Jean Moves to the City

Three Wise Girls (1932) stars Jean Harlow as Cassie Barnes, a small-town beauty who is sick of being badly paid in a local soda fountain so her boss can paw her.  Encouraged by the success of a another young woman from town, Cassie moves to New York City, where she finds more of the same kinds of bosses.  One day, she finally decks the latest sexually abusive boss, gets fired, but manages to get her pending pay with the help of Jerry Wilson (Walter Byron), a visitor to the shop.  Cassie's life turns around when her inspiration for her move, Gladys Kane (Mae Clark) helps her get a job as a model.  Cassie begins to date Jerry, not knowing that Jerry is a married man, and that her life is taking the same sad path as that of Gladys - in love with a man who can provide nothing but a fancy apartment. 

The film is very reminiscent  of the previously discussed Our Blushing Brides, which starred Joan Crawford as a woman facing challenges similar to those of Cassie. Harlow is quite good in her first starring role as a young woman with drive, but with scruples.  Our introduction to her, as Cassie walks home after her date attempts to go too far, gives us an immediate insight into her character.  We were also very amused at the scene in which she tries to get a job as a model.  Her idea of how a model would walk is a hoot.

Marie Prevost is wonderful as Dot, Cassie's roommate.  Dot is content to find happiness with an ordinary man and to live within her budget.  Prevost's turn of phrase is always amusing, and she makes a good counterpoint to the more ambitious Cassie. It's a shame that Marie Prevost didn't have a more substantial career in the sound era.  Though active in silent films (she made a total 121 silent films); her career never really seems to have taken off in talkies.  After 1933, offers began to peter off, and she found herself unable to get roles.   She died in 1937, at age 38, the result of alcoholism and malnutrition.  Interestingly, her sad life was one of the motivating factors for the creation of the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital.

We also enjoyed  Walter Byron as Jerry.  He too started in the silent era, most notably in Queen Kelly, starring Gloria Swanson in the title role.  Byron had a fairly busy career in the 1930s, but by the end of that decade, he was appearing primarily in uncredited roles.  So, in 1942, he retired.  He died in 1972 at age 72.

It was enjoyable to see Andy Devine in a small role as Callahan, Jerry's chauffeur and Dot's love interest. And the lovely Mae Clark as Gladys was very good.  One forgets that Mae did a lot more than get a grapefruit shoved in her face.  She worked widely in the 1930s, in such films as Frankenstein (as Elizabeth), the 1931 Waterloo Bridge (as Myrna), and Penthouse.  Later in her career, she worked in supporting roles and in television until 1970.  She died in 1992 at age 81.

Though the film was not as well received as the studio would have liked, as this TCM article points out, Harlow hit a popular note, and a star was born. 

Jean is Jealous of Loretta

Though Loretta Young (as Gallagher, the young reporter with no first name) is listed as the star of Platinum Blonde (1931), it's Jean Harlow as socialite Ann Schuyler who steals the film.  When reporter Stew Smith (Robert Williams) visits the Schuyler home to determine the validity of rumors about Ann's brother Michael, Stew is instantly smitten by the lovely Ann.  She is less impressed, but when Stew is able to retrieve (and return to the family) some incriminating letters written by Michael, Ann discovers that Stew is appealing indeed.  Their elopement is an anathema to her family, but Ann is determined to have Stew fit into HER world, whether Stew likes it or not.

This is a very enjoyable film, with good performances by Jean Harlow and Robert Williams.  As we mentioned, Young's name is above the title, but she doesn't stand a chance once Harlow shows up.  Harlow's Ann is quite appealing, perhaps because she doesn't seem as upper class and snooty as the rest of the Schuyler family.  This TCM Article discusses the problems Harlow had with sounding "sophisticated."  She especially had some difficulties with the word "library".  While director Frank Capra must have despaired at getting her to sound right, in the long run, it works in her favor.  We want to like them as a the couple, despite the fact that Ann is doing all she can to make her young husband into an upper-class twit.

That this is a pre-code film is readily apparent by the relationship between Stew and Ann. It's really one of lust more than of love.   Though Stew is clearly his own man, Ann is determined to tame him, and make him an appendage to her lifestyle.  She has no clear understanding of his career goals (he wants to write a play, for one thing) and would be quite satisfied if he stayed home and played at being a society husband.

Louise Closser Hale, a character actress we've admired before, is terrific as Ann's horror of a mother.  Mrs. Schuyler couldn't be a bigger snob, and her disregard for anyone not in her social circle makes her unlikeable AND humorous.  Her "consort" of sorts is Reginald Owen as lawyer Grayson.  Grayson does all of Mrs. Schuyler's dirty work, and enjoys every minute of it.  The character provides someone at whom Stew can direct his animosity, and Owen does an admirable job of keeping the character distasteful.  Also well worth watching is Halliwell Hobbes as Smythe, the butler.  We would expect this character (really, the only one in the house with any class) to be the worst snob, but Hobbes gives us a likeable fellow who really is open to all classes.  The party scene in which he interacts with Stew's friends is a riot.

Robert Williams, who played Stew, is also delightful.  This, unfortunately, was his last film. He died at the age of 37, the result of peritonitis from a ruptured appendix.  He had only made 7 films - two shorts and 5 full-length films (one a silent).  We've actually reviewed two of his talkies: Devotion and The Common Law.  This film demonstrates his breezy style and screen presence. 

Though Ann is the one with most of the good clothing, our Loretta gets one smashing evening dress that takes your breath away.  It's amusing that Stew specifically asks HOW she got a dress like that (on a reporter's salary).  We wondered the same thing.  The name of the costumer is not provided, but this dress proves his/her talents.

Interestingly, the film was originally called "Gallagher" after Young's character, but was changed to demonstrate the power Harlow had in the film.  Directed by Capra and written in part by Robert Riskin, it provides an early example of their collaborative genius.

As we mentioned before, one scene that particularly stuck with us was the singing argument between Ann and Stew.  As referenced in the TCM article above, it does seem almost improvised. It also appears that Harlow and Williams are having quite a good time:

Joan Meets Her Mom

This Modern Age  (1931) stars a very blonde Joan Crawford as Valentine 'Val' Winters.  Val has been raised by her recently deceased father, who has left her a small income and a very little information about her mother, Diane (Pauline Frederick).  Diane, who now lives in Paris as the mistress of the very married André de Graignon (Albert Conti), has been absent from Val's life for many years (by court order).  De Graignon has set Diane up in a lovely apartment and given her a very comfortable life style.

Curious about her mother, Val journeys to Paris.  She is prepared to dislike the woman her father so abhorred; to her amazement, they love each other immediately.  Diane, determined to find a place for herself in her daughter's life, hides her past (and her present) and invites Val to remain with her in the apartment.  All is well until Val meets Bob Blake, Jr (Neil Hamilton), the son of a fairly snobby Boston family and they fall in love, much to the disdain of Mr. and Mrs. Blake, Sr.  And there is the problem of De Graignon, who is none too happy with the enforced celibacy brought on by Val's presence.

Though the pace of the film is a bit uneven - the middle seems very drawn out, while the ending is rushed and somewhat abrupt - this is an enjoyable movie.  The characters of mother and daughter are well drawn, and Pauline Frederick is a sympathetic figure as the  mother who doesn't want the life she chose for herself to impact her daughter.  Since we never see Val's father, and Val doesn't say much about him, we questioned what she knew about her mother, and what her father was really like.  All we know is what we learn from Diane prior to Val's arrival; we would have liked Val's opinion of him as well.

Joan Crawford is very good as Val.  She is both innocent and intelligent.  You believe that she is completely unaware of her mother's past.  You also believe in her deep affection for this woman who has been absent for most of her life.  

Also quite good is Monroe Owsley as Tony Girard.  For a change, Owsley gets to play a nice guy, and his Tony is a doll.  Yes, he drinks too much, but his genuine affection for Val is apparent.  Though a superficial person, he doesn't have a mean bone in his body.  He wants to love Val, but is so immature that he doesn't know how to love.

Neil Hamilton does a good job making Bob attractive as well.  When we are introduced to his family, it becomes hard to have a lot of regard for Bob, but Hamilton is able to keep you rooting for him.  There is an implication that Bob might have been a bit of a mama's boy - as soon as his parents realize that Bob is seeing someone seriously, they arrive in Paris to check her out.  One suspects they've been doing this to him for some time.  Of course, Boston and Harvard (Bob's alma mater) become synonyms for snobbery in this story.
A quick nod to the always talented Adrian for Crawford's magnificent dresses. Before we go, here is a snippet of the movie from YouTube, in which Val and Diane meet.  Watch Diane's subtle change of expression as she is introduced to her unknown daughter.  And take a look at Crawford's lovely white evening gown:

Joan B.'s on the Switchboard

I've Got Your Number (1934) is a film about the telephone: repairing them, using them, working with them.  It opens with a fascinating examination of the importance of the telephone in the 1930s - surely dated, but so enlightening.  In an age where we carry our phones with us, to see the phone being demonstrated as a new technology for both good and ill is a revelation.  As a native New Yorker, I also enjoyed the references to the old exchanges that, back in the day, told you the location of the phone (Nowadays, we carry our numbers with us, no matter where we live!)  

The story is a simple one.  Hotel switchboard operator Marie Lawson (Joan Blondell) inadvertently provides information to gangster Nicky (Gordon Westcott) that results in a financial loss for a guest.  Marie is forced to resign when telephone repair man Terry Reilly (Pat O'Brien) determines the security breech was human rather than machine.  Terry assists Marie in finding a new job.  Only problem is, Nicky is planning to use Marie's new position in a financial office to steal some some securities.  

The film is a tad silly, but it is amusing.  Terry and partner Johnny (Allen Jenkins) make telephone repair look like the most fun job in the world.  And while we have some really great actors, the script doesn't give them a whole lot of time to flesh out their characters.  Terry does a complete about-face when he meets Marie - going from roué to devoted suitor in about ten seconds,though O'Brien does a really good job at making the switch believable.  And Blondell's  Marie come across as very naive.  How can she not know that Nicky is a snake, especially after the incident at her first job?  She's awfully trusting of a man she doesn't seem to like all that much, yet she is obviously, from her banter with O'Brien, very careful of her appearance with men.

Wonderful supporting actors abound:  We've already mentioned Allen Jenkins, who is, as always, a hoot.  We also have Glenda Farrell as Bonnie, aka Madame Frances, a would-be psychic, who's not very good at it and Louise Beavers as her assistant.  And the always wonderful Eugene Pallette as Terry's often frustrated boss, Joe Flood gives a fantastic performance as a man who wants to throttle the devil-may-care Terry, but, when the chips are down, is the first one to come to his defense.  

We were not very familiar with Gordon Wescott.  He made 34 films between 1931 and 1935, but died at the age of 32 from injuries sustained while playing polo. Another interesting bit of trivia - the last scene shows Blondell in bed.  Well, she really WAS confined to her bed - she had just had emergency surgery, and the studio did the scene in Blondell's own bedroom!  The book, Joan Blondell: A Life Between Takes states that the emergency was actually the result of a botched abortion.

Released in January of 1934, this film just makes it into the pre-code era, and, as a result, it is quite risque - there is much double entendre.  And the scene in which Terry lounges on a couch with Bonnie really needs no explanations.

Orry-Kelly does the film's costumes, and Joan Blondell has some wonderful dresses that no switchboard operator could afford.   The dress with a fur collar is especially attractive. 

Before we go, here is a trailer from the film:

Vivien's a Lady

The war is raging in England, and filmmakers rally to do their bit for the war effort.  The results of one of those endeavors is That Hamilton Woman (1941), starring Vivien Leigh as Emma Hart, Lady Hamilton and Laurence Olivier as Horatio Nelson.  The film was recently shown as part of AFI 100th Anniversary tribute to Vivien Leigh.  Leigh, still basking in her post-Gone With the Wind fame gets top billing here, in this story of passion and devotion to country.  Clearly, the love affair between Nelson and Lady Hamilton becomes an example of England's strength in the face of attack, with tyrant Napoleon standing in for dictator Hitler, and the lovers representing England giving up everything to preserve the nation.  

The story sticks pretty close to history - and juicy history it was.  Told in flashback, this is the story of Emma Hart, the lover of Charles Francis Greville, who arrives in Naples to visit Greville's uncle, the wealthy Sir William Hamilton (Alan Mowbray).  Hamilton is a lover of beauty, in music, in art - and in women.  Unbeknownst to Emma, Hamilton has literally purchased her from his nephew.  Within a few years, Emma, already the darling the English art circle, becomes the wife of Hamilton, as well as his hostess, and a major player in the Naples diplomatic circles.  Enter Horatio Nelson, a young Captain of the fleet.  Emma helps him approach the Queen of Naples for military assistance; afterwhich he departs.  Five years later, he returns; this time, they find themselves deeply in love.  Only problem is, both are married: Nelson's wife, Frances (Gladys Cooper) is at home in England. and quite naturally, she is none too pleased about her husband's involvement with the now notorious Lady Hamilton.  

That the film is attempting to put the past into the context of the present conflict facing England is quite apparent.  As mentioned above, the use of the term "dictator" in connection with Napoleon is a clear pointer to Adolf Hitler.  Nelson, of course, stands in for all the men who would give their lives for the nation. while Emma stands in the for the women who will lose all they love in the fighting.  The film even brings in some of the pictures done of Emma Hamilton:  the picture on the left is used as an emblem in the film.  Next to it is the original George Romney painting of the real Lady Emma.  
The film caused some real consternation among some representatives in Washington, DC, who were eager to stay out of the war.  They even went so far as to subpoena Alexander Korda.  His appearance was to be on December 17, 1941, but the events of December 7th eliminated the need for his visit.  This TCM Article goes into more on the history of the film.

This was the only film that  the always wonderful (and so spectacularly beautiful) Vivien Leigh, and her equally talented spouse, Laurence Olivier did together during the period of their marriage.  The film is also filled with splendid supporting actors.  Gladys Cooper is excellent as Frances Nelson.  The scene in which she sits down to knit as she is forced to converse with her rival, Emma, is great.  Obviously, Ms. Cooper was a knitter - and her needles do as much of the talking as does her voice.  Also good are Sara Allgood as Emma's lower-class mother, Mrs Cadogan-Lyon and Henry Wilcoxon as Captain Hardy.

As a knitter myself, I was interested to see the use of crafts to further our understanding of the main female characters.  As mentioned before, Frances knits.  Knitting, in the era, would have been a middle-class craft, used to create usable clothing for the members of the family.  Knitting was no hobby here; it was a necessary skill to keep the family warm.  Emma however, embroiders.  Embroidery was an upper-class craft, used to create pieces of art.  It was a hobby - an occupation for a woman who had no real work.  The lower-class Emma has risen to the position of having no need to work, while Frances remains the middle-class housewife, despite her husband's rise in status.

I close with a trailer for the film:

Joan Joins an Army

In 1931, a legendary film partnership began.  Joan Crawford and Clark Gable appeared together for the first time in Laughing Sinners, a pre-code romance.  We meet Ivy 'Bunny' Stevens (Crawford) in love - with Howard 'Howdy' Palmer (Neil Hamilton), a traveling salesman.  It's quite clear that the two are lovers, and that Howdy has promised to marry Ivy (or Bunny, as he calls her).  But while marriage IS on his mind, it's not marriage with her.  He has decided to marry the boss' daughter, and coward that he is, he runs away, leaving her a note about his intentions.  Some time later, Ivy tries to commit suicide, but is stopped by Carl Loomis (Clark Gable).  Carl, a Salvation Army worker, encourages her to leave her current life, and become a part of his world.  Giving to others, he feels, is what helped him to recover from the pains of a world that nearly destroyed him.  Within a short time, Ivy too has become part of the Salvation Army.  But then Howdy returns.

That this film is from the pre-code era is instantly apparent.  Ivy and Howdy are obviously having an affair; and a one-night stand is neither condoned nor condemned.  And all that is required for forgiveness to happen is honesty on the part of the parties involved, and a true attempt at repentance.  Because of Gable's forthrightness, Carl is shown as sympathetic and forgiving - not preachy.  He truly believes you can always restart your life, and his talks center on living  life squarely.  God is not brought into the equation.  Relatively speaking, the part of Carl is a small one, and we would have liked to have seen more of him.  Gable gets third billing in the film - behind Neil Hamilton, and Crawford (whose name is above the title). By the time he films Sporting Blood that same year, he has begun to be listed first; by the following year, his name is routinely above the title.

The Salvation Army is portrayed positively; and again, there is little emphasis on the religious aspects of the organization.  Rather, it is shown as a means of helping people get through difficult times in their lives. The Great Depression, which was still severely impacting the lives of Americans in 1931 is a major focus of the film.  Helping your fellow man is the means of both ending the Depression, and finding inner salvation.

As always, much of our conversation focused on Joan Crawford. She is so exquisitely  beautiful in this film, and her portrayal of Ivy is spot on.  Crawford manages to touch gently on the dilemma faced by her character, and to make her likeable and sympathetic.   Though her reformation requires that Ivy quit her job, she is never condemned for working in what appears to be a speakeasy. 

The portrait painted of the traveling salesmen in the film, however, shows them as carousing boozers.  Again, the pre-code aspects of the film are obvious - the purchase of alcohol is still illegal in 1931, yet the salesmen buy it with easy.  And since they seem to travel in bunches, they egg one another into bad behavior.

Laughing Sinners has a short, but tightly written script, based on Kenyon Nicholson's play, Torch Song, which opened on Broadway on 27 August 1930. Guy Kibbee here reprises the role of Cass Wheeler which he originated in that production, the only member of the cast to come over to the film (and Mayo Methot, who would become the wife of Humphrey Bogart, starred as Ivy).  Interestingly, Johnny Mack Brown was originally cast as Carl, but bad previews caused them to reshoot the part with Gable (for more information, see this TCM article).

As we depart, here is a trailer from the film:

Shane Comes Back

For those of you who read Entertainment Weekly, you might have had the pleasure recently to read an excerpt of Mark Harris' new book Five Came Back: A Story of Hollywood and the Second World War.  The book focuses on five directors: John Ford, Frank Capra, George Stevens, John Huston, and William Wyler, all of whom served in the military during WWII, and all of whom were involved in film-making within the armed services.  Their war experiences, not surprisingly, colored their post-war films, and this book looks in detail at their work during and after the war.   In conjunction with the book's release, AFI Silver featured a screening of the 1953 Shane, one of director George Steven's post-war films.  

Shane features an all-star cast: Alan Ladd as the title character, a gunfighter who is trying to escape his past; Van Heflin as Joe Starrett, Jean Arthur  as his wife Marian Starrett, and Brandon de Wilde as Joey Starrett, a family trying to create a home on the frontier; and Jack Palance (here listed as Walter Jack Palance) as Jack Wilson, the gunfighter who is trying to drive them off their land. It's a fairly simple film: the Starett family is trying to build a farm on the prairie, much to the disgust of Rufus Ryker (Emile Meyer) a cattleman who claims rights to the whole valley.  The lives of the Staretts and all the settlers have been made miserable as Ryker attempts to run them off.  Enter the loner, Shane, who attempts to restart his life by working for Joe as a handyman.  But given the environment, Shane soon finds that the only way he can help the family he has come to love is to return to his old occupation.

Interestingly, Ladd and Heflin were not the first choices for Shane and Joe.  Montgomery Clift and William Holden were the first choice of director Stevens for the roles of Shane and Starrett.  When they were unavailable, Stevens selected Ladd and Heflin who were under contract to Paramount. This article from TCM discusses some of the studio's attitudes towards the film.

Stevens was able to coax Jean Arthur (with whom he had worked on The More the Merrier) out of retirement for this, her final film role.  Ms. Arthur is quite wonderful as Marian, a strong woman who loves her husband, but who is also attracted to the stranger in their midst.  The scene in which she tries to decide what dress to wear - all but her wedding dress are work clothes - as Shane talks to Joey outside, is gently amusing and poignant.  

Shane is shot in Technicolor, and while it's not a widescreen film, it has an exquisite use of color and vistas.  The film emphasizes the size of the country through the use of widescreen shots.  This serves to elaborate on the greed of Ryker, who desires so much land in an area that is so vast it surely could hold a few more people.  Yet Ryker is given time to explain his need for the land.  In fact, all of the characters are allowed an opportunity to explain their feelings about the range dispute, leaving us, the audience, to decide who is in the right.

And there are quite a few characters: Elisha Cook, Jr., as Stonewall Torrey, a former Confederate soldier with a bad temper and a deep thirst; Ben Johnson as Chris Calloway, a ranch hand for Ryker who starts the film as Shane's adversary, but who ends as his friend; Edgar Buchanan as Fred Lewis, another of the settlers who fears the effects of Ryker's wrath.  We also have two familiar female faces in this group: Nancy Culp (Mrs. Howells) and Ellen Corby (Liz Torrey) have brief moments as settlers' wives.

Ultimately, though, Shane is a love story between a grown man and a little boy, and Brandon de Wilde as the hero-worshiping Joey turns in a wonderful performance.  There is a real rapport between him and Ladd, and their chemistry gives the film its strength.  Sadly, after a career in which he appeared in films such as The Member of the Wedding, All Fall Down, and Hud, de Wilde died in a traffic accident at the age of 30.

We leave you with a clip from Shane, in which the title character demonstrates the proper use of a revolver to young Joey.  One thing to notice is the loudness of the gunfire - director Stevens purposely made the gunshots extra loud: "a gun is a tool," Shane tells us.  But in a sense, it is a tool that destroys lives.

Everyone loathes Kirk

Perhaps the most interesting film to examine Hollywood is The Bad and the Beautiful (1952).  Kirk Douglas plays Jonathan Shields, a would-be studio executive, who is broke and has successfully alienated everyone who might possibly have assisted him in a comeback.  Jonathan is brilliant, he is inspirational, but he is also the biggest creep you could ever have the misfortune to meet.  As Harry Pebbel (Walter Pidgeon) asks former friends  Georgia Lorrison (Lana Turner), Fred Amiel (Barry Sullivan), and James Lee Bartlow (Dick Powell) to consider being part of Jonathan's next production, we are treated to three mini-movies, which reveal their particular relationships with Jonathan. 

Told in flashback, we already know that Jonathan has world has collapsed.  But what we don't know is why these three renowned people - an Oscar winning director, a highly praised leading lady, and a Pulitzer Prize winning author - despise Jonathan.  Slowly, we learn that Jonathan is completely obsessed with his own vision, and he will use his friends' strengths - and weaknesses - to get what he wants.  But we also discover that each of the three became who they are because of Jonathan.

Fred is a would-be director unable to get a job.  He is meek, unassuming, and almost passive.  Jonathan even takes the initiative to propose marriage to Fred's girl FOR Fred.  But once Jonathan steals Fred's pet project,  Fred learns to fight for what he wants.  He becomes a power in Hollywood, and a success in his personal life.

Georgia, the daughter of a famed Shakespearean actor - and noted drunk - is herself a drunk, who thinks nothing of sleeping around to amuse herself.  She is, by her own confession, a lousy actress, and she has no ambitions.  She both hates and idolizes her dead father, and has hidden herself away from even the possibility of success, until Jonathan enters her life.

James Lee is a college professor in Virginia, living quietly with his amorous wife Rosemary (Gloria Grahame).  It has taken him seven years to complete his first book, primarily because Rosemary won't let him work. This story is perhaps the most hard to deal with of the three.  In order to allow James Lee time to work, Jonathan involves Rosemary with film Lothario Victor 'Gaucho' Ribero (Gilbert Rowland), leading to both their deaths.  Left to himself, James Lee becomes a successful writer, but at what cost? Is the death of Rosemary worth the success he achieves?  Or, is love and companionship more important than success?

Director Vincente Minnelli carefully weaves in nods to real Hollywood in this fictional tale.  It's very apparent that the unseen George Lorrison (voiced by Louis Calhern) is modeled on John Barrymore; and that Georgia is loosely based on Diana Barrymore. Also, the filming of a horror film involving cat men is a nod to the 1942 film Cat People.  But also alluded to, according to this article from SUNY Albany are such notable filmmakers as David O. Selznick, Alfred Hitchcock, Josef von Sternberg, Erich von Stroheim, Val Lewton, and William Faulkner. TCM provides a great deal of information on this film, including the fact that Clark Gable was asked to play Jonathan (he turned it down).  Certainly, it would have been a very different role - Gable was much older (perhaps too old to play the younger Jonathan), and was also too likeable.  Is it possible to loathe Clark Gable?

This is a film with an amazing cast, both of leads and of extras.  Kirk Douglas is electrifying as Jonathan.  He conveys the small things as well as the big ones - his dislike, but love for his father; his admiration for Georgia's father; his fear of loving and being loved.  Barry Sullivan, an actor who is usually not high on my list, is excellent as well.  And Gloria Grahame as the modern day Scarlett O'Hara, Rosemary Bartlow, is stunning.  (Her line, "You have a dirty mind, James Lee, I'm happy to say" is priceless.)  Did Rosemary cheat on her husband? We'll never know, because Grahame paints such a beautiful, multidimensional portrait.  And watch for bit parts from people like Barbara Billingsley and Ned Glass.  This "Behind the Camera" from TCM discusses Glass' role in the film; Glass was a victim of the Hollywood Blacklist, and this film began his problems.

Finally, also from TCM, a look at the critical reception of the film in their Critic's Corner.  The film won five Oscars (from six nominations), as well as receiving accolades from the major critics. 

Before we go, a clip from the film in which Ned Glass as the costumer for "Doom of the Cat Men" demonstrates how NOT to dress a monster:

Joan B. Leaves Home

Joan Bennett and Henry Fonda star in I Met My Love Again (1938).  We meet Julie Weir and Ives Towner while Ives is in school.  He and Julie are deeply in love and wish to marry, but Ives has been convinced by his mother (Dorothy Stickney) to delay the wedding until he is a success.  Two years later, the couple are still engaged, and Julie is frustrated by the delay.  Caught in a storm one night, she seeks refuge in the home of Michael Shaw (Alan  Marshall), and it is lust at first sight.  Julie and Michael elope and move to Paris.  Three years later, she has reason to regret her hasty marriage: Michael refuses to work, they are in debt, have a young daughter, and he is constantly partying.  Those parties prove his downfall - Michael is shot and killed while playing "duel" with another guest.  For the next seven years, Julie attempts to work as a fashion designer.  Finally, a letter from her Aunt William (Dame May Whitty) pulls her back to Vermont and to college professor Ives.

Joan Bennett is excellent in the role of Julie.  She has to literally grow up in front of you, starting as a naive 18 year old and morphing into the 30ish mother of a young child.  This is one of Bennett's last roles as a blonde.  The same year as this film, she reverted to her natural brunette color and never looked back.  She is stunning with dark hair, and her resemblance to sister Constance is minimized.  We have her husband Walter Wanger and Tay Garnett, the director of her film Trade Winds to thank for the change.  It also resulted in a change to her career, making her more appealing as a femme fatale in such films as Scarlet Street, The Woman in the Window and the recently discussed The Housekeeper's Daughter. 

Some really wonderful character performances are highlighted in the film.  First and foremost is Dame May Whitty as Aunt William, the aunt we all want to have in our family.  As is often the case, Dame May gets the best lines in the film.  When the obnoxious Mrs. Towner comes to find out why Julie is back, Aunt William finally loses her temper: "The next time you come for tea, I'll have rat poison in it".  And Stickney is really good as the mother from hell.  You wouldn't want to have the family that Ives has. They are all pieces of work, and the actors do a good job of demonstrating that.  Henry Fonda's role is somewhat weaker than we are used to from him, but like Bennett he does a good job in growing the character from youth to maturity.

Some of our group were not familiar with Alan Marshall, who plays the ne'er do well Michael.  Marshall had a long career, appearing in films and on television until  his death in 1959 of  a heart attack.  At the time, he was appearing on stage with Mae West in Sextette. Also in the cast is Louise Platt, whose most famous role was of Lucy in Stagecoach.  She left the screen for ten years (between 1942 and 1952), returning to do some television, including a year on the soap opera The Guiding Light.  Her only scene with Bennett (which comes at the end of the film) is a doozy.  Watch for it!

Next week, we'll be back with a film from the 1950s.

Fred Meets Ginger

As I've mentioned before, when an extraordinary opportunity to see a classic film happens in the greater Washington DC area, I'm going to tell you about it.  Recently, the National Portrait Gallery hosted a screening of Flying Down to Rio (1933), and there to comment on the film was TCM's own Robert Osborne.  I was very excited to attend the film screening, as well as a reception for Mr. Osborne, who was kind enough to sign my copy of his latest book 85 Years of the Oscars.  Add to this, the opportunity to ask questions about the film and to see the film on a big screen - it was an amazing night!

Flying Down to Rio is the first Astaire-Rogers film.  Technically, it's a Dolores Del Rio-Gene Raymond story, though, as Ginger and Fred are only minor players in it: they get fourth and fifth billing, respectively.  And they only get one dance number together - "The Carioca", which was nominated for the Best Song Oscar (it lost to "The Continental" from The Gay Divorcee).  But, as always, their dancing is so amazing, they stole the picture from the stars, and the rest is history.
The plot of the film is fairly ordinary.  Roger Bond (Gene Raymond) is the leader of a fairly successful orchestra, however, Roger likes two things far better than working - flying and the ladies.  As a result, he is constantly getting the band fired either because he was late for a broadcast, or for consorting with the guests.  Into his club walks Belinha de Rezende (Dolores Del Rio), a wealthy Brazilian traveler, who immediately captivates Roger.  The management fires the band when Roger is caught dancing with Belinha instead of working, but their joblessness doesn't last long - they have been hired by the Hotel Atlantico in Rio, and off they go.  Of course, the hotel is owned by Belinha's father.  Further complications ensue as Roger and Belinha realize they are in love, though Belinha is engaged to Julio Rubeiro (Raul Roulien), and when the band discovers that the Hotel is in the midst of a hostile takeover by a consortium.  In order to keep their job, Fred Ayres (Fred Astaire) and Honey Hale (Ginger Rogers) come up with a production number to end all production numbers - it's danced in the air!

The introduction by Robert Osborne provided us with some interesting facts.  Originally, Honey Hale was to have been played by Dorothy Jordan, but just before filming began, she married Merian C. Cooper and retired.  In the 1950s, she made three more films, one of which is quite notable. It's The Searchers, in which she played Martha Edwards, Ethan's sister-in-law and great love. (We talked about The Searchers twice.  Here is the most recent article.)  Her marriage to Cooper lasted until his death in 1973; she died in 1988, at the age of 82.  

With Jordan's departure, a new Honey Hale was needed, so the studio turned to Rogers.  She and Astaire knew one another - they had met - and dated - in New York City when he worked as a choreographer in play in which she appeared.  Though neither was looking for a dance partnership (Astaire had decided not to have another partner after sister Adele retired), this was a one-shot in a minor role.  Little did they know they would be making film history.

This TCM Article talks about these facts, as well as another partnership that was formed during the film - Astaire's meeting with Hermes Pan, the assistant choreographer here. It also discusses the magnificent art deco sets - they are of themselves works of art.

The film is also VERY pre-code. From Ginger Rogers see-through evening gown to the dancers whose dresses are literally blown off while performing on an airplane wing, we get to see a lot of some lovely ladies.  Add to that some suggestive lines ("What's this business with the forehead?" "Mental telepathy." "I can tell what they’re thinking about from here.”) and you have a delightfully naughty film.

A quick tip of the hat is due to actor Raul Roulien, who plays Belinha's fiance.  He makes Julio so very likeable that, by film's end, you wonder WHY Belinha would pick such a lightweight as Roger, when she has a wonderful, stable, loving guy like Julio at hand.  We don't have a lot of hope for that marriage.  One suspects Roger will be gadding about once the novelty of Belinha and Rio wears off.   However, we think that Fred and Honey will take the band to new heights of popularity (once they get away from Roger and his hijinks).

We leave you with Fred and Ginger dancing "The Carioca":