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The Secret Witness
''The Secret Witness'' is a 1931 American pre-Code drama film, directed by Thornton Freeland and starring Una Merkel, William Collier Jr. and Zasu Pitts.Goble p. 946 It is an adaptation of the novel ''Murder in the Gilded Cage'' by Sam Spewack. The screenplay concerns a man who is found murdered in his luxury apartment. His neighbors believe that the wrong man has been arrested and set out to solve the crime. Cast * Una Merkel as Lois Martin * William Collier Jr. as Arthur Jones aka Casey * Zasu Pitts as Bella * Purnell Pratt as Capt. McGowan * Ralf Harolde as Lewis Leroy * Clyde Cook as Larson - Building Engineer * June Clyde as Tess Jones * Nat Pendleton as Gunner - Bodyguard * Clarence Muse as Jeff - Building Janitor * Hooper Atchley as Herbert 'Bert' Folsom * Billy Bletcher as Radio Announcer's Voice * Mike Donlin as Mike - Speakeasy Proprietor * James Durkin as Detective * Greta Granstedt as Moll * Henry Hall as Police Commissioner Martin * Pa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thornton Freeland
Thornton Freeland (February 10, 1898 – May 22, 1987) was an American film director who directed 26 British and American films in a career that lasted from 1924 to 1949. Early success He was born in Hope, North Dakota in 1898 and originally worked as an assistant director during the silent era. In 1929 he directed his first film, the comedy ''Three Live Ghosts''. He enjoyed an early success with the Eddie Cantor Technicolor musical '' Whoopie!'' (1930) and much of his subsequent work was in musicals and comedies. In 1933, he directed ''Flying Down to Rio'' which launched the screen partnership of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers although it had originally been designed as a starring vehicle for the Mexican actress Dolores del Río. The following year Freeland made a film version of the long-running Broadway revue ''George White's Scandals''. Britain In 1935 Freeland went to London to make the musical comedy '' Brewster's Millions'' starring Jack Buchanan. He was to work in Br ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Billy Bletcher
William Bletcher (September 24, 1894 – January 5, 1979) was an American actor. He was known for voice roles for various classic animated characters, most notably Pete in Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse short films and the Big Bad Wolf in Disney's ''Three Little Pigs''. Early life William Bletcher was born in Lancaster, Pennsylvania on on September 24, 1894, to Huber and Dora Bletcher. Career Bletcher appeared on-screen in films and later television from the 1910s to the 1970s, including appearances in several ''Our Gang'' and ''The Three Stooges'' comedies. He was most active as a voice actor. His voice was a deep, strong and booming baritone. Bletcher provided the voices of various characters for Walt Disney Animation Studios ( Black Pete, Short Ghost and the Big Bad Wolf in ''Three Little Pigs''). He auditioned to play one of the dwarfs in Disney's ''Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs'' (1937). However, Walt Disney disapproved for fear that people would recognize Bletcher from t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
American Black-and-white Films
American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, people who self-identify their ancestry as "American" ** American English, the set of varieties of the English language native to the United States ** Native Americans in the United States, indigenous peoples of the United States * American, something of, from, or related to the Americas, also known as "America" ** Indigenous peoples of the Americas * American (word), for analysis and history of the meanings in various contexts Organizations * American Airlines, U.S.-based airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas * American Athletic Conference, an American college athletic conference * American Recordings (record label), a record label previously known as Def American * American University, in Washington, D.C. Sports teams Soccer * ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Columbia Pictures Films
Columbia may refer to: * Columbia (personification), the historical female national personification of the United States, and a poetic name for America Places North America Natural features * Columbia Plateau, a geologic and geographic region in the U.S. Pacific Northwest * Columbia River, in Canada and the United States ** Columbia Bar, a sandbar in the estuary of the Columbia River ** Columbia Country, the region of British Columbia encompassing the northern portion of that river's upper reaches ***Columbia Valley, a region within the Columbia Country ** Columbia Lake, a lake at the head of the Columbia River *** Columbia Wetlands, a protected area near Columbia Lake ** Columbia Slough, along the Columbia watercourse near Portland, Oregon * Glacial Lake Columbia, a proglacial lake in Washington state * Columbia Icefield, in the Canadian Rockies * Columbia Island (District of Columbia), in the Potomac River * Columbia Island (New York), in Long Island Sound Populated places * ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Films Directed By Thornton Freeland
A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere through the use of moving images. These images are generally accompanied by sound and, more rarely, other sensory stimulations. The word "cinema", short for cinematography, is often used to refer to filmmaking and the film industry, and to the art form that is the result of it. Recording and transmission of film The moving images of a film are created by photographing actual scenes with a motion-picture camera, by photographing drawings or miniature models using traditional animation techniques, by means of CGI and computer animation, or by a combination of some or all of these techniques, and other visual effects. Before the introduction of digital production, series of still images were recorded on a strip of chemically sensitized ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
American Drama Films
American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, people who self-identify their ancestry as "American" ** American English, the set of varieties of the English language native to the United States ** Native Americans in the United States, indigenous peoples of the United States * American, something of, from, or related to the Americas, also known as "America" ** Indigenous peoples of the Americas * American (word), for analysis and history of the meanings in various contexts Organizations * American Airlines, U.S.-based airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas * American Athletic Conference, an American college athletic conference * American Recordings (record label), a record label previously known as Def American * American University, in Washington, D.C. Sports teams Soccer * ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1931 Drama Films
Events January * January 2 – South Dakota native Ernest Lawrence invents the cyclotron, used to accelerate particles to study nuclear physics. * January 4 – German pilot Elly Beinhorn begins her flight to Africa. * January 22 – Sir Isaac Isaacs is sworn in as the first Australian-born Governor-General of Australia. * January 25 – Mohandas Gandhi is again released from imprisonment in India. * January 27 – Pierre Laval forms a government in France. February * February 4 – Soviet leader Joseph Stalin gives a speech calling for rapid industrialization, arguing that only strong industrialized countries will win wars, while "weak" nations are "beaten". Stalin states: "We are fifty or a hundred years behind the advanced countries. We must make good this distance in ten years. Either we do it, or they will crush us." The first five-year plan in the Soviet Union is intensified, for the industrialization and collectivization of agriculture. * February 10 – Official ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1931 Films
The following is an overview of 1931 in film, including significant events, a list of films released and notable births and deaths. Top-grossing films (U.S.) The top ten 1931 released films by box office gross in North America are as follows: Events * January 5: RKO acquires the producing and distribution arm of Pathé for $4.6 million. * June 20: Monogram Pictures releases its first film, ''Ships of Hate''. * July 7: Anti-competitive practices disclosed about certain distributors and producers in Canada. * November 17: E. R. Tinker elected president of Fox Films replacing Harley L. Clarke. * December 14: RKO refinancing plan approved. Best money stars ''Variety'' reported the following as the biggest male stars in the U.S. in alphabetical order although grouped George Arliss and Ronald Colman together as having equal ranking. The following were the biggest women names in the U.S. in alphabetical order but again grouped two actresses together to denote they were ranked t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Maston Williams
Maston Williams (April 23, 1879 – July 15, 1978) was an American actor who appeared in films during the 1930s. He appeared in more than 40 films between 1931 and 1939. Selected filmography * ''Clearing the Range'' (1931) * '' Without Honor'' (1932) * ''The Gambling Sex'' (1932) * ''Fighting with Kit Carson'' (1933) * '' The Lost Jungle'' (1934) * ''The Outlaw Tamer'' (1935) * '' Public Cowboy No. 1'' (1937) * '' Heart of the Rockies'' (1937) * ''Whistling Bullets'' (1937) * ''Call the Mesquiteers'' (1938) * ''The Overland Express'' (1938) * ''The Lone Ranger'' (1938) * ''Heroes of the Hills ''Heroes of the Hills'' is a 1938 American Western " Three Mesquiteers" B-movie directed by George Sherman. Cast * Robert Livingston as Stony Brooke * Ray Corrigan as Tucson Smith * Max Terhune as Lullaby Joslin * Priscilla Lawson as Madelin ...'' (1938) References External links * 1879 births 1978 deaths American male film actors Male actors from Texas People from Na ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rita La Roy
Rita La Roy (born Ina La Roi Stuart; October 2, 1901 – February 18, 1993) was an American actress and dancer, beginning her career in 1929, and having her last significant role in 1940. Career La Roy appeared in over 50 films, the best known of which was ''Blonde Venus'', which starred Marlene Dietrich. After her acting career, she had a school for models in Hollywood. Early life While the studio publicity machine claimed she had been born in Paris, France, she was actually born in the small town of Bonners Ferry, Idaho in 1901. Her early years saw her work as both a dress designer and a stock company actress, before moving onto vaudeville, where she became a dancer. Performing on the Pantages and Orpheum theater circuits, she was known for erotic acts, which included dances such as the "frog dance", the "peacock dance" and the "cobra dance" in which her feet and legs were tied together under a stylized snakeskin so that she danced by undulating her torso." Film caree ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paul Hurst (actor)
Paul Causey Hurst (October 15, 1888 – February 27, 1953) was an American actor and director. Career Born in Traver, California, Hurst was half-Cherokee and half-Seneca. He was raised on a ranch. He appeared in hundreds of films during the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s. However, he got his start painting scenery as part of the backstage crew during the silent movie era. By 1911, he was active in films as an actor, writer and director. He freelanced and worked for many of the movie studios, building a solid reputation for his work both on and off screen. Hurst is best remembered for two roles: as the Yankee deserter who trespasses at Tara and is shot by Scarlett in ''Gone with the Wind'' (1939); and his memorable characterization of the drunken and sadistic vigilante Smith in ''The Ox Bow Incident'' (1943). However, he was most proud of his role as a crotchety, old rancher who refuses water to a Quaker family in the movie ''Angel and the Badman'', until John Wayne's character conv ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Henry Hall (actor)
Henry Hall may refer to: Politics and government * Henry Hall (MP), in 1601 MP for City of York * Henry Charles Hall (1883–1962), Canadian politician * Henry Clay Hall (1860–1936), attorney and member of the Interstate Commerce Commission appointed by President Wilson * Lyall Hall (Henry Lyall Hall, 1861–1935), member of the West Australian parliament Entertainment * Henry Hall (bandleader) (1898–1989), British bandleader * Henry Hall (actor) (1876–1954), American actor, including in ''The Secret Witness'' * Henry Hunter Hall (born 1997), American actor * Henry Richard Hall (1920-1999), American actor better known as Huntz Hall Arts and literature * Henry Hall (poet) (died 1707), English poet and composer * Henry Robinson Hall (1859–1927), British painter * Henry Bryan Hall (1808–1884), English stipple engraver and portrait painter Academia * Henry Hall (physicist) (1928–2015), British physicist * Henry Hall (Egyptologist) (1873–1930), British Egypto ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
