Christmas Day Wishes

Best wishes to all my readers for a very happy Christmas!

Here's longtime favorite Alan Ladd making sure that everything is in readiness for Christmas gift giving.

Merry Christmas to all!

Previous Christmas Day photo posts: 2012 (the Lockhart Family), 2013 (Priscilla Lane), 2014 (Martha Hyer), 2015 (Andra Martin), 2016 (Betty Grable), 2017 (Loretta Young), 2018 (Alice Faye), 2019 (Marsha Hunt), 2020 (Ann Blyth), 2021 (Ann Rutherford), 2022 (Deanna Durbin), 2023 (Audrey Totter), and 2024 (Barbara Britton).

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Merry Christmas!

Best wishes to all for a very merry Christmas!

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Tonight's Movie: The Mad Miss Manton (1938) - A Warner Archive Blu-ray Review

The giddy screwball comedy THE MAD MISS MANTON (1938) was recently released on Blu-ray by the Warner Archive Collection.

I first saw this film in 2007, thanks to Turner Classic Movies, and last year I had the delight of seeing it in 35mm at the 2024 TCM Classic Film Festival. Watching it at the Egyptian Theatre with a packed crowd was a treat.

This is a film which I enjoy more on each viewing, so revisiting it thanks to the new Warner Archive Blu-ray was great fun. I may have watched it as recently as a year and a half or so ago, but who cares when you're watching this cast having fun in beautiful black and white? It's a film I've found to have great "rewatch" value.

Late one evening wealthy Melsa Manton (Barbara Stanwyck) is walking her dogs and eventually finds herself entering a mansion uninvited...where she finds a dead body!

When Police Lieutenant Brent (Sam Levene) arrives on scene, the body is gone. He and newspaperman Peter Ames (Henry Fonda) don't believe Melsa actually saw a body. Despite that, Peter finds himself irresistibly attracted to Melsa, and they begin a combative romance of sorts.

Melsa and a group of her wealthy girlfriends (including Whitney Bourne and Vickie Lester) are determined to solve the case...

This movie, written by Philip G. Epstein, was based on a story by Wilson Collison, with uncredited contributions by a quartet of writers. It may not be very deep, but it's highly amusing, with quite a bit of good dialogue.

The movie, directed by Leigh Jason, moves along at a great clip, so it's impossible to be bored. And as mentioned above, Stanwyck and company look glorious, photographed by Nicholas Musuraca.

Another part of the fun is the great supporting cast. The movie is packed with marvelous players such as George Chandler, Grady Sutton, Olin Howland, John Qualen, Hattie McDaniel, Paul Guilfoyle, Stanley Ridges, James Burke, Penny "Blondie" Singleton, Miles Mander, Leona Maricle, and even the Queen of Dress Extras, Bess Flowers, as a charity ball guest. I love watching and mentally naming each actor as he or she comes on screen.

The excellent Blu-ray print is from a 1080p HD master from 4K scans of the original nitrate camera negative. Sound quality is solid.

Blu-ray extras consist of the trailer plus the cartoons THE PENGUIN PARADE (1938) and PORKY THE GOB (1938).

THE MAD MISS MANTON is a diverting 80 minutes, and I especially recommend seeing it via the new Warner Archive Blu-ray.

Thanks to the Warner Archive for providing a review copy of this Blu-ray. Warner Archive Blu-rays may be ordered from Movie Zyng, Amazon, and other online retailers.

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Quick Preview of TCM in January

January is fast approaching! Here's a quick peek ahead at what's coming to Turner Classic Movies next month.

The majority of the schedule has now been posted, with a few spots on the scheduleto be filled in later. I'll have more complete details on the full schedule posted here around New Year's.

The January Star of the Month will be Jean Arthur. Over 20 of Arthur's films will be shown on Thursday evenings next month.  I'm sure this news will delight most film fans, as Arthur is a great favorite of many of us.

January's Noir Alley films will be THE SECOND WOMAN (1950), CRIME OF PASSION (1957), DIABOLIQUE (1955), SHIELD FOR MURDER (1954), and TALK ABOUT A STRANGER (1952).

THE SECOND WOMAN, starring Robert Young and Betsy Drake, will be a TCM premiere.  I enjoyed it quite well when I first saw it over a decade ago.

The TCM Spotlight theme is "Flashback Fridays," with films featuring flashback sequences, including PENNY SERENADE (1941), THE LOCKET (1946), THE KILLERS (1946), and many more.  Looking over the schedule makes one realize just how prevalent the flashback device has been in films.

Additional "Special Themes" in January will be films centered on "working class" characters and two evenings devoted to composer Sammy Cahn.

New Year's Day will feature a Thin Man movie marathon, along with two additional films featuring William Powell and Myrna Loy.

Additional programming themes in December will include 1950s sci-fi, gambling, secret agents, jealousy, skiing, bounty hunters, Chicago, treasure hunters, and Hildegarde Withers and Miss Marple mysteries.

There will be a five-film memorial tribute to Diane Keaton on January 25th, including MANHATTAN MURDER MYSTERY (1993) and BABY BOOM (1987). The latter film is a personal favorite of mine which I've seen many times.

TCM has also just announced a tribute to Rob Reiner for January 28th, including the TCM premiere of THE PRINCESS BRIDE (1987). WHEN HARRY MET SALLY (1989) is also part of the lineup.

I also want to particularly mention that the lineup for a daytime tribute to Johnny Mack Brown on January 9th includes a whopping five TCM premieres.

Other filmmakers receiving multifilm tributes in January include Bette Davis, Joan Crawford, Louis Hayward, Zsa Zsa and Eva Gabor, Lloyd Bacon, Margaret O'Brien, Jack Hively, Patricia Neal, Paul Newman, and Robert Taylor.

Be sure to check back here around January 1st for a complete look at TCM in January!

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TCM Remembers 2025

Friday afternoon Turner Classic Movies released its annual TCM Remembers tribute video.

As always, the video does a wonderful job honoring all those the world of cinema has lost in the past year.

 

The video may also be watched on Twitter or YouTube. 

Past TCM tribute posts: 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024.

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Around the Blogosphere This Week...

...is taking the weekend off.

I've run out of time this week for myriad reasons, including Christmas festivities and wrapping up work for the year.  I'm now on vacation until January and have numerous posts in the works.

Some readers may have noticed I've been posting a bit less frequently the last few weeks, and there's an additional reason for that: I'm sad to say that my mother passed away unexpectedly last month, after a brief hospitalization.

I'm sure anyone who's been through the loss of a close family member understands both the emotional upheaval and the many ensuing time demands. I will have additional related tasks ahead of me in the coming weeks, but the impact on my time will gradually reduce.

As always, I take comfort in family, friends, faith, and films. I wish everyone a very happy Christmas, and watch for more posts here coming soon!

For additional recent links of interest to classic film fans, please visit my December 13th column.

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Tonight's Movie: Miracle on Main Street (1939)

This holiday season I've finally caught up with a relatively little-known Christmas "B" film, MIRACLE ON MAIN STREET (1939).

I've been interested in this movie ever since learning about it from Jeremy Arnold, author of CHRISTMAS IN THE MOVIES. He included the film in his book, which also led to the movie being shown on Turner Classic Movies.

Following a well-done montage of Christmas celebrations around the world, this 78-minute film begins on Christmas Eve "in the Old Spanish Quarter of Los Angeles," perhaps meant to be around Olvera Street.

Jim Foreman (Walter Abel) has just become engaged to the brittle Nina (Jean Brooks, billed as Jeanne Kelly), though it's foreshadowed the marriage may not end well. And indeed, that later proves to be the case.

Elsewhere on Christmas Eve, Dick Porter (Lyle Talbot) and his wife, an exotic dancer named Maria (Margo), aren't finding much business and end up on the run when they attempt to rob an undercover cop.

Maria escapes into a church, where she finds an abandoned baby boy has been left amidst the church's Nativity scene. A letter left with the baby implores someone to give him a good home.

The baby proves to be Maria's ticket to leaving the church without being suspected as one of the robbers, as the police officer on guard ignores the young mother carrying her infant.

Little does Maria know that Dick is about to abandon her and that the baby will be the key to her turning her life around. She finds she can't give him up and determines to earn an honest living to support him.

Months pass and eventually Jim, grieving the quick end of his marriage, will become involved with Maria and the baby, coming to love them both.

Maria's landlady (Jane Darwell) and an alcoholic doctor (William Collier Sr.) also become part of the lives of Maria and her baby, improving their own lives in the process.

It's always a delight to discover a new-to-me Christmas film, and I found this movie, written by Frederick Jackson, based on a story by Samuel Ornitz and Boris Ingster, to be quite moving.

The script adeptly balances humor, pathos, and a sharp edge, as Talbot's Jim is an absolute heel whose eventual return threatens Maria's future with the baby. I found MIRACLE ON MAIN STREET quite enjoyable and will definitely be watching it during future Christmas seasons.

Margo does a very nice job in the lead, believably conveying Maria's transformation and quickly engendering audience sympathy.

Darwell and Collier are excellent in support. I liked that Collier's doctor doesn't descend into the maudlin but turns his life around, just as Maria has. He provides pithy commentary on the goings-on, and Darwell likewise has some terrific sarcastic lines.

Darwell, incidentally, was also in another recently discovered Christmas film released the same year, INSIDE STORY (1939). I saw INSIDE STORY at Cinecon it September, and in a fun coincidence it was introduced by Jeremy Arnold.

The supporting cast of MIRACLE ON MAIN STREET includes Wynne Gibson, Veda Ann Borg, Willie Best, Dorothy Devore, and Pat Flaherty.

This was the first U.S. film directed by Hungarian director Steve Sekely. It was filmed in black and white by Charles Van Enger. The film was produced by Grand National Pictures and distributed by Columbia Pictures.

Margo also starred with Arturo de Cordova in a Spanish-language version of this story, EL MILAGRO DE LA CALLE MAYOR, which was released by a different studio, 20th Century-Fox. (That studio also released the Spanish-language 1935 film INSURE YOUR WIFE! which I saw at Cinecon several years ago.) I'd love to have the chance to see it.

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Around the Blogosphere This Week

Miscellaneous bits of news and fun stuff from around the Internet...

...The Warner Archive Collection has announced a great Blu-ray lineup for January, including RED DUST (1932), MANPOWER (1941), THE VERDICT (1946), THE NARROW MARGIN (1952), BY THE LIGHT OF THE SILVERY MOON (1953), and FOR THE FIRST TIME (1959).  Can't wait!

...Speaking of the Warner Archive, Movie Zyng is having a great year-end Warner Archive sale -- both Blu-rays and DVDs -- through December 21st. Use the checkout code WARNER2025 with a minimum purchase of three discs and receive 30% off; orders of $70 and over qualify for free shipping.

...Coming in February from Kino Lorber Studio Classics: A Jack Benny double feature Blu-ray set with ARTISTS AND MODELS (1937) and MAN ABOUT TOWN (1939).

...And "coming soon" from Kino Lorber: DEATH OF A GUNFIGHTER (1969) with Richard Widmark, Lena Horne, and John Saxon.

...On the way to Blu-ray from Universal in January: MA AND PA KETTLE COMPLETE COMEDY COLLECTION containing 10 films, starting with THE EGG AND I (1947).

...Leonard Maltin previews several new film books.

...Now available from McFarland: ASSEMBLY-LINE AUTEUR: THE PRE-CODE FILMS OF WILLIAM WELLMAN by David Meuel, which I first mentioned here in July. I've enjoyed other books by the author and have just ordered a copy.

...Published in September by the University Press of Mississippi: TOO FAST, TOO SHORT: THE LIFE OF DIANA BARRYMORE by Jennifer Ann Redmond, also mentioned back in July.

...Here's the lineup for the "To Save and Protect" series to be held at the Museum of Modern Art in New York from January 8th through February 2nd, 2026.

...Some of the latest reviews by the always-interesting Glenn Erickson posted at Trailers From Hell include I KNOW WHERE I'M GOING! (1945) from Criterion, KANSAS CITY CONFIDENTIAL (1952) from Film Masters, and Columbia Noir #7: Made in Britain from Powerhouse Indicator. 

...I always enjoy perusing the latest viewing lists at Phyllis Loves Classic Movies. Great to see her exploring Randolph Scott Westerns! I'm also very fond of CIRCLE OF DANGER (1951) with Ray Milland and Patricia Roc.

...At Shadows and Satin Karen Burroughs Hannsbery has reviewed two Joel McCrea films, FOUR FACES WEST (1948) and STRANGER ON HORSEBACK (1955).

...Thanks to Keith Buczak for being a great source of info on upcoming Disney-related books. Some of the latest titles I've learned about from him include BEFORE THE BIRDS SANG WORDS by Ken Bruce, about Disneyland's Enchanted Tiki Room attraction, and TICKET TO RIDE: AMERICA'S THEME PARK TRAINS by Barry R. Hill. I was also recently alerted by Old Mill Press about the upcoming JOHN CANEMAKER: AN ANIMATOR'S GARDEN, to be published next month.

...For additional recent links of interest to classic film fans, please visit my December 6th column.

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Tonight's Movie: The Gracie Allen Murder Case (1939) - A Kino Lorber Blu-ray Review

The unique comedic mystery THE GRACIE ALLEN MURDER CASE (1939) has just been released on Blu-ray by Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

Gracie plays her patented dimwitted persona as she becomes mixed up in a murder mystery involving Bill (Kent Taylor), who's employed at a perfume company owned by Gracie's Uncle Ambrose (Jed Prouty).

Gracie accidentally implicates Bill as the killer of a gangster (Lee Moore), and we're off to the races.

The great detective Philo Vance (Warren William) is called in to investigate the case, managing to eventually set matters right, no thanks to Gracie.

A little of Gracie goes a long way, with the character front and center for the majority of the movie's 78 minutes. Her imbecilic persona becomes as exasperating for the audience as she is for the other movie characters. That said, she also has some genuinely funny moments, so the movie is kind of a mixed bag in that regard.

The production is buoyed by its supporting cast. William returns to a role he played in THE DRAGON MURDER CASE (1934) and serves as a serious counterweight to Gracie's lightheaded nature. Donald MacBride plays Vance's friend, District Attorney Markham.

In addition to favorites Kent Taylor and Ellen Drew, who admittedly don't get to do much, the supporting cast is packed with familiar faces including Jerome Cowan, Richard Denning, William Demarest, Irving Bacon, Lillian Yarbo, James Flavin, and H.B. Warner.

Spending time with the cast is what sold the movie for me; while I wouldn't revisit this film with great frequency due to Gracie being a wearing presence, I would nonetheless watch it again thanks to all the great faces surrounding her.

The screenplay by Nat Perrin and two uncredited writers was based on a story by S.S. Van Dine. The movie was directed by Alfred E. Green and filmed in black and white by Charles Lang.

Print and sound quality are excellent. Disc extras consist of a commentary track by Bernie Prokop, plus a gallery of half a dozen trailers for other films available from Kino Lorber.

Thanks to Kino Lorber for providing a review copy of this Blu-ray.

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