''Castle on the Hudson'' (UK title: ''Years Without Days'') is a 1940 American

film noir Film noir (; ) is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarded as the "classic period" of American ' ...

drama directed by Anatole Litvak and starring John Garfield,

Ann Sheridan Clara Lou "Ann" Sheridan (February 21, 1915 – January 21, 1967) was an American actress and singer. She is best known for her roles in the films ''San Quentin'' (1937) with Humphrey Bogart, ''Angels with Dirty Faces'' (1938) with James Cagne ...

, and Pat O'Brien. A thief is sent to Sing Sing Prison, where he is befriended by the reform-minded warden. The film was based on the book ''Twenty Thousand Years in Sing Sing'', written by

Lewis E. Lawes Lewis Edward Lawes (September 13, 1883 – April 23, 1947) was a prison warden and a proponent of prison reform. During his 21-year tenure at Sing Sing Correctional Facility, he supervised the executions of 303 prisoners. Biography Lawes was born ...

, on whom the warden (played by O'Brien) in the film was based. ''Castle on the Hudson'' was actually a remake of an earlier Spencer Tracy prison film, ''

20,000 Years in Sing Sing ''20,000 Years in Sing Sing'' is a 1932 American Pre-Code drama film set in Sing Sing Penitentiary, the maximum security prison in Ossining, New York, starring Spencer Tracy as an inmate and Bette Davis as his girlfriend. It was directed by Mi ...

'' (1932), also based on Lawes's book.

Plot

Tommy Gordan ( John Garfield), a cocky, arrogant career thief, is finally nailed by New York City authorities after pulling a big heist. He is sentenced to a minimum seven years at the state prison in Ossining, aka Sing Sing, on the shores of the Hudson River. There, he meets prison warden Walter Long ( Pat O'Brien), to whom he takes an immediate dislike. Months later, inmate Tommy settles into the dull routine of prison life. There is one rule that the superstitious Tommy Gordon has always obeyed—never pull a job on a Saturday. So when fellow inmate Steve Rockford ( Burgess Meredith) invites Tommy to assist him in a breakout, he at first agrees. Later however, learning that Rockford has scheduled the escape for a Saturday night, he backs out. Sure enough, Rockford's plans go awry, and he dies during the attempt. Afterwards, Warden Long learns of Tommy's refusal to collaborate with Rockford. So later, when he receives news that Tommy's girlfriend, Kay Manners (

), is seriously ill, he offers Tommy temporary unsupervised parole, just long enough to visit Kay. Despite the parole's taking place on a Saturday, Tommy gratefully accedes. Once in New York, however, Tommy becomes embroiled in an altercation involving his shyster lawyer Ed Crowley ( Jerome Cowan), who is shot dead by a sick, convalescing Kay. Though he is actually innocent of the crime, Tommy decides to protect Kay's reputation by taking the blame for his lawyer's death. So upon returning to Sing Sing, he greets the warden with a fake confession. A courtroom trial follows, where despite Kay's attempts to explain she is the real murderer, Tommy is convicted and sentenced to the electric chair. Unlike many of his death-row companions who panic and break down as their appointment with fate approaches, Tommy stolidly faces the consequences of his noble decision. In the end, he slowly walks that last mile before execution, accompanied by a solemn Warden Long and the prison chaplain.

Cast

* John Garfield as Tommy Gordan *

as Kay Manners, his girlfriend * Pat O'Brien as Warden Walter Long * Burgess Meredith as Steve Rockford *

Henry O'Neill Henry O'Neill (August 10, 1891 – May 18, 1961) was an American film actor known for playing gray-haired fathers, lawyers, and similarly dignified roles during the 1930s and 1940s. Early years He was born in Orange, New Jersey. Career ...

as District Attorney * Jerome Cowan as Ed Crowley * Guinn "Big Boy" Williams as Mike Kagel * John Litel as Prison Chaplain * Margot Stevenson as Ann Rockford * Willard Robertson as Detective Ragan * Edward Pawley as Black Jack * Billy Wayne as Pete *

Nedda Harrigan Nedda Harrigan Logan (August 24, 1899 – April 1, 1989) was an American actress. Early life Harrigan was the youngest of 10 children of entertainer Edward Harrigan and his wife, Annie (Braham) Harrigan. Her grandfather was conductor Davi ...

as Mrs. Long * Wade Boteler as Principal Keeper * Barbara Pepper as Goldie * Robert Strange as Joe Morris * William Hopper as Reporter (uncredited) * Grant Mitchell as Psychologist Dr. Ames (uncredited) * Frank Puglia as Tony, prisoner on Death Row (uncredited) *

Adrian Morris Adrian Grant Morris (18 May 1929 – 6 December 2004) was an England, English painter. Early life Morris was born in London, England. He spent his childhood in rural Somerset before the family moved to the United States, where he attended the ...

as Prisoner (uncredited)

Production notes

A year earlier, John Garfield had refused to play a role in '' Invisible Stripes'' (1939) as

George Raft George Raft (born George Ranft; September 26, 1901 – November 24, 1980) was an American film actor and dancer identified with portrayals of gangsters in crime melodramas of the 1930s and 1940s. A stylish leading man in dozens of movies, Raft is ...

's younger brother, and this had forced Warner Brothers to place the actor on the first of 11 total suspensions while at the studio. It was only after Warners agreed to allow Garfield to play the lead role in a film based on Maxwell Anderson's 1927 play ''

Saturday's Children Saturday's Children may refer to: * ''Saturday's Children'' (1929 film), a romantic comedy film by Gregory La Cava * ''Saturday's Children'' (1940 film), a drama film by Vincent Sherman *''Saturday's Children'', a 1927 play by Maxwell Anderson ...

'' that Garfield agreed to first act in ''Castle''. Before shooting commenced, John Garfield made two demands. First, he stipulated that the original ending, where his character dies in the electric chair for a crime he did not commit, be retained in the movie's script. Second, to seal the deal, Garfield pressed for a $10,000 bonus. Warners agreed to both demands. The week the film opened in New York City, Garfield guest-starred on the popular NBC network radio program, '' Cavalcade of America''. The March 5, 1940, broadcast promoted his work in a new play, Albert Bein's ''Heavenly Express'', but made no mention of the just-released ''Castle on the Hudson''. Ironically, Bein's play closed after only 20 performances, but ''Castle'' became a resounding commercial success.

Critical reaction

An unsigned critique in ''The New York Times'', published during ''Castle on the Hudson's'' premiere March 1940 engagement, praised the cast as being "so good that a player like Burgess Meredith appears satisfied with fourth billing." The reviewer, however, panned the stock characters they played, complaining that "you have met them all before, and whether you care to renew the acquaintance or not, here is an excellent opportunity." According to one of John Garfield's biographers, the actor was disappointed that "the critics did not think more highly of the film or his performance." Further, it seemed he was continually trying to "prove that he had far more range as an actor" than Warners allowed him to demonstrate. So when the studio assigned him another shallow tough-guy role in '' Flight Angels'' (1940), he rejected it and, for the second time, was placed on suspension. In 1977, th
Greater Ossining Arts Council
featured a film festival under the title of Stars in Stripes Forever. The movies selected for showing were those that were either filmed at or set in Ossining (Sing Sing) Prison. Besides paying tribute to ''Castle on the Hudson'', the festival also saluted such features as '' Invisible Stripes'' (1939), ''

Each Dawn I Die ''Each Dawn I Die'' is a 1939 Crime film, gangster film directed by William Keighley and starring James Cagney and George Raft. The plot of ''Each Dawn I Die'' involves a crusading reporter who is unjustly thrown in jail and befriends a famous gan ...

'' (1939), and ''

'' (1932).Smothers, Ronald. "Doing Time at the Movies." ''The New York Times.'' (Oct. 21, 1977): p. 64.
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External links

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References