Connie Lee Movies

This 20th entry in Columbia's long-running "Blondie" series finds poor Dagwood Bumstead (Arthur Lake) in financial trouble once again. Unable to obtain a raise from boss Radcliffe (Jerome Cowan), Dagwood begins "playing the ponies" at the race track, which gets him in trouble with the Law-not to mention his long-suffering wife Blondie (Penny Singleton). But salvation is at hand in the form of bank president Samuel Breckinridge (Grant Mitchell), who expresses a lot of gratitude when Dagwood saves Mrs. Breckinridge (Mary Young), likewise a horse player, from being arrested in a bookie-joint raid. The "regular" cast of the "Blondie" series remains the same as before, with the exception of Bobby Larson, who for this entry only replaces Danny Mummert as Alvin Fuddle. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Daisy, the Bumstead's mischievous mutt, makes the family a little extra cash when she wins a contest to become a model for the Navy. From there she becomes the favorite calendar gal. All the attention to the dog, makes Dagwood feel that his position as master of the house is jeopardized. Meanwhile all the attention catches the greedy eyes of gangsters who abduct Daisy. Fortunately, everything works out for the best. This was one of many entries in the comic-strip based series of domestic comedies. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

After a two-year layoff, Columbia revived its moneymaking "Blondie" series with 1945's Leave It to Blondie. Older but no wiser, Blondie and Dagwood Bumstead (Penny Singleton, Arthur Lake) enter a songwriting contest. It's all part of a plan to cover charity checks that they've signed separately but can't cover. Along the way, Blondie's blood boils when Dagwood gets innocently mixed up with beautiful music teacher Rita Rogers (Marjorie Weaver). The best scenes involve Dagwood's misguided efforts to cure a cold, leading to several motheaten but still reliable slapstick setpieces. Leave it to Blondie proved that the series hadn't lost its humor as Dagwood is arrested for murder, obliging our heroine to solve the case herself. Former bandleader Kirby Grant registers well as the nominal hero, while Milburn Stone scores as an imitation Walter Winchell (named "Winchester", no less!) ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Footlight Glamour is one of two "Blondie" series entries in which Blondie's name isn't included in the credits. Otherwise, the film adheres strictly to formula, with Dagwood Bumstead (Arthur Lake) getting into a mess and Dagwood's wife Blondie (Penny Singleton) getting him out of it. This time around, Dagwood's boss Dithers (Jonathan Hale) is hoping that wealthy tool manufacturer Randolph Wheeler (Thurston Hall) will be a war plant on some of Dithers' real estate. Wheeler's daughter Vicki (Ann Savage) wants to be an actress, but her father strongly opposes her pursuing a theatrical career. Trouble begins to brew when Vicki is cast in a community-theatre production written by Blondie, who is unaware of Wheeler's anti-showbiz stance. Poor Dagwood is forced to prevent Wheeler from seeing the play, leading to a slapsticky denouement on opening night. Many of the amateur-theatrical gags (props that don't work, actors who can't remember their lines) are straight out of George Kelly's The Torch Bearers, but they're just as funny the second time around. Particularly amusing is "Blondie" regular Irving Bacon (Mr. Crum the Postman) ineptly portraying a British butler. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Anxious to do her bit for the war effort, Blondie (Penny Singleton) joins the Housewives of America, a home defense league. Husband Dagwood (Arthur Lake) soon finds that Blondie is neglecting her responsibilities at home in favor of her war work; also disgruntled are Dagwood's chauvinistic boss Mr. Dithers (Jonathan Hale) and a newlywed husband (Stu Erwin) whose wife is never home thanks to the defense league. Following a slapstick denouement at a power plant, in which the husbands are shown the error of their macho attitude, Blondie promises to devote more time to Dagwood--but at the same time delivers a patriotic speech to the women in the audience, exhorting them to align with the "Home Front". Blondie for Victory was twelfth in Columbia's series of comedy films based on Chic Young's popular comic strip Blondie. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this musical comedy, a musical comedy star is finally reunited with her estranged son whom she hasn't seen in 20 years. She is so happy she buys him a little restaurant which he and his friends turn into a dinner theater. Soon they make the place a great success. Songs include: include "Annabella," "It Makes No Difference When You're in the Army" (Johnny Lange, Lew Porter), "Put Your Trust in the Moon" (June Baldwin, Charles Callender), "Zis Boom Bah" (Elaine Cannon), "Good News Tomorrow," "I've Learned to Smile Again" (Neville Fleeson). ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

A nightclub singer becomes actively involved in the education of the son she has never seen. She uses almost everything she makes to pay his tuition and expenses. One day she goes to the college to see how well he is doing. She is horrified to see that he is squandering his opportunity by spending his time going to parties and carousing with women. Later she learns that the college is nearly bankrupt. To save it she opens a club near campus and uses the profits to help out. Meanwhile her son grows up a bit, understands why education is important and buckles down to become a serious student. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Like so many Gene Autry westerns of the early 1940s, Carolina Moon draws its title from a popular song of the era, duly warbled by Autry in the course of the film. In fact, music takes precedence over action in this outing, which would remain one of Gene's quietest and most laid-back vehicles. The plot finds Autry and his perennial saddle pal Frog (Smiley Burnette) coming to the rescue of several elderly Carolina plantation owners, presently at the mercy of a Uriah Heep-ish villain. The southern setting is as good an excuse as any to trot out several African American spirituals, soulfully performed by the Hall Johnson Choir. And as mentioned, Autry tackles the title tune, singing enthusiastically to wide-eyed heroine June Storey. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Gene Autry rescues a young boy from a gang of kidnappers in this delightful musical-Western from Republic Pictures. Having lost their jobs with the rodeo, Gene and sidekick Frog Millhouse (Smiley Burnette) are heading west when they discover a young British stowaway, Ronnie Willoughby (Clifford Severn Jr.), who mistakenly assumes that the two cowboys represent his father's large "Rancho San Quentin." Gene, however, doesn't have the heart to tell the boy that San Quentin is no ranch at all, but the state penitentiary. Along the way, the merry little group picks up a couple of pretty hitchhikers, runaway society bride-to-be Joyce Halloway (June Storey) and her kid sister, Patsy (Mary Lee), and they, too, keep mum about "Rancho San Quentin." In fact, Joyce nobly arranges for her own family ranch to be renamed after the prison lest the boy should learn the truth. Wrongly assuming that Gene and company are kidnappers, Ronnie's father, Frederick (Lester Matthews), makes a daring escape from San Quentin but Gene manages to make it appear as if the escapee is returning from a long and arduous cattle drive. The real kidnappers turn up soon enough, of course, and after the inevitable chase, Willoughby's establishes his innocence and Gene agrees to stay on as Joyce's foreman. Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, and girl singer Mary Lee perform no less than seven musical numbers, including the title tune, "The Singing Hills," "Give out With a Song," Headin' for the Wild Open Spaces," and "Wooing of Kitty MacFuty." A television print entitled Keep Rollin' also exists, but without many of the songs and all the Mexican cantina production numbers. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide

The action content of Republic's Gene Autry musical westerns was considerably enhanced by veteran director B. Reeves "Breezy" Eason, as demonstrated by the mile-a-minute Mountain Rhythm. True, there's a plot, with Autry coming to the rescue of elderly Maude Eburne, who is in danger of losing her ranch to the crooked owner (Walter Fenner) of a resort hotel. And, yes, there's comedy relief aplenty, not only from standard Autry sidekick Smiley Burnette but also from hoboes Ferris Taylor and Jack Pennick. And, sure, Autry sings a number of songs to leading lady June Storey. But the main selling card of Mountain Rhythm is action with a capital "A"-especially during a climactic chase which conjures up pleasant memories of Breezy Eason's chariot-race sequence in 1926's Ben-Hur. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Directed by the veteran J.P. McGowan, Where the West Begins was the fourth of 22 Westerns -- some with music -- starring Jack Randall (aka Addison Randall), the lesser-known brother of Robert Livingston. This time around, Randall played Jack Manning, a ranch foreman, who, when not battling a greedy neighbor (Dick Alexander), warbles such tunes as "Sleep, Little Cowboy, Sleep" and "I'm in Prairie Heaven," both by Connie Lee, and "Born to the Range" by Johnny Lange and Fred Stryker. Ranch owner Lynne Reed (Luana Walters) is more interested in pursuing an acting career than paying attention to her property, which unbeknownst to her contains a large deposit of sulfur. Assisted by his sidekick, Buzz (Fuzzy Knight), Jack not only saves the ranch from the evil neighbor, but wins the love and affection of Lynne, who abandons all hope of stardom in favor of marriage. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide

Inasmuch as diminutive Frankie Darro was Hollywood's foremost portrayer of jockeys, it should come as no surprise that Darro heads the cast of Racing Blood. The story begins when young Frankie Reynolds (Darro) rescues a crippled nag from the glue factory. With faith and perserverance Frankie builds the horse into a champion racer, only to be kidnapped by the villains on the eve of the Big Race. Escaping from his captors, our hero commandeers an ambulance (a bit "borrowed" from Joe E. Brown's Alibi Ike) and makes it to the racetrack in the nick o' time. Darro's frequent costar Kane Richmond plays stable owner Clay Harrison, who in the last reel proves a suitable love interest for Frankie's sister Phyllis (Gladys Blake). Minimal comedy relief is provided by black actor Fred Toones, once again demeaningly billed as "Snowflake". ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide