Steve Clemente Movies
Mexican-born Esteban "Steve" Clemente (sometimes spelled Clemento) became a victim of Hollywood xenophobia. One of the screen's more perfidious villains -- and one of its best scene stealers -- Clemente would have been handsome had it not been for that trademark sneer considered essential for playing "greasers" and "half-breeds." Onscreen from the 1910s, Clemente's villainy continued well into the sound era and he is perhaps best remembered today for playing the witch doctor in King Kong (1933). The veteran screen villain's death was attributed to a cerebral hemorrhage. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide- 1917
Western star Harry Carey and director John Ford worked together on quite a few films. Not all of them were winners, however, and this one was definitely below par. Cheyenne Harry (Carey) escapes from prison and hops on a train. He is aided by ranch owner Henry Beaufort (Morris Foster), who gives him some clothes and lets him sleep in his stateroom. Harry goes on to find a job as a cowboy but is forced to flee when he is seen by the sheriff (Vester Pegg). Beaufort has a little girl, Elizabeth (Elizabeth Janes), and he asks Pedro (Steve Clemente), who is taking care of her, to take her to another town. But Pedro is drunk and loses control of the wagon, and is killed in the ensuing accident. Harry finds the wreck and takes charge of Elizabeth. Because the child is hurt and dying of thirst, he lets himself be captured so that she will get help. The town decides to raffle the girl off to the highest bidder, but she recognizes her mother in Molly, the sheriff's sister (Edith Sterling). Mother and child are reunited, but the sheriff goes in search of the man he believes ruined his sister. He heads for Beaufort, and Molly confides her dilemma to Harry. With the help of Chuck, the deputy (Hoot Gibson), Harry escapes and keeps the sheriff from shooting Beaufort. When Molly arrives, she explains that they were secretly married so that it wouldn't affect Beaufort's status in his uncle's will. Since the uncle has just died, they no longer need to keep quiet. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide
- 1918
The Scarlet Drop was one of John Ford's seven directorial efforts for the year 1918 -- none of which, alas, seem to have survived. Ford also wrote the screenplay, while his friend and mentor Harry Carey essayed the leading role. Briefly dropping his standard "Cheyenne Harry" characterization, Carey is cast as "Kaintuck" Ridge, a veteran of the War Between the States. Disdained as "poor white trash," Ridge distinguishes himself with conspicuous acts of courage when he joins a Southern guerilla band, comprised of social outcasts like himself. With a price on his head, Ridge is forced to escape to the West, where he is reunited with Marley Calvert (Vester Pegg), an aristocratic Southern belle whose life he saved during the war. Though he is deeply in love with Marley, he has sworn vengeance against her family due to past humiliations, and it takes plenty of hard ridin', fancy shootin' and heavy drinkin' before the plot is resolved. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1918
John Ford's fourteenth film is a fast-paced Harry Carey western vehicle featuring Carey as his popular Cheyenne Harry hero. From the Plains, Harry rides into the disorderly western town of Rawhide, where he makes an immediate friend in Cimmaron Bill (Duke Lee). Harry then falls for dance-hall girl Bess (Neva Gerber), an upstanding woman forced into this particular line of work by a series of dire circumstances. Rawhide is yet another western town lorded over by crooks and outlaws. Harry determines to rid the town of the riffraff and restore order, but complications set in when he finds out that Bess' brother is a member of the gang that is riding roughshod over the town. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Harry Carey, Neva Gerber, (more)
- 1922
Silent Western star Jack Hoxie played a sheriff in this low-budget outing produced by Ben Wilson. Ordered to clean up the rough town of Cactus Flats, Sheriff Hoxie learns that the town's mayor (Claude Payton) is corrupt and the brain behind a recent series of crimes against the local settlers. According to Hoxie, leading lady Evelyn Nelson was one of the best horsewoman around and a nice person to work with. Sadly, the actress committed suicide at the age of 24 in 1923. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jack Hoxie, Evelyn Nelson, (more)
- 1926
The Temptress was Greta Garbo's second American film, and while it may strike modern viewers as excessively melodramatic, Garbo is always worth watching. The star plays Elena, the wife of Monsieur Canterac (Lionel Barrymore) -- and the mistress of rich Parisian banker Monsieur Fontenoy (Marc MacDermott). When the banker's Argentine friend Robledo (Antonio Moreno), a dynamic young engineer, pays a visit to Paris, the fickle Elena immediately falls in love with him. Upon learning that Fontenoy has lost his fortune, Elena dumps him and returns to her husband, whereupon the banker kills himself. Evidently not content with ruining one life, Elena heads to Argentina and goes to work on Robledo, leading to a bloody whip duel between Robledo and his rival Manos Duros (Roy D'Arcy). Inevitably, Elena drives Robledo to perdition and indirectly causes the destruction of the magnificent dam upon which he has worked all his life. Banished from Argentina, she returns to Paris, where she spends the rest of her days as a seedy streetwalker. At least, that was the ending of the European version of The Temptress. The American version incredibly ends happily, five years after the above-described events, as Robledo and the reformed Elena triumphantly supervise the opening of his now-repaired dam! Initially, the film's director was Garbo's mentor-lover, the brilliant Mauritz Stiller, but he was replaced halfway through by the competent but uninspired Fred Niblo -- and the finished picture shows this division of interests all too clearly. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Greta Garbo, Antonio Moreno, (more)
The first of many official and unofficial screen versions of Richard Connell's The Most Dangerous Game was put together by producer Willis O'Brien and directors Ernest B. Schoedsack and Irving Pichel in 1932. Leslie Banks stars as loony Russian count Zaroff, a renowned big-game hunter who tires of stalking animals and begins hunting down the "most dangerous game"-human beings. Luring unwary victims to his remote island, Zaroff wines and dines them, gives them a few hours' head start to run into the jungle, then hunts them down with rifle and bow and arrow. As his grisly trophy room demonstrates, Zaroff hasn't missed yet. Shipwreck survivors Joel McCrea and Fay Wray are Zaroff's latest quarry. "First the hunt, then the revels!" declares Zaroff, casting a lecherous eye towards the wide-eyed Ms. Wray. The original Connell story had no heroine, but who wants to watch Joel McCrea lose most of his clothing while scurrying through the jungle? The Most Dangerous Game was filmed on RKO's standing King Kong sets during a lull in the production of that classic film, utilizing most of the Kong personnel (actors Fay Wray, Robert Armstrong, Noble Johnson, Steve Clemente and Dutch Hendrian; producer O'Brien; director Schoedsack; composer Max Steiner). While the plot has been reshaped and recycled many times since 1932, RKO's only official remake of Most Dangerous Game was 1945's A Game of Death. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joel McCrea, Fay Wray, (more)
Hoping to immediately cash in on its blockbuster hit King Kong (1933). RKO Radio commissioned producers Willis O'Brien and Ernest B. Schoedsack to hastily slap together a sequel. Son of Kong begins where King Kong left off, with foolhardy entrepreneur Carl Denham (Robert Armstrong) facing hundreds of thousands dollars in lawsuits from the damages inflicted by the mighty Kong on the city of New York (remember?) Denham's partner Captain Englehorn (Frank Reicher) suggests that they escape to Malaya, where they make the acquaintance of Hilda (Helen Mack), the daughter of drink-besotted circus-owner Peterson (Clarence Wilson). When her father is killed in a fire caused by Norwegian sea captain Helstrom (John Marston), Hilda is comforted by Denham, who has taken a liking to the unfortunate girl. It turns out that Helstrom was the sailor who sold Denham the map to Skull Island, where King Kong once ruled unchecked. Hoping to escape prosecution for the fatal fire, Hellstrom claims that there's a fabulous treasure buried somewhere on Skull Island and offers to lead Denham and Englehorn back to the Pacific flyspeck. With no place else to go, Hilda stows away on Englehorn's boat and joins the expedition. After an unpleasant confrontation with the natives whom Kong trampled and chewed up in the earlier film, Denham and Hilda explore another part of the Island -- and there they find Little Kong, a 12-foot-high white gorilla who is as lovable as his "old man" was nasty. As the treacherous Hellstrom meets his doom elsewhere on the island, cute Little Kong protects his new friends Denham and Hilda from a variety of marauding dinosaurs, ultimately sacrificing his own life to save the human hero and heroine from a native war party. Largely played for laughs (at one point Little Kong makes an "Oy vey" gesture, as the soundtrack plays a snatch of a Jewish dance!), Son of Kong is nowhere near the classic stature of its illustrious predecessor. On the other hand, the stop-motion photography is quite impressive, at times even better than the animation seen in the original King Kong. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Armstrong, Helen Mack, (more)
- 1933
In this western, the locals are being plagued by "Black Death" an evil outlaw who shoots victims with chemical bullets that turn them black. He is pursued by a brave Texas Ranger. When the ranger learns that the killer is following a wild West show --the one the ranger used to work in--the hero rejoins. He soon catches up to the crook and ends up following him to Mexico. A deadly gunfight ensues and the Black Death finally dies. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ken Maynard, Lucille Browne, (more)
Brooklyn tugboat worker Eddie (Eddie Cantor), bullied and cowed by his tough-guy stepfather and stepbrothers (a la Harold Lloyd's The Kid Brother), inherits $77 million from his uncle, an Egyptologist. Con artist Dot (Ethel Merman) wants to get her lunchhooks on the money, and to this end offers herself as Eddie's adopted mother (never mind that she's nearly 20 years younger), intending to have her thuggish brother Louie (Warren Hymer) bump off our hero at the first opportunity. The nonsensical plotline ends up with Eddie, Dot, Louie, pompous Southern colonel Larrabee (Berton Churchill), and nominal romantic leads Jerry (George Murphy in his film debut) and Jane (Ann Sothern) trapped in the palace of Arab potentate Mulhulla (Paul Harvey). The better-than-average comic banter includes some funny bits between Cantor and Eve Sully, of the comedy team of "Block and Sully" (her husband-partner Jesse Block is also in the picture, but just barely). Spotted among the featured players in Kid Millions are such "Our Gang" members as Stymie Beard, Scotty Beckett and Tommy Bond, and there's a specialty by the Nicholas Brothers during Cantor's obligatory "blackface" number; and yes, that's Lucille Ball as a blonde Goldwyn Girl in the harem sequence. PS: According to Ethel Merman, the film's elaborate Technicolor ice-cream factory finale, in which Eddie allows dozens of tenement kids to gorge themselves on his tasty confections, posed censorship problems: while producer Sam Goldwyn was allowed to show the little boys with comically extended stomachs, he was not permitted to do so with the little girls, for fear that the audience might think the female moppets were pregnant! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Stanley Fields, Eddie Cantor, (more)
The distinguished Henry B. Walthall, a major star of the early silent screen, headlined this cheap whodunit that fully capitalized on his remaining box-office pull in the hinterlands. Walthall plays Professor Mysto, a carnival magician warned by his boss, Carr (Lynton Brent), that a group of reformers headed by the police commissioner (Joseph W. Girard) and a teetotalist councilman (Sam Flint) are after him. When the latter is murdered, both Mysto, Carr, and a concessionaire (John Elliot) are among the suspects, the last mentioned admitting ownership of a .45-calibre gun. The concessionaire, however, is released when it becomes clear that the lethal bullet came from a .38-calibre weapon. Newspaperman Jerry Ross (John Harron), who is in love with the commissioner's pretty daughter (Phyllis Barrington), attempts to scoop the competition by unmasking the killer, but is knocked unconscious by a hooded figure. Carr, who is guilty of selling bootleg liquor in his establishment, manages to flee the law but is eventually killed by a jealous employee. None of this leads Jerry closer to the killer, who, it later turns out, has invented a device that equips a .45-calibre gun to fire .38-calibre bullets. In the end, however, the killer is unmasked and Jerry proposes to the police commissioner's daughter. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- 1934
The Buck Jones western The Fighting Ranger utilizes its familiar plotline with excellent results. When Jones' kid brother is killed by the villains, our hero quits the Texas Rangers and sets off to seek vengeance on his own. He ends up just below the Mexican border, where bandit leader Cougar (Bradley Page) lives high off the hog, knowing he can't be extradited. But Jones is able to round up the baddies just in time for the "End" title. Columbia's all-purpose leading lady Dorothy Revier is the heroine, while comedy relief is provided by eyeball-rolling Frank Rice. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Buck Jones, Dorothy Revier, (more)
- 1936
Yet another Zorro imitation, this adventure serial starred Robert Livingston as Don Loring, whose father and brother are killed by the evil General Burr (Fred Kohler). Seeking revenge, Loring dons a black cape and mask, calls himself "The Eagle," and goes about bringing Burr and his men to justice. As a daytime cover, the hero assumes the role of a kind, simple-minded church organist, a disguise that manages to fool Burr and his collaborator, the nasty Russian Count Raspinoff (Robert Warwick), for the serial's 12 installments. Guinn "Big Boy" Williams co-starred as Salvation, the leader of a motley gang of outlaws who assist Loring in his quest, while brunette Kay Hughes added much needed feminine touch to the proceedings. Produced for Republic Pictures by genre specialist Nat Levine, the serial was co-directed by former actor Mack V. Wright and Ray Taylor. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- 1937
The very urban Paul Kelly is the unlikely hero of It Happened Out West. Sent to Arizona to persuade ranch owner Anne Martin (Judith Allen) to sell her property, banker Dick Howe (Kelly) begins to wonder if this transaction is a good idea. His doubts are fueled by the behavior of Anne's foreman Burt Travis (Leroy Mason), whose eagerness to sell the girl's ranch is downright sinister. Sure enough, Travis and Dick's boss Middleton (Reginald Barlow) are in cahoots to get their hands on the ranch's hidden silver deposits. Our hero foils the villains, enabling Anne to keep her land -- an excellent wedding present, as it turns out. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Paul Kelly, Judith Allen, (more)
- 1937
Hills of Old Wyoming was the 10th entry in the "Hopalong Cassidy" series, and at 79 minutes one of the longest of the batch (beaten out only by the 82-minute Borderland). William Boyd and George "Gabby" Hayes are back as Hoppy and Windy, but handsome sidekick Johnny Nelson (James Ellison) has been replaced by Lucky Jenkins (Russell Hayden, who remained with the series until 1941). The plot focuses on an Indian reservation where the residents are being victimized by villainous deputy Andrews (Stephen Morris, aka Morris Ankrum). Fomenting a range war between Indians and cattlemen for his own profit, Andrews is foiled by Hoppy and company. Former silent screen star Clara Kimball Young is given a few moments to shine in the minor role of Ma Hutchins. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William "Hopalong" Boyd, George "Gabby" Hayes, (more)
- 1942
- NR
Though officially based on a Saturday Evening Post story by Clarence Buddington Kelland, RKO Radio's Valley of the Sun was obviously inspired by the blockbuster comedy western Destry Rides Again (indeed, both films were directed by George Marshall). James Craig stars as Indian scout Jonathan, whose pro-Native American sentiments do not rest well with crooked civilian Indian agent Jim Sawyer (Dean Jagger), who intends to benefit from an impending tribal uprising. Court-martialed on a trumped-up charge fomented by Sawyer, Jonathan escapes the stockade with the help of a friendly sergeant and rides off to Washington DC, hoping to forestall an all-out Indian war. En route, he makes the acquaintance of Sawyer's snooty fiancee Christine (Lucille Ball), forcing her into a marriage for plot reasons too complicated to go into here. After juggling comedy and melodrama for nearly eight reels, the film turns serious towards the climax, when the fate of the protagonists falls into the hands of level-headed Indian chieftan Cochise (Antonio Moreno) and his hotheaded rival Geronimo (Tom Tyler). RKO's first big-budget western in several years, Valley of the Sun lost $158,000 at the box office, temporarily discouraging any followups. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lucille Ball, James Craig, (more)
