Richard Carlson

Tom Stewart is a successful Jazz musician who has retreated to a small island where he intends to marry a girl named Meg Hubbard. However, trouble presents itself when Tom's old flame, Vi Mason shows up looking for him. Tom quickly takes Vi to the old lighthouse on the island. Tom explains that it's over between them, but Vi claims that she intends to blackmail Tom if she can't have him. However, as they go to the top of the lighthouse, the railing gives way, and Vi hangs from it, pleading for Tom to save her. However, he refuses to, and she plunges into the waters below. The next day, Tom goes down to the beach, and sees Vi's body floating out on the water. Swimming out to it and returning it to the beach, Tom is shocked when it then turns to seaweed before his very eyes! Meg's little sister Sandy shows up shortly after wondering what Tom is doing. As he requests she leave, something in the sand catches her eye. It appears to be a watch inscribed with the name 'Vi.' Tom takes the watch from Sandy, and once she leaves, he throws it back into the ocean, claiming that's the end of Vi. Tom returns to the lighthouse, where Meg eventually finds him. As they hug, Meg swears she smell perfume. Tom quickly ushers her out of the lighthouse down to the beach. However, as they talk, Tom swears he sees footprints in the sand following them. Meg sees nothing, and is surprised when Tom suggests they return to the main land to get married. Meg refuses to do so, claiming that this would upset her parents. Tom then returns to his island apartment, but even there, strange things happen. A record player in the corner starts by itself, frightening him. The blind housekeeper Mrs Ellis stops by. As their conversation turns to talk of the supernatural, the old woman explains about a house she once rented that was said to still contain the spirit of a dead boy and his dog. Tom soon after goes to sleep, but Vi even invades his dreams. Tom wakes in the evening, to see a light in the lighthouse. Going there and finding nothing, Tom declares to Vi that he is not going to live in fear of her, and that he will marry Meg. The next day, Sandy visits Tom, who shows him the ring that he intends to give Meg. However, Tom soon sees the ring appear on Vi's disembodied hand. When he attempts to tell Sandy about it, she has no idea what he's talking about. Soon, the hand disappears, and after Sandy leaves, Tom demands the ring back, but gets no response. Later on that evening, the family goes through several of the wedding gifts that have been received. Meg then decides to show Tom her gown, but is horrified to find the gown draped in wet seaweed, as well as a strange smell of sweet perfume in the air. The next day, Tom is visited by Mrs Ellis who wishes to talk about what happened the night before. When Tom brings up word about Vi, claiming her to be an old girlfriend who he met and quarreled with, Mrs Ellis suggests that Vi may have planted the seaweed, playing tricks to get even. After she leaves, Mrs Ellis goes by the old lighthouse, where her seeing-eye dog starts barking at. Thinking Vi may be inside, Mrs Ellis enters. Vi attempts to lure the old woman up the stairs and over the broken railing, but Mrs Ellis manages to stop herself before going over. Sometime afterwards, Meg's family is preparing for the pre-wedding party. Meg and Sandy's father arrives, and while he is happy to see his daughters and wife, he is still sour at the prospect of Meg marrying a jazz musician. Sandy later goes to the lighthouse looking for Tom, but is shocked when she comes across a man looking for Tom, and finds a pendant. Shortly afterwards, the man finds Tom in his beach house. The man has come to the island looking for Vi, claiming she owed him 5 dollars for the boat trip over. The remembered Vi mentioning Tom's name, and thought he'd know where Vi is. Tom is tight-lipped about Vi, but pays the man the 5 dollars, trying to get him away. The ferry boat driver stops at a small cafe, and overhears someone talking about Tom marrying Meg, which gives him an idea. Later that evening, a small pre-wedding party is hosted. Tom is freaked out when an instant photo shows Vi's head floating near him and Meg. When Meg notices Tom's nervous demeanor, Tom confesses to knowing Vi, and finally shows her the photo...only for Meg to see no floating head in the shot as Tom mentioned. This mention of Vi causes Meg to seem rather thoughtful later on during the night. The next day, Tom attempts to practice at his piano, but is interrupted when Vi's disembodied head appears on a table. Vi claims that she will now use her voice to tell the world that Tom killed her. As she starts chanting 'Tom Stewart killed me,' Tom wraps her head in a towel and heads out the door, only to drop the head, which turns into a vase of flowers. He is the accosted by the same boat driver, who has found a locket of Vi's. When Tom attempts to take it, the man smiles, knowing he has information that Tom doesn't others to know about. Tom and the ferryman go to the lighthouse, where the ferryman tells Tom he wants $5000 as payment to be kept quiet. Tom suddenly hears Vi's voice, pushing him to kill the ferryman, and Tom does so to keep his secrets. Unknown to Tom, Sandy was in the lighthouse, and secretly witnessed the killing. The wedding is held and Vi's ghost shows up to open the door, wilt flowers, and turn the pages in the minister's book to the funeral service litany. Tom returns to the lighthouse after the failed wedding to see if Vi's ghost will appear. After seeing the light on, Sandy arrives and Tom realizes she saw him kill the ferryman. He lures her upstairs and is tempted to push her off the lighthouse, but Vi charges forward to push him off the ledge to the rocks below. Now a surprise waits when both Tom and Vi are recovered later.

Introduction: As the narrator reads the Genesis story of the Creation, we see images on the screen. Opening scene In the jungles of the upper Amazon, Dr Carl Maia (Antonio Moreno ) has discovered a fossilized claw. Excited, he explains to the native workers that he needs to go back to the institute on the coast to get help to dig out the rest of the fossil. Hidden from view, a claw, similar to the one found in the fossil, rears out onto a river bank, then slides back into the water. At the institute Dr David Reed (Richard Carlson) meets Maia, who seems surprised to find Reed in Brazil. Reed explains they're researching lung fish. The rest of the conversation centers around Maia remembering when Reed was a student. Maia asks Reed about why he never married Kay Lawrence (Julie Adams) He explains she's never been able to talk him into it. Maia then shows Reed a photo of the fossil he found and believes it is hundreds of million years old. Reed immediately takes an interest and wants to go back up river to recover the rest of the fossil. At the institute discussions occur about the meaning of the fossil, it is generally agreed it was an amphibian and probably very strong. Dr Williams (Richard Denning) agrees the fossil is a major find, and as one of the directors gives the go ahead for a larger expedition to go back up river and dig the rest of it out. Back at the campsite it is night and the workers are preparing to settle down for the night. One sees a creature enter the tents and kills both occupants. Sometime later the expedition is making its way upstream on the Rita, a battered motor vessel with little comfort. Captain Lucas (Nestor Paiva) explains how deadly and large all the life around the Amazon River is. The boat docks and the crew quickly discover the campsite has been destroyed and the men are dead. They consider it could have been a jaguar. . Despite the situation the crew clean up the camp and work begins retrieving the fossil. After eight days no fossil remains are found. Reed figures that perhaps the fossil had been washed away from the river bank, and the remains might be located further downstream in a lagoon, The Black Lagoon. Capt Lucas explains that many people have gone to the lagoon over the years, but none have come back. Reed and Kay have a romantic moment as the boat is moved. They discuss their plans to marry and settle down together. The boat pushes towards the lagoon, it is a very tight fit through a section of the river, but it soon opens up to the lagoon. Reed Reed and Williams break out the aqua-lungs to dive the lagoon and investigate the local life forms. The men successfully complete their mission not realizing they are being stalked by the creature. Williams is jealous of the attention Kay is giving to Reed. To break the tension she goes for a swim. The creature swims along with her, mimicking some of her swimming moves, unsure what to make of the situation. At one point it briefly grazes her leg while she is floating on the surface. Rather than be surprised, she dives to investigate, further firing the creature's curiosity. Back on board, the boat is upset by the pressure being put on the net. Quickly they try to haul the net in, only to discover a huge tear in the net and what appears to be a fang or claw. Kay begins to wonder now exactly what might have touched her while swimming. Williams decides to go back down and hunt whatever is in the lagoon. Reed opposes the course of action, but is over ruled. While on the dive the two men catch sight of the creature and attempt to shoot it with a spear fishing gun. They hit it once but it escapes before they can capture it. Lucas tells the men when they get back on board that there was an old river legend about a gill man who lived underwater. Reed things he has photographed the creature but the images appear blank. On deck one of the men is attacked and dragged into the water by the creature. Lucas tells the team about a native poison he has which makes fish come to the surface. All agree it is a good idea and begin spreading it over the lagoon. After some time a huge number of fish float to the surface but no sign of the creature. They surmise the poison is not getting down deep enough and create some pellets to flush the creature from the bottom. They wait for hours well into the night with no result. As the survey the lagoon the creature, unaffected by the poison ,attempts to climb into the boat . He is frightened by the light of a lantern. They see a trail of bubbles leading to the bank. When they fix a search light on it, the creature suddenly rears up, roars and disappears. Reed and Willliams follow the creature, discovering a cave hidden by the bank. They begin tracking footprints through the sand. The creature doubles back on the men. Reaching the boat it kills one of the crew then attempts to kidnap Kay. Wounded and suffering the effects of the drugs, the creature collapses. Reed and Williams build a makeshift cage and contain the creature, then go back to document the cave and leave doctor Thompson (Whit Bissell) and Kay discuss what the future holds. The creature breaks free and attacks Thompson. He has the presence of mind to smash a lantern over the creature setting it on fire but is gravely injured. Williams wants to stay try and recapture the creature. Reed and the rest of the team argue that with four people dead, the best thing is leave with the evidence and data they have. Williams clashes with Lucas who pulls a knife on Williams and explains they are leaving right now. As the boat heads out of the lagoon, it is blocked by a snag that was not there before. It is assumed the creature did this to stop them from leaving. They try to clear the snag with a winch but the obstruction is too heavy. Infuriated, the creature breaks the links, bringing attempt to an end. Reed decides to try again using the aqualung. He and Williams again clash, this time ending with Williams being knocked out. Reed then goes over the side. While preoccupied with the work he does not see the creature until Williams appears and tries to shoot the animal with the spear gun. On the second attempt he manages to hit the creature, but loses him. The creature counter attacks and drags Williams into the depths. A life and death struggle continues till Reed, realizing the dange,r comes to the rescue. Defeated, the creature once again retreats to the depths, leaving a badly injured Williams floating on the surface. Williams is ultimately killed in the attack. The team decides to try the poison again, this time just to slow the creature down while they try to clear the snag. Reed goes back into the water armed with the poison and begins work on the snag. Reed waits for the creature to get to very close range and fires twice, enveloping the creature in the paralyzing poison. Reed tries yet a third time before succeeding. The plan works and the lagoon is cleared. Preoccupied by the activity they don't see the creature climb on board. The creature spots Kay and drags her over the side, taking her back to his cave. Reed follows armed once again with the spear gun. Reed finds Kay but the creature stops the rescue by attacking Reed. Two of the crew coming from the beach entrance of the cave open fire hitting him multiple times. The creature retreats back into the water badly injured. Reed stops the men from finishing the job, allowing the creature to slink back to the depths, possibly to die. chapman_glen@yahoo.com

A fireball streaks across the desert sky and crashes. We see an aerial view of Sand Rock, Arizona in the late evening in the early spring. Inside an isolated ranch house outside of town we meet John Putnam (Richard Carlson) and his girlfriend Ellen Fields (Barbara Rush). He is an amateur astronomer, she the local school teacher. They sit in front of a fire in his partially completed home enjoying a cup of coffee. They walk outside to take in the night air when they spot the "meteor" from the opening shot. From inside the crater, by the old Excelsior Mine, we see a sphere partially exposed that looks like a soccer ball. A hexagonal shaped "door" opens and we see some weird machinery and in shadow one of the occupants--a single eyed blob of a creature. It exits the ship and explores the desert leaving in its wake a shimmery trail. John and Ellen charter Pete Davis (Dave Willock) to take them to the crater in his helicopter. They circle the crater and land near the rim. The three climb to the top and peer inside. John walks down to the floor of the newly formed crater insisting that Ellen and Pete stay up on the rim. John sees the ship partially buried in the side of the mine, and also notices the shimmery substance near the exit of the ship. He stretches his hand out to touch the glowing material, but hesitates when he notices something inside the ship and stands up to face it. The door closes and slams shut triggering an avalanche of loose debris, burying the ship and almost killing John. John climbs back out of the crater and explains what he saw, but Ellen and Pete do not believe him. Two cars approach the crater. Pete and Ellen beg John not to discuss what he saw--they think he was imagining it. Sheriff Matt Warren (Charles Drake) and Dave Loring (Alan Dexter), who runs the local newspaper, arrive on the scene. John starts to relay his story and the disbelief and ridicule starts. Three more cars arrive at the crater. John, Ellen, and Pete fly back to the airport. John and Ellen drive back to his house. Along the way they are being observed. They encounter the creature on the highway as it appears to block their path on the road. John pulls to the side of the road thinking they hit it. Finding nothing they continue down the road. The next morning the crater is a buzz of activity. A KLTV television news van pulls up. The Sheriff's office has set up a cordon around the crater admitting only authorized personnel. The military has sent a small group out to explore. John and Ellen arrive only to be hounded by the press. John is there to meet with Dr. Snell. Dugan (Robert Carson) from American Press, and Lober (Dick Pinner) from Press Dispatch want to question John about the Sand Rock Star newspaper headline, "Star Gazer Sees Martians". They get no answers and turn their attention to Ellen, who is equally reluctant to talk to the press. John walks down into the crater to talk to Dr. Snell (George Eldredge). His assistant, Bob (Bradford Jackson) is taking radioactivity measurements, but finds none. Snell is convinced it was just a meteor, and refuses Johns request to dig it out. As John heads back to his car, where Ellen was patiently waiting, he is confronted by Matt. He has known Ellen a long time and is concerned about her involvement with John. He is jealous. John and Ellen drive off. As they are driving the see the county telephone linemen, George (Russell Johnson), and his boss, Frank (Joe Sawyer). John asks them if they've seen anything. Frank tells them he's hearing something very strange on the wires. Frank and George head down the road and encounter the creature. As he exits the truck, George is attacked and "globbed" or absorbed. John and Ellen suspect something is wrong and turn around and head back in the same direction that George and Frank took. They find the empty telephone truck on the side of the road. John retrieves his gun from the car and they begin their search, starting with the truck. John notices blood on the truck door and the shimmery trail, a telltale sign of the xenomorph. George appears to them, but is behaving very strangely. John notices Frank's arm on the ground, unmoving, the rest of his body is hidden behind a boulder. John and Ellen head back to town to get the Sheriff. John states his conclusion that Frank is dead, and it appears that George was the perpetrator. The xenomorph, now masquerading as George explains things to the human George and Frank. The Sheriff reluctantly agrees to accompany John and Ellen back out to where they encountered George and Frank, but when they arrive the truck and any evidence is gone. The three drive back to town. The Sheriff returns to his office, but John notices George and Frank walking through town. John follows and confronts them. They warn John not to interfere. Back at the Excelsior Mine, miners Sam (Edgar Dearing) and Toby (Warren MacGregor) are building a fire just outside the mine opening. They are waiting for Tom (George Selk) to return with food. Tom and his mule are just about back to the mine when the mule is spooked, and runs off. Tom turns around and is confronted by the xenomorph and is "globbed" or absorbed. Sam and Toby think they hear something in the mine and enter it. As they exit the mine they are met by the creature and are also a globbed. John and Ellen are summoned to see the Sheriff that evening. Frank's wife (Virginia Mullen) and George's girlfriend Jane Dean (Kathleen Hughes) have reported them acting strangely and now missing. Their clothes are also missing. The sheriff questions John because he appears to be the last one to have spoken to either of them. Ellen takes Mrs. Daylon and Jane home in John's car. John stays with Matt to discuss the situation; he tells Matt that Frank and George are in fact the creatures from the space craft stuck in the crater. The sheriff tells John that electrical equipment has been stolen from the hardware store and that Dr. Snell and his assistant, Bob, have been reported missing. John and Matt go out to the crater and find Dr. Snell's car, but no trace of Snell or Bob. Ellen is driving alone on the highway when she encounters Frank standing in the middle of the highway. She stops and he gets into the car. Frank instructs Ellen to take him to the mine. Back at the Sheriff's office, the phone rings. It is for John, and he is informed that the xenomorphs have Ellen. The Sheriff and John drive out into the desert. John exits the car and searches for Ellen. He sees what appears to be Ellen on a ridgeline in a cocktail dress. He follows her. She leads him to the opening to the mine shaft. A voice from inside the mine tells John that they are repairing their ship and will be leaving that night. The missing townsfolk are being held hostage. John begs to see the creature as it really is. It shows itself and John is horrified and repelled. He returns to see Matt who has been waiting by the car. Matt drops John off at his house. John notices the door unlocked and a shimmering trail leading back to an empty closed. All of his clothes are missing. The Sheriff gives orders to clear everyone away from the crater. John tells Matt that he got a visit and his clothes are missing. Frank appears in town just outside the Sheriff's office. Matt is spoiling for a confrontation with the creature impersonating the lineman, but John restrains him. They fight. Frank drives off in his telephone truck. The Sheriff forms an impromptu posse as John steals his police car and heads off to the crater. The Sheriff intends to confront Frank on the highway. Taking a shortcut through the desert, he forms a vehicle barricade across the highway. As Frank approaches, the posse opens fire. The truck careens off the highway and hits a boulder and bursts into flame. Meanwhile John arrives at the mine entrance and enters. He finds alien Ellen. She tells John they only need a few more hours. She then attacks him with a wand that emits a beam that cuts through rock, but misses. He shoots her with his gun and she falls into a lake below and dissolves. The posse arrives outside as John continues his exploration of the old mine. He hears machinery and finds the aliens in their human form making repairs to their ship. The head xenomorph has assumed John's identity. He explains their mission and the equipment's power. John demands Ellen's release as a sign of good faith. Alien John reciprocates by ordering all the hostages released. As they depart the mine, alien John resumes his alien form. John seals the mine entrance with dynamite to keep the posse away from the aliens. The ground begins to rumble and the ship departs, streaking across the sky.

Perky young Nanette attempts to save the marriage of her uncle and aunt by untangling Uncle Jimmy from several innocent but ensnaring flirtations. Attempting one such unentanglement, Nanette enlists the help of theatrical producer Bill Trainor, who promptly falls in love with her. The same thing happens when artist Tom Gillespie is called on for help. But soon Uncle Jimmy's flirtations become too numerous, and Nanette's romances with Tom and Bill run into trouble. Will Uncle Jimmy's marriage survive, and will Nanette find happiness with Tom, Bill, or somebody else? —Jim Beaver <jumblejim@prodigy.net>

The ghosts of three elderly industrialists killed in an airplane crash return to Earth to help reunite a young couple they initially brought together. Melton (Harry Carey), Chadwick (C. Aubrey Smith) and O'Brien (Charles Winninger), rich but lonely heads of an engineering firm, invite three strangers to dinner on Christmas Eve. Only two show up, James (Richard Carlson) and Jean (Jean Parker). They fall in love and become friends with their three benefactors, until the latter are killed in a plane crash and come back to their old home as ghosts. In the coming months, true love encounters some rough spots. Can ghostly O'Brien help the young folks? —Rod Crawford <puffinus@u.washington.edu> Christmas Eve. Michael O'Brien (Charles Winninger), George Melton (Harry Carey) and Allan Chadwick (C. Aubrey Smith) are three aging friends and millionaires businessmen that live alone in a mansion with Josef (Alex Melesh), the butler, and Madam Tanya (Maria Ouspenskaya), the innkeeper. After knowing that their party guests can't celebrate with them because one of them is sick, the three old men decide make a bet about the existence the goodness on the people, throwing by the window three wallets with ten dollars and a calling card, hoping that someone returns (the loser pays a dinner to the people that take back any wallet). Although the first wallet lost, the other two are found and returned in an independent way by two young ones, aspiring singer James Houston (Richard Carlson) and Jean Lawrence (Jean Parker), who works as teacher in a children's hospital. Meeting in the home of O'Brien, Melton and Chadwick, Houston and Lawrence fall in love, making a strong friendship with the old men and helping to these ones to recovery the joyful of life. But when the three travel to Pittsburgh by business reasons, their airplane crashes and they die, returning as ghosts to their former house. Josef and Madam Tanya ask Houston and Lawrence to live with them at the house, to have someone for whom to care. Having a chance to sing on the radio, Houston meets beautiful performer Arlene Terry (Helen Vinson), who put her eye on Houston, causing a distancing between he and Lawrence. It causes O'Brien, Melton and Chadwick try to help the innocent Houston to stay away from manipulative Terry and Jace Taylor (James Bush)--Terry's ex-husband and a singer in professional decline. Can the three old men save the situation and reunite Houston and Lawrence before the afterlife calls them to pass away from Earth? —Chockys It's Christmas Eve, and elderly Allan Chadwick (C.Aubrey Smith), George Melton (Harry Carey) and Michael O'Brien (Charles Winninger), the partners of Chadwick, Melton and O'Brien Engineers located in Radio Center in New York City, are working late as usual before having a small dinner party at their home, which also serves as their office. While they treat their servants as friends, such as Josef (Alex Melesh) the butler and especially Madam Tanya (Maria Ouspenskaya) their housekeeper, she a deposed Russian countess (Josef her longtime servant before the two came to the US), they realize that they have lost many friends over the years in being workaholics when their dinner guests cancel at the last minute due to unforeseen circumstances, George further believing their cancellation stemming from they learning of his attendance and not wanting to associate with him due to an unseemly issue from his past. Wanting to spend the evening with who they consider deserving people, Michael comes up with an idea to hold a lottery of sorts to find those replacement dinner guests with only the truly deserving who would come forward. Who shows up are James Houston (Richard Carlson), a Texas cowboy feeling emotionally lost in New York City, and Jean Lawrence (Jean Parker), a kindergarten teacher at a children's clinic. This entire collective end up as close friends, but that friendship is short-lived when the three partners are unexpectedly killed in an accident. Before they are called to their final afterlife resting place where they will spend eternity, Allan, George and Michael return as spirits to their home, Michael in particular who believes they sent back to ensure their friends are well taken care of, especially that there is a happily ever after for James and Jean who he could see were falling in love with each other. However, Michael may feel powerless, especially within the short time-frame he has before he goes to his final resting place, as he watches James, who becomes a singing star, take a wrong path in falling under the spell of his stage partner Arlene Terry (Helen Vinson), whom Michael considers a soulless woman. —Huggo The ghosts of three elderly industrialists (Harry Carey as George, C. Aubrey Smith as Allen, and (Charles Winninger as Michael) killed in an airplane crash return to Earth to help reunite a young couple (Richard Carlson as James, and Jean Parker as Jean) they initially brought together.

The film is set in colonial Virginia between the 1750s and 1781. Matt Howard (Cary Grant), orphaned son of a backwoods Virginia farmer, uses his connections with his schoolmate Tom Jefferson to get employment as a surveyor and acquire a thousand acres on the Shenandoah. While surveying the Williamsburg estate of planter Fleetwood Peyton (Cedric Hardwicke) he meets Peyton's sister Jane (Martha Scott). For both of them it is eternal love at first glance, and despite differences of class and culture, and the enmity of Fleetwood, Jane marries Matt and follows him to his cabin in the west country. Within a few years, the estate is thriving and the cabin on the hillside has become a gracious colonial home. There are minor conflicts with neighbors over manners, but the Howards successfully raise a clutch of 3 children. The one major instability is over the eldest son, Peyton Howard, whose looks remind Matt of his hated brother-in-law, and whom Matt therefore cannot love or even bring himself to touch. As time passes, and conflict with England looms, Matt is sent by his neighbors to the House of Burgesses in Williamsburg, where he and Fleetwood represent the extreme rebel and Tory positions. In 1776, the entire family moves back to Williamsburg as Indian attacks threatens, and after the passage of the Virginia resolution for independence, Matt leaves to fight the British under General Washington. A few years later, after quarreling with their uncle over their father's rebel stand, Peyton and his younger brother James are expelled from the Peyton home, and they too go north to join up with their father, and Peyton is accepted as dispatch rider for Washington. Listening unseen to his two sons arguing over the merits of the rebellion, Matt Howard realizes that Peyton is closer to his own principles and political beliefs than his beloved James, and he tries to communicate his regrets over his behavior towards his son. But war gets in the way: Peyton is sent with a message for Lafayette, and we see him shot off his horse by a British patrol. Matt and the rest of the army trudge south to meet the British army, which is bottled up near Yorktown. When the army reaches Williamsburg, Matt forces his way into Washington's presence and asks after Peyton: his mission had been to draw the British fire so that other messengers could get through, but he was merely wounded and is recuperating back at home. At Fleetwood Peyton's house Matt finds his son and they reunite, together with their mother and the rest of the Howards. The odd man out is Fleetwood, who has become cynical and bitter at the outcome of the war and what he sees as the destruction of Tidewater society. The film was commercially unsuccessful despite an excellent cast; Cary Grant was out of his element playing a backwoods American, and the script, though literate, was not really strong. The political conflict, though real enough, is never argued intelligently: Matt and Fleetwood seem to be merely acting out their class positions. And the class conflict within the marriage never really surfaces, as Jane's backwoods estate is miraculously transformed into a Tara. The time scheme of the story also seems inconsistent. Matt is 12 when his father is killed with Braddock in the French and Indian War (1755), so he was born in 1743. His sons are supposedly 18 and 16 when they join Washington's army at Valley Forge (1777-8), so they were born in 1760 and 1762. This would require Matt to be 16, or even younger, when he courts Jane Peyton. But neither of them is supposed to be an adolescent, and of course the actors playing them, Cary Grant and Martha Scott, were 35 and 27 when the film was made.