Raft began his association with Director Edwin L. Marin when they made Johnny Angel. Maybe it seemed like a wonderful title. For whatever reason, the movie was a big hit. The book “RKO Story” said that production chief Charles Koerner thought the movie routine and that it wouldn’t “set the world on fire.” The movie earned $2 million and, along with The Enchanted Cottage, The Spanish Main, Murder My Sweet and others, was on RKO’s list of hits for 1945. So, that explains the mystery as to why Raft worked with Marin a few more times.

Marin’s other credits include the 1938 version of A Christmas Carol, westerns like John Wayne’s Tall in the Saddle and Randolph Scott’s Colt 45, some entries in the Maisie series starring Ann Sothern and the Eddie Cantor vehicle Show Business, which some people find very entertaining. Author Leslie Halliwell gave Show Business three stars (a high rating from him) and wrote, “It probably presents the best picture of what old-time vaudeville was really like. A lot of fun when the plot doesn’t get in the way.”

On to another topic.
I once read a funny story about Marilyn Maxwell, who entertained the troops as part of Bob Hope’s troupe. A member of the band playfully flirted with her and propositioned her. I forget his name; Lets say his name was Shorty. Marilyn took it in stride and would say, “Not now, Shorty.” Well, one day the troupe was in a plane with a sputtering engine and they were all afraid and worried. Finally, Marilyn turned to Shorty and said, “Okay, Shorty, NOW!!!!”

You know, we all love movies so much that we forget that there are people out there who don’t care much for them. It makes no difference to them if they never see another movie during the rest of their lives. And sometimes, not very often, those people become movie stars.
I suspect Raft didn’t like movies, didn’t go to movies. That is why he couldn’t judge scripts.

By the way, I doubt that Johnny Angel, which I haven’t seen, is that amazing Raft classic that you are looking for. Koerner was probably right and it is just routine.

But one of her closest friends was Rock Hudson, back in the days when his sexual preference wasn’t known to the public. The columnists and movie magazines hinted that they had a romantic relationship. Marilyn was quoted as saying at the time, “It’s better than love, it’s friendship.” When she died Hudson looked after her 16 year old son (from producer Jerome Davis) during the funeral arrangements.

My uncle once met William Bendix when he was making a personal appearance at a Pittsburgh theater to promote a movie. He was amazed at how short he was. You have to remember that during their heyday the studios kept Bendix’s and Alan Ladd’s heights a secret.

Frank Faylen was a character actor under contract to Paramount and later appeared as Dobie Gillis’s father in that TV series.

I don’t know of any startling classic starring Raft. I haven’t seen Spawn of the North and would like to see that too.

My pick for best Raft film would have been They Drive by Night – although Ann Sheridan, Lupino, Bogart, Alan Hale, Roscoe Karns, and Joyce Compton give him a lot of competition. Still he gives a likable performance.
Many people heard about Night After Night as the movie Mae West debuted and attracted all of the attention. The trailer for it promoted it as Raft’s big movie. Raft later said, “Mae West came in and stole everything but the cameras.”