Eve Arden Movies
Little Eunice Quedens' first brush with the performing arts came at age seven, when she won a WCTU medal for her recital of the pro-temperance poem "No Kicka My Dog." After graduating from high school, she became a professional actress on the California stock company circuit. Still using her given name, she played a blonde seductress in the 1929 Columbia talkie Song of Love then joined a touring repertory theater. After another brief film appearance in 1933's Dancing Lady, she was urged by a producer to change her name for professional purposes. Allegedly inspired by a container of Elizabeth Arden cold cream, Eunice Quedens reinvented herself as Eve Arden. Several successful appearances in the annual Ziegfeld Follies followed, and in 1937 Arden returned to films as a young character actress. From Stage Door (1937) onward, she was effectively typecast as the all-knowing witheringly sarcastic "best friend" who seldom got the leading man but always got the best lines. Her film roles in the 1940s ranged from such typical assignments as sophisticated magazine editor "Stonewall" Jackson in Cover Girl (1944) to such hilariously atypical performances as athletic Russian sniper Natalia Moskoroff in The Doughgirls (1944). In 1945, she earned an Oscar nomination for her portrayal of Joan Crawford's sardonic but sympathetic business partner in Mildred Pierce. In July of 1948, she launched the popular radio situation comedy Our Miss Brooks, earning a place in the hearts of schoolteachers (and sitcom fans) everywhere with her award-winning portrayal of long-suffering but ebullient high school teacher Connie Brooks. Our Miss Brooks was transferred to television in 1952, running five successful seasons. Less successful was the 1957 TVer The Eve Arden Show, in which the star played authoress Liza Hammond. This failure was neutralized by her subsequent stage tours in such plays as Auntie Mame and Hello, Dolly! and her well-received film appearances in Anatomy of a Murder (1959) and Dark at the Top of the Stairs (1960). In 1967, she returned to TV to co-star with Kaye Ballard on the chucklesome The Mothers-in-Law which lasted two years. And in 1978, she became a favorite of a new generation with her performance as Principal McGee in the phenomenally successful film version of Broadway's Grease. In 1985, Eve Arden came out with her autobiography, The Three Phases of Eve. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
This concert and interview documentary features the racy wit of Canada and the U.S.'s most popular female comedians, including Jenny Jones, Whoopi Goldberg, Phyllis Diller, Ellen DeGeneres, and Paula Poundstone. In addition to screening their stand-up gigs and providing interviews with these funny ladies, the documentary provides some historical perspective about the origins of present-day feminine humor using clips of performances by Eve Arden, Lucille Ball and Carol Burnett. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Phyllis Diller, Whoopi Goldberg, (more)
- 1984
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Originally aired on Shelley Duvall's family-oriented HBO television series, this lively retelling of the classic tale features Jennifer Beals as the good-hearted slave girl who overcomes all to become a princess. Matthew Broderick plays the handsome object of her affection. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
Part of the Broadway Theater Archives, this stage production of Lewis Carroll's children's fantasy Alice in Wonderland was directed by Kirk Browning. Kate Burton plays young Alice, the little girl who wanders into a bizarre wonderland that just gets more and more curious. Her real-life father, Richard Burton, plays the White Knight. Also starring Eve Arden as the Queen of Hearts, Maureen Stapleton as the White Queen, and Donald O'Connor as the Mock Turtle. Broadway star Nathan Lane can also be seen in one of his earliest roles as the Dormouse. Alice in Wonderland was originally broadcast on PBS in 1983 as an episode of Great Performances. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kate Burton, Richard Burton, (more)
- 1980
Old-time Hollywood director Vincent Sherman brings a glossy studio-bound look to The Dream Merchants, a two-part, four-hour adaptation of Harold Robbins' novel. The story follows the career of a pioneer filmmaker (Mark Harmon), who comes to Hollywood in the early 20th century with a pocketful of dreams and helps build the sleepy California orange-grove community into the world's entertainment capital. Typical of the Harold Robbins ouevre, most of the characters are based on real-life movie personalities: Robert Goulet's vainglorious matinee idol is a combination of John Barrymore and Douglas Fairbanks, while Vincent Gardenia's vitriolic mogul can be taken as a low-budget Louis B. Mayer. The film is rife with historical inaccuracies (Goulet is informed that the closeup has "just been invented by D. W. Griffith" as a means to convince him to sign a long-term contract assuring him plenty of closeups!), while the haircuts and speech patterns are firmly locked into the 1980s. All the same, The Dream Merchants was a profitable entry in the syndicated "Operation Prime Time" series of TV specials. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1980
TV sitcom icon Eve Arden appears as a pscyhologist who runs a TV talk show for teenagers. Everyone at the diner is delighted when Tommy (Philip McKeon) appears on the show to air his opinions. But "delight" is not the operative word when the boy spends his air time telling embarrassing tales about his elders--including his mom Alice (Linda Lavin). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1978
The made-for-TV Guide for the Married Woman was conceived by screenwriter Frank Tarloff as an "answer" to his frolicsome 1968 theatrical feature Guide for the Married Man. If the sequel isn't quite as much fun as the original, it may be because what was deemed "risque" in 1968 was kid's stuff in 1978. In her TV-movie debut, Cybill Shepherd plays a bored housewife who yearns for romance and excitement. With the help of a steady stream of celebrity guest stars, Shepherd is able to fantasize about extramarital hijinks to her heart's content. The supporting cast includes such luminaries as Peter Marshall, Eve Arden, John Beradino, John Byner, Bill Dana, Bonnie Franklin, George Gobel, Tom Poston, Barbara Feldon and Chuck Woolery (the guest-star list of the original Guide for the Married Man included Art Carney, Jack Benny, Lucille Ball, Carl Reiner, Terry-Thomas, Joey Bishop and Jayne Mansfield: guess which film had the bigger budget?) Guide for the Married Woman originally aired October 13, 1978. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1973
A daughter is the recipient of a wonderful wedding quickly organized by her mother in this comedy. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1972
Hildegarde Withers, the schoolteacher/sleuth created by Stuart Palmer, was the central character in a series of RKO "B" films of the 1930s. Television tried to revive Hildegarde in the unsold pilot film A Very Missing Person, starring Eve Arden as a distressingly updated Ms. Withers and James Gregory as long-suffering Inspector Piper. Hildegarde and Piper join forces to ascertain the whereabouts of a runaway girl (Skye Aubrey), whose disappearance is connected with a murder. A Very Missing Person was one of three pilots for the proposed "rotating" series The Great Detectives, wherein the adventures of Hildegarde Withers would alternate with those of Sherlock Holmes and Nick Carter. None of the three components made it any farther than the pilot. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1972
Robert Young stars as Judge Charles Raleigh in the made-for-television All My Darling Daughters. The Judge happens to have four daughters, played by Darleen Carr, Judy Strangis, Sharon Gless, and Fawne Harriman (what did all the detective shows and sitcoms do for ingenues while these four ladies were tied up in this film?) And, as the fates would have it, all four daughters plan to get married on the same day! Screenwriter John Gay and David Lowell Rich, two of the most prolific TV-movie artisans in Hollywood, managed to maintain audience interest despite the story's inbuilt cliches. Originally telecast November 22, 1972, All My Darling Daughters was followed by a TV-pilot sequel, All My Darling Daughters' Anniversary. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1969
This by-the-numbers TV movie features an all-star cast in a comedy of marital mix-ups and misunderstandings. Consultants Michael Callan and Ann Prentiss arrange the marriages of several couples, only to discover that all the unions are illegal. Among those affected are a cop (Christopher Connelly) and his hippie spouse (Heather Young); A bachelor at heart (Bill Daily) who thinks he'd be happier without his wife (Elinor Donahue); and a dull missus (Ruth Buzzi) and her "swinger" hubby (Herb Edelman). Whether or not the now-unmarried couples will want to tie the knot legally forms the basis of the comedy. In Name Only has innocently caused resentment among film buffs who've tuned in expecting to see the 1939 film In Name Only, a quite different dramatic opus starring Cary Grant and Carole Lombard. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1966
First telecast January 13, 1966, "And Then There Were Three" is the historic Bewitched episode wherein Samantha and Darrin Stephens' daughter, Tabitha, is born. Darrin's joy at becoming a father is dampened by Endora's intention to transform the baby into a 25-year-old, just to see what the child will look like upon reaching adulthood. This is also the episode in which Samantha's mischievous lookalike cousin, Serena, makes her first appearance. As a bonus, Eve Arden appears as a flinty-eyed but golden-hearted admitting nurse. "And Then There Were Three" was written by Bernard Slade. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Elizabeth Montgomery, Dick York, (more)
- 1966
The Beauty Jungle can hardly be considered an expose of the beauty-contest business, since most of what happens in the film is what the average viewer has suspected all along. The lovely and graceful British leading lady Janette Scott stars as an ambitious typist who enters the "Miss Globe" pageant. She doesn't care what she does or whom she hurts along the way, the result being that she wins the competition. But when the anticipated decline sets in, she confronts the same embittered people on the downward spiral that she stepped over during her upward climb. Cliched though it may seem on paper, The Beauty Jungle is fascinating in its own garish way; the film was issued to the US under the title Contest Girl. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ian Hendry, Janette Scott, (more)
- 1965
In this comedy, a hapless Army sergeant's plans to marry are temporarily delayed after he accidentally ends up launched into space with a chimpanzee. Upon his return, he is a changed man and is ultimately sent to prison after he threatens to go public with the mix-up. Meanwhile, suave Sgt. Donovan, Deadhead's double, takes his place at the altar. To stop him, Deadhead breaks out of prison and becomes his old self again just as he arrives at the honeymoon suite. Naturally he wins his rightful bride and happiness ensues. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Frankie Avalon, Deborah Walley, (more)
- 1960
Robert Preston plays the flip side of his eternally ebullient Professor Harold Hill in Dark at the Top of the Stairs. Preston portrays an early 20th-century harness salesman, fully aware that his product is rapidly becoming obsolete. He tries to compensate for his own lack of self-esteem by cheating on his patient wife Dorothy McGuire; Preston's "other woman" is played by Angela Lansbury. Meanwhile, daughter Shirley Knight falls in love with Jewish boy Lee Kinsolving, who kills himself in the face of relentless bigotry. And McGuire's sister Eve Arden is stuck in a loveless marriage with spineless Frank Overton. Robert Eyer plays the young alter-ego of William Inge, who wrote the Pulitzer Prize-winning play on which this film is based. Eyer's fear of the "dark at the top of the stairs" is meant to be symbolic of the other characters' inner demons, a fact that Inge drives home every three minutes or so. In typical Inge fashion, an unlikely happy ending is reached just before "The End." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Preston, Dorothy McGuire, (more)
- 1956
Our Miss Brooks had been a radio and TV sitcom hit thanks to the considerable input of star Eve Arden. The film version of Our Miss Brooks was not quite as successful (why pay for something that you can get at home every week for free?), but it admirably captures the spirit of the original audio and video versions. As ever, high school teacher Connie Brooks (Arden) carries a torch for handsome but clueless biology professor Phillip Boynton (Robert Rockwell, taking over a role created for radio by Jeff Chandler). Connie is finally able to arouse Boynton's attention when she is courted by the father (Don Porter) of a student (Nick Adams) she is tutoring. A subplot involving petty crime can easily be ignored, but there's no avoiding the hilarious fingernails-on-the-blackboard rendition of It's Magic sung by the adenoidal Walter Denton (Richard Crenna). And of course, there's principal Osgood Conklin (Gale Gordon), blowing his top at the slightest provocation. Our Miss Brooks was directed by Al Lewis, who was the chief writer for the radio and TV editions of the property. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eve Arden, Gale Gordon, (more)
- 1953
In this comedy, a housewife schemes to make her dreams of feeling the soft touch of mink on her hardworking shoulders a reality. Unfortunately her husband does not have enough money for such a luxury. Being a resourceful lass, the wife decides the only viable alternative is to raise her own mink. Unfortunately, her project doesn't set well with the landlord and the family ends up having to move into the country. More trouble follows when the husband loses his job. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dennis O'Keefe, Ruth Hussey, (more)
Having supped full of success with the multi-storied O. Henry's Full House, 20th Century-Fox assembled another all-star "omnibus" film, We're Not Married. The unifying factor of this enjoyable seriocomedy is provided by justice-of-the-peace Melvin Bush (Victor Moore), who learns to his horror that his license is invalid. Bush and his wife (Jane Darwell) feverishly track down the five couples whom he has married "illegally" to inform them of the fact and invite them to renew their vows. Couple #1 is Fred Allen and Ginger Rogers, a husband-and-wife radio team whose huggy-kissy behavior on the air conceals the fact that they'd dearly love to cut each other's throats. Couple #2 consists of David Wayne and his contest-happy spouse Marilyn Monroe, who's just won the "Mrs. Mississippi" pageant. Couple #3, Paul Douglas and Eve Arden, ran out of things to say to each other long ago. Couple #4 is millionaire Louis Calhern and his avaricious young bride Eva Gabor, who intends to jilt the old coot and make off with his millions. And Couple #5 is young GI Eddie Bracken and his pregnant wife Mitzi Gaynor. When Bush delivers the news that these unions aren't legal in the eyes of the state, the results range from poignant to hilarious: particularly satisfying is Calhern's puckish revenge on his gold-digging wife. And yes, that is Lee Marvin as Eddie Bracken's army buddy. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ginger Rogers, Fred Allen, (more)
- 1951
Based on a play by Fay Kanin, this comedy drama follows a successful congresswoman's emotional journey back to her alma mater. When Agatha Reed (Joan Crawford) is offered an honorary degree at her former college, she is forced to remember the reason she was expelled to begin with. Nearly twenty years prior, Agatha (Crawford) had an affair with Dr. James Merrill (Robert Young), one of her professors. After her departure, Dr. Merrill (Young) slowly rose through the ranks, eventually becoming the president of the school. Despite having left under less than desirable circumstances, Agatha is excited to see him and hopes to rekindle their relationship. Meanwhile, newspaper reporter Matt Cole (Frank Lovejoy), not only follow's Agatha to her former university, but unsucessfully proposes marriage. Unfortunately for him, the alumna's eyes are set firmly towards her old flame. However, once Matt (Lovejoy) and Agatha team up in a passionate attempt to update the school's outdated curriculum, she realizes who she truly loves. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joan Crawford, Robert Young, (more)
- 1950
That Letter to Three Husbands was an uninspired gender-switch reworking of 1949's Letter to Three Wives was less obvious when the film was originally released as Three Husbands. The husbands of Eve Arden, Ruth Warrick and Vanessa Brown each receive a letter from a recently deceased gentleman, who claims to have had an affair with one of the wives. The flashbacks begin rolling, with each hubby (Howard de Silva, Sheppard Strudwick and Robert Karnes) trying to decide if his is the guilty wife. Unlike Letter to Three Wives, in which the letter is genuine and the ending ambivalent, Letter to Three Husbands turns out to be founded on a hoax conducted by roguish Emlyn Williams. Vera Caspary, who'd done all right with Laura a few years earlier, was the scriptwriter responsible for this cinematic carbon copy. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1950
Lizabeth Scott and Diana Lynn are both effectively cast against type in Paid in Full. Scott plays Jane Langley, the spectacularly self-sacrificial older sister of selfish, reckless Nancy Langley (Lynn). Though she is in love with Bill Prentice (Robert Cummings), Jane gives him up to Nancy. And when Jane accidently causes the death of Nancy's child, she vows to makes amends by the most direct means possible. What follows is within the Production Code guidelines of the era -- but just barely. An unabashed "woman's picture" (that's what they called them back in 1949), Paid in Full doesn't always play well today, since viewers might be tempted to yell "Get real, Lizabeth!" at the screen. Still, it worked beautifully for its original target audience, especially those who'd read the factual Reader's Digest article upon which it was based. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Cummings, Lizabeth Scott, (more)
- 1950
Tea for Two is a Technicolor adaptation of the 1924 Broadway musical No No Nanette, previously filmed under its own title in 1929. Doris Day stars as Nanette, a Roaring '20s Jazz Baby with showbiz aspirations. Nanette offers to put up $25,000 if producer Billy DeWolfe will star her in a Broadway show. The girl's wealthy, and stingy uncle S.Z. Sakall agrees to advance her the money, but only on one condition; for the next 24 hours, Nanette must answer "No" to every question. Gordon MacRae co-stars as Nanette's attorney, who worships her from afar and who finally manages to win her hand with a little wager of his own. The songs, culled from several sources and written by hands ranging from Irving Caesar to George Gershwin, include "Crazy Rhythm," "Do Do Do," "I Want to Be Happy," "I Only Have Eyes for You" and the title number. In 1970, the original No No Nanette was successfully revived for Broadway, with veterans Ruby Keeler and Patsy Kelly in the cast. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Doris Day, Gordon MacRae, (more)
- 1950
Curtain Call at Cactus Creek is an agreeable combination of the western, comedy and musical genres. Donald O'Connor plays Edward Timmons, a mild-mannered stagehand for a travelling repertory troupe. Edward is in love with ingenue Julie Martin (Gale Storm), but there's no love lost between Edward and the troupe's hammy leading man Tracy Holland (Vincent Price). Things begin percolating when Edward gets mixed up in the activities of infamous outlaw Rimrock (Walter Brennan). Even allowing for the considerable singing and dancing skills of Donald O'Connor and Gale Storm, the film's best musical number is rendered by Eve Arden, cast as an over-the-hill soubrette who happens to be the heroine's mother (and never mind that she was only ten years older than Gale Storm!) ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Donald O'Connor, Gale Storm, (more)
