Bad Sister 1931 N/R, 68 min. Genre: Drama
Director: Hobart Henley Cast: Conrad Nagel, Sidney Fox, Bette Davis, Zasu Pitts, Humphrey Bogart, Slim Summerville, Charles Winninger, Emma Dunn, Bert Roach
Two sisters, Laura (Bette Davis) and Marianne (Sidney Fox), in the Madison family live different lives. Laura becomes involved with a new man in town (Humphrey Bogart).
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Bedside Manner 1945 N/R, 79 min. Genre: Comedy aka: Her Favorite Patient
Director: Andrew L. Stone Cast: John Carroll, Ruth Hussey, Charles Ruggles, Ann Rutherford, Claudia Drake, Renee Godfrey, Esther Dale, Grant Mitchell, Frank Jenks, Vera Marshe, John James, Bert Roach
Dr. Hedy Fredericks (Ruth Hussey) visits her hometown, and her overworked uncle, Dr. J.H. Fredericks (Charles Ruggles), wants her to stay around to help with the patient load. When he learns that Hedy has other plans, her uncle convinces an Air Force pilot (John Carroll) to fake an injury and have Hedy treat him. The plot works but not without complications.
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Bird of Paradise 1932 N/R, 80 min. Genre: Drama
Director: King Vidor Cast: Joel McCrea, Dolores del Rio, John Halliday, Richard "Skeets" Gallagher, Lon Chaney Jr., Bert Roach, Napoleon Pukui, Wade Boteler, Creighton Hale, Arnold Gray
Romance blooms when an adventurer (Joel McCrea) arrives on a South Seas island and falls in love with a beautiful native (Dolores del Rio).
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The Crowd 1928 N/R, 104 min. Genre: Drama
Director: King Vidor Cast: Eleanor Boardman, James Murray, Bert Roach, Estelle Clark, Daniel G. Tomlinson, Dell Henderson, Lucy Beaumont, Freddie Burke Frederick, Alice Mildred Puter
If there is really a classic movie, this is it. In one of the greatest silent films, young Joe (Murray) takes off to make his mark on the world in New York. But life is not easy, and this is the story of his family's ups and downs.
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Decoy 1946 N/R, 76 min. Genre: Drama
Director: Jack Bernhard Cast: Jean Gillie, Edward Norris, Robert Armstrong, Herbert Rudley, Sheldon Leonard, Marjorie Woodworth, Philip Van Zandt, Carole Donne, Bert Roach, Rosemary Bertrand, William Self, Jody Gilbert, Louis Mason, Pat Flaherty, Ray Teal
Margot (Jean Gillie) schemes to get her hands on her gangster boyfriend Frank's (Robert Armstrong) $400,000 when Frank is scheduled to die in the gas chamber. Her plan is to have Frank's body removed immediately after execution and then have Dr. Craig (Herbert Rudley) administer an antidote that will bring Frank back to life. The plan works, and Frank gives Margot half of a map to locate the money in a treasure chest, but then Frank is shot by a rival, Jim (Edward Norris), who then, with Margot's help, forces the doctor to help find the treasure. Before all is said and done, Margot has killed both the doctor and Jim. For all her work, Margot ends up dead from a fatal gunshot wound, and it turns out the only thing in the treasure chest is a one-dollar bill and a note from Frank saying he knew there would be a double-cross.
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The Great Waltz 1938 N/R, 102 min. Genre: Musical / Drama / Romance
Director: Julien Duvivier Cast: Luise Rainer, Fernand Gravey, Miliza Korjus, Hugh Herbert, Lionel Atwill, Curt Bois, Leonid Kinskey, Minna Gombell, George Houston, Bert Roach, Greta Meyer, Herman Bing, Alma Kruger, Henry Hull, Sig Ruman
In this fictionalized biography of Austrian "Waltz King" Johann Strauss, Fernand Gravey takes on the role of Strauss in a very good romantic musical. Luise Rainer plays Strauss' wife Poldie and received an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her role in this film.
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Hi Diddle Diddle 1943 N/R, 72 min. Genre: Comedy aka: Try and Find It Diamonds and Crime
Director: Andrew L. Stone Cast: Adolphe Menjou, Martha Scott, Pola Negri, Dennis O'Keefe, Billie Burke, Walter Kingsford, Barton Hepburn, Georges Metaxa, Eddie Marr, Paul Porcasi, Bert Roach, June Havoc, Chick Chandler, Richard Hageman, Ellen Lowe
The honeymoon of newlyweds Janie (Martha Scott) and Sonny (Dennis O'Keefe) is interrupted when the bride's mother (Billie Burke) learns that she has been swindled by a suitor (Barton Hepburn) she has turned down. To the rescue comes the groom's father (Adolphe Menjou) who steps in to save the day.
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Love Before Breakfast 1936 N/R, 70 min. Genre: Comedy / Romance
Director: Walter Lang Cast: Carole Lombard, Preston Foster, Cesar Romero, Janet Beecher, Betty Lawford, Richard Carle, Bert Roach, Forrester Harvey, Ed Barton, Dennis O'Keefe, Robert Kent, Sammee Tong
Scott Miller (Preston Foster) and Bill Wadsworth (Cesar Romero) are both in love with Kay Colby (Carole Lombard), and, to get rid of Bill in the competition, Scott gives Bill a job running the company's business in Japan. Then, he arranges for the beautiful Contessa Janie Campanella (Betty Lawford) to sail on the same ship that Bill is taking to Japan. Romance blooms, but when Kay finds out about Scott's manipulation, she breaks off their relationship. Later, she accepts that his actions were performed in the name of true love, and Kay and Scott marry.
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Love Me Tonight 1932 N/R, 96 min. Genre: Musical / Comedy / Romance
Director: Rouben Mamoulian Cast: Maurice Chevalier, Jeanette MacDonald, Charles Ruggles, C. Aubrey Smith, Myrna Loy, Charles Butterworth, Elizabeth Patterson, George "Gabby" Hayes, Blanche Friderici, Joseph Cawthorn, Ethel Griffies, Robert Greig, Bert Roach, Tyler Brooke, Mary Doran
This Rogers and Hart musical is a delight. It is the story of a tailor Maurice Courtelin (Maurice Chevalier) who pretends to be a Baron in order to gain the romantic attentions of the beautiful Princess Jeanette (Jeanette MacDonald). Chevalier sings the classics "Mimi," "Lover," and "Isn't it Romantic."
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The Man in the Iron Mask 1939 N/R, 110 min. Genre: Adventure
Director: James Whale Cast: Louis Hayward, Joan Bennett, Warren William, Joseph Schildkraut, Alan Hale, Miles Mander, Bert Roach, Walter Kingsford, Marion Martin, Montagu Love, Peter Cushing, Albert Dekker, Doris Kenyon
This is a good rendition of Alexandre Dumas' classic story of twin brothers (both played by Louis Hayward)–one becomes the King of France and the other is sprung from prison and raised by the Three Musketeers (Alan Hale, Miles Mander, and Bert Roach). The renegade brother is forced to wear an iron mask to hide the fact that he is the legitimate heir to the throne, else his brother would do him in. Elaborate adventure. Look for Peter Cushing as a messenger to the King in his first screen role.
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The Mandarin Mystery 1936 N/R, 65 min. Genre: Mystery
Director: Ralph Staub Cast: Eddie Quillan, Charlotte Henry, Rita La Roy, Wade Boteler, Franklin Pangborn, George Irving, Kay Hughes, William Newell, George Walcott, Edwin Stanley, Edgar Allen, Bert Roach
The popular hero of mystery novels, Ellery Queen, is brought to the screen with Eddie Quillan in the role of the sleuth. He sets out to recover a valuable Mandarin stamp that has been stolen and to solve murders that occurred during the heist. Even though Quillan had the same initials as Ellery Queen, he just didn't seem to fit the role–especially when the film was played more for laughs than for the mystery. No further Ellery Queen films were made until four years later.
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Mannequin 1937 N/R, 95 min. Genre: Drama
Director: Frank Borzage Cast: Joan Crawford, Spencer Tracy, Alan Curtis, Ralph Morgan, Leo Gorcey, Elisabeth Risdon, Mary Philips, Bert Roach, George Chandler, Paul Fix, Oscar O'Shea, Wade Boteler, James Flavin, Mary Gordon, Frank Puglia
A poor working girl, Jessie Cassidy (Joan Crawford), uses wealthy shipping tycoon John L. Hennessey (Spencer Tracy) to attain her dreamed-of destiny. "Always and Always" received an Academy Award nomination for Best Song.
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Murders in the Rue Morgue 1932 N/R, 75 min. Genre: Horror / Thriller
Director: Robert Florey Cast: Bela Lugosi, Sidney Fox, Leon Ames, Brandon Hurst, Arlene Francis, Bert Roach, Noble Johnson, D'Arcy Corrigan, Herman Bing, Betty Ross Clarke
Dr. Mirakle (Bela Lugosi) is especially fiendish in this film adaptation of Edgar Allen Poe's story of the attempt to cross an ape with a woman.
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Night World 1932 N/R, 60 min. Genre: Drama
Director: Hobart Henley Cast: Lew Ayres, Boris Karloff, Mae Clarke, Dorothy Revier, Hedda Hopper, George Raft, Russell Hopton, Bert Roach, Dorothy Peterson, Clarence Muse
This film showcases stars of the 1930's era of Hollywood and is set in a nightclub frequented by a varied array of patrons.
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Sensations of 1945 1944 N/R, 86 min. Genre: Musical aka: Sensations
Director: Andrew L. Stone Cast: Eleanor Powell, Dennis O'Keefe, C. Aubrey Smith, Eugene Pallette, Mimi Forsythe, Lyle Talbot, Marie Blake, W.C. Fields, Sophie Tucker, Bert Roach
This is really a showcase for vaudeville acts and lacks much of a plot. There are some pretty good acts and musical numbers, which includes W.C. Fields' last film appearance.
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| 1. Bad Sister (1931)
2. Bedside Manner (1945) aka: Her Favorite Patient
3. Bird of Paradise (1932)
4. The Crowd (1928)
5. Decoy (1946)
6. The Great Waltz (1938)
7. Hi Diddle Diddle (1943) aka: Try and Find It aka: Diamonds and Crime
8. Love Before Breakfast (1936)
9. Love Me Tonight (1932)
10. The Man in the Iron Mask (1939)
11. The Mandarin Mystery (1936)
12. Mannequin (1937)
13. Murders in the Rue Morgue (1932)
14. Night World (1932)
15. Sensations of 1945 (1944) aka: Sensations
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