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International House (1933 Movie)
''International House'' is a 1933 American pre-Code comedy film starring Peggy Hopkins Joyce and W. C. Fields, directed by A. Edward Sutherland and released by Paramount Pictures. The tagline of the film was "The ''Grand Hotel'' of comedy". It is a mixture of comedy and musical acts tied together by a slim plot line, in the style of the '' Big Broadcast'' pictures that were also released by Paramount during the 1930s. In addition to some typical comedic lunacy from W. C. Fields and Burns and Allen (George Burns and Gracie Allen), it provides a snapshot of some popular stage and radio acts of the era. The film includes some risqué pre-Code humor. The cast also features Cab Calloway with his orchestra and Bela Lugosi. Plot At International House, a large hotel in metropolitan Wuhu, China Chinese inventor Dr. Wong (Edmund Breese) is soliciting bids for the rights to his "radioscope", a kind of television. Unlike real television, his contraption does not need a camera; it can look ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Walter DeLeon
Walter DeLeon (May 3, 1884 – August 1, 1947) was an American screenwriter and playwright. Biography Walter DeLeon was born on May 3, 1884 in Oakland, California. DeLeon made his playwright debut at Idora Park in Oakland. He wrote for 69 films that were released between 1921 and 1953, and acted in one film. He died on August 1, 1947 in Los Angeles, California. Filmography * '' Scared Stiff'' (1953) * ''The Time of Their Lives'' (1946) * ''Little Giant'' (1946) * ''Birth of the Blues'' (1941) * ''The Ghost Breakers'' (1940) * ''Union Pacific'' (1939) * ''The Big Broadcast of 1938'' (1938) * ''Ruggles of Red Gap'' (1935) * ''Tillie and Gus'' (1933) * ''The Phantom President'' (1932) * '' Meet the Wife'' (1931) * '' Won by a Neck'' (1930) * '' Big Money'' (1930) * ''The Sophomore ''The Sophomore'' is a 1929 American pre-Code comedy film directed by Leo McCarey and starring Eddie Quillan, Sally O'Neil and Jeanette Loff.Munden p.747 Made during the early sound era, it was ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Old-time Radio
The Golden Age of Radio, also known as the old-time radio (OTR) era, was an era of radio in the United States where it was the dominant electronic home entertainment medium. It began with the birth of commercial radio broadcasting in the early 1920s and lasted through the 1950s, when television gradually superseded radio as the medium of choice for scripted programming, variety and dramatic shows. Radio was the first broadcast medium, and during this period people regularly tuned in to their favorite radio programs, and families gathered to listen to the home radio in the evening. According to a 1947 C. E. Hooper survey, 82 out of 100 Americans were found to be radio listeners. A variety of new entertainment formats and genres were created for the new medium, many of which later migrated to television: radio plays, mystery serials, soap operas, quiz shows, talent shows, daytime and evening variety hours, situation comedies, play-by-play sports, children's shows, cooking s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lona Andre
Lona Andre (born Launa Anderson; March 2, 1915 – September 18, 1992) was an American film actress, golfer, and businesswoman. Biography Born in Nashville, Tennessee, Andre attracted attention with her first films in Hollywood and was named as one of the WAMPAS Baby Stars of 1932. After a strong finish in the ''Paramount Panther Woman Contest'' – won by Kathleen Burke – she was signed to a movie contract by Paramount Pictures. When Paramount did not renew her option, Andre worked as a freelance artist. During the 1930s she appeared frequently in films, usually as the lead in "B" pictures, and by the end of the decade had starred in more than fifty films. In 1934 Andre was part of the cast of ''School For Girls'' along with Toby Wing, Lois Wilson, Sidney Fox, and Dorothy Lee. In 1936 she appeared alongside Laurel and Hardy in their feature film ''Our Relations''. In June 1935, Andre eloped to Santa Barbara, California to marry MGM actor Edward Norris, then filed for ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sterling Holloway
Sterling Price Holloway Jr. (January 4, 1905 – November 22, 1992) was an American actor and voice actor who appeared in over 100 films and 40 television shows. He did voice acting for The Walt Disney Company, playing Mr. Stork in ''Dumbo'', Adult Flower in ''Bambi'', the Cheshire Cat in '' Alice in Wonderland'', Kaa in ''The Jungle Book'', Roquefort the Mouse in ''The Aristocats'', and the title character in ''Winnie the Pooh'', among many others. Early life Born in Cedartown, Georgia, Holloway was named after his father, Sterling Price Holloway (1864–1930), who, in turn, was named after a prominent Confederate general, Sterling "Pap" Price. His mother was Rebecca DeHaven Boothby (1879–1963). He had a younger brother named Boothby (1909–1978). The family owned a grocery store in Cedartown, where his father served as mayor in 1912. After graduating from Georgia Military Academy in 1920 at the age of fifteen, he left Georgia for New York City, where he attended the Amer ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stoopnagle And Budd
Stoopnagle and Budd were a popular radio comedy team of the 1930s, who are sometimes cited as forerunners of the Bob and Ray style of radio comedy. Along with Raymond Knight ('' The Cuckoo Hour''), they were radio's first satirists. Musician Wilbur Budd Hulick (1905–1961) and former broker-lumberman Frederick Chase Taylor (1897–1950) were both announcers at Buffalo station WMAK (now WBEN) in 1930. The great-grandson of British-born Aaron Lovecraft of Rochester, New York, Taylor was a second cousin once removed of author H. P. Lovecraft, and was related to Chief Justice Salmon P. Chase. Radio Hulick and Taylor came together as a team when a transmitter failure kept the station from receiving the scheduled network program. To prevent dead air, they delivered a barrage of spontaneous, impromptu patter. Hulick called Taylor "Colonel Stoopnagle" while Taylor played "I Love Coffee, I Love Tea" and other selections on the organ. The audience responded with so much enthusiasm th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rudy Vallée
Hubert Prior Vallée (July 28, 1901 – July 3, 1986), known professionally as Rudy Vallée, was an American singer, musician, actor, and radio host. He was one of the first modern pop stars of the teen idol type. Early life Hubert Prior Vallée was born in Island Pond, Vermont, United States, on July 28, 1901, the son of Catherine Lynch and Charles Alphonse Vallée. His maternal grandparents were English and Irish, while his paternal grandparents were French-Canadians from Quebec. Vallée grew up in Westbrook, Maine. On March 29, 1917, he enlisted to fight in World War I, but was discharged when U.S. Navy authorities discovered he was only 15 years old. He had enlisted in Portland, Maine, under the false birth date of July 28, 1899. He was discharged at the Naval Training Station in Newport, Rhode Island, on May 17, 1917, after 41 days of active service. Career Music After playing drums in his high school band, Vallée played clarinet and saxophone in bands around New En ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Franklin Pangborn
Franklin Pangborn (January 23, 1889 – July 20, 1958) was an American comedic character actor famous for playing small but memorable roles with comic flair. He appeared in many Preston Sturges movies as well as the W. C. Fields films '' International House'', ''The Bank Dick'', and ''Never Give a Sucker an Even Break''. For his contributions to motion pictures, Pangborn received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1500 Vine Street on February 8, 1960. Early years Pangborn was born in Newark, New Jersey. During World War I, he served for 14 months with the 312th Infantry in Europe. Career An encounter with actress Mildred Holland when he was 17 led to Pangborn's first professional acting experience. He was working for an insurance company when she learned about his ambitions for acting and offered him an extra's position with her company at $12 per week, initially during his two weeks' vacation. That opportunity grew into four years' touring with Holland and her troupe. Fol ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sari Maritza
Sari Maritza (born Dora Patricia Detring-Nathan; 17 March 1910 – July 1987) was a British film actress of the early 1930s. Early years Born Dora Patricia Detring-Nathan in Tianjin, China, Maritza was the daughter of Major Walter Simeon Nathan, an army engineer who was an agent and manager in Chinese Mining and Engineering, and his Viennese wife. Her stage name was taken from the titles of two then famous European operettas – ''Sari'' and ''Countess Maritza''. British colonial administrator Matthew Nathan was her uncle. Film Maritza entered films in 1930 and gained some notoriety for dancing a tango with Charles Chaplin at the premiere for his film '' City Lights'' in 1931. Although her behaviour was described as lurid, which was silly publicity, she attracted attention and was cast in several low budget, but relatively popular British films. She made the German-UK film '' Monte Carlo Madness'' in Germany in 1932 before traveling to Hollywood, but her few f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stuart Erwin
Stuart Erwin (February 14, 1903 – December 21, 1967) was an American actor of stage, film, and television. Early years Erwin was born in Squaw Valley, Fresno County, California. He attended Porterville High School and the University of California. Career Erwin began acting in college in the 1920s, having first appeared on stage. From there, he acted in stock theater in Los Angeles. Film career He broke into films in 1928 in ''Mother Knows Best''. In 1934, he was cast as Joe Palooka in the film '' Palooka''. In 1932, he co-starred with Bing Crosby in the comedy ''The Big Broadcast'', where he played Texas oil tycoon Leslie McWhinney. In 1936, he was cast in '' Pigskin Parade'', for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. In 1940, he played Howie Newsome, the dairy delivery vendor, in the film adaptation of ''Our Town'', based on the Thornton Wilder play. In Walt Disney's ''Bambi'', Erwin performed the voice of a tree squirrel. Late ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Autogyro
An autogyro (from Greek and , "self-turning"), also known as a ''gyroplane'', is a type of rotorcraft that uses an unpowered rotor in free autorotation to develop lift. Forward thrust is provided independently, by an engine-driven propeller. While similar to a helicopter rotor in appearance, the autogyro's rotor must have air flowing across the rotor disc to generate rotation, and the air flows upwards through the rotor disc rather than down. The autogyro was invented by Spanish engineer Juan de la Cierva in an attempt to create an aircraft that could fly safely at low speeds. He first flew one on 9 January 1923, at Cuatro Vientos Airfield in Madrid. The aircraft resembled the fixed-wing aircraft of the day, with a front-mounted engine and propeller. Cierva's autogyro is considered the predecessor of the modern helicopter. The success of the autogyro garnered the interest of industrialists and under license from Cierva in the 1920s and 1930s, the Pitcairn & Kellett compan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Edmund Breese
Edmund Breese (June 18, 1871 – April 6, 1936) was an American stage and film actor of the silent era. Biography Breese was born in Brooklyn, New York. His parents were Renshaw Breese and Josephine Busby. The Opera House in Eureka Springs, Arkansas, was the site of Breese's stage debut in the summer of 1895. He portrayed Adonis Evergreen in ''My Awful Dad''. Long on the stage with a varied Broadway career before entering films, Breese appeared with James O'Neill in ''The Count of Monte Cristo'' (1893), ''The Lion and the Mouse'' (1906) with Richard Bennett, ''The Third Degree'' (1909) with Helen Ware, ''The Master Mind'' (1913) with Elliott Dexter, the popular World War I era play ''Why Marry?'' (1917) with Estelle Winwood & Nat C. Goodwin and ''So This Is London'' (1922) with Donald Gallaher. He also acted in a stock company at the Castle Square Theatre in Boston. Breese's film career began in 1914 with the Edison Studios. He appeared in more than 120 films between 19 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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