Valerie Bettis Movies

Irregularly scheduled on NBC from 1954-1957, Producers' Showcase was a series of lavish, full-color, 90-minute specials, bringing the best of Broadway to the 21-inch screen. One of the more memorable presentations in this anthology was director Vincent Donahue's live staging of Clare Boothe Luce's brilliantly vitriolic 1936 stage comedy, The Women, which had previously been filmed by MGM in 1939. Boasting a stellar all-female cast, The Women centers around the tactics used by the supposedly demure Mary Haines (here played by Ruth Hussey) to win back her husband from predatory shopgirl Crystal Allen (Shelley Winters). Meanwhile, Mary's so-called friends gossip, bicker, and "diss" with bitchy abandon, both in New York and on a Reno "divorce ranch." Mary Boland, who played the much-married Countess DeLage in the 1939 movie, repeats her role in the TV version, while Paulette Goddard, who portrayed mercenary chorus dancer Miriam in the film, is here ironically cast as the malicious Sylvia Fowler, whose husband is stolen away by Miriam (played on this occasion by Valerie Bettis). The Women was adapted for television by Sumner Locke Elliot. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

"Her Salome Will Steal Your Breath Away" was the classic advertising slogan attached to this opulent Rita Hayworth epic -- a slogan which became laughable whenever a radio announcer would mispronounce Salome as "salami." Using the very sketchy Biblical story of the death of John the Baptist as its springboard, Salome depicts its title character, the stepdaughter of King Herod, as a victim of circumstance rather than a wanton temptress. Banished from Rome because of an unfortunate romance with the nephew of Caesar, Salome (Rita Hayworth) declares that all men are her enemies, but her resolve weakens when she falls in love with Claudius (Stewart Granger), the military commander of Galilee. Meanwhile, Salome's wicked mother, Herodias (Judith Anderson), plots the demise of John the Baptist (Alan Badel), who currently enjoys the protection of the superstitious Herod (Charles Laughton). At this point, the story departs radically from Scripture. Salome is no longer coerced by Herodias to demand the head of John the Baptist; instead, Herodias, on her own, promises Herod that Salome will perform the "Dance of the Seven Veils" for him -- but only if he beheads John first (Salome has been misinformed that the dance will save John from the headsman's sword). Somehow, scriptwriter Jesse Lasky Jr. even manages to concoct a happy ending for poor Salome, which is a lot more than Oscar Wilde or Richard Strauss were able to do. Considered an artistic flop in 1953, Salome seems somewhat better today, if only because of that powerhouse cast. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this romantic spy thriller, a nightclub performer plys her trade in her husband's Trinidad bar. He is murdered by a notorious spy. Soon afterward, the police ask the widow to try to get close to the killer and gather information. Her work is nearly thwarted when her bumbling brother-in-law appears, looking to bring the killer to justice himself. This film marked the return of bombshell Rita Hayworth who had retired from movies during her marriage to Prince Aly Khan. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi