John Wald Movies

Pride of St. Louis is the story of one of baseball's most colorful characters, Jerome Herman "Dizzy" Dean. While playing amateur ball in 1928, Dizzy (Dan Dailey) is hired by the St. Louis Cardinals. He spends a year or so playing with the Cards' Texas farm team, during which time he woos and wins department-store clerk Pat Nash (Joanne Dru, who ironically was the real-life aunt of pro baseball player Pete LaCock!) Once in the majors as a pitcher, Dean is joined on the Cards lineup by his younger brother Paul (Richard Crenna), whom the press nicknames "Daffy." Through a combination of spectacular ballplaying and zany publicity stunts, Dizzy and Daffy become nationwide favorites. Their popularity really soars after they help the Cardinals win the 1934 World Series. After this triumph, things begin to go downhill for Dizzy, who endures several injuries and finally "loses" his pitching arm. Dean is rescued from a binge of self-pity by his old friend Johnny Kendall (Richard Hylton), whose dad is a brewery executive. Johnny convinces his dad to sponsor a series of St. Louis Browns radio broadcasts, and to hire Dizzy as a play-by-play announcer. Ol' Diz gets in a lot of trouble with local schoolteachers because of his eccentric grammar ("he slud into third base," etc.) but things eventually turn out A-OK. Pride of St. Louis takes any number of liberties with the facts, but the real Dizzy Dean didn't care so long as 20th Century-Fox ponied up a huge sum of money for the rights to his life story: "Jeez," he said at the time, "they're gonna give me 50,000 smackers just fer livin'!" Future NBC news commentator Chet Huntley shows up in one of the closing scenes as sportscaster Tom Weaver. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Ex-navy pilot Slattery (Richard Widmark) works for a dope-smuggling ring. When he's not in the air, Slattery is making time with Dolores (Veronica Lake), the somewhat put-upon secretary of the ring's leader. Only upon meeting Aggie (Linda Darnell), the wife of his old navy buddy Hobson (John Russell), does Slattery entertain thoughts of changing his ways. As the film's title indicates, Slattery redeems himself during an outsized hurricane. Based on a story by Herman Wouk, Slattery's Hurricane was largely shot on location in Florida. The film represented a comeback attempt by Veronica Lake, who was then married to director Andre de Toth. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Opening with a brief look at Republic Pictures' back lot in Studio City, CA, this average Roy Rogers songfest settles down to weightier matters after Roy returns to the old homestead to perform a radio broadcast. Peace and quiet, however, are rudely interrupted when someone kidnaps the cowboy crooner's famous horse Trigger and demands a $100,000 ransom for the handsome equine. The perpetrators of this dastardly deed are horse traders "Pop" Jordan (George Lloyd) and Lige McFarland (Wade Crosby), who employ a mole at the Rogers outfit in the person of young Ted Conover (Michael Chapin), Lige's innocent stepson, who will do anything to recover the imperiled Trigger. When not chasing down nasty kidnappers, Roy Rogers, Bob Nolan and The Sons of the Pioneers (featuring Pat Brady) and leading lady Jane Frazee perform "Under California Stars", "King of the Cowboys", and Little Saddle Pals", all by Jack Elliott. Like he had in his initial Republic starring vehicle, Under Western Stars (1938), Roy also sings Gene Autry's dramatic "Dust". Under California Stars was released in Trucolor. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, Rovi

Acclaimed playwright George S. Kaufman made his directorial debut with this broad political satire. Senator Melvin G. Ashton (William Powell) is a long-time congressman for whom the phrase "dumb as a log" would be fitting if one were not afraid of insulting the trees. After more than twenty years of representing his clueless constituents, Ashton decides to take a shot at the presidential race, and hires Lew Gibson (Peter Lind Hayes) is his press agent. Party topkick Dinty (Charles D. Brown) considers Ashton an utterly hopeless candidate, especially after he begins making fantastic campaign promises no one could possibly keep, but Ashton turns out to be a bit more shrewd than expected. The senator has kept a detailed journal documenting the many underhanded deals his colleagues have had their hands in over the years; all he has to do is slip the diary to a reporter and most of congress will be run out of town on a rail. This possibility seem all the more urgent when Ashton starts dating Poppy McNaughton (Ella Raines), a journalist. The Senator Was Indiscreet boasts a fine supporting cast, including Ray Collins, Allen Jenkins, Hans Conreid, and a cameo appearance from Myrna Loy. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi