''Rich Man's Folly'' 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 John Cromwell and written by

Edward E. Paramore Jr. Edward E. Paramore Jr. (17 September 1895 – 1 May 1956) was an American screenwriter. Career His 1929 play ''Ringside'', co-written with George Abbott and Hyatt Daab, was adapted for the movie ''Night Parade'' by RKO. He was a staff screen ...

and

Grover Jones Grover Jones (November 15, 1893 – September 24, 1940) was an American screenwriter - often teamed with William Slavens McNutt - and film director. He wrote more than 100 films between 1920 and his death. He also was a film journal publish ...

. The film stars

George Bancroft George Bancroft (October 3, 1800 – January 17, 1891) was an American historian, statesman and Democratic politician who was prominent in promoting secondary education both in his home state of Massachusetts and at the national and internatio ...

Frances Dee Frances Marion Dee (November 26, 1909 – March 6, 2004) was an American actress. Her first film was the musical '' Playboy of Paris'' (1930). She starred in the film ''An American Tragedy'' (1931). She is also known for starring in the 1943 ...

, Robert Ames,

Juliette Compton Juliette Compton (May 3, 1899 – March 19, 1989) was an American actress whose career began in the silent film era and concluded with '' That Hamilton Woman'' in 1941. Career Compton was born in Columbus, Georgia, on May 3, 1899. She was ...

, David Durand,

Dorothy Peterson Bergetta "Dorothy" Peterson (25 December 1897 - 3 October 1979) was an American actress. She began her acting career on Broadway before appearing in more than eighty Hollywood films. Early years Peterson was born in Hector, Minnesota, the da ...

, and Harry Allen. The film was released on November 14, 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 ...

. This modern adaptation of the 1848 novel ''

Dombey and Son ''Dombey and Son'' is a novel by English author Charles Dickens. It follows the fortunes of a shipping firm owner, who is frustrated at the lack of a son to follow him in his footsteps; he initially rejects his daughter's love before eventual ...

'' is regarded as Hollywood's first major screen adaptation of a

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...

work.

Plot

Cast

as Brock Trumbull *

as Ann Trumbull * Robert Ames as Joe Warren *

as Paula Norcross *

David Durand David Durand (1680 – 16 January 1763) was a Huguenot French people, French and English people, English minister (religion), minister and historian. He was born in Languedoc and fled France to the Netherlands before heading to Spain with a grou ...

as Brock Junior *

as Katherine Trumbull * Harry Allen as McWylie *

Gilbert Emery Gilbert Emery Bensley Pottle (June 11, 1875 – October 28, 1945), known professionally as Gilbert Emery, was an American actor who appeared in over 80 movies from 1921 to his death in 1945. He was also a playwright, author of seven Broadway pla ...

as Kincaid *

Guy Oliver George Guy Oliver (September 25, 1878 – September 1, 1932) was an American actor. He appeared in at least 189 silent film era motion pictures and 32 talkies in character roles between 1911 and 1931. His obituary gives him credit for at l ...

as Dayton *

Anne Shirley Anne Shirley is a fictional character introduced in the 1908 novel '' Anne of Green Gables'' by L. M. Montgomery. Shirley is featured throughout the classic book series, which revolve around her life and family in 19th and 20th-century Prince ...

as Anne, as a child * George MacFarlane as Marston

Criticism

Director John Cromwell commented on the film and actor George Bancroft in an interview with historian Kinglesy Canham (circa 1975):

Preservation status

Although the film does still exist, ''Rich Man's Folly'' has not been seen publicly in decades. It has never been released onto VHS or DVD, and no re-showings or television broadcasts are known to have taken place. A surviving copy currently exists in the

UCLA Film & Television Archive The UCLA Film & Television Archive is a visual arts organization focused on the preservation, study, and appreciation of film and television, based at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Also a nonprofit exhibition venue, the arc ...

. Paramount created a promotional film in 1931 called ''

The House That Shadows Built ''The House That Shadows Built'' (1931) is a feature compilation film from Paramount Pictures, made to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the studio's founding in 1912. The film was a promotional film for exhibitors and never had a regular theat ...

'', with excerpts of ''Rich Man's Folly'' featured.

Footnotes

References

*Canham, Kingsley. 1976. ''The Hollywood Professionals, Volume 5: King Vidor, John Cromwell, Mervyn LeRoy.'' The Tantivy Press, London.

External links

* {{Dombey and Son 1931 films American drama films 1931 drama films Paramount Pictures films Films directed by John Cromwell American black-and-white films 1930s English-language films 1930s American films Films scored by Bernhard Kaun Films based on British novels Films based on works by Charles Dickens Films scored by John Leipold