Barbara Stanwyck Movies
In an industry of prima donnas, actress Barbara Stanwyck was universally recognized as a consummate professional; a supremely versatile performer, her strong screen presence established her as a favorite of directors, including Cecil B. De Mille, Fritz Lang, and Frank Capra. Born Ruby Stevens July 16, 1907, in Brooklyn, NY, she was left orphaned at the age of four and raised by her showgirl sister. Upon quitting school a decade later, she began dancing in local speakeasies and at the age of 15 became a Ziegfeld chorus girl. In 1926, Stanwyck made her Broadway debut in The Noose, becoming a major stage star in her next production, Burlesque. MGM requested a screen test, but she rejected the offer. She did, however, agree to a supporting role in 1927's Broadway Nights, and after completing her stage run in 1929 appeared in the drama The Locked Door. With her husband, comedian Frank Fay, Stanwyck traveled to Hollywood. After unsuccessfully testing at Warner Bros., she appeared in Columbia's low-budget Mexicali Rose, followed in 1930 by Capra's Ladies of Leisure, the picture which shot her to stardom. A long-term Columbia contract was the result, and the studio soon loaned Stanwyck to Warners for 1931's Illicit. It was a hit, as was the follow-up Ten Cents a Dance. Reviewers were quite taken with her, and with a series of successful pictures under her belt, she sued Columbia for a bigger salary; a deal was struck to share her with Warners, and she split her time between the two studios for pictures including Miracle Woman, Night Nurse, and Forbidden, a major hit which established her among the most popular actresses in Hollywood. Over the course of films like 1932's Shopworn, Ladies They Talk About, and Baby Face, Stanwyck developed an image as a working girl, tough-minded and often amoral, rarely meeting a happy ending; melodramas including 1934's Gambling Lady and the following year's The Woman in Red further established the persona, and in Red Salute she even appeared as a student flirting with communism. Signing with RKO, Stanwyck starred as Annie Oakley; however, her contract with the studio was non-exclusive, and she also entered into a series of multi-picture deals with the likes of Fox (1936's A Message to Garcia) and MGM (His Brother's Wife, co-starring Robert Taylor, whom she later married).For 1937's Stella Dallas, Stanwyck scored the first of four Academy Award nominations. Refusing to be typecast, she then starred in a screwball comedy, Breakfast for Two, followed respectively by the downcast 1938 drama Always Goodbye and the caper comedy The Mad Miss Manton. After the 1939 De Mille Western Union Pacific, she co-starred with William Holden in Golden Boy, and with Henry Fonda she starred in Preston Sturges' outstanding The Lady Eve. For the 1941 Howard Hawks comedy Ball of Fire, Stanwyck earned her second Oscar nomination. Another superior film, Capra's Meet John Doe, completed a very successful year. Drama was the order of the day for the next few years, as she starred in pictures like The Gay Sisters and The Great Man's Lady. In 1944, she delivered perhaps her most stunning performance in Billy Wilder's classic noir Double Indemnity. Stanwyck's stunning turn as a femme fatale secured her a third Oscar bid and helped make her, according to the IRS, the highest-paid woman in America. It also won her roles in several of the decade's other great film noirs, including 1946's The Strange Love of Martha Ivers and 1949's The File on Thelma Jordon.
In between, Stanwyck also starred in the 1948 thriller Sorry, Wrong Number, her final Academy Award-nominated performance. The 1950s, however, were far less kind, and strong roles came her way with increasing rarity. With Anthony Mann she made The Furies and with Lang she appeared opposite Marilyn Monroe in 1952's Clash by Night, but much of her material found her typecast -- in 1953's All I Desire, she portrayed a heartbroken mother not far removed from the far superior Stella Dallas, while in 1954's Blowing Wild she was yet another tough-as-nails, independent woman. Outside of the all-star Executive Suite, Stanwyck did not appear in another major hit; she let her hair go gray, further reducing her chances of winning plum parts, and found herself cast in a series of low-budget Westerns. Only Samuel Fuller's 1957 picture Forty Guns, a film much revered by the Cahiers du Cinema staff, was of any particular notice. It was also her last film for five years. In 1960, she turned to television to host The Barbara Stanwyck Show, winning an Emmy for her work.
Stanwyck returned to cinemas in 1962, portraying a lesbian madam in the controversial Walk on the Wild Side. Two years later, she co-starred with Elvis Presley in Roustabout. That same year, she appeared in the thriller The Night Walker, and with that, her feature career was over. After rejecting a role in Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte, she returned to television to star in the long-running Western series The Big Valley, earning another Emmy for her performance as the matriarch of a frontier family. Upon the show's conclusion, Stanwyck made a TV movie, The House That Would Not Die. She then appeared in two more, 1971's A Taste of Evil and 1973's The Letters, before vanishing from the public eye for the remainder of the decade. In 1981, she was awarded an honorary Oscar; two years later, she was also the recipient of a Lincoln Center Life Achievement Award. Also in 1983, Stanwyck returned to television to co-star in the popular miniseries The Thorn Birds. Two years later, she headlined The Colbys, a spin-off of the hugely successful nighttime soap opera Dynasty. It was her last project before retiring. Stanwyck died January 20, 1990. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
Famed archeologist Rick Banning has mysteriously vanished after reports surfaced claiming that he had unearthed the mythical lost city of Lemuria, and now it's up to fellow adventurers Ace Zucco, Mike Flannigan, and reporter Fay Kendal to head for the Middle East and find out what grim fate befell the missing archeologist. After tracing his trail from London to Scotland and ultimately Egypt, the trio arrives in Lemuria to discover that the dreaded, 3000 year-old Queen Amanetor has been eagerly awaiting their arrival. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Leanna Chamish, Nikolai Volkoff, (more)
- 1989
This documentary highlights the careers and lives of some of the most famous actresses of early cinema. Some of the ladies featured in this video are Bette Davis, Barbara Stanwyck, Carole Lombard, and Joan Crawford. These actresses from Hollywood's Golden Age were different in the types of films they were known for, from romantic comedy to high drama, but they were all the queens of the movie industry. You will watch some of their performances, listen to stories from historians and critics about their illustrious careers, and hear to the stars themselves in excerpts from interviews they did on television. There are rare photographs of the stars and outtakes from many of their movies. ~ Cecilia Cygnar, All Movie Guide
This mammoth TV miniseries, based on the best-selling novel by Colleen McCullough, proved to be a ratings bonanza; indeed, its viewership was surpassed only by the 1978 blockbuster Roots. Set in Australia, the story covers 42 years in the life of Ralph de Bricassart (Richard Chamberlain), a Roman Catholic priest engaged in a constant struggle between his calling and his carnal desires. The women in de Bricassart's life include Meggie Cleary (Rachel Ward, in her first American TV role) and Meggie's iron-willed grandmother Mary Carson (Barbara Stanwyck). Also in the cast are Jean Simmons and Richard Kiley as the Clearys, Sydney Penny as the young Meggie, Bryan Brown as Luke O'Neill, Mare Winningham as Justine (Meggie's daughter) and Christopher Plummer as the Archbishop. This 4-part, 10-hour presentation earned an Emmy award for Barbara Stanwyck, and Golden Globes for Stanwyck and Richard Chamberlain. Originally telecast March 27 through March 30, 1983, The Thorn Birds was followed 13 years later by The Thorn Birds: The Missing Years, again starring Richard Chamberlain. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Chamberlain, Rachel Ward, (more)
- 1983
Based on the best-selling novel by Colleen McCullough, the 1983 miniseries The Thorn Birds was set in Australia and covered the life of Ralph de Bricassart (Richard Chamberlain), a Roman Catholic priest engaged in a constant struggle between his calling and his carnal desires. The miniseries concluded with part four, first telecast in a three-hour slot on March 30, 1983. Covering a time span of nearly 30 years (1935-1962), this final chapter focuses on the lives of Meggie's (Rachel Ward) children -- flamboyant aspiring actress Justine (Mare Winningham) and would-be priest Dane (Philip Anglim) -- neither of which have any inkling (at least, not at first) of the past relationship between their mother and Cardinal de Bricassart, aka Father Ralph. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Chamberlain, Rachel Ward, (more)
- 1983
Based on the best-selling novel by Colleen McCullough, the 1983 miniseries The Thorn Birds was set in Australia and covered the life of Ralph de Bricassart (Richard Chamberlain), a Roman Catholic priest engaged in a constant struggle between his calling and his carnal desires. Part three, which aired March 29, 1983, finds a disillusioned Meggie (Rachel Ward) entering into an unhappy marriage and ending up a housemaid on a Queensland sugar-cane plantation. Her subsequent pregnancy is but one of the intriguing and surprising plot developments in this crucial episode. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Chamberlain, Rachel Ward, (more)
- 1983
Based on the best-selling novel by Colleen McCullough, the 1983 miniseries The Thorn Birds was set in Australia and covered the life of Ralph de Bricassart (Richard Chamberlain), a Roman Catholic priest engaged in a constant struggle between his calling and his carnal desires. In part two, which aired March 28, 1983 -- and which, like the subsequent third episode, runs two hours -- a cataclysmic brush fire destroys Mary Carson's (Barbara Stanwyck) ranch. Later, having already succumbed to their mutual passion, Father Ralph and Meggie (Rachel Ward)experience an uncomfortable reunion and later still the politically ambitious Ralph forms a strong and beneficial alliance with Archbishop Contini-Verchese (Christopher Plummer), one of Rome's most influential religious leaders. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Chamberlain, Rachel Ward, (more)
- 1983
Based on the best-selling novel by Colleen McCullough, the 1983 miniseries The Thorn Birds was set in Australia and covered the life of Ralph de Bricassart (Richard Chamberlain), a Roman Catholic priest engaged in a constant struggle between his calling and his carnal desires. In the three-hour opening episode, originally telecast by ABC on March 27, 1983, young Father Ralph becomes the object of desire for powerful sheep rancher Mary Carson (Barbara Stanwyck, who also won an Emmy), while the priest himself expresses concern -- and sometimes more than concern -- for the well being of Mary's niece, Meggie Cleary (played as a youngster by Sydney Penny and as an adult by Rachel Ward in her first American TV role). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Chamberlain, Rachel Ward, (more)
- 1980
It's nice to know that some of the greatest of the movie stars, while doing some of the most famous and best of Hollywood movies, have feet of clay like the rest of us. This set of outtakes lets us see the human side of celebrities like Bette Davis, Errol Flynn, Kirk Douglas, Humphrey Bogart and James Cagney. ~ Tana Hobart, All Movie Guide
- 1973
Letters begins with the crash of a U.S. mail plane. One year later, cheerful postman Henry Jones delivers the long-delayed letters. These overdue missives profoundly affect the lives of (a) a man who's deserted his wife; (b) a woman anxious to break up her daughter's romance; and (c) a pianist who'd sell his soul for success. The guest star roster of this TV movie includes John Forsythe, Jane Powell, Lesley Ann Warren, Ida Lupino, Ben Murphy, Pamela Franklin, and Leslie Nielsen. Both Letters and its sequel Letters From Lost Lovers (1973) were intended as pilot films for a never-sold TV anthology series. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1971
Screenwriter Jimmy Sangster and John Llewellyn Moxey, longtime collaborators in the field of British psychological-horror efforts, once more combined their skills for the American TV movie Taste of Evil. Barbara Parkins plays a young rape victim, recently released from a mental institution. She begins experiencing "flashbacks" to her rape; are these merely illusions, or is she being systematically tortured by a mystery villain? Barbara Stanwyck, Roddy McDowell, William Windom, Roddy McDowell and Bing Russell (Kurt's father) express varying degrees of concern and menace. Taste of Evil is a bit of a letdown considering its cast and the previous achievements of the Sangster/Moxey team. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1970
Barbara Stanwyck made her TV movie debut in 1970's The House That Would Not Die. The setting is an old house in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Stanwyck moves after inheriting the house, but has cause to rethink her decision. Built during the Revolutionary era, the house is said to be haunted by the spirits of its original inhabitants--who are disinclined towards hospitality. House That Would Not Die was based on a novel by Barbara Michaels (one of several pseudonyms for author Barbara G. Mertz). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
The Big Valley was the last major successful network Western series of the 1960s, running four seasons, from 1965 through 1969; none of the others that came after it, Branded, Hondo, Lancer, etc., even came close to that kind of longevity. Most of its appeal, besides high production values, lay in its casting and the starring role played by Barbara Stanwyck (or "Miss Barbara Stanwyck" as she was referred to in the credits) as Victoria Barkley, the matriarch ruling over a huge ranch outside of Stockton, CA, and the San Joachin Valley. Stanwyck was also a partner in the series' production company, Four Star. The Big Valley opens in the year 1876, six years after the death of Victoria's husband, Thomas Barkley, who was shot to death amid a battle with the railroad, and in the first episode the railroad is once more trying to take the land of the homesteaders adjacent to the Barkley ranch. The series' model was very obviously Bonanza (along with elements of the movie Duel in the Sun), which, with a relatively inexperienced cast, was already a hit in its fourth season at the time this series was conceived. The sensibilities of the period being what they were, Victoria Barkley could not have produced four siblings from different husbands, as Lorne Greene's Ben Cartwright had by different wives on Bonanza -- but her offspring were still as varied as the Cartwright family. The Barkleys, in the opening, include three brothers, Jarrod (Richard Long), the oldest and the lawyer, mature and deliberative; Nick (Peter Breck), the ramrod of the ranch, bold but also very hot-tempered; and Eugene (Charles Briles), the youngest, who looks up to both of his brothers (who goes off to college and, after the first season, is never seen or mentioned again); and one daughter, Audra (Linda Evans), who is by turns spoiled and vulnerable, and solitary.
In the first episode, a mysterious young man named Heath (Lee Majors) arrives at the ranch, claiming to be Tom Barkley's illegitimate son -- which sends Nick into a rage that nearly has him killing the visitor, until he joins the Barkley brothers in defending their neighbors from the railroad. The Barkley ranch may not have been as big as the Ponderosa on Bonanza, but it was just as attractive to would-be interlopers and troublemakers, and across four seasons the series managed to put some fresh twists on a lot of Western conventions, mostly by virtue of what Stanwyck's presence allowed in the way of scripting. With more acting and filmmaking experience than the rest of the cast combined, she could put her own stamp and fresh, interesting interpretations on stories as old as the "Vanishing Lady" ("The Disappearance") -- the same story that inspired Hitchcock's The Lady Vanishes -- and even prison stories ("Four Days to Furnace Creek") in later seasons. The other prime actor in the series was, oddly enough, Lee Majors, who, at the outset of his career, understood the notion of less being more. His approach to the role of Heath in the first seaon is reminiscent of Steve McQueen with a touch of James Dean and Dennis Hopper. Whereas Richard Long did his best with a role that was usually fairly dullish, Breck tended to overact in his role, which, when it wasn't very physical, tended to get difficult speeches that required more subtlety than he had as an actor. As for Linda Evans, she was so untrained as an actress that she was actually occasionally interesting to watch in her scattershot approach to the role, which, as a solitary romantic dreamer, lent itself to a certain amorphous quality. To the audience's relief, she also got better during the later seasons of the show and was a fully competent actress by the series' end.
The first season of the series was devoted principally to establishing who the Barkleys were, the dimensions of their 30,000-acre ranch (which, in addition to cattle, included a mine, timber, a vineyard, orange groves, and -- in keeping with the sensibilities of the mid-'60s -- included at least one black ranch hand), and establishing the characters' individual personalities. Stanwyck evidently believed that scarcity created demand, and in many of the episodes, her work was confined to no more than two or three major scenes, enough to keep audiences satisfied while not overexposing her on the small screen. By the end of the season, youngest son Eugene was gone from memory and Jarrod, Nick, Heath, and Audra were the focus of the series, along with Victoria. The series was the creation of renowned author A.I. Bezzerides and Louis F. Edelman, and produced by Arthur Gardner, Arnold Laven, and Jules Levy. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide
In the first episode, a mysterious young man named Heath (Lee Majors) arrives at the ranch, claiming to be Tom Barkley's illegitimate son -- which sends Nick into a rage that nearly has him killing the visitor, until he joins the Barkley brothers in defending their neighbors from the railroad. The Barkley ranch may not have been as big as the Ponderosa on Bonanza, but it was just as attractive to would-be interlopers and troublemakers, and across four seasons the series managed to put some fresh twists on a lot of Western conventions, mostly by virtue of what Stanwyck's presence allowed in the way of scripting. With more acting and filmmaking experience than the rest of the cast combined, she could put her own stamp and fresh, interesting interpretations on stories as old as the "Vanishing Lady" ("The Disappearance") -- the same story that inspired Hitchcock's The Lady Vanishes -- and even prison stories ("Four Days to Furnace Creek") in later seasons. The other prime actor in the series was, oddly enough, Lee Majors, who, at the outset of his career, understood the notion of less being more. His approach to the role of Heath in the first seaon is reminiscent of Steve McQueen with a touch of James Dean and Dennis Hopper. Whereas Richard Long did his best with a role that was usually fairly dullish, Breck tended to overact in his role, which, when it wasn't very physical, tended to get difficult speeches that required more subtlety than he had as an actor. As for Linda Evans, she was so untrained as an actress that she was actually occasionally interesting to watch in her scattershot approach to the role, which, as a solitary romantic dreamer, lent itself to a certain amorphous quality. To the audience's relief, she also got better during the later seasons of the show and was a fully competent actress by the series' end.
The first season of the series was devoted principally to establishing who the Barkleys were, the dimensions of their 30,000-acre ranch (which, in addition to cattle, included a mine, timber, a vineyard, orange groves, and -- in keeping with the sensibilities of the mid-'60s -- included at least one black ranch hand), and establishing the characters' individual personalities. Stanwyck evidently believed that scarcity created demand, and in many of the episodes, her work was confined to no more than two or three major scenes, enough to keep audiences satisfied while not overexposing her on the small screen. By the end of the season, youngest son Eugene was gone from memory and Jarrod, Nick, Heath, and Audra were the focus of the series, along with Victoria. The series was the creation of renowned author A.I. Bezzerides and Louis F. Edelman, and produced by Arthur Gardner, Arnold Laven, and Jules Levy. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide
Charlie Rogers (Elvis Presley) is a coffeehouse singer who joins a financially troubled carnival in Roustabout. He is hired by owner Maggie Morgan (Barbara Stanwyck) and soon catches the eye of his pretty female co-worker Cathy Lean (Joan Freeman). Cathy's irate father Joe (Leif Erickson) clashes with Charlie when he tries to romance his daughter, but Charlie's singing helps bring in the much-needed money for the failing carnival and keeps the wolves from the big tent show. A disagreement has Charlie joining another carnival before things are smoothed out. Watch for Raquel Welch and Terry Garr in bit parts. Presley delivers 11 songs, the highlight being the Mike Leiber/Jerry Stoller tune"Little Egypt". ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Elvis Presley, Barbara Stanwyck, (more)
- 1964
Irene Trent (Barbara Stanwyck) was married to the inventor Howard (Hayden Roarke) before the blind electronics genius blows himself up following an argument between the couple. Irene leaves after the arguments only to learn of her husband's demise later. When Irene has reoccurring dreams of a faceless lover, she confides in her friend and attorney Barry Moreland (Robert Taylor) of her vision. She also tells him that Howard had accused her of marital infidelity and had her trailed by a private detective. William Castle directed the suspenseful thriller written by Psycho author Robert Bloch. Taylor and Stanwyck appear in their first film together in 27 years. The two were married from 1939 to 1951 and appeared in two films before their marriage. Their mutual respect as friends and performers is evident in The Night Walker. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Taylor, Barbara Stanwyck, (more)
- 1963
This Untouchables episode is the second of two unsold pilot films for the spinoff series The Seekers, starring Barbara Stanwyck as Lt. Agatha "Aggie" Stewart of the Chicago Bureau of Missing Persons. On this occasion, Aggie is determined to identify the "John Doe" whose body was recently fished out of Lake Michigan--especially after an expensive wreath is sent to the dead man's grave in Potter's Field. Tracing the teller's mark on the cash used to buy the flowers, Aggie locates one Claire Simmons (Sheree North), who has quite a story to tell. Meanwhile, Elliot Ness (Robert Stack) and the Untouchables are hot on the trail of a criminal gang led by the Portuguese Brothers--never dreaming that his assignment and Aggie Stewart's search will soon merge into one single case. Edward Asner and Virginia Capers appear respectively as detective Frank Benton and Lt. Stewart's secretary Aggie, repeating their roles from the previous episode "Elegy". ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1962
This Untouchables episode is the first of two pilot films for the proposed spinoff series The Seekers, starring Barbara Stanwyck as Lt. Agnes "Aggie" Stewart of the Chicago Missing Persons Bureau. The story is set in motion when gangster Charlie Radick (John Larch) learns that he is dying of leukemia. Summoning Elliot Ness (Robert Stack), Charlie offers to provide evidence against his fellow hoodlums. There's just one catch: Radick will turn "fink" only if Ness agrees to locate the mobster's missing daughter Margaret (Peggy Ann Garner) for one last reunion. It is at this point in the proceedings that Aggie Stewart enters the picture, along with her loyal secretary June (Virginia Capers) and her favorite detective Frank Benton (Edward Asner, curiously billed as "Asher" in the closing credits). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
This moody and controversial drama takes place in Depression-era New Orleans. Dove (Laurence Harvey) has traveled by bus from Texas to find his wayward lover Hallie (Capucine). He meets young Kitty Twist (Jane Fonda) as the two get off in the crescent city. Teresina (Anne Baxter) gives him a job at her small cafe. In his free time, Dove searches for Hallie and finds her at work as a prostitute in the Doll's House. Dove implores Hallie to return to him but she refuses. When the lecherous lesbian madame Jo (Barbara Stanwyck) discovers Dove's intentions towards Hallie, she has him beaten to a bloody pulp by her hired goons. He is found by Kitty, now a happy hooker at the Doll House, and is taken back to the cafe where the compassionate Teresina heals his physical and emotional wounds. The film taken from the novel by Nelson Algren is much tamer than the original text. The title track, sung by Brook Benton, was nominated for an Academy Award. The "black-cat stalking" opening and closing sequences (by designer Saul Bass) is a perfect little "film-within-a-film." This footage, with its superb lighting, framing, panning, and editing, should be appreciated by anyone who wants to know more about the art of cinematography. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Laurence Harvey, Capucine, (more)
- 1957
Trooper Hook is played by Joel McCrea, but top billing goes to Barbara Stanwyck in this multilayered western. McCrea plays a Cavalry officer sent to rescue Stanwyck, who had been captured by Indians years earlier. Upon reaching the Indian village, McCrea discovers that Stanwyck, forced into marrying the chief, has a young son (Terry Lawrence) whom she refuses to desert. After intensive persuasion, Stanwyck permits McCrea to bring herself and her son back to her white husband, John Dehner--who refuses to have anything to do with the child. But after Dehner's death, both Stanwyck and her son find happiness with McCrea. Trooper Hook was written and directed by Charles Marquis Warren, an old western hand who was responsible for many of the best hour-long Gunsmoke TV episodes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joel McCrea, Barbara Stanwyck, (more)
Cult hero Samuel Fuller wrote and directed this visually inventive western, which didn't fare well with American audiences but earned a potent reputation with European cineastes. Jessica Drummond (Barbara Stanwyck) is a despotic landowner who, with a posse of hired guns, has made herself the law of Cochise County, Arizona, with the weak-willed sheriff Ned Logan (Dean Jagger) knuckling under to her demands. One day, Griff Bonnell (Barry Sullivan), a one-time gunfighter turned United States Marshall, arrives with his brothers Wes (Gene Barry) and Chico (Robert Dix) to restore democratic law and order to Cochise County. Griff soon tangles with Drummond's brother Brockie (John Ericson), though Jessica is attracted to the new lawman, and Griff finds love with female gunsmith Louvenia Spangler (Eve Brent). Griff and Louvenia marry, but on their wedding day, Brockie murders Wes, and Griff, who takes pride in the fact that he has never fired his gun since becoming a marshal, must now break his vow of non-violence. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barbara Stanwyck, Barry Sullivan, (more)
Kathy Ferguson (Barbara Stanwyck) is a cynical newspaper columnist in San Francisco, handling women's advice -- by chance one day, the paper's city editor assigns her to cover the woman's angle on the arrival of a pair of L.A. police detectives, Capt. Manny Alidos (Royal Dano) and Lt. Bill Doyle (Sterling Hayden), on the hunt for a murder suspect known to be hiding somewhere in the city. They're both pretty button-down types and seem like fish-out-of-water in the more easy-going Frisco, and Kathy quickly clashes with them both, especially when her column appealing to the missing suspect as a woman yields serious dual results -- not only does Kathy boost her profile and readership, but the missing suspect makes contact and is ultimately brought in; in the process, Kathy goes from journalistic back-bencher to media star. That would be the end of the issue, except that Kathy and Bill have become attracted to each other amid their clashes, parries, and thrusts, and decide to get married -- she spurns the offer of a job in New York to move to Los Angeles and settle down to the life of a wife and homemaker. But that proves impossible -- Kathy quickly chafes at what she regards as the empty vacuous chatter of her fellow detective wives' lives and social interactions, and also her place in their pecking order as determined by their husbands' ranks and assignments (and Bill just doesn't rate high enough). Her own life suddenly cut off from career and ambition, and an ability to act on either, she becomes fixated on Bill's career and advancing it and him as a substitute. She contrives to cross paths socially with Alice Pope (Fay Wray), the wife of Inspector Tony Pope (Raymond Burr), who is both the head of an elite detective unit and the top man in her husband's division, and is soon not only getting Bill invited to parties with Pope and the police commissioner, but also cutting her husband's boss Manny Alidos and his wife Sara (Virginia Grey), to whom she's taken a special dislike, out of those same events.
It's not quite enough, however, and Kathy starts socializing on her own with Tony Pope, on Bill's behalf, and the two soon have their own relationship. Bill is still too much of a nice guy, and not careerist enough or assertive enough -- until she feigns distress at receiving poison-pen letters accusing her of having an affair with Pope, and blames Manny and Sara. This drives Bill to confront and assault Alidos, leading to a hearing in Pope's office where the chief of the division -- now very much beholden to Bill for Kathy's sake -- comes down on Bill's side. When the smoke clears, Manny is bounced back into uniform and Bill is made acting captain and put in charge of the homicide unit that Alidos formerly headed. Bill is on his way, and so is Kathy and Pope's relationship. But Pope proves to be a distressingly honorable and loyal man -- when his wife's health takes a turn for the worse, he decides to put in for retirement, and Kathy wants him to recommend Bill as his replacement. He considers it but decides that regardless of what he's done outside of his marriage, the department is too important to compromise the detective division, and that Bill just doesn't have what it takes to head it. Kathy is too deep in her strategy to back off, and also feels betrayed by Pope; now pushed over the edge, she contrives to threaten him with a gun, and is prepared to make good on her threat. Ironically enough, Bill may get his shot yet at heading the division, as he's head of homicide and takes personal charge of the biggest case the department has seen in years -- bringing in Tony Pope's killer. The only question is if and how he can put together the clues and pieces of the puzzle leading back to Kathy. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide
It's not quite enough, however, and Kathy starts socializing on her own with Tony Pope, on Bill's behalf, and the two soon have their own relationship. Bill is still too much of a nice guy, and not careerist enough or assertive enough -- until she feigns distress at receiving poison-pen letters accusing her of having an affair with Pope, and blames Manny and Sara. This drives Bill to confront and assault Alidos, leading to a hearing in Pope's office where the chief of the division -- now very much beholden to Bill for Kathy's sake -- comes down on Bill's side. When the smoke clears, Manny is bounced back into uniform and Bill is made acting captain and put in charge of the homicide unit that Alidos formerly headed. Bill is on his way, and so is Kathy and Pope's relationship. But Pope proves to be a distressingly honorable and loyal man -- when his wife's health takes a turn for the worse, he decides to put in for retirement, and Kathy wants him to recommend Bill as his replacement. He considers it but decides that regardless of what he's done outside of his marriage, the department is too important to compromise the detective division, and that Bill just doesn't have what it takes to head it. Kathy is too deep in her strategy to back off, and also feels betrayed by Pope; now pushed over the edge, she contrives to threaten him with a gun, and is prepared to make good on her threat. Ironically enough, Bill may get his shot yet at heading the division, as he's head of homicide and takes personal charge of the biggest case the department has seen in years -- bringing in Tony Pope's killer. The only question is if and how he can put together the clues and pieces of the puzzle leading back to Kathy. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barbara Stanwyck, Sterling Hayden, (more)
- 1956
There's Always Tomorrow is a remake of a 1934 film of the same name. Fred MacMurray is a toy company executive whose wife (Joan Bennett) and kids (Gigi Perreau, William Reynolds and Judy Nugent) take him for granted. Barbara Stanwyck is Fred's former girlfriend, whose own business activities result in a surprise reunion. MacMurray falls back in love with Stanwyck and prepares to leave his family. MacMurray's children go to Stanwyck and politely ask her to back off. She does so, and MacMurray's wife Bennett, who's been out of town during all this, is none the wiser. In the original There's Always Tomorrow, the male and female leads (Frank Morgan and Binnie Barnes) were farther apart age-wise, making their brief encounter all the more poignant. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barbara Stanwyck, Fred MacMurray, (more)
- 1956
The MGM melodrama These Wilder Years marked the first onscreen pairing of Hollywood stars James Cagney and Barbara Stanwyck. Lonely middle-aged businessman Steve Bradford (Cagney) returns to his old town in hopes of finding the son he fathered 20 years earlier. Choosing his career over marriage and family, he got a girl pregnant and she gave the baby up for adoption. He goes to an orphanage ran by Ann Dempster (Barbara Stanwyck) to find out information about his son. They are attracted to each other, but she refuses to release the confidential files that could help him. He hires a lawyer, James Rayburn (Walter Pigeon), and proceeds to sue the adoption agency. Though he loses the case in the climactic courtroom scene, Steve ends up finding his son on his own, but he decides it's too late to forge a relationship. Instead, Ann introduces him to pregnant teenager Suzie (Betty Lou Keim), who needs his help. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Cagney, Barbara Stanwyck, (more)
