Robert Armstrong Movies
Forever remembered by film buffs as the man who brought King Kong to New York, American actor Robert Armstrong was a law student at the University of Washington in Seattle when he dropped out in favor of a vaudeville tour. Learning by doing, Armstrong worked his way up to "leading man" roles in a New York stock company run by veteran character man Jimmy Gleason. Gleason's play Iz Zat So? led to a film contract for Armstrong, whose first picture was The Main Event (1927). The actor's stage training served him well during Hollywood's switchover to sound, and he appeared with frequency in the early talkie years, at one point costarring with Broadway legend Fanny Brice in My Man (1930). An expert at playing sports and showbiz promoters, Armstrong was a natural for the role of the enthusiastic but foolhardy Carl Denham in King Kong (1933). Armstrong enjoyed some of the best dialogue of his career as he coerced erstwhile actress Fay Wray to go with him to Skull Island to seek out "money, adventure, the thrill of a lifetime", and as he egged on his crew to explore the domain of 50-foot ape Kong. And of course, Armstrong was allowed to speak the final lines of this imperishable classic: "It wasn't the planes...It was beauty killed the beast." Armstrong played Carl Denham again in a sequel, Son of Kong (1933), and later played Denham in everything but name as a shoestring theatrical promoter in Mighty Joe Young (1949), wherein he brought a nice giant gorilla into civilization. Always in demand as a character actor, Armstrong continued to make films in the 1940s; he had the rare distinction of playing an American military officer in Around the World (1943), a Nazi agent in My Favorite Spy (1942), and a Japanese general in Blood on the Sun (1945)! In the 1950s and 1960s, Armstrong was a fixture on TV cop and adventure programs. Perhaps the most characteristic moment in Armstrong's TV career was during a sketch on The Red Skelton Show, in which Red took one look at Armstrong and ad-libbed "Say, did you ever get that monkey off that building?" ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1928
The ebullient Eddie Quillan made his talking-picture bow in the Pathe part-talkie Show Folks. After a chance meeting with counter-girl Rita Carey (Lina Basquette), vaudeville hoofer Eddie Kehoe (Quillan) invites Rita to join his act. On the eve of their all-important Broadway debut, however, Eddie and Rita have a lover's quarrel, prompting Rita to walk out on her partner. Eddie is forced to find another girl for the act; unfortunately, he chooses gold-digging Cleo (a very young Carole Lombard), who can't dance her way out of a wet paper bag. Not surprisingly, the act is a floperoo, and Eddie is sent back to the "small time." He is rescued from permanent obscurity by Rita, who foregoes her own big chance for fame and fortune to rejoin Eddie as his partner -- both onstage and off. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eddie Quillan, Lina Basquette, (more)
- 1928
The Baby Cyclone was adapted from the George M. Cohan stage play of the same name, which originally starred Grant Mitchell and an up-and-comer named Spencer Tracy. The popular MGM screen team of Lew Cody and Aileen Pringle top the cast in this pleasant domestic comedy, wherein two suburban wives battle over the same pet Pekinese dog. Since F. Hugh Herbert's screenplay totally eliminated the play's third act, the roles played by William Morris and Georgia Hale -- both carryovers from the Broadway original -- were whittled down to nothing. Critics were most impressed by the performance of MGM contractee Gwen Lee, who was developing into a distinctive comedienne. The subtitles for Baby Cyclone were written by Bob Hopkins, the legendary MGM "idea man" whose one-sentence plot synopses provided fodder for Hollywood wits for nearly three decades. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lew Cody, Aileen Pringle, (more)
- 1928
Celebrity was based on the play of the same name by Willard Keefe. Robert Armstrong stars as a thick-witted boxer who achieves fame for his literary efforts. Actually, Armstrong can barely write his own name; the poems published under his imprimatur have been ghost-written at the behest of the pug's publicity-hungry manager Clyde Cook. To uphold Armstrong's image as a "man of letters," unemployed chorus girl Lina Basquette is hired to pose as the boxer's debutante fiance. At Basquette's urging, Armstrong decides to stop living a lie and begins to write his own poems without the aid of his "ghost" -- and in so doing becomes more popular than ever. Beyond these rather novel plot twists, Celebrity is a standard prizefight drama, right down to the "comeback" finale. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Armstrong, Lina Basquette, (more)
- 1928
The 1928 Fox comedy-drama Square Crooks was based on James P. Judge's stage play of the same name (back then, "square" meant "honest", not "clueless"). After their release from prison, petty criminals Johnny Mack Brown and Robert Armstrong decide to go straight and seek out legitimate employment. But every time they land a job, it is ruined by the interference of an obnoxious detective, who refuses to believe that the two heroes are sincere. Not long after losing their jobs at a ritzy mansion, their ex-employer reports the theft of a diamond necklace. The detective is convinced that Brown and Armstrong are the thieves, obliging the duo to prove their innocence with the help of Brown's ever-loving wife Dorothy Dwan. As it turns out, the mystery is resolved by Brown and Dwan's little daughter, who uncovers the evidence necessary to trap the real culprits. Square Crooks was remade in 1934 as the Shirley Temple vehicle Baby Take a Bow. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Johnny Mack Brown, Dorothy Dwan, (more)
- 1928
When Cecil B. DeMille's own production company was absorbed by Pathe in 1928, several DeMille contractees went along for the ride. One of these was William Boyd, the star of the 1929 Pathe effort The Leatherneck. The setting is China, specifically the headquarter of the 6th U.S. Marine regiment, where Calhoun (Boyd) and Schmidt (Alan Hale) are facing court-martial for desertion. In a series of flashbacks, the viewer is apprised of the reasons for the two leathernecks' supposed dereliction of duty. Essential to the action are a third marine, the unfortunate Joe Hanlon (Robert Armstrong), and a mysterious Russian girl named Tanya (Diane Ellis). A silent picture for most of its 76-minute running time, The Leatherneck includes approximately eight minutes' worth of dialogue. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William "Hopalong" Boyd, Alan Hale, (more)
- 1928
Future "Hopalong Cassidy" William Boyd essays the title role in Pathe's The Cop. It all begins when likeable police sergeant Alan Hale Sr. is bumped off by surly scar-faced underground chieftain Robert Armstrong. Unfortunately, the authorities aren't able to pin the crime on Armstrong, so patrolman Boyd takes it upon himself to trap the killer. He is aided in this endeavor by "mystery woman" Jacqueline Logan, who may or may not be working both sides of the fence. Coincidentally, Quality Productions' The Lookout Girl, featuring Jacqueline Logan in a similar role, premiered two weeks before The Cop. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William "Hopalong" Boyd, Alan Hale, (more)
- 1928
Jacqueline Logan stars as Paula, a beautiful and fearless circus leopard trainer. Working hand-in-glove with the police, Paula joins a circus where several murders have occurred. Among the suspects is gorilla trainer Caesar (Alan Hale Sr.), who previously in the picture had saved Paula's life. Nonetheless, when Caesar is revealed to be the murderer, he unleashes one of his killer apes with orders to tear Paula and her sweetheart Chris (Robert Armstrong) apart. Luckily, Paula proves to be as adept at "staring down" the ape as she is at pacifying the big cats. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alan Hale, Robert Armstrong, (more)
- 1928
The rampant male chauvinism in A Girl in Every Port might be hard for contemporary audiences to stomach, but fans of director Howard Hawks will be delighted. Victor McLaglen and Robert Armstrong play Spike and Salami, two sailors who become close pals but only after dukeing it out over a dame. Together, Spike and Salami travel all of the world in search of women and adventure and women. Their friendship is sorely tested when Spike decides to settle down to marry French fortune hunter Marie (Louise Brooks), but eventually Salami convinces his pal that this "skirt" just ain't worth it. Famed exotic dancer Sally Rand co-stars as one of the heroes' many sexual conquests. A Girl in Every Port was remade two years later as Goldie, with Spencer Tracy, Warren Hymer and Jean Harlow. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Victor McLaglen, Robert Armstrong, (more)
- 1927
No relation to the 1979 Barbra Streisand-Ryan O'Neal vehicle of the same name, Main Event was one of the first efforts of the newly-formed DeMille Pictures Corporation (as in "Cecil B.") Nightclub dancer Glory Frayne (Vera Reynolds) falls in love with championship boxer Red Lucas (Robert Armstrong). Luca's latest opponent is likeable young pugilist Johnny Regan (Charles Delaney). When Johnny meets Glory, he is instantly smitten, but Glory remains faithful to Red -- who, as it turns out, has been cheating on our heroine with another tootsie named Margie (Julia Faye), who happens to be Glory's roommate! Inveigled into making Johnny break training on the night before his bout with Red, Glory regrets her actions when she finds out that she's being double-crossed. Thus it is that Glory, with the considerable assistance of Johnny's manager-dad (Rudolph Schildkraut), whips the boy back into shape in time for our hero to knock Red senseless. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Vera Reynolds, Rudolph Schildkraut, (more)
