Floyd Shackelford Movies

It is altogether typical of Republic Pictures that the studio's 1945 horror effort The Vampire's Ghost was interrupted mid-film by a barroom brawl! Set in a coastal African village, the story concerns one Webb Fallon (John Abbott), an unprepossessing sort who holds the region in thrall because of his vampiric tendencies. Fallon attempts to exercise his influence over a local plantation owner, and almost succeeds-until the hand of God, in the form of an intellectual priest (Grant Withers), intervenes. Republic stalwart Peggy Stewart and newcomer Charles Gordon handle the romantic subplot. Vampire's Ghost was the first screenwriting effort by Leigh Brackett, who went on to somewhat loftier projects like The Big Sleep and Rio Bravo. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Though it's not made readily apparent by the title, Passport to Suez was the 10th entry in Columbia's "Lone Wolf" series. Warren William returns as amateur sleuth Michael Lanyard, aka the Lone Wolf, while Eric Blore is his faithful valet Jamison. In this outing, Lanyard finds himself in Alexandria, Egypt, where he works as an unofficial espionage agent for the Allies. Nazi spies threaten to murder Jamison if Lanyard does not agree to steal valuable military documents from the British Embassy. Among the suspicious characters weaving in and out of the proceedings are Johnny Booth (Sheldon Leonard), a "Rick Blaine" style café proprietor, and Valerie King (Ann Savage) a secret agent posing as a journalist. One of the film's cuter script touches is a trio of spies with "artistic" code names: Rembrandt, Cezanne, and The Whistler. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Buster Crabbe is a doctor, accompanying a shipment of fever serum to a remote jungle village. The ship is torpedoed by a U-Boat. Crabbe and his girlfriend Sheila D'Arcy are marooned on a small island. When D'Arcy falls ill to jungle fever, Crabbe heroically dives into the ocean to retrieve the serum. Its adventure quotient aside, Jungle Man has all the production expertise of an 8-millimeter home movie. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Lillian Russell is the sanitized musical biopic of the legendary (and much-married) 19th century musical comedy star. Discovered in 1880 by bandleader Tony Pastor (Leo Carrillo), Lillian Russell (Alice Faye) wastes no time rising to fame and fortune on the Broadway stage. Along the way, she curries the favor of such eligible bachelors as newspaperman Alexander Moore (Henry Fonda), composer Edward Solomon (Don Ameche), and railroad tycoon Diamond Jim Brady (Edward Arnold). She marries the first two, and has a high old time (albeit chastely) with the third. The story ends with Russell's retirement in 1912, and her reunion with the one true love of her life. The film's hands-down highlight is a timeworn but classic routine involving those two Broadway comedy giants Joe Weber and Lew Fields, both of whom had appeared on-stage with the real Lillian Russell. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

James Stewart and Ginger Rogers were "an item" when Vivacious Lady was filmed, and their obvious real-life affection for one another pours over onto the screen. Stewart plays Peter Morgan, a young botany professor who while on a visit to New York impulsively marries free-spirited nightclub singer Francey (Rogers). A few obstacles lie in the path of connubial bliss, however, including Peter's bitchy ex-fiancee Helen (Frances Mercer) and his stern college-dean father Peter Morgan Sr. (Charles Coburn). Hoping to break the news of his marriage gently to Helen and his father, Pete contrives to keep the union a secret, with the expected embarrassing results. Before the final fade-out, both Morgan Senior and Morgan Junior are on the outs with their respective wives, and it takes an uproariously tearful reunion on a passenger train to straighten things out. In his first outing as a producer, director George Stevens shows off his two-reel-comedy training with a number of hilarious comedy setpieces (the best is a slapsticky cat-fight between the two rivals for Pete's affections), though things tend to slow down towards the end. Stevens also finds room for several of his favorite character actors, including Grady Sutton, Franklin Pangborn and Willie Best, to do their time-honored specialties. Best of all is Beulah Bondi as James Stewart's mother (one of several such assignments), delivering a most unusual and touchingly funny performance. In short, Vivacious Lady was a guaranteed box-office smash even before the cameras began to turn. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The sixth of RKO's Fred Astaire -Ginger Rogers pairings of the 1930s, Swing Time starts off with bandleader Astaire getting cold feet on his wedding day. Astaire's bride-to-be Betty Furness will give him a second chance, providing he proves himself responsible enough to earn $25,000. Astaire naturally tries to avoid earning that amount once he falls in love with dance instructor Ginger Rogers. Numerous complications ensue, leading to the "second time's the charm" climax, with Ginger escaping her own wedding to wealthy Georges Metaxa in order to be reunited with Astaire. The film's most indelible image is that of Fred Astaire, immaculately attired in top hat and tails, hopping a freight car--a perfect encapsulation of the film's Depression-era cheekiness. The Jerome Kern-Dorothy Fields score includes such standards-to-be as "Pick Yourself Up," "A Fine Romance," "The Way You Look Tonight," "Never Gonna Dance" and "Bojangles of Harlem." The peerless supporting cast of Swing Time includes Helen Broderick, Victor Moore, Eric Blore, and Landers Stevens, the actor-father of the film's director, George Stevens. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

So many silent favorites had fallen by the wayside with the comic of talkies that one shouldn't be surprised that canine star Rin-Tin-Tin had to content himself with fourth billing in The Man Hunter. The plot is typical of Rinty's silent vehicles, with the doggie hero tracking down villains, aiding the hero, and rescuing the heroine. The film's singular novelty is its setting: Darkest Africa, where Lady Jane Winston (Nora Lane) has arrived to find out what's been delaying her ivory shipments. It turns out that her overseer is a crook, whereupon Rinty, with the help of nominal human hero George Castle (John Loder), swings into action. The Rin-Tin-Tin features, once a mainstay of the Warner Bros. operation, steadily lost money after the advent of talkies, which is why Rinty ended his movie career starring in serials for low-budget Mascot Pictures. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this adventure set in South America, the captain of a yacht moored there is really a fugitive criminal. The passengers are too busy trying to find the missing son of the boat's owner to pay the captain much mind. Later the hapless passengers find themselves having to deal with angry natives and a big, mean ape. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

This college musical chronicles the travails of a college football star who wants to quit playing. To stop him, the conniving coach enlists the aid of a flirtatious co-ed who tries to use her many charms to coerce the lad into staying on the team. She succeeds and the boy falls deeply in love with her. When she realizes that he is serious, she stops seeing her latest beau, and the professes her love to the football player. This inspires him to go on and win the big game. Songs include: "One Minute Of Heaven," "I Gotta Have You," "Hello Baby," "Huddlin'." ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Prolific director Richard Thorpe helmed this average silent Western starring one of the era's lesser cowboy heroes, Buffalo Bill, Jr.. This time, he plays a lawman who goes undercover as a carnival prize-fighter in order to infiltrate a gang of robbers. Producer Lester F. Scott, Jr. threw in a couple of comedy sidekicks (including African-American Floyd Shackelford) and no less than two pretty ingenues (Peggy Shaw and Nancy Nash). Future Academy Award-winning actor Walter Brennnan, who began his screen career as an extra, played one of the villain's henchmen. Buffalo Bill, Jr later changed his name to Jay Wilsey and enjoyed a long career as a supporting player/stunt-man. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, Rovi