Vivian Mason Movies

Everyone involved with Siren of Bagdad decided early on that this adventure could never be taken seriously; thus it's played strictly for laughs, and actually earns a few. Paul Henried stars as an Arabian-Nights magician who becomes involved with a passel of harem girls and an usurping sultan. We know what to expect from the rest of the film when, in the very first scene, Henried burlesques his Now Voyager role by smoking two hookahs, then handing one to a lady friend ("Nine out of ten Arabian doctors recommend this brand"). As Henried's comic sidekick, Hans Conried is forced to deliver such lines as "Excuse me, sir; I know they haven't been invented yet, but have you got a match?" Hardly a gut-buster, Siren of Bagdad is fitfully amusing if you're willing to go along for the ride. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Originally intended as a 3D film, this standard-issue Bob Hope musical comedy was released "flat." The 50-year-old Hope plays over-aged chorus boy Stanley Snodgrass, whose attempts to get ahead in the early 20th-century theatre world always come acropper. His luck suddenly changes when he's promoted to the leading-man role in a show headlined by Irene Bailey (Arlene Dahl). What Stanley doesn't know is that he's been set up as a decoy to bring the murderous Jack the Slasher (Robert Strauss) out in the open. It seems that Jack is obsessed with Irene, and has a nasty habit of cutting all of her male co-stars into ribbons. Meanwhile, Stanley lays waste to the show by performing all of his big numbers incorrectly, but his faithful gal Daisy Crockett (Rosemary Clooney) loves him all the same. Tony Martin also appears as Irene's boyfriend, while Millard Mitchell makes his final film appearance as Stanley's stepfather (and never mind that he and Hope were the same age!) A brief clip from Here Come the Girls showed up in, of all places, the 1953 sci-fier Conquest of Space. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

This Three Stooges comedy was a remake of the 1938 short Healthy, Wealthy and Dumb, with Shemp in Curly's role. The boys are having breakfast while Shemp is working on a ditty to enter in a radio contest. Moe puts Shemp's glue on his pancakes and seals his mouth shut. While dealing with this insanity, Shemp gets a call from the "Mystery Motor Jackpot Contest," and wins fifty thousand dollars when the announcer mistakes his shout of "my bunion aches!" as "Bunyon 8" -- the correct answer. So the boys dress to the nines and check in at the Hotel Costa Plenty (just like in the 1938 film). The manager proudly points out the five thousand dollar Ming vase, and the bed that goes back to Henry VIII -- it's clear that before the boys are done, both items will be decimated. After the Stooges have done their damage, the manager shows up with a registered letter. It's the contest money which, after taxes, amounts to $4.85. The boys try to hide this news from the manager, who is growing ever more suspicious. Meanwhile, in a room down the hall, three girls have heard about the contest winners and want a piece of the action. But every time they try to knock on the Stooges' door, the guys think it's the hotel manager and the girls are greeted with buckets of water. Finally the ladies fed up and money or no, they bean the boys with three empty champagne bottles. ~ Janiss Garza, Rovi

1950's Emergency Wedding is a remake of 1940's You Belong to Me. The later film stars Larry Parks, who'd had a bit role in the original. Parks plays wealthy Peter Kirk, a playboy, while Barbara Hale co-stars as female doctor Helen Hunt. When Peter marries Helen, it is a "given" that he'll stay home while she works. Unfortunately, Peter becomes jealous of the amount of time Helen spends at the hospital with her patients. Out of pique, Peter makes the supreme sacrifice and offers to get a job himself. All sorts of misunderstandings and remonstrations ensue before the title Emergency Wedding is explained at the very end. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Monogram's French Leave received an inordinate amount of press coverage because of its teaming of two former child stars. Jackie Cooper and Jackie Coogan play a couple of amorous merchant seamen on the loose in a small French village. Hoping to score with the local mademoiselles, the two Jackies become sidetracked with black market activities. The boys bend a few laws along the way, but everything turns out just fine. It was French Leave that convinced Jackie Cooper to seek out acting lessons rather than coast on his past fame; as for Jackie Coogan, he wouldn't truly make a comeback until losing his hair and re-emerging as a cantankerous character actor on such TV series as The Addams Family. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In another of her series of romantic desert adventures, popular actress Maria Montez is this time Naila, the newly crowned queen of an ancient Egyptian land. Her father the king has just been assassinated and she intends to make those responsible pay for their crime. She sets out into the desert to find the killer herself -- little does Naila know that her "loyal" assistant Horadef (George Zucco) may be working against her, for he has designs on the throne for himself. John Hall plays a secondary role as Merab, an adventurer who shows up in the titular region with his comic-relief pal Nebka (Andy Devine), and the two help Naila, totally unaware that she is the queen. The romantic lead this time out is Herua (Turhan Bey), a rebel leader opposed to the despotic Horadef. The villain has Naila under his evil influence, but this state of affairs comes to an end when she falls in love with the charismatic rebel. The climax, wherein Horadef and his invading hordes are caught in a cleverly rigged death trap, is the film's highlight. As usual, Maria Montez plays her rather ridiculous role in Sudan with the determined seriousness of a Lady Macbeth, which only adds to the giddy fun. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this drama, a piano teacher buys a song-publishing business only to discover that it is on the brink of bankruptcy and is embroiled in a lawsuit over the song: "Kansas City Kitty". Other songs include "Tico Tico", "Nothing Boogie from Nowhere", and "Pretty Kitty Blue Eyes". ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

All that MGM's Ziegfeld Girl lacks is Technicolor; otherwise, the film has talent and "sock" entertainment value in abundance. The story focuses on three showbiz hopefuls-Judy Garland, Hedy Lamarr and Lana Turner-and the efforts to attain the lofty status of "Ziegfeld Girl." Garland is compelled to leave her family vaudeville act; she bids her dad Charles Winninger a tearful farewell, and later falls in love with Turner's brother Jackie Cooper. In her bid for success, Lana forgets all about her faithful boyfriend James Stewart, who turns to bootlegging to come up to the financial stature of Lana's new beau, socialite Ian Hunter. Lamarr nearly dumps her impoverished violinist husband Philip Dorn as she climbs the ladder of success. There are happy endings in store for two of the three female leads, but we'll let you watch the film yourselves to find out who wins and who loses. Featured in the cast are Tony Martin, Edward Everett Horton, Eve Arden, Dan Dailey, and, in a poignant cameo as a wardrobe woman, the "ever popular" Mae Busch. Song highlights include "Minnie from Trinidad", "You Never Looked So Beautiful Before", "I'm Always Chasing Rainbows", "Laugh? I Thought I'd Split My Side", "Caribbean Love Song", "Whispering", "Mr. Gallagher and Mr. Shean" (performed by Charles Winninger and the surviving half of the Gallagher-and-Shean duo, Al Shean-who happened to be the Marx Bros.' uncle), "You Stepped Out of a Dream" and "You Gotta Pull Strings." ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi