''Men in White'' is a 1934

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 ...

film starring

Clark Gable William Clark Gable (February 1, 1901November 16, 1960) was an American film actor, often referred to as "The King of Hollywood". He had roles in more than 60 motion pictures in multiple genres during a career that lasted 37 years, three decades ...

and

Myrna Loy Myrna Loy (born Myrna Adele Williams; August 2, 1905 – December 14, 1993) was an American film, television and stage actress. Trained as a dancer, Loy devoted herself fully to an acting career following a few minor roles in silent films. ...

, and directed by Ryszard Bolesławski. The story is loosely based on the Sidney Kingsley

Pulitzer-Prize The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made hi ...

-winning play of the same name. Due to suggestions of illicit romance and abortion, the film was frequently cut. The

Legion of Decency The National Legion of Decency, also known as the Catholic Legion of Decency, was a Catholic group founded in 1934 by Archbishop of Cincinnati, John T. McNicholas, as an organization dedicated to identifying objectionable content in motion pictu ...

declared the movie unfit for public exhibition.

Plot

Encouraged by his mentor, the eminent Dr. Hochy Hochberg (

Jean Hersholt Jean Pierre Carl Buron (12 July 1886 – 2 June 1956), known professionally as Jean Hersholt, was a Danish-American actor. He is best known for starring on the radio series '' Dr. Christian'' (1937–1954) and in the film '' Heidi'' (1937).Obitu ...

), George Ferguson (

), a dedicated young doctor, places his patients above everyone else in his life. However, his

Social Register The ''Social Register'' is a semi-annual publication in the United States that indexes the members of American high society. First published in the 1880s by newspaper columnist Louis Keller, it was later acquired by Malcolm Forbes. Since 2014, ...

fiancée, Laura Hudson (

), grows weary of the constant interruptions and demands on his time—even cutting short their wedding rehearsal. (The long hours and scanty pay endured not only by interns but practicing physicians is a recurrent theme in this film.) At the end of a long, devastating day that includes the loss of a patient, George calls Laura, expecting to spend the evening with her, but she angrily tells him to leave her alone. An English student nurse, Barbara Denham (

Elizabeth Allan Elizabeth Allan (9 April 1910 – 27 July 1990) was an English stage and film actress who worked in both Britain and Hollywood, where she appeared in 50 films. Life and career Allan was born in Skegness, Lincolnshire in 1910 and educated in D ...

), comes to his room to borrow some notes. They talk about how deeply the closeness of death affected them. She stays behind in his room. Some time later, Barbara is brought to the operating room for emergency surgery, presumably to deal with the results of a botched abortion. Hochy has arranged for Laura to watch George at work so she can see how important his career is. Before the anesthetist puts her under, Barbara tells George she loves him. George plans to marry Barbara to salvage her reputation, but she develops a blood clot that will be fatal. Hochy apologizes for teaching Laura a harsher lesson than he planned, and brings her to Barbara, who tells Laura about her single encounter with George. Laura realizes that “it was that night,” the night she was not there for him. George is with Barbara when she dies. (Barbara's eyes remain open for some time after she dies, until George gently closes them.) In the end, George will go to Europe, fulfilling Hochy's plans for his brilliant future. Laura will also go there, hoping George will find time for her. One thread of the story involves diabetic hypoglycemia: Two doctors have a conflict at the bedside of a young girl who is desperately ill. George diagnoses (correctly) that the patient is in insulin shock (needing

glucose Glucose is a simple sugar with the molecular formula . Glucose is overall the most abundant monosaccharide, a subcategory of carbohydrates. Glucose is mainly made by plants and most algae during photosynthesis from water and carbon dioxide, u ...

), while the senior doctor, Dr. Cunningham—who has prescribed too much insulin—insists she is in a

diabetic coma Diabetic coma is a life-threatening but reversible form of coma found in people with diabetes mellitus. Three different types of diabetic coma are identified: #Severe low blood sugar in a diabetic person # Diabetic ketoacidosis (usually type 1 ...

(needing

insulin Insulin (, from Latin ''insula'', 'island') is a peptide hormone produced by beta cells of the pancreatic islets encoded in humans by the ''INS'' gene. It is considered to be the main anabolic hormone of the body. It regulates the metabolism ...

). George prevails and the child recovers.

Cast

Censorship

Although there were no overt references to abortion in the original script the

Hays Office The Motion Picture Production Code was a set of industry guidelines for the self-censorship of content that was applied to most motion pictures released by major studios in the United States from 1934 to 1968. It is also popularly known as the ...

found the story to be in violation of the

Production Code The Motion Picture Production Code was a set of industry guidelines for the self-censorship of content that was applied to most motion pictures released by major studios in the United States from 1934 to 1968. It is also popularly known as the ...

because they believed that there were clear indications that Barbara Denham’s illness was brought about by an attempted abortion. Ultimately, MGM cut some lines to accommodate their concerns. Despite these changes there were protests against the film by moral reformers and religious groups. ''Men in White'' was one of the first films condemned by the newly formed

Reception

The film was considered a success at the box office.Churchill, Douglas W
The Year in Hollywood: 1934 May Be Remembered as the Beginning of the Sweetness-and-Light Era ''(gate locked)''
''New York Times'' ew York, NY December 30, 1934, page X5; retrieved December 16, 2013. According to MGM records, it earned $890,000 in the US and Canada, and $565,000 elsewhere resulting in a profit of $784,000.

Radio adaptation

''Men in White'' was presented on the '' Lady Esther Screen Guild Theatre'' on CBS on July 19, 1943. The 30-minute sanitized adaptation starred

, James Craig, and Louise Allbritton.

References

External links

* * * * {{AFI film, 7091
''Men in White''
at pre-code.com 1934 films American black-and-white films Films directed by Ryszard Bolesławski Films set in hospitals Medical-themed films Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films 1934 romantic drama films American romantic drama films 1930s English-language films 1930s American films