Wednesday, September 30, 2015

Tuesday, Sept. 29 - Alias the Doctor

Alias the Doctor (1932)

He's happiest while manning the plow on his Austrian farm, but brilliant student Richard Barthelmess (as Karl Brenner) goes to medical school in Munich. A naturally gifted surgeon, Mr. Barthelmess is named valedictorian of his graduating class. Unfortunately, a tragedy occurs just before Barthelmess graduates. He takes the rap for his irresponsible foster brother Norman Foster (as Stephan Brenner) after the latter gets drunk and botches an operation on a female companion. Barthelmess is later mistaken for his brother and takes his place as country doctor, after a freaky accident threatens the life of a young boy. Upon saving the kid's life, Barthelmess is offered a big job in the city. However, he must pretend to be his foster brother, which is not legal.

Tuesday, September 29, 2015

Monday, Sept. 28 - Checkmate: Death Runs Wild

Checkmate: Season 1, Episode 1 Death Runs Wild (17 Sep. 1960)

The Checkmate Detective Agency is hired by the rich owner of a horse farm, after what appear to be bogus attempts on her life. This all happens after her husband is found guilty of murder and receives the death penalty.

Monday, September 28, 2015

Sunday, Sept. 27 - The Mad Executioners

The Mad Executioners (1963) "Der Henker von London" (original title)

A band of hooded men have formed a court and they are exacting justice upon the criminals who have escaped the reach of the law. The sentence they exact is death by hanging. Using the hangman's rope from the Scotland Yard Museum they leave their victims hanging from various locations with a file detailing the case against them pinned to the body. Scotland Yard is stumped and have assigned their best man to break the case. Meanwhile another fiend is on the loose, one who is neatly severing the heads of young women. The bodies are found the heads are not.

Sunday, September 27, 2015

Saturday, Sept. 26 - Tales of Terror

Tales of Terror (1962)

Three stories adapted from the work of Edgar Allen Poe. A man and his daughter are reunited, but the blame for the death of his wife hangs over them, unresolved. A derelict challenges the local wine-tasting champion to a competition, but finds the man's attention to his wife worthy of more dramatic action. A man dying and in great pain agrees to be hypnotized at the moment of death, with unexpected consequences.

Saturday, September 26, 2015

Friday, Sept. 25 - The Woman from Monte Carlo

The Woman from Monte Carlo (1932)

Warren William plays a lieutenant who hides his commander's wife in his stateroom. When the ship is sunk in battle, courtroom drama ensues.

Friday, September 25, 2015

Thursday, Sept. 24 - The Falcon in Danger

The Falcon in Danger (1943)

After industrialist Stanley Palmer and his assistant go missing from a plane crash, Palmer's daughter, Nancy, receives a note demanding ransom for his return, and she contacts suave detective Tom Lawrence, known as the Falcon, to investigate.

Thursday, September 24, 2015

Wednesday, Sept. 23 - I'll See You in Hell

I'll See You in Hell (1960) "Ti aspetterò all'inferno" (original title)

When a diamond heist goes wrong, the three would-be robbers go on the run from the law. They soon find themselves involved with a beautiful woman who may wind up being even more trouble for them than the botched robbery.

Tuesday, September 22, 2015

Monday, Sept. 21 - The Ambushers

The Ambushers (1967)

A government space saucer is hijacked mid-flight by a powerful laser beam under the control of Jose Ortega. ICE sends agent Matt Helm to Acapulco with pilot Sheila Sommars to recover the saucer, under the guise of Matt taking fashion photographs of beautiful models. Matt is temporarily side-tracked, falling prey to the seductive charms of enemy agent Franceca Madeiros.

Monday, September 21, 2015

Sunday, Sept. 20 - The Girl Hunters

The Girl Hunters (1963)

Legendary detective Mike Hammer has spent seven years in an alcoholic funk after the supposed death of his secretary, Velda. He is brought back to the land of the living by his old friendly enemy, police lieutenant Pat Chambers.

Sunday, September 20, 2015

Saturday, Sept. 19 - The Tiger Makes Out

The Tiger Makes Out (1967)

Letter carrier Ben Harris (Eli Wallach) broods about the emptiness and injustice of life in his small basement apartment in Greenwich Village. One day he decides to lash out by kidnapping a beautiful young girl, but is disappointed when he all can find is 40-something housewife Gloria Fiske (Anne Jackson). It turns out, though, that Gloria is just as dissatisfied as Ben, and the two develop a growing rapport as they share their tales of alienation and misanthropy.

Saturday, September 19, 2015

Friday, Sept. 18 - Storm Fear

Storm Fear (1955)

Bank robber Cornel Wilde, after being wounded by a bullet, seeks shelter with his gang at his brother's mountain retreat. There he rekindles his romance with his brother's wife, and reconnects with the boy he believes is his son.

Friday, September 18, 2015

Thursday, Sept. 17 - A Damsel in Distress

A Damsel in Distress (1937)

Lady Alyce Marshmorton must marry soon, and the staff of Tottney Castle have laid bets on who she'll choose, with young Albert wagering on "Mr. X." After Alyce goes to London to meet a beau (bumping into dancer Jerry Halliday, instead), she is restricted to the castle to curb her scandalous behavior. Albert then summons Jerry to Alyce's aid in order to "protect his investment."

Thursday, September 17, 2015

Wednesday, Sept. 16 - Wake Up and Live

Wake Up and Live (1937)

Ben Bernie (himself) is about to take the stage with his band at a trendy New York City club when Walter Winchell (himself), a wise-cracking gossip reporter, makes some choice quips at Ben's expense in front of the audience. And so begins a very public series of back-and-forth insults, with Ben and Walter eventually involving others in their game of one-upmanship, including the beautiful singing starlet Alice Huntley (Alice Faye) and a honey-voiced man with a crippling case of stage fright.

Wednesday, September 16, 2015

Tuesday, Sept. 15 - Hobson's Choice

Hobson's Choice (1954)

Henry Hobson runs a successful bootmaker's shop in nineteenth-century Salford. A widower with a weakness for the pub opposite, he tries forcefully to run the lives of his three unruly daughters. When he decrees 'no marriages' to avoid the expensive matter of settlements, eldest daughter Maggie rebels and sets her sights on Will Mossop, Hobson's star bootmaker. Maggie and Will leave to start up in competition, and she then turns her mind to helping her sisters marry their chosen partners.

Tuesday, September 15, 2015

Monday, Sept. 14 - The Assassin

The Assassin (1952) "Venetian Bird" (original title)

Private detective Edward Mercer goes to Venice at the request of a French insurance company to locate a brave Italian whom they wish to reward for his part in the rescue of an Allied airman shot down during the war. At least, that is what Mercer thinks as he steps off the steamer at the Piazza San Marco and is greeted by a smiling street photographer, Cassana. Mercer makes his way to a shop and finds his first contact dead from a knife stab, and the trail leads him to Adrianna. He faces danger from police chief Spaloni and also from a group of foreign patriots, led by Count Borian and Lieutenant Longo, who want to use him as a stool-pigeon for a planned Coup d'Etat. A hectic race across the roof tops, high above the great square, brings Mercer to grips against his unknown enemy.

Monday, September 14, 2015

Sunday, Sept. 13 - B.B. King: The Life of Riley & The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance

B.B. King: The Life of Riley (2012)

The untold true American story of an orphan boy from the heart of the Mississippi Delta who rose to music stardom around the world and inspired a generation of fans against all odds.

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)

Questions arise when Senator Stoddard (James Stewart) attends the funeral of a local man named Tom Doniphon (John Wayne) in a small Western town. Flashing back, we learn Doniphon saved Stoddard, then a lawyer, when he was roughed up by a crew of outlaws terrorizing the town, led by Liberty Valance (Lee Marvin). As the territory's safety hung in the balance, Doniphon and Stoddard, two of the only people standing up to him, proved to be very important, but different, foes to Valance.

Sunday, September 13, 2015

Saturday, Sept. 12 - The Golden Salamander

Golden Salamander (1950)

British archaeologist David Redfern comes to Tunisia to catalog a collection of art relics and stumbles into evidence of a gun-smuggling racket. Hesitant at first to get involved or even to report the information, he becomes convinced he must do the right thing after a young man is murdered. By then, though, the smugglers know Redfern knows too much and they target him for death.

Saturday, September 12, 2015

Friday, Sept. 11 - Mannix: Huntdown

Mannix: Season 1, Episode 9 Huntdown (18 Nov. 1967)

Mannix, on the mend after a gunshot has one foot in a cast, is given a routine assignment by Intertect boss Lew Wickersham: get the signature of a man named Amos Silo on a legal document. The detective takes a bus to a small town but finds a chilly reception whenever he inquires about the man or his ranch. The town is hiding something. As Mannix digs deeper, he discovers dead cattle are part of the mystery.

Friday, September 11, 2015

Thursday, Sept. 10 - The Public Menace

The Public Menace (1935)

A woman with Greek citizenship (Jean Arthur) meets a reporter (George Murphy) on an ocean liner. She asks him to marry her in order to get off the boat. The reporter agrees but only because she gives him a fake tip on an unsolved kidnapping, which causes him to get fired from his newspaper. Now married and without jobs, the two get mixed up with a trigger happy gangster who has every cop in town hot on his tail.

Thursday, September 10, 2015

Wednesday, Sept. 9 - Disc of Horrors

Disc of Horror

Three featurettes included in the MGM Scream Legends Collection box set devoted to the films of Vincent Price fill in the details on the actor's theatrical background, fondness for art, and impish sense of humor.

Vincent Price: Renaissance Man (2007)

The Art of Fear (2007)

Vincent Price: Working with Vincent Price (2007)

Wednesday, September 9, 2015

Tuesday, Sept. 8 - The Falcon Strikes Back

The Falcon Strikes Back (1943)

The Falcon is framed for the murder of a banker and the theft of war bonds. He makes his escape into the mountains where he hides out in a rustic lodge. From here he uncovers a phony war bond operation.

Tuesday, September 8, 2015

Monday, Sept. 7 - The Palm Beach Story

The Palm Beach Story (1942)

This screwball comedy finds married couple Tom (Joel McCrea) and Gerry Jeffers (Claudette Colbert) in a strained relationship, largely due to financial difficulties. Gerry decides to leave Tom, a struggling architect, and head to Palm Beach in order to marry a wealthy man who could fund Tom's projects. When Tom follows Gerry, they cross paths with the quirky millionaire John D. Hackensacker III (Rudy Vallee) and his chatty, husband-seeking sister, Princess Centimillia (Mary Astor).

Monday, September 7, 2015

Sunday, Sept. 6 - The Front Page

The Front Page (1931)

Adapted from the 1928 stage play, this comedy follows Hildy Johnson (Pat O'Brien), an investigative reporter looking for a bigger paycheck. When an accused murderer (George E. Stone) escapes from custody, Hildy sees an opportunity for the story of a lifetime. But when he finds the criminal, he learns that the man may not be guilty. With the help of his editor (Adolphe Menjou), Hildy attempts to hide the convict, uncover the conspiracy and write the scoop of his career.

Sunday, September 6, 2015

Saturday, Sept. 5 - The Lady Eve

The Lady Eve (1941)

Returning from a year up the Amazon studying snakes, the rich but unsophisticated Charles Pike meets con-artist Jean Harrington on a ship. They fall in love, but a misunderstanding causes them to split on bad terms. To get back at him, Jean disguises herself as an English lady, and comes back to tease and torment him.

Saturday, September 5, 2015

Friday, Sept. 4 - Shoot the Works

Shoot the Works (1934)

Jack Oakie stars as seedy sideshow barker Nicky, who uses everyone he meets to get ahead. Nicky isn't even above exploiting his singing sweetheart Lily (Dorothy Dell) to suit his purposes, but this time it is he who ends up the loser -- at least until he gets wise to himself.

Friday, September 4, 2015

Thursday, Sept. 3 - The Murder Man

The Murder Man (1935)

Steve Grey, reporter for the Daily Star, has a habit of scooping all the other papers in town. When Henry Mander is investigated for the murder of his shady business partner, Grey is one step ahead of the police to the extent that he often dictates his story in advance of its actual occurrence. He leads the police through an 'open and shut' case resulting in Mander being tried, convicted and sentenced to death. Columnist Mary Shannon is in love with Steve but she sees him struggle greatly with his last story before Mander's execution. When she starts typing out the story from his recorded dictation, she realizes why.

Thursday, September 3, 2015

Wednesday, Sept. 2 - Murder by the Clock

Murder by the Clock (1931)

The matriarch of a wealthy family is haunted by the notion that she'll be buried alive. To avoid this contingency, she has a horn installed in the family mausoleum, to be activated in case she arises from her casket. The lady is murdered, and shortly after her internment the horn blows at regular intervals. Each time the horn is heard, the dead woman is seen wandering the cemetery, and each time one of her relatives winds up dead. These "supernatural" events are actually being orchestrated by a covetous family member, who uses the services of several homicidal confederates.

Wednesday, September 2, 2015

Tuesday, Sept. 1 - Perry Mason: The Case of the Jaded Joker

Perry Mason: Season 2, Episode 18 The Case of the Jaded Joker (21 Feb. 1959)

Danny Ross is a television comedian who is waiting to hear about a new television show. It has been three years since his last television show was cancelled. Charles Goff is an advertising executive who promised Danny he would pitch him for a new show in return for an introduction with the president of a large big-budget advertiser. Danny does his part but learns from Goff's secretary that Goff landed the deal without him. When Charles Goff is found dead in his office the next morning, Danny's friend, Freddie Green, is accused of the murder after finding his fingerprints on the murder weapon.

Tuesday, September 1, 2015

Monday, Aug. 31 - The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes: The Missing Q.C.s

The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes: Season 2, Episode 11 The Missing Q.C.s (9 Apr. 1973)

Two leading London barristers--Queen's Counsels--disappear during a murder trial, one for the prosecution and one for the defense. Junior defense barrister Charles Dallas searches for his two colleagues, but they are about to undergo the most bizarre of trials themselves.