Christopher Columbus (1949) Intro

Christopher Columbus

The greatest adventure man ever lived!

Christopher Columbus is a 1949 British biographical film starring Fredric March as Christopher Columbus and Florence Eldridge as Queen Isabella.

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Using a letter of introduction from Queen Isabella's former confessor, Christopher Columbus gains access to the Spanish court where he tries to convince authorities of the practicality of his proposed voyage to reach to Far East by sailing west. Court intrigue and the efforts of Francisco de Bobadilla, whose financial interests would be hurt by Columbus' success, are roadblocks to the voyage, but the navigator perseveres and ultimately prevails. Written by duke1029@aol.com

The Babe Ruth Story (1948) Trailer

The Babe Ruth Story

 America's most beloved guy!..... His life! His times! His triumphs!

The Babe Ruth Story is a 1948 baseball film biography of Babe Ruth, the famed 

New York Yankees slugger.

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The famed slugger is played by Bendix, who resembles Ruth slightly in looks and not at all in baseball ability. The film traces the "life and times" of Ruth, including his famous "called shot" in the 1932 World Series.

Song of Scheherazade (1947) Trailer

Song of Scheherazade

Warm Lips...Exotic Nights!

Song of Scheherazade is a 1947 American musical film directed by Walter Reisch.

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This 1947 Technicolor production from Universal Pictures is a film about the early years of composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, referred to as “Nicky” in the trailer. It’s a camp classic emblazoned with the tagline, “So Lavish, So Gay” (I kid you not!), and featuring the infamous “whip duel.” Yvonne de Carlo stars, with Jean-Pierre Aumont as the sailor “Nicky,” who also, apparently, composes, although you wouldn’t know it from this trailer. Aumont must have had enough of Hollywood with this picture because he returned to Europe to make films right after this.

Joan of Arc (1948)

Joan of Arc

 A cast of thousands

Joan of Arc is a 1948 American epic historical drama film directed by Victor Fleming, and starring Ingrid Bergman as the French religious icon and war heroine.

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In the Fifteenth Century, France is a defeated and ruined nation after the One Hundred Years War against England. The fourteen years old farm girl Joan of Arc claims to hear voices from Heaven asking her to lead God's Army against Orleans and crowning the weak Dauphin Charles VII as King of France. Joan gathers the people with her faith, forms an army and conquerors Orleans. When her army is ready to attack Paris, the corrupt Charles sells his country to England and dismiss the army. Joan is arrested, sold to the Burgundians England and submitted to a shameful political trial in Rouen castle.Written by Claudio Carvalho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Words and Music (1948) Trailer

Words and Music

M*G*M presents a spectacular musical, packed with the beloved hits of the famed song-writing team of Rodgers and Hart; their own story, with all the adventure, romance, high life of the Great White Way.

Words and Music is a 1948 film loosely based on the creative partnership of the composer Richard Rodgers and lyricist Lorenz Hart.

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Fictionalized story of the songwriting partnership of Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart.

Monsieur Vincent (1947) Trailer

Monsieur Vincent

Monsieur Vincent is a 1947 French film about Vincent de Paul, the seventeenth century 

priest and charity worker. 

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An Academy Award winner for Best Foreign Language Film, Monsieur Vincent chronicles the remarkable journey of St. Vincent de Paul (Pierre Fresnay) who rose from slavery to become a trusted advisor to queens and princes. Director Maurice Cloche's powerful and dramatic biopic reveals how St. Vincent de Paul's unwavering commitment to the poor made him one of the greatest humanitarians in history.

Devotion (1946) Trailer

Devotion

It tells ALL about those Brontë sisters!...They didn't dare call it love- they

 tried to call it Devotion

Devotion is a 1946 American biographical film directed by Curtis Bernhardt and starring Ida Lupino, Paul Henreid, Olivia de Havilland, and Sydney Greenstreet.

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In Victorian England, literary siblings Emily and Charlotte Bronte vie for the affection of the Reverend Arthur Nichols. Along with their sister Anne, Emily and Charlotte also try to help their tormented brother Branwell, a gifted artist whose life is being destroyed by alcohol.

Written by Daniel Bubbeo

The Jolson Story (1946) Scene

The Jolson Story

The Jolson Story is a 1946 musical biography which purports to tell the life

 story of singer Al Jolson.

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This movie shows the idealized career of the singer Al Jolson, a little Jewish boy who goes against the will of his father in order to be in showbiz. He becomes a star, falls in love with a non-Jewish dancer, and marries her. In the end he chooses success on the stage.

Written by Stephan Eichenberg <eichenbe@fak-cbg.tu-muenchen.de>

Dillinger (1945) Trailer

Dillinger

A Cold Blooded Bandit and a Hot Blooded Blonde ... who stopped at Nothing!

Dillinger is a 1945 gangster film telling the story of John Dillinger.

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The rise of John Dillinger from petty criminal (including, unforgiveably, holding up a cinema) via prison and bank robbery with his new convict associates to the accolade of Public Enemy Number One. Written by Jeremy Perkins <jwp@aber.ac.uk>

The Road to Hollywood (1947)

The Road to Hollywood

The Road to Hollywood is a 1947 American film released by Astor Pictures that is a combination of several of Bing Crosby's Educational Pictures short subjects.

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Exploitation film-maker Bud Pollard appears on screen to tell us of Bing Crosby's rise to fame, using scenes from four early Crosby shorts to illustrate his fictional biography.

Anna and the King of Siam (1946) Trailer

Anna and the King of Siam

Anna and the King of Siam is a 1946 drama film directed by John Cromwell.

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In 1862, young English widow Anna Owens accepts the job of teaching the royal children of Siam. On her arrival in Bangkok, culture clash is immediate. The king respects Anna for standing up to him, though this appalls his courtiers. In due course, she becomes the king's confidant and diplomatic advisor; their relationship endures through many trials.

Written by Rod Crawford <puffinus@u.washington.edu>

A Song to Remember (1945) Trailer

A Song to Remember

A Song to Remember is a 1945 Columbia Pictures biographical film which tells a fictionalised life story of Polish pianist and composer Frédéric Chopin.

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Prof. Joseph Elsner guides his protégé Frydryk Chopin through his formative years to early adulthood in Poland. At a recital in a duke's home Chopin insults the new Russian-installed governor, and must flee the country. The professor takes him to Paris, where he eventually comes under the wing and influence of novelist George Sand and rises to prominence in the music world, to the exclusion of his old friends and patriotic feelings towards Poland.

Written by Ron Kerrigan <mvg@whidbey.com>

The Dolly Sisters (1945) Trailer

The Dolly Sisters

The Dolly Sisters is a 1945 American Technicolor biographical film about the Dolly Sisters, identical twins who became famous as entertainers on Broadway and in Europe in the early years of the twentieth century Jennie and Rosie Dolly, Hungarian-born entertainers.

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Two sisters from Hungary become famous entertainers in the early 1900s. Fictionalized biography with lots of songs.

God Is My Co-Pilot (1945) Trailer

God Is My Co-Pilot

God is My Co-Pilot is a 1945 American war film based on the autobiography of the same name by Robert Lee Scott, Jr.

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Robert L. Scott has dreamed his whole life of being a fighter pilot, but when war comes he finds himself flying transport planes over The Hump into China. In China, he persuades General Chennault to let him fly with the famed Flying Tigers, the heroic band of airmen who'd been fighting the Japanese long before Pearl Harbor. Scott gets his chance to fight, ultimately engaging in combat with the deadly Japanese pilot known as Tokyo Joe.

Written by Jim Beaver <jumblejim@prodigy.net>

Rhapsody in Blue (1945) Trailer

Rhapsody in Blue

The jubilant story of George Gershwin.

Rhapsody in Blue (1945) is a fictionalized screen biography of the American composer and musician George Gershwin (September 26, 1898 – July 11, 1937) released by Warner Brothers.

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Rhapsody in Blue is a story that is as enchanting as the music of its central character, the legendary George Gershwin. Robert Alda plays the talented composer in this moving tribute to one of America's premier musical artists. Although it was intended that the Gershwins' eldest son, Ira, take piano lessons, it was his younger brother George who displayed a real talent for music. Following years of practice and an assortment of jobs, George worked his way from a music hall pianist to a Tin Pin Alley "song plugger." Gershwin experienced his first great success with "Swanee" (sung in the film by the man who made it famous, the inimitable Al Jolson). Despite his ensuing accomplishments with hit songs and stage successes, the musical genius yearned for something greater -- to create unique American music, combining the European classics and popular songs. In addition to its inspirational story, Rhapsody in Blue is musically uplifting, featuring a two hour feast of classic Gershwin.

Caesar and Cleopatra (1945) Trailer

Caesar and Cleopatra

 Never before such seductive beauty; such riotous... luxurious... loving and living

Caesar and Cleopatra is a 1945 British Technicolor film directed by Gabriel Pascal and starring Claude Rains and Vivien Leigh.

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Cleopatra hasn't been on the throne of the pharoahs of Egypt very long when Julius Caesar pays a visit. Caesar finds the prospect of romance more tempting than he expected, since Cleopatra is a rare woman who is bright as well as beautiful. And for Cleopatra, a friendly relationship with the most powerful man in the world may pay dividends in the future.

Written by Dale O'Connor <daleoc@interaccess.com>

The Adventures of Mark Twain (1944) Trailer

The Adventures of Mark Twain

The Life Story of the Creator of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn - His keen pen wove a fabric of wit into the lives of Americans !

The Adventures of Mark Twain is a 1944 American biographical film starring Fredric March as Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain) and Alexis Smith as his wife, Olivia. It was produced at Warner Brothers, and directed by Irving Rapper, with music by Max Steiner.

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A dramatised life of Samuel Langhorn Clemens, or Mark Twain.

Wilson (1944)

Wilson

DRAMA AND SPECTACLE UNPARALLELED! ENTERTAINMENT UNDREAMED OF! 12,000 PLAYERS! 200 MIGHTY SCENES! TOLD TO THE TUNE OF 87 BELOVED SONGS! 

Wilson is a 1944 American biographical film in Technicolor about President Woodrow Wilson.

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The political career of Woodrow Wilson is chronicled, beginning with his decision to leave his post at Princeton to run for Governor of New Jersey, and his subsequent ascent to the Presidency of the United States. During his terms in office, Wilson must deal with the death of his first wife, the onslaught of German hostilities leading to American involvement in the Great War, and his own country's reticence to join the League of Nations.Written by Shannon Patrick Sullivan <shannon@mun.ca>

The Fighting Sullivans (1944) Trailer

The Fighting Sullivans

The Guts and Glory of the Fighting Navy!!

The Fighting Sullivans, originally released as The Sullivans, is a 1944 American biographical war film directed by Lloyd Bacon and written by Edward Doherty, Mary C. McCall Jr., and Jules Schermer. 

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The Fighting Sullivans portrays the true story of 5 brothers who fought and died together when their ship, the American cruiser U.S.S. Juneau, was sunk in the South Pacific during World War II. The wartime film is emotionally gripping depiction of the Sullivan boys of Waterloo, Iowa. Amid all the tales of personal tragedy in WW II, this one stands out. The five inseparable brothers enlisted together after Pearl Harbor and were all assigned to a battleship that ended up at Guadalcanal, where all five brothers died in action. A moving tribute to those who gave their lives in the last world war.

Jack London (1943)

Jack London

 The true adventures of America's rugged and remarkable hero! 

Jack London, also known as The Story of Jack London, is a 1943 American biographical film made by Samuel Bronston Productions and distributed by United Artists. 

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Episodes in the novelist's life: In 1890, young Jack London quits a cannery job to try oyster piracy. Later, he signs on for a sealing voyage, tries Yukon prospecting and a brief university career, loving and leaving women along the way. Instead of riches, he gets story ideas. Suddenly, he finds success and a delectable lady; but the urge to adventure won't let him go. Written by Rod Crawford <puffinus@u.washington.edu>