The following is an overview of 1936 in film, including significant events, a list of films released and notable births and deaths.
Bruce Cabot was an American film actor, best remembered as Jack Driscoll in King Kong (1933) and for his roles in films such as The Last of the Mohicans (1936), Fritz Lang's Fury (1936), and the Western Dodge City (1939). He was also known as one of "Wayne's Regulars", appearing in a number of John Wayne films beginning with Angel and the Badman (1947), and concluding with Big Jake (1971).
Raymond Walburn was an American character actor of stage and screen who appeared in dozens of Hollywood movie comedies and an occasional dramatic role during the 1930s and 1940s.
Thomas Donald Meek was a Scottish-American actor. He first performed publicly at the age of eight and began appearing on Broadway in 1903.
Alfred Hitchcock Presents, sometimes called The New Alfred Hitchcock Presents, is an American television anthology series that originally aired on NBC for one season from September 29, 1985 to May 4, 1986, and on the USA Network for three more seasons, from January 24, 1987, to July 22, 1989, with a total of four seasons consisting of 76 episodes. The series is an updated version of the 1955 eponymous series.
Sweethearts is a 1938 American Technicolor musical romance film directed by W.S. Van Dyke and starring Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy. The screenplay, by Dorothy Parker and Alan Campbell, uses the “play within a play” device: a Broadway production of the 1913 Victor Herbert operetta is the setting for another pair of sweethearts, the stars of the show. It was the first color film for Nelson or Jeanette. It was their first film together without uniforms or period costumes.
Ernest Thurston Hall was an American film, stage and television actor.
It Can't Last Forever is a 1937 American comedy film directed by Hamilton MacFadden and starring Ralph Bellamy, Betty Furness, and Robert Armstrong. It is also the debut film for an unbilled 11-year-old Donald O'Connor, who would later go on to be famous for his acrobatic tap dancing.
The King Steps Out is a 1936 American musical comedy film directed by Josef von Sternberg and starring Grace Moore, Franchot Tone and Walter Connolly. It is based on the early years of Empress Elisabeth of Austria, known as "Sisi" or "Sissi", and her courtship and marriage to Franz Joseph I of Austria, after he was initially engaged to her older sister Duchess Helene in Bavaria. The film is set from 1852 to 1854.
Society Doctor is a 1935 American drama film directed by George B. Seitz and starring Robert Taylor, Chester Morris, and Virginia Bruce. It was produced and distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was inspired by an unproduced play by Theodore Reeves.
Midshipman Jack is a 1933 American pre-Code action film directed by Christy Cabanne and written by Frank Wead and F. McGrew Willis. The film stars Bruce Cabot, Betty Furness, Frank Albertson, Arthur Lake, and Florence Lake. The film was released on September 22, 1933, by RKO Pictures.
Millionaires in Prison is a 1940 American crime drama film directed by Ray McCarey and written by Lynn Root and Frank Fenton. The film stars Lee Tracy, Linda Hayes, Raymond Walburn, Morgan Conway and Truman Bradley. The film was released on July 12, 1940, by RKO Pictures.
Mr. Cinderella is a 1936 American comedy film directed by Edward Sedgwick and written by Richard Flournoy and Arthur V. Jones. The film stars Jack Haley, Betty Furness, Arthur Treacher, Raymond Walburn, Robert McWade and Rosina Lawrence. It was released on October 23, 1936 by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.
Bad Guy is a 1937 American crime film directed by Edward L. Cahn and written by Earl Felton and Harry Ruskin. The film stars Bruce Cabot, Virginia Grey, Edward Norris, Jean Chatburn and Cliff Edwards. It was released on August 27, 1937 by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.
The Man in the Trunk is a 1942 American comedy film directed by Malcolm St. Clair and written by John Larkin. The film stars Lynne Roberts, George Holmes, Raymond Walburn, J. Carrol Naish, Dorothy Peterson and Eily Malyon. The film was released on September 18, 1942, by 20th Century Fox.
Affairs of Geraldine is a 1946 American comedy film directed by George Blair and written by John K. Butler. The film stars Jane Withers, Jimmy Lydon, Raymond Walburn, Donald Meek, Charles Quigley and Grant Withers. The film was released on November 18, 1946, by Republic Pictures.
The Defense Rests is a 1934 American film directed by Lambert Hillyer and starring Jack Holt, Jean Arthur, and Nat Pendleton. The movie was produced in May 1934 and released on 15 July 1934.
The 1938 United States Senate election in Iowa took place on November 8, 1938. Incumbent Democratic Senator Guy M. Gillette, who won a special election to complete the unexpired term of Richard Louis Murphy, won a full term in office by defeating Republican former Senator Lester J. Dickinson. Gillette and Dickinson had briefly served together in the final months of 1936.
The Lone Wolf Returns is a 1935 American mystery crime film directed by Roy William Neill and starring Melvyn Douglas, Gail Patrick and Tala Birell. Douglas plays jewel thief Michael Lanyard, aka the Lone Wolf. Retired, the Lone Wolf is forced back into crime, but turns the tables on his enemies. It is based on the 1923 Louis Joseph Vance novel The Lone Wolf Returns, which had previously been made into a 1926 film of the same name.
Bachelor Daddy is a 1941 American comedy film directed by Harold Young and written by Robert Lees and Frederic I. Rinaldo. The film stars Baby Sandy, Edward Everett Horton, Donald Woods, Raymond Walburn, Evelyn Ankers, Kathryn Adams Doty, Franklin Pangborn and Jed Prouty. The film was released on June 4, 1941, by Universal Pictures.
