John Krafft Movies
American screenwriter John W. Krafft entered films in 1928 when his novel Apache Rising, a story of the Parisian demimonde, was adapted for the screen as Show Folk. Krafft was steadily employed as a title writer, remaining in this capacity even after talkies had taken hold; he composed titles for the silent versions of such early sound productions as RKO's Leathernecking (1930). He moved on to the low-budget Monogram operation in 1933, remaining there for nine years, except during the twelve months in 1936 and 1937 when the studio was shut down for reorganization. John W. Krafft's final film credit was Republic's 1943 version of James Fennimore Cooper's The Deerslayer. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1945
In this musical, a humble cigarette girl dreams of auditioning for the handsome bandleader at the nightclub. Her many attempts keep failing until her uncle appears. To help her, he impersonates a colonel and uses his "influence" to get her singing with the band. Eventually their ruse is revealed, but by then the bandleader has fallen in love with her. Songs include: "Tell It to a Star" (Shirley Botwin), "Love Me or Leave Me" (Gus Kahn, Walter Donaldson), "You're So Good to Me" (Sammy Cahn, Jule Styne), "A Batucada Corazon" (Ary Barroso). ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ruth Terry, Robert Livingston, (more)
- 1943
After gathering dust for nearly a year, the independently produced The Deerslayer attained a national release through Republic. A bottom-budget adaptation of the James Fenimore Cooper classic, the film stars Bruce Kellogg as Deerslayer, an intrepid Indian scout-hunter in the 18th century Hudson Valley. He spends most of the film escaping from hostile Indians and helping white settlers protect themselves against the savage hordes. Most of the film is amateurishly shot, with the actors fighting a losing battle against an uninspired, illogical script (in one scene, an Indian brave receives a wound in a portion of the body that was out of the range of gunfire!) In later years, Deerslayer would gain reissue value by virtue of supporting actors Larry Parks and Yvonne De Carlo, who'd gone on to achieve full-fledged stardom. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bruce Kellogg, Larry Parks, (more)
- 1943
An amoral gambler tries to beat a murder rap by adopting an orphaned newsboy in this drama. He takes in the lad to show the court that he is really a "sweetheart" and would never think of killing someone. Unfortunately, it looks as if the ruse will fail and so he takes the boy and leaves town. He is far out in the country and there meets a highly-principled young woman who helps him think about people other than himself. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rick Vallin, Bobby Larson, (more)
This Monogram "special" stars Frank Albertson as the title character, a police reporter named Larry Doyle. Our hero solves a murder case in Chicago, then moves on to St. Louis-but not voluntarily, since he has been kidnapped by the minions of the Windy City gang leader (Max Hoffman Jr.) against whom he is scheduled to testify. Eluding his captors, Doyle befriends another "lost soul" named Ann (Joan Woodbury). Together, Doyle and Ann manage to make their way back to Chicago, but not before the imprisoned mobster has arranged to frame our hero on a robbery rap. One of the lesser gangsters is played by future movie and TV favorite Arthur O'Connell, while perennial "3 Stooges" foil Christine McIntyre shows up as a telegraph girl. Rollo Lloyd, nearly always enlisted as an actor, authored the script in 1935; it was produced in 1942, four years after his death. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Frank Albertson, Joan Woodbury, (more)
- 1942
Director William "One Take" Beaudine slapped together Foreign Agent in a week or so, enabling Monogram to ship the picture to theaters before its subject matter grew stale. Set in a Hollywood movie studio (sure looks like the cramped Monogram headquarters), the story concerns a gang of Nazi agents who want to get their filthy mitts on a searchlight filter developed by studio technician Jimmy (John Shelton). Unable to alert the authorities, Jimmy is forced to turn sleuth himself to rout out and round up the villains-all played by such overly obvious types as Hans Schumm and Ivan Lebedeff (a Lithuanian actor, here cast as a Japanese!). Heroine Gale Storm sings two songs, including the deathless "It's Taps for the Japs." Jack Mulhall, who used to star in films of this nature, plays a bit role as a studio film editor. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Shelton, Gale Storm, (more)
- 1941
In this corny comedy, the Weaver Brothers learn that in 1790, their distant forebears loaned the government some cash. The government did not pay it back, and now, by their computations, they are owed a substantial amount from interest on the principal. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
In Old Cheyenne is where the viewer can find Roy Rogers and Gabby Hayes this time out. Rogers is cast as frontier journalist Steve Blane, determined to print the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth in his weekly rag. But when Steve inaugurates a series of articles about alleged bandit Arapahoe Brown (Hayes), he finds he's been misled: Arapahoe is innocent of the crimes attributed to him. The instigator of this outrage is town boss Sam Drummond (George Rosener), who hopes to use Brown as a scapegoat for his own misdeeds. Steve manages to show Drummond up as the no-good he is, pausing every so often to serenade heroine Dolores Casino (Joan Woodbury) ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Roy Rogers, George "Gabby" Hayes, (more)
- 1940
Monogram's Laughing at Danger finds page-boy Frankie Kelly (Frankie Darro) trying to solve a murder at a fancy beauty salon. It so happens that the establishment is used for blackmail purposes by a gang of crooks who eavesdrop on their gossiping clientele by means of hidden microphones. When the cops prove unable to find out who killed the owner of the salon, Kelly takes over, assistant by timid but resourceful janitor Jefferson (Mantan Moreland). The film's romantic angle is handled by opera star George Houston as a police lieutenant and perennial starlet Joy Hodges as a cosmetician. Darro and Moreland work together so well that it's a shame the film's script doesn't come up to their performances. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Frankie Darro, Joy Hodges, (more)
- 1939
Monogram's seemingly endless series of inexpensive crime mellers continued with Convict's Code. Robert Kent plays a star football player who is framed by gamblers on a robbery charge and sentenced to prison. Serving three years behind bars, Kent is paroled in the custody of the same gambling boss (Sidney Blackmer) who engineered the frame. Unaware that his benefactor is also the guy who sent him up, Kent falls in love with the gambler's innocent sister Anne Nagel. Ten points to anyone who can figure out the relevance of the film's title. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Kent, Anne Nagel, (more)
- 1939
In this comedy, a young waitress is given $1,000 from her grandfather. She desires to buy a race horse and so trustingly gives the money to a man at the track. The trouble begins when he loses the money. To make up for his mistake, he gives her a ticket for the Irish sweepstakes and then sells her a broken-down horse. Not surprisingly, both end up winners and happiness ensues. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Marie Wilson, Johnnie Davis, (more)
- 1939
In this crime drama, a gangster uses an innocent newsboy to manipulate the jury just prior to his manslaughter trial. The 10-year-old newsboy idolizes the gangster. Eventually the lad's admiration comes to deeply affect the gangster who begins to soften up. Meanwhile his moll plans to rob him. The newsboy intervenes and stops her. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Carroll, Kay Linaker, (more)
Very cheaply produced, Rebellious Daughters was released on a theater-by-theater basis as an "exploitationer." Such familiar faces as Marjorie Reynolds, Verna Hillie, Sheila Bromley and Lita Chevret play the daughters of the title, who rebel against their mommies and daddies by heading to the sinful Big City and indulging in all sorts of forbidden pleasures. Many of the wayward lasses come to grief, with the exception of the heroine, who is rescued in the nick of time by her roving-reporter boyfriend. Veteran supporting players Monte Blue, Dell Henderson and Vivien Oakland do their best to bring a bit of professionalism to the shoddy proceedings. Even in 1938, Rebellious Daughters was regarded as "camp." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Marjorie Reynolds, Verna Hillie, (more)
- 1938
Judith Allen stars as Telephone Operator Helen in this Monogram actioner. Most of the story is built around newsreel footage of the recent Ohio and Tennessee Valley floods. As telephone linemen Red (Grant Withers) and Shorty (Warren Hymer) race against time to hook up phone wires to a huge dam, the storm clouds gather and the weather gets really rough. Even so, Red and Shorty pause every so often to romance local telephone gals Helen and Dottie (Alice White). When the inevitable flood arrives, Helen's courage and stamina during the crisis leaves a lasting impression on Red, who gives up his minor flirtations and proposes marriage. Telephone Operator was one of several comeback attempts for onetime silent-screen favorite Alice White, who was still trying to recapture her former glory as late as 1948's Flamingo Road. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Judith Allen, Grant Withers, (more)
- 1938
An excellent cast elevates the quality of this ultra-cheap independent effort. Adrienne Ames stars as Helene, the owner of a posh beauty salon and reducing parlor. Most of Helene's clients are from the society's upper crust, but that doesn't prevent them from dishing out vitriolic gossip with reckless abandon. Columnist Terry Kent (William Newell) has a field day printing up the "hot" tidbits bandied about in the salon, causing no end of trouble for Helene and her boyfriend Pat Fenton (Craig Reynolds). The supporting cast is a film buff's dream, consisting of such veterans as Esther Ralston, George Meeker, Pert Kelton and Vivien Oakland. Slander House was based on a novel by Madeline Woods. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Adrienne Ames, Craig Reynolds, (more)
- 1937
Flash Casey (Eric Linden), per his nickname, is an ace photojournalist--at least, he will be once he gets out of high school. After winning a prize in a photography contest, Flash vows that within two years of his graduation, he'll own his own newsphoto agency. To attain his goal, Flash goes after a big scoop, and nearly breaks his neck in the process. Co-starring as Eric's faithful girl is Boots Mallory, at one time the sister-in-law of James Cagney. Here's Flash Casey is an agreeable piece of non-think entertainment from the Grand National quickie mills. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eric Linden, Boots Mallory, (more)
- 1937
Weldon Heyburn, poverty row's answer to Clark Gable, stars in this whodunit, in which the victim, a crusading district attorney (William Gould), is murdered by a dart laced with curare while attending a prizefight. The D.A., Sutherland, was about to arrest yet another gangland boss in a crackdown that hitherto had netted an even dozen. But is the gang behind the murder or is someone else responsible? Radio personality Swifty Taylor (Heyburn) discovers the truth and is about to announce the murderer's identity on the air when yet another killing occurs. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Weldon Heyburn, Inez Courtney, (more)
A young man is in danger of losing his inheritance in this muddled thriller from the waning Chesterfield Motion Picture Corp., a remake of the company's first talkie. After rescuing a pretty girl from a brute while crossing the English channel, Barry Wilding (Leslie Fenton) learns that he has inherited the large Hawk's Nest estate on the condition that he never sell the place. He also discovers that the girl, Julie Kenmore (Muriel Evans), lives on the estate along with her father (Morgan Wallace), a noted scientist. After agreeing that Julie and her father may remain on the estate for at least six months, Barry is dumbfounded when the girl prohibits him from visiting her. He does so anyway and is promptly confronted by nasty American gangster Dan Wharton (Noel Madison). What exactly is the gang lord doing at Hawk's Nest and why are the British authorities so reluctant to help the troubled heir? The answer, as Barry discovers soon enough, has something to do with a treasure hidden on the estate. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Leslie Fenton, Muriel Evans, (more)
Eccentric professor Einfeld (Lee Kohlmar) is lecturing a select group of scientists at a darkened planetarium when one of the spectators is shot to death. Homicide detective Ted Mallory (Russell Hopton) can't get a straight story from the witnesses and refuses to allow reporter Kay Palmer (Lola Lane) to file her story until he can determine the direction from which the murderer fired the shots. Kay manages to phone in her story anyway, putting Mallory on the spot with the DA. Burying the hatchet, Mallory and Kay combine forces to nab the killer and expose his diabolically clever method of firing a gun without being present in the room! Though filmed on a tiny budget, Death from a Distance is an impressively spooky whodunit, benefitting immeasurably from the special-effects expertise of Jack Cosgrove. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Russell Hopton, Lola Lane, (more)
The "Crime Club" detective-novel series spawned a film counterpart in 1935, which for the next four years bounced around such studios as Warner Bros., Universal, and Chesterfield. The last-named company's contribution was Murder at Glen Athol, based on a novel by Norman Lippincott. Usually cast as an oily villain, John Miljan heads the cast as detective Bill Holt, who has suspects aplenty to choose from when the titular murder takes place. The catalyst for the killing -- and all follow-up killings -- is faithless wife Muriel Randall, an uncharacteristic assignment for brassy blonde character-comedienne Iris Adrian. As was usually the case in the Chesterfield product, Murder at Glen Athol is populated by several former silent-movie favorites, including Barry Norton, Betty Blythe (heavily disguised as an old lady, which she wasn't at the time) and Robert Frazer. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Miljan, Irene Ware, (more)
In this drama, a manicurist is mistaken for the winner of a large sweepstakes and finds herself pursued by fortune hunters. One of them wants to marry her for the publicity and a stage contract. The trouble really begins when the real winner shows up. She is more than happy to let the manicurist get all the attention, provided she gets the money. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patricia Farr, William Bakewell, (more)
- 1936
A couple of naïve girls get themselves unwittingly involved in the gambling racket in this Poverty Row production directed by the redoubtable Phil Rosen. Runaway Ann Jason (Ann Doran) finds shelter in big, bad New York City with the Traveler's Aid Society, one of those organizations run by bored socialites. The socialite in question is Dorothy Benson (Muriel Evans), the daughter of a state senator (Wallis Clark) who is advocating a bill that would legalize gambling and make the profits taxable. But the senator is murdered by gangster Ben Davis (Noel Madison), who is confident that the blame will fall on racketeer Dan Collins (Sidney Blackmer), the senator's foe. Investigating newspaper reporter Jimmie Dugan (Roger Pryor), meanwhile, would rather go to prison than divulge his sources but changes his mind when Davis kidnaps Ann and Dorothy. Disguised as a hobo, Jimmie locates both the girls and the gangsters and after the inevitable showdown reveals that he is an undercover G-Man. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Roger Pryor, Muriel Evans, (more)
Another above-average entry in Paramount's Zane Grey series, Arizona Raiders was adapted from Grey's Riders of Spanish Peaks. Buster Crabbe, here billed under his given name of Larry, stars as outlaw Laramie Nelson, who at the beginning of the picture manages to escape a "necktie party." A sense of obligation which Laramie himself cannot explain leads him to rescue another miscreant, Tracks Williams (Raymond Hatton), from a similar demise. The two desert rats team up with a third, handsome young Lone Alonzo Mulhall (Johnny Downs), whereupon the threesome engage in numerous adventures, many of them humorous in nature. Marsha Hunt, as much of a "regular" in the Zane Grey series as Crabbe and Hatton, plays the self-reliant ingenue. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Larry "Buster" Crabbe, Raymond Hatton, (more)
- 1935
In this children's movie, a married vaudevillian team learns that talent scouts are looking for the new Shirley Temple. Unfortunately, they have an adorable little boy. This does not prevent them from dressing up like Temple and entering him in a contest, which he, unfortunately for him, wins. He then finds himself bewigged and train-bound for Hollywood. The hapless lad, would rather die than face life as a little girl, and so leaps from the speeding train. He soon encounters a friendly vagabond and a gang of fugitive bank robbers who think the lad may be able to help them with their nefarious schemes. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Arline Judge, Ray Walker, (more)
This peppy Monogram meller stars Robert Armstrong as a big-city newspaper reporter. After getting a bonus, Armstrong over-celebrates and wakes up in faraway St. Louis without a penny to his name. He finagles passing-stranger Maxine Doyle into posing as his wife so that he'll be able to get a hotel room. While thus occupied, Armstrong finds time to solve a local mystery and secure another bonus that will enable him to marry Doyle for real. Mystery Man was directed by Leo McCarey's kid brother Raymond, a veteran of the Hal Roach and Columbia 2-reel comedy factories. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Armstrong, Maxine Doyle, (more)
- 1932
In this murder mystery, everyone around a murdered movie producer is a suspect, including his girl friend. Most of those involved have good reason to kill him. The murder occurred on a ship bound for a new location; all the suspects are aboard. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Greta Nissen, Mary Brian, (more)
