''The Big Brain'' is a 1933 American

pre-Code Pre-Code Hollywood was the brief era in the 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 censorship guidelines, popularly known ...

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- ...

directed by

George Archainbaud George Archainbaud (May 7, 1890 – February 20, 1959) was a French-American film and television director. Biography In the beginning of his career he worked on stage as an actor and manager. He came to the United States in January 1914, and st ...

and written by Sy Bartlett and Warren Duff. The film stars George E. Stone, Phillips Holmes,

Fay Wray Vina Fay Wray (September 15, 1907 – August 8, 2004) was a Canadian/American actress best known for starring as Ann Darrow in the 1933 film ''King Kong''. Through an acting career that spanned nearly six decades, Wray attained international r ...

, Minna Gombell and

Lilian Bond Lilian Bond (January 18, 1908 – January 25, 1991) was an English-American actress based in the United States. Life and career Bond was born in London and made her first professional stage appearance at the age of 14 in the pantomime ''Dic ...

. The film was released on August 5, 1933, by

RKO Pictures RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, was an American film production and distribution company, one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Keith-Albee-Orph ...

Cast

* Phillips Holmes as Terry Van Sloan * George E. Stone as Max Werner *

as Cynthia Glennon * Minna Gombell as Margy *

as Dorothy Norton *

Reginald Owen John Reginald Owen (5 August 1887 – 5 November 1972) was a British actor. He was known for his many roles in British and American films and television programs. Career The son of Joseph and Frances Owen, Reginald Owen studied at Sir Herbert ...

as Lord Darlington *

Berton Churchill Berton Churchill (December 9, 1876 – October 10, 1940) was a Canadian stage and film actor. Early years Churchill was born in Toronto, Ontario. After his family moved to New York City, he graduated from high school there, studied law a ...

as Col. Higginbotham *Reginald Mason as Lord Latham * Sam Hardy as Slick Ryan *Charles McNaughton as Wallack *

Lucien Littlefield Lucien Littlefield (August 16, 1895 – June 4, 1960) was an American actor who achieved a long career from silent films to the television era. He was noted for his versatility, playing a wide range of roles and already portraying old men befor ...

as Justice of the Peace

Plot

A ruthless small time crook's rise from backroom bookie in a barber shop to that of high stakes international con artist. Max Werner gets rich as he moves from gambling to crooked stocks and bond dealing. Fleeing the authorities, he absconds to England where he continues his deceptions and setting up fake companies. Following a newspaper exposé of an accomplice, he double-crosses another and returns to America with his girlfriend, where a trap awaits him.

References

External links

* 1933 films American black-and-white films RKO Pictures films Films directed by George Archainbaud 1933 drama films American drama films 1930s English-language films 1930s American films {{1930s-drama-film-stub