Mystery & Crime Non-Series 30's-50's (1 Viewer)

[criblecoblis]

I figure Kay Kiser must have financed this oeuvre himself, as there would be NO OTHER reason for him to actually be the star of a movie.

Russ, Kay Kyser was quite popular, both on records and the radio. He had a show, Kay Kyser's Kollege of Musical Knowledge, that grew out of his band's early act in Chicago. It combined the band's performance with a quiz, with Kyser acting as "The Ol' Perfesser." My Mom always said it was one of her favorite radio shows of all time (along with Col. Stoopnagle And Budd).

I have a bunch of his records. His band was good, but not usually hot. He had kind of a repertory group of vocalists and featured musicians, some of whom became famous in their own right (notably Ginny Simms, but in some quarters Ish Kabbibble is big stuff too).

 

[Rustifer]

Russ, Kay Kyser was quite popular, both on records and the radio.

Well now, I've been thoroughly admonished for disparaging Mr. Kyser. I had no idea of his level of popularity. My bad.
I therefore offer sincerest apologies to him, his band, agents, studio, parents, ancestors, grandkids, landscaper, chef, physical trainer and garage mechanic.
I hope that covers it.

Ish Kabibble? Is that what one says after tasting dog food? Just askin'.

 

[Mysto]

Well now, I've been thoroughly admonished for disparaging Mr. Kyser. I had no idea of his level of popularity. My bad.
I therefore offer sincerest apologies to him, his band, agents, studio, parents, ancestors, grandkids, landscaper, chef, physical trainer and garage mechanic.
I hope that covers it.

Ish Kabbibble? Is that what one says after tasting dog food? Just askin'.

Now you're making fun of the ISH - Will this blasphemy never stop!

 

[Rustifer]

Now you're making fun of the ISH - Will this blasphemy never stop!

I'm here if only to shake the trees....

 

[Rob_Ray]

Whenever I see Ish Kabibble, I am reminded of the ALL IN THE FAMILY episode "Cousin Maude". When Maude makes a reference to Ish Kabibble, Gloria asks, "Who's Ish Kabbibble?".

Maude replies, "He was a comedian with Kay Kyser's orchestra".

"Was he funny?"

Maude's deadpan reply: "Like a migraine!"

 

[bujaki]

Well now, I've been thoroughly admonished for disparaging Mr. Kyser. I had no idea of his level of popularity. My bad.
I therefore offer sincerest apologies to him, his band, agents, studio, parents, ancestors, grandkids, landscaper, chef, physical trainer and garage mechanic.
I hope that covers it.

Ish Kabibble? Is that what one says after tasting dog food? Just askin'.

You forgot his attorney. And probably some divinity. Just like the Oscar speeches.

 

[criblecoblis]

Well now, I've been thoroughly admonished for disparaging Mr. Kyser. I had no idea of his level of popularity. My bad.

I am sincerely sorry I said anything.

 

[Rustifer]

I am sincerely sorry I said anything.

Lighten up, Rob. I was just kidding you, my friend.

 

[criblecoblis]

And with that I am outta here.

 

[Mysto]

And with that I am outta here.

Hi Rob
Russ and I have this habit of taking cheap shots at each other. It's all in fun and never intended to be hurtful. Sometimes we add you to the fray and a couple of times you have been offended. We should have stopped. My fault. Obviously you don't care for it. We like your posts. They add to the discussion and are thoughtful and perceptive and I truly wish them to continue. I no longer will joke about your posts (promise) and Russ you please stop as well. Russ you can joke about my stuff all you want because I like it (and probably have earned it) but not Rob anymore because I know that you too have no desire to hurt his feelings. Deal Rob?

 

[Robert Crawford]

And with that I am outta here.

Rob,

I hope that's not true. I really enjoy reading your comments. Sometimes, I think attempts at humor often gets lost from the strokes of a keyboard to what appears on internet forums like this one. I didn't think anybody meant to disparage you in any serious manner. They were joking, but they failed to realize you took their comments more seriously than they intended them to be taken. We try to maintain a nice little HT community here so we can talk about this great hobby of ours that evolves around enjoying our favorite movies and then hopefully, discover some new movies to add to our favorite lists. This thread is such a tool that increases our film enjoyment by sharing knowledge, thoughts and feelings about various classic movies and film stars. Please, do not stop posting here because you have a lot to offer to all of us.

 

[Rustifer]

And with that I am outta here.

I hope you don't mean that, Rob. You of all people should know I can be acerbic with my humor, but never meant to be abrasive or demeaning to anyone's feelings or viewpoints.
You also know I think very highly of you and your contributions within these threads.

I truly apologize for saying anything that hurt you.

 

[criblecoblis]

I truly apologize for saying anything that hurt you.

Thanks, Russ. Consider it forgotten.

 

[Robert Crawford]

On Friday, I watched "Larceny, Inc. (1942) starring Edward G. Robinson, Jane Wyman, Brokerick Crawford, Jack Carson, Edward Brophy, Anthony Quinn and a young Jackie Gleason. A gangster parody with Edward G. and cohorts Crawford and Brophy rebuffed in their attempt to raise cash legally from a bank decide to rob that bank by tunneling from their newly acquired luggage store into the bank's vault next door. Pretty funny stuff especially the sequences in the luggage store.

 

[Robert Crawford]

Next up is this weekend's TCM "Noir Alley" selection "99 River Street".

 

[Rustifer]

Next up is this weekend's TCM "Noir Alley" selection "99 River Street".

Yep. Got that one scheduled on my DVR. Looking forward to pitching a few thoughts on it.

 

[Rustifer]

Film Commentary
"They Gave Him A Gun" (MGM-1937)

Odd combination of war movie, love story and gangster flick. The opening title credits are created by bullet holes--just in case you didn't quite get the "gun" part of the title.

Fred (Spencer Tracy) and Jimmy (Franchot Tone) meet one another upon induction into the army at the start of WWI, forming a bond by bitching over the ill fit of their uniforms. The guys spend their required time in boot camp, with Jimmy going from a fainting wimp over having to stab a practice dummy with a bayonet--to sharpshooter status with his carbine rifle. He quickly proves his mettle in war by wiping out an entire machine gun nest of Germans, but gets mortally wounded in the process. Enter angelic army nurse Rose (Gladys George), who will bounce her affections between Fred and Jimmy like a lovesick blonde pinball. Based on her level of ardor, her voice rises from normal to a pitch as if having taken a hit off a helium-filled balloon. It's interesting to note that having to tend to the bloody remnants of shot-up soldiers such as Jimmy, she somehow remains as neat as a Macy's mannequin.

Jimmy and Rose being touchy-feely, Fred and Rose contemplating the carpeting pattern, a threesome post war

The war ends with Jimmy getting a bucket load of war medals and Fred missing in action. Fortunately, everyone lands safely in the MGM back lot cityscape, where Fred and Jimmy are reunited. Jimmy has married Rose and has achieved penthouse wealth as a slimy racketeer who knocks off rivals with his rifle from seemingly across entire city blocks. Why not--after all, they gave him a gun. Honest Fred runs a two-bit circus--in those days a career destination, I guess. Faced once again with choosing between the two, Rose is easily a candidate as poster child for Xanax. To settle matters, she rats on Jimmy's next crime caper and lands him in the clink, then cozies up as one of Fred's circus employees--a dream job for any girl.

Unwilling to serve in full his three year sentence, Jimmy breaks out of prison. Consumed with his need to reunite with Rose, he finds Fred and her on the circus route. Rose has somehow remained true to Jimmy, even though Fred has been all over her like felt on a fedora. Jimmy quickly matures from wanting to shoot Fred on the spot to suddenly seeing the light and deciding upon suicide by cop. Love and honor has crashed together like an orchestra's coda.

This flick is worth watching if only for a glimpse of a young Spencer Tracy's emerging acting brilliance. After a bit of thought, I think the movie would have been improved if Tone's and Tracy's roles had been reversed. Franchot was never a very believable sneering gangster whereas Spencer could have chewed up that role like a pit bull with a nerfball.
"They Gave Him a Gun" may strain the parameters of this thread to a certain degree, but I didn't know where else to plant it.

 

[BobO'Link]

That replacement for the Warner's "Tough Guys" box set arrived a few days ago. I've since successfully watched all 6 movies. I started with a repeat viewing of A Slight Case of Murder. I'd only missed about 3 minutes on the defective copy. Nothing significant but it was nice to make it through that segment without issue.

Following that I rewatched the one that clued me in the rest were likely defective (it froze and refused to play about 50 minutes into the
short 70 minute run time):

Bogart plays a thug who tries to go straight but finds redemption comes with a price. It was OK but nothing special being a rather standard story prison story. Watch it for the cast.

City for Conquest was up next:

I chose it simply to get it out of the way as it appeared to be a "corrupt boxing" movie, a sub-genre I just don't care for (I don't like any boxing movies as they all seem to play off the same general theme - and it's boxing, a "sport" I absolutely do not like). It was a surprise as it's *not* just boxing. It's a gangster/boxing/symphony-of-the-city/starstruck show-biz career picture, and more all rolled into one. Most of it works. The "guy helping his brother succeed" bit was the worst as the music is rather generic and predictable sounding like a tired Gershwin imitation. The cast is superb. In addition to Cagney there's Ann Sheridan as his love interest/starstruck dancer, Anthony Quinn as the "bad guy/domineering" dancing partner, Frank McHugh as his close buddy, Arthur Kennedy as the brother/composer, and George Tobias, Jerome Cowan, and Elia Kazan(!) as his old neighborhood friends. I enjoyed it far more than I expected.

Cagney & Kazan:

Following that was Each Dawn I Die:

Cagney was very good in this rather standard "I wuz framed!" prison story. Raft pretty much slides through on his looks/reputation. Also in the cast are Jane Bryan, the love interest, George Bancroft, and the great character actor Maxie Rosenbloom. In spite of Raft pretty much not doing much acting wise, he and Cagney have good rapport and work well together to make a sometimes taught tale. You watch this one for Cagney.

Jane Bryan:

Then on the other side of the law, Cagney stars in "G" Men:

New lawyer James "Brick" Davis (Cagney) only gets job offers from crooks. He joins the FBI when an old pal, now an agent, is murdered. J. Edgar Hoover is said to have personally approved every facet of 'G' Men. It's a rather by-the-books story of how the FBI got its start. Cagney makes it work.

It all wrapped up with Bullets or Ballots:

After Police Captain Dan McLaren (Joe King) becomes police commissioner former detective Johnny Blake (Robinson) knocks him down convincing rackets boss Al Kruger (Barton MacLane) that Blake is sincere in his effort to join the mob. "Buggs" Fenner (Bogart) thinks Blake is a police agent. Yep... the "Undercover Cop" story. New York is sewn up all nice and pretty by the hoods. So much so that infiltration is the only way to take them down as the top guys are thought to be very prominent citizens. Joan Blondell is a love interest that's also in on the action. Another that's rather "by the book" but still very good.

Frank McHugh, Humphrey Bogart, and Joan Blondell:

In spite of a couple of rather "generic" stories, all 6 movies are worth watching and are all-around very good movies with some excellent performances on display.

All 6 discs played flawlessly!

With movies like these available I don't care if "Hollywood" ever makes another "new" movie. The business of movie making has gotten too big and "little" films like these are no longer made. That's a shame as these are better than just about every "new" movie I've seen in the past few years. That includes the "tent pole" CGI movies that have become the new standard product.

 

[Rustifer]

That replacement for the Warner's "Tough Guys" box set arrived a few days ago. I've since successfully watched all 6 movies. I started with a repeat viewing of A Slight Case of Murder. I'd only missed about 3 minutes on the defective copy. Nothing significant but it was nice to make it through that segment without issue.

I'm glad you got to chance to watch A Slight Case of Murder again, uninterrupted. The flick has moved up to assuming position as one of my favorite movies.

With movies like these available I don't care if "Hollywood" ever makes another "new" movie. The business of movie making has gotten too big and "little" films like these are no longer made.

I agree for the most part with you, Howie. But then I'll watch something like Field of Dreams or The Grey Fox and think Well, that one's gonna stick with me awhile...

 

[BobO'Link]

I agree for the most part with you, Howie. But then I'll watch something like Field of Dreams or The Grey Fox and think Well, that one's gonna stick with me awhile...

But I don't consider either of those to be "new" movies as they're both from the 80s, although I'm generally not too fond of many movies from that decade (or later). There were still low budget genre movies made back then - at least more than seemingly is made today. I'm mostly talking about movies from 2000 and later.