Frank M. Thomas Movies

When mild-mannered bank clerk Wilbur Meely (Joe Penner) finds himself stuck in a speeding trailer after a bank robbery gone wrong, he doesn't think the situation could get much worse than it already is. Unbeknownst to him, however, both the police department and his domineering wife Carol (Lucille Ball) think he's the the one who initiated the robbery. Oblivious to the fact that Wilbur has actually been captured by the true theives, Carol (Ball) and the cops head off in hot pursuit. Go Chase Yourself was directed by Edward F. Cline and also features actors June Travis, Richard Lane, Fritz Feld, Tom Kennedy, Granville Bates, and Bradley Page. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide

Given the talent involved, The Joy of Living should have been far better than it is. Irene Dunne plays Maggie, a popular musical-comedy star saddled with a possessive, spendthrift family. Maggie would like to leave the house once in a while and experience "real life," but her parents (Alice Brady, Guy Kibbee), worried that they'll lose their meal ticket, refuse to allow her to do so. The Prince Charming who rescues Maggie from her folks is ship-owner Dan (Douglas Fairbanks Jr.) As a bonus, the footloose and fancy-free Dan teaches the repressed Maggie that "it's fun to be foolish." Apparently director Tay Garnett couldn't keep the production under control, and the cost ballooned to a then-staggering $1.1 million, resulting in a huge loss for RKO Radio. Some of the film's brighter moments are provided by Lucille Ball, Billy Gilbert, Jean Dixon and Franklin Pangborn, who like Dunne and Fairbanks all deserved funnier material than this. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The Saint, Leslie Charteris' charming but deadly criminal-turned-sleuth, made his first film appearance in RKO Radio's The Saint of New York. Faithful to Charteris' original concept, this first movie Saint is a cold-blooded murderer, redeemed by the fact that all of his victims are notorious gangsters who'd otherwise elude the clutches of the law. Hired by a coterie of businessmen, Simon Templar (Louis Hayward), aka the Saint, methodically rids New York of its worst criminals, though "The Big Fellow", aka Hutch Rellin (Sig Rumann), continues to elude him. He is aided by Rellin's enigmatic mistress Fay Edwards (Kay Sutton), who pays for her actions with her life. The film's most memorable moment finds Templar disguising himself as a nun to dispose of a particularly nasty villain. The success of The Saint of New York prompted RKO to negotiate with Charteris for a series of "Saint" films, with George Sanders and Hugh Sinclair taking over from Louis Hayward as the title character. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

When two lovers are framed for a jewelry store robbery in which the clerk was killed, the only person capable of saving them from the death penalty is the gangster who actually committed the crime. A remake of the 1930 thriller The Pay Off, Law of the Underworld tells the tale of Shirley and Bond, two young lovers who are about to be swept up in circumstances beyond their control. On the surface Morris is a respectable citizen, the perfect cover for a career criminal. When Morris frames Shirley and Bond for a violent jewelry store robbery, the lovebirds are arrested and sentenced to death. Morris may be a criminal, but is he really willing to let two innocent people die for his crime, or will his conscience finally get the best of him at the last minute? ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Another of RKO's movie vehicles for radio comic Joe Penner ("You na-a-a-asty man!"), Mr. Doodle Kicks Off stars Penner as the son of a wealthy and influential businessman. Penner's dad is disappointed at how sonny has turned out (we can't blame him), but is bound and determined to enroll Joe in his alma mater and turn him into a college football hero. Penner falls for June Travis, daughter of the college president, and sets his mind (what there is of it) to make good. Incredibly, Joe makes it into the Big Game, where he pulls a "Roy Riegels" and runs the wrong way. The best moment in Mr. Doodle Kicks Off, if indeed there is one, features Joe Penner conducting a college orchestra while strapped in a straitjacket. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The old west collides with the new in this fine remake of RKO's 1932 Come On, Danger!. Or, rather, veteran RKO star George O'Brien is at odds with his eventual successor at the studio, Tim Holt -- at least part of the way. They play Texas Rangers assigned to bring in suspected murderess Judith Alvarez (Rita Hayworth). But young Holt, who gets himself fired for an altercation in the local cantina, defies his older colleague and instead joins Judith's band of renegades. O'Brien is sympathetic to Judith's claim that local political boss Ben Sanderson (William Royle) is usurping the local ranches by means of phony taxes, but maintains that the girl must make her argument in court. In the end, the greedy Sanderson shows his true face and Judith and her vigilantes are found innocent of all charges. In between the action -- which is fast and plentiful -- resident RKO balladeer Ray Whitley yodels "Move Slow, Little Doggie" by Willia Phelps, and Cecilia Callejo, as Holt's love interest, performs a Mexican dance. Borrowed from Columbia Pictures, a ravishing Rita Hayworth is not the usual placid prairie flower but takes an active part in all the ridin' and shootin'. After all, as her character explains, "I wouldn't have my men do anything I wouldn't do." Renegade Ranger was filmed a third time by RKO in 1943, under its original title, Come On, Danger!, and starring Tim Holt, now a full-fledged B-Western star. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide

Outcasts of Poker Flat is an adaptation of Bret Harte's western story of the same name, with elements of Harte's The Luck of Roaring Camp thrown in for good measure. Set during the California gold rush, the story traces the destinies of several divergent individuals. Preston S. Foster is gambler John Oakhurst, a seemingly underhanded gent with an untapped streak of decency. Jean Muir is a schoolteacher who tries to find some good in the gambler. Margaret Irving is the duchess, a woman of (presumed) ill repute. And Virginia Weidler is "Luck," the diminutive mascot of the mining town of Roaring Camp. Van Heflin is also around and about as the minister of the mining community. The film spends its first half establishing the characters and its second half placing them in a life-threatening situation wherein the true natures of all concerned are revealed. The Outcasts of Poker Flat, previously filmed in 1919, was remade (minus the "Luck of Roaring Camp" subplot) in 1952. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Attorney Lee Tracy gains renown for his flamboyant courtroom tactics, which nearly always result in acquittal for his clients. Though none too honest, Tracy rises to the position of district attorney. Unbeknownst to the public, the D.A. is in the pocket of local gangster interests, who hope that their courtroom connections will allow them to operate unmolested. His conscience awakened by his faithful girlfriend (Margot Grahame), Tracy turns his back on his mobster cronies; his career is ruined, but he is "clean" for the first time in his life. Criminal Court is a remake of the 1932 John Barrymore vehicle State's Attorney; the later film makes several concessions to the now more stringent censors, especially when it comes to detailing the former profession of the D.A.'s lady friend. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Hotshot attorney Jimmy Hughes (Preston S. Foster) prides himself on never backing down from a dare. Thus, when he is goaded into running for mayor on the Reform ticket, Jimmy mounts an aggressive campaign. Only one problem: the incumbent mayor (Frank M. Thomas) is the father of Jimmy's sweetheart Trudy (Joan Fontaine). Before unentangling this problem, our hero manages to rescue Hizzoner from a contingent of graft-grabbing cronies. In one of her first major roles, Joan Fontaine is quite appealing, but her lack of experience stands out in marked contrast to the expertise of Preston Foster and the rest of the cast. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Its title notwithstanding, We Who Are About to Die has nothing to do with Roman Gladiators. Rather, the film is based on the true story of San Quentin inmate David Lamson, who spent 13 agonizing months on Death Row before the Supreme Court reversed his conviction. Renamed John (and played by John Beal), the Lamson character knows he's innocent but also knows that the date of his execution is drawing ever nearer. Meanwhile, his sweetheart Connie (Ann Dvorak), in collaboration with private eye Matthews (Preston S. Foster), races against time to unearth new evidence and expose the guilty party. Rather pokey for the most part, We Who Are About to Die turns into a real nail-biter during the final 15 minutes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The "they" who want to marry in this RKO Radio programmer are news photographer Jim Tyler (Gordon Jones) and cute society deb Sheila Hunter (Betty Furness). The heroine's father (Henry Kolker) disapproves of the union, requiring Gordon to take a "respectable" job in daddy's advertising agency. Our hero manages to strike out on Madison Avenue, but redeems himself with a big news scoop in the final reel. E.E. Clive has all the good lines as the Hunter family's dry-witted butler. Four decades later, leading lady Betty Furness would later make a name for herself in the journalistic world as NBC's consumer reporter. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Professional horsewoman Ann Dvorak is the Racing Lady in this hit-and-miss romantic comedy. The story begins breaking into a trot when millionaire auto tycoon Steven Wendel (Smith Ballew) (later a movie "singing cowboy") purchases a thoroughbred horse and engages the services of Ruth Martin (Dvorak) as a trainer. She begins to fall in love with Steven, but renounces him upon discovering that his "affection" for horses is motivated by his desire for publicity. Harry Carey, no stranger to horseflesh himself, co-stars as Dvorak's crusty father. The Ann Dvorak-Smith Ballew combination in Racing Lady proved unsatisfactory, with Dvorak handily out-acting her stiff-necked co-star throughout the picture. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

RKO Radio's "Hildegarde Withers" series, based on the mystery stories by Stuart Palmer, ground to a half with 40 Naughty Girls. ZaSu Pitts is once more miscast as crime-solving schoolmarm Hildegarde Withers, while James Gleason is rather better served as Inspector Oscar Piper. The title refers to a "Follies"-style Broadway revue, which serves as the backdrop for a baffling murder mystery. When the show's leading man is killed in full view of the audience, suspicion immediately falls upon the hapless prop man (Frank M. Thomas). But Hildegarde suspects that someone else was responsible, and, acting upon her impulses, assimilates a dizzying succession of contradictory clues to finger the actual killer. Among the "40 Naughty Girls" is 17-year-old Marjorie Lord, some 20 years before her TV fame as Danny Thomas's "wife." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide