Film Flashback December 23, 1955

This is the last film flashback for now. I may do a few again at some point, but I've been posting these for a little over a year and all good things must come to an end. I've decided to go back to 1955 for this post. There was lots of choices of what to see in Murfreesboro, Tennessee on December 23 and for days afterward. 

The 4-Lane Drive-In Theatre which was on land that later became the site of the Marbro Drive-In has a double feature running through Saturday. I am going to guess that Call North Side is the Jimmy Stewart film noir Call Northside 777 since I can't find a film just named Call North Side. It's a film noir from 1948 about a news reporter, played by Stewart, who reopens an eleven year old murder case. The movie was based on a factual case.

Call Northside 777 trailer

The Swordsman is also from 1948 and appears to be a swashbuckling story about young lovers from opposite fighting clans. The Kiss of Fire was coming on Christmas with Sun Valley Serenade which would play December 27 -29, 1955. Kiss of Fire was a 1955 release starring Jack Palance as ruthless outlaw El Tigre who is the guide for Princess Lucia, played by Barbara Rush, who is traveling from New Mexico to California. The great skater Sonja Henie is the star of Sun Valley Serenade from 1941 along with John Payne and the great jazzman Glenn Miller. It's a musical comedy/drama romance set at a famous ski resort. 

Sun Valley Serenade trailer

A trip out Shelbyville Highway will bring us to the Starlite Drive-In Theatre where they also have a double feature playing on December 23, 1955. New York Confidential is a film noir starring Broderick Crawford, Richard Conte, Marilyn Maxwell, and Anne Bancroft about a New York crime boss. The Diamond Wizard is about a group of thieves creating artificial diamonds from sugar. Big stars Jane Russell and Jeanne Crain would be on the screen come Christmas in Gentlemen Marry Brunettes. It was not a sequel to Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. It was just a play on the title of the much better film from 1953.

New York Confidential trailer

The Diamond Wizard trailer

Gentlemen Marry Brunettes trailer

So that's what was playing the drive-in theatres. Let's go see what was playing at the Princess. There's a Christmas classic plus the coming attractions including an all time classic Disney film arriving on Christmas Day. Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Vera-Ellen and Rosemary Clooney are the main stars in Irving Berlin's White Christmas which is playing on December 23. It's a song and dance put on a show holiday musical for the ages. Christmas Eve features Shane and Devil Goddess. The George Stevens directed Western Shane starring Alan Ladd was a hit with both audiences and critics right out the gate when it was released in 1953. I would imagine it's on a second or third run for this Saturday double feature. The Johnny Weissmuller film Devil Goddess is all about finding a missing colleague who is now playing God to the natives. The movie was a continuation of the Jungle Jim films Weissmuller had been playing in before, except Columbia Pictures had lost the right to use the name hence Johnny playing a character named Johnny Weissmuller. The biggest film of the week for me has to be Walt Disney's Lady and the Tramp. This romance story between a pedigreed cocker spaniel and a streetwise mutt enchanted me when I was a boy seeing it in the 1970's just as it delighted audiences back in 1955. 

White Christmas trailer

Shane trailer

Lady and the Tramp trailer