Douglas Dumbrille Movies
Silver-tongued actor Douglas Dumbrille played just about every type in his long screen career, but it was as a dignified villain that he is best remembered. Born in Canada, Dumbrille did most of his stage work in the United States, breaking into films with His Woman in 1931. He bounced between supporting parts and unbilled bits in the early 1930s, usually at Warner Bros., where his sleek brand of skullduggery fit right in with the gangsters, shysters and political phonies popping up in most of the studio's 1930s product. Superb in modern dress roles, Dumbrille also excelled at costume villainy: it is claimed that, in Lives of the Bengal Lancers (1935), he was the first bad guy to growl, "We have ways of making you talk." The actor's pompous demeanor made him an ideal foil for such comedians as the Marx Brothers, with whom he appeared twice, and Abbott and Costello, who matched wits with Dumbrille in four different films. Sometimes, Dumbrille's reputation as a no-good was used to lead the audience astray; he was frequently cast as red-herring suspects in such murder mysteries as Castle in the Desert (1942), while in the Johnny Mack Brown western Flame of the West (1945), Dumbrille piqued the viewer's interest by playing a thoroughly honest, decent sheriff (surely he'd turn bad by the end, thought the audience -- but he didn't). In real life a gentle man whose diabolical features were softened by a pair of spectacles, Dumbrille mellowed his image as he grew older, often playing bemused officials and judges who couldn't make head nor tails of Gracie Allen's thought patterns on TV's The Burns and Allen Show. Late in life, a widowed Douglas Dumbrille married Patricia Mobray, daughter of his close friend -- and fellow screen villain -- Alan Mowbray. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
We first lay eyes on Jimmy Cagney in Lady Killer while he's working as a movie theater usher. This job lasts just long enough for Jimmy to be swindled in a "badger game" orchestrated by hard-boiled Mae Clarke and a gang of crooks headed by Douglass Dumbrille. Knowing a good thing when he sees it, Cagney joins the mob, and soon is calling the shots. But though he's got larceny in his soul, Cagney draws the line at murder, and when gang member Raymond Hatton is bumped off, Cagney and Clarke board the Super Chief and head to California. With the cops laying for Cagney in LA, he's suspicious of everyone. A shifty-looking mug (William B. Davidson) takes after Cagney on the street; catching up to the winded Cagney, the mug explains that he's a movie director, and that Cagney is a perfect "type" for an upcoming prison picture. After several months as a bit player, Cagney befriends good-natured movie-star Margaret Lindsay, who encourages Cagney to seek out bigger parts. The enterprising Cagney engineers a phony fan-mail campaign encouraging the studio to give him starring roles. Though now a slick, pomaded romantic lead in pictures, Cagney is still Cagney; when a snooty critic pans Lindsay's most recent performance, Cagney forces the reviewer to literally eat his words! It must needs be that Cagney's old gang shows up in Hollywood, planning to use Cagney's influence to gain entree into movie stars' mansions, then steal their valuables. Cagney says ixnay to this, so the mob schemes to take him for a ride. Tipped off by Clarke, Cagney is able to rout the crooks, save the day, and claim Lindsay for his bride. Lady Killer is vintage Cagney, throwing virtually every one of his star-making attributes (including one cute reference to his legendary "grapefruit scene" in 1931's Public Enemy) into one entertaining 76-minute stew. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Cagney, Mae Clarke, (more)
- 1933
This drama is set aboard a cross-country train bound for New York. Aboard this train is a silk manufacturer from Seattle who is going to the Big Apple to deliver a valuable shipment. Unfortunately, an avaricious rival is also on board. Fortunately, a railroad detective is also aboard the train as are a sickly professor and his daughter. The foursome join forces and stop the rival. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Neil Hamilton, Sheila Terry, (more)
- 1933
Perennial sidekick George E. Stone is given the leading role in The Big Brain. Stone plays a small-town barber, short of stature but a giant in the world of stock promotion. As his bank account grows, Stone's ethics diminish, and soon he's playing fast and loose with other people's money. Disgruntled investor Fay Wray is the one who finally blows the whistle on the prevaracating hair-snipper. Reportedly based on the career of real-life swindler Charles Ponzi, The Big Brain also owes a great deal to the 1931 Edward G. Robinson vehicle Smart Money. This RKO programmer was released in Great Britain as Enemies of Society. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George E. Stone, Phillips Holmes, (more)
- 1933
Baby Face is a good example of the kind of spitfire lead female characters that appeared in the cinema of pre-code Hollywood. Lily Powers (Barbara Stanwyck) works as a barmaid in her father's factory-town saloon where she learns to deal with the unwanted advances of male customers. When her father dies, she moves to New York City with her maid, Chico (Theresa Harris), to become a ruthless gold digger. First she meets office boy Jimmy McCoy (a young John Wayne in an uncharacteristically clean-cut role) who helps her get a job at the Gotham Trust Company. From there, she seduces and discards various men (George Brent, Donald Cook, Henry Kolker) as she sleeps her way to the top of the company. Jealously between the men causes a murder scene, so Lily takes her furs and jewels and moves to Paris with Chico. The production code censors tacked on an ending that featured Lily giving away her money and returning to her home town with Brent. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barbara Stanwyck, George Brent, (more)
- 1933
The Man Who Dared was inspired by the career of Chicago mayor Anton Cermak, here called "Jan Novak" and played by Preston S. Foster. The first portion of the film dwells upon Novak's early years in Chicago's Bohemian community, then follows him on the political trail. In the face of governmental corruption, Novak is scrupulously honest; despite the pressures of big-business barons, Novak tirelessly champions the working man. Elected mayor of Chicago during the Prohibition era, Novak stands his ground against gangsterism. At the end, he is shot down by a sniper who was aiming at President-elect Roosevelt (just as Anton Cermak was shot at the Chicago Century of Progress exhibition in 1933). As Novak dies, he expresses no regrets, declaring his gratitude that Roosevelt was spared. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Preston S. Foster, Zita Johann, (more)
- 1932
- Add I Am a Fugitive From a Chain Gang to QueueAdd I Am a Fugitive From a Chain Gang to top of Queue
Warner Bros.' hard-hitting chain-gang movie was a faithful adaptation of the similarly titled autobiography of Robert Elliot Burns. Paul Muni plays World War I veteran James Allen, whose plans of becoming a master architect evaporate in the cold light of economic realities. Flat broke, Allen is forced to pawn his war medals, which have become a glut on the market. When Allen is innocently involved in a restaurant holdup, the police don't buy his story that the robber (Preston S. Foster) had forced him to clean out the cash register, and Allen is sentenced to ten years on a chain gang. The brutal scenes that follow make the later chain-gang movie Cool Hand Luke (1967) look like a picnic in the country. Unable to stand any more, Allen escapes and heads to Chicago. Using an alias, he builds a new life for himself and within five years is the respected president of a bridge-building firm. His landlady (Glenda Farrell), learning about his past, forces Allen to marry her. When he falls in love with another girl (Helen Vinson) and asks for a divorce, his wife turns him over to the authorities. The real-life Robert Elliot Burns was still a fugitive when he wrote his exposé of the chain-gang system; the publication of Burns' book led to the abolishment of that system and an erasure of Burns' sentence. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Paul Muni, Glenda Farrell, (more)
- 1932
Marion Davies and Billie Dove, both veterans of the real-life Ziegfeld Follies, star in the entertaining comedy-drama Blondie of the Follies. Having both grown up in the New York tenement district, Blondie (Davies) and Lurleen (Dove) hope to escape their shabby surroundings in favor of the show-business world. But while Lurleen takes "the easiest path," sleeping her way to the top and living in luxury as the kept woman of playboy Robert Montgomery, Blondie does her best to hold on to her virtue while climbing the rungs of fame and fortune. The rivalry between the two girls reaches a fever pitch when Lurleen inadvertently causes Blondie to suffer a debilitating injury during a particularly treacherous Follies production number. Sticking fast to her principles, Blondie ultimately wins Montgomery, whereupon she and Lurleen renew their rocky friendship. The film's highlight is a delightful party scene in which Marion Davies and Jimmy Durante perform a devastating send-up of Greta Garbo and John Barrymore in Grand Hotel. Blondie of the Follies might have even been better had it been shorter; at 90 minutes, however, it veers towards repetition and predictability in the final reels. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Marion Davies, Robert Montgomery, (more)
- 1932
Margaret Hughes (Claudette Colbert) returns from a trip abroad to discover that her sweetheart, crusading attorney David Rolfe (Melvyn Douglas), has been framed for murder. To save Rolfe from the chair, Margaret poses as a trollop and insinuates herself into the confidence of the criminal underworld. Her efforts to get her hands on the evidence that will free Rolfe are stymied by gang boss Harry Evans (William "Stage" Boyd), but Evans is himself destroyed by his castoff mistress Claire Foster (Lilyan Tashman). The Wiser Sex was inspired by the recent crime-busting activities of New York's Seabury committee, though one assumes that the real-life participants were not as glamorous as Colbert and Douglas. Featured in the cast is a talented young actor named Ross Alexander, who would go on to a tragically brief starring career at Warner Bros. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Claudette Colbert, Melvyn Douglas, (more)
- 1932
A young football hero learns valuable life lessons on the way to becoming a pro in this sports drama. Tommy is a promising player who is working his way through college. He quickly becomes a star on the campus grid-iron, but when he gets entangled in a stock swindle, he nearly destroys his budding career. Fortunately, Tommy smartens up and pays back all of the money he gained when he inadvertently cheated some innocent investors. The USC national championship football team of 1931 appears in the film. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Cromwell, Dorothy Jordan, (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)
