The Chance of a Lifetime
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| The Chance of a Lifetime | |
|---|---|
 Film poster |
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| Directed by | William Castle |
| Produced by | Wallace MacDonald |
| Written by | Jack Boyle Paul Yawitz |
| Starring | Chester Morris Erik Rolf Jeanne Bates |
| Music by | Stock Music Used |
| Release date(s) | October 26, 1943 |
| Running time | 65 min. |
| IMDb profile | |
The Chance of a Lifetime is a crime drama starring Chester Morris, Erik Rolf and Jeanne Bates made in 1943. It is one of 14 films made by Columbia Pictures involving detective Boston Blackie, criminal turned detective. This film is William Castle's directorial debut.
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[edit] The Plot
Boston Blackie helps the war effort by getting prisoners released on parole to help in a WWII manufacturing factory. The prisoners chosen have to be "good prisoners" who want to support America's war efforts. As usual there is the proverbial black sheep who immediately returns to crime after his parole. If Boston Blackie is to save this project he has to capture the criminal and find the stolen loot.
[edit] The Production
As with the other studios Columbia Pictures had their own "in house" detective series. Boston Blackie films were taught, compact and entertaining "B" crime films with a bit of humor periodically injected into the plot.
"The Chance of a Lifetime" was Columbia Pictures sixth Boston Blackie film in the series and one of three that did not have Boston Blackie's name in the title of the film. As with many of the films of the period this was a flag waiver to support America's efforts during World War II.
[edit] The Cast
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Chester Morris | Boston Blackie |
| Erik Rolf | Dooley Watson |
| Richard Lane | Insp. John Farraday |
| George E. Stone | The Runt |
| Lloyd Corrigan | Arthur Manleder |
| Arthur Hunnicutt | Elwood "Tex" Stewart |
| Pierre Watkin | Gov. Rutledge |
| Douglas Fowley | Nails Blanton |
| Sid Melton | "Sunny" Hines |
| Walter Sande | Detective Sgt. Mathews |
| Haarry Semels | Jerome "Egypt" Hines |
| Ray Teal | The Cop "Joe" |
Chester Morris was a dark, handsome, firm jawed actor who appealed to both men and women for his confidence and good natured humor. He was nominated for an Oscar for "The Alibi" in 1929. Throughout the 1930s he effortlessly switched between tough guy and slick debonair love interest roles. He is best remembered for his Boston Blackie series in the 1940's. In the 1950s - 1960s he worked mainly in TV with occasional forays into regional theatre. His last film role was in "The Great White Hope" (1970).
Chester Morris was dying of cancer when he committed suicide by taking an overdose of barbiturates in 1970. He had been starring in a regional production of "The Caine Mutiny Court Martial".
The Boston Blackie series had a standard cast along for most of the series:
- Inspector Farrady, Boston's long-suffering police foil played by Richard Lane
- The Runt, Boston's talkative but dim-witted sidekick played by Charles Wagenheim and later George E. Stone.
- Arthur Manleder, Boston's irresponsible, irrepresible, adventurous millionaire pal played by Lloyd Corrigan.
[edit] The Critics Speak
- Leonard Maltin said that Chester Morris "brought to the role a delightful offhand manner and sense of humour that kept the films fresh even when the scripts weren't".
- Hal Erickson of the All movie Guide said: "The Chance of a Lifetime" represents the first directorial effort of William Castle, who later claimed that, saddled with a hopeless project, he made the film "work" by re-arranging the reels in the editing room".
[edit] Trivia
- Chester Morris made his Broadway debut at 15 in Lionel Barrymore's "The Copperhead". At 17 he billed himself as "the youngest leading man in the country".
- Chester Morris starred in "The Bat Whispers" in 1930. This was one of the first films to use the "Magnifilm" 70mm process. Sound films were just taking hold with the public and theatres weren't willing to pay for the added expense of 70mm projection cameras and larger wide screens on top of the cost of sound equipment. The process was abandoned until the 1950s when film studios began to use it again to lure customers away from the TV sets.
- In 1952 he received the deathbed confession of his friend, Roland West, for the murder of Thelma Todd in 1935.
[edit] Availability
There have been no "official" Columbia VHS or DVD releases of any of the Boston Blackie Films but there are VHS and DVD-R versions available via internet auction sites for several of these films.
[edit] External Links
- The Chance of a Lifetime at the Internet Movie Database
- More information on the history of Boston Blackie can be found on Wikipedia here.
