Martha Mattox Movies
Character actress Martha Mattox had several solid years of theatrical work to her credit when she made her first film in 1915. Throughout the silent era, Mattox could be spotted playing everything from hillbilly housewives to Spanish duennas. In the 1920 adaptation of Huckleberry Finn, she was typecast as Miss Watson, while in 1927's Cat and the Canary, she was memorably sinister as shifty-eyed housekeeper Mammy Pleasant (a role she virtually reprised in the 1932 quickie The Monster Walks). Busy right up to her death in 1933, Martha Mattox made her final screen appearance in Frank Capra's The Bitter Tea of General Yen. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1933
Tom Mix once again goes up against corrupt Fred Kohler in this would-be epic Western filmed on-location at Kanab, UT. Retiring from a life of train robbing, Benjamin R. Jones (Kohler) takes over the ghost town of Stillwell, knowing full well that the property belongs to Molly O'Rourke (Margaret Lindsay). Enter horse wrangler Tom Mason (Mix), who smells a rat and does his best to unmask Jones as the crook he knows him to be. Molly at first falls for Jones' scheme, but confronts him when a general feeling of lawlessness sets in. The villain, alas, has an ace up his sleeve: Molly owes back taxes on her property, which is ripe for a takeover. The Fourth Horseman was the fifth of nine Westerns Tom Mix would make for Universal from 1932-1933 before an on-the-set accident basically ended his career as a series Western star. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Margaret Lindsay, Raymond Hatton, (more)
- 1933
The Bitter Tea of General Yen is the oddest, least characteristic talkie effort of director Frank Capra. Barbara Stanwyck stars as the intended of an American missionary (Gavin Gordon) who is sent to spread the good word in China. During a military revolution, Stanwyck and her fiance inadvertently wander into forbidden territory while trying to help a group of orphans escape. The couple is forcibly detained by elegant warlord General Yen (played by Swedish actor Nils Ashter), who relies upon the financial advice of drunken American expatriate Walter Connolly. Yen is overcome with desire at the sight of Stanwyck; at first repulsed by his attentions, Stanwyck finds herself strangely drawn in by his charisma. When everyone but Connolly deserts Yen when he needs them most, Stanwyck offers to stay behind with the General. Fearing that he will never be able to truly attain the woman he so loves, the honorable General Yen commits suicide by drinking poisoned tea rather than put her in harm's way. The one scene that everyone remembers takes place during one of Stanwyck's fevered dreams, in which she imagines Yen as a Fu Manchu-type rapist, who then melts into a gentle, courtly suitor. Directed with the exotic aplomb of a Josef von Sternberg by the usually down-to-earth Frank Capra, The Bitter Tea of General Yen was unfortunately a box office failure, due in great part to its miscegenation theme (this was still 1933). Even so, the film was chosen as the first attraction at the new Radio City Music Hall. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barbara Stanwyck, Nils Asther, (more)
- 1932
This second of three film versions of Edna Ferber's novel So Big stars Barbara Stanwyck as Ferber's resilient heroine Selena Dejong Peake. Widowed early in the proceedings, Chicago truck farmer Selena sacrifices everything for her son Dirk (Dickie Moore as a child, Hardie Albright as a grown-up), living for the day that the boy will become a successful architect. But the callow Dirk breaks his mom's heart by becoming a bond salesman. Selena vows that Rolf Pool (Dick Winslow as a boy, George Brent as an adult) will not prove a similar disappoint to his parents, taking it upon herself to encourage Rolf's dreams to become a sculptor. Bette Davis plays a supporting role as Dallas O'Mara, a young artist who hopes to convince Dirk to fulfill his mother's dreams. Previously filmed in 1925 with Colleen Moore, So Big was remade in 1953 with Jane Wyman. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barbara Stanwyck, George Brent, (more)
Having signed for eight Westerns with poverty row entrepreneur E.W. Hammons, Ken Maynard went on to deliver a series of solid sagebrush entertainment despite non-existing budgets and filming on standing sets at the old, threadbare Tiffany lot on Sunset Boulevard. The opener, Dynamite ranch presented Ken as a cowboy falsely accused of safe-cracking.The robbery was actually committed by villainous foreman Park Owens (Alan Roscoe) but only the rancher's daughter, Doris (Ruth Hall), believes in his innocence. But even she turns against the cowboy when his glove is found on the crime scene. When the assistance of the rancher's accountant (Arthur Hoyt), Ken sets a trap for Owens and manages to clear his own good name. As a sign of changing times in Hollywood, former silent star Jack Perrin appears at the bottom of the cast-list playing one of Owens' henchmen. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ken Maynard, Ruth Hall, (more)
A judge investigating two Wall Street brokers accused of stock manipulations learns of a mysterious invention, a "DXL Accumulator" with which its inventor, Prof. Farrington, plans to harness solar power. The judge decides to visit the professor at his mountain hideaway. When he arrives, he finds that the professor's daughter and her boyfriend are there, along with the professor's mysterious housekeeper, her creepy son and a strange couple the daughter and her boyfriend brought along. As the judge is questioning the professor, someone turns off the lights, and when the daughter and her boyfriend rush into the room, the judge is found murdered and the professor has disappeared! Mischa Auer and Martha Mattox, the twin menaces in the "classic" horror cheapie The Monster Walks, play approximately the same roles here. The sputtering laboratory equipment and the electronic special effects were the handiwork of Kenneth Strickfaden, of Frankenstein fame. ~ Brian Gusse, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jack Mulhall, Josephine Dunn, (more)
- 1932
Alexander Carr, a Jewish-dialect comedian usually confined to small roles, is practically the whole show in the sentimental drama No Greater Love. Carr is cast as delicatessen owner Sidney Cohen, who unofficially adopts Irish-Catholic orphan girl Mildred (Betty Jane Graham). Hoping to finance an operation that will enable the crippled Mildred to walk, Cohen hocks all his possessions and sells his store. The insensitive adoption authorities intervene, snatching Mildred from Cohen's arms, but the girl eventually walks all the same, inspired by the love of her foster father. No Greater Love was partially remade in 1938 as City Streets, with the protagonist changed to an Italian (played by Leo Carrillo). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dickie Moore, Alexander Carr, (more)
It is difficult to believe that this ultra-cheapie ever actually scared anyone; it's just possible that audiences laughed as loudly at the film in 1932 as they do today. On a dark and stormy night, Hero and heroine Rex Lease and Vera Reynolds head to Reynolds's ancestral mansion to claim her inheritance. Everyone in the house takes great delight in informing the girl that her scientist father died suddenly (the word is repeated at least 20 times in the first two reels). Soon our heroine discovers that she, too, has been marked for death by her maniacal uncle Sheldon Lewis, who is using his deranged son Micha Auer, Auer's housekeeper-mother Martha Mattox, and a huge and surly ape as his vessels of wrath. The climax finds Auer binding Reynolds to a post as he exhorts the ape to tear her apart; unfortunately for him, the big beast chooses to rend the villains asunder. Black comedian Willie Best (here billed as Sleep 'N'Eat) is supposed to be the comedy relief, but Mischa Auer is heaps funnier unintentionally. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Vera Reynolds, Sheldon Lewis, (more)
- 1932
In this romance, a homely country girl makes herself over into a gorgeous New York Fashion model. Suddenly men flock to her and one night she is in a speakeasy when she meets a suave, handsome and rich fellow. The cops raid the place and after she gets out of the hoosegow, the woman goes to Paris, and for some strange reason takes on the name of the man she met in the nightclub. The man has followed her to Europe and is so persistent that her friends begin to think they are married. Word spreads back to the States, and the poor girl tries to rectify the misunderstanding by claiming that the marriage disintegrated. Things only get worse when the truth finally comes out. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joan Bennett, John Boles, (more)
One of The Duke's earlier efforts, this John Wayne vehicle sees our hero using his wits against not only gold hunters, but also the evil specters that haunt the land's treasures. A labyrinth of underground paths provides the backdrop for many of the action scenes. ~ Michael Hastings, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sheila Terry, Harry Woods, (more)
- 1932
Barbara Stanwyck overcomes a veritable ocean of clichés and manages to make her "shopworn" heroine come to life in this old-fashioned but rather poignant melodrama. A waitress in her aunt and uncle's café, orphaned Kitty Lane falls in love with society scion Dave Livingston (Regis Toomey). Much to Mrs. Livingston's regret, Dave is equally smitten and the society matron (Clara Blandick) has Kitty convicted on a trumped up charge of prostitution. While Dave accompanies his mother on a long trip to Europe, Kitty serves her time in reform school and later becomes a successful showgirl. Reunited after several years, Dave and Kitty resume their romance and Mrs. Livingston once again attempts to talk Kitty out of marrying her son, this time by brandishing a firearm. Like Marguerite Gautier had before her, Kitty is about to sacrifice her love when Dave's mother suddenly has a change of heart. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barbara Stanwyck, Regis Toomey, (more)
- 1932
This socially-conscious drama is set in a slum and centers on the events that lead a parsimonious slum lord to change her ways. It all begins when a little boy stumbles down three flights of rickety stairs. The landlady is later approached by a lawyer who tries to collect damages for the child. She refuses to pay, causing her more compassionate uncle to argue on behalf of the boy. The woman won't listen and ends up stomping out. She is then mugged on the street. Afterwards, the police arrest her because she appears drunk; she is sentenced to 30 days. While in jail she meets a slum resident who is jailed after taking the fall for the injured lad's mother who had been stealing food for her poor boy. The heartless woman is finally touched and sees the error of her ways. After she is released, she marries and begins a kinder, gentler life. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Maureen O'Sullivan, Betty Compson, (more)
- 1931
When European princess Lee comes back to her Midwestern hometown, she is thought to be a seamstress and goes along with the ruse in this comedy. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1931
An eerie early-talkie mystery, Murder by the Clock spends most of its time in a cemetery. The matriarch (Blanche Frederici) of a wealthy family is haunted by the notion that she'll be buried alive. To avoid this contingency, she has a horn installed in the family mausoleum, to be activated in case she arises from her casket. The lady is murdered, and shortly after her internment the horn blows at regular intervals. Each time the horn is heard, the dead woman is seen wandering the cemetery, and each time one of her relatives winds up dead. These "supernatural" events are actually being orchestrated by a covetous family member (there's a large legacy involved of course), who uses the services of several homicidal confederates. Murder by the Clock was perhaps more frightening in 1931 than it is today, but a TV revival is long overdue. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William "Stage" Boyd, Lilyan Tashman, (more)
- 1931
A WWI American nurse stationed in London (Constance Bennett) meets a handsome flier and finds only sorrow in this three-hanky melodrama. She gets pregnant; then the flier disappears during a mission and she must bear her child alone. Time passes and eventually, she reluctantly agrees to marry a disabled British officer. Not long afterward, her true love reappears (not dead, after all) and many complications ensue. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Constance Bennett, Joel McCrea, (more)
- 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
The marriage between Jim and Esther Hamilton (Owen Moore and Dorothy Christy) spirals downhill rapidly when Esther purchases a sable coat for herself. Hoping to live up to her expensive accessory, Esther begins imagining herself a glamorpuss and soon is keeping company with caddish Morrell (Jameson Thomas). Jim brings his wife's galavanting to an abrupt end by committing suicide. All of this is related by the sadder-but-wiser Esther as an object lesson for young Alice Kendall (June Collyer), who out of love for her sweetheart Fred Garlan (Lloyd Hughes) returns the fur coat that she's bought on impulse. The only thing "extravagant" about this pinchpenny Tiffany Studios production is its title. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Owen Moore, June Collyer, (more)
- 1929
With less sumptuous production values perhaps, but with just as much savoir faire as in his earlier Fox Westerns, Tom Mix starred in this late-silent Wild West melodrama from poverty row company FBO as a ranch foreman assigned to escort his employer's daughter (Kathryn McGuire) from the big city back to the ranch. The girl, Ellen, is carrying the valuable Regent diamond, and the pair become the target of a gang of thieves led, it turns out, by Ellen's former fiancée Rodney (Ernest Hilliard). Still a name to be reckoned with, Mix was released from his contract later that year when FBO abandoned the outdoor units in preparation for a merger with RKO and sound films. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tom Mix, Kathryn McGuire, (more)
- 1929
Boris Karloff played a red herring in this the final silent serial from chapter play specialist Mascot, who reportedly spared all expenses this time around. Helene Costello, a former Warner Bros. star now down on her luck, starred as Dorothy Rogers, the daughter of a banker (George Periolat) who disappeared mysteriously while reading a novel entitled "The Fatal Warning." The vanished Rogers was accused of absconding with 100,000 dollars in cash and Dorothy hired private investigator Russell Thorne (Ralph Graves) to clear her father's good name. Suspects abounded, of course, including bank president John Harmon (Tom Lingham), a clerk (Karloff), the inevitable butler (Sid Crossley), a two-bit femme fatale (Symona Boniface), and sundry other nefarious types, all of whom proved to be innocent. In the tenth and final chapter, "Unmasked," Thorne discovered that Rogers had been guiding the investigation from his hiding place and the identity of the real culprit was revealed. Since The Fatal Warning appears to be among the lost, we may in good conscience reveal his identity here as well: seemingly stalwart businessman Leonard Taylor (Phillips Smalley). In addition to the presence of a pre-Frankenstein Boris Karloff, The Fatal Warning is also noteworthy for an early appearance by future Three Stooges foil Symona Boniface. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- 1929
In this drama, a woman finds herself abandoned when the man she assumed was her husband suddenly marches in, announces that they were never legally married, and leaves. Many years pass and the woman is on a jury for a murder case involving a woman in similar straits as she once was. It is then revealed that the man she killed was the same one who left the woman. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1929
The cheapo-sleazo Montmartre Rose is little more than a "chorus girl" drama, transplanted to Gay Paree. The titular heroine, played by Marguerite de la Motte, is a dancer in a seedy Montmartre-district dive. Wealthy Paul Ralli falls in love with the girl, but his family won't hear of it. Love conquers all, but not before several melodramatic setbacks. Leading man Ralli had been a mere extra prior to appearing in Montmartre Rose, which might explain his stilted performance; conversely, supporting actress Rosemary Theby had been a major screen name in the pre-1920 years but would soon be reduced to the extra ranks. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Marguerite de la Motte, Paul Ralli, (more)
- 1928
Veteran comedian Charlie Murray plays a serious role in 1928's Head Man. Murray is cast as a senator named Watts, whose political career is ruined when he refuses to suck up to a "machine" boss. After several weeks of self-pity, Watts decides to beat the Machine at its own game. With the support of friends and family, he runs for mayor and soon the bad guys are running from him! Cast as Watts' daughter Carol is 15-year-old Loretta Young, just beginning her long association with First National/Warner Brothers. Also on hand are such surefire supporting players as Lucien Littlefield, Irving Bacon, Harvey Clark, and Dot Farley (who, like Charlie Murray, was an alumnus of the Mack Sennett comedy factory). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Charlie Murray, Loretta Young, (more)
- 1928
Kentucky Courage was the second film version of John Fox Jr.'s 1903 novel The Little Shepherd of Kingdom Come. Richard Barthelmess stars as Chad Buford, a sensitive Kentucky farm boy who escapes his sadistic guardian Nathan Cherry (Gustav von Seyfertitz) and finds a safe harbor in the home of Old Joe Turner (Nelson McDowell). Chad's budding romance with Turner's daughter Melissa (Molly O'Day) is put on hold by the Civil War. Fighting on the Northern side, the boy comes marching home five years later -- older, wiser, and a great deal stronger. After beating the town bully to a pulp, Chad settles down to a happy future with Melissa at his side. The Little Shepherd of Kingdom Come was filmed for a fourth time in 1961, with singer Jimmie Rodgers as Chad. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Molly O'Day, Nelson McDowell, (more)
- 1928
From small-scale (and typically misnamed) Excellent Pictures, this minor silent melodrama featured handsome Bryant Washburn as Roger Van Dorn, a scion of society marrying a lowly cabaret dancer, Fola Dale (Lila Lee), despite the misgivings of his domineering Aunt Honoria (Martha Mattox). In collaboration with spurned debutante Helen Worl (Jacqueline Gadsden), Aunt Honoria manages to break up the couple by convincing Roger that Fola has been unfaithful during an engagement in Paris. When Roger learns that Fola has given birth to their child, he stops divorce proceedings and rushes to her side. Supporting actress Jacqueline Gadsden specialized in playing the other woman, and is perhaps best remembered as Clara Bow's debutante nemesis in It (1927). ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bryant Washburn, Lila Lee, (more)
- 1928
The heavy-breathing Singapore Mutiny owes a great deal to such previous passion-in-the-tropics efforts as Rain and The Hairy Ape. Estelle Taylor plays a shady Broadwayite who books passage on an oil tanker. It isn't long before the all-male crew degenerates into a brawling mob, maddened as they are by Taylor's dazzling beauty. But the girl has eyes only for stowaway Gardner James, who appears to be a spineless jellyfish until he asserts himself during the climactic mutiny. Director Ralph Ince, as usual, has reserved a plum leading role for himself, in this cast the part of the ship's brutish head stoker. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Estelle Taylor, Ralph Ince, (more)
- 1928
The Naughty Duchess was the come-on title affixed to this filmization of the novel Indiscretion of a Duchess (apparently "naughty" was easier to spell). Eve Southern plays a woman with a shady history who tries to elude the Law by boarding a train. Here she begs handsome fellow-passenger H.B. Warner to pose as her husband to throw the cops off the trail. It so happens that Warner is a duke, who is so charmed by the breathless Southern that he asks her to become his duchess. The girl tries to live up to her new title and responsibilities, but she finds it difficult not to lapse into her old low-born shenanigans. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- H.B. Warner, Eve Southern, (more)
