Undercover Agent (Monogram) (1939)

Drama of U. S. Postal ON ooo occccccosesss DCTEON oe Inspectors **Under cover Agent” Features Monogram ’s Russell Gleason and Shirley Deane In Cast ae a (REVIEW ) The post office battles gangsters in Monogram’s_ thrilling “Undercover Agent,” the story of a man’s loyalty in the face of dishonor, which is now showing at the ........0... theatre. Counterfeiters with phoney sweepstakes tickets invade the mails, and the postal inspectors are called in to track down the criminals. Inspector Bill Trent has been suspended from the service, but when he gets a clue as to the identity of the ringleader, he sets out singlehanded to track down this killer, although it means breaking with the girl he loves, who is employed by the mastermind. It is Betty’s irresponsible father, innocently selling the sweepstakes tickets, who leads Bill to the criminal, and it is the same old man who inadvertently leads him into Bartel’s trap. But Betty has learned of Bartel’s duplicity, and it is she who informs the postal authorities, who race against time to save Bill and her father from Bartel’s gunmen. Russell Gleason scores as Bill Trent, the ambitious postal clerk, and he is teamed with Shirley Deane, who plays Betty, a dramatic role well suited to Miss Deane’s varied talents. Maude Eburne is excellent as the comic Mrs. Minnow, crochety old landlady, and J. M. Kerrigan almost steals the show as the no-account braggadocio, Tom Madison, Betty’s father. Original story for “Undercover Agent,” an E. B. Derr production, was the work of Martin Mooney, famous Hearst reporter who was jailed for contempt of court for not revealing the sources of his startling articles exposing graft in New York. Milton Raison wrote the screenplay, and Howard Bretherton directed. BREVITIES i Shirley Deane and Russell Gleason, who play the leading roles in Monogram’s “Undercover Agent,’’ now at thie ee theatre, are perhaps the most famous “married couple” in the world, as they play the young newlyweds in the “Jones Family” series. Russell Gleason, who plays the leading role in Monogram's ‘'Undercover Agent,” now at the theatre, is the son of James Gleason and Lucille Gleason, famous acting team, so he comes by his ability naturally. Undercover Agents The phoney sweepstakes racket is exposed by Russell Gleason and Shirley “Undercover theatre. One Col. Cut or Mat No. 6 Deane in Monogram’s Agent” current at the Monogram’s imaginative jectionist, Tommy Jones. 14 “99 rushes Monogram executives, he finds time to dream up various inventions, amus IN CRIME-BUSTING DRAMA Russell Gleason and Shirley Deane play leading roles in Monogram’s “Under cover Agent,” scheduled to open at the theatre. The film drama shows the role United States postal inspectors play in exposing a phoney sweepstakes racket. Two Col. Cut -~=-BORN TO ACT. or Mat No. 4 ‘ ¢ Russell Gleason, Son of Veteran Troupers, ‘ t ' Plays Lead in Monogram’s “‘Undercover Agent” fg <> p> <> SS ——_— — —S — wD =| — — —= |S -—p Russell Gleason was born to greasepaint, and on his father’s side comes from a long line of dramatists. For Russ is the son of Jimmy and} Lucille Gleason, for years one. of the theatre’s brightest acting teani, and right now, shining stars of the cinema. Russ, who is currently playing the leading role in Monogram’s “Undercover Agent,” now at the ................ thea-_ tre, was born when his parents were playing stock in Oakland, California, but they kept him off the stage. He went to school in Oakland, and ‘later to the University of California. In 1929, with the advent of talking pictures, the Gleasons moved to Hollywood, where they entered pictures. Then Russ was allowed to follow the career he had set his heart on, and he made his first picture, “Flying Fools.” From that moment on, there was never any question as to whether or not Russ could act, or as to what profession he would follow. In rapid succession he made “Strange Cargo,” “Officer O’Brien,” “The Sophomore,” and “Shady Lady.” Then he was given his big chance in “All Quiet on the Western Front.” Many more hits followed, and then in 1936 Russ met up with the “Jones Family” as Bonnie Jones’ boy friend. In 1937 he married into the family, and has been there ever since in such pictures as “Big Business,” “Off to the Races” “Everybody’s Baby,” and “Love on a Budget.” Incidentally, Shirley Deane, who plays opposite Russ in “Undercover Agent,” also plays Bonnie Jones Thompson, Russ’s bride in the “Jones Family” series. But Russ ‘manages to sandwich in a few. outside roles between the Jones Family pictures. He prefers to do this t's ’ s 2° just to keep his hand in,” and usually likes to play dramatic parts instead of the usual comedy roles. In .“Undercover Agent” Russell Gleason plays the role of Bill Trent, postal clerk who is suspended from the service on the eve of his being appointed Postal Inspector, but who tracks down a gang of counterfeiters single-handed when he discovers that they are defrauding the mails. Outstanding also in the cast are Shirley Deane, Oscar O’Shea, Maude Eburne, and J. M. Kerrigan. Howard Bretherton directed from the screenplay by Milton Raison. Studio Projectionist Invents ingenious Mechanical Toy A new kind of toy is introduced in Monogram’s “Undercover Agent,” now playing -atethe? (20.2. theatre, with Shirley Deane and ‘Russell Gleason in the top roles. The toy is “Jigger Joe.” a wooden $s blackfaced comedian, who tap dances on a wooden platform manipulated by invention of studio pro hand, and he is the When Tommy isn’t busy running the or a finished picture for ing or useful. Usually his automobile is Tommy’s main diversion. It is now equipped with practically every labor and money device he could think of. One of these, a Diesel engine conversion attachment, saves Tommy many dollars a week on gasoline. saving “Jigger Joe” is Tommy’s first venture into the amusement field, and already the toy has caught on so in Southern California that young Mr. Jones, who makes each toy by hand, is flooded with orders. In “Undercover Agent, J. M. Kerrigan, who plays Shirley Deane’s father, uses “Jigger Joe” to distract Maude Eburne’s mind from the rent he owes her. “Undercover Agent” is the story of the war between gangsters and_ the United States Post Office. Others outstanding in the cast include Ralf Harolde, Oscar O’Shea, and Selmer Jackson. Martin Mooney wrote the original story, with Milton Raison doing the screenplay. “Undercover Agent,” an E. B. Derr production, was directed by Howard Bretherton. “Undercover .... Lheatre a bm Agent” At Fast-Paced Sweepstakes Racket Thriller (REVIEW ) The campaign against crime is continued in Monogram’s “Undercover Agent,” a thrilling expose of the methods of counterfeiters, now at the Pas Gs PNG theatre. In this film the postal inspectors are the unsung heroes in the war against vice. Young Bill Trent studies to be a postal inspector so he can marry the girl he loves, but just when his appointment is assured, he is suspended from the service for illegally carrying his service gun, even though he has used it to prevent a hold-up. But Bill’s loyalty does not permit him to admit defeat, so when he gets a tip on the identity of counterfeiters who are using the mails to defraud, Bill begs the Chief Inspector to let him work on the case. Even though it means involving Betty, the girl he loves, Bill tracks down the gang to their hidden lair, and a thrilling climax ensues as Betty’s father, innocently implicated in the crime, changes sides to face the criminals in a death battle. Bill and Betty are played by Russell Gleason and Shirley Deane, the young married couple of the “Jones Family” series. Gleason demonstrates his ability as an actor, for he easily switches from his comic role of the husband of “Bonnie Jones” to the part of the vigorous, determined Bill Trent, postal inspector for the United States government. Miss Deane also handles her serious role of Betty expertly. An outstanding characterization is that of J. M. Kerrigan, who plays Betty’s drunkard father, who reforms in time to help save the day for the government. Excellent in smaller roles were Ralf Harolde, Maude Eburne,and Oscar O’Shea. “Undercover Agent,” an E. B. Derr production, was directed by Howard Bretherton from the sereenplay by Milton Raison. Shirley Deane Bard Luck Actress ie Shirley Deane is regarded as Hollywood’s hard luck actress. But despite a succession of accidents, illness and other circumstances which-temporarily impeded the motion picturé ‘progress of Miss Deane, she has managed through sheer perserverance to win out and command much respect in the various film studios. Strangely enough, it was an accident that first gave Miss Deane her opportunity to go on the stage. One night, she with a boy friend attended a stock company performance in San_ Fran| cisco, her home own. When asked if she wanted to go. backstage, she consented. Backstage she tripped over a piece of scenery and was taken to a hospital where it was discovered she was suffering from a sprained ankle. The stage manager called on Miss Deane in the hospital principally because he didn’t want any suits on his hand and in an enthusiastic mood offered her a job in the company. She accepted. That started her theatrical career. Time after time in Hollywood Miss Deane was practically a cinch for a role but she was suffering from an illness. Her luck suddenly took an upturn when she was signed with Russell Gleason for a leading role in the popular “Jones Family” series at Fox. In Monogram’s “Undercover Agent,” Miss Deane and Gleason are again united as a young couple in love but money proving the obstacle as far as marriage is concerned. This E. B. Derr production reveals the inner working of a gang of sweepstake ticket racketeers. It is scheduled to open abst? yee theatre. Seen in the cast are J. M. Kerrigan, Maude Eburne, Oscar O’Shea, Selmer Jackson, Ralf Harolde, Ray Bennett, Ralph Sanford and others. Howard Bretherton directed from the screenplay by Milton Raison. Original screenplay was written by Martin Mooney. : Associate producer was Frank Melord. t ' ' t t t t t Jailed for "'Knowing Too Much" al Martin Mooney, author of the original story of “Undercover Agent,” the Monogram picture now showing at the EULA a SI, theatre, was once jailed in New York for contempt of court because he would not reveal the sources of startling information he published in a series of articles on graft. Shirley Deane and Russell Gleason have the leads in this thrilling story of the war against crime. fe ee > <-> <<— <— <<<<—<<<; <-<© t t t t t ' t | TWEET! TWEET! It would seem that love is in the air from the admiring giances Russell Gleason and Shirley Deane. cast at each other in this scene from “Undercover Agent,” new film at theccccoccooun theatre. One Col. Cut or Mat No. 5 “Undercover Agent” Now Playing At......1 heatre est During the filming of Monogram’s “Undercover Agent,” now at the ae sh theatre, it was necessary to have a sweepstakes ticket photographed. Producer E. B. Derr didn’t know just where to get one, and when he was voicing aloud his difficulty to his associate, Frank Melford, Derr was overheard. Of the sixty men working on the set, thirty of them produced sweepstakes tickets. Derr was flabbergasted, to use a mild word. “Undercover Agent” is the story of a postal inspector who tracks down a gang of counterfeiters, using the mails to defraud. Martin Mooney wrote the original story, and Milton Raison the screenplay. In the top roles are Russell Gleason and Shirley Deane. “Undercover Agent” was directed by Howard Bretherton.