Preston Sturges

Preston Sturges

Every fan of film comedy should be familiar with Preston Sturges, the writer/director who practically invented the so-called “Screwball Comedies” popular in the 1930s and 40s. There’s a crash course in the art of Sturges in a box set of DVDs called “Preston Sturges: The Filmmaker Collection” (Universal 2006). With seven films in this set, one could become a true fan of Sturges in a week’s time---although if you want to go out on Saturday night, the weakest film of the bunch “The Great Moment” is non-required viewing. At least two of the bunch are solid classics: “The Lady Eve” starring Henry Fonda and “Sullivan’s Travels” with Joel McCrea and Veronica Lake (she of the ravishing peek-a-boo hairdo). Part of the fun of watching these films is the brilliant thespian work of Sturges’ “stock company”---a group of character actors who each performed in several of his films. The most recognizable of these actors is William Demarest--who played Uncle Charlie in the “My Three Sons” TV series-- a guy who personifies the term “irascible”. Incredibly, these seven films were made during 1940 through 1944---a remarkable feat still unmatched today by anyone.