Brian Donlevy Movies
The son of an Irish whiskey distiller, Brian Donlevy was 10 months old when his family moved to Wisconsin. At 15, Donlevy ran away from home, hoping to join General Pershing's purge against Mexico's Pancho Villa. His tenure below the border was brief, and within a few months he was enrolled in military school. While training to be a pilot at the U.S. Naval Academy, Donlevy developed an interest in amateur theatricals. He spent much of the early 1920s living by his wits in New York, scouting about for acting jobs and attempting to sell his poetry and other writings. He posed for at least one Arrow Collar ad and did bit and extra work in several New York-based films, then received his first break with a good supporting role in the 1924 Broadway hit What Price Glory?. Several more Broadway plays followed, then in 1935 Donlevy decided to try his luck in Hollywood. A frustrated Donlevy was prepared to head back to Manhattan when, at the last minute, he was cast as a villain in Sam Goldwyn's Barbary Coast. In 1936 he was signed to a 20th Century-Fox contract, alternating between "B"-picture heroes and "A"-picture heavies for the next few years. The most notable of his bad-guy roles from this period was the cruel but courageous Sgt. Markoff in Beau Geste (1939); reportedly, Donlevy deliberately behaved atrociously off-camera as well as on, so that his co-workers would come to genuinely despise his character. From 1940 through 1946, Donlevy was most closely associated with Paramount Pictures, delivering first-rate performances in such films as The Great McGinty (1940), Wake Island (1942), The Glass Key (1942) and The Virginian (1946). His own favorite role was that of the good-hearted, raffish con-artist in Universal's Nightmare (1942). In 1950, Donlevy took time off from films to star and co-produce the syndicated radio (and later TV) series Dangerous Assignment. He went on to introduce the character of Dr. Quatermass in two well-received British science fiction films, The Creeping Unknown (1955) and Enemy From Space (1957). Brian Donlevy left behind an impressive enough filmic legacy to put the lie to his own assessment of his talents: "I think I stink." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1936
Making a transcontinental plane flight in only thirteen hours was quite an achievement when this film was made in 1936 -- but it was not impossible, as indicated by Paramount's last-minute decision to "downsize" the film's original title, Twenty Hours by Air. In anticipation of Airport 34 years later, womanizing pilot Jack Gordon (Fred MacMurray) is called upon to safely guide his plane through a blinding blizzard. His task is complicated by a trio of crooks who are escaping from the law after pulling a jewel heist, and by a shady nobleman (Fred Keating) who offers Gordon a large amount of money if he will land the plane before San Francisco. In the climax, one of the passengers hijacks the plane, only to be foiled by -- of all people -- an obnoxious brat of a youngster (Bennie Bartlett). Oh yes, and before this eventful flight has reached its conclusion, self-styled Lothario Jack has decided to settle down with one girl, wealthy Felice Rollins (Joan Bennett), who, during one of the many crises, is briefly pressed into service as Jack's copilot. Thirteen Hours by Air was produced with the technical assistance of United Airlines. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Fred MacMurray, Joan Bennett, (more)
- 1936
A winning sweepstakes ticket is the catalyst in 36 Hours to Kill. The lucky recipient is gangster Duke Benson (Douglas Fowley), who happens to be a fugitive from justice. Duke hops a train to collect his prize money, keeping a low profile lest he be discovered. Also on board are G-man Frank Evers (Brian Donlevy) and newspaper sob-sister Anne Marvis (Gloria Stuart). Yes, they catch the villain, but before that they stop squabbling long enough to fall in love. The basic premise in 36 Hours to Kill was later reshaped by scenarist Lou Breslow for his 1942 Laurel and Hardy comedy A-Haunting We Will Go. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Brian Donlevy, Gloria Stuart, (more)
- 1937
Based on fact, this turn-of-the-century crime drama stars Robert Taylor and Barbara Stanwyck (husband and wife at the time). Taylor plays a seemingly disreputable young man who joins a gang of murderous bank robbers, headed by Victor McLaglen. Stanwyck is a beer-hall entertainer, who disapproves of Taylor's activities and tries to reform him. She needn't bother: Taylor is in reality an undercover detective, on a top secret mission for President William McKinley. So anxious is Taylor to bring McLaglen to justice that he allows himself to be convicted of murder. The agent is confident that the president will keep him from hanging--but McKinley is assassinated before he can intervene. Stanwyck rescues Taylor by pleading his case with McKinley's successor, Teddy Roosevelt (Sidney Blackmer). The plot of This is My Affair was impressive enough to inspire at least one imitation: Night Riders, a 1939 Republic western wherein the martyred president who shares the hero's secret is James A. Garfield. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Taylor, Barbara Stanwyck, (more)
- 1942
The Two Yanks in Trinidad are gangsters Tim Reardon (Pat O'Brien) and Vince Barrows (Brian Donlevy), who split up over a disagreement and join the army, Tim to escape Vince's wrath and Vince to get his lunch-hooks on Tim. Both of our heroes run afoul of Army discipline and protocol in general, and tough top sergeant Valentine (Donald MacBride). Vince and Tim eventually bury the hatchet long enough to foil a German spy who plans to smuggle Nazi oil shipments out of Trinidad. Janet Blair is wholesomely sexy as café entertainer Patricia Dare, over whom Vince and Tim had their original falling out. In his autobiography, Pat O'Brien recalls asking director Gregory Ratoff how to play his role in Two Yanks in Trinidad, whereupon Ratoff replied that the character of Tim Reardon was an "Irish Bugsy Siegel" (which indeed he is!) ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Pat O'Brien, Brian Donlevy, (more)
- 1946
Based on a famous book by Richard Henry Dana, Jr., this grueling saga of shipboard oppression is set in the mid-19th century. Charles Stewart (Alan Ladd), the wealthy son of a Boston shipowner, is hijacked by Amazeen (William Bendix), the first mate on a ship bound for California. Francis Thompson (Howard Da Silva) is the tyrannical captain of the Pilgrim who was booted out of the U.S. Navy for mistreating his sailors. Now he wants to set a record sailing time, and he and Amazeen mete out severe punishment for the slightest of infractions. They even deny the men permission to go ashore and pick fruit when they stop in California and pick up the beautiful Maria Dominguez (Esther Fitzgerald). Without fruit, the men develop scurvy and begin to mutiny. Stewart allies himself with the author Dana (Brian Donlevy), whose brother died on one of Captain Thompson's previous voyages. Dana wants to write an expose of Thompson. Stewart steals guns and tries to take over the ship, but Amazeen subdues and imprisons him. The film was shot on a Hollywood set, but with devices on the set that simulate rolling waves so effectively that much of the cast got seasick. ~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alan Ladd, Brian Donlevy, (more)
- 1939
Cecil B. DeMille takes us back to the 1860s, then rebuilds the first intercontinental railroad in Union Pacific. The real-life spectacle is occasionally interrupted by the fictional adventures of railroad overseer Joel McCrea, postmistress Barbara Stanwyck (with an incredible Irish brogue), and McCrea's best pal Robert Preston. Unfortunately Preston has fallen in with Brian Donlevy, who is dedicated to destroying the Union Pacific railroad on behalf of a crooked political cartel. During an Indian attack, McCrea and Preston fight side by side to save Stanwyck, prompting Preston to turn honest. On the day in 1869 that the "Golden Spike" is to be driven at Promontory Point, Preston is killed saving McCrea from Donlevy's bullets. Union Pacific owes a great deal to John Ford's 1924 film on the same subject, The Iron Horse, even restaging one or two major action sequences from the earlier film. This DeMille spectacular was a big hit with audiences of 1939, who craved a booster shot of flag-waving now and again. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barbara Stanwyck, Joel McCrea, (more)
- 1966
In this western, a gunfighter is hired to clean up the chaotic streets of Emporia, Wyoming. The gunfighter arrives and finds that his ex-lover is there and is married to the town preacher. Though the two are still attracted, they resist temptation. When he sees how violent the town really is, the gunman sends for help. As soon as his friend gets there, the two begin cleaning up the town. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Howard Keel, Jane Russell, (more)
The winner of four Oscar nominations, Wake Island was one of the first major Hollywood films to deal with America's forced participation in World War II. The first two reels takes place in the weeks prior to Pearl Harbor, as Wake Island military commander Brian Donlevy carries on a friendly rivalry with Seabee supervisor Albert Dekker. Once the US is in the shooting war, all previous differences are forgotten and the Wake Island personnel begin pulling together. Despite being heavily outnumbered during the subsequent Japanese attack on Wake, the Americans put up a valiant fight, at great cost to the Imperial Forces. In a scene calculated to evoke long, loud cheers from the audience, Donlevy, weary and battle-stained, relays to the American mainland the legendary (if offensive) challenge "Send us more Japs!" As in the like-vintage Bataan, the military defeat of the Americans is treated-and justifiably so--as a moral victory. Utilizing some of the top male talents in Paramount's contract pool-Donlevy, Dekker Robert Preston, MacDonald Carey, William Bendix--Wake Island remains an excellent example of propaganda-as-entertainment ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Brian Donlevy, Robert Preston, (more)
- 1938
This musical features many popular ballads from the 1880s as it tells the tale of a cabaret singer and her boozy husband who travel to the South African gold fields to seek their fortune. They choose an empty mine, and while her husband hopefully works in the mine, the woman gets a singing job in a local saloon. Time passes, and eventually she and the handsome proprietor begin falling in love. By the story's end though, the woman returns to her neer-do-well but sweet husband. Together they begin looking for the elusive mother lode. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gracie Fields, Victor McLaglen, (more)
When the Daltons Rode is the much-embellished tale of that celebrated outlaw family, the Daltons. Broderick Crawford, Brian Donlevy, Stu Erwin and Frank Albertson play the gunslinging brothers, with Mary Gordon on hand as Ma Dalton. In the tradition of the 1939 western Jesse James, the film whitewashes the Daltons, showing them being forced into committing their crimes by duplicitous railroad interests. There's plenty of comic banter and byplay until about twenty minutes from the end; then the film becomes a nonstop marathon of action, halted only by the Daltons' fateful (and for the most part fatal) bank robbery in Coffeyville, Kansas. Randolph Scott is the nominal hero, a lawyer who befriends the boys and tries to dissuade them from their life of crime. When the Daltons Rode ends with all four brothers dead as doornails--even though the script was based on the autobiography of the surviving Dalton! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Randolph Scott, Kay Francis, (more)
