Motion Picture Herald (Nov-Dec 1944)

finth' guffaws. Reviewer's Rating: Good. — Mandel Herbstman. Release date, December 29, 1944. Running time, 62 min. PCA No. 10269. General audience classification. Miiggs Leo Gorcey Glimpey . . .Huntz Hall Billy Benedict, Jimmy Strand, Bobby Jordan, Bud Gorman, Anne Sterling, Gabriel Dell, Frank Jaquet, Francis Ford. Evelyn Brent, Eddie Clierkose, Wheeler Oakman. Ian Keith, Tlielma White. Bill Rhul. Rustlers' Hideout PRC, i943-44 — \f/e$iem When Buster Crabbe teams up with Al "Fuzzy" St. John, and Charles King once again has an opportunity to display his unquestioned talent for villainy, Western fans can be assured full enjoyment of their favorite cinematic form. This film, under the experienced direction of Sam Newfield, has what it takes to make an enjoyable Western. Joe O'Donnell's original story and screenplay concerns a notorious band of thieves, who, among other crimes, specialize in rustling cattle. When Buster Crabbe descends upon them, he runs into everything in the repertory of skullduggery, including a charge of murder. There is a full quota of gunplay and hard ridine, sprinkled with bright flashes of awkward comedy from "Fuzzy." The broad sweep of frontier hills and river are caught vividly by Jack Greenhalgh's camera. Of course, Crabbe finally succeeds in outmaneuvering the desperadoes and bringing them to justice. Pattie McCarthy is pleasing in providing the necessary feminine touch. Sigmund Neufeld produced. Seen in the New York theatre on Broadway, where inveterate Western fans had a good time. Reviewer's Rating: Good. — M. H. Release date, September 2, 1944. Running time, 60 min. PCA No. 10161. General audience classification. Billy Carson Buster Crabbe Fuzzy Jones ..Al St. John Patti McCarty, Charles King, John Merton, Terry Frost. Hal Price, Lane Chandler, Al Ferguson, Frank McCarroll, Ed Cassidy. The Girl Who Dared Republic, 1943-44 — Murder Mystery The device of crowding a group of likely suspects into an isolated house and then crossing them off one by one in subsequent murders is not . so effective here as it has been in the past. There is too' little opportunity in the 56 minutes to give life to the characters and situations and hold the interest of the audience in the complicated puzzle. But there ' is enough action, attempted murder and ghost play to satisfy the mystery fan. Medora Field's novel, "Blood on Her Shoe," adapted to the screen by John K. Butler, springs the first murder in the middle of a ghost hunt, while a collection of house guests with no love for eacli other prowl through the shrubbery. The second body is found dangling from a rafter in the ■Cellar, and a third appears in due course after the first has disappeared. By this time the hunt has switched from ghosts to radium. Lorna Gray, Peter Cookson and Grant Withers perform in routine fashion, and Veda Ann Borg plays twin sisters indiscriminately. Howard Bretherton adds little to the story by his direction. Rudolph E. Abel was associate producer. r. Seen in Loew's Sheridan theatre, New York, its/here n youthful afternoon audience remained audibly unconvinced. Reviewer's Rating : Average. — ^E. A. Cunningham. Release date, August 5, 1944. Running time, 56 min. PCA No. 9897. General audience classification. Ann Carroll Lorna Gray Rufus Blair Peter Cookson Girant Withers, Veda Ann Borg. John Hamilton, Willie Best, Vivien Oakland, Ray Barcroft, Kirk Alyn. SHORT SUBJECTS reviews and synopses {Running times are those quoted by the distributors.) Strangers in the Night Republic, 1943-44 — Romance of a Soldier There is an unusual idea here with a good measure of suspense, but it is poorly served by the melodrama of the climax. A small cast of, earnest performers sustains the story well past the midpoint, however, and a burst of drama at the close overrides the inconsistencies of the film. The center of interest from the beginning is a beautiful girl who doesn't exist. She is the prod 2174 ZORRO'S BLACK WHIP (Rep.) Serial The latest chapter play from Republic is set in 1899 when the Territory of Idaho is about to vote on entering the Union as a state. The forces opposed to statehood are those opposed to law and order for their own purposes, and their efforts to thwart the desires of the settlers provide the excitement of the film. "Zorro's Black Whip" has the usual abundance of mystery and action, captures and escapes but it offers novelty in the person of its heroine. She takes on the identity of the Whip, a masked rider who avenges wrong with gun and cattle whip, after the death of her father. Working with her to further the newspaper campaign in favor of the Union is a government agent, who does not learn of the Whip's identity until he has been twice saved by her from the outlaw gang. Leading the forces against them is the owner of the city stage line at the head of a band of renegades. Linda Stirling plays the enterprising girl, and George J. Lewis is the government man. Others in the cast include Lucien Littlefield, Francis McDonald, Hal Taliaferro and Jay Kirby. Two directors. Spencer Bennet and Wallace Grissell, , and four script writers, Basil Dickey, Jesse Duffy, Grant Nelson, and Joseph Poland, collaborated on the film. Ronald Davidson was associate producer. Running time for the first chapter is 23 minutes, for succeeding chapters 14 minutes. Release date, December 16, 1944 12 episodes I WONT PLAY (WB) Fcaturetfe (1104) ' A group of young players, headed by Dane Clark and Jaiiis Paige, enact a small drama at a South Pacific Marine base, with romance and music for entertainment. The central character is a young man who has boasted of his success in show business without ever giving any proof of his abilities. The time comes when he must prove himself before his comrades and the visiting entertainers or admit his exaggerations. It turns out that he was all that he had represented himself to be. Release date, November 11, 1944 20 minnfcs uct of a crippled woman's frustrated desire for a child and a serviceman's romantic attachment to letters from an unseen correspondent. When the man returns wounded from the South Pacific he tries to see the girl whose letters had helped him recover, and is warmly welcomed by her mother. The woman hopes to avoid telling him the truth while satisfying herself of the Marine's love for her imaginary child. A woman doctor is called to the house and helps uncover the secret, but not in time to prevent the death of the woman and her companion. Helene Thimig is responsible for much of the pathos of the film in her portrayal of the woman whose yearning for romance is satisfied by an imaginary daughter. William Terry is properly disturbedand sensitive as the young Marine, and Virginia Grey gives an appearance of charm and efficiency as the doctor. Edith Barrett is effective in the role of the tormented companion. The original idea was furnished in a story by Phillip MacDonald and written into screenplay form by Bryant Ford and Paul Gangelin. Anthony Mann directed and Rudolph E. Abel produced. Seen in the RKO Jefferson theatre, Nezv York, zmth an unresponsive audience. Revieivcr's Rating : Fair. — E. A. C. Release date, September 12, 1944. Running time, 56 min. PCA No. 10201. General audience classification. Sgt. Johnny Meadows William Terry Dr. Leslie Rose Virgmia Grey Mrs. Hilda Blake ,.. Helene Thimig Edith Barrett. Anne O'Neal. OLD GREY HARE (WB) Bugs Bunny Special (9726) The feud between Bugs and Elmer has gone on until it is now 2000 A.D. Elmer is a bent old man and Bugs is a not-so-spry rabbit with a beard. But the end has really come. Elmer catches the rabbit and shoots. With his dying breath Bugs wistfully recalls the old days of their battle as Elmer becomes a bit nostalgic too. This is all Bugs has been waiting for. Release date, October 28, 1944 7 minutes YANKEE DOODLE DONKEY (Para.) Noveltoons (P4-1) This season's first short release from Famous Studios reports an adventure of Spunky the Donkey. Saddened by the lack of service organizations for donkeys he adopts a disguise and tries to join the Wags. His distinctive bray and long ears give him away, and he is rejected. When the flea army attacks, however, his thick hide is invaluable for tank action. With his help the pests are routed. Release date, October 27, 1944 10 minutes FLICKER FLASHBACKS. NO. 2 (RKO-Pathe) Three clips from the old silent days, from 1903, 1904 and 1909, in fact, make up the amusing collection'of screen reminiscences. "The Fate of an Artist's Model" is the first moral lesson, followed by "Pull Down the Curtain, Susie." An early thriller with Henry B. Walthall called "The Sealed Room" or "A Ghastly Revenge" completes the bill. Release date, October 27, 1944 9^ minutes CHAMPIONS OF THE FUTURE (WB) Sports Parade (9512) All under 10, these sports enthusiasts are already on the road to being experts. There's Don Carson, a sharpshooter ; Rose Marie Spawn, a horsewoman at four ; George Nokes and Paulette Henry, 7-year-old swimmers ; George Moore, a tennis champion, and Beverly Anne Stensvald, figure skater. Release date, November 4, 1944 10 minutes HARRY OWENS AND HIS ROYAL HAWAIIAN ORCHESTRA (WB) Melody Masters (1603) Here is some music from the old Hawaii when Waikiki Beach and not Pearl Harbor was the principal point of interest. Harry Owens plays some of his own compositions along with a few Island favorites : "Happy Hawaiian Beach Boy," " J omi, Tomi," "Hula Rhumba," "Song of the Sea," "Maui Girl" and the familiar "Aloha Oe." Release date, November 4, 1944 10 minutes OUTDOOR LIVING (WB) Vitaphone Varieties (1403) This is another adventure with Howard Hill, famed archer and cameraman. He takes a group of friends through a canyon in Nevada with no modern equipment for eating or sleeping, and only bow and arrow for protection. The campers manage to create their own beds, build a fire, cook a good meal, catch fish and kill a prowling bobcat. Release date, November 4, 1944 10 minutes I LOVE TO SINGA (WB) Bine Ribbon Hit Parade (1304) Papa and Mamma Owl have high hopes for their young* quadruplets along musical lines. All show great promise except one, who threatens to become a crooner. Rejected by his family, he wanders off into a woodsy amateur hour and is headed for the prize when the Owls file in. Quickly he switches from swing to the classics, but gives up for the only style he knows and finds the family joining in. Release date, November 18, 1944 7 minutes PRODUCT DIGEST SECTION, NOVEMBER II, 1944