Category Archives: Movies

The Glass Menagerie

The Glass Menagerie was the first major success by playwright Tennessee Williams, first produced in 1944. It’s based on an earlier short story by Williams (published a few years later). It is a reminiscence by amateur poet Thomas Wingfield (think … Continue reading →

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The Jazz Singer

The Jazz Singer is a landmark of cinematic history, as the first feature-length film with synchronized dialog.  Directed by Alan Crosland, it’s the story of a Jewish musician (played by Al Jolson) who defies his father’s wishes for him to … Continue reading →

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Mickey Mouse

Mickey Mouse has arguably been the driving force behind the ongoing extension of copyright over the past 40 years. He was created in 1928, and it was the impending expiration of the Mickey Mouse copyright (among others) that prompted Disney … Continue reading →

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Walt Disney’s Peter Pan

The original story of Peter Pan, Wendy Darling, Captain Hook, and Tinker Bell is in the public domain in most of the world, having been published by creator J. M. Barrie in novel form in 1911. Although the basic story … Continue reading →

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Rebel Without A Cause

Rebel Without A Cause is a landmark of American culture, identified by the Library of Congress as culturally, historically, and aesthetically significant. It features James Dean in his next-to-last role, with Natalie Wood and Sal Mineo, and a supporting cast … Continue reading →

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Casino Royale

Ian Fleming’s spy novel Casino Royale was published in 1953.  It introduced the characters of stalwart CIA agent Felix Leiter, the villain Le Chiffre, and the beautiful but unpredictable Vesper Lynd…. oh, and some guy named Bond… James Bond. Although … Continue reading →

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I Was a Male War Bride

I Was a Male War Bride was a low-key screwball comedy starring Cary Grant and Ann Sheridan, directed by Howard Hawks.  Based on a true story, Grant and Sheridan play a French captain and an American WAC lieutenant assigned to … Continue reading →

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The Big Trail

John Wayne’s first starring role was in The Big Trail, a western written by Hal G. Evarts and directed by Raoul Walsh.  It was this film in which handsome 23-year-old Marion “Duke” Morrison became “John Wayne”, a name chosen by … Continue reading →

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