The Champ (1931/I)

User Rating:

7.3/10   

Writers:

Frances Marion (story)
Leonard Praskins (dialogue continuity)

Release Date:

21 November 1931 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Family | Sport

Tagline:

Don't fail to get a ringside seat!

Plot:

Dink Purcell loves his alcoholic father, ex-heavyweight champion Andy "Champ" Purcell, despite his frequent binges...

Plot Keywords:

Gambling | Horse | Boxing | Alcoholic | Jail

Awards:

Won 2 Oscars. Another 2 nominations

Cast

Wallace Beery	...	Champ
Jackie Cooper	...	Dink
Irene Rich	...	Linda
Roscoe Ates	...	Sponge (as Rosco Ates)
Edward Brophy	...	Tim
Hale Hamilton	...	Tony
Jesse Scott	...	Jonah
Marcia Mae Jones	...	Mary Lou

Runtime:

86 min (Turner library print)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #4248-R: 13 April 1938 for re-release) | USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | USA:TV-G (TV rating)

Filming Locations:

Agua Caliente Racetrack, Baja California Norte, Mexico

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

Wallace Beery actually got one less vote than Fredric March in the 1931/1932 Academy Awards voting for best actor, but the rules at the time considered anyone with one or two votes less than the leader as being in a tie. So both got Academy Awards.

Goofs:

Continuity: During the fight, The Champ sustains a cut above his left eye, but when he goes back to his corner it is gone. The cut comes back when the fighting resumes and stays for the duration of the film.

Quotes:

[Dink compares the swanky home to his own]
Dink Purcell: The Champ and I ain't fixed up swell as this, but our joint's more lively.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in A Personal Journey with Martin Scorsese Through American Movies (1995) (TV)

Soundtrack:

The Stars and Stripes Forever

Wallace Beery Should Have Shared The Oscar With Jackie Cooper

Probably the greatest disconnect among film personalities in history is that of Wallace Beery. On the screen he played these lovable oaf types, even when he was a bad guy. Off the screen he was a violent man, given to fits of temper and I can't recall anyone having a good word to say about him. Possibly for that reason Beery could lay claim to the fact he was the greatest actor in films. The crowning achievement of his career was his Oscar winning performance in The Champ.

Of course Beery could not have done it without little Jackie Cooper as well. It's their scenes together that make the film as memorable as it is. Instead of splitting the Academy Award with Fredric March who was also awarded The Best Actor for Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, possibly Beery should have given half of his half to Cooper.

Beery is actually a former champ in this film. He's an over the hill, alcoholic pug who lives a hand to mouth existence with his young son Cooper. He split from his wife Irene Rich years ago, taking Cooper and she'd like to get him back. She's pretty well fixed now with a new and rich husband and a daughter by that marriage.

The fly in the ointment is that Cooper is really attached to his father and blind to the faults he has. And Beery really does love his son, the only really happy part about his life. He's probably way too old to be seriously in the fight game, but he needs the dough for his kid.

The Champ is guaranteed four handkerchief film even now almost eighty years after its debut. A remake was done in 1979 with Jon Voight and Rick Schroder in the main two roles, but it wasn't a patch on this one.