Charles Coburn

A comedy directed by Irving Pichel, based on the novel by Berry Fleming. Colonel Willard Effingham (Charles Coburn), a retired Army officer, returns to his hometown of Fredericksville, Georgia, and discovers the town's historical monuments are being neglected. When the corrupt city council tries to sell the town square for a parking lot, the Colonel mounts a one-man crusade to preserve the town's heritage, enlisting the help of his niece (Joan Bennett) and a young newspaper editor (William Eythe). The film is a gentle satire of small-town politics and civic pride, with Coburn's blustering but warm-hearted performance as its centerpiece. The film is in the public domain.

Comedy

A wealthy businessman survives a murder attempt arranged by his wife and her lover, then disappears so that the two of them can be charged with killing him. He hides out in a small town under an assumed name while the police, led by a sharp lieutenant played by Charles Coburn, work to build the case. Brian Donlevy is the wronged husband who has to decide whether to come back at all, and Ella Raines is the woman who helps him. The film was shot entirely in Northern California, around San Francisco and Marin County, which gives it a different look from the usual Los Angeles noir. It entered the public domain due to non-renewal of its copyright.

Crime · Noir · Mystery