One of the least credible theories regarding the identity of Jack the Ripper insists the serial killer was Arthur Conan Doyle, who was a practicing physician prior to gaining wider fame as the creator of Sherlock Holmes with the publication of “A Study in Scarlet” in 1887. There is no evidence – not even the most frayed wisp of preposterous circumstance – to place Conan Doyle in Whitechapel at the time of the killings, let alone providing him with a motive for the crimes.
Rondo Hatton was the unlikeliest movie star of the 1940s: a bit player who came to the edge of horror film stardom due to his acromegaly-shaped face, only to die before his starring features were released. On this episode of “The Online Movie Show,” Hatton’s biographer Scott Gallinghouse offers insight on Hatton’s strange and compelling life.
Hillary Brooke could always be relied upon to bring an aura of cool glamour to the screen, whether she was the sophisticated foil to Abbott and Costello’s antics or the arch-enemy of Sherlock Holmes or the bringer of casual cruelty in “Jane Eyre” and “The Enchanted Cottage.” On this “Online Movie Show” episode, film historian Ron Palumbo offers insight on the life and often-surprising career of this much-loved blonde bombshell.
The episode can be heard here.
Basil Rathbone was the ultimate movie hero as Sherlock Holmes, but he was also the ultimate movie villain (think of “David Copperfield,” “Romeo and Juliet,” “The Adventures of Robin Hood” and “The Mark of Zorro”). On this episode of “The Online Movie Show,” film historian and Rondo Award-nominated writer Troy Howarth considers Rathbone’s versatile cinematic output.