Ralph Lynn Movies
- 1944
The popular screen team of Claudette Colbert and Fred MacMurray stars in this wartime farce. MacMurray is an army pilot who develops engine trouble during a vital mission. Thinking he's about to die, MacMurray radios back his undying affection for his dog "Piggy." But the radio reception is fuzzy, and it is assumed that he has said "Peggy"--which happens to be the character name of Colbert, who intercepts the message. MacMurray survives the plane crash, whereupon he is whisked back home into the arms of Peggy, which is not to the liking of Peggy's gormless fiance (Gil Lamb). Practically Yours was guaranteed to make money, which it did. Its humor not meant to survive the ages, which it hasn't. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Claudette Colbert, Fred MacMurray, (more)
- 1943
The luridly titled Women in Bondage was Monogram's "answer" to RKO Radio's wartime melodrama Hitler's Children. The plot concerns the nationalization and subjugation of Germany's women during the Third Reich. Expected to devote their every waking moment to the cause of Nazism -- and this includes bearing strong Aryan children for Der Fatherland -- several women, notably Margot Bracken (Gail Patrick), begin to rebel. When she finally determines that Hitler has gone to far in his regimentation of the populace, Margot casts her lot with the Allies, becoming a martyr to the cause of freedom. Unusually well-acted for a Monogram film, Women in Bondage boasts an especially strong cast, including Nancy Kelly, Gertrude Michael, Anne Nagel, Tala Birell and H.B. Warner. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gail Patrick, Nancy Kelly, (more)
They just don't make 'em like They Drive By Night anymore. This slam-bang Warner Bros. attraction stars George Raft and Humphrey Bogart as Joe and Paul Fabrini, owners of a small but scrappy trucking firm. The film deftly combines comedy with thrills for the first half-hour or so, as the Fabrini boys battle crooked distributors and unscrupulous rivals while establishing their transport company. Things take a potentially tragic turn when the overworked Paul Fabrini falls asleep at the wheel and cracks up, losing an arm in the accident. He's pretty bitter for a while, but, with the help of his loving wife, Pearl (Gale Page), Paul eventually snaps out of his self-pity and goes to work as a dispatcher for the Fabrinis' company. Meanwhile, Joe's on-and-off romance with wisecracking waitress Cassie Hartley (Ann Sheridan) is threatened by the presence of seductive Lana Carlsen (Ida Lupino), the wife of glad-handing trucking executive Ed Carlsen (Alan Hale). At this point, the film metamorphoses into a remake of the 1935 Paul Muni-Bette Davis vehicle Bordertown. Desperately in love with Joe, Lana murders her husband, making it look like an accident, then offers Joe half-interest in Carlsen's organization. Joe accepts the offer, but spurns Lana's romantic overtures, whereupon the scheming vixen accuses Joe of plotting Carlsen's murder. Thus, the stage is set for a spectacular courtroom finale, completely dominated by a demented Lana, whose "mad scene" rivals those of Ophelia and Lucia di Lammermoor. In addition to the full-blooded performances by the stars and the virile direction by Raoul Walsh, They Drive By Night benefits immeasurably from the nonstop brilliant dialogue by Jerry Wald and Richard Macaulay -- especially in an early lunch-counter scene between Ann Sheridan and George Raft, generously seasoned with hilarious double- and single-entendres. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George Raft, Ann Sheridan, (more)
- 1937
In this British comedy, set during the Boer War, a foot soldier saves his major's life. The officer is most grateful and puts the soldier in line for a Victoria Cross (a medal for valor). Unfortunately the well-meaning major's actions cause the soldier to be extradited back to England where he must stand trial for a series of crimes he committed before he joined the military. Later the major scours the British jails in search of the heroic lad. He finally finds him recruiting soldiers for WW I. The major offers to raise the soldier's son along with his own grandson. The boys are totally different. The soldier's son is a budding juvenile delinquent while the major's grandson is a perfect angel. The major hopes that the latter will have a good influence on the former, but this does not turn out to be the case. Twenty years pass. Goody-two-shoes is now serving time, while the soldier's son lives quite well on the spoils of his illegal activities. He also takes good care of the elderly major, who does not know the truth about his grandson ( he thinks his grandson is living in America) because the soldier's son refuses to tell him. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tom Walls, Ralph Lynn, (more)
- 1936
Another of the delightful Aldwych Theater farces, Pot Luck once again teams those flawless farceurs Tom Walls (who also directed) and Ralph Lynn. Walls is cast as retired Scotland Yard detective Patrick Fitzpatrick, who harbors a deep resentment for his pompous successor Reggie Bathbrick (Ralph Lynn). When a rash of art thefts breaks out in London, Fitzpatrick takes on the investigation himself, for the sole purpose of humiliating Bathbrick. As usual, Ben Travers' dialogue is chock full of familiar catch phrases, cleaned-up expletives and hilariously atrocious puns. Cast as Lynn's pretty daughter is Diana Churchill, in one of her first important screen roles. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tom Walls, Ralph Lynn, (more)
- 1936
In this British comedy, a barrister badly botches his first case and begins to think he has chosen the wrong career. To assist with their bills, he and his wife sublet their apartment to several people at the same time. To fool them all, the couple pretends to be household servants and throws a dinner party for their guests. The wife then sprinkles sleeping powder into their soup. When the renters awaken, they find themselves in assorted compromising positions. The "servants" then blackmail them for their money. They wind up with a tidy sum of money. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1936
Lynn has just received his inheritance--a stable of racehorses. The only problem is that his aunt, a staunch opponent to gambling in any form, is apoplectic at the thought of his owning the stable. She wants him to turn it into a home for working women. That's when then con men show up with a wrestling arena to sell. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1935
In this British comedy, an aging aristocrat with a gambling addiction borrows money from a relative and ends up winning big at the track. Unfortunately he quickly loses it all in Nice. Impoverished once again, he encounters another loser. Together the two get in cahoots with a diamond thief masquerading as a count who cons the wealthy tourists out of their gems. The two end up going to rat on the count to the police when they are arrested. They go to trial, and at the last minute they are acquitted. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tom Walls, Ralph Lynn, (more)
- 1935
In this comedy, a wealthy businessman and his two workers begin scoping out Chinatown for new business opportunities. It is there he learns that his new wife's ex-husband is a blackmailing crook, preparing to victimize him. The businessman decides to destroy the crook before he destroys him. Comic mayhem ensues. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1935
The Aldwych Theater farceurs are at it again in Fighting Stock. The punning title refers to a well-stocked rural fishing stream, which sparks a battle royale between two rival groups of fishermen. Brigadier-General Sir Donald Rowley (Tom Walls) gets involved in the fray when he rents a country cottage with his nephew Sydney (Ralph Lynn). While the nephew pitches woo at the local maidens, General Rowley adopts military tactics to reclaim the stream from village squire Duck (J. Robertson Hare). The weapons deployed herein are slapstick, one-liners and outrageous double-takes. The script for Fighting Stock was penned by Aldwych perennial Ben Travers. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tom Walls, Ralph Lynn, (more)
- 1934
Although this Laurel and Hardy short is quite funny, it's often neglected. The boys, playing chimney sweeps, don't appear right away -- first the stage is set in the laboratory of a mad scientist, Professor Noodle (Lucien Littlefield). He has been working intensely for the past 20 years to create an elixir of youth and he is just moments away from success. At this significant moment, Stan and Ollie arrive to sweep the chimney. The butler, Jessup (Sam Adams), directs them to the fireplace and they go to work while, in another room, Noodle is adding a few drops of this, a half drop of that (he uses a scissors to cut off the last half drop). The professor's work goes far more smoothly than Stan and Ollie's efforts -- in fact, by the time they're done, the room is ankle-deep in debris, and both the boys and the butler are black with soot. Jessup looks at the wreckage and promises that somewhere "an electric chair is waiting." While he is upstairs washing off the grime, the professor proudly appears with his successful elixir and since no one else is around, he decides to show it to the boys. He places a duckling in a big tub of water, adds just a few drops of the potent solution, and the duck reverts to an egg. When Noodle disappears in search of Jessup, Stan and Ollie wonder if there's any validity to what they've just witnessed. They decide to try it out with a fish, but as Ollie stands over the tub holding the full beaker, Stan accidentally knocks him in. The water violently bubbles and churns and finally Ollie emerges -- as a chimp, wearing the inevitable bowler hat. His reply to Stan and the whole situation: "I have nothing to say!" ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ralph Lynn, Gordon Harker, (more)
- 1934
In this romantic comedy two young people defy their feuding parents and marry. Accusations of fraud ensue. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1933
In this drama a shy music teacher attempts to become more outgoing by taking a "How to Succeed" course. Later his girlfriend's father puts him in charge of his hotel. Trouble ensues when the establishment's books do not add up and the quiet fellow is accused of embezzling. The shy guy proves his innocence when he catches his accountant doing the dirty deed himself. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1933
In this frothy farce, the personal secretary to a boorish lord finds himself in romantic trouble after he falls in love with his employer's niece. Because he cannot afford to marry her, he decides to steal his master's prize porker. Later he "finds" the missing pig and returns it in hopes of currying the favor of his boss. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Winifred Shotter, Dorothy Bouchier, (more)
- 1933
In this comedy, two good friends spend Christmas at the home of one of their fiancees. While there, her beloved falls in love with another woman. His buddy falls for the newcomer too and romantic mayhem ensues. Fortunately things are set to right by the story's end and romantic bliss ensues. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1933
In this film, an inn is filled to capacity and a couple must spend the night together in a room. The problem is that both of them are married to other people; before that, they had been engaged to each other. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1933
In this comedy, a quiet bank clerk inherits a fortune, quits his job, and tries to become a major theatrical producer. He then falls in love with a chorine and spends most of his money on a lavish production designed to make her a star. Unfortunately, the show is a bomb. To save the performance of the overly dramatic drama, the would-be producer hops up onstage and begins earnestly trying to play the lead. The audience goes into paroxysms of laughter for he is too awful to be taken seriously and soon he is heralded as a comic genius. The next time the show is listed as a comedy and becomes a hit. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ralph Lynn, Winifred Shotter, (more)
- 1932
Thark is a lively British filmization of a popular theatrical "old dark horse" satire. Aldwych Theatre stalwart Tom Walls directs the film and stars as real estate agent Sir Hector Benbow. The peer sells mysterious Thark Manor to Mary Brough, who has good reason to suspect that the joint is haunted. To prove her wrong, Benbow and his confreres (Ralph Lynn and Evelyn Bostock) spend the night in Thark Manor. Ben Travers, who along with Tom Walls virtually lived at the Aldwych Theatre, was the playwright responsible for this goosepimply gagfest. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ralph Lynn, Tom Walls, (more)
- 1932
In this farce, a playboy falls for a nightclub dancer who is being blackmailed by the club owner over a necklace she borrowed. The playboy and an Irish cop ensure that everything turns out OK. ~ Steve Huey, All Movie Guide
- 1931
In this British comedy, a normally devoted wife begins entertaining thoughts about an affair. Her husband then goes on a Paris business trip, and she decides to go for it with her new male friend in a certain little cottage. Unfortunately, they are followed by her husband's pals. This leads to the aspiring lovers' eviction from the cabin by its owner. Meanwhile, in Paris, the husband is also tempted by the arrival of an old friend. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Carew, Winifred Shotter, (more)
- 1931
Ralph Lynn (who also co-directed) plays a twittish lawyer whose prior engagements prevent him from attending his sweetheart's birthday party. Thanks to a series of unavoidable (and hilariously unbelievable) coincidences, Lynn ends up at a dance hall with a woman he barely knows. The problem: How to divest himself of this lady without hurting her feelings and getting into trouble with his own girlfriend. It's Ralph Lynn's show all the way, and he makes the most of every comic opportunity. It would be nice to say that the film's production values were on the same level as the star's performance -- nice, and untrue. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Winifred Shotter, Kenneth Kove, (more)
- 1931
The Aldwych Theater farceurs again combined forces in this adaptation of Will Evans and Arthur Valentine's stage farce Tons of Money. Ralph Lynn (who also co-wrote the script) plays eccentric inventor Aubrey Allington, on the verge of selling one of his creations for millions of pounds. To do this, however, Allington finds it necessary to pose as his long-missing cousin. On cue, the cousin shows up to label Allington a phony -- only to be labelled a phony himself by another man claiming to be the cousin. This goes on for reels and reels until director Tom Walls decides that enough's enough. Also on hand in Tons of Money is Aldwych regular Robertson Hare, expressing his usual panic and disdain over the hectic goings-on. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ralph Lynn, Yvonne Arnaud, (more)
- 1931
In this British farce, based on a popular play, one fellow joins another in an endeavor to steal his fiancee's jewels back from the housekeeper that bilked her into giving them away. They succeed. Later, the engaged fellow discovers that the housekeeper obtained the valued rocks by committing bigamy. He and the housekeeper then cut a deal to share the wealth. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robertson Hare, Mary Brough, (more)
- 1930
This comedy marks the first sound appearance of the "Aldwych farceurs" three actors known for performing adaptations of then popular playwright Ben Travers' "Aldwych farces." In this one, a young girl flees her home and cruel stepfather. She then is befriended by a married man. Complications ensue. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ralph Lynn, Tom Walls, (more)
- 1930
The first of the wonderful Aldwych Theater farces to hit the silver screen was the frantically hilarious Rookery Nook. The title refers to a country house where Gerald Popkiss (Ralph Lynn) heads for a good long rest. Gerald sends word to his wife Clara (Margot Grahame) to join him then retires for the night. Meanwhile, pajama-clad Rhoda Marley (Winifred Shotter), who has been thrown out of her home by her stepfather, takes refuge in the Rookery Nook living room. It isn't long before Gerald's cousin Clive (Tom Walls), sent to the country house to make certain that Gerald behaves himself, makes the acquaintance of the startled Rhoda -- and that's when the fun begins. Best bits include the lifeboat drill presided over by the scatterbrained Poppy Dickey (Doreen Bendix) and such dialog exchanges as "I'm a man of peace"/ "You'll be a man of pieces in a minute". Filmed exactly like a photographed stage play, Rookery Nook is hardly an advance in the art of the cinema, but that doesn't stop it from being unbearably funny. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ralph Lynn, Tom Walls, (more)
