The pilot for "The Barbara Stanwyck Show" is actually the start of a recurring character whom she played on the show, adventuress Josephine Little, a lover of all things orient, and that includes things that get her into trouble. Stanwyck, with her beautiful mane of lightening hair and million dollar case of laryngitis, was screen royalty by this time, and her presence alone elevated everything she touched. The reason? She's having fun with her work, and it shows, and her mixture of dramatic and comic talents is unmatched.
In this exotic adventure, she's scheming to raise money to have her fiancee (Charles Gray) released from Chinese communist custody, and her card game alone makes her tops at getting over the men she plays against, as well as the sob story she creates right off of her mind to gain time for companion Anna May Wong to get away with the money. Stanwyck always added a sly knowing to her clever characters, no matter how evil they were, and she's great at the tricks she plays on everyone around her. Sadly Wong seems ailing here, as if she'd had a slight stroke. Veteran character actor Philip Ahn has a great small part as one of the men Stanwyck fools. Great fun, and a terrific way to start her TV series!
In this exotic adventure, she's scheming to raise money to have her fiancee (Charles Gray) released from Chinese communist custody, and her card game alone makes her tops at getting over the men she plays against, as well as the sob story she creates right off of her mind to gain time for companion Anna May Wong to get away with the money. Stanwyck always added a sly knowing to her clever characters, no matter how evil they were, and she's great at the tricks she plays on everyone around her. Sadly Wong seems ailing here, as if she'd had a slight stroke. Veteran character actor Philip Ahn has a great small part as one of the men Stanwyck fools. Great fun, and a terrific way to start her TV series!
