Book review - "The Many Lives of Cy Endfield Film Noir, the Blacklist, and Zulu" by Brian Neve (2015)

How good a filmmaker was Cy Endfield? He made one movie that has passionate devotees - Zulu - but the others are far, far less well known. After the triumph of Zulu his career bewilderingly failed to gain momentum. I was familiar with glimpses - the mysterious Sands of the Kalahari, being booted off De Sade, the beyond-weird Universal Soldier - but this superb biography answers all those questions and more.

Endfield was from Scranton Pennsylvania; like so many directors of his era, he was the son of immigrants, and was whip smart, getting into Yale. He earned contacts in the progressive theatre scene of the 1930s, knowing Orson Welles and Paul Gallico, and joining the Communist Party. He eventually found his way to Hollywood and whinged/nagged/networked his way into filmmaking jobs, doing a stint for Mercury at RKO, then making a short for MGM, Inflation. This was extremely highly regarded - but also so powerful it was considered anti-capitalist and found it hard to get distribution. It was to be the first in a series of career blows that would frustrate Endfield.

He was a hard worker and wrote as well as directed so managed to find work - radio dramas (including "The Argyle Secrets" for Suspense which I review elsewhere on this blog), then making comedies at Monogram, and working his way up to some highly regarded film noirs, notably The Sound and Fury. It seemed Endfield's career was back on track then he was hit with another blow - being blacklisted.

Endfield fled to England. He eventually found work again in TV and then movies, writing and directing, forming a notable collaboration with actor-producer Stanley Baker: A Child in the House, Hell Drivers, Jet Storm, then of course Zulu. This was a big hit and really should have put Endfield back in the A league again. But his follow up, Sands of the Kalahari, flopped and Endfield could never get his groove back - by this stage he was too cranky, too old, probably too tired after so many knock backs. He was booted off De Sade, Universal Soldier was a mess, was unable to get financing for other projects; he worked increasingly in other areas - computers, tried writing a play (the man was ferociously intelligent); he had a life long interest in magic and was very serious about it. Critics rediscovered him but it was probably too little too late for his sense of self-respect.

For all his many admirable qualities Endfield wasn't always an easy person to like - he was prickly, temperamental, sulky; he bailed on a first marriage and child (the blacklist was a big part of this, in his defense); seemed reluctant to help out with the war effort. But he had talent, intelligence and made some entertaining films. Its a shame his early 50s film noirs aren't better known, for instance. He was a fascinating character who deserved a good biography, and he got one.

Radio review - Suspense #319 - "No Escape" (1948) **1/2

Jimmy Cagney says at the end of this episode he agreed to appear to promote road safety! He plays a guy who is on his way to accept a safety award and runs someone over. It's fun to hear Cagney but he's actually not that well cast - he's too strong and well, Jimmy Cagney like. Still, it has novelty.

Radio review - Suspense#314 - "Muddy Track" (1948) **

Edmond O'Brien is another tough talking guy who is framed for murder with Ann Blyth as the slinky dame. There's a shady guy as well. Fair run of the mill despite the horse racing setting.

Radio review - Suspense # 313 - "Death Sentence" (1948) *** (warning: spoilers)

John Garfield is sometimes an actor overlooked when talking of the great days of Hollywood despite an early death - he is overshadowed by other Warners tough guys like Cagney and Bogart - but he was good actor, as shown in this installment. A tough no-nonsense entry with Garfield as a dodgy guy involved with a shady lady. Raymond Burr is in it too.

Radio review - Suspense - "A Little Piece of Rope" (1948) ***** (warning: spoilers)

Astonishingly bleak episode where Lucille Ball stars as a not very successful actress in LA who makes her living posing as school girls enticing dirty old men into cars, conking them over the head and stealing their money. One night she is picked up by a man who turns out to be a serial killer... she tries to expose him without exposing herself, fails, so tries to kill him. Ultimately he kills her but then dies in a trap she sets for him!!

It's a powerful atmospheric tale with Ball very good in a completely untypical role and stands as an example of what was good about radio at its best.

Radio review - Suspense - "Overdrawn" (1951) ***

Very strong central idea: Dick Powell is a bank teller longing for cash who takes advantage of a bank robbery to pocket some takings. A junior teller spots him.I think they should have brought back the bank robbers but this is a pretty good installment of the series and Powell is strong as always. Written by Blake Edwards!

Radio review - Suspense - "A Vision of Death" (1953) **1/2

William Spiers of Suspense loved Ronald Colman - he was the man Spiers wished he could be - but sorry, Colman always got on my nerves. He's not particularly well cast here either as a magician type whose offsider develops the ability to see the future (years before Whoopi Goldberg in Ghost)... or so she says. Decent enough with some strong emotion.

Radio review -Suspense - "The Rescue" (1951) ***

James Stewart is, not surprisingly, a terrific radio actor, with that great voice and ability to convey nervousness. Here he's a PR man who sees a woman outside his window on a ledge - he gets drawn into her mystery, and uncovers a dodgy doctor. This could have made a feature, it's a very strong entry - more time would have enabled developing the love story between Stewart and the girl.

Radio review - Suspense - "Beyond Reason" (1948) **1/2

The show was still going at an hour which feels too long, to be honest - but this isn't a bad episode, directed by Robert Montgomery who also narrates, and starring Robert Ryan. He's a mystery man involved in an accident that kills a rich man and he comes to know his three daughters. I kept thinking of A Kiss Before Dying as they all fall in love with him.

Radio review - Suspense - "The Last Letter of Dr Bronson" (1943) ****

Top notch episode of the series, with an intriuing (if admittedly contrived) set up: a doctor tries to convince various people to murder him. He goes for a murderer, an old nurse who hates him, a greedy person, some others... if you think too much about it, it doesn't make sense, but if you don't it's interesting and Laird Cregar is perfectly cast in the lead. Terrific support from George Colouris, too.

Radio review - Suspense - "The Queen's Ring" (1953) **1/2

A bit different for Suspense: a look at Queen Elizabeth's famous fling with Essex. Normally he's depicted as a dashing good looking spoilt idiot - James Mason is cast here, giving the role a far more mature, villainous dash. Queen Bess is still a whiny idiot who at the end begs for Essex to come back so it's not exactly fresh drama, but Mason's performance keeps it fresh. He's supported by his wife Pamela, who plays the other woman.

Radio review - Suspense - "Ordeal in Donner Pass" (1953) ***

Suspense were increasingly doing historical tales around this time - Edmund O'Brien is a survivor of the famous Donner Party, stuck in snow on the way to California. Snowy starvation stories work well on radio, with wind and jumping time and a sense of claustrophobia - so does this, even if you are frustrated by the Donner party being such idiots (not tying up animals, I mean come on). No cannibalism here but some strong acting and atmosphere.

Radio review - Suspense - "Night Cry" (1948) **1/2

Radio and movies were always so open about police brutality in the old days - here is Ray Milland as a copper who likes to smack around and is blamed for killing a prisoner. It sounded familiar as I read it - I did some research and discovered that the source material was later filmed as Where the Sidewalk Ends. It adapts well to half an hour.

Radio review - Suspense - "The Guilty Always Run" (1954) **1/2

Tyrone Power is very effective as an unhappily married man whose supposed mistress winds up dead. When a friend offers to provide an alibi you can kind of guess who the real killer is but this is a quite enjoyable entry in the series.

Radio review - Suspense - "Circumstantial Terror" (1954) (warning: spoilers) **

Never heard Ronald Regan in a radio drama before - he's really good, though I should be surprised since he broke into acting via radio. The story he's in is full of contrivance though - he's a man wrongly accused of murder who finds the real killer is on the jury. That's very gimmicky and the gimmic really isn't exploited that much. (NB I read a Jeffrey Archer story with a similar twist once).

Radio review - Suspense - "The Big Shot" (1949) ***

Burt Lancaster in a radio version of a sort of story he was often playing on screen around this time - a big lumbering sap who tries to commit a crime but gets betrayed by a dame. This has the benefit of being set in Mexico with some comment on Mexican US relationships at the time. Lancaster didn't have the greatest voice (he depended a lot on his physique for his power) but he does pretty well.

Radio review - Suspense - "Deep into Darkness" (1948) **1/2

Douglas Fairbanks Jnr in a plot that was later used in Double Jeopardy  - man imprisoned for manslaughter gets out and discovers person he thought was dead is still alive so he seeks revenge. Not bad - Fairbanks is not the first actor you think of this material but he's pretty good.

Radio review - Suspense - "Odd Man Out" (1952) **1/2

One of James Mason's most famous roles has the added benefit of his then wife Pamela playing his love interest but while interesting it doesn't make for great radio - the 25 minute running time means the loss of key encounters, such as with the painter who wants to capture his dying expression and the treacherous woman, so what we've got is a lot of plunking around in alley ways and speaking in Irish accents. Dan O'Herlihy is on hand for the support cast.

TV review - Suspense - "The Flight" (1957) ** (warning: spoilers)

Suspense felt padded on radio when it went from 30 mins to an hour and an hour feels too long on TV as well. This stars Audie Murphy in a story with similarities to The Gun Runners - instead of being a skipper here he's a pilot who has to smuggle someone into a fictitious South American country. Well, he doesn't realise that at first but that's what it turns out to be. The person is actually a dissident for the regime, but a lot of this doesn't make sense - namely, why don't the locals just kill Murphy instead of just keeping him sort of under house arrest?

Good support cast including Jack Warden (Yank expat who may or may not be a baddie), Everett Sloane (sleazy South American) and Susan Kohner (a girl he meets who may or may not be a baddie). Murphy isn't bad - it's good to see him in a different profession, ie. a flyer - but his character is a real dill because the whole thing is so obviously dodgy.

Radio review - "Suspense" - "The Lost Special" (1943) **1/2 (warning: spoilers)

Orson Welles hams it up in a funny foreigner voice as a man who's on death row for sabotage - he gives a farewell broadcast where he threatens to expose his collaborators. It's based on an Arthur Conan Doyle story updated which means this is a more imaginative adaptation but Welles' performance distracts.