Dorothy's Getting Married

Louanne (Dorothy Mackaill) has finally hit the big time, only it's not the Bright Lights (1930) of Broadway. She's landed herself a rich husband - Emerson Fairchild (Philip Strange), the son in a wealthy - and scandalized - family. Louanne is leaving her longtime partner  Wally Dean (Frank Fay) behind, and he is supportive of her move. But things get difficult when Miguel Parada (Noah Beery) arrives. He tried to rape Louanne years before, and he is planning to try again.

Bright Lights is a film that really doesn't know what it wants to be - it has romance, mystery, nudity (in silhouette), rape, violence, murder, AND music! Interspersed throughout the film are musical number, most of them repetitive. There is, however, a unique musical interlude - a VERY strange song celebrating cannibalism. In spite of all of this, it's a short film - only 69 minutes (thank heaven!).

Dorothy Mackaill is wasted in this movie. She is so much better than the film. While she was part of the original casting, she was eventually elevated to star billing, with Frank Fay downgraded to co-star billing (AFI catalog). She does get to sing (she has a pleasant, throaty voice) and dance (in that rather all-legs style of the early 30s), but her plot-line is slim. She's trying to keep her fiance from running off, while still hinting to the audience that she has feelings for her co-star. She more or less succeeds, but I think the viewer would have wondered why she was wasting her time with either of them. (The film is briefly touched on in this New York Times article on Dorothy Mackaill's films).

Much of our discussion focused on Frank Fay. A highly-paid personality on the New York stage, Fay was lured to Hollywood with a tidy contract. It quickly became apparent that whatever talent he had did not translate to the screen. It also didn't help that he was a fairly despicable man - a racist who made his antisemitism well known. An oft-repeated story involves an altercation with Milton Berle. Fay was on stage at the Palace, and Mr. Berle was watching from the wings. When Fay shouted an ethnic slur in Berle's direction, Mr. Berle hit him with a stage brace. Sympathy was on Mr. Berle's side (The Comedians: Drunks, Thieves, Scoundrels, and the History of American Comedy by Kliph Nesteroff). But Mr. Fay had one ace - he was married to the up-and-coming Barbara Stanwyck, who was highly regarded and loved by all who worked with her. As Ms. Stanwyck's star rose, however, Fay's plummeted (It's been suggested that their marriage was the basis for A Star is Born (A Life of Barbara Stanwyck: Steel True 1907-1940 by Victoria Wilson)). Mr. Fay drank more heavily, became abusive to his wife, who finally left him when he threatened their child. He made a few movies in the 1940s, but his film career was essentially over. He would return to Broadway in 1944, when he starred as Elwood P. Dowd in the Broadway premiere of Harvey. (The film role would, of course, go to James Stewart. This January 8, 1945 issue of Life magazine featured an article about Fay's life.) But Harvey was pretty much the end for him. He died in 1961.

One reason to watch this film is to see a sound film featuring Noah Beery, Sr. The father of Noah Beery, Jr. (of The Rockford Files fame) and brother of Wallace Beery, Noah, Sr. had an extensive silent film career. He began his career in vaudeville. By 1915, when he ventured out to Hollywood, he had already appeared in one short; he proceeded to appear in over 200 films primarily in character parts. He was the original Sgt. Gonzalez in the 1920 The Mark of Zorro and Tabywana in Cecil B. DeMille's The Squaw Man (1918). When his son began a film career, Mr. Beery billed himself as Noah Beery, Sr. He was visiting his brother (for Wallace's birthday) in 1946 when he suffered a fatal heart attack - the brothers were planning a Lux Radio Theater broadcast of "Barnacle Bill" in which they would have appeared together.  You can hear a rehearsal tape here. 

Frank McHugh also appears as the newspaper reporter, Fish. The character is, for the most part, annoying, but his part is pivotal to the action. Also appearing in a bit part (as a photographer) is John Carradine. He's unbilled, so you have to look hard to see him.

A later of the release of the film would re-title it Adventure in Africa (probably because of the short incident with Parada. The new title makes absolutely no sense). It's a pretty awful movie (as was noted by my colleague at Pre-code.com in his review). There are just too many musical numbers and not enough a story. However, for a look at Noah Beery, Sr. and Frank Fay, this might be worth an hour of your time (you can always fast forward through the numbers).  We'll leave you with this clip from the film.

Dorothy Marries a Steel Boss

When steel magnate Arthur Parker (Robert McWade) brings his steel boss to his home for dinner, his wife, Henrietta (Florence Roberts) is insulted, and his daugher, Dorothea (Dorothy Mackaill) is amused; both expect an unkempt worker who will slurp his soup. But Dot is rapidly converted when she meets Richard Brunton (Joel McCrea); she almost immediately decides to marry him. But there is a problem; Dick is poor and is decidedly opposed to Kept Husbands (1931).

This is not a great movie, but it has some nice moments, thanks to its strong cast. Dorothy Mackaill does a good job of portraying a selfish, greedy brat of a girl, who is more interested in her own satisfaction than in the needs of anyone else, including her husband. There are times that it is hard to believe that Dot truly loves Dick, though Ms. Mackaill makes it quite clear that Dot is definitely in lust for the hunky steel boss. She plays Dot as thoroughly spoiled, and quite used to getting her own way by any means possible. Watching Ms. Mackaill summon up phony tears to play on Mr. McCrea's emotions is a pleasure; her delivery is perfect. Also amusing is the wedding night scene (remember, this is a pre-code film!)

Joel McCrea is excellent as Dick. He's a man with ambitions, who knows that wealth comes from being productive, and he is willing to pay his dues to reach the top. He genuinely loves Dot, but is thrown by the contradictions of this woman who claims to love him, but is unwilling to let him be anything but her lapdog. It's interesting that Dot falls in love with a man much like her father (who states that he is "the only one in this family that works") but then tries to change that husband into a layabout. When the final confrontation happens, you want him to stand his ground. We favorably compared Dick to Gene Raymond's character in The Bride Walks Out - Dot's wealth is not the sticking point. It is her insistence that he abrogate his career and dreams, and become a parasite on her and her father that is the issue. (We would argue with this TCM article that the film is less about taking down the heiress than showing that hard work is important, whether you are wealthy or not).

There are several noteworthy supporting actors in this film. Ned Sparks as Hughie is amusing at times, but after a while becomes an annoyance.  We liked Mary Carr as Dick's mother, Mrs. Brunton. She's sweet (though by the end, she is a bit too oblivious to what is going on with her son and daughter-in-law). Ms. Carr had a lengthy career during the silent era (unfortunately, many of those films are currently lost). She worked from the beginning of sound (1928) through 1956 (when she played a Quaker woman in Friendly Persuasion). Five of her children with silent film director William Carr went on to show business careers (son Thomas was a prolific film and television director). When Ms. Carr found herself nearly destitute after silent films ended, her friends in the film industry found her jobs. She died at the age of 99, in 1973.

Clara Kimball Young  (Mrs. Lucille Post) returned to film after a six-year absence with this, her first talkie (AFI catalog). She had her own company during the silent era (Women Film Pioneers Project), though there was involvement on the part of her husband, James Young, and her lovers Lewis J. Selznick and Harrry A. Garson (her eventual ex-husband would attack Mr. Garson with a knife in 1917). After this film, she primarily appeared in westerns, and in 1956, she was a correspondent for the Johnny Carson's first television show. She died in 1960, at the age of 70.

In the end, we did enjoy this film. It's not the best film that either Joel McCrea or Dorothy Mackaill ever made, but it's interesting - with the caveat that you may want to throttle Dot or her mother at various points in your viewing. At 70 minutes, it's worth a look if you are interested in pre-code films or in seeing silent stars like Clara Kimball Young and Mary Carr. (By the way, it lapsed into the Public Domain and is available for viewing on the Internet Archive).

Dorothy Flirts

Celia Faraday (Dorothy Mackaill) has had it.  She's 26 and unmarried, and her younger sister Evelyn (Leila Hyams) is trying to set her up with a marriage to the idiotic Raleigh Raleigh (William Austin).  It seems their father Sir William Farady (Claude Gillingwater) will not permit Evelyn to marry until Celia is safely in wedded bliss.  Celia had already been forced to be the green stocking when her other younger sister married, and Sir William will not see it happen again - it's too embarrassing (for him).  Celia, on the other hand, could care less; she's not all that interested in marriage and doesn't care if her sisters want to have husbands.  So, she makes up a fiance who's been shipped to India.  But, when her sister steals and mails one of Celia's fake letters to her "beloved" Colonel John "Wabbles" Smith, the letter is delivered to the very puzzled Colonel John S. Smith (Basil Rathbone) in India, who determines to meet his unknown "lover". Thus begins The Flirting Widow (1930)

The beauty of this slight little film is the interplay between Basil Rathbone and Dorothy Mackaill.  Until he arrives at her doorstep, the film is rather banal, but once they begin to interact, the chemistry is palpable.  As always, Dorothy Mackaill is wonderful in the film; the addition of Rathbone gives her someone whom she can really bounce off.  Added to that, he is quite dashing and amusing as the bemused fiance of a woman he's never actually met. 

For a precode film, this one is rather tame.  My colleague at Pre-code.com points out a scene in which a watch gets dropped down Celia's front (with the very interested Colonel Smith watching her retrieve it. You can see a photo of the scene on his website, above).  There is also the character of Raleigh Raleigh - though not stated outright, the film hints that he is gay.  Aunt Ida's drunk scene also might give later censors a bit of a shudder (this is, after all, still the era of prohibition. Sure, it's set in England, but when would that stop a censor?)  But by and large, this is a subdued precode film, which just skirts around the borders of naughtiness.
We did find the character of Celia to be very interesting.  She has an almost masculine way about her when we first meet her - a severe slicked back hairstyle, a tie and sweater;  but later, once she's not being harassed to marry, her clothing and hair are soft and more traditionally feminine.  Much like the film Devotion, which we earlier discussed (and would be released the following year), this is a woman who is rather abused by a family that considers her to be more of a servant than a daughter or sister.  But Celia is released from her servitude by her declaration of an engagement.  Only as the appendage of  a man (even a fictitious one) is she permitted the independence she craves. 


In their review of the film, the New York Times also commented on the slight nature of the film.  However, they too agreed that the chemistry between Rathbone and Mackaill was outstanding.  Though not an earthshattering film, it's a pleasant enough way to spend 72 minutes, if only to see Dorothy Mackaill with an actor who is her equal.

 

Dorothy's in Hell

Gilda Karlson (Dorothy Mackaill) has hit rock bottom.  In order to survive after losing her job, she sees no other options but to work as a prostitute.  She has basically accepted her fate; but when she arrives at an appointment and finds the client is Piet Van Saal (Ralf Harolde), the man who raped her, fired her from her job in his company, and then prevented her from finding another job, resignation flies out the window.  She informs him that he is the only man on earth to whom she is off-limits; when he tries to again molest her, she hits him with a vase, and runs.  The room catches fire, apparently killing Piet.  With Gilda now on the lam for the murder of Piet, she is taken by her seaman boyfriend, Carl Erickson (Donald Cook) to a Caribbean island where she cannot be extradited.  Though initially devastated by the revelation that Gilda is a hooker, Carl (who has just returned from sea duty to see her) still wants to marry her, but he asks her to promise to remain true to him while he finishes out his service on his current trip - a promise easier said than done on this island where women are at a premium.  Gilda quickly discovers that she is Safe in Hell (1931).

Without giving away the ending, this is not the happiest movie on the planet.  Gilda's life IS hell, and life on this little island doesn't make it any better.  For the most part, the members of my review panel did not enjoy the film, though I myself do like it.  It's a tough movie, but the performance of Dorothy Mackaill makes it a standout for me.  Gilda doesn't always make the best choices, but her strength and determination make her a character worth watching.

The part of the script that my group found most difficult to accept was Carl's decision to bring her to this abysmal environment.  First, she has to endure three days in a box in the hold of a ship, then she ends up on an island full of very nasty men.  Yes, the island has no extradition treaty with the U.S., but since Carl plans on bringing her home once the furor dies down, one would think he could find a safer place to stash her.  This is, after all, not the age of the Internet - drop her in a big city somewhere, give her money to live, change her name and appearance a bit, and she can get lost for a good long time. Is Carl (as suggested by my colleague at Pre-code.com) punishing her for her actions or protecting her?  Given the outcome of the film, it's hard to determine what his motivation could be.  

Perhaps what makes this film a film worth watching (besides Ms. Mackaill's exemplary performance) are the portrayals of Leonie (Nina Mae McKinney) and Newcastle (Clarence Muse), the only really good people in the film.  This is notable because both Mr. Muse and Ms. McKinney are black.  But, we are not treated to servile idiots.  Both Leonie and Newcastle are intelligent and well-spoken.  (This TCM article comments that the original script had the character doing the usual southern black dialect, but it seems director William Wellman changed it).  Leonie and Newcastle work in this horrid environment, but they have not absorbed it.  Their affection for Gilda is evident, as is hers for them. Ms. McKinney, who has a lovely singing voice, gets to do one song, the clip below features just that part of her sensitive performance:
Safe in Hell is reminiscent of  several other precode films:  Suzy, The Unholy Garden, and Mandalay all spring to mind - featuring a woman on the run and some very disreputable men.  In fact, a New York Times review from 1931 (by critic Mordaunt Hall) specifically comments on the similarity to The Unholy Garden, and Mr. Hall was not keen on this film.  But, what is equally interesting is this 2012 New York Times article on Ms.Mackaill, which presents a glowing discussion of Safe in Hell.  Obviously, nearly 80 years makes a big different in attitudes.

It's a shame that Dorothy Mackaill had such a brief career.  She started in silent films (she had two Broadway appearances around the same time - appearing in one of Florenz Ziegfeld shows in 1921).  She was a WAMPAS Baby Star in 1924, and apparently made the transition to sound smoothly - in 1931, she appeared in 6 films. But by 1934, her star was starting to wain.  She made two pictures that year, and then nothing until 1937 (last week's Bulldog Drummond at Bay). With that, she retired to care for her mother.  In 1947, she married Harold Patterson, an orchid grower in Hawaii (they divorced the following year).  She made Hawaii her home, living at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel (sometimes called "The Pink Palace") for the rest of her life.  In the 1970s, she appeared in two episodes of Hawaii Five-O - it was after all, filmed in her home town!  When she died, her ashes were scattered off her beloved Waikiki Beach.  She was 87 (Here is her obituary from the LA Times).

According to this articles from AFI, a number of different people were considered for this film, including Barbara Stanwyck and Lillian Bond as Gilda, David Manners as Carl, and Boris Karloff, with Michael Curtiz originally slated to direct.  This would have been the time period in which Ten Cents a Dance and Night Nurse were released, so perhaps it was better for Stanwyck not to have been given the role of yet another woman with an "image problem."

We'll close with Dorothy's arrival in hell.  I'd also like to recommend reviews from two of my fellow bloggers at Immortal Ephemera and Pre-code.com. Both have spoilers, but are excellent analyses of this difficult film.  Next time, we'll discuss a comedy with another of our favorite actresses, Olivia de Havilland.

Dorothy is Devious

We follow one of our favorite actors with a favorite actress, the lovely Dorothy Mackaill in Bulldog Drummond at Bay (1937).  Ms. Mackaill plays Doris Thompson, a rather shady young lady who seems to be menacing the hero of the piece, Hugh "Bulldog" Drummond, this time played by John Lodge.  When a vacationing Drummond sees two men loading a dead body into a car trunk, he becomes enmeshed in a plot which includes stolen jewels, a mysterious lady, and intrigue.

In a sense, the plot of this Bulldog Drummond adventure seems very reminiscent of the one we watched last week.   However, our reactions to the films were very different.  Where the 1929 film crackled, this one rather drones along.  Part of the problem - in fact, the biggest part - is that John Lodge is no Ronald Colman.  He's quite handsome, and he is an okay actor, but he just doesn't have any spark.  Quite frankly, Dorothy Mackaill steals the film right from under him.  It really should have been entitled Doris Thompson NOT at Bay. (This, by the way, was Ms. Mackaill's final film).  Though the title of this film was reused in 1947 (with Ron Randall in the title role),  the plots seem to be quite different.

John Lodge did not have a long film career.  Discovered by a talent scout while in California visiting his wife (who was dubbing a Greta Garbo film into Italian), between 1933 and 1940, he appeared in 21 films, the most notable being Little Women (1933), as Laurie's tutor, John; The Little Colonel (1935) in which he played Shirley Temple's Confederate officer father; and The Scarlet Empress (1934), as Marlene Dietrich's lover.  He journeyed to France for his last film, Max Ophuls' Sarajevo, then went to New York to appear on Broadway in Night of Love and Watch on the Rhine.  But, by 1943, he was in the Navy, where he achieved the rank of Lieutenant Commander and was decorated with the rank of Chevalier in the French Legion of Honor and with the Croix de Guerre with Palm.  When he returned to civilian life, he and his wife settled in Westport, Connecticut, where Mr. Lodge took up the family business - the grandson of Senator Henry Cabot Lodge, he ran for a seat in the U.S. Congress and won.  He later would serve as governor of Connecticut, and eventually would become ambassador to Spain, Argentina, and Switzerland.  (His wife, Francesca,was a founding member of the American Shakespeare Festival in Stratford, Connecticut.)  He died in 1985, at the age of 82, survived by his two daughters and his wife of 53 year.  The Connecticut Turnpike was named in his honor after his death.

Victor Jory (Gregoroff) is. not surprisingly, the villain of the piece.  Jory spent most of his career playing the baddie - Jonas Wilkerson in Gone with the Wind (1939),  Injun Joe in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Yancey in Dodge City, (1939) are just a few of his films, but it was a substantial career.  Mr. Jory began working at the beginning of sound - his first film was in 1930 - and continued working in film, television, radio until 1980, two years before his death.  With a remarkable, unique speaking voice, he was a natural to take up animated films, and in fact his recording of Tubby the Tuba (he served as the narrator to the song, which was designed to introduce children to the parts of an orchestra) was nominated for an Oscar for Best Animated Short Subject in 1947, and was inducted into the National Recording Registry in 2005.  In the 1940s, he moved to New York, where he appeared in 8 Broadway plays. In his later years, he segued easily into television, becoming a staple (usually as the villain) on many television series (including I Spy, Bonanza, and Burke's Law, to touch the tip of the iceberg).  His own series, Manhunt, was on for two years.  Married for 50 years to his wife, Jean,  he was 80 when he died of a heart attack.  This obituary in the Los Angeles Times will give you a fuller picture of his impressive career. 

We'll leave you with this scene of the arrival of Dorothy Mackaill to the Drummond hide-away.  Next week, we'll return with another of her films.

"Manuella" Loy

This week's film is a little-known Myrna Loy film from 1929 - The Great Divide, in which she plays Manuella, the maid of Steven Ghent (Ian Keith).  Yes, Ms. Loy is a Mexican (with appropriately darkened skin), and she is supposed to be VERY young (I believe 16), but she is quite enamored of Steve. He, however, sees her as a child, and laughs off her advances.  Then, he meets Ruth Jordan {Dorothy Mackaill) and falls head-over-heels.  Only problem is, she is not interested in him. Since she is a brat, and the daughter of a good friend (who is dead), he decides to teach her some manners, so he kidnaps her, and brings her to his hacienda.  Where, of course, she meets our little Manuella.  And here is Manuella BEFORE Ruth arrives, trying her best to seduce Steve:


Given that this film was made in 1929, there is a certain static-ness to the proceedings, and Keith is a bit stiff, but Loy and Mackaill (who we all like very much.  See our blog post about Love Affair) are lots of fun, especially when sniping at one another.  

This isn't a great movie, but getting to see Loy in her exotic period is a enjoyable. When you think that this is the future Nora Charles and Milly Stephenson, one is even more impressed by her fabulous range as an actress.

Precode Bogart

This week, we examined another precode movie, notable for being an early effort of Humphrey Bogart.  The film is Love Affair (from 1932 - not be be confused with the 1939 film of the same name with Irene Dunne, which inspired An Affair to Remember) and Bogart plays James Leonard, a brilliant aeronautical engineer who becomes involved with an impoverished heiress. Carol Owen (Dorothy Mackaill) is a party girl, with a love for thrills (and no one else) til she meets Jim at the air field, where she has gone to be wowed in an airplane.  He manages to knock the stuffing out of her (by doing loop-d-loops with his plane) and she returns the favor by driving him to the City (at 80 miles per hour!)  It doesn't take long before Jim has spent the night with Carol (this is a precode, after all), and before Carol discovers that the little money she has is gone, and she will end up being a detriment to Jim's efforts to develop an airplane motor company with his revolutionary new motor design.

Dorothy Mackaill was nearing the end of her career when she filmed Love Affair.  Within two years, she left pictures for good (after seeing her rather substantial career peter out to supporting roles and then none at all).  Sad really, as she was quite talented.  We were very impressed by the scene in which she is flying with Jim - the look on her face is priceless.  Also wonderful was the scene in which we realize she has been intimate with Jim.  Her tears as she brushes her hair before she goes out to join her lover are very special. We see in her eyes all her emotions - her fears, her anticipation, her deep and abiding love.

This film is also noteworthy as an early attempt to introduce Bogart as a leading man.  Columbia obviously decided he did not fit the bill (their loss. He is wonderful in this film) and Bogart would leave to play gangsters and finally, the ultimate leading man at Warner Brothers.  Here is a scene with Bogart looking all ruggedly handsome:


Luckily, this film is available on DVD (though we caught it on Antenna TV; you could look for it there as well).  It is certainly worth your time.