Union Depot (film)
Encyclopedia
Union Depot is a Pre-Code
film starring Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.
and Joan Blondell
, directed by Alfred E. Green for Warner Brothers, and based upon an unpublished play by Joe Laurie, Jr.
, Gene Fowler
, and Douglas Durkin
.
The film, an ensemble piece for the studio’s contract players, features performances by Guy Kibbee
, Alan Hale, Sr.
, Frank McHugh
, David Landau, and George Rosener
.
).
He picks up Ruth Collins (Joan Blondell), a broke and out-of-work chorus girl, desperate to raise the train fare to Salt Lake City, where a job is waiting for her. She confides she is worried about being followed by Dr. Bernardi (George Rosener), a fellow resident of her cheap boarding house. He paid her to read to him in the evenings material she found disgusting.
Meanwhile, masquerading as a German musician, Bushy Sloan (Alan Hale) checks in a violin case full of counterfeit money. Soon after, a pickpocket steals his wallet, containing his claim check. When the thief throws the wallet away after taking the cash, Scrap Iron finds the claim check inside. Chick, who has "acquired" respectable clothing, then claims the violin case and discovers what it contains. He hides it in a coal scuttle and has his buddy stand guard, while he ponders what to do. Chick gives Ruth some of the money to buy clothes.
While Chick is away, Dr. Bernardi sends Ruth a train ticket and a message to meet him in the compartment. Believing the ticket is from Chick, Ruth goes there. When she finds Bernardi instead, she begins screaming. Chick breaks through the locked door, but Bernardi escapes through a window. However, in his haste, he is knocked down and killed by a passing train.
The suspicious dress shop clerk (Adrienne Dore) takes the counterfeit money to the station manager. Both Ruth and Chick are taken into custody by government agent Kendall (David Landau). Kendall has been alerted that Bushy may be at the station, but has no description of the counterfeiter. He believes that Ruth either is Bushy or is connected to him. To clear her, Chick goes to get the violin case, accompanied by agent Jim Parker (Earle Foxe
). However, Bushy follows them, shoots Parker and flees with the case. Chick chases him down. All is eventually cleared up, and Ruth has a bittersweet parting from Chick, as she leaves on the train.
, the film contains many topics that would, by 1934, have jeopardized the certificate of approval needed for the film to be shown in the United States. Some of these forbidden topics include:
debut at the Winter Garden Theater, on January 14, 1932. The New York Times
movie critic, Mordaunt Hall
, characterized Union Depot as an “ingenious, rather than artistic” melodrama recalling the (then) play Grand Hotel
. He noted that some of the dialogue was at times, unnecessarily “raw” and that Mr. Fairbanks appeared to have “taken a leaf from James Cagney’s
book, judging by his talk and the way he slaps a girl’s face”. He also questioned the realism of a hobo speaking with Mr. Fairbanks’ excellent elocution.
In addition to noting performances by Blondell and Fairbanks, Variety
magazine also praised the "capital technique" employed in the series of brief scenes utilized at the beginning of the movie to establish the film's tongue-in-cheek attitude toward human (mis)behavior.
Much attention has also been given to the construction of the lavish train depot station set in which most of the movie takes place. This set was subsequently used in future Warner Brothers movies.
Pre-Code
Pre-Code Hollywood refers to the era in the American film industry between the introduction of sound in the late 1920s and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorship guidelines. Although the Code was adopted in 1930, oversight was poor and it did not become rigorously...
film starring Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.
Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.
Douglas Elton Fairbanks, Jr. KBE was an American actor and a highly decorated naval officer of World War II.-Early life:...
and Joan Blondell
Joan Blondell
Rose Joan Blondell was an American actress who performed in movies and on television for five decades as Joan Blondell.After winning a beauty pageant, Blondell embarked upon a film career...
, directed by Alfred E. Green for Warner Brothers, and based upon an unpublished play by Joe Laurie, Jr.
Joe Laurie, Jr.
Joe Laurie, Jr. was a vaudeville monologist who later performed on Broadway....
, Gene Fowler
Gene Fowler
Gene Fowler was an American journalist, author and dramatist.He was born in Denver, Colorado. When his mother remarried, young Gene took his stepfather's name to become Gene Fowler. Fowler's career had a false start in taxidermy, which he later claimed permanently gave him a distaste for red meat...
, and Douglas Durkin
Douglas Durkin
Douglas Durkin was a Canadian novelist, short story writer and screenwriter.-Biography:Douglas Leader Durkin was born in Parry Sound, Ontario, Canada, but moved with his family to Swan River, Manitoba, during his youth...
.
The film, an ensemble piece for the studio’s contract players, features performances by Guy Kibbee
Guy Kibbee
Guy Bridges Kibbee was an American stage and film actor.Born in El Paso, Texas, Kibbee began his entertainment career on Mississippi riverboats and eventually became a successful Broadway actor...
, Alan Hale, Sr.
Alan Hale, Sr.
Alan Hale, Sr. was an American movie actor and director, most widely remembered for his many supporting character roles, in particular as frequent sidekick of Errol Flynn. His wife of over thirty years was Gretchen Hartman , a child actress and silent film player and mother of their three children...
, Frank McHugh
Frank McHugh
Francis Curray "Frank" McHugh was an American film and television actor.Born in Homestead, Pennsylvania, McHugh came from a theatrical family. His parents ran a stock theatre company and as a young child he performed on stage...
, David Landau, and George Rosener
George Rosener
George Michael Rosener wrote and acted in the Frank Buck serial Jungle Menace. -Career:...
.
Plot
Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. stars as Charles "Chick" Miller, a hobo released that day from jail along with fellow drifter "Scrap Iron" Scratch (Guy Kibbee). Through a series of chance encounters with travelers in a large train station, he becomes, in his own words, a "Gentleman for a Day" (the name under which the film was released in the United KingdomUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
).
He picks up Ruth Collins (Joan Blondell), a broke and out-of-work chorus girl, desperate to raise the train fare to Salt Lake City, where a job is waiting for her. She confides she is worried about being followed by Dr. Bernardi (George Rosener), a fellow resident of her cheap boarding house. He paid her to read to him in the evenings material she found disgusting.
Meanwhile, masquerading as a German musician, Bushy Sloan (Alan Hale) checks in a violin case full of counterfeit money. Soon after, a pickpocket steals his wallet, containing his claim check. When the thief throws the wallet away after taking the cash, Scrap Iron finds the claim check inside. Chick, who has "acquired" respectable clothing, then claims the violin case and discovers what it contains. He hides it in a coal scuttle and has his buddy stand guard, while he ponders what to do. Chick gives Ruth some of the money to buy clothes.
While Chick is away, Dr. Bernardi sends Ruth a train ticket and a message to meet him in the compartment. Believing the ticket is from Chick, Ruth goes there. When she finds Bernardi instead, she begins screaming. Chick breaks through the locked door, but Bernardi escapes through a window. However, in his haste, he is knocked down and killed by a passing train.
The suspicious dress shop clerk (Adrienne Dore) takes the counterfeit money to the station manager. Both Ruth and Chick are taken into custody by government agent Kendall (David Landau). Kendall has been alerted that Bushy may be at the station, but has no description of the counterfeiter. He believes that Ruth either is Bushy or is connected to him. To clear her, Chick goes to get the violin case, accompanied by agent Jim Parker (Earle Foxe
Earle Foxe
Earle Foxe was an American actor.-Background:Foxe was born Earl Aldrich Fox in Oxford, Ohio, to Charles Aldrich Fox, originally of Flint, Michigan, and Eva May Herron. His older half sister was Ethel May Fox, a music teacher, born in Michigan to Charles Aldrich Fox and Katie Eldridge. Always very...
). However, Bushy follows them, shoots Parker and flees with the case. Chick chases him down. All is eventually cleared up, and Ruth has a bittersweet parting from Chick, as she leaves on the train.
Risque topics
Because it was produced prior to the rigid enforcement of the Production CodeProduction Code
The Motion Picture Production Code was the set of industry moral censorship guidelines that governed the production of the vast majority of United States motion pictures released by major studios from 1930 to 1968. It is also popularly known as the Hays Code, after Hollywood's chief censor of the...
, the film contains many topics that would, by 1934, have jeopardized the certificate of approval needed for the film to be shown in the United States. Some of these forbidden topics include:
- Ruth reads what is implied to be off-color stories to Dr. Bernardi.
- Though Chick stops short of taking advantage of Ruth's plight, she makes it clear that she has "been around" and is willing to do whatever is necessary for the price of a train ticket. Despite this, she emerges unscathed, which was counter to the Hays Code notion that "sympathy of the audience should never be thrown to the side of the crime, wrongdoing, evil or sin".
- Chick, a thief, liar and someone who is not averse to purchasing sexual services, is also not punished, and in fact emerges as a hero.
Critical reception
The picture launched its New YorkNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
debut at the Winter Garden Theater, on January 14, 1932. The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
movie critic, Mordaunt Hall
Mordaunt Hall
Mordaunt Hall was the first regularly assigned motion picture critic for The New York Times, from October 1924 to September 1934....
, characterized Union Depot as an “ingenious, rather than artistic” melodrama recalling the (then) play Grand Hotel
Grand Hotel (film)
Grand Hotel is a 1932 American drama film directed by Edmund Goulding. The screenplay by William A. Drake and Béla Balázs is based on the 1930 play of the same title by Drake, who had adapted it from the 1929 novel Menschen im Hotel by Vicki Baum...
. He noted that some of the dialogue was at times, unnecessarily “raw” and that Mr. Fairbanks appeared to have “taken a leaf from James Cagney’s
James Cagney
James Francis Cagney, Jr. was an American actor, first on stage, then in film, where he had his greatest impact. Although he won acclaim and major awards for a wide variety of performances, he is best remembered for playing "tough guys." In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked him eighth...
book, judging by his talk and the way he slaps a girl’s face”. He also questioned the realism of a hobo speaking with Mr. Fairbanks’ excellent elocution.
In addition to noting performances by Blondell and Fairbanks, Variety
Variety (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 also praised the "capital technique" employed in the series of brief scenes utilized at the beginning of the movie to establish the film's tongue-in-cheek attitude toward human (mis)behavior.
Much attention has also been given to the construction of the lavish train depot station set in which most of the movie takes place. This set was subsequently used in future Warner Brothers movies.
Cast
- Douglas Fairbanks Jr. as Charles "Chick" Miller
- Joan BlondellJoan BlondellRose Joan Blondell was an American actress who performed in movies and on television for five decades as Joan Blondell.After winning a beauty pageant, Blondell embarked upon a film career...
as Ruth Collins - Guy KibbeeGuy KibbeeGuy Bridges Kibbee was an American stage and film actor.Born in El Paso, Texas, Kibbee began his entertainment career on Mississippi riverboats and eventually became a successful Broadway actor...
as "Scrap Iron" Scratch - Alan Hale, Sr.Alan Hale, Sr.Alan Hale, Sr. was an American movie actor and director, most widely remembered for his many supporting character roles, in particular as frequent sidekick of Errol Flynn. His wife of over thirty years was Gretchen Hartman , a child actress and silent film player and mother of their three children...
as "The Baron" / Bushy Sloan - David LandauDavid Landau (actor)David Landau was an American film actor who appeared in 33 films between 1931 and 1935.He appeared on Broadway in 12 plays from 1919 to 1929....
as Kendall - George Rosener as Dr. Bernardi
- Earle FoxeEarle FoxeEarle Foxe was an American actor.-Background:Foxe was born Earl Aldrich Fox in Oxford, Ohio, to Charles Aldrich Fox, originally of Flint, Michigan, and Eva May Herron. His older half sister was Ethel May Fox, a music teacher, born in Michigan to Charles Aldrich Fox and Katie Eldridge. Always very...
as Detective Jim Parker - Frank McHughFrank McHughFrancis Curray "Frank" McHugh was an American film and television actor.Born in Homestead, Pennsylvania, McHugh came from a theatrical family. His parents ran a stock theatre company and as a young child he performed on stage...
as The Drunk - Adrienne Dore as Sadie, the dress shop attendant