DVD - Forbidden Hollywood Collection, Volume Three

Wild Times: Pre-Code Films of "Wild Bill" Wellman. He flew World War I's Lafayette Escadrille. Later made his Hollywood introduction by landing a plane on Douglas Fairbank's property. And went on to a remarkable 40-year career that includes these six snappy pre-Code works.

Disc 1 of this William A. Wellman movie collection features burly railroad men vying for Mary Astor in "Other Men's Women" and Barbara Stanwyck proving she's a mail-order bride worth "The Purchase Price". Stepping out of the shadows for

Disc 2 are Ruth Chatterton as brothel madam "Frisco Jenny" and Loretta Young as a desperate moll in the dazzlingly stylistic "Midnight Mary" (made at Metro but very much in the Warner mode).

Wellman flexes Depression-era social-conscience muscle in Disc 3, using "Heroes For Sale" (starring Richard Barthelmess) to focus on the plight of war veterans and championing the wandering youths turned into "Wild Boys On The Road". Go where the excitement is with Hollywood's "Wild Bill". "Other Men's Women" (1931): This is the story of a love triangle between two burly railroad men and the one woman they both desire (Mary Astor). Jack, an engineer (Regis Toomey) and Lily's husband, is more solid and reliable. Bill (Grant Withers) is a carefree ladies' man with an irresponsible streak.

Directed with his signature virile style, Wellman balances scenes of fraying domesticity with vigorous vignettes of tough railroad life. "The Purchase Price" (1932): This film is a brisk Wellman mix of comedy and melodrama about torch singer Joan Gordon (Barbara Stanwyck), who tiring of her relationship with small-time hood Eddie Fields (Lyle Talbot), flees to North Dakota and becomes the mail-order bride of down-to-earth farmer Jim Gilson (George Brent). Their wedded bliss is threatened by Gilson's own stubbornness, a lecherous neighbor and the reappearance of Fields. "Frisco Jenny" (1932): Ruth Chatterton plays the title role of "Frisco Jenny", a woman orphaned by the 1906 earthquake who becomes the madam of a prosperous brothel.

She puts her son up for adoption and as he rises to prominence as district attorney he becomes dedicated to closing down such houses. When her associate proposes killing the DA, she kills the associate and must face execution. "Midnight Mary" (1933): This crime melodrama was based on a story by Anita Loos, about a young woman on trial for murder (Loretta Young). The story is told in flashback, as she awaits her verdict. Mary Martin recalls how her life of desperate poverty leads to involvement with gangsters.

When she meets a young lawyer in a brothel, scion of a wealthy and prestigious family, he helps her turn around her life. But her past catches up with her, and she chooses to face the consequences rather than cause him scandal. "Heroes For Sale" (1933): Filmed with raw, gritty immediacy by the no-nonsense Wellman, covers all the Depression-era bases, and puts the spotlight on the plight of veterans. This is the hard-hitting story of Tom Holmes (Richard Barthelmess), an unsung war hero left wounded and addicted to morphine whose struggles make him an American Everyman, a tough hero for a tough time.

"Wild Boys Of The Road (1933): It's the Depression, and Tom's mother has been out of work for months when Eddie's father loses his job. Not to burden their parents, the two high school sophomores decide to hop the freights and look for work. This socially conscience message film helped draw attention to wandering youths cut adrift by hard times. Frankie Darro, whose acting career stretched from the 1920s into the '70s, portrays Eddie.

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