Barbara Stanwyck can be yours for "Ten Cents a Dance"

Ten Cents a Dance (1931) is an American pre-Code romantic drama directed by Lionel Barrymore and starring Barbara Stanwyck, Ricardo Cortez, Monroe Owsley, and Sally Blane.

Barbara O'Neill (Stanwyck) is a taxi dancer at the Palais de Dance, a dance hall in New York City. Bradley Carlton, a wealthy patron gives Barbara $100 because he enjoys her company.

When Barbara discovers that Eddie Miller, a tenant at the same boarding house in which she lives is about to skip town because he is behind on his rent, she gives him the $100. Barbara asks Bradley to provide Eddie with a job, which he agrees to do. It isn't too long before Eddie and Barbara fall in love and Barbara quits the dance hall at Eddie's insistence.

Eddie grows dissatisfied with his life and starts to gamble and embezzle money from Bradley's company. Everything comes crumbling down and Eddie and Barbara's marriage is in trouble.

Will Eddie and Barbara work out their financial and marital problems? And what about Bradley? Where does he fit in?

Lionel Barrymore (1878 - 1954) was an American stage, screen, and radio actor. He was also a film director in the era of silent and early talking pictures. He is the older brother of Ethel and John Barrymore. Barrymore won a Best Actor Academy Award for his work in A Free Soul (1931). He is probably most famous for his screen portrayal of Mr. Potter in Frank Capra's It's a Wonderful Life (1946).  Other films he starred in include Dinner at Eight (1933), The Little Colonel (1935) with Shirley Temple, Duel in the Sun (1946), and Key Largo (1948).

Barbara Stanwyck (1907 – 1990) was an American film star who got her acting start with a supporting role on Broadway in a play called The Noose (1926). The next year she had the lead in another Broadway production, Burlesque which was a huge hit. She eventually made it to Hollywood where her success was not immediate. Director Frank Capra saw something in Stanwyck and he educated her in filmmaking and film acting and the rest is history. Stanwyck was nominated four times for the Best Actress Oscar—Stella Dallas (1937), Ball of Fire (1941), Double Indemnity (1945), Sorry, Wrong Number (1948)—and remains one of the most beloved movie stars from Hollywood’s Golden Age.

Ricardo Cortez (1900 - 1977) was an American actor and film director. He was born Jacob Kranze or Krantz to Jewish parents in New York City. Because of his Latin-like features, he benefited from the popularity of top silent film stars Rudolph Valentino and Ramon Novarro. He was the first actor to play Sam Spade in the original pre-Code version of The Maltese Falcon (1931). Besides his acting career, Cortez directed several B-movies for 20th Century Fox. After retiring from films, he worked as a stockbroker for Solomon Brothers on Wall Street.

Monroe Owsley (1900 - 1937) was an American stage and film actor. Owsley got his start on the stage and made his film debut in 1928. He was in the original film version of Holiday (1930) in the role played by Lew Ayres in the 1938 version. In the early 1930s, he was cast opposite Clara Bow, Bette Davis, Barbara Stanwyck, Joan Crawford, and Kay Francis. On June 7, 1937, Owsley died of a heart attack. He was 36 years old.

Sally Blane (1910 - 1997) was an American actress who acted in silent films as a child. She acted in silent films as an adult and continued acting in film through most of the 1930s. Her last film credit was in A Bullet for Joey (1955) starring Edward G. Robinson and George Raft. She was married to actor Norman Foster.

Ten Cents a Dance trivia

• The first and the last talking picture directed by Lionel Barrymore.
• Sally Blane who plays Molly is the sister of Loretta Young. Blane was married to actor/director Norman Foster from 1935 until he died in 1976.
• The film was inspired by the song "Ten Cents a Dance" by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart.

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Discussion questions

1. What did you think of 25-year-old Stanwyck's performance? Did she seem convincing as a taxi dancer?
2. Were you surprised to learn that Lionel Barrymore was the film's director?
3. What did you think of Monroe Owsley as Stanwyck's husband Eddie?
4. Ricardo Cortez was promoted as a "Latin lover" early in his career. Did you like him as the rich businessman in this film? Was he convincing in his scenes with Stanwyck?
5. Did this film surprise you in any way?
6. Was the ending believable? Was it satisfying?

Ricardo Cortez and Barbara Stanwyck

Barbara Stanwyck is “Stella Dallas”

Stella Dallas (1937) is an American drama film directed by King Vidor and starring Barbara Stanwyck, John Boles, and Anne Shirley. Other members of the cast include Barbara O’Neil, Alan Hale, Marjorie Main, and Tim Holt. The film is based on the novel of the same name by Olive Higgins Prouty.

Growing up on the wrong side of the tracks, young Stella Martin (Stanwyck) manages to catch the eye of Stephen Dallas (John Boles), a well-bred business executive. The two fall in love and marry. For a time they’re happy, but after the birth of their daughter, Laurel (Anne Shirley), the marriage begins to deteriorate. Stella wants to dance and rub elbows with the upper-class folks at the country club. Stephen expects his wife to be content to stay at home with their child, a much quieter existence than the life Stella desires. They eventually divorce, with Stella having the main custody of Laurel. Stella is determined to give her daughter the things she never had, but when Stephen begins a new relationship, Stella feels her closeness with Laurel slipping away. Always putting her daughter’s happiness above her own, Stella faces a choice no mother should have to make.

Stanwyck received the first of her four Best Actress Oscar nominations for her role as Stella. Stanwyck was so determined to get the part that she submitted to a screen test—something unheard of for a star of her caliber. She convinced the director (King Vidor) and the producer (Samuel Goldwyn) that she could be convincing as a mother, especially as the character ages into midlife.

Anne Shirley, who turned 18 during the filming of Stella Dallas had this to say about Stanwyck: “She was prepared to the very top of her ability. Dialogue learned perfectly. Hair, clothes, energy ready.”

King Vidor (1894 - 1982) was an American film director, producer, and screenwriter whose career successfully spanned the silent and sound era. His most famous and successful film from the silent era was The Big Parade (1925) starring John Gilbert. In the sound era, he directed Northwest Passage (1940), Comrade X (1940), and Duel in the Sun (1946). Considered an actor’s director, Wallace Berry, Robert Donat, Barbara Stanwyck, Jennifer Jones, Anne Shirley, and Lillian Gish all received Academy Award nominations under Vidor’s direction.

Barbara Stanwyck (1907 – 1990) was an American film star who got her acting start with a supporting role on Broadway in a play called The Noose (1926). The next year she had the lead in another Broadway production, Burlesque which was a huge hit. She eventually made it to Hollywood where her success was not immediate. Director Frank Capra saw something in Stanwyck and he educated her in filmmaking and film acting and the rest is history. Stanwyck was nominated four times for the Best Actress Oscar—Stella Dallas (1937), Ball of Fire (1941), Double Indemnity (1945), Sorry, Wrong Number (1948)—and remains one of the most beloved movie stars from Hollywood’s Golden Age.

John Boles (1895 – 1969) was an actor and singer and a star of both silent and sound films. Boles is probably best known for playing Victor Moritz in Frankenstein (1931). Once sound pictures emerged, he starred in several popular musicals. He starred opposite Irene Dunne in Back Street (1932) and The Age of Innocence (1934). He starred with Shirley Temple in Curly Top and The Littlest Rebel both released in 1935. Once his film career ended, Boles went into the oil business.

Anne Shirley, John Boles, and Barbara Stanwyck

Anne Shirley (1993) began acting in silent movies when she was only four years old. She started out as Dawn O’Day, but when she portrayed Lucy Maud Montgomery’s heroine Anne Shirley in Anne of Green Gables, she took that name for her own. Shirley progressed from child star to adult roles; she was one of many actresses who tested for the role of Melanie Hamilton in Gone With The Wind, eventually losing out to Olivia de Havilland. Her last starring role was in Murder, My Sweet (1944). After completing that film, she retired from acting at the age of 26. Shirley was married three times. Her first husband was the actor John Payne.

Stella Dallas trivia

• The movie’s popularity spanned a radio series that lasted for 18 years.
• For her role, Stanwyck bleached her hair and wore padding to appear heavier later in the film.
• Samuel Goldwyn wanted Ruth Chatterton to play Stella, but she turned it down.
• Barbara O’Neil made her screen debut in the film and received encouragement from Stanwyck. O’Neil said Stanwyck was “a marvelous, warm-hearted person…”

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Discussion questions

1. Was Stanwyck convincing in the role of Stella? Was she worthy of the Best Actress nomination?
2. Did the mother-daughter relationship between Stella and Laurel ring true?
3. What did you think of John Boles?  Could he have been more understanding of  his young wife?
4. Anne Shirley was nominated for Best Supporting Actress. Did she give an Oscar-worthy performance?
5. The Best Actress Academy Award competition was pretty stiff the year Stanwyck was nominated. The other actresses in contention were Greta Garbo in Camille (co-starring Robert Taylor who was married to Stanwyck), Irene Dunne in The Awful Truth, Janet Gaynor in A Star is Born, the winner was Luise Rainer in The Good Earth. Did the Academy get it right?

Barbara Stanwyck is one of the “Ladies of Leisure”

Ladies of Leisure (1930) is a American pre-Code drama film directed by Frank Capra and starring Barbara Stanwyck and Ralph Graves. Other members of the cast include Lowell Sherman and Marie Prevost.

Jerry Strong (Graves) the heir to a railroad tycoon and aspiring artist, sneaks out of a party thrown by his friend Bill Standish (Sherman) and meets a self-described “party girl” Kay Arnold (Stanwyck) who is also leaving a party aboard a yacht.

Jerry sees something special in Kay and hires her as the model for his painting “Hope.” As the two get to know each other Kay falls in love with Jerry. She regrets her past, knowing that his family will never approve of her.

Will Kay be able to live up to Jerry’s family’s expectations for their son or will Kay have to give him up and go back to her old life?

Barbara Stanwyck, Lowell Sherman, and Ralph Graves

Frank Capra (1897 - 1991) was an American film director, producer, and writer. During the 1930s and 1940s, Capra’s films were among the most popular and awarded films. By 1938, Capra has won three Best Director Academy Awards. Born in Italy, Capra immigrated to the United States with his family when he was five years old. By sheer determination and his self-described cockiness, Capra talked his way into the movie business. He found a great home at “Poverty Row” studio, Columbia Pictures. At Columbia he had a major success with It Happened One Night (1934), which swept all the major categories at the Academy Awards that year. This helped turn Columbia Pictures from a Poverty Row studio into a major one. Other Capra successes include You Can’t Take It with You (1938), Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), and It’s a Wonderful Life (1946).

Barbara Stanwyck (1907 – 1990) was an American film star who got her acting start with a supporting role on Broadway in a play called The Noose (1926). The next year she had the lead in another Broadway production, Burlesque which was a huge hit. She eventually made it to Hollywood where her success was not immediate. Director Frank Capra saw something in Stanwyck and he educated her in filmmaking and film acting and the rest is history. Stanwyck was nominated four times for the Best Actress Oscar—Stella Dallas (1937), Ball of Fire (1941), Double Indemnity (1945), Sorry, Wrong Number (1948)—and remains one of the most beloved movie stars from Hollywood’s Golden Age.

Barbara Stanwyck and Marie Prevost

Ladies of Leisure trivia

• This was the first time Frank Capra directed Barbara Stanwyck.
• Stanwyck made several movies, all unsuccessful, and she was considering going back to Broadway but the film was a hit and it made her a star.
• Columbia studio head Harry Cohn gave Capra complete artistic control.
• This was Capra’s fifth talking picture although it was also released as a silent film for those theatres that hadn’t yet converted to sound. All-talking pictures had only become a reality a year before.
• Capra and Stanwyck would go on to work together on four more films including The Miracle Woman (1931) and Meet John Doe (1941).

 

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I discovered a vital technical lack – one that shook us all up: Stanwyck gave her all the first time she tried a scene ... All subsequent repetitions, in rehearsals or retakes, were pale copies of her original performance. This was a new phenomenon – and a new challenge, not only to me, but to the actors and the crews. I had to rehearse the cast without her. The actors grumbled. Not fair to them, they said. Who ever heard of an actress not rehearsing? ... On the set I never let Stanwyck utter one word of the scene until the cameras were rolling. Before that I talked to her in her dressing room, told her the meaning of the scene, the points of emphasis, the pauses ... I talked softly, not wanting to fan the smoldering fires that lurked beneath that somber silence. She remembered every word I said – and she never blew a line.*

Discussion questions

1. This was a breakthrough film for Stanwyck. What did you think of her performance?
2. Could you see the potential in Stanwyck to be the star/actress she would become?
3. As an early talking picture, does it hold up in 2024?
4. Does this feel like your “typical” Capra movie?
5. Did anything about the film surprise you?

 

*Capra, Frank (1971). The Name Above the Title: An Autobiography. New York: Macmillan. pp 113-15.

Book Review: “From the Moment They Met It Was Murder: Double Indemnity and the Rise of Film Noir”

Title: From the Moment They Met It Was Murder: Double Indemnity and the Rise of Film Noir

By: Alain Silver and James Ursini

Publisher: Running Press – Turner Classic Movies

ISBN: 978-07624-8493-5 (hardcover)

ISBN: 978-0-7624-8495-9 (ebook)

 

The new book by Alain Silver and James Ursini is a detailed account of how the classic film noir Double Indemnity came to be. The authors take a look at the real-life crime that influenced James M. Cain’s novel on which the film is based. The thesis of the book is that Double Indemnity is the definitive film noir and its influence is still felt today.

Just when you thought you knew all there was to know about Double Indemnity and film noir, the authors begin their book with the case of Ruth May Snyder and Henry Judd Gray. Snyder and Gray came up with a plot to murder her husband. They tried to make it look like robbery and murder but weren’t as slick as Phyllis Dietrichson and Walter Neff.

Once the authors start talking about the development of Double Indemnity, the book really moves along. The consensus was that Cain’s dialogue in the novel sounded stilted and phony when read aloud. That’s where Raymond Chandler came in. Chandler’s novels were known for their snappy, realistic dialogue. Chandler worked with director Billy Wilder on the script. A contentious relationship at best but somehow it all worked out in the end.

The casting was interesting. Dick Powell campaigned hard to play Neff, but this was before his dramatic turn in Murder, My Sweet (1944). Powell was a musical comedy star during the 1930s at Warner Bros. and wasn’t seriously consider by Wilder. Fred MacMurray was known for light comedy and musicals as well, but Wilder saw something. Casting MacMurray against type turned out to be a brilliant move. He’s convincing and believable as Neff. For Phyllis Dietrichson, it doesn’t look like Wilder wanted anyone but Barbara Stanwyck.

Billy Wilder (right in front of policemen) directs Stanwyck and MacMurray
in the supermarket scene.

When Ball of Fire (1941) starring Gary Cooper and Stanwyck went into production, Wilder, still a screenwriter, decided he wanted to direct so he shadowed director Howard Hawks. Wilder and Charles Brackett wrote the screenplay for Ball of Fire. He was impressed with Stanwyck’s performance and the rest is history.

There has always been a fascination with why Wilder had Stanwyck wear that cheap blonde wig. The truth is the wig was the same one worn by Marlene Dietrich in Manpower (1941). Wilder wanted Stanwyck to look cheap but he ultimately admitted it was a mistake. He decided this after a few weeks of filming but he decided he couldn’t scrap what was already printed and start from scratch so he just kept going. Paramount file executive Buddy DeSylva said, “We paid for Barbara Stanwyck, and we got George Washington.”

One bit of information that I had never heard before was that Mona Freeman was originally cast as Lola Dietrichson. When Wilder saw her on film, she looked twelve years old. She was eventually replaced with Jean Heather. Heather also had a role in Going My Way, the film that beat Double Indemnity for Best Picture. Its director Leo McCarey also beat Wilder in the Best Director category.

The gas chamber scene that was filmed but cut from the final film

Dressing Stanwyck—done by the legendary Edith Head—to look cheap was expensive. Some of Stanwyck’s outfits cost $7000 in today’s dollars. Stanwyck’s bath towel and pair of slippers cost $40 in 1943 or $700 today.

The book delves into the films Double Indemnity has influenced during the peak noir era and more contemporary or neo-noir films like Body Heat (1981).

And you can’t ignore the foreboding score by Miklos Rozsa. The feeling of dread is apparent from the opening credits and is carried through to the very last frame.

If you’re a fan of Double Indemnity and/or film noir, this book is a must.

Some quick facts:

• Fred MacMurray worked 61 days
• Barbara Stanwyck worked 35 days
• Edward G. Robinson worked 37 days

Barbara Stanwyck Sleighs Christmas

Barbara Stanwyck is one of the icons of Hollywood’s Golden Age. She was believable as a hard-boiled film noir dame as she was a madcap heiress in screwball comedy. She had a way of mixing toughness and vulnerability like no other actress in film history. These qualities would contribute to Stanwyck’s longevity in a career that spanned over 60 years.

Stanwyck is so closely identified with film noir due to her Oscar-nominated performance in Double Indemnity (1944) that she is almost forgotten for some of the best Christmas-themed movies ever made.

The four Christmas movies Stanwyck starred in have stood the test of time and all are worth watching, even in the jaded 21^st century. So here we go!

Lee Leander (Barbara Stanwyck) and John Sargent (Fred MacMurray) take a break on their way to Indiana.

Remember the Night (1940) is directed by the underrated Michell Leisen with a screenplay by Preston Sturges. It’s a wonderful Christmas movie that has been rediscovered in the last several years. It’s also the first pairing of Stanwyck and Fred MacMurray, four years before Double Indemnity cemented their status as film noir icons.

Lee Leander (Stanwyck) is arrested for shoplifting a bracelet from a jewelry store in New York City. Her trial is set to start right before Christmas. John “Jack” Sargeant (MacMurray), the lawyer set to prosecute her, gets the trial postponed until after Christmas. He fears that the jurors will be filled with compassion during the Christmas holiday and declare her not guilty. But when he hears Lee complain to her lawyer that she’ll be spending Christmas in jail, Sargeant arranges for her bail.

Through a misunderstanding, the bail bondsman delivers Lee to Jack’s apartment, thinking he wants to take advantage of the situation by seducing her. When Jack realizes that Leander is a fellow Hoosier, he volunteers to drive her home for Christmas. When Lee arrives at her mother’s home, she finds a mean spirited woman who wants nothing to do with her daughter. Lee is devastated by her mother’s rejection. Seeing how hurt she is, Jack invites her to come home with him for Christmas.

Lee is embraced by Jack’s family including his mother (Beulah Bondi), Aunt Emma (Elizabeth Patterson), and Cousin Willie (Stanley Holloway). Perhaps for the first time in her life, Lee feels loved and accepted. Jack’s mother and aunt treat Lee like family and it has a profound effect on her.

Lee and Mrs. Sargent (Beulah Bondi) have a serious conversation. 

When Jack and Lee start falling in love, things begin to change. As much as Jack’s mother feels for Lee’s predicament, she’s concerned for her son’s career, a career that took a lot of hard work and sacrifice.

Will Jack and Lee be able to overcome the obstacles in their way and find happiness? I hope you get the chance to see this classic for yourself; I think you’ll be surprised by the ending. 

Meet John Doe (1941) is a comedy-drama directed by Frank Capra. Stanwyck’s co-star is Gary Cooper who has the title role. Stanwyck stars as Ann Mitchell, a newspaper reporter who is fired when a new owner takes over The Bulletin a paper with a sagging readership. As she exits, Ann creates a column featuring a man she calls John Doe who plans on committing suicide to protest the ills of the world on Christmas Eve.

John Willoughby (Gary Cooper) and Ann Mitchell (Barbara Stanwyck)

The column gets such a big response from the public that the new editor of the paper hires Ann back. Once she’s back on the paper, Ann sets about finding a “real” John Doe to promote her column and to keep her employed. When she sees Long John Willoughby (Cooper), a former baseball player and tramp, she thinks she’s found the perfect man to play the part. With coaching from Ann, John develops into a competent speaker and leader. John Doe clubs pop up all over the country due to John’s appearances on the radio and Ann’s columns.

Ann convinced newspaper editor Henry Connell (James Gleason) that she should get her job back.

When the owner of the paper D. B. Norton realizes that the John Doe clubs could help him with his political ambitions, as long as he can convince Ann and John to go along. Things get complicated when Ann finds herself falling in love with John but is blinded by the money and position Norton offers her.

John refuses to go along with Norton which also alienates him from Ann who he thinks has betrayed him. At an outdoor rally where John is set to speak, Norton has the microphones turned off and agitators in the crowd hired to turn the rallygoers against him. Ann, now being held by Norton is desperate to explain herself to John but he won’t listen. Frustrated and upset, Ann makes herself sick when she realizes that John thinks she played him for a fool.

Hurt and disillusioned, John decides to jump off of the top of City Hall on Christmas Eve just as Ann had said he would in her first column. D. B. Morton and his associates fear that John may actually try to jump to his death and go to the top of City Hall. They’re afraid he’ll turn himself into a martyr and thwart their political ambitions.

Ann Mitchell begs John not to jump

Ann, leaving her sickbed goes to City Hall in an attempt to keep John from jumping. She confronts John and begs him not to jump. She also proclaims her love for him and that together they can continue the John Doe movement. Exhausted from her climb to the top of City Hall and her illness, Ann collapses in John’s arms. At that moment, some members of the John Doe clubs have gone to the top of city hall to tell him the movement isn’t dead and that they still believe in him.

What does John do? Is there hope for John and Ann and the John Doe movement? Watch this classic (it’s free on YouTube) to find out.

Christmas in Connecticut (1945) is a wonderful screwball comedy directed by Peter Godfrey. Stanwyck plays Elizabeth Lane, a popular food writer for Smart Housekeeping magazine owned by publisher Alexander Yardley (Sydney Greenstreet). Her stories about her married life on a farm in Connecticut with her husband and baby have helped boost circulation, making it one of the top magazines in the country. The only problem is Elizabeth Lane’s life is one big lie. She can’t cook, she’s not married, has no baby or a farm in Connecticut. All her recipes come from her friend Felix Bassenak (S.Z. Sakall) a restaurateur in her neighborhood.

Jefferson Jones (Dennis Morgan) and Elizabeth Lane (Barbara Stanwyck) out for a sleigh ride

As a publicity stunt, Yardley invites a Navy veteran who was adrift at sea for several weeks before his rescue to Elizabeth’s “farm” for Christmas. Yardley believes that if Elizabeth Lane entertains a war hero in her home, readers will buy and subscribe to Smart Housekeeping.

This development puts Elizabeth on the spot. How will she be able to entertain a war hero when she lives in a small New York City apartment? Enter John Sloan, an architect, who is in love with Elizabeth and has asked her to marry him on several occasions but has always been turned down…until now! John has a farm in Connecticut, the farm she has based her stories on, and he’s anxious to make her his bride. Sloan even has worked out a plan where they can “rent” a baby!

Felix (S.Z. Sakall) teaches Elizabeth how to flip pancakes

When returning war hero Jefferson Jones (Dennis Morgan) arrives at the Connecticut farm, he is immediately smitten with Elizabeth Lane, and she is with him. Elizabeth and Sloan try numerous times to get married at the farm but are always interrupted by someone or something. Felix, who doesn’t think Sloan is the right man for Elizabeth, finds ways to disrupt their wedding plans on several occasions. On the other hand, he does all he can to bring Elizabeth and Jefferson together since Felix sees the war veteran as a better match for his friend.

Like many screwball comedies, the action is fast and furious with lots of witty dialogue and improbable situations. You know that Elizabeth and Jefferson are destined to be together, but it’s the crazy path they take to get there that makes this movie so much fun.

My Reputation (1946) is a wonderful romantic drama directed by Curtis Bernhardt. Stanwyck stars as Jessica Drummond a widow who is trying to get on with her life while raising two young boys. She gets a lot of advice from her friends and family on how she should act now that she’s a widow. Her mother (Lucile Watson) especially feels that her daughter should mourn her husband perpetually. Jessica’s mother still wears black in memory of her dead husband. Jessica wants no part of her mother’s view of widowhood. Some of the film’s major events take place during the Christmas and New Year’s Eve holidays.

Ginna Abbott (Eve Arden) and Jessica Drummond (Barbara Stanwyck)

Jessica’s best friend Ginna Abbott (Eve Arden) and her husband Cary (John Ridgely) invite her on a ski vacation in Lake Tahoe. Jessica has a skiing mishap and is assisted by Major Scott Landis (George Brent). Jessica is wary of Scott’s attention but she needs his help to get back to her friends' cabin. After a little back and forth between the two, Jessica asks him to leave.

Back home in Lake Forest, Illinois, Jessica learns that Scott is stationed in Chicago. In the meantime, Jessica’s social circle starts spreading rumors about her and Scott. Not understanding why, when she’s unattached, a platonic relationship should garner so much attention and ruin her reputation. One of Jessica’s chief critics is Riette Van Orman (Leona Maricle) whose husband tried to force himself on Jessica.

Jessica and Major Scott Landis (George Brent) on the slopes

During the Christmas holiday, Jessica spends time with her mother her boys, and the family lawyer and friend Frank Everett (Warner Anderson). Jessica’s mother thinks Frank is a suitable man for Jessica to consider dating. Jessica is having none of it; she doesn’t want to be pushed into a relationship with someone she doesn’t love.

After being subjected to her “friends” talking behind her back for months, Jessica confronts Riette at Van Orman’s New Year’s Eve party. Riette expresses her disapproval of Jessica’s behavior in a most unkind way. Jessica protests saying she’s done nothing wrong and resents Riette’s judgment.

It’s about this time that Jessica realizes that she’s in love with Scott and wants to build a life together with him in spite of the gossip and judgment she may encounter going forward. Scott has orders to go overseas which complicates their relationship. It is especially difficult for her two boys who wonder if Jessica has forgotten their father. She tells them that she loved their father but has it in her to love another

My Reputation had its premiere at a U.S. Army base.

Scott is on his way to New York by train and Jessica goes to meet him. She originally planned on going to New York with him but after speaking with her boys decided not to. Jessica meets Scott at the train but tells him she can’t go with him because her boys are too young to understand. Scott asks her to wait for him. Jessica says she will as she watches the train leave the station.

Barbara Stanwyck and Barry Sullivan in Samuel Fuller's "Forty Guns"

Forty Guns (1957) is an American western written and directed by Samuel Fuller and starring Barbara Stanwyck and Barry Sullivan. The film also stars Dean Jagger, John Ericson, and Gene Barry.

John Ericson and Barbara Stanwyck

Jessica Drummond (Stanwyck) runs the territory of Tombstone in Cochise County, Arizona, with her "Forty Guns," men and landowners who she controls, with an iron fist. Enter Griff Bonnell, and his brothers, Wes and Chico. Griff, a reformed gunfighter, is working for the Attorney General's office, looking to arrest Howard Swain (Chuck Roberson). 

Things get tense when Griff confronts Jessica's baby brother Brockie (John Ericson), a drunk bully who routinely bullies the town, going so far as to shoot the town marshal (Hank Worden) in the leg. Griff pistol whips Brockie and knocks him out with one blow, bringing order back to the town.

Will Jessica seek revenge for her brother, setting in motion, more strife in Tombstone?

Jessica Drummond and her Forty Guns

Samuel Fuller (1912 - 1997) was an American director, screenwriter, novelist, and journalist. Fuller got his start writing and directing B-pictures. He wrote and directed two cult films in the early 1960s: Shock Corridor (1963) and The Naked Kiss (1964). In 1957, he directed Barbara Stanwyck in the western classic Forty Guns. Later in Fuller's career, he directed the big-budget World War II film, The Big Red One starring Lee Marvin and Mark Hamill. Fuller's work influenced directors Martin Scorsese and Quentin Tarantino.

Barbara Stanwyck (1907 – 1990) was an American film star who got her acting start with a supporting role on Broadway in a play called The Noose (1926). The next year she had the lead in another Broadway production, Burlesque which was a huge hit. She eventually made it to Hollywood where her success was not immediate. Director Frank Capra saw something in Stanwyck and he educated her in filmmaking and film acting and the rest is history. Stanwyck was nominated four times for the Best Actress Oscar—Stella Dallas (1937), Ball of Fire (1941), Double Indemnity (1945), Sorry, Wrong Number (1948)—and remains one of the most beloved movie stars from Hollywood’s Golden Age.

Barry Sullivan (1912 - 1994) was an American film actor whose career dates back to the 1930s. Sullivan had roles on the stage as well as in film. He was under contract to Paramount and MGM studios, playing mostly supporting roles, although he often had some leading-man roles opposite stars like Lorreta Yound, Lana Turner, Bette Davis, Joan Crawford, and Barbara Stanwyck. Sullivan worked in television during the 1950s and beyond. He guest-starred on Highway Patrol, Alfed Hichcock Presents, Playhouse 90, Mission: Impossible.

Forty Guns trivia:

• Stanwyck did her own stunt, being dragged by a horse, when the stunt woman refused to do it.
• The film contains one of the longest camera takes in film history.
• Jessica Drummond was the name of Stanwyck's character in My Reputation (1946).
• Reviews in the U.S. condemned the violence, but in Europe it was admired for its energetic style.
• Working title was Woman with a Whip.

To watch the film on YouTube, click the link below.

To join the discussion on June 6, 2022, at 6:30 p.m. Central Time, click here. Once you RSVP, you will receive an invitation and a link to the discussion on Zoom.

Discussion questions:

• Stanwyck was 49-years-old when she made this film. Does this fact surprise you?
• How does the violence from Fuller's Pickup on South Street compare to Forty Guns?
• What do you make of Fuller's depiction of the two main woman in this film? Are their characters believable to you?
• Did this film remind you of any others you've seen?
• The relationship between Jessica and Griff is a complicated one. Did it work well on film?
• Did anything about this film surprise you?

Barbara Stanwyck and Gary Cooper in “Meet John Doe”

Meet John Doe (1941) is a comedy-drama directed by Frank Capra and starring Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwyck. The screenplay is by frequent Capra collaborator, Robert Riskin. The cinematography is by George Barnes (Rebecca) and the music is by Dimitri Tiomkin (It’s a Wonderful Life).

Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwcyk

When Ann Mitchell (Stanwyck) gets fired from her job as a newspaper columnist, her final column focuses on “John Doe” who threatens to commit suicide on Christmas Eve because of all the injustice in the world. Ann parlays this fictional column into a sensation for the newspaper, as well as a financial boon to herself. In order to keep the stunt going and circulation rising, Ann and the new editor, Henry Connell (James Gleason) hire John Willoughby (Cooper), a minor league ballplayer who is down on his luck to portray John Doe.

As John Doe, Willoughby makes speeches and personal appearances, causing a sensation whenever he goes out in public. Doe’s love your neighbor philosophy spreads and John Doe clubs pop up all over the country, attracting the attention of the paper’s owner D. B. Norton (Edward Arnold), who has political ambitions. Norton plans on using the John Doe clubs to help elect him president! 

Will his scheme be successful? Will the John Doe movement survive?

Frank Capra (1897 - 1991) was an American film director, producer, and writer. During the 1930s and 1940s, Capra’s films were among the most popular and awarded films. By 1938, Capra has won three Best Director Academy Awards. Born in Italy, Capra immigrated to the United States with his family when he was five years old. By sheer determination and his self-described cockiness, Capra talked his way into the movie business. He found a great home at “Poverty Row” studio, Columbia Pictures. At Columbia he had a major success with It Happened One Night (1934), which swept all the major categories at the Academy Awards that year. This helped turn Columbia Pictures from a Poverty Row studio into a major one. Other Capra successes include You Can’t Take It with You (1938), Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), and It’s a Wonderful Life (1946).

Gary Cooper (1901 - 1961) was an American film actor who was known for his down-to-earth, understated acting style. He was a major star for almost four decades until his untimely death at age 60. Cooper got his start in silent film but easily made the transition to sound. During the early 1930s, he became a major star in films like A Farewell to Arms (1932), The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (1935), and Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936). Other popular Cooper films include Meet John Doe (1941), Sergeant York (1941), The Pride of the Yankees (1942), and For Whom the Bell Tolls (1952). Cooper won two Best Actor Academy Awards: Sergeant York and High Noon (1952).

Barbara Stanwyck (1907 – 1990) was an American film star who got her acting start with a supporting role on Broadway in a play called The Noose (1926). The next year she had the lead in another Broadway production, Burlesque which was a huge hit. She eventually made it to Hollywood where her success was not immediate. Director Frank Capra saw something in Stanwyck and he educated her in filmmaking and film acting and the rest is history. Stanwyck was nominated four times for the Best Actress Oscar—Stella Dallas (1937), Ball of Fire (1941), Double Indemnity (1945), Sorry, Wrong Number (1948)—and remains one of the most beloved movie stars from Hollywood’s Golden Age.

The amazing supporting cast includes Edward Arnold, Walter Brennan, Spring Byington, James Gleason, Gene Lockhart, Irving Bacon, and Regis Toomey.

Why watch this film?

• It’s considered one of director Frank Capra’s classic films, featuring two of his favorite actors (Stanwyck and Cooper).
• The film has a timeless appeal and seems relevant no matter the era in which it is viewed.
• It features great performances from Stanwyck and Cooper who were somewhat ubiquitous in 1941.
• Along with the stars, the film features some of the best supporting players working in film at the time.

To watch the film on YouTube, click the link below.

Meet John Doe trivia:

• Gary Cooper agreed to star in the film without reading a script. He enjoyed working with Capra on Mr. Deeds Goes to Town, and he wanted to work with Barbara Stanwyck.
• This was the first film that Cooper and Stanwyck starred in in 1941, the second one was Ball of Fire.
• It was the first independent film produced by Frank Capra.
• Ann Sheridan was Capra’s first choice to play Ann Mitchell but Warner Bros. wouldn’t let her take the role because she was in a dispute with the studio.
• Olivia de Havilland was also considered but she too was in dispute with Warner Bros.

To join the discussion on September 20, 2021, at 6:30 p.m, Central Time, click here. Once you RSVP, you will receive an invitation and a link to the discussion on Zoom.

Discussion questions:

1. How would you compare and contrast Ann Mitchell and Hildy Johnson? They are both women journalists working in a predominately male working environment. Was one more successful than the other?
2. How would you compare Professor Potts with Long John Willoughby?
3. What did you think of the chemistry between Cooper and Stanwyck? Better than Ball of Fire?
4. As far as your knowledge of Capra movies goes, where do you think this one ranks? Top ten? Top five?
5. Did anything about the film surprise you?

Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwyck are an unlikely pair in Howard Hawks’s “Ball of Fire”

Ball of Fire (1941) is an American romantic comedy directed by Howard Hawks and starring Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwyck. The screenplay was wirtten by Charles Brackett and Billy Wilder. The cinematography was by Gregg Toland (Citizen Kane), the music by Alfred Newman.

The plot concerns a group of professors developing and writing an encyclopedia who encounter a nightclub entertainer who is an expert on American slang. Cooper plays Professor Bertram Potts who is an expert on English and grammar. Seven other professors are experts in science, geography, physiology, law, philosophy, botany, and history. All of the professors are bachelors, with the exception of Professor Oddley who is a widower. 

When Professor Potts realizes that their entry on slang is terribly out of date, he goes out into the world to do some research. He encourages nightclub singer Sugarpuss O’Shea to help him. She ignores him at first but when her boyfriend, gangster Joe Lilac (Dana Andrews) is under scrutiny for murder, she decides to hide out with the professors.

The seven professors and Mrs. Bragg

Howard Hawks (1896 - 1977) was an American director, producer, and screenwriter. He is considered one of the great directors from the classic Hollywood era. Hawks excelled in directing films in all genres. His films were famous for featuring strong women characters. These tough-talking “Hawksian women” helped to define the director’s work. Some of Hawks’ popular films include Scarface (1932) Bringing Up Baby (1938), Only Angels Have Wings (1939), His Girl Friday (1940), To Have and Have Not (1944), The Big Sleep (1946), Red River (1948), and Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953). Gary Cooper won a Best Actor Academy Award for his performance in Sergeant York (1941) under Hawks’ direction.

Gary Cooper (1901 - 1961) was an American film actor who was known for his down-to-earth, understated acting style. He was a major star for almost four decades until his untimely death at age 60. Cooper got his start in silent film but easily made the transition to sound. During the early 1930s, he became a major star in films like A Farewell to Arms (1932), The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (1935), and Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936). Other popular Cooper films include Meet John Doe (1941), Sergeant York (1941), The Pride of the Yankees (1942), and For Whom the Bell Tolls (1952). Cooper won two Best Actor Academy Awards: Sergeant York and High Noon (1952).

Barbara Stanwyck (1907 – 1990) was an American film star who got her acting start with a supporting role on Broadway in a play called The Noose (1926). The next year she had the lead in another Broadway production, Burlesque which was a huge hit. She eventually made it to Hollywood where her success was not immediate. Director Frank Capra saw something in Stanwyck and he educated her in filmmaking and film acting and the rest is history. Stanwyck was nominated four times for the Best Actress Oscar—Stella Dallas (1937), Ball of Fire (1941), Double Indemnity (1945), Sorry, Wrong Number (1948)—and remains one of the most beloved movie stars from Hollywood’s Golden Age.

Dana Andrews (1909 – 1992) was an American stage and film actor. During the 1940s, Andrews was a major star and leading man starring in Laura (1944), State Fair (1945), A Walk in the Sun (1945), The Best Years of Our Lives (1946), Canyon Passage (1946), Boomerang! (1947), and Daisy Kenyon (1947) co-starring Joan Crawford and Henry Fonda. During the 1950s, film roles were harder to come by, but he had success in Elephant Walk (1954) co-starring Elizabeth Taylor and Peter Finch, While the City Sleeps (1956), and Curse of the Demon (1957). In 1958 he replaced Henry Fonda on Broadway in Two for the Seesaw.

Dana Andrews on “the Ameche”

The amazing supporting cast includes Oscar Homolka, Henry Travers, S.Z. Sakall, Tully Marshall, Leonid Kinskey, Richard Haydn, Aubrey Mather, Allen Jenkins, Dan Duryea, Kathleen Howard, Mary Field, and Charles Lane.

Ball of Fire trivia:

• Ginger Rogers turned down the role of Sugarpuss, something she regretted.
• Lucille Ball was going to play Sugarpuss but once producer Samuel Goldwyn found out that Gary Cooper had suggested Stanwyck and that she was available, he gave her the part instead.
• Leonid Kinskey (Professor Quintana) and Richard Haydn (Professor Oddley) were both under 40 years old and younger than Gary Cooper.
• Dana Andrews based his character (Joe Lilac) on real-life gangster Bugsy Siegel. Siegel owned the Formosa, a club across the street from Goldwyn Studios.
• Gary Cooper was paid $150,000 for his role, while Barbara Stanwyck earned the odd salary of $68,133.
• Don’t feel too sorry for Stanwyck though. By 1944, she was the highest-paid woman in the United States.
• Barbara Stanwyck received her second Best Actress (out of a total of four) for this film.

To watch the film on YouTube, click on the link below.

To join the discussion on August 30, 2021, at 6:30 p.m. click here. Once you RSVP, you will receive an invitation and a link for the discussion on Zoom.

Why watch this film?

• For the terrific script by Billy Wilder and Charles Brackett.
• The great performances and chemistry between Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwyck.
• The amazing group of character actors assembled for this film.
• To see Dana Andrews as Joe Lilac, three years before his star turn in Laura.
• This is a great example of director Howard Hawks’s versatility.
• To hear the great American 1940s slang that your parents and grandparents spoke.

Gary Cooper shares a laugh with Robert Taylor while he visits his wife, Barbara Stanwyck on the set of Ball of Fire.

Discussion questions:

1. What did you think of the pairing of Cooper and Stanwyck?
2. Billy Wilder said this was a modern version of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Do you agree with that comparison?
3. Did you have a favorite professor/character actor?
4. What do you think changed Sugarpuss’s opinion of Bertram? Do they have a chance at happiness?
5. Did this film remind you of any other movies you have seen?
6. Do you think this fits the category of screwball comedy?

Backstory

1941 was a great year for both Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwyck. 

Stanwyck films released in 1941:

The Lady Eve, directed by Preston Sturges

Meet John Doe, directed by Frank Capra

You Belong to Me, directed by Wesley Ruggles

Ball of Fire, directed by Howard Hawks**

Four films, two costars. Henry Fonda starred with Stany in The Lady Eve and You Belong to Me.

Cooper films released in 1941:

Meet John Doe, directed by Frank Capra

Sergeant York, directed by Howard Hawks*

Ball of Fire, directed by Howard Hawks

**Stanwyck was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress; she lost to Joan Fontaine (Suspicion).

*Cooper won the Academy Award for Best Actor. 

Henry Fonda, Preston Sturges, and Barbara (Stany) Stanwyck on 
the set of The Lady Eve