James Whitmore Movies
Leading American character actor James Whitmore specialized in giving tour de force solo performances on stage, screen, and television, notably with his Oscar-nominated solo turn as President Truman in Give 'Em Hell Harry! Whitmore is short and thickset with a well-aged face and gentle smile; he is known for portraying outwardly tough but inwardly caring men. Born in Buffalo, NY, Whitmore attended the private school Choate in Connecticut and then studied pre-law at Yale. While there he was a member of the Yale Drama School Players and co-founded the Yale radio station. He was drafted into the U.S. Marine Corps where during boot camp, he finished his degree and became an officer. Following his discharge, Whitmore joined the U.S.O. and also spent time studying at the American Theater Wing. Before making his Tony-winning debut on Broadway with a supporting role in Command Decision, Whitmore gained experience in summer stock. He made his film debut in The Undercover Man in 1949. That year, he also appeared in Battleground and his performance as a battle-scarred sergeant earned him his first Oscar nomination. Though primarily a supporting player, Whitmore occasionally played leads, notably in films like Them! (1954) and Black Like Me (1964). In addition to his film and stage work, Whitmore also performed on television as a guest star and as the star of the series The Law and Mr. Jones (1960-1962). Between 1972 and 1974, Whitmore co-starred on the series Temperatures Rising. During the '80s, Whitmore often appeared in television miniseries. His career slowed dramatically in the '90s, though in 1994, he offered a memorable performance as an old lifer who finds himself unable to cope outside of prison in The Shawshank Redemption. He died in February 2009 at the age of 87. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1952
- NR
Above and Beyond is the story of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, as told from the perspective of the man who flew the mission. Robert Taylor stars as Col. Paul Tibbetts, commander of the Enola Gay. Once selected for this extremely dangerous mission, Tibbetts must hand-pick a crew worthy of the task. He is also forced to keep his mission a closely guarded secret, even unto withholding all information from his loving and patient wife Lucey (Eleanor Parker). The film concentrates on the strain placed upon Tibbetts, his crew and their families in the crucial days before the "big drop". The bombing itself is handled with taste and decorum, though the horror and mixed emotions of the moment are brilliantly conveyed on the faces of Tibbetts and his men. Above and Beyond represents a rare noncomedy endeavor from the writer-director team of Melvin Frank and Norman Panama. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Taylor, Eleanor Parker, (more)
- 1952
Golden-throated Mario Lanza stars in Because You're Mine. Lanza plays opera singer Renaldo Rossano, who is drafted into the army. Much to the displeasure of topkick Sgt. Batterson (James Whitmore), Renaldo is given celebrity treatment even while in uniform. Even more problematic is the romance between Renaldo and Batterson's sister, Bridget (Doretta Morrow, fresh from her Broadway success as Tuptim in The King and I). Wait till you see the "dueling tenors" scene between Whitmore and Lanza! For the benefit of those not operatically inclined, Because You're Mine features a gratuitous dance solo by Bobby Van. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mario Lanza, Doretta Morrow, (more)
- 1951
Clark Gable is the largely nonheroic hero of the sprawling western Across the Wide Missouri. A cunning trapper who lives purely by his wits, Gable avoids being scalped by the Blackfoot Indians by marrying Maria Elena Marques, the chief's daughter. This marriage of convenience also allows Gable to trap to his heart's content in Blackfoot territory. After bearing a child, Marques is killed by a warring tribe; the opportunistic Gable at first considers abandoning the child, but at long last does right by the boy. Adolphe Menjou steals the show as an eternally inebriated French trapper, while Ricardo Montalban and J. Carroll Naish are convincing (and noncondescending) in their Native American characterizations. Evidently, Across the Wide Missouri tested poorly when it was first previewed: the final release version runs a surprisingly brief 78 minutes, with narrator Howard Keel (who otherwise does not appear) filling in the continuity gaps. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Clark Gable, Ricardo Montalban, (more)
The backstory of The Red Badge of Courage involves the toppling of MGM's old Louis B. Mayer regime in favor of Dore Schary and his young Turks. It is also the tale of how an intended epic was ruthlessly whittled down to a lower-berth programmer. Since this story has already been related in detail in Lillian Ross' Picture (not to mention several John Huston biographies), the focus here will be what shows up on screen in Red Badge of Courage. Based on the novel by Stephen Crane, the film stars real-life war hero Audie Murphy as a Civil War soldier who must redeem himself in his own eyes after an act of cowardice. When he finally gets his opportunity, he realizes that he is no less frightened than before; it is simply that he has learned to push on in spite of that fear. A comparative newcomer to films, Murphy acquits himself magnificently in the difficult title role; equally impressive are political cartoonist Bill Mauldin as "The Loud Soldier," John Dierkes as "The Tall Soldier" and Royal Dano as "The Tattered Man." When Red Badge of Courage tested poorly in preview, the studio sliced it down to 69 minutes and added a narrator (James Whitmore) to clarify the more obscure plot passages. Further hurting the film was Bronislaus Kaper's overbaked musical score, which seemed more suited to a gung-ho John Wayne flick than a comparatively intimate tale of personal fortitude. Though the finished product plays like a Reader's Digest adaptation, a few brilliant passages remain, notably the sequence in which a commanding officer ingratiatingly lies to his troops for the sake of morale. Like Orson Welles' The Magnificent Ambersons, Red Badge of Courage is a truncated classic -- but a classic, all the same. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Audie Murphy, Bill Mauldin, (more)
- 1951
A minor but effective MGM programmer, Shadow in the Sky stars Ralph Meeker as a shell-shocked World War II veteran. He is taken in by sympathetic relatives, who hope that a stable environment will help Meeker overcome his neuroses. But even these people find their compassion strained to the breaking point by Meeker's increasingly erratic (and violent) behavior. Nancy Davis (a year before becoming Nancy Reagan) plays one of the relatives, while Jean Hagen (later the screechy-voiced movie queen in Singin' in the Rain) plays Meeker's long-suffering girlfriend. Ben Maddow based his screenplay for Shadow in the Sky on a story by Edward Newhouse. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ralph Meeker, Nancy Davis, (more)
- 1950
Producer Val Lewton abandoned the "psychological horror" efforts of his RKO days when he moved to MGM in 1950. Lewton's Please Believe Me is a simple, sometimes simplistic romantic comedy, designed principally as a showcase for Deborah Kerr. The star plays Alison Kirbe, an English girl who inherits a Texas ranch. Once word gets out that Alison is in town, she is pursued by three bachelors. Terence Keath (Robert Walker) hopes to marry Alison so that he can square his gambling debts. Jeremy Taylor (Peter Lawford) is too wealthy to consider marriage, but he hopes to have a no-strings-attached good time with Alison. And Matthew Kinston (Mark Stevens) is Alison's all-business attorney, ever on the alert for any fortune hunters who might prey on his client. Guess who she winds up with in the end. As it turned out, Please Believe Me was Val Lewton's cinematic swan song; he died not long after the film's release. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Deborah Kerr, Robert Walker, (more)
- 1950
MGM went into the western-programmer business relatively late in the game, but made up for lost time with such laudable efforts as The Outriders. Joel McCrea stars as one of three Confederate soldiers who escape from a northern prison compound. The three men join a wagon train, hoping to capture a Yankee gold shipment to help their cause. When the wagoners are attacked by Indians, McCrea decides to reassess his priorities and protect the passengers--especially the stunning Arlene Dahl. The Outriders was produced in the wake of MGM's surprise success with 1949's Ambush. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joel McCrea, Arlene Dahl, (more)
- 1950
In their never-ending efforts to create a movie series to match the success of "The Thin Man," MGM came up with the fast-paced programmer Mrs. O'Malley and Mr. Malone. Based on characters created by Craig Rice, the film stars James Whitmore as lawyer and part-time sleuth John J. Malone (this character had previously appeared in several other films, as well as the radio series The Amazing Mr. Malone). In his efforts to track down an embezzler, Mr. Malone boards a train heading for New York. Meanwhile, Mrs. Hattie O'Malley (Marjorie Main), a raucous widow from Montana, is also travelling to New York to claim her prize money from a radio contest. During the journey eastward, the man whom Malone is seeking ends up dead. Thanks to Mrs. O'Malley's well-intentioned interference, Malone ends up being accused of murder. How this mismatched pair manages to solve the mystery and save their own hides is good for several laughs. Mrs. O'Malley and Mr. Malone didn't result in a series, though James Whitmore and Marjorie Main make a surprisingly copacetic screen team. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Marjorie Main, James Whitmore, (more)
- 1950
The Next Voice You Hear was a pet project of MGM producer Dore Schary, who lavished more attention on this modestly budgeted drama than he did on some of his "bigger" projects. Though based on characters first introduced in the 1942 film Joe Smith, American, Next Voice was not a sequel to the earlier film. James Whitmore stars as blue-collar family man Joe Smith, while future first lady Nancy Davis appears as his pregnant wife and Gary Gray rounds out the family unit as their son. The Smiths, their relatives, their neighbors and the citizens of the World are shaken out of their complacency when the voice of God begins delivering messages over the radio. For six consecutive evenings, the voice speaks over the airwaves (the movie audience never hears the voice, thanks to a series of clever evasionary tactics). At first frightened, the listeners gradually realize that God simply wants to convey the age-old message "Love thy Neighbor." With this realization comes several changes of attitude, some minor, others profound. The concept may sound portentous (and pretentious), but the actors handle their responsibilities with subtlety and conviction. So, too, does director William A. Wellman, a curious choice indeed for this sort of film. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Whitmore, Nancy Davis, (more)
The Asphalt Jungle is a brilliantly conceived and executed anatomy of a crime -- or, as director John Huston and scripter Ben Maddow put it, "a left-handed form of human endeavor." Recently paroled master criminal Erwin "Doc" Riedenschneider (Sam Jaffe), with funding from crooked attorney Emmerich (Louis Calhern), gathers several crooks together in Cincinnati for a Big Caper. Among those involved are Dix (Sterling Hayden), an impoverished hood who sees the upcoming jewel heist as a means to finance his dream of owning a horse farm. Hunch-backed cafe owner (James Whitmore) is hired on to be the driver for the heist; professional safecracker Louis Ciavelli (Anthony Caruso) assembles the tools of his trade; and a bookie (Marc Lawrence) acts as Emmerich's go-between. The robbery is pulled off successfully, but an alert night watchman shoots Ciavelli. Corrupt cop (Barry Kelley), angry that his "patsy" (Lawrence) didn't let him in on the caper, beats the bookie into confessing and fingering the other criminals involved. From this point on, the meticulously planned crime falls apart with the inevitability of a Greek tragedy. Way down on the cast list is Marilyn Monroe in her star-making bit as Emmerich's sexy "niece"; whenever The Asphalt Jungle would be reissued, Monroe would figure prominently in the print ads as one of the stars. The Asphalt Jungle was based on a novel by the prolific W.R. Burnett, who also wrote Little Caesar and Saint Johnson (the fictionalized life story of Wyatt Earp). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sterling Hayden, Louis Calhern, (more)
- 1950
Comprised of eight unrelated episodes of inconsistent quality, this anthology piece of American propaganda features some of MGM Studios' best directors, screenwriters and actors; it is narrated by Louis Calhern. Stories are framed by the lecture of a university professor. In one tale a Boston resident becomes angry when the census forgets to record her presence. Another sketch chronicles the achievements of African Americans while still another pays tongue-in-cheek tribute to Texas. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ethel Barrymore, Gary Cooper, (more)
- 1949
Eliot Ness may have gotten lots of publicity (especially long after the fact) for breaking the Capone mob, but as Joseph H. Lewis' The Undercover Man reminds us, it was the accountants and the numbers-crunchers that brought down Capone and his mob. Frank Warren (Glenn Ford) started out as an accountant, but now serves as an investigator for the Treasury Department. His job has frequently required him to go undercover, masquerading as a criminal to get the goods on the top-level tax-law violators that his unit targets. But now his assignment is to gather evidence on the operations of the nation's number-one crime boss and get proof of the income that he and his lieutenants are not declaring, and this proves not only frustrating but dangerous. Potential stoolies are murdered and witnesses intimidated, and when one otherwise "respectable" lawyer (Barry Kelley) starts mentioning Warren's wife (Nina Foch) in casual conversation, he takes the hint. He's ready to quit until the mother (Esther Minciotti) of a witness-turned-victim tells him about what life was like in Italy under the Black Hand, and why she came to America to raise her sons. Warren and his men (James Whitmore, David Wolfe) make one last attempt to get the proof they need, tracing signatures and handwriting to get evidence implicating a small man in the operation, using it to turn him and going for bigger fish. Finally, even the shyster lawyer who has been dogging Warren every step of the way ends up in the sights of the feds, and the mob turns its attention to getting rid of this new "liability" and taking care of Warren as well. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Glenn Ford, Nina Foch, (more)
Incoming MGM production head Dore Schary ramrodded Battleground into the studio's schedule over the virulent protests of MGM boss Louis Mayer. The result was an award-winning box-office hit, as well as the beginning of the end of Mayer's power. This dramatization of the battles of Bastogne and the Bulge in the waning days of World War II concentrates on a single infantry unit. Van Johnson and John Hodiak are the ostensible stars, but the film is stolen by James Whitmore as the cigar-chomping, battle-stained sergeant. Also appearing is Ian MacDonald as General McAuliffe, whose legendary response to the Nazi's suggestion that the Americans surrender consisted of a single four-letter expletive: "Nuts". Whitmore's final scenes of near-delirium before the relief troops arrive are unforgettable. Battleground tries within MGM limits to be wholly realistic, though it is slightly compromised by the scripters' inability to use Army profanity, and by pointless subplot involving actress Denise Darcel. The film doesn't hold up as well as such wartime efforts as The Story of GI Joe or Walk in the Sun, but in 1949 Battleground was regarded as an important milestone in the field of truthful, de-glamorized combat flicks. Please avoid the colorized version: this is a black-and-white subject if ever there was one. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Van Johnson, John Hodiak, (more)
Narrated by James Whitmore, this video offers an overview of the major campaigns of the American Civil War, covering the significant battles that preceded the Confederate high-water mark of Gettysburg. Battles that receive close attention include Manassas, second Manassas, and Antietam. Also included are brief looks at the campaigns of the western front, including the battles of Shiloh and Fort Donelson. ~ Rob Ferrier, All Movie Guide
Narrated by James Whitmore, this video offers an overview of the major campaigns of the American Civil War, picking up the story at the convenient turning point of Gettysburg, the high-water mark of Confederate military designs. Included in the video are brief discussions of the battles of Fredericksburg, Chickamagua, Chattanooga, Vicksburg, the Wilderness, and the burning of Atlanta, including Sherman's famous March to the Sea, a campaign that defined the term "total war." ~ Rob Ferrier, All Movie Guide
