William Gargan

In this western, an adventurous gambler goes on the lam when he is falsely accused of a riverboat killing. He hides out for three years before returning to prove his innocence, and to find the girl he loves. Unfortunately, the girl is involved with a gambler, the ringleader of the gang responsible for the killing. The fugitive, assisted by a comic sidekick, soon brings them all to justice, and reclaims his lady love. Songs include: "Give Me Your Love," "Happy Go Lucky," and "The Gypsy with the Fire in His Shoes." ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Dynamite is a 1949 effort from the Pine-Thomas production mill. William Gargan and Richard Crane star as Gunner and Johnny, troubleshooters for dynamite contractor Hard Rock Mason Frank Ferguson. Though forced to work as a team on the job, Gunner and Johnny fall out when romance enters the picture in the form of Mason's pretty daughter Mary Virginia Welles. However, all misunderstandings are swept aside, however, when one of the men is trapped in a tunnel where several tons of TNT are about to go off. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The Pine-Thomas action/adventure assembly line put together another winner with Waterfront at Midnight. Hoping to put the cuffs on criminal mastermind Socks Barstow (Richard Travis), detective Mike Hanrohan (William Gargan) is stymied by the fact that his younger brother Denny (Richard Crane) has joined Barstow's gang. Things get worse after a bloody shootout, in which Mike apparently guns down his own brother. It takes several reels for Mike to realize he's being played for a chump by the cagey Barstow-and when he does realize this, it's every man for himself! Starting off with a brutal point-blank murder, Waterfront at Midnight remains in high gear right up to the "End" title. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Inspired by the radio program of the same name, Night Editor features Charles D. Brown as the editor of the New York Star. In flashback, the editor tells the tale of police lieutenant William Gargan, who forsakes his happy home life for the love of no-good society dame Janis Carter. Both Gargan and Carter begin cheating on their respective spouses, and while on a romantic rendezvous the couple witnesses a murder. They can't report the crime without revealing their own infidelities, a dilemma which leads to blackmail, double-crossing and a second murder attempt. A twist ending caps this snappy little 65-minute morality play. The script of Night Editor was based on the story "Inside Story" by Scott Littleton, previously dramatized on the Night Editor radio series. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this drama two wandering WW II vets visit the family of a former buddy who had been killed in action. Finding the family nearly destitute and their trucking business on the brink of ruin, the friends decide to stay and help them fight the rival companies behind the mayhem. Unfortunately, the rivals play hard ball and kill the youngest son in the family causing the two vets to combine their know how and fight back in earnest. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

One of many films of the late 1940s examining the impact of WWII on post-war domestic life in the U.S., The Swell Guy is the story of an unprincipled war correspondent, Jim Duncan (Sonny Tufts). Jim has returned to his hometown following the war and tries to milk his wartime status and pose as a hero. He's actually a corrupt con man who exploits the good graces of his brother Martin (William Gargan) and tries to woo Martin's wife Ann (Ruth Warrick). Jim cheats the townspeople by staging rigged craps games, and he engages in other nefarious schemes that depend on the local citizens' naïve trust in the supposed war hero. Jim finally steals money from the town's charity campaign for war veterans and tries to leave town before his misdeeds catch up to him. But Jim gets a chance for redemption and real heroism when he alone can save his nephew's life. This film was directed by Frank Tuttle and based on the book The Hero by Gilbert Emery. ~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide

Sometimes dismissed as a derivation of Samuel Goldwyn's The Best Years of Our Lives, RKO Radio's superb Till the End of Time was actually based on Niven Busch's novel They Dream of Home, and was completed and released several months before the Goldwyn film. The story concentrates on three ex-marines: Cliff Harper (Guy Madison), Bill Tabeshaw (Robert Mitchum) and Perry Kincheloe (Bill Williams). Harper falls in love with emotionally distraught war widow Pat Ruscomb (Dorothy McGuire); Tabeshaw endures one disappointment after another as he tries to buy his own ranch; and Kincheloe, rendered legless by the war, intends to spend the rest of his life wallowing in self-pity. All three men find a new lease on life when they engage in a cathartic barroom brawl against a bigoted group of self-styled patriots led by hate-spouting Ray Teal (forever typecast as rabid racists during the postwar years). It was this climactic scene, which remains the most memorable aspect of Till the End of Time (outside of its Chopin-inspired theme song) that caused a lot of headaches for producer Dore Schary, screenwriter Allen Rivkin and director Edward Dmytryk during the House Unamerican Activities hearings a few years later: what was accepted as pro-American in 1946 would soon be labelled "Pinko" by the anti-Red zealots. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this follow-up to director Leo McCarey's Going My Way (1944), Bing Crosby repeats his Oscar-winning characterization of happy-go-lucky priest Father O'Malley. The good father is sent to help out financially strapped St. Mary's Academy, a parochial school presided over by lovely nun Sister Benedict (Ingrid Bergman). The film is constructed in anecdotal fashion: Nun and priest gently quarrel over teaching methods; they help patch up the tottering marriage of William Gargan and Martha Sleeper; Sister Benedict plays baseball and teaches a student how to box; Father O'Malley softens the heart of the man who holds the mortgage (Henry Travers) by convincing the poor fellow that he's only got a few months to live; and the kids of St. Mary's put on a much-revised stage version of the Nativity, complete with a chorus of "Happy Birthday" on the occasion of the Virgin Birth. A huge hit at the box office, Bells of St. Mary's was nominated for nine Academy Awards. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Follow That Woman is a tad more light-hearted than most Pine-Thomas adventure efforts. William Gargan plays private eye Sam Boone, who is about to be inducted into the Army. Before donning uniform, Boone attempts to solve a murder, but Uncle Sam is a little faster than he is. Still on the "outside", Boone's wife Nancy (Nancy Kelly) takes it upon herself to finish the case that Sam started. Yes, it's another "Thin Man" derivation, given a bit of currency by its wartime setting. The story doesn't always make sense, but William Gargan and Nancy Kelly work together quite well. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this drama, two competing reporters get involved in a mystery when they find a gangster's corpse in a wax museum. As no one has reported the death, the two rivals begin racing to get the scoop. Unfortunately the uncooperative corpse keeps disappearing. Also looking for the body is the killer who does not want his murder to become public as he has also stolen some jewels. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

The whimsical Oscar Wilde fantasy yarn The Canterville Ghost is updated to WW2 in this economical but attractively produced MGM filmization. Charles Laughton plays Sir Simon de Canterville, a feckless 17th century British aristocrat who, after proving himself a coward on the field of honor, is walled up alive in his own castle by his unforgiving father (Reginald Owen). Sir Simon's ghost is doomed to haunt the corridors of Canterville Hall until one of his descendants performs a conspicuous act of bravery. 300 years later, the castle is billetted by a platoon of American soldiers-one of whom, Cuffy Williams (Robert Young), is of course a distant relation to Sir Simon. The ghost of Canterville Hall does his best to frighten away the American "intruders", but he's a fairly incompetent spirit, incapable of frightening even the young mistress of the castle, 8-year-old Lady Jessica (Margaret O'Brien). Upon learning of his family legacy, Cuffy begins worrying that he, too, will prove to be a coward when the chips are down, but with the help of the Ghost and the stalwart Lady Jessica, Cuffy is able to summon up his innate courage. Sharp-eyed viewers will spot Peter Lawford in a tiny role as Sir Simon's ill-fated brother, and cult figure Tor Johnson as Simon's fearsome jousting opponent. Though never remade theatrically, The Canterville Ghost resurfaced in TV-movie form 1986 and 1996. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide