Vaudeville escape artist Harry Crocker turns to Sherlock Holmes for help when he is accused of strangling a chorus girl.
Sunday, January 31, 2016
Saturday, Jan. 30 - Sherlock Holmes: The Case of Harry Crocker
Vaudeville escape artist Harry Crocker turns to Sherlock Holmes for help when he is accused of strangling a chorus girl.
Saturday, January 30, 2016
Friday, Jan. 29 - Employees' Entrance
Manipulative Kurt Anderson (Warren William), the manager at a department store, treats his employees ruthlessly. He hires Madeline Walters (Loretta Young) as a model only after sleeping with her, and drives assistant Martin West (Wallace Ford) crazy with his constant demands. When Madeline and Martin fall in love, they secretly marry, hoping to keep it from the boss. However, Anderson's temperament keeps causing stress for the newlyweds, causing early marital strife.
Friday, January 29, 2016
Thursday, Jan. 28 - The Age of Consent
This little precode film deals with the unfortunate fact that hormonal activity peaks at the same time in life that critical decisions must be made. In this case we have a couple half-way through college - Betty and Mike - that are starting to suffer certain "urges". Mike wants to get married, but Betty thinks that if Mike drops out of college to marry her, he'll regret it someday and she wants them to wait. In the meantime, rich kid Duke Galloway sees an opportunity in this romantic intermission and starts to put the moves on Betty.
All of this angst leads Mike to drink heavily one night and fall for the charms of local waitress Dora Swale. Dora is OK with the fact that this is a one night stand, but just as Mike is getting ready to leave her house, Dora's dad appears, and he is not at all happy about the situation. ("Better wed her right now or face a slaughter!")
Thursday, January 28, 2016
Wednesday, Jan. 27 - The Unseen
A secretive widower hires a governess for his children, a willful boy and impressionable girl. Strange occurrences and the governess's curiosity lead her to unlock the secrets of the mysterious and uninhabited brownstone next door.
Wednesday, January 27, 2016
Tuesday, Jan. 26 - Death on the Diamond
Pop Clark is about to lose his baseball team, unless they can win the pennant so he can pay off debts. He hires ace player Larry Kelly to ensure the victory. As well as rival teams, mobsters are trying to prevent the wins (what?), and as the pennant race nears the end, Pop's star players begin to be killed, on and off the field. There's romance, too. Pop's daughter is in love with Larry. And comedy. And Mickey Rooney.
Tuesday, January 26, 2016
Monday, Jan. 25 - Sherlock Holmes: The Case of the Blind Man's Bluff
A sailor in a pub returns to his table and finds a chicken claw tied with a black ribbon hanging over it. He angrily accuses a barmaid of putting it there, but she denies it. Just after the sailor leaves the pub, he is stabbed to death. Inspector Lestrade consults Sherlock Holmes about the case, and when he tells Holmes that this is the second recent murder that has involved a chicken claw tied with a black ribbon, Holmes explains that this is used as a death threat in certain parts of Trinidad. Soon afterward, when a doctor receives the same objects, he consults with Holmes, Lestrade, and Dr. Watson.
Monday, January 25, 2016
Sunday, Jan. 24 - Killer McCoy
Tommy McCoy is a tough New York City boy, close to his dad, Brian, a performer in vaudeville. One night while his dad is doing a song and dance for the audience as part of a boxing event, Tommy accepts a challenge to step into the ring. He knocks out his opponent.
Lightweight champ Johnny Martin is impressed. He takes the McCoys on the road, letting Brian perform and showing Tommy the ropes of the boxing business. Tommy wins several fights and gains popularity, but kills a man in the ring (He kills Johnny, for crissakes! Pay attention!) and wants to quit. Then he discovers that his dad is heavily in debt to racketeer Jim Caighn and has gambled away Tommy's earnings.
Tommy begins a romantic relationship with the gangster's daughter, Sheila. He is expected to throw a big fight so that Caighn (Not Caighn! It was the other guy! You think Caighn had his own daughter kidnapped?) can collect a big payoff from his gambling rivals, and to ensure his dive in the eighth round, Sheila is taken hostage. But she manages to escape, inspiring Tommy to knock out his foe.
Sunday, January 24, 2016
Saturday, Jan. 23 - Kentucky
During the Civil War, two of the oldest families in Kentucy,the Dillons and the Goodwins, begin a long and bitter feud that has lasted into 1938. When Jack Dillon refuses to enter his father's banking business he,under an assumed name, gets a job as a trainer in Sally Goodwin's stables. A romance develops between them. When Sally's father dies, the entire estate---including the horses---has to be sold at auction to pay his debts. A note turns up left by Sally's father that according to a wager made between him and the elder Dillon, any one horse in the Dillon stable can be claimed by the Goodwins. Complications arise when Sally finds out that Jack is a Dillon.
Saturday, January 23, 2016
Friday, Jan. 22 - The Littlest Hobo
A German shepherd dog saves a lamb from slaughter; then both help a governor's (Carlyle Mitchell) paralyzed daughter (Wendy Stuart).
Friday, January 22, 2016
Thursday, Jan. 21 - Thriller: The Merriweather File
After a mysterious intruder fails to kill Ann Merriweather in her home, her husband Charles is framed for murder, leaving their lawyer Howard Yates to unravel a twisted scheme of revenge.
Thursday, January 21, 2016
Wednesday, Jan. 20 - The Irish in Us
The family consists of Pat, the cop, Mike the fireman, Danny the boxing promoter and Ma. Pat wants Danny to get a real job, because most of his fighters end up in Polookaville and Pat wants to marry Lucille. This means that he will leave the family and Danny needs a income to help support Ma. But Danny believes he has the fighter named Carbarn who will bring him fortune and is going with that. But Lucille meets Danny on the road one day and it means trouble for the family as she does not love Pat, but loves Danny.
Wednesday, January 20, 2016
Tuesday, Jan. 19 - Island in the Sky
Julie Hayes is betrothed to Michael Fraser, assistant district attorney. Peter Vincent is falsely convicted of murder of his father Stephen Vincent and is condemned to death. Julie postpones her wedding to prove him innocent. She enlists the help of Johnny Doyle, a former gangster, and eventually succeeds in saving the innocent man's life.
There's more to it than that, of course. Doyle is the real father of Peter, and Julie has helped him escape from prison to find the real killer.
Tuesday, January 19, 2016
Monday, Jan. 18 - Sherlock Holmes: The Case of the Winthrop Legend
Harvey Winthrop comes to see Sherlock Holmes out of concern for his older brother John. There is an old family legend that foretells the death of any Winthrop who unexpectedly finds silver coins in his possession, and in fact his brother has recently found several such coins. Holmes does not believe the legend, but he agrees to come to Winthrop Manor to investigate. John Winthrop also scoffs at the legend, but that same night he is found dead at the foot of the staircase. Holmes is certain that someone has murdered him, using the legend to cover up the truth.
Monday, January 18, 2016
Sunday, Jan. 17 - Whoopee
Western sheriff Bob Wells is preparing to marry Sally Morgan; she loves part-Indian Wanenis, whose race is an obstacle. Sally flees the wedding with hypochondriac Henry Williams, who thinks he's just giving her a ride; but she left a note saying they've eloped! Chasing them are jilted Bob, Henry's nurse Mary (who's been trying to seduce him) and others.
Sunday, January 17, 2016
Saturday, Jan. 16 - Stage Door
Terry Randall, rich society beauty, has decided to see if she can break into the Broadway theatre scene without her family connections. She goes to live in a theatrical boarding house and finds her life caught up with those of the other inmates and the ever-present disappointment that theatrical hopefuls must live with. Her smart-mouth roommate, Jean, is approached by a powerful producer for more than just a role. And Terry's father has decided to give her career the shove by backing a production for her to star in, in which she's sure to flop. But his machinations hurt more than just Terry.
Saturday, January 16, 2016
Friday, Jan. 15 - The Missing Juror
A newsman (Jim Bannon) tracks down a phantom killer of murder-trial jurors.
Friday, January 15, 2016
Thursday, Jan. 14 - Secret of the Blue Room
Twenty years after 3 murders occur in a castle's "blue room", three men who each want to marry a beautiful girl decide to spend a night in the room to prove their bravery to her.
Thursday, January 14, 2016
Wednesday, Jan. 13 - One Hundred Men and a Girl
The daughter of a struggling musician forms a symphony orchestra made up of his unemployed friends and through persistence, charm and a few misunderstandings, is able to get Leopold Stokowski to lead them in a concert that leads to a radio contract.
Wednesday, January 13, 2016
Tuesday, Jan. 12 - The Magnificent Dope
Unable to drum up interest in his self-improvement courses, Dwight Dawson (Don Ameche) and his press agent fiancée, Claire Harris (Lynn Bari), concoct a contest to locate America's biggest failure. Winner Tad Page (Henry Fonda), who only entered to get the money for a new fire engine for his tiny Vermont hometown, turns out to be perfectly happy with his stress-free life -- but when he falls for Claire, Tad goes along with Dwight's attempts to turn him into an ambitious Manhattan go-getter.
Tuesday, January 12, 2016
Monday, Jan. 11 - Mannix: Catalogue of Sins
A burglar steals notebooks from a psychiatrist but double crosses an accomplice and takes the notebooks for himself. One of the patients hires Mannix and Intertect after being blackmailed. Mannix's client is a movie studio art director who has a secret in his past. The trail turns deadly. The burglar and a companion turn up dead and Intertect boss Lew Wickersham is wounded.
Monday, January 11, 2016
Sunday, Jan. 10 - Obsession
New Orleans businessman Michael Courtland's life is shattered when his wife and daughter are tragically killed in a botched kidnap rescue attempt. Many years later whilst visiting Italy he meets and falls in in love with Sandra Portinari, who bears a striking resemblance to his wife.
Sunday, January 10, 2016
Saturday, Jan. 9 - Hi, Nellie!
When missing government lawyer Frank Canfield is accused of embezzling state funds, journalist Brad Bradshaw (Paul Muni) refuses to publish the headline because he considers it sensational and unverifiable. But when the media circus declares Canfield guilty, Brad is demoted for getting scooped by every paper in town. Now forced to write a ladies' advice column, Brad struggles to save face, attract a readership and find out the truth about the Canfield case in hopes of regaining his old job.
Saturday, January 9, 2016
Friday, Jan. 8 - Swing Your Lady
Promoter Ed Hatch comes to the Ozarks with his slow-witted wrestler Joe Skopapoulos whom he pits against a hillbilly Amazon blacksmith, Sadie Horn. Joe falls in love with her and won't fight. At least not until Sadie's beau Noah shows up.
Friday, January 8, 2016
Thursday, Jan. 7 - Porterhouse Blue: Episode 1
In late-'80s Britain, Porterhouse College Cambridge is an anachronism, its students uniformly male and (in the vast number of cases) privately educated. When the incumbent Master dies (from a stroke brought on by overeating) the government revenges itself on Porterhouse by appointing as his successor an old graduate, the politician Sir Godber Evans. One of the tiny minority of state-school students the college has had forced on it over the years, Evans returns to his alma mater determined to drag this bastion of privilege into the twentieth century. The elderly academic staff cease their bickering and close ranks against him, but the new Master finds his most implacable and unscrupulous opponent in Skullion, the college porter.
Porterhouse Blue: Season 1, Episode 1 Episode #1.1 (3 Jun. 1987)
When the master of Porterhouse College, Cambridge dies of a Porterhouse blue, a stroke brought on by excessive living, having rejected all likely candidates to succeed him, the post passes to former Minister of Social Security Sir Godber Evans. This is not a popular choice with the staff, who are snobs, as former student Evans was a grammar school boy. Notably aghast is head porter Skullion, whose ancestors have worked at the college for over five hundred years and who resents the upstart and his pushy wife, Lady Mary. The new master is progressive, intent on overturning centuries old traditions and planning a new, unisex college, named after his wife. Earnest research student Lionel Zipser meets Lady Mary at a feminist lecture but this makes him late returning to college and he accidentally knocks Skullion unconscious climbing over the wall.
Thursday, January 7, 2016
Wednesday, Jan. 6 - Shakedown
In "Shakedown," Howard Duff plays a photographer who will stop at nothing to climb his way to the very top of the success ladder. On the strength of his sheer tenacity, he gets a job with a major newspaper, and it's not long before he's made a name for himself by charming a notorious crime boss (Brian Donlevy) into allowing himself to be photographed. Donlevy takes him under his wing, but Duff decides to bite the hand that feeds him and sets Donlevy and another crime boss, Lawrence Tierney, against one another. He uses photos to blackmail Tierney into providing him with a steady income while he sidles up to Donlevy's wife on the sly, all the while romancing the photo editor of the paper at which he works. But Duff's cockiness and confidence in his own cleverness get the best of him, and he meets his end in a wildly melodramatic finale in which he snaps one last photo, that of his own murderer, before dying.
Wednesday, January 6, 2016
Tuesday, Jan. 5 - The Unholy Three
Echo the Ventriloquist (Lon Chaney) teams up with fellow carnies (Harry Earles, Victor McLaglen) to use their skills for crime, setting up a profitable scam operation behind the guise of a kindly old lady and "her boys" running a pet shop. But things go awry, resulting in a murder, a falsely accused patsy, and a falling out among thieves.
Tuesday, January 5, 2016
Monday, Jan. 4 - Sherlock Holmes: The Case of the Shy Ballerina
As Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson prepare to go out for a walk, Watson realizes that he has accidentally picked up another man's coat at his club. He also finds a note in the pocket with an odd, seemingly meaningless message. Just then, the man whose coat Watson has arrives to exchange coats, but in making the exchange, the two accidentally exchange hats as well. When Holmes and Watson go to the man's home to return his hat, the man's wife recognizes Holmes and asks for his help, telling him that her husband is being blackmailed by a ballerina whom he met in Russia. When the man is murdered late that same night, Inspector Lestrade suspects the ballerina, and asks for Holmes's help.
Monday, January 4, 2016
Sunday, Jan. 3 - Hi-Jack Highway
A story about truck drivers in Central France, ostensibly in the region of Clermont Ferrand (Auvergne) and in particular where their lives meet up with those of a group of gangsters who (wrongly) believe that one of the drivers, played by Jean Gabin, has stolen booty from a dead man that he ran over. The harassement becomes more intense throughout the film until the end where finally Gabin gets all his truck-driver pals to close in on and "corner" the gangsters' in their car.
Saturday, January 2, 2016
Friday, Jan. 1 - The Laughing Policeman
A policeman is among the victims when the passengers of a late-night bus are machine-gunned. With only one semi- conscious survivor and no other witnesses, the detectives try to learn from the identities of the dead why this happened and who the killer could be.
Friday, January 1, 2016
Thursday, Dec. 31 - The Mystery of Edwin Drood
By all appearances, respected choirmaster John Jasper should have a quiet life in the small village of Cloisterham. But the serenity is pierced by Jasper's opium-fueled dreams and surreal fantasies. At Jasper's despairing epicenter is his obsession with his nephew Edwin Drood's fiancé, Rosa Bud. When the handsome and cheerful Drood arrives for a visit with Rosa Bud, Jasper's previously hidden longings are slowly and unnervingly revealed. Simultaneously, orphan twins Neville and Helena Landless arrive from Ceylon to receive the charity of the community in this new adaptation of Charles Dickens's unfinished tale of passion and betrayal.
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