Blanche Craig Movies

In this frothy romantic adventure, Marlene Dietrich plays Madeleine de Beaupre, a devious jewel thief. After sneaking a valuable string of pearls away from jeweler Aristide Duval (Ernest Cossart), Madeleine attempts to flee Paris, leaving a trail that will instead implicate psychiatrist Dr. Pauquet (Alan Mowbray). While headed for the Spanish border, she nearly runs into Tom Bradley (Gary Cooper), an American auto engineer vacationing in Europe. Madeleine spots Tom again as she waits to go through Spanish Customs; worried that the stolen pearls will be found in her handbag, she slips them into Tom's pocket. After they both make their way through inspection unscathed, Madeleine flirts with Tom in an attempt to get the valuables back; he's too shy to respond in kind, so she gets his attention by trying to "repair" the engine of her car with a hammer. Madeleine lures Tom to the San Sebastian estate of her partner in crime, Carlos Margoli (John Halliday). It doesn't take long for Tom to figure out what Madeleine and Carlos are up to; however, he also knows that he's fallen in love with her, and he is willing to play along if it allows him to be near her. Carlos was originally to have been played by John Gilbert; Halliday was a last-minute replacement after the one-time silent screen star died a week before shooting was to begin. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Filmed in 1929 and released early in 1930, Dynamite was Cecil B. DeMille's first all-talking feature. As one observer has noted, this 128-minute opus has enough plots for seven pictures. The basic storyline here involves spoiled heiress Cynthia Crothers (Kay Johnson) who will lose her fortune if she isn't married right away. Her love Roger Towne (Conrad Nagel) isn't interested in marriage, so Crothers decides to wed convicted murderer Hagon Derk (Charles Bickford). Her plan: Derk will die, then she'll be a millionaire, free to chase after Towne without benefit of clergy. Unfortunately for Crothers, Derk is pardoned at the last minute when the real killer (Leslie Fenton) confesses. Crothers tries to drive Derk out of her life by humiliating him at a fancy party, only to discover that the conditions of her inheritance require that she live with her husband for a set period of time. She swallows her pride and heads for Derk's home town, a grimy mining village. Touched by Crother's inept efforts to keep house and cook dinner, Derk eventually falls in love with her--though he makes it clear that he wants no part of her money. Crothers, in turn, falls genuinely in love with her brutish but basically decent husband. It must needs be that fortune-hunting Towne arrives in the mining village, leading to a powerful climax wherein Derk, Crothers and Towne are trapped in a mine cave-in. Though the dialogue is occasionally quite silly (after the killer commits suicide in a crowded restaurant, one of the patrons is heard to complain "It's ruined my dinner!") and the performances overripe at times, Dynamite actually holds up better than you'd expect. DeMilles' utilization of sound is both innovative and imaginative, especially during the noisy climactic sequences. The film was a success, paving the way for DeMilles' camp classic Madame Satan (1930). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Veteran matinee-idol James Kirkwood starred in this low-budget melodrama from poverty row organization Gotham Productions as Officer Jim Ryan, whose girlfriend, Alice (Edna Murphy), proves a dead-ringer for noted criminal Dorothy Stone. When Jim refuses to arrest Alice for a crime actually committed by Dorothy (also Edna Murphy), Jim faces suspension from the police force. In order to find evidence to clear herself, Alice impersonates Dorothy but the ploy fails and she is kidnapped by gang. She is saved in the nick of time by Jim, who proves once and for all that Dorothy and not Alice is the head of the crime ring. Brunette Edna Murphy was one of the many also-ran "flappers" appearing in the wake of Colleen Moore and Clara Bow. She was at one point married to director Mervyn LeRoy. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide

This drama glorified the lowly postman, which probably warmed the heart of Will H. Hays, the head of the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors Association -- he was a former postmaster general. Dan O'Brien (Brandon Tynan) loyally stays at his mailman job, even when his pal Michael O'Hara (Charles McDonald) offers him a chance to go into business. O'Hara's son Tom (Chester Morris) secretly marries the O'Brien's adopted daughter Peggy (Faire Binney). When O'Brien retires, his pension isn't enough to live on, so his son Terrence (William Collier Jr.) gets a job at the post office to help out. O'Brien allows Brady (Tom Blake) to spend the night at his house, and he gratefully leaves some money. But Brady is a mail robber and the cash is marked, so O'Brien is arrested. Brady and one of his associates attempt to rob a mail train, but Terrence, who is clerking, stops them. Brady escapes, however, and attempts yet another robbery. Once again, he is foiled by Terrence. Finally he confesses and clears O'Brien's name. O'Brien is officially thanked by the postmaster general, and when the marriage between Peggy and Tom is revealed, it brings the two families together again. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

This light-hearted romance, released by Realart, stars Constance Binney. When her father is killed during a fox hunt, Lady Noreen of Kildoran (Binney) finds herself saddled with debts and an ancient, run-down castle. The only way she can think of raising money is to rent the place out to Terrence O'Brien (Tom Carrigan), an American who is visiting Ireland . She pretends to be a maid, and tells O'Brien that her mistress is in France. O'Brien shows his American resourcefulness by playing handyman and fixing up the castle. A romance blooms between O'Brien and Noreen, hampered on her end by Ephraim Roach (Malcolm Bradley), who wants his son Desmond (Arthur Housman) to marry her, and on O'Brien's end by Leila Osborne (Ellen Cassidy), who has designs on him. When Leila and her brother Robert (Jed Prouty) come to visit, Noreen makes things as uncomfortable for them as possible. O'Brien, meanwhile, figures out that the Roaches only want Noreen's castle, and he makes short work of them. With all obstacles out of the way, the two happily unite. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

Fox signed Evelyn Nesbit purely for sensational value. Even at this late date, she was still notorious as the cause for what was considered in 1906 to be "the crime of the century" -- the murder of her ex-lover, architect Stanford White, by her husband Harry Thaw. So most of the films she made for the studio were sheer exploitation. This one, however, was surprisingly good. Nesbit plays Varda Deering, a dancer who is involved with August Von Grossman (Alphonz Ethier), a suspicious character under scrutiny by the U.S. Secret Service. When she meets Lieutenant John Long (Henry Clive), he falls for her, and she for him. But he won't stand for her dealings with Von Grossman so eventually he leaves her. What he doesn't realize is that the Secret Service has contacted her and asked her to spy on Von Grossman for them. She has agreed, and becomes involved in his espionage, all for the benefit of the U.S. government. It turns out that the chauffeur is also working for the Secret Service, and he lends a hand to Varda. With the help of her aides, she breaks into Von Grossman's safe, gets the needed information and takes off in a car. The spies pursue, but are conveniently killed when their car runs afoul of an express train. With the escapade over, Varda can finally explain all to her now-understanding Lieutenant. Nesbit's young son, Russell Thaw, had a bit part as the chauffeur's kid -- a touch that must have delighted Fox's press agents. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

Dawn of a Tomorrow was another winner from the felicitous writer-star team of Frances Marion and Mary Pickford. "America's Sweetheart" plays a girl of the London slums whose sweetheart David Powell is in danger of succumbing to a life of crime. Our Mary puts Powell on the right track, then assures her financial future by rescuing millionaire Forrest Robinson from drowning. Dawn of a Tomorrow was adapted from a play by Frances Hodgson Burnett, of Little Princess and Little Lord Fauntleroy fame. As a result of this and other Pickford hits, the 21-year-old actress soon found herself the highest-paid woman in America. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide