My preferred involved ones off the thirties years: #7

The dapper William Powell had a rich voice for the talkies and a smooth manner to match.If he gained popularity playing detectives in several series of films, Powell certainly went beyond that. His chemistry with frequent co-star Myrna Loy was so complete that people assumed they were married in real life. He was a welcome addition to MGM’s stable of stars. That studio made Powell a household name when he became frustrated elsewhere.But before Hollywood he went to school to pursue a possible law career â€" and he would have stayed there if Powell’s father had his way. However, Powell was drawn to acting and went to New York. He spent 10 years on Broadway before making his film debut in John Barrymore’s â€! œSherlock Holmes” in 1922. Surprisingly, Powell played many villains during his years in silents, including a domineering movie director in “The Last Command.”In 1929, he began playing detective Philo Vance and made the transition to talking films. But he became frustrated at Paramount Pictures and went to Warner Brothers. He still wasn’t getting the material he wanted, although he did make his first true gem of the decade â€" “One Way Passage.” This improbable tearjerker on a cruise ship between Powell’s convicted killer and Kay Francis’ terminally ill socialite sounds corny, but it’s one of the most beautiful romances of the early 1930s, thanks to Powell and Francis’ lovely performances.He made “The Kennel Murder Case,” the best Philo Vance movie, in 1933 before heading to MGM. One of his first assignments there was “Manhattan Melodrama” opposite Loy and Clark Gable. If not a great film, it’s certainly enjoyable and one of the year’s top hi! ts. It pushed Powell’s career into high gear and established! him and Loy (below) as a viable screen couple.And that couple really hit the stratosphere as Nick and Nora Charles in “The Thin Man,” the terrific adaptation of Dashiell Hammett’s book. This movie combines mystery, drama and comedy, as the two stars display a sophisticated ease in their roles. It was followed by five more “Thin Man” movies, three in the 1930s. Powell received his first well-deserved Oscar nod for “The Thin Man,” and it’s as fresh today as it was then.In 1936, he had five roles. “After the Thin Man” was the second in that series and was another success for Powell as Nick Charles. “The Ex-Mrs. Bradford” was a screwball comedy with Jean Arthur. “Libeled Lady” was a much better sc! rewball with Spencer Tracy, Jean Harlow and Loy again. He plays a Don Juan with gusto in this fun movie.It was another screwball comedy, “My Man Godfrey,” with Carole Lombard (below), that allowed him to shine as a “common” man found by Lombard on a scavenger hunt and invited to be her family’s butler. Powell’s droll wit and deadpan deliveries are wonderful as is the film. Another Oscar nomination came his way. That same year he played Flo Ziegfeld in MGM’s mammoth musical “The Great Ziegfeld.” If the script didn’t dive deep enough into Ziegfeld’s life, Powell captures the impresario’s zest for living and the knack for knowing what an audience wants, which eventually was Broadway shows filled! with beautiful women.What a year for the popular Powell. He w! as also engaged to Harlow, whom he met when making “Reckless” in 1935. However, when she died in 1937, he was devastated, and he took a break from movies. Although his filmwork continued into the 1940s, it definitely slowed after Harlow’s death. He never had another run like he did during the mid-1930s.Still, Powell was a charming, highly likable actor. The creation of Nick Charles and Godfrey alone earns him a spot as one of Hollywood’s most delightful leading men.
Great classic films, best all time movies