Pulp Fiction discussion

Not every noir had big budgets and have come
to be known as "classics" - most of the ones
I like I've found are the littlees - you know
the ones with stars like Steve Brodie, Raymond
Burr etc.
Of course "I Wake Up Screaming"(1941) was from
20th Century Fox but don't let Betty Grable put
you off - see it for Laird Creager who was a huge
(in more ways than one) find for Fox in the early
1940s. In this terrific film he plays a very, very
menacing policeman who is obsessed with finding the
killer of a mercenary model (beautiful Carole Landis)
that he has been obsessed with. Don't be put off by
the cheesy Fox stars (Betty Grable, Victor Mature)
- the title is not the only good thing about the
movie.
Interesting pulp fiction tie in. The writer, Steve
Fisher wrote the creepy detective with his friend
Cornell Woolrich in mind. In the book the description
apparently fits Woolrich to a tee - but Fox went
to the other extreme when they cast Creager but the
mannerisms and portrayal were very Woolrich so I have
read.

Another film is "Pitfall" with Dick Powell and
Lizabeth Scott. He plays an insurance assessor
(I think) who has to collect stolen goods from
femme fatale Scott who seems to be the real
innocent in this movie. Enter Raymond Burr!! He
probably couldn't believe his luck when he scored
"Perry Mason", before then he was one of the
horriblest villains in movies. By 1948 Creager
was dead and I really think they saw in Burr another
big, heavy in the Creager tradition. I think Burr
makes "Pitfall" (1948) - he plays a private
investigator and a really nasty one at that. Also
one that has an obsessive feeling toward Scott and
the "if I can't have her - no one else will" sort!!

Nice recommendations Diane. There's a lot to be said for those B-noirs and Poverty Row pictures. There's even a collection of little known films in the public domain and available from the film noir collection at archive.org amongst other places.

Laird Creegar died too young and in a terrible to hear about manner, but he seems to have been largely remembered for his serial killer type roles, I Wake Up Screaming sounds like a really great use of him though.

Hello Tfitoby, yes Cregar certainly had a
presence. We saw him the other week in "Hangover
Square", I suppose you would call it a "gaslight
noir". Cregar was the star and thoroughly sympathetic
- Linda Darnell was the "vixen" who found toying
with his affections was distinctly to her
disadvantage. There is a good book called "Death
on the Cheap" that is a terrific reference to
poverty row noir.

I also clicked on your link - it is an interesting
site. I've been on there when I want to read old
fan magazines, had no idea it had movies as well.
Love the staff recommendation of "Door to Door
Maniac" - sounds like something Ed Wood would be
proud to put his name to, I must check it out.

I saw Hangover Square the other week too. Nothing at all like the Patrick Hamilton novel but excellent in its own way, largely thanks to Cregar.

Door to Door Maniac is surprisingly good considering that it's a Johnny Cash film! Home Invasion noir in the vein of Sinatra's Suddenly (subject of a truly bad remake recently,) Tierney's Devil Thumbs a Ride and Bogart's Desperate Hours (also on the receiving end of a bad remake.) Here's my review from back in March:

"A middling late period noir featuring a surprisingly good Johnny Cash as the eponymous villain. For fans of bald directors and former Happy Days stars the annoying little kid is none other than Ron Howard himself.

The facade of suburban life is peeled back to highlight child neglect, adultery and boredom. Working as a deliberate attack on suburbia Door to Door Maniac is a violent film that must have shocked audiences at the time with its almost casual use of home invasion and rape, children in peril and a villain who seems to get almost a sexual pleasure out of murder."

Diane wrote: "Another film is "Pitfall" with Dick Powell and
Lizabeth Scott. He plays an insurance assessor
(I think) who has to collect stolen goods from
femme fatale Scott who seems to be the real
innocent in..."


I always preferred the early Raymond Burr performances where it appears he was being directed to imitate Laird Cregar.

Early Burr is very sinister as the villains in those early films and although shorter than most of the leading men, he's almost always shot as practically looming over the leading lady or the "hero".

Last performance I can remember seeing Burr in role where he's darkly sinister was the over-the-top noir/action-adventure mish-mash HIS KIND OF WOMAN co-directed by John Farrow and Richard Fleischer.

Awesome cast in that one, as well: Robert Mitchum, Jane Russell, Vincent Price, Charles McGraw, Tim Holt.

Still -wonderful tribute to an almost forgotten actor: Laird Cregar.
Hangover Square is a true classic.

I will definitely take a note of "His Kind of
Woman" - just love Charles McGraw as well.
But wait there's more, Raymond Burr was particularly
nasty in "Desperate" - Steve Brodie played a good
guy truckie who took over a round for his sick (?)
friend one night and found himself on the run from
psychotic gangster Burr. It used to be on in the
wee small hours occasionally but I haven't seen it
for years. Does anyone remember this movie??

I saw DESPERATE a long time ago, and principally remember it for Burr's menace.

Looking over his imdb listings, he made an unusal number of swashbucklers for an actor who seems so quintessentially modern.

I'm sure I read where he was over the moon when
he got the role as "Perry Mason" - then when it
came to an end he said something to the effect that
it had consumed his whole life and he had other
interests. Why oh why did he agree to sign up to
"Ironside"? I mean I just love that show but he
must have felt it was not going to be as successful
as it was.

Diane wrote: "Another film is "Pitfall" with Dick Powell and
Lizabeth Scott. He plays an insurance assessor
(I think) who has to collect stolen goods from
femme fatale Scott who seems to be the real
innocent in..."
Yes! I couldn't remember the name of that movie. Just that Raymond Burr was such a creep in it.

Another actress I like that did good in noirish
things is Nina Foch. I have her in "Nine Girls"
which is about murder in a girl's school. Though
strictly for the bottom part of a double bill, it
must have been Columbia's way of introducing new
talent. Nina had the most dramatic part as a
girl who was being blackmailed by murder victim.
I was thinking she was terrific in "My Name is
Julia Ross" - she plays an unemployed girl who
finds her dream job quickly turns into a nightmare
when she has to ..... anyway, I just realised George
MacCready is in it to and he is just terrific -
does anyone like him?? Last week I saw Nina and George
in another "noirish" one "I Love a Mystery" -
it's not a spoiler but the beginning has George
desperately wanting help from these two detectives,
he has been told he will lose his head within 3 days
and he really wants to keep it!! Great movie, he was
also memorable in "The Missing Juror" as well.
Last year I happened to catch him in a "Night Gallery"
- 25 years later and he was still playing the same
twitchy, smooth talking "no one's going to hurt you,
least of all me, it's absurd" parts!!

Kurt wrote: "Diane wrote: "Another film is "Pitfall" with Dick Powell and
Lizabeth Scott. He plays an insurance assessor
(I think) who has to collect stolen goods from
femme fatale Scott who seems to be the rea..."
I agree with you Kurt, especially the part where
Powell approaches a house around twilight and
Burr is just sitting there - very scary!!

Last night we saw the movie "Fallen Angel" (1945).
Directed by Otto Preminger, it was designed as a
vehicle for Alice Faye but when she supposed her
part had been edited to build up luscious Linda
Darnell she walked away from movies altogether!!
I actually think the balance was right. I just love
Alice Faye, but she was playing her usual "sweet
girl" role and it definitely needed the darkness
of Darnell, who was absolutely beautiful. Dana
Andrews played a conscienceless (until the last
2 minutes, very unbelievable) con man who falls
hook line and sinker for Darnell, in spite of the
fact that she is already up to her ears with another
"gaga" suitor (Bruce Cabot was probably old enough
to be her father and he didn't age well).
I suppose Preminger is the master of convoluted plots.
This one had Andrews looking around for easy money
with which to splash in Darnell's direction and finds
it in Faye's lap. Won't throw in spoiler's but there
is an unexpected murder and the last part of the
film has Andrews making all the wrong moves as he
tries to clear himself.
Has anyone seen this?
Hopefully over Christmas I'll try to rewatch "The
Spiral Staircase" a really terrific scary movie!!

The Spiral Staircase...one of my favorite Gothic films. I need to go and buy a copy of that movie. I have it saved on DVR.

Raymond Burr had a very 'good guy' role in a western radio series, 'Fort Laramie' (1956) and earlier he was a no-good detective always battling Jack Webb in Webb's 1946 'Pat Novak For Hire'. Burr's character was so obsessed with putting Webb's Novak in prison it was hilarious. The show in general had very fractured noir-speak, like "you couldn't find a rat in a basement of cheese"

I'm still shocked to learn Burr was not heterosexual. Of all actors. Who next, Richard Boone?