1934 was a year and a half for film. Massive stars were born this year and 4 of them are still beavering away today at the age of 84. Numerous films released are still impacting movies and some of them are still being remade to this day. The Hays code was the big movie news of the year.
The Hays Code came fully into effect. A set of moral guidelines designed to whip Hollywood into a more family friendly shape after a serious of scandals involving actors and studios in the 20's especially the Fatty Arbuckle case. Blood, nudity, swearing, homosexuality, sex & drug references and other nefarious goodies all vanish from Hollywood movies for the next 30+ years. This code is the reason why married couples in old B&W films always had separate beds. Ridiculous wasn't it.
It Happened One Night becomes the first film to win all 5 main Oscars at the Academy awards. Actor, actress, writer, director and film. Something not again achieved until 1975's One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest repeated the feat. It deserved them all. A glorious romantic comedy that's still influencing romcoms today. Rapid fire dialogue and great characters ensure that 84 years later this is still a brilliant watch.
The Merry Widow is the big earner of the year. A fun movie based on an opera. With the country in the midst of the Great Depression it's no surprise that audiences flock in droves to more light hearted fare than previous years. The gangster film and the Universal monster movies have taken a back seat.
Death Takes A Holiday. Another massive success this year and still an intriguing watch. Death takes the form of a human being to understand why people fear him so much. And of course he falls for a beauty.
The Thin Man. The first appearance on screen of Nick & Nora Charles. An absolute joy of a film. Clever, twisty, funny and the chemistry between it's stars Myrna Loy and William Powell bubbles off the screen. Worth tracking down if you haven't seen it. And yes Nick & Nora's Infinite Playlist took it's name from here.
Cleopatra, Imitation Of Life & The Count Of Monte Cristo all appeared on screen this year and would go on to be remade again and again over the course of the 20th century. The 1934 versions still hold up though especially Cleopatra which was directed in reliably epic fashion by Cecil B.DeMille
Claudette Colbert
Without a doubt the actor of the year. It Happened One, Night, Cleopatra, Imitation Of Life and Four Frightened people all did mighty business and snagged her an Oscar too. A genuinely likable screen presence who sadly went on to live a troubled lonely life. Her career evaporated by the late 50's and she only appeared on screen twice more between 1960 and her death in 1996.
Man Of Aran. One of the most famous documentaries ever made appeared this year. Famous for both documenting the tough life lived by the people of the Aran islands off the coast of Galway and for the sheer amount of fabrication shown on screen. It wasn't until 4 decades later that the full truth came out about the manufactured drama show onscreen but it's still worth a watch for it's depiction of natural beauty and the cinematography techniques used.
Born this year were Alan Arkin, Shirley MacClaine, Judi Dench, Maggie Smith, Sophia Loren and Brigitte Bardot amongst others. Amazingly all of them are still in fine fettle and the first 4 in the list are still pumping out films at a rate that puts younger actors to shame. They made 'em tough in the Thirties.
Bright Eyes was released this year. The breakout hit little Shirley Temple who went on to become the sweetheart of the world during the rest of the decade. This fun bit of fluff is remembered mainly for her, the Good Ship Lollypop song she sang and the fact that it won her a special academy award. After being spotted 4 years previously her career was molded by her mother and the Fox Film Company who knew a star when the saw one and Bright Eyes was the first film written specifically for her.
Hers was the only debut of the year though. A few massive names made their mark this year and a couple of them would go on to be megastars over the next 4 decades.
Alec Guinness - Evensong
Rita Hayworth - Cruz Diablo
James Stewart - Art Trouble
Margaret Lockwood - Lorna Doone
Bob Hope - Going Spanish
They all stand in the shadow of one though. One big name appeared this year and even the children of 2018 have heard of him. The one, the only.
Donald's first appearance was in 1934's The Little Wise Hen and he's made 150 appearance's since then, the latest being Kingdom Hearts III, a computer game released this year. He's going nowhere.
Now for a film. Man Of Aran. In all it's dodginess. As always the legality of watching movies on youtube is murky. So I'll turn my back and you decide what to do next.
Previous years
1933
1932
1931
1930
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