Private Jones
Cast & Crew
Russell Mack
Lee Tracy
Gloria Stuart
Donald Cook
Emma Dunn
Shirley Grey
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
After America enters World War I, young William "Bill" Jones tries to avoid military service by telling the draft board that he is the sole supporter of his family and is employed by businessman Roger Winthrop, his sister Helen's boss. While waiting to see Winthrop at his office, Bill meets John Gregg, a recent army enlistee who, in contrast to Bill, believes wholeheartedly in the righteousness of the war effort. Bill, whose sickly mother has begged him not to enlist, lies to Gregg about joining the navy, then asks Winthrop to corroborate his draft board story. However, because he is having an illicit affair with Helen, Winthrop is eager to rid himself of Bill and informs the draft board of his lie. After Bill is claimed by the draft, his beloved mother, whose husband was killed in the Spanish-American War, is shocked into a heart attack and dies. Filled with anger and despair, Bill is shipped to France for military training and there meets Mary Parker, a sympathetic "Doughnut Dolly." Bill also encounters Gregg, now the lieutenant in charge of his platoon, who immediately gives him kitchen detail for violating quarantine rules. Although Bill receives encouragement and counseling from Mary, he resists the regimentation of army life and repeatedly fights with his fellow soldiers and with Gregg. Just before his unit is to be shipped to the front, Bill, learning that Mary has wed Gregg, quarrels bitterly with him. Determined to see Bill at the front, Gregg refuses to make an arrest, even after the private knocks him down with a punch. Bill's platoon then heads into a raging battle, during which Gregg's compass is lost, and the unit becomes stranded. To determine the unit's location, Gregg asks for volunteers to survey the battlefield and all but forces Bill to go out with him. While they are scouting the area, Gregg and Bill are captured and interrogated by the Germans. After the Germans leave to launch a new attack on the Americans, Gregg attempts an escape from the poorly guarded post and is aided by a reluctant Bill. In spite of his fears, Bill helps Gregg alert the Americans about the Germans' attack and then, as chemical bombs drop around them, saves his rival by forcing him to put on the one gas mask in their possession. With only a handkerchief to protect him, a suddenly matured Bill makes his way through the enemy lines and later receives a medal for his brave acts.
Director
Russell Mack
Cast
Lee Tracy
Gloria Stuart
Donald Cook
Emma Dunn
Shirley Grey
Frank Mchugh
Russell Gleason
Walter Catlett
Burton Churchill
William Von Brinken
Al Hill
Hans Von Twardowski
Roland Varno
Richard Carle
Ethel Clayton
Richard Cramer
Ferdinand Schumann-heink
Wallis Clark
Dick Winslow
Ralph Lewis
Edward Tiel
Crew
Robert Carlisle
Prescott Chaplin
Bella Cohen
James Drought
George Jessel
Gilbert Kurland
Carl Laemmle Jr.
Carl Laemmle
Carl Laemmle
Mickey Marigold
John Martin
William N. Robson
Richard Schayer
Samuel Spewack
Charles Stumar
George Trafton
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
Although this film was not viewed, the above credits and plot summary were taken from a studio cutting continuity. The continuity contained two endings. In the first ending, "Bill" dies on the battlefield after saving "Gregg's" life. According to New York Times, the "happy" ending, in which "Bill" survives and receives a medal, was used in at least some of the release prints. According to Variety, outtakes from All Quiet on the Western Front, a 1930 Universal film, were used in this picture. Although Variety lists the post-preview running time as 70 minutes, this time is probably an error.
