Old Hickory (1939)

Four key incidents in the public life of Andrew Jackson (1767-1845), seventh President of the United States. We watch him win the Battle of New Orleans in 1812 after an alliance with pirate... See full summary »

Director:

Lewis Seiler

Writers:

Don Ryan (screenplay), Owen Crump (screenplay),

Stars:

Hugh Sothern, Nana Bryant, Victor Kilian

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Hugh Sothern	...	Andrew Jackson
Nana Bryant	...	Rachel Jackson
Victor Kilian	...	Tim
Frank Wilcox	...	Capt. Abraham Lincoln
Irving Pichel	...	Bruce Renoir
Natalie Moorhead	...	Mrs. Renoir
Georges Renavent	...	Jean Lafitte (as George Renevant)
John Hamilton	...	Governor Clairborne of Louisiana

Storyline

Four key incidents in the public life of Andrew Jackson (1767-1845), seventh President of the United States. We watch him win the Battle of New Orleans in 1812 after an alliance with pirate Jean Lafitte. Later, political enemies slander his wife to coax Jackson into a duel with a crack shot: from her sickbed, she demands he promise not to fight. At his inauguration in 1829, plain folk are invited to celebrate. The film ends with a close look at a crisis early in his presidency: the threat by South Carolina (and his own Vice President, John Calhoun), to secede in a dispute over tariffs. This southern President confounds his allies, choosing the union over parochial economics.

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Plot Keywords:

inauguration | slander | duel | union | tariff | 

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Taglines:

OUR FEDERAL UNION MUST AND SHALL BE PRESERVED! (original one-sheet poster)

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Genres:

Short | Biography | Drama

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 December 1939 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

17 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Vitaphone production reels #9590-9591.

User Reviews

Decent Technicolor Short

Old Hickory (1940)

*** (out of 4)

Warner short came a year after DeMille's THE BUCCANEER so one would have to wonder what the point was. In this 17-minute short, Andrew Jackson (Hugh Sothern) has just won the Battle of New Orleans and is about to have a party to celebrate. If that seems like a too brief summery then that's exactly what the film delivers as there's very little here in terms of plot. We don't get any battle scenes and we really don't get much of anything else except for the actors throwing around some silly dialogue and some voice-over work that moves the film along. The funny thing is that Sothern played the part of Jackson in the DeMille film so it appears Warner was just needing this in a hurry and didn't bother with too much casting time. Sothern is pretty good in the role as his stern figure and strong voice adds quite a bit. The supporting players really don't jump out at anyone. The one real benefit to the film, and the main reason to watch is, is because of the Technicolor. The rich colors really stand out and make sitting through the film a lot easier than it probably would have been without.