Johnny Michaels Movies

A woman is torn between a comfortable lie and the painful truth in this drama. After she is abandoned by her unfaithful boyfriend Stephen Morely (Lyle Bettger), Helen Ferguson (Barbara Stanwyck) discovers that she's pregnant, and she has no choice but to go home to her family. Shortly after boarding the train, Helen meets Hugh and Patrice Harkness (Richard Denning and Phyllis Thaxter), a recently married couple who are travelling to visit Hugh's parents, who have yet to met his bride. Patrice, who is also with child, strikes up a conversation with Helen, and allows her to try on her beautiful wedding ring. Moments later, the train becomes involved in a terrible accident in which Hugh and Patrice are killed; because she was still wearing Patrice's ring, Helen is mistaken for the late Mrs. Harkness by Hugh's parents (Jane Cowl and Henry O'Neill), and is taken home with them as she recovers and has her baby. Helen begins to feel a part of the family until Stephen arrives, demanding money to keep her true identity a secret. No Man of Her Own was remade in 1996 as the comedy Mrs. Winterbourne. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Bride for Sale is an old-fashioned romantic triangle brightened by the star power of Claudette Colbert, George Brent and Robert Young. In search of a "perfect" husband, Nora Shelly (Colbert) decides to comb through the tax records of several eligible males, and to that end takes a job at Paul Martin's (Brent) accounting firm. When Paul learns the real reason behind Nora's diligence, he decides to teach her a lesson. He convinces his wealthy friend Steve Adams (Young) to woo and win Nora, then leave her flat. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that Paul and Steve will both fall in love with Nora by reel seven. Produced independently by Jack H. Skirball's Crest Productions, Bride for Sale proved to be a moneyspinner for its distributor, RKO Radio. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

After gathering dust for nearly a year, the independently produced The Deerslayer attained a national release through Republic. A bottom-budget adaptation of the James Fenimore Cooper classic, the film stars Bruce Kellogg as Deerslayer, an intrepid Indian scout-hunter in the 18th century Hudson Valley. He spends most of the film escaping from hostile Indians and helping white settlers protect themselves against the savage hordes. Most of the film is amateurishly shot, with the actors fighting a losing battle against an uninspired, illogical script (in one scene, an Indian brave receives a wound in a portion of the body that was out of the range of gunfire!) In later years, Deerslayer would gain reissue value by virtue of supporting actors Larry Parks and Yvonne De Carlo, who'd gone on to achieve full-fledged stardom. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide