George Guhl Movies

Mae West is Goin' to Town in this elegant post-Production Code vehicle. West plays Cleo Borden, a nouveau riche cattle rancher who hopes to crash into high society. Though she is willing to subject herself to "refinement" lessons, she still has a high old time puncturing the pretensions of those around her: when aristocratic Ivan Valadov (Ivan Lebedeff) haughtily announces that he is the backbone of his family, West gives him the once-over and replies "Then your family'd better see a chiropractor." Through the connections of her husband-by-convenience Fletcher Colton (Monroe Owsley), Cleo is able to move freely among the glitterati of Southhampton but is forced to rely on her tried-and-true "street smarts" when she crosses swords with haughty villainess Grace Brittony (Marjorie Gateson) at a Buenos Aires race track. Through it all, aristocratic British engineer Edward Carrington (Paul Cavanaugh) awaits the opportunity to claim Cleo for his own -- as if anyone could ever "own" our fiercely self-reliant heroine. The film's highlight is a society operatic gala, in which Mae West delivers a serious (and most effective) rendition of "My Heart at Thy Still Voice" from Samson and Delilah. In a more characteristic vein, the star gets down and dirty (well, at least semi-dirty) with "He's a Bad Bad Man, But He's Good Enough for Me." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Although some purists hold out for Duck Soup (1933), many Marx Brothers fans consider A Night at the Opera the team's best film. Immediately after the credits roll, we are introduced to Groucho Marx as penny-ante promoter Otis B. Driftwood. After a sumptuous dinner with a beautiful blonde at a fancy Milan restaurant, Driftwood tries to cadge another free meal from his wealthy patroness, Mrs. Claypool (Margaret Dumont). The dignified dowager complains that Driftwood had promised to get her into high society, but has done nothing so far. Otis B. counters by introducing Mrs. C to pompous opera entrepreneur Gottleib (Sig Rumann); all Mrs. Claypool has to do is invest several hundred thousand dollars in Gottleib's opera company, and her entree into society is in the bag. Contingent upon this plan is Driftwood's signing of Rodolfo Lassparri (Walter Woolf King), a self-important tenor. Backstage at the opera, Driftwood meets Fiorello (Chico Marx), who poses as a manager and offers to sell Driftwood the "world's greatest tenor"-not Lassparri, as Driftwood assumes, but Fiorello's pal Ricardo Baroni (Allan Jones). Instantly the two sharpsters try to draw up a contract ("The party of the first part shall hereafter be known as the party of the first part..."), which they proceed to tear up piece by piece whenever coming across a clause that displeases them (Driftwood: "That's a sanity clause"; Fiorello: "You no foola me. There ain't no Sanity Claus"). Having lost Lassparri to Gottleib, Driftwood sails back to America with Mrs. Claypool and the opera company. Gottleib arranges for Driftwood to get the tiniest, least accessible stateroom on the ship. Unpacking his trunk, Driftwood discovers that he's got to share his postage-stamp quarters with Ricardo Baroni, who has stowed away because he's in love with the opera troupe's leading lady Rosa (Kitty Carlisle). Also hiding out in Driftwood's trunk is Fiorello, who's come along because he's still Ricardo's manager, and the wacky Tomasso (Harpo Marx), Lassparri's former dresser, who has come along for the hell of it. Anxious to arrange a tete-a-tete with Mrs. Claypool in his stateroom, Otis finds out that his unwelcome guests won't leave until they're fed ("Do you have any stewed prunes? Well, give them some black coffee, that'll sober 'em up"). After ordering a huge dinner, Otis and his new friends are crowded even farther by a steady stream of intruders, including an engineer and his assistant, a cleaning lady, a manicurist, a girl looking for her Aunt Minnie, and a dozen waiters. The celebrated "stateroom scene" comes to a rollicking conclusion when Mrs. Claypool has the misfortune of opening the door. On the last night of the voyage, Fiorello, Tomasso and Ricardo sneak out of their stateroom to enjoy an impromptu ethnic festival in steerage. Ricardo sings, Fiorello "shoots the keys" on the piano, and Tomasso plays the film's theme song Alone on the harp. The stowaways are caught and thrown in the brig, but with Driftwood's help they escape. To avoid recapture, the stowaways don heavy beards and pose as three famed Russian aviators. After making a shambles of a public reception, the three reprobates hide out in Driftwood's New York apartment, where everyone conspires to drive an investigating detective (Robert Emmet O'Connor) crazy. Driftwood is fired from the opera company for associating with the stowaways, while Rosa is dismissed for refusing Lassparri's affections. In order to restore Rosa's job and put the deserving Ricardo in Lassparri's place during the opening performance of La Traviata, Driftwood, Fiorello and Tomasso concoct a scheme that will reduce the opera to comic chaos. The actual night at the opera in A Night at the Opera must be seen to be believed, but the spirit of the scene can be summed up by Gottleib's anguished cry "A battleship in Il Trovatore!" Opera was the Marx Brothers' first film for MGM, and they dearly coveted a hit after the disappointing box-office showing of their final Paramount films. With the blessing of MGM production chief Irving Thalberg, the Marxes went on the road with their brilliant writing staff (including George S. Kaufman, Morrie Ryskind and Al Boasberg) to test their comedy material before live audiences. As a result of this careful preplanning, Night at the Opera was a smash-hit gigglefest, grossing over $3 million and putting the Marxes back on top in the hearts and minds of filmgoers everywhere. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Previously filmed in 1919, the Kate Douglas Wiggin novel Timothy's Quest was remade as a talkie in 1935. Dickie Moore plays Timothy Tarbox, a dewy-eyed orphan united in misery with his little sister Samantha (Virginia Weidler). The kids are taken in by maiden lady Vilda Cummins (Elizabeth Patterson), an old battle-ax who allegedly hates all children. It takes some doing, but Timothy and Samantha eventually win over Vilda, whose bark (as suspected) is far worse than her bite. A romantic subplot involving grown-ups Martha (Eleanor Whitney) and David (Tom Keene) never intrudes too long on the sentimental main story. Among the scenarists of Timothy's Quest are former Harold Lloyd director Gil Pratt and future MGM executive Dore Schary. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Burned-out British intellectual Alan Squier (Leslie Howard) wanders into the desert service station/restaurant owned by Jason Maple (Porter Hall). Alan finds himself an object of fascination for Jason's starry-eyed daughter, Gabrielle Bette Davis, who dreams of moving to France and establishing herself. Boze Hertzlinger (Dick Foran), Gabrielle's gas-jockey boyfriend, grows jealous of Alan, but the penniless, dissipated Briton has no intention of settling down; in fact, as soon as he mooches a ride from wealthy tourists Mr. and Mrs. Chisholm (Paul Harvey and Genevieve Tobin), he's on his way out of Gabrielle's life...or so everyone thinks. Later that same day, Alan, Gabrielle, Jason, Boze, and Mr. and Mrs. Chisholm are huddled together in the selfsame restaurant, held at gunpoint by Dillinger-like desperado Duke Mantee (Humphrey Bogart) and his gang. Alan seems indifferent to the danger, toasting Duke as "the last great apostle of rugged individualism." Sensing an opportunity to give his life meaning, Alan takes Duke aside, begging the outlaw to kill him so that Gabrielle can travel to Paris on the money provided by Alan's insurance policy. When the police converge on the restaurant, Duke announces that he intends to use Mr. and Mrs. Chisholm as a shield in order to make his escape. Alan tries to stop him, receiving a bullet in the belly for his troubles. "So long, pal," growls Duke fatalistically, moments before his own death, "I'll be seein' ya soon." Alan dies in Gabrielle's arms, secure in the knowledge that, alone among the film's principals, she will be able to escape the trap of her existence. When originally presented on Broadway, Robert E. Sherwood's The Petrified Forest starred Leslie Howard and Humphrey Bogart. Warner Bros. intended to cast Edward G. Robinson in Duke's role, only to be thwarted by Howard, who told the studio that he himself would drop out of the project if Bogart wasn't retained. The film proved to be just the break that Bogart needed; years later, he expressed his undying gratitude to Howard by naming his daughter Leslie Bogart. One year after The Petrified Forest, Humphrey Bogart and Leslie Howard co-starred in The Stand-In. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Spanky tries to escape his "command performance" at the Spring Street School's annual Arbor Day show, but local truant officer Smithers (George Guhl) is a little too fast for him. Meanwhile, a pair of wisecracking midgets (George and Olive Brasno) take an unauthorized day off from their performance schedule at a local sideshow. Disguised as children, the midgets are spotted by the indefatigable Smithers, who assumes that they're also trying to duck out of the Arbor Day festivities. Forceably dragged into the School, the midgets are told to sit down and keep quiet while the show proceeds. After an endearingly clumsy kiddie ensemble piece and Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer's ear-piercing rendition of "Trees, the midgets decide to get even with Smithers by putting on a show that no one will ever forget. In addition to the aforementioned adult cast members, the film is also graced by the presence of Maurice Cass as the pompous principal, future Oscar winner Hattie McDaniel as the mother of Billy "Buckwheat" Thomas, and Rosina Lawrence in her first appearance as the Gang's pretty schoolteacher Miss Lawrence. Originally released on May 2, 1936, "Arbor Day" was the last two-reel "Our Gang" comedy; thereafter, with the special exception of "Our Gang Follies of 1938," all of the series' releases would be one reel (approximately ten minutes) in length. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Directed by Edwin L. Marin, Sworn Enemy stars Robert Young as "Hank" Sherman, a law student who earns extra cash by working as a chauffeur. His job becomes significantly harder, however, when he finds himself entangled in the effort to catch the mobster who murdered his boss and harmed his brother. In order to get closer to the killer, Sherman Young masquerates as a fight promoter, and in the process falls in love with his beautiful assistant Maragaret (Florence Rice). Eventually, the young man gains the trust of the mobsters, and is allowed to join in their gang. Once inside, Sherman rushes to avenge the deaths of those near and dear to him. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide

Coincidentally, Warner Bros. contractee Jane Wyman made her starring debut in the same year as her husband-to-be Ronald Reagan. In Public Wedding, Wyman plays Flip Lane, one of five young and healthy carnival workers. Broke and jobless, the five "carnies" concoct a publicity stunt to get work: a phony wedding, staged in the mouth of a stuffed whale. Flip is chosen to be the bride, while Tony Burke (William Hopper) is selected as the groom. The fun begins when Flip and Tony, between whom no love is lost, discover that they're really married after all. Without the benefit of foresight, critics in 1937 had no way of knowing that pert little Jane Wyman would one day win an Academy Award, so they lavished their praise on "dumb-blonde" supporting player Marie Wilson (then the wife of Nick Grinde, the film's director). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A remake of 1932's Guilty as Hell, Night Club Scandal also borrows a page from 1934's Murder at the Vanities by depicting the "friendly adversary" relationship between a reporter (Lynne Overman) and a cop (Charles Bickford). Top-billed John Barrymore plays a respectable doctor married to a nightclub singer (Evelyn Brent), who murders his wife and frames the victim's lover for the crime. Overman and Bickford spot holes in Barrymore's story, bringing him to justice by Reel Seven. The murder plot is standard stuff, but the main attraction of Night Club Scandal is the aggressively masculine love/hate byplay between tipsy Lynne Overman and flint-eyed Charles Bickford. The best moment occurs at the end, when the wide-eyed ingenue (Louise Campbell) doesn't marry the fellow the audience expects her to! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this musical western, ranch owner "Lucky" Langham (Robert Homans) dies unexpectedly, and in his will he leaves his spread to his daughter Cody (Carol Hughes). However, "Lucky" added the proviso that ranch foreman Gene (Gene Autry) is to be the executor of his will, and must give his OK before Cody can marry. Larry Cummings (Craig Reynolds) is a man from the city with eyes for Cody and her ranch; Gene has a feeling that Larry isn't to be trusted, and refuses to allow them to wed. Gene turns out to be a shrewd judge of character when Larry involves Cody in a kidnapping, and Gene (who is also drawn to Cody's charms) must come to the rescue. As usual, Smiley Burnette co-stars as Gene's sidekick Frog, and Gene warbles five songs of the sagebrush. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Despite the title, the plot of Young Fugitives is carried by an oldster. Civil war veterans Harry Davenport and Clem Bevans save a nest egg of $50,000. When Bevans dies, Davenport sets out to find Bevans' son and heir Robert Wilcox. The younger man proves to be a wastrel and cheat, but Davenport decides to reform him. Dorothea Kent, in a brief respite from dumb-blonde roles, plays Wilcox's girl friend. Young Fugitives is based on a short story by Edward James. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this entry in the "Torchy Blane" series, the plucky young reporter tries to expose a ring of counterfeiters led by a man pretending to be a G-man assigned to investigate the case. He asks her not to print any of the information she has gathered so as not to blow his cover. The ploy works until Torchy figures it out and brings the gang to justice. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Torchy Runs for Mayor stars Glenda Farrell as fast-lipped newspaper reporter Torchy Blaine. In possession of a crooked political boss' "little red book" of crimes and misdemeanors, Torchy can't convince any of the newspapers in her city to print the contents. She has to rely on a small-town weekly, The South End Blotter, to convey the evidence against the ward heeler. The revelations result in a recall election for mayor. Torchy's city editor (Barton MacLaine), angered at her defection to the Blotter, jokingly enters Torchy's name as a mayoral candidate. She wins, but not before the small-town editor is murdered and the political boss is blown up in one of his own booby traps. Torchy Runs for Mayor is the eighth in Warner Bros' series of B-films based on characters created by Frederick Nebel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide