Jack Oakie Movies
The parents of American actor Jack Oakie had hopes that their son would enter the business world, but a spell as telephone clerk in a brokerage house convinced Oakie to look elsewhere for a career. After appearing at an amateur show staged by Wall Street executives for the Cardiac Society, Oakie was encouraged by the show's director to give acting his full attention. Oakie's professional debut was in the chorus of the 1922 George M. Cohan musical Little Nellie Kelly. Several Broadway productions later, Oakie travelled westward to try his luck in films, the first of which was Finders Keepers. Transferring without a hitch to talkies, Oakie found himself much in demand, usually playing a dimwitted braggart (with one of the best "double takes" in the business) who somehow made good and got the girl before fadeout time. By the late 1930s Oakie's career had gone into decline. The experience humbled the bombastic comedian and convinced him take a new approach to his career. After his unforgettable Mussolini take-off in Chaplin's The Great Dictator (1940), Oakie entered a new movie phase as second lead and character actor, which sustained him through many a musical comedy of the 1940s. And when called upon to do so, he could still carry a picture with finesse, as witness the 1945 fantasy That's the Spirit. Stage and TV work took up much of his time in the 1950s and 1960s, with occasional choice character parts in such films as The Rat Race (1960) and Lover Come Back (1962). Unpredictable in his likes and dislikes, Oakie was the sort of fellow who brusquely shooed away autograph seekers, but who also visited ailing comedian Stan Laurel, a man Oakie barely knew, to brighten up Stan's hospital stay at a time when some of Laurel's "close" pals didn't want to show up. Just before his death, Jack Oakie committed his memories to a sometimes fanciful but always entertaining biography, Jack Oakie's Double Takes, which was published posthumously by Jack's widow, actress Victoria Horne. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1930
Here we go again. Sailor "Searchlight" Hogan (Jack Oakie) has a yen for every pretty girl who crosses his path. Imagine his delight, then, when Hogan is assigned to the European vessel captained by a man (Albert Conti) with a host of gorgeous daughters. The most gorgeous of the bunch is Adrienne (Lilian Roth), who lets Hogan chase her until she catches him. By way of plot development, a two-million-dollar inheritance is wedged into the storyline, with our man Hogan as the sole heir. Eugene Pallette and Harry Green offer their patented comical embroiderings as Hogan's best pal and Jewish lawyer, respectively. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jack Oakie, Harry Green, (more)
- 1930
Considered the best of the all-star "studio" musicals of 1929 and 1930, Paramount on Parade utilized the talents of practically everyone on the Paramount Pictures payroll. Under the supervision of British musical-comedy favorite Elsie Janis, 11 top directors contributed to the project: Dorothy Arzner, Otto Brower, Edmund Goulding, Victor Heerman, Edwin H. Knopf, Rowland V. Lee, Ernst Lubitsch, Lothar Mendes, Victor Schertzinger, Edward Sutherland and Frank Tuttle. Introduced by masters of ceremonies Jack Oakie, Skeets Gallegher and Leon Errol, the film is a vaudeville-like maelstrom of musical duets, comedy sketches, occasional dramatic interludes, and spectacular production numbers. To mention all the highlights would take a book in itself but among them are Nancy Carroll's rendition of "Dancing to Save Your Sole" (performed inside a giant shoe!); Maurice Chevalier (and chorus) soaring heavenward in "Sweeping the Clouds Away" ; child actress Mitzi Green's dead-on impersonations of Chevalier, George Arliss, Moran & Mack and Helen "Boop-a-doop" Kane; Ernst Lubitsch's witty staging of an Apache dance in the style of a polite boudoir farce, with Chevalier (again) and Evelyn Brent; Clara Bow's saucy "I'm True to the Navy Now" ; the wish-fulfillment sketch "Impulses," in which George Bancroft and Kay Francis delightedly upset a dinner party by saying what's really on their minds; and best of all, "Murder Will Out," a murder-mystery parody wherein Fu Manchu (Warner Oland) bumps off Sherlock Holmes (Clive Brook) and Philo Vance (William Powell) when they refuse to give him proper credit for his killing of Jack Oakie. Only the dramatic sketch with Frederic March and Ruth Chatterton truly creaks when seen today. Originally released at 102 minutes, Paramount on Parade is presently available only in an 80-minute version, with all its Technicolor sequences missing: casualties include the elaborate "Drink to the Girl of My Dreams" number, directed by Edmund Goulding and featuring Gary Cooper, Jean Arthur and Fay Wray, and Harry Green's dialect song "Isadore the Toreodor". ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Maurice Chevalier, Richard Arlen, (more)
- 1930
In this high-spirited satire of competitive sports, boxer Marco Perkins is creamed during a fight and decides to play polo instead so he can impress an extremely wealthy young woman who merely considers him amusing. The poor social climbing fellow soon learns that she is only toying with his affections and so goes back to the vulgarity of the ring. Fortunately, his devoted former girl friend is there to welcome him back and cheer him on. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jack Oakie, Mary Brian, (more)
- 1929
This comedy chronicles the rise of a country rube who becomes a baseball legend for the New York Yankees. Not only does he help the team win the World Series against the Pittsburgh Pirates, he also beats a group of gangsters all by himself. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Evelyn Brent, Jack Oakie, (more)
- 1929
Bearing no relation to the popular torch song of the same name, The Man I Love is a prizefight picture, courtesy of Paramount production exec David O. Selznick. Richard Arlen stars as Dum-Dum Brooks, a tank-town boxer who journeys to New York in hopes of cracking the Big Time. Along for the ride is Dum-Dum's long-suffering but ever-faithful wife Celia (Mary Brian). After licking Champ Mahoney (Charles Sullivan) in an exhibition bout, Dum-Dum is given a chance to win the title for real. His road to success is temporarily blocked off by seductive Sonia Baranoff (Olga Baclanova), giving poor Celia even more to worry about. Among the real-life pugilists seen in The Man I Love is ubiquitous stunt man and bit player Sailor Vincent, who remained in films well into the late 1950s. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Arlen, Mary Brian, (more)
- 1929
In this film, the irresponsible Stella Ames (Clara Bow) spends her college career attending parties rather than studying. However, when she ends up in the difficult class of the handsome, but stern, Professor Gil Gilmore (Fredrick March), she develops a crush on him which creates a series of dilemmas for both of them. The Wild Party, directed by one of the first female directors, Dorothy Arzner was Clara Bow's first talkie film, and -- while dated -- is still good, trashy fun to watch. ~ Linda Rasmussen, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Clara Bow, Fredric March, (more)
- 1929
In this college-campus musical, a Broadway star finds herself the proud owner of a North Carolina college. The star's boy friend attends the school where he is a big football hero. The trouble begins when the star begins trying to convince the young man to forget about school and elope with her and he refuses because he would let down his team. The determined young woman begins trying to force him to give up football, but she fails. Songs include: "My Sweeter Than Sweet," "The Prep Step," "I Think You'll Like It," "Alma Mammy" ( a parody of Jolson's minstrel classic, sung by Jack Oakie), "Bear Down Pelham" (Richard A. Whiting, George Marion, Jr.), "He's So Unusual" (Al Lewis, Abner Silver, Al Sherman), "Sweetie" (sung by Helen Kane). ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nancy Carroll, Helen Kane, (more)
- 1929
The early Paramount talkie The Dummy represented a collaboration of sorts between screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz, who adapted the play on which the film was based, and Mankiewicz' brother Joseph, who wrote the subtitles for the film's silent version. The title character is office-boy Barney, played by Mickey Bennett. Pretending to be a deaf-mute, Barney tries to trump his detective boss Walter Babbing (John Cromwell) by tracking down the person who kidnapped Peggy Meredith (Vondell Darr), the daughter of wealthy Agnes and Trumbull Meredith (Ruth Chatterton, Frederic March). The guilty party turns out to be Rose Gleason, played by ZaSu Pitts in a rare non-comic role. Previously filmed as a silent picture with Jack Pickford (Mary's brother) in the lead, The Dummy suffered from substandard sound reproduction, but like most 1929 "talkers" it was a big success. John Cromwell, the actor who plays "The Dummy's" boss, is better known for his directorial achievements; his son, James Cromwell, would earn an Oscar nomination for his performance in the 1995 fantasy Babe. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ruth Chatterton, Fredric March, (more)
- 1929
The first official release from RKO Productions (previous films from this company had been produced by RKO antecedent FBO Pictures), Street Girl afforded Betty Compson to exhibit her considerable skills as a violinist. Compson is cast as Frederika "Freddy" Joyzelle, manager and principal attraction of The Four Seasons, a Jazz Quartet. In love with Mike Fall (John Harron), the group's pianist, Freddy briefly and foolishly falls in love with Prince Nicholaus (Ivan Lebedeff), who hails from the girl's home country of Aragon. But by film's end, Freddy and Mike have patched things up and tied the knot. A box-office hit, Street Girl was remade by RKO Radio as That Girl From Paris (1937) and Four Jacks and a Jill (1944). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Harron, Ned Sparks, (more)
- 1929
Edna Ferber's short story "Classified" was the source for the Dorothy Mackaill vehicle Hard to Get. Mackaill is cast as Bobby Martin, a dress-shop model with intellectual aspirations. Wealthy Dexter Courtland (Edmund Burns) rescues Bobby from a masher, whereupon romance blooms. Likewise smitten with the heroine is down-to-earth garage mechanic Jerry (Charles Delaney). Putting on phony airs for Dexter's benefit, Bobby at last realizes that she'd be happier with Jerry, who loves her for herself. A plenitude of laughs are provided by Bobby's blue-collar family, played by James Finlayson, Louise Fazenda and Jack Oakie. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dorothy Mackaill, James Finlayson, (more)
- 1929
This tuneful tale revolves around a shy warehouse clerk who, at the encouragement of his girlfriend finally musters up his courage and decides to break into show business with his little band. The bandleader must work hard to inspire his musicians. He does. Musical numbers abound. Songs include: "She's So I Dunno," "I Want To Go Places and Do Things," "I'm All A-twitter, I'm All A-twirl," and ""Twelfth Street Rag."" ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nancy Carroll, Harry Green, (more)
- 1929
Despite the creative input of producer David O. Selznick and director William A. Wellman, Chinatown Nights was just so much chop suey. In her first (and last) talking-picture appearance, silent screen queen Florence Vidor plays Joan Fry, a San Francisco socialite who ruins her reputation when she falls in love with Chinatown gang boss Chuck Riley (Wallace Beery). When she fails to convince Chuck to quit the rackets, the couple splits up. Unable to return to her own social class, unlucky Joan ends up as a streetwalker (albeit a very glamorous one!) Realizing that he is responsible for the girl's present sorry state, Chuck promises to reform, and together he and Joan leave Frisco to start life anew. In later years, the long-retired Florence Vidor described Chinatown Nights as "absurd," citing producer Selznick's decision to team her with the rough-hewn Wallace Beery as its biggest absurdity. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Wallace Beery, Florence Vidor, (more)
- 1928
Finders Keepers is based on a lighthearted story by mystery specialist Mary Roberts Rinehardt. Laura LaPlante stars as Barbara, the flighty daughter of army colonel Archibald (Edmund Breese). Upon falling in love with Carter (John Harron), one of the men under her father's command, Barbara decides to "crash" the army camp and marry the boy, with the chaplain (Joe Mack) presiding. Accordingly, our heroine disguises herself as a boy and sneaks into Carter's barracks. She is forced to keep up the masquerade when a reviewing officer suddenly shows up for a surprise inspection, leading to all sorts of risque complications. Not exactly the subtlest comedy film of 1928, Finders Keepers proved to be a real crowd pleaser, reducing even sophisticated New York audiences to peals of helpless laughter. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Laura La Plante, John Harron, (more)
- 1928
Paramount's popular screen team of Charles "Buddy" Rogers and Mary Brian were once again cinematically united in 1928's Someone to Love. Rogers plays William Shelby, a struggling young sheet-music salesman, while Brian is Joan Kendricks, his wealthy sweetie. Thanks to a series of bizarre coincidences and misunderstandings, Joan is led to believe that the virtuous William is a no-account fortune hunter and skirt-chaser. But he redeems himself by using his salesmanship to put a bankrupt girl's school back on its financial feet. Not only does William get the girl, but he also falls heir to 20 million bucks. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Charles "Buddy" Rogers, Mary Brian, (more)
