TopBilled

MAKE MINE MINK (1960)

STAYING ALIVE (1983)

SMART MONEY (1931)

ABSOLUTION (1978)

SO YOUNG SO BAD (1950)

Ustinov, Peter

JESSE JAMES (1939)

THE END (1978)

CAIRO (1942)

The Bold and the Beautiful

THE COUNTRY GIRL (1954)

PRACTICALLY YOURS (1944)

YELLOW SKY (1948)

How about IMITATION OF LIFE (1934)...Laemmle supervised the original version starring Claudette Colbert and it was very groundbreaking in terms of race relations. Yes...I get it, the monsters are well-known, but I feel the OP is doing her family a disservice by not branching out into discussion of the other genre films that Laemmle made.

Exactly. I don't want to throw shade on the OP since I understand and respect her sense of family pride. But I am sure that Mr. Laemmle would also like to be remembered for the other genre films he made. Another excellent precode that he supervised is LITTLE MAN WHAT NOW? (1934). It would be nice if the OP could expand her range and go beyond the monsters and really discuss how wide-ranging her ancestor's legacy is. He should be remembered for more than the horror output. My sincere opinion.

Sorry, don't really agree with this premise. Deanna Durbin and W.C. Fields saved Universal in the late 30s. In the postwar period, a merger with International Pictures saved Universal. I think where the monsters come in is that they became a veritable franchise later, a money cow the studio could trot out during the lean periods. But to say the monsters saved Universal is a stretch. I also dislike the idea, which these threads suggest, that Laemmle's only glory was the monsters. How about those wonderful precodes he made like BAD SISTER (1931) which featured Bette Davis' motion picture debut...or the superb NIGHT WORLD (1932) that gets short shrift and deserves a bit of focus.

Today's neglected film is from 1955. It has aired 13 times on TCM. Audie Murphy’s 1949 autobiography served as the basis for a 1955 motion picture from Universal that dramatized his military experiences during WWII. In the opening sequence we learn that his childhood was kind of hellish; his father had run out on his mother and nine kids leaving them in abject poverty. This situation forced him to quit school at 12 and take a full time job to help support the family. By age 16, his mother had died and his younger siblings were sent elsewhere to live. In order to support himself, Audie Murphy decided to enlist in the armed services. This was right after Pearl Harbor had been bombed. Because of his age, height and weight, he was rejected by three branches of the military. He was finally accepted into the Army as an infantryman. After basic training Audie Murphy was sent to North Africa then on to Italy. The film does not waste time getting right into the battle scenes. So immediately we have a sense of the danger he faced. There are some humorous moments where he seems like the last one who will adapt to these conditions; and his fellow soldiers help him through an initial awkward phase. But the young infantryman soon gains confidence and proves himself. As the story unfolds we become better acquainted with the other men in his company, who come from a variety of backgrounds. What makes these scenes interesting is how Audie Murphy the actor plays these moments as a tribute to his old buddies, most of whom would be killed in battle. You can’t help but sense he is trying his best to give the most faithful rendering possible of this story– not for his own personal glory, but to ensure that the other men are honored and come across as heroes in their own right. Originally, he did not want to play himself in the film version of his life story. He had suggested the studio use Tony Curtis; but Universal execs persuaded him to do it instead. Perhaps he had felt self-conscious about the idea of playing himself; and in a way it is a bit surreal to see him at the age of 30 portraying incidents from his life from when he was in his teens. However, Audie Murphy had retained his youthful looks into the mid-50s, meaning he could still convincingly pass as a teen when this movie was made. TO HELL AND BACK was photographed in CinemaScope, which adds to its realism. It is important to watch the story in widescreen, to gain a sense of how the action on the battlefield affected so many men all at once. It is also important to remember when looking at the film that Audie is saying things as he probably originally said them over a decade earlier. The expression in his eyes indicates this is an acting performance that is relying entirely on emotion memory to convey the truth about what happened.

two thousand five hundred fifty-ninth category A memorable dream sequence TOM DICK AND HARRY (1941) FATHER OF THE BRIDE (1950) Moonlighting episode— The Dream Sequence Always Rings Twice

RICHIE RICH (1994)

THE GREAT WHITE HOPE (1970)

THE RUSSIANS ARE COMING! THE RUSSIANS ARE COMING! (1966)

FLOWING GOLD (1940)

TALES OF MANHATTAN (1942) Next: TELL NO TALES (1939)

Gene Wilder Next: Harry Ueberroth

FOURTEEN HOURS (1951)