Blonde Crazy (1931)

Adventures of a cocky con man and his glamorous accomplice.

Director:

Roy Del Ruth

Writers:

Kubec Glasmon (story), John Bright (story)

Stars:

James Cagney, Joan Blondell, Louis Calhern

Cast

Complete credited cast:
James Cagney	...	Bert Harris
Joan Blondell	...	Anne Roberts
Louis Calhern	...	Dapper Dan Barker
Noel Francis	...	Helen Wilson
Ray Milland	...	Joe Reynolds
Guy Kibbee	...	A. Rupert Johnson, Jr.
Polly Walters	...	Peggy
William Burress	...	Col. Bellock
Maude Eburne	...	Mrs. Snyder
Nat Pendleton	...	Hank - aka Pete

Storyline

At a midwestern hotel, conniving bellhop Bert Harris has a finger in every pie. He promotes a job for glamorous Ann Roberts, but she does not immediately succumb to his charms. However, Bert soon enlists Ann as partner in his new profession of con man. Most of the victims they fleece are lawbreakers themselves. But Bert is tempted to try actual stealing, and Ann fears it will bring bad luck...

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Plot Keywords:

hotel | pawnbroker | bellman | robbery | wedding | 

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Taglines:

Jim's back!... with a brand new line!

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Crime | Romance

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Certificate:

TV-G

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 November 1931 (USA)

Also Known As:

Gente Esperta

Filming Locations:

Warner Brothers Burbank Studios - 4000 Warner Boulevard, Burbank, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros, Vitaphone Corporation, The

Technical Specs

Runtime:

79 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

Bert Harris: Now, you play ball with me... and your worrying days will be over.
Ann Roberts: Yeah? How about the nights?
Bert Harris: [smirks] Well, I'll see what I can do about those too, honey!

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Connections

Referenced in James Cagney: Top of the World (1992)

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Soundtracks

"Ain't That the Way It Goes"
(1931) (uncredited)
Music by Fred E. Ahlert
Played when Anne and Bert first meet Dan and Helen

User Reviews

If you don't want to get slapped, don't mess with Joan

How would you like to go to a hotel and find out James Cagney is the #1 bell-hop, and Joan Blondell is your blond chamber-maid? That's where we start in "Blonde Crazy", and things get wild in a hurry. Cagney plays con-man Bert Harris, and he falls hard for the new chamber-maid, Ann Roberts, played by Joan Blondell. Peggy, another cute chambermaid, warns Ann to stay away from Bert. Ann says, "He can't be interested in me, I'm not important and I have no money." Peggy shoots back, "Oh yeah ... maybe you've got something else he wants." Bert makes a pass at Ann, and get his face slapped hard. When he next sees her he says, "I'm so stuck on you, I wouldn't mind getting slugged by you every day." Ann says, "Oh yeah," smiles, and hauls off and hits him again. Hold on, she's just warming up. Middle aged Guy Kibbee falls hard for Ann, and asks Bert, "What do you know about the blond chambermaid?" Bert smiles and sells the chump a bottle of booze at triple the price, knowing Kibbee will pay because he's been told, "It's the only stuff the blond chamber-maid drinks." After Ann and Bert rip off Kibbee big time, they head for the city and tangle with super chisler "Dapper Dan Barker", played to the hilt by Louis Calhern. Things get rough, with the con-artists ripping off one another, and thumbing their noses at the sap whose been taken at clean-out time.

The dialogue is outrageous, and Ann wallops Bert a few more times along the way. Blondell slaps Cagney when he's bad, and slaps him when he's good, only a little softer then and with a big smile, just to let him know she still loves him. At one point Bert starts to walk in on Ann when she's in the tub. She shrieks and yells, "Hey, what's the big idea? I'm taking a bath." To which he cracks, "Oh yeah ... move over!" This is a great film. The only problem is that the ending is way to somber and dark in comparison to the breezy, good-natured tempo of the rest of the film. But this is one you've got to see. Blondell and Cagney are wonderful together.