William Christy Cabanne Movies
William Christy Cabanne (usually billed minus the "William") was an American film director of considerable longevity but little distinction. He started as jack-of-all-trades in several New York studios, making his screen acting debut in Cord of Life (1909). Under the supervision of D. W. Griffith, Cabanne began directing films for Triangle Studios, chalking up such credits as Enoch Arden (1915) and Douglas Fairbanks' first feature The Lamb (1915). Cabanne became one of Fairbanks' favorite directors, for much the same reason that he flourished in the 1920s: Cabanne was efficient, organized, and he didn't get in the star's way with any attention-getting artistry of his own. In one of his few associations with a "blockbuster," Cabanne was a casting director and production assistant for MGM's Ben-Hur (1926). He had no trouble adjusting to sound, churning out programmers like Graft (1931), Rendezvous at Midnight (1935) and The Outcasts of Poker Flat (1937). Only in a few scattered productions like the 1934 version of Jane Eyre or 1940's The Mummy's Hand did Cabanne evince any sort of individual style, though he was seldom able to sustain that style for a full seven or eight reels. In 1944, Cabanne directed the only color film ever made by Bela Lugosi, Scared to Death, but the picture was of such low quality that it remained unreleased for three years. Cabanne flourished until the late 1940s, cranking out B-minus westerns like King of the Bandits (1947) and Silver Trails (1948). The "Christy Cabanne" frequently listed amongst the bit players in Cecil B. DeMille's 1942 Reap the Wild Wind is most likely starlet Christine Cabanne, a relative of the director. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi- 1949
Singing cowboy Jimmy Wakely stars in Monogram's Silver Trails. It all begins when Jimmy and his comical sidekick Dub "Cannonball" Taylor ride into a small California engineering community. Villain Jackson (George Meeker) is busy orchestrating a land-grab scheme, using the members of an outlaw gang as his flunkies. Jackson hopes to split the miners down the middle by sparking a feud. Jimmy does his best to keep the peace, resorting to gunplay only when all else fails. Future Monogram star Whip Wilson essays a secondary role. In fact, Silver Trails was partially designed as a "pilot" for a potential Whip Wilson series. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Jimmy Wakely, Christine Larson, (more)
- 1948
In this entry in the long-running western series, Cisco and Pancho must clear the Kid's name after he is blamed for recent stagecoach robberies. In reality the robber is another disguised as the Kid. Meanwhile Cisco is captured by U.S. Marshals. Fortunately, he escapes them, captures the real crook, and clears his name. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Gilbert Roland, Angela Greene, (more)
- 1948
Back Trail is one of the livelier entries in Monogram's Johnny Mack Brown western series. Brown rides into a small town where he becomes embroiled in a blackmail scheme. The town's banker (Ted Adams), a pillar of respectability, once served a jail term. Outlaw leader Pierce Lyden threatens to reveal Adams' secret if the banker doesn't let him know in advance when the gold shipments are going through. Adams tearfully tells Brown the whole story, whereupon Johnny rides shotgun on the next shipment himself. Back Trail was one of the last films directed by workhorse Christy Cabanne, whose career stretched all the way back to the D.W. Griffith days. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Johnny Mack Brown, Raymond Hatton, (more)
Completed several years before its 1947 release, Scared to Death is historically important as Bela Lugosi's only color film (outside of his brief unbilled appearance in 1931's Fifty Million Frenchmen, which today exists only in black & white). Other than that, it's a dreary story of how a beautiful but treacherous young woman (Molly Lamont) literally dies of fright. Anticipating Sunset Boulevard by at least five years, the film is narrated by the deceased "heroine", meaning that suspense and surprise are hardly considerations here. It's a toss-up as to who's funnier: the film's official comedy relief, dumb detective Nat Pendleton and dumber blonde Joyce Compton, or the "odd couple" team of the caped-and-cloaked Bela Lugosi and his dress-alike dwarf companion Angelo Rossitto. For the record, Lugosi plays a sinister hypnotist named Leonide, yet another of his myriad of "red herring" roles in the 1940s. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Bela Lugosi, Douglas Fowley, (more)
- 1947
Gilbert Roland made his penultimate appearance as the Cisco Kid in Monogram's Robin Hood of Monterrey. Roland is joined in his exploits by Chris-Pin Martin as Pancho. The film's 56 minutes is a near-nonstop anschluss of fistfights and gunplay, occasionally punctuated by Cisco's poetic wooing of whatever senorita happens to be around. The bad guys are headed by veterans Jack LaRue and Evelyn Brent; the last-named performer had by this time made western villainesses her particular specialty. After Robin Hood of Monterey and King of the Bandits, Gilbert Roland relinquished the Cisco Kid mantle to Duncan Renaldo. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
In this comedy drama a war hero returns home following a medical discharge and ends up entangled with a young woman speeding away from her wedding day in her fiance's car. Seeing the soldier, she gives him a ride and explains her predicament. Things get sticky when the cops capture them and accuse the soldier of desertion. Fortunately, the truth comes out by the story's end. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Dave "Tex" O'Brien, Kay Aldridge, (more)
- 1945
In this crime drama, a naive, honest young woman falls for a louse who takes her to illicit gambling houses. When one of them is raided and she is there, her angry father throws her out of the house. After that her life takes a real dive until she is able to talk her way into joining a chorus-line at the night club frequented by the creepy boyfriend. Even a job doesn't stop her downward spiral and soon her boyfriend jilts her for her best friend. In the end she shoots them both. More tragedy ensues. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Robert Lowery, Doris Merrick, (more)
- 1944
Ever so slightly, the quality of PRC Pictures' film output improved as the 1940s rolled on. In PRC's Dixie Jamboree, Frances Langford plays Susan Jackson, the daughter of a showboat skipper (Guy Kibbee). Captain Jackson's vessel, the Ellabelle, is the last of the Mississippi showboats, and as such has become a refuge for such social outcasts as con artists Tony (Lyle Talbot) and Curly (Frank Jenks), itinerant musician Jeff Calhoun (Eddie Quillan), and ham actors Yvette (Fifi D'Orsay) and the Professor (Charles Butterworth). When Jackson inadvertently picks up a shipment of whiskey, Tony and Curly, assuming that the captain is a wealthy distiller, plan to hijack the boat and its cargo. All of this is set to the music of Cajun ditties, black spirituals, and lively cakewalks, performed con brio by Frances Langford and company. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Frances Langford, Guy Kibbee, (more)
- 1943
Keep 'Em Slugging was the last of Universal's "Little Tough Guys" series-which, like Monogram's "East Side Kids", was an offshoot of Warner Bros.' "Dead End Kids" films. This time around, the kids decide to mend their troublemaking ways and get real jobs. Tommy (Bobby Jordan) is hired by the department store where his sister Sheila (Evelyn Ankers) is already employed. Frank (Frank Albertson), Tommy's supervisor, is mixed up with a gang of hijackers. When Tommy refuses to join the crooks, Frank frames the kid on a robbery rap. With the help of fellow Little Tough Guys Pig (Huntz Hall), String (Gabriel Dell) and Ape (Norman Abbott, nephew of comedian Bud Abbott), Tommy not only proves his innocence, but gives the criminals a real soaking. By the time Keep 'Em Slugging was released, Huntz Hall and Gabriel Dell were already repeating their antics in Monogram's "East Side Kids" flicks. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Huntz Hall, Bobby Jordan, (more)
- 1942
Timber is a typical Universal Pictures amalgam of he-man virility and endless spools of stock footage from earlier films. Newly recruited from MGM, Dan Dailey Jr. stars as Kansas, a two-fisted troubleshooter from the U.S. Forestry Service. Kansas, his pal Arizona (Andy Devine) and mill owner Quebec (Leo Carrillo) try to find out who's been plaguing Quebec's lumber camp with a series of highly suspicious accidents. It all builds up to a literally cliff-hanging climax involving a runaway timber truck. The late "B"-film historian Don Miller has noted a booking error made by Universal Pictures when the studio shipped out Timber on a double bill with Chapter One of the Universal serial The Great Alaskan Mystery -- which was comprised almost exclusively of highlight footage from Timber! ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Leo Carrillo, Andy Devine, (more)
- 1942
Top Sergeant was the third of four inexpensive Universal action films top-billing Leo Carrillo, Andy Devine and Don Terry. Terry plays the title character, drill sergeant Dick Manson of the Engineer Corps. Carrillo and Devine are cast respectively as Corporals Frenchy Devereaux and Andy Jarrett, whose merry antics constantly land them in the stockade. All three protagonists are instrumental in capturing a gang of bank robbers, but one of the crooks (Don Porter) escapes after killing Manson's younger brother (Gene Garrick). The rest of the picture details Manson's herculean efforts to track down the murderer without going AWOL. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Leo Carrillo, Andy Devine, (more)
- 1942
RKO Radio's film series based on the popular radio serial Scattergood Baines rolled into 1942 with Scattergood Rides High. Guy Kibbee returns as Scattergood Baines, the grocer-sage of the small town of Coldriver. On this occasion, Baines champions the cause of orphan boy Dan Knox (Charles Lind), who has been cheated out of his family's racing stable and horse-breeding farm. Using common sense and a bit of genteel larceny, Scattergood out-slickers the crooks who've victimized Dan. He also puckishly stage-manages the romance between Dan and wealthy city gal Helen Van Pelt (Dorothy Moore). Mild comedy relief is provided by black youngsters Philip Hurlic and Paul White. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Guy Kibbee, Jed Prouty, (more)
- 1942
A talented cast hacks its way through a so-so script and miles of stock footage in Universal's Drums of the Congo. In the heart of Africa, naval intelligence officer Kirk (Don Terry) searches for a rare metal vital to the war effort (just why it's vital is never thoroughly explained). He is aided in his quest by missionary Ann Montgomery (Ona Munson) and by dishevelled "bwana" Congo Jack (Stu Erwin). Alas, a couple of minions of the Third Reich are also after the elusive metal, and they're not above committing murder to get what they want. The most novel aspect of Drums of the Congo is the casting of likeable, fresh-faced Universal ingenue Peggy Moran as one of the villains. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Ona Munson, Stuart Erwin, (more)
- 1942
Cinderella Swings It was the last in a series of RKO programmers based on the popular radio series Scattergood Baines (its original title, Scattergood Swings It, was changed in the light of the poor reception afforded the earlier series entries). Guy Kibbee stars as small-town busybody Baines, who in this outing tries to make a big star out of local songstress Betty Palmer (Gloria Warren). One of his strategies is to spotlight the girl in a USO benefit show, which takes up most of the film's 70-minute running time. The supporting cast include juvenile actors Butch and Buddy (Bill Lenhart and Kenneth Brown), who'd previously bedevilled W. C. Fields and Abbott &Costello over at Universal, and future 3 Stooges straight woman Christine McIntyre. Cinderella Swings It was packaged by Pyramid Productions, the same concern responsible for RKO's radio-inspired "Lum and Abner" series. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Guy Kibbee, Gloria Warren, (more)
- 1942
The title neatly gives away the ending in RKO Radio's Scattergood Survives a Murder. Guy Kibbee once again stars as storekeeper Scattergood Baines, the sage of the small town of Coldriver. The story gets under way when two reclusive spinsters die under mysterious circumstances. Inasmuch the as the eccentric old ladies have left their fortune to their pet cats, Scattergood suspects that foul play was involved, with the victims' sinister housekeeper (Eily Malyon) high on the suspect list. Aiding and abetting our hero in his easygoing investigation are local newspaper editor John Archer and hotshot gal reporter Margaret Hayes (Archer, incidentally, was the father of present-day leading lady Anne Archer). Scattergood Survives a Murder was the latest in a series of B-pictures inspired by the long-running radio saga Scattergood Baines. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Guy Kibbee, John Archer, (more)
- 1941
Inspired by the long-running (1937-1949) radio series of the same name, Scattergood Baines came to the screen in 1941, with Guy Kibbee replacing the radio version's Jess Pugh in the title role. In his first movie outing, storekeeper Scattergood Baines, resident philosopher of the town of Coldriver, tries to prevent a group of shifty financiers from taking control of a local railroad line which he manages. For a while, Baines loses the confidence and support of his friends and neighbors, but in the end he prevails as usual. Carried over from the radio series is Francis "Dink" Trout as eccentric train conductor Pliny Pickett. Like its radio role model, Scattergood Baines is based on characters created by Clarence Buddington Kelland. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Guy Kibbee, Carolyn Hughes, (more)
- 1941
Scattergood Meets Broadway was the third of RKO's film series based on the long-running radio favorite Scattergood Baines. Guy Kibbee once again plays the avuncular Mr. Baines, philosophical storekeeper of the mythical town of Coldriver. Though he has no use for the Big City, Scattergood heads to New York to save local boy Davy (William Henry), a would-be playwright, from being victimized by a team of clever Broadway con artists (Frank Jenks and Bradley Page). Before the final fade out, Scattergood is nearly suckered himself by the slickers, but he turns out to be a bit too smart for 'em. Some of the film's biggest laughs are provided by Joyce Compton as a deceptively dumb-blonde showgirl. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Guy Kibbee, Emma Dunn, (more)
- 1941
Scattergood Pulls the Strings was the second in a series of B pictures based on the long-running radio series Scattergood Baines. Guy Kibbee returns as Baines, the philosophy-dispensing proprietor of the general store in the village of Coldriver. Living up to the film's title, Scattergood manages to solve practically everyone's problems in the course of the film's brief running time. He is especially effective in helping a pair of young lovers (Susan Peters and James Corner) achieve their life's ambition, and in reuniting a 10-year-old boy (Bobs Watson) with his long-missing father (silent screen veteran Monte Blue). If this film were any more heartwarming, it would catch fire. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Guy Kibbee, Susan Peters, (more)
- 1940
Old stock shots are blended with freshly filmed material in the Universal programmer Hot Steel. Richard Arlen plays a metallurgist who brings his formula for super-strength steel to a mining town. The formula is promptly stolen, putting everyone under suspicion. To make matters worse, a murder is committed, and the evidence points to Arlen. Helping the hero clear himself are true-blue comic sidekick Andy Devine, Devine's kid sister Peggy Moran, and leading lady Anne Nagel. Watch for Joe "You Crazy, You!" Besser in the role of "Siggie." ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Richard Arlen, Andy Devine, (more)
- 1940
The Man From Montreal is a lively entry in Universal's Richard Arlen-Andy Devine action series. The stars are cast respectively as fur trapper Clark Manning and constable Bones Blair, who carry on a friendly rivalry in the Canadian Northwest. Our heroes team up in the final reels to put the kibosh on a fur-smuggling racket, permitting Universal to plunge deeply into its stock-footage files. The leading ladies this time out are Anne Gwynne and Kay Sutton, their billing status indicating which one of the two ladies will land Clark Manning in the last scene. Incredibly, the Arlen-Devine series lasted for 14 films, none of them classics but all of them worthwhile Saturday-matinee fare. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Richard Arlen, Andy Devine, (more)
- 1940
In this comedy-adventure two petroleum engineers must investigate strange reports from a Company outpost in the South Seas. The minute they arrive they are arrested, framed and sentenced to hard labor. They find themselves working for the local oil magnate. It seems that the crook is using the "convicts" as a source of cheap labor; he keeps all their salaries. The two investigators successfully incite an uprising against the malicious magnate and gain their freedom. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Richard Arlen, Andy Devine, (more)
- 1940
Egyptian mystic Andoheb (George Zucco) is ordered by his High Priest (Eduardo Ciannelli) to stand guard over the sacred mummy of Kharis (Tom Tyler), who thousands of years earlier was entombed alive for falling in love with Egyptian Princess Ananka. Kharis can be revived or neutralized at will through the simple expedient of burning a handful of tanna leaves, a plot device that is hammered home on several occasions. Meanwhile, perennially broke archeologists Steve Banning (Dick Foran) and Babe Jenson (Wallace Ford) persuade itinerant magician Solvani the Great (Cecil Kellaway) to finance an expedition in search of Ananka's sarcophagus. Solvani's daughter Marta (Peggy Moran), suspecting that Steve and Babe are a couple of con artists, tags along with them to Egypt. Also on hand is the ubiqutious Andoheb, in his daytime guise as professor of Egyptology at the Cairo Museum. After ordering Kharis to bump off expedition members Dr. Petrie (Charles Trowbridge) and Ali (Leon Belasco), Andoheb turns his attentions to the beauteous Marta, with whom he hopes to live "in eternity" with the aid of those handy tanna leaves. But when he kidnaps Marta, Andoheb breaks his sacred trust, and thus must pay with his life at the hands of the vengeful Kharis. Much of Hans J. Salter's pulsating musical score was lifted from Son of Frankenstein. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Dick Foran, Peggy Moran, (more)
- 1940
The Black Diamonds of the title are diamonds, and diamonds are a boy's best friend in this Richard Arlen-Andy Devine actioner. Arlen plays newspaperman Walter Norton, who attempts to investigate a mine explosion in which his father was injured. Norton's "inside man" helper is jovial miner Barney Tolliver (Andy Devine), who is in love with Norton's sister Nina (Mary Treen). Utilizing spool upon spool of stock footage from earlier Universal films, Black Diamonds builds steadily to an exciting cave-in finale. Reviewers in 1940 were kindly disposed to the film but didn't like the title, suggesting that it wasn't condusive to good business (Silly boys: the Arlen-Devine vehicles always made money). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Richard Arlen, Andy Devine, (more)
- 1940
Radio humorist Bob Burns plays the title role in Alias the Deacon. Based on a stage play by John B. Hymer and LeRoy Clements (previously filmed in 1927 with Jean Hersholt), the story concerns a philosophical drifter named Deke Caswell (Burns) who is mistaken for the new deacon of a small town. A gambler by nature, Caswell decides to continue the clerical pose so that he can divest the locals of their hard-earned dollars. Instead, he turns honest, eventually solving all of the town's problems. A subplot concerns the "scandalous" (but wholly innocent) relationship between truck driver Johnny Sloan (Dennis O'Keefe) and hitchhiker Phyllis (Peggy Moran). This being a Universal film of the early 1940s, it was all but mandatory for Mischa Auer to show up in an incongrous but amusing supporting role. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Mischa Auer, Peggy Moran, (more)
- 1940
Danger on Wheels is one of the 14 Richard Arlen-Andy Devine adventure films ground out by Universal Pictures between 1939 and 1941. Arlen is cast as daredevil test-car driver Larry Taylor, while Devine brings up the rear as Larry's mechanic. A rivalry develops between Larry and hotshot motorist Bruce Cowley (Jack Arnold), culminating in Bruce losing his job before an important race. Larry takes Bruce's place in the contest, whereupon he accidentally kills the brother of his sweetheart Pat (Peggy Moran). Our hero redeems himself in everyone's eyes by proving the efficiency of a new oil-burning motor invented by Pat's father (Herbert Cothrell). Danger on Wheels is allegedly based on the exploits of real-life stunt driver Lucky Teeter, who is represented throughout via stock footage. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Richard Arlen, Andy Devine, (more)
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