Sam Jaffe Movies
Longtime Hollywood fixture Sam Jaffe (who should not be confused with the actor of the same name) was at various points in his career a talent agent, a studio executive, and a producer. His start in the business, however, was as an office boy for the Paramount-Famous Players-Lasky Company. His brother-in-law, B.P. Schulberg, had a hand in getting the position for the young Jaffe, which quickly proved to be a springboard for his career. He rapidly worked his way through the ranks of the company and became the executive in charge of production, with responsibility over 50 or so projects per year. He switched production companies in the early '30s, going over to Columbia Pictures for a very brief time before starting his own talent agency in the middle part of that same decade. As an agent, he represented the likes of Lauren Bacall, Humphrey Bogart, Fredric March, David Niven, Zero Mostel, Richard Burton, and Stanley Kubrick. In the 1950s, with the advent of Senator Joseph McCarthy's UnAmerican Activities investigations, Jaffe's agency suffered a significant drop of business, since many of his clients were under investigation or blacklisted. He was forced to join forces with The Famous Artists Agency and shortly thereafter, in 1959, Jaffe retired from the talent agent business and moved to London. From there, he produced a number of films, as well as becoming well-known as a collector of impressionist art. Sam Jaffe died in early 2000, at the age of 98. ~ Ryan Shriver, All Movie Guide
Born Free is the heartwarming true story of a British couple who teach their pet lioness how to survive in the wilds of the African jungles. Joy and George Adamson (portrayed by real-life married couple Virginia McKenna and Bill Travers) involuntarily domesticate several lions while living in Kenya. They keep one, named Elsa, until she is fully grown, and rather than turn her over to a zoo, they decide to train her to live like a wild animal so that they can release her into her natural habitat. Geoffrey Keen is a sympathetic government official who convinces the Adamsons that they should set Elsa free to avoid being ordered to place her in captivity. The film, based on Joy Adamson's book, is poignant and emotional without ever becoming banal or overly sentimental. The title song and film score both won Academy Awards. ~ Don Kaye, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Virginia McKenna, Bill Travers, (more)
- 1962
This classic Greek tale of a friendship that overcomes even death makes for an interesting sword-and-sandal saga, with Guy Williams in the role of Damon. An apt choice since Williams is himself an expert swordsman, as partially demonstrated in his role as Zorro on American television (1957-59). Pythias (Don Burnett) has been caught plotting the assassination of King Dionysis I of Syracuse (Arnoldo Foa). Before his execution, Dionysis grants Pythias leave to put his affairs in order because Damon volunteers to stand in his stead if Pythias does not come back to face the executioner. Damon's act is considered foolish. He was safe, why should Pythias come back? But the two are devotees of the Pythagorean mysteries, and their faith in brotherly love goes beyond self-interest. When Pythias does return in the allotted time, King Dionysis is impressed enough to have a change of heart. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Don Burnett, Guy Williams, (more)
The Sullivans attempts to find the positives in one of the most tragic chapters of World War II. Edward Ryan, John Campbell, James B. Cardwell, John Alvin and George Offerman Jr. play the Sullivan brothers, sons of an Iowa railroad worker (Thomas Mitchell) and his wife (Selena Royle). The film traces the boys from childhood, maintaining a relatively lighthearted tone until the Sullivans sign up en masse for the navy at the outbreak of the war. Refusing to be separated, the boys are all assigned to the cruiser Juneau--and all are killed when the vessel goes down at Guadalcanal. This appalling incident (which made something of a celebrity of the brothers' grieving father when he went on a nationwide patriotic lecture tour) resulted in the Navy's decision to never again allowed all the enlisted members of one family to serve on the same ship. Even from the vantage point of fifty years, the scene in which the family receives the wire from the war department is impossible to watch with a dry eye. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anne Baxter, Thomas Mitchell, (more)
- 1934
With William Boyd in the cast, one would think that Flaming Gold was a "Hopalong Cassidy" western -- and one would be wrong. Boyd and Pat O'Brien play Dan Manton and Ben Lear, wildcat oil men at large in Mexico. Dan and Ben continually run afoul of a powerful oil cartel, determined to put our heroes out of business. Meanwhile, the two buddies fall out over the affections of good-time Claire Arnold (Mae Clarke) who marries Dan. A "big gusher" climax caps Flaming Gold, which had it been made 10 years later would probably have been produced by Pine-Thomas Productions with Richard Arlen, Chester Morris and Jean Parker in the cast. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William "Stage" Boyd, Pat O'Brien, (more)
- 1933
Ace of Aces was based on Bird of Prey by John Monk Saunders, an acknowledged master of aviation epics. Richard Dix stars as Rex Thorne, a pacifistic sculptor who registers as a conscientious objector when WWI breaks out. Thorne's unwillingness to fight in a war he believes to be unnecessary is misread as cowardice by his socialite sweetheart Nancy Adams (Elizabeth Allen). In "four feathers" fashion, Thorne signs up with the air corps to prove his courage. Before long, he has established a reputation as a reckless, ruthless flying ace, with little concern for anyone's safety, including his own. This fails to satisfy Nancy -- now also serving her country as a Red Cross nurse -- who feels that Thorne has become too bloodthirsty for his own good (What does this woman want?) The supporting cast includes radio singer Art Jarrett and James Cagney's look-alike brother Bill. Some of the aerial scenes in Ace of Aces were "borrowed" from Howard Hughes's Hell's Angels. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Dix, Elizabeth Allan, (more)
- 1933
Two barbers from an Indian reservation (Bert Wheeler, Robert Woolsey) are sent as the delegates of the Adoop tribe to an international peace convention in Geneva. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bert Wheeler, Robert Woolsey, (more)
- 1933
In this drama, a young surgeon and his driver must combat the racketeers who have taken over the hospital where he works. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Wynne Gibson, William Gargan, (more)
- 1932
In one of his first westerns, Johnny Mack Brown plays Kirby Tornell, who does the "Robin Hood" bit on the wide open spaces. When not flummoxing the Cavalry, Kirby relaxes by playing the piano and rendering a song or two. Despite Kirby's notorious reputation, Carol Winfield (Evalyn Knapp), the daughter of the hero's perennial foe General Winfield (George Irving), can't help falling in love with him. And in the end, Carol surrenders totally to Kirby, riding off with him into the sunset. A strong cast of silent-film veterans (ZaSu Pitts, J. Farrell McDonald, Raymond Hatton) helps lift Vanishing Frontier well above the norm. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Johnny Mack Brown, Evelyn Knapp, (more)
