Daisy Lee Mothershed Movies
- 1944
Definitely no relation to the 1980 Louis Malle film of the same name, 1944's Atlantic City is a tuneful Republic musical, not quite an "A" picture but certainly not a "B". Brad Taylor (who formerly acted at Columbia under the name of Stanley Brown) stars as Brad, an early-20th-century entrepreneur who decides to transform the sleepy oceanside community of Atlantic City, New Jersey into a mecca for vacationers and thrill-seekers. One of Taylor's visionary notions is the creation of a bathing-beauty contest, and that's where prim-and-proper heroine Marilyn Whitaker (Constance Moore) comes in. The plot is essentially an excuse to trot out several venerable entertainers doing their tried-and-true specialties. Guest stars include Belle Baker, Paul Whiteman, Louis Armstrong, Buck & Bubbles, and Joe Frisco, not to mention Al Shean (of Gallegher and Shean) and Gus Van (of Van and Schenck). Also adding to the general frivolity are Jerry "Ahhh, Yes!" Colonna and up-and-coming Dorothy Dandridge. Atlantic City demonstrated that Republic could make a 20th Century-Fox style musical even without Betty Grable. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Constance Moore, Brad Taylor, (more)
- 1941
Maintaining Republic Pictures' early-1940s predilection for corny, antiquated titles, Rags to Riches made its national debut in the late summer of 1941. Despite its Horatio Algerish cognomen, the film is a fur-hijacking melodrama, with nary a genuine "rag" in sight. Taking a break from his usual screen villainy, Alan Baxter plays honest cabdriver Jimmy Rogers, who is falsely imprisoned for his supposed complicity in a recent fur robbery. With the help of his aspiring-singer sweetheart Carol (Mary Carlisle), Rogers clears himself and exposes the suave mastermind behind the theft. Anyone who can't figure out the culprit's identity has probably never seen any film made between 1940 and 1945. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alan Baxter, Mary Carlisle, (more)
- 1940
Little Orvie (Johnny Sheffield) is a small boy whose stern father (Ernest Truex) and by-the-book mother (Dorothy Tree) refuse to buy a dog. Orvie befriends a stray mutt, which of course follows him home and just won't leave. Failing to keep the dog's presence a secret, Orvie is ordered to give up the canine. Orvie's dad finally weakens his resolve and reveals himself to be a sentimentalist. Based on a story by Booth Tarkington, Little Orvie provided an unusually "normal" assignment for young Johnny Sheffield, best remembered for his appearances as Boy in the Tarzan pictures and his later starring stint in Monogram's "Bomba the Jungle Boy" series. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Johnny Sheffield, Ernest Truex, (more)
- 1940
Based on a novel by Medora Field, Who Killed Aunt Maggie? would appear to be an attempt by Republic Pictures to launch a new series of comedy-mysteries a la MGM's The Thin Man. When a much-despised matriarch (Elizabeth Patterson) is murdered-or apparently murdered-all of her relatives and "friends" fall under suspicion. Sheriff Gregory (Edgar Kennedy) is the official investigator, but most of the clue gathering is done by amateur sleuths Kirk Pierce (John Hubbard) and Wendy Barrie (Sally Ambler). The plot hinges on that old standby, the "hidden room". Who Killed Aunt Maggie? is consummately produced, but this sort of fare wasn't really Republic's forte. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Hubbard, Wendy Barrie, (more)
