Oh man! Who here spent October pouring through the Godzilla films that TCM was showing? … anyone? Just me? No one else building tiny towns and stomping through them? Forcing their unsuspecting daughters to dress up as Mothra?? Just me?

Wow, okay, awkward.

Anyway, while October on TCM had a bevy of titles, November’s selections are much more focused. With Bette Davis as star of the month, you see November 5th featuring many of her early movies where she was shoehorned in her ingenue phase (I know, it’s nuts). November 7th has a ton of Cagney pre-Codes as well, and then the 22nd has many of Mary Astor’s early movies.

For those of you who follow my own travails with streaming, in October I switched to Hulu Live for watching TCM. The upside is that the interface is substantially better than Sling, which was extremely clunky. It also includes a DVR, which is fantastic. The default package also includes Fox Movie Channel, which sometimes shows some crazy 60s films, such as Dear Brigitte and more Jerry Lewis than you can shake a stick at. Also, Hulu allows screen capturing, which is what drove me away from Sling.

Downsides? To use the live features, you do have to reveal your location, which, besides preventing account sharing, also brings up a host of privacy issues. The price is also significantly more (+$15 more than Sling a month), and one thing I really hate– even if you pay for it ‘Without Ads’ you will still be forced to watch episodes with advertisements if they are more recently shown, and the interface doesn’t warn you about it. So I’m not sure that extra money is worth it.

I’ll probably keep it for another month before deciding if I’m going to try YouTube TV. Either way, here’s hoping that TCM does a standalone app like, say, every other goddamn channel in existence and I can just pay $15 or $20 a month for what I really want to see.

I know I haven’t posted anything on my Patreon in a while, but that will change later today as I share some of the work I’ve been pouring into the Maisie book I’ve been tooling around on in my minimal amount of free time. You can become a Patron over at Patreon. Cheers!

Pre-Code Movies on TCM in November

Please note:

All times listed here are Eastern Standard. This schedule is subject to change (like if someone dies or the world ends– you know how it is).
Plot descriptions and casts lists below come from TCM. See the full listings for the month here.
If you subscribe to TCM via cable, you can watch TCM online via the TCM Watch site.

Date & Time	Film
1st 8:30 AM	Thrill Hunter ( 1933)
	A blowhard cowboy talks himself into a job as a movie stunt man. Dir: George B. Seitz Cast: Charles “Buck” Jones , Dorothy Revier , Edward Le Saint . BW- 61 mins, CC,
1st 12:00 PM	Lucky Devils (1933)
	Two Hollywood stuntmen compete for the same pretty extra. Dir: Ralph Ince Cast: Bill Boyd , Dorothy Wilson , William Gargan . BW- 63 mins, CC,
1st 8:00 PM	Duck Soup (1933)
	When he’s named dictator of Freedonia, a con artist declares war on the neighboring kingdom. Dir: Leo McCarey Cast: Groucho Marx , Harpo Marx , Chico Marx . BW- 69 mins, CC,
5th 6:00 AM	Waterloo Bridge (1931)
	A chorus-girl turned prostitute finds love during World War I. Dir: James Whale Cast: Mae Clarke , Kent Douglass , Doris Lloyd . BW- 81 mins, CC,
5th 7:45 AM	20,000 Years in Sing Sing (1932)
	When his girl commits murder, a hardened criminal takes the rap to protect her honor. Dir: Michael Curtiz Cast: Spencer Tracy , Bette Davis , Arthur Byron . BW- 78 mins, CC,
5th 9:30 AM	The Rich Are Always with Us (1932)
	A socialite gets a divorce but can’t keep out of her ex-husband’s life. Dir: Alfred Green Cast: Ruth Chatterton , George Brent , Bette Davis . BW- 71 mins, CC,
5th 11:00 AM	So Big (1932)
	A farmer’s widow takes on the land and her late husband’s tempestuous son. Dir: William A. Wellman Cast: Barbara Stanwyck , George Brent , Dickie Moore . BW- 81 mins, CC,
5th 12:45 PM	Three on a Match (1932)
	A woman’s childhood friends try to rescue her from gangsters. Dir: Mervyn LeRoy Cast: Virginia Davis , Joan Blondell , Dawn O’Day . BW- 63 mins, CC,
5th 2:00 PM	Bureau of Missing Persons (1933)
	A police chief helps a young bride find her missing husband or at least his corpse. Dir: Roy Del Ruth Cast: Lewis Stone , Pat O’Brien , Glenda Farrell . BW- 73 mins,
5th 3:15 PM	Ex-Lady (1933)
	A female artist is torn between her belief in free love and the constraints of romance. Dir: Robert Florey Cast: Bette Davis , Gene Raymond , Frank McHugh . BW- 67 mins, CC,
5th 4:30 PM	The Working Man (1933)
	A wealthy manufacturer takes a vacation incognito and ends up working for his chief rival. Dir: John G. Adolfi Cast: George Arliss , Bette Davis , Theodore Newton . BW- 77 mins, CC,
5th 6:00 PM	Parachute Jumper (1933)
	A gangster victimizes three friends trying to get jobs. Dir: Alfred E. Green Cast: Douglas Fairbanks , Bette Davis , Frank McHugh . BW- 72 mins, CC,
5th 8:00 PM	Of Human Bondage (1934)
	A medical student falls prey to a sluttish waitress. Dir: John Cromwell Cast: Leslie Howard , Bette Davis , Frances Dee . BW- 83 mins, CC,
5th 9:30 PM	Fog Over Frisco (1934)
	A San Francisco heiress discovers her sister is hanging out with gangsters. Dir: William Dieterle Cast: Bette Davis , Donald Woods , Margaret Lindsay . BW- 68 mins, CC,
5th 11:00 PM	The Big Shakedown (1934)
	A racketeer breaks into black-market medicine. Dir: John Francis Dillon Cast: Charles Farrell , Bette Davis , Ricardo Cortez . BW- 61 mins, CC,
6th 12:30 AM	Fashions of 1934 (1934)
	A con artist and his beautiful assistant take on the fashion world. Dir: William Dieterle Cast: William Powell , Bette Davis , Frank McHugh . BW- 78 mins, CC,
6th 2:15 AM	Jimmy the Gent (1934)
	An unscrupulous detective makes a killing locating missing heirs. Dir: Michael Curtiz Cast: James Cagney , Bette Davis , Allen Jenkins . BW- 68 mins, CC,
7th 6:00 AM	The Doorway to Hell (1930)
	Despite his efforts to go straight, a young gangster keeps falling back into crime. Dir: Archie Mayo Cast: Lew Ayres , Charles Judels , Dorothy Mathews . BW- 78 mins, CC,
7th 7:30 AM	The Millionaire (1931)
	A bored millionaire retires from big business to open a garage. Dir: John G. Adolfi Cast: George Arliss , Florence Arliss , David Manners . BW- 80 mins, CC,
7th 9:00 AM	Other Men’s Women (1931)
	A railroad engineer falls for a co-worker’s wife. Dir: William A. Wellman Cast: Grant Withers , Mary Astor , Regis Toomey . BW- 70 mins, CC,
7th 10:15 AM	Smart Money (1931)
	A barber’s good luck turns him into a big-time gambling boss. Dir: Alfred E. Green Cast: Edward G. Robinson , James Cagney , Evalyn Knapp . BW- 81 mins, CC,
7th 11:45 AM	The Crowd Roars (1932)
	A race-car driver tries to keep his brother from following in his footsteps. Dir: Howard Hawks Cast: James Cagney , Joan Blondell , Ann Dvorak . BW- 70 mins, CC,
7th 1:15 PM	Winner Take All (1932)
	A prize fighter tries to help an invalid and her baby. Dir: Roy Del Ruth Cast: James Cagney , Marian Nixon , Guy Kibbee . BW- 66 mins, CC,
7th 2:30 PM	Hard To Handle (1933)
	A hustling public relations man promotes a series of fads. Dir: Mervyn LeRoy Cast: James Cagney , Mary Brian , Allen Jenkins . BW- 78 mins, CC,
7th 4:00 PM	Picture Snatcher (1933)
	An ex-con brings his crooked ways to a job as a news photographer. Dir: Lloyd Bacon Cast: James Cagney , Ralph Bellamy , Patricia Ellis . BW- 77 mins, CC,
7th 5:30 PM	The Mayor of Hell (1933)
	A racketeer goes straight to run a reform school. Dir: Archie Mayo Cast: James Cagney , Madge Evans , Arthur Byron . BW- 90 mins, CC,
14th 7:45 AM	College Coach (1933)
	A timid chemistry major becomes a college football star. Dir: William A. Wellman Cast: Dick Powell , Ann Dvorak , Pat O’Brien . BW- 76 mins,
14th 9:15 AM	Dames (1934)
	A reformer’s daughter wins the lead in a scandalous Broadway show. Dir: Ray Enright Cast: Joan Blondell , Dick Powell , Ruby Keeler . BW- 91 mins, CC,
15th 2:30 PM	One Way Passage (1932)
	An ocean voyage leads to romance for a dying heiress and a condemned criminal. Dir: Tay Garnett Cast: William Powell , Kay Francis , Aline MacMahon . BW- 68 mins, CC,
18th 7:45 AM	Big City Blues (1932)
	A country boy finds love and heartache in New York City. Dir: Mervyn LeRoy Cast: Joan Blondell , Eric Linden , Jobyna Howland . BW- 62 mins, CC,
22nd 7:15 AM	The Lash (1931)
	A Spanish nobleman in Southern California turns to robbery to help the peasants. Dir: Frank Lloyd Cast: Richard Barthelmess , Mary Astor , Fred Kohler . BW- 77 mins,
22nd 8:45 AM	The Sin Ship (1931)
	A ship’s captain fights to protect a female passenger from his crew. Dir: Louis Wolheim Cast: Louis Wolheim , Mary Astor , Ian Keith . BW- 65 mins,
22nd 10:00 AM	The Lost Squadron (1932)
	Veteran flyers from World War I find work as movie stuntmen. Dir: George Archainbaud Cast: Richard Dix , Mary Astor , Robert Armstrong . BW- 79 mins, CC,
22nd 11:30 AM	Men of Chance (1932)
	Gamblers go after a man with a knack for picking winning horses. Dir: George Archainbaud Cast: Ricardo Cortez , Mary Astor , John Halliday . BW- 67 mins, CC,
22nd 12:45 PM	Upper World (1934)
	A wealthy man escapes his wife’s social pretensions in the arms of a burlesque queen. Dir: Roy Del Ruth Cast: Warren William , Mary Astor , Ginger Rogers . BW- 73 mins, CC,
25th 7:30 AM	Doctor X (1932)
	A reporter investigates a series of cannibalistic murders at a medical college. Dir: Michael Curtiz Cast: Lionel Atwill , Fay Wray , Lee Tracy . C- 76 mins, CC,
25th 2:30 PM	Night Nurse (1931)
	A nurse discovers that the children she’s caring for are murder targets. Dir: William A. Wellman Cast: Barbara Stanwyck , Ben Lyon , Joan Blondell . BW- 72 mins, CC,

Questions? Comments? Or do you just want to bug me? Leave a comment below!

3 Comments

thestoryenthusiast · October 25, 2019 at 9:08 am

I’ve been using Youtube TV for the last two months and am very happy with it. I love that it features unlimited DVR, but it doesn’t offer the Fox Movie Channel. Hope you find what works best for you.