Genre: Classics, Comedy, Drama, Romance Directed By: Jack Arnold Written By: Danny Arnold In Theaters: 30 Jan. 1958 Runtime: 94 minutes Studio: Universal Pictures | Cast: Lana Turner as Maggie Colby Jeff Chandler as Mike Dandridge Richard Denning as Al Reynolds Andra Martin as Nikki Taylor Chuck Connors as Phil Donahoe Reta Shaw as Nurse Kennedy Alan Hale Jr. as Frank Henshaw |
The Lady Takes a Flyer is a 1958 American romantic drama film made by Universal Pictures.
Daredevil pilot Mike Dandridge goes into a business partnership with flight-school pal Al Reynolds and meets Maggie Colby (Lana Turner), who’s also a pilot.
The two flyers take cargo to Japan, where they become romantically involved. Al is best man at their wedding, then joins the Air Force.
Mike hires new pilot Nikki Taylor and might be having an affair with her during business trips while Maggie stays home with their new baby.
Maggie decides to fly a shipment herself and let Mike care of their daughter for a change. He and co-pilot Phil take a risk by bringing the baby along on a flight to London. Their plane has difficulty landing in a fog, angering Maggie, whose own plane barely got there safely. But at least Mike and Maggie are brought closer by the experience.
Lana Turner plays Maggie Colby.
Lana looks lovely and natural in this light role. Aviatrixes were not a common sight in the first half of the twentieth century, but they made interesting characters. The lead characters in this film were fashioned from real-life husband and wife Mary and Jack Ford, pilots who established a succesfull ferrying service specifically for airplanes.
Wanda Hale in the New York Daily News called “The Lady Takes A Flyer” “a pleasing, honest comedy”, and said that Lana “moves and expresses herself just right as the woman torn between being a practical mother and a sweetheart to her husband.”
Clip:
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Lana Turner did a lot of movies. She really loved being a moviestar.
Here are the most important films in which she starred. Just click the links for more info, photos and videos.
20 April 1937: A Star Is Born
9 Oct. 1937: They Won’t Forget
24 Oct. 1937: The Great Garrick
1 Jan. 1938: The Adventures of Marco Polo
22 July 1938: Love Finds Andy Hardy
12 Aug. 1938: Rich Man, Poor Girl
9 Dec. 1938: Dramatic School
28 April 1939: Calling Dr. Kildare
18 Aug. 1939: These Glamour Girls
29 Sept. 1939: Dancing Co-Ed
19 April 1940: Two Girls on Broadway
19 July 1940: We Who Are Young
25 April 1941: Ziegfeld Girl
12 Aug. 1941: Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
2 Oct. 1941: Honky Tonk
18 Febr. 1942: Johnny Eager
27 Aug. 1942: Somewhere I’ll Find You
1 April 1943: Slightly Dangerous
19 Aug. 1943: Du Barry Was A Lady
13 Nov. 1943: The Youngest Profession
23 Aug. 1944: Marriage Is a Private Affair
8 March 1945: Keep Your Powder Dry
1 Oct. 1945: Week-End At The Waldorf
2 May 1946: The Postman Always Rings Twice
5 Nov. 1947 : Green Dolphin Street
1 Nov. 1947: Cass Timberlane
29 April 1948: Homecoming
20 Oct. 1948: The Three Musketeers
1 Sept. 1950: A Life Of Her Own
2 March 1951: Mr. Imperium
5 Sept. 1952: The Merry Widow
25 Dec. 1952: The Bad And The Beautiful
25 Aug. 1953: Latin Lovers
1 May 1954: Flame And The Flesh
7 Sept. 1954: Betrayed
13 May 1955: The Prodigal
4 June 1955: Sea Chase
14 Dec. 1955: The Rains Of Ranchipur
12 Jan. 1956: Diane
13 Dec. 1957: Peyton Place
30 Jan. 1958: The Lady Takes A Flyer
2 May 1958: Another Time, Another Place
30 April 1959: Imitation Of Life
23 June 1960: Portrait In Black
19 July 1961: By Love Possessed
2 Nov. 1961: Bachelor In Paradise
25 Dec. 1962: Who’s Got The Action?
24 Febr. 1965: Love Has Many Faces
27 April 1966: Madame X
30 April 1969: The Big Cube
7 Nov. 1974: Persecution
27 Oct. 1976: Bittersweet Love
31 Oct. 1980: Witches Brew
21 May 1982: Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid
Sources: Wikipedia, IMDB, Rotten Tomatoes, Lana’s biography “Lana, the Lady, The Legend, The Truth“, “The Films Of Lana Turner” by Lou Valentino and “Lana Turner, The Memories, The Myths and The Movies” by Cheryl Crane.