The Three Queens of Paramount: Claudette Colbert, Paulette Goddard, and Veronica Lake star in “So Proudly We Hail”

So Proudly We Hail! (1943) is an American war film directed and produced by Mark Sandrich and starring Claudette Colbert, Paulette Goddard, and Veronica Lake. The cinematography was by Charles Lang, and the music was by Miklos Rozsa.

The film follows a group of U.S. Army nurses stationed in the Pacific during the early days of World War II. The story is told through a series of flashbacks as one of the nurses, Lieutenant Janet “Davy” Davidson (Colbert), is being evacuated back to the States. She recounts the harrowing experiences she and her fellow nurses endured, starting with their idyllic pre-war lives and their subsequent deployment to the Philippines. The film portrays the close-knit bonds that form among the nurses as they face the brutal realities of war, including the constant threat of Japanese attacks and the overwhelming casualties they must tend to.

The main plot focuses on the nurses’ heroic efforts to care for wounded soldiers during the Battle of Bataan and the subsequent Fall of Corregidor. Led by their compassionate chief nurse, Captain Olivia D’Arcy, the women demonstrate incredible resilience and bravery while working in makeshift hospitals under deplorable conditions. The film highlights the personal sacrifices they make, including those to their own health and well-being, in service to their country. Romantic subplots emerge, with Davy falling in love with a dashing soldier named Lieutenant John Summers, adding a layer of emotional complexity to the narrative.

Ultimately, the film serves as a powerful tribute to the courage and selflessness of military nurses. It chronicles their struggles and triumphs, from their initial arrival in the Pacific to their eventual capture and internment by the Japanese. The movie’s final scenes depict the stark contrast between their valiant service and the grim reality of their fate, emphasizing the tremendous human cost of war. So Proudly We Hail! is a classic example of a wartime propaganda film, designed to honor the contributions of women in the armed forces and boost morale on the home front.

 

Colbert, Goddard, and Lake

Mark Sandrich (1900–1945) was an American film director, producer, and screenwriter best known for directing a series of successful Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers musicals at RKO Pictures in the 1930s. A notable example is Top Hat (1935), which is widely regarded as the duo's best film. Sandrich began his career in the film industry as a prop man before moving on to direct comedy shorts and eventually feature films. In the 1940s, he also worked as a producer on films he directed, including the highly successful musical Holiday Inn (1942), which featured the debut of the iconic song "White Christmas," and the patriotic war drama So Proudly We Hail! (1943). His career was cut short when he died suddenly from a heart attack at age 44 while working on the film Blue Skies (1946).

 

Claudette Colbert (1903 -1996) was an American stage, film, and television actress. She is perhaps best known for her role as Ellie Andrews in Frank Capra’s It Happened One Night (1934). For her role in that film, she won the Academy Award for Best Actress. She was nominated two other times in that category. Colbert got her start in the theater, where she played a variety of ingenue roles. In 1928, she signed a contract with Paramount Pictures, where she quickly made a succession of movies. Her breakout role came in 1932 in The Sign of the Cross (1932) starring Fredric March and Charles Laughton. In 1934, she made three films that were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture: Imitation of Life, Cleopatra, and the eventual winner, It Happened One Night. No one had been able to match that record. Other popular films include I Met Him in Paris (1937), Drums Along the Mohawk (1939), Midnight (1939), The Palm Beach Story (1942), Since You Went Away (1944), and The Egg and I (1947).

Paulette Goddard (1905–1990) was an American actress who rose to fame in the 1930s and 1940s. Born Marion Pauline Levy, she began her career as a child model and then became a Ziegfeld Girl on Broadway. She moved to Hollywood and gained attention for her relationship with Charlie Chaplin, who cast her as the female lead in Modern Times (1936) and The Great Dictator (1940). Goddard went on to become a major star for Paramount Pictures, appearing in popular films such as The Cat and the Canary (1939) and Reap the Wild Wind (1942). She earned her only Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her role as an army nurse in So Proudly We Hail! (1943). Her life after Hollywood included her marriage to writer Erich Maria Remarque and a legacy of philanthropy.

Veronica Lake (1922 - 1973) was an American film, stage, and television actress. She was a popular star of film noirs, often paired with Alan Ladd in the 1940s. She was also famous for her peek-a-boo hairstyle. Her home studio, Paramount, dubbed her the peek-a-boo girl. Women and girls all over the world copied her hair-over-one-eye hairstyle. Lake became an overnight sensation with her role in I Wanted Wings (1940). During the height of her career, Lake was making $4,500 a week. Some of her popular films include Sullivan’s Travels (1941),  This Gun for Hire (1942), The Glass Key (1942), So Proudly We Hail! (1943), and The Blue Dahlia (1946). Lake’s career declined due to her struggle with alcoholism. She died from cirrhosis of the liver in 1973. She was 50 years old.

 

So Proudly We Hail trivia

• Claudette Colbert was 39, Paulette Goddard was 32, and Veronica Lake was 20 during the film’s release.
• Lake, in keeping with Army regulations, changed her famous “peek-a-boo” hairstyle. She let her hair down only once toward the end of the film.
• Goddard was nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Academy Award. It was her one and only nomination. The film was nominated for three other Academy Awards.
• Paramount went to great lengths to ensure the film’s accuracy.

 

Click HERE to watch the film on the Internet Archive.

Click HERE to join the online discussion on September 15, 2025, at 6:00 p.m. Central Time. Once you RSVP, you will receive an invitation to join the discussion on Zoom.

 

Discussion questions

1. How does the film’s narrative structure, which incorporates flashbacks from Janet Davidson’s perspective, affect the viewer's emotional connection to the characters and the events?
2. In what ways does “So Proudly We Hail!” serve as both a tribute to military nurses and a piece of wartime propaganda? Consider the portrayal of gender roles, patriotism, and the enemy.
3. Discuss the different types of relationships depicted in the film—friendships among the nurses, romantic relationships, and the professional dynamics with the soldiers and doctors. How do these relationships evolve under the stress of war?
4. The film often contrasts moments of intense combat and suffering with quieter scenes of camaraderie and personal reflection. How does this juxtaposition contribute to the film’s overall message about the human experience of war?

 

 

 

 

 

Claudette Colbert and Joel McCrea in Preston Sturges's "The Palm Beach Story"

The Palm Beach Story (1942) is an American screwball comedy written and directed by Preston Sturges and starring Claudette Colbert, Joel McCrea, Mary Astor, and Rudy Vallee. The cinematography is by Victor Milner, and the music is by Victor Young.

Tom Jeffers (McCrea) is an inventor going through a rough patch with his wife, Gerry (Colbert). Used to living an upper-class life in New York City, their current financial situation (not good) isn't helping the relationship.

Gerry, still in love with her husband, develops a plan that seems to make no sense to anyone but her. Will her plan throw her marriage into greater peril or save it?

Preston Sturges (1898 - 1959) was an American playwright, screenwriter, and film director. Sturges was one of the first film directors to direct his own screenplays, opening up the door for Billy Wilder and Joseph L. Mankiewicz to do the same. Sturges was a successful playwright and Hollywood screenwriter, and script doctor. As a writer-director, Sturges had an amazing output of films in a period of five years, all considered classics today. These films include The Great McGinty (1940), Christmas in July (1940), The Lady Eve (1941), Sullivan's Travels (1941), The Palm Beach Story (1942), Hail the Conquering Hero (1944), and The Miracle of Morgan's Creek (1944). After leaving Paramount Pictures in a dispute with upper management, Sturges's career declined, and he never produced anything close to the quality of his earlier successes. In spite of this decline, Sturges is considered one of the greatest talents to come out of Hollywood.

Claudette Colbert (1903 -1996) was an American stage, film, and television actress. She is perhaps best known for her role as Ellie Andrews in Frank Capra’s It Happened One Night (1934). For her role in that film, she won the Academy Award for Best Actress. She was nominated two other times in that category. Colbert got her start in the theater, where she played a variety of ingenue roles. In 1928, she signed a contract with Paramount Pictures, where she quickly made a succession of movies. Her breakout role came in 1932 in The Sign of the Cross (1932) starring Fredric March and Charles Laughton. In 1934, she made three films that were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture: Imitation of Life, Cleopatra, and the eventual winner, It Happened One Night. No one had been able to match that record. Other popular films include I Met Him in Paris (1937), Drums Along the Mohawk (1939), Midnight (1939), The Palm Beach Story (1942), Since You Went Away (1944), and The Egg and I (1947).

Joel McCrea (1905 – 1990) was an American movie star who appeared in over 100 films. During his almost-five-decade career, McCrea worked with some of the top directors in Hollywood, including Alfred Hitchcock (Foreign Correspondent 1940), Preston Sturges (Sullivan’s Travels 1941, The Palm Beach Story 1942), and George Stevens (The More the Merrier 1943). McCrea worked opposite some of the top leading actresses of the day, including Miriam Hopkins, Irene Dunne, Veronica Lake, Claudette Colbert, and Barbara Stanwyck, with whom he made six films. He was the first actor to play Dr. Kildare in the film Internes Can’t Take Money (1937), co-starring Stanwyck. McCrea married actress Frances Dee in 1933. The two were married until McCrea died in 1990.

Click HERE to watch the movie on the Internet Archive.

Click HERE to watch the movie on YouTube.

Click HERE to join the discussion on August 25, 202, at 6:30 p.m. Central Time. Once you RSVP, you will receive an invitation and a link to the discussion on Zoom.

The Palm Beach Story trivia

• Carole Lombard was scheduled to star alongside McCrea but was replaced by Colbert when Lombard was killed in a plane crash in 1942.
• Preston Sturges makes a cameo appearance carrying Colbert's luggage after departing Rudy Vallee's yacht.
• The studio didn't want Rudy Vallee to be cast in the role of J.D. Hackesacker III but Sturges persisted and got his way.
• The $700 that the Wienie King gives Gerry would be worth over $10,000 today.
• The Palm Beach Story was the fifth film writer-director Preston Sturges made in two years!

Why watch this film?

• The Palm Beach Story is considered one of the best screwball comedies ever made. 
• Preston Sturges is one of the true geniuses of Hollywood's classical period which makes watching his films practically mandatory.
• It's an opportunity to see Joel McCrea and Claudette Colbert at the peak of their powers and appeal.
• The supporting cast includes Mary Astor and Rudy Vallee, and the members of The Preston Sturges Stock Company.
• Few people could write sophisticated comedy like Preston Sturges, and The Palm Beach Story is just one example of the director's talent.

Discussion questions

1. Gender Roles and Expectations: How does the film challenge or reinforce traditional gender roles of the 1940s? Consider the characters of Gerry and Tom and their respective approaches to money, marriage, and independence.
2. Money vs. Love: The central conflict in the film revolves around money. Does the movie ultimately suggest that money is a necessary evil for a successful marriage, or is it a corrosive force that undermines genuine affection?
3. Screwball Comedy Elements: Identify and analyze the classic elements of screwball comedy present in "The Palm Beach Story." How do these elements, such as fast-paced dialogue, zany situations, and mistaken identities, serve the film's satirical commentary on class and relationships?
4. Symbolism of the Ale & Quail Club: The Ale & Quail Club and its chaotic journey on the train are a significant part of the film's humor. What might this group symbolize? What is their function within the narrative, and how do they reflect the film's broader themes?
5. Frankness and Modernity: For a film made in 1942, "The Palm Beach Story" is remarkably frank about divorce, remarriage, and a woman's desire for financial security. How does this film's treatment of these topics compare to other films of the era, and in what ways does it feel surprisingly modern?

Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert in Frank Capra’s “It Happened One Night”

It Happened One Night (1934) is an American romantic comedy directed by Frank Capra and starring Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert. The supporting cast includes Walter Connolly, Roscoe Karns, and Alan Hale. The film was produced by Capra and Columbia Pictures studio head Harry Cohn. The script was written by Robert Riskin. The cinematography was by Joseph Walker (The Awful Truth, It’s a Wonderful Life, Born Yesterday).

Heiress Ellen “Ellie” Andrews (Colbert) has eloped with King Westley (Jameson Thomas), a fortune-hunting pilot, against her rich industrialist father Alexander Andrews’s (Walter Connolly) wishes. Ellie’s father wants to have the wedding annulled but Ellie has other plans. Ellie runs away from her father and takes a bus to New York City to reunite with Wesley. On the bus, Ellie meets Peter Warne (Gable), a newspaper reporter who just lost his job. When he realizes that he’s traveling with the runaway heiress, Warne makes a deal with Ellie that he will keep quiet and not expose her identity if she gives him an exclusive on her love story with Wesley. If she doesn’t, Peter will tell her father where she is.

As the two traveling companions evade her father and his detectives, they fall in love.

Will Peter and Ellie be able to sustain their love, or will Ellie’s father and King Wesley have something to say about it?

 

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).

Clark Gable (1901 – 1960) was an American film actor. Gable was one of the most consistent box office stars in the history of movies. He won an Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in the landmark romantic comedy It Happened One Night (1934) directed by Frank Capra. As “The King” of Hollywood, Gable starred alongside some of the biggest female stars of their day including Joan Crawford, Myrna Loy, Jean Harlow, Lana Turner, Norma Shearer, and Ava Gardner. Gable received two additional Best Actor nominations for Mutiny on the Bounty (1935) and Gone With the Wind (1939), one of the biggest money-makers of all time. Gables third wife was the legendary Carole Lombard. Gable married Lombard in 1939 and ended with her tragic death in a plane crash in 1942. Other Gable films include San Francisco (1937), Test Pilot (1938), Boom Town (1940), Honky Tonk (1941), Command Decision (1948), Teacher’s Pet (1958), It Started in Naples (1960), and The Misfits (1961), his last film before his death at 59.

Claudette Colbert (1903 -1996) was an American stage, film, and television actress. She is perhaps best known for her role as Ellie Andrews in Frank Capra’s It Happened One Night (1934). For her role in that film, she won the Academy Award for Best Actress. She was nominated two other times in that category. Colbert got her start in the theater where she played a variety of ingenue roles. In 1928, she signed a contract with Paramount Pictures where she quickly made a succession of movies. Her breakout role came in 1932 in The Sign of the Cross (1932) starring Fredric March and Charles Laughton. In 1934, she made three films that were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture: Imitation of Life, Cleopatra, and the eventual winner, It Happened One Night. No one had been able to match that record. Other popular films include I Met Him in Paris (1937), Drums Along the Mohawk (1939), Midnight (1939), The Palm Beach Story (1942), Since You Went Away (1944), and The Egg and I (1947).

 

It Happened One Night trivia

• Both Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert didn’t want to make the film. Gable was on loan to Columbia Pictures, which was considered a punishment by the star. Columbia was a minor studio, part of  “poverty row.” Colbert had worked with Frank Capra on a silent film, which wasn’t a pleasant or successful experience.
• At first, Colbert refused to show her leg in the hitchhiking scene. When she saw the body double’s leg, she changed her mind saying, “That’s not my leg!”
• It was the first film to win the top five Academy Award categories: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Screenplay. The other films to win the Oscar “grand slam” are One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975) and The Silence of the Lambs (1991).
• Constance Bennett and Myrna Loy turned down the script. Colbert only agreed to do the picture because Capra agreed to double her salary and not be required to work for more than four weeks. Bette Davis wanted the role of Ellie, but Warner Bros. wouldn’t loan her to Columbia. Miriam Hopkins, Margaret Sullivan, and Carole Lombard also turned down the role.
• Robert Montgomery and Fredric March both turned down the role of Peter Warne.                             

Click here to watch the film on YouTube.

Click here to join the discussion on December 4, 2023, at 6:30 p.m. Central Time. Once you RSVP, you will receive an invitation with a link to join the discussion on Zoom.

 

Discussion questions

1. Some critics consider the film a screwball comedy. Would you put it in that category?
2. This film basically wrote the template for all romantic comedy films that came after it. Do you know any modern romantic comedies that owe a debt to It Happened One Night?
3. What did you think of the chemistry between Gable and Colbert? Was it believable?
4. Did you have a favorite scene or line of dialogue?
5. Considered one of the best films ever made, do you think its reputation is well deserved?

Claudette Colbert and Joel McCrea in Preston Sturges's "The Palm Beach Story"

The Palm Beach Story (1942) is an American screwball comedy written and directed by Preston Sturges and starring Claudette Colbert, Joel McCrea, Mary Astor, and Rudy Vallee. The cinematography is by Victor Milner and the music is by Victor Young.

Tom Jeffers (McCrea) is an inventor going through a rough patch with his wife Gerry (Colbert). Used to living an upper-class life in New York City, their current financial situation (not good) isn't helping the relationship.

Gerry, still in love with her husband comes up with a plan that seems to make no sense to anyone but Gerry. Will her plan throw her marriage into greater peril or save it?

Joel McCrea and Claudette Colbert

Preston Sturges (1898 - 1959) was an American playwright, screenwriter, and film director. Sturges was one of the first film directors to direct his own screenplays, opening up the door for Billy Wilder and Joseph L. Mankiewicz to do the same. Sturges was a successful playwright and Hollywood screenwriter and script doctor. As a writer-director, Sturges had an amazing output of films in a period of five years, all considered classics today. These films include The Great McGinty (1940), Christmas in July (1940), The Lady Eve (1941), Sullivan's Travels (1941), The Palm Beach Story (1942), Hail the Conquering Hero (1944), and The Miracle of Morgan's Creek (1944). After leaving Paramount Pictures in a dispute with upper management, Sturges's career declined and he never produced anything close to the quality of his earlier successes. In spite of this decline, Sturges is considered one of the greatest talents to come out of Hollywood.

Claudette Colbert (1903 -1996) was an American stage, film, and television actress. She is perhaps best known for her role as Ellie Andrews in Frank Capra’s It Happened One Night (1934). For her role in that film, she won the Academy Award for Best Actress. She was nominated two other times in that category. Colbert got her start in the theater where she played a variety of ingenue roles. In 1928, she signed a contract with Paramount Pictures where she quickly made a succession of movies. Her breakout role came in 1932 in The Sign of the Cross (1932) starring Fredric March and Charles Laughton. In 1934, she made three films that were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture: Imitation of Life, Cleopatra, and the eventual winner, It Happened One Night. No one had been able to match that record. Other popular films include I Met Him in Paris (1937), Drums Along the Mohawk (1939), Midnight (1939), The Palm Beach Story (1942), Since You Went Away (1944), and The Egg and I (1947).

Joel McCrea (1905 – 1990) was an American movie star who appeared in over 100 films. During his almost-five-decades career, McCrea worked with some of the top directors in Hollywood including Alfred Hitchcock (Foreign Correspondent 1940), Preston Sturges (Sullivan’s Travels 1941, The Palm Beach Story 1942), and George Stevens (The More the Merrier 1943). McCrea worked opposite some of the top leading actresses of the day including Miriam Hopkins, Irene Dunne, Veronica Lake, Claudette Colbert, and Barbara Stanwyck with whom he made six films. He was the first actor to play Dr. Kildare in the film Internes Can’t Take Money (1937) costarring Stanwyck. McCrea married actress Frances Dee in 1933. The two were married until McCrea’s death in 1990.

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

To join the discussion on March 28, 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.

The Palm Beach Story trivia

• Carole Lombard was scheduled to star alongside McCrea but was replaced by Colbert when Lombard was killed in a plane crash in 1942.
• Preston Sturges makes a cameo appearance carrying Colbert's luggage after departing Rudy Vallee's yacht.
• The studio didn't want Rudy Vallee to be cast in the role of J.D. Hackesacker III but Sturges persisted and got his way.
• The $700 that the Wienie King gives Gerry would be worth over $10,000 today.
• The Palm Beach Story was the fifth film writer-director Preston Sturges made in two years!

"The Ale and Quail Club" with Claudette Colbert

Why watch this film?

• The Palm Beach Story is considered one of the best screwball comedies ever made. 
• Preston Sturges is one of the true geniuses of Hollywood's classical period which makes watching his films practically mandatory.
• It's an opportunity to see Joel McCrea and Claudette Colbert at the peak of their powers and appeal.
• The supporting cast includes Mary Astor and Rudy Vallee and the members of The Preston Sturges Stock Company.
• Few people could write sophisticated comedy like Preston Sturges and The Palm Beach Story is just one example of the director's talent.

Discussion questions

1. Do you think the director had a message about marriage and relationships buried beneath the comedy?
2. What did you think of the comedic talents of Colbert and McCrea and Astor and Vallee?
3. Was there any wisdom in Gerry's plan to help her husband succeed?
4. Did you have a favorite actor or character actor?
5. Was there anything that surprised you?
6. Was the ending satisfying, confusing, brilliant?

Claudette Colbert is a prisoner of war in “Three Came Home”

Three Came Home (1950) is an American film about prisoners of war under the Japanese in North Borneo (now Sabah) and Sarawak during World War II. The film was directed by Jean Negulesco and starring Claudette Colbert, Patric Knowles, and Sessue Hayakawa. The film is based on the memoir Three Came Came Home, by Agnes Newton Keith. Keith was a journalist and novelist. 

Agnes and Harry Keith were living a comfortable life in North Borneo with their young son. Harry Keith was English and Conservator of Forests and Director of Agriculture for the government. The Japanese invaded Sandakan on January 19, 1942. Wives and children were separated from their husbands and fathers and held captive in prison camps near each other. When Mrs. Keith is singled out by Colonel Suga, the head of the camp, she has no idea what may be in store for herself and her family.

Sessue Hayakawa and Claudette Colbert

Jean Negulesco (1900 - 1993) was a Romanian-American movie director during the classical Hollywood period. He is most famous for directing Jane Wyman to her Oscar-winning performance in Johnny Belinda (1948), How to Marry a Millionare (1953), Titanic (1953), and Three Coins in the Fountain (1954). He was one of the first directors to film in the then-new widescreen process called Cinemascope. In fact, he was called “the first real master” of the process. Other films he directed include Road House (1948), Daddy Long Legs (1955), Boy on a Dolphin (1957), and The Best of Everything (1959).

Claudette Colbert (1903 -1996) was an American stage, film, and television actress. She is perhaps best known for her role as Ellie Andrews in Frank Capra’s It Happened One Night (1934). For her role in that film, she won the Academy Award for Best Actress. She was nominated two other times in that category. Colbert got her start in the theater where she played a variety of ingenue roles. In 1928, she signed a contract with Paramount Pictures where she quickly made a succession of movies. Her breakout role came in 1932 in The Sign of the Cross (1932) starring Fredric March and Charles Laughton. In 1934, she made three films that were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture: Imitation of Life, Cleopatra, and the eventual winner, It Happened One Night. No one had been able to match that record. Other popular films include I Met Him in Paris (1937), Drums Along the Mohawk (1939), Midnight (1939), The Palm Beach Story (1942), Since You Went Away (1944), and The Egg and I (1947).

Patric Knowles (1911 -1995) was an English actor and got his start in British cinema during the early days of talking pictures. On arriving in America, he was signed by Warner Bros. At that studio, he had roles in The Charge of the Light Brigade (1936) with Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland, It's Love I'm After (1937), and The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938) again with Flynn and de Havilland. During the 1940s, Knowles worked at RKO, Universal, Paramount Studios. Knowles continued working in film and television until the early 1970s.

Sessue Hayakawa (1886 -1973) was a Japanese actor and matinee idol during the silent era in Hollywood. Hayakawa was so popular that he was earning $3500 a week in 1919. He also had his own production company from 1918 - 1920. Hayakawa made films in Europe, America, and Japan during the 1920s, 30s, and 40s. He later became a character actor with roles in The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) and Swiss Family Robinson (1960).

Sessue Hayakawa during his days as a silent film idol 

Three Came Home trivia:

• Claudette Colbert was signed to play Margo Channing in All About Eve, but during a scene in Three Came Home, she injured her back and had to drop out, allowing Bette Davis to play the iconic character.
• Colbert considered this one of her best film roles and performances.
• The Fox film crew went to Borneo and filmed for four weeks to get background footage.
• Agnes Newton Keith’s memoir was a best-seller in 1947 when it was first published.
• Olivia de Havilland was originally announced for the role of Keith.
• Agnes Newton Keith has a small cameo in the film; she’s the very tall woman carrying two suitcases off of the dock at Kuching, Sarawak.

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

To join the discussion on April 20, 2021, at 6:30 p.m. on Zoom. To RSVP click here. Once you RSVP, you’ll get an invitation and Zoom link to join the discussion.

Why watch this film?

• The film is based on a true story of a family’s survival as prisoners of war.
• It features a great performance by Colbert who wore no makeup and lost weight so her characterization would be more realistic.
• Colbert hated to have her face filmed from the right side; for this film, she put her vanity aside.
• Released only five years after the end of the war, the film gives a fairly balanced portrayal of the Japanese commander Colonel Suga.

Discussion questions:

1. What did you think of the movie overall? Did it seem realistic?
2. Was Colbert’s performance believable?
3. What did you think of the supporting cast? Did anyone stand out?
4. Did anything surprise you?
5. How did this film compare to Stalag 17?

Great films of 1939: Screening of “Midnight” January 16 at Daystar Center

Great films of 1939: Midnight
Where: The Venue 1550 at the Daystar Center, 1550 S. State Street, Chicago, IL
When: January 16, 2016
Time: 6:45 p.m.
Hosted by Stephen Reginald

A rainy night in Paris
Midnight is a delightful romantic screwball comedy starring Claudette Colbert and Don Ameche. Colbert plays Eve Peabody, a down-on-her-luck showgirl stuck in Paris on a miserable rainy night. Ameche plays Tibor Czerny, a Hungarian cab driver, working in The City of Light, who takes pity on her. Pity turns to attraction, for both Tibor and Eve, but Eve is set on the finer things in life.

Pawn ticket to paradise
After Tibor has driven Eve to all the cabarets in Paris helping her find work as a blues singer, Eve slips out of Tibor’s cab while he’s getting gas. Dressed in a beautiful evening gown—the only garment she owns after losing all her money in Monte Carlo—Eve wanders into a society party to get out of the rain, using a pawn ticket as her invitation. Eve relaxes into a comfortable chair while she listens to the party’s entertainment: an overweight soprano and a very serious pianist. Stephanie (Hedda Hopper), the party host, is alerted to the fact that someone entered the party with a pawn ticket. While interrupting the pianist, she asks if anyone in the room is or knows a Eve Peabody. As Colbert sinks into her chair, she is rescued from discovery.

From bridge game to high society
Before you know it, Eve is playing bridge with rich society swells Helen Flammarion (Mary Astor), Jacques Picot (Francis Lederer), and Marcel Renaud (Rex O’Malley). When Eve asks him why he picked her to be his partner, Marcel responds, “You looked charming, you looked bored, and you looked as though you wouldn’t trump your partner’s ace.” Eve introduces herself as Madame Czerny from Hungary and Jacques is smitten with her. His current lover, Helen, is enjoying the card game less and less. In the background is George Flammarion, Helen’s husband who knows his wife is having an affair with Picot, but is still in love with her.

from left to right: Mary Astor, Don Ameche, Rex O'Malley, Francis Lederer, Claudette Colbert, and John Barrymore

The further along Eve’s deception goes, the more complicated it gets, especially when Tibor shows up at the Flammarion’s estate unannounced during a high society party. Will Tibor give Eve away or will he help keep her secret?

Midnight, a clever twist on the Cinderella tale, is a delightful romp with a brilliantly witty script by Billy Wilder and Charles Brackett. It’s directed with a classy polish by Mitchell Leisen, a director who isn’t as well known today as he should be.

A popular commercial and critical success Midnight garnered this praise on April 6, 1939 from New York Times reviewer Frank S. Nugent:

“The ice went out of the river at the Paramount [theater] yesterday, and Spring came laughing in with “Midnight,” one of the liveliest, gayest, wittiest and naughtiest comedies of a long hard season. Its direction, by Mitchell Leisen, is strikingly reminiscent of that of the old Lubitsch… Pictures like “Midnight” should strike more often.”

We couldn’t agree more!

Have some Joe and Enjoy the Show!

Before the movie, grab a cup of coffee from Overflow Coffee Bar, located within the Daystar Center. You can bring food and beverages into the auditorium; we even have small tables set up next to some of the seats. General Admission: $5 Students and Senior Citizens: $3.

Join the Chicago Film club; join the discussion

Twice a month we screen classic films and have a brief discussion afterward. For more information, including how to join (it’s free), click here. The Venue 1550 is easily accessible by the CTA. Please visit Transit Chicago for more information on transportation options.

Stephen Reginald is a freelance writer and editor. He has worked at various positions within the publishing industry for over 25 years. Most recently he was executive editor for McGraw-Hill’s The Learning Group Division. A long-time amateur student of film, Reginald hosts “Chicago Film Club,” a monthly movie event held in the South Loop, for the past two years. Reginald has also taught several adult education film classes at Facets Film School, Chicago.

Daystar Center located at 1550 S. State St. works through a grassroots network of collaborations and partnerships with individuals and other nonprofit organizations. Through this web, they’re able to provide educational, cultural, and civic activities that enrich and empower their clients, guests, and community members. To learn more about classes and events offered at the Daystar Center, please visit their Web site.

Screwball Comedy and the Feminine Mystique—New Film Club series begins in September

Henry Fond and Barbara Stanwyck in The Lady Eve

The 2013-14 Film Club is back at The Venue 1550 at the Daystar Center, 1550 S. State St., Chicago. Hosted by Stephen Reginald, the film club will feature seven classic screwball comedies, including The Awful Truth and The Lady Eve. Movies will be screened at 6:30 p.m. on the second Tuesdays* of the month, starting September 10, 2013. Reginald will introduce each film giving background information before screenings, with discussion afterward. Reginald is a freelance writer/editor and popular instructor at Facets Film School in Chicago. He was also the original host of Meet Me at the Movies.

Screwball Comedy and the Feminine Mystique will feature seven screwball comedies, featuring these icons of the genre: Irene Dunne, Katherine Hepburn, Barbara Stanwyck, Claudette Colbert, and Carole Lombard.

Production Code births the Screwball Comedy
With the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code in 1934, movie studios were restricted in their depiction of certain “unacceptable” activities on screen. Prior to the code, the studios produced a string of provocative films that, for the time, were quite sexually explicit.

Life Magazine dubbed Carole Lombard (left) “The Screwball Girl,”
while Clark Gable rarely made comedies
like It Happened One Night.

Once the self-censorship began, the major studios had to come up with clever ways to entertain audiences without going outside the boundaries of the code. Out of these new constraints came the screwball comedy. The use of snappy dialogue filled with double entendres substituted for more straightforward “sex talk,” with the female lead becoming the dominant sex talker, if you will. Professor and film historian, Maria DiBattista calls these women “fast-talking dames.”

This fast-talking by the female protagonist is used not only to get laughs, which it most certainly does, but also to transform the male into a new man of her own creation. This reverse Pygmalion scenario, as noted by DiBattista and others, is at the heart of the screwball comedy and places women in the primary role. This genre produced many familiar female screen icons, including Irene Dunne, Katherine Hepburn, Carole Lombard, and Barbara Stanwyck. This series will examine the screwball comedy, in the context of the female protagonist and her very important place in the canon of American cinema.


Tuesdays* at 6:30 p.m (CST)

September 10 It Happened One Night (1934) When her father threatens to annul her marriage to oily fortune hunter King Westley, heiress Ellie Andrews hops on a cross-country bus to New York. On the trip to meet her new husband, she is befriended by a gruff newspaper reporter named Peter Warne. He agrees to help her on her journey in exchange for exclusive rights to her story. When Ellie and Peter find themselves falling in love, things get complicated, but don’t worry because there are plenty of laughs along the way. Director Frank Capra won the first of his three Oscars for his direction. Stars Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert won Oscars for Best Actor and Actress respectively. It also won awards for Best Picture and Best Writing, making it the first film to sweep all the major Oscar categories, a record it would hold for decades.

October 8 My Man Godfrey (1936) Considered the definitive screwball comedy by many, the plot centers on the actions of the wealthy and eccentric Bullock family. When one of the Bullock daughters (Carole Lombard) hires a “forgotten man” to be their new butler, things get interesting. The film features brilliant performances from Lombard and William Powell as Godfrey. It also features an excellent supporting cast that includes Alice Brady, Eugene Pallette, Gail Patrick, Mischa Auer, and Jean Dixon. My Man Godfrey was the first film to receive Academy Award nominations in all four acting categories. Also nominated for Academy Awards were director Gregory La Cava (Stage Door, Fifth Avenue Girl) and screenwriters Eric Hatch and Morrie Ryskind.

November 19 Theodora Goes Wild* (1936) Irene Dunne plays Theodora Lynn, a small-town girl who has written a racy best-selling novel under the pen name Caroline Adams. Raised by her two maiden aunts, of Lynnfield, Connecticut, Theodora tries to keep Adams’s true identity a secret. On a trip to New York to meet with her publisher, she meets an artist named Michael Grant (Melvyn Douglas) who threatens to expose her real identity. When Theodora discovers that Michael has a few secrets of his own, she turns the tables on him and goes “wild.” Released a few months after My Man Godfrey, Theodora Goes Wild was a huge box office hit. It also revealed that Dunne had a unique gift for comedy. So good was Dunne that she received her second Academy Award nomination for Best Actress—competing against fellow Hoosier, Carole Lombard who was nominated in the same category for My Man Godfrey.

*Theodora Goes Wild will be screened on the third Tuesday in November.

December 10 Christmas in Connecticut* (1945) A big hit when released, this holiday classic is sometimes overlooked in the lists of great Christmas movies. Made when Barbara Stanwyck was at her peak, the story is clever and genuinely funny. Stanwyck is Elizabeth Lane, a writer for Smart Housekeeping magazine, who delights her readers with recipes and homemaking hints. Her character is sort of a 1940s version of Martha Stewart, except, unlike Martha, she has no domestic skills whatsoever. When compelled by her magazine publisher to entertain a war hero, Stanwyck goes into high gear to present herself as the perfect domestic goddess the reading public and her publisher think she is. This holiday charmer fits right in with our screwball comedy series.

*Christmas in Connecticut will be screened on Saturday December 7 at 6:30 p.m.

January 14 The Awful Truth (1937) The first screen pairing of Irene Dunne and Cary Grant is an (Love Affair, Going My Way,) won the Academy Award for his direction.
absolute gem. This Academy Award winning comedy has everything: great acting, dialogue, and a wonderful cast of supporting players. Lucy (Dunne) and Jerry (Grant) Warriner are facing divorce, but do they really want to break up? Lucy finds herself involved with a rich oil tycoon and Jerry starts courting a young woman from a well-heeled aristocratic family. Both try to foil the others’ new romances, while refusing to face the awful truth that they’re still in love with each other. Nominated for five Academy Awards, including a third Best Actress nod for Dunne. Director Leo McCarey

February 11 Bringing Up Baby (1938) Katharine Hepburn is Susan Vance, a rich heiress who becomes infatuated with a mild-mannered paleontologist named David Huxley (Cary Grant). What follows is a roller coaster ride of madcap adventures all initiated by Susan with the weak-willed David along for the ride as her not-so-willing accomplice. And then there’s a dog named George and that leopard named Baby! Director Howard Hawks’s pacing is frenetic. The action and dialogue is nonstop. Don’t be surprised if you’re exhausted after watching this film…but you’ll be smiling, we guarantee it.

March 11 The Lady Eve (1941) Father and daughter con artists (Charles Coburn and Barbara Stanwyck) travel on transatlantic cruise ships swindling rich passengers in card games. When the two spot big fish Charles Poncefort Pike (Henry Fonda), heir to Pike Ale—“The ale that won for Yale”—they decide to take him for all he’s worth. But when the daughter falls in love with their mark, things get complicated and hilarious. Preston Sturges directed his first big-budget hit with amazing results. A critical and financial success, The New York Times declared The Lady Eve the best picture of 1941, above Citizen Kane! Once you see this film you’ll understand why they came to that amazing conclusion.

If you love classic cinema, you should join the Chicago Film Club. It’s free to join. Come share your love of the movies; it’s fun!



Daystar Center located at 1550 S. State St. works through a grassroots network of collaborations and partnerships with individuals and other nonprofit organizations. Through this web, they’re able to provide educational, cultural, and civic activities that enrich and empower their clients, guests, and community members. To learn more about classes and events offered at the Daystar Center, please visit their Web site.

“Reel People” Film Series at Facets Film School February—April

Facets Film School, 1517 W. Fullerton Ave., is presenting a new midnight movie series starting February 25, 2012. “Reel People” will feature films about real people and events. A different host will introduce each movie every week. Many of the hosts are instructors at Facets. The film series features Classic Movie Man, Steve Reginald, introducing the 1950 release, Three Came Home starring Claudette Colbert on Saturday, March 17.

Mark Keuning and Claudette Colbert

Three Came Home tells the story of Oak Park, IL, native Agnes Newton Keith. The film is based on Keith’s memoirs written about her experiences as a Japanese prisoner of war on the Island of Borneo, during World War II. The film is remarkable on many levels, including a realistic and gritty performance from Colbert as Keith. Colbert, famous for her glamorous persona in romantic comedies and melodramas, is anything but glamorous as Keith.

The film, released barely five years after the end of the conflict, presents a remarkably balanced portrayal of Keith’s experiences as a prisoner of war under the Japanese. Sessue Hayakawa (Bridge on the River Kwai) lends excellent support as Colonel Suga, both Keith’s tormentor and confidant. The direction by Jean Negulesco (Johnny Belinda, Road House) is steady and true. Considered one of the most important films of the year when first released, this classic is almost forgotten today.

Admission to each film is free for Facets members, $5 for nonmembers.

Facets Multi-Media, founded in 1975, is a non-profit, 501(C)3 organization, and a leading national media arts organization. Its mission is to preserve, present, distribute, and educate about film.


Feb. 25             Lew Ojeda        Amin: The Rise and Fall (1981)
March 3            Mike Smith       I’m Not There (2007)
March 10          Chris Damen     Barfly (1987)
March 17          S. Reginald       Three Came Home (1950)
March 24          Cary Elza          Shadow of the Vampire (2000)
March 31          N. Calderone    The Bengali Detective (2011)
April 7               Joe Lewis         The Beaver Trilogy (2000)
April 14             Dom Mayer      King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters (2007)
April 21             J. Wicklund       Head (1968)

Special Screening of “Three Came Home” at Facets in March, 2012

There will be a special midnight screening of Three Came Home, a true story based on the memoirs of Agnes Newton Keith, at Facets Film School in March. The exact date has not been set, so stay tuned.

Claudette Colbert plays a prisoner of war in Three Came Home.

True Story
Agnes Newton Keith was imprisoned on the island of Borneo by the Japanese during World War II. The classic film starring Claudette Colbert as Agnes and directed by Jean Negulesco will be part of Facets Night School’s “Reel People” series. If you are used to seeing Colbert in glamorous roles, this movie will be a bit of a shock. Dressed in clothes off the rack and often appearing sweaty and dirty, there is nothing glamorous about Three Came Home.

Illinois Native
Agnes was born in Oak Park, IL, and earned a degree from the University of California, Berkeley. She married Henry G. Keith (Patrick Knowles), a citizen of the United Kingdom and a childhood friend of her brother’s. Henry Keith worked for the Government of North Borneo. After Henry and Agnes were married, they settled there and had a child. A writer by profession, Agnes was the author of many books, including several about Asia and its people.

Tormentor and Confidant
When the Japanese invaded Borneo, they separated husbands and wives. Men were imprisoned with men and women with women (children were imprisoned at the womens’ camp). Agnes suffered many indignities under the Japanese. She also had a unique and strange relationship with the camp’s commander, Colonel Suga, portrayed by Sessue Hayakawa in the film. He was both her tormenter and confidant.

One of the Strongest Films of the Year
The film, well received at the time of its release, is mostly forgotten today. New York Times film critic Bosley Crowther had this to say in his February 21, 1950 review: “Soundly written, sincerely directed and honestly played by Claudette Colbert and an excellent cast, this picture, which opened here last night at the Astor, bids fair to stand as one of the strongest of the year.”

Three Came Home is definitely worth viewing for its honesty and superior storytelling that avoids stereotyping. But it still packs a wallop.

The Classic Movie Man (Steve Reginald) will introduce the film at Facets Film School, 1517 W. Fullerton Ave. Chicago IL 60614 800.331.6197, and conduct a Q & A afterward.