Louis Calhern

As socialite Tracy Lord prepares for her wedding to priggish George Kittredge at her Newport, Rhode Island estate, her ex-husband, millionaire song writer C. K. Dexter-Haven, organizes a jazz festival for the same weekend, using his neighboring home as a rehearsal hall. On the eve of her wedding, Tracy informs her precocious kid sister Caroline that she has not invited their father, Seth Lord, because he has left their mother for a chorus girl. Soon after, when Tracy hears Dexter play her and Dexter's favorite tune, she runs to Dexter's and accuses him of setting up the festival to disrupt her wedding. Dexter confesses he is still in love with her, but reminds Tracy that she left him because her expectations for him differed from his own. Tracy retorts that instead of becoming a respected composer, Dexter has lowered himself to being a "jukebox hero," and leaves. Back at the Lords', Uncle Willie calls to tell Tracy's mother, Mrs. Lord, that Spy magazine will withhold a slanderous article about Seth's affair in exchange for being allowed to send reporter Mike Connor and photographer Liz Imbrie to cover Tracy's high-society wedding. To appease her mother who fears for the family's reputation, Tracy agrees to the blackmail, but she and Caroline greet Mike and Liz, who arrive shortly after, with exaggeratedly gauche mannerisms and interrogate them about their lives, while avoiding any questions about their father. Soon after, George and Dexter arrive at the Lord house, prompting Liz to request a photograph of Tracy standing between her past and future husbands. Tracy reluctantly agrees, but later intentionally knocks the camera over, ruining the film. Tired of the reporter's constant badgering about her father, Tracy introduces her Uncle Willie as "papa" when he arrives at the house. The family goes along with the lie and when Seth arrives, they call him "Uncle Willie." Later, as they peruse tables filled with extravagant, impractical wedding gifts, Mike and Liz confide that they would rather have true happiness than be married into a wealthy, but obviously dysfunctional family. Later at the pool, Dexter suggests to Tracy that she soften her expectations of George to ensure a happy union and notes that she has little tolerance for "human frailty." Later alone, Tracy unwraps Dexter's wedding gift, the model of their honeymoon yacht, and fondly remembers the first few romantic weeks of her and Dexter's marriage. Suddenly, George interrupts her reverie to promise unfailing adoration of his "goddess." Upset that she might be seen as distant, Tracy demands that she be treated as a real woman. When Tracy later confronts her father about his affair, Seth supposes that his philandering is an attempt to maintain his youth and suggests that Tracy is partially to blame for refusing to show him any affection. Distraught by the day's events, a drunken Tracy takes Mike on a drive to tell him that his presumptions about the Newport upper class are unfair. As they stop at Uncle Willie's house for a drink, Tracy admits she has been sheltered by wealth, while an enamored Mike insists that Tracy needs only the right man to "fire her heart." Although her inhibitions are diminished by alcohol, Tracy flees the room when Mike tries to embrace her. After returning to the house, Tracy overhears Dexter sing a love song for his "Samantha," her nickname, rekindling her attraction to him. Later at the bachelor ball held at Willie's house, Dexter, Louis Armstrong and his band entertain the crowd with jazz, while George insists that Tracy sleep off her drunkenness alone in a parlor. Meanwhile, Mike wanders into a study, where he shares glass after glass of champagne with Dexter until the men break into song about the "swell party," mocking the haughty crowd. Later, Tracy climbs out the parlor window and joins Mike on a walk back to the Lords' house, where Mike tells her that she is a "flesh and blood" woman. After embracing him, Tracy jumps into the pool, fully clothed and swooning at the compliment. While escorting Liz back to the Lords' house, Dexter asks her why she and Mike have not married, prompting the patient Liz to reply that Mike must first outgrow his love for Tracy. Meanwhile, George, having discovered Tracy missing, rushes to the Lords' house, where he, Dexter and Liz witness a woozy Mike carrying Tracy back from the pool, both soaking from a swim. Horrified by what he assumes is a case of infidelity, George prepares to take a swing at Mike, but Dexter jumps in and punches him instead, hoping he has saved Mike from a savage blow of the truly jealous groom. The next morning, as dozens of wedding guests arrive, Tracy is so hung over that she has forgotten the previous evening's escapade. When she asks Mike about the night, he tells her only that he enjoyed himself. In a moment alone, a guilt-ridden Tracy asks advice from Dexter, who suggests that a mistake can sometimes help a couple learn. Soon after Mike and Liz announce they are through with dirty journalism and so will not to publish the story, George arrives and proclaims that he is undecided about continuing the wedding. When Tracy cannot provide an explanation for the previous evening, Mike informs the worried groom that the "affair" consisted of only two kisses and a swim, prompting Tracy to accuse Mike of thinking her too "unattractive and distant" to sleep with. After Mike tells her he did not want to take advantage of her drunken state, George, now full of self-righteousness, tells Tracy he can forgive this one mistake. Tracy, realizing the larger mistake is marrying George, tells her fiance that she "couldn't bear a perfect man." As George marches off and the processional music begins, Tracy, at a loss for words, seeks Dexter's coaching to address the awaiting crowd. As she repeats his phrasing unthinkingly, Tracy parrots that she eloped with Dexter two years ago and then announces she will now marry him in a full ceremony. Tracy turns to Dexter, ecstatic at his off handed proposal, and then thanks her father for helping her become more human. Meanwhile, Mike and Liz, inspired by the turn of events, decide to marry, as a jazzed-up version of the processional begins again.

TV's great comedy duo, Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, star in this madcap comedy about a research chemist whose dedicated pursuit of a new pesticide wreaks havoc on his marriage. Susan and Lorenzo have been married for over five years and they are starting to drift apart. So into her life comes an angel which only she can see, to tell her that trouble is ahead if they don't work out their problems. Lorenzo is developing insecticide #383 at Finlay Vega Chemical Co. and plans to test it on a camping trip that he takes with Susan, but the trip becomes an obstacle course for him. —Tony Fontana <tony.fontana@spacebbs.com> Five years in, the bloom has come off the marriage of scientist Larry Vega and wealthy socialite Susan Vega née Bewell, because of their differences, that are heightened, and the problems in their marriage exacerbated, by her closest friends. Larry doesn't like Susan's friends because they're always trying to get her--and him by association--to live beyond what they can afford on his income. Their differences are further heightened when Larry, who owns and operates a chemical company with his friend BIll Finlay, plans to do field work for two years, going to the remotest parts of the globe to test a new insecticide he has developed and wants Susan to accompany him. Susan begins to see a vision of a man; initially she believes he's an intruder, but she comes to believe--and ultimately realize--that hie is her Guardian Angel. Beyond the seeming incredulity of such a story and thus the belief by others that she could be crazy, Susan does not want to divulge her vision, least of all to Larry, in the Guardian Angel's resemblance to her favorite actor, handsome James Mason. Indeed, the Guardian Angel has arrived in her psyche at this juncture to help her deal with her and Larry's crumbling marriage. But the Guardian Angel's resemblance to Mason could cause, rather than resolve, more complications in Susan and Larry's relationship. —Huggo

At their villa in the south of France, beautiful, spoiled young American heiress Louise Durant informs her wealthy father Nicholas that she is going to the music conservatory in Zurich to study piano and be near her beau, Paul Bronte, a violinist in his final year of study. The headstrong Louise adds that she plans to marry Paul, although he does not know this yet. In Zurich, Louise rents an apartment from Frau Sigerist, and meets fellow tenant James Guest, an American studying piano on the G.I. Bill. The following morning, Louise auditions for Prof. Schuman and, acknowledging her unexceptional talent, tells him she wants to study at the conservatory to be near the man she loves. When the kindly professor cautions her that great musicians do not always make good husbands, Louise confesses that she does not share Paul's passion for music. Schuman then tells Paul that he has chosen him to perform the violin solo in Tchaikovsky's Concerto in D Major with the Zurich Philharmonic. Paul leaves Louise alone in Schuman's waiting room for hours while he practices the piece, and she finally gets angry and walks out. Paul finds Louise in her room packing, and although she is disheartened by the thought of always coming second to Paul's music, he persuades her to stay. Louise strikes up a friendship with James, and allows him to use her piano to practice. One day, Louise gets a telegram from her father asking her to join him in St. Moritz, and brings Paul with her. Nicholas concedes that the young man has a certain "arrogant charm," but warns Louise that Paul will never need her as much as she desires. As the date of his concert debut grows nearer, Paul gets into an argument with the conductor at a rehearsal, and when Schuman reproaches him, he walks out in anger. When Louise tries to console him, Paul bitterly blames himself for being unprepared. Schuman gives Paul another chance, and Paul tells Louise they must not see each other until after the concert. Louise reluctantly consents, and the lovers speak only on the phone during Paul's intensive rehearsal period. On the night of the concert, Paul performs with great passion, and is so much in demand after the show that Louise is again left waiting alone. Paul's career is immediately launched, but Louise feels excluded and takes no pleasure in his success. When Paul tells her he must continue to focus on his work, they quarrel and Louise walks out. From her apartment that night, Louise sees Paul kiss a pretty conservatory student and drive away with her. Later that night, Frau Sigerist hears a noise coming from Louise's room and goes to James for help. James breaks down the door, and they find Louise on the floor, unconscious from taking an overdose of pills. Nicholas is summoned, and is impressed by James's devotion to Louise during her recovery. When she is well again, Louise prepares to join her father in Paris. James asks her to stay, and although the now-hardened Louise lightly dismisses his protestations of love, his desperation moves her. Time passes, and Paul tours the world as a concert violinist. One day, after encountering Nicholas on the street in Paris, Paul calls Louise at the Ritz, and she happily agrees to meet him. While waiting for her in the bar, Paul sees James at a booth, drunk and miserable. Paul is surprised to learn that James married Louise several weeks earlier, and leaves the bar in disgust. Louise seeks Paul out at the concert hall and offers to divorce James, but while he admits he still loves her, he rejects her offer. A conversation with Nicholas convinces Louise that she needs to redeem herself in Paul's eyes by helping James, and she tells her husband they must go back to Zurich. James returns to the conservatory, and Louise patiently supports him through his long hours of practice. In time, James's first concert appearance is announced, and Louise sends her father a flyer with a note saying she wishes Paul knew she did it all for him. Nicholas passes the flyer to Paul after a concert, and Paul is pleased by the change in Louise. Soon afterward, Louise comes home and finds a letter slipped under her door. On the evening of James's concert debut, Louise tells him she is going away with Paul after the concert, and implores James to see that he can succeed without her. Despite his obvious suffering, James plays brilliantly, unaware that Louise is watching him from the back of the auditorium. Paul comes for Louise and finds her watching her husband with great emotion. After the concert, James is standing on the empty stage when Louise appears and rushes into his arms.

The growing ambition of Julius Caesar is a source of major concern to his close friend Brutus. Cassius persuades him to participate in his plot to assassinate Caesar but they have both sorely underestimated Mark Antony. Brutus, Cassius, and other high-ranking Romans murder Caesar, because they believe his ambition will lead to tyranny. The people of Rome are on their side until Antony, Caesar's right-hand man, makes a moving speech. The conspirators are driven from Rome, and two armies are formed: one side following the conspirators; the other, Antony. Antony has the superior force, and surrounds Brutus and Cassius, but they kill themselves to avoid capture. —John Oswalt <jao@jao.com> Brutus is convinced by a scheming band of Roman senators, led by Caius Cassius, that his dear friend Julius Caesar intends to dissolve the republic and install himself as monarch, and he joins a conspiracy to assassinate him. Brutus stirringly defends his actions, but when Mark Antony responds with a speech that plays upon the crowd's love for their fallen leader, a battle between the two factions is assured. —Jwelch5742

Arguably the Marx Brothers' funniest film, this comedy masterpiece contains several famous scenes, including the hilarious mirror sequence. The small state of Freedonia is in a financial mess, borrowing a huge sum of cash from wealthy widow Mrs. Teasdale. She insists on replacing the current president with crazy Rufus T. Firefly and mayhem erupts. To make matters worse, the neighboring state sends inept spies Chicolini and Pinky to obtain top secret information, creating even more chaos!

A district attorney and a reporter try to find the killer of a D.A. who uncovered a massive stock fraud. A district attorney is investigating a utility company's directors for fraud. He gets a call about some incriminating evidence, but it's a ploy to lure him to an apartment where he is gunned down. To make the shooting seem less like an effort to suppress the investigation, it's made it look like the district attorney was keeping a jealous mistress. Andy Terrell, his wisecracking newspaperman friend, is networked with practically everyone and gets curious. Things get complicated for the utility company directors because Lionel Houston, now the new district attorney, is dating Diane Cromwell, the daughter of utility director Grover Cromwell. Andy uses his connections in low places to ferret out information but runs afoul of the king-pin Bruno by dallying with his lady. The utility directors were using their purloined funds to gamble in other stocks. Suddenly, they have no funds left plus cooked books. One tells Grover that he knows how to get his hands on $1M in gold bullion. He thinks he has talked Grover into fleeing with him, but Grover decides to arrange for a train/car accident so that his insurance will provide for his daughter. Lionel is lured by Bruno to a meeting but brings reinforcements. —Garon Smith