Waterfront Lady (1935)

When a young man is befriended by a gambling ship operator and made a partner in the business, he becomes involved in a police manhunt after he covers up a murder committed by his new ... See full summary »

Director:

Joseph Santley

Writers:

Wellyn Totman (story), Joseph Fields (additional dialogue)

Stars:

Ann Rutherford, Frank Albertson, J. Farrell MacDonald

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ann Rutherford	...	Joan O'Brien
Frank Albertson	...	Ronny Hillyer aka Bill
J. Farrell MacDonald	...	Capt. O'Brien
Barbara Pepper	...	Gloria Vance
Charles C. Wilson	...	Jim McFee aka Mac
Grant Withers	...	Tod
Purnell Pratt	...	Dist. Atty. Shaw
Jack La Rue	...	Tom Braden
Ward Bond	...	Jess
Paul Porcasi	...	Tony Spadaloni
Mary Gordon	...	Mrs. O'Flaherty
Mathilde Comont	...	Mrs. Spadaloni
Robert Emmett O'Connor	...	Police Lieutenant
Clarence Wilson	...	Truant Officer
Victor Potel	...	Alex

Storyline

When a young man is befriended by a gambling ship operator and made a partner in the business, he becomes involved in a police manhunt after he covers up a murder committed by his new partner.

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Plot Keywords:

partner | police | murder | gambling | manhunt | 

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Taglines:

featuring...ANN RUTHERFORD...HOLLYWOOD'S NEW GLAMOROUS STAR (original one-sheet poster)

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

5 October 1935 (USA)

Also Known As:

La ragazza del porto

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mascot Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

70 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

'Ann Rutherford' (I)'s first film. She got the part after actress Anne Darling walked off the film and out of her contract to marry an insurance executive. At the time, Ann Rutherford was performing on a Los Angeles radio show. A producer at Mascot Pictures saw Rutherford's picture in the paper and thought she looked enough like Anne Darling that casting her would enable the studio to complete the movie.

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Soundtracks

"Deep Dark River"
Sung by Barbara Pepper
Music and Lyrics by Smiley Burnette

User Reviews

Cheap but agreeable.

"Waterfront Lady" is a low-budget public domain B-movie from small-time Mascot Pictures. However, unlike some Bs, this one does have a few established Hollywood actors in the film. Though none of them were big stars (such as J. Farrell MacDonald, Grant Withers, Jack LaRue and Ward Bond), it is nice to see their familiar faces. Ann Rutherford appears here in her first film and IMDb's trivia about this is interesting. The film's title would make you think that the film stars a woman, Frank Albertson is clearly the star. The film begins aboard a gambling ship. Just before it's raided, a stool pigeon and the boss are engaged in a tussle--and in the process the stoolie is killed. Being an all-around sucker, Albertson covers for the boss and is now a hunted man. He hides out along the waterfront and in the process he meets nice Ann Rutherford and falls for her--though she has no idea he's a wanted man and professional gambler. Despite this, he's a pretty likable guy and romance begins to blossom--until his identity is revealed and is forced to flea. Can this all be worked out for a happy ending? Well, what do you think?!

Overall, despite the film's very modest budget, it's a rather agreeable film--mostly due to some decent writing--though the final fight sequence is a bit dopey. Now understand...it is NOT a great film but a very watchable B-movie--especially if you like this sort of thing.