Wonderland Burlesque's Let's All Go To The Movies: NURSE! Edition, Part 1 of 7

Wonderland Burlesque's 

Let's All Go To The Movies

NURSE! Edition

Part 1 of 7

Today, we begin a seven-part series of posts having all to do about films featuring nurses.

Nurses, those vital, in the trenches Florence Nightingales of the silver screen. Where would we be without them? Our bed pans full? Our elderly in need of a turn? Our temperatures taken and, at times, risen? Our Jello delivered?

Be they sexy, or conniving, whimsical or earnest, humanitarian or pure evil, candy striper or stripper... these nurses are there, in or out of uniform servicing their clientele with the best or worst of intentions. 

So, let's sit back and take a look at these visions in white, these caregivers and occasional life takers as enshrined for eternity Hollywood-style.

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War Nurse

(1930)

(At the outbreak of WWII, women from various backgrounds fly to France to volunteer on the frontlines as nurses. Despite having little or no experience, under the leadership of a big-hearted socialite, they manage to turn an abandoned building into a thriving hospital.)

(This pre-Code war drama was directed by Edgar Selwyn and stars Robert Montgomery, Anita Page, June Walker and Robert Ames.)

(Quite a bit of Hollywood lore to be found in the supporting cast of this one: Marie Provost, Zasu Pitts, and Hedda Hopper! Provost's life would end in tragedy, as captured in the song by Nick Lowe. Fluttery Zasu Pitts worked with all the greats, rarely the star, but the very best support any star could ask for. And Hopper? Well, she must have had something on newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst, because she ruled Hollywood via her gossip column, achieving a fame that far eclipsed her acting career.)

Robert Montgomery and June Walker 

June Walker and Anita Page

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Night Nurse

(1931)

(A young woman lands a job in a hospital as a trainee nurse. After completing her training, she becomes the night nurse for two small children who are very sick. She soon discovers that something much more sinister is going on and enlists the help of a petty criminal to foil a sinister plot to murder the two children.)

(Based on the 1930 novel of the same name by Dora Macy (the pen name of Grace Perkins), this Warner Bros. pre-Code crime drama mystery was directed by William A. Wellman, and stars Barbara Stanwyck, Ben Lyon, Joan Blondell and Clark Gable.)

(The part of the chauffeur was originally intended for James Cagney. However Cagney's recent success in The Public Enemy prevented him accepting a supporting role, paving the way for Gable. The role helped Gable catch the eye of both the industry and the movie going public. He does a bang up job portraying the viciously violent chauffeur who is gradually starving two little girls to death after having already purposely runover their slightly older sister with a limousine, killing her.)

 (The film was considered risqué at the time of its release, due to the scenes where Stanwyck and Blondell are shown in their lingerie.)

(Watching Stanwyck, Blondell, and Gable in very early roles holds much of the appeal here. It's half high-camp and half successful drama. Director William A. Wellman would go on to enjoy huge with such films as 1937's A Star Is Born and 1939's Beau Geste. His other contribution to Hollywood? It is believed that his salacious Night Nurse and hyperviolent Public Enemy served as the catalysts for the creation of the US film industry's self-censoring Production Code)

Barbara Stanwyck

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Nurses On Wheels

(1963)

(A quietly competent student nurse moves with her scatterbrained mother to a country village to tackle her first job as District Nurse. Overcoming the suspicions of her patients, she becomes part of the community and romantically involved with a local farmer. However, things go sour when her would-be love attempts to evict a couple who are expecting their first born, who make the mistake of parking their trailer on his land.)

(Based on the story Nurse Is My Neighbour by Joanna Jones (pseudonym of John Burke), this British comedy was directed by Gerald Thomas, and stars Juliet Mills, Ronald Lewis, and Joan Sims.)

(Joan Sims was originally set to play the title role, however she gained a bit of weight prior to production beginning. Producer Peter Rogers recast the role with Juliet Mills, while offering Sims her choice of any other role at a higher salary. She chose the part of the vicar's smitten daughter.)

(Despite this film sharing the cast and production team of the popular UK Carry On films, it's not considered an official part of that series. In addition, four of the actors (Juliet Mills, Ronald Lewis, Joan Sims and Amanda Reisshad) had worked previously on another medical based comedy released a year earlier - 1962's Twice Round the Daffodils.)

(When the film was transferred to television and subsequently, DVD, there seems to have been a  mismatch of reels, for halfway through the film the story goes awry, making the middle part largely unintelligible. Plot points are presented without introduction and scenes resolved before the conflict is apparent, as one thing after another takes place out of order  The problem was allegedly fixed in 2020, but the incorrect version can still be seen on UK Television.)

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The Sensuous Nurse

(1975)

AKA: L'infermiera, I Will If You Will, The Nurse, The Secrets of a Sensuous Nurse

(A grizzled, successful winery owner in Treviso has survived a major heart attack, but appears to be on the verge of death. As a result, his greedy heirs flock to his villa, eager to sell his business and enrich themselves. One small detail stands in their way... the man is still alive, making it impossible to seal the deal with an American buyer. Their hands appear to be tied, until, in the hopes of speeding things along, the winery owner's son-in-law enlists the help of a sensual nurse, who just happens to be his curvy ex-girlfriend. It's the son-in-law's hope that his lovely ex will put a smile on the old man's face and lead to a fatal second heart attack. Will the predatory family succeed? Or has the nurse a different agenda?)

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(This commedia sexy all'italiana film was produced by Carlo Ponti,  directed by Nello Rosatti, and  stars Ursula Andress, Jack Palance and Luciana Paluzzi.)

(This served as Swiss actress Andress's return to the screen after a four-year hiatus. Her last film, 1971's Red Sun, was an international success, but gave her cause to pause, as it also coincided with the end of her relationship with the love of her life, actor John-Paul Belmondo. In a 1972 interview, she said "I think my image, especially to Americans, is that of a femme fatale, a man-eating woman. I'm not empty-headed or calculating and cool. But maybe my looks give that impression. I'm disciplined in my doings and undisciplined in my emotions. I can't control the things I feel or hide my feelings")

(Andress shot to fame in 1962, as bond girl Honey Ryder in the first James Bond film, Dr. No. At one time or another, she was romantically linked to Ryan O'Neal, James Dean, Dennis Hopper, Franco Nero, John Delorean, Helmut Berger, Ricci James Martin, Nels Van Patten, John Richardson, Harry Hamlin, John Derek, Ron Ely, Julio Iglesias, and Marcello Mastroianni.)

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Night Nurse

(1979)

AKA: L'infermiera di notte

(In this Italian sex-comedy, a hapless dentist invites an elderly patient to convalesce at his home. Unbeknownst to his host, the guest is a jewel thief, who plans to steal a valuable diamond. However, his plans go awry thanks to the presence of  a beautiful nurse with plans of her own.)

(This commedia sexy all'italiana film was written and directed by Mariano Laurenti. and stars Gloria Guida, Lino Banfi, Alvero Vitali, and Leo Colonna.)

(Of course, she sings! Disco! Guida's disco number La Musica è - which she inexplicably sings like a lorry drive r- serves as the main theme of the film with an instrumental version running throughout.)

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And that's all for now.

Tune in next week:

Same time, same channel.

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La Musica è - Gloria Guida

from the 1979 motion picture Night Nurse