MR. MOTO'S GAMBLE

Mr. Moto meets Lee Chan, Charlie Chan's son

MR. MOTO'S GAMBLE (1938). Director: James Tinling.

Mr. Moto (Peter Lorre) is teaching a course in criminology and his students include the punch-drunk "Knock-Out" Wellington (Maxie Rosenbloom of Mr. Universe) and Charlie Chan's son, Lee (Keye Luke) -- temporarily moving from one mystery series to another -- who wants to follow in his father's footsteps. These last two serve as comedy relief -- Rosenbloom instead of Mantan Moreland -- in a tiresome tale of a boxer, Frankie Stanton (Russ Clark), who is murdered in the ring during a battle. The surviving boxer, Bill Steele (Dick Baldwin), has two women fighting over him: the plucky sports reporter Penny (Lynn Bari of City in Darkness); and spoiled society gal, Linda Benton (Jayne Regan), who is sort of a groupie for boxers, dumping them whenever they lose. Suspects include not only those already mentioned, but also Clipper McCoy (Bernard Nedell); Nick Crowder (Douglas Fowley); Connors (George E. Stone, on vacation from playing the Runt in the Boston Blackie movies); nasty boxer Biff Moran (Ward Bond of Blowing Wild); and Linda's father (John Hamilton), whose racket is the fight game. Lon Chaney Jr. has a small role; Pierre Watkin plays another of his seemingly endless bland authority figures; Harold Huber is Lt. Riggs; and Irving Bacon almost runs off with the movie in his funny portrayal of Sheriff Tuttle. The comedy relief in this is quite stupid for the most part, and the script is mediocre, but at least it has a fast pace and a slightly surprising ending. With this third entry the Mr. Moto series took a real dip in quality, adding Lee Chan and the moronic Rosenbloom to make it more resemble the Chan series, but even the weakest Chan entry had a more interesting screenplay. Lorre is as terrific as ever. Mr. Moto apparently knows Charlie Chan, at least by reputation, but the two characters, I believe, never appeared together -- too bad.

Verdict: A vehicle unworthy of both Peter Lorre and Mr. Moto. *1/2.

ROSES ARE RED

New D.A. faces criminal lookalike; Don Castle plays both

ROSES ARE RED (1947). Director: James Tinling.

"I can't place the face but the feet are familiar."

Robert Thorne (Don Castle) has just become the new D.A. of an unspecified city. His photograph, along with some roses, is found near the body of a young woman who has been murdered. [No one ever expresses the slightest sympathy for this woman.] Thorne doesn't know the victim, and doesn't realize the photo is actually of his double, the crooked Don Carney. Thorne is kidnapped by Carney's confederates so the latter can study his movements and impersonate him with the help of corrupt police lieutenant, Wall (Joe Sawyer). Meanwhile Thorne's girlfriend, Martha (Peggy Knudsen of Hilda Crane), comes into contact with Carney's wife, Jill (Patricia Knight of Shockproof), when she tries to trace the photo. When the D.A. finally shows up again, is it Thorne or Carney, and how will Martha know the difference? Roses are Red is a modestly entertaining little low-budget flick with more than adequate performances and an intriguing premise that not enough is done with. Although Thorne is as brave as anyone, Castle makes him look realistically dismayed by and frightened of the situation he finds himself in. But the picture is stolen by Jeff Chandler [Raw Wind in Eden] in a very early role as thug John Jones, alias the Knuckle, displaying the sexy insolence that would eventually turn him into a star. Other familiar faces include Charles McGraw, James Arness, Douglas Fowley, and Charles Lane.

Verdict: Adequate in all departments, but that's about it. **.

CHARLIE CHAN IN SHANGHAI

Charlie Chan (Warner Oland) sings! 

CHARLIE CHAN IN SHANGHAI (1935). Director: James Tinling.

Charlie Chan (Warner Oland) is attending a banquet in his honor when his host, honorable Sir Stanley Woodland (David Torrence) opens a small case and is promptly shot (by some mechanism inside) right in front of his guest of honor. Seems Sir Stanley got on the bad side of an opium smuggling ring, the leader of which is unknown. Suspects and other interested parties include daughter Diane Woodland (Irene Hervey of Play Misty for Me); secretary Philip Nash (Jon Hall of San Diego I Love You appearing as Charles Locher); James Andrews (Russell Hicks), a G-Man from Washington; police commissioner Watkins (Halliwell Hobbes); and of course Lee Chan (Keye Luke), Number One Son. There's invisible writing that hides clues as well as more intrigue at Cafe Versailles. At one point Charlie sings a cute song to an equally cute little girl, but proves not exactly ready for an American Idol audition. James Tinling also directed some of the early Jones Family films such as Back to Nature.

Verdict: Okay Chan entry but not one of the best. **1/2.

BACK TO NATURE

Kenneth Howell and George Ernest 

BACK TO NATURE (1936). Director: James Tinling.

A third Jones Family programmer was rushed out in 1936 and proved a touch funnier than the previous installments. In this Father Jones (Jed Prouty) goes to a convention and is pressured into bringing the whole family along [a premise that was used again in The Jones Family in Hollywood and probably others]. He buys an $800 trailer and most of the family foolishly ride inside it during the trip. There's a scene involving the trailer and a cliff that prefigures The Long, Long Trailer, but is less elaborate. At Crystal Lake, Jack (Kenneth Howell) dates a loopy gal named Mabel (Dixie Dunbar, carried over from the previous film, Educating Father, but playing a supposedly different character), and the two are involved in a near-disastrous boat ride just as they were nearly in a plane crash in the last installment. Tony Martin [Here Come the Girls] plays a romantic interest for Bonnie (Shirley Deane) -- and plays it very well, with suave flair and assurance -- but the romance decidedly hits a snag. Excellent performances help put this over, although Dunbar and her character are rather irritating. You keep hoping she'll run into Jason Vorhees from that other Crystal Lake in Friday the 13th!

Verdict: Palatable hijinks with the Joneses. **1/2. 

EDUCATING FATHER

Granny Jones reads her horror stories

EDUCATING FATHER (1936). Director: James Tinling.

The first sequel to Every Saturday Night, in which the Evers Family became the Jones Family, was rushed out the same year, becoming a sort of theatrical hour-long sitcom for fifteen more installments. In this entry Mr. Jones (Jed Prouty) wants his son, Jack (Kenneth Howell) to follow him into the pharmacy business, but Jack is more interested in the field of aviation and has been taking flying lessons on the sly. There's a hair-raising bit when a silly gal named Millicent (Dixie Dunbar) climbs into the back seat of a plane without his knowledge and nearly causes a crack-up. In another sub-plot Mr. Jones goes fishing in a place miles away from anywhere just when his lease is coming up on his pharmacy, and Jack has to fly into the wilderness to get him back to town in time or he'll lose his store. Granny Jones (Florence Roberts) reads horror stories, and Mrs. Jones (Spring Byington) wrings her hands and offers sage advice. In this entry oldest daughter Bonnie is played by Shirley Deane.

Verdict: Passable comedy with likable players. **.

EVERY SATURDAY NIGHT

Jack gets advice from his granny

EVERY SATURDAY NIGHT (1936). Director: James Tinling.

When 20th Century-Fox came out with this adaptation of the stage play about a warm and loving family with their share of minor disagreements, they probably had no idea it would make enough money to engender no less than sixteen sequels! That means that there was one more entry in [what became] the Jones Family series than in MGM's Andy Hardy/Hardy Family series (even when you count the much-later Andy Hardy Comes Home and don't count a couple of Andy Hardy shorts), which began with A Family Affair (also from a play) the year after Every Saturday Night debuted. Ironically, the Jones Family series is pretty much completely forgotten, while everyone has heard of Andy Hardy, probably thanks to the irrepressible Mickey Rooney. 

In Every Saturday Night the name of the family is actually Evers, but it was changed for subsequent entries, although when the film was re-released as a "Jones Family" feature the "Evers" name wasn't over-dubbed. Evers/Jones (Jed Prouty) is a small-town pharmacist who, as his mother (Florence Roberts) tells him, raises his children as if it were twenty years earlier, and forgets the trouble he got into himself when he was a boy. His oldest daughter, Bonnie (June Lang) is dating a guy named Clark (Thomas Beck) who drives drunk and nearly kills a girl. The younger daughter, Lucy (June Carlson) wants to be an actress and is always imitating Hepburn, Garbo or someone else. Oldest son Jack (Ken Howell) gets in hot water when he takes Dad's car without permission, and borrows money from his serious younger brother Roger (George Ernest) at high interest. Then there's a near-crisis when little Bobby (Billy Mahan) gets a serious cut. Mrs. Evers (Spring Byington) is wise enough to know when to intercede and when to keep quiet. Every Saturday Night is certainly not a masterpiece, but it is surprisingly touching at times in its warmth and honest sentiment, and the obvious love these characters feel for one another is almost palpable, thanks to very adept performances by the entire cast.

Verdict: A lost bit of Hollywood history. **1/2.