List Of Thriller Films Before 1940
A list of thriller films released in the before 1940. Notes {{filmsbygenre 1920s thriller films 1930s thriller films 1920s File:1920s decade montage.png, From left, clockwise: Third Tipperary Brigade Flying Column No. 2 under Seán Hogan during the Irish War of Independence; Prohibition agents destroying barrels of alcohol in accordance to the 18th amendment, which ... Lists of 1920s films by genre Lists of 1930s films by genre ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Thriller Film
Thriller film, also known as suspense film or suspense thriller, is a broad film genre that evokes excitement and suspense in the audience. The suspense element found in most films' plots is particularly exploited by the filmmaker in this genre. Tension is created by delaying what the audience sees as inevitable, and is built through situations that are menacing or where escape seems impossible. The cover-up of important information from the viewer, and fight and chase scenes are common methods. Life is typically threatened in a thriller film, such as when the protagonist does not realize that they are entering a dangerous situation. Thriller films' characters conflict with each other or with an outside force, which can sometimes be abstract. The protagonist is usually set against a problem, such as an escape, a goal, mission, or a mystery. Screenwriter and scholar Eric R. Williams identifies thriller films as one of eleven super-genres in his Screenwriters Taxonomy, screenwrite ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Fritz Lang
Friedrich Christian Anton Lang (; December 5, 1890 – August 2, 1976), known as Fritz Lang, was an Austrian film director, screenwriter, and producer who worked in Germany and later the United States.Obituary ''Variety'', August 4, 1976, p. 63. One of the best-known ''émigrés'' from Germany's school of Expressionism, he was dubbed the "Master of Darkness" by the British Film Institute. He has been cited as one of the most influential filmmakers of all time. Lang's most celebrated films include the groundbreaking futuristic ''Metropolis'' (1927) and the influential '' M'' (1931), a film noir precursor. His 1929 film ''Woman in the Moon'' showcased the use of a multi-stage rocket, and also pioneered the concept of a rocket launch pad (a rocket standing upright against a tall building before launch having been slowly rolled into place) and the rocket-launch countdown clock. [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Chester Morris
John Chester Brooks Morris (February 16, 1901 – September 11, 1970) was an American stage, film, television, and radio actor. He had some prestigious film roles early in his career, and received an Academy Award nomination for ''Alibi'' (1929). Chester Morris is remembered for portraying Boston Blackie, a criminal-turned-detective, in the ''Boston Blackie'' film series of the 1940s. Early years Chester Morris was born John Chester Brooks Morris in New York City, and was one of five children of Broadway stage actor William Morris and stage comedienne Etta Hawkins. His siblings who lived to adulthood were screenwriter-actor Gordon Morris, actor Adrian Morris, and actress Wilhelmina Morris. Another brother, Lloyd Morris, had died young. Morris dropped out of school and began his Broadway career at 15 years old opposite Lionel Barrymore in ''The Copperhead''. He made his film debut in the silent comedy-drama film '' An Amateur Orphan'' (1917). After appearing in several ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Spencer Charters
Spencer Charters (March 25, 1875 – January 25, 1943) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 220 films between 1920 and 1943, mostly in small supporting roles. Biography Charters was born in Duncannon, Pennsylvania. Until around 1890 he worked as a machinist for the Chesapeake Nail Works in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and had little interest in acting. He soon appeared on stage after leaving school with a walk-on part, but it wasn't long before he was being given fair-sized roles. He played on Broadway between 1910 and 1929 and was a busy character actor in films during the 1930s and early 1940s. He often portrayed somewhat befuddled judges, doctors, clerks, managers, and jailers. Charters was married to actress Irene Myers until her death December 22, 1941. He died by suicide from a mix of sleeping pills and carbon monoxide poisoning. He is buried in Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale, California Glendale is a city in the San Fernando Valley and ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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The Bat Whispers
''The Bat Whispers'' is a 1930 American pre-Code mystery film directed by Roland West, produced by Joseph M. Schenck, and released by United Artists. The film is based on the 1920 mystery play '' The Bat'', written by Mary Roberts Rinehart and Avery Hopwood, and is the second film version by the same director, previously adapted in 1926. An early talkie and one of the first widescreen films, West financed the cinematography, which required two cameramen and several techniques. It was considered a lost film for many years, but was restored from duplicate filmstock in 1988. Plot A mysterious criminal by the name of "The Bat" eludes police and then finally announces his retirement to the country. In the countryside near the town of Oakdale, news of a bank robbery in Oakdale has put Mrs. Van Gordner's maid, Lizzie, on edge. Van Gordner is leasing the house from Mr. Fleming, the Oakdale bank president, who is in Europe. The chief suspect in the bank robbery, a cashier, has disappe ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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1930 In Film
The following is an overview of 1930 in film, including significant events, a list of films released and notable births and deaths. Top-grossing films (U.S.) The top ten 1930 released films by box office gross in North America are as follows: Events * February 21: '' Anna Christie'', Greta Garbo's first sound film is released, it grosses $1.5 million. * February 23: Silent screen legend Mabel Normand dies at the age of 37 in Monrovia, California after a lengthy battle with tuberculosis. * March 10: Release of ''Goodbye Argentina'' (''Adiós Argentina''), the first Argentine film with a (musical) soundtrack. Ada Cornaro has her first starring role and Libertad Lamarque makes her film debut. * April 6: William Fox sells his interest in Fox Film for $18 million and Harley L. Clarke becomes president. * May 27: Howard Hughes' epic film ''Hell's Angels'' premieres at Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood and features Jean Harlow in her first major role as well as some im ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Charles Paton
Charles Ernest Paton (31 July 1874 – 10 April 1970) was an English film actor. He joined the circus at 14, and had early stage and music hall experience. He appeared in more than 100 films between 1927 and 1952, including ''Freedom of the Seas''. In 1927, he appeared in a short film, made in the DeForest Phonofilm sound-on-film process, singing "If Your Face Wants to Smile, We'll Let It In" from the revue ''John Citizen's Lament''. He was born in London and died from a heart attack, also in London. Selected filmography * ''Blackmail'' (1929, UK), Alfred Hitchcock's first sound film * '' The Feather'' (1929) * '' The W Plan'' (1930) * '' What a Night!'' (1931) * ''The Sleeping Cardinal'' (1931) * '' The Lyons Mail'' (1931) * '' The Great Gay Road'' (1931) * ''Stepping Stones'' (1931) * ''The Girl in the Night'' (1931) * '' Glamour'' (1931) * '' The Spare Room'' (1932) * '' Rynox'' (1932) * ''Josser Joins the Navy'' (1932) * '' The Third String'' (1932) * '' The Love Nest ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Sara Allgood
Sarah Ellen Allgood (30 October 1880 – 13 September 1950), known as Sara Allgood, was an Irish-American actress. She first studied drama with the Irish nationalist Daughters of Ireland and was at the opening of the Irish National Theatre Society. In 1904, she had her first big role in '' Spreading the News'' and was a full-time actress the following year. In 1915, she toured Australia and New Zealand as the lead in ''Peg o' My Heart''. Her acting career continued in Dublin, London, and the U.S. She appeared in a number of films, most notably being nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Beth Morgan in the 1941 film '' How Green Was My Valley''. She became an American citizen in 1945 and died of a heart attack in 1950. Early life Allgood was born on 30 October 1880 at 45 Middle Abbey Street in Dublin, then still part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland at the time, a daughter of Margaret ( Harold) and compositor George A ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Anny Ondra
Anny Ondra (born Anna Sophie Ondráková; 15 May 1903 – 28 February 1987) was a Czech film actress. She began her career in 1920 and appeared in Czech, German, Austrian, French and English films. In 1933, she married German boxing champion Max Schmeling. Life Ondra was born in Tarnów to Czech parents, Bohumír Ondrák, an officer in the Austro-Hungarian Army, and Anna Ondráková (''née'' Mracek). She had two brothers, Tomáš and Jindřich. She spent her childhood in Tarnów, Pula and Prague. At seventeen she acted in the theatre and in her first film, which was directed by her then boyfriend, director and actor Karel Lamač. When her family learned of it, they had a shouting match in which the teenager received a beating from her father - to be an actress, soon after the First World War, was socially almost at the level of being a beggar. Anna had been educated at a convent school and her father had found an official government position for her. Anna preferred a film care ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Blackmail (1929 Film)
''Blackmail'' is a 1929 British thriller drama film directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Anny Ondra, John Longden, and Cyril Ritchard. Based on the 1928 play of the same name by Charles Bennett, the film is about a London woman who is blackmailed after killing a man who tries to rape her. After starting production as a silent film, British International Pictures decided to adapt ''Blackmail'' into a separate sound film. It became the first successful European talkie; a silent version was released for theaters not equipped for sound (at 6,740 feet), with the sound version (7,136 feet) released at the same time. Both versions are held in the British Film Institute collection. ''Blackmail'' is frequently cited as the first British sound feature film. Voted the best British film of 1929 in a UK poll the year it was released. In 2017 a poll of 150 actors, directors, writers, producers and critics for ''Time Out'' magazine ranked ''Blackmail'' as the 59th best British film ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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1929 In Film
The following is an overview of 1929 in film, including significant events, a list of films released and notable births and deaths. Top-grossing films (U.S.) The top ten 1929 released films by box office gross in North America are as follows: Events The days of the silent film are numbered. A mad scramble to provide synchronized sound is on. * February 1 – '' The Broadway Melody'' is released by MGM and becomes the first major musical film of the sound era, sparking a host of imitators as well as a series of ''Broadway Melody'' films that will run until 1940. * February 18 – The first Academy Awards, or Oscars, are announced for the year ended August 1, 1928. * March 3 – William Fox announces that he has taken control of Loews Inc., including its subsidiary Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, buying shares from Marcus Loew's widow and sons and Nicholas Schenck for $50 million. The acquisition eventually falls through. * May 16 – The first Academy Awards are distributed at The H ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Craighall Sherry
Craighall Sherry (April 8, 1869; Glasgow, Scotland, UK - 1943 (age 73); Uxbridge, Middlesex, UK) was a British stage and film actor. Selected filmography * ''The Battles of Coronel and Falkland Islands'' (1927) * ''Spione'' (1928) * '' Number 17'' (1928) * '' The Informer'' (1929) * ''The Loves of Robert Burns'' (1930) * ''Nell Gwyn'' (1934) * ''Royal Cavalcade ''Royal Cavalcade'', also known as ''Regal Cavalcade'', is a 1935 British, black-and-white, drama film directed by six separate directors: Thomas Bentley (Supervising Director), Herbert Brenon, Norman Lee, Walter Summers, W. P. Kellino and Mar ...'' (1935) Bibliography * Ott, Frederick W. ''The Films of Fritz Lang''. Citadel Press, 1979. External links * 1869 births 1943 deaths Scottish male silent film actors 20th-century Scottish male actors Scottish male stage actors {{UK-film-actor-stub ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |