Posts about “B” films from the 1930s and 1940s.
On May 15, 1942, Monogram Pictures released a “B” film (affiliate link) about a disgraced scientist who turns a simple man into a werewolf to extract revenge on his former colleagues. The Mad Monster (1942) is an atmospheric thriller starring George Zucco as Dr. Lorenzo Cameron who turns Pedro, played by Glenn Strange, into a wolf man. Dr. Cameron is […]
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RKO Pictures brought the Dick Tracy comic strip character to the big screen on December 1, 1945. While the film is definitely a “B” film meant to be first on the double bill, it still would have been of interest to the many fans of the popular comic strip. Chester Gould created the strip in October 1931 for the Detroit […]
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The Chinese Cat (1944) is one of the eleven Charlie Chan films produced by Monogram Pictures with Sidney Toler in the lead role. The film begins with Leah Manning, played by Joan Woodbury, seeking Inspector Chan’s assistance in clearing her mother of her stepfather’s murder a year before. Mrs. Manning was acquitted of the murder but a criminologist has just […]
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Bulldog Drummond’s Secret Police (1939) is the second-to-last Bulldog Drummond film (affiliate link) starring John Howard as Drummond. Drummond is once again preparing for his marriage to Phyllis Clavering. As usual, the marriage plans are disrupted by the revelations of Professor Downey regarding Rockingham Towers, the Drummond Estates. The treasure of an English king is hidden in the catacombs underneath […]
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Dick Purcell stars as Policeman Terry Murphy in this “B” film (affiliate link) from Monogram Pictures. Terry Murphy is put in a tough position when his brother Joe Murphy, played by Charles Quigley, borrows money from a gangster named Moran. Joe has been gambling on the horse races and is into Moran for a significant amount of money. Joe decides […]
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Sherlock Holmes Faces Death (1943) is loosely based on The Adventure of the Musgrave Ritual. The short story was published in The Strand Magazine during May 1893. It was later compiled in The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes. In the story, the Musgrave Mansion held a secret that even it’s inhabitants did not know. This film follows the same plot line […]
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Frank R. Strayer is a little known director today. If classic film fans have heard of him, it is because of Strayer’s work as the frequent director of films in the Blondie Series. Strayer was able to land this “B” film series because of his quality work in lesser “B” film productions in the early 1930s. This film and The […]
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On January 29, 1940, First National Pictures, the Warner Brothers “B” film company, released the spy thriller British Intelligence (1940). The film (affiliate link) is set in Britain during World War I. Released almost two years before the attack on Pearl Harbor, the film showed that Hollywood and probably most of the countries sympathies were with Britain and the Allies. […]
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Tom Tyler was a star of Westerns in the 1920s, 30s and 40s but he also starred in serials such as The Phantom (1943). He even played Kharis the Mummy in The Mummy’s Hand (1940). However, he was primarily a Western actor. He started out as an actor and stuntman in 1920s silent films. The Cowboy Cop (1926) was one […]
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On August 5, 1938, Paramount Pictures released another film (affiliate link) in the Bulldog Drummond series starring John Howard as Drummond. Bulldog Drummond in Africa (1938) is one of the best films in the series primarily due to a strong cast. Besides John Howard, Heather Angel returns as Drummond’s fiance Phyllis Clavering. They are joined by series regular H. B. […]
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