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The Glass Key (1942 film)
Encyclopedia
The Glass Key is a 1942
film noir
, directed by Stuart Heisler
and based on the novel of the same name
by Dashiell Hammett
. The story had previously been adapted for film in 1935
.
) for governor after falling in love with Henry's daughter, Janet (Veronica Lake). Madvig's right hand man, Ed Beaumont (Alan Ladd), believes the move is a big mistake and rightly distrusts Janet's motives. She is only playing along at her father's request; she is put off by Madvig's crudity and becomes very attracted to the more eclectic Beaumont. He fends off her advances out of strong loyalty to his friend. The deluded Madvig boasts that Henry has practically given him the key to his house; Beaumont warns him that it is liable to be a glass key, one that can break at any moment.
When Madvig tells gangster Nick Varna (Joseph Calleia
) that he is cleaning up the city and that Varna will no longer receive protection from the police, Beaumont grows even more concerned. Complicating matters further, Henry's ne'er-do-well son, Taylor (Richard Denning
), owes Varna for gambling debts, while Madvig's young sister, Opal (Bonita Granville
), is in love with Taylor. When Madvig finds out, Opal fears what he will do to her boyfriend.
Beaumont later finds Taylor's lifeless body. Madvig is the prime suspect, much to Varna's delight. When Varna hears that Beaumont and Madvig have split over the Henry mess, he also tries to recruit Beaumont. Beaumont turns him down, so Varna has him brutally beaten repeatedly by sadistic henchman Jeff (William Bendix
) to torture him into revealing details of corruption to the editor of the newspaper Varna controls. Beaumont contrives an escape and is hospitalized. When Beaumont recovers, he learns that Varna has found a "witness" to Taylor Henry's killing, a man named Sloss (Dane Clark
). Madvig has Sloss brought to his office, but Sloss is gunned down before he can talk. As a result, Madvig is held in jail.
Beaumont finds a somewhat drunk Jeff in a bar and tries to pump him for information in a back room. Just as Jeff starts to talk, Varna shows up and brusquely orders him to shut up. When Beaumont disarms Varna, a fed-up Jeff strangles his boss. After Jeff is finished, Beaumont gets the waiter to call the police to arrest Jeff. Having finally guessed who killed Taylor Henry, Beaumont persuades District Attorney Farr (Donald MacBride
) to arrest Janet. As Beaumont had hoped, her father confesses he struggled with his son, causing Taylor to fall and strike his head. Afterwards, Madvig overhears Janet tell Beaumont that she loves him and that she knows he loves her. Seeing that it is true, Madvig gives the couple his blessing (but takes back his expensive engagement ring).
magazine gave the film a favorable review, writing, "Parading a murder mystery amidst background of politics, gambling czars, romance and lusty action, this revised version of Dashiell Hammett's novel - originally made in 1935 - is a good picture of its type...Mixed well, the result is an entertaining whodunit with sufficient political and racketeer angles to make it good entertainment for general audiences. Donlevy makes the most of his role of the political leader who fought his way up from the other side of the tracks."
Critic Dennis Schwartz wrote, "The film is mostly done for entertainment purposes, as it lightly skips over the corrupt political process as merely background for the unlikely love story developing between the engaging Lake and the deadpan Ladd. The film had many undeveloped film noir themes used by other films. Howard Hawks's The Big Sleep
borrowed freely from The Glass Key."
Critic Hal Erickson wrote, "Dashiel Hammett's The Glass Key, a tale of big-city political corruption, was first filmed in 1935, with Edward Arnold
as a duplicitous political boss and George Raft
as his loyal lieutenant. This 1942 remake improves on the original, especially in replacing the stolid Raft with the charismatic Alan Ladd...Far less complex than the Dashiel Hammett original (and far less damning of the American political system), The Glass Key further increased the box-office pull of Paramount's new team of Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake."
1942 in film
The year 1942 in film involved some significant events, in particular the release of a film consistently rated as one of the greatest of all time, Casablanca.-Events:...
film noir
Film noir
Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and sexual motivations. Hollywood's classic film noir period is generally regarded as extending from the early 1940s to the late 1950s...
, directed by Stuart Heisler
Stuart Heisler
Stuart Heisler was an American film and television director. He worked as a motion picture editor from 1921 to 1936, then dedicated the rest of his career to that of a film director....
and based on the novel of the same name
The Glass Key
The Glass Key is a novel by Dashiell Hammett, said to be his favorite among his works. It was first published in 1931, and tells the story of gambler and racketeer Ned Beaumont, whose devotion to crooked political boss Paul Madvig leads him to investigate the murder of a local senator's son as a...
by Dashiell Hammett
Dashiell Hammett
Samuel Dashiell Hammett was an American author of hard-boiled detective novels and short stories, and political activist. Among the enduring characters he created are Sam Spade , Nick and Nora Charles , and the Continental Op .In addition to the significant influence his novels and stories had on...
. The story had previously been adapted for film in 1935
The Glass Key (1935 film)
-Cast:*George Raft as Ed Beaumont*Edward Arnold as Paul Madvig*Claire Dodd as Janet Henry*Guinn Williams as Jeff*Ray Milland as Taylor Henry-External links:...
.
Plot
Crooked political boss Paul Madvig (Brian Donlevy) is determined to back reform candidate Ralph Henry (Moroni OlsenMoroni Olsen
Moroni Olsen was an American actor.-Biography:Olsen was born in Ogden, Utah to Mormon parents Edward Arenholt Olsen and Marsha Hoverholst who named him after the Moroni found in the Book of Mormon. Some sources have claimed that Olsen's birth name was John Willard Clawson, or even John Willard...
) for governor after falling in love with Henry's daughter, Janet (Veronica Lake). Madvig's right hand man, Ed Beaumont (Alan Ladd), believes the move is a big mistake and rightly distrusts Janet's motives. She is only playing along at her father's request; she is put off by Madvig's crudity and becomes very attracted to the more eclectic Beaumont. He fends off her advances out of strong loyalty to his friend. The deluded Madvig boasts that Henry has practically given him the key to his house; Beaumont warns him that it is liable to be a glass key, one that can break at any moment.
When Madvig tells gangster Nick Varna (Joseph Calleia
Joseph Calleia
Joseph Calleia was a Maltese born American singer, composer, screenwriter and actor, both on Broadway and in film...
) that he is cleaning up the city and that Varna will no longer receive protection from the police, Beaumont grows even more concerned. Complicating matters further, Henry's ne'er-do-well son, Taylor (Richard Denning
Richard Denning
Richard Denning , was an American actor who starred in such movies as Creature from the Black Lagoon and An Affair to Remember , and on radio with Lucille Ball as her husband George Cooper in My Favorite Husband , the forerunner of television's I Love Lucy, for which Denning was replaced by Ball's...
), owes Varna for gambling debts, while Madvig's young sister, Opal (Bonita Granville
Bonita Granville
Bonita Granville was an American film actress and television producer.-Early life:Born in Chicago, Illinois, Granville was the daughter of stage actors, and made her film debut at the age of nine in Westward Passage...
), is in love with Taylor. When Madvig finds out, Opal fears what he will do to her boyfriend.
Beaumont later finds Taylor's lifeless body. Madvig is the prime suspect, much to Varna's delight. When Varna hears that Beaumont and Madvig have split over the Henry mess, he also tries to recruit Beaumont. Beaumont turns him down, so Varna has him brutally beaten repeatedly by sadistic henchman Jeff (William Bendix
William Bendix
William Bendix was an American film, radio, and television actor, best remembered in movies for the title role in the movie The Babe Ruth Story and for portraying clumsily earnest aircraft plant worker Chester A. Riley in radio and television's The Life of Riley...
) to torture him into revealing details of corruption to the editor of the newspaper Varna controls. Beaumont contrives an escape and is hospitalized. When Beaumont recovers, he learns that Varna has found a "witness" to Taylor Henry's killing, a man named Sloss (Dane Clark
Dane Clark
Dane Clark was an American film actor who was known for playing, as he labeled himself, "Joe Average".-Early life:...
). Madvig has Sloss brought to his office, but Sloss is gunned down before he can talk. As a result, Madvig is held in jail.
Beaumont finds a somewhat drunk Jeff in a bar and tries to pump him for information in a back room. Just as Jeff starts to talk, Varna shows up and brusquely orders him to shut up. When Beaumont disarms Varna, a fed-up Jeff strangles his boss. After Jeff is finished, Beaumont gets the waiter to call the police to arrest Jeff. Having finally guessed who killed Taylor Henry, Beaumont persuades District Attorney Farr (Donald MacBride
Donald MacBride
Donald MacBride was an American character actor on stage, in films and on TV who launched his career as a teenage singer in vaudeville and went on to be an actor on Broadway. He appeared in nearly 140 films between 1914 and 1955...
) to arrest Janet. As Beaumont had hoped, her father confesses he struggled with his son, causing Taylor to fall and strike his head. Afterwards, Madvig overhears Janet tell Beaumont that she loves him and that she knows he loves her. Seeing that it is true, Madvig gives the couple his blessing (but takes back his expensive engagement ring).
Cast
- Brian DonlevyBrian DonlevyBrian Donlevy was an Irish-born American film actor, noted for playing tough guys from the 1930s to the 1960s. He usually appeared in supporting roles. Among his best known films are Beau Geste and The Great McGinty...
as Paul Madvig - Veronica LakeVeronica LakeVeronica Lake was an American film actress and pin-up model. She received both popular and critical acclaim, most notably for her role in Sullivan's Travels and her femme fatale roles in film noir with Alan Ladd during the 1940s, and was well-known for her peek-a-boo hairstyle...
as Janet Henry - Alan LaddAlan Ladd-Early life:Ladd was born in Hot Springs, Arkansas. He was the only child of Ina Raleigh Ladd and Alan Ladd, Sr. He was of English ancestry. His father died when he was four, and his mother relocated to Oklahoma City where she married Jim Beavers, a housepainter...
as Ed Beaumont - Richard DenningRichard DenningRichard Denning , was an American actor who starred in such movies as Creature from the Black Lagoon and An Affair to Remember , and on radio with Lucille Ball as her husband George Cooper in My Favorite Husband , the forerunner of television's I Love Lucy, for which Denning was replaced by Ball's...
as Taylor Henry - Bonita GranvilleBonita GranvilleBonita Granville was an American film actress and television producer.-Early life:Born in Chicago, Illinois, Granville was the daughter of stage actors, and made her film debut at the age of nine in Westward Passage...
as Opal "Snip" Madvig - Joseph CalleiaJoseph CalleiaJoseph Calleia was a Maltese born American singer, composer, screenwriter and actor, both on Broadway and in film...
as Nick Varna - William BendixWilliam BendixWilliam Bendix was an American film, radio, and television actor, best remembered in movies for the title role in the movie The Babe Ruth Story and for portraying clumsily earnest aircraft plant worker Chester A. Riley in radio and television's The Life of Riley...
as Jeff - Frances GiffordFrances GiffordMary Frances Gifford was an American actress who played leads and supporting roles in many 1930s and 1940s movies.-Career:...
as Nurse - Donald MacBrideDonald MacBrideDonald MacBride was an American character actor on stage, in films and on TV who launched his career as a teenage singer in vaudeville and went on to be an actor on Broadway. He appeared in nearly 140 films between 1914 and 1955...
as District Attorney Farr - Margaret HayesMargaret HayesMargaret Hayes was an American film and television actress.Born December 5, 1916 Florette Regina Ottenheimer in Baltimore, Maryland, she was often billed as Maggie Hayes in her film credits. She is perhaps best known for her role as Lois Judby Hammond in the film Blackboard Jungle...
as Eloise Matthews - Moroni OlsenMoroni OlsenMoroni Olsen was an American actor.-Biography:Olsen was born in Ogden, Utah to Mormon parents Edward Arenholt Olsen and Marsha Hoverholst who named him after the Moroni found in the Book of Mormon. Some sources have claimed that Olsen's birth name was John Willard Clawson, or even John Willard...
as Ralph Henry - Eddie Marr as Rusty
- Arthur Loft as Clyde Matthews
- George Meader as Claude Tuttle
Critical reaction
VarietyVariety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
magazine gave the film a favorable review, writing, "Parading a murder mystery amidst background of politics, gambling czars, romance and lusty action, this revised version of Dashiell Hammett's novel - originally made in 1935 - is a good picture of its type...Mixed well, the result is an entertaining whodunit with sufficient political and racketeer angles to make it good entertainment for general audiences. Donlevy makes the most of his role of the political leader who fought his way up from the other side of the tracks."
Critic Dennis Schwartz wrote, "The film is mostly done for entertainment purposes, as it lightly skips over the corrupt political process as merely background for the unlikely love story developing between the engaging Lake and the deadpan Ladd. The film had many undeveloped film noir themes used by other films. Howard Hawks's The Big Sleep
The Big Sleep (1946 film)
The Big Sleep is a 1946 film noir directed by Howard Hawks, the first film version of Raymond Chandler's 1939 novel of the same name. The movie stars Humphrey Bogart as detective Philip Marlowe and Lauren Bacall as the female lead in a film about the "process of a criminal investigation, not its...
borrowed freely from The Glass Key."
Critic Hal Erickson wrote, "Dashiel Hammett's The Glass Key, a tale of big-city political corruption, was first filmed in 1935, with Edward Arnold
Edward Arnold (actor)
Edward Arnold was an American actor. He was born on the Lower East Side of New York City as Gunther Edward Arnold Schneider, the son of German immigrants Carl Schneider and Elizabeth Ohse.-Acting career:...
as a duplicitous political boss and George Raft
George Raft
George Raft was an American film actor and dancer identified with portrayals of gangsters in crime melodramas of the 1930s and 1940s...
as his loyal lieutenant. This 1942 remake improves on the original, especially in replacing the stolid Raft with the charismatic Alan Ladd...Far less complex than the Dashiel Hammett original (and far less damning of the American political system), The Glass Key further increased the box-office pull of Paramount's new team of Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake."
External links
- The Glass Key at DVD Beaver (includes images)
- The Glass Key film trailer at You Tube