Marjorie "Babe" Kane Movies
- 1950
The Secret Fury works best if one is willing to suspend one's disbelief from the outset. Claudette Colbert stars as Ellen, a famed concert pianist who, on the day of her wedding, is accosted by a stranger who insists that she's already married to someone else. Ellen is willing to laugh this off, until the stranger produces witnesses, records and the justice of the piece. Has Ellen lost her mind, or is she merely the victim of an elaborate scam. With the help of fiancé David (Robert Ryan), Our Heroine begins her own investigation -- and ends up accused of murder and shunted off to a mental institution. And the story isn't over yet! Featured in a pivotal role is future I Love Lucy co-star Vivian Vance, who'd previously worked in an L.A. theatre company with Secret Fury-director Mel Ferrer. For reasons best known to himself, Willard Parker, a fairly well-known film actor in 1950, appears unbilled. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Claudette Colbert, Robert Ryan, (more)
- 1944
This 91-minute Republic "special" stars Michael O'Shea as Matt Braddock, an aggressive Henry Kaiser-like shipbuilder operating in 1880s California Though his business innovations are brilliant, Braddock's pugnacious attitude loses him the support of the locals when he plans to build a big new shipyard in a small coastal community. Eventually he perseveres, bringing the story to a rousing conclusion. Along the way, however, there's a bit too much emphasis on the hot-and-cold romance between Braddock and the lovely Diana Kennedy (Anne Shirley). Tommy Bond, the former Butch in the "Our Gang" comedies, registers well in a sympathetic supporting role (Bond later noted that this was one of his favorite films). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael O'Shea, Anne Shirley, (more)
- 1943
This airy bit of MGM fluff stars Lana Turner as small-town soda clerk Peggy Evans. After telling off the self-important new drugstore manager Bob Stuart (Robert Young), Peggy, convinced that there's no future for her in her hometown, fakes her suicide and heads for the big city. After a series of dizzying comic complications, she successfully poses as the long-lost daughter of millionaire Cornelius Burden (Walter Brennan). Meanwhile, poor Bob, held responsible for Peggy's "death," comes to town determined to clear his name by exposing Peggy as an impostor. How this all works itself out is as hard to swallow as the rest of the picture, but the stars are attractive and the production values first-rate. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lana Turner, Robert Young, (more)
- 1942
In this comedy, set in WW II, a Venezuelan rubber planter's son must travel to New York to try and secure a loan for the expansion of the family business. There he encounters an impoverished American girl whose fortune lies frozen in England until the war ends. To make ends meet, she rents her apartment to the Venezuelan and becomes his personal maid. Mayhem ensues as the two get involved in merry mix-ups, fall in love, fall out of love, and fall in love again. Eventually, she helps him get the loan he needs. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Don Ameche, Joan Bennett, (more)
The successful producer-director combination of Walter Wanger and Tay Garnett served up another winner with Slightly Honorable. Adapted from F. G. Presnell's novel Send Another Coffin, the story concerns the efforts made by corrupt politician Cushing (Edward Arnold) to frame honest attorney John Webb (Pat O'Brien) for the murder of Alma Brehmer (Claire Dodd). In concert with his diligent and apparently slow-witted assistant Rus Sampson (Broderick Crawford), Webb hopes to squelch Cushing's plan by locating the real murderer-who turns out to be a lot closer to Webb than he'd ever imagined. Ruth Terry has one of her best screen roles as a birdbrained nightclub hoofer who helps Webb clear himself. Like many Walter Wanger productions of the period, Slightly Honorable is currently available on the public-domain video market. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Pat O'Brien, Edward Arnold, (more)
- 1939
A remake of a 1930 Universal film, Little Accident was the third starring vehicle for androgynous juvenile star Baby Sandy. Hugh Herbert stars as Herbert Pearson, self-styled infant specialist on a big-city newspaper. When father Tabby Morgan (Ernest Truex) abandons his bundle of joy (Baby Sandy) on Pearson's desk, the latter is forced to play "papa"-and to play it with expertise-at the risk of losing his job. The slapstick consequences give way to thrills and spills when Baby Sandy finds himself (herself?) headed for a whirring laundry machine. Like its same-named predecessor, Little Accident was based on a play by Floyd Dell and Thomas Mitchell (yes, that Thomas Mitchell). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Hugh Herbert, Florence Rice, (more)
- 1938
Merrily We Live is a blatant imitation of My Man Godfrey, courtesy of producer Hal Roach. This time Brian Aherne is the gentleman vagabond whom flighty society matron Billie Burke hires as a butler. Aherne's down-to-earth attitude jars against the high-toned phoniness of Burke's wealthy household, but soon the butler has "humanized" everyone around him. He also falls in love with Burke's daughter Constance Bennett, the snootiest member of the family. While at least one prominent film historian has applauded Merrily We Live for avoiding the muddled political subtext of My Man Godfrey, critics in 1938 were less politely inclined, blasting Merrily for being so unabashed a carbon copy. Audiences, on the other hand, loved the film, and Merrily We Live was a success. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Constance Bennett, Brian Aherne, (more)
- 1938
Contrary to popular belief, the Nelson Eddy-Jeanette MacDonald Technicolor confection Sweethearts is not based on the 1913 Victor Herbert operetta of the same name (though most of Herbert's songs remain intact), but a Dorothy Parker-Alan Campbell brainstorm about a popular Broadway singing duo, starring in a long-running production of Sweethearts. The early portions of the film take place during a purported presentation of the Herbert piece, with Eddy and MacDonald singing their hearts out and Ray Bolger providing comic relief. We then segue into a long sequence wherein producer Frank Morgan, celebrating Sweethearts's six-year run, insists that Eddy and MacDonald attend a lavish party, where the weary performers are called upon to continue singing throughout the evening. Hoping for a few moments alone after escaping the party, Eddy and MacDonald are besieged at their apartment by friends, co-workers, hangers-on and sponging relatives. Seeking peace and quiet, the couple agrees to leave Sweethearts for the comparative calm of Hollywood. But their entourage, fearing that they'll lose their meal ticket if Eddy and MacDonald leave New York, arrange to inaugurate two profitable road companies of Sweethearts by contriving to split up the loving couple. Cleverly sidestepping the sugary sweet sentimentality that one might expect from an MGM musical of the era, the delightful Sweethearts is hampered only by its overlength. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jeanette MacDonald, Nelson Eddy, (more)
- 1933
This is a musical comedy which starred Bing Crosby and included the song "Auf Wiedesehn". ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1930
In this heartwarming drama, an amiable department store worker gets more than he bargained for when he accidentally slips a $10 tip he'd received into the hands of a nurse looking for donations to an orphanage on the way to the bank. By doing this, he unwittingly committed himself to supporting one of the orphans. As he rather likes the nurse, and his new boy, he takes on another job to fulfill his obligation. He finds himself quite happy with the situation until a wealthy man steps forward claims that he believes the boy is his grandson. He promptly adopts the lad. The distraught clerk then plots to kidnap the youth to get him back. Instead he proves that the boy is not related to the millionaire and regains custody. Then to make it all official, he proposes to the nurse, she accepts and a happy family is born. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1930
A well-staged battle between two wild horses became the centerpiece in this early musical Western starring diminutive Mexican actress Armida. She plays the owner of a hacienda who takes in a fugitive (Don Terry) from the Mexican authorities. Terry, of course, is completely innocent in the charge of horse stealing and gets a chance to clear his good name when Armida's ranch becomes a target for the real rustlers. Produced by the penny-pinching Lester F. Scott, Jr., Border Romance came complete with a sentimental theme song written by Will Jason and Val Burton. Scott, however, wanted his money's worth and the theme, according to the New York Times was "heard on the sands of the desert, in adobe huts, at fiestas, during horse raids and after every meal!" ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- 1930
In this early musical western, Stephen Ghent (Ian Keith) is a businessman who, after the death of his partner, has been helping to support Ruth Jordan (Dorothy Mackaill), the late man's college-age daughter. While visiting a town near the Mexican border on business, Ghent is shocked to discover Ruth has become a jaded and hard-drinking sophisticate. Convinced she needs a healthy dose of the great outdoors and the simple life, Ghent kidnaps her disguised as a Mexican bandit and carries her away to an isolated cabin in the hills. As the masked cowboy attempts to teach Ruth about the virtues of the simple life, she finds herself falling in love with her captor, though she has a rival for his affections in hot-blooded servant girl Manuella (Myrna Loy). Fancy Baggage was released both as a talking picture and in a silent version, designed to play in small-town theaters (where westerns were perennially popular) which had yet to be wired for sound. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dorothy Mackaill, Ian Keith, (more)
- 1930
Sunny Skies was the first of two attempts by Tiffany Studios to make a major talkie star out of Jewish dialect comedian Benny Rubin. The story takes place on a college campus, where over-aged freshman Benny Krantz (Rubin) is the roommate of football hero Jim Grant (Rex Lease). Rather full of himself, Grant goes out on a toot with a "fast lady," and as a result is booted out of college just before the big game. Managing to redeem himself on the day of the crucial gridiron contest, Grant is again detained when he gallantly submits to a blood transfusion to save Krantz's life. Will he make it to the game on time? Will he score the winning touchdown? Marjorie "Babe" Kane, best known for her ingenue work in the Bing Crosby 2-reelers for Mack Sennett, does a cute imitation of her boop-a-doop namesake Helen Kane. Sunny Skies was followed in short order by Hot Curves, which also co-starred Benny Rubin, Rex Lease and Marceline Day and was also set against a sports background. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Benny Rubin, Marceline Day, (more)
While Barbra Streisand played musical-comedy star Fanny Brice in Funny Girl and Funny Lady, the closest Brice ever came to playing a Streisand-like role on film was in the 1930 comedy-drama Be Yourself. The Rose of Washington Square is cast as Fanny Field, the long-suffering girlfriend of no-account, gin-swilling prizefighter Jerry Moore (Robert Armstrong). After sacrificing everything to advance Jerry's career, Fanny is "repaid" when Jerry dumps her in favor of femme fatale Lillian (Gertrude Astor). Our heroine gets her revenge by telling Jerry's ring opponent to "go after" her man's nose, which was recently reconstructed by plastic surgery. As a result, Jerry loses the bout, but comes to his senses, returning to Fanny for good. Highlights include Brice's takeoff of "Dante's Inferno" and her song solo "Cookin' Breakfast for the One I Love," co-written by her then-husband Billy Rose. Unfortunately, the public didn't respond to Be Yourself, and Fanny Brice never again starred in a film, though she appeared as supporting player and guest performer from time to time. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Fanny Brice, Robert Armstrong, (more)
- 1930
For a "Poverty Row" production, Ladies in Love is pretty and is in fact no worse than most of the early talkies being ground out by the major studios. Alice Day stars as radio singer Brenda Lascelle, who throws a fancy party for her many male admirers. Small-town songwriter Harry King (Johnny Walker), hoping to make a sale, crashes the party, and when Brenda lays her eyes on him it's you-know-what at first sight. Messing up this pretty arrangement is the arrival of Harry's hometown sweetheart Mary Wood (Elinor Flynn), who expresses dismay at her boyfriend's infidelity -- even though she's been merrily playing the field herself. It's a typical Chesterfield production, shot almost entirely indoors and with an overabundance of dialogue. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alice Day, Johnny Walker, (more)
After the disastrous failure of Queen Kelly, the great silent film director Eric Von Stroheim began to parcel himself out as an actor-for-hire, his directing career in tatters. His first post-Queen Kelly acting job was in this early sound film curio, with Von Stroheim playing The Great Gabbo, a ventriloquist who is gradually going insane, transferring his subliminal urges to his dummy, Otto. Gabbo's lovely assistant Mary (Betty Compson) is in love with him, but Gabbo's reciprocal love for Mary is transformed by Otto into heaps of hateful verbal abuse -- so much so that Mary leaves the act, walking out on Gabbo. Without Mary, Gabbo becomes completely unhinged, eking out retribution upon Otto. The Great Gabbo, made at the height of the early talkie musical revue boom, contains a series of inexplicable and incongruous musical production numbers, clumsily grafted onto this Lon Chaney-esque tale of psychological horror. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Erich Von Stroheim, Betty Compson, (more)
