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A Day at the Races
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A Day at the Races (1937) More at IMDbPro »

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Overview

User Rating:
7.6/10   5,743 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
No change in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writers:
Robert Pirosh (story) &
George Seaton (story) ...
(more)
Contact:
View company contact information for A Day at the Races on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
11 June 1937 (USA) more
Genre:
Tagline:
Three Great Laff Stars ! . . . more gags and gals . . . more songs and dances ! more
Plot:
A vet posing as a doctor, a race horse owner and his friends struggle to help keep a sanitarium open with the help of a misfit racehorse. full summary | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Awards:
Nominated for Oscar. more
User Reviews:
The Last Great Marx Brothers Movie more (57 total)

Cast

  (in credits order) (verified as complete)

Groucho Marx ... Dr. Hugo Z. Hackenbush

Chico Marx ... Tony

Harpo Marx ... Stuffy
Allan Jones ... Gil Stewart

Maureen O'Sullivan ... Judy Standish
Margaret Dumont ... Emily Upjohn
Leonard Ceeley ... Whitmore
Douglass Dumbrille ... J.D. Morgan
Esther Muir ... Flo Marlowe
Sig Ruman ... Dr. Leopold X. Steinberg (as Sig Rumann)
Robert Middlemass ... Sheriff
Vivien Fay ... Speciality Dancer (as Vivian Fay & Her Ballet)
Ivie Anderson ... Specialty Singer
The Crinoline Choir ... Musical Ensemble
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Hooper Atchley ... Race judge (uncredited)
King Baggot ... Race Track Official Starter (uncredited)
Kenny Baker ... Party Guest (uncredited)
Vivian Barry ... Telephone girl (uncredited)
Barbara Bedford ... Secretary (uncredited)
Edna Bennett ... Nurse (uncredited)
Troy Brown Jr. ... Black singer (uncredited)
Ben Carter ... Black singer (uncredited)
Jacqueline Clancy ... Child (uncredited)

Gino Corrado ... Man Boarding Bus (uncredited)
DeForest Covan ... Black singer (uncredited)
George Cowl ... Racetrack Spectator (uncredited)
Jack Daley ... Racetrack Spectator (uncredited)

Dorothy Dandridge ... Black singer (uncredited)
Vivian Dandridge ... Black singer (uncredited)
Frankie Darro ... Morgan's jockey (uncredited)
Frank Dawson ... Doctor (uncredited)
Dudley Dickerson ... Wheelchair attendant (uncredited)
Billy Dooley ... Race Track Bugler (uncredited)
Edward Earle ... Race judge (uncredited)

Richard Farnsworth ... Jockey (uncredited)

Pat Flaherty ... Detective with sheriff (uncredited)
Bess Flowers ... Racetrack Spectator (uncredited)
Ray Flynn ... Racetrack Spectator (uncredited)
Byron Foulger ... Racetrack Spectator (uncredited)
Jack George ... Musician (uncredited)
John Hiestand ... Radio announcer (uncredited)
Leyland Hodgson ... Policeman at Racetrack (uncredited)
Arthur Stuart Hull ... Racetrack Spectator (uncredited)
John Hyams ... Judge (uncredited)
Si Jenks ... Messenger (uncredited)
Jack W. Johnston ... Racetrack Spectator (uncredited)
Darby Jones ... Black singer (uncredited)
Etta Jones ... Black singer (uncredited)
Jack Kenny ... Racetrack Spectator (uncredited)
Edith Kingdon ... Old woman (uncredited)
Carole Landis ... Party Guest (uncredited)
Harry Lash ... Racetrack Spectator (uncredited)
Edward LeSaint ... Doctor (uncredited)
Max Lucke ... Doctor (uncredited)
Wilbur Mack ... Race judge (uncredited)
Mary MacLaren ... Nurse (uncredited)
Alex Melesh ... Racetrack Spectator (uncredited)
Bert Moorhouse ... Racetrack Spectator (uncredited)
Edmund Mortimer ... Party Guest (uncredited)
Henry Mowbray ... Man for Hat Business (uncredited)
Field Norton ... Party Guest (uncredited)
Jack Norton ... Drunk (uncredited)
Frank O'Connor ... Racetrack Guard (uncredited)
Victor Potel ... Horn blower (uncredited)
Russ Powell ... Racetrack Spectator (uncredited)
James Quinn ... Racetrack Spectator (uncredited)
Gus Robinson ... Black singer (uncredited)
Phillips Smalley ... Racing Spectator with Wrong Hat (uncredited)
Charles Trowbridge ... Dr. Wilmerding (uncredited)
Elizabeth Williams ... Racetrack Spectator (uncredited)
Harry Wilson ... Detective with sheriff (uncredited)
Buck Woods ... Black singer (uncredited)
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Directed by
Sam Wood 
 
Writing credits
Robert Pirosh (story) &
George Seaton (story)

Robert Pirosh (screenplay) &
George Seaton (screenplay) &
George Oppenheimer (screenplay)

Produced by
Max Siegel .... associate producer
Sam Wood .... producer
Irving Thalberg .... producer (uncredited)
Lawrence Weingarten .... producer (uncredited)
 
Original Music by
Walter Jurmann 
Bronislau Kaper 
Franz Waxman (uncredited)
 
Cinematography by
Joseph Ruttenberg 
 
Film Editing by
Frank E. Hull 
 
Art Direction by
Cedric Gibbons 
 
Art Department
Stan Rogers .... associate art director
Edwin B. Willis .... associate art director
 
Sound Department
Douglas Shearer .... recording director
 
Stunts
Richard Farnsworth .... stunts
 
Camera and Electrical Department
Ted Wurtenberg .... gaffer (uncredited)
 
Costume and Wardrobe Department
Dolly Tree .... wardrober
 
Music Department
Leo Arnaud .... music arranger: choral and orchestral
George Bassman .... orchestrator
Roger Edens .... music arranger
Paul Marquardt .... orchestrator
Merrill Pye .... musical presentation
Franz Waxman .... musical director
Wayne Allen .... orchestrator (uncredited)
George Bassman .... composer: additional music (uncredited)
Roger Edens .... composer: additional music (uncredited)
 
Other crew
Dave Gould .... choreographer
Carl 'Major' Roup .... script clerk (uncredited)
 
Crew verified as complete


Production CompaniesDistributorsOther Companies
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Additional Details

Runtime:
111 min | Germany:105 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Aspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Allan Jones appears for the second time in a film with The Marx Brothers. The first was A Night at the Opera (1935). more
Goofs:
Continuity: When Chico starts playing, the piano clearly shows "Steinway and Sons." In later shots the logo is missing. more
Quotes:
[Dr. Hackenbush is pointing to a portrait of one of Judy's parents]
Dr. Hackenbush: You know, I proposed to your mother once.
Judy: But that's my father!
Dr. Hackenbush: No wonder he turned me down.
more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in House of 1000 Corpses (2003) more
Soundtrack:
Nobody Knows the Trouble I've Seen more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
3 out of 3 people found the following review useful.
The Last Great Marx Brothers Movie, 25 January 2005
8/10
Author: masercot from Manassas, Va

After this one, the quality fell off...dramatically.

This one has everything but Zeppo. Groucho and Chico work together like a well oiled insane asylum. The ice cream bit still makes me laugh and I've seen it upwards of twenty times. The timing is incredible. The examination room bit with Harpo ("Either this man is dead or my watch has stopped") is equally tight. There isn't a slow moment in the film.

What is unusual in this film is the big musical number with the African-American race track employees. Instead of people in black face or grotesque caricatures, real black singers and dancers are featured. Imagine seeing the Jitterbug fifteen years before white teens were performing it. It is not the only time the Marx Brothers have featured black musicians in one of their movies (At the Circus comes to mind)...

Margaret Dumont as Mrs Upjohn is wonderful. A Marx Brothers fan, like myself, tends to fall in love with the woman after many years. Her beauty and naivety eventually charm even the most cynical Grouchophile...

See it!

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for A Day at the Races (1937)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Racial Issues Dario_Uruguay
Did Allan Jones pursue a musical career? bkutach
Anybody wanna join my new Marx Brothers Club? Calvero_
Down By The Old Mill Stream slatbrad-1
Here's your Florida call, Mr. Whitmore. bonsai-superstar
This was actually my favorite Marx Bros. Film AfraidofVirginiaWoolf
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