Tue 2 Dec 2014
YELLOW CARGO. Grand National Pictures, 1936. Later released as Sinful Cargo. Conrad Nagel, Eleanor Hunt, Vince Barnett, Jack La Rue, Claudia Dell, Vance Carroll. Story, screenplay & director: Crane Wilbur.
Pretty much a minor leaguer in the overall scheme of things, but this was the first of four crime and espionage movies featuring the two leading stars Conrad Nagel and Eleanor Hunt in a series of “G-Man” pictures, the other three being Navy Spy, The Gold Racket, and Bank Alarm, all from 1937.
Conrad Nagel plays Alan O’Connor in all four, while his companion in crime solving is Bobbie Reynolds, played by Eleanor Hunt, about whom I will have more to say later. O’Connor works for immigration office in Yellow Cargo, sent to the west coast to breakup a gang who has been smuggling illegal immigrants from China into, while Bobbie Reynolds is a brash young newspaper reporter covering the movie industry.
Their paths meet when they both learn that a small time movie studio is using a make-believe film to conduct their business, replacing movie extras dressed in Chinese garb by the men from China they are smuggling in.
The movie is played as much for laughs and light entertainment rather than a serious crime drama, with balding Vince Barnett as the dimmest (and clumsiest) news photographer ever to try to take a picture with an old accordion box camera.
You have to give the actors credit. They take their roles seriously, even if the story (lame) and production values (practically nil) are far beneath their ability. Stalwart leading man Nagel’s career lasted until the 1960s in both TV and the movies, but unfortunately Eleanor Hunt made only one more film after this series ran dry. Her large expressive eyes reminded me of Kay Francis, but with a much brassier demeanor. To add to the comparison, she also has a hint of a lisp.
As a former chorus girl, Eleanor Hunt also had the legs to show for it, at least in one short scene in which her skirt came up above her knees. I don’t know why I noticed that, but I did.
In spite of its various and sundry flaws and shortcomings, I enjoyed this less than 60 minute programmer, and I think I’ll look to see if the other three in the series can be found.
December 3rd, 2014 at 10:03 am
Immigration and illegal immigrants — no need for these people any longer. Too bad about that.
December 3rd, 2014 at 11:12 am
I haven’t seen any of the films in this series.
There are reports that the great Joseph H. Lewis shot some scenes uncredited for Navy Spy, and The Gold Racket. This was before his official debut as a director with Courage of the West (1937).
I keep meaning to look these up, and see if anything in them is especially Lewis-like.
December 3rd, 2014 at 3:09 pm
I’ve seen this and NAVY SPY but not particularly impressed by either of them. Ingeniously silly method of smuggling illegal Chinese in though. At least it isn’t THE YELLOW PERIL.
What was it with Hollywood in this era with middle aged, not particularly attractive, and not particularly fit leading men?
December 3rd, 2014 at 3:25 pm
Nagel had one interesting line. I don’t know if it was intentional or not, and I have to wonder what kind of reaction audiences at the time may have had. Maybe it’s just me.
In any case, in the course of his duties Nagel’s character is grazed by a bullet and wakes up in a hospital bed. When he’s told what the bad guys have been up to, he demands his clothes so he can get out of there.
“What can a man do without his pants?” he asks. Fade to black.
December 3rd, 2014 at 11:39 pm
All four are available from Alpha Video, the cheapo but legit public domain DVD label.
December 3rd, 2014 at 11:48 pm
That’s good news. Thanks, Jim. I haven’t had a chance to start looking yet, but I knew there was a good chance that Alpha might have one or two of them. If they have all three, that makes it easy.
December 4th, 2014 at 10:35 pm
Conrad Nagel was, at one time, the ‘fantasy’ love object of Joan Fontaine, and he delivered the eulogy at Paul Bern’s funeral. Recently, I heard some wild but ‘wildly’ reasonable speculation that Bern was actually killed by Jean Harlow — not a thesis I care to put forward, but call it gossip of interest.
December 5th, 2014 at 12:20 am
Crane Wilbur began directing NAVY SPY but fell behind schedule and rushed to finish scenes later deemed unacceptable. Joe Lewis, initially hired to edit the film, was asked by producer George Hirliman to shoot retakes. Lewis reshot so much footage that he got credit as co-director.
The Nagel-Hunt films were marketed as the “Federal Agent Series.” Grand National announced a second group of four entries for release during the 1937-38 season, but according to Hunt the series was canceled due to exhibitor indifference.
Hunt, by the way, was the wife of producer Hirliman. My friend Sam Sherman knew her fairly well and interviewed her twice.
December 5th, 2014 at 12:36 am
Thanks, Ed, for all that information. I sometimes wonder why I am fonder of small budget, quickly filmed movies like this one than they really deserve. I think it’s because they were often made by people who loved movie making. They certainly weren’t in it for the money, and what went on behind the scenes I find very fascinating.