Cecilia Loftus Movies
- 1941
1941's The Black Cat is neither a remake of the 1934 Karloff-Lugosi film of the same name, nor does it bear the slightest relation to the same-named Edgar Allan Poe story (as if the 1934 picture did!) The fact that the heroes are played by Hugh Herbert and Broderick Crawford is indication enough that the 1941 film wasn't meant to be taken entirely seriously. It all begins when elderly cat fancier Henrietta Winslow (played by legendary vaudeville impressionist Cecilia Loftus) is murdered by a scheming relative. At the reading of the will, Henrietta's heirs discover that the old dear has left her entire fortune to her pet felines. No one will get a penny until all the cats join their ancestors in Tabby Heaven. Several more murders occur, as suspicion is cast on such shady types as Mr. Hartley (Basil Rathbone), Abigail Doone (Gale Sondergaard) and family butler Eduardo (Bela Lugosi in yet another red-herring role). By the time that bumbling Mr. Penny (Herbert) and Hubert Smith (Crawford) figure out who the real killer is, heroine Elaine Winslow (Anne Gwynne) is on the verge of meeting her doom as well. Billed last, Alan Ladd has practically nothing to do as one of the heirs. Hardly one of the classic Universal horror efforts, The Black Cat at least has the advantage of some spook camerawork, courtesy of Stanley Cortez (Magnificent Ambersons). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Basil Rathbone, Hugh Herbert, (more)
When Darryl F. Zanuck's arrangement to loan Shirley Temple to MGM as star of The Wizard of Oz fell through, Zanuck hastily assembled a lavish Technicolor vehicle for his diminutive star which, he hoped, would match Wizard in popularity and appeal. The result was The Blue Bird, adapted from the allegorical stage play by Maurice Maeterlinck (previously filmed by director Maurice Tourneur in 1918). In emulation of The Wizard of Oz, The Blue Bird was bookended with black-and-white sequences, reserving Technicolor for the fantasy "body" of the film; similarly, Gale Sondergaard, who had been the first choice to play the Wicked Witch of the West in Wizard, was cast as Blue Bird's nominal villainess. Set in mid-Europe sometime in the late 18th century, the story concerns Mytyl (Temple and Tyltyl (John Russell), the children of a woodchopper (Russell Hicks) who has been called to fight in a faraway war. Heartbroken, the kids decide to run away from home in search of the Bluebird of Happiness, which will ostensibly solve all their problems. Falling asleep, Mytyl and Tyltyl dream that the good fairy Berylune (Jessie Berylune) is leading them on that search, accompanied by their household pets Tylo (a dog) and Tylette (a cat), who have assumed human form (and as such are repectively played by Eddie Collins and the aforementioned Gale Sondergaard). Before arriving at the far-from-unexpected realization that the elusive Bluebird of Happiness is no further than their own backyard, the two kiddies undergo a variety of astonishing experiences, including a raging forest fire (a triumph of 20th Century-Fox special-effects master Fred Sersen) and an oddly unsettling visit to "The Land of the Unborn". Rather heavy going for its intended family audience, The Blue Bird proved to be Shirley Temple's biggest flop, and a subsequent 1976 US-Soviet version starring Elizabeth Taylor fared no better at the box office. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Shirley Temple, Spring Byington, (more)
- 1940
In It's a Date, the teenage diva Deanna Durbin is cast as Pamela Drake, the daughter of celebrated stage actress Georgia Drake (Kay Francis). Hoping to find success as an actress herself, Pamela energetically lobbies for the role of the maid in an upcoming play based on the life of St. Bernadette -- a role that has already been given to Georgia. When those conducting the auditions hear Pamela's singing, however, they quickly change their mind and offer the part to her. The rivalry between Pamela and Georgia intensifies when both fall in love with handsome middle-ager John Arlen (Walter Pidgeon). Innumerable complications follow, leading to a happy ending for both mother and daughter, though not quite the ending that either one had in mind. Deanna Durbin's musical repertoire this time out includes "Musetta's Street Song" from La Bohème, "Loch Lomond," "Love Is All," and a curious climactic rendition of "Ave Maria." It's a Date was remade in 1950 as Nancy Goes to Rio, with Jane Powell and Ann Sothern. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Deanna Durbin, Kay Francis, (more)
- 1940
Lewis Milestone directs the lightweight romantic comedy Lucky Partners, based on a story by Sacha Guitry. David Grant (Ronald Colman) is an artist in New York's Greenwich Village. After he wishes good luck to passing ingenue Jean Newton (Ginger Rogers), she is immediately offered a beautiful dress. Thinking that David is lucky, she agrees to go in with him on a ticket for the Irish Sweepstakes. Their horse wins the race, and he asks her to accompany her to Niagara Falls to celebrate their winnings. Jean's fiancé, Freddie Harper (Jack Carson), is not pleased about the arrangement, so he follows them. Eventually Jean and David fall for each other and they end up in the courthouse, where the judge ($Harry Davenport) sorts everything out in favor of the new couple. Lucky Partners was released in 1940, the same year Rogers gave her Oscar-winning performance in Kitty Foyle: The Natural History of a Woman. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ronald Colman, Ginger Rogers, (more)
- 1939
When Zoë Akins' play The Old Maid (based on a novel by Edith Wharton) won the 1934-1935 Pulitzer Prize, the selection was roundly condemned by critics, who felt that Lillian Hellman's The Children's Hour was more deserving, but had lost because of its lesbian theme. Certainly, Akins' story of the relationship between two Southern cousins in the years between 1833 and 1854 is nothing spectacular. Delia Lovell marries James Ralston, leaving her old beau Clem Spender out in the cold. Delia's cousin Charlotte comforts Clem by spending the night with him. Charlotte becomes pregnant, secretly farming out her daughter, Tina, to another family. The years pass; Charlotte sets up a day nursery so that she may remain close to her daughter (still in the dark as to the true identity of her mother). Meanwhile, Charlotte has become engaged to Ralston's brother Joseph. The troublesome Delia, who discovers her cousin's secret, contrives to prevent Charlotte from marrying Joseph, then arranges to have Charlotte raise Tina as her niece rather than her daughter. More years pass; Tina regards Delia as her mama and Charlotte as just an "old maid." At Tina's wedding, Charlotte almost reveals the truth to her daughter, but.....It's all slick romance-magazine stuff, and hardly worthy of the Pulitzer. On the other hand, the film version of The Old Maid, starring Bette Davis as Charlotte and Miriam Hopkins as Delia, is a classic of its kind, and one of Davis' best vehicles. The story is given additional substance by moving the early scenes up to the time of the Civil War, making Clem Spender (George Brent) less of a cad by killing him off at Vicksburg, thus rendering it impossible for Clem to make an honest woman of Charlotte. From the vantage point of the 1990s, when film stars find it difficult to turn out more than one picture a year, it is incredible that The Old Maid was but one of four first-rate Bette Davis films to be released in 1939; the others were Dark Victory, Juarez, and The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bette Davis, Miriam Hopkins, (more)
- 1939
In this entry in the long-running series, one of the Kids goes to military school and learns, with the help of his late father's friend who promised to watch over the lad, to be a real man. The kid is initially, quite rebellious. One boy tries to help him, but the kid throws him out a second story window. Eventually the kid grows up and becomes a hero by saving another boy's life during a dangerous fire. This was the final entry in the series. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Billy Halop, Leo Gorcey, (more)
- 1936
Hecht and MacArthur's Once in a Blue Moon was an unsuccessful attempt to fashion a film vehicle for legendary Broadway comedian Jimmy Savo. The pixieish star is cast as Gabbo the Great, a circus performer in pre-Revolutionary Russia. A sensitive soul, Gabbo is afforded an opportunity to prove his loyalty to the Motherland by delivering an urgent message to a Russian general (Nikita Balieff, who died just after completing his role). Savo's great appeal lies in his whimsical pantomime, not his handling of dialogue; alas, he is saddled with reams and reams of satirical dialogue, very little of which was genuinely amusing. Though co-scripters Ben Hecht and Charlie McArthur are credited with the direction, it was an open secret in 1936 that most of Once in a Blue Moon was directed by cinematographer Lee Garmes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nikita Balieff, Cecilia Loftus, (more)
- 1931
Whenever a vaudeville comic of the 1920s wanted to get a quick laugh, he'd announce to his audience "Next Week: East Lynne." To many playgoers, this hoary stage adaptation of Mrs. Henry Wood's 1861 novel represented the height of Victorian nonesuch. Still, there were several silent film versions of East Lynne, all of which made money. 1931 yielded no fewer than two adaptations, one set in modern times and retitled Ex-Flame. Fox Studios' version restored the original title and the 1860s setting, but couldn't do much with that creaky plot. Ann Harding portrays Lady Isabel Carlisle, who nearly a decade of family hardships learns that her son has fallen ill. Despite being nearly blind as the result of a bomb explosion, Lady Carlisle returns home to see her son one last time--just before dying herself. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ann Harding, Clive Brook, (more)
- 1931
In this drama, a wild young punk is assigned to spend time with a man who specializes in helping juvenile delinquents. The boy is a tough nut to crack and the two engage in complex psychological and physical games. At one point, the man sticks the rebellious youth alone in a mountain cabin. Much to the delight of the lad, his girl friend sneaks up for a visit. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Thomas Meighan, Hardie Albright, (more)
- 1931
The trials of being a doctor's wife are presented in this drama. The story centers upon the problematic marriage of one couple. Their troubles begin when the doctor makes a housecall to a seductive woman with designs upon him. His suspicious wife follows him and spies on him. She thinks they are getting romantic when he is actually trying to extricate himself from his predatory patient. She decides to get revenge with his best friend, but nothing happens. The doctor later finds out that she saw him. He then becomes suspicious because it is she who is now seldom home. He confronts his friend about the alleged adultery. The friend becomes distraught and tries to kill himself. The doctor operates to save his friend's life. He then discovers that his wife has been taking nursing classes so she could work beside her husband and see him more often. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Warner Baxter, Joan Bennett, (more)
- 1914
Based on a play by James K. Hackett, the four-reel Pride of Jennico was one of the shorter offerings from the Famous Players film company. Studio contractee House Peters heads the cast as Basil Jennico, the last in a long line of Ruritanian princes (playwright Hackett had originated the role of Basil on Broadway). The hero spends most of the film rescuing the lovely heroine (played by Betty Harte) from various and sundry fates worse than death. A bit less stagebound than most Famous Players productions, Pride of Jennico benefitted from extensive location filming in Cuba. This was one of the first of Jesse Lasky's productions for Famous Players; not long afterward, Lasky would expedite the studio's merger with Paramount. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
