Torin Thatcher
Also Known As: Torin Herbert Erskine Thatcher, Lt. Torin Thatcher R.A., T. Atkinson, Торин Тэтчер, 托林·撒切尔
Biography: From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Torin Thatcher (15 January 1905 - 4 March 1981) was an English actor born in Bombay, British India, India), to English parents. He was an imposing, powerfully built figure noted for his flashy portrayals of screen villains. He was educated in England at Bedford School and at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. He worked as a schoolmaster before first appearing on the London stage in 1927 and then entering British films in 1934. He appeared in the 1937 Old Vic stage production of Hamlet, in which Laurence Olivier made his first appearance in the title role, opposite Vivien Leigh as Ophelia. During the Second World War, he served with the Royal Artillery and was demobilized with the rank of lieutenant colonel. Thatcher appeared in classic British films of the late 1930s and 1940s, including Major Barbara (1941) and Great Expectations (1946), in which he played Bentley Drummle. He moved to Hollywood in the 1950s. He was constantly in demand, invariably lending his looming figure and baleful countenance to sinister or stern roles in popular costume thrillers such as The Crimson Pirate (1952), Blackbeard the Pirate (1952), The Robe (1953) (as the disapproving father of Richard Burton's character), The Black Shield of Falworth (1954), Helen of Troy (1956), Darby's Rangers (1958), and The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958). He also appeared in the Marlon Brando and Trevor Howard 1962 remake of Mutiny on the Bounty. He returned to the stage quite frequently, notably on Broadway, in such esteemed productions as Edward, My Son (1948), That Lady (1949) and Billy Budd (1951). In 1959, he portrayed Captain Keller in the award-winning play The Miracle Worker with Anne Bancroft and Patty Duke. All of these plays were filmed, but Thatcher did not appear in the movie versions. Also a steady fixture on television, he appeared in such made-for-TV films as adaptations of A. J. Cronin's Beyond This Place (1957) and The Citadel (1960),Bonanza(1961), and Brenda Starr (1976). He also played the title role in a Philco Television Playhouse version of Othello and acted in a CBS production of Beyond This Place (1957). Thatcher died of cancer on March 4, 1981, in Thousand Oaks, California, in the Los Angeles area.
Department: Acting
Place of Birth: Bombay, British India, India
Birthday: January 15, 1905
Deathday: March 04, 1981
Adult: No
Gender: Male
Popularity:
Known For:
The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
Overview: In this Dan Curtis production of the Robert Louis Stevenson classic, Jack Palance stars as Dr. Henry Jekyll, a scientist experimenting to reveal the hidden, dark side of man, who, in the process of his experiment, releases a murderer from within himself.
Genres: Thriller TV Movie Horror
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1968-01-07
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The Snows of Kilimanjaro
Overview: Writer Harry Street reflects on his life as he lies dying from an infection while on safari in the shadow of Mount Kilimanjaro.
Genres: Adventure Romance Drama
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1952-10-08
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The Fallen Idol
Overview: Phillipe, the son of an ambassador in London, idolizes Baines, his father's butler, a kind of hero in the eyes of the child, whose perception changes when he accidentally discovers the secret that Baines keeps and witnesses the consequences that adults' lies can cause.
Genres: Drama Thriller
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1948-09-30
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The Crimson Pirate
Overview: Burt Lancaster plays a pirate with a taste for intrigue and acrobatics who involves himself in the goings on of a revolution in the Caribbean in the late 1700s. A light hearted adventure involving prison breaks, an oddball scientist, sailing ships, naval fights and tons of swordplay.
Genres: Adventure Comedy
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1952-09-27
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The Black Shield of Falworth
Overview: In the days of King Henry IV, stalwart young Myles and his sister Meg have been raised as peasants, without any knowledge of who their father really was. But one day, they journey to Macworth Castle. There, Myles falls in love with Lady Anne Macworth, makes friends and enemies, and learns to be a knight.
Genres: Adventure History Romance
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1954-09-02
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The Citadel
Overview: The good doctor is on trial before the British Medical Association Council, if he is found guilty, he will no longer be allowed to practice medicine. The story unfolds through flashbacks which depict his career and his subsequent downfall.
Genres: Drama TV Movie
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1960-02-19
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Jack the Giant Killer
Overview: The terrible and trecherous Pendragon plans to gain the throne of Cornwall by getting the king to abdicate and to marry his lovely daughter. To help him he has his dreadful witches in his castle and his almost unstoppable sorcery. A giant under his control abducts the princess, but on the way home with her the giant meets farming lad Jack who slays him. This is only the beginning.
Genres: Adventure Fantasy Family
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1962-05-18
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Decision at Midnight
Overview: Adaptation of the play Music at Midnight, set in the Iron Curtain.
Genres: Drama
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1963-12-12
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I See a Dark Stranger
Overview: Proud Irishwoman Bridie Quilty journeys to Dublin while World War II rages across Europe. During her travels, she encounters J. Miller, who recruits her as a Nazi spy. She acquires the necessary information that leads to the breakout of a German spy who holds key information about the Allies' newest offensive plans. However, the arrival of British officer David Baynes and his romancing of Bridie lead to unexpected consequences.
Genres: Drama Thriller War
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1946-07-04
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The Desert Rats
Overview: In North Africa, German Field Marshal Rommel and his troops have successfully fended off British forces, and now intend to take Tobruk, an important port city. A ramshackle group of Australian reinforcements sent to combat the Germans is put under the command of British Captain MacRoberts. The unruly Aussies immediately clash with MacRoberts, a gruff, strict disciplinarian, however this unorthodox team must band together to protect Tobruk from the German forces.
Genres: War Action
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1953-05-20
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The Robe
Overview: Drunk and disillusioned Roman, Marcellus Gallio, wins Jesus' robe in a dice game after the crucifixion. Marcellus has never been a man of faith like his slave, Demetrius, but when Demetrius escapes with the robe, Marcellus experiences disturbing visions and feels guilty for his actions. Convinced that destroying the robe will cure him, Marcellus sets out to find Demetrius — and discovers his Christian faith along the way.
Genres: Drama History
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1953-09-16
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Helen of Troy
Overview: Prince Paris of Troy, shipwrecked on a mission to the king of Sparta, meets and falls for Queen Helen before he knows who she is. Rudely received by the royal Greeks, he must flee...but fate and their mutual passions lead him to take Helen along. This gives the Greeks just the excuse they need for much-desired war.
Genres: Adventure War Romance History
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1956-01-26
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Witness for the Prosecution
Overview: An ailing famous barrister agrees to defend a man in a sensational murder trial where his self-possessed wife's unconvincing testimony confuses him.
Genres: Drama Mystery Crime
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1957-12-17
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Band of Angels
Overview: Living in Kentucky prior to the Civil War, Amantha Starr is a privileged young woman. Her widowed father, a wealthy plantation owner, dotes on her and sends her to the best schools. When he dies suddenly Amantha's world is turned upside down. She learns that her father had been living on borrowed money and that her mother was actually a slave and her father's mistress.
Genres: Romance Drama History
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1957-08-03
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Houdini
Overview: By the early 1900s, the extraordinary Houdini earned an international reputation for his theatrical tricks and daring feats of extrication from shackles, ropes, handcuffs and... Scotland Yard's jails.
Genres: Drama Romance History
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1953-07-02
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Affair in Trinidad
Overview: A nightclub singer enlists her brother-in-law to track down her husband's killer.
Genres: Romance Thriller Mystery
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1952-07-29
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The 7th Voyage of Sinbad
Overview: When a princess is shrunken by an evil wizard, Sinbad must undertake a quest to an island of monsters to cure her and prevent a war.
Genres: Action Adventure Family Fantasy
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1958-12-05
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Red Wagon
Overview: Adapted from Lady Eleanor Smith’s novel, this 1934 feature tells the story of Joe Prince, an orphan child of circus people who, after many struggles, achieves his life-long ambition of owning a circus.
Genres: Drama
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1933-12-06
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Darby's Rangers
Overview: Stationed in Scotland, Maj. William Darby and the men under his command are trained by British commandos, becoming the U.S. Army's 1st Ranger Battalion. Their drilling period is rigorous, but the men find time to romance local women before being deployed to fight the Nazis. U.S. forces battle from French North Africa to Italy, but when a surprise attack decimates the 1st and 3rd Battalions at the Battle of Cisterna, Darby and the 4th Battalion must come to their aid.
Genres: War Action Drama
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1958-02-12
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Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing
Overview: A widowed doctor of both Chinese and European descent falls in love with a married American correspondent in Hong Kong during China's Communist revolution.
Genres: Drama Romance
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1955-08-18
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The Man Within
Overview: A man goes on the run from hardened smugglers.
Genres: Adventure Crime Drama
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1947-05-19
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Knock on Wood
Overview: Ventriloquist Jerry Morgan has failed with another love affair. The reason: when the relationship reaches the point when it is time to discuss marriage, his two dolls become mean and jealous. Morgan's dollmaker Papinek is a member of a spy ring who has stolen the secret plans for the top-secret Lafayette airplane. Since Morgan is leaving for Zurich the same night, he decides to hide the secret plan in the heads of the dolls.
Genres: Action Comedy
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1954-04-06
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Bonnie Prince Charlie
Overview: Scotland, 1745. After decades of exile, Prince Charles Edward Stuart secretly lands with the purpose of revolting the Highland chieftains against the German House of Hanover, ruler of Great Britain.
Genres: Drama History War
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1948-10-26
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The Sandpiper
Overview: A free-spirited single mother forms a connection with the wedded headmaster of an Episcopalian boarding school in Monterey, California.
Genres: Drama Romance
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1965-06-23
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Blackbeard, the Pirate
Overview: Honest Robert Maynard finds himself serving as ship's surgeon under the infamous pirate Blackbeard.
Genres: Adventure
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1952-12-24
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Lady Godiva of Coventry
Overview: Fictionalized account of events leading up the famous nude ride (alas, her hair covers everything) of the militant Saxon lady.
Genres: Drama History
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1955-11-02
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Now Barabbas
Overview: A prison governor deals with a variety of different prisoners, including a charming murderer.
Genres: Drama
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1949-05-24
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Istanbul
Overview: A suspected diamond smuggler returns to Istanbul and finds the lady love he thought was dead...or does he?
Genres: Crime Drama Romance Thriller
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1957-01-23
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Night Train to Munich
Overview: Czechoslovakia, March 1939, on the eve of World War II. As the German invaders occupy Prague, inventor Axel Bomasch manages to flee and reach England; but those who need to put his knowledge at the service of the Nazi war machine, in order to carry out their evil plans of destruction, will stop at nothing to capture him.
Genres: Drama Thriller War
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1940-08-31
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Diane
Overview: Asked by Francis I to tutor his son, Diane de Poitiers becomes the future King Henry II's mistress in 1500s France.
Genres: Drama History Romance
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1956-01-12
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Bengal Brigade
Overview: Year 1856, British India. Capt. Jeffrey Claybourne is severely punished after disobeying an order. Feeling unworthy of his fiancée Vivian Morrow, the daughter of his superior officer, Claybourne leaves the army until he could regain his reputation. When the Rajah Karam launches an attack on the British forces in India, Claybourne finds a chance at redemption.
Genres: War Adventure History
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1954-11-06
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When The Bough Breaks
Overview: The bewildered wife of a bigamist allows her child to be adopted and then regrets it.
Genres: Drama
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1947-11-19
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Hell of Borneo
Overview: A wealthy mercenary lives in blissful solitude on his private island in the Philippines, until it's invaded by pirates, mobsters, and smugglers.
Genres: Adventure
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1964-01-01
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Jassy
Overview: In 19th century England, Jassy is a young Gypsy girl blessed with the gift of second sight. Pursued by superstitious villagers, she is rescued by the son of the owner of Mordelaine, a vast stately home. Unfortunately, his father's drinking and gambling threaten the very ownership of the house. Despite her humble origins as a servant girl, Jassy must try to use her talents to climb the social ladder and save Mordelaine for the man whom she loves.
Genres: Adventure Drama Romance
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1947-08-13
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The Canadians
Overview: When the Sioux come to Canada, the Canadians permit them to stay in Canada if they come peacefully. However, some cowboys kill all inhabitants of one of their villages. The cowboys seek to get back their horses, but they pretend to search for a girl who once had been robbed by the Indians.
Genres: Action Drama Western
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1961-03-11
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The King's Pirate
Overview: Handsome British officer, Lt. Brian Fleming is sent undercover to infiltrate a lively band of pirates.
Genres: Adventure
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1967-07-20
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The Captive Heart
Overview: A series of stories about the lives and loves of men in a Prisoner of War camp over five years. The main story is of Hasek (Redgrave) a Czech soldier who needs to keep his identity a secret from the Nazis. To do this, he poses as a dead English Officer and corresponds with the man's wife. Other inmates’ stories are also revealed. Location shooting in the British occupied part of Germany adds believability.
Genres: Drama War
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1946-04-29
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The End of the River
Overview: A South American Indian is taken from his jungle home into the world of the White Man where he is forced to stand trial for murder.
Genres: Drama
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1947-12-01
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The Spy in Black
Overview: A German submarine is sent to the Orkney Isles in 1917 to sink the British fleet.
Genres: War Thriller
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1939-08-03
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Let George Do It!
Overview: Shortly after the start of World War II, a ukelele player (George) takes the wrong boat and finds himself in (still uninvaded) Norway. He is mistaken for a fellow British intelligence agent by a woman (Mary), and becomes involved in trying to defeat Nazi agents.
Genres: Comedy Music War
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1940-07-12
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Saloon Bar
Overview: A bookmaker with a fancy for detective work attempts to prevent the execution of a potentially innocent man.
Genres: Thriller
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1940-11-02
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The Case of the Frightened Lady
Overview: A classic British thriller set in a sinister old house, based on a story by Edgar Wallace.
Genres: Mystery Thriller Crime
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1940-09-28
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Contraband
Overview: When a neutral Danish merchant ship is forced to put into port after trying to evade British wartime contraband control, its captain becomes involved in a beautiful British Naval Intelligent agent's efforts to capture a group of German spies operating from a London cinema.
Genres: Thriller War
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1940-05-11
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Old Mother Riley, MP
Overview: Old Mother Riley loses her laundry job and then battles her ex-boss in a parliamentary election.
Genres: Comedy
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1939-08-15
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Saboteur
Overview: Aircraft factory worker Barry Kane flees across the United States after he is wrongly accused of starting the fire that killed his best friend.
Genres: Thriller Drama
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1942-04-24
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Climbing High
Overview: Wealthy Nicky finds himself engaged to gold-digger Lady Constance, but he really loves scatty model Diana. Complications, slapstick and mountaineering are the result.
Genres: Comedy
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1938-10-31
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The Next of Kin
Overview: Lots of slogans such as "Be like Dad, Keep Mum" and "Keep it under your Hat" are visible on the walls in various scenes to reinforce the plot of this British wartime movie illustrating how gossipy talk can result in unknowingly giving valuable information to Nazi spies.
Genres: Drama War Thriller Mystery
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1942-06-15
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Drake of England
Overview: Imposing Canadian-born stage actor and playwright Matherson Lang was one of the twentieth century's great Shakespearean players, and became Britain's foremost screen actor during the 1920s; in Drake of England, one of his final films, he takes the title role in Arthur Woods' portrayal of the life and times of the flamboyant piratical adventurer who founded Britain's sea fortunes. From clandestine romance at the court of Elizabeth I to conquests in the newly discovered lands of South America and spectacular victory over the Armada, Drake of England offers a panoramic overview of Drake's life.
Genres: Action Drama
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1935-05-16
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The Kindled Flame
Overview: A short British film, based on "The Proconsul" by Seaward Beddow and produced by Religious Films, Ltd.
Genres: Drama
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1939-08-29
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The Common Round
Overview: "The Common Touch" tells of an elderly headmaster (George Zucco) whose Christian beliefs are re-affirmed when he hears news from two of his ex-pupils who are working as missionaries in Africa.
Genres: No genres available
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1936-03-12
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Drums of Africa
Overview: David Moore is in East Africa to get to his employer's railway construction site. He's accompanied by the owner's son Brian and they've lined up Jack Cuortemayn, reputedly the best guide available, to take them there. Cuortemayn refuses as he doesn't care for the impact the railroad will have on the local inhabitants. While Moore tries to make other arrangements, he meets Ruth Knight who has lived there for many years working with her father in a medical clinic. There will be adventures along the way but when Ruth is captured by slave traders, it's up to the others to rescue her.
Genres: Adventure
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1963-05-15
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Gasbags
Overview: It's war time London and the Crazy Gang (Flanagan & Allen, Nervo & Knox, Naughton & Gold) are doing their bit for the war effort by running a fish and chip stall using their platoon's barrage balloon for advertising. Their Sgt Major is not happy about this and orders them to take the balloon down, but a freak heavy wind accidentally carries the gang away to Nazi Germany. They are captured and placed in a detention camp where they meet an elderly prisoner named Jerry, who possess a map for the location of a secret weapon which will win the war! Fortunately Teddy Knox's impersonation of Hitler lands him the spot of pretending to be the Fuhrer at a gala dinner and the gang are allowed out of the camp. However the Nazis have other ideas for their substitute leader.
Genres: War Adventure Comedy
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1941-02-01
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Major Barbara
Overview: Idealistic young Barbara is the daughter of rich weapons manufacturer Andrew Undershaft. She rebels against her estranged father by joining the Salvation Army. Wooed by professor-turned-preacher Adolphus Cusins, Barbara eventually grows disillusioned with her causes and begins to see things from her father's perspective.
Genres: Comedy
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1941-05-14
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Great Expectations
Overview: In this Dickens adaptation, orphan Pip discovers through lawyer Mr. Jaggers that a mysterious benefactor wishes to ensure that he becomes a gentleman. Reunited with his childhood patron, Miss Havisham, and his first love, the beautiful but emotionally cold Estella, he discovers that the elderly spinster has gone mad from having been left at the altar as a young woman, and has made her charge into a warped, unfeeling heartbreaker.
Genres: Drama Romance
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1946-12-26
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Crime Over London
Overview: With the police on their tail, a gang of New York criminals decided to relocate to London where they plan a major robbery on a department store.
Genres: Adventure Romance Crime
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1936-10-21
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The Lion Has Wings
Overview: This early, influential propaganda film blends documentary and studio footage to show the valiant efforts of the Royal Air Force to defend the British people against the Nazis.
Genres: Documentary War
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1939-11-03
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Young and Innocent
Overview: Robert Tisdall finds on the beach the corpse of a woman he knew. Others wrongly conclude that he is the murderer. Fleeing, he desperately attempts to prove that he is not the killer. A young woman becomes embroiled in the effort.
Genres: Thriller Romance Mystery
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1937-11-01
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Hawaii
Overview: Abner Hale, a rigid and humorless New England missionary, marries the beautiful Jerusha Bromley and takes her to the exotic island kingdom of Hawaii, intent on converting the natives. But the clash between the two cultures is too great and instead of understanding there comes tragedy.
Genres: Drama Adventure Romance History
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1966-10-10
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The Black Rose
Overview: In the 13th century, Walter of Gurnie, a disinherited Saxon youth, is forced to flee England. With his friend, Tristram, he falls in with the army of the fierce but avuncular General Bayan, and journeys all the way to China, where both men become involved in intrigues in the court of Kublai Khan.
Genres: War Adventure History
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1950-09-01
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Sabotage
Overview: Karl Anton Verloc and his wife own a small cinema in a quiet London suburb where they live seemingly happily. But Mrs. Verloc does not know that her husband has a secret that will affect their relationship and threaten her teenage brother's life.
Genres: Drama Thriller Crime
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1937-01-08
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The Man Who Could Work Miracles
Overview: An ordinary man, while vigorously asserting the impossibility of miracles, suddenly discovers that he can perform them.
Genres: Comedy Fantasy
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1936-07-23
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Mutiny on the Bounty
Overview: The Bounty leaves Portsmouth in 1787. Its destination: to sail to Tahiti and load bread-fruit. Captain Bligh will do anything to get there as fast as possible, using any means to keep up a strict discipline. When they arrive at Tahiti, it is like a paradise for the crew, something completely different than the living hell aboard the ship. On the way back to England, officer Fletcher Christian becomes the leader of a mutiny.
Genres: Adventure Drama History
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1962-11-08
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The Holy Terror
Overview: A television dramatization based on the life and work of Florence Nightingale. The story, set in 1856, relates the incidents in her life following the war in the Crimea, where she had gained such fame that her name was virtually a household word.
Genres: Drama TV Movie
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1965-04-07
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The Deadly Riddle
Overview: Episode aired May 22, 1956
Genres: No genres available
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1956-05-22
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Law and Disorder
Overview: On the eve of WWII a young defence lawyer, assisted by his wife, invaigles his way into a gang of foreign saboteurs. Comedy thriller, ably executed by a satisfactory cast.
Genres: Comedy Crime Thriller
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1940-07-06
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