IMDb > The Big Street (1942)

The Big Street (1942) More at IMDbPro »

IMDb Holiday Movie Guide

Overview

User Rating:
6.0/10   380 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
No change in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Irving Reis
Writers:
Damon Runyon (story)
Leonard Spigelgass (screenplay)
Contact:
View company contact information for The Big Street on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
4 September 1942 (USA) more
Genre:
Drama | Romance more
Tagline:
Damon Runyon's thrill-packed story of Broadway . . . as only he could tell it ! more
Plot:
Little Pinks is in love with a nightclub singer named Gloria. But it is a unrequited love as she does not know that he exists... more | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
more
User Comments:
If you don't like it, then you don't get it... more (30 total)

Cast

  (Complete credited cast)

Henry Fonda ... Agustus 'Little Pinks' Pinkerton, II

Lucille Ball ... Gloria Lyons
Barton MacLane ... Case Ables
Eugene Pallette ... Nicely Nicely Johnson

Agnes Moorehead ... Violette Shumberg
Sam Levene ... Horsethief
Ray Collins ... Professor B
Marion Martin ... Mimi Venus

William T. Orr ... Decatur Reed (as William Orr)
George Cleveland ... Colonel Samuel Venus
Vera Gordon ... Mrs. Lefkowitz
Ozzie Nelson ... Himself, Orchestra Leader (as Ozzie Nelson and His Orchestra)
more
Create a character page for: ?

Additional Details

Parents Guide:
Add content advisory for parents
Runtime:
88 min
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Color:
Black and White
Aspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (RCA Sound System)
Certification:
USA:Approved (PCA #8385) | USA:TV-G (TV rating) | Sweden:(Banned) (1943) | Australia:G
Filming Locations:
Miami, Florida, USA more
Company:
RKO Radio Pictures more

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Some cast members in studio records/casting call lists did not appear or were not identifiable in the movie. These were (with their character names): Elliott Sullivan (Tramp), Al Hill (Tramp) and Donald Kirke (Surgeon). more
Quotes:
Gloria Lyons: Love is something that gets you one room, two chins and 3 kids. more
Movie Connections:
Featured in Lucy and Desi: A Home Movie (1993) (TV) more
Soundtrack:
Who Knows? more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.

User Comments

   (Comment on this title)
17 out of 26 people found the following comment useful.
If you don't like it, then you don't get it..., 6 August 2001
10/10
Author: jacksflicks from Hollywood

...and that's not the movie's fault. Those who've panned The Big Street and this review say more about themselves than the movie.

Damon Runyon was a beloved chronicler of a microcosm that no longer exists - the street life of New York's Broadway district, during its heyday, when it was known as The Great White Way or The Big Street. You will never see characters like Runyon's anywhere else in literature or film. The closest are perhaps to be found in Dickens, say, the souls who populate the London of Mr. Pickwick.

Other comments, who have been put off by the dialog finding it saccharine or phony, don't understand the special language Runyon uses for his characters, the picaresque vernacular of the small-time Broadway hustlers, promoters, racetrack touts and "professors," whose schemes and rackets are cloaked with highfalutin patter.

Among the steady, low-level service people who interface with these demi-mondes is Little Pinks, "the best busboy in the whole wide world". Pinks (Henry Fonda), has a good heart and the misfortune of falling head-over-heels for a gangster's moll, played against type by Lucille Ball, who has none of the former (good heart) and plenty of the latter (misfortune). Devoted to a fault, Pinks acts as her guardian angel, from her pinnacle, all the way to her pitiful decline and fall. Director Irving Reis, knows how to keep his material from becoming mired in bathos by using Runyon's whimsy and humor and the most delightful character players in Hollywood, from Eugene Palette and Agnes Moorehead to Ray Collins, Louis Beavers and Hans Conried.

"The Big Street" faithfully recreates Runyon's world and its inhabitants. Like all of his stories, it is a parable, and like all parables it teaches a lesson. But the lesson is delivered gently, never preaching. The most moving moment comes in the final scene, at once tragic and triumphant. The tragedy is apparent. But the triumph, the triumph of love over all, is apparently lost on the idiots who have panned this gem.

Was the above comment useful to you?
more (30 total)

Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for The Big Street (1942)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
'They don't get it!' foxfirebrand
Best Movie Ever! DannyC39
role reversals.... ksf-2
Even more respect for Lucy... ilovejesus2002
more

Recommendations

If you enjoyed this title, our database also recommends:
- - - - -
Gone with the Wind Rear Window The Palm Beach Story Giant Deadly Is the Female
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
Show more recommendations

Related Links

Full cast and crew Company credits External reviews
IMDb Drama section IMDb USA section Add this title to MyMovies

You may report errors and omissions on this page to the IMDb database managers. They will be examined and if approved will be included in a future update. Clicking the 'Update' button will take you through a step-by-step process.