Harrison's Reports (1933)

170 HARRISON’S REPORTS October 28, 1933 “Aggie Appleby, Maker of Men” with Wynne Gibson, Charles Farrell and William Gargan (RKO, ^,'ov. 3; running time, 72 min.) A fair comedy for the masses. Some of the dialogue and situations are rather vulgar, but since they are treated mostly in a comedy vein they are not so offensive. The plot is far-fetched but it holds the interest fairly well because of the comedy situations and of the good performances. Most spectators will be disappointed in the breaking up of the love affair between Wynne Gibson and Charles Farrell, even though it is the logical outcome. The comedy is brought about by the efforts of Wynne to make over the characters of two men — Charles Farrell, from a gentlemanly and timid person, to a he-man ; and William Gargan, from a redblooded he-man, to a calm and subdued working man Wynne Gibson and William Gargan are lovers, living together although unmarried. Gargan’s weakness is to pick fights with policemen. This eventually lands him in prison. He leaves Wynne stranded, and she cannot obtain a position. Her friend, Zasu Pitts, is a chambermaid in a rooming house, and one day she allows Wynne to use Charles Farrell’s apartment while he is out. He comes home earlier than they had expected and although at first he is shocked he becomes friendly with Wynne. He is a timid soul but when Wynne tells him she is without funds he tells her she may continue living in his apartment as his housekeeper. He comes from a good family and is out to make good on his own. But he cannot find a position. Wynne teaches him how to be tough and assert himself and he soon becomes boss of a construction gang. They become lovers and he wants to marry her. Gargan is released from prison and sets out to find Wynne. Farrell receives a visit from his aunt and former fiancee but tells them he is going to marry Wynne. Wynne realizes she would be in his way and tells him a lie — that she is married to Gargan. This cures Farrell. Gargan and Wynne remain together but this time she insists that he marry her, change his disposition and take a position as a floorwalker to all of which he agrees. The plot was adapted from a story by Joseph O. Kesselring. It was directed by Mark Sandrich. In the cast are Betty Furness and Blanche Friderici. Not for children, adolescents, or Sundays. “Walls of Gold” with Sally Eilers, Norman Foster and Ralph Morgan (I'ox, Oct. 13; running time, 73 min.) ■‘Walls of Gold” will probably entertain fairly well women audiences because of the sympathy they will feel for Sally Eilers who is unhappy in her marriage and thwarted in her desire to have a child ; also because of the lavish clothes worn. But it is not pleasant entertainment since the characters in the story are unsympathetic and worthless. Ralph Morgan, Sally’s husband, is cruel in his treatment to her, and heartless in his relationships with other women. Norman Foster is spineless ; without waiting for explanations he runs off and marries another woman when he thinks Sally had been unfaithful. Sally Eilers is the only one who wins some sympathy, even though at first one feels resentment towards her for having married an elderly man, for his money. The brightest spot in the picture is during one situation when Rosita Morena dances ; this is excellent. Sally Eilers is a successhil woman. She meets Norman Foster w'ho works in the office of Ralph Morgan, his uncle, a wealthy philanderer. Sally and Norman fall in love and hope to marry. But Morgan is infatuated with Sally and sets out to prove to Norman that she is no better than the rest. Morgan insists that .Sally accept an expensive fur coat from him as a gesture of friendship. This embitters Norman, who gets drunk and then goes to Sally’s mother’s home in the country. Her younger sister comforts him and he induces her to elope with him. Sally is heartbroken and eventually marries Morgan, who tells her she was made for luxury. But her marriage is an unhappy one; Morgan continues his affairs with other women and forbids Sally to have a child. Sally’s sister dies giving birth to her baby and Sally takes the child into her home to rear him during Foster’s absence — Foster had been sent to .South America on a construction job. When he returns they realize they still love each other but Morgan refuses to give Sally a divorce. Morgan is killed in a quarrel with one of his women. Sally and Norman later marry. The plot was adapted from a stor> by Kathleen Norris. It was directed by Kenneth MacKenna. In the cast are Rochelle Hudson, Marjorie Gateson, Mary Mason, and others. Not suitable for children, adolescents, or Sundavs. “Police Car 17” with Tim McCoy and Evalyn Knapp (Columbia, Sept. 30; running time, 58 min.') Columbia gets away from the routine western in this story, and instead presents Tim McCoy as a policeman in an action melodrama that is a fairly thrilling entertainment. It holds one in suspense, and the closing scenes in which the heroine and her father are in danger of being killed by the villain are exciting. The spectator is shown how radio police work is done, and excitement is kept at pitch during some of the situations in which the police race to overtake criminals. There is human interest in the heroine’s devotion to her father, and the romance between the hero and the heroine is pleasant : — The hero, a radio policeman, meets the heroine, whose father was a former police Lieutenant. He had been crippled by a bullet from the villain’s gun in capturing the villain. The hero proposes to the heroine but she refuses him because of her father to whom she devoted all her spare time. The villain escapes from prison and comes back to town to take charge of his gang, and to kill the heroine’s father which he had sworn to do. He learns from a friend of the heroine, member of his gang, that her father was to be taken to the hospital for an operation. He sends his own ambulance around and not knowing of the trick the heroine goes with her father and is taken to the villain’s home. The hero sets out to rescue them when the kidnaping is discovered. He beats the gangster friend into telling him the whereabouts of the heroine and her father. He arrives there just as the villain was making ready to shoot both of them. The villain is captured. The father eventually recovers from an operation and is able to walk again. Hero and heroine marry. The story and direction are by Lambert Hillyer. In the cast are Wallis Clark, Ward Bond, Harold Huber, Edwin Maxwell, and others. Suitable for children, adolescents, and Sundays. “Bombshell” with Jean Harlow and Lee Tracy ( MGM , Oct. 13 ; running time, 95 min. ) Great entertainment for the masses. Fast-moving, filled with laughs and nonsensical situations, it holds the interest and never lags, in spite of the fact that it hasn’t much of a story to tell. It is made up of incidents in the life of a famous moving picture actress, and the hectic situations Lee Tracy, her publicity-mad manager, gets her into. The whole thing doesn’t make much sense, but the spectator will not worry about this for the laughs come frequently, continuing to the end. One comical situation is where Jean Harlow tries to impress two women inspectors from an orphanage with the peace and charm of her life ; all her hopes are smashed when T racy, who docs not want her to adopt a baby, stages a wild fight in her home between two of her lovers, and brings in her drunken father and numbskull brother. But the most comical situation comes towards tlie end where the heroine sees possibilities in marrying Franchot Tone, who supposedly comes from a fine Boston family. She does not know that Tracy had arranged the whole affair so that these people might humiliate her and send her back to the studio to finish her picture. The story revolves around Jean Harlow, a famous moving picture star. She leads a hectic life from morning until night, pestered by her drunken father, supplying her gambling brother with money, acting, and trying to rid herself of Lee Tracy, her publicity manager. Tracy loves her, but she is so fed up on his stunts and endeavors to paint her as a .scarlet woman that she will not listen to his pleas of love. She suddenly feels the urge for a child and decides to adopt one. But Tracy sees to it that she is stopped from doing this by disgracing her before the investigating committee. She is so angry that she leaves her home, and refuses to finish the picture she was working in. Tracy follows her but she refuses to listen to him. She meets Franchot Tone who proposes to her. When she meets his family, supposedly of a fine Boston family, she tries to impress them ; but when they discover she is a film star with a reputation they will not agree to their son’s marrying her, and Tone agrees with his parents. This makes Jean so angry that she insults them and gladly goes back to the studio with Tracy. M’lien she finds out that the whole thing was a trick conceived by Tracy to bring her back to the studio she is an^y again. But she now realizes she loves him and forgives him. The plot was adapted from t'ne play by Caroline Francke and Mack Crane. It was directed by Victor Fleming. Others in the cast are Frank Morgan. Una Merkel. Ted Healy, Pat O’Brien. Not for children, adolescents, or Sundays,