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Basil Wrangell
Basil Wrangell (born Basilio Petrovich von Wrangell) was an Italian film and television editor and director who worked in Hollywood from the 1920s through the 1970s. Biography Basil was born at the Russian embassy in Ponte a Moriano, Italy, to Peter von Wrangell and Marussia Sasso-Ruffo. On his father's side, his family line had reportedly served as court attaches of old Russia since 1200 A.D. Basil's brother, George Wrangell, was a society columnist in New York City. Basil attended the elite Grosvenor School in Nottingham, England, as a young man, until his family lost their wealth during the Russian Revolution. A chance opportunity to serve as an interpreter for Fred Niblo on ''Ben-Hur'' led to Basil traveling to America to take an entry-level job in a cutting room at a studio. He ended up becoming a proficient editor, eventually earning the chance to direct shorts and features. For television, he edited many episodes of ''I Spy'', '' Peyton Place'', ''Combat!'', and '' Adve ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lucca
Lucca ( , ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, Central Italy, on the Serchio River, in a fertile plain near the Ligurian Sea. The city has a population of about 89,000, while its province has a population of 383,957. Lucca is known as one of the Italian's "Città d'arte" (Arts town), thanks to its intact Renaissance-era city walls and its very well preserved historic center, where, among other buildings and monuments, are located the Piazza dell'Anfiteatro, which has its origins in the second half of the 1st century A.D. and the Guinigi Tower, a tower that dates from the 1300s. The city is also the birthplace of numerous world-class composers, including Giacomo Puccini, Alfredo Catalani, and Luigi Boccherini. Toponymy By the Romans, Lucca was known as ''Luca''. From more recent and concrete toponymic studies, the name Lucca has references that lead to "sacred wood" (Latin: ''lucus''), "to cut" (Latin: ''lucare'') and "luminous space" (''leuk'', a term used by the firs ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aggie Appleby, Maker Of Men
''Aggie Appleby, Maker of Men'' is a 1933 American pre-Code comedy film directed by Mark Sandrich and written by Humphrey Pearson and Edward Kaufman. The film stars Charles Farrell, Wynne Gibson, William Gargan, ZaSu Pitts, Betty Furness and Blanche Friderici. The film was released on November 3, 1933, by RKO Pictures. Plot Streetwise Agnes "Aggie" Appleby (Wynne Gibson), waitress at Nick's Restaurant, gets into a mass fight and escapes with friend Red Branaham (William Gargan). The fight was about her honor. They live together, but the money isn't coming in, as it should. Red Branaham is caught by the police and put into jail. Her landlady (Jane Darwell) puts her out as she is unable to pay the rent. So, Aggie goes to her friend Sybby (ZaSu Pitts), a cleaning lady who puts Aggie in the room of a man who's not expected for some time so she can get some sleep. The man, Adoniram 'Schlumpy' Schlump (Charles Farrell), however, comes back earlier than expected and finds Aggie in his ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Voice Of The City
''The Voice of the City'' is a 1929 American Pre-Code film by Willard Mack and starring Robert Ames. Modeled on a stage play, it is not related to the story of the same name by O. Henry. silentera.com; accessed January 26, 2016. The film became available on DVD on January 31, 2012 from the Warner Archive collection. Premise A young man is accused of murder and a master detective is set to track him down and uncover conclusive evidence of his guilt, but the more he works on the case, the more he becomes convinced that the accused is not the real killer. He discovers that the murder was committed by a notorious gangster who's attempting to frame the boy.Cast *[...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marianne (1929 Silent Film)
''Marianne'' is a 1929 American silent romantic-drama film about a French farm girl who, despite already having a French fiancé, falls in love with an American soldier during World War I. It was made first as a silent film, then as a musical with a different cast, but Marion Davies starred in both versions. Plot summary Cast * Marion Davies as Marianne * Oscar Shaw as Stagg * Fred Solm as André (as Robert Castle) * Robert Ames as Soapy * Scott Kolk as Lieutenant Frane * Émile Chautard as Père Joseph * Mack Swain as General * Oscar Apfel as Major Production In her 30th and final silent film, Marion Davies starred for director Robert Z. Leonard in this World War I story about a French girl who falls for an American soldier ( Oscar Shaw). Davies was rushed into this project after production of the ill-fated ''The Five O'Clock Girl'' shuttered. The film was remade as a sound film. This silent version survives but was long thought lost. When Fred Lawrence Guiles wrote ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Woman Racket
''The Woman Racket'' is an extant 1930 Pre-Code talking film produced and distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer starring Tom Moore and Blanche Sweet. It is based on a 1928 Broadway play, ''Night Hostess'' by Philip Dunning. In January 2012 the film became available on DVD from the Warner Archive collection home library. IBDb.com; accessed July 23, 2015. It was one of Blanche Sweet's three talking films. Cast * Tom Moore - Tom Hayes * |
Let Us Be Gay
''Let Us Be Gay'' is a 1930 American pre-Code romantic comedy-drama film produced and distributed by MGM. It was directed by Robert Z. Leonard and stars Norma Shearer. It was filmed concurrently with and based upon the 1929 play by Rachel Crothers starring Tallulah Bankhead, which ran for 128 performances at London's Lyric Theater. Critics generally preferred Tallulah's rendition to Shearer's. Plot Housewife Kitty Brown (Norma Shearer) doesn't spend much time on her personal appearance. She is devoted to her husband Bob (Rod La Rocque). Kitty spends all her time seeing that Bob has everything he needs. Bob is embarrassed to be seen with his wife because he considers her dowdy and he doesn't like the homemade clothes she wears. Kitty gets a shock when Bob's latest girlfriend, Helen, shows up at their home. Kitty is polite to Helen and pretends that she has known about the affair all along but secretly she is broken-hearted. She excuses herself to go to her room and cry. Whe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Love In The Rough
''Love in the Rough'' is a 1930 American Pre-Code comedy film directed by Charles Reisner and written by Sarah Y. Mason, Joseph Farnham and Robert E. Hopkins. The film stars Robert Montgomery, Dorothy Jordan, Benny Rubin, J. C. Nugent, Penny Singleton and Tyrell Davis. Also a musical, it is a remake of the 1927 silent comedy ''Spring Fever''. The film was released on September 6, 1930, by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Plot summary Cast * Robert Montgomery as Kelly * Dorothy Jordan as Marilyn * Benny Rubin as Benny * J. C. Nugent as Waters * Penny Singleton as Virgie * Tyrell Davis as Tewksbury * Harry Burns as Gardener * Allan Lane as Johnson * Catherine Moylan as Martha * Edwards Davis as Williams * Roscoe Ates as Proprietor * Clarence Wilson as Brown * George Chandler as Taxi Driver * Donald Novis Donald George Novis (3 March 1906 – 23 July 1966) was an English-born American actor and tenor. Early life Novis was born on 3 March 1906 in Hastings, Sussex to Frederick ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Min And Bill
''Min and Bill'' is a 1930 American Pre-Code comedy-drama film, directed by George W. Hill and starring Marie Dressler and Wallace Beery. Adapted by Frances Marion and Marion Jackson from Lorna Moon's 1929 novel, ''Dark Star'', the film tells the story of dockside innkeeper Min's tribulations as she tries to protect the innocence of her adopted daughter, Nancy, while loving and fighting with boozy fisherman Bill, who resides at the inn. The picture was a runaway hit. In 1931, the studio released a Spanish-language version of ''Min and Bill'', ''La fruta amarga,'' directed by Arthur Gregor and starring Virginia Fábregas and Juan de Landa. ''Min and Bill'' stars Dressler (Min), Beery (Bill), Dorothy Jordan (Nancy), and Marjorie Rambeau (Bella, Nancy's disreputable mother). Dressler won the Academy Award for Best Actress in 1931 for her performance in this film. Beery received the Academy Award for Best Actor in 1931 for playing the title role in ''The Champ'', which “fully ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sidewalks Of New York (1931 Film)
''Sidewalks of New York'' is a 1931 American comedy film directed by Zion Myers and Jules White and starring Buster Keaton. The film was commercially successful. Plot Harmon (Keaton) is a wealthy landlord. When he goes to visit one of his tenements, he gets caught in the middle of a brawl between groups of kids, one of whom, Clipper Kelly (Phillips) starts to attack Harmon. When Harmon defends himself, he is seen by Clipper's sister, Margie (Page). Harmon falls in love at first sight and begins to woo her following his trial for attacking Clipper. In order to demonstrate that he is okay, Harmon opens a gymnasium for the street boys, but Clipper, who has fallen in with a small-time gangster, Butch (Rowan), wants nothing to do with Harmon and turns the other boys against him. Harmon tries to win them over by staging a wrestling match with his friend Poggle (Edwards) and a rigged boxing match with Mulvaney ( Saylor). In the meantime, Butch has gotten Clipper involved in a series o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Freaks (1932 Film)
''Freaks'' (also re-released as ''The Monster Story'', ''Forbidden Love'', and ''Nature's Mistakes'') is a 1932 American pre-Code horror film produced and directed by Tod Browning, starring Wallace Ford, Leila Hyams, Olga Baclanova, and Roscoe Ates. ''Freaks'', originally intended as a vehicle for Lon Chaney, is set amongst the backdrop of a travelling French circus and follows a conniving trapeze artist who joins a group of carnival sideshow performers with a plan to seduce and murder a dwarf in the troupe to gain his inheritance. However, her plot proves to have dangerous consequences. The film is based on elements from the short story " Spurs" by Tod Robbins, first published in ''Munsey's Magazine'' in February 1923, with the rights being purchased by the studio, responsible by MGM art department chief Cedric Gibbons. Filmed in Los Angeles in the fall of 1931, some employees at MGM were discomfited by the presence of the actors portraying the "freaks" on set, and, other tha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
