Forbidden Hollywood Collection Volume 3

He flew with World War I's Lafayette Escadrille. Later, he made his Hollywood introduction by landing a plane on Douglas Fairbanks' property and went on to a remarkable 40-year career that includes these six snappy, pre-Code works. Disc 1 of this William A. Wellman movie collection features burly railroad men vying for Mary Astor in Other Men's Women and Barbara Stanwyck proving she's a mail-order bride worth The Purchase Price. Stepping out of the shadows for Disc 2 are Ruth Chatterton as brothel madam Frisco Jenny and Loretta Young as a desperate moll in the dazzlingly stylistic Midnight Mary (made at Metro but very much in the Warner mode). Wellman flexes Depression-era social-conscience muscle in Disc 3, using Heroes for Sale (starring Richard Barthelmess) to focus on the plight of war veterans and championing the wandering youths turned into Wild Boys of the Road. Go where the excitement is with Hollywood's "Wild Bill."

• comedy
• crime
• drama