John Abbott Movies
While studying art in his native London, John Abbott relaxed between classes by watching rehearsals of a student play. When one of the actors fell ill, Abbott was invited to replace him, and at that point he switched majors. He became a professional actor in 1934, joined the Old Vic in 1936, and made his first film, Mademoiselle Docteur, in 1937; later that same year he made his first BBC television appearance. Turned down for military service during World War II, Abbott joined the Foreign Office, working as a decoder in the British Embassy in Stockholm and working in similar capacities in Russia and Canada. In 1941, he took a vacation in New York, leaving his resumé and photo with various producers, just in case something turned up. On the very last day of his vacation, he was hired for a small role in Josef von Sternberg's The Shanghai Gesture (1941), thus launching the Hollywood phase of his career. Generally cast as a fussy eccentric, Abbott was seen at his very best as whining hypochondriac Frederick Fairlie in Warner Bros.' The Woman in White (1948). He also received at least one bona fide starring role in the 1943 quickie London Blackout Murders. In the late '40s, Abbott began amassing some impressive Broadway credits in such productions as He Who Gets Slapped, Monserrat, and Waltz of the Toreadors. He also appeared in 1950's Auto da Fe, which was specifically written for him by Tennessee Williams. Though still active in films and TV into the 1980s (he played Dr. Frankenstein in the ill-fated 1984 cinemadaptation of Kurt Vonnegut's Slapstick), John Abbott spent most of his twilight years as an acting teacher. Abbott died in a Los Angeles hospital on May 24, 1996, after a prolonged illness. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1964
The third season of The Beverly Hillbillies was launched on September 23, 1964, with the first episode of a four-part story arc. In "Jed Becomes a Movie Mogul," the Clampetts purchase Mammoth Pictures, a movie studio on the verge of bankruptcy. Not unexpectedly, the new owners can't convince the studio gateman that they are the new owners. Milton Frome guest stars as Mammoth's nepotistic CEO, Lawrence Chapman (a name "borrowed" from the real-life production manager of The Beverly Hillbillies). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1963
This frantic comedy finds Raymond (Jerry Lewis) working in a department store. Mr. Tuttle (John McGiver) is the watchful owner, whose outspoken wife Phoebe (Agnes Moorehead) makes no secret about her feelings that Raymond is an incompetent boob. Barbara (Jill St. John) is the pretty elevator operator, and unknown to Raymond, the boss' daughter. Quimby (Ray Walston) is the floor manager who has more of an eye for the ladies than his job at the store. Raymond proceeds to wreck every department in the store, earning new positions with each mishap. Two of the many sight gags are when Raymond is sent to paint the top of a flagpole and a hilarious vacuum cleaner demonstration that naturally goes awry. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jerry Lewis, Jill St. John, (more)
- 1962
Moving from Saturday to Thursday evening for its sixth season on CBS, Perry Mason kicks off the new year with another baffling murder case. This time the victim is Joseph Kraft (Maurice Manson) a crooked book dealer who traffics in forgeries of rare first editions. Not long after firing his clerk Ellen Carter (Phyllis Love) for misplacing a copy of Tristam Shandy), Kraft is found dead in a locked room, apparently the victim of a gas leak. Ultimately, the police decide that Kraft was murdered, and that Ellen is the most likely suspect. Enter Perry Mason (Raymond Burr), who intends to prove Ellen's innocence while setting a trap for the real killer. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1962
Saddled with paying huge alimony checks to his high-maintenance former wife, Edward Gibson (Robert Webber) seeks a legal method to rid himself of this burden. Enter Edward's pal Carl Seabrook (Jeremy Slate), who magnanimously offers to marry the ex-Mrs. Gibson himself -- for a 5,000-dollar fee. Little does Edward realize that he has been a "free man" for several hours...but, of course, Carl has known all along. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1961
The Cartwrights rescue 11-year-old Gabrielle Wickham (Diane Mountford), a blind orphan girl whom they find wandering aimlessly in the snow. Gabrielle is hoping against hope to locate her grandfather, Zachariah Wickham (John Abbott). Alas, Zachariah turns out to be a contentious hermit who hates people in general and relatives in particular. Also appearing is Kevin Hagen as Everett. Written by Anthony Lawrence, "Gabrielle" originally aired December 24, 1961, as Bonanza's Christmas present to its many fans. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, (more)
- 1959
In Carson City, Paladin (Richard Boone) finds a kindred spirit in the form of an elderly, cultured gentleman named Ainslee (John Abbott). Like Paladin, Ainslee has been forced by circumstances to become a gunfighter, and now must face down every young punk in the west who is trying to make a name for himself. Hoping to retire with his reputation and honor intact, Ainslee prevails upon Paladin to shoot him in the hand during a gunfight--with the thorough understanding that the fight will be fair, and that Paladin will be risking his own life in the process. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Leslie Caron plays Gigi, a young girl raised by two veteran Parisian courtesans (Hermione Gingold and Isabel Jeans) to be the mistress of wealthy young Gaston (Louis Jourdan). When Gaston falls in love with Gigi and asks her to be his wife, Jeans is appalled: never has anyone in their family ever stooped to anything so bourgeois as marriage! Weaving in and out of the story is Maurice Chevalier as an aging boulevardier who, years earlier, had been in love with Gingold's character. Chevalier gets most of the best Lerner & Loewe tunes, including Thank Heaven for Little Girls, I'm Glad I'm Not Young Any More, and his matchless duet with Gingold, I Remember it Well. Caron's best number (dubbed by Betty Wand) is The Night They Invented Champagne while Jourdan gets the honor of introducing the title song. Filmed on location in Paris, Gigi won several Oscars, including Best Picture; it also represented the successful American movie comeback of Chevalier, who thanks to this film was "forgiven" for his reputed collaboration with the Nazis during World War II. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Leslie Caron, Maurice Chevalier, (more)
- 1957
Frank Freeman Jr., son of the longtime head of Paramount Pictures, made his debut as producer with the opulent but empty Omar Khayyam. Cornel Wilde stars as the legendary Persian poet, here depicted as not only a philosopher but a scientist, politician and great lover. As the Persians gear up for war against the Byzantines, Omar occupies his time by romancing Sharain (Debra Paget), the favorite wife of the Shah (Raymond Massey). He also does his best to foil a plan by Hasani (Michael Rennie), leader of the Cult of Assassins, to murder the royal family. While many of the characters and events are based on fact, it is difficult to believe the story or the dialogue for more than ten minutes at a stretch. Singer Yma Sumac, then famous for her four-and-a-half octave vocal range, is somehow woven into the proceedings. When Omar Khayyam laid an egg at the box-office, a Hollywood wit, taking into consideration the Southern heritage of Frank Freeman Jr., assessed the results as "A loaf of bread, a bottle of coke and you-all." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cornel Wilde, Michael Rennie, (more)
- 1957
Red Skelton's final film starring vehicle is an expansion of an hour-long TV play, which also starred Skelton when it was originally seen in September of 1955 on the weekly anthology Climax!. Skelton plays doltish lunchroom attendant Rusty Morgan, who is dutifully saving up enough money so that he and sweetheart Edith Enders (Janet Blair) can be married. Rusty foolishly entrusts his bankroll to a gang of stock swindlers, whom he believes to be FBI agents. Before long, our hero finds hmself the crooks' unwitting courier, landing in jail as a result. After a zany prison break orchestrated by genuine FBI agents who've had their eyes on Rusty all along, our hero catches up with the crooks during a nightclub floor show presided over by the vivacious Rita DeLacey (Vivian Blaine). Produced by RKO Radio, Public Pigeon No. 1 was eventually released by Universal-International. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Red Skelton, Vivian Blaine, (more)
- 1956
Doc Adams (Milburn Stone) reacts with uncharacteristic violence when snake-oil peddler Lute Bone (John Abbott) shows up in town. Though everyone (including Chester [Dennis Weaver) falls for Professor Bone's line of patter, Doc is convinced that the man is not only a fraud but a potential murderer, distributing "medicine" that is virtually 100 per cent opium. As it turns out, Bone is not really dishonest, just pathetically misguided--but in any event, Matt has no legal grounds to stop the Professor until tragedy strikes. Based on the Gunsmoke radio broadcast of November 14, 1953, this episode features a rare TV-western appearance by legendary African American entertainer/songwriter Jester Hairston. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1955
The 20th Century-Fox Hour (later syndicated as The Hour of Stars) ran on CBS just shy of two years, from October 1955 through September 1957. An anthology program, the series typically featured readaptations of 20th Century-Fox feature films for a sixty-minute TV airslot. The 1955 production of Miracle on 34th Street - a reworking of George Seaton's 1948 blockbuster and Christmas perennial - was just such an example and became one of the first episodes of the series. The program makes its home video debut following recent appearances on The Fox Movie Channel. In this slightly condensed version of the Seaton story, Thomas Mitchell takes over the Edmund Gwenn role, portraying Kris Kringle, Teresa Wright plays Doris Walker, and Sandy Descher stars as her daughter, Susan Walker, filling the role originally made famous by Natalie Wood. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Thomas Mitchell, Teresa Wright, (more)
- 1953
This tuneful romantic melodrama is set in a tiny Mexican village and is comprised of three storylines. One tale concerns a pair of young lovers from rival villages who will not be able to marry until a long time feud is ended. In another tale, an heir to a large fortune falls in love with an impoverished girl. His family is dead set against the match. When he is diagnosed with a fatal tumor, the man begs the girl to marry him, but she refuses and instead arranges for him to marry another. In the third story, a matador's comely sister falls in love with a street vendor. Unfortunately, the matador hates her beloved and to break them up permanently, slyly convinces the peddler to enter the dangerous bullring. Fortunately for the sister, her brother's scheme fails spectacularly. She then marries the peddler and makes an ironic discovery. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anna Maria Pier Angeli, Ricardo Montalban, (more)
- 1953
During the early days of East Indian independence in 1947, a native rebellion threatens a hotel full of Britishers, Europeans and Americans. Gunrunner Alan Ladd could care less about anything other than his own neck. Ladd runs up against the resistance of a pacifist Indian leader (Charles Boyer), who hopes to quell the factional disturbances. Falling in love with Deborah Kerr, blind daughter of missionary Cecil Kellaway, Ladd decides to forego mercenary involvement in India's internal affairs and to shepherd the stranded non-Indians to safety. Paramount was overproducing again in 1951, so Thunder in the East didn't go into release until 1953, at which time its story was outdated enough to result in utter indifference from the paying public. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alan Ladd, Deborah Kerr, (more)
- 1953
The Steel Lady in this crazy-quilt actioner is the armored tank commandeered by star Rod Cameron. Marooned in the Sahara desert, airplane pilot Mike Monohan (Cameron) and his melting-pot crew (including a young Tab Hunter) come across a deserted Afrika Korps tank. As they roll across the burning sands in search of civilization, the crew is unaware that hidden within the tank is a fortune in diamonds. But villainous sheik Mustapha El Melek (John Abbott) does know, and he manages to enlist Monohan's drunken co-pilot Barlow (John Dehner) in his scheme to claim the gems for himself. Also released as Treasure of Kalifa, The Steel Lady is an unsteady mixture of war drama and Arabian-Nights escapism. The film was directed by E. A. Dupont, who in his salad days was responsible for the silent German classic Variety. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rod Cameron, Tab Hunter, (more)
- 1952
Rogue's March was described by one observer as an eastern western. A mustachioed Peter Lawford stars as Capt. Dion Lenbridge of His Majesty's Service. Branded a traitor, Lenbridge is cashiered from the regiment. In fact, Lenbridge isn't a traitor, but he spends the next 84 minutes proving it. He makes it his mission in life to rid India of the insidious influence of Russia, whose leaders intend to establish a stronghold in the Jewel of the British crown. Though the Russians depicted herein are of the Czarist variety, they spout curiously communistic dialogue, a reflection of the Red paranoia then prevalent in Hollywood. With the grudging assistance of Captain Thomas Garron (Richard Greene), Lenbridge valiantly thwarts the rascally Russians' schemes during a climactic desert battle. Janice Rule is on hand as the nominal love interest, while Leo G. Carroll does a C. Aubrey Smith routine as Lenbridge's stiff-upper-lip father. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Lawford, Richard Greene, (more)
- 1952
Based on an operetta by Franz Lehar, this remake of the 1934 original finds a wealthy widow (Lana Turner) returning to her husband's native land to dedicate a memorial to him. The king (Thomas Gomez) of the country, deep in debt, tries to convince her to stay by offering a young count (Fernando Lamas) for her to marry. The film earned Oscar nominations for Best Art Direction/Set Decoration and Best Costumes. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lana Turner, Fernando Lamas, (more)
- 1951
Charlotte Hastings' West End stage hit Bonaventure was adroitly translated to the American screen as Thunder on the Hill. The bulk of the action takes place at convent, presided over by Sister Mary (Claudette Colbert). Circumstances -- namely, a dangerous rainstorm and raging flood -- dictate that the convent become a stopover for Valerie Carns (Ann Blyth), a convicted murderess who is being escorted to Death Row by a brace of guards. Slowly becoming convinced that Valerie is innocent, Sister Mary sets about to clear the girl and bring the genuine killer to justice. It goes without saying that said killer is also a reluctant guest of the convent. A superb shadow-laden climax in the convent's belltower caps this heart-pounding mystery meller. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Claudette Colbert, Ann Blyth, (more)
- 1951
Paramount's Pine-Thomas unit served up another winner with the Technicolor actioner Crosswinds. Set in New Guinea, the film stars John Payne as schooner captain Pete Singleton, who loses his boat to a pair of scheming gold thieves (Forrest Tucker, Robert Lowery). On board the vessel as a semi-reluctant passenger is embittered war widow Katherine Shelley (Rhonda Fleming). With the help of his disreputable chums Sir Cecil (Alan Mowbray) and Sykes (John Abbott), Singleton does his best to retrieve his schooner and claim Katherine for himself. The last reels are chock full of close shaves, hairbreadth escapes, storms at sea and native uprisings. In short, there's something for everyone in Crosswinds. The screenplay was adapted by Thomson Burtis from his own novel New Guinea Gold. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Payne, Rhonda Fleming, (more)
- 1951
Tuna fisherman Joe Morelli (Tom Neal) is Navy Bound in this Monogram programmer. While on board ship, Morelli becomes the fleet's boxing champion. He gives up pugilistic glory to return home, where he tries to help his family out of a financial dilemma. When things prove harder to handle than he'd thought, Morelli endangers his amateur status by signing up for a lucrative professional bout. Veteran stuntman Harvey Parry (who'd performed many of Harold Lloyd's building-climbing antics in Safety Last) has a rare speaking role as Joe's ring opponent. Navy Bound was based on a short story by Talbert Josselyn. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tom Neal, Wendy Waldron, (more)
- 1950
Sideshow was the last starring effort of Don McGuire, who would soon abandon acting in favor of writing, producing and directing. McGuire plays Steve Arthur, an undercover T-Man (or Treasury Agent), hot on the trail of jewel smugglers. He traces the crooks to a travelling carnival, where he takes a job as a barker in order to maintain surveillance without arousing suspicion. Among the suspects are sideshow-entrepreneurs Pierre (John Abbott) and Sam (Ray Walker), "kootch" dancer Dolly (Tracey Roberts), and general helpers "Big Top" (Eddie Quillan) and Johnny (Jimmy Conlin). In the course of the film's 67 minutes, Arthur faces death at the tunnel of love, aboard a roller-coaster ride, and within the walls of a wax museum. Sideshow gets by on the novelty of its surroundings. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Don McGuire, Tracey Roberts, (more)
MGM circumvented the censorship that would otherwise have prevented a film version of Gustave Flaubert's Madame Bovary by adding a prologue and epilogue that assured any and all bluenoses that the story was strictly a work of fiction. James Mason appears as Flaubert, defending his inflammatory novel before a French jury. Thus, the tragedy of Emma Bovary (Jennifer Jones) is offered as a product of Flaubert's imagination, rather than a real-life story. The body of the film concerns Emma's attempt to escape the boredom of her bourgeois existence by marrying a wealthy doctor (Van Heflin). She finds life with the physician even more tiresome than her previous experiences, thus begins taking a series of wealthy lovers-all of whom prove to be two-dimensional cads. Unable to tolerate a lifetime of dead-end affairs, Emma eventually commits suicide. The best sequence-indeed, one of the finest set pieces ever directed by Vincente Minnelli-is the "Emma Bovary Waltz" sequence, a dazzling experience in dizzying camera movements. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jennifer Jones, James Mason, (more)
- 1948
The Woman in White attempts to translate the archaic prose of 19th century gothic-mystery writer Wilkie Collins to the medium of film. Gig Young plays a 19th century painter who, while en route to a country estate, encounters a strange, ethereal young lady (Eleanor Parker) who both begs his help and insists that he keep their meeting a secret. He will meet the girl again at several crucial junctures -- though she will fail to recognize him. The painter has unknowingly stumbled upon a scheme by the diabolical Count Fosco (Sydney Greenstreet) to claim an inheritance on behalf of a dissipated nobleman (John Emery); the plan involves a marriage of convenience to the hapless lady of the house (Alexis Smith), blackmail, hidden siblings, and the suppression of a dark family secret involving Fosco's neurotic wife (Agnes Moorehead). The full plotline is far too labyrinthine to go into detail here -- in fact, it can barely be followed in the film itself. While The Woman in White suffers from excess verbiage, the film is at its best in its shadowy, nocturnal "conspiracy" set pieces and in the scenes with timorous aristocrat John Abbott, to whom every raised voice is a threat to his fragile health. And keep an eye on Sidney Greenstreet's pet monkey, Iago, easily the most well-adjusted character in the film. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eleanor Parker, Alexis Smith, (more)
- 1947
Adapted from a novel by Rachel Field, Time Out of Mind is a slow-moving costume drama enlivened by its stars. Servant girl Kate Ferald (Phyllis Calvert, in her first Hollywood film) falls in love with Christopher Fortune (Robert Hutton), the scion of a wealthy New England sailing family. Chistopher is likewise smitten by Kate, but the class structure of the 19th century precludes their marriage. Aware that their union is not to be, Kate renounces Christopher and encourages him to wed someone from his own social class. As the years go by, Kate is the mute witness to Christopher's frustration and unhappiness, culminating in a fatal bout with alcohol. Standing out in the huge cast are Ella Raines as Christopher's "sensible" sister Rissa and Eddie Albert as the obligatory best friend/severest critic Jake Bullard. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Phyllis Calvert, Robert Hutton, (more)
- 1947
Adventure Island is a shorter and less satisfying remake of the 1937 Paramount actioner Ebb Tide. Rory Calhoun, Paul Kelly and John Abbott star as Herrick, Lochlin and Hulsh, three mercenary seamen involved in illegal activities in the South Seas. Hired to pilot a schooner to Australia, the threesome plan instead to rob the vessel of its precious cargo. Much to their dismay, they discover that the cargo is bogus, and that they're stuck taking care of the former captain's pretty but contentious daughter Faith Rhonda Fleming. The four lost souls are later imprisoned by Mr. Atwater Alan Napier, in the role played in Ebb Tide by Lloyd Nolan, a megalomaniac who rules a tiny island by exploiting the superstitions of the local natives. Assembled by Pine-Thomas productions, Adventure Island represents a rare excursion away from Poverty Row by director Sam Newfield, here travelling under the alias of Peter Stewart. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rory Calhoun, Rhonda Fleming, (more)
- 1947
The Italian-American Her Wonderful Lie is based on the novel Latin Quarter by Murger. This literary work is better known as the source for the Puccini opera La Boheme, and indeed, Her Wonderful Life is a modernized adaptation of the Puccini classic, with a few songs from other operas thrown in for good measure. Marta Eggerth and Jan Kiepura sing and act the leading roles of the tragic seamstress and her headstrong starving-artist lover. Featured in the cast are such familiar American faces as Janis Paige, Douglass Dumbrille, Sterling Holloway and Isobel Elsom, not to mention dancer-choreographer Marc Platt. On the strength of its multinational cast, Her Wonderful Lie was distributed stateside by Columbia Pictures. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Marta Eggerth, Jan Kiepura, (more)
