After her sole project for Paramount Pictures, Hostages, in 1943, Luise retired from the big screen but continued to work on radio, stage and television for the rest of her career. Best-known as a movie actress she did, in fact, appear in as many television drama productions as she did feature films, the most memorable of which is this 1965 episode of long-running war series Combat!
Between 1962 and 1967 there were 152 episodes of the series broadcast, making the show the world’s longest running World War II television drama. The series was immensely popular and had high production values, character-driven plots and notable guest appearances. Luise appeared in the episode Finest Hour which was broadcast on 21 December 1965 and would be her last dramatic television performance for almost 20 years.
Series regulars Rick Jason and Pierre Jalbert play 2nd Lt. Gil Hanley and PFC “Caje” LeMay, two US soldiers from a squad fighting on the ground in German-occupied France. Hanley has been injured in a skirmish with German soldiers and they find refuge in the grand Château Armandie, taken in, much against her best judgement, by the Countess de Roy (played by Luise). With the Germans taking over the château as HQ for their next manoeuvres the soldiers see a chance to thwart their plans, whilst the Countess must choose whether to protect her husband’s ancestral home or aid the soldiers as the net closes in.
This is a superb part for Luise and it is in stark contrast to the parts she played in her MGM heyday. The Countess is a headstrong and determined presence dealing with a situation where there is very little luxury of choice. Her performance is commanding and she holds the reins of the moral dilemma which is the guts of the story. Playing opposite her as the Count de Roy is silent film star Ramon Novarro, in his second Combat! guest spot. It is almost enough to see these two stars together on screen for the first time, a coming together of the old and the new… Novarro’s MGM contract expired in 1935, the year in which Luise’s began. In contrast to Luise’s character his is a quiet and introspective performance, but one which sits at the heart of the drama. Also in the cast, coincidentally, is Austrian actor John Mylong, who had also appeared in Hostages with Luise.
Cast:
Rick Jason as Lt. Hanley
Luise Rainer as Countess de Roy
Ramon Novarro as Count de Roy
Pierre Jalbert as Caje
James Dobson as Lt. Schaefer
John Mylong as General Kroehler
Lou Robb as Capt. Roswald
Karl Sadler as German #1
Norbert Meisel as German #2
Larry Gelbman as Sentry
Kurt Kreuger as Major Werner
Maurice Marsac as Claude
Credits:
Directed by Sutton Roley
Written by Don Tait
Produced by Gene Levitt
Luise Rainer 