TCM Schedule for Thursday, July 16, 2015 -- What's On Tonight - John Wayne in the 70s

This evening's theme is the 1970s films of John Wayne. It's a somewhat sad evening, whatever you think of John Wayne. He was ill, after the removal of a cancerous lung in 1964, and his characters don't have the energy of his earlier films. Enjoy!


6:00 AM -- Midnight Alibi (1934)
An elderly recluse shelters a gambler on the run from bogus murder charges.
Dir: Alan Crosland
Cast: Richard Barthelmess, Ann Dvorak, Helen Chandler
BW-58 mins,

Based on a story by Damon Runyon.


7:15 AM -- Crime School (1938)
A crusading warden sets out to improve conditions at a reform school.
Dir: Lewis Seiler
Cast: Humphrey Bogart, Gale Page, Billy Halop
BW-85 mins, CC,

The second of seven movies featuring The Dead End Kids.


8:50 AM -- Opening Day (1938)
A man attends the opening of a new baseball stadium to throw out the first pitch, but the crowd must first endure his monologue in this comedic short.
Dir: Roy Rowland
Cast: Robert Benchley, Harlan Briggs, John Butler
BW-9 mins,


9:00 AM -- Heart of the North (1938)
A Canadian Mounted Policeman searches for the outlaws who robbed a freighter.
Dir: Lewis Seiler
Cast: Dick Foran, Gloria Dickson, Gale Page
BW-83 mins,

Based on a novel by William Byron Mowery.


10:30 AM -- My Bill (1938)
An impoverished widow fights scandal for the sake of her four children.
Dir: John Farrow
Cast: Kay Francis, Bonita Granville, John Litel
BW-65 mins, CC,

The play Courage, by Tom Barry, opened in New York City, New York on 8 October 1928 and ran for 280 performances.


11:45 AM -- The Adventures of Jane Arden (1939)
A reporter poses as a jewel smuggler to unmask a criminal gang.
Dir: Terry Morse
Cast: Rosella Towne, William Gargan, James Stephenson
BW-58 mins,

Based on the comic strip by Monte Barrett and Russell E. Ross. Jane Arden was the prototype for Lois Lane and Brenda Starr, and Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Mary McGrory credited Jane Arden with instilling her interest in journalism.


1:00 PM -- King Of The Underworld (1939)
A lady doctor gets mixed up with a criminal gang.
Dir: Lewis Seiler
Cast: Humphrey Bogart, Kay Francis, James Stephenson
BW-67 mins, CC,

Adapted from a story by W. R. Burnett.


2:15 PM -- Pride of the Bluegrass (1939)
A jockey trains a blind horse for the Grand National.
Dir: William McGann
Cast: Edith Fellows, James McCallion, Gantry The Blind Horse
BW-65 mins,

Gantry is played by himself.


3:30 PM -- The Return Of Doctor X (1939)
A murderer returns from the grave with a thirst for blood.
Dir: Vincent Sherman
Cast: Humphrey Bogart, Rosemary Lane, Wayne Morris
BW-63 mins, CC,

Humphrey Bogart said of this film: "This is one of the pictures that made me march in to (Warner Bros. studio chief Jack L. Warner) and ask for more money again. You can't believe what this one was like. I had a part that somebody like Bela Lugosi or Boris Karloff should have played. I was this doctor, brought back to life, and the only thing that nourished this poor bastard was blood. If it had been Jack Warner's blood, or Harry's, or Pop's, maybe I wouldn't have minded as much. The trouble was, they were drinking mine and I was making this stinking movie."


4:45 PM -- The Man Who Talked Too Much (1940)
A defense lawyer sets out to topple a powerful gangster.
Dir: Vincent Sherman
Cast: George Brent, Virginia Bruce, Brenda Marshall
BW-76 mins,

A film based on a fictionalized account of the life and legend of lawyer William Fallon, the famous Great Mouthpiece of the roaring 20s. Other films include The Mouthpiece (1932) and Illegal (1955).


6:15 PM -- Flight From Destiny (1941)
An elderly professor with six months to live plots a murder to reunite two young lovers.
Dir: Vincent Sherman
Cast: Geraldine Fitzgerald, Thomas Mitchell, Jeffrey Lynn
BW-75 mins, CC,

From a story by Anthony Berkeley. As Francis Iles, he wrote the novel Before the Fact, and Alfred Hitchcock turned it into the film Suspicion (1941).


7:32 PM -- First In War (1932)
Charley Chase gets mixed up in a revolution in this short comedy.
Dir: Warren Doane
Cast: Marvin Hatley, Julian Rivero, Nancy Torres
BW-20 mins,



TCM PRIMETIME - WHAT'S ON TONIGHT: JOHN WAYNE IN THE 70'S



8:00 PM -- Brannigan (1975)
A Chicago police detective has to bring a crook home from London.
Dir: Douglas Hickox
Cast: John Wayne, Richard Attenborough, Judy Geeson
C-111 mins, CC, Letterbox Format

Sir Ralph Richardson and Diana Rigg were offered major roles. Richardson reportedly bowed out at the last minute but was quoted as saying that Wayne should try Shakespeare. According to the renowned actor, "He is hypnotic. He conveys a sense of mystery, and that's invaluable in Shakespeare."


10:00 PM -- McQ (1974)
A police lieutenant tackles corruption when his best friend is killed.
Dir: John Sturges
Cast: John Wayne, Eddie Albert, Diana Muldaur
C-111 mins, CC, Letterbox Format

Stuntman (and later director) Hal Needham designed the car chase at the end of this film. It featured the first staged rollover of a car in film history.


12:00 AM -- Cahill, United States Marshal (1973)
A tough lawman has to bring in his own sons for a train robbery.
Dir: Andrew V. McLaglen
Cast: John Wayne, Gary Grimes, George Kennedy
C-102 mins, CC, Letterbox Format

John Wayne told an interviewer he gave up caring about the movie halfway through filming when he learned that John Ford was dying of cancer.


1:51 AM -- The Moonshine War (Featurette) (1970)
This humorous promotional short offers a behind-the-scenes look at the production of "The Moonshine War" (1970).
BW-7 mins,


2:00 AM -- Rio Lobo (1970)
A Civil War veteran searches for the traitor behind a friend's death.
Dir: Howard Hawks
Cast: John Wayne, Jorge Rivero, Jennifer O'Neill
C-114 mins, CC, Letterbox Format

During a break in filming John Wayne collected his Best Actor Oscar for True Grit (1969) from Barbra Streisand at The 42nd Annual Academy Awards (1970). When he returned, every member of the cast was wearing an eye patch - including his horse.


4:00 AM -- The Train Robbers (1973)
A bandit's widow enlists a famed gunman to return the gold her husband had stolen.
Dir: Burt Kennedy
Cast: John Wayne, Ann-Margret, Bobby Vinton
C-92 mins, CC, Letterbox Format

Director Burt Kennedy wanted to cast Jack Elam as Grady. However John Wayne would not allow this, because he felt Elam had stolen too many scenes from him in Rio Lobo (1970).


5:45 AM -- Chisum (1970)
A cattle baron enlists Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid to help him fight a land war.
Dir: Andrew V. McLaglen
Cast: John Wayne, Forrest Tucker, Christopher George
C-111 mins, CC, Letterbox Format

Although clearly labeled as the older man, at 57 Patric Knowles was actually five years younger than John Wayne. Wayne's character, John Chisum, died five or six years after the events portrayed in this movie, at age 60. In real life cattle baron John Tunstall was 24 when he was murdered; he was played by the 57-year-old Knowles. The real John Chisum was 54 at the time the events in this film occurred, but he was played by the 62-year-old Wayne.