THE CHOCOLATE SOLDIER

Rise Stevens and Nelson Eddy

THE CHOCOLATE SOLDIER (1941). Director: Roy Del Ruth.

Karl Lang (Nelson Eddy) and Maria Lanyl (Rise Stevens) are a married couple in Vienna who appear nightly in a production of The Chocolate Soldier. Karl is generally surrounded by adoring young ladies, but he is still jealous of the attentions his wife receives from other men, and thinks that she has quite a romantic history. He fears it is time for her to take yet another lover and his marriage may be doomed. To test Maria's affections, he disguises himself as an intensely romantic Russian singer ...

Eddy disguised as the Russian

Like Sweethearts, which Eddy did with Jeanette MacDonald three years earlier, The Chocolate Soldier completely throws out the plot of that operetta -- while retaining some of Oscar Straus' music -- and substitutes the storyline of that creaky old standby The Guardsman (which Lunt and Fontanne actually filmed ten years earlier). This plot was recycled for more than one I Love Lucy episode which at least had Lucy and Desi yukking it up. However, to be fair to the leads in this picture, they are both excellent and amusing in their own way. Often damned as a lousy actor, Eddy is actually quite effective in this, including when he is impersonating the love-mad Russian. Stevens, a mezzo-soprano to reckon with and a genuine operatic star (and with a voice far superior to Jeanette MacDonald's ), also proves a delightfully talented and sophisticated actress. Stevens may not have been a stunning beauty, but with her personality, manner and charm -- not to mention her cute appeal -- I have no doubt she had plenty of male admirers (she was happily married for 61 years, however).

Nelson Eddy as Karl

But then we come to the music. The best song, of course, is the gorgeous "My Hero," which is reprised more than once in the movie and deserves to be. Vivian Vance sang this song in the classic "Ethel's Home Town" episode of I Love Lucy, but while Vance had a nice voice, she can't compare to Stevens, who gives a superb rendition, joined in by Eddy, who is also in fine voice, at one point. Stevens is also given a beautiful aria from Samson and Delilah, while Eddy does Tannhauser.  There are other musical interludes, including a weird, unmemorable piece sung by Eddy as the Russian, and a frenetically-edited dance at a drinking establishment.

Rise Stevens

Frankly, the script for Chocolate Soldier is not the chief appeal of the movie, although it does manage to remain amusing and watchable due to the actors and the soundtrack. Florence Bates [The Brasher Doubloon], Nigel Bruce, and Nydia Westman [Forty Little Mothers] add to the fun as assorted associates of the lead couple, and all are very good. Rise Stevens did a version of The Chocolate Soldier for television with Eddie Albert in 1955, which I believe stuck to the original story of the operetta. Stevens had a long and wonderful career with the Metropolitan opera in New York and did very few films, one of which was Going My Way. She did a few operas, such as Carmen, on TV as well.

Verdict: Despite its obvious flaws, this is still quite entertaining. "My Hero," indeed! ***. 

MARTIN KANE, PRIVATE EYE

Mark Stevens

MARTIN KANE, PRIVATE EYE (aka Martin Kane/1949 - 1954.)

Martin Kane, Private Eye started out as a popular radio series, then spread out to television even as the radio show continued. The NBC half-hour telecast was sponsored by the U.S. Tobacco Company, and many of the ads were sort of incorporated into the story, with characters going into a tobacco shop to buy the sponsor's cigarettes, chewing tobacco, and the like. (This is "product placement" par excellance!) The show was originally introduced with loud organ music like a radio show, and the old style announcer practically shouts out the name of the series in figuratively italicized letters. Martin Kane was played by William Gargan, Lloyd Nolan (of Michael Shayne fame), Lee Tracy, and Mark Stevens. I believe the show was aired live, but despite its low budget it's well-produced, with more movement and action than you may associate with live TV.

Here are some episodes, listed by actor. I give the season and episode number when available.

William Gargan: Pleasant and amiable Gargan [Night Editor] made a very likable Martin Kane. He says good-night to the audience at the end of each episode.

  (S2, E 20) "The District Attorney Killer." A convicted killer (Frank DeKova) clears an innocent man from the witness stand, but then pulls out a gun and kills the district attorney who prosecuted him. Then he says the gun was given to him by his own attorney! Who's telling the truth? And is the "innocent" man guilty after all? Suspenseful story with some good twists and a comparatively complex plot. A.

"Hotel Con Game." A man named Smith comes to Kane to tell him that his entire life savings has been stolen, presumably by the land lady of the hotel where he lives, who is also a fortune teller who importuned him to change banks. Then a murder results. B+.

"Doctored Will." An elderly man is shot to death and his heirs all become suspects, but has someone fiddled with the will? C

"Murder on the Ice." An obnoxious if talented rookie hockey player takes a drink of brandy before a game and drops dead on the ice. Kane is convinced from a smell of almonds that the man was poisoned, but the chemical report on the bottle may contain some surprises. Roland Winters plays one of the suspects. C-.

"Reclusive Sisters" stars an excellent Una O'Connor and Nydia Westman in a darkly comic tale of three weird sisters who live alone in an old mansion and take steps when an elderly lawyer comes to tell them that they're losing the house and must move to a home. B+.

Lloyd Nolan

Lloyd Nolan could be tough when required but generally gives it the light touch after appearing in several Michael Shayne movies such as Dressed to Kill.

  (S3, E 27.) "Black Pearls." Kane is accused of murder when the grumpy man who hired him and who has a fabulous collection of black pearls, is murdered on his yacht and the pearls are found in the detective's pocket. B.

"A Jockey Is Murdered." There are a number of suspects when a jockey (Walter Burke) who throws a race is stabbed to death right in front of a betting window. B.

"Nightclub Murder." Nightclub singer Johnny Silver (Mark Dawson) is shot dead in front of an audience after just a few bars of his hit song, and Kane uncovers the fact that several people in his life had major motives for killing him. B+.

"Rest Home Murder." In one of the worst episodes of the series, Judith Evelyn plays the shady owner of a rest home who tries to find out the whereabouts of a $100,000 check from a "patient," a former client of Kane's who calls him for help. D+.

Lee Tracy [Dinner at Eight] offers one of the most interesting and flavorful interpretations of Martin Kane, adding great charm to his portrayal.

 (S4, E25.) "The Comic Strip Killer." The clever plot has a comic strip artist and writer foolishly telling everyone that he'll reveal the identity of the person who murdered a philandering woman's wealthy husband in the comic strip itself. B+.

Mark Stevens [Time Table] is more of a traditional hard-boiled private eye than the others, and the handsomest of the actors who played the role.

"The Milk Bottle Burglar." Trying to catch whoever is stealing his milk bottles, an elderly major comes afoul of a hit man who is after the thief for other reasons. Robert H. Harris is terrific as the mob boss who ordered the hit. C+

"The Shoeshine Murder." When a shoeshine boy witnesses a murder he goes on the run, then winds up out on a window ledge where Kane and others try to talk to him, and the murderer tries to get him to throw himself down to the street several stories below.  B-.

Verdict: Hard to judge this based on only a handful of episodes (some are on youtube; others on DVD) but it might be safe to say this is a real mixed bag with some hidden gems. **1/2. 

FORTY LITTLE MOTHERS

Scene stealer: Baby Quintanilla; Odd duo: Cantor and Anderson

FORTY LITTLE MOTHERS (1940). Director: Busby Berkeley.

"Maybe he has a charm we know nothing about?" Mme. Cliche

I doubt it." -- Mme. Granville

Out of work professor Gilbert Thompson (Eddie Cantor) runs into and saves a suicidal woman, Marian (Rita Johnson), unaware that she has left her little baby boy (Baby Quintanilla) in a depot. When he discovers the child later on, he doesn't know who the mother is, and takes him home to his boarding house. He finally gets a job at Mme. Granville's School for Girls, but learns that babies aren't allowed there. Another complication is that the girls, who are pining for a handsome professor who was fired, are dismayed by his replacement. "I've seen better heads on an umbrella!" says one disgruntled co-ed. They cook up a scheme to get him thrown out of the school by pretending all of them are in love with him, but when Gilbert is forced to take in the baby from the friend who was watching him, he discovers the girls may not be quite as awful as they seem. Forty Little Mothers is an unusual and charming  comedy-drama with lots of sentiment and a warm and winning performance from Cantor. It is a little astonishing that he is teamed with -- of all people -- Judith Anderson [Rebecca] as the headmistress, but these two pros (from very different disciplines) work very well together. Bonita Granville [Andy Hardy's Blonde Trouble] is cast as the main "mean girl" and she is effective, although it is unlikely that she and the other cruel young monsters would suddenly develop a pleasant nature just because Gilbert shames them. Nydia Westman is very amusing as Anderson's assistant, Mademoiselle Cynthia Cliche, and Baby Quintanilla -- who was actually twin girls and not a baby boy -- is the most adorable scene-stealer since Baby Leroy. Cantor even gets to warble "Little Curly Hair in a High Chair." With her highly expressive face, Rita Johnson [Honolulu] makes a decided impression as the woman who hopes, eventually, to be reunited with her baby.

Verdict: How much cuteness can you stand? ***.