IMDb > The Secret of Dr. Kildare (1939)

The Secret of Dr. Kildare (1939) More at IMDbPro »

Overview

User Rating:
6.2/10   101 votes
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Director:
Harold S. Bucquet
Writers:
Max Brand (story)
Willis Goldbeck (writer)
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Contact:
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Release Date:
24 November 1939 (USA) more
Genre:
Drama more
Plot:
Dr. Gillespie's cancer has gotten worse, and to force him to take a rest instead of pursuing a sulfa-drug/pneumonia study... more | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
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User Comments:
Kildare tries to help Gillespie and a young woman more (5 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)
Lew Ayres ... Dr. James 'Jimmy' Kildare

Lionel Barrymore ... Dr. Leonard Barry Gillespie
Lionel Atwill ... Paul Messenger
Helen Gilbert ... Nancy Messenger
Nat Pendleton ... Joe Wayman
Laraine Day ... Nurse Mary Lamont
Sara Haden ... Nora
Samuel S. Hinds ... Dr. Stephen Kildare
Emma Dunn ... Mrs. Martha Kildare
Walter Kingsford ... Dr. S.J. Carew
Grant Mitchell ... John Xerxes Archley
Alma Kruger ... Head Nurse Molly Byrd
Robert Kent ... Charles Herron
Marie Blake ... Sally, Telephone Operator
Martha O'Driscoll ... Mrs. Roberts
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Additional Details

Parents Guide:
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Runtime:
84 min
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Color:
Black and White
Aspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (Western Electric Sound System)
Certification:
Finland:S | Sweden:Btl | USA:Approved | USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | USA:TV-G
Filming Locations:
San Pedro, Los Angeles, California, USA
Company:
Loew's more

Fun Stuff

Movie Connections:
Follows Internes Can't Take Money (1937) more

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User Comments

   (Comment on this title)
Kildare tries to help Gillespie and a young woman, 1 March 2008
7/10
Author: blanche-2 from United States

In 1939's "The Secret of Dr. Kildare," the young doctor is faced with a tough decision. Dr. Gillespie's cancer has exacerbated, and he cannot continue his lab experiments as he once did. Of course, he's refusing to stop. So Kildare quits, knowing Gillespie can't do the work without him. He takes over instead the care of a young woman, Nancy Messenger (Helen Gilbert), who has some emotional issues. Her father (Lionel Atwill) isn't sure what to do about her, so Kildare gains her confidence and tries to get to the bottom of her problems. Meanwhile, Kildare's parents (Samuel S. Hinds and Emma Dunn) come to visit. It turns out that the senior Dr. K has a potentially terminal heart problem and has come to New York for a second opinion. This, too, is a Secret of Dr. Kildare - because he doesn't tell his son.

What made this series a great success was the interrelationships of the characters. Lionel Barrymore is a great Dr. Gillespie, and his relationship with Kildare, with his head nurse, Molly Byrd (Alma Kruger) and Dr. Carew (Walter Kingsford) are lively ones of affection cut with bellowing. Laraine Day is Mary Lamont, who's in love with Kildare, but things haven't really heated up between them yet. She, too, has her moments with Gillespie. At one point while recuperating from a weak spell, he asks her to order him a steak, baked potato and apple pie. Lamont never changes expression, picking up the phone to get him gruel and weak tea.

Though the plot line involving Nancy Messenger is oversimplified and not terribly realistic, this is nevertheless a good episode in the Kildare series. Some trivia - Helen Gilbert, who plays Nancy, in real life was married for one year to gangster Johnny Stompanato, Lana Turner's boyfriend who was killed by her daughter Cheryl.

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