Running late again. I’m working on a very lengthy post to be up here in the next couple of days on Nick Ray’s rarely shown Wind Across the Everglades.  The other thing I want to mention is that someone from the Netherlands contacted me last week (incidentally, I now have an official spot for contacting me on the right margin) about his site, which looks really nice and is devoted to screen shots of title screens. Here’s a link to it so you can see for yourself. He even has an area dedicated to film noir. TCM this week begins its annual “Summer Under the Stars” endeavor where each day is dedicated to a different actor. This week it’s Henry Fonda, James Mason, Marion Davies, James Coburn, Harold Lloyd, Judy Garland and Glenn Ford. As always, all times are EDT and program days begin at 6:00 AM.

Saturday August 1

10:30 PM The Farmer Takes a Wife (Fleming, 1935) - BW-91 mins. - Henry Fonda day, including a couple of teamings with Barbara Stanwyck. This is an earlier performance, his first on film, from Fonda where he plays a would-be farmer courting Janet Gaynor’s canal boat cook. It hasn’t been released on DVD and should be controlled by Fox. The Grapes of Wrath, with probably Fonda’s best performance, precedes this one at 8:00 PM.

Sunday August 2

12:00 PM The Seventh Veil (Bennett, 1945) - BW-94 mins. - This will be showing as part of Film Forum’s little Brit Noir sidebar for James Mason on August 17, though that obviously won’t help most readers. Ann Todd stars as a pianist with amnesia who can’t play the piano and struggles to remember her tortuous past. The film was awarded an Oscar for its screenplay by husband and wife Sydney and Muriel Box. Another interesting tidbit according to the TCM article on the movie is that the BFI has it listed as the 10th biggest ticket seller ever in the UK with 17.9 million patrons. It’s not on R1 DVD. An affordable R2 edition is out in the UK from Odeon.

4:15 AM They Met in the Dark (Lamac, 1943) - BW-91 mins. - Mason stars as a naval commander during WWII who gets removed from the military after he tells a beautiful woman (Joyce Howard) military secrets. He then tries to track down the woman, realizing her ties with the Nazis. Director Carl Lamac, credited here as Karel Lamac, had worked in the German film industry for several  years prior to making this movie. No DVD in R1, but there is a German release.

Monday August 3

10:45 AM Not So Dumb (Vidor, 1930) - BW-76 mins. - It’s a bit gutsy to give the entire day here to Marion Davies, but I like it. Her films seem virtually forgotten today, mentioned as little more than footnotes to her reputation as Hearst’s mistress or loose inspiration for a character in Citizen Kane. That’s not entirely fair, as the productions were generally of good quality. This particular film was the third time King Vidor directed Davies and also just the second talking picture for the actress. It’s a comedy and involves Davies as a ditzy gal trying to get her man a promotion at work by throwing a party and inviting the boss. A remake with Ann Sothern called Dulcy (the lead’s first name) was done a decade later.  MGM originally put it in cinemas so Warner Bros. should control. It isn’t on DVD, but seems like a contender for the Archive. Vidor’s Show People and The Patsy air in prime time beginning at 8:00 PM.

1:45 PM Blondie of the Follies (Goulding, 1932) - BW-91 mins. - Marion Davies and Billie Dove play best friends in New York City who develop a rift after the latter gets her pal a job in a Broadway show only to have her boyfriend (Robert Montgomery) make eyes at Davies. The great cast also includes Jimmy Durante, James Gleason, Zasu Pitts, and Sidney Toler. It was written by Frances Marion and Anita Loos. Produced by Davies’ production company and released by MGM, the film isn’t on DVD.

3:30 AM Ever Since Eve (Bacon, 1937) - BW-80 mins. - Davies and Robert Montgomery are teamed again, albeit a few years later, in this romantic comedy. She plays a secretary who gets frustrated with men being distracted by her looks and uglies her appearance to get hired by writer Montgomery. He then falls for the pretty version and ignores the homely one. Sounds a bit far-fetched, dumb even, but I can still get behind plots like this if the writing and acting hold up. Plus it was Davies’ last film. Warner Bros. this time but no DVD here either.

Wednesday August 5

9:30 PM Welcome Danger (Bruckman, 1929) - BW-115 mins. - Huh, this doesn’t seem to be on DVD in R1. It was Harold Lloyd’s first talking picture, apparently done first as a silent but then refilmed with sound. At 115 minutes, it would seem to be surprisingly lengthy, but considering the original cut ran 16 reels or about 2 hours and 45 minutes,  this seems like a fair compromise. Lloyd plays a botany student who goes home to San Francisco to try to replace his dead father as chief of police. The film can be had as part of a 9-disc Harold Lloyd Definitive Collection in the UK from Optimum.

Friday August 7

4:45 PM Framed (Wallace, 1947) - BW-82 mins. - Lots of rarely seen Glenn Ford movies show up today. One with Evelyn Keyes and John Ireland, Mr. Soft Touch, precedes this at 3:00 PM. I particularly like the sound of Framed, though, which has Janis Carter as a dangerous femme fatale who lures new-in-town Ford into committing crimes. Shot by Burnett Guffey and made (probably as a B) for Columbia, the film is not on DVD in R1 or, to my knowledge, anywhere else. Convicted, also with Broderick Crawford, follows at 6:15 PM.

2:45 AM A Time for Killing (Karlson, 1967) - C-89 mins. - Crime dramas make way for westerns as the night progresses, including this one in which Confederate soldiers hide the fact that the war is over en route to Mexico. Ford is a Union officer whose fiancee (Inger Stevens) is held hostage by the Confederates. This seems interesting for the cast alone, which also has George Hamilton, Paul Petersen (of The Donna Reed Show!), Timothy Carey, Max Baer Jr, and a virtual unknown by the name of Harrison Ford. Roger Corman is listed at IMDb as an uncredited director. Columbia released the picture, and it’s not on DVD in R1.

4:15 AM Heaven with a Gun (Katzin, 1969) - C-101 mins. - Another one for the Glenn Ford color western enthusiasts. This is rated TV-MA so expect violence, language and/or nudity. Ford plays an ex-gunfighter turned preacher forced into picking up the old belt again. Carolyn Jones is a saloon owner, Barbara Hershey plays an Indian girl, and John Anderson is the local ranch owner causing trouble for the sheepmen. David Carradine appears as his son. Looks like an MGM release originally. No DVD so far.