Film noir the most influential of the early noirs. A slew of now-renowned noir "bad girls" followed, such as those played by Rita Hayworth in "Gilda" (1946), Lana Turner in "The Postman Always Rings Twice" (1946), Ava Gardner in "The Killers" (1946), and Jane Greer in "Out of the Past" (1947). The iconic noir counterpart to the femme fatale, the private eye, came to the fore in films such as "The Maltese Falcon" (1941), with Humphrey Bogart as Sam Spade, and "Murder, My Sweet" (1944), with Dick Powell as Philip Marlowe. The prevalence of the private eye as a lead character declined
Leon Ames "Bright Honor" (1936). Ames made his film debut in "Quick Millions" (1931). During the 1940s, he was under contract to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. He played the important role of Mr. Smith in 1944's massive hit and subsequent classic "Meet Me in St. Louis". Ames appeared in a featured role in "The Postman Always Rings Twice" (1946) as district attorney Kyle Sackett. He also appeared in the Doris Day-Gordon MacRae film "On Moonlight Bay", its sequel, "By the Light of the Silvery Moon", and "Peyton Place" (1957). He played the role of Samuel Eaton, Alfred Eaton's (Paul Newman) father, in "From the Terrace"