Cary and Myrna House Hunt

Jim (Cary Grant) and Muriel Blandings (Myrna Loy) are a happily married couple living in a three bedroom apartment with their two daughters, Joan (Sharyn Moffett) and Betsy (Connie Marshall), and their maid, Gussie (Louise Beavers). Jim is a successful ad man, making a nice salary, and while he loves his family, he yearns for a home with more room. When he stumbles upon an ad for a farmhouse in Connecticut, Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House (1948).

If you’ve ever bought a house, redesigned your abode, or even picked out paint samples, this film is for you. The combination of Cary Grant, Myrna Loy, and Melvyn Douglas (Bill Cole) is a trio not to be missed. Add in a truly wonderfully supporting cast, and you have a VERY funny movie, which even today rings so true.

Cary Grant is delightful as a family man who is feeling the physical constraints of his crowded New York City apartment. It's very clear that the Blandings are well-off by contemporary standards. Jim makes a good salary, but there are limits, and Mr. Grant effectively pulls off the frustration of a man who is sinking his salary into a construction project that feels like a money pit. Some aspects of home buying have (thankfully) changed - no one today would dream of buying a home without a professional building inspection - but Jim's limitations as a home buyer add significantly to the humor in the film. Cary Grant and Myrna Loy did three films together (the other two are Wings in the Dark (1937) and The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer (1947)); this would be their final film together (TCM article).

Myrna Loy has long proved her talent for comedy, and her fine touch is demonstrated perfectly here. Her rapport with Mr. Grant is wonderful - an early scene, in which he brings her an early morning cup on coffee is a sweet comment on the intimacy of their marriage. As Jim hands her the cup, he lightly strokes the top of her head; she sleepily smiles. Later, as they try to perform their morning ablutions in their tiny bathroom, Jim gently pushes her head down so he can adjust the mirror on the medicine cabinet. It's those little touches that make this very much the story of a marriage. As Jeanine Basinger says, Ms. Loy "always remained relaxed, natural...There was an honesty to her, and a subtext that put her quietly in charge of everything." (I Do and I Don't: A History of Marriage in the Movies). One of my favorite scenes in the film is her selection of paint for the house. Think about the plethora of paint chips in the local paint store today!

The last member of the trio is the realist in their midst - Jim's best friend and lawyer, Bill Cole - who, it turns out, was also one of Muriel's beaux in college. Melvyn Douglas is wry (if somewhat frustrated) by Jim's impetuosity, and the contrast is wonderful. Their regard for one another is clear - even when Jim shows moments of jealousy, the audience knows it can't possibly last. Mr. Douglas had already appeared with Ms. Loy in Third Finger, Left Hand (1940), however they were close friends due to their mutual interest in liberal politics (TCM article).

Louise Beavers is terrific as Gussie, the one calm, practical member of the family. When all else is falling apart, Gussie keeps the home humming.  Though her acting career was spent playing maids, she always brought warmth and dignity to the parts. She's best remembered today for films like Imitation of Life (1934), She Done Him Wrong (1933), and The Jackie Robinson Story (1950), and was one of three actresses to portray Beulah on television - the first television series to star an African-American actress.  In her private life, she served as a board member for the Screen Actors' Guild (Hollywood Black: The Stars, The Films, The Filmakers by Donald Bogle). Her career is discussed in depth in African American Actresses: The Struggle for Visibility, 1900-1960 by Charlene Regester. Ms. Beavers died of a heart attack in 1962, at the age of 60.

The Blandings daughters are ably portrayed by Sharyn Moffett and Connie Marshall. Both girls stopped acting as they approached adulthood; Ms. Marshall died of cancer in 2001. Ms. Moffett and her husband are clergy in the Episcopal Church in Pennsylvania.

Other notable appearances in the film include Reginald Denny as Mr. Simms, the unflappable architect who keeps the Blandings house going; Ian Wolfe has one short scene as realtor Smith - a conniver if ever there was one. Lex Barker is a carpentry foreman in another brief speaking part. Jason Robards, Sr appears as John Retch, the contractor.  But two actors stand out - Lurene Tuttle as Mary, Jim's loyal secretary (watch her as she waits for him to come up with an appropriate ad campaign for Wham!), and especially Harry Shannon as Mr. Tesander, who spends most of the movie looking for water. This exchange between Mr. Shannon and Mr. Grant and Mr. Douglas is priceless:

JIM: Water, Mr. Tesander. TESANDER: Yep. JIM: At six feet! TESANDER: Yep. JIM: And over there, just thirty-two yards away, you had to go down two hundred and twenty-seven feet to hit the same water. TESANDER: Yep. JIM: How do you account for that, Mr. Tesander? TESANDER: We-ll, way it seems to me, Mr. Blandings, over here the water's down around six feet and over there it's-- uh --  BILL AND TESANDER: down around two hundred and twenty-seven feet. (script).

The film was based on a book by Eric Hodkins and is a novelized account of a true story.  Bosley Crowther's New York Times review was generally positive. 

The story spawned an October 1949 Lux Radio Theatre production which starred Irene Dunne and Cary Grant, as well as a Screen Director's Playhouse production with Betsy Drake and Cary Grant in  June of 1950 (AFI catalog). Mr. Grant and Ms. Drake also were the stars of the Mr. and Mrs Blandings radio show in 1951.

New Yorkers all, we loved the introductory scenes of New York City, circa 1948. And we can certainly empathize with life in a NYC apartment. If you've never seen this movie, you'll find it a real treat (and if you have seen it, it's not a bad time to relax with the Blandings Family again). In the meantime, here's the trailer for a taste of what's to come:

Gumshow Virginia

Private investigator Bill Reardon (Melvyn Douglas) is trying to find the thief who robbed the jewelry store owned by Francine Nacelle (Margaret Lindsay) and her husband (Pierre Watkin). While he's preoccupied with this case, his wife, Sally (Virginia Bruce) is taking on new clients by pretending she is herself an agent.  Highjinks ensue as Sally again complicates Bill's life and career in There's that Woman Again (1938)

Some years ago, we saw There's Always a Woman (1938), the precursor to this film. Frankly, we didn't enjoy the first one all that much, and we disliked this one more. The crew seems to think they are making a new Thin Man movie, but they aren't even in the universe, much less the ballpark. The script is plodding, the characters are underdeveloped, and the character of Sally is just plain silly.

With Joan Blondell in the part of Sally, you had a slight chance at humor, but Virginia Bruce, who really is quite a good actress in other films, is beyond annoying. It's not Ms. Bruce's fault really. She doesn't have any chemistry with Melvyn Douglas, and the script gives her precious little to do except get in the way of everyone. (Though hats off to her in the very last scene - the only funny one in the film!) Ms. Blondell was pregnant when shooting began (The Women of Warner Brothers: The Lives and Careers of 15 Leading Ladies by Daniel Bubbeo), and thus escaped being embroiled in this fiasco.

Though the film is only 72 minutes long, it feels as though the screenwriters needed to pad it out. And much of the padding makes no sense. The so-called comic bits go on for too long - there is a scene in a gym that has nothing to do with the plot and just goes on forever - and it's not funny. It's clear that they are not sure if they are making a comedy, a mystery, a farce, or pure screwball.

Poor Margaret Lindsay has nothing to do in this morass of a movie. She is involved in one of the better scenes - a fairly ingenious murder - but otherwise you want to tell her to run as far away from the film as she can get. Watch The House on 56th Street or B.F.'s Daughter if you want to visit with her.

According to the AFI catalog, this film was supposed to be the second in a trilogy. Thankfully, that idea was mercifully put to sleep after this debacle. Columbia Pictures Movie Series, 1926–1955: The Harry Cohn Years by Gene Blottner says it all: "the comedy is forced and unfunny. The story lets the viewer down when the murderer is revealed long before Douglas comes up with solution. No wonder the series was cancelled after this one." 

We agree. This is one to pass up.

Myrna's Married?

Magazine editor Margo Sherwood Merrick (Myrna Loy) is celebrating her first wedding anniversary alone. Or so her colleagues believe. The truth is, Margot is not married. Offered a promotion, Margot faked the marriage to discourage flirting by her boss Ralph Russell (William Halligan) and eventual firing at the instigation of his jealous wife (Marjorie Gatson). Her faux marriage also protects her from a number of unwanted suitors, including Philip Booth (Lee Bowman) and Hughie Wheeler (Sidney Blackmer). But when she meets artist Jeff Thompson (Melvyn Douglas), she begins to wonder about the benefits of that fictitious ring on her Third Finger, Left Hand (1940).

When it's a Myrna Loy movie, you really WANT to enjoy it. She is always so wonderful. Add the engaging Melvyn Douglas to the mix, and you SHOULD have an delightful film. But good as they are, even these actors need a script, and Third Finger, Left Hand really doesn't have much of one. The initial idea is good - a woman who pretends marriage to deflect unwelcome male advances on the job (surely a timely plot!) - but at a certain point, the screenplay runs out of steam and the picture just gets stupid.  For example, Margo has been carrying on this deception for a year, but she doesn't have a concrete description of her alleged husband, and each time she is asked, makes up a  new (rather asinine) one. Her father (Raymond Walburn) and sister (Bonita Granville as Vicky) never asked to see a picture or to know what he is like?  Margo should be smarter than that.

As a result, these two entertaining actors become irksome after a while, as they try to best and humiliate the other. If Margo is interested in Jeff, it's hard to imagine her as a simple housewife in Wapakinetta, Ohio. (We surmised that she will end up handling the business end of his art sales. He's really not all that good at it). Late in the film, the couple run into his neighbors from Wapakinetta, and Margo starts talking like a Brooklyn B-girl. Several members of the group were very distressed at her actions, though I myself found it fit revenge for his earlier behavior. Yet, there is so much plot between his actions and hers that it did, on many levels, seem out of place and inappropriate. It's as though the early chemistry between the two actors vanishes.

Not that there is any particular chemistry with any of her other suitors. Hughie, seen briefly, is a drunk, and Philip is boring. It's hard to imagine the intelligent Margo with any of them. In the long run, she would have been better off single.

There are several underused actors in the production, including Felix Bressart (August Winkel) and Bonita Granville. It's a shame to waste such talented people; when you see them in the cast, you expect them to be integral to the plot. Regretfully, they were not.

We thoroughly enjoyed the scenes with Ernest Whitman, as Pullman conductor Sam. Viewed from a 21st Century perspective, Sam is a wonder. A man eager to stimulate his mind, Sam has a law degree, which he pursued to alleviate the sameness of his job. Sam, as a matter of fact, is a far better lawyer than Philip, and proves an able adversary to Philip when Jeff solicits his assistance. Sam is also African-American.  Mr. Whitman spent most of his career, not surprisingly, playing bathroom attendants and African natives (The Road to Zanzibar). But he also had a stage, radio, and a brief television career, appearing as Bill Jackson in the radio and television versions of Beulah. He died in 1954, at the age of 61.

 

According to this TCM article, Ms. Loy and Mr. Douglas became lifelong friends. Their liberal politics and social activism united them.  Ms. Loy supported Helen Gahagan Douglas when she ran for the U.S. Senate against Richard Nixon (Nixon accused Congresswoman Douglas of being a Communist. She was not, but it worked. He won the election. For more concerning the election, visit this New York Times article.)

Though reviews were not generally enthusiastic, this New York Times review was actually complimentary towards Ms. Loy and Mr. Douglas.  The story was reused by the Lux Radio Theatre in September 1941 when they presented a radio version starring Martha Scott and Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. (AFI catalog).  We'll leave you with the trailer from the film.

Garbo Laughs Over Lunch

When Russian representatives Iranoff (Sig Rumann), Buljanoff (Felix Bressart), and Kopalski (Alexander Granach) are sent to Paris to sell the jewels of the Grand Duchess Swana (Ina Claire), the negotiations do not go smoothly. The Grand Duchess, now living in Paris, initiates a lawsuit, and the three agents find themselves seduced by the entrancing Parisian lifestyle. Enter Nina Ivanovna Yakushova - or Ninotchka (Greta Garbo) - a stern Communist envoy, sent to find out the reason for the delay. Determined to not fall into the same pit as her predecessors, Ninotchka (1939) instead finds herself succumbing to the wooing of Count Leon d'Algout (Melvyn Douglas), a ne'er-do-well playboy, and Swana's latest lover.

In conjunction with the Food in Film Blogathon, we'll look at Ninotchka though the lens of food and beverage. Ernst Lubitsch's film sparkles like the champagne that intoxicates Ninotchka and Leon and satisfies like Ninotchka's workman's lunch. A nominee for the 1939 Best Picture Oscar, it marked a redemption for Greta Garbo who had been labeled as "Box Office Poison" in 1938. This was her first comedy, and resulted in the last of her 3 nominations for the Best Actress Oscar. (She'd already been nominated for Anna Christie (1930) and Camille (1938)). In 1955, she was awarded an Honorary Oscar. Not surprisingly, she did not attend the ceremony.

Food represents a corrupting influence in Ninotchka.  Among the initial temptations that seduce Iranoff, Buljanoff, and Kopalski is the readily available room service in their luxurious hotel. Ninotchka tries to resist the temptation by eating lunch where working men eat, but even there she is expected to relish her food and care about what she is eating. Leon cautions her that she has insulted the restaurant owner and must apologize "by eating everything that he brings you with relish, by drinking everything with gusto, by having a good time for the first time in your natural life!"  Ninotchka's ultimate downfall is represented when she is drunk on champagne. She's been raised on goat's milk and vodka. Champagne is a new, heady experience for her.

In comparison, the lack of food in Russia is constant theme. The jewels that the ambassadors are in Paris to sell will provide food for the citizens. Grand Duchess Swana convinces Ninotchka to leave Paris by pointing out the number of people who will starve while their court case if fought. When the quartet return to Russia, they pool their ration of a single egg apiece to make an omelet. Finally,when Iranoff, Buljanoff, and Kopalski again leave Russia - never to return - it is to open a restaurant in Turkey.

Greta Garbo is amazing in the film. Yet, her two most intriguing scenes were ones she did not want to play.  According to this TCM article, Garbo was reluctant to play the drunk scene - finding it "unbecoming".  Co-star Melvyn Douglas also stated that she "was unable to articulate so much as a titter during the shooting of the restaurant scene." Yet, somehow in the film, laugh she did, and legend was born.

Bela Lugosi has almost a cameo appearance as Commissar Razinin. With his beard and scowl, he is properly menacing (he's been mentioned prior to his appearance as someone with whom you do not want to tangle).  It's a good role, and makes for an interesting break from the horror films that would dominate his career. 

Both Cary Grant and William Powell were considered for the role of Leon (AFI Catalog); Melvyn Douglas is excellent in the role. You believe him both as a wastrel and as a man who is sincerely in love for the first time. A stage actor with Broadway experience, Mr. Douglas came to film with the advent of sound. He continued to work in both mediums, adding radio and television to his resume, until his death in 1981 - 14 months after the death of his wife of nearly 50 years Congresswoman Helen Gahagan Douglas.  The pair met while appearing in the Broadway production of Tonight or Never (Mr. Douglas had been previously married and had a son). They had two children; their grand-daughter is actress Illeana Douglas.

The story was redone as a play on the Paris stage in 1950, as well as a radio play (part of the Screen Guild Theater) with Joan Fontaine and William Powell in the leads.  A musical followed in 1954. Silk Stockings, with music and lyrics by Cole Porter, and starring Hildegarde Neff and Don Ameche (and with a very young Julie Newmar in a minor role) ran for 478 performances.  The film version, starring Fred Astaire and Cyd Charisse was released in 1957. Then, in 1960, a television version of Ninotchka was aired on ABC, with Maria Schell and Gig Young in the leads.

There were, not surprisingly, censorship issues. The Russians didn't like the film (and threatened theater owners in Vienna with reprisals if they exhibited the film!). As this New Yorker article points out, it won no love from the Germans either - the German couple at the railroad station issuing their salute to the Fuhrer is a clear barb at the Nazis. Lubitsch was no fan of the German Reich - three years later, he would release his biting comedy, To Be or Not To Be (1942).  Regardless, the New York Times was in heaven, calling Ninotchka "one of the sprightliest comedies of the year." Besides the awards mentioned above, it was also nominated for Best Writing (Original Story) and Best Writing (Screenplay). It ranks at #52 on AFI 100 Years, 100 Laughs.

We'll leave you with this scene, of Garbo laughing (and eating - and she's not eating "raw beets and carrots"). Enjoy!

Barbara Shoots (at a Target)

Annie Oakley (1935) stars Barbara Stanwyck as the legendary sharpshooter Annie Oakley.  The story is loosely based on Annie's early years in the entertainment industry, when she broke into the business by competing against a male rifleman, here named Toby Walker (Preston Foster).  And while the film does get a lot of the information right, it takes many liberties with Ms. Oakley's life, not the least of which is that it changes the name of her partner and husband from Frank Butler.  Nevertheless, it's an entertaining film, as long as you realize it is "FILM history".

Young Annie Oakley is the main support of her family - her mother and younger siblings.  Annie is a crack shot; she hunts quail for an upscale Cincinnati hotel; as she able to hit the bird directly in the head, so no buckshot ruins the meat.  When Toby Walker, the new attraction for the Buffalo Bill Wild West Show stays at the hotel, the hotel manager, Mr. MacIvor (Andy Clyde), suggests a shooting match between Walker and the person who is supplying him with his game.  MacIvor, however believes his supplier is a man.  Annie is able to match Toby shot for shot, but when her mother overhears a discussion that Annie's win might cost Toby his position with Bill Cody, she encourages Annie to lose the match.  Annie, who finds Toby quite attractive, purposely misses her next shot. Regardless, her talent with a rifle is noted by Jeff Hogarth (Melvyn Douglas), who hires her for the Buffalo Bill Wild West Show.  Soon, Annie is the star of the show, with Ned Buntline (Dick Elliott) hinting at a bitter rivalry between Annie and Toby (for publicity), while Toby secretly teaches Annie showmanship, and while Toby and Annie fall in love.

Barbara Stanwyck as Annie Oakley

The real Annie Oakley

Let's start with a look at the real Annie Oakley.   She was born Phoebe Ann Moses in 1860, and following her father's death in 1866, she lived a life of privation.  After being sent to a foster home (she would only identify the people as "the wolves"), she eventually returned to her mother; she began hunting and was able through her work to pay off the mortgage on her family's home.  That same year (1875), she competed against Frank Butler in a Cincinnati challenge match, and won.  Butler was instantly fascinated by her, and the following year, they wed.  By 1882, she joined Frank's act - she was so popular that Frank became her manager and publicist, leaving the shooting to Annie.  After a long career, both with the Wild West Show and on stage, Annie retired.  The Butlers lived in retirement until her death in 1926.  Frank died 18 days later.   For an in-depth biography of the real Annie Oakley, as well as an analysis of Annie Oakley on Stage and Screen, visit: Annie Oakley (The American Experience).

What is really successful in this film is their ability to catch the romance between Annie and Toby.  The audience and Annie never question that the couple are deeply in love.   Surely, it plays fast and loose with the facts, but neither are demeaned.  Annie is clearly Toby's equal, and even after he is told (by her) that she let him win, he is not intimidated by her, but respects her abilities.  Stanwyck is especially vibrant in the role of Annie.  She is sweet when she needs to be, but proud of her abilities and not one to hide her light.  One scene especially shows Stanwyck at her best.  Alone in her room, Annie longs for Toby, whom her colleagues believe has purposefully injured her hand.  She knows the injury was accidental, but Toby has been fired by Bill Cody (Moroni Olsen), and Annie is unable to prevent it or even go to Toby.  Her pain radiates from her; the scene is done in silence.

This was Stanwyck's first film at RKO. She had been appearing in films at Warner Brothers and was dissatisfied with the parts she was receiving their.  She'd already ventured over to First National for The Woman in Red and to Edward Smalls (Reliance) for Red Comrade.  Her next film, A Message to Garcia, would be at 20th Century Fox.  In A Life of Barbara Stanwyck: Steel-True 1907-1940, Victoria Wilson stated that Stanwyck was "outside the protection of a single studio" (full quote at Rogerebert.com).  Perhaps this is why she never won an Oscar.  Regardless, it gave her the ability to control her own career to a degree that other actresses probably envied.  For more detail on Stanwyck's move to RKO, see this TCM article.

 

We focused a bit of our discussion on the male leads.  Melvyn Douglas appears in a secondary role with Preston Foster in the lead.  We wondered what the film would have been like had the roles been switched.

We've only seen a few films with Preston Foster, and in most of them he had a supporting role (for example, The Harvey Girls (1946) in which he plays the evil Sam Purvis to John Hodiak's heroic Ned Trent); he was briefly discussed when he appeared opposite Carole Lombard in Love Before Breakfast.  Foster had a long career, appearing in film and television til 1967. He had started on the Broadway stage, appearing in five plays between 1929 and 1932.  After that, he was Hollywood bound.  He also had a career as a vocalist and songwriter, appearing in trio consisting of himself, his wife Sheila Darcy (to whom he was married from 1946 until his death in 1970) and guitarist Gene Leis.  When Foster retired from acting, he took on the role of executive director of the El Camino Playhouse, where he wrote, directed and acted in plays (the Playhouse closed in 1966).  Preston Foster died in 1970, at the age of 69.

Also in the small role of Vera Delmar is Pert Kelton, whose distinct speaking voice is instantly recognizable. We've mentioned her before in our discussions of Cain and Mabel and Bed of Roses (wherein she plays the hooker, Minnie) - in this film, she plays a character much closer to that of Minnie.  Vera is a bit of a tramp; she's interested in Toby, and doesn't really care what she has to do to get him.  Kelton makes the most of her short screen time to create a memorable characterization.

Pert Kelton had a very varied career.  Her film career, in which she was generally the wisecracking buddy or a floozy, only lasted from 1929 to 1939.  After that, she seems to have moved back to the East Coast, where she appeared in radio.  In the 1950s, she appeared in short sketches the Cavalcade of Stars as Alice Norton - sketches that would give birth to the television show The Honeymooners.  Kelton, however would not continue on to the series - her husband Ralph Bell had become embroiled in the McCarthy Era blacklist, which led to her being dropped from the show. She did continue in small roles on Cavalcade, and it has been suggested that Gleason attempted to keep her working for as long as he could.  He, in fact, invited her to appear in The Color Honeymooners as Alice's mother (since, by that time Audrey Meadows had assumed the role of Alice). Ms. Kelton died in 1968 at the age of 61.  Though many of the episodes from Cavalcade are lost, here is a short bit with her that survives:

We leave you this time with a short clip from Annie Oakley - the shooting contest between Annie and Toby.  We'll be back soon with a discussion of a more recent film, as well as our evaluation of a Kay Francis film.  

Historical Joan

The Gorgeous Hussy (1936) is an unusual film, in that it feature Joan Crawford playing an historical person and is set in the 1820s and 1830s.  Never before, nor again, would Crawford tackle a period piece, which makes this a fascinating diversion.

Crawford plays Margaret "Peggy" O'Neal Timberlake Eaton, an innkeeper's daughter who becomes influential in the Andrew Jackson (Lionel Barrymore) White House, following her marriage to Secretary of War John Eaton (Franchot Tone).  Her common birth, her forthrightness, and her earlier marriage to John "Bow" Timberlake (Robert Taylor) make her an easy target for gossip.  And then there is her relationship with John Randolph (Melvyn Douglas). She loves him, he claims not to love her, but then he realizes too late that he does have feelings for her.

It's hard to imagine a studio other than MGM  being able to assemble this much talent in one movie. Besides the already mentioned Crawford, Tone, Taylor, and Douglas, we also have James Stewart  as "Rowdy" Dow,  Lionel Barrymore as Andrew Jackson, Beulah Bondi  as Rachel Jackson, Sidney Toler as Daniel Webster, and Louis Calhern as Sunderland.  With the exception of Crawford and Barrymore, the supporting actors have minimal screen time.  Certainly, Taylor and Stewart had not yet achieved the level of stardom that we are familiar with (Taylor's breakout in Camille was 4 months away, while Stewart would wait another 2 years before You Can't Take it With You.); yet Taylor gets second billing under Crawford, in spite of being in only about 1/3 of the film (no spoilers here; you have to watch the film to find out why).  We particularly enjoyed a scene in which Peggy and Bow are sewn into adjacent beds so there will be no hanky-panky.

Crawford's Peggy is very sweet; and also quite bright - she does the accounting for her father's inn, and she is shown as being quite savvy about business.  As always, Crawford creates a strong and feminine character (with the assistance of Adrian, in his creation of some spectacular period dresses).  Despite this, Crawford felt that the audience - always her career arbiter - did not like her in costume roles, and so she opted to not appear in an historical drama again.  This TCM article discusses the public reception - or lack thereof - of the film. 

The article also discusses the personal life of Lionel Barrymore in some detail.  Barrymore's severe arthritis had already become a problem.  He could still stand, though doing so was painful; walking was next to impossible.  He was also dealing with his wife's illness - an illness that would claim her life 4 months later.  Barrymore's relationship with the always wonderful Beulah Bondi - in her Oscar-nominated role - is warm and loving; acting as a counterpoint to the blustering, somewhat abrasive politician.  One particularly funny scene with Barrymore involved an unnamed character actress - the mother of one of the cabinet wives - who congratulates Jackson for his successful put-down of her daughter.

The character of John Randolph is, however, a frustrating one.  While his reluctance to become involved with a girl he'd known since she was a child is understandable, Randolph seems hell-bent on being unhappy, and making Peggy unhappy as well.  Even when it seems that love is within their grasp, he is unable to compromise to unite them.  Certainly, Jackson is equally to blame for Peggy's eventual unhappiness, but it's easier to blame Randolph, with his easy assumption that Peggy's beliefs should take second place to his own. It's not one of Douglas' better roles; a bit too angst-y for our taste.

We found it interesting that the author of the book The Gorgeous Hussy, Samuel Hopkins Adams, also wrote the book The Harvey Girls and the story Night Bus (which became It Happened One Night).  An article in the American Journal of Public Health discusses his career as a "journalist and muckraker".

Ms. Crawford was likely correct to eschew historical pictures after this. Nevertheless, it's an enjoyable film and worth viewing.

Gumshoe Joan, Take Two

Bill Reardon (Melvyn Douglas) is an unsuccessful PI.  With no clients, and loads of debts, he decides to go back to his job as an investigator for the District Attorney's office.  His wife, Sally (Joan Blondell) protests, so he jokingly gifts her with his office.  Next thing you know, a client, in the form of Lola Fraser (Mary Astor) appears. She hires Sally to find out if her husband is a cheat.  Only, within hours, Walter Fraser is dead.  Who dun it?

Thus begins the screwball There's Always a Woman (1938).  Our group had rather mixed reactions to it.  Developed as a response to The Thin Man, the big reaction was that Bill and Sally are no Nick and Nora.  The jokes tended to go on and on (sometimes way too long for some tastes).  And the over-the-top humor made the movie far less enjoyable.  

On the other hand, the film had great sets and costumes.  And some scenes were really funny.  Like a bit, late in the film, when Sally is being interrogated by the police, and is not in the least phased by the rhetoric.  Blondell could be very cute at times; other times, you wanted to give her a good spanking.  Here, we can share a little bit of the slapstick action (and it might give you a clue of why Sally is such a brat):

Finally, a couple of things to look out for: a young Rita Hayworth as the Bill's secretary (she's there for about one minute),l and Mary Astor appearing in a role very reminiscent of something a few years away - The Maltese Falcon.

Next time - another pre-code.

Joan Shines (Well, not quite)

Our film this time is Crawford's 1938 melodrama The Shining Hour. Crawford is Olivia (Maggie) Riley, a nightclub singer who weds Harry Linden (Melvyn Douglas) and moves with him to his farm (really big, wealthy farm) in Wisconsin.  The new couple moves in with Harry's brother David (Robert Young), sister-in-law Judy (Margaret Sullavan), and much older sister Hannah (Fay Bainter).  Unfortunately, what we have here is not one big, happy family - it rather more resembles the Ewings of Dallas - lots in infighting, jealousy, and sexual tension.  It seems that David, who is one of these guys who is never satisfied with what he has, develops an infatuation of Olivia. She begins to respond, but fights it, by urging her husband to build them a new home away from the family mansion, which he does.  And then there is Hannah, who hates this competition for her brother's affection, and makes it perfectly clear that Olivia is not welcome.  Moving out seems like it should be the perfect solution, however, problems pursue them to their new abode.

The real problem with the movie is that the characters just don't ring true, especially our supporting characters.  Judy is just WAY too sweet and self-sacrificing.  Our group felt that David needed a good swift kick - or the corned Judy demanding BIG alimony.  And then there is Hannah. Without giving too much away, her bitchy treatment of Olivia, her domineering attitude towards her brothers and her home were one thing, but then there is a scene close to the end where she gets, well, VERY strange indeed.  We won't even talk about the last scene.  We wondered if the character had had a brain transplant; we though manic-depression medications might actually be in order.  As to Robert Young, whom we all like as a general rule, he is annoying and self-centered  throughout the film. Then again, David is supposed to be annoying and self-centered, so Young is doing his job. 

Douglas and Crawford are good here, but the script makes it hard to really sink ones' teeth into anything.  What we really enjoyed was the relationship between Crawford and Hattie McDaniel (here playing Belvedere, Maggie's maid and confidante).  One thing that really surprised us was a scene in which Olivia leaps out of her car, runs to Belevedere and embraces her.  1938, and a white woman is hugging a black woman!  It was lovely, genuine and somewhat astounding.  And, of course McDaniel makes YOU want to hug Belvedere as well.

Next  time, we'll be doing a film that is slightly different from our norm.  Join us then. In the meantime, here is a trailer:

Mogel Joan

This week, we were able to get hold of 1942's They All Kissed the Bride.  In it, Joan Crawford plays Margaret J. Drew, the head of a trucking company. She is a stern boss, with a passel of rules for her employees, which makes her despised and dreaded by her truck drivers. Enter Michael Holmes (Melvyn Douglas) who is publishing articles on her tyrannies, much to her ire.  Michael meets her (though she doesn't know who he is) when he crashes the wedding of MJ's younger sister Suzie (Mary Treen).  Rapidly, MJ and Michael become involved as he tries to loosen up this very up-tight lady.  She, however is immediately attracted to this unknown man.

This is a particularly odd little movie.  First of all, the title has NOTHING to do with the plot. We barely see the bride, in fact, we see more of her groom as the action progresses.  Also, the film can't decide if it wants to be a screwball comedy or a romance.  Clearly filmed (at some point) after the start of World War II, it makes only passing reference to the war, and there is no implication that all the male characters will soon be deep into the fighting.  And Crawford's MJ is rather annoying.  She WANTS to be the head of her father's company, but she acts like a total idiot when she meets Michael.  Oh, sure, love at first sight and all that, but really!! There is no way anyone could efficiently run a conglomerate like MJ does, yet be such a blithering moron.  Poor Melvyn Douglas doesn't get to do much better, really.  Michael is pretty much as silly - and he KNOWS who MJ is. At least she has the excuse of ignorance.

Some good supporting actors here - Billie Burke is very sweet (and of course, addled) as MJ's mother;  and Roland Young is rather likeable as MJ's business associate, Mr. Marsh.  Here's a scene where she meets Allen Jenkins:

 But in the long run, one rather wishes the authors and director had made a decision about which direction they wanted the picture to take.  Instead, they end up with a mishmash that never does find its genre.

Joan has Plastic Surgery

When we decided to view Joan Crawford's movies, A Woman's Face (1941) was one of the movies I was most looking forward to seeing with my friends. A totally underrated movie, with a beautiful, understated performance by Ms. Crawford, I was sure everyone would love it. And they did.  

Joan plays Anna Holm, a young woman who works as a blackmailer, and who was horribly scarred as a child.  During one of her blackmail missions, she encounters Dr. Gustav Segert (Melvyn Douglas), a plastic surgeon with a remarkable record of successes.  Fascinated by Anna's scars, he offers to attempt a series of surgeries that will possibly correct the damage.  Anna consents; she had recently met Torsten Barring (Conrad Veidt), and hopes to be part of his life, scar-free.  Unbeknownst to her, Barring is far more interested in luring her into a murder plot, a murder that would leave him the heir to millions.

Crawford is just perfect in this role.  Her acting is subtle; watch her reactions to fire (Anna is terrified of fire), her mannerisms before and after her surgery, and the restrained but definite reactions that we see in her eyes as she reacts to a variety of frightening and horrifying issues.  
 
Also magnificent is the always wonderful Conrad Veidt.  Veidt began his career in the silent cinema of his native Germany, and generally played the hero.  In the 1930s, he managed to alienate the Nazis (he loathed Hitler and everything Hitler stood for), and escape to England (where he became a citizen).  Of course, his career in American movies generally cast him as either a villain (as here) or a Nazi (as in his most famous performance - Major Strasser in Casablanca).  While we know at the start that there is something a tad slimy about Barring, we are able to watch Veidt construct a maniac before our eyes.  We watch as his insanity is more clearly and definitely revealed with each passing scene.

Finally, we wanted to say a word about Richard Nichols as Lars-Erik.  Nichols did not have a long career, but we've seen him in several films (most notably Kitty Foyle and All This and Heaven, Too).  Nichols has a rather childlike speech pattern that is hard to miss, but he is SO much the little boy in this movie (and in everything he does), that it is hard to remember he IS an actor.  Witness Lars-Erik bouncing around on a cable car, and then looking back to see if  he will be scolded for doing something so dangerous.  So totally 5 year old boy!! And with a sense of tension ably supplied by the astute direction of George Cukor!

We hope you will give this one a try. We think it is worth a viewing, especially if you've not seen it before.  Here's a brief scene to give you a glimpse of the film: