Lucy's in the Corner

Bradford Galt (Mark Stevens), recently relocated from San Francisco to New York City, has opened a private detective agency with Kathleen Stuart (Lucille Ball) working as his secretary. He is visited by Lt. Frank Reeves (Reed Hadley) and warned to keep out of trouble. But trouble is following Brad; he's being shadowed by Stouffer (William Bendix), an unpleasant character who it appears has been hired by Anthony Jardine (Kurt Kreuger).  Jardine is a disreputable man who likes to use people and then blackmail them. Welcome to the world of The Dark Corner (1946)

If you've only seen Lucille Ball play the daffy Lucy Ricardo, you are in for a treat.  Kathleen, as portrayed by Ms. Ball is one smart cookie - smarter, in fact, than her boss, the private eye. She's also a lot calmer under pressure; she is witty and determined. Reviews quoted in Loving Lucy: An Illustrated Tribute to Lucille Ball by Bart Andrews and Thomas J. Watson attest to the fact that her efforts here were not wasted: Variety called her performance "tops" and the Los Angeles Examiner said that "given half a chance [she] demonstrates a quality of work that is all too rare in pictures."  High praise indeed! She almost didn't get the part, though. Ida Lupino was originally cast, but scheduling conflicts kept her from appearing. (AFI Catalog) Sadly, the film was not a happy experience for Ms. Ball (TCM article); she did not get along with director Henry Hathaway, who bullied her terribly. 

 

Clifton Webb (Hardy Cathcart) seems to have been given the Waldo Lydecker part from Laura. Like Waldo, Cathcart is ascerbic, opinionated, and obsessed with beauty. Here, it takes the form of his wife, Mari (Cathy Downs), who, quite frankly doesn't appear to have two brain cells to rub together. She's no match for Mr. Webb, who dominates the scenes they are in (he should, really). But her acting is just not there, and she fades quickly into the background of the film, when compared to the talents of Mr. Webb and Ms. Ball.

Mark Stevens was also a second choice for the role of Brad - Fred MacMurray was suggested initially. It is interesting that Mr. Stevens gets fourth billing in the credits (as seen above), because it IS the lead role. He is decent as Brad, but he has the same problem as Ms. Downs - it's hard to shine when you are working with performers like Ms. Ball, Mr. Webb, and William Bendix. His skills as an actor are not as great as theirs, and as a result, he isn't particularly memorable. He proved to be a reliable actor, with a career that spanned radio, film, and television (He also played Olivia de Havilland's husband in The Snake Pit).

William Bendix is decidedly creepy as Stouffer (or White Suit, as Brad un-affectionately calls him). He's a sweaty mess of a man, with no scruples and a vicious streak a mile-wide. His presence in the film, and his exit from it are both memorable. He provides an excellent foil to the equally evil but far more intelligent Cathcart. Mr. Bendix began his film career in 1942, primarily playing supporting parts such as Gus in Lifeboat (1944). By the 1950s, he had starting moving to television, where he was best known as the title character in The Life of Riley. Mr. Bendix was married for 37; he died in 1964 of pneumonia, having appeared in over 90 films and television episodes/shows.

A highly regarded film noir (see these articles in Slant and in Noir of the Week for contemporary discussions of the film), The Dark Corner was based on a story that appeared in Good Housekeeping magazine by Leo Rosten (he also wrote Captain Newman, M.D.) Ms. Ball and Mr. Stevens would reprise their roles in a Lux Radio Theatre production in November 1947.  Screen Guild Players also produced a version starring Howard Duff and Claire Trevor in May 1952.

This is a really good film, and worth a viewing. Here's a trailer to whet your appetite:

Olivia Enters the Asylum

As we near the end of our Olivia de Havilland Festival, we have saved the best for next to the last (we have one more to go after this one). It's The Snake Pit - Olivia's Academy Award nominated performance as the tortured Virginia Stuart Cunningham, whose mental collapse lands her in a mental institution.  This is truly a tour-d-force performance.  What Ms. de Havilland does with a brief glance, other actors could not do with their entire bag of tricks.  Watch her reactions change from ignorance to disbelief to suspicion to anger in the briefest second - it is truly magnificent.  That Ms. de Havilland did not win the Oscar for 1948 is due perhaps to the fact that her competition was fierce - she lost to Jane Wyman in Johnny Belinda.  

This film is full of wonderful performances, and features some of the premiere actresses of the day.  Let's start with Celeste Holm and Betsy Blair as Grace and Hester, the bookends to Virginia's confinement.  Holm's Grace cares for Virginia as she begins her confinement; as Virginia heals, she becomes mentor to the disturbed Hester (Blair).  Other patients in the hospital are portrayed by Beulah Bondi, Ruth Donnelly, Lee Patrick, and Isabel Jewell. Though their parts are small, each adds to the atmosphere of the hospital in their own unique way. Another interesting performance is that of Natalie Schafer as Virginia's mother, certainly high on the list of dysfunctional parents!

On the distaff side, we have Leo Genn as Dr. Kik, Virginia's psychiatrist, Mark Stevens as her husband Robert, and Leif Erickson as her one-time boyfriend, Gordon.  The men however, merely serve as window-dressing.  It is the women who rule this picture. It is their performances you will remember.

Here, we see a trailer from the film:

Next time, our final Olivia picture.