| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Edward G. Robinson | ... | Dr. Paul Ehrlich | |
| Ruth Gordon | ... | Mrs. Ehrlich | |
| Otto Kruger | ... | Dr. Emil Von Behring | |
| Donald Crisp | ... | Minister Althoff | |
| Maria Ouspenskaya | ... | Franziska Speyer | |
| Montagu Love | ... | Prof. Hartmann | |
| Sig Ruman | ... | Dr. Hans Wolfert (as Sig Rumann) | |
| Donald Meek | ... | Mittelmeyer | |
| Henry O'Neill | ... | Dr. Lentz | |
| Albert Bassermann | ... | Dr. Robert Koch | |
| Edward Norris | ... | Dr. Morgenroth | |
| Harry Davenport | ... | Judge | |
| Louis Calhern | ... | Dr. Brockdorf | |
| Louis Jean Heydt | ... | Dr. Kunze | |
| Charles Halton | ... | Sensenbrenner | |
Dr. Paul Ehrlich was the German physician who developed the first synthetic antimicrobial drug, 606 or Salvarsan. The film describes how Ehrlich first became interested in the properties of the then-new synthetic dyes and had an intuition that they could be useful in the diagnosis of bacterial diseases. After this work met with success, Ehrlich proposed that synthetic compounds could be made to selectively target and destroy disease causing microorganisms. He called such a drug a "magic bullet". The film describes how in 1908, after 606 attempts, he succeeded. Written by Anonymous
Edward G. Robinson will always be remembered for LITTLE CAESAR(1930), but this movie features probably the best acting of his career. This is based on the true story of Dr. Paul Ehrlich, a Polish born German bacteriologist that discovered the cure for syphilis. Stubborn dedication paid off on the 606th test that provided Dr. Ehrlich's 'magic bullets' to fight a silent killer of society. Not only was Robinson in top form, but other cast members provided strong support: Otto Kruger, Ruth Gordon and Donald Crisp. Highly recommended.
Note: It was a daring risk that this movie made it to the screen. In a time when a man and a woman could not share the same bed...here is a movie about finding a cure for venereal disease.