Bruce Covington Movies

Hoping to repeat the success of its 1929 musical spectacular Rio Rita, RKO Radio reteamed leading lady Bebe Daniels and the comedy team of Bert Wheeler & Robert Woolsey for the equally lavish Dixiana. Set in antebellum Louisiana, the film casts Daniels as the title character, a lovely and charming circus entertainer. Dixiana is loved by Carl Van Horn (Everett Marshall), the son of plantation owner Cornelius Van Horn (Joseph Cawthorn). Though Cornelius approves of his son's choice, his imperious wife (Jobyna Howland) orders Dixiana out of her house, much to the delight of crooked gambler Royal Montague (Ralf Harolde), who has his own wicked designs on our heroine. Fired by her circus, Dixiana is forced to go to work at Montague's gambling establishment, and it is here that the love-struck Carl catches up with her. Hoping to bankrupt Carl and force him to relinquish the deed to the Van Doren plantation, Montague engages the young man in a crooked card game, but Dixiana turns the tables on the villain. Elected queen of the Mardi Gras, Dixiana is kidnapped by the disgruntled Montague, who intends to goad Carl into a duel, knowing full well that the boy's guns have been tampered with. Dixiana is the film debut of Bill "Bojangles" Robinson, who performs a "stair dance" routine during the Technicolor Mardi Gras finale. Incidentally, the film's final color reels were for many years considered lost, with only the black-and-white scenes remaining: thus, many TV prints of Dixiana come to an end long before the plot has been resolved. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Comedian Frank Fay and director Michael Curtiz reportedly despised one another at sight, and their mutual animosity tends to seep through every frame of Under a Texas Moon. The vainglorious Fay is cast as Don Carlos, a gay caballero ("gay" meaning "carefree") whose serenades every senorita he meets. When a group of ranchers post a $7000 dollar reward for the capture of the Bad Man of the Pool (Fred Kohler), a notorious bandit, Don Carlos passes himself off as a daring cattle rustler and promises to bring the Bad Man to heel within 10 days. Characteristically, he spends nine of those ten days romancing such lovelies as Raquella (Raquel Torres), Lolita (Myrna Loy) and Dolores (Armida). All of this was played for laughs, but Frank Fay's special brand of quiet put-down humor didn't play quite as well on screen as it did on stage. Under a Texas Moon was originally released in Technicolor, but try finding a color print today. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Lon Chaney stars as Erik, the Phantom, in what is probably his most famous and certainly his most horrifying role. Produced by Universal, the film shot in 1923 and shelved for nearly two years, and was subjected to intensive studio tinkering. While many expected a disaster, the film turned out to be a rousing success. It was both the stepping off point for Chaney's run as a superstar at MGM and the prototype for the horror film cycle at Universal in the 1930s. The story concerns Erik, a much-feared fiend who haunts the Paris Opera House. Lurking around the damp, dank passages deep in the cellars of the theater, he secretly coaches understudy Christine Daae (Mary Philbin) to be an opera star. Through a startling sequence of terrors, including sending a giant chandelier crashing down on the opera patrons, the Phantom forces the lead soprano to withdraw from the opera, permitting Christine to step in. Luring Christine into his subterranean lair below the opera house, the Phantom confesses his love. But Christine is in love with Raoul de Chagny (Norman Kerry). The Phantom demands that Christine break off her relationship with Raoul before he'll allow her to return to the opera house stage. She agrees, but immediately upon her release from the Phantom's lair, she runs into the arms of Raoul and they plan to flee to England after her performance that night. The Phantom overhears their conversation and, during her performance, the Phantom kidnaps Christine, taking her to the depths of his dungeon. It is left to Raoul and Simon Buquet (Gibson Gowland), a secret service agent, to track down the Phantom and rescue Christine. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi

Mildred Patterson (Mildred June) is planning to wed Robert Wallace (Robert Agnew) when a crook known only as the Baron (Alan Hale) enters their lives. He is on the run from the police and posing as an architect who is overseeing a house being renovated by Mildred's father (Bruce Covington). The Baron finds out that Mildred is upset with her fiancé after catching him kissing a vamp, and they scheme to test his love. The Baron kidnaps Mildred and puts her in all sorts of dangerous situations, and Wallace rises to the occasion. To fulfill her end of the bargain, Mildred gets thrown off of cliffs, tied to a railroad track, and faces certain death in a sawmill. Plus she has to deal with the Baron, who apparently can't decide whether he's trying to bring the couple back together or keep Mildred for himself. Finally everything gets straightened out and Mildred and Wallace end the film together. ~ Janiss Garza, Rovi

John Gilbert was on the brink of superstardom when he appeared in this routine domestic drama -- his fame would explode within a year, when he starred in The Merry Widow and The Big Pararde back-to-back. Even though The Wife of the Centaur (based on the novel by Cyril Hume) wasn't a brilliant film, director King Vidor gave it his usual thought-provoking touch. Jeffrey Dwyer (Gilbert) is a writer and a poet who wrestles with the conflicts between his idealism and his passion. The two sides of his nature are personified in the women he loves: the sweetly innocent Joan Converse (Eleanor Boardman), and the sexy, charismatic Inez Martin (Aileen Pringle). Inez eventually dumps Dwyer in favor of Harry Todd (Philo McCullough), but her marriage to him fails. After burying his unhappiness in a round of wild parties, Dwyer marries Joan and they go to a mountain lodge. Inez rents a nearby house and once again Dwyer begins falling for her. He fights his emotions until he can take it no longer, and, after leaving a note for Joan, he goes to Inez. But his better nature ultimately takes over and he returns to his forgiving wife. ~ Janiss Garza, Rovi