Hotchka Movies by the Decade feature #199 :: May 16•22

Legendary

This week saw the release of many films over the last 100 years with quite a few based on literature or stage production, a few that have some interesting firsts, and several that earned some Oscar glory. Of the nine 1924 films, two-thirds of them still exist today. 1934 produced a film that ran afoul of the censors, 1944 had a cartoon short that was forced to undergo a title change, 1944 saw a recently deceased film great earn his first producer credit, 1964 gave us a fantasy film that inspired a fantasy TV series and they both feature the same star, 1974 had an ill-fated project from a well-regarded director, 1984 saw the debut of an actor who has become infamous as a producer, 1994 brought a classic TV series to the big screen, 2004 had one of the most financially successful animated film, and 2014 brought a Japanese titan back to life in the US, and gave us a horror film that has gone on to cult status. Scroll down the list to see this week’s films and let us know if any of your favorites are celebrating milestone anniversaries.

1924

• May 18 – Black Oxfords (USA, short, Mack Sennett Comedies)
• May 18 – The Lightning Rider (USA, Hunt Stromberg Productions)
• May 18 – The Lone Chance (USA, Fox Film Corporation)
• May 18 – The Spirit of the USA (USA, Emory Johnson Productions)
• May 18 – Virtuous Liars (USA, Whitman Bennett Productions)
• May 19 – The Dangerous Blonde (USA, Universal Pictures)
• May 19 – The Moral Sinner (USA, Famous Players-Lasky Corporation)
• May 20 – High Speed (USA, Universal Pictures)
• May 20 – Listen Lester (USA, Sacramento Pictures)

Prints of The Lightning Rider, originally titled Desert Rose, are held in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art in New York City and Cinémathèque Française in Paris. A print of Virtuous Liars is preserved in the Library of Congress.

The Lone Chance, The Spirit of the USA, and The Dangerous Blonde are considered lost films.

The Moral Sinner is based on the 1904 play Leah Kleschna by C. M. S. McLellan. It is a remake of an early 1913 Adolph Zukor produced film, Leah Kleschna. The film is considered lost.

Listen Lester is based upon the 1918 stage play of the same name. Prints are held in the Library of Congress.

1934

• May 16 – Murder in Trinidad (USA, Fox Film Corporation)
• May 18 – Born to Be Bad (USA, 20th Century Pictures)
• May 18 – Change of Heart (USA, Fox Film Corporation)
• May 18 – Marrying Widows (USA, Tower Productions)
• May 18 – Murder at the Vanities (USA, Paramount Pictures)
• May 18 – Where Sinners Meet (USA, RKO Radio Pictures)
• May 19 – Hell Bent for Love (USA, Columbia Pictures)
• May 19 – Smarty (USA, Warner Bros. Pictures)
• May 20 – Monte Carlo Nights (USA, Paul Malvern Productions)
• May 21 – On Secret Service (UK, British International Pictures)
• May 22 – Say It with Flowers (UK, Julius Hagen Productions)

On Secret Service was released in the US as Spy 77 on February 9, 1936. Say It with Flowers has no known US theatrical release date.

Murder in Trinidad is based on the 1933 novel of the same name by John Vandercook, which also inspired 1939’s Mr. Moto in Danger Island and 1945’s The Caribbean Mystery.

Born to Be Bad was rejected by the Hays Office, even though it was technically a pre-Code film. The studio was forced to re-write and re-film scenes that only hinted at the occupation of Loretta Young’s character, removing shots of Young in her underwear and of her legs exposed up to her hips.

Change of Heart was adapted from Kathleen Norris’s novel, Manhattan Love Song. It was the last pairing of Janet Gaynor and Charles Farrell after nearly a dozen romantic films.

Murder at the Vanities is based on the 1933 Broadway revue Earl Carroll’s Vanities. Lucille Ball has a small role as a chorus girl. Where Sinners Meet was adapted from Clara Beranger’s 1927 movie The Little Adventuress, which itself was adapted from the 1921 British play The Dover Road by A. A. Milne. The Dover Road was the film’s working title.

Smarty is known in the UK as Hit Me Again. It was adapted from F. Hugh Herbert’s play. On Secret Service is based on the 1933 German film Spies at Work, with Karl Ludwig Diehl reprising his role as Captain Michael von Homberg from that film.

1944

Leon Schlesinger Studios

• May 18 – Riding West (USA, Columbia Pictures)
• May 18 – Welcome, Mr. Washington (UK, British National Films)
• May 20 – Between Two Worlds (USA, Warner Bros.-First National Pictures)
• May 20 – Charlie Chan in the Chinese Cat (USA, Monogram Pictures)
• May 20 – Easy Life (USA, short, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer)
• May 20 – Russian Rhapsody (USA, short, Leon Schlesinger Studios)
• May 20 – Why Daddy (USA, short, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer)
• May 21 – Boss of Boomtown (USA, Universal Pictures)
• May 22 – The Eve of St. Mark (USA, Twentieth Century Fox)

Welcome, Mr. Washington has no known US theatrical release date. It was one of the British Film Institute’s ’75 Most Wanted’ lost films until a complete print was discovered in 2016 in a locker in London’s Cinema Museum.

Between Two Worlds is a remake of 1930’s Outward Bound, with both adapted from the 1923 stage play of the same name.

Charlie Chan in the Chinese Cat was originally to be titled Charlie Chan and the Perfect Crime. It is also known as Murder in the Funhouse.

Easy Life is part of MGM’s ‘Crime Does Not Pay’ series. Why Daddy was the last of a collection of shorts made by Robert Benchley for MGM.

Many of the gremlins seen in Russian Rhapsody are caricatures of the Warner Bros. animation department staff including Friz Freleng, Bob Clampett and Leon Schlesinger. The short was originally to be titled Gremlins in the Kremlin but Disney was in production on an adaptation of Roald Dahl’s The Gremlins at the time, but it ended up not getting made.

The Eve of St. Mark is adapted from the 1942 play of the same name by Maxwell Anderson. 20th Century Fox obtained the rights and agreed to not release the film before January 1944 when the show was expected to end. Five of the show’s cast members reprised their roles in the film. The script had to be modified to avoid the play’s sexual references and language to comply with the Motion Picture Production Code. The play’s closing scene was refilmed for the movie with a more hopeful tone after test audiences rejected the original ending.

1954

• May 19 – Monsieur Ripois (France, Transcontinental Film Productions)
• May 20 – Captain Kidd and the Slave Girl (USA, Superior Pictures)
• May 20 – Three Coins in the Fountain (USA, Twentieth Century Fox)
• May 21 – Monster from the Ocean Floor (USA, Palo Alto Productions)
• May 21 – Pigs Is Pigs (USA, short, Walt Disney Productions)
• May 22 – Claws for Alarm (USA, short, Warner Bros. Pictures)

Monsieur Ripois, based on the novel by Louis Hémon, was released in the US as Knave of Hearts on September 30, 1954.

Three Coins in the Fountain is based on the 1952 novel Coins in the Fountain by John H. Secondari. The film’s working title was We Believe in Love. The film’s Oscar winning title song, performed by an uncredited Frank Sinatra, went on to become an enduring standard. The film also won the Oscar for Cinematography and was nominated for Best Picture.

Monster from the Ocean Floor was the first film produced by Roger Corman. The original title was It Stalked the Ocean Floor, but the distributor changed it for being ‘too artsy’. Corman allowed Wyott Ordung to direct, and Ordung agreed to defer part of his pay for the experience of directing. Corman has claimed the budget was $12,000 with a six day shoot, but other sources list the budget as high as $35,000. Corman had become aware of a new one-man electric-powered submarine, and was able to use it for free in exchange for an on-screen credit for the manufacturer. This film marks the first appearance of Jonathan Haze in a Corman film. Haze would become a regular in Corman’s productions. Corman earned $60,000 from the film, which allowed him to make his next film.

Pigs Is Pigs was Oscar nominated for Best Animated Short Film. Claws for Alarm is the second of three comedy-horror shorts featuring Porky Pig and Sylvester, with the cat in a non-speaking role as Porky’s pet, the only one of the two aware of the danger the pair are in.

1964

• May 16 – The Iceman Ducketh (USA, short, Warner Bros. Pictures)
• May 19 – The Man Who Burnt His Corpse (USA/Italy, I.C.E.T. Produzione Film)
• May 20 – Black Like Me (USA, The Hilltop Company)
• May 20 – Rhino! (USA, Ivan Tors Films)
• May 20 – The Brass Bottle (USA, Scarus)
• May 20 – The Evil Eye (USA, Galatea Film)
• May 20 – The Human Vapor (USA, Toho)
• May 20 – Viva Las Vegas (USA, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer)
• May 21 – The Chalk Garden (USA, Ross Hunter Productions)
• May 22 – The Three Lives of Thomasina (UK, Walt Disney Productions)

The Italian title of The Man Who Burnt His Corpse is L’uomo che bruciò il suo cadavere. The Evil Eye originally opened in Italy on February 14, 1963 as La ragazza che sapeva troppo (The Girl Who Knew Too Much). The Human Vapor originally opened in Japan on December 11, 1960 as Gasu ningen dai 1 gô. The Chalk Garden originally opened in the UK on April 2, 1964. The Three Lives of Thomasina opened in the US on June 4, 1964.

The Iceman Ducketh was the next to last Warner Bros. theatrical cartoon to star Bugs Bunny, and the last to feature Bugs and Daffy Duck together until 1991’s Box-Office Bunny.

Black Like Me is based on the 1961 book by John Howard Griffin.

The Brass Bottle was based on the 1900 novel of the same name by Thomas Anstey Guthrie. It had been adapted twice in the silent era in 1914 and 1923. The film, about a man who frees a long-imprisoned genie, was the inspiration for the 1960s TV sitcom I Dream of Jeannie. Barbara Eden’s role in the film helped secure her role in the TV series even though she did not play the genie in the film (Burl Ives was the genie).

The Evil Eye director Mario Bava was a fan of Alfred Hitchcock and incorporated many Hitchcockian touches into the film including his own director’s cameo, as a portrait on the wall with eyes that keep following the heroine. It is considered to be the first film to introduce the genre of ‘giallo’, which combined thriller, sexploitation and horror conventions. It would be Bava’s last black-and-white film. Letícia Román, John Saxon and Valentina Cortese dubbed themselves for the American release of the film. The American version of the film features a different score by Les Baxter, omits several scenes and adds others to put a greater emphasis on comedy compared to the Italian release. The film was the first of the American International Pictures produced in Italy for release in the US.

The Human Vapor is the third and final film in Toho’s ‘Transforming Human Series’. A rubber balloon mannequin of Yoshio Tsuchiya was made and was used to simulate the Gas Man’s transformation. Air was inflated into the balloon and deflated while filmed at high speed. Small grains of dry ice were placed inside and exposed to lukewarm water, with the balloon allowing the resultant smoke cloud to retain a human shape.

Viva Las Vegas had no script but producers had a commitment to MGM. The original story was about an Arabian but it was changed to place the story in Las Vegas and the screenplay was written in less than two weeks. The film was produced before Elvis Presley’s Kissin’ Cousins but released after. The film was titled Love in Las Vegas in the UK to avoid conflict with a British film titled Viva Las Vegas that was released at the same time. The chemistry between Elvis and Ann-Margret was very real, which concerned Presley’s girlfriend Priscilla especially after the gossip columns erroneously reported Elvis and Ann-Marget had become engaged. David Winters, the film’s choreographer, was recommended by Ann-Margret. It was his first job as a choreographer, and the film includes ten musical scenes. The scene where Presley sings ‘Viva Las Vegas’ was performed in one unedited shot, the only known example of this technique in Presley’s film career.

The Chalk Garden is adapted from the play of the same name by Enid Bagnold. Sandra Dee was originally to star in the film but had to drop out when she became pregnant, replaced by Hayley Mills. Edith Evans was Oscar and BAFTA nominated for Best Supporting Actress. The film received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Motion Picture — Drama.

The Three Lives of Thomasina is based on Paul Gallico’s 1957 novel Thomasina, the Cat Who Thought She Was God. Karen Dotrice and Matthew Garber won everyone over with their performances in the film which landed them the roles of the Banks children in Mary Poppins.

1974

The Directors Company

• May 16 – Craze (UK, Harbour Productions Limited)
• May 17 – A Quiet Day in Belfast (Canada, Vision IV)
• May 17 – Alice in den Städten (West Germany, Produktion 1 im Filmverlag der Autoren)
• May 17 – Black Eye (USA, Pat Rooney Productions)
• May 17 – Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry (USA, Academy Pictures)
• May 17 – The Black Windmill (USA, Universal Pictures)
• May 19 – Zandy’s Bride (USA, Warner Bros. Pictures)
• May 20 – Identikit (Monaco, Rizzoli Film)
• May 22 – Daisy Miller (USA, The Directors Company)
• May 22 – The Mutations (USA, Cyclone)
• May 22 – Welcome to Arrow Beach (USA, Brut Productions)

Craze was released in the US in June 1974. A Quiet Day in Belfast has no known US theatrical release date. Alice in den Städten received a limited theatrical release in the US as Alice in the Cities on April 28, 1977. Black Eye originally opened in Sweden on March 15, 1974. Identikit opened in the US on October 10, 1975 as The Driver’s Seat.

Craze was based on the 1967 novel The Infernal Idol by Henry Seymour. A Quiet Day in Belfast was based on a play by Andrew Dalrymple.

Alice in den Städten was the fourth feature length film directed by Wim Wenders. While preparing the film, Wenders was horrified to learn Paper Moon had basically the same story so he cancelled the project. Since he already had funding, Samuel Fuller convinced him to continue with it and Wenders did but with extensive rewrites to the screenplay so it didn’t appear that he was making something that had already been made. The film was shot in close to chronological order. As the film progressed, improvisation became more common except for scenes filmed in hotel rooms or cars for logistical reasons, but by the end of filming Wenders said they had practically thrown out the script.

Black Eye was based on the 1971 novel Murder on the Wild Side by Jeff Jacks. The film was originally titled Stone, which was the name of the lead character. The film was shot entirely on location with no studio work.

Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry is based on the 1963 Richard Unekis novel titled The Chase (later retitled Pursuit). Jimmie Haskell is credited with the music score, but there is no incidental music in the film. The film was processed with the wrong color timing because the developers thought the cars in the film were yellow, resulting in a warmer tone on all prints released to theaters, shown on TV and released on VHS. A 2005 DVD was more correct in showing the cars as lime green.

The Black Windmill is based on Clive Egleton’s 1973 novel Seven Days to a Killing. Zandy’s Bride has been shown on TV under the title For Better, For Worse. Andy Warhol appears in Identikit as ‘English lord’.

Daisy Miller is based on the 1878 novella of the same title by Henry James. Director Peter Bogdanovich regretted making the film because he realized it was not commercial enough, and its failure caused the studio to lose confidence in him. But he still thinks it’s a good film. It did earn an Oscar nomination for costumes but lost to The Great Gatsby.

The Mutations is also known as The Mutation, The Freaks, and The Freakmaker. The film was inspired by Tod Browning’s Freaks. An edited version of Welcome to Arrow Beach was released in 1976 as Tender Flesh.

1984

• May 18 – Finders Keepers (USA, CBS Theatrical Films)
• May 18 – Making the Grade (USA, Golan-Globus Productions)

Finders Keepers features an early performance by Jim Carrey. The film was adapted from Charles Dennis’ 1974 novel The Next-to-Last Train Ride. Warner Bros. insisted on Dudley Moore for the lead role, but the producers’ and director Richard Lester’s concept for the film was that it was an ensemble piece. The project went into turnaround, and CBS Theatrical Films took it over.

Making the Grade marked the debut of actor turned television producer Dan Schneider. The film’s working title was The Last American Preppie. There was already a film registered with the MPAA titled Preppies, forcing a title change. After going through a list of 200 titles with none clicking, the studio held a contest at test screenings for audience members to name the film. With over 1,000 entries, the winning title came from an 18-year-old University of Central Florida student. Ironically, Making the Grade had been on the shortlist of previously rejected titles. A sequel titled Tourista was teased at the end of the film, but as it generated little interest at the box office the sequel was never completed.

1994

• May 20 – Even Cowgirls Get the Blues (USA, Fourth Vision)
• May 20 – Maverick (USA, Icon Productions)
• May 20 – Saturday Night Special (USA, limited, Concorde-New Horizons)
• May 20 – The Road Killers (USA, Dimension Films)
• May 21 – Dead Funny (USA, Avondale Pictures)

The Road Killers, known as Roadflower in the UK, originally opened in South Korea on May 7, 1994.

Even Cowgirls Get the Blues is based on Tom Robbins’ 1976 novel of the same name. Robbins narrated the film, k.d. lang sang the entire soundtrack, and the film was dedicated to River Phoenix. Uma Thurman and Sean Young were Razzie nominated for the performances as Worst Actress and Worst Supporting Actress, respectively.

Maverick was based on the 1957-1962 TV series that starred James Garner as Bret Maverick. In the film he plays Marshal Zane Cooper to Mel Gibson’s Maverick. Garner wrote that director Richard Donner wanted Paul Newman for the role but Newman wasn’t interested. The film was Oscar nominated for Best Costume Design. Credited and uncredited cameos include Danny Glover, Corey Feldman, Art LaFleur, Leo Gordon, Denver Pyle, Robert Fuller, Doug McClure, Henry Darrow, William Smith, Charles Dierkop, Bert Remsen and Margot Kidder. Cameos cut from the film include Alice Cooper, Linda Hunt and Clint Walker. Country music stars that make cameos include Carlene Carter, Waylon Jennings, Kathy Mattea, Reba McEntire, Clint Black and Vince Gill.

2004

• May 19 – Shrek 2 (USA/Canada, DreamWorks Animation)
• May 20 – Devil’s Gate (UK, Alchemist Films Limited)
• May 20 – Thunderstruck (AUS, BV International Pictures)
• May 21 – Stateside (USA/Canada, limited, Seven Hills Pictures)

Devil’s Gate has no known US theatrical release date. Thunderstruck premiered in the US on home video on September 6, 2005. Stateside was released as Sinners in Germany.

Shrek 2 is loosely based on the 1990 children’s picture book Shrek! by William Steig. Steig died eight months before the film was completed, and it carries a dedication to him. Co-director Conrad Vernon’s feature debut. The film’s story was inspired by the 1967 film Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner. The three lead actors each earned a $10 million salary for about 15-18 hours work total, significantly higher than the $350,000 they received for the first film. It was the highest grossing film of 2004, and is still the highest grossing film from DreamWorks Animation. The film earned two Oscar nominations for Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song.

2014

Smoking Gun Productions

• May 16 – 10,000 Km (Spain, Lastor Media)
• May 16 – Chinese Puzzle (USA, StudioCanal)
• May 16 – Don Peyote (USA, limited, Studio13)
• May 16 – Godzilla (USA/Canada, Legendary)
• May 16 – Half of a Yellow Sun (USA, Slate Films)
• May 16 – Million Dollar Arm (USA/Canada, Mayhem Pictures)
• May 16 – Wolf Creek 2 (USA, limited, Screen Australia)
• May 17 – Out of Nothing (USA, documentary, limited, P-51 Pictures)
• May 22 – Cabin Fever: Patient Zero (Canada, Film002)
• May 22 – The Babadook (AUS, Smoking Gun Productions)

10,000 Km opened in the US on July 10, 2015. Chinese Puzzle originally opened in France as Casse-tête chinois on December 4, 2013. Don Peyote originally premiered on home video in the US on May 9, 2014. Half of a Yellow Sun originally opened in the UK on March 21, 2014. Million Dollar Arm first opened in India on May 9, 2014. Wolf Creek 2 originally opened in Australia on February 20, 2014. Cabin Fever: Patient Zero originally opened in Germany on February 6, 2014, and received a limited US theatrical release on August 1, 2014. The Babadook received a limited US theatrical release on November 28, 2014.

Dan Fogler recruited his large cast of cameo actors for Don Peyote by allowing them to co-write and improvise their characters. The cameos include Josh Duhamel, Jay Baruchel, Wallace Shawn, Anne Hathaway, Topher Grace, Annabella Sciorra, and Abel Ferrara.

Godzilla is the first film in Legendary’s Monsterverse series, the 30th Godzilla film in the franchise, and the second to be produced by a major Hollywood studio. The project began as a short for IMAX in 2004, but transferred to Legendary in 2009 to be redeveloped as a feature. The Godzilla design for the film was inspired by the classic Toho designs. This film’s Godzilla was the tallest yet at 355 feet. Toho provided the original Godzilla sound effect, which was then studied and improved upon using various techniques but keeping it in the same musical key and cadence, with the 50th version produced being the final one used in the film. It took about a year to design the MUTO creatures. The film’s working title was Nautilus to throw off curious onlookers when production started in Vancouver.

Half of a Yellow Sun is based on the novel of the same name by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. It was filmed on location in Nigeria.

Cabin Fever: Patient Zero is a prequel to, and the third installment of the Cabin Fever franchise. A sequel titled Cabin Fever: Outbreak was to be filmed back-to-back with Patient Zero but those plans were scrapped.

The Babadook was the feature directorial debut of Jennifer Kent. Kent wrote the screenplay based on her 2005 short film Monster. Kent originally wanted the film to be shot in black-and-white but lost interest in the idea. The film’s color scheme was created without the use of gels on the camera lenses or any alteration of the image in post-production. Stop motion animation was used to bring the monster to life. Lon Chaney’s vampire character from London After Midnight was an inspiration for the design of the Babadook.