Joan Fulton Movies
- 1947
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
- Starring:
- Deanna Durbin, Tom Drake, (more)
- 1947
Bearing little resemblance to reality, this musical biography of 19th century Russian composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov takes liberal poetic license with the truth. Jeanne-Pierre Aumont stars as Nicky, a Naval Academy cadet assigned to a vessel undergoing a world cruise. On shore leave in Morocco, Nicky goes in search of a piano intending to pursue his true passion, music. Accompanied by the ship's singing doctor, Klin (Charles Kullmann), Nicky makes the acquaintance of a cabaret dancer named Cara de Talavera (Yvonne De Carlo). The daughter of a Spanish colonial family that was once prominent but has fallen upon difficult times, Cara now dances in secret as Scheherazade in a revue at the nightclub. Inspired by her, Nicky sets about composing his most famous song for inclusion in a ballet. Although fate conspires to keep Cara and Nicky apart for a time, his piece is a success and is scheduled for a performance at the St. Petersburg Opera House, where none other than Cara turns up as the lead dancer. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Yvonne De Carlo, Patricia Alphin, (more)
- 1947
In this western, a marshal goes undercover to stop a brutal gang of crooks from continuing to terrorize local ranchers. After infiltrating the gang, he discovers that the perpetrator is the owner of the town saloon where his ex-girlfriend works. Unfortunately, the marshal gets discovered and framed for murder. Fortunately, he escapes from prison, rounds up a vigilante posse and gets rid of the outlaws. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jon Hall, Margaret Lindsay, (more)
- 1947
After serving with a notable lack of distinction in WW2, Corporal Slicker Smith (Bud Abbott) and Private Herbie Brown (Lou Costello) return to the US. Unbeknownst to their sourpussed sergeant Collins (Nat Pendleton), Slicker and Herbie have smuggled cute little war orphan Evie (Beverly Simmons) past the immigration authorities. In their efforts to find a decent home for Evie, our heroes return to the prewar "jobs" as sidewalk salesmen, then make a disastrous attempt to collect their GI bonus money. They also struggle to save Evie from deportation, hiding her from the prying eyes of the ubiquitous Collins, who has likewise returned to his civilian job as a police officer. The climax finds Herbie participating in a big-money midget-car race, feverishly dodging pedestrians and motorists as he tries to escape the authorities. The film also includes a romantic subplot involving Tom Brown and Joan Fulton (later known as Joan Shawlee). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, (more)
- 1947
Jon Hall, Universal's beefcake kid, usually comported himself in South Seas or Arabian nights outfits. In Michigan Kid (based on a novel by Rex Beach), he's decked out in ten-gallon hat, levis and six-guns. Hall and his cohort Andy Devine are among the many characters searching for a treasure stolen during a stagecoach holdup. Our hero also tries to protect lovely ranch owner Rita Johnson from the clutches of crooked politicians. Since most of Hollywood's Technicolor cameras were busy at 20th Century-Fox, Michigan Kid was lensed in the red and blue hues of Cinecolor. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jon Hall, Victor McLaglen, (more)
- 1946
This marked the first starring role for Rondo Hatton, previously seen in a few Sherlock Holmes films as the spine-snapping killer "The Oxton Creeper." Hatton, a giant of a man whose face was deformed by acromegaly, was luridly promoted by the studios as a "human monster" who required no makeup. Here, he plays yet another brutish character, a homicidal convict who is rescued from drowning by mad sculptor Martin Kosleck. Hatton returns the favor by killing any critic who ever gave the artist a poor notice. Though Hatton never had the opportunity to develop his acting skills before his tragic death, there is nevertheless a glimmer of talent evident here, which is put to better use in his final film The Brute Man. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- 1946
In this crime drama, two ex-hoods find their attempts to straighten up and fly right are foiled by a blackmailing gangster who threatens to expose their past who forces them to rob the department store they work at. Outwardly, the crooks go along with the scam, but they have also devised a scam of their own. In the end, the extortionist is killed by a cop and the two reluctant robbers turn themselves in. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Preston S. Foster, Alan Curtis, (more)
- 1946
The Runaround is a game attempt to return to the "screwball comedy" genre so popular in the 1930s. Rival detectives Kildane (Rod Cameron) and Prentice (Broderick Crawford) are hired simultaneously by millionaire Norman Hampton (Samuel J. Hinds). Their client informs the two gumshoes that he has a daughter named Penelope (Ella Raines) who has run off to get married, and he wants her back. After a chase extended from New York to San Francisco, Kildane manages to get the better of Prentice and catches with to Penelope. The two antagonists then embark on a riotous cross-country tug-of-war, with poor Penelope in the middle. Only upon returning to New York with Penelope does Kildane discover that he's been deliberately sent on the wrong track by Hampton, whose interest in the heroine-who isn't all that she seems--is anything but paternal. Throughout The Runaround, Ella Raines seems far too intelligent to be involved in the silly goings-on, and thoroughly undeserving of the rather rough treatment afforded her by her two leading men. Even so, the film is a pleasant diversion, with a satisfying (if not altogether logical) conclusion. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rod Cameron, Ella Raines, (more)
- 1946
In this comedy drama, a butler and a crap-shooting chauffeur find themselves having the run of their employer's mansion after he goes on a ten-day vacation. They decide to avail themselves of their master's luxuries. The butler finds his boss's clothing fits him perfectly, and so pretends to be master of the manse. He and his driver end up at a ritzy gambling club where they meet a wealthy but spoiled young woman whose sister owes $100,000 to a racketeer. To impress the girl, the butler writes a check in his employer's name to cover her debt. Now they must all hurry to earn back the money before the master returns. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Scotty Beckett, William Bendix, (more)
- 1946
Lucille Ball stars as the wife of a war correspondent, anxiously awaiting her husband's return. Ball is convinced that hubby (George Brent) is looking forward to feminine companionship after four long years at the front. Imagine her surprise when it looks as though her husband wasn't quite as lonely as she'd thought--thanks to sexy combat photographer Vera Zorina. Ball files for divorce, but the outcome is tipped off by the title: the Lovers come back. Lucille Ball is merely decorative for the most part in this film, though she has one delightful comic scene involving an attempt to smoke a cigar. To avoid confusion with a 1962 Doris Day/Rock Hudson epic of the same name, Lover Come Back was retitled When Lovers Meet for television. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George Brent, Lucille Ball, (more)
- 1946
The Idea Girl in this Universal mini-musical is songplugger Pat O'Rourke (played by Julie Bishop, formerly Jacqueline Wells). Hoping to hit the big time, Pat pitches the notion of an amateur song-writing contest. Her zany publicity-seeking efforts cause nothing but grief for a group of Manhattan-based song publishers, foremost among them handsome but harried Larry Brewster (Jess Barker). As a means of enlivening the proceedings, director Will Jason utilizes a more mobile camera than was usual in quickies of this nature. Featured in the cast as a curvaceous secretary is Joan Fulton, later to metamorphose into the delightful character actress Joan Shawlee. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jess Barker, Julie Bishop, (more)
- 1946
This Universal B-musical casts Desi Arnaz as himself: a Cuban bandleader making it big in the United States. Shawnee (Joan Fulton) schemes to draw Arnaz from his homeland and transform the Havana musician into a star in New York City by having him perform on a successful radio show. Adding urgency to her efforts is the show's sponsor, who threatens to pull out if Arnaz doesn't play. Her efforts prove ineffective until she gets support from Arnaz's beloved niece, who persuades him that the gig is worth taking. Songs include "El Cumbanchero" and "Rhumba Matumba". ~ Nicole Gagne, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Desi Arnaz, Beverly Simmons, (more)
- 1945
Johnny Hart (Rod Cameron) is on the run from the law after killing one of the men who shot his partner. He passes through a town and stops at a saloon owned by singer Lorena Dumont (Yvonne de Carlo). The two seem a good, albeit tempestuous match, although Johnny has no plans to marry -- Lorena has other ideas and a shotgun wedding ensues. Blackie (Sheldon Leonard), an outlaw who is jealous of the marriage, informs Lorena of Johnny's wanted status, and he ends up getting caught by the law after their wedding night. He serves six years and returns to find that he and Lorena don't get along any better than they did before, and that he's also the father of a five-year-old girl (Beverly Simmons). Also lurking about is Blackie, whom he recognizes as one of the men who killed his partner, and Blackie wants Johnny out of the way so he can marry Lorena. Johnny and Lorena fight over custody of their daughter and Blackie nearly gets them each killed at one point or another. He kidnaps their daughter before Johnny dispatches him. He finally realizes that the only way he can win Lorena is to meet her cup for cup and blow for blow, until she understands that he loves her. The film, a sort of Western Taming of the Shrew, ends on a note of romance and reconciliation. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Yvonne De Carlo, Rod Cameron, (more)
