Tom Drake Movies

The Nazi Party's rise to power has disastrous consequences for a German family in this drama. Victor Roth (Frank Morgan) is a college professor teaching in Germany in 1933 who leads a peaceful and contented life with his wife Emelie (Irene Rich), son Rudi (Gene Reynolds), daughter Freya (Margaret Sullavan), and stepsons Otto (Robert Stack) and Erich (William T. Orr). However, Adolph Hitler's emergence as Germany's ruler has an unexpected impact on their lives. Fritz (Robert Young) and Martin (James Stewart) both vie for Freya's hand in marriage, but anti-Nazi activist Martin is forced to flee to Austria, while Freya is disturbed by Fritz's membership in a pro-fascist group. Victor repudiates Hitler's theories about Aryan superiority in class, and he not only loses his teaching position, but he is sentenced to a concentration camp. And while Emelie and Rudi join Freya as she tries to escape to Martin's new home in Austria, they find themselves hunted by Otto and Erich, now members of the Hitler Youth. The Mortal Storm was perhaps the most explicitly anti-Nazi film made in Hollywood prior to America's entry into WWII, and it resulted in all of MGM's product being banned in Germany. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Sally Benson's short stories about the turn-of-the-century Smith family of St. Louis were tackled by a battalion of MGM screenwriters, who hoped to find a throughline to connect the anecdotal tales. After several false starts (one of which proposed that the eldest Smith daughter be kidnapped and held for ransom), the result was the charming valentine-card musical Meet Me in St. Louis. The plot hinges on the possibility that Alonzo Smith (Leon Ames), the family's banker father, might uproot the Smiths to New York, scuttling his daughter Esther (Judy Garland)'s romance with boy-next-door John Truett (Tom Drake) and causing similar emotional trauma for the rest of the household. In a cast that includes Mary Astor as Ames' wife, Lucille Bremer as another Ames daughter, and Marjorie Main as the housekeeper, the most fascinating character is played by 6-year-old Margaret O'Brien. As kid sister Tootie, O'Brien seems morbidly obsessed with death and murder, burying her dolls, "killing" a neighbor at Halloween (she throws flour in the flustered man's face on a dare), and maniacally bludgeoning her snowmen when Papa announces his plans to move to New York. Margaret O'Brien won a special Oscar for her remarkable performance, prompting Lionel Barrymore to grumble "Two hundred years ago, she would have been burned at the stake!" The songs are a heady combination of period tunes and newly minted numbers by Ralph Blane and Hugh Martin, the best of which are The Boy Next Door, The Trolley Song, and Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas. As a bonus, Meet Me in St. Louis is lensed in rich Technicolor, shown to best advantage in the climactic scenes at the St. Louis World's Fair of 1904. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this eighth film in MGM's "Maisie" series, Ann Sothern is back as ever-stranded chorus girl Maisie Revier. As the story opens, Maisie has a steady non-showbiz job as a defense plant riveter (it's wartime, of course); still, she utilizes a two-week vacation to take a singing job in a Reno night spot. This small Nevada town being the Divorce Capital of America, Maisie finds herself involved in the crumbling marriage between a GI (Tom Drake) and his wealthy wife (Ava Gardner). Meanwhile, Maisie's own well-being is threatened by a conniving businessman who has her committed to an asylum when she threatens to squeal about his crooked business practices. Like most "Maisie" pictures, Maisie Goes to Reno suffers from a surfeit of plotting, but is redeemed by the insouciant Ann Sothern. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The White Cliffs of Dover is one of those overlong MGM wartime films that everyone seems to have seen a part of, but no one can remember the film as a sum total. Based on a poem by Alice Duer Miller, the story chronicles the trials and tribulations of one courageous woman through two world wars. Irene Dunne plays an American girl who, in 1914, falls in love with titled Englishman Alan Marshal. At the end of World War 1 in 1918, it is painfully clear that Marshal will not be returning from the battlefields. Remaining loyal to her husband, Irene vows to raise their child in England. Played by Roddy McDowell in his early scenes, Irene's son grows up to be Peter Lawford. At the outbreak of World War 2, Irene despairs at the thought of losing another loved one, but Lawford convinces her that his dad would have wanted him to answer his country's call to the colors. While working as a Red Cross volunteer, Irene finds that she must tend her own mortally wounded son. Unable to save his life, she is grief-stricken, but is gratified with the notion that neither her husband nor her boy have died in vain. Like many films of its ilk and era, White Cliffs of Dover struck a responsive chord with filmgoers, to the tune of a $4 million profit. Watch for a touching scene between Roddy McDowell and 12-year-old Elizabeth Taylor; 19 years later, lifelong friends Roddy and Liz would be playing mortal enemies in Cleopatra (1963). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this romantic comedy, a soldier is granted a two-week furlough and returns home to discover that his girlfriend is engaged to someone else. At first, on the advice of her friends, the girl tries to hide her betrothal from the soldier, but it is not long before she recalls why she loved him in the first place. Conflict ensues when he discovers her deception. Eventually, they manage to straighten out the situation and things come out alright. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

This is the one where Lassie plays a war veteran with amnesia. Actually Lassie isn't even Lassie, but a male collie named Bill (at least he isn't asked to appear "in drag" like all the other cinematic Lassies). Raised from a pup by adolescent Elizabeth Taylor, the doggy hero becomes a sheep collie on rancher Frank Morgan's spread. Lassie--er, Bill--loses his memory when hit by a car. Later on, the dog finds himself in the K-9 corps, where he is trained to kill Japs (Lassie a racist? No, no, not that!) The dog returns home shell-shocked and ready to tear apart anyone who crosses his path. But the love of Elizabeth Taylor conquers all in the lachrymose Technicolor finale. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this musical comedy, Louise Ginglebusher (Deanna Durbin) is a girl from a small town who comes top New York City with dreams of making it in show business. She gets her foot in the door in a roundabout way when she gets a job as an usherette at a prestigious movie palace run by tycoon J. Conrad Nelson (Adolphe Menjou). It soon becomes obvious that Nelson has eyes for his new hire, while Louise is more interested George Prescott (Tom Drake), a young lawyer looking to establish himself. Hoping to discourage Nelson while helping Prescott at the same time, Louise fibs and tells Nelson that Prescott is her husband, and could use a job within his organization. However, Louise's white lie turns out to have unexpected repercussions. Like any Deanna Durbin vehicle, I'll Be Yours features the star singing several tunes, including "Sari Waltz and "Granada"; two years after making this film, she would retire from the screen. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

The life stories of Broadway tunesmiths Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart are prettified for the screen in MGM's Words and Music. Billed fourth, the colorless Tom Drake plays Rodgers, but never mind that: the film belongs to Mickey Rooney, as the dynamic, self-destructive Lorenz Hart. Understandably, Hart's bisexuality is downplayed. According to MGM, his biggest problem in life is that he was never satisfied with his work. We are, however, especially when those great Rodgers & Hart tunes are performed by the likes of Judy Garland, Janet Leigh, Perry Como, Lena Horne, June Allyson, Cyd Charisse, Betty Garrett, Ann Sothern, Mel Torme, Allyn McLerie, Gene Kelly and Vera-Ellen. The musical highlights include Garland's powerhouse rendition of Johnny One-Note, Kelly's Slaughter on 10th Avenue dance solo, Horne's interpretation of Where or When, Allyson's take on Thou Swell, and, best of all, Rooney's premiere performance of I'll Take Manhattan, which he allegedly had just written on the back of an automobile advertisement! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

MGM's Lassie series was declining in popularity by 1948, so the studio decided to release its latest adventure of the famous collie as Hills of Home, so that non-Lassie fans might be inveigled into entering the theatre. Actually, Hills is one of the best entries in the series, due in no small part to the engaging performance by Edmund Gwenn. Playing a Scottish doctor, Gwenn adopts Lassie, who in this film has an unnatural aversion to water; she'll drink it, but won't swim in it. Gwenn spends most of the film trying to cure Lassie of her fears, but she remains water-shy until Gwenn's life is put in danger and the dog is forced to dive into a raving river. The doctor dies as the result of the ordeal, but not before beneficently passing on Lassie's ownership to romantic leads Janet Leigh and Tom Drake. Lensed in restful Technicolor, Hills of Home was based on Ian McClaren's Doctor of the Old School, which had previously been filmed without Lassie in 1923. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Clifton Webb recreates his Sitting Pretty role as Mr. Lynn Belvedere, the World's Greatest Genius. Belvedere discovers that he is ineligible for an honorary award because he never attended college. So he enrolls as a freshman in a major university, becoming the target for "hazing" from obnoxious upper classman Alan Young. The middle-aged Belvedere rapidly builds himself into Big Man on Campus, which complicates his intention of remaining incognito while attending college. Journalism major Shirley Temple likewise threatens to blow Belvedere's cover by writing an article about him for a major magazine. Before earning his college degree (four years' worth of study in six months!), Belvedere plays Cupid for Temple and her estranged boyfriend Tom Drake. Mr. Belvedere Goes to College proved successful enough for a follow-up film, 1951's Mr. Belvedere Rings the Bell. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Never Trust a Gambler proves the veracity of its title by offering up a particularly unsavory specimen in the form of Steve Garry (Dane Clark). Vowing that he's sworn off gambling, Steve is taken back by his loving ex-spouse Virginia Merrill (Cathy O'Donnell). In fact, Steve is merely using Virginia as a shield, to avoid testifying as a witness in a San Francisco murder trial. It seems that he's the murderer, and as such is obliged to kill again to cover his tracks. Poor, deluded Virginia doesn't catch on to her former husband's perfidy until it's nearly too late. Never Trust a Gambler is well-stocked with reliable supporting players, including Tom Drake, Jeff Corey, Myrna Dell and especially Rhys Williams. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Evidently Monogram had high hopes for the modestly produced Disc Jockey, else why would the studio release the film through its "prestige" subsidiary Allied Artists? Songstress Ginny Simms stars as Vickie Peters, an unknown selected for stardom by radio deejay Mike Richards (Michael O'Shea). It is Richards' contention that he can create a singing star exclusively through exposure on disc-spinning radio programs, without resorting to that upstart medium called television. Along the way, Mike falls in love with Vickie, though she has eyes only for her manager Johnny (Tom Drake). Guest stars in this pleasant bit of fluff include Russ Morgan, Tommy Dorsey, George Shearing, Nick Lucas, Herb Jeffries, Sarah Vaughan, The Weavers, Foy Willing and the Riders of the Purple Sage, and a veritable legion of real-life disc jockeys. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide