LINDA DARNELL for Star of the Month October 2013

[TopBilled]

Or, like Ann Sheridan, she may have wound up doing a daytime soap. It's all guess-work at this stage, but it's interesting to think about, isn't it?

[Arturo]

Here's another "what if" regarding Linda Darnell's career, not as far-fetched as some others. Linda received much acclaim for A LETTER TO THREE WIVES, as did the rest of the cast, the movie, and the director, Joseph L. Mankiewicz. ALTTW was one of the most acclaimed films of 1949 from its release in January of that year. At the Oscars in early 1950, Mankiewicz received Oscars for writing and directing this movie. Although there was talk of Linda receiving a Best Actress nomination, none of the actors were nominated.

 

Now the "what if"....What if ALTTW had been released just a month earlier, in December 1948, in time to qualify for the 1948 Oscars? It was possible, since the film was completed by the end of summer that year. AND if it had, the movie and all involved would have been basking in the glow of the praise it was receiving JUST at the time that the ballots for the Oscars were being completed. It is conceivable, that Linda (and others in the cast) might have been nominated. After all, the studio could have put some muscle into a campaign for a film then making the rounds, increasing its commercial viability at the boxoffice (in actuality, the film was a year old when it had to compete for nominations with all the prestigious releases of the end of the year).

 

And if Linda had been nominated for Best Actress for 1948? Well it would have been the capper to the excellent reviews she was getting, and as a result, maybe Zanuck would have taken a more careful approach to her next assignments, instead of the slapdash pattern soon obvious. In the long run, that would have meant better vehicles, and possibly more popularity, and increased value when she'd start to freelance, IF the studio would have let her go. Intriguing possibilities; we'll never know.

 

Any thoughts?

[Arturo]

For those with MeTV, or at least MeTV Hollywood, this Saturday, May 18 at 12 noon Pacific time, the Wagon Train episode "The Dora Gray Story", featuring Linda Darnell, will be shown. She plays a spunky, if somewhat deceptive woman, who gets involved with Robert Horton.

 

 

And on Monday, May 20, at 7;15 am eastern, 4;15 pacific, Fox Movie Channel will show Linda in her classis western, MY DARLING CLEMENTINE.

 

Edited by: Arturo on May 16, 2013 8:54 PM

[Arturo]

Back to the last "what if?" over Linda Darnell's husbands. What if she had never married husband number 3, Merle "Robby" Robertson? As I've mentioned, the marriage, which took place in March 1957, started out strongly, with Linda deeply in love with the dashing airline pilot. She was seen with him all over town at parties and premieres and other industry functions, putting herself out there networking, an important way to be considered for projects, and which she had not done much for several years. She enjoyed catering to Robby when he was back from a trip. From Linda's daughter Lola's perspective, they were a real family doing things together. Linda was so happy in her marriage the first couple of years, that she could put into perspective the few movie offers coming her way as a result of the studio system being in its death throes. Besides, she was busy doing tv shows and stage work around the country. However, after awhile she started to go into a deep depression, and her drinking again increased. Her weight, an issue she always had had, also started to fluctuate, so much so that sometimes there were continuity problems, even in quickly done tv shows. Around 1959, Linda's hopes were pinned on doing a tv series, and a pilot was filmed, where she played a woman rancher who raised horses, but it didn't find a sponsor. After this, Robby, who had taken over as her manager, cajoled and eventually convinced her to do a nightclub act, since he felt the big money was here, especially in Las Vegas. And as always, their finances were in a precarious state, moreso as Robby had overextended her credit. So she toured the country in 1960 and part of 1961. Although she had sung in a few of her films, Linda so feared to do an act in front of a live audience, with no script, that she would perspire profusely before each performance. She would drink heavily to muster the courage to go on, leading to several months spent drying out in a sanatarium. Although the show did well around the country, and garnered decent reviews, she bombed in Vegas, with small, drunk and hostile audiences. After this, she begged off, and Robby consented. But soon, she found out he was having an affair, and separated in early 1962, and eventually divorced in late 1963. Her finances were a shambles at that point, and she lost her home to foreclosure. Slowly she returned to work, doing stage, occasional tv, and even a movie role, until the end in 1965. So, although the marriage started out well, Robby soon diverted Linda to a field she felt was not for her, and turned down offers for stage, tv etc. This proved Darnell's biggest professional failure, and she felt she cheapened her image as she traded on her name. As far as the moneymen in Hollywood were concerned, she was semi-retired, and offers dried up, at a time where she really needed to work and make money.

[Arturo]

Just a reminder: Tomorrow, Saturday May 18, at 12 noon pacific time, MeTV (Hollywood) will be showing the Wagon Train episode, "The Dora Gray Story", starring Linda Darnell. She plays a woman determined to get to San Francisco however she can, and has taken up with a gunrunner when scout Robert Horton comes upon them. This episode, first broadcast in early 1958, during the first season of the series, also features John Carradine and future tv stars Dan Blocker and Michael Connors. And for tv in the 50s, it seems that Linda showed a fairly large amount of cleavage here. She would later briefly reprise this role in the season finale.

[Arturo]

Just saw the first episode of Linda Darnell's two appearances on the first season of Wagon Train, "The Dora Gray Story". Living in the TCM coccoon world, I forgot that commercial tv makes cuts to fit their advertisers in, and here MeTV eliminated a scene where Linda is showering outdoors, and Robert Horton watches her. The DVD set of the show's first season, and the showing on EncoreWesterns (a year or so back), had the complete show. Still an entertaining episode, and I've said it before, the episodes where the storyline has Horton off away from the wagon train, could almost be feature films in their own right, and "The Dora Gray Story" is no exception.

[Arturo]

Just a reminder this Monday morning on FMC:7:15 am EST, 4:15 AM PST: MY DARLING CLEMENTINE A western classic about Wyatt Earp (Fonda) and Doc Holliday (Mature) and their clash with the Clanton family at the O.K. Corral.Cast: Henry Fonda, Victor Mature, Tim Holt, Alan Mowbray, Linda Darnell, Walter BrennanDirector: John Ford 1946

[Arturo]

Tomorrow, Tuesday, May 21, Fox Movie Channel will show a movie featuring Linda Darnell, FALLEN ANGEL, along with three other dramas directed by Otto Preminger. Here's the schedule:

 

 

8:15 am EST, 5:15 AM PST:

 

 

FALLEN ANGEL

 

A small town is shocked by the murder of a waitress (Linda Darnell), and the prime suspect is the gold-digging press agent (Dana Andrews) of a high society heiress (Alice Faye). 1940's Otto Preminger film noir gem.

Cast: Alice Faye, Dana Andrews, Charles Bickford, John Carradine, Linda Darnell, David Raksin

Director: Otto Preminger

1945

 

 

 

10:00 am EST, 7 AM PST:

 

 

 

DAISY KENYON

 

Joan Crawford is a successful commercial artist who must choose between the married man she has been involved with for years (Dana Andrews) or a military veteran (Henry Fonda) who sincerely loves her.

Cast: Joan Crawford, Dana Andrews, Henry Fonda, Ruth Warrick, Martha Stewart, Peggy ann Garner, David Raksin

Director: Otto Preminger

1947

 

 

 

11:50 am EST, 8:50 AM PST:

 

 

 

WHIRLPOOL

 

The tense drama of an evil-minded hypnotist (Jose Ferrer) who uses an innocent woman (Gene Tierney) to carry out his criminal deeds.

Cast: Gene Tierney, Richard Conte, Jose Ferrer, Charles Bickford, Constance Collier

Director: Otto Preminger

1950

 

 

 

1:30 pm EST, 10:30 AM PST

 

 

LAURA

 

Everyone, including Det. Mark McPherson (Andrews) thinks that ad agency executive Laura Hunt (Tierney) has been murdered, but has she?

Cast: Gene Tierney, Dana Andrews, Clifton Webb, Vincent Price, Judith Anderson, David Raksi

Director: Otto Preminger

1944

[Arturo]

Well I guess I didn't really get into the "What If" part if Linda Darnell had never married 3rd husband, Robby Robertson.

 

He was a stabilizing force for Linda at the beginning, at a time she really needed it. However, had they not married, she would not have had her husband take over management of her career, and turn down offers for tv shows and stage productions, maybe even feature films, to concentrate on an ill-advised and ill-fated nightclub act. Linda most likely would have continued doing these tv and stage shows, instead of dropping off the radar as drastically as she did around 1960 to 1962. It seems that the initial security in this relationship might have allowed her the comfort of gaining weight, without worrying about what her husband might think; at least that's the impression given by the sudden weight fluctuation, which seemed to have started late in 1956, around the time she began dating Robby. So if she had watched her weight a little more conscientiously, some producers might have been forthcoming with offers of work, instead of just chalking it up to her reputed alcoholism (as was happening at this time, on a more drastic scale, with Judy Garland). As I've mentioned before, Linda might've been drinking heavily, on and off the set, but it never impeded her from knowing her lines or otherwise hindering her performance.

 

And, if the marriage had not occurred, Linda's finances might not have gotten as bad as they did. Robby borrowed heavily on Linda's name and credit, and soon was overextended. He failed to pay the property taxes on Linda's home, which would eventually lead to its foreclosure. And his obsession with making "big money" with Linda's cabaret act, had the ironic effect of keeping her out of the eye of those very people who could have offered her decent paying jobs.

[Arturo]

 

Here's another "what if" (actually a couple or so, interrelated) that is not too out there, and might have made a big difference in the trajectory of Linda Darnell's career. What if Linda Darnell had been first choice for FOREVER AMBER? Or when she WAS assigned, production resumed shortly thereafter, instead of a nearly 6 month wait?

 

Well, had Linda been assigned from the get-go, she would have started filming in early March 1946. Whether the director would have been reassigned is debatable. When Zanuck removed Stahl and asked Preminger to take the reins, he stated that Stahl was doing a terrible job. But it now seems that the main problem had been Peggy Cummins as Amber; she was good in the early scenes, where she played a teenager, but was not able to project the more mature Amber of the later storyline. In the second scenario, if the filming resumed soon after Linda had stepped in as Cummins and Stahl were removed, say, if the movie got assigned to Henry King (who was considered) instead of Otto Preminger, King might have gone with the script as it was, instead of Preminger having it completely rewritten (in the rewriting process, some storylines were pared down or eliminated). So the film could've resumed in May 1946 instead of October of that year.

 

In either of these two scenarios, Linda would've filmed a movie that adhered a little closer to the actual bestseller, and probably been done filming by late Fall 1946 at the latest, instead of Spring 1947. For Linda, she would've been done with it, and able to take the role of Catana in CAPTAIN FROM CASTILE, a part she really wanted to do but had to forfeit due to the overlapping shooting schedules. This would have been an ideal part for her (as Zanuck had envisioned all along), playing a gutsy sexy gypsy, and coming as it did after AMBER, the one-two punch of two sexy roles in two blockbusters might've established her even bigger as a sex symbol in the aftermath. As it was, it was nearly a year after AMBER (10 months to be exact), when her followup to that, THE WALLS OF JERICHO, was released, and while good imho, wouldn't have had the same impact CFC would have for Linda.

 

 

[NoraCharles1934]

> {quote:title=Arturo wrote:}{quote}

> For Linda, she would've been done with it, and able to take the role of Catana in CAPTAIN FROM CASTILE, a part she really wanted to do but had to forfeit due to the overlapping shooting schedules. This would have been an ideal part for her (as Zanuck had envisioned all along), playing a gutsy sexy gypsy, and coming as it did after AMBER, the one-two punch of two sexy roles in two blockbusters might've established her even bigger as a sex symbol in the aftermath. As it was, it was nearly a year after AMBER (10 months to be exact), when her followup to that, THE WALLS OF JERICHO, was released, and while good imho, wouldn't have had the same impact CFC would have for Linda.

It would have been interesting to see her opposite Ty in Castile. Her films with him were all very much ingenue, angel-faced Linda. A more-seasoned (shall we say?) and sensuous Ms. Darnell could have made for some very different dynamics between the two.

 

By the way, I just wanted to say thanks for all the effort you've put into this thread. I'm working my way back through from the begining (I know - embarrassingly slow reader :8} ) and learning much as I go. I don't know anything about its feasibility, but it would be great to see your campaign succeed. I'd be particularly grateful for the opportunity to see Centennial Summer, Slattery's Hurricane, Everybody Does It and/or The 13th Letter.

 

A very lovely lady, indeed . . .

 

 

[Arturo]

*It would have been interesting to see her opposite Ty in Castile. Her films with him were all very much ingenue, angel-faced Linda. A more-seasoned (shall we say?) and sensuous Ms. Darnell could have made for some very different dynamics between the two.*

 

Nora,

 

I totally agree. After the War, it was sort of assumed that Ty and Linda would be re-teamed. CFC would have been a great opportunity to see a mature Linda with him. Other opportunities that didn't work out for them, and would've been perfect imho, were LYDIA BAILEY and DIPLOMATIC COURIER. Both of these two films, released in 1952, had been slated for them. Power turned down LB, as he was trying to get away from costume adventures, and Linda was recuperating from the jaundice she contracted while filming ISLAND OF DESIRE in Jamaica, which caused her to miss out on both films.

 

And thanks for the thanks. Hope that the TCM programmers are also paying attention.

 

[Arturo]

*I'd be particularly grateful for the opportunity to see Centennial Summer, Slattery's Hurricane, Everybody Does It and/or The 13th Letter.*

 

Nora, I believe that SLATTERY'S HURRICANE and EVERYBODY DOES IT have been released recently as part of the Fox Cinema Archives series. They do turn up occasionally on Fox Movie Channel, and EDI was even shown on TCM as part of Linda's SUTS tribute in 2011. CENTENNIAL SUMMER and THE 13TH LETTER cry out for DVD release; I have them both on VHS, but would like to upgrade. Hopefully, if TCM were to do Linda as SOTM, they would include all of these movies.

 

Oh, and thanks for the pictures. I was never able to "get" the technique involved (apparently simple cut and paste doesn't work); otherwise I would have used stills to illustrate the various movies as I discussed them.

 

 

 

[Arturo]

Here's another "What If?' re: Linda Darnell's career. What if her Broadway stage debut had been a hit? Linda opened on Broadway in October 1956, in "Harbor Lights". The play had been having difficulties in tryouts, with re-writes constantly being done. When it debuted on the Great White Way, the reviews murdered the drama, and it folded after a handful of performances; with it folded Linda's chances of further Broadway offers.

 

Well, IF it had been successful, even moderately so, it might've made all the difference for Linda careerwise. As it was, she went into the stage because feasible movie offers were becoming scarce. She really enjoyed stage work, and for most of her remaining life, she would fly around the country to do this. If "Harbor Lights" (or another play) had had a decent run, at minimum Linda would have been offered another Broadway play. At some point she could have had a big hit, leading to renewed movie offers from Hollywood. Other actresses that found the going rough in Hollywood at some point in the 50s would have Broadway successes that revitalized their movie careers: among them Shelley Winters, Patricia Neal and Anne Bancroft. And even if Linda didn't get movie offers flooding her way, a successful run of "Harbor Lights" would have led Columbia, who were financing it, to make a movie of it, as per their agreement with Linda. And that might have led to another similar agreement, where that studio would again bankroll Linda in a Broadway venture.

 

Anyway, it obviously didn't work out that way for Linda, but just some food for thought....

[NoraCharles1934]

 

I'm somewhat picky about MOD DVDs, but if I ever stumble upon Slattery's Hurricane for a good price I may pick it up. Unfortunately, I've heard that the FCA release of Everybody Does It runs extremely dark. Centennial Summer and The 13th Letter could certainly be included in the line at some point, but for the moment yeah, they're pretty much impossible to see. I have Spanish (region 2) editions of both Forever Amber and The Walls of Jericho. It's amazing to me that Amber never made it to a DVD release in this country. It calls out for Blu-ray treatment, but I suspect the chances are slim. Maybe, just maybe, Fox will pawn it out to Twilight Time for one of their over-priced editions. It would be worth it though, for David Raskin's gorgeous score alone. Okay, enough bitching on my part. :8}

 

Have you seen each and every one of Ms. Darnell's films? And do you have a favorite or is that like asking you to rank your children? Maybe a better question - which of her films would you recommend first to a Linda novice?

 

Your thread was still wonderfully informative sans pictures, but if you want to post a photo you just have to copy an image's URL, paste it, and add an exclamation point immediately before and after said URL. I also like to give it a preview to see that everything's looking kosher (though I still manage to produce more than my fair share of funky posts ).

 

 

[Arturo]

I understand about spending on DVD-Rs for what Fox Cinema Classics is listing them, especially if the quality is questionable. However, if you have Fox Movie Channel, they occasionally show EVERYBODY DOES IT and SLATTERY'S HURRICANE. Also, TCM showed EDI a couple of years back.

 

As for CENTENNIAL SUMMER or THE 13TH LETTER, I don't know what's up with those. I have CS on VHS, which I recorded off the old AMC back in the day. I have 13TH LETTER, as well as NIGHT WITHOUT SLEEP, WALLS OF JERICHO, and THE LADY PAYS OFF from DVD-Rs I bought awhile back through I-Offers, of variable quality, but none very good. I would buy any off these if available from Fox Cinema Classics, as money permits (or in the case of TLPO, a Universal release, and Douglas Sirk movie, hopefully they will release it).

 

... which is why your statement re: a Spanish copy of TWOJ caught my eye. I know that AMBER and TWO FLAGS WEST were Spanish only releases, but I didn't know about this third one. I may have to buy one of those universal dvd players.

 

As for seeing Linda's movies, the only ones I have not seen, other than snippets from youtube, etc. are Linda's two films she made in Italy for Giuseppe Amato. Also, I have seen roughly half of the TV dramas that Linda did in the last decade of her career. As a completist, I would like to get ahold of them all.

 

I'd have to think about your question on recommending Linda's movies....I'll get back to you on that.

 

Edited by: Arturo on Jun 4, 2013 3:05 PM

[TopBilled]

Arturo,

 

Not long ago, I bought some DVDs of an old American soap opera from a German company. I don't know how they wound up with the rights, but I was eager to look at episodes from the 70s and 80s and did purchase six discs. They do not work in my DVD player, but they do work using my iMac.

 

I agree that the Fox Cinema Archives should release CENTENNIAL SUMMER. It is long overdue. And one would think it has fairly broad commercial appeal.

[Arturo]

 

Tomorrow, June 5, Fox Movie Channel will again show a classic western featuring Linda Darnell:

 

 

 

6:00 am eastern, 3 am pacific:

 

 

MY DARLING CLEMENTINE

 

A western classic about Wyatt Earp (Fonda) and Doc Holliday (Mature) and their clash with the Clanton family at the O.K. Corral.

*Cast:* Henry Fonda, Victor Mature, Tim Holt, Alan Mowbray, Linda Darnell, Walter Brennan

*Director:* John Ford

1946

 

 

[Arturo]

Topbilled wrote:

*I agree that the Fox Cinema Archives should release CENTENNIAL SUMMER. It is long overdue. And one would think it has fairly broad commercial appeal.*

 

 

TB:

With it's broad commercial appeal, I think a full blown restored release would be warranted for CENTENNIAL SUMMER. But if it makes it onto the list of FCA releases, I will be happy and purchase it.

 

 

[NoraCharles1934]

> {quote:title=Arturo wrote:}{quote}

> ... which is why your statement re: a Spanish copy of TWOJ caught my eye. I know that AMBER and TWO FLAGS WEST were Spanish only releases, but I didn't know about this third one. I may have to buy one of those universal dvd players.

You can find multi-region/format players for DVDs pretty easily online (a little tougher when it comes to multi-region Blus). I'd recommend the investment. The Walls of Jericho DVD I purchased has the Twentieth Century Fox logo on the spine and everything. I don't understand why some of these titles merited official releases in Spain but not in the US. I mentioned Forever Amber and Jericho, but I've also seen The Foxes of Harrow, Belle Starr, The Late George Apley . . . One thing to be aware of - some foreign-produced titles don't allow you to remove the native language subtitles. I've only run into this problem once with a French copy of Broken Lullaby, but it was still annoying. The Fox titles I referenced earlier don't have this issue. Curiously, when I play Forever Amber, it always wants to jump past a chapter when the duel begins. If I back it up however, I can watch the skipped portion. I can't tell if it's an issue with the disc or my player though, because I don't have another region-free player to try it out on. The picture and sound quality are quite lovely, at least to my untrained eye. Here's The Walls of Jericho disc. You can find other titles I from the same seller:

 

 

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0034DA226/ref=wms_ohs_product?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

 

 

Fox Movie Channel used to play a much wider selection of their older titles, but that seems to have all but dried up.

 

Edited by: NoraCharles1934 on Jun 4, 2013 5:05 PM

[Arturo]

Here's another "What If?" re: Linda Darnell's career. What if she had been able to do the movies she had hoped for her production company? During her last two marriages, this option had arisen as a way of allowing her movie projects, at the point where viable outside offers were becoming scarce.

 

In mid-late 1955, towards the end of her short-lived second marriage to Phillip Leibmann, he tried to hold on to her with the promise of producing film projects, with Linda having control over costars, technicians, etc. He had bought a script for her, "Constantia" a love story which would have had Linda being disabled. however, at this point, it was no longer enough to keep her married to him, and Linda went ahead with her plans to leave him. She didn't want anything from him, giving back jewelry and even the ranch he had purchased for her. She could've asked for the rights to their proposed movie, and maybe made it later; it never was. In fact, had she made it in the period while still married to Liebmann, his wealth and contacts might've enabled him to get further funding and the green light on this project. The marriage might have lasted a little longer, since one of Linda's main gripes was that she was bored, as he didn't want her filmmaking, and she had nothing to do be a wealthy Park Avenue matron, something NOT in her short-term goals. But immersed and involved in all aspects of production, she would not have been bored, probably finding it a rewarding experience. This could have led to the couple doing more movies, prolonging Linda's feature film career as well as keeping her in the public eye and the nation's big screens.

 

In the early 60s, as Linda was recuperating from her alcohol rehab, and temporarily not doing her stage act, she and her third husband and manager of her career, Robby Robertson, formed a production company. Among other things, they bought a script entitled "The Virgin Heart", hoping to have this be their inital film feature. However, they were in the midst of their financial crisis, with bills mounting and Linda's lucrative, if short-lived stage career was on hold. They had hoped to get backing for their venture, but at that point in mid-1961, Linda was a risky proposition, not having made a movie in over three years. Perhaps it might have been better if Robby used the large amounts of her money he used for the stage act to try to get this (or another) movie project jump-started. And even a modestly successful movie would probably have opened the flood-gates to outside movie offers.

[Arturo]

Tomorrow at 6pshow m eastern, 3 pm Pacific, TCM wlll show 1940`s THE MARK OF ZORRO ,which features a beautiful young Linda Darnell in this classic Tyrone Power swashbuckler. Great fun.

[Arturo]

Another "What If' supposition re: Linda Darnell's career. Last week TCM broadcast THE RAINS OF RANCHIPUR, which featured Lana Turner, borrowed from MGM just before the end of her contract there. This remake had been planned as a vehicle for Fox' Susan Hayward, but she got selected to do I'LL CRY TOMORROW over at Lana's home studio, and rightly jumped at the chance. Anyway, during the filming of TROR, Lana got hurt or sick (I don't remember which), and the shooting schedule was reworked to shoot around her while she got better. Well, 20th was at the point of replacing Lana, in late summer of 1955, but she recovered in time to complete the movie.

 

Well, this was around the time Linda was returning to Fox, after nearly 3 years, to do a tv movie, DECEPTION. She would have been a logical choice to step into the role of the amoral Lady Edwina Esketh, and while she might not have worn Helen Rose designs (Lana brought her with her), she would likely have done a decent job. Had she done it, It may well have jump-started her movie career at a time when she had been out of the public eye in over a year, except for the release of THIS IS MY LOVE late in 1954.

[Arturo]

Early Saturday, June 22, at 7:15 am eastern, 4:15 pacific,

 

TCM will show the following movie featuring Linda Darnell:

 

BLACKBEARD THE PIRATE (1952), which she did on loan to RKO just before the end of her long-term contract at 20th Century Fox. Howard Hughes decided to exploit her physique, showing off substantially more cleavage than Fox did at that time. Other than that, this colorful pirate epic has a hammy Robert Newton going way over board as the title character, and funny performances by William Bendix and Irene Ryan. Also with Keith Andes and Richard Egan.

 

 

 

h4. 22 Saturday

h1. 7:15 AM

h2. [Blackbeard, the Pirate (1952)|http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/981/Blackbeard-the-Pirate/]

 

 

A kidnapped beauty gets caught between feuding pirates.

 

 

*Dir*: [Raoul Walsh|http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/person/201402%7C127526/Raoul-Walsh/] *Cast*: [Robert Newton|http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/person/140658%7C132350/Robert-Newton/] , [Linda Darnell|http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/person/44380%7C99349/Linda-Darnell/] , [William Bendix|http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/person/13549%7C155169/William-Bendix/] .

 

 

C-99 mins, TV-PG, CC,

 

h4. 22 Saturday

h1. 7:15 AM

h2. [Blackbeard, the Pirate (1952)|http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/981/Blackbeard-the-Pirate/]

 

 

A kidnapped beauty gets caught between feuding pirates.

 

 

*Dir*: [Raoul Walsh|http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/person/201402%7C127526/Raoul-Walsh/] *Cast*: [Robert Newton|http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/person/140658%7C132350/Robert-Newton/] , [Linda Darnell|http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/person/44380%7C99349/Linda-Darnell/] , [William Bendix|http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/person/13549%7C155169/William-Bendix/] .

 

 

C-99 mins, TV-PG, CC,

 

 

[Arturo]

Here's another "What If?" regarding Linda Darnell's career, but of a different nature than earlier ones, as those all had beneficial results for her career and/or life. This supposition is one that was totally possible, but might have had a negative inpact on these.

 

What if Linda Darnell had been dropped by Fox around the time her career had gotten its second wind, in 1944? After immediate success in 1939, Linda's career began to sag by mid-1941; the reasons are not totally certain, but she was soon relegated to roles in programmers and b-films, and loaned to other studios for the same. This was a pattern that other young girls at Fox had followed, with initial enthusiasm and strong lead roles, then sudden demotion to supporting roles or leads in B features. In the late 30s-early 40s, this happened to, among others: Nancy Kelly, Arleen Whelan, Marjorie Weaver and Brenda Joyce. After a couple or so years into their downfall, 20th would drop them, and more likely than not, they'd get employment in leads or second leads at other studios, in less than prestigious features.

 

This too could have been Linda's fate. It seemed like she was headed that way, but two things happened nearly simultaneously that gave her career new impetus. One: she was one of four actresses selected by Look Magazine as the most beautiful in Hollywood. Two: a loanout for UA's SUMMER STORM brought a burst of publicity over her sexy new image, quite different from the girl-next-door she had been playing till then. This resurrected her career as her studio now looked for similar vehicles for her.