In Old Chicago (1937)

User Rating:

7.1/10   

Director:

Henry King

Writers:

Lamar Trotti (screenplay) and
Sonya Levien (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

15 April 1938 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Drama | Musical | Romance

Tagline:

The great American motion picture!

Plot:

The O'Leary brothers -- honest Jack and roguish Dion -- become powerful figures, and eventually rivals, in Chicago on the eve of its Great Fire.

Plot Keywords:

Fire | Cow | Lawyer | Brother | Marriage

Awards:

Won 2 Oscars. Another 4 nominations

Cast

Tyrone Power	...	Dion O'Leary
Alice Faye	...	Belle Fawcett
Don Ameche	...	Jack O'Leary
Alice Brady	...	Molly O'Leary
Andy Devine	...	Pickle Bixby
Brian Donlevy	...	Gil Warren
Phyllis Brooks	...	Ann Colby
Tom Brown	...	Bob O'Leary
Sidney Blackmer	...	General Phil Sheridan
Berton Churchill	...	Senator Colby
June Storey	...	Gretchen
Paul Hurst	...	Mitch
Tyler Brooke	...	Specialty Singer
J. Anthony Hughes	...	Patrick O'Leary
Gene Reynolds	...	Dion O'Leary as a Boy

Runtime:

95 min | 111 min (roadshow version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #3639) | USA:TV-G (TV rating) | UK:A (original rating) (1938) | UK:U (re-rating) (1994) | Finland:K-16

Filming Locations:

California, USA

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

This was Darryl F. Zanuck's riposte to the success of MGM's San Francisco (1936). He tried to borrow Clark Gable and Jean Harlow for his production, but MGM head Louis B. Mayer refused to loan them out.

Quotes:

Dion O'Leary: Nothing can lick Chicago!

Movie Connections:

Edited into Time Travelers (1976) (TV)

Soundtrack:

When Johnny Comes Marching Home

Fighting fire with fire.

This is the fictional story of the O'Leary family and the birth of the Great Fire of Chicago.

Big budget, big stars and a completely big production, In Old Chicago may be deemed as a Zanuck cash in on the previous years MGM eye opener, San Francisco, it is however a wonderful picture that features two differing halves of worth. Casting aside historical accuracy {lets really not go down that road in cinema history}, this Henry King directed piece firstly engages us as a jaunty family character piece, only to then pull the rug from underneath us to let in political intrigue, deception, down right ugliness and a near $2 million fire besieged Chicago!.

Tyrone Power, Don Ameche, Alice Faye, Alice Brady {Best supporting Actress Academy Award} and Brian Donlevy all line up to entertain the viewers, all possibly aware that they are merely the starter course for the extravagant main course that will be the 20 minute final reel of panic and burning disaster. Yet to focus merely on the fire itself, and the effects that some 70 years later still impact smartly, is to do the first half a disservice, characters are formed and the story is fully fleshed to make the wait for the fire completely worth our time. It's no history lesson for sure but the devilment of some characters, and the ineptitude of some others, more than make this an essential watch for fans of 30s cinema. 7.5/10