Philip St. John Basil Rathbone MC was an Anglo-South African actor. He rose to prominence in the United Kingdom as a Shakespearean stage actor and went on to appear in more than 70 films, primarily costume dramas, swashbucklers, and, occasionally, horror films.
John Conrad Nagel was an American film, stage, television and radio actor. He was considered a famous matinée idol and leading man of the 1920s and 1930s. He was given an Honorary Academy Award in 1940, and three stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960.
Rose Hobart is a 1936 experimental collage film created by the artist Joseph Cornell, who cut and re-edited the Universal film East of Borneo (1931) into one of America's most famous surrealist short films. Cornell was fascinated by the star of East of Borneo, an actress named Rose Hobart, and named his short film after her. The piece consists of snippets from East of Borneo combined with shots from a documentary film of an eclipse.
Glorious Betsy is a 1928 sound part-talkie drama film. In addition to sequences with audible dialogue or talking sequences, the film features a synchronized musical score and sound effects along with English intertitles. The soundtrack was recorded using the Vitaphone sound-on-disc system. The film is based on the 1908 play of the same name by Rida Johnson Young, and it stars Dolores Costello. It was produced by Warner Bros. and nominated for an Academy Award for Best Writing, Adaptation in 1929. The film was directed by Alan Crosland with cinematography by Hal Mohr.
Tower of London is a 1939 black-and-white historical film directed and produced by Rowland V. Lee. It stars Basil Rathbone as the future King Richard III of England, and Boris Karloff as his fictitious club-footed executioner Mord. The film is based on the traditional depiction of Richard rising to become King of England in 1483 by eliminating everyone ahead of him. Each time Richard accomplishes a murder, he removes one figurine from a dollhouse resembling a throneroom. Once he has completed his task, he now needs to defeat the exiled Henry Tudor to retain the throne.
Quality Street is a 1927 American silent romance film directed by Sidney Franklin and starring Marion Davies, Conrad Nagel and Helen Jerome Eddy. Produced by Cosmopolitan Productions for release through MGM, it was based on the 1901 play of the same name by James M. Barrie. Prints of this film are preserved at the Library of Congress and in the Turner Archive.
Genevieve Tobin was an American actress.
Forbidden Paradise is a 1924 American silent drama film, directed by Ernst Lubitsch, produced by Famous Players–Lasky, and distributed by Paramount Pictures. The film is based on a 1922 Broadway play, The Czarina, by Edward Sheldon, who adapted the Hungarian-language book by Melchior Lengyel and Lajos Bíró. The play starred Doris Keane, in one of her last stage roles, as Catherine the Great. Basil Rathbone costarred with Keane. The film stars Pola Negri as Catherine the Great and Rod La Rocque in the Rathbone role. Clark Gable makes his second appearance on film.
Fool's Paradise is a 1921 American silent romance film directed by Cecil B. DeMille. The film stars Dorothy Dalton and Conrad Nagel. The film was based on the short story "Laurels and the Lady" by Leonard Merrick published in his 1908 collection The Man Who Understood Women. It was adapted for the screen by Sada Cowan and Beulah Marie Dix.
Married Flirts is a 1924 American silent drama film directed by Robert Vignola and starring Pauline Frederick, Mae Busch, and Conrad Nagel. The screenplay, written by Julia Ivers, is based on Louis Joseph Vance's 1923 best seller Mrs. Paramor. The drama was considered quite daring at the time as the story centered on husbands being lured away from their wives. One scene has well known Hollywood stars playing themselves at a party.
Kind Lady is a 1935 American drama film directed by George B. Seitz starring Aline MacMahon, Basil Rathbone and Mary Carlisle. It is based on the play of the same name by Edward Chodorov and a short story called The Silver Mask by Hugh Walpole.
The Wrecker is a 1933 American Pre-Code action-romance film directed by Albert S. Rogell and starring Jack Holt, Genevieve Tobin and George E. Stone. The screenplay was by Jo Swerling. The film was produced and released by Columbia Pictures.
Midsummer Madness is a 1921 American silent drama film produced by Famous Players–Lasky and released by Paramount Pictures. It is based on the novel His Friend and His Wife by Cosmo Hamilton.
A Notorious Affair is a 1930 American pre-Code drama film, produced and released by First National Pictures. It was directed by Lloyd Bacon, starred Billie Dove, and featured Basil Rathbone and Kay Francis. The film was adapted from the play Fame, which was written by Audrey and Waverly Carter.
Second Wife is a 1930 American drama film produced and released by RKO Pictures. It was directed by Russell Mack, written by Hugh Herbert and Bert Glennon, based on the play All the King's Men by Fulton Oursler. The film stars Conrad Nagel and Lila Lee, two silent film veterans moving into talkies.
The Reckless Hour is a 1931 American pre-Code drama film directed by John Francis Dillon and starring Dorothy Mackaill, Conrad Nagel, H.B. Warner and Joan Blondell. It was produced and distributed by First National Pictures, which was controlled by Warner Brothers. It was based on the play Ambush by Arthur Richman.
Free Love is a 1930 Pre-Code film produced and distributed by Universal Pictures, directed by Hobart Henley and starring Conrad Nagel.
The Right of Way is a 1931 American pre-Code film directed by Frank Lloyd and produced and distributed by First National Pictures. It stars Conrad Nagel and Loretta Young. The story was filmed previously in 1915 and in 1920.
Three Who Loved is a 1931 American Pre-Code drama film directed by George Archainbaud from a screenplay by Beulah Marie Dix based on a story by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Martin Flavin. The film revolves around a love triangle. It was produced by RKO Pictures, which also distributed the film, releasing it on July 3, 1931.
Dark Hazard is 1934 pre-Code American drama film starring Edward G. Robinson and directed by Alfred E. Green. It is based on a novel by W. R. Burnett. It was produced by First National Pictures and released through Warner Bros.
