Tennessee Johnson (1942)

Biography of Andrew Johnson, who followed Abraham Lincoln into office and became the first President of the United States ever to be impeached.

Director:

William Dieterle

Writers:

John L. Balderston (screen play by), Wells Root (screen play by)

Stars:

Van Heflin, Lionel Barrymore, Ruth Hussey

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Van Heflin	...	Andrew Johnson
Lionel Barrymore	...	Thaddeus Stevens
Ruth Hussey	...	Eliza McCardle Johnson
Marjorie Main	...	Mrs. Maude Fisher
Regis Toomey	...	Blackstone McDaniel
J. Edward Bromberg	...	Coke
Grant Withers	...	Mordecai Milligan
Alec Craig	...	Sam Andrews
Charles Dingle	...	Senator Jim Waters
Carl Benton Reid	...	Congressman Hargrove
Russell Hicks	...	Lincoln's Emissary
Noah Beery	...	Sheriff Cass (as Noah Beery Sr.)
Robert Warwick	...	Major Crooks
Montagu Love	...	Chief Justice Chase
Lloyd Corrigan	...	Mr. Secretary

Storyline

This biopic focuses on Andrew Johnson, the first American president to be impeached. Initially an uneducated drifter who stumbles upon a job as a tailor in a Tennessee town, Johnson is taught to read by librarian and future wife, Eliza. Eliza convinces him to enter a local election, and, from there, Johnson rises swiftly. However, after inheriting the presidency in the wake of Abraham Lincoln's assassination, he finds himself on unsteady political ground.

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Plot Keywords:

character name as title | andrew johnson character | nickname as title | jefferson davis character | capitol building | 

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Taglines:

From Poverty to President A Great American Story!

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Genres:

Biography | Drama

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Did You Know?

Trivia

This film received its USA television premiere in Los Angeles Tuesday 26 February 1957 on KTTV (Channel 11), followed by Seattle 3 April 1957 on KING (Channel 5), by Norfolk VA 11 April 1957 on WTAR (Channel 3), by Portland OR 4 May 1957 on KGW (Channel 8), by Chicago 24 May 1957 on WBBM (Channel 2), by Tucson 18 June 1957 on KVOA (Channel 4) , by Philadelphia 10 August 1957 on WFIL (Channel 6), by Altoona PA 7 September 1957 on WFBG (Channel 10), by Minneapolis 13 November 1957 on KMGM (Channel 9) and by San Francisco 25 January 1958 on KGO (Channel 7); but it was not aired in New York City until 7 April 1959 on WCBS (Channel 2).

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Goofs

The Vice-Presidential oath administered by the Chief Justice is incorrect (using the Presidential oath, adding "Vice"). In reality, the Vice-President's oath is the same generic oath taken by a Senator or Congressman.

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Quotes

all in this scene: [first lines]
Mrs. Maude Fisher: There, see that?
[pointing to the jail cuff clamped around Andrew Johnson's ankle]
Blackstone McDaniel: [Andrew quickly looks up from sewing his pantleg and appears startled and nervous] We didn't see nothin' stranger.
Mrs. Maude Fisher: [as the group approaches him] I seed ya sewin' though!
Mordecai Milligan: First time I ever see a man sew like that.
Andrew Johnson: I done tailorin'.
Mordecai Milligan: How much you want to sew the seat in a pair-a britches?
Andrew Johnson: I wouldn't work here.
[continues sewing his pants]
[...]

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Crazy Credits

The opening outline includes a disclaimer about historical facts being changed for entertainment purposes.

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Soundtracks

The Battle Cry of Freedom
(1862)
Written by George Frederick Root
In the score during the foreword, reprised in the score for the last scene

User Reviews

Good Film - Mixed reality and history

I doubt if a film made in 2004 or after about Andrew Johnson would be as kind as this 1943 film. Johnson did support the North in the Civil War (he was the only Southern Senator to remain in the U.S. Government during the war, and would be appointed Governor of that portion of Tennessee from 1863 - 64). Lincoln, in order to have a strong National ticket in her 1864 election chose Johnson (a Democrat)as his running mate. So Johnson became Vice President. And then John Wilkes Booth shot Lincoln, and Johnson became President.

Johnson was illiterate, until his wife taught him to read and write. He educated himself, and rose in the legal and political world of Tennessee (and then the nation). But he was a piece of "po' white trash", and remained so with all it's cultural baggage. He supported the North because he (rightly) distrusted the Southern plantation aristocracy (epitomized by Jefferson Davis). However - he hated slaves and free Black people. Hence his willingness to be soft on the South. Lincoln would have been soft too, but Lincoln had great gifts at managing his adversaries and probably could have arranged a compromise. Johnson was pig-headed. He antagonized the Radical Republicans controlling Congress. They waited for him to make a mistake, and he did (technically he violated the Tenure of Office Act, by firing Secretary of War Stanton without getting Congressional permission - this act was declared unconstitutional in the 1880s). Then followed his impeachment and the saving of his skin by seven Republican Senators who voted not to remove him. And those men all lost their Senatorial seats.

In 1943 Johnson was considered a hero, for saving the Executive Branch from becoming a rubber stamp for Congress. Actually, there was nothing to show that some Radical Republican President could not have restored power to the Executive Branch if Johnson had been removed. He gets high grades for his grit and courage, but his pig-headed stupidity and racism sink his historical rating.

Still Van Heflin, Lionel Barrymore, and the other actors (like Charles Dingle) make the film interesting and enjoyable enough. Good film making but mixed history. Two final points: Edmond Ross was in good health when he voted, but James W. Grimes of Iowa also voted for acquittal, and he had a paralytic stroke a few weeks earlier (he died within a year). Second: Andrew Johnson is the second Vice President of the name Johnson (and Lyndon Johnson the third Veep). The first was Martin Van Buren's Vice President, Richard Mentor Johnson of Kentucky, whose career as a politician might make a diverting comedy.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

December 1942 (USA)

Also Known As:

Campeão da Liberdade

Filming Locations:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1