George Chandler Movies
Comic actor George Chandler entered the University of Illinois after World War I service, paying for his education by playing in an orchestra. He continued moonlighting in the entertainment world in the early 1920s, working as an insurance salesman by day and performing at night. By the end of the decade he was a seasoned vaudevillian, touring with a one-man-band act called "George Chandler, the Musical Nut." He began making films in 1927, appearing almost exclusively in comedies; perhaps his best-known appearance of the early 1930s was as W.C.Fields' prodigal son Chester in the 1932 2-reeler The Fatal Glass of Beer. Chandler became something of a good-luck charm for director William Wellman, who cast the actor in comedy bits in many of his films; Wellman reserved a juicy supporting role for Chandler as Ginger Rogers' no-good husband in Roxie Hart (1942). In all, Chandler made some 330 movie appearances. In the early 1950s, Chandler served two years as president of the Screen Actors Guild, ruffling the hair of many prestigious stars and producers with his strongly held political views. From 1958 through 1959, George Chandler was featured as Uncle Petrie on the Lassie TV series, and in 1961 he starred in a CBS sitcom that he'd helped develop, Ichabod and Me. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1928
Popular stunt pilot Al Wilson is appropriately cast as the title character in Universal's The Cloud Dodger. Speeding to his own wedding, Wilson is arrested by a sharp-eyed cop and thrown in the slammer for 30 days. This is ample time for the heroine's aunt to arrange a marriage between the girl and a wealthy snob. Fortunately, Wilson is released from jail in time to hop into his trusty monoplane and rescue the heroine from an unhappy splicing. Action highlights from The Cloud Dodger showed up in many a penny-arcade "flip picture" machine of the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Al Wilson, Gloria Grey, (more)
- 1929
Filmed on location in the hills of the Dakotas, The Black Hills was directed by Norman Dawn, just before he left America to pitch camp in Australia. The heroine, played by Susan Denis, inherits a lumber mill and a passel of trouble in the opening reel. Menaced by the villains, Denis is protected by George Chandler, a supposed drifter who turns out to be a detective. Meanwhile, Chandler falls in love with the camp cook, who turns out to be the real proprietress of the mill. Evidently the only characters not leading two lives are the heroine and the principal villain. Even at 40 minutes, The Black Hills moved at a snail's pace. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George Chandler, George Fisher, (more)
- 1929
Not a remake of the pre-1920 film of the same name, The Kid's Clever was Glenn Tryon's last silent vehicle; he would pursue a brief talkie acting career before going behind the cameras as a producer. On this occasion, Tryon plays Bugs Raymond, a would-be inventor who has developed a car that runs without gasoline or any other kind of fuel. Through the auspices of Ruth Decker (Kathryn Crawford), daughter of automobile magnate John Decker (Russell Simpson), Bugs is able to stage a demonstration of his invention. The test run goes disastrously wrong, but it turns out that this is the handiwork of Bug's crooked rival Ashton Steele (Lloyd Whitlock). Things are set aright when Bugs and Ruth virtually kidnap Decker and force him to take another test ride -- this one a smashing success. Black comedian Stepin Fetchit is seen in a tiny role. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Russell Simpson
- 1929
Gary Cooper, as a lanky Wyoming ranch and foreman, places his gun on a poker table after being insulted by one of the gamblers and intones, "If you want to call me that . . . smile." That much quoted line's origin is in this early sound version of the Owen Wister novel, The Virginian, directed by Victor Fleming. When the Virginian meets his old friend Steve (Richard Arlen), he gives him a job on his crew at the Box H Ranch near Medicine Bow, Wyoming. Newly arrived in town is the new schoolmarm, Molly Wood (Mary Brian), and both men take notice. Afterwards, in a saloon, The Virginian encounters the evil Trampas (Walter Huston), and the two get into an argument over a dancer. The Virginian calls Trampas' bluff but, although Trampas backs down, he seethes inside. Afterwards, following a christening party, The Virginian walks Molly back home, and a friendship grows between the two that burgeons into love. But when Steve joins up with Trampas and his gang of rustlers and is captured by a posse, The Virginian is forced to supervise Steve's lynching. After that, Molly spurns The Virginian. However, when The Virginian is wounded, Molly forgets all that, and nurses him back to health. They decide to finally marry, but Trampas interferes with their plans --Trampas wants The Virginian to leave town, and he is out gunning for him. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gary Cooper, Walter Huston, (more)
The Light of Western Stars goes a long way towards using Paramount's fledgling sound system creatively; some scenes are filmed in complete darkness, allowing voices and sound effects to carry the day. Otherwise, this is a pleasantly familiar western concerning the relationship between drunken-cowpuncher Richard Arlen and new ranch-owner Mary Brian. Arlen's best friend was Brian's brother, who was killed under suspicious circumstances. Fred Kohler is the villain, but he's not as easily subdued as Arlen would prefer. Light of Western Stars was co-directed by Otto Brower and Edwin H. Knopf, but there seems to have been no dissension between these two journeymen; it was based on a novel by Zane Grey, which had previously been filmed twice and was good for another go-round in 1940. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Arlen, Mary Brian, (more)
- 1930
Last Dance was loosely based on the real-life story of a newspaper mogul who married a Broadway taxi dancer. For the purposes of the film, Jason Robards Sr. plays wealthy Tom Malloy, while Vera Reynolds is cast as dime-a-dance damsel Sally Kelly. Though she enjoys Tom's company, Sally has no intention of "clipping" him, but a shyster lawyer has other ideas. The ambulance chaser convinces Sally to sign a breach-of-promise complaint against Tom, but Sally isn't aware of the complaint's contents until she gets to court (no one ever said this picture was believable). The ensuing newspaper-tabloid headlines cause a great deal of embarrassment for both hero and heroine; all the same, everything ends happily for both. A visual gimmick unique to The Last Dance has each song number preceded by a superimposed close-up of the sheet music: the film's one big song, "Sally, I'm Looking For You Sally", is warbled not by Vera Reynolds, as might be expected, but by comedy-relief George Chandler. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Vera Reynolds, Jason Robards, Sr., (more)
- 1930
A Flask of Fields consists of three short subjects starring the inimitable W.C. Fields. All three will be familiar to Fields buffs, but chances are they won't pass up the opportunity for just one more look. First on the docket is 1930's The Golf Specialist, wherein W.C. recreates his classic Ziegfeld Follies golf routine ("Stand clear and keep your eye on the ball!") Next up is The Dentist (1932), in which the comedy gets so raucous that an entire sequence had to be censored in reissue prints (it's the bit where Fields is forced to straddle his struggling female patient (Elise Cavanna)). Last on the program is The Fatal Glass of Beer (1932), a surrealistic bit of inspired nonsense best summed up by the catchphrase "And it ain't a fit night out fer man nor beast!" ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1930
In this comedy, set during the 1900s, a Florodora girl slowly falls for a gentle millionaire. Songs include: "My Kind Of Man," "Pass The Beer And Pretzels," "Swingin' In The Lane," and a Technicolor stage sequence of "Tell Me Pretty Maiden." ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Marion Davies, Lawrence Gray, (more)
- 1930
Rubber-legged comedian Leon Errol made his talkie starring bow in Paramount's Only Saps Work. Based on a play by Owen Davis Sr., the film casts Errol as James Wilson, a kleptomaniac who starts with picking pockets and ends up robbing a bank. Wilson's friend Lawrence Payne (Richard Arlen) inadvertently aids our hero during one of his heists, ending up in deep doo-doo with the law. Before Wilson is able to extricate Payne from his dilemma for the sake of heroine Barbara Tanner (Mary Brian), he pauses long enough to pose as a private eye -- and even gives bellboy Oscar (Stu Erwin) tips on how to spot a crook! If only all of Leon Errol's feature films had been as consistently hilarious as Only Saps Work. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Leon Errol, Richard Arlen, (more)
- 1930
Originally filmed under the title The House of Troy, In Gay Madrid was one of four 1930 MGM operettas designed to show off the singing talents of silent-screen idol Ramon Novarro. The star is cast as Ricardo, a young, headstrong student in love with cabaret girl Goyita (Lottice Howell). Trouble is, he already has a sweetheart, the demure Carmina (Dorothy Jordan). This being an essentially lighthearted frolic, Ricardo eventually goes back to his true love, while Goyita philosophically moves on to her next conquest. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ramon Novarro, Dorothy Jordan, (more)
- 1930
Poor but honest district attorney Fredric March, sick of the "one law for rich, one law for poor" imbalance, sentences selfish society girl Claudette Colbert to ten years in prison for vehicular manslaughter. The sentence is reduced to two years due to political pressure; nonetheless, Claudette feels humiliated by March and vows revenge. While incarcerated, the girl learns a few lessons in humility, and by the time she has completed her sentence she has become most popular and kindhearted inmate in the joint. Upon her release, Claudette seeks out March and declares her love for him. Based on a story by Alice Duer Miller, Manslaughter had been previously filmed by Cecil B. DeMille in 1922; the great director used the plotline as an excuse for an extended (and gloriously pointless) flashback to Ancient Rome. This 1930 talkie remake is infinitely more tasteful and restrained than the DeMille version--but not quite as much fun to watch. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Claudette Colbert, Fredric March, (more)
- 1931
The trials of being a doctor's wife are presented in this drama. The story centers upon the problematic marriage of one couple. Their troubles begin when the doctor makes a housecall to a seductive woman with designs upon him. His suspicious wife follows him and spies on him. She thinks they are getting romantic when he is actually trying to extricate himself from his predatory patient. She decides to get revenge with his best friend, but nothing happens. The doctor later finds out that she saw him. He then becomes suspicious because it is she who is now seldom home. He confronts his friend about the alleged adultery. The friend becomes distraught and tries to kill himself. The doctor operates to save his friend's life. He then discovers that his wife has been taking nursing classes so she could work beside her husband and see him more often. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Warner Baxter, Joan Bennett, (more)
- 1931
When RKO Radio decided to split up the studio's moneymaking comedy team of Bert Wheeler and Robert Woolsey, in hopes of earning twice as much at the box-office, the results were sad indeed. Bert Wheeler's solo venture, Too Many Cooks, is marginally better than Bob Woolsey's Everything's Rosie but was still nothing to write home about. Based on a play by Frank Craven (previously filmed with Douglas McLean in 1920), the story details the trials and tribulations faced by newlywed couple Wheeler and Dorothy Lee when they decide to build a house in the wilds of Long Island. Before long, Lee's obnoxious relatives have descended on the couple en masse, making life miserable for poor, bumbling Bert. Coming to the rescue is Wheeler's wealthy, irascible uncle Edward McWade, who plays Santa Claus for the couple and puts the other relatives in their place. Bert Wheeler and Dorothy Lee play together beautifully as always, but their characters aren't terribly compelling nor is their dialogue terribly funny. The film's rare good moments belong to Sharon Lynn, as Dorothy's man-hating best friend. As a result of the poor showing of Too Many Cooks and Everything's Rosie, Wheeler and Woolsey were permanently reunited in 1931's Caught Plastered. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bert Wheeler, Dorothy Lee, (more)
- 1931
Still in his "sophisticated cad" period, William Powell essays the title role in Man of the World. Powell plays a smooth extortionist who preys upon wayfaring Americans in Paris. He woos lonely wives and wives-to-be, then threatens them with blackmail unless they sustain his lifestyle. One of his potential victims is Carole Lombard, with whom Powell (much against his better judgment) falls in love. Powell's vituperative mistress (Wynne Gibson) won't let her lover off the hook, and heads for the police. To avoid arrest, Powell reluctantly sends Lombard back to her fiancee--and then presumably picks up his racket where he left off. In real life, William Powell and Carole Lombard became husband and wife shortly after filming Man of the World. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Powell, Carole Lombard, (more)
- 1932
Inspired in part by the sensational Snyder-Gray murder case (which was also the source of The Postman Always Rings Twice), The Famous Ferguson Case casts an unflattering light on the journalist "feeding frenzy" attending such crimes. A wealthy banker named Ferguson is found murdered, and his bound-and-gagged wife (Vivienne Osborne) is rescued by the police. It appears at first that the murderer was an unknown burglar, but the cops think otherwise, hypothesizing that Mrs. Ferguson actually conspired with her lover Judd Brooks (Leon Waycoff, aka Leon Ames) to murder her husband. The small town where the murder occurred suddenly becomes the center of a media circus, with reporters from all over the country grasping and clawing for a "hot scoop." At first, hard-boiled girl reporter Maizie Dickson (Joan Blondell) is no better than the rest of the journalist jackals, but she soon becomes disillusioned at the manner in which the truth has been crushed to earth by her insensitive brethren. She also has her heart broken when her husband, likewise a reporter, uses his assignment as an excuse to sleep around. The relentless media blitz eventually drives Mrs. Ferguson (whose guilt or innocence is never completely established) to kill herself and also ruins the lives of everyone around her. Once considered a relic of its period, The Famous Ferguson Case grows more timely with each passing year. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joan Blondell, Tom Brown, (more)
- 1932
Blessed Event is one of several early-1930s films inspired by the meteoric rise to fame of gossip columnist Walter Winchell--and like most such films, its title is based on a Winchell tag line. Lee Tracy plays a glib-tongued reporter who is conducting a feud with popular singer Dick Powell (making his film debut). Along the way, Tracy offends a powerful gangster, and in so doing becomes entangled with chorus girl Mary Brian. The film is at its best when parodying commercial radio of the era (notably an inane jingle for "Shapiro Shoes" warbled by Dick Powell). The original Broadway stage version of Blessed Event was written by Manuel Seff and Forrest Wilson--and reportedly inspired by the career of Ruby Keeler, who rose to stardom thanks in part to the patronage of a New York mobster. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lee Tracy, Mary Brian, (more)
- 1932
A reluctantly appointed police chief in a crime-riddled city takes his job seriously and works hard to clean the streets of gangsters and to shape up his own corrupt department in this brutal, gritty film noir. Jean Harlow plays a luminescent but ill-fated gun moll. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Walter Huston, Jean Harlow, (more)
- 1932
In this wisecracking comedy, Dan Dolan (Spencer Tracy) is a cop whose beat is the New York waterfront. Dan has a soft spot for Helen Riley (Joan Bennett), a sharp-tongued waitress at a cheap diner, while her scatter-brained sister Kate (Marion Burns) is in love with Duke Castage (George Walsh), a sleazy low-level mobster. While Duke makes a play for Kate, both Helen and Dan know that he's bad news, and Dan wants to put Duke behind bars before he can break Kate's heart. Me and My Gal was directed by Raoul Walsh, one of the great craftsmen of the studio system -- and also the brother of George Walsh, who plays the villain. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Spencer Tracy, Joan Bennett, (more)
- 1932
Ricardo Cortez plays a newspaper gossip columnist based on real-life journalist Walter Winchell (the film's title was in fact a Winchell catchphrase). Merrily dishing up innuendoes and destroying reputations, Cortez enjoys hobnobbing with the rich and powerful, including several disreputable citizens who back up their authority with bullets. He makes the error of announcing a gangland murder before the police have found the body, and in so doing is nearly rubbed out by the killers. An unregenerate louse for most of the film, Cortez finally mends his ways out of love for beautiful Helen Twelvetrees. Is My Face Red? is based on a play by Ben Markson and Allen Rivkin. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Helen Twelvetrees, Ricardo Cortez, (more)
- 1932
In this strange, convoluted tale, a hotel clerk ends up pregnant and alone after she has a brief fling with a wealthy playboy. Shortly after her daughter's birth, she hooks up with a criminal. She does not realize that the good-hearted bellboy with whom she works secretly loves her. When the criminal inadvertently involves her in a murder, an eager-beaver reporter, who also grows to lover her, hatches a clever scheme to save her and win her hand. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ann Dvorak, Lee Tracy, (more)
- 1932
Eric Linden is a bellhop who has the extreme misfortune of being in the wrong place at the wrong time in gangster era of Chicago. After witnessing an assassination staged by gangsters, Linden becomes a pawn, being pushed back and forth by corrupt authorities and the mob. Tension mounts as the possibility that the blame for the crime may eventually rest on Linden. ~ All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eric Linden, Sidney Fox, (more)
- 1932
George S. Kaufman's sturdy stage comedy The Butter and Egg Man was the inspiration for no fewer than four Warner Bros. talkie versions. The first of these was The Tenderfoot, starring Joe E. Brown as a wealthy but naive cowboy alone in the Big Apple. The producers of a down-and-out musical revue hope to convince Brown to put his money in their show, sending out cute chorine Ginger Rogers as the "convincer." After having his heart broken a few times and tangling with gangsters, Joe comes through and the show goes on. Warners followed The Tenderfoot with a 1937 musicalization of Butter and Egg Man, Dance Charlie Dance; this in turn was remade as An Angel From Texas in 1942. The final variation on this theme (so far!) was Three Sailors and a Girl (53). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joe E. Brown, Ginger Rogers, (more)
Often (and accurately) described as a model of the whodunit genre, The Kennel Murder Case stars William Powell, making his fourth screen appearance as S. S. Van Dine's dilettante detective Philo Vance. This time the story involves intrigue at the Long Island kennel club. The murder victim is Robert H. Barrat, who works overtime making himself a much-hated target in the first ten minutes. With the aid of a Doberman, Vance solves not only Barrat's murder but a follow-up killing designed to deflect attention from the killer. The suspects include Mary Astor, Ralph Morgan, Jack LaRue, Helen Vinson, Paul Cavanaugh and Arthur Hohl, all of whom have "done it" from time to time in other murder mysteries (movie buffs, however, will have little trouble spotting the killer; the person in question has probably been the hidden murderer in more films than any other member of the Screen Actor's Guild). Kennel Murder Case was William Powell's last "Philo Vance" film; it would be remade in 1940 as Calling Philo Vance, with James Stephenson as Vance and a new World War II angle added to the plot. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Powell, Mary Astor, (more)
We first lay eyes on Jimmy Cagney in Lady Killer while he's working as a movie theater usher. This job lasts just long enough for Jimmy to be swindled in a "badger game" orchestrated by hard-boiled Mae Clarke and a gang of crooks headed by Douglass Dumbrille. Knowing a good thing when he sees it, Cagney joins the mob, and soon is calling the shots. But though he's got larceny in his soul, Cagney draws the line at murder, and when gang member Raymond Hatton is bumped off, Cagney and Clarke board the Super Chief and head to California. With the cops laying for Cagney in LA, he's suspicious of everyone. A shifty-looking mug (William B. Davidson) takes after Cagney on the street; catching up to the winded Cagney, the mug explains that he's a movie director, and that Cagney is a perfect "type" for an upcoming prison picture. After several months as a bit player, Cagney befriends good-natured movie-star Margaret Lindsay, who encourages Cagney to seek out bigger parts. The enterprising Cagney engineers a phony fan-mail campaign encouraging the studio to give him starring roles. Though now a slick, pomaded romantic lead in pictures, Cagney is still Cagney; when a snooty critic pans Lindsay's most recent performance, Cagney forces the reviewer to literally eat his words! It must needs be that Cagney's old gang shows up in Hollywood, planning to use Cagney's influence to gain entree into movie stars' mansions, then steal their valuables. Cagney says ixnay to this, so the mob schemes to take him for a ride. Tipped off by Clarke, Cagney is able to rout the crooks, save the day, and claim Lindsay for his bride. Lady Killer is vintage Cagney, throwing virtually every one of his star-making attributes (including one cute reference to his legendary "grapefruit scene" in 1931's Public Enemy) into one entertaining 76-minute stew. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Cagney, Mae Clarke, (more)
