Pre-Code Hollywood (1929-1934)
Pre-Code Hollywood refers to the brief era in the American film industry between the widespread adoption of sound in pictures in 1929 and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorship guidelines, popularly known as the "Hays Code", in mid-1934. Not all are that "naughty," but certainly a "nice" collection of uninhibited cinema.
Many are "B" films about one hour running time that were produced by long-forgotten studios like Grand National, Victory, Chesterfield, Remington and Mascot. Genres range from Mystery, Romance, Comedy and Crime to Jungle, Boxing, Prison and Chain Gangs.
All Pre-Code films are available on DVD-R and Mpeg2 formats @ special price of $10 each.
Big News (1929) 67m. Comedy/Mystery. Robert Armstrong, Carole Lombard. A reporter's marriage is jeopardized by his drinking and he finds himself accused of a murder he didn't commit.
The Dance of Life (1929) 112m. Hal Skelly, Nancy Carroll. A vaudeville comic and a pretty young dancer aren't having much luck in their separate careers, so they decide to combine their acts. In order to save money on the road, they get married. Not a "B" film, this lengthy drama featured one of the most popular actresses of the era, Nancy Carroll.
Glorifying the American Girl (1929) 95m. Mary Eaton, with guest appearances by Eddie Cantor, Helen Morgan and Rudy Vallee. The rise of a showgirl, Gloria Hughes, culminating in a Ziegfeld extravaganza "Glorifying the American Girl".
The Great Gabbo (1929) 96m. Drama/Musical. Erich von Stroheim, Betty Compson. An insanely, egocentric ventriloquist, even though he is possessed by his wooden dummy, is in love with a dancer who is in love with another. The dummy gives advice to the ventriloquist. Directed by James Cruze.
Phantom in the House (1929) 58m. Crime/Mystery. Ricardo Cortez, Nancy Welford. An inventor takes the blame for a killing his wife committed and serves a long prison sentence. Upon his release he returns, he returns as a 'family friend,' hoping to get to know his now-grown daughter who thinks he is dead.
Vagabond Lover (1929) 65m. Comedy/Musical. Rudy Vallee, Sally Blaine, Marie Dressler. A zany musical about an amateur musician in search of work who impersonates a big band leader.
Woman to Woman (1929) 78m. Drama. Betty Compson, George Barraud. An amnesiac WW-2 officer weds a barren socialite and adopts his son by a French ballerina he met in Paris.
Borrowed Wives (1930) 62m. Comedy. Rex Lease, Vera Reynolds. Peter has to be married by midnight or else his inheritance goes to his uncle... Who happens to live in a "haunted house."
Danger Lights (1930) 74m. Adventure/Drama. Louis Wolheim, Jean Arthur, Robert Armstrong. Head railroad man Dan is as ugly as he is honorable. When he spots a drifter who'd hopped a freight held up by a landslide, Dan offers the man a job; then he finds the man was a railroader, too, and takes him under his wing.
Dixiana (1930) 100m. Comedy/Musical. Wheeler & Woolsey, Bebe Daniels in period comedy set during Mardi Gras, with color sequence. Excellent example of a filmed version of a hit Broadway musical.
Framed (1930) 65m. Crime/Drama. Evelyn Brent, Rose Manning, the daughter of a racketeer who has just been killed, along with a policeman, in a shoot-out is undergoing a hard third-degree grilling from Police Inspector "Butch" McArthur, and she leaves with a desire for revenge against McArthur.
Silver Horde (1930) 76m. Adventure/Drama. Joel McCrea, Evelyn Brent. Boyd Emerson loves the wealthy Mildred Wayland, but so does Boyd's unscrupulous rival in the Yukon salmon fisheries, Frederick Marsh. The two battle for Mildred's hand and for control of the thriving fishing business.
Sin Takes a Holiday (1930) 80m. Comedy. Constance Bennett, Basil Rathbone. Dowdy Sylvia accepts her boss' marriage proposal, even though he only asked her to avoid marriage to another woman. As a wealthy wife, Sylvia changes from ugly duckling to uninhibited swan and even contemplates having an affair with a man she meets during a trip to Paris.
Chinatown After Dark (1931) 55m. Crime/Drama. Carmel Myers, Rex Lease. he female head of a criminal gang in Chinatown is after a valuable jewel, and lets nothing stand in her way of finding it.
Corsair (1931) 74m. Adventure. Chester Morris, Thelma Todd. A stock market broker plans to liven up his boring life by taking up piracy on the high seas. Directed by Roland West.
Grief Street (1931) 64m. Barbara Kent, John Holland. Crime/Mystery. Alvin Merle, a womanizing Broadway matinée idol, is found strangled in his dressing room. The door is locked from the inside and there is no possible other way into the room. Merle is having an affair with his leading lady, while his wife, actress Ethel Wynn, appearing in another play in a theater around the corner, is doing the same with Frank Murray, the stage manager on Merle's play.
Reaching for the Moon (1931) 67m. Comedy/Musical. Douglas Fairbanks, Bebe Daniels, Bing Crosby.Wall Street wizard, Larry Day, new to the ways of love, is coached by his valet. He follows Vivian Benton on an ocean liner, where cocktails, laced with a "love potion," work their magic. .
The Crooked Circle(1932) 60m. Comedy/Mystery. Zasu Pitts, James Gleason, Ben Lyon. A group of amateur detectives sets out to expose The Crooked Circle, a secretive group of hooded occultists.
Cross-Examination (1932) 62m. Drama/Mystery. H.B. Warner, Sally Blane. Defense Atorney Gerald Waring uses great skill and ingenuity in his efforts to save the life of a boy charged with the murder of his father.
Hell's Highway (1932) 62m. Action/Crime. Richard Dix, Rochelle Hudson. Chain gang prisoners forced to construct a "liberty highway" for their overseer chasten under his brutal stewardship, causing Duke Ellis to mastermind a mass riot.
Honor of the Press (1953) 61m. Edmond O’Brien and Frank Lovejoy out for a hunting trip are taken over by a murderous fugitive. Directed by Ida Lupino.
Klondike (1951) 67m. Lawrence Tierney is career criminal who gets out of prison and gets back at it.
Manhattan Tower(1949) 66m. Brian Donlevy’s cheating wife plots to do him in.
Inner Sanctum (1948) 62m. Killer trapped in small town when flood washes out bridges.
Johnny One-Eye (1950) 78m. Pat O'Brien is a gangster who isn't quite the tough guy everybody thinks he is.
Kansas City Confidential (1959) 98m. Ex-con John Payne implicated in a bank heist.
Lady Gangster (1942) 62m. Faye Emerson, Julie Bishop, Jackie Gleason. The title tells it all.
Lady in the Death House (1944) 55m. Story of woman on death row told by letter she wrote on day of her scheduled execution.
The Marines Are Coming (1930) (1930) 71m. William Haines, Conrad Nagel in Latin American insurrection.
The Last Alarm (1940) 61m. A retired fireman teams up with his duaghter and her fiancee to catch a serial arsonist.
The Limping Man (1953) 75m. Lloyd Bridges is innocent G.I. involved in murder case in London.
Ma Barker's Killer Brood (1960) 89m. Lurene Tuttle, Tristram Coffin. Ma Barker and sons terrorize South with crime in 1930s.
Man in the Attic (1954) 82m. Jack Palance as Jack the Ripper!
The Naked Kiss (1964) 92m. Constance Towers is a prostitute trying to start new in a small town. Directed by Sam Fuller.
Open Secret (1948) 68m. John Ireland stumbles on a Jewish hate group.
Parole Inc. (1949) 71m. Federal agent goes undercover. Michael O’Shea, Evelyn Ankers.
Please Murder Me (1956) 78m. Angela Lansbury, Raymond Burr in homicide yarn.
Quicksand (1950) 79m. Mickey Rooney steals $20 and sinks into robbery and blackmail.
The Red House (1947) 100m. Old house deep in the woods holds fearful secret for E.G. Robinson.
Roar of the Press (1941) 71m. While on their honeymoon, a reporter and his new bride stumble upon a ring of fifth columnists.
Rogue's Gallery (1944) 60m. Two reporters suspected of killing an inventor.
Scarlet Street (1945) 103m. Henpecked Edward G. Robinson is pulled into world of crime and deception by seductive Joan Bennett and her boyfriend Dan Duryea.
The Second Woman (1951) 91m. Brooding drama of architect Robert Young who feels responsible for girlfriend’s accidental death.
Shoot to Kill (1947) 64m. Gangster framed by crooked DA. Wife and newspaper reporter team up.
Strange illusion (1945) 80m. B-movie update of “Hamlet” has troubled teen Jimmy Lydon doubting smooth-talker Warren Williams who is wooing his mother.
Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946) 117m. Gripping melodrama with Barbara Stanwyck bound to her husband by a crime she committed long ago. Kirk Douglas’ film debut!
The Stranger (1946) 95m. Orson Welles is an escaped Nazi war criminal hiding in small town and about to marry Loretta Young until E.G. Robinson tracks him down. Directed by Welles.
Suddenly (1954) 77m. Frank Sinatra leads a trio of assasins to shoot the President when he visits town.
They Made me a Criminal (1939) 92m. Boxer John Garfield flees believing he has comitted a murder while he was drunk. Pursued by Claude Rains, he meets up with the Dead End Kids.
They Made Me a Killer (1946) 64m. Young girl tries to prove man innocent of robbery and murder.
Three Steps North (1951) 85m. After a prison sentence an American GI stationed in Italy (Lloyd Bridges) discovers that his hidden loot has disappeared and goes searching for it.
Too Late for Tears (1949) 99m. Atmospheric thriller about a bag of cash dropped into car of bad-girl Elizabeth Scott and husband Arthur Kennedy. With Dan Duryea, Don DeFore.
Trapped (1949) 78m. FBI enlists con Lloyd Bridges to help trail counterfeiters.
Two Dollar Bettor (1951) 72m. An honest bank employee gets hooked on horse racing, and starts to embezzle bank funds in an attempt to recoup his losses.
Whistle Stop (1946) 85m. Gangster George Raft romances Ava Gardner in a small town.
The Wrong Road (1936) 56m. Spoiled young lovers rob bank and hide the loot. Lionell Atwill tries to find it. With Richard Cromwell and Helen Mack.
X Marks the Spot (1942) 58m. Private Eye seeks to uncover events that led to his father's death.
