''Marked Woman'' is a 1937 American dramatic

crime film Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine ...

directed by

Lloyd Bacon Lloyd Francis Bacon (December 4, 1889 – November 15, 1955) was an American screen, stage and vaudeville actor and film director. As a director he made films in virtually all genres, including westerns, musicals, comedies, gangster films, an ...

and starring

Bette Davis Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis (; April 5, 1908 – October 6, 1989) was an American actress with a career spanning more than 50 years and 100 acting credits. She was noted for playing unsympathetic, sardonic characters, and was famous for her pe ...

and

Humphrey Bogart Humphrey DeForest Bogart (; December 25, 1899 – January 14, 1957), nicknamed Bogie, was an American film and stage actor. His performances in Classical Hollywood cinema films made him an American cultural icon. In 1999, the American Film In ...

, with featured performances by

Lola Lane Lola Lane (born Dorothy Mullican; May 21, 1906 – June 22, 1981) was an American actress and one of the Lane Sisters with her sisters Leota, Rosemary, and Priscilla Lane. She appeared on Broadway and in films from the 1920s to 1940s. Early yea ...

Isabel Jewell Isabel Jewell (July 19, 1907 – April 5, 1972) was an American actress who rose to prominence in the 1930s and early 1940s. Some of her more famous films were '' Ceiling Zero'', ''Marked Woman'', ''A Tale of Two Cities'', and ''Gone with t ...

Rosalind Marquis Rosalind Marquis (September 11, 1915 – June 12, 2006) was an American actress. Early life and career She was born Rosalind Saindon on 11 September 1915 in Chicago. She was the sixth of eight children of Leopold Saindon, an usher of modest ...

Mayo Methot Mayo Jane Methot (March 3, 1904 – June 9, 1951) was an American film and stage actress. She appeared in over 30 films, as well as in various Broadway productions, though she attracted significant media attention for her tempestuous marriage t ...

Jane Bryan Jane Bryan (born Jane O'Brien, June 11, 1918 – April 8, 2009) was an American actress groomed by Warner Bros. to become one of its leading ladies but she chose to retire from acting in 1940 at age 22, after which she became a philanthropist an ...

Eduardo Ciannelli Eduardo Ciannelli (30 August 1888 – 8 October 1969), was an Italian baritone and character actor with a long career in American films, mostly playing gangsters and criminals. He was sometimes credited as Edward Ciannelli. Early life Ciannelli ...

and

Allen Jenkins Allen Curtis Jenkins (born Alfred McGonegal; April 9, 1900 – July 20, 1974) was an American character actor and singer who worked on stage, film, and television. Life and career Jenkins was born on Staten Island, New York, on April 9, 190 ...

. Set in the underworld 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 ...

, ''Marked Woman'' tells the story of a woman who dares to stand up to one of the city's most powerful

gangster A gangster is a criminal who is a member of a gang. Most gangs are considered to be part of organized crime. Gangsters are also called mobsters, a term derived from ''mob'' and the suffix '' -ster''. Gangs provide a level of organization and ...

s. The film was a major success for

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...

and one of Davis' most important early pictures. She had recently filed a lawsuit against the studio, partly because of the inferior quality of roles that she was expected to play. Although she lost the lawsuit, she garnered considerable press coverage, and ''Marked Woman'' was her first film upon returning to Hollywood. She was reported to be pleased with the script and the dramatic possibilities that it afforded her.

Jack L. Warner Jack Leonard Warner (born Jacob Warner; August 2, 1892 – September 9, 1978) was a Canadian-American film executive, who was the president and driving force behind the Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, California. Warner's career spanned some ...

was said to be equally pleased by the public's reaction in favor of Davis, which he predicted would increase the appeal and profitability of her films. Costars Humphrey Bogart and Mayo Methot met on the set of ''Marked Woman'' and were married in 1938.

Background

Despite a disclaimer at the start of the film that asserts that the story is fictitious, ''Marked Woman'' is loosely based on the real-life crime-fighting exploits of

Thomas E. Dewey Thomas Edmund Dewey (March 24, 1902 – March 16, 1971) was an American lawyer, prosecutor, and politician who served as the 47th governor of New York from 1943 to 1954. He was the Republican candidate for president in 1944 and 1948: although ...

, a

district attorney who became a national celebrity in the 1930s because of his fight against organized crime in New York City. Dewey indicted and convicted several prominent gangsters, and his greatest achievement was the conviction of

Lucky Luciano Charles "Lucky" Luciano (, ; born Salvatore Lucania ; November 24, 1897 – January 26, 1962) was an Italian-born gangster who operated mainly in the United States. Luciano started his criminal career in the Five Points gang and was instrumenta ...

, the organized crime boss of the entire city. Dewey used the testimony of numerous

call girls A call girl or female escort is a sex worker who (unlike a street walker) does not display her profession to the general public, nor does she usually work in an institution like a brothel, although she may be employed by an escort agency.

and madams to convict Luciano of running one of the largest prostitution rings in American history. Hollywood studios produced several films about Dewey's exploits, with ''Marked Woman'' among the most prominent. Humphrey Bogart's character David Graham is based on Dewey, who went on to twice become the Republican presidential nominee in the 1940s. Warner Bros. purchased the rights from a ''Liberty'' series on Luciano but was forced to make alterations to the story because of

censorship Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governments ...

concerns, such as changing the women's profession from that of

prostitute Prostitution is the business or practice of engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, non-penet ...

to nightclub hostess.

Plot

1937 - Hamilton Theater Ad - 28 Jul MC - Allentown PA

The notorious underworld czar Johnny Vanning becomes the owner of a gaudy New York night club and renames it Club Intimate. He exploits and mistreats the club's

bar girl A bargirl is a woman who is paid to entertain patrons in a bar, either individually or, in some cases, as a performer. The exact nature of the entertainment varies widely from place to place; depending on the venue this can be individual enterta ...

s—Mary, Gabby, Emmy Lou, Florrie, and Estelle—in order to ensure their loyalty and obedience. As part of her job, Mary entices a man into betting and losing more money than he can afford. On the way home, he confides in her that he does not have the money to repay the gambling debt. He feels that it is all a game, but Mary warns him that he is in real danger and must leave town immediately. She is distressed, but not surprised, to learn soon after that the man has been murdered by two of Vanning's henchmen. District Attorney David Graham brings Vanning to trial, feeling that he has a strong case. Mary testifies against them, but Vanning has an airtight alibi concocted for them, and further damages her reputation, so the jury rules they were innocent. Graham believes that Mary lied to him, and she leaves fearing Vanning's retribution. Mary's younger sister Betty visits for a football game. Unaware of the dangerous situation that she has entered, Betty attends a party at Vanning's club with Mary's roommate Emmy Lou. She meets Vanning's friend Bob Crandall, and after dancing with him, returns to the women's apartment. Mary admonishes her to not to go back to the party, but Betty does it anyway. At the party Betty meets Crandall again, and he tries to get her to go with him. She resists, but Vanning is enraged and slaps her, causing her to tumble down a flight of stairs to her death. Vanning disposes of her corpse in the river. Mary is panicked that Betty hasn't returned from the party, and threatens to testify against Vanning, but his thugs beat her and scar her face, cutting a cross onto her cheek. Her resolve to testify against Vanning is only strengthened. Aware that they can only be free from Vanning if they stand against him, the other women also agree to testify. They implicate Vanning, breaking up his vice ring. As Graham is congratulated by the press, the five girls walk off into the foggy night.

Cast

Mayo Methot and Bette Davis - Marked Woman

as Mary Dwight Strauber *

as District Attorney David Graham *

as Dorothy "Gabby" Marvin *

as Emmy Lou Eagan *

as Johnny Vanning *

as Florrie Liggett *

as Estelle Porter *

as Betty Strauber *

as Louie *

John Litel John Beach Litel (December 30, 1892 – February 3, 1972) was an American film and television actor. Early life Litel was born in Albany, Wisconsin. During World War I, he enlisted in the French Army and was twice decorated for bravery. Ba ...

as Gordon, Vanning's lawyer *

Ben Welden Ben Welden (born Benjamin Weinblatt; June 12, 1901 – October 17, 1997) was an American character actor who played a wide variety of Damon Runyon-type gangsters in various movies and television shows. Early years Welden was born in Toledo, Oh ...

as Charlie Delaney *Damian O'Flynn as Ralph Krawford *

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 Arthur Sheldon *

Raymond Hatton Raymond William Hatton (July 7, 1887 – October 21, 1971) was an American film actor who appeared in almost 500 motion pictures. Biography Hatton was born in Red Oak, Iowa. His physician father steered him toward a career in medicine. Howev ...

as Vanning's Lawyer *Carlos San Martín as Head Waiter * William B. Davidson as Bob Crandall *

Kenneth Harlan Kenneth Daniel Harlan (July 26, 1895 – March 6, 1967) was an American actor of the silent film era, playing mostly romantic leads or adventurer types. Early life Harlan was born in Boston, Massachusetts, the son of George W. Harlan and ac ...

as Eddie, a Sugar Daddy *Robert Strange as George Beler *Archie Robbins as Bell Captain (credited as James Robbins) *Arthur Ayelsworth as Sheriff John Truble * John Sheehan as Vincent *Sam Wren as Mac *

Edwin Stanley Edwin Stanley (November 22, 1880 – December 25, 1944), was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 230 films between 1916 and 1946. He was born in Chicago, Illinois and died in Hollywood, California. On Broadway, Stanley appear ...

as Detective Casey (credited as playing "Ferguson") Uncredited Cast *Alan Davis as Henchman *Allen Mathews as Henchman *

Guy Usher James Guy Usher (May 9, 1883 – June 16, 1944) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 190 films between 1932 and 1943. Born in Mason City, Iowa, Usher acted on stage before venturing into films. Billed as James Guy Usher, h ...

as Detective Ferguson *Gordon Hart as Judge at 1st trial *

Pierre Watkin Pierre Frank Watkin (December 29, 1887 – February 3, 1960) was an American character actor best known for playing distinguished authority figures throughout the Golden Age of Hollywood. He is best remembered for his roles of Mr. Skinner the b ...

as Judge at 2nd trial *Herman Marks as Joe *

Ralph Dunn Ralph Dunn (May 23, 1900 – February 19, 1968) was an American film, television, and stage actor. Early years Dunn was born in Titusville, Pennsylvania. His father was a veterinarian for the U.S. Army during World War I, and his mother ...

as Court Clerk at 1st trial ;Cast notes *Eduardo Ciannelli bears a physical resemblance to

. *Hymie Marks, who played the bit part of a gangster named Joe in the film, attracted the attention of executive producer

Hal B. Wallis Harold Brent Wallis (born Aaron Blum Wolowicz; October 19, 1898 – October 5, 1986) was an American film producer. He is best known for producing '' Casablanca'' (1942), '' The Adventures of Robin Hood'' (1938), and ''True Grit'' (1969), along ...

, who felt that he did not look menacing enough, despite the fact that Marks was a former gangster and henchman of Lucky Luciano and had been specifically cast by director

because of this connection.Landazuri, Margarit
"Marked Woman" (TCM article)
Retrieved September 8, 2022. *Warner Bros. had originally cast

Jane Wyman Jane Wyman ( ; born Sarah Jane Mayfield; January 5, 1917 – September 10, 2007)"Actress, P ...

as Florrie.

Production

Because the

Motion Picture Production Code The Motion Picture Production Code was a set of industry guidelines for the self-censorship of content that was applied to most motion pictures released by major studios in the United States from 1934 to 1968. It is also popularly known as the ...

prohibited plots involving brothels or prostitution, the prostitutes in the original ''Liberty'' series were changed to nightclub hostesses in the screenplay. Vanning's racket became illegal gambling rather than running a prostitution ring, and the crime became a murder. ''Marked Woman'' entered production on December 9, 1936 at the Warner Bros. studios in Burbank under the working title ''The Men Behind''.TC
Notes
/ref> Director

Michael Curtiz Michael Curtiz ( ; born Manó Kaminer; since 1905 Mihály Kertész; hu, Kertész Mihály; December 24, 1886 April 10, 1962) was a Hungarian-American film director, recognized as one of the most prolific directors in history. He directed cla ...

substituted for

while Bacon was on his honeymoon. Bette Davis was unhappy with the minimal bandaging that had been used for her hospital-room scene, so on her lunch break she drove to her personal doctor, described the injuries from the script and asked him bandage her accordingly. When she returned to the studio, a guard at the gate saw her bandages and called executive producer

to tell him that Davis had been in an accident. Warner Bros. rereleased ''Marked Woman'' in 1947.

Reception

Writing for '' Night and Day'' in 1937,

Graham Greene Henry Graham Greene (2 October 1904 – 3 April 1991) was an English writer and journalist regarded by many as one of the leading English novelists of the 20th century. Combining literary acclaim with widespread popularity, Greene acquir ...

offered a positive review, noting that as a noir film "it's been done before, of course, ..but it has never been done better than in some of these scenes." Greene praised Ciannelli, who was able to "convey not only corruption but the sadness of corruption," but Green expressed disappointment with Davis' acting, which he claimed "plugs the emotions with dreadful abandonment." The film is ranked on

review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...

website

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

at 100% based on reviews by five critics and with an average ranking of 6.5/10.

Awards and honors

Bette Davis won the

Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival he ...

Volpi Cup The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival he ...

for Best Actress in 1937. Director

was nominated for the 1937 Mussolini Cup.IMD
Awards
/ref>

Notes

External links

* * * *
LIFE 19 Apr 1937 - Movie of the Week ''Marked Woman''
{{Robert Rossen 1937 crime drama films American black-and-white films American crime drama films Films directed by Lloyd Bacon Films directed by Michael Curtiz Films scored by David Raksin Films with screenplays by Robert Rossen Warner Bros. films 1930s American films Films scored by Bernhard Kaun Films set in Manhattan 1930s English-language films