Hooray for Hollywood! It’s an adage that is as true today as it was all those years ago. Can you even imagine what life would be like without the magic of movies? We don’t want to either, and fortunately we don’t have to! In our current Golden Age Greats Sale, you’ll have the chance to get huge savings on some of the greatest films ever made. Here’s a look at just some of the titles featured in the sale.
A Star Is Born (1937)
Marvelous William Wellman classic drama about the early days of the Hollywood star system stars Fredric March as one-time screen idol Norman Maine, who meets and falls for waitress/would-be actress Esther Blodgett (Janet Gaynor)─only to watch his career decline, as hers rises to the top. This first filming of the memorable story was also one of the first films to be shot in Technicolor; with Andy Devine, Adolphe Menjou, and Lionel Stander.
Lost Horizon (1937)
A group of travelers lost in the Tibetan mountains comes upon the mystical valley of Shangri-La, a Utopia detached from the rest of the world, in Frank Capra’s classic adventure/romance saga. Ronald Colman, Jane Wyatt, Sam Jaffe, John Howard, H.B. Warner, Thomas Mitchell star.
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)
Frank Capra’s timeless 1939 political fable still resonates today. Political power-brokers decide that Jefferson Smith (James Stewart), an obscure scoutmaster in a small town, would be the perfect dupe to fill a vacant U.S. Senate chair, assuming he would be easily controlled by the senior state senator (Claude Rains). Stewart’s wide-eyed wonderment at the glories of Washington feels like an act to his cynical secretary (Jean Arthur), who doesn’t believe for a minute this overgrown boyscout could be for real. But he is. Congress didn’t appreciate the portrayal of their august body as being cynical, corrupt and absorbed by their own self-interest, but audiences sure did.
The Lost Weekend (1945)
Four Academy Awards (Best Picture, Director, Actor, and Adapted Screenplay) went to Billy Wilder’s social drama, a groundbreaking look into the dangers of alcoholism that was almost not released. Ray Milland stars as Don Birnam, an alcoholic writer who blows off a weekend trip with his brother and falls into a maelstrom of delusion and dementia and winds up in a psychiatric ward during a four-day bender. Jane Wyman, Howard Da Silva, Frank Faylen also star; based on the novel by Charles R. Jackson.
Sands of Iwo Jima (1949)
One of the all-time great war movies, powerfully recounting the Allied assault on Japan in the last days of World War II, earned star John Wayne his first Best Actor Oscar nomination for his role as the battle-scarred Marine sergeant leading his men into combat. The superb action scenes were shot at the actual Pacific locales; Forrest Tucker, Richard Jaeckel, John Agar also star.
Little Women (1949)
The beloved Louisa May Alcott novel received a glossy treatment in this favorite adaptation from MGM, as young New England sisters Jo (June Allyson), Amy (Elizabeth Taylor), Meg (Janet Leigh), and Beth March (Margaret O’Brien) rally around their beloved “Marmee” (Mary Astor) while hoping for the safe return of their chaplain father (Leon Ames) from the Civil War. Peter Lawford, Rossano Brazzi, Lucile Watson, C. Aubrey Smith also star; Mervyn Leroy directs.
The Quiet Man (1952)
Director John Ford’s Oscar-winning rouser stars John Wayne as Irish-born, American-raised ex-boxer Sean Thornton. Returning to Ireland to claim his family’s estate, Sean falls for and weds feisty village beauty Mary Kate Danaher (Maureen O’Hara). But after he’s branded a coward for refusing to fight her ruffian brother Red (Victor McLaglen) for her dowry, Sean finally relents and takes on Red in a classic screen brawl. With Barry Fitzgerald, Mildred Natwick, Ward Bond.
Strategic Air Command (1955)
Having distinguished himself as a bomber pilot during World War II, major league ballplayer Dutch Holland (James Stewart) thought his days in the sky were behind him. That would change when the Air Force summoned him back to active duty, and he’d have to master new classes of jet aircraft as well as a needed role in the crucial deterrent force of the Cold War era. Favorite flag-waver also stars June Allyson, Frank Lovejoy, Barry Sullivan, Alex Nicol; Anthony Mann directs.
For a complete rundown of all the films included in this sale, click here.