''Ladies of the Big House'' is a 1931 American

pre-Code Pre-Code Hollywood was the brief era in the American film industry between the widespread adoption of sound in film in 1929LaSalle (2002), p. 1. and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorship guidelines, popularly known ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super- ...

directed by

Marion Gering Marion Gering (June 9, 1901 in Rostov-on-Don – April 19, 1977 in New York City) was a Russian-born American stage producer and director. He moved to the United States in 1923 as an artist. He became involved in the theatrical community in Chicag ...

and written by Ernest Booth,

William Slavens McNutt William Slavens McNutt (September 12, 1885 – January 25, 1938), was an American screenwriter. He wrote for 28 films between 1922 and 1939. He was nominated for an Academy Award on two occasions. At the 5th Academy Awards, he was nominated ...

and Grover Jones. The film stars Sylvia Sidney, Gene Raymond, Wynne Gibson, Earle Foxe, Rockliffe Fellowes,

Purnell Pratt Purnell Pratt (October 20, 1885 – July 25, 1941) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 110 films between 1914 and 1941. He was born in Bethel, Illinois and died in Hollywood, California. Partial filmography * ''The Great D ...

and Frank Sheridan. The film was released on December 26, 1931, by

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...

Plot

Young florist Kathleen Storm ( Sylvia Sidney) is instantly the object of desire of a young man standing in front of the shopwindow, where she is arranging flowers. They have two wonderful weeks in their life together before they marry. The same day her criminal ex-boyfriend Kid Athens ( Earle Foxe), who heard about her wedding, decides to frame her and her new husband. She and her husband Standish ( Gene Raymond) end up in prison. He is sentenced to

death penalty Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that ...

on a charge of murder and she to a life sentence. In prison she meets a woman, Susie Thompson ( Wynne Gibson), who was Kid Athens' girlfriend before her, who after an initial raging jealousy ends up helping her to tell the authorities the truth about Kid Athens and she and her husband's innocence. Justice wins and the couple can finally have a

honeymoon A honeymoon is a vacation taken by newlyweds immediately after their wedding, to celebrate their marriage. Today, honeymoons are often celebrated in destinations considered exotic or romantic. In a similar context, it may also refer to the phase ...

on a ship.

Cast

* Sylvia Sidney as Kathleen Storm McNeil * Gene Raymond as Standish McNeil * Wynne Gibson as Susie Thompson * Earle Foxe as Kid Athens * Rockliffe Fellowes as Martin Doremus *

as John Hartman * Frank Sheridan as Warden Hecker *

Louise Beavers Louise Beavers (March 8, 1902 – October 26, 1962) was an American film and television actress. From the 1920s until 1960, she appeared in dozens of films and two hit television shows. She was most often cast in the roles of a maid, servant ...

as Ivory *Miriam Goldina as Maria * Hilda Vaughn as Millie *

Fritzi Ridgeway Fredericka Berneice "Fritzi" Ridgeway (April 8, 1898 – March 29, 1961) was an American silent film actress, vaudeville performer, and hotelier. Though she starred in numerous films, she is perhaps best known for her work in silent Western film ...

as Reno Maggie * Esther Howard as Clara Newman *Edna Bennett as The Countess *Ruth Lyons as Gertie * Jane Darwell as Mrs. Turner *Mary Foy as Mrs. Lowry *

Noel Francis Noel Francis (born Noel Frances Sweeney, August 31, 1906 – October 30, 1959) was an American actress of the stage and screen during the 1920s and 1930s. Born in Texas, she began her acting career on the Broadway stage in the mid-1920s, befo ...

as Thelma * Theodore von Eltz as Frazer * Evelyn Preer as Inmate

References

External links

* 1931 films 1931 drama films 1930s prison films American black-and-white films American prison drama films Films directed by Marion Gering Paramount Pictures films Women in prison films 1930s English-language films 1930s American films {{1930s-US-film-stub

Plot

Cast

See also

References

External links