James Albert Stephenson was a British stage and film actor. He took up film acting at 49 and after a typically slow start delivered an Academy Award-nominated performance in the William Wyler-directed melodrama, The Letter in 1940. The roles offered to Stephenson dramatically improved following this performance, but he died just a year later at 52.
Jane Arden was an internationally syndicated daily newspaper comic strip which ran from November 26, 1928 to January 20, 1968. The title character was the original "spunky girl reporter", actively seeking to infiltrate and expose criminal activity rather than just report on its consequences and served as a prototype for later characters such as Superman supporting character Lois Lane and fellow comic strip heroine Brenda Starr, Reporter. Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Mary McGrory credited Jane Arden with instilling her interest in journalism.
It's in the Bag! is a 1945 comedy film featuring Fred Allen in his only starring film role. The film was released by United Artists at a time when Allen was at the peak of his fame as one of the most popular radio comedians. The film has been preserved by UCLA Film & Television Archive. The film is loosely based on the comic novel The Twelve Chairs (1928) of Ilf and Petrov, later filmed by Mel Brooks as The Twelve Chairs (1970). The team of screenwriters included Jay Dratler, Alma Reville, and Morrie Ryskind. Allen's encounter with Jack Benny in the film is notable as at this time they were involved in a famous 'feud', which ran for over a decade.
Declaration of Independence is a 1938 American short drama film directed by Crane Wilbur. It won an Academy Award at the 11th Academy Awards in 1939 for Best Short Subject (Two-Reel), and has been credited as being one of the few films relating to the American Revolution to win this award.
Fixer Dugan is a 1939 American drama film starring Lee Tracy as a circus promoter who decides to help out an orphaned girl, played by Virginia Weidler. The film was directed by Lew Landers, released by RKO Radio Pictures and is based on the play What's a Fixer For? by H.C. Potter.
The Housekeeper's Daughter is a 1939 comedy/drama film directed and produced by Hal Roach. The film stars Joan Bennett, Adolphe Menjou and John Hubbard. The screenplay was written by Rian James, Gordon Douglas, Jack Jevne and Claude Martin, based on a novel by Donald Henderson Clarke.
Cowboy from Brooklyn is a 1938 American Western musical romantic comedy film directed by Lloyd Bacon and written by Earl Baldwin. It stars Dick Powell, Pat O'Brien and Priscilla Lane. The film was based on the 1937 Broadway play Howdy Stranger by Robert Sloane and Louis Pelletier.
Miss Annie Rooney is a 1942 American drama film directed by Edwin L. Marin. The screenplay by George Bruce has some similarities to the silent film, Little Annie Rooney starring Mary Pickford, but otherwise, the films are unrelated. Miss Annie Rooney is about a teenager from a humble background who falls in love with a rich high school boy. She is snubbed by his social set, but, when her father invents a better rubber synthetic substitute, her prestige rises. Notable as the film in which Shirley Temple received her first on-screen kiss, and Moore said it was his first kiss ever. The film was panned.
Nancy Drew... Reporter is a 1939 American comedy-mystery film directed by William Clemens and written by Kenneth Gamet. The film stars Bonita Granville as Nancy Drew, John Litel, Frankie Thomas, Mary Lee, Dickie Jones and Larry Williams. The film was released by Warner Bros. on February 18, 1939. It is a sequel to Nancy Drew... Detective (1938) and was followed by Nancy Drew... Trouble Shooter (1939).
The Perfect Specimen is a 1937 American romantic comedy film directed by Michael Curtiz and starring Errol Flynn and Joan Blondell. The picture is based on a novel by Samuel Hopkins Adams.
Yes, My Darling Daughter is a 1939 American screwball comedy film directed by William Keighley and starring Priscilla Lane. Ellen Murray is a young woman determined to spend a weekend with her lover, Douglas Hall before he takes off to Europe for his new job.
Secret Service of the Air is a 1939 American adventure film directed by Noel M. Smith and starring Ronald Reagan. This film was the first in Warner Bros.' Secret Service series. The series consisted of four films, all starring Ronald Reagan as Lieutenant "Brass" Bancroft of the U.S. Secret Service and Eddie Foy, Jr. as his sidekick "Gabby." It was followed up by Code of the Secret Service, Smashing the Money Ring, and Murder in the Air (1940), the last film in the series. Reagan was just starting out his film career and commented later that during that period, he was a B movie "Errol Flynn".
Women in the Wind is a 1939 film directed by John Farrow and starring Kay Francis, William Gargan and Victor Jory. The plot concerns women pilots competing in the so-called "Powder Puff Derby", an annual transcontinental air race solely for women.
Rosella Towne was an American film actress. She was born in Youngstown, Ohio. Her film career began in 1937, after making a screen test for Warner Bros. and signing a contract for the studio. At first she made minor appearances in motion pictures such as Varsity Show, It's Love I'm After and Submarine D-1. In 1939, she got her first leading role when she was chosen to play the part of comic-strip character Jane Arden in a film adaption. While touted by critics as a future star, Towne retired from showbusiness after marrying Harry Kronman, a Hollywood producer, in 1942. She died on August 29, 2014, aged 96. Towne was cremated.
Blackwell's Island is a 1939 American crime drama film directed by William C. McGann and written by Crane Wilbur. The film stars John Garfield, Rosemary Lane, Dick Purcell, Victor Jory, Stanley Fields and Morgan Conway. The film was released by Warner Bros. on March 25, 1939.
Ambush is a 1939 American drama film directed by Kurt Neumann and written by Laura Perelman and S. J. Perelman. The film stars Gladys Swarthout, Lloyd Nolan, William "Bill" Henry, William Frawley, Ernest Truex and Broderick Crawford. The film was released on January 20, 1939, by Paramount Pictures.
Man Hunt is a 1936 American comedy film directed by William Clemens and written by Roy Chanslor. The film stars Ricardo Cortez, Marguerite Churchill, Charles "Chic" Sale, William Gargan, Dick Purcell and Olin Howland. The film was released by Warner Bros. on February 15, 1936.
Wolf of New York is a 1940 American crime film directed by William C. McGann and written by Gordon Kahn and Lionel Houser. The film stars Edmund Lowe, Rose Hobart, James Stephenson, Jerome Cowan, William Demarest and Maurice Murphy. The film was released on January 23, 1940, by Republic Pictures.
Flying Cadets is a 1941 American adventure film directed by Erle C. Kenton and written by George Waggner, Roy Chanslor and Stanley Rubin. The film stars William Gargan, Edmund Lowe, Peggy Moran, Frank Albertson, Frankie Thomas and Riley Hill. Flying Cadets was released on October 24, 1941, by Universal Pictures.
Fighting Mad is a 1939 American adventure film directed by Sam Newfield and written by George Rosener and John Rathmell. It is based on the 1927 novel Renfrew Rides Again by Laurie York Erskine. The third of the Renfrew of the Royal Mounted film series stars James Newill, Sally Blane, Benny Rubin, Dave O'Brien, Milburn Stone and Walter Long. The film was released on November 5, 1939, by Monogram Pictures when Grand National Pictures ceased operation.
