THE WORKING MAN (Warner Brothers, 1933) directed by John G. Adolfi, stars George Arliss in this charming tale mixing fate, humor and sentiment. Based on the story "The Adopted Father" by Edgar Franklin, and earlier filmed in the silent movie era as $20 A WEEK (Selznick, 1923) also starring George Arliss, this latest edition, pure Arliss, would be further interest today due to the presence of young Bette Davis, who earlier worked with Arliss in her first important movie role THE MAN WHO PLAYED GOD (Warner Brothers, 1932), that also led to Davis' 18 year association for the studio, many that have become classics.
After the opening credits roll to the underscoring to the then popular song hit, "Young and Healthy" introduced in 42nd STREET (1933), the story introduces John Reeves (George Arliss), president of Reeves Shoe Company in Buffalo, New York, who reads in a newspaper that his friend and rival, Tom Hartland, has died. He soon breaks away from stress and strain from business by leaving his conceited nephew, Benjamin Burnett (Hardie Albright) in charge to go fishing in Maine with his good friend, Henry "Hank" Davids (J. Farrell MacDonald). While fishing, John loses his bait because of the swimming presence from a nearby yacht of Jenny (Bette Davis) and Tommy (Theodore Newton), who turn out to be the spoiled children of Tom Hartland. It is soon learned that John, who never married, had lost the only woman he ever loved to Tom. After many years of competing with the Harland Shoe Company based in New York City, who's new manager. Freddie Pattison (Gordon Westcott), is slowly ruining the once prospering company, John goes under the guise of John Walton, an unemployed bookkeeper, with intentions of changing Hartland's grown children from their reckless ways of life of all night partying and boozing to become responsible human beings. Aside by becoming their live-in "adoptive father," John finds himself competing against himself by keeping his identity a secret trying to get the Hartland Shoe Company back on its feet. As much as John would prefer fishing with Hank, he faces further problems when Jenny, wanting to learn the shoe business from the bottom up, being employed for the Reeves Shoe Company under the name of Jane Grey. Co-starring Edward Van Sloan, Ruthelma Stevens, Douglass Dumbrille, Frederick Burton and Charles Evans.
While George Arliss is better known for his historical figures as DISRAELI (1929), ALEXANDER HAMILTON (1931) and VOLTAIRE (1933), it's those modest modern-day light comedies that show Arliss to best advantage. Far from young and handsome, Arliss always manages to hold audience interest from start to finish. One fine moment comes when Arliss' John looks sentimentally towards a photo of a woman he could have married, thus thinking her children could have been theirs. Once more Arliss works well with Bette Davis, who, unlike THE MAN WHO PLAYED GOD, plays her fatherly figure rather than her fiance In spite of its age, THE WORKING MAN is quite entertaining through much of its 78 minutes.
Never distributed onto home video, but available on DVD, THE WORKING MAN can be seen occasionally on Turner Classic Movies. (*** shoes).
After the opening credits roll to the underscoring to the then popular song hit, "Young and Healthy" introduced in 42nd STREET (1933), the story introduces John Reeves (George Arliss), president of Reeves Shoe Company in Buffalo, New York, who reads in a newspaper that his friend and rival, Tom Hartland, has died. He soon breaks away from stress and strain from business by leaving his conceited nephew, Benjamin Burnett (Hardie Albright) in charge to go fishing in Maine with his good friend, Henry "Hank" Davids (J. Farrell MacDonald). While fishing, John loses his bait because of the swimming presence from a nearby yacht of Jenny (Bette Davis) and Tommy (Theodore Newton), who turn out to be the spoiled children of Tom Hartland. It is soon learned that John, who never married, had lost the only woman he ever loved to Tom. After many years of competing with the Harland Shoe Company based in New York City, who's new manager. Freddie Pattison (Gordon Westcott), is slowly ruining the once prospering company, John goes under the guise of John Walton, an unemployed bookkeeper, with intentions of changing Hartland's grown children from their reckless ways of life of all night partying and boozing to become responsible human beings. Aside by becoming their live-in "adoptive father," John finds himself competing against himself by keeping his identity a secret trying to get the Hartland Shoe Company back on its feet. As much as John would prefer fishing with Hank, he faces further problems when Jenny, wanting to learn the shoe business from the bottom up, being employed for the Reeves Shoe Company under the name of Jane Grey. Co-starring Edward Van Sloan, Ruthelma Stevens, Douglass Dumbrille, Frederick Burton and Charles Evans.
While George Arliss is better known for his historical figures as DISRAELI (1929), ALEXANDER HAMILTON (1931) and VOLTAIRE (1933), it's those modest modern-day light comedies that show Arliss to best advantage. Far from young and handsome, Arliss always manages to hold audience interest from start to finish. One fine moment comes when Arliss' John looks sentimentally towards a photo of a woman he could have married, thus thinking her children could have been theirs. Once more Arliss works well with Bette Davis, who, unlike THE MAN WHO PLAYED GOD, plays her fatherly figure rather than her fiance In spite of its age, THE WORKING MAN is quite entertaining through much of its 78 minutes.
Never distributed onto home video, but available on DVD, THE WORKING MAN can be seen occasionally on Turner Classic Movies. (*** shoes).