''52nd Street'' is a 1937 American

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

directed by Harold Young and starring Ian Hunter.

Leo Carrillo Leopoldo Antonio Carrillo (; August 6, 1880 – September 10, 1961), known professionally as Leo Carrillo, was an American actor, vaudevillian, political cartoonist, and conservationist. He was best known for playing Pancho in the television ...

and Pat Paterson. An

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

production by

Walter Wanger Walter Wanger (born Walter Feuchtwanger; July 11, 1894 – November 18, 1968) was an American film producer active from the 1910s, his career concluding with the turbulent production of '' Cleopatra,'' his last film, in 1963. He began at Para ...

it was distributed by

United Artists United Artists Corporation (UA), currently doing business as United Artists Digital Studios, is an American digital production company. Founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks, the studi ...

. It portrays the rise of

52nd Street 52nd Street is a -long one-way street traveling west to east across Midtown Manhattan, New York City. A short section of it was known as the city's center of jazz performance from the 1930s to the 1950s. Jazz center Following the repeal of ...

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

as a major hub of

nightclub A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gener ...

s in the 1930s.

Cast

* Ian Hunter as Rufus Rondell *

as Fiorello Zamarelli * Pat Paterson as Margaret Rondell *

Ella Logan Ella Logan (born Georgina Armour Allan; 6 March 1913 – 1 May 1969) was a Scottish-American actress and singer who appeared on Broadway, recorded and had a nightclub career in the United States and internationally. Early years Logan was bor ...

as Betty *

Zasu Pitts Zasu Pitts (; January 3, 1894 – June 7, 1963) was an American actress who starred in many silent dramas, including Erich von Stroheim's epic 1924 silent film ''Greed'', and comedies, transitioning successfully to mostly comedy films with the ...

as Letitia Rondell *

Marla Shelton Marla Shelton (October 12, 1912 – February 14, 2001) was an American actress. She appeared in the films '' The Phantom Rider'', ''Flying Hostess'', ''Under Cover of Night'', ''Dangerous Number'', '' When's Your Birthday?'', '' Personal Property ...

as Evelyn Macy Rondell *

Collette Lyons Collette Lyons (October 3, 1908 – October 5, 1986) was an American stage, film and television actress An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional mediu ...

as Minnie *

Dorothy Peterson Bergetta "Dorothy" Peterson (25 December 1897 - 3 October 1979) was an American actress. She began her acting career on Broadway before appearing in more than eighty Hollywood films. Early years Peterson was born in Hector, Minnesota, the dau ...

as Adela Rondell * Kenny Baker as 'Benny' Zamarelli *

Al Shean Abraham Elieser Adolph Schönberg (May 12, 1868 – August 12, 1949), known as Al Shean, was a comedian and vaudeville performer. Other sources give his birth name variously as Adolf Schönberg, Albert Schönberg, or Alfred Schönberg. He is mos ...

as Klauber *

Sid Silvers Sid Silvers (January 16, 1901 in Brooklyn, New York – August 20, 1976 in Brooklyn) was an American actor, comedian, lyricist, and writer. Silvers began his career in vaudeville in the early 1920s as a comedy partner of Phil Baker. As part of ...

as Sid * Jack White as Jack * Jack Adair as Porky * George Tapps as George Tapps * Jerry Colonna as Specialty Vocalist *

Roman Bohnen Roman Aloys Bohnen (November 24, 1901 – February 24, 1949) was an American actor. He is perhaps best known for his roles in the films ''Of Mice and Men'' (1939), '' The Song of Bernadette'' (1943), and ''The Best Years of Our Lives'' (194 ...

as James *

Wade Boteler Wade Boteler (October 3, 1888 – May 7, 1943) was an American film actor and writer. He appeared in more than 430 films between 1919 and 1943. Biography He was born in Santa Ana, California, and died in Hollywood, California, from a heart ...

as Butler *

Pat Harrington Sr. Daniel Patrick Harrington Sr. (February 6, 1901 – September 2, 1965) was a Canadian actor. Biography Born Daniel Patrick Harrington in Montreal, Quebec, he made his Broadway debut in ''Panama Hattie'' in 1940. Additional Broadway credits i ...

as Pat Harrington * Al Norman as Al Norman *

Maurice Rocco Maurice Rocco (born Maurice John Rockhold; June 26, 1915 – March 24, 1976) was an American pianist, singer, actor, and composer known for playing boogie-woogie piano and his disdain for using a piano bench. He was a top nightclub and theater dra ...

as Maurice Rocco * Dotty Saulter as Dorothy *

Delmar Watson David Delmar Watson (July 1, 1926 – October 26, 2008) was an American child actor and news photographer.Nelson, Valerie J"Delmar Watson, child actor turned news photographer, dies at 82" ''Los Angeles Times''. October 28, 2008.Andres, Holly J.F ...

as Young Benjamin *

Frank Mills Frank Mills (born June 27, 1942) is a Canadian pianist and recording artist, best known for his solo instrumental hit "Music Box Dancer". Early life and education Mills was born in Montreal, Quebec. He was raised in Verdun, Quebec and started pl ...

as Party Guest * Edmund Mortimer as Nightclub Patron *

Cyril Ring Cyril Ring (December 5, 1892July 17, 1967) was an American film actor. He began his career in silent films in 1921. By the time of his final performance in 1951, he had appeared in over 350 films, nearly all of them in small and/or uncredited bit ...

as Nightclub Patron *

Mary MacLaren Mary MacLaren (born Mary Ida MacDonald, also credited Mary McLaren; January 19, 1900 – November 9, 1985) was an American film actress in both the silent and sound eras."Thirteenth Census of the United States: 1910 Population", digital cop ...

as Nightclub Patron *

Jim Thorpe James Francis Thorpe ( Sac and Fox (Sauk): ''Wa-Tho-Huk'', translated as "Bright Path"; May 22 or 28, 1887March 28, 1953) was an American athlete and Olympic gold medalist. A member of the Sac and Fox Nation, Thorpe was the first Native ...

as Street Thug *

Frank O'Connor Frank O'Connor (born Michael Francis O'Donovan; 17 September 1903 – 10 March 1966) was an Irish author and translator. He wrote poetry (original and translations from Irish), dramatic works, memoirs, journalistic columns and features on a ...

as Policeman

Reception

The film recorded a loss of $4,392.

References

Bibliography

* Stumpf, Charles. ''ZaSu Pitts: The Life and Career''. McFarland, 2010.

External links

* * 1937 films Films directed by Harold Young (director) 1937 drama films American drama films Films produced by Walter Wanger American black-and-white films 1930s English-language films United Artists films Films set in New York City 1930s American films {{1930s-drama-film-stub