A somewhat tangential entry in the "Universal Monsters" series of films is 1942's "Invisible Agent," which sneaks in as part of "The Invisible Man" series.
It's a pretty fun blending of the invisible theme with topical WWII action.
The star of the film Jon Hall, was never a big star, but he has at least one important distinction: he was born on February 23, the same as Kelsey Grammer's Scrooge, Kathleen Harrison and yours truly!
Why are we talking about this movie? It was directed by Edwin L. Marin, known in these circles as the director of 1938's "A Christmas Carol" from 1938!
The picture was not sold by using his name, as it's in extremely fine print on the (very cool , if misleading) poster above and the (misleadingly Frankenstein-esque) one below!
But we needed reliable guys like him to keep the product coming back in the golden age of Hollywood!
Note: My editor, Slugger Jr., was particularly interested in what I had to say in this post:
He watches all the movies with me and must have liked this one! Maybe it was the walk-on by Walter Tetley as a newsboy!
On the subject of the 1938 version of "A Christmas Carol," you may recall that June Lockhart, daughter of Gene and Kathleen (who portrayed Bob and Mrs. Cratchit) made her movie debut as Belinda Cratchit in that film.
June's first lead role in a movie was in Universal's 1946 "She-Wolf of London," which also sneaks into the whole Universal Monsters thing, as it is sort-of part of the Wolf Man series. SPOILER: It really shouldn't be!
June is cute as a button, but doesn't get a chance to act much and she and co-star Don Porter are so not British!
But fun for 1960s TV fans to see Gidget's father and Will Robinson's mother 20 years prior!
So, as I often often do, I was looking for a movie to watch on TCM and settled on "Listen, Darling," a 1938 release from MGM.
I had seen it years ago and remembered some of it but not so much as not to be entertained.
Anyway, what caught my eye was that this film was directed by Edwin L. Marin, who was also the director of "A Christmas Carol," another 1938 release from MGM!
This sort of thing makes me start thinking about context (my big thing) and how do those two movies relate and whatnot.
One thing to note is that Edwin L. Marin was the director of five MGM releases that year, which shows that he was efficient, if nothing else, and that he couldn't have spent much time on "A Christmas Carol," so that was not a big "prestige" picture.
I've enjoyed quite a few movies on his résumé, so I'd say he had talent to go along with his efficiency, so a valuable employee in the days when studios were churning out a lot of movies.
The other common thread of "Listen, Darling" and "A Christmas Carol" is that Gene Lockhart appears in both films.
He, of course, plays Bob Cratchit in "A Christmas Carol" and adds a lot to that movie. His role in "Listen, Darling" is smaller, but puts the plot in motion.
The plot (such as it is) of "Listen, Darling" is Judy Garland and her friend Freddie Bartholomew trying to find a suitable husband for Mary Astor, Judy's widowed mother, so she won't have to marry the "drizzle puss" played by Gene Lockhart!
Gene's character is named "Mr. Drubbs" (which has a Dickensian sound to it!) and is just as dull as his name. Gene plays the part very well and comparing this to his performance as Bob Cratchit shows his versatility.
Gene Lockhart is the only actor to appear in the two movies, but I started to wonder if anyone else in "Listen, Darling" would fit into "A Christmas Carol."
The obvious first thought is Freddie Bartholomew, the young British breakout star of MGM's earlier Dickens adaptation of "David Copperfield" from 1935. I think he would have been a good Tiny Tim if MGM had adapted "A Christmas Carol" a couple of years earlier, but even by 1938, Freddie was age 14 and not tiny enough anymore. Not that I think Terry Kilburn was ideal, but don't get me started!
If MGM had wanted to use Freddie in "A Christmas Carol," the best part would have young Ebenezer Scrooge, but that role would have needed to be expanded and it would have thrown everything off by having a box office name (which Freddie had been and sort of still was) play young Scrooge while a non-box office name (Reginald Owen never was) as old Scrooge.
The only other British actor in "Listen, Darling" was Barnett Parker, who plays his typical role of a butler. He could have been shoved into any number of small parts in "A Christmas Carol" if he had been hanging around the lot.
The romantic lead of "Listen, Darling," Walter Pidgeon, was Canadian, but sort of seemed British, but I don't think there was a good role for him in "A Christmas Carol," except maybe Fred, but he was perhaps too mature for that part.
Not British in the least was Alan Hale, who also appears in "Listen, Darling," but I submit that he could have been a great Ghost of Christmas Present, had things lined up that way!
Another thing to note is that Judy Garland also appeared in another 1938 MGM movie directed by Edwin L. Marin, "Everybody Sing," and her father in that movie was played by Reginald Owen and her sister by Lynne Carver ("Bess" in "A Christmas Carol")!
Everything comes back around!
From a non-"A Christmas Carol" standpoint, "Listen, Darling" is pleasant entertainment showing Freddie Bartholomew just after his peak of stardom and Judy Garland just before hers was to begin!
Here's the trailer for "Listen, Darling," which tells you all you need to know:
