Penitentiary | |
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![]() Theatrical release poster | |
Directed by | John Brahm |
Screenplay by | Seton I. Miller Fred Niblo, Jr. |
Based on | the play The Criminal Code by Martin Flavin |
Produced by | Robert North |
Starring | Walter Connolly John Howard Jean Parker Robert Barrat |
Cinematography | Lucien Ballard |
Edited by | Viola Lawrence |
Music by | Morris Stoloff |
Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
Release date |
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Running time | 79 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Penitentiary is a 1938 American crime film directed by John Brahm starring Walter Connolly, John Howard, Jean Parker and Robert Barrat. [1] It was the second Columbia Pictures film adaptation of the 1929 stage play The Criminal Code by Martin Flavin, after Howard Hawk's The Criminal Code (1930) and followed by Henry Levin's Convicted (1950).
William Jordan (Howard) is befriended by the man who sent him to prison on a manslaughter charge, former DA (District attorney) now prison warden Matthews (Connolly). In order to give Jordan the opportunity to rehabilitate himself Matthews allows him to work as chauffeur to his daughter Elizabeth (Parker), though he's a bit uncomfortable when Elizabeth falls in love with the young convict. All of this extra effort goes out the window when Jordan, adhering to the "criminal code" of never snitching on a fellow con, allows himself to be implicated in the murder of another convict. Jordan is saved from the death penalty by a last-minute confession of his hard-bitten but honorable cellmate.
James Joseph "Whitey" Bulger Jr. was an American organized crime boss who led the Winter Hill Gang in the Winter Hill neighborhood of Somerville, Massachusetts, a city directly northwest of Boston. On December 23, 1994, Bulger fled the Boston area and went into hiding after his former FBI handler, John Connolly, tipped him off about a pending RICO indictment against him. Bulger remained at large for sixteen years. After his 2011 arrest, federal prosecutors tried Bulger for nineteen murders based on grand jury testimony from Kevin Weeks and other former criminal associates.
My Six Convicts is a 1952 American film noir crime drama directed by Hugo Fregonese. The screenplay was adapted by Michael Blankfort from the autobiographical book My Six Convicts: A Psychologist's Three Years in Fort Leavenworth, written by Donald Powell Wilson.
Washington State Penitentiary is a Washington State Department of Corrections men's prison located in Walla Walla, Washington. With an operating capacity of 2,200, it is the largest prison in the state and is surrounded by wheat fields. It opened in 1886, three years before statehood.
Robert Harriot Barrat was an American stage, motion picture, and television character actor.
Howard Close Hickman was an American actor, director and writer. He was an accomplished stage leading man, who entered films through the auspices of producer Thomas H. Ince.
Martin Archer Flavin was an American playwright and novelist. His novel Journey in the Dark received both the Harper Prize for 1943 and a Pulitzer Prize for 1944. His play The Criminal Code was produced on Broadway in 1929, and it was the basis for the movie The Criminal Code. In all, he had eleven plays on Broadway between 1923 and 1937.
John Joseph Connolly Jr. is an American former FBI agent who was convicted of racketeering, obstruction of justice, and murder charges stemming from his relationship with James "Whitey" Bulger, Steve Flemmi, and the Winter Hill Gang.
The Hurricane Express is a 1932 American Pre-Code 12-chapter Mascot Pictures film serial. Written by Colbert Clark, Barney Sarecky, Wyndham Gittens, George Morgan, and J.P. McGowan, the serial was directed by Armand Schaeffer and J.P. McGowan and produced by Nat Levine. The Hurricane Express stars John Wayne as aircraft pilot Larry Baker. Wayne goes after a mystery villain named "The Wrecker", who was responsible for a train crash that killed Baker's father.
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Convicted is a 1950 American crime film noir directed by Henry Levin and starring Glenn Ford and Broderick Crawford. It was the third Columbia Pictures film adaptation of the 1929 stage play The Criminal Code by Martin Flavin, following Howard Hawks's The Criminal Code (1930) and John Brahm's Penitentiary (1938).
Wonder Bar is a 1934 American pre-Code film adaptation of a Broadway musical of the same name directed by Lloyd Bacon with musical numbers created by Busby Berkeley.
James William Flavin Jr. was an American character actor whose career lasted for nearly half a century.
The Criminal Code is a 1930 American pre-Code romantic crime drama film directed by Howard Hawks and starring Walter Huston and Phillips Holmes. The screenplay, based on a 1929 play of the same name by Martin Flavin, was written by Fred Niblo Jr. and Seton I. Miller, who were nominated for Best Adaptation at the 4th Academy Awards but the award went to Howard Estabrook for Cimarron.
The Last Mile is a 1932 American pre-Code crime drama film directed by Samuel Bischoff and starring Preston Foster. The picture is based on John Wexley's 1930 Broadway play, The Last Mile. Actor Howard Phillips appeared in both the play and the film but in different roles. In 1959, the play was adapted a second time into a film of the same name starring Mickey Rooney.
I Live on Danger is a 1942 film noir thriller film directed by Sam White and starring Chester Morris and Jean Parker.
State Penitentiary is a 1950 American drama film directed by Lew Landers and starring Warner Baxter and Onslow Stevens. The film's prison scenes were photographed at the state penitentiary at Carson City, Nevada.
Brothers is a 1930 American pre-Code crime film directed by Walter Lang. A print of the film is preserved in the Library of Congress collection.
The Amazing Mr. Williams is a 1939 American screwball comedy film produced by Everett Riskin for Columbia Pictures and directed by Alexander Hall. The film stars Melvyn Douglas, Joan Blondell and Clarence Kolb. It was written by Dwight Taylor, Sy Bartlett and Richard Maibaum. The film is about a police lieutenant who is too busy solving crimes to marry his longtime fiancée, who decides to take action and get him to marry her and settle down. The film was released on November 22, 1939.
Doin' Time is a 1985 American comedy film directed by George Mendeluk and written by Franelle Silver, Ron Zwang and Dee Caruso. The film stars Jeff Altman, Dey Young, Richard Mulligan, John Vernon, Jimmie Walker, and Judy Landers. The film was released by Warner Bros. on May 19, 1985.
One Way Ticket is a 1935 American crime film directed by Herbert Biberman starring Lloyd Nolan, Peggy Conklin and Walter Connolly. The film is based on the 1934 novel One-Way Ticket by Ethel Turner.