You, the People (1940)

Director:

Roy Rowland

Writers:

Douglas Foster (screenplay)
Douglas Foster (story)

Release Date:

30 November 1940 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Short | Crime

Plot:

This entry in MGM's series of shorts, "Crime Doesn't Pay", features a big city crime boss's attempt...

Plot Keywords:

Crime Does Not Pay Series | Corruption | Arson | Beating | Coercion

Cast

C. Henry Gordon	...	John 'Boss' Bailey
Byron Shores	...	Deputy William 'Bill' Wright
Paul Everton	...	Mayor James W. 'Jim' Wheelock
Matt McHugh	...	Albert 'Bert' / 'Perky' Perkins

Also Known As:

A Crime Does Not Pay No. 32: You, the People (USA) (series title)

Runtime:

21 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

USA:Approved

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

You, the People is another compelling "Crime Does Not Pay" short subject

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

Before I begin, I'd like to note that Bill Edmonds-Mr. Martini in It's a Wonderful Life-plays Louie the janitor here. Also appearing are "The Beverly Hillbillies" Raymond Bailey as Bailey Henchman and "Leave It To Beaver"s Hugh Beaumont as Pete. And that Barbara Bedford, who died in a city I once lived in-Jacksonville, Fla.-is a rooming house diner here. Shades (or maybe not) of the 2000 general presidential election, this "Crime Does Not Pay" short explores the illegal ways an incumbent mayor's re-election staff tries of "stuffing the ballots" and convincing the "regular folks" to stay home on election day. When someone tries to expose them, however, someone gets shot and police arrive as they try to burn the polling place...Gets pretty exciting at the end with the chases and shootings and is also compelling when someone at the end says to shut up since the person he talked to admitted he didn't vote. A pretty good account of how corruptness always seems to be around the corner near election day. Hope nothing like that happens this year with Obama now declared the Democratic presidential nominee...