. . . here on IMDb. IN A WORLD that was more perfect, ALL theatrical trailers would be available on IMDb for research purposes, as well as providing a forum to comment upon them. Turner Classic Movie channel runs vintage previews all the time for upcoming movies on their TV schedule to fill the gaps between their feature presentations. Many of these antique promos run three or four minutes, like this 1937 spot for THE LAST GANGSTER (which clocks in at 3 minutes, 53 seconds). The Eon Production Company, behind 23 of the 25 James Bond feature films released to date, includes as many as 39 different radio spots in the "Propaganda" section of their 20-film DVD release from the early 21st Century. Each of these should have their own page, as well as the trailers for upcoming flicks showing in the multiplexes today. Furthermore, the hundreds of audio versions of classic films still circulating many decades later as recordings from the Lux Radio Theatre and the competing shows of the 1930s and 1940s (many of which have Hollywood's top stars reprising their iconic roles) ALSO need a place for research and commentary within the IMDb format. These radio presentations boil down a 90- or 120-minute movie to 30 minutes or an hour. Trailers tell you what the producers think is important about a movie in 15 seconds to 4 minutes. You do not have the complete picture of a story unless you can study BOTH separately (when available).
It's obvious that Edward G. Robinson made THE FIRST GANGSTER AND THE LAST GANGSTER under duress. The title is a clever way of saying that Mr. Robinson was one of the first gangsters--"Rico"--in LITTLE CAESAR (during Hollywood's more American "pre-code" days) and now he's come down in the world (like Al Capone in real life), spending most of THE LAST GANGSTER locked up in Alcatraz. He's also confessing to the blatant swagger of the the doomed Rico, knowing the church censors will burn him alive in the same fashion as they did Saint Joan, if he recants his confession here. This kowtowing to church authorities obviously upsets Mr. Robinson as much or more than Galileo was abashed, causing him to blurt out a lame joke about strangling his wife in bed over a "territorial dispute." You cannot understand American culture without being able to see the "man behind the curtain," or at least infer his presence, such as here in THE FIRST GANGSTER AND THE LAST GANGSTER.
It's obvious that Edward G. Robinson made THE FIRST GANGSTER AND THE LAST GANGSTER under duress. The title is a clever way of saying that Mr. Robinson was one of the first gangsters--"Rico"--in LITTLE CAESAR (during Hollywood's more American "pre-code" days) and now he's come down in the world (like Al Capone in real life), spending most of THE LAST GANGSTER locked up in Alcatraz. He's also confessing to the blatant swagger of the the doomed Rico, knowing the church censors will burn him alive in the same fashion as they did Saint Joan, if he recants his confession here. This kowtowing to church authorities obviously upsets Mr. Robinson as much or more than Galileo was abashed, causing him to blurt out a lame joke about strangling his wife in bed over a "territorial dispute." You cannot understand American culture without being able to see the "man behind the curtain," or at least infer his presence, such as here in THE FIRST GANGSTER AND THE LAST GANGSTER.
