John Ford Sound Films, Part 2: 1935-1938
The Whole Town’s Talking through Submarine Patrol
The following is a list of John Ford sound films. These film pages are taken from Wikipedia entries (with some minor editing). I will be adding bibliographic material and John Ford film stills from my personal collection to add to these pages. Also, I will be adding bibliographic material and references from noted writers.
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The Whole Town's Talking (1935)
Directed by
John Ford
Produced by
John Ford
Lester Cowan (uncredited)
Screenplay by
Jo Swerling
Robert Riskin
Based on
Jail Breaker Collier's (1932) by W.R. Burnett
Starring
Edward G. Robinson
Jean Arthur
Music by (Uncredited):
Mischa Bakaleinikoff
Louis Silvers
Cinematography
Joseph H. August
Edited by
Viola Lawrence
Production company
Columbia Pictures
Distributed by
Columbia Pictures
Release date
February 22, 1935
Running time
93 minutes
Country
United States
Language
English
The Whole Town's Talking (released in the UK as Passport to Fame) is a 1935 American comedy film starring Edward G. Robinson as a law-abiding man who bears a striking resemblance to a killer, with Jean Arthur as his love interest. It was directed by John Ford from a screenplay by Jo Swerling and Robert Riskin based on a story by W.R. Burnett originally published in Collier's in August 1932.[1] Burnett was also the author of the source material for Robinson's screen break-through, Little Caesar.[2] The film The Whole Town's Talking (1926) has no story connection to this film.
Plot
Meek and mild Arthur Ferguson Jones (Edward G. Robinson) and brash Wilhelmina Clark (Jean Arthur) work at the same advertising firm. He harbors a secret crush on her while she barely knows he exists.
Jones turns out to look exactly like the notorious bank robber "Killer" Mannion (also Robinson) and is apprehended by the police. After his true identity is confirmed, the district attorney gives Jones a "passport," a letter identifying him as not Mannion, so that he can avoid the same trouble in the future. Jones becomes a local celebrity and, at the behest of his boss (Paul Harvey), begins ghost-writing Mannion's "autobiography" in the newspaper, with good-natured but street-wise "Miss Clark" (as he refers to her) voluntarily acting as his agent to see that he gets paid.
Mannion decides to take advantage of his mild-mannered doppelgänger and, ultimately, leave Jones "holding the bag" for Mannion's crimes. He kidnaps Wilhelmina, Jones' visiting aunt, and his manager from work, and takes them back to his hideout. He instructs Jones to make a large deposit for Mannion's mother's benefit at the First National Bank, and then has a henchman phone the police and tell them that he (Mannion) is about to rob the bank. But Mannion's plan fails when Jones forgets to bring the check and unwittingly leads the police back to Mannion's hideout.
Upon his arrival, Jones is mistaken for Mannion by the waiting henchmen and quickly realizes that he is meant to be the fall guy. When the real Mannion returns unexpectedly, his gang thinks he is Jones and machine-guns him to death. The police arrive in time to capture the rest of the gang and release the captives. With Mannion dead, Jones collects a reward and takes a long-desired cruise to Shanghai with Wilhelmina.
Cast
· Edward G. Robinson as Arthur Ferguson Jones and "Killer" Mannion
· Jean Arthur as Wilhelmina Clark
· Arthur Hohl as Detective Sergeant Boyle
· James Donlan as Detective Sergeant Howe
· Arthur Byron as Spencer, District Attorney
· Wallace Ford as Healy, Record reporter
· Etienne Girardot as Seaver, office manager
· Donald Meek as Hoyt
· Edward Brophy as "Slugs" Martin (as Ed Brophy)
· Paul Harvey as "J.G." Carpenter
Cast notes
· In his autobiography, All My Yesterdays, Edward G. Robinson wrote of Jean Arthur, "She was whimsical without being silly, unique without being nutty, a theatrical personality who was an untheatrical person. She was a delight to work with and to know."[2]
· Lucille Ball has a small uncredited part as a bank employee, and Francis Ford, director John Ford's older brother, appears as a newspaper reporter at the dock.
Production
The Whole Town's Talking – which had the working titles of "Jail Breaker" and "Passport to Fame"[3] – was in production from October 24 to December 11, 1934.[4] The film incorporated some footage originally shot for Columbia's 1931 film The Criminal Code.[5]
Columbia Pictures borrowed Edward G. Robinson for this film from Warner Bros. – Robinson heard about the transactions through gossip columnist Louella Parsons.[2] At the time Robinson's career was somewhat moribund and the star was tired of playing only gangsters. He was initially opposed to the project but changed his mind after reading the script.[2] In retrospect The Whole Town's Talking has been seen as a turning point for Robinson, reviving his cinematic fortunes.[2][5] Along with 1933's The Little Giant and 1938's A Slight Case of Murder, it was one of the few comedies Robinson made.[6]
W.R. Burnett, who wrote the story that The Whole Town's Talking was based on, also wrote Little Caesar, which was the film that catapulted Robinson to stardom, and High Sierra, the film of which was a significant step for Humphrey Bogart in moving from playing gangsters to romantic lead.[6]
Response
Film critic and historian Jean Mitry said of the film that it is "...wonderfully cut and mounted, supercharged, taut like a spring, it is a work of total perfection in its genre."[7] And Michael Costello of All Movie Guide wrote that "Ford directs and cuts the scenes with uncharacteristic rapidity, seeming to enjoy playing off the meek clerk against the anarchic gangster."[8]
References
1. Quoted in Gallagher, Tag (1988). John Ford: The Man and his Films. Berkeley: University of California Press. p. 108.
The Informer (1935)
Directed by
John Ford
Produced by
John Ford
Cliff Reid (associate)
Screenplay by
Dudley Nichols
Based on
The Informer by Liam O'Flaherty
Starring
Victor McLaglen
Heather Angel
Preston Foster
Margot Grahame
Wallace Ford
Una O'Connor
Music by
Max Steiner
Cinematography
Joseph H. August
Edited by
George Hively
Production company
RKO Radio Pictures
Distributed by
RKO Radio Pictures (USA)
Release date
May 9, 1935 (USA)
Running time
91 minutes
Country
United States
Language
English
Budget
$243,000
Box office
$950,000
The Informer is a 1935 dramatic film, released by RKO. The plot concerns the underside of the Irish War of Independence, set in 1922. It stars Victor McLaglen, Heather Angel, Preston Foster, Margot Grahame, Wallace Ford, Una O'Connor and J. M. Kerrigan. The screenplay was written by Dudley Nichols from 1925 the novel of the same title by Liam O'Flaherty. It was directed by John Ford. The novel had previously been adapted for a British film The Informer (1929).
Along with Mutiny on the Bounty, The Informer was a big contender at the 8th Academy Awards, competing directly in all six categories they were nominated for (though Mutiny got eight nominations in total, given its three Best Actor nominations). The Informer won four Oscars: Best Director for Ford, Best Actor for McLaglen, Best Writing Screenplay for Nichols, and Best Score. In 2018, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."
Plot
In Dublin in 1922, Gypo Nolan (Victor McLaglen) has been kicked out of the outlaw Irish Republican Army (IRA) for not killing a Black and Tan who killed an IRA man. He becomes angry when he sees his streetwalker girlfriend Katie Madden (Margot Grahame) trying to pick up a customer. After he throws the man into the street, Katie laments that she does not have £10 for passage to America to start afresh.
Gypo later runs into his friend and IRA comrade Frankie McPhillip (Wallace Ford), a fugitive with a £20 bounty on his head. Frankie, tired of hiding for six months, is on his way home to visit his mother (Una O'Connor) and sister Mary (Heather Angel) under cover of the foggy night. The slow-witted Gypo decides to turn informer for the £20 reward, enough for passage to America for the both of them. The Black and Tans find Frankie at his house, and Frankie is killed in the ensuing gunfight. The British contemptuously give Gypo his blood money and let him go.
Gypo subsequently buys a bottle of whiskey and tells Katie that he obtained money by beating up an American sailor. He goes to Frankie's wake, and acts suspiciously when coins fall out of his pocket. The men there tell him that they do not suspect Gypo of informing, but he then meets with several of his former IRA comrades, who wonder who informed on Frankie. Gypo claims it was a man named Mulligan (Donald Meek). Though Gypo is drunk and talking nonsense, the others begin to suspect him but do not have enough evidence as yet. Gypo leaves and gives out £1 notes to a blind man (D'Arcy Corrigan) and some bar patrons, but people wonder why he had such a sudden influx of cash. Meanwhile, Mary tells the IRA that the only person Frankie talked to that day was Gypo, and the men decide to hold an inquest into the death.
Gypo goes to an upper-class party to look for Katie, but gets drunk and buys rounds of drinks. Gypo is then taken away by his former IRA comrades when they figure out it was he. He is taken to a kangaroo court, where Mulligan is questioned and is accused once again by Gypo. However, the comrades do not believe Gypo, and give him a detailed accounting of where he spent his entire £20 reward. Gypo then confesses to ratting out Frankie.
Gypo is locked up, but before he can be killed he escapes through a hole in the ceiling. He runs to Katie's apartment, where he tells her that he informed on Frankie. Katie goes to see the commissioner who presided over the trial, Dan Gallagher (Preston Foster), to beg him to leave Gypo alone. The rigid Gallagher says he cannot do anything, and Gypo might turn in the entire organization to the police if he is allowed to live. However, other IRA members, having overheard Katie, go to her apartment and shoot Gypo, much to Katie's horror as she hears the shots. Gypo wanders into a church where Frankie's mother is praying and begs forgiveness as he confesses to her. She does forgive him, telling him that he did not know what he was doing, and the absolved Gypo dies content on the floor of the church after calling out to Frankie with joy.
Cast
· Victor McLaglen as "Gypo" Nolan
· Heather Angel as Mary McPhillip
· Preston Foster as Dan Gallagher
· Margot Grahame as Katie Madden
· Wallace Ford as Frankie McPhillip
· Una O'Connor as Mrs. McPhillip
· J. M. Kerrigan as Terry
· Joe Sawyer as Bartly Mulholland (credited as Joseph Sauers)
· Neil Fitzgerald as Tommy Connor
· Donald Meek as Peter Mulligan
· D'Arcy Corrigan as The Blind Man
· Leo McCabe as Donahue
· Steve Pendleton as Dennis Daly (credited as Gaylord Pendleton)
· Francis Ford as "Judge" Flynn
· May Boley as Madame Betty
Reception
Writing for The Spectator in 1935, Graham Greene praised the film as "a memorable picture" the substance of which made "superb material for the screen". Greene singled out the acting of Victor McLaglen for specific praise, noting that he had "never given an abler performance".
The film was popular at the box office, earning a profit of $325,000 and remains one of John Ford's most widely referenced films.
Awards and nominations
Academy Awards – 1935
The film was nominated for six Academy Awards, winning four. McLaglen won Best Actor for his portrayal of Gypo Nolan, beating out Charles Laughton, Clark Gable, and Franchot Tone for the better-remembered Mutiny on the Bounty, and Ford won Best Director. Dudley Nichols won Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay, but turned it down because of union disagreements. It was the first time an Oscar was declined, though he claimed it three years later. The film also won the Oscar for Best Score; Max Steiner won for the first time. The film was nominated for Outstanding Production,[7] as well as for Best Film Editing.
Award Result Winner
Outstanding Production Nominated RKO Radio (John Ford, Producer)
Winner was Mutiny on the Bounty (MGM)
(Irving Thalberg and Frank Lloyd, Producers)
Best Director Won John Ford
Best Actor Won Victor McLaglen
Best Writing, Screenplay Won Dudley Nichols
Best Film Editing Nominated George Hively
Winner was Ralph Dawson – A Midsummer Night's Dream
Best Music (Scoring) Won Max Steiner
The film's other awards and nominations:
· National Board of Review—Best Picture
· New York Film Critics Circle Awards—Best Film and Best Director
· Venice Film Festival—John Ford nominated for the Mussolini Cup
Adaptations in other media
The Informer was adapted as a radio play on the July 10, 1944, and October 17, 1950, episodes of The Screen Guild Theater, the March 28, 1948, episode of the Ford Theatre. On the Academy Award Theater's May 25, 1946, episode, McLaglen reprised his role.
Steamboat Round the Bend (1935)
Directed by
John Ford
Produced by
Sol M. Wurtzel
Written by
Ben Lucien Burman
Dudley Nichols
Lamar Trotti
Starring
Will Rogers
Anne Shirley
Cinematography
George Schneiderman
Edited by
Alfred DeGaetano[1]
Production company
Fox Film Corporation
Distributed by
20th Century Fox
Release date
September 6, 1935
Running time
82 minutes
Country
United States
Language
English
Box office
$1,528,000 (rentals)[2]
Steamboat Round the Bend is a 1935 American comedy film directed by John Ford, released by 20th Century Fox and produced by Fox Film Corporation,[3] based on the 1933 novel of the same name by author Ben Lucien Burman. It was the final film made by star Will Rogers and was released posthumously, a month after he was killed in an airplane crash on August 15, 1935.
A con man enters his steamboat in a winner-take-all steamboat race in the 1890s with a rival while attempting to find an eyewitness that will save his nephew, who has been wrongly convicted of murder, from the gallows.
Cast
· Will Rogers as Doctor John Pearly
· Anne Shirley as Fleety Belle
· Irvin S. Cobb as Captain Eli
· Eugene Pallette as Sheriff Rufe Jeffers
· John McGuire as Duke
· Berton Churchill as New Moses
· Francis Ford as Efe
· Roger Imhof as Breck's Pappy
· Raymond Hatton as Matt Abel
· Hobart Bosworth as Chaplain
· Stepin Fetchit as Jonah
Home video
Steamboat Round the Bend was released as a region 1 DVD in 2006.
References
1. Jack Murray was likely an uncredited editor on this film; see Pommer, John E. (July 24, 1994). .
2. Sennwald, Andre (September 20, 1935). "MOVIE REVIEW: Steamboat Round the Bend (1935)". The New York Times.
The Prisoner of Shark Island (1936)
Directed by
John Ford
Produced by
Nunnally Johnson
Darryl F. Zanuck
Written by
Nunnally Johnson
Starring
Warner Baxter
Gloria Stuart
Frank McGlynn
Francis McDonald
Music by
R.H. Bassett
Hugo Friedhofer
Cinematography
Bert Glennon
Edited by
Jack Murray
Production company
Twentieth Century Fox
Distributed by
Twentieth Century Fox
Release date
February 28, 1936
Running time
96 minutes
Country
United States
Language
English
The Prisoner of Shark Island is a 1936 film loosely based on the life of Maryland physician Samuel Mudd, who treated the injured presidential assassin John Wilkes Booth and later spent time in prison after his controversial conviction for being one of Booth's accomplices. The film was produced by Darryl F. Zanuck, was directed by John Ford and starred Warner Baxter and Gloria Stuart.
Twentieth Century Pictures, before it merged with Fox, purchased the rights to the book The Life of Dr. Mudd by Nettie Mudd Monroe, the doctor's daughter. The film's credits, however, make no reference to Monroe or her book. Modern sources state that Darryl F. Zanuck, Twentieth Century's vice-president in charge of production, got the idea to make the film after he read an article in Time magazine about the prison camp for political prisoners on the Dry Tortugas island.[1]
Plot
A few short hours after the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln (Frank McGlynn Sr.), Dr. Samuel Mudd (Warner Baxter) gives treatment to a man with a broken leg who shows up at his door. Mudd does not know that the president has been assassinated and the man who he is treating is John Wilkes Booth (Francis McDonald). Mudd is arrested for being an accessory in the assassination and is sent to prison on the Dry Tortugas, described as in the West Indies and referred to in the film as "America's own Devil's Island".
After a period of ill treatment due to his notoriety, and an unsuccessful escape attempt, his skills as a doctor are requested by the Commandant of the prison. The island has been in the grip of a yellow fever epidemic and the official prison doctor has fallen ill. Dr. Mudd takes charge with the blessing of the Commandant and the cooperation of the soldier guards, and the yellow fever epidemic subsides.
In the end he receives a pardon and is allowed to return home.
Cast
· Warner Baxter as Dr. Samuel Alexander Mudd
· Gloria Stuart as Mrs. Peggy Mudd
· Claude Gillingwater as Col. Jeremiah Milford Dyer
· Arthur Byron as Mr. Erickson
· O.P. Heggie as Dr. MacIntyre
· Harry Carey as Commandant of Fort Jefferson
· Francis Ford as Cpl. O'Toole
· John McGuire as Lt. Lovett
· Francis McDonald as John Wilkes Booth
· Douglas Wood as Gen. Ewing
· John Carradine as Sgt. Rankin
· Joyce Kay as Martha Mudd
· Fred Kohler Jr. as Sgt. Cooper
· Ernest Whitman as 'Buck' Milford
· Paul Fix as David Herold
· Frank Shannon as Joseph Holt
· Frank McGlynn Sr. as President Abraham Lincoln
· Leila McIntyre as Mary Todd Lincoln
· Etta McDaniel as Aunt Rosabelle Milford
· J.M. Kerrigan as Judge Maiben
· Arthur Loft as Frank J. Thomas - Carpetbagger
· Paul McVey as Gen. David Hunter
· Maurice Murphy as Prison Hospital Orderly
· Robert Homans as Sergeant (uncredited)
· Murdock MacQuarrie as Edman Spangler (uncredited)
· Cyril Thorton as Michael O'Laughlen (uncredited)
· Cecil Weston as Mary Surratt (uncredited)
· Lloyd Whitlock as Henry Rathbone (uncredited)
Mary of Scotland (1936)
Directed by
John Ford
Produced by
Pandro S. Berman
Screenplay by
Dudley Nichols
Based on
Mary of Scotland, 1933 play by Maxwell Anderson
Starring
Katharine Hepburn
Fredric March
Music by
Nathaniel Shilkret
Cinematography
Joseph H. August
Jack MacKenzie
Edited by
Jane Loring
Distributed by
RKO Radio Pictures
Release date
July 30, 1936 (New York)[1]
August 28, 1936
Running time
123 minutes
Country
United States
Language
English
Budget
$864,000[2]
Box office
$1,276,000[2]
Mary of Scotland is a 1936 RKO film starring Katharine Hepburn as the 16th-century ruler Mary, Queen of Scots.[3][4] Directed by John Ford, it is an adaptation of the 1933 Maxwell Anderson play. The screenplay was written by Dudley Nichols. It is largely in blank verse. Ginger Rogers wanted to play this role and made a convincing screen test, but RKO rejected her request to be cast in the part[5] feeling that the role was not suitable to her image.
Mary (Katharine Hepburn), by assuming her throne as queen of Scotland, strikes terror into the heart of Queen Elizabeth I (Florence Eldridge). After languishing in jail for 18 years at Elizabeth's command, Mary is offered a pardon if she will sign away her throne. Will she accept the deal, or die instead?[6]
Cast
· Katharine Hepburn as Mary, Queen of Scots
· Fredric March as the Earl of Bothwell
· Florence Eldridge as Elizabeth of England
· Douglas Walton as Lord Darnley
· John Carradine as David Rizzio
· Robert Barrat as Morton
· Gavin Muir as Leicester
· Ian Keith as James Stuart, Earl of Moray
· Moroni Olsen as John Knox
· William Stack as Lord Ruthven
· Ralph Forbes as Randolph
· Alan Mowbray as Throckmorton
· Frieda Inescort as Mary Beaton
· Donald Crisp as Huntly
· David Torrence as Lindsay
· Molly Lamont as Mary Livingston
· Anita Colby as Mary Fleming
· Jean Fenwick as Mary Seton
· Lionel Pape as Burghley
· Alec Craig as Donal
· Mary Gordon as Nurse
· Monte Blue as Messenger
· Leonard Mudie as Maitland
· Brandon Hurst as Airan
· Wilfred Lucas as Lexington
· D'Arcy Corrigan as Kirkcaldy
· Frank Baker as Douglas
· Cyril McLaglen as Faudoncide
· Doris Lloyd as Fisherman's Wife
· Robert Warwick as Sir Francis Knollys
· Murray Kinnell as a Judge
· Lawrence Grant as a Judge
· Ivan F. Simpson as a Judge
· Nigel De Brulier as a Judge
· Barlowe Borland as a Judge
· Walter Byron as Walsingham
· Wyndham Standing as a Sergeant-at-Arms
· Earle Foxe as the Earl of Kent
· Paul McAllister as du Croche
· Lionel Belmore as a Fisherman
· Gaston Glass as the Frenchman
· Neil Fitzgerald as the Nobleman
· Tommy Bupp as Boy in Boat (uncredited)
· Robert Homans as Jailer (uncredited)
· Harry Tenbrook as Guard (uncredited)
· Bobs Watson as Fisherman's Son (uncredited)
Accuracy
The film does not keep close to the historical truth, portraying Mary as something of a wronged martyr and her third husband, James Hepburn, Earl of Bothwell (played by Fredric March), as a romantic hero. While true that Bothwell was a well known scoundrel, his last marriage to Mary was genuine. Regarding Mary's historical status, the false imprisonment by Elizabeth I and Anglo protestant intrigue in Scotland did undermine her valid claim to the throne of Scotland and the throne of England, making her a dire threat to Elizabeth I.
At the beginning of the movie she is described as the legitimate heir of Henry VII, when in fact it was King James V.
Reception
Contemporary reviews were generally positive. Frank S. Nugent of The New York Times wrote it had a "blend of excellence and mere adequacy." He wrote that the film had "depth, vigor and warm humanity" but had scenes which "lack the vitality they possessed in the play", and considered Hepburn's characterization of the title role rather too soft in comparison with the historical Mary.[7] Variety praised the "extra-strong cast" and Ford's "sure-footed" direction. Hepburn's performance was described as "not really Mary Stuart but rather Katie Hepburn. And that is all in the film's favor because it humanizes it all and makes it that much more nearly acceptable." However, the review also found the film too long and the ending too sad, and conceding it could not end any other way without "completely corrupting history."[8] "Impressive historical drama finely acted and produced with all-around distinction", reported Film Daily.[9] Motion Picture Daily called the film "a splendidly powerful drama" with a "sincere, intelligent and genuine" performance by Hepburn.[10] Russell Maloney reviewed the film negatively in The New Yorker, writing that despite its high production values, "it has little or nothing to do with Maxwell Anderson's play. Any other historical drama of the period could have been sandwiched in between these scenes and it wouldn't have made a bit of difference." Of Hepburn's performance, Maloney wrote that she had "the cards stacked against her from the very start, because pageantry naturally interferes with characterization."[11]
The film is not regarded well by critics today, and in its time, it was a box-office flop, causing a loss of $165,000.[2] This was Katharine Hepburn's second flop in a row causing her to being labeled "box office poison" in the late 1930s, leading to (after a two-year screen absence) her move to MGM for her comeback in The Philadelphia Story.
References
1. "The Broadway Parade". Film Daily. New York: Wid's Films and Film Folk, Inc.: 2 July 27, 1936.
2. Richard Jewel, 'RKO Film Grosses: 1931-1951', Historical Journal of Film Radio and Television, Vol 14 No 1, 1994 p. 57.
3. Variety film review; August 5, 1936, p. 16.
4. Harrison's Reports film review; July 25, 1936, p. 119.
5. "Answers - The Most Trusted Place for Answering Life's Questions". Answers.com.
6. "Mary of Scotland (1936) - Articles - TCM.com". Turner Classic Movies.
7. Nugent, Frank S. (July 31, 1936). "Movie Review – Mary of Scotland". The New York Times. Retrieved August 16, 2015.
8. "Mary of Scotland". Variety. New York: Variety, Inc.: 16 August 5, 1936.
9. "Reviews of the New Films". Film Daily. New York: Wid's Films and Film Folk, Inc.: 7 July 24, 1936.
10. "Looking 'Em Over". Motion Picture Daily. Quigley Publishing Company, Inc.: 8 July 23, 1936.
11. Maloney, Russell (August 8, 1936). "The Current Cinema". The New Yorker: 52.
The Plough and the Stars (1937)
Directed by
John Ford
Produced by
Cliff Reid
Written by
Dudley Nichols
Seán O'Casey
Starring
Barbara Stanwyck
Preston Foster
Music by
Roy Webb
Cinematography
Joseph H. August
Edited by
George Hively
Distributed by
RKO Radio Pictures
Release date
January 15, 1937
Running time
72 minutes
Country
United States
Language
English
The Plough and the Stars is a 1937 American drama film directed by John Ford based on the play of the same name by Seán O'Casey.
Plot
Nora Clitheroe runs a rooming house in Dublin while trying to stay away from the political turmoil raging around her in Revoluntary Ireland. However, try as might, she discovers that her husband Jack has joined a militia of Irish rebels seeking to oust the British from Ireland. Nora fears for Jack's safety and begs him to keep his distance from the revolutionary forces. Jack assures her that he'll step back from their activities, but it's not until it's too late that Nora learns that Jack has done just the opposite -- and has become a commander with the Irish Citizen Army as they plan to occupy the Dublin Post Office as part of the Easter Rising.[2]
Cast
· Barbara Stanwyck as Nora Clitheroe
· Preston Foster as Jack Clitheroe
· Barry Fitzgerald as Fluther Good
· Denis O'Dea as The Young Covey
· F. J. McCormick as Capt. Brennan
· Una O'Connor as Maggie Gogan
· Arthur Shields as Padraig Pearse
· Moroni Olsen as James Connolly
· J. M. Kerrigan as Peter Flynn
· Bonita Granville as Mollser Gogan
· Erin O'Brien-Moore as Rosie Redmond
· Neil Fitzgerald as Lt. Langon
· Robert Homans as Timmy the Barman
· Brandon Hurst as Sgt. Tinley
· Cyril McLaglen as Cpl. Stoddard
· Wesley Barry as Sniper
· D'Arcy Corrigan as Priest
· Mary Gordon as Woman at Barricades
· Doris Lloyd as Woman at Barricades
Production
Casting
Director John Ford wished to reuse the entire cast of the original play for the film; however, RKO insisted upon two stars for the leading roles to make the production more appealing at the box office, hence the inclusion of Barbara Stanwyck and Preston Foster in the almost all-Irish cast. [3]
Filming
John Ford had several bitter disputes with RKO Pictures while making The Plough and the Stars, leading RKO to re-shoot many scenes with a different director in an effort to tone down the film's politics. Ford disowned the finished product, complaining RKO "completely ruined the damned thing."[4]
See also
· The Informer (1935 film), a film also directed by John Ford set in Revolutionary Ireland
References
1. "The Plough and the Stars: Detail View". American Film Institute.
2. "The Plough and the Stars (1936)".
3. "The Plough and the Stars - The Cinematheque". www.thecinematheque.ca.
4. "The Plough and the Stars".
Wee Willie Winkie (1937)
Directed by
John Ford
Produced by
Darryl F. Zanuck
Gene Markey
Written by
Julien Josephson
Ernest Pascal
Mordaunt Shairp (uncredited)
Based on
Wee Willie Winkie by Rudyard Kipling
Starring
Shirley Temple
Victor McLaglen
C. Aubrey Smith
Cesar Romero
Music by
Alfred Newman
Cinematography
Arthur C. Miller
Edited by
Walter Thompson
Production company
Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation
Distributed by
Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation
Release date
June 25, 1937 (Los Angeles)
Running time
100 minutes
Country
United States
Language
English
Budget
over $1 million[2]
Wee Willie Winkie is a 1937 American adventure drama film directed by John Ford and starring Shirley Temple, Victor McLaglen, and Cesar Romero. The screenplay by Julien Josephson and Ernest Pascal was based on a story by Rudyard Kipling. The film's story concerns the British presence in 19th-century India. The production was filmed largely at the Iverson Movie Ranch in Chatsworth, California, where a number of elaborate sets were built for the film.
The film is noteworthy for not having any elaborate song or dance routines which had become staples in Temple's films for 20th Century Fox.
William S. Darling and David S. Hall were nominated for an Academy Award for Best Art Direction.[3]
Plot
During the British Raj, Sergeant Donald MacDuff escorts Joyce Williams, an impoverished widow, and her young daughter, Priscilla, to a military outpost on the northern frontier of India to live with her stern father-in-law, Colonel Williams. Along the way, they witness the capture of notorious rebel chief Khoda Khan. Soon, Priscilla, nicknamed 'Wee Willie Winkie' by MacDuff, wins the hearts of all the soldiers, especially her grandfather and MacDuff; even Khoda Khan is touched by her visits to cheer him up in his captivity. Meanwhile, her mother is courted by Lieutenant Brandes.
Khoda Khan is rescued by his men in a night raid and a fight breaks out. MacDuff is fatally wounded while out on patrol. He passes away in the hospital while Priscilla sings "Auld Lang Syne" to him.
Priscilla decides to persuade Khoda Khan to stop fighting when Mohammed-din, a soldier who is actually Khan's spy, smuggles her out of the base and takes her to the rebel mountain fortress. Khan is greatly pleased; he thinks that the colonel will bring his entire regiment in a hopeless attempt to rescue her.
Colonel Williams halts his force out of range and walks alone to the entrance. A few of Khan's men start shooting at Williams, and Priscilla rushes to her grandfather's side. Impressed by the colonel's courage and overcome with empathy for the child, Khan orders his men to stop firing. He agrees to negotiate and the war ends.
Cast
· Shirley Temple as Priscilla 'Winkie' Williams
· Victor McLaglen as Sergeant Donald MacDuff
· C. Aubrey Smith as Colonel Williams
· Cesar Romero as Khoda Khan
· June Lang as Joyce Williams
· Michael Whalen as Lieutenant 'Coppy' Brandes
· Constance Collier as Mrs. Allardyce
· Douglas Scott as Mott
· Gavin Muir as Captain Bibberbeigh
· Willie Fung as Mohammed-din
· Brandon Hurst as Bagby
· Lionel Pape as Major Allardyce
· Clyde Cook as Pipe Major Sneath
· Lauri Beatty as Elsie Allardyce
· Lionel Braham as Major General Hammond
· Mary Forbes as Mrs. MacMonachie
· Cyril McLaglen as Cpl. Tummel
· Pat Somerset as Officer
· Hector V. Sarno as Driver
· Harry Tenbrook as Soldier (uncredited)
Production
Until The Little Princess (1939), this was Shirley Temple's most expensive film.[2] Production of Wee Willie Winkie had to be moved from the Fox studio lot to Chatsworth, California, owing to intense conflicts taking place between labor unions and Hollywood studios. During one standoff, a Fox studio messenger visiting the set nearly had a light dropped on his head after scolding a stagehand who complained about working conditions. During the shooting of the film, Temple's mother, Gertrude, was hospitalized for two weeks with an unspecified stomach ailment.[4]
Ford was notorious for his distaste of working with child stars, but he was drawn to this movie for its large budget and strong supporting cast, including Ford favorite Victor McLaglen. He was initially indifferent towards Temple, but his demeanor changed after the famous death scene of Sgt. MacDuff, as he was pleased with the restraint shown in her performance and impressed by her professionalism. Temple and Ford remained friends for many years after this movie was finished. Ford was later the godfather of Temple's oldest daughter.[5]
Shortly after completion of this film, an unknown gunman fired a shot at Temple and her mother as they were walking into their home with a group of other people.[6]
According to Temple, this was her favorite film:
Of all my films I rate Wee Willie Winkie the best, but for all the wrong reasons. It was best because of its manual of arms, the noisy marching around in military garb with brass buttons, my kilts bouncing. It was best because of daredevil stunts with snipers and stampeding horses. It was also best because I finally seemed to earn the professional respect of someone so blood-and-thunder macho as Ford. Best of all, the watery-blue color of my portable dressing room had been repainted in regimental red.[7]
Reception
Frank S. Nugent of The New York Times called the film "a pleasing enough little fiction, sure to delight every Temple addict and likely to win the grudging approval even of those who, like myself, are biding their time until she grows up, becomes gawky and is a has-been at 15."[8] Variety praised the film's "realistic and elaborate backgrounds and tense reality", as well as "good comedy" between Temple and McLaglen, but suggested that the film was too long for Temple's younger fans to be able to sit through.[9] Harrison's Reports wrote "Very good! Although Shirley, as usual, predominates, the producers have wisely surrounded her with capable players...The story has comedy, romance, and thrills, and holds one's attention throughout."[10] John Mosher wrote that the film "isn't much as a Shirley Temple tryout...Miss Temple's talent is rather overexploited at times, and she seems just a bit too pert."[11]
Libel action against Graham Greene
Writing for Night and Day in 1937, Graham Greene gave the film a mildly good review, complaining about the manufactured ingenue of the star's handlers, but otherwise observing that the Hollywood treatment is an improvement over the original Kipling version.[12][13] The review employed a number of characterizations of the star that provoked Temple and the British and American branches of Twentieth-Century Fox to sue Greene, Night and Day, its publisher (Chatto and Windus), and its printers (Hazell, Watson and Viney) for libel. The case appeared before the King's Bench in 1938 and a settlement was announced the following day. Speaking on behalf of Greene, Night and Day, and the publisher, the counsel for the defense Valentine Holmes reframed the review "which, his clients instructed him, [as] one to see which anybody could take their children". The Lord Chief Justice who prevailed over the hearing declared the printed "libel ... simply a gross outrage" and fined the defendants £3500 (equivalent to £225,100 in 2019).[15][16][17][18]
Home media
In 2009, the film was available on videocassette and DVD in both the original black-and-white and in computer-colorized versions. Some editions had theatrical trailers and special features.
Notes
1. The details of the settlement were such that Shirley Temple was to receive £2000 (equivalent to £128,600 in 2019) in compensation to partially defray court costs and the film corporation and company would receive £1000 (£64,300) and £500 (£32,200) respectively. The film and company would donate their portion of the fee to charity.[14]
References
1. Hanson, Patricia King, ed. (1993). The American Film Institute Catalog of Motion Pictures Produced in the United States: Feature Films, 1931-1940. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. pp. 2368–2369.
2. Up Budgets In Quality Film Drive The Washington Post (1923-1954) [Washington, D.C] 03 Jan 1939: 14
3. "Wee Willie Winkie". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times.
4. Shirley Temple Black, Child Star: An Autobiography (New York: McGraw-Hill Publishing Company, 1988), 168, 178.
5. The New York Times Film Reviews, Volume 2: 1932-1938. The New York Times & Arno Press. 1970. p. 1412.
6. "Film Reviews". Variety. New York: Variety, Inc. June 30, 1937. p. 20.
7. "Wee Willie Winkie". Harrison's Reports. New York: Harrison's Reports, Inc.: 123 July 31, 1937.
8. Mosher, John (July 17, 1937). "The Current Cinema". The New Yorker. New York: F-R Publishing Corp. p. 64.
9. "Graham Greene's infamous review of Wee Willie Winkie (1937), starring Shirley Temple". The Charnel-House. Retrieved 4 December 2014.
10. Greene, Graham (28 October 1937). "Wee Willie Winkie/The Life of Emile Zola". Night and Day. (reprinted in: Taylor, John Russell, ed. (1980). The Pleasure Dome. Oxford University Press. p. 176.
11. "Law Report, March 22 - Libel on Miss Shirley Temple: 'A Gross Outrage'". The Times. London. 23 March 1938. p. 4.
12. Taylor, John Russell, ed. (1980). "Appendix: The Shirley Temple Libel Action". The Pleasure Dome. Oxford University Press. p. 276.
13. Temple v. Night and Day Magazine Ltd, HCJ, KBD (1938). (reprinted in: Taylor, John Russell, ed. (1980). The Pleasure Dome. Oxford University Press. pp. 276–277.
14. Andrew Johnson "Shirley Temple scandal was real reason Graham Greene fled to Mexico", The Independent on Sunday, 18 November 2007
15. Atkinson, Michael (August 21, 2009 ) "Our Man in London. "Moving Image Source.
· Robinson, George (March 1994), Wee Willie Winkie: Hollywood's version of a Highland Regiment on the NW Frontier, Soldiers of the Queen (Journal of the Victorian Military Society)
The Hurricane (1937)
Directed by
John Ford
Produced by
Samuel Goldwyn
Written by
Dudley Nichols
Oliver H.P. Garrett
Based on
The Hurricane (novel) by James Norman Hall and Charles Nordhoff
Starring
Dorothy Lamour
Jon Hall
Mary Astor
C. Aubrey Smith
Thomas Mitchell
Raymond Massey
John Carradine
Jerome Cowan
Music by
Alfred Newman
Cinematography
Bert Glennon
Edited by
Lloyd Nosler
Production company
Samuel Goldwyn Productions
Distributed by
United Artists
Release date
November 9, 1937
Running time
110 minutes
Country
United States
Language
English
Budget
$2 million (estimated)
The Hurricane is a 1937 film set in the South Seas, directed by John Ford and produced by Samuel Goldwyn Productions, about a Polynesian who is unjustly imprisoned. The climax features a special effects hurricane. It stars Dorothy Lamour and Jon Hall, with Mary Astor, C. Aubrey Smith, Thomas Mitchell, Raymond Massey, John Carradine, and Jerome Cowan. James Norman Hall, Jon Hall's uncle, co-wrote the novel of the same name on which The Hurricane is based.
Plot
As a passenger ship sails by the bleak ruins of a deserted island, Dr. Kersaint (Thomas Mitchell) blows his former home a kiss. When a fellow passenger (Inez Courtney) asks him about the place, he tells its tragic story, segueing into a flashback.
During the colonial era in the South Pacific, the natives of the island of Manakoora are a contented lot. Terangi (Jon Hall), the first mate on an island-hopping schooner, marries Marama (Dorothy Lamour), the daughter of the chief (Al Kikume). She has a premonition and begs him not to leave, or at least take her with him on the ship's next voyage, but he makes her stay behind.
Upon reaching Tahiti, the crew goes to a bar to celebrate. When a racist white man orders them to leave, Terangi strikes him and breaks his jaw. Unfortunately, the man has strong political connections, and the governor is forced to sentence him to six months in jail, over the objections of Terangi's captain, Nagle (Jerome Cowan). Back on Manakoora, Dr. Kersaint begs recently appointed local French Governor Eugene De Laage (Raymond Massey) to have Terangi brought home to serve his sentence under parole, but De Laage refuses to compromise his stern interpretation of the law, despite the pleas of Captain Nagle, Father Paul (C. Aubrey Smith), and even his own wife (Mary Astor).
Unable to bear being confined, Terangi repeatedly tries to escape, eventually lengthening his sentence to 16 years, much to the delight of a particularly harsh jailer (John Carradine). Finally, after eight years, Terangi succeeds in escaping, but unintentionally kills a guard. He steals a canoe and returns to Manakoora after an arduous journey. At the end, he is rescued from his overturned canoe by Father Paul, who promises to remain silent.
Terangi is reunited with Marama and a daughter (Kuulei De Clercq) he has never seen before. Chief Mehevi recommends the family hide on a tabu island, where no one will look for them. However, De Laage discovers their preparations and commandeers the schooner to hunt them down.
Terangi turns back to warn his people after he sees birds fleeing the island, an unprecedented, ominous event that Marama had dreamed about many years before. A once-in-a-lifetime hurricane strikes the island. A few, among them Dr. Kersaint and his pregnant patient, weather the disaster in a canoe, while Terangi ties his family and Madame De Laage to a stout tree. The rest drown, and the island is stripped bare.
The tree floats away. Terangi later finds a war canoe in the water, which he uses to get his party to a small island. When they spot the schooner, Terangi signals it with smoke before fleeing in the canoe with his family. Governor De Laage embraces his wife, but then spots something on the water through his binoculars. Madame De Laage insists it must be a floating log; after a pause, her husband agrees with her.
Cast
· Dorothy Lamour as Marama
· Jon Hall as Terangi
· Mary Astor as Madame Germaine De Laage
· C. Aubrey Smith as Father Paul
· Thomas Mitchell as Dr. Kersaint
· Raymond Massey as Governor Eugene De Laage
· John Carradine as Warden
· Jerome Cowan as Captain Nagle
· Al Kikume as Chief Mehevi
· Kuulei De Clercq as Tita
· Layne Tom Jr. as Mako
· Mamo Clark as Hitia
· Movita Castaneda as Arai
Awards and nominations
The film was nominated for three Academy Awards, winning in the category for Best Sound.[1]
· Best Sound Recording - Thomas T. Moulton
· Best Supporting Actor (nomination) - Thomas Mitchell
· Best Music, Score (nomination) - Alfred Newman
Critical reception
The New York Times critic Frank S. Nugent praised the climactic special effect created by James Basevi, stating, "It is a hurricane to blast you from the orchestra pit to the first mezzanine. It is a hurricane to film your eyes with spin-drift, to beat at your ears with its thunder, to clutch at your heart and send your diaphragm vaulting over your floating rib into the region just south of your tonsils."[2] He complimented the performances of all of the principal actors with the exception of Hall, whose Terangi was described as "a competent Tarzan".[2] Nugent also faulted the uneven pacing, but in the end, characterized the film as "one of the most thrilling spectacles the screen has provided this year."[2]
DVD
The Hurricane was released on Blu-ray and DVD by Kino Lorber Studio Classics in November 2015.[3]
References
1. "The 10th Academy Awards (1938) Nominees and Winners". oscars.org. Retrieved 2011-08-10.
2. Frank S. Nugent (November 10, 1937). "Hurricane (1937)". The New York Times.
3. "Kino Lorber Studio Classics]". Classic Images. January 2016. p. 36.
Four Men and a Prayer (1938)
Directed by
John Ford
Produced by
Kenneth Macgowan
Written by
Richard Sherman
Sonya Levien
Walter Ferris
William Faulkner (uncredited)
Screenplay by
Richard Sherman
Sonya Levien
Walter Ferris
Based on
Four Men and a Prayer, 1937 novel by David Garth
Starring
Loretta Young
Richard Greene
George Sanders
David Niven
C. Aubrey Smith
William Henry
Music by
Louis Silvers
Cinematography
Ernest Palmer
Edited by
Louis R. Loeffler
Production company
20th Century Fox
Distributed by
20th Century Fox
Release date
April 29, 1938
Running time
85 minutes
Country
United States
Languages
English
Spanish
Four Men and a Prayer is a 1938 American adventure film directed by John Ford and starring Loretta Young, Richard Greene and George Sanders.
Plot
After a British Army Officer is cashiered in India following accusations of dereliction of duty, he summons his four sons to meet him in their family home. He reveals he has been framed, but before he can explain any more he is murdered. The four immediately set out to discover the truth and restore their father's honour. Spreading out across the world to Argentina and India they gather the evidence that shows that their father was a victim of a major arms dealer and triumph over him in a final confrontation in the Egyptian city of Alexandria. Returning home they are able to present evidence that clears their father's name.
Cast
· Loretta Young as Miss Lynn Cherrington
· Richard Greene as Geoffrey Leigh
· George Sanders as Wyatt Leigh
· David Niven as Christopher Leigh
· C. Aubrey Smith as Colonel Loring Leigh
· William Henry as Rodney Leigh
· J. Edward Bromberg as General Torres
· John Carradine as General Adolfo Arturo Sebastian
· Alan Hale as Mr. Furnoy
· Reginald Denny as Captain Douglas Loveland
· Berton Churchill as Mr. Martin Cherrington
· Barry Fitzgerald as Trooper Mulcahay
· Claude King as General Bryce
· Cecil Cunningham as Piper
Bibliography
· Eyman, Scott. Print the Legend: The Life and Times of John Ford. Simon and Schuster, 2012.
Submarine Patrol (1938)
Directed by
John Ford
Produced by
Darryl F. Zanuck
Written by
William Faulkner
Jack Yellen
Starring
Richard Greene
Nancy Kelly
Preston Foster
George Bancroft
Cinematography
Arthur C. Miller
Edited by
Robert L. Simpson
Distributed by
20th Century Fox
Release date
November 25, 1938
Running time
95 minutes
Country
United States
Language
English
Submarine Patrol is a 1938 film directed by John Ford and starring Richard Greene and Nancy Kelly. The supporting cast includes Preston Foster, George Bancroft, Elisha Cook, Jr. and John Carradine. The movie was partly written by William Faulkner.
Cast
· Richard Greene as Perry Townsend III
· Nancy Kelly as Susan Leeds
· Preston Foster as John C. Drake
· George Bancroft as Captain Leeds
· Slim Summerville as Spuds Fickett
· J. Farrell MacDonald as Sails Quincannon
· Warren Hymer as Rocky Haggerty
· Douglas Fowley as Pinky Brett
· Dick Hogan as Johnny Miller
· Elisha Cook Jr. as Rutherford Davis Pratt ("The Professor")
· George E. Stone as Irving Goldfarb
· Jack Pennick as Guns McPeek
· John Carradine as McAllison
· Henry Armetta as Luigi
· Joan Valerie as Anne
· Robert Lowery as Sparks, radioman