THE THREE MUSKETEERS (1948)

 

I have never read Alexander Dumas' classic, but have seen a few film adaptions. This movie may explain the reasoning behind most versions only taking it as far as the jewel theft plot. By trying to cover all the characters and subplots—even with 125 minutes—there is not enough time to develop either. The story lacks a strong central focus and it is all over the place. Just when one thinks it will be wrapped up, it goes "back around" for a second or third time introducing irrelevant characters or repeated sequencing. What follows are my takes on a beautifully filmed costumed extravaganza that is not exactly perfect—but great movie-making.

THE DANCING FOIL

The film starts out as a pseudo-slapstick comedy with the over-eager reactions of Gene Kelly (D'Artagnan) closely resembling a cartoon figure. If Kelly could possibly keep this up, I would have likened his character to Danny Kaye's later perfection in the hilarious film, The Court Jester. One might expect (wish) this to set the tone of the film. Kelley's fencing scenes are excellent and possess enough believability to give a pass on any repetitions. The well-choreographed, opening swordplay—filmed at Busch Gardens in Pasadena—is hilariously explosive and done with great acrobatic skills by Kelly. It is easy to see that he enjoyed the role. This amusing sequence opens the door for an undying friendship with the film's title characters. Kelly broke his ankle about a year before the film's release, and these scenes were some of the last filmed to give him maximum recovery time. So there is physicality better left to professional stuntmen like effortlessly climbing up a trellis to a second story, jumping from great heights or onto a horse. Then again, I doubt Kelly's agent wanted him leaping off rooftops. The humor is in short supply as the film progresses.

CASTING A LOT

Lana Turner gets top billing yet is arguably the least talented of the big-name actresses of her era. Like many Hollywood discoveries, her appeal was strictly physical and her youthful glow which was so magical at the beginning of the decade began to fade. One male equivalent might be Errol Flynn within his first decade. A hint in this film is when she is imprisoned and lacks makeup. I do not know when those scenes were shot, but after casting her in the role, the director wanted her to lose weight. Her face seems squarish and perhaps heavier. Of course, lighting or camera angle has a great effect on visual perception, perhaps as the director envisioned someone imprisoned in a dark cell. Turner still looked astonishing in other close-ups. She simply did possess a strong ability to pull off a self-serving villain. She was reluctant to take the supporting role, not fully understanding it was actually a lead character.

Angela Lansbury campaigned for the Turner role but MGM said no. Turner was the bigger star at the time—Lansbury had no clout. Lansbury seems wasted (now) in her brief appearance as Queen Anne. Quite astutely, June Allyson did not think a period piece was right for her, but her opening scene with Kelly works well. If you blink at the wrong time you will miss Marie Windsor's two brief glimpses. Fans probably expected her to develop into someone, but she is never seen a third time. Very strange. Along the same lines, Patricia Medina—on a career upswing—appears out of nowhere as Turner's maid. The airhead character could have been left on the cutting room floor. Van Heflin brought a heavy-drinking flair to his role with Gig Young and Richard Coote as adequate comrades. Speaking of old coots, Frank Morgan was too much of the Wizard as the king of France. Long-time MGM contract player, Lewis Stone, might have been a better—perhaps the only choice within the studio. In face-altering disguise, it may take a bit of time to recognize Keenan Wynn—until his first sentence—as d'Artagnan's right-hand man.

FLAMBOYANT COSTUMES

The wardrobe department pulled out all the stops (for you pipe organ enthusiasts) with costuming, though some today might take exception to their authenticity. One of Turner's hats, the green feathered black hat pops off the screen and adds about three feet to her height. Vincent Price looked authentic enough—accented in red—and I loved his angled gray/white stripes across his torso for one costume. The musketeers looked as one would expect—like on the candy bar wrapper of the day—in capes, wide-brimmed feathery hats, and vibrant colors.

Despite some questionable casting for a period piece, the film was an entertaining hit with the full MGM splash without singing and magnificent cinematography in dazzling Technicolor. The film's credits can be found on numerous websites as well as a Dumas synopsis if you choose to explore.

Allied Artists Productions

I am highlighting three of the five crime movies released by Allied Artists—each roughly an hour long—that are all quite routine. The films center around the Los Angeles police department and, in particular, a no-nonsense police lieutenant, the low-energy Bill Elliott. He seems out of place in a modern-day setting after his popular cowboy daze. 

 

DIAL RED O (1955)

This slow-moving, sixty-three-minute film, directed and written by Daniel B. Ullman, is as predictable as daylight. Not as obvious at the time was Allied Artists Production's intention to produce four more crime mysteries over the next two years. Rather intriguing [confusing] is that the symbol “O” actually represents the zero on the phone's dial. Apparently, the operator can offer a great deal of assistance no matter the circumstance. In a nutshell, the film opens with a mysterious, intriguing escape from a veteran hospital's psychiatric ward. A war-torn, highly decorated World War II and Korean veteran seeks his wife, who is preparing divorce papers. His escape initiates an all-out manhunt, not really sure if the veteran is unstable or what his plans are for his wife's life. The police department enlists the help of an undercover policewoman, played by Elaine Riley, to help locate the escapee.

Keith Larsen plays the even-tempered, well-mannered veteran whose potential contact with his wife, Helene Stanley, is his only reason for going AWOL. In fact, he plans to return to the hospital that evening. But the audience is way ahead of him as we learn she is involved with Paul Picerni, a Realtor paying for her fancy apartment. In the habit of making demands, she wants Picerni to also get a divorce. Immediately. Temper's flair, he is slapped, and he judo chops her to death, as his combat and Realtor training comes into play. He returns to his office to call a few clients as an alibi for his whereabouts. By happenstance, Larsen spots his realty office lit up. The two Marine buddies have a cordial reunion with Larsen hoping he has seen or heard from his wife. Picerni's devious wheels start turning. He contacts the police about his concern over Larsen's visit. Larsen is jailed but bamboozles the officer with a clever combat trick and escapes. Marlin Skiles' score finally makes itself evident as the escapee heads straight for Picerni and the two combat-trained vets share a few bullets in total darkness. But you cannot bamboozle Elliott's good judge of character. That, and Stanley's autopsy reveals a detail that dooms Picerni.

Note: Bill Elliott, popular cowboy star for the past two decades, plays Lt. Andy Flynn in this first outing. He is the constant in the series. It was soon brought to Allied's attention there was a real Andy Flynn in Los Angeles law enforcement, so for the remaining films in the series, the lieutenant becomes Andy Doyle. Elliott is about as tight-lipped as a ventriloquist and appears to really miss the slow pace, prairie campfires with his horse, Sonny.

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SUDDEN DANGER (1955)

Tom Drake "guest stars" in this week’s episode of television's "CSM: Crime Scene Mystery" series. Except this film was never meant as home entertainment, being the second film from Allied Artists Production, Inc. about a Los Angeles detective, Bill Elliott, solving another crime with repeated questioning and methodical deduction. Like the other films in the set of five, it is a talky procedural offering with zero excitement until the last-minute climax. Viewers will know that point when the otherwise dormant Merlin Stiles' score explodes. With less professional performances, the film could have been a laugh-fest. Elliott seems a bit less wooden than in his first installment and he is able to smile appropriately in this routine whodunit.

The film opens under the credits as we watch men's shoes and dog paws walk on a sidewalk. The Thom McAn's belong to Drake and the paws to his seeing-eye dog. The German Shepherd barks and refuses to go inside their apartment. The natural gas smell is heavy and he yells for his mother but it is too late. Elliott investigates the apparent suicide of the woman, a clothing manufacturing company executive. There is substantial evidence that does not support suicide and all eyes are on her son, who lost his sight years earlier due to his mother selecting what she thought were eye drops. Feeling pretty embarrassed since that day, her insurance policy designated it go toward his eye surgery. A successful operation later, he feigns his blindness under sunglasses around his mother's attorney and insurance agent in the hope of finding clues to the murderer. Drake is helped by his girlfriend, Beverly Garland, a swimsuit fashion designer for the company. Typically, near the halfway point in the film, Elliott already knows who staged the suicide.

Note: Minerva Urecal plays the apartment manager where Drake lives. Her negative attitude causes trouble for him when she gives false details to Elliott. This frequently happens when someone does not have any facts to back up their opinions. Another Hollywood stalwart, Frank Jenks, plays a bartender with his usual facial contortions. Garland more often than not played strong characters—like in this film—when she was not screaming at a creature in a science fiction film.

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FOOTSTEPS IN THE NIGHT (1957)

This film opens with a teaser. We see a man leave his motel kitchenette to find his poker partner dead in the other room. This all plays out as the camera focuses on a record playing part of a jazzy Marlin Skiles score. A flashback repeats the scene in sequence as the movie unfolds. Directed by Jean Yarbrough, this is the fifth and final film series by Allied Artists Productions Inc. that follows detective Bill Elliott with the Novocaine upper lip. A man of controlled emotions with suits bought off the rack. Don Haggerty plays his partner and they sort of echo the Dragnet series at times during their idle, barely humorous, chit-chat. This sixty-two-minute film is a talk-fest of interviews between witnesses and those who are anxious to help the department track down a murderer. Pretty boring stuff with Elliott not quite fully awake. He headed for the “Sunset Retirement Corral” after this film. Never mind the poster. Amazingly, no women were attacked in the film.

Douglas Dick, looking at times like the higher fore-headed brother of actor, Roger Smith, has had a serious gambling problem in the past but when we are introduced to his character, he has put all that behind him. Thanks, in big part, to his fiancé, Eleanore Tanin. His acquaintance and motel neighbor, Robert Shayne, has not kicked the habit and pesters Dick into playing a small stakes game of poker with him. Shayne is not meant to be likable in his brief role. In order to clear some debt and put Shayne in his place, Dick decides to clean him out, then suddenly calls it quits. Shayne is irate that he is not given the chance to win it back and promptly leaves the room in a huff—to get ice for their drinks. The opening scene returns though the viewer never witnesses the murder.

We later learn of the somewhat humorous premise about the world's fastest strangler, played by Gregg Palmer. In his confusion between two different motels with similar names, he accidentally kills Shayne in bungalow 8 at the wrong motel. The “Bungling Bungalow” strangler intended to kill and rob James Flavin, another bungalow 8 motel occupant. In the murderer's defense, he and Shayne share a similar appearance from behind. Elliott does not figure Dick for a killer, but Haggerty, who never saw the opening scene, bets otherwise. See Dick run. See Dick get apprehended.

Flavin is a spark of fun in an otherwise droll screenplay. Noted for being a typically high-strung Irishman, he is an extrovert of the highest order in this film. A flamboyant salesman who flashes his big-money roll around to attract big business. Spend money to make money. He drives a station wagon loaded with every option. Where he gets his car serviced plays a pivotal role in his future. Elliott wants to use him to flesh out the strangler. Flavin finds the plan exciting until he is informed that he will be the bait for the killer. His excitement wanes momentarily.

Palmer has finally caught up with Flavin in the correct motel just as Elliott planned on his 36” x 24” stakeout drawing. Before strangling Flavin from behind, the baiting police step in. The killer pushes Flavin into Elliott, escapes, and drives away. The gunshot sound effect during this ”exciting” ending sounds like any number of old Saturday morning cowboy shoot-em-ups. Palmer speeds off leaving the viewer wondering if he gets away. We are suddenly back in the squad room to wrap up the movie with “Deadpan Elliott” explaining to Dick and Jane...er...his fiancé what exactly happened. Tucked neatly within the dialogue is a reveal that Palmer was actually wounded during his getaway. He did not get far and lived a simple life on behalf of the state.

Note: Elliott's other two Allied films are Calling Homicide (1956), and Chain of Evidence (1957).

FILM BRAKE: A CONFIDENT MAN

 

Yancy Derringer (1958-59) is a thirty-four-episode American action/adventure series that was originally broadcast Thursdays on CBS. The opening theme song followed the era's trend as one of the shortest orchestral themes of the era, in the likes of Wanted: Dead or Alive or The Rifleman. Both of whom carried unique firearms. The thirty-minute show was produced by Derringer Productions and filmed in Hollywood by Desilu Productions. Halfway through the season, the show was deemed a success with a second season planned. Now realizing its potential, CBS suddenly demanded a percentage in the profits and wanted Desilu out of the picture. Neither the star nor the creators wanted any part of the plan and the network canceled the show. 

Those sensing the show was another gimmick Western was on to something. It would seem to be cashing in on Have Gun – Will Travel's popularity, which reached its peak at about the same year. Both Paladin—when at the Hotel Carlton—and Yancy like a white suit with frilly shirts and were lovers of fine cuisine and an eye for the ladies. Both were super confident, both used their physical dominance to settle arguments, and both might act as detectives or secret agents. Each knew their way around derringers, too. Paladin carries a 2-barrel version, and Yancy ups the ante with three 4-barrel Sharps pepperboxes hidden in his hat, under a coat sleeve, or in his vest. Though the series is centered in New Orleans, Yancy—like Paladin from San Francisco—might be hired to travel to far-off destinations. 

Set three years after the Civil War, the series follows Yancy's exploits as an ex-Confederate soldier turned cardsharp and gentleman adventurer. The promising first episode set up the series premise as Yancy returns to his estate in New Orleans after several years. A civil engineer and city administrator, the hard-nosed John Colton—played by television veteran Kevin Hagen—makes a deal with Yancy to clean up crime in the city however he sees fit. Colton cleverly makes sure there are no records of them as a team—it is their little secret. Their arrangement brings up one distinct difference between Paladin and Yancy. The latter never gets paid.

There are unique aspects to Yancy, aside from the unlikely pairing of a cool, dapper Jock Mahoney with an emotionless and silent partner, the largest gimmick of the era: Pahoo-Ka-Ta-Wah, or simply Pahoo. Played by X Brands, a Pawnee Indian who carried a knife at his upper back and a double-barreled shotgun under his Native blanket. He always had Yancy's back and the duo were considered blood brothers after Paho saved Yancy's life. They communicate only by hand gestures—both excellent at charades I imagine. It was Mahoney's suggestion that X Brands not say a word during his audition. He became a defining character of the show. Oddly, Mahoney's voice quality may differ during a given scene—at times a puny, nasal sound that can give way to a rich baritone.

Mahoney is certainly appealing with his unflappable, fluid persona. He is a smooth talker as well as a walker with a short stride and a back as straight as a ship's mast. He is quite likable with some witty one-liners added for charm. With fists of iron and a cane that conceals a sword for additional protection. Considered by most in Hollywood at the time to be the most amazing stuntman working, viewers get to witness his athleticism during the occasional fight scene or jumping from a second-story veranda. Somewhat pale in comparison to his amazing work in his earlier Western series, The Range Rider, however. X Brands started as a stuntman as well and they worked together on new stunts. One of the slickest was the tossing of Pahoo's knife back and forth in a rapid, flawless exchange—sometimes backward over the shoulder. A series regular is Madame Francine, played by Frances Bergen, owner of a members-only gambling house in New Orleans. Bergen was the wife of Edgar (and Charlie McCarthy).