stage spouse .
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437,247 | 306,861 | 20,932 | 10 |
Mr . Mouse Meets Kong's Little Brother
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A Walt Disney MICKEY MOUSE Cartoon . It's Mickey to the rescue when an escaped ape causes mayhem in poor Minnie's house . THE GORILLA MYSTERY is a very fine little black & white film , with plenty of chills and suspense . The frightful simian gives new emphasis to the intransitive verb ' slavering . ' Notice the particular care the animators took with Minnie's piano playing - every finger in exactly the right spot on the keyboard to produce the notes heard on the soundtrack ; it was tiny ( but perfect ) details like this which put the folks at Disney at the top of their professional tree . Walt Disney supplies Mickey with his trademark squeaky voice . Walt Disney ( 1901-1966 ) was always intrigued by pictures & drawings . As a lad in Marceline , Missouri , he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper ; later , as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War , he drew comic figures on the sides of his vehicle . Back in Kansas City , along with artist Ub Iwerks , Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters . Always the innovator , his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe . Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923 , where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor . When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor , the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination , ensuring Disney's immortality . The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut , STEAMBOAT WILLIE ( 1928 ) , a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music . The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared , and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color , illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development , an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable . Mickey's feisty , naughty behavior had captured millions of fans , but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions : temperamental Donald Duck , intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto . All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films . Against a blizzard of doomsayers , Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White , Pinocchio , Dumbo , Bambi & Peter Pan . Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse , or that childlike simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off .
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437,949 | 306,861 | 22,958 | 10 |
Check Into This Establishment
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A world-weary prima ballerina , desperate for love . A noble cat thief , desperate for money . A dying clerk , out on a last fling . His industrialist boss , passionate & brutal . A pretty young stenographer , willing to do almost anything to get ahead . A hotel bell captain , anxious to hear about his pregnant wife . And a cynical , war-scarred doctor . Destiny awaits them all in one of Europe's most renowned establishments - Berlin's GRAND HOTEL . This is considered to be the first ' all star ' movie . It was certainly MGM's most opulent film up to that time . The studio loaded it with an A List of star performers : Greta Garbo , uttering her trademark phrase , ' I want to be alone . ' Radiant in love , one can only imagine the despair that awaits her after the film ends . John Barrymore , suave , sophisticated & ultimately tragic . Lionel Barrymore , in a performance that will stay in your memory , slowly dying . Wallace Beery in a heavy role , all bullying bluff & bluster . Joan Crawford , tough as nails & good as gold . Lewis Stone , Jean Hersholt , Rafaela Ottiano & Ferdinand Gottschalk all lend sterling support . There was concern that putting so much talent into one film , instead of spreading the stars out over 4 or 5 films , would lose the studio money . Not to worry . It was a great success , financially & critically . Watch how the plot weaves the threads of the characters ' lives into a finished tapestry . One of the great movies . Tremendously satisfying .
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438,071 | 306,861 | 25,184 | 10 |
Disney Dallies With Greek Mythology
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A Walt Disney SILLY SYMPHONY Cartoon Short . Persephone , THE GODDESS OF SPRING , is kidnapped by Hades , the devilish god of the Underworld , leaving the earth in perpetual winter . Will the warmth & joy of Spring ever return ? A vivid , and somewhat bizarre , little film which retells the story from Greek Mythology , while incorporating both operatic & jazz traditions . The animators seem to have confused the character of Hades with that of the Biblical Satan . Years later , Walt would draw comparison between Persephone & Snow White , to illustrate how far his animators evolved in just three short years . The SILLY SYMPHONIES , which Walt Disney produced for a ten year period beginning in 1929 , are among the most fascinating of all animated series . Unlike the Mickey Mouse cartoons in which action was paramount , with the Symphonies the action was made to fit the music . There was little plot in the early Symphonies , which featured lively inanimate objects and anthropomorphic plants & animals , all moving frantically to the soundtrack . Gradually , however , the Symphonies became the school where Walt's animators learned to work with color and began to experiment with plot , characterization & photographic special effects . The pages of Fable & Fairy Tale , Myth & Mother Goose were all mined to provide story lines and even Hollywood's musicals & celebrities were effectively spoofed . It was from this rich soil that Disney's feature-length animation was to spring . In 1939 , with SNOW WHITE successfully behind him and PINOCCHIO & FANTASIA on the near horizon , Walt phased out the SILLY SYMPHONIES ; they had run their course & served their purpose .
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438,220 | 306,861 | 168,071 | 10 |
Some Magic Beans For Mr . Mouse
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A Walt Disney MICKEY MOUSE Cartoon . Three zany farmers - Mickey , Donald & Goofy - attempt to rescue the stolen Singing Harp from a temperamental giant . While it technically does not match the quality of their classic cartoons from the 1930's , MICKEY AND THE BEANSTALK is a most enjoyable two-reeler and provides the trio with one of their liveliest adventures . The sequence of the growing beanstalk up lifting & breaking apart the farmhouse is pure magic . Comic veteran Billy Gilbert provides the voice for Willie the Giant ; Clarence Nash does the honors for Donald . Disney has produced at least three versions of this cartoon . Originally it was the concluding half of FUN AND FANCY FREE ( 1947 ) and was narrated by the marvelous Edgar Bergen with assistance from Charlie McCarthy & Mortimer Snerd . There is also a version narrated by Paul Frees in the character of Professor Ludwig von Drake . Finally , there is a version of the cartoon narrated by Sterling Holloway . Walt Disney ( 1901-1966 ) was always intrigued by pictures & drawings . As a lad in Marceline , Missouri , he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper ; later , as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War , he drew comic figures on the sides of his vehicle . Back in Kansas City , along with artist Ub Iwerks , Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters . Always the innovator , his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe . Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923 , where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor . When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor , the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination , ensuring Disney's immortality . The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut , STEAMBOAT WILLIE ( 1928 ) , a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music . The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared , and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color , illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development , an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable . Mickey's feisty , naughty behavior had captured millions of fans , but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions : temperamental Donald Duck , intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto . All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films . Against a blizzard of doomsayers , Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White , Pinocchio , Dumbo , Bambi & Peter Pan . Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse , or that childlike simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off .
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437,909 | 306,861 | 25,185 | 10 |
Heading Out Of Town With Mr . Laurel & Mr . Hardy
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A LAUREL & HARDY Comedy Short . Stan & Ollie are GOING BYE-BYE ! Butch , a notoriously violent criminal has threatened them with great bodily harm for squealing on him . Wanting to get out of town fast , and not aware that Butch has escaped the police , the Boys arrange to travel with a shady lady to share expenses . Naturally , she turns out to be Butch's girlfriend and the hilarity begins when they all show up at her apartment . . . A very funny little film - the slapstick ' trunk sequence ' is wonderful . That's Mae Busch as the girlfriend and Walter Long as Butch .
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437,602 | 306,861 | 44,835 | 10 |
Memories Of A Little Stinger
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A Walt Disney DONALD DUCK Cartoon . An elderly bee reminisces about the life he once lead partnered with a certain Duck . . . LET'S STICK TOGETHER marked the seventh & final film appearance by Buzz-Buzz the Bee ( here called Spike ) in a Disney cartoon since 1948 - always as an antagonist to Donald . Like the Bootle Beetle before him , his popularity never seemed to really catch fire and he was forced into early retirement at a hive in Rancho Cucamonga , California . Clarence Nash provides Donald with his unique voice ; June Foray does the honors for Spike's frightful wife . Walt Disney ( 1901-1966 ) was always intrigued by pictures & drawings . As a lad in Marceline , Missouri , he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper ; later , as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War , he drew comic figures on the sides of his vehicle . Back in Kansas City , along with artist Ub Iwerks , Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters . Always the innovator , his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe . Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923 , where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor . When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor , the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination , ensuring Disney's immortality . The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut , STEAMBOAT WILLIE ( 1928 ) , a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music . The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared , and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color , illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development , an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable . Mickey's feisty , naughty behavior had captured millions of fans , but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions : temperamental Donald Duck , intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto . All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films . Against a blizzard of doomsayers , Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White , Pinocchio , Dumbo , Bambi & Peter Pan . Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse , or that childlike simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off .
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437,058 | 306,861 | 221,180 | 10 |
Satisfying Little Film
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An MGM Short Subject . General George Washington asks Betsy Ross in 1776 to design & create THE FLAG to be used by the American forces . MGM does a most commendable job with this little silent film , combining patriotism & romance . Matinee idol Francis X . Bushman has a properly noble bearing as Washington ( his career was about to go on the skids for inadvertently angering Louis B . Mayer ) . Enid Bennett shows enthusiasm in her role as Miss Ross . A subplot concerns Washington's judicious dealing with a young British couple ( Alice Calhoun & Johnnie Walker ) harboring in the Ross home . Notice the sensitive way in which the film handles the pregnancy of Miss Calhoun's character . The early Technicolor is very appealing to the eye , especially in the scene where Miss Ross points to the twilight heavens to explain her inspiration for the new flag . The film has been restored and given a splendid new score by Vivek Maddala . Often overlooked or neglected today , the one and two-reel short subjects were useful to the Studios as important training grounds for new or burgeoning talents , both in front & behind the camera . The dynamics for creating a successful short subject was completely different from that of a feature length film , something akin to writing a topnotch short story rather than a novel . Economical to produce in terms of both budget & schedule and capable of portraying a wide range of material , short subjects were the perfect complement to the Studios ' feature films .
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437,150 | 306,861 | 27,376 | 10 |
A Gypsy Adventure With Mr . Laurel & Mr . Hardy
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Two gentle eccentrics raise THE BOHEMIAN GIRL kidnapped by gypsies , unaware of her noble birth . In evaluating this film it is important to understand that it is very different from the result first planned by Hal Roach . The mysterious and scandalous death ( murder ? suicide ? accident ? ) of the leading lady late in 1935 caused extensive reshooting & reediting by the nervous Studio . Although Thelma Todd is still given third place billing , her participation has been slashed down to virtual insignificance . What a waste . This was the lovely & talented Miss Todd's final film , she was a credit to herprofession and she deserved better treatment . This probably also accounts for the abrupt cuts & scene transitions which plague the production . As a result , Felix Knight's obvious role as romantic lead was also truncated and he is left with but one short appearance , singing a melodic ballad . This is also a shame , as he was a fine young actor and he never received another good chance to become a successful movie star . The main attractions , Stan Laurel & Oliver Hardy , never falter . They are hilarious even when sitting and doing nothing . Playing puckish pickpockets , they get to involve themselves in a fair amount of physical activity , which gives the viewer another opportunity to marvel at Stan's inventiveness and Ollie's remarkable grace & dexterity . Stan's latest finger trick and his attempt to siphon a barrel of wine into bottles , along with Ollie divesting a foppish nobleman of every last valuable accouterment , stand out , but only as gems among treasures . Two of the great character actors from the Boys ' films of the past appear with them again . Formidable Mae Busch , making her final appearance with Stan & Ollie , plays Hardy's spectacularly unfaithful wife and suspicious little James Finalyson comes in at the end as an officious captain of the guard . OUR GANG cutie Darla Hood is darling indeed as the purloined infant . She grows up to become pretty Jacqueline Wells ( an obvious replacement for Miss Todd ) . Former matinée idol Antonio Moreno plays Miss Busch's paramour , while elderly English actress Zeffie Tilbury brings life to the small part of the Gypsy Queen . Irish prodigy Michael William Balfe ( 1808-1870 ) composed the 1843 operetta upon which the film is based . Many of the words of the songs , especially when performed by the Gypsy Chorus , are unintelligible . However , it is good to hear the wonderful old solo ballads " When Other Lips " & " I Dreamt That I Dwelt In Marble Halls " beautifully sung .
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438,161 | 306,861 | 44,841 | 10 |
Disney Version Of Classic Children's Book
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THE LITTLE HOUSE sits on a little hill , way out in the country . Even though filled with a loving family , she can't help but notice the relentless approach of the big city coming ever closer to her . . . This cartoon is a charming adaptation of Virginia Lee Burton's 1942 Caldecott Medal winner . For the few minutes of its duration , the viewer feels deep interest in , and sympathy for , the little house - a tribute to the skill of the Disney artists in giving life to an inanimate object . The film benefits greatly from the expressive narration of Sterling Holloway .
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437,135 | 306,861 | 36,179 | 10 |
Mightier Than A Roaring Hurricane
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A SUPERMAN Cartoon . ' He who disturbs the eternal peace of King Tush shall perish ! ' This ancient Egyptian curse comes true when THE MUMMY STRIKES , trapping Lois Lane & Clark Kent in a museum with Tush's reanimated giant guards . . . This was another in the series of excellent cartoons initially created by Max Fleischer for Paramount Studio . They feature great animation and taut , fast-moving plots . Meant to be shown in movie theaters , they are miles ahead of their Saturday Morning counterparts . Bud Collyer is the voice of Superman ; Joan Alexander does the honors for Lois Lane .
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437,022 | 306,861 | 25,200 | 10 |
Disney Borrows From Aesop
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A Walt Disney SILLY SYMPHONY Cartoon Short . Winter is coming , but the GRASSHOPPER AND THE ANTS have very different ways of preparing for it . While the ants are diligently storing food , the Grasshopper is only dancing around & playing his fiddle . When the snows come , perhaps he'll play a different tune . . . Aesop's Fables provided the source for this very enjoyable cartoon . The intricate labors of the ants give lots of interest for the eye . ' Oh , The World Owes Us A Living ' , the Grasshopper's song , would eventually become , with a slight revision , the theme for Goofy ; Pinto Colvig voiced both characters . The SILLY SYMPHONIES , which Walt Disney produced for a ten year period beginning in 1929 , are among the most fascinating of all animated series . Unlike the Mickey Mouse cartoons in which action was paramount , with the Symphonies the action was made to fit the music . There was little plot in the early Symphonies , which featured lively inanimate objects and anthropomorphic plants & animals , all moving frantically to the soundtrack . Gradually , however , the Symphonies became the school where Walt's animators learned to work with color and began to experiment with plot , characterization & photographic special effects . The pages of Fable & Fairy Tale , Myth & Mother Goose were all mined to provide story lines and even Hollywood's musicals & celebrities were effectively spoofed . It was from this rich soil that Disney's feature-length animation was to spring . In 1939 , with SNOW WHITE successfully behind him and PINOCCHIO & FANTASIA on the near horizon , Walt phased out the SILLY SYMPHONIES ; they had run their course & served their purpose .
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437,100 | 306,861 | 22,971 | 10 |
Mister Tracy & Miss Velez Paint The Town Red
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A carnival barker crashes onto Broadway , hoping to keep THE HALF NAKED TRUTH secret that both he and his ? Turkish princess ' are as phony as a three dollar bill . . . RKO Studios produced this highly amusing , but rarely seen , comedy with flair , exuberance , and first-rate performances . Broadway is given a few lighthearted kicks in the shin by its cinematic cousin and a good time is had by all . In the kind of role he could almost play in his sleep , Lee Tracy plays an over-the-top promoter who engages in wild escapades to get his ladies noticed by the press & public . He is conniving , untruthful & underhanded ; he is also wonderfully funny . Tracy was the master at playing the anti-hero , the unromantic lover , the average-looking guy with the extra moxie it takes to get on top . Had his career not come crashing down around him due to a drunken indiscretion while filming in Mexico for MGM , he would probably today be remembered as one of Hollywood's top stars . As it is , he's lucky to be remembered at all . Lupe Velez is a terrific foil for Tracy . The Tamale , as he calls her , is pungent , peppery & red hot . As a temperamental hootchy-kootchy dancer who makes it from a carny midway to the Great White Way , she is perfectly cast in what remains one of her best roles . It is sad , however , watching this lively lady , to remember that she would die despondent & alone in 1944 , a suicide at 36 . Three top film comics help enliven the proceedings : gravely-voiced Eugene Pallette , who as Tracy's sidekick must impersonate eunuchs & nudists to further the scam ; unctuous Franklin Pangborn as an officious hotel clerk ; and blustery Frank Morgan as an imperious theatrical impresario who finds himself the target of Tracy's wild schemes . Movie mavens will recognize celebrated movie composer Max Steiner appearing unbilled as the orchestra leader during Lupe's Broadway rendition of ? Hey , Mr . Carpenter . '
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