Classic Films

Staph

(6,252 posts) Tue May 21, 2013, 12:04 PM May 2013

TCM Schedule for Thursday, May 23, 2013 -- What's On Tonight -- Harold Lloyd

What an interesting day! In the daylight hours, TCM is featuring films made in the pre-code days. As described in Wikipedia's entry on Pre-Code Hollywood:

"Pre-Code Hollywood refers to the era in the American film industry between the introduction of sound in the late 1920s and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code (usually labeled, albeit inaccurately after 1934, as the "Hays Code&quot censorship guidelines. Although the Code was adopted in 1930, oversight was poor and it did not become rigorously enforced until July 1, 1934. Before that date, movie content was restricted more by local laws, negotiations between the Studio Relations Committee (SRC) and the major studios, and popular opinion than strict adherence to the Hays Code, which was often ignored by Hollywood filmmakers.

"As a result, films in the late 1920s and early 1930s included sexual innuendo, miscegenation, profanity, illegal drug use, promiscuity, prostitution, infidelity, abortion, intense violence and homosexuality. Strong women dominated films such as Female, Baby Face, and Red-Headed Woman. Gangsters in films like The Public Enemy, Little Caesar, and Scarface were seen by many as heroic rather than evil. Along with featuring stronger female characters, films examined female subject matters that would not be revisited until decades later in American films. Nefarious characters were seen to profit from their deeds, in some cases without significant repercussions, and drug use was a topic of several films. The Pre-Code era featured shorter films, usually running little more than an hour. Many of Hollywood's biggest stars such as Clark Gable, Barbara Stanwyck, and Edward G. Robinson got their start in the era. But it also contained stars like Ruth Chatterton, Lyle Talbot, and Warren William (the so-called "king of Pre-Code&quot who excelled during this period but are mostly forgotten today."

In prime time, TCM is showing 20 of the more than 200 films starring the amazing Harold Lloyd, one of the best and most prolific comedians of the silent era. That famous shot of Lloyd hanging from a clock many stories above a busy urban street is from the film Safety Last!, first up at 8:00 EDT this evening. Enjoy!

6:00 AM -- Without Lying Down - Frances Marion and the Powerful Women in Hollywood (2000)
A look at the women who helped build Hollywood by taking on such traditionally male jobs as directing, producing and writing.
Dir: Bridget Terry
Cast: Mary Lea Bandy, Cari Beauchamp, Kevin Brownlow
C-55 mins, TV-PG, CC,

Features clips from Tillie's Punctured Romance (1914), The Poor Little Rich Girl (1917), Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm (1917), The Little Princess (1917), Stella Maris (1918), Amarilly of Clothes-Line Alley (1918), M'Liss (1918), Johanna Enlists (1918), Pollyanna (1920), The Love Light (1921), Galloping Gallagher (1924) (Short), Thundering Hoofs (1924), Zander the Great (1925), The Scarlet Letter (1926), The Wind (1928), The Big House (1930), Min and Bill (1930), Anna Christie (1931), The Champ (1931), Blondie of the Follies (1932), Dinner at Eight (1933), and The Candid Camera Story (Very Candid) of the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures 1937 Convention (1937).

7:00 AM -- Coquette (1929)
A Southern belle's flirtation with a working man leads to tragedy.
Dir: Sam Taylor
Cast: Mary Pickford, John Mack Brown, Matt Moore
BW-76 mins, TV-PG,

Won an Oscar for Best Actress in a Leading Role -- Mary Pickford

Mary Pickford's first sound film.

8:30 AM -- The Last of Mrs. Cheyney (1929)
A chic jewel thief in England falls in love with one of her marks.
Dir: Sidney Franklin
Cast: Norma Shearer, Basil Rathbone, George Barraud
BW-94 mins, TV-G,

Nominated for an Oscar for Best Writing, Achievement -- Hanns Kräly (No official nominees had been announced this year.)

The play opened in London, England, UK on 22 September 1925 and on Broadway in New York City, New York, USA on 9 November 1925. The Broadway production had 385 performances with an opening cast including Helen Hayes, Roland Young, Felix Aylmer, Ina Clare, Winifred Harris and Lionel Pape.

10:15 AM -- Voice of the City (1929)
A detective tries to clear an innocent man framed for murder by gangsters.
Dir: Willard Mack
Cast: Robert Ames, Willard Mack, Sylvia Field
BW-80 mins, TV-G,

Based on a story by Willard Mack.

11:45 AM -- The Divorcee (1930)
The double standard destroys a liberal couple's marriage.
Dir: Robert Z. Leonard
Cast: Norma Shearer, Chester Morris, Conrad Nagel
BW-82 mins, TV-G, CC,

Won an Oscar for Best Actress in a Leading Role -- Norma Shearer

Nominated for Oscar for Best Director -- Robert Z. Leonard, Best Writing, Achievement -- John Meehan, and Best Picture

Prior to this film, Norma Shearer had primarily played very "proper," ladylike roles. She was eager to change her image and do parts that were more sensuous, so she launched a campaign to get the part of Jerry. MGM producers were skeptical - none more so than Irving Thalberg, who was also Shearer's husband. To convince him that she could handle a more "sexy" role, Shearer did a photo shoot with her posing provocatively in lingerie, and after seeing the pictures, Thalberg agreed to cast her. The decision paid off, as Shearer won Best Actress at the Academy Awards that year.

1:15 PM -- The Life of the Party (1930)
Two gold-digging shop girls use their jobs to hunt down sugar daddies.
Dir: Roy Del Ruth
Cast: Winnie Lightner, Irene Delroy, Jack Whiting
BW-79 mins, TV-G,

The title credits on the present surviving version, as well as the anachronistically more modern music behind them, were designed in the 1950s for the television release. The original material and musical accompaniment begins with the first title card, "New York was originally purchased from the Indians..."

2:45 PM -- The Office Wife (1930)
A gold-digging secretary sets out to lure her boss from his straying wife.
Dir: Lloyd Bacon
Cast: Dorothy Mackaill, Lewis Stone, Hobart Bosworth
BW-59 mins, TV-G, CC,

Although credits, a telegram, and a resignation letter show the name of the main character as spelled Fellowes (note second 'e'), the entrance doors to the firm read "Fellows Publishing Co."

4:00 PM -- Kept Husbands (1931)
A steel worker marries the boss's daughter, then has to teach her about life on a budget.
Dir: Lloyd Bacon
Cast: Dorothy Mackaill, Joel McCrea, Ned Sparks
BW-76 mins, TV-G,

Born in London, Dorothy Mackaill got her start in New York City in the Zeigfeld Follies, where she became friends with Marion Davies.

5:30 PM -- The Secret Six (1931)
A secret society funds the investigation of a bootlegging gang.
Dir: George Hill
Cast: Wallace Beery, Lewis Stone, John Mack Brown
BW-84 mins, TV-PG, CC,

During the filming, Irving Thalberg had scenes added to bolster Clark Gable's part, and he was given an MGM contract after shooting was completed.

7:00 PM -- Complicated Women (2003)
Documentary that looks at the phenomenon of "pre-code women" during the years 1929-1934.
Dir: Hugh Munro Neely
Cast: Frances Dee, Kitty Carlisle, Molly Haskell
C-55 mins, TV-PG, CC,

Features clips from Flesh and the Devil (1927), A Woman of Affairs (1928), Anna Christie (1930), The Divorcee (1930), Inspiration (1931), Strangers May Kiss (1931), A Free Soul (1931), Big Business Girl (1931), The Smiling Lieutenant (1931), Night Nurse (1931), Blonde Crazy (1931), Safe in Hell (1931), Mata Hari (1931), Shanghai Express (1932), Arsène Lupin (1932), Grand Hotel (1932), So Big! (1932), Red-Headed Woman (1932), Downstairs (1932), Bird of Paradise (1932 -- Dolores del Rio's nude swimming scene is featured in opening credits), Blonde Venus (1932), Faithless (1932), Red Dust (1932), The Sign of the Cross (1932), The Animal Kingdom (1932), Frisco Jenny (1932), She Done Him Wrong (1933), Ladies They Talk About (1933), Blondie Johnson (1933), Christopher Strong (1933), The Story of Temple Drake (1933), Ex-Lady (1933), Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933), Hold Your Man (1933), Midnight Mary (1933), Baby Face (1933), Mary Stevens, M.D. (1933), Dinner at Eight (1933), Torch Singer (1933), Footlight Parade (1933), I'm No Angel (1933), Female (1933), Blood Money (1933), The House on 56th Street (1933), Flying Down to Rio (1933), Queen Christina (1933), Design for Living (1933), Mandalay (1934), Fashions of 1934 (1934), Wonder Bar (1934), Men in White (1934), Riptide (1934), Tarzan and His Mate (1934), Murder at the Vanities (1934), Dr. Monica (1934), and The Flame Within (1935).

TCM PRIMETIME - WHAT'S ON TONIGHT: HAROLD LLOYD

8:00 PM -- Safety Last! (1923)
In this silent film, a small-town boy out to impress his girlfriend scales a skyscraper in the big city.
Dir: Fred Newmeyer
Cast: Harold Lloyd, Mildred Davis, Bill Strother
BW-74 mins, TV-G,

Harold Lloyd got the idea for this film when he saw Bill Strother climbing the Brockman Building in Los Angeles as a stunt one day. Lloyd - who had a difficult time watching anyone else perform a dangerous stunt because he had no control over that situation - hid behind a corner, peeking to check on Strother's progress every few moments. After Strother reached the roof, Lloyd went up and introduced himself.

9:30 PM -- Bashful (1917)
In order to claim his inheritance, a man must first come up with a wife and child.
Dir: Alfred J. Goulding
Cast: Bebe Daniels, Snub Pollard, Harold Lloyd
BW-9 mins, TV-G,

9:30 PM -- Take a Chance (1918)
A rare Harold Lloyd comedic short.
Dir: Alfred J. Goulding
Cast: Bebe Daniels, Snub Pollard, Harold Lloyd
BW-11 mins, TV-G,

9:30 PM -- A Gasoline Wedding (1918)
A rare Harold Lloyd comedic short.
Cast: Harold Lloyd,
BW-10 mins, TV-G,

9:30 PM -- The Big Idea (1918)
A rare Harold Lloyd comedic short.
Dir: Hal Mohr
Cast: Harold Lloyd,
BW-9 mins, TV-G,

9:30 PM -- By the Sad Sea Waves (1917)
In this silent short, boy saves a man from drowning, only to discover that it is the wrong man.
Dir: Alfred J. Goulding
Cast: Bebe Daniels, Harold Lloyd, Snub Pollard
BW-10 mins, TV-G,

9:30 PM -- Lonesome Luke, Messenger (1917)
While delivering a message, a messenger finds himself in a girl's seminary.
Dir: Hal Roach
Cast: Gus Leonard, Snub Pollard, Bebe Daniels
BW-10 mins, TV-G,

One of the 68 films featuring Lloyd's character Lonesome Luke.

9:30 PM -- Look Pleasant, Please (1918)
A rare Harold Lloyd comedic short.
Dir: Alfred J. Goulding
Cast: Snub Pollard, Bebe Daniels, Harold Lloyd
BW-10 mins, TV-G,

11:00 PM -- The Freshman (1925)
In this silent film, a naive college boy tries to join the football team after making a fool out of himself.
Dir: Sam Taylor
Cast: Harold Lloyd, Jobyna Ralston, Brooks Benedict
BW-76 mins, TV-G,

Harold Lloyd was 31 when he shot this movie. He had always wanted to make a football movie but never had the opportunity. When this film was in development, he thought it would be a bad idea to have him in it, because he was too old. This movie was shot in sequence, which was rare for a Harold Lloyd movie. Lloyd usually thought up comic setpieces and based his stories around them. In this instance he felt it was a more character-driven story and he would have to get into the character by shooting it in order.

12:30 AM -- Young Mr. Jazz (1919)
A rare Harold Lloyd comedic short.
Dir: Hal Roach
Cast: Snub Pollard, Harold Lloyd, Bebe Daniels
BW-10 mins, TV-G,

12:30 AM -- A Sammy in Siberia (1919)
A bumbling U.S. soldier attempts to aid a put-upon Russian woman.
Dir: Hal Roach
Cast: Bebe Daniels, Harold Lloyd, Snub Pollard
BW-10 mins, TV-G,

12:30 AM -- Just Neighbors (1919)
Suburban neighbors join together to build a garden shed, but end up demolishing their garden.
Dir: Harold Lloyd
Cast: Bebe Daniels, Harold Lloyd, Snub Pollard
BW-9 mins, TV-G,

12:30 AM -- Spring Fever (1919)
A bookkeeper escapes the office to enjoy the spring weather.
Dir: Hal Roach
Cast: Snub Pollard, Harold Lloyd, Bebe Daniels
BW-10 mins, TV-G,

12:30 AM -- Next Aisle Over (1919)
A rare Harold Lloyd film in which Lloysd literally demolishes a department store in helping the unlucky customers.
Dir: H. M. Walker
Cast: Bebe Daniels, Snub Pollard, Harold Lloyd
BW-10 mins, TV-G,

12:30 AM -- The Marathon (1919)
A rare Harold Lloyd comedic short.
Dir: Alfred J. Goulding
Cast: Harold Lloyd, Sammy Brooks, Bebe Daniels
BW-10 mins, TV-G,

1:45 AM -- The Kid Brother (1927)
In this silent film, the weakling in a family of he-men tries to prove his mettle.
Dir: Ted Wilde
Cast: Harold Lloyd, Jobyna Ralston, Walter James
BW-82 mins, TV-G,

Harold Lloyd always claimed this to be his favorite among all his films, and in later years proudly screened the film in selected theaters and at film schools.

3:15 AM -- Captain Kidd's Kids (1919)
After a wild bachelor party, a boy finds himself aboard a sailing vessel where he encounters numerous adventures.
Dir: Hal Roach
Cast: Snub Pollard, Bebe Daniels, Harold Lloyd
BW-19 mins, TV-G,

In the credits, the pirates are listed as "Blondes, Brunettes and Salmon Pinks".

3:45 AM -- His Royal Slyness (1920)
In this silent film, a young adventurer trades places with a European prince and falls in love above his station.
Dir: Hal Roach
Cast: Snub Pollard, Harold Lloyd, Mildred Davis
BW-22 mins, TV-G,

Later remade as Long Fliv the King (1926), starring Charley Chase and Oliver Hardy.

4:15 AM -- Now or Never (1921)
In this silent film, a young man deals with escorting a child on a train trip.
Dir: Fred Newmeyer
Cast: Harold Lloyd,
BW-36 mins, TV-G,

Soundtracks -- How can you have a soundtrack in a silent film, you say? "Rock-a-Bye Baby" (1886), with lyrics by Effie I. Canning is shown as sheet music with printed lyrics!

5:00 AM -- Hot Water (1924)
In this silent film, a newlywed husband has in-law problems.
Dir: Sam Taylor
Cast: Harold Lloyd, Jobyna Ralston, Josephine Crowell
BW-60 mins, TV-G,

The real-life name of the turkey in the film is Genevieve.