Blessed Event (1932)

User Rating:

7.5/10   

Director:

Roy Del Ruth

Writers:

Howard J. Green (writer)
Manuel Seff (play)

Release Date:

10 September 1932 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Comedy

Tagline:

Here it is! The scandalous comedy of a scandal columnist who rose FROM A KEYHOLE TO A NATIONAL INSTITUTION

Plot:

Al Roberts writes a gossip column for the Daily Express. He will write about anyone and everyone as long as he gets the credit...

Plot Keywords:

Confession | Attempted Murder | Newspaper | Singer | Dictaphone

Cast

Lee Tracy	...	Alvin 'Al' Roberts
Mary Brian	...	Gladys 'Glad' Price
Dick Powell	...	Bunny Harmon
Allen Jenkins	...	Frankie Wells
Ruth Donnelly	...	Miss 'Stevey' Stevens
Emma Dunn	...	Mrs. Roberts
Edwin Maxwell	...	Sam Gobel
Ned Sparks	...	George Moxley
Walter Walker	...	Mr. Louis Miller
Frank McHugh	...	Reilly

Runtime:

80 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:PG

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

The original Broadway show starred Roger Pryor as Alvin Roberts. In the film version, Isabel Jewell (in her film debut as Dorothy Lane), Allen Jenkins (as Frankie Wells) and Milton Wallace (as Joe Moskowitz) all recreated the roles they created on the stage.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Week-end Marriage (1932)

Soundtrack:

Waitin' For a Call From You

Not The Nadir

A brash tabloid columnist turns his BLESSED EVENT style of gossip mongering into a sensation, but creates many enemies along the way.

This is the film that made Lee Tracy an authentic movie star - the role and the actor were perfect for each other. For the next couple of years Tracy would specialize in fast talking shyster lawyers, agents, reporters & flimflam men. In the process, he became one of the most enjoyable performers of the era, always fresh & entertaining. However, after misbehaving in Mexico while under contract to MGM, he would be banished to the Poverty Row studios to continue acting in minor films. Today, regrettably, he is almost forgotten.

But in pre-Code BLESSED EVENT Tracy is at the top of his form: exasperating, maddeningly irritating & wonderfully funny. Warner Brothers gives him an excellent supporting cast to bounce off of - acerbic Ned Sparks as a disgruntled tabloid reporter; peppy Frank McHugh as an overeager publicity agent; porcine Edwin Maxwell as a nasty gangster; and Allen Jenkins as a softhearted criminal (his ‘electric chair' scene with Tracy is a classic).

Boyish Dick Powell, in his film debut, seems an odd choice to play Tracy's nemesis, but there's no doubt about his charm & fine singing style, both of which would soon make him a major movie star.

Mary Brian is lovely as Tracy's girlfriend & Emma Dunn is sweet as his mother, but each tends to be a bit smothered by Tracy's oversized personality. His true co-star is tart-tongued Ruth Donnelly as his secretary. No slacker in slinging the dialogue around, she's able to match Tracy line for line.

Movie mavens will recognize Charles Lane as a reporter; Isabel Jewell, terrific as a much-abused showgirl; and hilarious Herman Bing as a chef - all of them uncredited.