''Exclusive'' is a 1937 American

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. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

directed by

Alexander Hall Alexander Hall (January 11, 1894 – July 30, 1968) was an American film director, film editor and theatre actor. Biography Hall acted in the theatre from the age of 4 through 1914, when he began to work in silent movies. Following his military ...

and written by

Jack Moffitt Jack Moffitt may refer to: * Jack Moffitt (computer scientist), American computer scientist, co-author of Icecast * Jack Moffitt (musician), Australian musician, former member of The Preatures * Jack Moffitt (screenwriter) (1901–1969), Americ ...

Sidney Salkow Sidney Salkow (June 16, 1911 – October 18, 2000) was an American film director (more than 50 motion pictures), screenwriter, and television director. Salkow was educated at the City College of New York, Columbia University, and Harvard Law Sch ...

and Rian James. The film stars

Fred MacMurray Frederick Martin MacMurray (August 30, 1908 – November 5, 1991) was an American actor. He appeared in more than one hundred films and a successful television series in a career that spanned nearly a half-century. His career as a major film le ...

Frances Farmer Frances Elena Farmer (September 19, 1913August 1, 1970) was an American actress. She appeared in over a dozen feature films over the course of her career, though she garnered notoriety for sensationalized accounts of her life, especially her inv ...

Charlie Ruggles Charles Sherman Ruggles (February 8, 1886 – December 23, 1970) was an American comic character actor. In a career spanning six decades, Ruggles appeared in close to 100 feature films, often in mild-mannered and comic roles. He was also the e ...

Lloyd Nolan Lloyd Benedict Nolan (August 11, 1902 – September 27, 1985) was an American stage, film and television actor who rose from a supporting player and B-movie lead early in his career to featured player status after creating the role of Captain Qu ...

, Fay Holden and

Ralph Morgan Raphael Kuhner Wuppermann (July 6, 1883 – June 11, 1956), known professionally as Ralph Morgan, was a Hollywood stage and film character actor, and union activist. He was a brother of actor Frank Morgan as well as the father of actress ...

. The film was released on August 6, 1937, by

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation, commonly known as Paramount Pictures or simply Paramount, is an American film production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the flagship namesake subsidiary of Paramount ...

Plot

Cleared of a crime, gangster Charles Gillette seeks vengeance against Mountain City townspeople who sought to put him behind bars, including Colonel Bogardus, owner of the influential ''Mountain City World'' newspaper. Gillette buys the ''Sentinel'', rival to the ''World'', and tries to hire star reporter Ralph Houston to be his editor, but Ralph declines. Gillette then uses Ralph's girlfriend, Vina Swain, to dig up dirt on his enemies. A story on mayoral candidate Horace Mitchell smears his reputation and results in a suicide. Tod Swain, an editor at the ''World'', chastises Vina for her poor judgment. Gillette then sets out to ruin a department store owner by having henchman Beak McArdle arrange an elevator accident that causes deaths as well as serious injury to Ralph. Vina's own life is in peril when Gillette then orders McArdle to murder her so she can never tell what she knows. Tod helps her return safely, then tricks Gillette into a confession about the elevator accident. The ''Sentinel'' is sold to the town, with a recovered Ralph deciding to run it.

Cast

as Ralph Houston *

as Vina Swain *

as Tod Swain *

as Charles Gillette * Fay Holden as Mrs. Swain *

as Horace Mitchell * Edward H. Robins as Colonel Bogardus *

Harlan Briggs Harlan Briggs (August 17, 1879 – January 26, 1952) was an American actor and Vaudeville performer who was active from the 1930s until his death in 1952. During the course of his career he appeared on Broadway, in over 100 films, as well a ...

as Springer *

Willard Robertson Willard Robertson (January 1, 1886 – April 5, 1948) was an American actor and writer. He appeared in more than 140 films from 1924 to 1948. He was born in Runnels, Texas and died in Hollywood, California. Biography Robertson first worked ...

as Mr. Franklin * Horace McMahon as Beak McArdle *William Mansell as Formby * Steve Pendleton as Elliott * Chester Clute as Garner *

Irving Bacon Irving Ernest Bacon (September 6, 1893 – February 5, 1965) was an American character actor who appeared in almost 500 films. Early years Bacon was the son of entertainers Millar West Bacon (who was a teenager) and Myrtle Vane. He was born ...

as Dr. Boomgarten *Frank Bruno as Lollipop *James Blakeley as Mr. Walton *Sam Hayes as Radio Announcer

Reception

Writing for '' Night and Day'' in 1937,

Graham Greene Henry Graham Greene (2 October 1904 – 3 April 1991) was an English writer and journalist regarded by many as one of the leading novelists of the 20th century. Combining literary acclaim with widespread popularity, Greene acquired a re ...

gave the film a mildly good review, noting that it gives "the general impression ..of slow old-fashioned sentiment

hose A hose is a flexible hollow tube or pipe designed to carry fluids from one location to another, often from a faucet or hydrant. Early hoses were made of leather, although modern hoses are typically made of rubber, canvas, and helically wound w ...

result, like lavender, is not unagreeable". Characterizing the film as "a routine film of American newspaper life", Greene gave mixed reactions to the scenes, praising the elevator crash scene but finding himself disappointed by the precious delivery of the final scenes with the daughter speaking of her dead father. A reviewer in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' found the film's portrayal of newspapermen "authentic" and its story "engrossing".J.T.M. "The Screen. 'High, Wide and Handsome,' a Story of the Oil Rush, Opens at the Astor--The Paramount's 'Exclusive'." The New York Times, 22 July 1937, p. 15, www.nytimes.com/1937/07/22/archives/the-screen-high-wide-and-handsome-a-story-of-the-oil-rush-opens-at.html?searchResultPosition=2. Accessed 1 Dec. 2020.

References

External links

* 1937 films Paramount Pictures films American drama films Films about journalists 1937 drama films Films directed by Alexander Hall American black-and-white films 1930s English-language films 1930s American films English-language drama films {{1930s-drama-film-stub