Golden Boy (1939)

Despite his musical talent, Joe Bonaparte wants to be a boxer.

Director:

Rouben Mamoulian

Writers:

Lewis Meltzer (screenplay), Daniel Taradash (screenplay)

Stars:

Barbara Stanwyck, Adolphe Menjou, William Holden

Nominated for 1 Oscar.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Barbara Stanwyck	...	Lorna Moon
Adolphe Menjou	...	Tom Moody
William Holden	...	Joe Bonaparte
Lee J. Cobb	...	Mr. Bonaparte
Joseph Calleia	...	Eddie Fuseli
Sam Levene	...	Siggie
Edward Brophy	...	Roxy Lewis (as Edward S. Brophy)
Beatrice Blinn	...	Anna
William H. Strauss	...	Mr. Carp
Don Beddoe	...	Borneo
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Charles Halton	...	Newspaperman (scenes deleted)

Storyline

Joe Bonaparte's father wants him to pursue his musical talent; but Joe wants to be a boxer. Persuading near-bankrupt manager Tom Moody to give him a chance, Joe quickly rises in his new profession. When he has second thoughts Moody's girl Lorna uses feminine wiles to keep him boxing. But when tough gangster Eddie Fuseli wants to "buy a piece" of Joe, Lorna herself begins to have second thoughts...for that and other reasons. Is it too late?

---

Plot Keywords:

bare chested male fighting | male male relationship | male female relationship | prizefighting | shaved chest | 

---

Taglines:

The romantic stage success that captured a nation... is now a great motion picture

---

Genres:

Drama | Romance | Sport

---

Certificate:

Approved

Did You Know?

Trivia

To convincingly portray a boxer who was also a violinist, William Holden took boxing and violin lessons all day every day for a week before production began. He continued to prepare during the 11 weeks of filming by boxing two hours daily and practicing the violin for 1-1/2 hours each night so his fingering of the instrument would be convincing.

---

Goofs

In the scene where Eddie Fuseli visits the new office, Lorna is seen sitting on the desk with a half-smoked cigarette although she had no cigarette earlier in the scene. At the beginning of the scene, she was holding a snifter and shot glass. Then Siggie gives her a roll of money. Eddie walks in, Lorna sits on the corner of the desk holding the cash with both hands. 48 seconds later Eddie looks at Lorna, who is holding the money in her left hand and cigarette in her right hand which looks like it must have been lit for at least a minute when compared to the length of Eddie's just lit cigarette. Lorna was not shown getting off the desk and nobody walked over to give her a cigarette or even to light it. A moment later, Eddie and Lorna are standing next to each other and Eddie's cigarette is shorter than Lorna's even though his was lit after or at the same time as Lorna's.

---

Quotes

Joe Bonaparte: [Last Lines] Poppa, I've come home.

---

Alternate Versions

A video version in Argentina was lifted from a 16mm print from Columbia Pictures, in English with Spanish language subtitles. The credits of this version are translated in Spanish.

---

Connections

Featured in Barbara Stanwyck: Fire and Desire (1991)

---

Soundtracks

We're in the Money Now
Sung a cappella by Adolphe Menjou to the tune of the traditional
nursery rhyme "The Farmer in the Dell"

User Reviews

Wonderful Movie

This is a wonderful, compelling, emotionally charged movie, with characters that are both interesting and likable. Of course, the central character of the movie is Joe Bonaparte, played by a young, gifted actor named William Holden. Joe's conflict, between his quest for fame as a prize fighter and his father's wish to become a concert violinist, although seemingly corny and contrived, actually works in this movie. And this can be attributed to the fine acting of all the players - Barbara Stanwyck, Lee J. Cobb, Adolph Menjou, and William Holden - who prove that high quality acting can transform a good script into a great script. One particularly intense scene is when Joe tries to play the violin - and he can't, leaving him devastated in the knowledge that he had squandered a gift and in the process had disappointed his father. This is a movie that is worth the time to watch and to enjoy.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

5 September 1939 (USA)

Also Known As:

El conflicto de dos almas

Filming Locations:

Eighth Avenue and 50th Street, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1