The Last Hurrah (1958) 7.3
Frank Skeffington is an old Irish-American political boss, running for re-election as Mayor of of a US town for the last time. Director:John Ford |
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The Last Hurrah (1958) 7.3
Frank Skeffington is an old Irish-American political boss, running for re-election as Mayor of of a US town for the last time. Director:John Ford |
|
| Watch Trailer 0Share... |
| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Spencer Tracy | ... | ||
| Jeffrey Hunter | ... |
Adam Caulfield
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Dianne Foster | ... |
Maeve Caulfield
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| Pat O'Brien | ... |
John Gorman
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| Basil Rathbone | ... |
Norman Cass, Sr.
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| Donald Crisp | ... |
Cardinal Martin Burke
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| James Gleason | ... |
'Cuke' Gillen
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Edward Brophy | ... |
'Ditto' Boland
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| John Carradine | ... |
Amos Force
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| Willis Bouchey | ... |
Roger Sugrue
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Basil Ruysdael | ... |
Bishop Gardner
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| Ricardo Cortez | ... |
Sam Weinberg
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Wallace Ford | ... |
Charles J. Hennessey
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Frank McHugh | ... |
Festus Garvey
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Carleton Young | ... |
Winslow
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An aging politician tries to get re-elected one last time in the changing world of the 1950s when TV started to play a bigger part in politics. Based loosely on the career of multi-term Boston Mayor James Michael Curley, this film examines the good and evil inherent in politics and all the things that go into an election. Tracy's uphill battle to stay in office is set against the political machinery that preyed on ethnic hatred and old-time money. Written by Ed Lorusso
A homespun and sentimental take on politics, with Spencer Tracy playing Frank Skeffington, an old style Irish Catholic big city mayor caught in a cooked up scandal by his blue blood Prostestant Republican enemies. Crowded scenes add to the pace as the characters whip through the sharp Frank Nugent screenplay like a hot knife going through butter. Directed by John Ford, the film previews the changes that have since taken place in American politics i.e. television imagery and big money, and here we see them presented in a political campaign pitting Skeffington against a younger, telegenic, politically inept opponent financed by the city's conservatives. With John Carradine giving a memorable performance as ultra-conservative newspaper publisher and ex-Klansman Amos Force, and personal favorite Ken Curtis playing a monsignor, the film blends the typical Ford elements: fairness and tolerance against hypocrisy and greed.