John T. Doyle Movies
- 1934
For all his Broadway success, George M. Cohan was never able to "make it" in motion pictures. In 1934, he made another try at movie success with Gambling, a self-produced adaptation of his own stage play. Cohan stars as Al Draper a high-rolling casino operator whose beloved ward Dorothy Kane (Dorothy Burgess) is murdered. With his usual sang-froid smoothness, he dedicates the rest of the picture to tracking down the girl's killer, even though the police have officially closed the case. Cheaply filmed in an abandoned New York warehouse, Gambling disappeared from view not long after its release. Though not technically a "lost" film (copies reportedly exist in the hands of private collectors), it might as well be. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George M. Cohan, Wynne Gibson, (more)
- 1931
In this drama, a remake of Sal of Singapore(1929), the captain of a freighter becomes an instant father when his crew rescues a drifting Navy boat that contains a baby. The captain decides that he will keep the baby and take it back to the U.S. instead of turning it in to the authorities. He begins advertising for a "mother" for the baby to help him while he runs the ship. His call is answered by a woman with a dubious, secret past. During the interview she lies about her character and qualifications and gets the job and a free cruise to the States. It is smooth sailing until one of the sailors recognizes her and attempts to blackmail her into sleeping with him. Fortunately, the captain rescues her and tosses the loutish seaman into the sea. The woman immediately falls for the good captain who has also fallen for her. They encounter more rough seas when, upon docking in New York, the captain is arrested for attempted murder. The woman becomes his witness, but when he learns the truth about her, he loses his respect and they go their separate ways. She again becomes a loose woman, and he begins to drink heavily. When the baby gets deathly ill, the two are reunited--this time it is for good, and happiness ensues. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gary Cooper, Claudette Colbert, (more)
- 1929
Popular radio crooner Morton Downey (yes, the father of talk-show host Morton Downey Jr.) stars in this sentimental Jazz Singer wannabe. On the eve of his Broadway debut, singer Tommy O'Day (Downey) learns that his care-worn, self-sacrificing old mother (Beryl Mercer) is gravely ill. Without giving a thought as to his professional future, Tommy walks out on his show, rushes to his Ma's bedside, and sings her back to health. Our hero's career is saved when the newspapers find out about his noble, selfless act. Although Helen Chandler (of Dracula fame) plays Tommy's sweetheart in Mother's Boy, his real-life spouse at the time was Barbara Bennett, the sister of actress Constance and Joan Bennett, who appears in the much smaller role of debutante Beatrix Townleigh. Brian Donlevy makes his talkie debut as Tommy's older brother Harry in this New York-filmed musical. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John T. Doyle, Beryl Mercer, (more)
- 1914
The Flamingo Film Company inaugurated its brief life-span with the 4-reel Without Hope. A comedy with melodramatic undertones, the film stars Harry Kendall as an adventuresome playwright. To pick up material for his latest play, Kendall poses as a waiter at a fancy restaurant. In a twinkling, he gets mixed up with a gang of sinister foreign agents, who hope to get their hands on a noiseless explosive device (gee, didn't Tom Clancy use this same plot approximately 75 years later?) Without Hope was produced and directed by former Keystone comedian Fred Mace, who died three years later under questionable circumstances. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
