''The Last Mile'' is a
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 Stre ...
play by
John Wexley that ran for 289 performances from February 13, 1930, to October 1930 at the
Sam H. Harris Theatre. It was produced by
Herman Shumlin
Herman Shumlin (December 6, 1898, Atwood, Colorado – June 4, 1979, New York City) was a prolific Broadway theatrical director and theatrical producer beginning in 1927 with the play ''Celebrity'' and continuing through 1974 with a short run of ...
and staged by
Chester Erskine. It is set in the
death row
Death row, also known as condemned row, is a place in a prison that houses inmates awaiting execution after being convicted of a capital crime and sentenced to death. The term is also used figuratively to describe the state of awaiting execution ( ...
wing of a prison. The lead role of John "Killer" Mears was first played by
Spencer Tracy
Spencer Bonaventure Tracy (April 5, 1900 – June 10, 1967) was an American actor. He was known for his natural performing style and versatility. One of the major stars of Hollywood's Golden Age, Tracy was the first actor to win two cons ...
, and it was the role that brought him to the attention of Hollywood. It was later played for a time by
Clark Gable
William Clark Gable (February 1, 1901November 16, 1960) was an American film actor, often referred to as "The King of Hollywood". He had roles in more than 60 motion pictures in multiple genres during a career that lasted 37 years, three decades ...
on tour. The play was adapted into a
1932 film starring
Preston Foster
Preston Stratton Foster (August 24, 1900 – July 14, 1970), was an American actor of stage, film, radio, and television, whose career spanned nearly four decades. He also had a career as a vocalist.
Early life
Born in Ocean City, New Jersey ...
and into a
1959 film starring
Mickey Rooney
Mickey Rooney (born Joseph Yule Jr.; other pseudonym Mickey Maguire; September 23, 1920 – April 6, 2014) was an American actor. In a career spanning nine decades, he appeared in more than 300 films and was among the last surviving stars of the ...
.
Cast
*
Howard Phillips as Fred Mayor
*
James Bell as Richard Walters
* Hale Norcross as "Red" Kirby
*
Ernest Whitman
Ernest Whitman (February 21, 1893 - August 5, 1954) was an American stage and screen actor. He was also billed in some Broadway plays as Ernest R. Whitman.
Early years
Whitman was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and was educated at Tuskegee Ins ...
as Vincent Jackson
* George Leach as Eddie Werner
*
Don Costello as Drake
*
Spencer Tracy
Spencer Bonaventure Tracy (April 5, 1900 – June 10, 1967) was an American actor. He was known for his natural performing style and versatility. One of the major stars of Hollywood's Golden Age, Tracy was the first actor to win two cons ...
as John Mears
* Herbert Heywood as O'Flaherty
* Orville Harris as Peddie
* Ralph Theodore as Principal Keeper Callahan
* Richard Abbott as Harris
*
Joseph Calleia
Joseph Calleia ( ; born Joseph Alexander Caesar Herstall Vincent Calleja, August 4, 1897 – October 31, 1975) was a Maltese-born American actor and singer on the stage and in films, radio and television.
After serving in the British Transport ...
as Tom D'Amoro
*
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.
Caree ...
as Father O'Connors
* Clarence Chase as Evangelist
* Bruce MacFarlane as Frost
* Albert West as Brooks
File:The-Last-Mile-1930-B.jpg, Howard Phillips and Spencer Tracy
Spencer Bonaventure Tracy (April 5, 1900 – June 10, 1967) was an American actor. He was known for his natural performing style and versatility. One of the major stars of Hollywood's Golden Age, Tracy was the first actor to win two cons ...
in ''The Last Mile''
File:Ernest Whitman as Vincent Jackson The Last Mile 1930.JPG, Ernest Whitman
Ernest Whitman (February 21, 1893 - August 5, 1954) was an American stage and screen actor. He was also billed in some Broadway plays as Ernest R. Whitman.
Early years
Whitman was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and was educated at Tuskegee Ins ...
in ''The Last Mile''
Adaptations
''The Last Mile'' was adapted for a
1932 feature film directed by
Samuel Bischoff. The film took a number of liberties with the original story, toning down its grim realism and shifting the emphasis from Killer Mears (
Preston Foster
Preston Stratton Foster (August 24, 1900 – July 14, 1970), was an American actor of stage, film, radio, and television, whose career spanned nearly four decades. He also had a career as a vocalist.
Early life
Born in Ocean City, New Jersey ...
) to Richard Walters (Howard Phillips).
A
1959 adaptation starring
Mickey Rooney
Mickey Rooney (born Joseph Yule Jr.; other pseudonym Mickey Maguire; September 23, 1920 – April 6, 2014) was an American actor. In a career spanning nine decades, he appeared in more than 300 films and was among the last surviving stars of the ...
as Mears was directed by
Howard W. Koch
Howard Winchel Koch (April 11, 1916 – February 16, 2001) was an American producer and director of film and television.
Life and career
Koch was born in New York City, the son of Beatrice (Winchel) and William Jacob Koch. His family was Jewish ...
.
References
External links
*
1930 plays
American plays adapted into films
Plays set in Oklahoma
{{1930s-play-stub