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''Lady Killer'' is a 1933 American
After being fired as a theater usher, Dan Quigley tracks down Myra Gale to her apartment and returns the purse she dropped. He then sits in on a poker game with her "brother-in-law", Spade Maddock, Duke, Smiley and Pete. After he loses all his money, he leaves, only to run into another person trying to return Myra's purse. Realizing he has been conned, he threatens to go to the police ... unless they let him join them, telling them he has some profitable ideas.
He is as good as his word. Eventually, they are running a nightclub and casino, a perfect cover to scout the rich as burglary targets. Dan stages a car accident so a passing "doctor" can persuade Mrs. Marley to let him rest for a while in her nearby mansion. This gives Dan an opportunity to check out the place, so that they can break in later. More burglaries follow, but Dan decides to quit when a butler is killed during the latest one. However, Pete cracks under police interrogation and betrays the others; when the police come for them, Duke kills Pete and everyone flees. Dan and Myra head to Los Angeles.
Dan is picked up for questioning at the train station, so he gives his money to Myra for safekeeping. She then runs into Spade. When Dan telephones her to have her post his bail, Spade persuades her to go with him to Mexico instead. Dan is released anyway.
Broke, he runs away from what he mistakes for a policeman, only to discover his pursuer is actually hiring extras for a film. Dan gladly accepts $3 a day and a box lunch. On his fourth day of work, he meets star Lois Underwood and is surprised to find her friendly, even to a lowly extra. Meanwhile, National Studio head Ramick is looking for fresh, "rough and ready" faces, as the public is tiring of handsome stars. One of his executives suggests Dan. Dan helps his career along by writing himself hundreds of fan letters a week, and is soon a rising star.
He and Lois start going out together. When he spots a critic who had written harsh things about Lois, he forces the man to literally eat his words, making him swallow the newspaper column, and warns him against panning Lois again. He then takes Lois home to see his new suite. However, when they unexpectedly find Myra in his bedroom, Lois leaves.
Dan throws Myra out, but she is not alone. Spade and their old gang want Dan to use his connections to get them inside stars' homes in preparation for robberies. Dan refuses, and offers them $10,000, all the money he has, to leave town and never come back. Spade has no intention of departing. When burglaries start occurring using the modus operandi of Dan's old gang, the police suspect he is the ringleader. Dan tracks the crooks down after they rob Lois. He retrieves her jewels at gunpoint, but just as he is leaving, the police arrive. He is arrested, while the others get away.
In spite of the protests of the studio bigwigs, Lois adamantly intends to pay Dan's bail and stand by him. However, Spade worries that Dan will tell all he knows and has Myra bail Dan out so they can kill him. Myra tells Dan, but he already suspected as much and had the police tail them both. After a car chase, the thieves are either dead or in custody, Dan is exonerated and he asks the authorities to guarantee leniency for Myra. Dan and Lois then fly to another state to get married without delay.
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 ...
crime drama film
In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in Ca ...
starring James Cagney, Mae Clarke
Mae Clarke (born Violet Mary Klotz; August 16, 1910 – April 29, 1992) was an American actress. She is widely remembered for playing Henry Frankenstein's bride Elizabeth, who is chased by Boris Karloff in ''Frankenstein'', and for being o ...
, and Margaret Lindsay
Margaret Lindsay (born Margaret Kies; September 19, 1910 – May 9, 1981) was an American film actress. Her time as a Warner Bros. contract player during the 1930s was particularly productive. She was noted for her supporting work in successf ...
, based on the story "The Finger Man" by Rosalind Keating Shaffer. The picture was directed by Roy Del Ruth.
Plot
After being fired as a theater usher, Dan Quigley tracks down Myra Gale to her apartment and returns the purse she dropped. He then sits in on a poker game with her "brother-in-law", Spade Maddock, Duke, Smiley and Pete. After he loses all his money, he leaves, only to run into another person trying to return Myra's purse. Realizing he has been conned, he threatens to go to the police ... unless they let him join them, telling them he has some profitable ideas.
He is as good as his word. Eventually, they are running a nightclub and casino, a perfect cover to scout the rich as burglary targets. Dan stages a car accident so a passing "doctor" can persuade Mrs. Marley to let him rest for a while in her nearby mansion. This gives Dan an opportunity to check out the place, so that they can break in later. More burglaries follow, but Dan decides to quit when a butler is killed during the latest one. However, Pete cracks under police interrogation and betrays the others; when the police come for them, Duke kills Pete and everyone flees. Dan and Myra head to Los Angeles.
Dan is picked up for questioning at the train station, so he gives his money to Myra for safekeeping. She then runs into Spade. When Dan telephones her to have her post his bail, Spade persuades her to go with him to Mexico instead. Dan is released anyway.
Broke, he runs away from what he mistakes for a policeman, only to discover his pursuer is actually hiring extras for a film. Dan gladly accepts $3 a day and a box lunch. On his fourth day of work, he meets star Lois Underwood and is surprised to find her friendly, even to a lowly extra. Meanwhile, National Studio head Ramick is looking for fresh, "rough and ready" faces, as the public is tiring of handsome stars. One of his executives suggests Dan. Dan helps his career along by writing himself hundreds of fan letters a week, and is soon a rising star.
He and Lois start going out together. When he spots a critic who had written harsh things about Lois, he forces the man to literally eat his words, making him swallow the newspaper column, and warns him against panning Lois again. He then takes Lois home to see his new suite. However, when they unexpectedly find Myra in his bedroom, Lois leaves.
Dan throws Myra out, but she is not alone. Spade and their old gang want Dan to use his connections to get them inside stars' homes in preparation for robberies. Dan refuses, and offers them $10,000, all the money he has, to leave town and never come back. Spade has no intention of departing. When burglaries start occurring using the modus operandi of Dan's old gang, the police suspect he is the ringleader. Dan tracks the crooks down after they rob Lois. He retrieves her jewels at gunpoint, but just as he is leaving, the police arrive. He is arrested, while the others get away.
In spite of the protests of the studio bigwigs, Lois adamantly intends to pay Dan's bail and stand by him. However, Spade worries that Dan will tell all he knows and has Myra bail Dan out so they can kill him. Myra tells Dan, but he already suspected as much and had the police tail them both. After a car chase, the thieves are either dead or in custody, Dan is exonerated and he asks the authorities to guarantee leniency for Myra. Dan and Lois then fly to another state to get married without delay.
Cast
* James Cagney as Dan Quigley *Mae Clarke
Mae Clarke (born Violet Mary Klotz; August 16, 1910 – April 29, 1992) was an American actress. She is widely remembered for playing Henry Frankenstein's bride Elizabeth, who is chased by Boris Karloff in ''Frankenstein'', and for being o ...
as Myra Gale
* Margaret Lindsay
Margaret Lindsay (born Margaret Kies; September 19, 1910 – May 9, 1981) was an American film actress. Her time as a Warner Bros. contract player during the 1930s was particularly productive. She was noted for her supporting work in successf ...
as Lois Underwood
* Leslie Fenton
Leslie Fenton (12 March 1902 – 25 March 1978) was an English actor and film director. He appeared in more than 60 films between 1923 and 1945.
Early life
Fenton was born on 12 March 1902 in Liverpool, Lancashire, England. He emigrated to ...
as Duke
* Douglass Dumbrille
Douglass Rupert Dumbrille (October 13, 1889 – April 2, 1974) was a Canadian actor who appeared regularly in films from the early 1930s.
Life and career
Douglass Dumbrille ( ) was born in Hamilton, Ontario. As a young man, he was employed ...
as Spade Maddock
* Russell Hopton
Harry Russell Hopton (February 18, 1900 – April 7, 1945) was an American film actor and director.
Biography
Hopton was born in New York City, New York. He appeared in 110 films between 1926 and 1945, often playing streetwise characters f ...
as Smiley
* Raymond Hatton
Raymond William Hatton (July 7, 1887 – October 21, 1971) was an American film actor who appeared in almost 500 motion pictures.
Biography
Hatton was born in Red Oak, Iowa. His physician father steered him toward a career in medicine. Howev ...
as Pete
* Henry O'Neill as Ramick
* Robert Elliott as Detective Joe Brannigan
* Marjorie Gateson
Marjorie Augusta Gateson (January 17, 1891 – April 17, 1977) was an American stage and film actress.
Biography
Gateson was born in Brooklyn, New York, to Augusta and Daniel Gateson. Her maternal grandfather and brother were clergymen; So ...
as Mrs. Marley
* Willard Robertson
Willard Robertson (January 1, 1886 – April 5, 1948) was an American actor and writer. He appeared in more than 140 films between 1924 and 1948. He was born in Runnels, Texas, and died in Hollywood, California.
Biography
Robertson first ...
as Detective Conroy
* William Davidson William or Bill Davidson may refer to:
Businessmen
* Bill Davidson (businessman) (1922–2009), Michigan businessman and sports team owner
** William Davidson Institute, University of Michigan, named in honor of Bill Davidson
* William Davidson ...
as Director Williams
* Edwin Maxwell as Jeffries
* Robert Homans
Robert Edward Homans (November 8, 1877 – July 28, 1947) was an American actor who entered films in 1923 after a lengthy stage career.
Life and career
Robert Homans was born November 8, 1877, in Malden, Massachusetts. Although he studied ...
as Jailer (uncredited)
* Olaf Hytten
Olaf Hytten (3 March 1888 – 11 March 1955) was a Scottish actor. He appeared in more than 280 films between 1921 and 1955. He was born in Glasgow, Scotland, and died in Los Angeles, California from a heart attack, while sitting in his car ...
as Butler (uncredited)
* Sam McDaniel as Porter (uncredited)
Release
The film received mixed reviews at the time of its release, as reflected in a collection of excerpts published in ''The Hollywood Reporter'': the ''World-Telegram'' called it "a sprightly, more or less daring, thoroughly entertaining film," while less favorable reviewers dismissed it as "premeditated hokum" and "more a collection of jokes than a sustained narrative." Cagney's performance, however, was unanimously praised."New York Reviews." ''The Hollywood Reporter''. January 10, 1934, p 2. Accessed June 22, 2020.References
External links
* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lady Killer (1933 Film) 1933 films 1930s crime comedy-drama films American black-and-white films 1930s English-language films Films about actors Films directed by Roy Del Ruth Films set in Los Angeles Films set in New York City Warner Bros. films American crime comedy-drama films American crime drama films 1930s American films