Tony Maietta:
Hello. I'm film historian Tony Maietta.

Brad Shreve:
And I'm Brad Shreve, who's just a guy who likes movies.

Tony Maietta:
We discuss movies and television from Hollywood's golden age. We go behind the scenes and share our opinions too.

Brad Shreve:
And of course, being the average guy, my opinions are the ones that matter.

Tony Maietta:
As does your self delusion. Welcome to going Hollywood.

Brad Shreve:
Tony, before we begin, I've got to stop and tell you, you look fabulous. You're so refreshed. You're so refreshed. Did you go somewhere?

Tony Maietta:
Well, thank you so much, Brad. Yes, I did. As a matter of fact, you know what? I was— I just got back. I went down to the shore with some friends. I think you might know a couple of them. I met Palm Springs Paulie and Big Mike and Pool Boy. Oh, oh, you know who else was there? Uh, Rudely Rudely Johnston. Do you know him? Do you know Rudely Rudely Johnston?

Brad Shreve:
Who doesn't?

Tony Maietta:
Oh yeah. Oh, but you know, guess who showed up at the end in trouble like always?

Brad Shreve:
Annie.

Tony Maietta:
No, Banana Barbara. She's always in trouble with the— she's always got something going on, some kind of scheme going on. So she came in and we all had— we had to help her out. It was nuts. It was nuts, but I had a great, great time. But I'm telling you one thing, I am not gonna go traveling with Big Mike anymore 'cause he just gets me in all kinds of trouble. That's all I'm saying right now about that.

Brad Shreve:
That is a ragtag group of friends that you have. I bet you picked 'em up off the LA streets.

Tony Maietta:
Sounds a little bit like a Damon Runyon group of people, doesn't it? Cast of characters.

Brad Shreve:
You mean the one they made today's movie about? Lady for a Day from 1933?

Tony Maietta:
Hey, you, you just took my job there, buddy.

Brad Shreve:
Hey, what, what'd I say?

Tony Maietta:
Yes. Yes, everybody. That was a little shout out to our, our film for today, Lady, Lady for a Day from Columbia in 1933, because it's based on a Damon Runyon story. And anybody who knows Guys and Dolls, anybody who knows The Big Street knows that that's what Damon, or anybody who knows Lady for a Day, or the short story that Lady for a Day is based on, Madame La Gimpe. knows that's how he does his characters. So that was a little fun little thing we just did for you there. Because I don't know Rudely, Rudely Johnston. I don't.

Tony Maietta:
I wish I did, but I don't.

Brad Shreve:
I want to read the short story because I love the story itself. And it's a short story, so it's something I should be able to fit in. I look forward to it. And I also want to talk about the— is it '62 or '63 that they did Pocketful of Miracles?

Tony Maietta:
Pocketful of Miracles, I think— 61. It's neither.

Brad Shreve:
We won't get too into it. I want to talk a little bit because I can't tell you which one I preferred.

Tony Maietta:
Before we go any further, we need to say something about— there might be some issues with Brad's sound right now. We're having some technical difficulties. Sounds pretty good to me. So yeah, it sounded good to us, but I just wanted to let everybody know that so they're not like trying to adjust their phone and going, why does Brad sound Different. So just, just let everybody know.

Brad Shreve:
Such is life.

Tony Maietta:
Just gotta take the rough with the smooth, baby, like they say in Gypsy. Yeah, so we're talking about Lady for a Day today, which— hold on to your phones, everybody— I let Brad pick one. This was Brad's choice.

Brad Shreve:
Yes.

Tony Maietta:
Tell me, Brad, before we get going, why did you want to talk about Lady for a Day? I think I know, but tell me anyway.

Brad Shreve:
Because I remember watching Pocketful of Miracles numerous times and really enjoying it with my mom. Oh, it's not a guilty pleasure, but whenever I watch it as an adult, I'm like, it's kind of slow.

Tony Maietta:
Yeah.

Brad Shreve:
But I really love the story, and I love it enough that I watch it over and over again. So I'd like to see the original and see how they did it compared to The Bette Davis version.

Tony Maietta:
Well, when we talked about Red-Headed Woman, we had the woman herself here. We had May Robeson, who's definitely a friend of this pod. We've talked about May Robeson now. I think she's almost up there with Joan Crawford. We've talked about her in Bringing Up Baby. We talked about her in Red-Headed Woman. We talked about her in A Star Is Born. Now we're talking about— this is her 4th appearance with us.

Tony Maietta:
And I think that's what I mentioned, that she played Lady for— she was in Lady for a Day. And I think that's what Because you didn't know that Pocketful of Miracles was a remake of Lady for a Day, did you?

Brad Shreve:
No. When we were doing the movie and I looked up May Robson's filmography, and I read what that movie was about, I'm like, that's the Pocketful of Miracles. I didn't know that was a remake. So it was nice to watch the original.

Tony Maietta:
Yeah. So we'll talk a little bit about Pocketful of Miracles. I am not a fan personally of Pocketful of Miracles because I'm not really a Glenn Ford fan. And he plays—

Brad Shreve:
Oh my God. That's one of the reasons I love it. But anyway, we'll go on.

Tony Maietta:
He plays the Dave the Dude character. So Lady for a Day, I guess, is based on a— well, first of all, I'll say what it is. It's an American Pre-Code— hi, another Pre-Code— comedy drama directed by none other than Frank Capra. We have— this is our first Frank Capra film. Do you realize that?

Brad Shreve:
No, that's actually shocking. I was thinking that you don't like Frank Capra, and I realized, no, I think that because you don't like Jimmy Stewart.

Tony Maietta:
Well, I don't dislike Jimmy Stewart. I'm just not a huge Jimmy— I, you know, I have other— Cary Grant, I prefer. I prefer William Powell. I'm just not huge— I prefer Henry Fonda. I'm just not a huge Jimmy Stewart fan.

Brad Shreve:
So he's not way up there on your list?

Tony Maietta:
He's not way up there. And so therefore, It's a Wonderful Life is not way up there. However, I do like— I do love Frank Capra. And it is kind of shocking that this is the first time we're talking about Frank Capra, because Frank Capra is one of the— I mean, if there was a Mount Rushmore of directors from the Golden Age, his face would be right up there with William Wyler and John Ford. I mean, you can't get more American director than Frank Capra, even though he's from Italy. My paisan, he's from Italy. Still, you can't get much more American iconic director than Frank Capra.

Brad Shreve:
I had no idea.

Tony Maietta:
You didn't know that?

Brad Shreve:
I didn't know he was Italian.

Tony Maietta:
Capra, of course. He was born Francesco Rosario Capra. So yeah, he's very Italiano, and he was born in Italy. But we'll get into the background of that. But I think one of the reasons why we haven't talked about Capra is because Capra's era was really the '30s. And when you think about Frank Capra, what do you think about? You think about— well, I guess you can think about It's a Wonderful Life. We do now. Not a hit when it was released.

Tony Maietta:
But you think about It Happened One Night. You think about You Can't Take It With You. You think about—

Stephanie:
Mr.

Tony Maietta:
Smith Goes to Washington. You think about these iconic films of the '30s, and no, we haven't talked about them. So shame on us for taking so long to get to Frank Capra, but I'm glad we're doing it today.

Brad Shreve:
I am too. This was a good choice.

Tony Maietta:
Why did you— so why did you choose this, Brad? Because you wanted to see how Pocketful of Miracles changed from this?

Brad Shreve:
No, no, because I was so disappointed in Pocketful of Miracles, but I loved the story so much. that I have issues with the story, but I love this story so much that I wanted to see if it was done better. Because as much as I love Pocketful of Miracles, it's seriously flawed. And I was hoping this would be a better version.

Tony Maietta:
Well, I think the reason for this, to watch this film, it is a very charming film, is the lady herself, is May Robson. And I want to say, you know, the past couple leading ladies we've had have been kind of A little, a little seriously almost underage.

Brad Shreve:
Yeah. Okay.

Tony Maietta:
We had a 17-year-old Elizabeth Taylor. We had 22-year-old Barbra Streisand. And now we have 75 years young Mae Robeson.

Brad Shreve:
You realize she was born before the Civil War began.

Stephanie:
Crazy. Crazy.

Tony Maietta:
No, she was, she was 75 years old when she did this. And 1933, she celebrated her 50th year in show business. business when she did this film. And kind of ironically, in this film, Apple Annie— she plays a part of Apple Annie— she really is a supporting player in this, even though she was nominated for Best Actress. Her major chunk of the film is at the very beginning, and then she just kind of comes in and out and in and out. So that's something I want to talk about with the film. But before we go into that, we want to tell the people what Lady for a Day Do you want to do that?

Brad Shreve:
Absolutely. Apple Annie is a— she's not homeless, but she's definitely a down-and-out woman that peddles apples around Times Square. And there's Dave the Dude, who, uh, he is a gangster who whenever he has a deal coming up, he buys an apple from Annie. So he really depends on Annie because that's his good luck charm. And, uh, Annie has been, uh, paying through her apples to have her daughter going to school in Spain.

Tony Maietta:
Ah, how about that? Did you ever run into her?

Brad Shreve:
Isn't that something?

Tony Maietta:
Isn't that something?

Brad Shreve:
I never met her.

Tony Maietta:
Oh, too bad.

Brad Shreve:
And, uh, her daughter is coming to the USA. Her daughter has never seen her because Annie has gone under the guise that she is too sickly to travel. And so her daughter is coming to the USA to bring her fiancé and his father to meet her society mother. And so Dave the Dude has to make Annie into a society woman and put on a show so her daughter doesn't learn the truth.

Tony Maietta:
Yes, that's it exactly. That's it exactly. The gangster Dave the Dude and his group of helpers staged this whole elaborate deception to make Apple Annie into Lady for a Day. That's where the title comes from.

Brad Shreve:
And obviously comedy ensues.

Tony Maietta:
Comedy and drama. It's a comedy.

Brad Shreve:
Yes. Yes, there is a sequel.

Tony Maietta:
It's a comedy drama. It is indeed a pre-code film. However, this is one instance in which we're not going to say, oh, this— there are some things we'll talk about that probably would not have flown in 19— after the code came down. However, this doesn't have the plot of Baby Face. This doesn't have the plot of—

Brad Shreve:
And he wasn't screwing every gangster in town.

Tony Maietta:
No. Exactly, exactly. She's a 75-year-old apple seller. So she's definitely— there are some questions about when this film was, if this film was to be made after 1934, because we get the hints that Annie's daughter, she probably had her out of, you know, out of wedlock. She probably was not married when she had her daughter and sent her to live in this convent in Spain. And also the treatment of the gangsters probably would not have been as— they probably wouldn't have treated the gangsters so magnanimously.

Brad Shreve:
Yes.

Tony Maietta:
In this film if this was after 1934. So thank God it's not. It's a Pre-Code. Fantastic.

Brad Shreve:
There's a couple other things, but they're, they're really tame. We'll probably get into them.

Tony Maietta:
So this is the unusual Pre-Code film we're talking about in which the heroine is not sleeping her way to the top. But anyway, so yes, so Brad hit the points again, based on a short story called Madame La Gimp by Damon Runyon. Damon Runyon also wrote, as I said, Guys and Dolls. which is not the name of the story, is called The Idol of Sarah Brown, I believe. If I'm wrong, don't hate me. I believe that's what the story is called that Guys and Dolls is based on, but we're not talking about Guys and Dolls. So this film, again, nominated for 4 Academy Awards. This was really the first important success for Frank Capra and Columbia Pictures.

Tony Maietta:
4 Oscar nominations, Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress, and Best Adapted Screenplay. The screenplay was by one of Capra's stalwart co-workers, stalwart colleagues, Robert Riskin. He wrote so many Capra films. One year after this, Capra got all the marbles because the year after this was the iconic screwball It Happened One Night, in which— which won everything.

Stephanie:
Won film.

Tony Maietta:
one director, one actor, one actress, just off the charts. This was the year before, but this was very important to Capra's career and to Columbia Studios because this was really their first big, big splash as a studio.

Brad Shreve:
Yeah, they made not a small chunk of change for that time period. Huge.

Tony Maietta:
No, they didn't. They didn't. They didn't. So also in line with the marvelous Mae Robeson as Apple Annie, we said some of these actors we have, we have Warren William, who plays Dave the Dude. And as I just was doing at our beginning, you know, all of Capra's— all of Runyon's characters have these kind of adjectives. I think that's an adjective applied to their names. So we have Warren William as Dave the Dude. We have the wonderful Guy Cabot as Henry Blake, Glenda Farrell as Missouri Martin, Ned Sparks— my favorite character— as Happy McGuire.

Tony Maietta:
Uh, we have Jean Parker as Annie's daughter Louise, Barry Norton as Carlos, Walter Connolly as Count Romero, and finally Nat Pendleton as Shakespeare. Uh, the handful of these are all part of Dave the Dude's entourage, basically his gang of gangsters. And I think we should talk to people about what a dude is, because people might be confused by this. It's not Dave the Dude as in, hey dude, like we think of now, okay? It's not a surfer dude. A dude, back before, you know, surfers took it over and it became part of the nomenclature in Southern California, a dude was like a city slicker. A dude was like a dandy. A dude was a guy who looked good and was sharp and might be a little, you know, might be a little sleazy. So that is, uh, what a dude is.

Tony Maietta:
So his name is Dave the Dude, and he is A dude for sure in that respect.

Brad Shreve:
And as you're listing off those names, it came to me, I'm like, you could be listing off characters from Goodfellas because they all had nicknames.

Tony Maietta:
It's that New York, it's that Damon Runyon New Yorkese. It's, that's the whole, you know, it's the same thing. Everybody with their nicknames. Lucky Luciano, his name wasn't Lucky. That wasn't his first name, you know what I'm saying?

Brad Shreve:
Yep, yep.

Tony Maietta:
So, should we go to why— what your thoughts are on this, Brad? How you felt about this before we go into the background and all that stuff we do?

Brad Shreve:
Yeah, my feelings are really mixed. I will say, I definitely think it's a better film than Pocketful of Miracles. I'm gonna try not to base it on that, but it stands out for that reason. Because I will tell you, May Robson just knocks it out of the park. She is wonderful as Apple Annie, far better than Bette Davis was as Apple Annie. She's actually the most difficult part of the movie because she's really good, doesn't have that many funny lines, if I can think of any. Hers are pretty tragic. It's everybody around her that's funny, trying to make things better for her.

Tony Maietta:
But she is funny in it. That's the thing. She's a very— she's a funny character, Apple Annie is, but she's also a tragic character because she's a—

Brad Shreve:
Most definitely.

Tony Maietta:
She's a, you know, I hate to use the word drunk, but that's what she is. And they show her drinking, even though the doctor told her it would kill her. She is, you know, she lives in a flat on, we think, probably down by the wharf. You know, she sells apples for a living, to make her living, and basically put her daughter through this convent in Spain to take care of her daughter. And what's amazing about May Robson in this, and I think in her interpretation of Apple Annie, and this is just in the beginning part of the film, because as I said, in the second part of the film, once the plan's underway and she becomes a lady, We kind of lose all personality here. She's suddenly not that interesting anymore.

Brad Shreve:
She's actually not even in it that much, really. She's talked about a lot.

Tony Maietta:
She becomes a supporting character.

Brad Shreve:
That's why William has the top billing, just like Glenn Ford had top billing in Pocketful of Miracles. Annie's character kind of— she sets the stage, but everything else is around Dave and the gang.

Tony Maietta:
Yeah, she really becomes a supporting player. Once she becomes a lady, it's kind of like My Fair Lady. It's kind of like the most interesting part of My Fair Lady is before she becomes a lady. But what's unfortunate about this film and Pocketful of Miracles is we don't see the process at all of Annie becoming a lady. We just— she suddenly gets a makeover with a very, very funny—

Brad Shreve:
Yeah.

Tony Maietta:
A very funny group of people. One guy in particular who's very funny, has no lines, but he's hysterically funny. in his looks. We have our gay character right there. She just gets a makeover and suddenly she's— her manner's completely changed. She's completely, you know, she's suddenly gracious and calm. Before she gets that makeover, she is a tough broad. She turns on a dime.

Tony Maietta:
She's irritable. She'll say something funny one minute and then she'll scream the next. I mean, actually, that's what I love about May Robson's performance is that she really makes Annie a live wire. in the first part of this. She's unpredictable in the first part of this movie. You don't know what way she's coming from, and that's realistic. And she also doesn't play the alcoholism for laughs. She's— it's a very, very sad thing when she's writing her daughter her letter and she's drinking the gin to get through it because she feels so horrible about herself.

Brad Shreve:
That and her desperation when she can't get the letter, when she reads the letter and she collapses in Times Square. I mean, there are she's tragic, but you don't watch it and say, wow, this is a sad movie. I mean, it has sad moments, but—

Tony Maietta:
No, that's what's so wonderful about Robeson's performance is she's believable as the funny Apple Annie, and she's also believable as the gut-wrenchingly tragic Apple Annie. She gets that letter from her daughter saying her daughter is going to come and see her, and she does. She collapses on the street, and it's so Sad and moving, and it's not played for laughs at all. It's tragic. And then you get the sense of gratitude she has for Dave the Dude and all these people who are going to help her. It's so heartwarming. It's in her— it's just a— it's a wonderful performance. I think that for what— for the screen time alone, it's not really a leading actress performance, but for the performance, the impact the performance has, I think that's the reason why she was nominated for Best Actress.

Tony Maietta:
Because I gotta tell you right now, if Bette Davis had been better in this film and been nominated, she wouldn't have been nominated for Lead Actress. She would have been nominated for Supporting. It's not a leading part, even though the film's called Lady for a Day.

Stephanie:
No.

Tony Maietta:
But May Robson is so good and so impactful in those scenes that suddenly she becomes the lead actress in this film. And not for nothing, by the way, just a small detail here, the Best Supporting Acting category didn't exist yet. It wouldn't have been created for another 3 years. So if Mae Robeson was gonna be nominated for anything, she would've been nominated for Best Actress. So there you go. So Brad, what else did you like about this film?

Brad Shreve:
I really liked the pace. It, it kept me engaged. It was moving. I never got bored. But I didn't like Warren William. I found his character very dull. I don't know what he's like in other movies. I know he's done a lot of swarthy characters.

Brad Shreve:
But in this film, he just was like, hmm, whatever. And I didn't feel like there was enough of the interesting background characters.

Tony Maietta:
Really? You didn't find them? You didn't find like Harry the horse? You didn't find them Colorful and amusing?

Brad Shreve:
Oh, they were definitely colorful and amusing, but not as much as I expected. And, you know, again, my expectations were there. I don't think the cast can match Pocketful of Miracles. I, like I said, I love Glenn Ford. I know you don't. Peter Falk was amazing.

Tony Maietta:
Yeah, Oscar nominated.

Brad Shreve:
I'm not going to go down the whole list of that. I just felt like it was a better cast. They were more interesting to me. What I liked about this film is that I really felt like I was in New York. I didn't feel like I was on a set. There were a couple scenes you could tell they were on a set, but that's because, like, doing this show, I'm searching for stuff like that. It's just as implausible as the story is, and I only bring that up because I read so many critic reviews from that time that said that, you ride with it and it doesn't feel implausible.

Tony Maietta:
Hmm.

Brad Shreve:
I will tell you, I don't like the ending.

Tony Maietta:
Oh, really?

Stephanie:
Why?

Brad Shreve:
Yeah, I think it's the only ending you could have without it becoming melodramatic. I'm really disgusted that in the end Annie goes away and her daughter never knows who her mother really is.

Tony Maietta:
Well, okay, but who is her mother really? Because there's a little clue there. She's not this grand society lady. But if you notice, Annie's friend said, I remember Annie when she used to be like that, which is the only part of the backstory of Apple Annie that we get, by the way, is that one line. So you have to fill in the blanks with, oh, something happened to Annie. Maybe she got pregnant when she was unmarried and had a kid, and then that's how her downfall, air quotes, began. But maybe this really is who this character is. Life's circumstances have changed her. I don't know, you know, she's a Damon Runyon character, so again, you can't look for a lot of character growth and development here.

Tony Maietta:
However, I don't know that she'll necessarily go back to the bottle and go back to being Apple Annie. I really don't. I think that the ending is the only ending you could have had, but I wonder if this really is who the character of Annie was. She just didn't have the money in society, but as her friend said, I remember Annie when she was like that, which I think is a really interesting point.

Brad Shreve:
Well, and I think this is a more realistic ending. Otherwise, you'd have to go into the whole beyond that, or it'd be a quick wrap-up of, oh, I still love you anyway. And which is actually very Frank Capra if he didn't follow the novel to— or the short story to a tee.

Tony Maietta:
Right.

Brad Shreve:
So I, I'm not going to complain on that level. Just on a personal level, it kind of made me sad. It doesn't fault the story. Just on a personal level, I'm very sad by it. But, you know, in the end, this girl grew up thinking that's who her mother is her whole life. And who knows, she may never see her mother again. So why not let her enjoy that fantasy? I, you know, I get both sides.

Tony Maietta:
That's— this is the definition. This film is a definition of Capra-esque. You know, Frank Capra is one of only a handful of directors whose stamp is so singular that their names have become adjectives. It's like Hitchcock, Hitchcockian, or Spielberg, Spielbergian. Well, Capraesque. And what that means is it's very much an American story. It focuses on courage and the positive effects and the triumph of the underdog over adversity. Think about It's a Wonderful Life.

Brad Shreve:
Same thing.

Stephanie:
Mm-hmm.

Tony Maietta:
We're left with the, the end of It's a Wonderful Life is a bittersweet ending. Same thing with Lady for a Day. We don't know if Annie will ever see her daughter again. However, at the end of the day, it's a happy ending. And that's what Frank Capra did better than anybody else. And especially during the Depression, when people needed endings like this, which were uplifting and made them believe in life and friendship. That last scene when Annie is about to tell her daughter the truth, and the way, the way Robeson plays it, I get chills thinking about it. And then she starts to hear all the society people coming to her rescue finally, after waiting and waiting and waiting for them to show up.

Tony Maietta:
The way Robeson plays it with such gratitude and overwhelming, um, just, uh, she's unbeliev— she can't believe this is happening. She can't believe that she's this lucky. This is actually happening. These people are actually coming to her rescue, and she can, you know, continue with the charade and send her daughter off without her daughter ever finding out that she's really Apple Annie. It's so heartwarming. It's just, it's so moving to me. It's so moving.

Brad Shreve:
I don't really know if I would've liked this movie. It's hard for me to say because I loved her so much that I was just constantly she glides through it like it's easy, and you believe her. And, you know, having seen her other films, they were gone, and I was just totally focused on this is who she is. The other thing I really liked is a lot of Depression-era films skirt the Depression. This clearly was the Depression.

Tony Maietta:
Yeah, that's another, another great thing about Capra. You know, Capra was very much— Capra was the common man's director, and Capra very Capra didn't sugarcoat things. He just gave things a happy ending. Think about how dramatic— I mean, George almost kills himself. He's gonna kill himself in It's a Wonderful Life. I mean, these are some real— this is some real drama. So when people say, when they call it Capricorn, that's what they call it, Capricorn, like it's corny. I don't agree with that.

Tony Maietta:
Capra gets down to the grit and the real tragedies in life and the hardness of the Depression. And it gives you an uplifting ending. Yeah, it's a little bit of a fairy tale. And actually, that's what I love about this film and about Frank Capra and his films. I love it.

Brad Shreve:
And that's why people love Capra, because they're watching that film and they're, that's me. That is me. And then it ends with a happy ending. And who doesn't want a happy ending? It's that simple.

Tony Maietta:
Especially in 1933.

Brad Shreve:
Absolutely.

Tony Maietta:
People needed this. People need it now too, but people definitely needed it in 1933.

Brad Shreve:
Exactly.

Tony Maietta:
So, a little bit of the background of this film. It was, as I said, Columbia was at this point Poverty Row Studio, which meant it was not MGM, it was not even Warner Brothers, or it was, it was the bottom of the barrel. Columbia was. They had Harry Cohn, who was as much of a reprehensible mogul as all the other moguls, but they didn't have stars, and they had very few contract players. Their one bright light was Frank Capra. Frank Capra was under contract. He was their one bright light, but he hadn't had an overwhelming hit yet. He had done Platinum Blonde with Jean Harlow and The Bitter Tea of General Yan with Barbara Stanwyck, who he often— who was in many of his films.

Tony Maietta:
But after this film, this film really began his golden era at Columbia. And originally, they wanted to use Marie Dressler as Apple Annie. Now, for anyone who doesn't know who Marie Dressler is, Marie Dressler was one of the biggest stars in the world at this time. She was a lot— I don't know how to describe Marie Dressler to people. Just go watch, Google Marie Dressler. You'll know what I'm talking about. She was a big woman. She was a big, cantankerous, obstinate sometimes.

Tony Maietta:
And she was— I don't want to say she was unattractive, but, you know, she was no looker. Basically. But she had just won an Academy Award for Best Actress the year before. She was MGM's biggest star, which is unbelievable at this time. And MGM said, uh-uh, you ain't getting Marie Dressler. Sorry, no way, Columbia. But we will offer you our contract player, May Robeson. And May Robeson was actually hired one week— did you know this, Brad?

Brad Shreve:
Yes, I did.

Tony Maietta:
One week before filming began. I mean, it was that fast. They're like, no, you can't have Marie Dressler, but here's May Robeson. Take her. Frankly, I can, I can see Marie Dressler in this film, but honestly, May Robeson steals my heart in this. I wouldn't want to see anyone else after watching it.

Brad Shreve:
Well, I have a question for you because speaking of somebody who was originally, they wanted to have the part and went to somebody else. Is it true they wanted James Cagney for Dave the Dude?

Tony Maietta:
He was, he was one of the stars. They really wanted William Powell.

Brad Shreve:
Okay.

Tony Maietta:
Warner Brothers was like, uh-uh, you ain't getting William Powell. Again.

Brad Shreve:
I just can't picture Cagney with Mae Robeson. It just makes me bristle to— it would've been such a different film to begin with.

Tony Maietta:
I mean, you know, gangster, you know, a different kind of gangster.

Stephanie:
Yeah.

Tony Maietta:
But that's where you get— they also were talking about Robert Montgomery, W.C. Fields, and they couldn't get any of them. They said, no, Columbia, you can have Warren Williams. And for people who don't know who Warren William is, Warren William had the nickname of King of the Pre-Codes because he really typified this kind of cunning, kind of amoral character that was very prevalent in early sound. And one critic said, no other actor embodied the classy mix of charm and sleaze like Warren William. And it's absolutely true. Warren William, to a tee, he's this character. And then he just, after the Code came down, he kind of disappeared.

Tony Maietta:
I mean, he died in 1948 at age 53, but his really big period was Pre-Code. And he's in a lot of really, really, really good Pre-Code movies. But you can kind of see he's kind of like a poor man William Powell. He's kind of like the poor man's, you know, Jimmy Cagney. He's not—

Brad Shreve:
The only thing that really interests me about him is I know that he was in some— he played Perry Mason in some films. The early Perry Mason novels, for those that are used to Raymond Burr and the Perry Mason TV series, the very original novels, Perry was not a nice guy. He would kick ass and break the law all the time to help his clients. And I wonder, because of the era and this guy's background, if he played that character. So I'm dying to know that. Just a little aside. comes to him. Otherwise, I was— I wouldn't find him all that interesting.

Tony Maietta:
You know who he did play? He played, uh, air quotes, Sam Spade, or the character based on Sam Spade in that remake of The Maltese Falcon called Satan Met a Lady. He was with Bette Davis in that film as the character, air quotes— that wasn't his name in the film because I— as when we talked about The Maltese Falcon, I said it was remade as a comedy called Satan Met a Lady with Bette Davis and Warren Williams in that part.

Brad Shreve:
Well, I'm curious because to me, ain't no Sam Spade.

Tony Maietta:
So, you know, Lady for a Day, once production began, as all these Pre-Code films usually are, it was very fast. You know, it was made very quickly on a very tight budget. Also, you had loanouts here because Columbia did not have stars. So all these people were working for a different studio. And I guess what I want to say about this film is, is to me, and this is my opinion about this film, Mae Robeson is the reason to watch this film. I like these people. I like Warren Williams. I like some of the supporting characters.

Tony Maietta:
But just to see— This supporting actress at age 75, finally given a chance to show everything she could do, to be nominated for an Academy Award for it. And then to kind of go back, she's had a wonderful career after this. I mean, we've talked about the films she did after this. We talked about— she's wonderful in A Star Is Born. The New York Times called her the Dowager Queen of the American Screen. And she really was. She played these— she was more used to playing parts like she played in Bringing Up Baby. You know, the, the— she's a socialite in Bringing Up Baby, and that was really her métier.

Tony Maietta:
But I gotta tell you, I am so impressed with her, her honesty. She doesn't— she's not maudlin, she's not sappy. She is a tough broad, and she's equally as touching after she becomes a lady. And I find her performance outstanding. And in my opinion, and we'll talk about the other 2 actresses who were nominated, actually, we'll talk about the actress who won, because that's interesting. She should have won this Oscar. I really feel— there were only 3 nominees. There were only 3 nominees this year.

Brad Shreve:
Wow.

Tony Maietta:
Do you know the actress that won the Academy Award in 1933, Brad?

Brad Shreve:
Yes, I do. And no surprise, because it's someone, you know, I love and adore. Katharine Hepburn for Morning Glory.

Tony Maietta:
That's right. Katharine Hepburn's first Oscar was for Morning Glory in 1933. The other nominee was Diana Wynyard for a movie called Cavalcade, which is based on a Noel Coward play. So there were only 3 nominees. There was May Robeson, there was Diana Wynyard, and there was Kate Hepburn. Did I say Kate Hepburn? There was May Robeson, Diana Wynyard, and Katharine Hepburn. Now, okay, I don't want to take an Oscar away from Kate. We talked about this when we talked about Guess Who's Coming to Dinner.

Tony Maietta:
This was her first Oscar, and then she didn't win another Oscar for 33 years or 34 years. Kate Hepburn was such an anomaly. She just came out of nowhere and nobody had ever seen anything like this before. She was— it was just like an explosion of talent and of unusualness and uniqueness that she won the Oscar. However, how you feel about Hepburn in Alice Adams is how I feel about Hepburn in Morning Glory. I think— absolutely. What did you think of Hepburn in Alice Adams, Brad?

Stephanie:
I—

Brad Shreve:
it was the first time I did not enjoy Katharine Hepburn. I thought She was creepy. I didn't find her endearing in any way, and I never thought I would say that about her. And people still can't believe I said those things.

Tony Maietta:
Yeah, well, that's kind of how I feel about Hepburn in Morning Glory. Quite not that strongly, but I find she's very mannered in Morning Glory. She's just not appealing. She's acting. You can see she's acting, which is not— I don't feel that way about her in Alice Adams at all. I think she's glorious in Alice Addams. And when I think about the fact that May Robeson, who only had one shot at this, and how wonderful it would have been for her to get this Oscar, it makes me very sad. It doesn't make me incredibly sad, because she still had a wonderful career.

Tony Maietta:
But I'm just— I just think that she's— for what May Robeson is giving— given in this film, I think she is... There'd be no reason to watch this film, in my opinion, without May Robeson. And I think it bears itself out, in my opinion, in Pocketful of Miracles, which I find to be one big snooze fest. Yes.

Brad Shreve:
Yeah.

Tony Maietta:
There are movies Tony doesn't like. I only like Pocketful of Miracles because it has Miss Ruth Elizabeth Davis as Apple Annie. That's the only reason I want to watch it. I don't like Hope Lange. I don't like Glenn Ford. I do like Peter Falk. I'll give you that. But to me, this is the one to watch.

Brad Shreve:
I agree. If you have to choose between the two, absolutely. Will I still always enjoy Pocketful of Miracles? Of course. It has sentimental value, so it'll always be my joy. But hands down, this is a better movie, mostly because of May, but not just because of her. The production in general is better, and it doesn't crawl crawl at a snail's pace.

Tony Maietta:
Yeah, well, Pocketful of Miracles is just a little too long. This is not—

Brad Shreve:
I actually think there were bigger laughs in Pocketful of Miracles, but the problem is you laugh and you may cry, and then you're like, okay, when are we gonna get back to the movie? This is— what's going on? This is boring. And then again, you get another laugh. There was none of that here.

Tony Maietta:
This frequently happens when they remade films. You have these little jewels of a movie, a little bubble of a movie from the '30s, and And then when they remade them in the '60s in color, suddenly they're in color and CinemaScope and they've got to be huge and they blow them way out of proportion. This is not an epic film. This is a sweet little movie that should stay a sweet little movie. It doesn't need all of this production that, that they gave Pocketful of Miracles. This movie was shot from, I think, May 9th to June 6th. So, that's what, a month? Less than a month.

Brad Shreve:
Yeah.

Tony Maietta:
By a couple days. They shot this in less than a month, and everybody went back around, went back about their business. And in my opinion, this film is much more successful. Again, nominated for 4 Academy Awards. The script is wonderful. The production is wonderful. And you have the actress right there who just, to me, is just sublime as Apple Annie.

Brad Shreve:
They both did about equal financially. I think this one did better because this one doubled its cost. Yeah, they doubled it. And Pocketful of Miracles earned, oh, about— they took $5 million in at the box office. They didn't make as much. They didn't make double, but they did— neither did poorly in the box office.

Tony Maietta:
So Brad, since you're kind of already doing it, tell us, how did this movie perform when it was released?

Brad Shreve:
It earned $600,000, which it cost about half that. So its actual earnings were $300,000. And you gotta realize we're talking about the 1930s here. That was huge. The audiences loved it. As we said, I think they connected with it. It did far better than Morning Glory, which only earned about a third as much as this film did. Critics were mixed on it.

Brad Shreve:
Overall, they really liked it. Again, I heard over and over again, eh, it's not believable. But in the end, it was good. Uh, it sounds like a Siskel and Ebert kind of review.

Tony Maietta:
Okay.

Brad Shreve:
In addition to the reviews back then, uh, critics today did really well on Rotten Tomatoes. It has a 100% rating. However, that's only an aggregate of 11 reviews, and I didn't look and see what years those— or what, what industry those critics were from. The audience score, though, is 79. So, not bad for an old film from the '30s, when you consider so many people won't even watch one.

Tony Maietta:
No, and that, yeah, that bothers me. Duh, big surprise. It bothers me a lot, because there are— this is an example of a true little jewel that, you know, Capra had made much more famous films. As I said, It Happened One Night happened the next year, and all those films, It's a Wonderful Life. This film is just a little jewel of a movie that is— it's not asking a lot of you. All it's asking is that you be entertained, and you be moved.

Stephanie:
Yeah.

Tony Maietta:
The ending of this film is so moving. And I don't know what, you know, you really, honest to God, at this time in 1933, with everything that was going on in this country, that's all audiences wanted. They wanted to escape. They wanted to feel good about their lives, many of which were not that far removed from what Apple Annie was doing. So it's uplifting, it's heartwarming as hell. I just, I love this movie. I think that if you want to have— and it's not that long— if you just want to have a really wonderful uplifting experience with a film, watch this movie. Just For Mae Robeson alone.

Tony Maietta:
Just so you know who Mae Robeson is, and, and why she was such a wonderful, wonderful actress. She died in the early '40s, so she wasn't around that much longer. You know, she was 75 when she started this movie. So it's— she did some wonderful, wonderful work, but without a doubt, in my opinion, Lady for a Day, her crowning achievement.

Brad Shreve:
Hands down, I agree. And, you know, I feel like I always have to find things to pick it apart. And despite you hearing me say those things, go see that. Just watch it. It's, it's easy to find. I, I watched on YouTube and numerous channels, and normally I won't do that, but they were there in many channels and they all said that it was public domain now, which Adding that up, I don't know, but maybe, maybe it is. And so I felt comfortable doing so. I thought you had to wait 100 years, but I know it used to be less, so maybe it was released before the law changed.

Tony Maietta:
I think it's— yeah, I think it's fine. I think it's fine. There is one apocryphal, perhaps— I don't know, it might not be apocryphal. It might— I mean, I wasn't there at the Oscars in 1933, so I can't verify this personally, but I have seen this story many times. And it comes to— so, as we said, this movie truly set Frank Capra on his way to becoming a legendary Hollywood director, a legendary Hollywood filmmaker. And he was nominated for Best Director for this film. During the ceremony, however, there was another Frank who was nominated for Best Director, and that is Frank Lloyd for Cavalcade. And the story goes that when Will Rogers was presenting the Academy Award for Best Director, he opened the envelope and all he said was, come up and get it, Frank.

Tony Maietta:
So Capra got up, Frank Lloyd got up, and both of them went to the podium to get their Oscar.

Brad Shreve:
Oh no.

Tony Maietta:
And they realized, oh, it's Frank Lloyd. So to save face, Will Rogers said, you come on up too, George. George Cukor, who was also nominated. So it looked like he was just calling up all the nominees and he kind of saved face for poor Frank Capra. But don't feel too bad for him because he won the following year for It Happened One Night. But that's just a little Hollywood lore for you, ladies and gentlemen. A little Hollywood lore.

Brad Shreve:
And I think Capra did pretty well for himself in the long run.

Tony Maietta:
Yeah, I don't think that— I don't think he was that upset about it. As I said, he won the following year.

Brad Shreve:
A missed opportunity in this film, which you touched on, is the fact that we saw Annie escorted with 2 dozen women and the gay gentleman into the next room. And then she comes out not only looking high society, which she did, she looked very glamorous, but she suddenly had an air. And when you put on nice clothes, you do have a different about you, but she was a whole different person. And I think a missed opportunity— and again, it would have been a whole different film though, or a longer film— is us to laugh at the process of them taking this woman from the streets and making her this elegant woman. But as you said, it's also hinted that she'd been there before, and we can say, okay, that's why she clicked into it so quickly.

Tony Maietta:
No, that— yeah, I think, I think we talked about that. I think that's a that was a missed opportunity. Like in My Fair Lady, it would have been funny to see the process, but I believe they covered their asses when they said, that's the way she used to be. So this was obviously a part of her that she was just reclaiming, reclaiming. So, yep. Well, uh, that was Lady for a Day, but we ain't done, ladies and gentlemen, because I love this, Brad. We got a voicemail message, didn't we?

Brad Shreve:
Yes, we love when we get them, and we love to share them. So Please, I'm going to tell them before you start how to do that. In the show notes, I believe it's at the top, I should check before I say this every week, it says text or leave a voicemail. If you click on that button, it'll send you a link and you can choose which one you want to do. Please do either. We love to get them. And if you leave a voicemail, we will play it on the show unless you say don't do it.

Stephanie:
Hello boys, Stephanie here. I love you. I love the show. I love the history. I love the education. I love the friendship you guys have. I love it. Did I say that? Okay.

Stephanie:
Um, I have a weird— well, no, not weird. Okay, I love these 2 movies. First one, People Will Talk, Cary Grant, 1951. I thought I had seen all the movies. I hadn't. That one was fantastic. Then, uh, Barbara Stanwyck, 1950, No Man of Her Own. That one was great, and I hadn't seen that one in a long time.

Brad Shreve:
Thank you, Stephanie.

Tony Maietta:
Thank you, Stephanie. That was very sweet. Thank you for leaving that. That is very sweet.

Brad Shreve:
We love uplifting things about us, and we certainly love suggestions. We always get good ones. Now, we've heard from Stephanie before. Do you know where she's from?

Tony Maietta:
No, I have no idea.

Brad Shreve:
Stephanie, next time let us know. I'm curious.

Tony Maietta:
No, we have heard from Stephanie before, so I apologize. I don't have it in front of me. But, um, yes, thank you, Stephanie. Thank you for leaving that. And I also believe, uh, our survey is over, isn't it, Brad? And do we want to tell the people, uh, a little bit about, uh, what we, what we learned from this survey?

Brad Shreve:
First of all, thank you, because a lot of podcasts ask for surveys and they don't get a huge response. Thank you. Thank you. We got a great response from folks. Uh, we're happy to hear that you folks are really happy with the show. And the results were pretty Concrete. I mean, I can tell you people mentioned different eras, but almost every single person said the '30s and the '40s.

Tony Maietta:
That's amazing.

Brad Shreve:
Hands down. Almost— actually, I wouldn't be surprised if it was every single person said the '30s and '40s. They may have listed other decades, but that was in there. Genres, number one was comedy, then drama, mystery, suspense, and rom-com. The most popular series category, which we've talked about doing, And we are definitely going to do, without a doubt, across the board, swan songs.

Tony Maietta:
Yay, yay, yay! I love that.

Brad Shreve:
And we already have one planned.

Tony Maietta:
So we already have—

Brad Shreve:
coming up after that, no surprise because we've done a lot of Best Actresses. So I'm not surprised that Best Actors was number 2. Actresses that came frequently mentioned, uh, some of them we've done a lot of, but I'll mention them again. Joan Crawford, Bette Davis, Barbara Stanwyck, Jean Harlow, Vivien Leigh, Ava Gardner, and so on. Uh, actors that were mentioned were Cary Grant, Clark Gable, Tyrone Power, Gary Cooper, Rod Taylor. And directors that were repeatedly mentioned were Billy Wilder, Charlie Chaplin, James Whale, David Lean, and Robert Aldrich.

Tony Maietta:
Wow.

Brad Shreve:
Lastly, I will go over film that listeners wanted to hear. Uh, they're all overwhelmingly classic films. The Letter, Gone with the Wind, The Egg and I. And I looked all over for The Egg and I, and I couldn't find— I wasn't even gonna do it for the show. I wanted to see it because I wanted to see if it was as good as when I was a kid, and I couldn't find it. And, uh, so we'll have to look for it. Uh, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, The Best Years of Our Lives. It's been a while since that one.

Brad Shreve:
And the prime of Gene Brody and others.

Tony Maietta:
Oh, I love that.

Brad Shreve:
Somebody put A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World. Uh, actually, I think you left a voicemail. Whoever that is, we did it already, so go look at our past episodes.

Tony Maietta:
Wow, that must have been pretty memorable.

Brad Shreve:
There were— I will say there were 2 modern films that were mentioned. One was Showgirls, and they said, trust me, do it. Uh, the other was, uh, Rock 'n' Rolla, Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. Are you familiar with those?

Tony Maietta:
Are we being punked? Is this what's happening here? I've never heard of this movie. I think we're being punked. Well, that's great. I'm excited about so many of those. And so many of those, so many of those we've already decided to do. We need to do another Barbara Stanwyck. We haven't done a lot of Barbara Stanwyck. So that's coming up.

Tony Maietta:
We've also had some requests for some of those for a Tyrone Power movie, which is coming up. Someone requested that. I won't say what it is. But we got to do it because of who it came from. And yeah, those are some great suggestions. I'm very excited about that. I'm very excited about these series. This—

Brad Shreve:
I'm actually excited because it is so much of what we talked about. Clearly, people are on the same wavelength, which makes sense because that's why they listen to the show. If they weren't, they'd go listen to something else. I was really surprised that the '30s and '40s were so overwhelming.

Tony Maietta:
Yeah, it gives me— it gives me a very A lot of gratitude for that. A lot of, um—

Brad Shreve:
Yes, I'm happy to see it. But we will continue to do other decades, folks, that if you like other decades, we won't be only stuck in the '30s and '40s.

Tony Maietta:
No, but it's, it's gratifying. That's the word I was looking for. It's gratifying because it just makes me believe that you people have incredible taste. Um, and we're gonna focus more on the '30s and '40s because I, I want to do that too. I agree with you. I do. I— yeah, absolutely.

Brad Shreve:
And as I said, there were a lot of nice comments which I'll send over to you. We won't bore everybody, but they were very kind.

Tony Maietta:
Good.

Brad Shreve:
I'm glad.

Tony Maietta:
Well, is there anything else you want to say about anything at all? The movie?

Brad Shreve:
Yes. Now that the survey is over, we still want to hear from you, and there are many ways to do it. The best way is Apple or Spotify or whatever podcast app you're listening to. Rate and review this podcast. Most of them have a button right there where you can do it because that tells others you enjoy the show. And even if they don't read your review, which hopefully they will, they'll see the number of stars and they'll say, oh, I should listen to that show. And also, we want to hear from you still. As I said, there was the text message or the voicemail.

Brad Shreve:
The other way is our email address, which is goinghollywoodpod@gmail.com.

Tony Maietta:
Thank you. Thank you for doing that. Thank you, everybody. This was a lot of fun. But I got to tell you, Barcelona Brad, I have only one thing left to say, but I don't want to say it. I had so much fun talking about this film. So let's not say goodbye. Let's say au revoir.

Brad Shreve:
No, let's say adiós.

Tony Maietta:
There you go. Barcelona Brad says it. Adiós, everybody.

Brad Shreve:
I'm not from Barcelona, but anyway.

Tony Maietta:
That's your nickname. Goodbye, everybody.