SAN DIEGO I LOVE YOU

Irene Ryan sizes up hunky Jon Hall

SAN DIEGO I LOVE YOU (1944). Director: Reginald Le Borg.

Virginia McCooley (Louise Allbritton of Son of Dracula) is so impressed with her widower-father, Phil's (Edward Everett Horton), lifeboat invention, that she's written to the government about it. The government is interested in talking to Phil and seeing his invention, but have by no means accepted it. Instead of waiting to see what they'll say, Virginia gets her father to quit his job and move the entire family -- four little brothers -- to San Diego, merely assuming the boat will be a success. Once you get past that idiotic premise -- I mean, why couldn't they just go to San Diego for a couple of days and see what happens? -- San Diego I Love You is a cute picture. Jon Hall [The Invisible Man's Revenge] plays a handsome, wealthy industrialist, John Caldwell, who might be interested in the lifeboat, and Eric Blore is marvelous as a weird butler who comes with the house the family moves into in San Diego; he and Horton have a funny scene together. Allbritton and Hall are fine in the leads, but the movie is nearly stolen by Irene Ryan [My Dear Secretary], who is hilarious as a woman who is looking for a cheap room and inadvertently thinks the McCooley's have one for rent -- and moves in! Buster Keaton shows up as a bus driver who is importuned to take the detour by the beach instead of his usual route when Virginia and John go on a date.

Verdict: Genuinely quite funny at times with a very spirited cast. ***.

DON'T TRUST YOUR HUSBAND aka AN INNOCENT AFFAIR

Madelaine Carroll and Fred MacMurray

DON'T TRUST YOUR HUSBAND (aka An Innocent Affair/1948). Director: Lloyd Bacon.

Advertising man Vincent Doane (Fred MacMurray) is trying to land an account which happens to be controlled by his still-amorous ex-fiancee, Margot Fraser (Louise Allbritton of Fired Wife). Vincent's wife, Paula (Madeleine Carroll), thinks he's spending all his evenings with a Mr. Fraser, but she suspects something's up. Vincent's sister, Eve (Rita Johnson of The Naughty Nineties), comes up with the dubious idea of testing her brother's love for her sister-in-law by seeing how jealous he gets if a paid actor pays too much attention to Paula on their anniversary. Clued in to the scheme, Vincent invites the man into his home and even asks him to take out his wife the next night! What nobody realizes is that the man in question is not the paid actor, but rather wealthy cigarette man Claude Kimball (Charles "Buddy" Rogers), who thinks the Doanes have a wonderfully carefree attitude. This all sounds rather cute, but it's almost by the numbers, with not enough real laughs -- although there are certainly amusing bits -- to make it stand out from the crowd. MacMurray is terrific, as you would expect, and the ladies are all good if not on his level. Alan Mowbray offers his customary fine performance as a man who pretends to be Margot's husband, and Anne Nagel has a small role as a receptionist. Rogers gets by on charm. Bacon also directed Crooner and many others.

Verdict: Cute, if formula, comedy. **1/2. 

FIRED WIFE

Abel, Allbritton, Paige and Barrymore all cut up

FIRED WIFE (1943). Director: Charles Lamont.

"You're so wonderfully repetitious."

In this largely forgettable and desperately frenetic farce, Hank Dunne (Robert Paige) has married career woman Tabitha (Louise Allbritton), who is keeping the marriage secret from her boss, Chris (Walter Abel). Besides the fact that Tabitha has to work on her honeymoon, and that Hank wants her to quit her job, another complication is Hank's friend and associate, radio hostess Eve (Diana Barrymore), who is carrying a torch for him. Hardly any cliche is left unturned in the mediocre screenplay, although the performers are certainly game; Allbritton and Paige are fine, Barrymore adds some zest in her lively portrayal of difficult Eve, and although Walter Abel gives a very good performance, as usual, his character is too loathsome to be funny -- the film's best moment comes when he finally gets his comeuppance. Walter Catlett [It Started with Eve] gives perhaps the funniest performance as Judge Allen, the bemused Justice of the Peace, and Rex Ingram [Anna Lucasta] is also notable as Hank's major domo, Charles. There are a few sporadic chuckles in the movie so it's not a complete waste of time. Paige also starred in Flying G-Men.

Verdict: With pictures like these no wonder Barrymore got disillusioned with Hollywood. **1/2.

THE EGG AND I

Colbert can do without MacMurray's attention to Allbritton

THE EGG AND I (1947). Director: Chester Erskine.

Bob MacDonald (Fred MacMurray), a selfish and inconsiderate husband, buys a farm without even consulting his wife, Betty (Claudette Colbert) -- which alone would be a reason for divorce for some women --   and the two set off for the country to raise chickens and sell eggs. While having assorted misadventures, the couple meet the odd Pa Kettle (Percy Kilbride), his big-hearted wife, Ma (Marjorie Main), and their huge brood, as well as the predatory Harriet (Louise Allbritton), who doesn't seem to care that Bob has a wife. The Egg and I is consistently amusing, has a nice scene when all the neighbors show up to help the MacDonald's after a fire, and boasts some very good performances; Colbert, in particular, is excellent, and her expressions throughout the movie are priceless. There are guest appearances by the likes of Donald MacBride, Elisabeth Risdon [from the "Mexican Spitfire" films], and Esther Dale, and there's even a pig named Cleopatra! Ida Moore shows up late in the film as a somewhat dotty old lady who has a tale of a giant chicken. While there are some fairly foolish marital developments at the end of the movie that make Betty seem like a dope, The Egg and I is still a very funny and entertaining picture. The characters of Ma and Pa Kettle soon got their own feature as well as several sequels.

Verdict: Colbert is a riot! ***.

STUDIO ONE: THE ROCKINGHAM TEA SET

STUDIO ONE: THE ROCKINGHAM TEA SET (1950). Director: Franklin J. Schaffner.

"You''ll never be rid of me! Never!"

For curiosity's sake since it stars Grace Kelly, Turner Classic Movies resuscitated this utterly forgettable melodrama from the golden age of live television. The Rockingham Tea Set is an episode of Studio One. A young nurse (Grace Kelly) tells the story of her last employer, a neurotic woman, Celia Arden (Louise Allbritton), who became crippled after a car accident. Her fiance, David (Richard McMurray), was driving the car at the time and has been doing penance ever since. Celia is convinced that the nurse and David are falling in love with one another and it all leads to alleged tragedy. Kelly is quite good; Allbritton chews the scenery but is effective. [For a much more interesting Allbritton performance see Son of Dracula.] This is a riot of unreal characters, lousy dialogue, and some stilted acting as well.

Verdict: Not everything in the golden age was golden. *1/2.

WHO DONE IT?

WHO DONE IT? (1942). Director: Erle C. Kenton.

Bud and Lou are soda jerks who seize an opportunity to get into the radio writing business and wind up pretending to be detectives when someone is murdered during a broadcast. While some of Costello's shtick gets a little tiresome, by and large he and Abbott give good, funny performances. Unfortunately, the movie doesn't have much of a plot to get involved in, so it's entirely dependent on its routines, some of which work and some of which don't. The film's highlight is the bit with Costello trying to get in touch with a radio show that has just awarded him $10,000 -- depending upon his getting back to them within five minutes. At a phone booth in a drug store he tries to get the ditzy operator on the other end to connect him to Alexander 2222 -- as all sorts of people interfere. (This may have been an old A&C vaudeville routine; in any case it's a classic.) Mary Wickes is fun as a secretary that Lou tries to romance but she doesn't have enough to do, and William Bendix scores as a brusque cop who's even stupider than Costello. Patric Knowles and Louise Allbritton are the obligatory romantic couple, Jerome Cowan is a writer, and William Gargan is the police lieutenant.

Verdict: Some very amusing moments. **1/2.

SON OF DRACULA (1943)

SON OF DRACULA (1943). Director: Robert Siodmak.

Imagine fearing death and oblivion so much that you would desire to become a vampire so that you could "live" eternally with your beloved. That is the premise of this fascinating, chilling, and ultimately poignant horror film, one of the best of the Universal Dracula/monster flicks. Lon Chaney (Jr.) plays Count Alucard, who comes to a sleepy Southern town at the invitation of Katherine Caldwell (Louise Allbritton), and who begins a reign of terror against those who figure out who he really is. Frank Craven is the kindly Dr. Brewster, who calls upon his friend Professor Lazlo (J. Edward Bromberg) for information on vampires. Robert Paige is Katherine's fiance, Frank, and Evelyn Ankers is her sister, Claire. Son of Dracula is well-acted (although Chaney can't compare to Lugosi and is rather disappointing), well-directed, and quite unpredictable, with a terrific conclusion. Lots of atmosphere. NOTE: There is no actual reference in the film to Chaney being the son of the original Dracula.

Verdict: Outstanding Universal horror film. ***1/2.