Mary Maguire Movies
- 1941
Filmed in England at Warner Bros.' Teddington Studios facilities, This Was Paris stars American actors (and current British residents) Ann Dvorak and Ben Lyon. She is cast as Ann Morgan, a female ambulance driver in the early days of WWII. He is cast as bibulous American newspaperman Butch, who likes to throw his weight around Paris because he knows he can get away with it. As the clouds of war gather all over Europe, Ann finds romance in the form of British Intelligence agent Bill Hamilton, while Butch sobers up and begins taking his responsibilities seriously. Oddly enough, This Was Paris didn't receive an American release until several years after its production. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ann Dvorak, Ben Lyon, (more)
- 1939
In this British wartime propaganda film, a Nazi spy creeps into England and is taken in by a kindly family who have no idea who he really is. He repays their kindness by using their home as a radio base for his communiqués to other Nazis regarding the location of British targets for German planes and paratroopers. The plot really thickens when the Nazi falls in love with the daughter. When the Nazis attack, the Nazi houseguest kills one of his own officers. He is then dragged out and shot just before the British bombers fly over and destroy the home. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Edmund Gwenn, Mary Maguire, (more)
- 1939
An embarrassed headwaiter provides the basis for this classical tale set in pre-war Russia. He conceals his lowly profession from his daughter who eventually discovers the truth. Soon after, the father discovers that his daughter has been having sex with a wealthy businessman in one of the restaurant's private salons in exchange for the money she needs to buy the restaurant. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mary Maguire, Otto Kruger, (more)
- 1939
The Outsider was a remake of the 1931 British film of the same name; both films were based on a popular play by Dorothy Brandon. George Sanders, on leave from Hollywood service, plays an osteopath accused of being a fraud. His talents are put to the test when he treats the crippled daughter (Mary Maguire, who like Sanders was borrowed from 20th Century Fox) of a respected surgeon (Frederick Leister). On the verge of disgrace, Sanders manages to make the girl walk again. This film should not be confused with the 1949 British release The Outsider, which was originally titled The Guinea Pig. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mary Maguire, George Sanders, (more)
- 1938
In this wartime drama, cavalry private Dennis Murphy purchases a nervous horse, Sergeant, after it is deemed unfit for military service. With patience and love, Murphy trains his horse into a champion and later proves his worth by sneaking the steed into England where he enters him in the Grand National. He wins. The plucky private also wins the affection of the colonel's daughter. This film is based on a true story. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ronald Reagan, Mary Maguire, (more)
- 1938
British musical comedy star Gracie Fields made a bid for stardom in the U. S. with this lighthearted story. Music hall entertainer Gracie Gray (Fields) has grown tired of dealing with her less-than-honest manager and quits her job in the revue, with the rest of the cast soon following suit. Gracie moves out to her uncle's farm, with her friends tagging along; they happen to meet Bert (Roger Livesey), a successful musician, and with his help and advice, Gracie and the gang work up a whole new act. Taking their routines to the stage of a theater in Brighton, Bert and Gracie's show proves to be a huge hit. As usual, Fields sings several songs, including "Swing Your Way to Happiness" and "The Holy City." Notable among the supporting cast is Skippy the dog, who as "Asta" became a scene-stealer in The Thin Man. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gracie Fields, Roger Livesey, (more)
- 1938
Peter Lorre makes his fifth appearance as J. P. Marquand's polite but deadly Japanese sleuth Mr. Moto. This time Moto is called in by Scotland Yard to thwart a vicious gang of international assassins. To infiltrate the gang, Moto poses as a Devil's Island inmate and escapes with one of the killers. The climax takes place at the British Museum, where the mysterious leader of the assassins (the least likely suspect, of course) overplays his hand. The gimmick of having Mr. Moto make his first appearance as an apparent villain works only when the "Moto" films aren't seen as a group. On its own merits, however, Mysterious Mr. Moto is one of the best of the series. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Lorre, Mary Maguire, (more)
- 1937
Gat Brady (John Litel) is a wealthy gangster, though he's never killed anyone, an he is devoted to his teenaged daughter Annabel (Mary Maguire). When he's arrested for tax evasion on the eve of a European trip, he has Annabel's governess Flo Allen (Ann Sheridan) continue on the trip with the girl anyway. Red Carroll (Ben Welden), who hates Gat, kidnaps Annabel, but is caught and sent to the same prison as Gat. A fight with Red results in Gat being sent to the maximum-security prison on Alcatraz Island but, still bent on revenge, Red later arranges to have himself sent there, too. ~ Bill Warren, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ann Sheridan, Mary Maguire, (more)
- 1937
"That Man" is Hugh (woo-woo) Herbert, here cast as lovable eccentric Thomas J. Jesse. Befriending apartment-house elevator operator Jimmy Whalen (Tom Brown), Jesse makes it his mission in life to smooth the course of true love for Jimmy and pretty Australian lass Nancy Lee (Mary Maguire). The plot contrives to drag in a cute little baby, whom Nancy is trying to extricate from an orphanage. The connection between heroine and baby is never explained; all that's important is that Jimmy agrees to adopt the kid by fade-out time. The principal set for That Man's Here Again, a lavish apartment hotel (complete with white telephones), seems too elaborate for a mere 60-minute programmer, suggesting that the set was borrowed from one of Warners' prestige productions. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Hugh Herbert, Mary Maguire, (more)
- 1937
German director Joe May brought a decidedly Teutonic ambience to his American film Confession--no surprise, since the film was based on the 1935 German production Mazurka. Kay Francis plays a onetime singer who confesses to the murder of her pianist, Basil Rathbone. In flashback, we learn that Rathbone had been responsible for the breakup of Francis's marriage. Years later, Rathbone came back into her life, this time with the intention of seducing Ms. Francis' grown daughter (Jane Bryan). In a variation of Madame X, Francis was stuck with the dilemma of deflecting Rathbone from his "mission"--and of keeping her true identity secret from her daughter. Prior to Mazurka, the Hans Rameau story upon which Confession was based had been filmed as a silent picture starring Gloria Swanson. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kay Francis, Ian Hunter, (more)
- 1936
The real-life Flying Medical Association of Australia was the inspiration for the box-office hit The Flying Doctor. Hollywood's Charles Farrell is cast as "sundowner" Sandy Nelson, who aspires to tend to the sick in the Austrian outback. He gets his chance when he joins the F.M.A., taking aviation training to become a "flying doctor." Nelson proves his mettle during a medical emergency, in which he's required to ship supplies to a remote, desolate and virtually impenetrable region. The Flying Doctor was also the title of a late 1950s series, again based on the exploits of the F.M.A. and again featuring an American screen favorite (Richard Denning) in the lead. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Charles Farrell, Mary Maguire, (more)
