Steven Geray Movies
Czech character actor Steven Geray was for many years a member in good standing of the Hungarian National Theater. He launched his English-speaking film career in Britain in 1935, then moved to the U.S. in 1941. His roles ranged from sinister to sympathetic, from "A" productions like Gilda (1946) to potboilers like El Paso (1949). He flourished during the war years, enjoying top billing in the moody little romantic melodrama So Dark the Night (1946), and also attracting critical praise for his portrayal of Dirk Stroeve in The Moon and Sixpence (1942). Many of Geray's film appearances in the 1950s were unbilled; when he was given screen credit, it was usually as "Steve Geray." Geray's busy career in film and television continued into the 1960s. Steven Geray worked until he had obviously depleted his physical strength; it was somewhat sad to watch the ailing Geray struggle through the western horror pic Jesse James Meets Frankenstein's Daughter (1965). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1951
Bob Hope is up to his famous nose in danger in this espionage comedy. Second-rate burlesque comic Peanuts White (Hope) is approached by federal agents who think that he's international spy Eric Augustine, to whom Peanuts bears a striking resemblance. When they realize that Peanuts and Eric are two different people, the FBI persuades him to travel to Africa posing as Eric and fetch a batch of microfilm that could prove vital to national security. With reluctance, Peanuts flies to Tangiers and arranges a rendezvous with Lily Dalbray (Hedy Lamarr), Eric's beautiful girlfriend and an agent of shifting alliances herself. However, Lily's superior Karl Brubaker (Francis L. Sullivan) wants the microfilm, and he will stop at nothing to get it. As Peanuts tries to rescue the microfilm, make time with Lily, and avoid Karl, things become even more confused when Eric escapes from hiding and re-enters the picture. Both Bob Hope and Hedy Lamarr contribute songs to the soundtrack, though unlike Bob, Hedy's vocals were dubbed in by a studio vocalist. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bob Hope, Hedy Lamarr, (more)
- 1951
Little Egypt is a lighthearted "biopic" all about the hootchie-kootchie dancer who created a sensation at the 1893 Chicago World's Fair. An incongruously redheaded Rhonda Fleming plays Izora, a cabaret dancer in old Cairo. American impresario Cyrus Graydon (Minor Watson) hopes to re-create an authentic Cairo street at the World's Fair, and to that end he ties up with fast-buck promoter Wayne Cravat (Mark Stevens) and a self-styled Pasha (Steven Geray). Graydon's plan is fulfilled, with one slight alteration; along for the ride is Izora, posing as an Egyptian princess. At Cravat's behest, Izora performs a belly dance at the World's Fair to draw in customers, resulting in a tempest of outrage stirred up by local blue-noses. Amusingly, while Little Egypt--aka Izora--is arrested for indecent exposure, by 1990s standards she is most modestly garbed; in fact, the audience never sees her famous bejeweled belly button. Perhaps realizing that no one could take this concoction seriously, the producers of Little Egypt wisely opted to play for laughs--and got them. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mark Stevens, Rhonda Fleming, (more)
Based on the story The Wisdom of Eve by Mary Orr, All About Eve is an elegantly bitchy backstage story revolving around aspiring actress Eve Harrington (Anne Baxter). Tattered and forlorn, Eve shows up in the dressing room of Broadway mega-star Margo Channing (Bette Davis), weaving a melancholy life story to Margo and her friends. Taking pity on the girl, Margo takes Eve as her personal assistant. Before long, it becomes apparent that naïve Eve is a Machiavellian conniver who cold-bloodedly uses Margo, her director Bill Sampson (Gary Merill), Lloyd's wife Karen (Celeste Holm), and waspish critic Addison De Witt (George Sanders) to rise to the top of the theatrical heap. Also appearing in All About Eve is Marilyn Monroe, introduced by Addison De Witt as "a graduate of the Copacabana school of dramatic art." This is but one of the hundreds of unforgettable lines penned by writer/director Joseph L. Mankiewicz, the most famous of which is Margo Channing's lip-sneering admonition, "Fasten your seat belts. It's going to be a bumpy night." All About Eve received 6 Academy Awards, including Best Picture. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bette Davis, Anne Baxter, (more)
- 1950
Republic's Harbor of Missing Men stars Richard Denning as a two-fisted smuggler named Brooklyn. Double-crossed by his partners, Brooklyn is forced to go on the lam lest he be shot full of holes by his smooth-talking boss Danzinger (George Zucco). Hiding out in the home of a Greek fishing captain, Brooklyn vows to reform when he falls in love with Angelike (Aline Towne) the captain's daughter. The film concludes with a burst of violence, retribution and redemption. Harbor of Missing Men features cult-favorite character actor Percy Helton in a meatier role than usual as a waterfront habitue named Rummy Davis. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Denning, Barbara Fuller, (more)
- 1950
A Lady Without Passport stars Hedy Lamarr in the title role. Lamarr plays Marianne Lorress, a concentration-camp refugee who takes up residence in Cuba while waiting permission to enter the U.S. Immigration agent Pete Karczag (John Hodiak) decides to use Marianne as bait to entrap Palinov (George Macready), the brains of an alien-smuggling ring. Pete eventually falls in love with Marianne, but she despises him for using her--at least until fade-out time. Despite the tattoo on her arm, it is difficult to believe that Hedy Lamarr has survived a Nazi concentration camp; she appears instead to have staged a desperate escape from the MGM makeup department. This aside, A Lady without Passport is an acceptable (and commendably short) crime meller. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Hedy Lamarr, John Hodiak, (more)
- 1950
Set in Paris, Under My Skin stars John Garfield as a washed-up jockey who has stolen money from a crooked gambler (Luther Adler). Anxious to escape with his life, Garfield leaves his young son (Orley Lindgren) in the care of his nightclub chanteuse girlfriend (Micheline Presle). While on the lam, Garfield has a change of heart and decides to make good for his son's sake. The gambler catches up with the jockey and demands that he throw an upcoming race, or else. Garfield makes the ultimate sacrifice so that his son will grow up remembering him with pride. Under My Skin was based on the Ernest Hemingway story My Old Man, which was refilmed for television in 1979 with Warren Oates as the father and Kristy McNichol as his daughter (one supposes that it was contract-commitment time). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Garfield, Luther Adler, (more)
Frank Johnson (Ross Elliott), a window-dresser and struggling artist, accidentally witnesses a mob-related rub-out of a witness (Thomas P. Dillon), while out walking his dog one night -- after being shot at for his trouble, he's approached by the police, who want to put him into protective custody. But before they can do that, he runs out, and it's up to Inspector Ferris (Robert Keith) to find him before the killer does. He approaches Johnson's wife, Eleanor (Ann Sheridan), only to discover that not only were they the most distant -- nearly estranged -- couple he's ever encountered, but that she doesn't want to help find him, or care if he is found. Then she learns that he has a potentially serious heart condition that he never told her about, and that he has no medication -- she decides to try and find him to give him help, dodging the police with help from a pushy reporter named Leggett (Dennis O'Keefe), covering his job and all of his old haunts; and in the process, she discovers a man that she never really bothered to know or understand, one who not only wanted to love her but does love her, despite the way their marriage has gone, and discovers that there may still be a marriage worth saving. But to do that she's got to find him to head off not only a potentially fatal heart seizure but also save him from the killer who, unbeknownst to her, is just a step behind her and has already started covering her trail and murdering potential witnesses. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ann Sheridan, Dennis O'Keefe, (more)
- 1950
Pygmy Island was entry number five in Columbia's "Jungle Jim" series. Johnny Weissmuller is back as Jungle Jim, who this time around leads a search for missing WAC officer Ann Kingsley (Ann Savage). He'd better hurry; enemy agents are also on the trail of the heroine, who became lost while searching for material vital to the U.S. defense program. Somewhere in the foliage is a tribe of white pygmies (!), who cast their lot with Jungle Jim against the bad guys. Highlights in Pygmy Island include a stampeding elephant herd and a couple of fierce jungle battles pitting our hero against a crocodile and a gorilla. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Johnny Weissmuller, Ann Savage, (more)
A haunting work of stark confessionalism disguised as a taut noir thriller, In a Lonely Place -- Nicholas Ray's bleak, desperate tale of fear and self-loathing in Hollywood -- remains one of the filmmaker's greatest and most deeply resonant features. It stars Humphrey Bogart as Dixon Steele, a fading screenwriter suffering from creative burnout; hired to adapt a best-selling novel, instead of reading the book itself he asks the hat-check girl (Martha Stewart) at his favorite nightclub to simply tell him the plot. The morning after, the girl is found brutally murdered, and Steele is the police's prime suspect; however, the would-be starlet across the way, Laurel Gray (Gloria Grahame), provides him with a solid alibi, and they soon begin a romance in spite of Gray's lingering concerns that the troubled, violent Steele might just be a killer after all. During production, Ray's real-life marriage to co-star Grahame began to crumble, and his own vulnerability and disillusionment clearly inform the picture; the brooding, bitter Steele -- a role ideally suited to Bogart's wounded romanticism -- is plainly a doppelganger for Ray himself (the site of his first Hollywood apartment is even employed as the set for Steele's home), and the film's unflinching examination of the character's disintegration makes for uniquely compelling viewing. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Humphrey Bogart, Gloria Grahame, (more)
- 1949
When a priceless diamond is stolen from a museum exhibition all suspicion falls upon the notorious Lone Wolf, a former jewel thief who became a reporter. It doesn't help that he was in the museum to write a story on the gem at the time of its theft. Now he and his gal pal must play amateur detectives in order to ring the real crooks to justice. This was the final entry in the "Lone Wolf" series. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ron Randell, June Vincent, (more)
- 1949
Though divorced from attorney Robert Cummings, Rosalind Russell continues hoping that she can arrange a reconciliation. This proves difficult due to Cummings' fascination with curvaceous Marie McDonald. Contriving to arouse Cumming's jealousy, Russell pretends to be married to feckless Gig Young. There's complications and misunderstandings aplenty before happy-ending time. Tell It to the Judge is so lightweight that it threatens to float out of sight at times; the stars manage to hold this pleasant meringue together. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rosalind Russell, Robert Cummings, (more)
- 1949
Produced in garish Cinecolor, this aspiring "A" Western features John Payne as Clay Fletcher, an Eastern lawyer assigned to track down a judge whose signature is needed for some estate papers. Clay traces the judge, Henry Jeffers (Henry Hull), to El Paso, a lawless town ruthlessly run by saloon owner Bert Donner (Sterling Hayden) and a corrupt sheriff, La Farge (Dick Foran). The judge has become a hopeless drunk and is used as a pawn by Donner, who terrorizes the local farmers off their land. When one settler, John Elkins (Arthur Space), shoots and kills a deputy in self-defense, Clay is at first inclined to trust that justice will prevail and arranges for traveling salesman "Pesky" (George "Gabby" Hayes) to keep Judge Jeffers sober long enough to render a just verdict. But a threatened Donner has both Jeffers and Elkins brutally killed and against the wishes of the judge's daughter Susan (Gail Russell), Clay takes matters into his won hands by organizing a vigilante group. Grandfather Fletcher (H.B. Warner) arrives to remind Clay of his judicial pledges but he, too, is killed by the increasingly insane La Farge. In the end, only the prospect of a mass lynching brings Clay around and the guilty all face a jury of their peers. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Payne, Gail Russell, (more)
- 1949
After the film-noir melodramatics of Lady in the Lake and Ride the Pink Horse, actor/director Robert Montgomery turned to comedy in Once More, My Darling. Montgomery plays a former movie idol hired by the government to woo a young heiress (Ann Blyth). Someone had previously given the girl some jewelry stolen by the Nazis during the war, and the government wants to find out who that someone was. In the grand tradition, Montgomery pursues Blyth until she finally catches him. Produced by longtime Alfred Hitchcock associate Joan Harrison, Once More, My Darling is more conservatively directed than Montgomery's earlier works, though the director earns at least one laugh by playing a clever editing joke. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Montgomery, Ann Blyth, (more)
- 1949
In her second film appearance, Marilyn Monroe stars as Peggy Martin, a second-generation showgirl who begins a romance with a rich young man (Randy Brooks), an action that strains her relationship with her mother (Adele Jurgens). ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
- 1949
Set virtually in its entirety in an airborne TWA Constellation (evidently the company agreed to the use of its name in exchange for free advertising), Sky Liner stars Richard Travis as FBI agent Steve Blair. At the beginning of the film, a government courier is murdered by a foreign spy during a transcontinental flight. Blair manages to collar the spy, who is then promptly murdered himself. Now Blair is forced to play detective, sifting out the guilty party (or parties) from the passenger list. Pamela Blake and Rochelle Hudson play the standard "good" and "bad" girls, while the rest of the cast is a film-buff's dream: Steven Geray, Bess Flowers, Jack Mulhall, George Meeker et. al. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Travis, Pamela Blake, (more)
- 1949
Desi Arnaz's bandleader career was in decline when he starred in Columbia's Holiday in Havana. Arnaz essays the difficult role of a Cuban bandleader, named not Ricky Ricardo but Carlos Estrada. His romantic vis-a-vis isn't Lucille McGillicudy but a peppery dancer named Lolita Valdez (Mary Hatcher). Just before the lovers participate in a gala Havana festival, Carlos has a lot of explaining to do when Lolita catches him in the arms of another. Song highlights include "The Arnaz Jam" and the title number, both written by Desi. Though it did OK at the box office, Holiday in Havana is indication enough that Desi Arnaz was very wise to latch onto the fledgling TV industry. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Desi Arnaz, Mary Hatcher, (more)
- 1948
Fans of TV's Dennis the Menace should get an extra kick out of Columbia's Port Said, wherein Gloria Henry, aka Dennis' mother Alice Mitchell, essays a dual role. The story concerns the pursuit of neo-Nazis in the exotic titular port city. Henry plays both Gina Lingallo, daughter of itinerant magican The Great Lingallo (Edgar Barrier), and cold-blooded murderess Helena Guistano. The hero of the piece is Leslie Sears (William Bishop), who makes it his mission in life to bring the bad guys to justice when his best friend is murdered. Meanwhile, Gina poses as her treacherous cousin Helena to infiltrate the villains' lair, setting the stage for the slam-bang finale. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gloria Henry, William Bishop, (more)
- 1948
In this faithful remake of Blind Alley (1939), psychoanalyst Andrew Collins (Lee J. Cobb), his wife, his son, and some friends are taken hostage by escaped murderer Al Walker (William Holden) and his gang, including girlfriend Betty (Nina Foch). Collins, an advocate of rehabilitating criminals through psychiatry, induces his captor to talk about himself through the course of the night. By calmly and methodically piecing together the strands of the killer's unconscious motivation, Collins rids Walker of his literally murderous rage and prevents a massacre. Shrinks who practice in the noir universe are frequently painted as absurdly omnipotent. When not using their power for evil, like Dr. Cross (Vincent Price) in Aubrey Schenck's Shock (1949), they may be capable, like the benign Dr. Collins, of miracle cures. A more complex depiction of an unrealistically powerful, but ambiguously motivated, psychiatrist can be seen in Joseph Losey's The Sleeping Tiger (1954). In that British film, Dr. Clive Esmond (Alexander Knox) cures a criminal in a few short months but destroys his own marriage in the process. ~ Steve Press, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Holden, Lee J. Cobb, (more)
- 1947
Though not readily apparent at first, The Unfaithful is a remake of the 1940 Bette Davis vehicle The Letter, which in turn was adapted from the play by W. Somerset Maugham. The locale of the Maugham original has been shifted from the jungles of Malaya to the cozy confines of a middle-sized American town. Ann Sheridan stars as Chris Hunter, who late one night shoots and kills a man who tries to attack her in her own home. At least that's her story: it turns out that the dead man had once had an affair with Chris while her serviceman husband Bob (Zachary Scott) was overseas. When it appears as though Chris might have internationally murdered her assailant, faithful family friend and attorney Larry Hammaford (Lew Ayres) puts his career and reputation on the line by suppressing a valuable piece of evidence. Shorn of the class and race consciousness -- not to mention the eroticism and bitter irony -- of the Maugham original, The Unfaithful is able to move more logically to a happy (or at least satisfying) denouement. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ann Sheridan, Lew Ayres, (more)
- 1947
For the ninth time, Warner Baxter plays Dr. Robert Ordway, better known to movie (and radio) fans as "The Crime Doctor". Ordway is in Paris, mingling with the upper crust of the art world. A murder is committed and a valuable painting is stolen; the principal suspects are the victim's son (Roger Dann), the father (Steven Geray) of the heroine (Micheline Cheirel), and an attorney (Marcel Journet). Ordway's search for the missing masterpiece takes him all over the European continent, while the solution to the murder takes him back to Paris. Crime Doctor's Gamble was directed by William Castle, long before he'd established himself as the king of "gimmick" horror films. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Warner Baxter, Micheline Cheirel, (more)
- 1947
Chester Morris plays a mystery writer who bears a grudge against his publisher. Morris is mad enough to get blind drunk, but is he mad enough to kill? When the publisher is indeed murdered, Morris tops the suspect list. To clear himself, he uses his own skills as a writer of whodunits to ascertain the identity of the real killer. Trouble is, all the clues Morris comes up with point right back to him -- and frankly, he can't remember what happened the night of the murder. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1947
Private detective Franchot Tone is hired by a prominent politician (Tom Powers) to run a background check on the politician's wife (Lynn Merrick). Meanwhile, another client (Janet Blair) engages Tone to locate her missing sister-in-law. The two assignments merge into one before long, and Tone is up to his ears in the trouble he claims to love in the film's title. Like most movie private eyes, Tone attracts women like a magnet: In addition to the aforementioned Lynn Merrick and Janet Blair, the cast includes Glenda Farrell (as the p.i.'s faithful secretary), Janis Carter and Adele Jergens. I Love Trouble was based on The Double Take, a novel by Roy Higgins. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Franchot Tone, Janet Blair, (more)
- 1947
Zane Grey, that bottomless bounty of inspiration for Hollywood westerns, wrote the novel upon which Gunfighters was based. Randolph Scott stars as a gunslinger who's vowed to kill no more. He goes to work for a land baron (Griff Barnett) who's been driving out neighboring ranchers by fair means and foul. The baron's nice daughter (Dorothy Hart) falls for Scott, while the girl's nastier sister (Barbara Britton) is obsessed by her father's vicious henchman Bruce Cabot. Scott eventually chooses the right side in the ranch war, leading to a showdown with Cabot--and the breaking of his vow to never again fire a gun. Gunfighters was photographed in Cinecolor, a process that produced pleasing reds and blues but ignored yellows and greens. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Randolph Scott, Barbara Britton, (more)
- 1947
In this romantic musical, a clever young adman decides to create the perfect woman as none of his models quite measure up. To do so, he uses the best parts of several different women's photographs and deftly blends them together. Liking what he sees, he decides he must continue his search in hopes of finding the real McCoy. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
When wealthy Ballin Mundson (George Macready) rescues down at his heels gambler Johnny Farrell (Glenn Ford) and invites him to the Buenos Aires casino he owns, both men get more than they wagered on. Farrell convinces Mundson to hire him as casino manager, but is shocked when Mundson introduces his new bride, and Farrell's old flame, Gilda (Rita Hayworth).Though Farrell is unwavering in his loyalty to his employer, and he and Gilda treat each other with contempt, Mundson realizes that the torch never died for either of the former lovers. Ordered to guard Gilda, Farrell tries to convince himself that he's protecting Mundson's interests, but Gilda sees through his self-deception. Meanwhile, Mundson reveals to Farrell that his primary business is control of an international tungsten cartel that he plans to use to further his fascist ends. With the police closing in on the cartel, Mundson fakes his death, apparently leaving Gilda and Farrell free to marry. They do so: Gilda for love, but Farrell to punish her for being unfaithful to Mundson. When Mundson returns to kill them, it is he who dies, thereby freeing the lovers to apologize to each other and return to the U.S. Charles Vidor's Gilda is a voyeuristic film noir treat that engages the viewer in a complex web of sado-masochistic triangles. When, for example, Gilda performs her signature number, "Put the Blame on Mame," she is not simply enraging both Mundson and Farrell with her open sexuality, she is also crying out in pain for the love she is being denied. ~ Steve Press, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rita Hayworth, Glenn Ford, (more)
