Heroes for Sale (1933)

The saga of Tom Holmes - a man of principles - from the Great War to the Great Depression. Will he ever get a break? His war heroics earn fame and a medal for someone else, and his wounds ... See full summary »

Director:

William A. Wellman

Writers:

Robert Lord (screen play), Wilson Mizner (screen play)

Stars:

Richard Barthelmess, Aline MacMahon, Loretta Young

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Richard Barthelmess	...	Tom
Aline MacMahon	...	Mary
Loretta Young	...	Ruth
Gordon Westcott	...	Roger
Robert Barrat	...	Max (as Robert Barratt)
Berton Churchill	...	Mr. Winston
Grant Mitchell	...	George Gibson
Charley Grapewin	...	Pa Dennis (as Charles Grapewin)
Robert McWade	...	Dr. Briggs
G. Pat Collins	...	Leader of Agitators (as George Pat Collins)
James Murray	...	Blind Soldier
Edwin Maxwell	...	Laundry Company President
Margaret Seddon	...	Jeanette Holmes
Arthur Vinton	...	Captain Joyce
Robert Elliott	...	'Red' Squad Policeman #1

Storyline

The saga of Tom Holmes - a man of principles - from the Great War to the Great Depression. Will he ever get a break? His war heroics earn fame and a medal for someone else, and his wounds result in a morpheme addiction that costs him a job, his reputation in his home town, and months in a clinic. He goes to Chicago, where he's enterprising and dedicated to his work and his fellow workers, but an invention he champions results in the opposite of his intentions, leading to loss of life and an unjust imprisonment. After release, during the Depression, he must face local "red squads" and vigilante groups jousting out jobless men. Will anyone see his true heroic character?

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Plot Keywords:

invention | great depression | poverty | tear gas | washing machine | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English German

Release Date:

17 June 1933 (USA)

Also Known As:

Breadline

Filming Locations:

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

Box Office

Budget:

$290,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

First National Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

76 min 76 min (copyright length) 71 min (Turner library print)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Director William A. Wellman used real hoboes for the fight scene and real laundry workers for the laundry scenes.

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Goofs

A newspaper photograph showing the new equipment at the laundry mistakenly identifies Max Brinker as Hans Brinker.

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Quotes

Thomas 'Tom' Holmes: You used to hate the capitalists.
Max Brinker: Naturally. That was before I had money.

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Connections

Featured in American Masters: You Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story (2008)

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Soundtracks

"Who Cares About Tomorrow?"
(uncredited)
Music by Harry Warren
Played when Tom first meets Ruth
Also played when Tom and Ruth are waiting for Mary to get ready
Also played when Tom is talking to Bill about Alaska

User Reviews

I WATCHED 'TIL IT STOPPED!

There's something strange about watching most pre-code WB movies: they don't end so much as they just STOP. It's as if Jack Warner doled out a budget and the director just shut the production down when the film stock quit being delivered. Wild Bill Wellman's a top-notch director knee deep into his socialist fervor period (see WILD BOYS OF THE ROAD as a double bill), Barthemless is a hapless WWI vet who traded heroism for a morphine addiction--- his cowardly platoon commander got the glory and he faces the next 14 years dealing with everything life throws at him. His fortunes ironically change when his cartoon-Red neighbor (played to the usual hilt by Robert Barratt) invents a machine that allows them both to get rich, but Barthemless has gains a deeper social conscious as Barratt loses his. This is really a big budget (for Warners!) soap opera. An uplifting ending is tacked on after Barthemless disappears into the Land of the Hobos. Watchable as an example of early 30's "realism."