{"id":15230,"date":"2026-07-28T20:19:11","date_gmt":"2026-07-28T20:19:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tenkmovies.com\/?p=15230"},"modified":"2026-07-28T20:33:44","modified_gmt":"2026-07-28T20:33:44","slug":"jesse-owens-dominated-hitlers-games-a-look-back-at-1936","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/tenkmovies.com\/?p=15230","title":{"rendered":"Jesse Owens dominated Hitler’s Games: A look back at 1936"},"content":{"rendered":"

In 1936,<\/p>\n

Edward VIII became King of England;<\/p>\n

Reza Shah banned veils (including the hijab) in Iran;<\/p>\n

The Winter Olympics were held in Garmisch-Partkenkirchen;<\/p>\n

The Hoover Dam was completed;<\/p>\n

The helicopter debuted;<\/p>\n

The Spanish Civil War began;<\/p>\n

Alan Turing published “On Computable Numbers”;<\/p>\n

Jesse Owens dominated the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin;<\/p>\n

Stalin began the Great Purge in the Soviet Union;<\/p>\n

FDR was reelected President of the United States for a third time;<\/p>\n

Life<\/em> magazine debuted,<\/p>\n

Roger Miller, Stephen Ambrose, Troy Donahue, Alan Alda, Burt Reynolds, Carl Icahn, Jim Brown, Barbara Jordan, Jerry Reinsdorf, Alex Rocco, Dean Stockwell, Marion Barry, Sepp Blatter, Antonin Scalia, F.W. de Kerk, Ursula Andress, Mario Vargas Llosa, Glenn Jordan, Charles Napier, Frank Serpico, Glen Campbell, Roy Orbison, Jill Ireland, Albert Finney, Glenda Jackson, Bobby Darin, Wavy Gravy, Dennis Hopper, Louis Gossett Jr., Keir Dullea, Bruce Dern, Ken Loach, Kris Kristofferson, Robert Downey Sr., Shirley Knight, Barbara Mikulski, Elizabeth Dole, Buddy Guy, Yves Saint Laurent, Robert Redford, John McCain, Buddy Holly, Walter Koenig, Al Oerter, Jim Henson, Winnie Mandela, Silvio Berlusconi, V\u00e1clav Havel, Brian Blessed, Bill Wyman, Charlie Daniels, Dick Vermeil, Michael Landon, Roy Emerson, Dick Cavett, Don Delillo, Abbie Hoffman, Alfred Uhry, David Carradine, Pope Francis, Hector Elizondo, Bobby Ross, Ismail Merchant, and Mary Tyler Moore were born;<\/p>\n

While John Gilbert, Rudyard Kipling, King George V, Richard Loeb, Charles Curtis, Billy Mitchell, Max Schreck, Ivan Pavlov, A.E. Houseman, Maxim Gorky, Irving Thalberg, and Anne Sullivan died.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

10)\u00a0The Devil Doll<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Paul Lavond (Lionel Barymore) was falsely convicted and sent to prison. He escapes with a scientist Marcel who has developed a formula to shrink people. Marcel wants to use this to stop overpopulation, but when he dies, Lavond uses the invention to extract revenge on those who wronged him.<\/p>\n

As Lavond marches forward with his vendetta, Marcel’s wife becomes his unwitting victim. Yet somehow the movie ends in a sweet moment of redemption and reconciliation between Lavond and his daughter.<\/p>\n

Directed by Tod Browning, the same guy who gave us the cult classic Freaks<\/em> (1932), it’s a breakneck 79 minutes. Ambitious and endlessly entertaining, full of defiant possibility, it’s like a runaway train. It’s a refreshing change of pace compared to most contemporary big movies, which want to stretch and breathe, this movie just wants to go go go.<\/p>\n

I loved seeing Lionel Barrymore at the height of his ability.<\/p>\n

This is a fun watch.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

9)\u00a0The Crime of Monsieur Lange<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Am\u00e9d\u00e9e Lange is a pedestrian writer working for unscrupulous publishing executive Paul Batala. Batala fakes his death to flee his creditors. In his absence, Lange turns the business into a success.<\/p>\n

When Batala returns, Lange, unwilling to give up his new creative freedom, kills Batala and goes on the run.<\/p>\n

He’s recognized, but when his wife explains what happened, the people decide they will protect him.<\/p>\n

It’s clearly left-wing propaganda, but in the hands of Renoir it’s a capable, interesting film.<\/p>\n

I can feel myself sympathizing with Lange even though his actions are immoral and borderline indefensible. It feels like the kind of movie used to justify modern day vigilantism from the likes of Luigi Mangione.<\/p>\n

Renoir is a powerful director and this is very empathetic film.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Prime<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

8)\u00a0The Devil is a Sissy<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Claude (Freddie Bartholomew) is a rich, aristocratic boy from England who, after his parents divorce, arrives in New York to live with his father where he meets two rougher, more worldly boys, Robert Murphy (Jackie Cooper) and Gig Stevens (Mickey Rooney).<\/p>\n

Their relationship is initially antagonistic, but after some misadventures turns to grudging respect.<\/p>\n

The three boys are played by three of the biggest child stars of any era. Bartholomew, Cooper, and Rooney is an all-star lineup. The film is sentimental and moralistic, but it teases some really dark turns which create a fascinating tension.<\/p>\n

It becomes a time capsule, a historic artifact, telling us far more about the way people of the era thought and lived than any history book could.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"By<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

7) By the Bluest of Seas<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Shipwrecked sailors Yussuf and Alyosha join a Soviet collective in Azerbaijan where each man falls in love with Mariya, When she is briefly believed lost at sea they are devastated. When she miraculously returns each man confesses how they feel, but she rejects both, revealing she is engaged and her fianc\u00e9e stationed in the Pacific Fleet.<\/p>\n

This is a well shot melodrama.<\/p>\n

It’s simplistic, but surprisingly heartfelt for Russian cinema, which in Western consciousness is uniformly political, harsh, and cold. This is the anti-Potemkin<\/em>.<\/p>\n

I was pleasantly surprised and it opened up a lot of my thoughts to what Russian artists were interested in during the interwar years.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Camille<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

6)\u00a0Camille<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Marguerite Gautier (Greta Garbo) uses her femininity to rise from humble beginnings to a preeminent position in French society as Dame Camille, but complications arise when she falls in love with Armand (Robert Taylor).<\/p>\n

Armand’s father (Lionel Barrymore) convinces Camille her sordid past will ruin his future, so she leaves him. \u00a0A heartbroken Armand finds her just before she dies from tuberculosis, which the film suggests is punishment for her promiscuous past.<\/p>\n

When thirty-five year old Garbo retired in 1941, her career consisted of fewer than forty films, less than twenty in the sound era, but her work was so transcendent it ensured her a place in the Hollywood pantheon. Years after her death, her name still has a cultural cache and her public image as a mysterious, beautiful recluse impacts how we view her films, forcing us to see sadness behind every smile.<\/p>\n

Robert Taylor was one of the brightest lights in Hollywood during the 1930s and 1940s, but since his death, the luster has faded. \u00a0 In a sort of reverse blacklist, he’s been systematically diminished because he identified\u00a0communists in Hollywood before the House Un-American Activities Committee<\/a>.<\/p>\n

George Cukor was at his best directing strong women, from Judy Holliday<\/a>\u00a0to\u00a0Audrey Hpeburn<\/a>\u00a0and his close friend, Katharine Hepburn<\/a>. \u00a0His affinity for women-centric films reached its apex with The Women<\/em> (1939), a film with no male roles.<\/p>\n

Excerpts from this film appear in Annie<\/em> (1982) when Daddy Warbucks takes his orphan charge to the movies, and my love\u00a0Annie<\/em> make me like this more than I might have otherwise.<\/p>\n

This is a good introduction to Garbo, but it’s a little too melodramatic. \u00a0If you want to see vintage Garbo, watch Ninotchka\u00a0<\/em>(1939).<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Mr.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

5)\u00a0Mr. Deeds Goes to Town<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Country bumpkin Longfellow Deeds (Gary Cooper) inherits a fortune from his uncle’s estate. His uncle’s attorney, desperate to keep his financial misdeeds a secret, works to discredit Deeds. Meanwhile, reporter Babe Bennett (Jean Arthur) sees the hokey Deeds as fodder for a sensational story.<\/p>\n

While Bennet writes articles highlighting Deeds’ folksy persona, they develop a tentative relationship.<\/p>\n

Typical Frank Capra fare, this is an overwhelmingly positive film. The story is structured like an elaborate joke. Gary Cooper is comic perfection, his double takes and fake cluelessness are endlessly entertaining.<\/p>\n

Jean Arthur is delightful. She was the embodiment of the screwball comedy, and her work with Capra is (rightfully) legendary.<\/p>\n

If you like Capra (and why wouldn’t you), you’ll love this.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

4) The Story of a Cheat<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

As The Cheat (Sacha Guitry) writes his memoirs, we see flashbacks of his life. As a boy, he was caught stealing money, but his punishment inadvertently prevented him from eating poisonous mushrooms, convincing the child\u00a0cheating and dishonesty were the keys to success.<\/p>\n

This led to lifetime of cheating and an association with a variety of unsavory characters, including a jewel thief and would be assassin.<\/p>\n

Finally cured of his cheating ways by an old army friend, he loses his money gambling and becomes a humble security officer.<\/p>\n

Guitry, the writer, producer, director and star is a delightfully impish rake. Sadly, following WWII, he was accused of collaboration with the Vichy government and his reputation suffered.<\/p>\n

This eighty year old film, fast paced and witty, has aged remarkably well.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Swing<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

3)\u00a0Swing Time<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

There’s ostensibly a plot involving the convoluted pathway to love of a gambler and a dancer, but who cares. The point of the movie is the delightful musical numbers showcasing the sublime talents of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.<\/p>\n

The dances are incredibly creative and the songs are wonders, including the transcendent: The Way You Look Tonight.<\/p>\n

This is a wonderful example of the potential of cinema.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

2) The Petrified Forest<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Failed British writer Alan Squier (Leslie Howard) arrives at a remote diner on the edge of the Petrified Forest and meets the proprietor’s daughter, Gabrielle (Bette Davis) who dreams of escaping to France to join her mother.<\/p>\n

Although Alan and Gabrielle have an obvious connection and playfully flirt with one another, he hitches a ride with a departing wealthy couple, only to be waylaid by Duke Manatee (Humphrey Bogart), a desperate gangster on the run.<\/p>\n

Duke forces the caravan back to the diner where he is supposed to rendezvous with his girlfriend. After realizing his girl has been captured, Duke takes everyone hostage.<\/p>\n

Adapted from a stage play (which also featured Howard and Bogart), the studio wanted an established star to play Duke, but Howard fought for his stage costar to reprise his role, and this film transformed Bogie into a star and fixed him in the public consciousness as a tough, no nonsense character. He’s a force of nature here, presaging Brando and the method acting performances of the 1950s.<\/p>\n

Howard was a superstar in the 1930s, and died a war hero, but sadly seems to have been pushed aside in favor of other stars of the era.<\/p>\n

I like Bette Davis here (although she’s more plot device than character).<\/p>\n

Watching Bogie explode out of the gate is worth the price of admission.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Charlie<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

1)\u00a0Modern Times<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

The Tramp<\/a>\u00a0gets a job at an assembly plant and, overwhelmed by the modern, machine-dominated world, suffers a nervous breakdown. When released from the hospital, he’s mistaken for a communist and arrested.<\/p>\n

In prison, he accidentally uses cocaine, inadvertently escapes, voluntarily returns, thwarts a jailbreak, and leaves as a hero.<\/p>\n

Finally free, he falls in love with a girl (Paulette Godard, who would become Chaplin’s third wife), and, after a series of setbacks, the couple find work at a cafe. Ill-suited for the job, the Tramp is quickly fired, but not before performing an amazing impromptu song and dance to entertain the customers.<\/p>\n

Charlie nonsense song<\/a><\/p>\n

So many people saw their own struggles reflected in Chaplin’s Tramp, he came to symbolize the uncertainty of modernity during the Great Depression<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Unlike his contemporaries, Chaplin was not afraid to make political points in his films and, in an ironic twist, would later be labelled a communist and exiled from the United States.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In 1936, Edward VIII became King of England; Reza Shah banned veils (including the hijab) in Iran; The Winter Olympics were held in Garmisch-Partkenkirchen; The Hoover Dam was completed; The helicopter debuted; The Spanish Civil War began; Alan Turing published “On Computable Numbers”; Jesse Owens dominated the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin; Stalin began the… Continue reading Jesse Owens dominated Hitler’s Games: A look back at 1936<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1706],"tags":[2184,1137,1211,1810,1348,1811,1038,355,2193,2192,1445,697],"class_list":["post-15230","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-retrospective","tag-bette-davis","tag-charlie-chaplin","tag-frank-capra","tag-fred-astaire","tag-gary-cooper","tag-ginger-rogers","tag-greta-garbo","tag-humphrey-bogart","tag-jean-renoir","tag-lionel-barrymore","tag-mickey-rooney","tag-russian-films","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/tenkmovies.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15230","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/tenkmovies.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/tenkmovies.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/tenkmovies.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/tenkmovies.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=15230"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"http:\/\/tenkmovies.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15230\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15244,"href":"http:\/\/tenkmovies.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15230\/revisions\/15244"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/tenkmovies.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=15230"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/tenkmovies.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=15230"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/tenkmovies.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=15230"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}