The Duke Comes Back

On the night that Duke Foster wins his first heavyweight boxing title, he retires to marry his girlfriend Susan, promising her that he will never return to the ring. A few years later her father, Wall Street financier Arnold Corbin, loses $200,000 in clients' money and confides to Duke that he faces disgrace and prison. To make some fast money on Corbin's behalf, Duke offers to step out of retirement and compete in a match that's sure to be a sellout. Racketeers who want Duke to throw the fight resort to kidnapping and threats of murder.

Future "Red Ryder" Allan Lane convincingly portrays a prize fighter who, after years away from the ring, still has dynamite in both fists. Fight fans with long memories will recognize that the story was partly drawn from life: In the late 1920s, pro boxing champ Gene Tunney promised his socialite wife he'd never fight again, but then defended his title one more time.

Also includes The Joe Palooka Story: Two Rings for Eddie (1954, B&W) with Joe Kirkwood and Charles Bronson.

• drama