|
The Most Precious Thing In Life
''The Most Precious Thing in Life'' is a 1934 American pre-Code film directed by Lambert Hillyer and starring Richard Cromwell, Jean Arthur, Donald Cook, Anita Louise, and Mary Forbes. The film tells a story about secret and selfless maternal devotion with elements of ''Madame X'' (1929) and '' Stella Dallas'' (1937). It Jean Arthur's third film with Columbia. Plot Ellen Holmes, a girl from an ordinary family, marries a rich, yet spoiled, boy from a snobbish family. The pair has a son, but soon Ellen finds herself ousted from the life of her husband. However, she rediscovers her son years later. Cast *Richard Cromwell – Chris Kelsey *Jean Arthur – Ellen Holmes, also known as Biddy and Babe * Donald Cook – Bob Kelsey *Anita Louise – Patty O'Day *Mary Forbes – Mrs. Kelsey *Jane Darwell – Mrs. O'Day * Ben Alexander – Gubby Gerhart * John Wray – Carter ead janitor *Ward Bond – Head coach *Dutch Hendrian – Assistant coach * Paul Stanton – M ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lambert Hillyer
Lambert Harwood Hillyer (July 8, 1893 – July 5, 1969) was an American film director and screenwriter. Biography Lambert Harwood Hillyer was born July 8, 1893, in Tyner, Indiana. His mother was character actress Lydia Knott. A graduate of Drake University, Drake College, he worked as a newspaper reporter and an actor in vaudeville and stock theater. During World War I he began working in motion pictures and became a prolific director and screenwriter, working on many silent-era Westerns by William S. Hart, Buck Jones, Tom Mix and others. Often associated with producer Thomas H. Ince, Hillyer expanded into romantic melodramas and crime films in the 1920s. In 1936 he directed two chillers for Universal Studios, Universal, the science-fiction film ''The Invisible Ray (1936 film), The Invisible Ray'' and the cult horror film ''Dracula's Daughter''. He directed Batman (serial), the first screen depiction of Batman, a 15-part serial produced in 1943 that was re-released as a the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Madame X (1929 Film)
''Madame X'' is a 1929 American pre-Code drama film directed by Lionel Barrymore, and starring Ruth Chatterton as a fallen woman who longs to be reunited with her son. The film is based on the 1908 play ''Madame X'' by French playwright Alexandre Bisson (1848-1912). Plot Jacqueline Floriot (Chatterton) is thrown out into the street without any money by her jealous husband Louis (Lewis Stone) when he discovers she had been carrying on an affair. She is not even allowed to see their four-year-old son, and sinks into depravity. Twenty years later, she has become the mistress of Laroque ( Ullrich Haupt), a cardsharp. When he finds out that her husband is now the attorney general, Laroque decides to blackmail him. Desperate to shield her son from her disgrace, she shoots and kills her lover. By chance, the lawyer assigned to her turns out to be her own son, on his first case. He is puzzled and frustrated when she refuses to defend herself in court. During the trial, her husband sho ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1934 Films
The following is an overview of 1934 in film, including significant events, a list of films released and notable births and deaths. Top-grossing films (U.S.) The top ten 1934 released films by box office gross in North America are as follows: Events *January 26 – Samuel Goldwyn (formerly of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer) purchases the film rights to ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' from the L. Frank Baum estate for $40,000. *February 19 – Bob Hope marries Dolores Reade. *April 19 – Fox Studios releases ''Stand Up and Cheer!'', with five-year-old Shirley Temple in a relatively minor role. Shirley steals the film and Fox, which had been near bankruptcy, finds itself owning a goldmine. *May 18 – Paramount releases '' Little Miss Marker'', with Shirley Temple, on loan from Fox, in the title role. *June 13 – An amendment to the Production Code establishes the Production Code Administration, and requires all films to obtain a certificate of approval before being released. *July 28 †... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Maidel Turner
Maidel Turner (May 12, 1888 – April 12, 1953) was an American movie actress featured in almost 60 films between 1913 and 1951, beginning as the leading lady of ''The Angel of the Slums'' (1913) and becoming a comical character actress as she aged. Prominent sound films in which she appeared include ''The Raven'' (1935), ''Palm Springs'' (1936), and ''State of the Union'' (1948). Selected filmography * '' The Boy Friend'' (1926) - Mrs. Wilson * ''Olsen's Big Moment'' (1933) - Mrs. Van Allen (uncredited) * '' The Barbarian'' (1933) - Flirty Dowager (uncredited) * '' Another Language'' (1933) - Etta Hallam * ''Beauty for Sale'' (1933) - Mrs. Gillespie, a Customer (uncredited) * '' Only Yesterday'' (1933) - Party Guest (uncredited) * ''The Worst Woman in Paris?'' (1933) - Mrs. Leda Jensen * ''Fugitive Lovers'' (1934) - Little Boy's Mother (uncredited) * ''It Happened One Night'' (1934) - last motel manager's wife (uncredited) * ''Journal of a Crime'' (1934) - Stout Lady at Play Pa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Samuel S
Samuel ''Šəmūʾēl'', Tiberian: ''Šămūʾēl''; ar, شموئيل or صموئيل '; el, Σαμουήλ ''Samouḗl''; la, Samūēl is a figure who, in the narratives of the Hebrew Bible, plays a key role in the transition from the biblical judges to the United Kingdom of Israel under Saul, and again in the monarchy's transition from Saul to David. He is venerated as a prophet in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. In addition to his role in the Hebrew scriptures, Samuel is mentioned in Jewish rabbinical literature, in the Christian New Testament, and in the second chapter of the Quran (although Islamic texts do not mention him by name). He is also treated in the fifth through seventh books of '' Antiquities of the Jews'', written by the Jewish scholar Josephus in the first century. He is first called "the Seer" in 1 Samuel 9:9. Biblical account Family Samuel's mother was Hannah and his father was Elkanah. Elkanah lived at Ramathaim in the district of Zuph. His geneal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Greta Meyer
Greta Meyer (7 August 18838 October 1965) was a German actress in motion pictures beginning in the silent film era. Biography Meyer belonged to a German family that was comparable to the Barrymore family in America. At age 3 she debuted on stage with her father's stock company. She went on to perform in operettas and plays in Amsterdam, Berlin, Dresden, Vienna, and other cities in Europe. She sang for Austria's emperor and Kaiser Wilhelm, and she starred in ''The Merry Widow'' for the Count of Luxembourg. Her early film efforts came in films like '' De jantjes'' (1922) and ''Die Königsloge'' (1929). Meyer came to the United States as the star of an operetta company. When the operetta's run was completed, she stayed in New York, starring in ''The Bat'' and other plays.She began a German theater in New York, but anti-German feelings following World War I diminished attendance and caused protests, leading to the theater's closing. She went on to study Yiddish and to perform acros ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paul Stanton (actor)
Paul Stanton (born Paul George Stahl; December 21, 1884 – October 9, 1955) was an American character actor and bit-part player in American films. Originally from Illinois, he appeared in about 130 films between 1918 and 1952, mostly in supporting roles. He often portrayed authoritarian figures like judges, attorneys, managers, officials and doctors. Selected filmography * ''The Girl and the Judge'' (1918) - Walter Stuyvesant * '' The Glorious Adventure'' (1918) - Bob Williamson * ''Her Price'' (1918) - Robert Carroll * '' Should Ladies Behave'' (1933) - Oscar McFarrey (uncredited) * ''The Women in His Life'' (1933) - Judge Malone (uncredited) * ''This Side of Heaven'' (1934) - Doctor (scenes deleted) * ''Viva Villa!'' (1934) - Newspaperman (scenes deleted) * ''Stand Up and Cheer!'' (1934) - Senator (uncredited) * ''The Most Precious Thing in Life'' (1934) - Charles Kelsey (uncredited) * ''Call It Luck'' (1934) - Mr. Morgan (uncredited) * ''His Greatest Gamble'' (1934) - ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dutch Hendrian
Oscar George "Dutch" Hendrian (January 19, 1896 – December 13, 1953) was an American actor and former American football player in the National Football League. Career Football Hendrian first played college football at the University of Pittsburgh where he played on the school's freshman football team in 1919. He also played on the school's freshman baseball team and performed in the university's student theatrical Cap and Gown Club in the spring of 1920. Hendrian then transferred to Princeton University where he finished out his college football career. He started his professional career as a running back in the NFL with the Akron Pros in 1923. He then played for the Canton Bulldogs, the Green Bay Packers, the New York Giants, and the Rock Island Independents. Acting He made his debut in the movie '' The Happy Hottentots'', playing Rosco. Many of his roles were uncredited, and he rarely had lines, usually playing extras. His two most notable movies were ''Son of Kong'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ward Bond
Wardell Edwin Bond (April 9, 1903 – November 5, 1960) was an American film character actor who appeared in more than 200 films and starred in the NBC television series ''Wagon Train'' from 1957 to 1960. Among his best-remembered roles are Bert the cop in Frank Capra's ''It's a Wonderful Life'' (1946) and Captain Clayton in John Ford's ''The Searchers'' (1956). Early life Bond was born in Benkelman in Dundy County, Nebraska. The Bond family, John W., Mabel L., and sister Bernice, lived in Benkelman until 1919 when they moved to Denver, Colorado, where Ward graduated from East High School. Bond attended the Colorado School of Mines and then went to the University of Southern California and played football on the same team as future USC coach Jess Hill. At 6' 2" and 195 pounds, Bond was a starting lineman on USC's first national championship team in 1928. He graduated from USC in 1931 with a Bachelor of Science degree in engineering. Bond and John Wayne, who as Marion Rober ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Wray (actor)
John Wray (born John Griffith Malloy; February 13, 1887 – April 5, 1940) was an American character actor of stage and screen. Career Wray was one of the many Broadway actors to descend on Hollywood in the aftermath of the sound revolution, and quickly appeared in a variety of substantial character roles, such as the Arnold Rothstein-like gangster in '' The Czar of Broadway'' (1930); Himmelstoss, the sadistic drill instructor in '' All Quiet on the Western Front'' (1930); and as the contortionist the Frog in the remake of '' The Miracle Man'' (1932), in the role previously played by Lon Chaney in the 1919 original. Wray's roles grew increasingly smaller as the decade progressed but he was very visible as the starving farmer threatening to kill Gary Cooper's Longfellow Deeds in Frank Capra's classic ''Mr. Deeds Goes to Town'' (1936) and as the warden in Fritz Lang's '' You Only Live Once'' (1937). On Broadway, Wray performed in ''Achilles Had a Heel'' (1935), ''Tin Pan Alley ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ben Alexander (actor)
Nicholas Benton "Ben" Alexander III (June 27, 1911 – July 5, 1969) was an American motion picture actor, who started out as a child actor in 1916. He is best remembered for his role as Officer Frank Smith in the ''Dragnet'' franchise. Life and career Ben Alexander was born in Goldfield, Nevada, and raised in California. Alexander made his screen debut at age of five in ''Every Pearl a Tear''. He went on to portray Lillian Gish's young brother in D. W. Griffith's ''Hearts of the World''. After a number of silent films, he retired from screen work, but came back for the World War I classic, ''All Quiet on the Western Front'' (1930), in which Alexander received good notices as an adult actor as "Kemmerick", the tragic amputation victim. He played lead and second lead roles in many low-budget films throughout the 1930s. He found a new career as a successful radio announcer in the late 1940s, including a stint on ''The Martin and Lewis Show''. Alexander also acted on radio, p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jane Darwell
Jane Darwell (born Patti Woodard; October 15, 1879 – August 13, 1967) was an American actress of stage, film, and television. With appearances in more than 100 major movies spanning half a century, Darwell is perhaps best remembered for her poignant portrayal of the matriarch and leader of the Joad family in the film adaptation of John Steinbeck's ''The Grapes of Wrath'', for which she received the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. She has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Early life Born to William Robert Woodard, president of the Louisville Southern Railroad, and Ellen Booth Woodard in Palmyra, Missouri, Darwell originally intended to become a circus rider, then later an opera singer. Her father, however, objected to those career plans, so she compromised by becoming an actress, changing her name to Darwell to avoid sullying the family name. The Jane Darwell Birthplace was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. Woodard vs. Woodward Some s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
_-_02.png "Click for more on -> Jane Darwell")