Ralph Arthur Roberts Movies

Having just recovered from a heart attack, fabled British barrister Sir Wilfred Robards (Charles Laughton) has been ordered by his doctor to give up everything he holds dear-brandy, cigars and especially courtroom cases. Robards' already shaky resolve to follow doctor's orders flies out the window when he takes up the defense of Leonard Vole (Tyrone Power), a personable young man accused of murdering a rich old widow. The case becomes something of a sticky wicket when Vole's "loving" German wife Christine (Marlene Dietrich) announces that she's not legally married to Robards' client-and she fully intends to appear as a witness for the prosecution! At the close of this film, a narrator implores the audience not to divulge the ending; we will herein honor that request. A delicious Billy Wilder mixture of humor, intrigue and melodrama, Witness for the Prosecution is distinguished by its hand-picked supporting cast: John Williams as the police inspector, Henry Daniell as Robards' law partner, Una O'Connor as the murder victim's stone-deaf maid, Torin Thatcher as the prosecutor, Ruta Lee as a sobbing courtroom spectator, and Charles Laughton's wife Elsa Lanchester as Robards' ever-chipper nurse (a role especially written for the film, so that Lanchester could look after Laughton on the set). And keep an eye out for that uncredited actress playing the vengeful-and pivotal-cockney. Adapted by Wilder, Harry Kurnitz and Larry Marcus from the play by Agatha Christie, Witness for the Prosecution was remade for television in 1982. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Danger on Wheels is one of the 14 Richard Arlen-Andy Devine adventure films ground out by Universal Pictures between 1939 and 1941. Arlen is cast as daredevil test-car driver Larry Taylor, while Devine brings up the rear as Larry's mechanic. A rivalry develops between Larry and hotshot motorist Bruce Cowley (Jack Arnold), culminating in Bruce losing his job before an important race. Larry takes Bruce's place in the contest, whereupon he accidentally kills the brother of his sweetheart Pat (Peggy Moran). Our hero redeems himself in everyone's eyes by proving the efficiency of a new oil-burning motor invented by Pat's father (Herbert Cothrell). Danger on Wheels is allegedly based on the exploits of real-life stunt driver Lucky Teeter, who is represented throughout via stock footage. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Evidently, German director Carl Boese never left the studio: his Engel mit Kleinen Fehlern (Angels With Minor Faults) was released but a scant few weeks after his previous effort Ein Ganzer Kerl (A Regular Fellow). The plot of Engel is predicated on a harmless deception which snowballs into comic disaster. Because of a misunderstanding, demure milliner Inge Bauer is forced to pose as her imaginary twin sister, a zesty nightclub hostess. While trying to juggle her two identities, Inge must also contend with a brace of ardent boyfriends and a horde of obnoxious and judgmental relatives. The film's acting honors go to star Charlotte Daudert, who switches from Pollyanna to vamp in the wink of an eye. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

No Ceremony With a Mayor is the English-language title of this provincial German farce. Siegfried Arno is typecast as Siegmund Meyer, the owner of a combination marriage bureau and divorce service. Hoping to impress his future father-in-law, Siegmund adopts the pose of a millionaire. Meanwhile, he nearly loses his sweetheart by inadvertently matching her up with his best friend. All of this sounds a lot like Bachelor Bait, a Stu Erwin comedy filmed in 1934 by RKO Radio. Chances are, however, that neither RKO nor director George Stevens were aware of the existence of Kein Feier Ohne Meier. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Also known as Komm' zu Mir Rendezvous, this is the German-language version of the French marital farce L'Amour Chante. To throw her suspicious husband off track, an unfaithful wife hires a total stranger to pose as her singing coach. While our hero doesn't know one note from another, he pulls off his charade so well that he is hired to give voice lessons to the husband's mistress. Sensing a good thing when he sees one, the faux singing teacher sets up a music conservatory, catering exclusively to philandering spouses. Though its direction is sometimes credited to Carl Boese, Rendezvous was actually directed by Robert Florey, who also helmed L'Amour Chante and its Spanish-language version, Professor de mi Señora. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Einbrecher (Burglars) is a vehicle for Lillian Harvey and Willy Fritsch, designed as a follow-up to their copacetic pairing in Drei von der Tankstelle. Like most operettas of this nature, the plot is the film's least important element. The story has something to do with an ingenuous young bride (Harvey) who gets involved with a gang of Runyonesque underworld types. One of the crooks, played by Fritsch, falls in love with the girl and vows to deliver her back to her husband. Featured in the cast is Viennesse stage actress Margarethe Koeppke, whose supporting role was pared down after her untimely death. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Twice Wedding is the literally translated title of this German comedy. Sure enough, the story deals with a double wedding -- not two couples at once, but the same couple on two different occasions. Lian Haid and Ralph A. Roberts, both of whom continued to enjoy movie success throughout the early 1930s, are the stars. Comedy relief is provided by Szoeka Szakall, who likewise continued to flourish in films, albeit in Hollywood, under the new moniker of S. Z. Sakall. Curiously, Zweimal Hochzeit does not show up on the "official" list of Sakall's films -- at least, not under that title. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Headwaiter Ralph A. Roberts is nonplused when he finds out that he's the father of pretty teenager Xenia Desni. This puts a crimp in Roberts' yearly ritual of posing as a wealthy baron at a posh European resort. Eventually, the old waiter rises to the occasion by using his fabricated aristocratic lineage to expedite the romance between Desni and her young sweetheart Hans Brauswetter. The latter was a popular musician of the era, whose acting talents were negligible at best but who was cast in the film to hypo its box-office appeal. A fairy-tale ending caps this innocuous bit of entertainment. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide