''Racket Busters'' is a 1938 film about crime in the trucking industry starring Humphrey Bogart and

George Brent George Brent (born George Brendan Nolan; 15 March 1904 – 26 May 1979) was an Irish-American stage, film, and television actor. He is best remembered for the eleven films he made with Bette Davis, which included '' Jezebel'' and '' Dark Victo ...

. The film was directed by Lloyd Bacon.

Plot summary

Attorney Hugh Allison (

Walter Abel Walter Abel (June 6, 1898 – March 26, 1987) was an American film, stage and radio actor. Life Abel was born in St. Paul, Minnesota, the son of Christine (née Becker) and Richard Michael Abel. Abel graduated from the American Academy of ...

) is appointed Special Prosecutor to investigate and strike down gangster John "Czar" Martin's ( Humphrey Bogart) racketeering scheme in the trucking industry. This is Martin's first step in controlling New York's produce market. However, Alison is unable to get testimony from witnesses because of Martin's brutal coercion. Denny Jordan (

), a popular and influential trucker, refuses to join Martin's gang, and his truck is vandalized, causing Jordan to crash his truck on the side of a hill. To provide for his pregnant wife Nora (

Gloria Dickson Gloria Dickson (born Thais Alalia Dickerson; August 13, 1917 – April 10, 1945) was an American stage and screen actress of the 1930s and 1940s. Early years Born in Pocatello, Idaho, Dickson was the daughter of a banker. After her father's dea ...

), Jordan robs Martin's office but is caught. Martin agrees to forgive him if he joins his "protective association". Jordan reluctantly complies. This allows the other truckers to also join Martin's corrupt organization, while Allison begins jailing witnesses who refuse to testify. Jordan's oldest friend, Pop Wilson (

Oscar O'Shea Oscar O'Shea (8 October 1881 – 6 April 1960) was a Canadian-American character actor with over 100 film appearances from 1937 to 1953. Early years O'Shea was born in Peterborough, Ontario, Canada. Acting O'Shea was a comic actor who earne ...

), is murdered after testifying against Martin, and Jordan's partner, "Skeets" Wilson ( Allen Jenkins), quits trucking and begins selling tomatoes. Although Jordan is arrested by Allison and his wife leaves him, he refuses to testify against Martin. In a move to control the entire produce market, Martin incites the truckers to go on strike, thereby causing a food shortage, until every commission merchant and produce dealer join his association. But, Wilson refuses Martin's entreaties and is killed by his gang. Jordan then leads the truckers into breaking the strike, and a free-for-all breaks out between the truckers and the racketeers. Jordan defeats Martin in a hand-to-hand fight as the police arrive. Denny eventually testifies against Martin, leading to his conviction.

Cast

* Humphrey Bogart as John 'Czar' Martin *

as Denny Jordan *

as Nora Jordan * Allen Jenkins as 'Skeets' Wilson *

as Hugh Allison * Henry O'Neill as Governor *

Penny Singleton Penny Singleton (born Mariana Dorothy McNulty, September 15, 1908 – November 12, 2003) was an American actress, singer, dancer and labor leader. During her 60-year career on stage, screen, radio and television, Singleton appeared as the ...

as Gladys Christie * Anthony Averill as Dave Crane, Martin's Henchman *

as Pop Wilson *

Elliott Sullivan Elliott Sullivan (July 4, 1907 – June 2, 1974) was an American actor. Sullivan was born in San Antonio, Texas, the son of Rabbi Solomon Solomon. He appeared in the films ''They Won't Forget'', '' Over the Wall'', ''Accidents Will Happen'', ' ...

as Charlie Smith *

Fay Helm Fay Helm (April 9, 1909 – September 27, 2003) was an American film actress. Born in Bakersfield, California, she appeared in about 65 films between 1936 and 1946. She is perhaps better known for films like A Child is Born (1939), Phantom La ...

as Mrs. Smith *

Joe Downing Joe Downing (June 26, 1903 in New York City, New York – October 16, 1975 in Canoga Park, California) was an American stage, TV and B-movie actor who made more than 70 appearances. Downing's early acting experience included work with the Thea ...

as Joe Pender, Martin's Henchman * Norman Willis as Gus Hawkins, Martin's Henchman * Don Rowan as Cliff Kimball

Production

The film was based on the prosecution of real-life trucking racketeering schemes in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

during Thomas E. Dewey's campaign against organized crime in the 1930s.Farris, Scott (2012).
Almost president: the men who lost the race but changed the nation
'. Internet Archive. Guilford, CN: Lyons Press. p. 111-112. . When the film was released in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

, it was retitled ''Threat Over the City'' to avoid mistakenly promoting itself as a tennis film.

References

External links

* * * * {{Lloyd Bacon 1938 films 1938 crime films American black-and-white films American crime films 1930s English-language films Films directed by Lloyd Bacon Films produced by Samuel Bischoff Films scored by Adolph Deutsch Films with screenplays by Robert Rossen Trucker films Warner Bros. films Films about organized crime in the United States 1930s American films