Betty Lawford Movies

Not by any means a great film, The Devil Thumbs a Ride nonetheless has an indefinable audience allure that sucks the viewer into its labyrinthine storyline and doesn't let go until the fade-out. Lawrence Tierney plays Steve Morgan, a charming but utterly sociopathic criminal who has just robbed and killed a movie theater cashier. Morgan hitches a ride with inebriated conventioneer Jimmy Furguson (Ted North). Later on, Furguson picks up two more hitchhikers: virginal Beulah Zorn (Nan Leslie) and good-time girl Agnes Smith (Betty Lawford). When circumstances lead Jimmy to believe that Steve is the fugitive whom the cops are looking for, Morgan sweet-talks his way into everyone's confidence. Before he knows what's happening, Jimmy is holed up in a beach house while Steve parties with Beulah and Agnes. Not even the most fervent of film noir fans will be able to predict the outcome of this one. Long ignored by movie buffs, The Devil Thumbs a Ride gained a large following through repeated TV showings in the 1960s and '70s. It is now considered so representative of its genre that one film historian used the film's title for a collection of his essays on B-melodramas. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The "Stavisky Affair," a high-level swindling scandal which all but destroyed the French government in the early 1930s, was the unofficial inspiration for Stolen Holiday. Claude Rains plays a suave confidence artist who has wormed his way into top European social and financial circles. When faced with exposure, Rains is protected by governmental and business higher-ups lest they be arrested for complicity in his crimes. Kay Francis plays an ambitious model who marries Rains, but regrets it when she falls in love with Ian Hunter. The real Alexander Stavisky ultimately avoided prosecution by committing suicide. The Hays Office wouldn't stand for that, so Claude Rains' character in Stolen Holiday is conveniently murdered. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Lew Ayres and Patricia Ellis are the "official" stars of Let's Be Ritzy, but the film is dominated by Frank McHugh as brash radio performer Bill Damroy. In his efforts to appease his social-climbing girlfriend Betty (Isabel Jewell), Damroy gets young hero Jimmie (Lew Ayres) mixed up in all sorts of hair-brained schemes. As a result, it looks as though Jimmie and his young bride Ruth (Patricia Ellis) will never be able to scrape enough money together to rent their own apartment, much less "crash" society themselves. In addition to lavishing praise on Frank McHugh, reviewers in 1934 were quite taken by Robert McWade's performance as last-minute problem-solver Mr. Spelvin. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The Human Side was adapted by Frank Craven and Ernest Pascal from a play by Christine Ames. Long married and the parents of four children, Gregory and Vera Sheldon break up when Gregory begins keeping time with seductive Alma Hastings (played by Betty Lawford, Peter's mom). Despite the subsequent divorce, Gregory can't resist visiting his ex-wife from time to time, which arouses Alma's jealous nature. The story isn't straightened out, however, until the four Sheldon kids -- Lucille (Charlotte Henry), Phil (Dick Winslow), Tom (George Ernest) and Bobbie (Dickie Moore) -- take a hand in the matter. Befitting the title, The Human Side is realistically written and acted, enhancing the audience's empathy with the characters. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

An old man learns the sad truth of the old saw about being careful what you wish for in this horror outing that is based on the enduring cautionary tale. It all begins with an army sergeant who is given a magical monkey's paw while fighting in India. He learns that the paw contains three wishes. Later the soldier is seen visiting an elderly couple in England. He tells of the paw and how no wish it grants comes without a terrible price. Despite the warning, the old man is tempted by the paw's power and so slyly steals it from the soldier as he departs in the morning. the old man's first wish is for enough money to pay the dowry of the girl her son wants to marry. Sure enough the wish is granted. Unfortunately, money comes from the son's life insurance, for the boy is killed at work. Horrified, the father wishes for his son to be alive, but then fearing that the paw will do something even more dreadful wishes that he had never said that. The next day, as if by magic, the man awakens to find his son hale and hearty. Whew! It was all but a bad dream. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

British actor George Arliss spent the bulk of his movie career in adaptations of his stage successes. Based on a play by John Galsworthy, Old English stars Arliss as an aging shipbuilder, who dotes on the children of his deceased son. Arliss' sister (Ethyl Gryffies) disapproves because the old man's son was illegitimate, but Arliss pays her no heed. He secures the financial future of his grandchildren by entering into a shady business deal that is sure to bring him disgrace and ruin. To escape the wrath of his enemies, Arliss commits an elegant suicide by defying his doctor's orders and eating a sumptuous gourmet mea -- a wistful finale later reworked into the 1935 biopic Diamond Jim. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this dark drama, based on a play by Ward Morehouse, the life of a tough newspaperman is chronicled. The man is a work-a-holic, and the demands of his job cause him to miss all the pleasures of his life. Because he is working on a story, he misses the birth of his daughter. He is not there for her wedding, and when she dies in labor--he is not there. Later the reporter begins reflecting upon all he missed out on. When he is interviewed by a Yale graduate about his career, the newspaperman strongly advises the young student to get out of it, because it is a poisonous business. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Once he attained full stardom, silk-hatted comedian Raymond Griffith was rushed into several inexpensive Paramount vehicles. The Night Club is so pinchpenny that all the street exteriors are shot on the back lot, with a conspicuous paucity of extras. This hardly matters, since the principal attraction is the dapper Griffith, here playing a man who stands to inherit a million dollars provided he agrees to an arranged marriage. He falls in love with Vera Reynolds, never dreaming that she is his intended bride; Reynolds does know who he is, however, and spurns him, assuming that he's a fortune hunter. To make amends, Griffith pounces upon a clause in his inheritance which states that all of his money will go to Vera in the event of his death. The rest of the film concerns Griffith's genial attempts to kill himself; when each method at self-destruction fails, Griffith moves on nonchalantly to the next, as though choosing between white and black caviar. Vera finally decides that Griffith is worthy of her, and it's off to the altar. The Night Club is based on a turn-of-the-century play co-authored by the DeMille brothers (Cecil B. and William C.). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide