The real “message to Garcia” was delivered by an American lieutenant to Cuban rebel General Garcia, asking for the General’s help in the Spanish-American war. The fact that the lieutenant made his way to Garcia in absolute safety was ignored in 20th Century-Fox’s Message to Garcia–which is just as well, since otherwise the movie would have been eight minutes long. In the film version, lieutenant John Boles is guided through the treacherous Cuban jungle by Barbara Stanwyck, doing her best to convince us that she’s an Hispanic senorita. Also along for the trip is renegade marine Wallace Beery, who may not be as friendly as he seems. Fighting off Spaniards and spies at every turn, Boles successfully completes his mission. As history, Message to Garcia is about as reliable as the Hearst newspaper dispatches which triggered the Spanish-American war in the first place.
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Tag Archives: George Marshall
The Sheepman (1958) George Marshall, Glenn Ford, Shirley MacLaine, Leslie Nielsen, Western
A stranger in a Western cattle-town behaves with remarkable self-assurance, establishing himself as a man to be reckoned with. The reason appears with his stock: a herd of sheep, which he intends to graze on the range. The horrified inhabitants decide to run him out at all costs.
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Boy, Did I Get a Wrong Number! (1966) George Marshall, Bob Hope, Elke Sommer, Phyllis Diller, Comedy
The Divine D.D., a European actress known more for her bubble bath scenes than for her acting, decides she has had enough with bubble baths and wants to be taken seriously as an actress. So much so that she runs away during the middle of a scene while filming in Hollywood and winds up in Oregon. While she is staying in a hotel, the operator accidentally connects her with a real estate agent named Tom Meade. She asks Tom to bring her some food and when he does he suggests that she go to his cabin in the woods. She also asks him not to tell anyone where she is because she doesn’t want to go back to Hollywood. Now Tom must keep the secret, especially from his wife and from his suspicious housekeeper Millie.
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