Public Hero No. 1 (1935)
- Starring:
- Lionel Barrymore, Jean Arthur, (more)
- Director(s):
- J. Walter Ruben
Synopsis of Public Hero No. 1
The stringent censorship imposed upon Hollywood of the mid-1930s dictated that gangsters could no longer be the "heroes" in any crime film. Public Hero No. 1 reflects this restriction. G-Man Chester Morris poses as a crook to infiltrate the notorious Purple Gang, a band of hoodlums which preys upon other hoodlums. Orchestrating the jailbreak of the Gang's leader (Joseph Calleia), Morris joins him in a Dillinger-like flight across the country. The bloody denouement, which occurs in a vaudeville theatre, is likewise drawn from the Dillinger saga (that particular gentleman was of course killed in front of a movie house). Also featured in Public Hero No. 1 is Jean Arthur as the heroine (a comic role) and Lionel Barrymore as a drunken gang doctor. The film was remade as The Getaway in 1942. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
Complete Cast of Public Hero No. 1
- Lionel Barrymore - Dr. Josiah Glass
- Chester Morris - Jeff Crane
- Paul Kelly - Duff
- Sam Baker - Mose
- George E. Stone - Butch
- Selmar Jackson - Simpson
- Lillian Harmer - Mrs. Higgins
- Pat O'Malley - Federal Agent
- Jonathan Hale - Prison Board Member
- Frank McGlynn, Jr.
- James Flavin
- Lawrence Wheat - Andrews
- Zeffie Tilbury - Deaf Woman
- Carl Stockdale - Train Conductor
- Jean Arthur - Theresa O'Reilly
- Joseph Calleia - Sonny Black
- Lewis Stone - Warden Alcott
- Paul Hurst - Rufe Parker
- John Kelly - Truck Driver
- Cora Sue Collins - Little Girl
- Frank Moran - Prison Guard
- Helene Costello - Girl
- Greta Meyer - Housekeeper
- Gladden James
- Walter Brennan - Farmer
- Tammany Young - Bartender
- Bert Roach - Masher
- Director(s):
- J. Walter Ruben
- Writer(s):
- Wells Root
- Producer(s):
- Lucien Hubbard
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