PRIVATE HELL 36

Steve Cochran and Ida Lupino have plans

PRIVATE HELL 36 (1954), Director: Don Siegel.

Detectives Cal Bruner (Steve Cochran) and Jack Farnham (Howard Duff) are trying to find some stolen loot and the guys who snatched it. When a marked $50 bill is given to chanteuse Lilli Marlowe (Ida Lupino) as a tip, they interview her to find out what she remembers about the generous club patron; Cal and Lilli are drawn to one another. Things take a dark turn when one of the two cops decides to pocket some of the aforementioned stolen loot ... Private Hell 36 is a minor crime drama with some good acting from all of the principals; Lupino is especially appealing as the slightly hard-bitten but likable saloon singer. Dean Jagger scores as the wise older boss of the two detectives, and Dorothy Malone is fine in the brief, thankless role of Farnham's wife [although Lupino and Duff were married at the time they are not paired with each other]. The script is credited to Lupino and her ex-husband, Collier Young. Borderline film noir. Director Siegel's best-known film is arguably Invasion of the Body Snatchers.

Verdict: Interesting idea that's not developed all that well. **.

IDA LUPINO: A BIOGRAPHY

IDA LUPINO: A BIOGRAPHY. William Donati. 1996; University Press of Kentucky.

Coming from a famous theatrical family, Ida Lupino had show biz in her blood, but according to this excellent biography, she got more fulfillment from directing than acting. This is not really a tell-all book -- Donati does look at Lupino's three marriages [to actor Louis Hayward, producer Collier Young, with whom she continued a working relationship even after their divorce, and finally the difficult Howard Duff], although there isn't that much on her estrangement from her only daughter. Donati doesn't go in for much in-depth analysis of Lupino's films [aside from the ones she directed] or acting technique, but he does deliver the basic facts in compelling fashion -- the book is a very good read. There is an examination of Lupino's often contradictory nature, her attitudes toward stardom, the Hollywood studio system and her pioneering efforts as director [she did not in any way she herself as a feminist], and her final days in which she wandered about in a disheveled house and grumbled at any one who came near her. Lupino had quite a life, and quite a career, and this book does justice to it, even if you wish at times there were a bit more about her major acting vehicles. Lupino was a star, but not quite of the front rank, never quite attaining the immortality of a Davis, Crawford or Stanwyck, although she was very talented. Of her directorial efforts they run the gamut from the poor [Outrage] to the decidedly memorable [The Bigamist]. Lupino also very ably directed one of the best ever episodes of the TV show Thriller, "Guillotine."

Verdict: Absorbing biography. ***1/2.