The year 1939 in film is widely considered the greatest year in film history. The ten Best Picture-nominated films that year include classics in multiple genres.
Raoul Walsh was an American film director, actor, founding member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), and the brother of silent screen actor George Walsh. He was known for portraying John Wilkes Booth in the silent classic The Birth of a Nation (1915) and for directing such films as the widescreen epic The Big Trail (1930) starring John Wayne in his first leading role, The Roaring Twenties starring James Cagney and Humphrey Bogart, High Sierra (1941) starring Ida Lupino and Humphrey Bogart, and White Heat (1949) starring James Cagney and Edmond O'Brien. He directed his last film in 1964.
Marked Woman is a 1937 American dramatic crime film directed by Lloyd Bacon and starring Bette Davis and Humphrey Bogart, with featured performances by Lola Lane, Isabel Jewell, Rosalind Marquis, Mayo Methot, Jane Bryan, Eduardo Ciannelli and Allen Jenkins. Set in the underworld of Manhattan, Marked Woman tells the story of a woman who dares to stand up to one of the city's most powerful gangsters.
George Francis "Gabby" Hayes was an American actor. He began as something of a leading man and a character player, but he was best known for his numerous appearances in B-Western film series as the bewhiskered, cantankerous, woman-hating, but ever-loyal and brave comic sidekick of the cowboy stars Hopalong Cassidy and Roy Rogers.
AFI's 100 Years...100 Stars is the American Film Institute's list ranking the top 25 male and 25 female greatest screen legends of American film history and is the second list of the AFI 100 Years... series.
Ralph Byrd was an American actor. He was most famous for playing the comic strip character Dick Tracy on screen, in serials, movies and television.
Sidney Salkow was an American film director, screenwriter, and television director.
Man of Conquest is a 1939 American Western film directed by George Nicholls Jr. and starring Richard Dix, Gail Patrick, and Joan Fontaine. The film was nominated for three Academy Awards for Best Score, Best Sound, and Best Art Direction.
Rovin' Tumbleweeds is a 1939 American Western film directed by George Sherman and starring Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette and Mary Carlisle. Written by Betty Burbridge, Dorrell McGowan, and Stuart E. McGowan, the film is about a cowboy congressman who exposes a crooked politician who is delaying passage of a flood control bill.
Sunset Trail is a 1939 American Western film directed by Lesley Selander, written by Norman Houston, and starring William Boyd, George "Gabby" Hayes, Russell Hayden, Charlotte Wynters, Jan Clayton, Robert Fiske and Kenneth Harlan. It was released on February 24, 1939, by Paramount Pictures.
King of Chinatown is a 1939 American crime film directed by Nick Grinde and written by Lillie Hayward and Irving Reis. The film stars Anna May Wong, Akim Tamiroff, J. Carrol Naish, Sidney Toler, Philip Ahn, Anthony Quinn and Bernadene Hayes. The film was released on March 17, 1939, by Paramount Pictures.
Born to Be Wild is a 1938 American action film directed by Joseph Kane and written by Nathanael West. The film stars Ralph Byrd, Doris Weston, Ward Bond, Robert Emmett Keane, Ben Hewlett and Charles Williams. The film was released on February 16, 1938, by Republic Pictures.
The Night Hawk is a 1938 American crime film directed by Sidney Salkow and written by Earl Felton. The film stars Robert Livingston, June Travis, Robert Armstrong, Ben Welden, Lucien Littlefield and Joe Downing. The film was released on October 1, 1938, by Republic Pictures.
Street of Missing Men is a 1939 American drama film directed by Sidney Salkow and written by Frank Dolan and Leonard Lee. The film stars Charles Bickford, Harry Carey, Tommy Ryan, Guinn "Big Boy" Williams, Ralph Graves and John Gallaudet. The film was released on April 25, 1939, by Republic Pictures.
She Married a Cop is a 1939 American comedy film directed by Sidney Salkow and written by Olive Cooper. The film stars Phil Regan, Jean Parker, Jerome Cowan, Dorothea Kent, Benny Baker and Barnett Parker. The film was released on July 12, 1939, by Republic Pictures.
That's My Story is a 1937 American drama film directed by Sidney Salkow from a screenplay by Barry Trivers. The film stars William Lundigan, Claudia Morgan, and Herbert Mundin.
Behind the Mike is a 1937 American comedy film directed by Sidney Salkow, which stars William Gargan, Judith Barrett, Don Wilson, and Sterling Holloway. The screenplay was written by Barry Trivers from a story by Thomas Ahearn and Walton Butterfield. The film was released on September 26, 1937.
Tillie the Toiler is a 1941 American comedy film directed by Sidney Salkow and starring Kay Harris, William Tracy, and George Watts. The screenplay was written by Karen DeWolf and Francis Martin, from DeWolf's story, which in turn was based on the comic strip of the same name by Russ Westover. It was the second film based on the comic strip, and the first sound picture, the other being the 1927 silent film also titled Tillie the Toiler.
Adrian Michael Morris was an American actor of stage and film, and a younger brother of Chester Morris.
