''The White Angel'' is a 1936 American

historical History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some theorists categ ...

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

William Dieterle William Dieterle (July 15, 1893 – December 9, 1972) was a German-born actor and film director who emigrated to the United States in 1930 to leave a worsening political situation. He worked in Cinema of the United States, Hollywood primarily a ...

and starring

Kay Francis Kay Francis (born Katharine Edwina Gibbs; January 13, 1905 – August 26, 1968) was an American stage and film actress. After a brief period on Broadway in the late 1920s, she moved to film and achieved her greatest success between 1930 an ...

, Ian Hunter and Donald Woods. The film depicts

Florence Nightingale Florence Nightingale (; 12 May 1820 – 13 August 1910) was an English Reform movement, social reformer, statistician and the founder of modern nursing. Nightingale came to prominence while serving as a manager and trainer of nurses during th ...

's pioneering work in nursing during the

Crimean War The Crimean War was fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, the Second French Empire, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the Kingdom of Sardinia (1720–1861), Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont fro ...

. It was produced and distributed by

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

studio

Warner Brothers Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...

Plot

Victorian England In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the reign of Queen Victoria, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. Slightly different definitions are sometimes used. The era followed th ...

, Florence Nightingale (Kay Francis) decides to become a nurse, puzzling her upper-class family (as nursing was considered a disreputable profession at the time). She travels to Germany to the only nursing school. The training is arduous, but she endures and graduates. When she returns home, however, no one is willing to employ her. When the

breaks out, she finally gets her chance. With the help of influential friends and damning newspaper reports on the wretched conditions in the Crimea by Fuller ( Ian Hunter), a reporter for ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'', she is permitted to recruit some nurses and lead them to Scutari in Turkey to tend the wounded. There, however, she is bitterly opposed by Dr. Hunt (

Donald Crisp Donald William Crisp (27 July 188225 May 1974) was an English people, English film actor as well as an early producer, director and screenwriter. His career lasted from the early silent film era into the 1960s. He won an Academy Award for Best S ...

), who is in charge of the hospital. She remains undaunted, and soon wins the love of her patients. Each night, she passes through miles of the wards, carrying a lamp, so she can satisfy herself that her patients have all they need. Her tireless efforts greatly reduce the mortality rate. Her fame is spread by the newspapers, and

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (February 27, 1807 – March 24, 1882) was an American poet and educator. His original works include the poems " Paul Revere's Ride", '' The Song of Hiawatha'', and '' Evangeline''. He was the first American to comp ...

writes a poem in her honor. When the opportunity arises, she goes to the front to attend the wounded more quickly. She leaves Sister Colomba ( Eily Malyon) in charge at Scutari. Once more, Nightingale faces official opposition to her efforts, instigated by Dr. Hunt. However, she gains the support of Lord Raglan ( Halliwell Hobbes), the British commander in chief, and is soon hard at work. When she comes down with

cholera Cholera () is an infection of the small intestine by some Strain (biology), strains of the Bacteria, bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea last ...

, she is attended by Tommy ( Billy Mauch), a drummer boy she herself nursed back from the brink of death. While she is only partially recovered, she is surprised when Sister Colomba shows up. The nun informs her that Dr. Hunt replaced her with Ella Stephens, a flighty socialite Nightingale had already rejected as a nurse. Under Stephens' lax and uncaring leadership, conditions had greatly worsened. Nightingale returns to Scutari and sets things straight. After the war ends, she returns home to England. By this time, even Dr. Hunt has reconsidered his opinion of her work, but his superior, Undersecretary of War Bullock (

Montagu Love Montagu Love (15 March 1877 – 17 May 1943) was an English screen, stage and vaudeville actor. Early years Born in Portsmouth, Hampshire, Love was the son of Harry Love and Fanny Louisa Love, née Poad; his father was listed as accountant ...

), remains steadfast in his opposition. Bullock tries to turn Queen Victoria against Nightingale, but the monarch instead shows her approval by presenting Nightingale with a brooch.

Cast

as Florence Nightingale * Ian Hunter as Fuller * Donald Woods as Charles Cooper *

Nigel Bruce William Nigel Ernle Bruce (4 February 1895 – 8 October 1953) was an English character actor on stage and screen. He was best known for his portrayal of Dr. Watson in a series of films and in the radio series '' The New Adventures of Sherlo ...

as Doctor West *

as Doctor Hunt *

Henry O'Neill Henry O'Neill (August 10, 1891 – May 18, 1961) was an American actor known for playing gray-haired fathers, lawyers, and similarly dignified roles on film during the 1930s and 1940s. Early life Henry O'Neill was born in Orange, New J ...

as Doctor Scott, a strong supporter of Nightingale * Billy Mauch as Tommy * Charles Croker-King as Mr. Nightingale * Phoebe Foster as Elizabeth Herbert * George Curzon as Sidney Herbert *

Georgia Caine Georgiana Caine (October 30, 1876 – April 4, 1964) was an American actress who performed both on Broadway and in more than 80 films in her 51-year career. Early career Born in San Francisco, California in 1876, the daughter of two Sha ...

as Mrs. Nightingale * Ara Gerald as Ella Stephens * Halliwell Hobbes as Lord Raglan * Eily Malyon as Sister Colomba *

as Bullock * Ferdinand Munier as Alexis Soyer, a cook who follows Nightingale to Scutari * Lillian Kemble-Cooper as Parthenope "Parthe" Nightingale (as Lillian Cooper) *

Egon Brecher Egon Brecher (18 February 1880 – 12 August 1946) was an Austrian-born American actor and director. He also served as the chief director of Vienna's Stadttheater, before entering the motion picture industry. Early years Brecher was born on 1 ...

as Pastor Fliedner *

Tempe Pigott Tempe Pigott (2 February 1869 – 6 October 1962) was an Australian silent and sound screen character actress. In the pre-film era she was a stage actress in England, Australia, Canada and the United States. She began appearing in motion pictures ...

as Mrs. Waters * Barbara Leonard as Minna * Frank Conroy as Mr. Le Froy * Alma Lloyd as nurse * J. Gunnis Davis as Secretary *

Gardner James Gardner James (1903–1953) was an American film actor. In 1925 James traveled to Los Angeles as a coal-hand on a vessel. In 1926 he signed a five-year contract with Inspiration Pictures. After some stage experience with George Arliss, he enter ...

as Patient

Reception

According to Warner Bros records the film earned $886,000 in the US and Canada and $530,000 elsewhere. Writing for ''

The Spectator ''The Spectator'' is a weekly British political and cultural news magazine. It was first published in July 1828, making it the oldest surviving magazine in the world. ''The Spectator'' is politically conservative, and its principal subject a ...

'' in 1936,

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 poor review, praising Francis' acting, but concluding that "she is defeated by the scenario-writers". Greene points in particular to the graveyard scene which he describes as a "dreadful sequence". (reprinted in: )

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:White Angel (1936 film), The 1936 films 1930s biographical drama films American biographical drama films American black-and-white films Crimean War films Films about Florence Nightingale Films directed by William Dieterle Warner Bros. films 1930s historical drama films American historical drama films Films set in the 1850s Films set in London Films set in Germany Cultural depictions of Florence Nightingale 1930s English-language films 1930s American films English-language historical drama films English-language biographical drama films