''Wrecking Crew'' is a 1942 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 Frank McDonald and starring

Richard Arlen Richard Arlen (born Sylvanus Richard Mattimore, September 1, 1899 – March 28, 1976) was an American actor of film and television. Biography Born in St. Paul, Minnesota, Arlen attended the University of Pennsylvania. He served in Canada as a ...

Jean Parker Jean Parker (born Lois May Green; August 11, 1915 – November 30, 2005) was an American film and stage actress. A native of Montana, indigent during the Great Depression, she was adopted by a family in Pasadena, California at age ten. She init ...

, and

Chester Morris John Chester Brooks Morris (February 16, 1901 – September 11, 1970) was an American stage, film, television, and radio actor. He had some prestigious film roles early in his career, and received an Academy Award nomination for ''Alibi'' ( ...

.DRAMA: Unique Stories Again Prevail in Filmdom Schallert, Edwin. Los Angeles Times 10 Jan 1942: 7. The film was something of an "all star" production for

Pine-Thomas Productions Pine-Thomas Productions was a prolific B-picture unit of Paramount Pictures from 1940–1957, producing 81 films. Co-producers William H. Pine (February 15, 1896 – April 29, 1955) and William C. Thomas (August 11, 1903 – April 2, 1984) were kno ...

at the time because it united their two male stars, Arlen and Morris, and biggest female star, Parker.DRAMA Los Angeles Times 21 Jan 1942: 11.

Plot

When the O'Glendy Wrecking Company is contracted to demolish an old hotel, "cannonballer" Duke Mason shows up at the worksite, having been hired by boss Mike O'Glendy. Wrecker Tom Kemp accuses Duke of jinxing every project on which he works, and after foreman Matt Carney breaks up the ensuing fistfight, he assigns Duke, an arrogant risk-taker, to work with him on the building's high watertower. While aloft, Matt slips and desperately clings to the edge of the tower, and Duke casually jokes with him before pulling him to safety. Later, Mike, who took over the business after her husband's death, tells Matt that she has put up a bond to save the company, and that they only have four weeks to bring down the twelve-story building. Wrecker Joe Poska then hosts a christening party after his wife Martha gives birth to a baby boy, but the wreckers have to leave suddenly to reinforce a section of unstable wall on the top of the hotel. The work goes smoothly until Joe accidentally falls to his death down the refuse chute while helping Duke dump a load of bricks. Joe's death reinforces Kemp's theory about the jinx, and Duke blames himself. While walking disconsolately on the street, Duke donates money to a missionary, who predicts that he will lighten someone's burden. Soon after, Duke rescues Peggy Starr when she is thrown out of a café for trying to steal money for food, then attempts to jump into the river. Duke introduces Peggy to his friends as his cousin, and attributes his new good luck to her. After Matt falls for Peggy, both he and Duke convince Mike to hire her as a secretary. While work on the building continues, Peggy dates both Duke and Matt. Duke is promoted to the position of night foreman so that they can speed up demolition by maintaining two shifts. Kemp quits to avoid working with Duke, and while there are many near misses, no one is injured in an accident, convincing Duke that Peggy has broken his jinx. One day after breaking through a wall, Duke finds a cache of hidden money. Duke shares the money with his helper and his pal, Freddy Bunce, who needs money for arm surgery which would help him return to his true vocation as a baseball pitcher. Duke also generously gives Martha some money, saying that it is a donation from the night crew. Later, Matt proposes to Peggy, but she is hesitant to respond because she is torn between him and Duke. One night, Matt catches Duke and Freddy showing off for an audience of women on the sidewalk, and warns Duke to put away the wrecking ball for which Duke is nicknamed. Duke secures the ball, but when he later refuses to rehire Kemp because he is drunk, Kemp angrily releases it. The runaway "cannonball" severely injures a worker, Emil, and causes structural damage to the building, resulting in the crew's having to reinforce the building before they can continue to take it down floor by floor. After Duke is blamed for the accident and threatens to quit, he asks Peggy to marry him. Convinced that Duke is acting irresponsibly, Peggy rejects him, prompting Duke to pick a fight with Matt, during which Mike learns that Peggy is not really his cousin. Mike breaks up the fight as a section of the hotel wall collapses, rendering the building unstable again. Duke leaves angrily while Matt and the crew try to stabilize the structure. As Matt climbs onto an unsteady girder, a hospital worker informs Mike that after regaining consciousness, Emil named Kemp as being responsible for his injury. Mike tries to call Duke, but he has already moved out of his boardinghouse. Duke again encounters the missionary, who advises him never to falter in helping a friend. Inspired by the advice, Duke returns to the worksite just as a supporting wall collapses and Matt is trapped under a girder. Duke climbs up to save Matt, but is then trapped with his friend when another section of the wall collapses. They are finally saved by Freddy, who, although recovering from his operation, risks his baseball career to throw them a lifeline. Some time later, Matt and Peggy begin their honeymoon at the

Empire State Building The Empire State Building is a 102-story Art Deco skyscraper in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. The building was designed by Shreve, Lamb & Harmon and built from 1930 to 1931. Its name is derived from "Empire State", the nickname of the st ...

, and Duke nearly falls off while he is kidding around with Mike.

Cast

as Matt Carney *

as Duke Mason *

as Peggy Starr *

Joe Sawyer Joe Sawyer (born Joseph Sauers, August 29, 1906 – April 21, 1982) was a Canadian film actor. He appeared in more than 200 films between 1927 and 1962, and was sometimes billed under his birth name. Early life Sawyer was born August 29, 1 ...

as Fred Bunce *

Esther Dale Esther Dale (November 10, 1885 – July 23, 1961) was an American actress of the stage and screen. Early years Dale was born in Beaufort, South Carolina. She attended Leland and Gray Seminary in Townshend, Vermont. In Berlin, Germany, she stud ...

as Mike O'Glendy *

Alexander Granach Alexander Granach (April 18, 1890 – March 14, 1945) was a German-Austrian actor in the 1920s and 1930s who emigrated to the United States in 1938. Life and career Granach was born Schaje Granoch in Werbowitz (Wierzbowce/Werbiwci) (Austri ...

as Joe Poska *

Evelyn Brent Evelyn Brent (born Mary Elizabeth Riggs; October 20, 1895 – June 4, 1975) was an American film and stage actress. Early life Brent was born in Tampa, Florida, and known as Betty. When she was age 10, her mother Eleanor (née. Warner) died, ...

as Martha Poska * Billy Nelson as Tom Kemp * William Hall as Red *Frank Melton as Pete * Fred Sherman as Emil *

Alec Craig Alexander Younger Craig (30 March 1884 – 25 June 1945) was a Scottish-born American character actor, particularly known for his roles in ''Mutiny on the Bounty'' (1935) and ''National Velvet'' (1944). He was particularly known for portraying ...

as Charlie *

Nigel De Brulier Nigel De Brulier (born Francis George Packer; 8 August 1877 – 30 January 1948) was an English stage and film actor who began his career in the United Kingdom before relocating to the United States. Biography De Brulier was born in Frenchay, a ...

as Father Zachary *

Byron Foulger Byron Kay Foulger (August 27, 1898 – April 4, 1970) was an American character actor who over a 50-year career performed in hundreds of stage, film, and television productions. Early years Born in Ogden, Utah, Byron was the second of four ...

as Mission Worker

Production

The title of the original story by the team of Robert Shannon and Mauri Grashin was ''Alley Cat.'' Paramount announced in November 1941 that they had purchased the story as a vehicle for Chester Morris. It was then known as ''Wreckage Crew''. The film was one of a series of movies made by

about people working in tough, outdoor professions, others being ''Wildcat'' (oil drilling) and ''Alaska Highway'' (highway construction). Writer Richard Murphy researched the story by following wreckers.

Arline Judge Margaret Arline Judge (February 21, 1912 – February 7, 1974) was an American actress singer who worked mostly in low-budget B movies, but gained some fame for habitually marrying. Early years Arline Judge was born in Bridgeport, Connecti ...

and Arthur Hunnicut who had just made ''Wildcat'' for Pine-Thomas were originally announced in the cast along with Morris, Parker and Arlen. Grant Withers was announced for the villain. Judge, Hunnicut and Withers did not appear in the final film. Filming began February 1942. The fight scene between Arlen and Morris took nine hours to rehearse and film. Bill Thomas did some second unit filming of buildings being wrecked in New York because there was not enough of them in Los Angeles.

References

External links

*
''The Wrecking Crew''
at

TCMDB Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie-oriented pay-TV network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcasting campus in the Midtown business district of Atl ...

''Wrecking Crew''
at BFI *
Review
at ''Variety'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Wrecking Crew 1942 films 1942 romantic drama films 1940s action adventure films 1940s English-language films American black-and-white films Films directed by Frank McDonald Films scored by Freddie Rich American romantic drama films American action adventure films Paramount Pictures films 1940s American films