''Broadway'' is a 1942

crime drama Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combin ...

musical film directed by William A. Seiter and starring George Raft as himself and

Pat O'Brien Pat O'Brien may refer to: Politicians * Pat O'Brien (Canadian politician) (born 1948), member of the Canadian House of Commons *Pat O'Brien (Irish politician) (c. 1847–1917), Irish Nationalist MP in the United Kingdom Parliament Others *Pat O'Br ...

as a detective. The supporting cast features

Janet Blair Janet Blair (born Martha Janet Lafferty; April 23, 1921 – February 19, 2007) was an American big-band singer who later became a popular film and television actress. Early years Janet Blair was born Martha Janet Lafferty on April 23, 1921, in ...

and Broderick Crawford. Another fictionalized biographical movie based on Raft's life, ''

The George Raft Story ''The George Raft Story'' is a 1961 American biographical film of Hollywood film star George Raft. Ray Danton portrays Raft and the film was directed by Joseph M. Newman. The picture was retitled ''Spin of a Coin'' for release in the United ...

'' (1961), featured a different actor ( Ray Danton) playing Raft.

Plot

George Raft, a Hollywood dancer, returns to

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

and recalls working in a nightclub with a bootlegger's girlfriend.

Cast

* George Raft as George Raft *

as Dan McCorn *

as Billie Moore * Broderick Crawford as Steve Crandall *

Marjorie Rambeau Marjorie Burnet Rambeau (July 15, 1889 – July 6, 1970) was an American film and stage actress. She began her stage career at age 12, and appeared in several silent films before debuting in her first sound film, '' Her Man'' (1930). She was t ...

as Lillian (Lil) Rice *

Anne Gwynne Anne Gwynne (born Marguerite Gwynne Trice; December 10, 1918 – March 31, 2003) was an American actress who was known as one of the first scream queens because of her numerous appearances in horror films. Gwynne was also one of the most popula ...

as Pearl * S. Z. Sakall as Nick * Edward Brophy as Porky (as Edward S. Brophy) * Marie Wilson as Grace *

Gus Schilling August "Gus" Schilling (June 20, 1908 – June 16, 1957) was an American film actor who started in burlesque comedy and usually played nervous comic roles, often unbilled. A friend of Orson Welles, he appeared in five of the director's films � ...

as Joe *

Ralf Harolde Ralf Harolde (born Ralph Harold Wigger, May 17, 1899 – November 11, 1974) was an American character actor who often played gangsters. Between 1920 and 1963, he appeared in 99 films, including '' Smart Money'' with Edward G. Robinson and ...

as Dolph *

Arthur Shields Arthur Shields (15 February 1896 – 27 April 1970) was an Irish actor on television, stage and film. Early years Born into an Irish Protestant family in Portobello, Dublin, Shields started acting in the Abbey Theatre when he was 17 years old ...

as Pete Dailey *

Iris Adrian Iris Adrian Hostetter (May 29, 1912 – September 17, 1994) was an American stage, film actress and dancer. Life and career Adrian was an only child, born in Los Angeles, California, to Florence (née Van Every) and Adrian Earl Hostetter, who ...

as Maisie * Janet Warren as Ruby (as Elaine Morey) * Dorothy Moore as Ann *

Nestor Paiva Nestor Paiva (June 30, 1905 – September 9, 1966) was an American actor of Portuguese descent. He is most famous for his recurring role of Teo Gonzales the innkeeper in Walt Disney's Spanish Western series ''Zorro'' and its feature film ''The ...

as Rinalti * Abner Biberman as Trado *

Damian O'Flynn Damian O'Flynn (January 29, 1907 – August 8, 1982) was an Irish- American actor of film and television originally from Boston, Massachusetts. Biography O'Flynn made his screen debut in ''Marked Woman'' (1937), after which he was a freelance p ...

as Scar Edwards *

Mack Gray Mack Gray (December 11, 1905, Brooklyn, New York – January 17, 1981, Beverly Hills, California) was an American actor who was the brother of Joe Gray (actor) and great-uncle of Jon Abrahams. He was given the nickname "Killer" by Carole Lomb ...

as Mack 'Killer' Gray

Production

Universal paid $175,000 for the rights to the 1926 play of the same name that had previously been filmed in 1929. On

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

, Lee Tracy played the dancer, Thomas Jackson played the detective and Paul Porcasi played the nightclub owner. In the 1929 film, Jackson and Porcasi reprised their roles and Glenn Tryon replaced Tracy. Pat O'Brien once played the detective role in a road show. In February 1941, Universal announced the film for the coming year. Bruce Manning, a writer who had recently been promoted to producer, would produce and George Raft and Broderick Crawford would star. Manning and Felix Young were to write the screenplay. However, Raft was under contract for three more pictures with

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...

, which refused to loan him to Universal. Raft had been refusing roles that he did not like over the course of eight months, but an agreement was reached whereby $27,500 would be taken from Raft's salary to allow Warner Bros. to borrow

Robert Cummings Charles Clarence Robert Orville Cummings (June 9, 1910 – December 2, 1990) was an American film and television actor who appeared in roles in comedy films such as '' The Devil and Miss Jones'' (1941) and ''Princess O'Rourke'' (1943), and in ...

from Universal. In December 1941, Raft signed on to make the film. Manning wanted to change the bootlegger characters from the play into foreign agents. He discussed the story with Raft and recognized the similarities between the story of Roy, the dancer played on stage by Tracy, and that of Raft's early career. He kept the characters as bootleggers but changed the story to focus on Raft. He also added a prologue and epilogue in which Raft returns to New York after establishing himself as a movie star. In February 1942, O'Brien signed on and filming began.

Reception

The film was a success with audiences.Everett Aaker, ''The Films of George Raft'', McFarland & Company, 2013 p 100 The ''Los Angeles Times'' called ''Broadway'' a "sock melodrama." '' Filmink'' said that the film "... isn’t particularly well remembered but it's a lot of fun, with plenty of gunfire and dancing, and was reasonably popular – Raft was best known for his gangster movies, but he was also a half-decent draw in musicals."

References

External links

*
Review of film
at Variety {{DEFAULTSORT:Broadway (1942 film) 1940s musical drama films 1942 films American black-and-white films American mystery drama films 1940s English-language films Films about actors Films about musical theatre Films about theatre American films based on plays Films directed by William A. Seiter Films set in New York City Universal Pictures films Films scored by Frank Skinner American musical drama films American crime drama films 1942 crime drama films 1940s mystery drama films 1940s American films