Sadie McKee (1934)

The life of Sadie McKee takes many twists and turns. She starts as the daughter of the cook for the well off Alderson family. Lawyer Michael Alderson likes Sadie but she runs off to New ... See full summary »

Director:

Clarence Brown

Writers:

John Meehan (screenplay), Viña Delmar (story)

Stars:

Joan Crawford, Gene Raymond, Franchot Tone

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Joan Crawford	...	Sadie McKee
Gene Raymond	...	Tommy Wallace
Franchot Tone	...	Michael Alderson
Edward Arnold	...	Jack Brennan
Esther Ralston	...	Dolly Merrick
Earl Oxford	...	Stooge
Jean Dixon	...	Opal
Leo G. Carroll	...	Phelps - Brennan's Butler (as Leo Carroll)
Akim Tamiroff	...	Riccori - Cafe Owner
Zelda Sears	...	Mrs. Craney - Landlady
Helen Ware	...	Mrs. McKee
Gene Austin	...	Cafe Entertainer on Piano
Coco and Candy	...	Cafe Entertainers (as Candy and Coco)

Storyline

The life of Sadie McKee takes many twists and turns. She starts as the daughter of the cook for the well off Alderson family. Lawyer Michael Alderson likes Sadie but she runs off to New York City with boyfriend Tommy to get married. Before they get married, Tommy takes up with show girl Dolly and deserts her. Sadie stays in New York and becomes involved with Michael's boss, millionaire Brennan. She marries the chronically alcoholic Brennan for his money. Michael views her as a golddigger at first, but then sees her help Brennan beat his alcoholism. Sadie leaves Brennan to try and find Tommy when she hears that her old flame is in trouble. Little does she know just how much trouble.

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Plot Keywords:

millionaire | alcoholic | cook | new york city | landlady | 

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 May 1934 (USA)

Also Known As:

Abenteuer einer schönen Frau

Filming Locations:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

One of the first film to treat alcoholism as a serious problem, instead of a comic device.

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Quotes

Sadie McKee Brennan: [showing off her bedroom] Here it is.
Opal: Lady, when you say, "I do take thee," how you take him.
Sadie McKee Brennan: [chuckles]
Opal: Got this all to yourself?
Sadie McKee Brennan: Yep, all to myself.
Opal: Always all to yourself?
Sadie McKee Brennan: Yep.
Opal: Well, a whole lot of us do a whole lot more for a whole lot less.

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Connections

Referenced in Hollywood Hist-o-Rama: Joan Crawford (1962)

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Soundtracks

"After You've Gone"
(1918) (uncredited)
Music and Lyrics by Henry Creamer and Turner Layton
Played and Sung by Gene Austin (piano), Candy Candido (bass) and Otto Heimel (guitar)

User Reviews

The stuff that Joan is made of...

It's easy to see why films like this made Crawford the idol of millions of young women across the country. It's the epitome of a "vehicle".....a film designed to display all the talents of a star and make audiences fall for them. As in many of her early films, she begins at the bottom...the daughter of the cook for a wealthy family including Tone. She gets a hot scene right off the bat when she angrily defends her boyfriend, who is being derided by the aristocrats at the table, by telling them all off (this moment actually brings to mind Emily Watson's similar, yet much more subdued, scene in "Gosford Park".) Soon she and lover Raymond are off to NYC. This section is fascinating as it portrays the way diners were in that era. There's an astonishing coffee dispenser that is shown in one scene and the Automat is quite interesting to behold (not to mention the corned beef hash and 2 poached eggs for $0.35!) Circumstances progress to where she is working in a dance hall (and showing some positively scary legs! It amazing how times have changed in that, today, a similar dancer would have to have sticks for legs and breasts out to there, etc....) Here she becomes associated with a drunken millionaire (Arnold) who takes a major shine to her. Fortunately, for the viewer, she sticks with him, so she can wear an array of dazzling Adrien gowns and furs. Ultimately, each of the men in her life (Tone, Raymond, Arnold) presents her with a variety of conflicts and decisions....all of which she handles with the utmost nobility and grace. She is photographed magnificently throughout with her amazing profile and luminescent eyes featured repeatedly. It's a good thing the film is in black and white because she'd be too much to deal with in color! Everyone knows that Hurrell retouched his amazing portraits of her, but here she looks quite wonderful with just make up and good lighting. The plot is creaky and contrived and the film is just plain out of date, but it's great to see Joan in action in her quintessential role and there's a decent performance from Arnold and nice work by several other supporting players including Hitchcock favorite Carroll. One fun thing to watch for: As a precursor of the later, more antagonistic Crawford, Joan gets fed up with a nightclub singer, barks at her to "Shut up!" and shoves her backwards into a trunk! Fun stuff.