William Gaxton Movies

The real Diamond Horseshoe was a Las Vegas nightclub created by impresario Billy Rose, which spotlighted old-time stars from the early 20th century recreating the songs and skits that had made them great. Rose allowed 20th Century-Fox to use the name "Diamond Horseshoe" for a Technicolor musical, but only on the proviso that Rose's name be included in the title. Billy Rose's Diamond Horseshoe does have the occasional old-timer specialty, but for the most part the plot concentrates on Betty Grable, a young entertainer who romances would-be songwriter Dick Haymes. The affair is frowned upon by Haymes' father (William Gaxton), the manager of the Diamond Horseshoe, who is determined that his son pursue a medical career. The predictability of the storyline is redeemed by Haymes' rendition of the song hit "The More I See You", and by the comedy turns of Phil Silvers. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This backstage musical offers a peek at vaudeville behind-the-scenes. The story centers on a recently divorced woman who decides to use her generous alimony settlement to stage an old fashioned vaudeville show. Unfortunately her chief backer insists on being the star. Fortunately, at the last minute, a very talented person replaces the no-talent backer. Songs include: "I Always Knew," "Hasta Luego," "Lotus Bloom," "Something to Shout About," "Through Thick and Thin." The song "You'd Be So Nice to Come Home To," was nominated for an Academy Award. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

In this comedy, two sisters work as assistants to a magician. The trouble begins when the day before a big show, the magician's psychic quits. In desperation he enlists the aide of one of the assistants. The three end up hired by a woman who is trying to help her wealthy, widowed sister see that her doctor is a charlatan by holding a bogus seance in the widow's creepy mansion. During the ritual, the widow tries to contact her late husband. When the ghost really does appear, the "medium" is shocked; she is more shocked when the spirit tells her he was murdered. The three performers become sleuths, solve the murder, and prove that the physician is a money-grubbing fake. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

W.C. Fields' It's the Old Army Game is an expansion on four Fields stage skits, originally performed in the Broadway revue The Comic Supplement. Described in the opening title as "the epic of the American druggist," the story begins late one night, in the apothecary shop of Elmer Prettywillie (Fields) in Ocala, Florida (where the film was location-shot). Aroused from his slumbers by a frantic customer (Elise Cavanna), Elmer discovers that all the woman wants is a two-cent stamp -- which she doesn't pay for. Attempting to mail her letter, the woman inadvertently sets off a fire alarm, which brings the local fire brigade to Elmer's store. The minute they leave, a real fire breaks out, which Elmer has to extinguish himself. Trying to get back to sleep on the back porch of his store, poor Elmer is continually awakened by the sounds of the neighborhood, ranging from a squalling infant to a steady stream of street vendors. After a hectic and typically profitless day behind the counter of his store, Elmer takes his family on a picnic, during which he ends up on the grounds of a Florida estate which he hopes to purchase. Only after nearly wrecking the grounds does Elmer discover that the property is not for sale. Cult figure Louise Brooks, then the wife of director Eddie Sutherland, plays Elmer's counter assistant Marilyn. It's the Old Army Game was remade as It's a Gift (1934) while certain plot elements and gags resurfaced in Fields' talkie 2-reeler The Pharmacist (1932). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide