Gretta Gould Movies
- 1936
Veteran character actress Zeffie Tilbury steals the show in this immensely satisfying "Our Gang" comedy. On the occasion of her 65th birthday, a crotchety hypochondric (Tilbury) goes through her daily rant as her snooty servants (Sidney Bracey and Greta Gould) ply her with colorful but uncessary pills. Her "celebration" is interrupted when a toy plane owned by the "Our Gang" kids crashes through her dining room window and shatters a vase. Forced to do the old lady's yardwork to pay for the damage, the kids ever so gradually win her heart, mostly by refusing to mollycoddle her as her servants have done for so many years. Before long, the Gang's new "Grandma" is singing along with Spanky McFarland and Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer, demolishing her pill bottles with a slingshot, embarking upon a wild roller-skate ride through her drafty mansion --- and having the time of her life in the process. "Second Childhood" was originally released on April 11, 1936. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George "Spanky" McFarland, Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer, (more)
- 1935
Produced by M.H. Hoffman's Liberty Pictures, School for Girls is based on Reginald Wright Kauffman's story Our Undisciplined Daughters. It all begins when innocent heroine Annette Eldridge (Sidney Fox) gets mixed up with a slimy jewel thief. Taking the rap for her boyfriend, Annette ends up doing a three-year stretch in a girl's reformatory, where she's subjected to the sadistic excesses of brutal matron Miss Keeble (Lucille La Verne) (the same actress who later provided the voice of the Wicked Queen in Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs). Thankfully, young prison-board appointee Gary Waltham (Paul Kelly) dedicates himself to helping Annette -- and by extension, the rest of the unfortunate female inmates. The supporting cast of School for Girls reads like a "B"-picture Who's Who: Lona Andre, Russell Hopton, Kathleen Burke, Fred Kelsey, Edward Le Saint, and former silent-film favorites Anna Q. Nilsson, Charles Ray, Myrtle Stedman and Helene Chadwick. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sidney Fox, Paul Kelly, (more)
- 1935
A man who has ruined a woman's life attempts to make good on his debt to her (and his conscience) in this sudsy drama based on a best-selling novel by Lloyd C. Douglas. Bobby Merrick (Robert Taylor) is an alcoholic ne'er-do-well whose recklessness causes the death of Dr. Hudson, a respected physician. Helen Hudson (Irene Dunne), the doctor's widow, turns away from Merrick's apology, only to walk into traffic. She's struck by a car and blinded. Shaken by the tragic events, Merrick gives up alcohol and begins studying to become a doctor and right the wrong he's done to Helen. As he begins spending time at the family's estate through a mutual friend, Helen grows fond of his frequent visits, and they begin to fall in love. However, when Helen learns that Merrick is responsible for her husband's death and her own accident, she moves away to a place where he cannot find her. In time, Merrick becomes a gifted eye surgeon, and he learns that he could restore Helen's sight with a delicate and dangerous operation that he has never performed before. Magnificent Obsession was a box-office success that spawned a 1954 remake directed by Douglas Sirk and starring Rock Hudson and Jane Wyman. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Irene Dunne, Robert Taylor, (more)
This version of the Charlotte Bronte classic is the first to use sound. The story closely follows the book as it chronicles the romantic travails of a troubled orphan girl who grows up to be a governess in love with her employer who returns her affections. She has finally found happiness. Alas, her happiness is short-lived as she learns that her love has locked his crazy wife in a remote wing of the house. The distraught governess flees and gets engaged to a new man. Just before they marry, she learns that her true love's house has burned down, immolating his wife and leaving him nearly blind. Without hesitation she returns to him and romantic bliss ensues. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Virginia Bruce, Colin Clive, (more)
- 1930
This early talkie melodrama features a waterfront hotel-owner (Marie Dressler) and her relationship with an area fisherman (Wallace Beery). The two are the guardians for a young girl (Dorothy Jordan) whose mother deserted her, but they lose custody of the girl to truant officers. The couple scrape up enough money to get the child back and into a boarding school, where she finds love with a wealthy young man (Donald Dillaway). Dressler won the Oscar for Best Actress in this 1930 film, the year's box-office breakthrough. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Marie Dressler, Wallace Beery, (more)
