Hank Daniels Movies
- 1947
At a time when Jim Crow segregation was de rigeur in the South and anti-lynching laws were still being voted down by certain legislators, the independently produced The Burning Cross provoked a great deal of controversy. Unlike previous films dealing with the Ku Klux Klan, this one wasn't afraid to identify the infamous organization by name. Hank Daniels plays Johnny, an embittered, unemployed war veteran who really goes off the deep end when his former sweetheart Doris (Virginia Patton) becomes engaged to Italian-American Tony (John Fostini). Seething with hatred and resentment, Johnny is easy pickings for the local branch of the KKK. Joining the hooded bigots in their terrorist activities, Johnny realizes what he's gotten himself into only when it's nearly too late. An excellent supporting cast includes those often underused black character actors Joel Fluellen and Maidie Norman as two of the Klan's targets. Far from a good film (its threadbare production values weigh heavily against it), The Burning Cross is nonetheless a fascinating one. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Glenn Allen, Raymond Bond, (more)
- 1946
Director Joseph Kane adapted his own story Diamond Carlisle for the screenplay of In Old Sacramento--the third film version of Kane's original tale. Bill Elliot stars as masked bandit Spanish Jack, who behaves as badly as he wishes with few of the usual redeeming features plaguing most cinema desperadoes. In fact, in the earlier film versions of Diamond Carlisle, Elliot's character was the villain! After numerous hairbreadth adventures, Elliot dies in the arms of loving saloon singer Constance Moore. Also released as Flame of Sacramento, this was the first of a long line of films in which onetime "B" cowboy star Bill Elliot would portray a new kind of "B" western hero--one who drank at any opportunity, took advantage of unarmed foes, and lived by his own personal code rather than the edicts of society. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Constance Moore, Hank Daniels, (more)
- 1946
The Green Years was an important rung in the career of child actor Dean Stockwell. He stars as a morose young Irish lad, raised by ultra-strict Scottish relatives of his late mother. He is drawn out of his shell by roguish great-grandfather Charles Coburn. In time, Stockwell grows up to be Tom Drake, and Coburn is still around to keep things lively. Adapted from a best-selling novel by A.J. Cronin, The Green Years is entertaining on several unexpected levels, from the thick Scots and Irish brogues of the largely American cast, to the odd pairing of husband and wife actors Hume Cronyn (age 35) and Jessica Tandy (age 37), here playing father and daughter. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Charles Coburn, Tom Drake, (more)
