You wouldn't think "Thirteen Hours By Air" would be any good if we told you the story of it. It's all mixed up and about an aviator and a beautiful society femme and a despurt killer and a G-man and forced landings and lots of horror and comedy in rapid alternation. Yet in spite of its handicaps the movie built round the story comes very close to excellence because of the great acting of Fred MacMurray, our choice for All-American Role-Transcender. Fred gets rotten parts most of the time and the way he just thinks nothing of it and goes right ahead and does a grand job of acting is beyond comprehension. In this picture he is the aviator who defends the beautiful society blonde (Joan Bennett) from perils that keep changing their shape. He has to do a lot of tricks to preserve his status as guardian, but he does them all gracefully and eventually wins her. Zasu Pitts and a horrible little boy who turns out to be a hero, Bennie Bartlett, are also in the show and add to its attractiveness.

In "The Singing Kid" Al Jolson gives another singularly uninteresting performance. Jolson's line is extremely limited and for this reviewer, at least, his appeal has utterly worn out. He is a past master at the art of letting his supporting cast take the picture out from under his nose, as Edward Everett Horton, the Yacht Club Boys, and most of all, Cab Calloway and his band, do in this picture. If the Cab and his band had had more of a part the whole thing might have been worth seeing. As it is he appears only a few short times and you live in hopes he'll come back, despising Al Jolson and the petty machinations of the plot sequence for keeping him away.

The March of Time is as fine as ever, with a survey of unemployment conditions in New Jersey, a splendid outlining of the troubles diplomatic and military attendant on the Ethiopian conquest, and the story of American railroad improvement.