THE BIG SHOW-OFF

Dale Evans and Arthur Lake

THE BIG SHOW-OFF (1945). Director: Howard Bretherton.

Sandy Elliott (Arthur Lake) is a piano accompanist for the nightclub singer June Mayfield (Dale Evans). Their boss, Joe Bagley (Lionel Stander of Tahiti Honey), knows that Sandy is secretly carrying a torch for June. While Joe likes Sandy, he can't stand his obnoxious emcee, Wally (George Meeker of Tarzan's Revenge), who is practically affianced to June. Joe tries to encourage Sandy to tell June how he feels, and to become the kind of man that June might fall for. Somehow it develops that June is convinced that Sandy is the real identity of the masked wrestler known as "the Devil." June is amazed that the mouse is really a lion, but now she's afraid that he might be too brutal for her taste. Sandy wants to give up his alleged career as the Devil, but the real Devil might have something to say about that. What's a boy to do?

Lionel Stander with Lake

The Big Show-Off might sound like a cute picture, and it is, but it's still distinctly minor although it gets lots of help from the likable Lake, best-known as Dagwood Bumstead of the Blondie film series. Lionel Stander is less off-putting than usual, and Dale Evans gets to warble the memorable ditty "There's Only One You." The film throws in some bizarre characters like the Devil (Paul Hurst of Borrowed Wives) and his wrestling cousin and chief opponent, Boris the Bulgar (Sammy Stein). Marjorie Manners plays Mitzi, one of the show girls and June's gal pal. I could swear I spotted a young Nestor Paiva but he's not in the cast list. Anyway, The Big Show-Off is an amiable comedy with a pleasant lead performance. 

Verdict: Lake takes some time off from the Blondie series. **1/2. 

TARZAN'S REVENGE

Glenn Morris and pal

TARZAN'S REVENGE (1938). Director: D. Ross Lederman.

Roger Reed (George Barbier of The Man Who Came to Dinner), his daughter Eleanor (Eleanor Holm), and her fiance, Nevin (George Meeker of Omoo-Omoo The Shark God), are in Africa to capture specimens for zoos. Along the way Eleanor offends nasty potentate, Ben Alleu Bey (C. Henry Gordon of Thirteen Women), who has her kidnapped for his harem. Tarzan (Glenn Morris) isn't crazy about animals being caged up and is even less crazy that his crush, Eleanor, has been captured by natives under the direction of Bey. Then there's the fact that the jealous and creepy Nevin has his own dastardly plans for the Ape Man. Tarzan's Revenge was 20th Century-Fox's answer to MGM's Tarzan films with Johnny Weissmuller, but this film, in addition to having lower production values, is much, much less entertaining, with slow pacing and a weak story line that hardly gives our hero any action. On the plus side, there is plenty of "local" color and a surprisingly elaborate Arabic city that may have been borrowed from an earlier picture. Olympic champion Glenn Morris speaks not one word as Tarzan -- although he does give out with a credible "yell" --  but he is appealing, unconventionally handsome, and plays a child-like version of the Ape Man. Scandalous Olympic swimming star Eleanor Holm exhibits genuine acting ability as the equally appealing, feisty, and likable Eleanor -- she and Tarzan meet cute when he pulls her out of a muddy river and winds up dumping her back in. The two have a sexy underwater swim later on. Morris and Holm both got such bad reviews (as did the film) that neither ever made another movie. Others in the cast include Joe Sawyer, and Hedda Hopper, who is little more than irritating as Eleanor's ever-complaining mother. A nice upbeat ending and a pleasant score by Hugo Riesenfeld.

Verdict: Lesser Tarzan produced by Sol Lesser. **1/2.

SKY LINER

Would you want this shifty guy (Greg McClure) on an airliner?

SKY LINER (1949). Director: William Berke.

A diverse group of people are flying to San Francisco on TWA. Few of them realize that George Eakins (John McGuire of Sea Raiders) of the State Department has been murdered and been replaced by a man known only as Smith (Steve Pendleton). Smith, who is hoping to sell important papers on the flight, is accompanied by Eakin's secretary, Amy (Rochelle Hudson of Meet Boston Blackie). Steven Geray [The Unfaithful] plays Bokejian, a representative of a foreign power who is anxious to buy those government secrets. An added complication is the presence on the flight of one J. S. Konigsby (Greg McClure), who is a dangerous jewel thief. But when one of those characters is murdered, Federal agent Steve Blair (Richard Travis) teams up with intrepid stewardess Carol (Pamela Blake) to ferret out the murderer and keep the passengers under control. Sky Liner is not quite as interesting as it sounds, but it's a mildly entertaining programmer with a generally competent cast. William F. Leicester is the pilot, Captain Fairchild; George Meeker is a financier; and Jack Mulhall is Colonel Hanson.

Verdict: There have been worse ... **1/2.

OMOO-OMOO THE SHARK GOD

Devera Burton as Julie

OMOO-OMOO THE SHARK GOD (1949). Director: Leon Leonard.

NOTE: First let me make it clear that this is an actual movie and not one of my infamous April Fool's-type concoctions. You would think the producers of this film would have had the sense to call it, say, Terror of the Shark God, Herman Melville notwithstanding (see below), but no such luck.

In 1874 Captain Roger Guy (Trevor Bardette of The Missing Juror) sets sail to Tahiti with his daughter, Julie (Devera Burton), mate Richards (Richard Benedict), Jeff Garland (Ron Randell), drunken Dr. Long (George Meeker of Dead Man's Eyes), a native stowaway named Tempo (Rudy Robles), and another man named Texas (Jack Raymond). Guy has come to reclaim some fabulous black pearls, but the curse of the shark god has been placed upon him, making him seriously ill. Meanwhile Richards and "Chips" (Michael Whalen) are hoping to get the pearls for themselves even as Julie and Jeff carry on an unexciting romance. One suspects this has little to do with Herman Meville's book Oomo, which is the supposed source material for the movie. Benedict gives the most vivid performance as the sinister and opportunistic Richards.  Burton is pretty and a competent actress, but she only did one other film. Ron Randell makes little impression, surprisingly. This would have been a lot more entertaining if there had been an actual shark god, or even just a shark. Don't expect human sacrifices or anything of much interest to happen.

Verdict: Not quite as dull as watching paint dry. *1/2.

DEAD MAN'S EYES

DEAD MAN'S EYES (1944). Director: Reginald Le Borg.

This "Inner Sanctum" mystery stars, as usual, Lon Chaney Jr., as artist David Stuart. David has a girlfriend named Heather (Jean Parker of Beyond Tomorrow), whose father, Stanley (Edward Fielding) is a good friend of his. David is working on a painting of his model, Tanya (Acquanetta), when she accidentally switches a bottle of eye wash with acid, resulting in David's blindness. Tanya, who is in love with David, wants to take care of him, out of guilt, while David's buddy, Alan (Paul Kelly of The File on Thelma Jordan) wants to take care of Tanya. Stanley arranges for David to get a corneal transplant when the time comes, and ironically winds up the donor when he is murdered. Suspects include everyone from David to Tanya to Nick (George Meeker), who is hoping to marry Heather. With a very suspenseful story and some adept playing, this is one of the best in the short-lived Inner Sanctum series. Acquanetta [Captive Wild Woman] is especially effective as Tanya.

Verdict: Credible and absorbing minor mystery. ***.