TCM Star of the Month: Jane Wyman

Oscar-winning actress Jane Wyman is the January Star of the Month on Turner Classic Movies.

45 Wyman movies will be shown on Thursdays this month, beginning on Thursday, January 5th.

The series kicks off with 13 movies on the 5th, from the early part of Wyman's Warner Bros. career. Titles include BROTHER RAT (1938) and BROTHER RAT AND A BABY (1940), costarring her first husband Ronald Reagan, whom she married in 1940. There are numerous "B" films on the schedule, including her film in the Torchy Blane series, TORCHY PLAYS WITH DYNAMITE (1939).

Titles from the first evening which have been previously reviewed here are AN ANGEL FROM TEXAS (1940) with Eddie Albert and Ronald Reagan, and GAMBLING ON THE HIGH SEAS (1940) with Wayne Morris and Gilbert Roland.

There are 11 movies scheduled on January 12th, including Wyman's Oscar-winning role in JOHNNY BELINDA (1948). Other starring films include THE YEARLING (1946), THE LOST WEEKEND (1945), and Alfred Hitchcock's STAGE FRIGHT (1950).

Lesser films airing this date are a fun detective movie with Jerome Cowan, CRIME BY NIGHT (1944); THE LADY TAKES A SAILOR (1949) with Dennis Morgan; and a Raoul Walsh Western with Morgan which I enjoyed a lot, CHEYENNE (1947), aka THE WYOMING KID.

The 10 films on January 19th kick off with HERE COMES THE GROOM (1951), in which Wyman and Bing Crosby introduced the Oscar-winning song "In the Cool, Cool, Cool of the Evening" -- singing it live for the camera, incidentally.

MAGIC TOWN (1947) with James Stewart is a TCM premiere.

A key film on the 19th is PRINCESS O'ROURKE (1943); Wyman's supporting role in that led to Bily Wilder casting her in THE LOST WEEKEND, which advanced her career to a new level. It's a fine romantic comedy which deserves to be better known.

The night's films also include LARCENY, INC. (1942), THREE GUYS NAMED MIKE (1951), THE DOUGHGIRLS (1944), and HONEYMOON FOR THREE (1941). The last is an amusing romantic comedy with George Brent and Ann Sheridan.

Wyman's films with Rock Hudson and director Douglas Sirk are front and center on January 26th, MAGNIFICENT OBSESSION (1954) and ALL THAT HEAVEN ALLOWS (1956). I especially love the latter film and highly recommend it.

Other '50s Wyman films airing that night are SO BIG (1953) with Sterling Hayden, LUCY GALLANT (1955) with Charlton Heston, and MIRACLE IN THE RAIN (1956) with Van Johnson.

The tribute ends with some of Wyman's lesser Warner Bros. appearances, including the okay-to-miss A KISS IN THE DARK (1949) with David Niven and the more pleasing MY LOVE CAME BACK (1940) with Olivia de Havilland and Jeffrey Lynn.

For more on TCM this month, please vist TCM in January: Highlights or the complete online schedule.

Happy New Year!