Osgood Perkins Movies

Those beautiful Busby Berkeley babes are back at work, seeking financial backing for a Broadway show. Salvation comes from a meek hypochondriac (Victor Moore) who'd rather the girls get his insurance money than his murderous business partners. Dick Powell isn't the male star of the show, but does show up as a glib insurance agent. A lesser but still enjoyable entry in Warners' Gold Diggers musical series, Gold Diggers of 1937 is very much a mixed bag. For every topnotch number like "With Plenty of Money and You," there's an excruciating experience like the "military" finale "All's Fair in Love and War." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Venerable character actor Ferdinand Gottschalk dominates the proceedings in the Universal crime meller Secret of the Chateau. The plot is set in motion by a rare Gutenberg bible, much coveted by a variety of thieves and mountebanks. Chief Inspector Marotte (Gottschalk) is anxious to capture an elusive book bandit named Prahec, whom he's never seen but who could be any one of a number of suspects. Practically everyone in the cast converges on the titular chateau, where two murders occur. Methodically, Marotte sifts through the suspects and fingers the killer, who of course is revealed to be mysterious Prahec. Former silent-screen leading lady Alice White provides several amusing moments as an overly flirtatious suspect. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Kansas City Princess came at the tail end of the "gold-digger" movie cycle. The inevitable Joan Blondell plays Rosie, a saucy-eyed manicurist who takes it on the lam when she loses a diamond entrusted to her by her gangster boyfriend Dynamite (Robert Armstrong). With nary a dime between them, Rosie and her pal Marie (Glenda Farrell) charm their way onto an ocean voyage to Paris. Also on board is daffy millionaire Junior Ashcraft (Hugh Herbert) enroute to the City of Light to check out rumors that his wife has been unfaithful. Unfortunately for Rosie, Ashcraft has hired himself a bodyguard -- none other than old friend Dynamite! Our heroine manages to wriggle out of her mess by saving Ashcraft from a frame-up engineered by his divorce-minded wife and her shifty attorney (Osgood Perkins). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Completed in mid-1930, Scarface, based on Armitage Trail's novel of the same name, might have been the first of the great talkie gangster flicks, but it was held up for release until after that honor was jointly usurped by Little Caesar and Public Enemy. Paul Muni stars as prohibition-era mobster Tony Camonte, a character obviously patterned on Al Capone (whose nickname was "Scarface"). The homicidal Camonte ruthlessly wrests control of the bootlegging racket from his boss, Johnny Lovo (Osgood Perkins), and claims Lovo's mistress, Poppy (Karen Morley), in the bargain. But while Poppy satisfies him sexually, Tony has a soft spot in his heart only for his sister Cesca (Ann Dvorak). The film's finale is one of the longest and bloodiest of the 1930s, maintaining suspense and concern for the characters involved even though Muni has deliberately done nothing to make Tony likeable to audience. The grimness of Scarface is leavened by a few choice moments of black humor. Forced to leave a stage production of Rain in order to commit a murder, Tony returns to his theater seat and anxiously asks his buddies how the play came out. Some of the film's funniest moments belong to Vince Barnett as the mentally deficient, illiterate gangster secretary, who at one juncture gets so mad at a caller on the phone that he shoots the receiver. Scarface features a famous "'X' Marks The Spot" logo, inspired by news photos of gangland murders: whenever a character is killed, the letter "X" appears on screen in one form or another. Example: When a rival gangster (played by Boris Karloff) is killed at a bowling alley, the camera cuts to his bowling ball knocking down all the pins -- a strike, denoted, of course, by an "X." Producer Howard R. Hughes couldn't release Scarface until he toned down some of the violence, reshot certain scenes to avoid libel suits, added the subtitle "The Shame of the Nation" to the opening credits, and shoehorned in new scenes showing upright Italian-Americans banding together to wipe out gangsterism. After its first run, Scarface was completely withdrawn from distribution on Hughes' orders; the film would not be seen again on a widespread basis until it was reissued by Universal in 1979, shorn of 8 of its original 99 minutes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Popular radio crooner Morton Downey (yes, the father of talk-show host Morton Downey Jr.) stars in this sentimental Jazz Singer wannabe. On the eve of his Broadway debut, singer Tommy O'Day (Downey) learns that his care-worn, self-sacrificing old mother (Beryl Mercer) is gravely ill. Without giving a thought as to his professional future, Tommy walks out on his show, rushes to his Ma's bedside, and sings her back to health. Our hero's career is saved when the newspapers find out about his noble, selfless act. Although Helen Chandler (of Dracula fame) plays Tommy's sweetheart in Mother's Boy, his real-life spouse at the time was Barbara Bennett, the sister of actress Constance and Joan Bennett, who appears in the much smaller role of debutante Beatrix Townleigh. Brian Donlevy makes his talkie debut as Tommy's older brother Harry in this New York-filmed musical. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Based on a play by George Abbott and John V.A. Weaver, Love 'Em and Leave 'Em stars Evelyn Brent and Louise Brooks as sisters in competition over the affections of Lawrence Gray. One sister covers for the other when a large amount of money is stolen, but her selflessness is rewarded when "bad" sis steals Gray away. Things eventually get straightened out, no thanks to would-be seducer Osgood Perkins, who, as the title tells us, "spent three years curing himself of halitosis, only to find out that he was unpopular anyway." The two leading ladies are far more interesting than the vapid hero, who spends half his time looking cow-eyed or comporting about in a silly party costume. Louise Brooks would later recall that director Frank Tuttle didn't inform her that the film was a comedy; he wanted her to play the material straight, which turned to be most effective. Love 'Em and Leave 'Em was remade as a talkie starring Clara Bow and Jean Arthur, 1929's The Saturday Night Kid. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Busy character actor Sam Hardy was afforded a rare starring role when he played the title character in High Hat. Despite his ritzy nickname, High Hat is a mere movie dress extra at First National Pictures (where the film was shot). Even so, he regards himself as the studio pundit, dispensing romantic and financial advice to such stars as John Barrymore and Pola Negri. The plot proper has something to do with a studio seamstress named Millie (Mary Brian), who after losing a string of pearls entrusted in her care vows to work overtime until she can make up their cost. High Hat comes to the girl's rescue, recovers the diamonds, and returns to his full-time "job" as First National's resident sage. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

F. Scott Fitzgerald was commissioned to write the story to this low budget crime drama for actor Glenn Hughes. In spite of this, the finished film was poor and did nothing for anyone's career -- except Hughes' co-star, a fresh young thing named Clara Bow. As she did in nearly all her early motion pictures, Bow just about steals the show away. Here, as a street urchin, she plays close to her real life persona. When Houdini Hart (Roland Young) tries to go straight, he is killed for his efforts. His wife Annie (Helena Adamowska) dies in childbirth and she transfers her fear onto her son. Although Kid Hart (Hughes) grows up to be a gang member, he's not a very effective one since he's a coward. A girl member of the gang, Orchid McGonigle (Bow) returns from the reformatory (obviously not reformed!) and takes a liking to the timid Hart, which angers gang leader Boris Smith (Osgood Perkins). When Smith kidnaps a boy and takes him to a Chinese opium den, Orchid tries to intervene and winds up in trouble. The Kid learns of her peril and finds the necessary courage to save her. Smith is killed and the Kid gets his girl. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

Glenn Hunter, who, with his shy, bashful persona would take off where Charles Ray left off, was the perfect starring choice for this thriller. Jim Bradley (Hunter) has always played second fiddle in his family -- while his older brother, Herbert (Townsend Martin), goes off to college, Jim becomes a garage mechanic. When Herbert returns home, it's easy for him to steal Jim's girl, Polly Crawford (Mary Astor). But trouble comes to the Bradley's town when Cragg (William Nally) murders his daughter (Helenks Adamowska) and breaks into the family's home. Herbert goes for help, leaving Jim with an empty gun to protect their mother (Mary Foy) and Polly. Jim faints before Herbert returns and is considered a coward. Cragg is taken off to jail, but he escapes and returns to his home to get money. Polly has taken refuge from a storm in the house, and Cragg takes her hostage. Herbert happens on the house, not realizing what is going on inside, and flees when Cragg attacks him. Jim shows up and battles the murderer. Cragg is killed, and Jim proves that he is the braver brother after all. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide