Dark Manhattan (1937)

A low-level gangster determines to let nothing stand in the way of his gaining control of the numbers rackets in Harlem.

Director:

Harry L. Fraser

Writers:

George Randol (screenplay), George Randol (story),

Stars:

Ralph Cooper, Cleo Herndon, Clarence Brooks

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Ralph Cooper	...	James A. 'Curly' Thorpe
Cleo Herndon	...	Flo 'Babe' Gray
Clarence Brooks	...	Larry Lee
Jess Lee Brooks	...	Lt. Luke Ballot
Sam McDaniel	...	Jack Jackson (as Sam McDaniels)
Corny Anderson	...	Attorney Brown
Rubeline Glover	...	Miss Hall (Lee's secretary)
James Adamson	...	Lem

Storyline

A low-level gangster determines to let nothing stand in the way of his gaining control of the numbers rackets in Harlem.

---

Plot Keywords:

gangster | numbers racket | african american | heart disease | new york city | 

---

Genres:

Crime | Drama

---

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

12 March 1937 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Grand National Studios - 7250 Santa Monica Boulevard, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$24,900 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Randol-Cooper Productions, Rinaldo Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

70 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This was the first all-black film produced in Hollywood.

---

Soundtracks

"The Sweetest Moment of My Life"
Written by Ben Ellison and Harvey Brooks
Sung by Cleo Herndon

User Reviews

A passable all-black crime drama.

Ralph Cooper stars as a small-time punk muscling his way to the top of a numbers racket in Harlem, in a story similar to the classics "The Public Enemy (1931)" and "Little Caesar(1931)." Although Cooper was a talented top black actor in "race" films (intended for black audiences), he lacked the dynamic qualities that James Cagney and Edward G. Robinson brought to those two classics. Still, I enjoyed the movie knowing it was the first all-black movie made in Hollywood, and because it had good actors except for the female love interest, Cleo Herndon, who seemed a bit poor except for her singing. Perhaps that is why she never made another film.

On a humorous note, Ossie Davis, who introduced the film on the Turner Classic Movies Channel, mentioned the movie broke all attendance records at the Apollo theater in Harlem because overflow crowds were shunted to a theater two blocks away. Since there was only one print, each reel had to be rewound and rushed to the other theater.