''Rain or Shine'' is a 1930 American

pre-Code Pre-Code Hollywood was the brief era in the Cinema of the United States, American film industry between the widespread adoption of sound in film in 1929LaSalle (2002), p. 1. and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorshi ...

film directed by

Frank Capra Frank Russell Capra (born Francesco Rosario Capra; May 18, 1897 – September 3, 1991) was an Italian-born American film director, producer and writer who became the creative force behind some of the major award-winning films of the 1930s ...

and starring Joe Cook and

Louise Fazenda Louise Fazenda (June 17, 1895 – April 17, 1962) was an American film actress, appearing chiefly in silent comedy films. Early life Fazenda was born in her maternal grandparents' house in Lafayette, Indiana, the daughter of merchandise broke ...

. The film was adapted from a hit

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

musical of the same name and was originally planned as a full-scale musical. Due to the public backlash against musical films (beginning in the latter part of the summer of 1930), all musical numbers were discarded before release. This move proved to be prudent as the film was a box office success, continuing the streak of hits Capra directed for the young

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...

studio. The AFI Catalog of Feature Films:''Rain or Shine''
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Synopsis

A woman inherits her father's struggling travelling circus, and looks to the circus's manager, Smiley, to save the day when the performers conspire to strike during a performance.

Cast

* Joe Cook as Smiley Johnson *

as Frankie *

Joan Peers Joan Peers (August 19, 1909 – July 11, 1975) was an American stage and film actress. She enjoyed a brief spell as a Hollywood star and is perhaps best known for her role in Rouben Mamoulian's burlesque-set melodrama ''Applause'' in 1929.Miln ...

as Mary Rainey * William Collier Jr. as Bud Conway * Tom Howard as Amos K. Shrewsberry *Dave Chasen as Dave *

Alan Roscoe Alan Roscoe (born John Albert Rascoe; August 23, 1888 – March 8, 1933) was an American film actor of the silent and early talking film eras. He appeared in more than 100 films between 1915 and 1933. Roscoe was born John Albert Rascoe ...

as Dalton *

Adolph Milar Adolph Milar (1895–1950) was a Swiss-born film actor. He appeared in character roles in around sixty American films from 1919 to 1945, playing characters of a variety of nationalities.Biskupski p.43 His name is sometimes written as Adolf Milar. ...

as Foltz *

Clarence Muse Clarence Muse (October 14, 1889 – October 13, 1979) was an American actor, screenwriter, director, singer, and composer. He was the first African American to appear in a starring role in a film, 1929's ''Hearts in Dixie''. He acted for ...

as Nero *

Nella Walker Nella Walker (March 6, 1886 – March 22, 1971) was an American actress and vaudeville performer of the 1920s through the 1950s. Biography The daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Walker, she was born and raised in Chicago. In 1910, she marrie ...

as Mrs Conway *

Edward Martindel Edward Martindel (July 8, 1876 – May 4, 1955) was an American stage and film actor who appeared on Broadway and in more than 80 films between 1915 and 1946. Born in Hamilton, Ohio, he was the son of Dr. and Mrs. Frank Martindell. His s ...

as Mr Conway *

Nora Lane Nora Lane (September 12, 1905 – October 16, 1948) was an American film actress. She appeared in more than 80 films between 1927 and 1944. She committed suicide in 1948, one month after her husband died from a heart attack. She was 43. Sel ...

as Grace Conway *

Tyrell Davis Tyrell Davis (1902–1970) was a British film actor, Cambridge educated, who appeared on the West End and Broadway stage, as well as in British and American films. Filmography * '' Lucky in Love'' (1929) * ''Mother's Boy'' (1929) * ''His Glor ...

as Lord Hugo Gwynne

Preservation

The film survives intact and has been broadcast on television and cable. The

International Sound Version ''International Sound Version'' is a term for a film in which all dialogue is replaced with music and foreign inter-titles. It was a method used by movie studios during the early talkie period (1928-1931) to make sound films for foreign markets. T ...

of this film also survives. Both versions have been released on DVD.

References

External links

* * * 1930 films Circus films American films based on plays Films directed by Frank Capra Columbia Pictures films American black-and-white films American comedy-drama films 1930 comedy-drama films 1930s American films {{comedy-drama-film-stub