By Violet LeVoit
Back Pay
Brief Synopsis
A small-town flirt jilts her soldier boyfriend, but changes her mind when he returns from the front a blind man.
Cast & Crew
Read More
William Seiter
Director
Corinne Griffith
Hester Bevins
Grant Withers
Gerald Smith
Montagu Love
Charles Wheeler
Hallam Cooley
Al Bloom
Vivian Oakland
Kitty
Film Details
Genre
Drama
Adaptation
Classic Hollywood
Release Date
Jun
1,
1930
Premiere Information
not available
Production Company
First National Pictures
Country
United States
Screenplay Information
Based on the short story "Back Pay" by Fannie Hurst in her book The Vertical City (New York, 1922).
Technical Specs
Duration
1h 17m
Sound
Mono
Color
Black and White
Theatrical Aspect Ratio
1.37 : 1
Film Length
5,672ft
(7 reels)
Synopsis
Hester Bevins, tiring of the humdrum existence of salesclerk in a smalltown department store and deaf to the proposal of bookkeeper Gerald Smith, flees to New York City with Al Bloom, a traveling salesman. There she travels the primrose path to luxury under the "protection" of Charles Wheeler; and though she renews her acquaintance with Gerald, she refuses his proposal because of her present situation. When Gerald loses his eyesight and suffers lung injury in the war, Hester goes to see him; and realizing she owes him something, she persuades Wheeler to agree to her marrying Gerald before he dies. Unexpectedly, she finds happiness and peace in the relationship; and after Gerald's death, she decides to leave Wheeler and return to work.
Director
William Seiter
Director
Cast
Corinne Griffith
Hester Bevins
Grant Withers
Gerald Smith
Montagu Love
Charles Wheeler
Hallam Cooley
Al Bloom
Vivian Oakland
Kitty
Geneva Mitchell
Babe
William Bailey
Editor
Virginia Sale
Wheeler's secretary
Dee Loretta
Aggie Simms
James Marcus
Judge
Louise Carver
Masseuse
Louise Beavers
Hester's maid
Crew
Film Details
Genre
Drama
Adaptation
Classic Hollywood
Release Date
Jun
1,
1930
Premiere Information
not available
Production Company
First National Pictures
Country
United States
Screenplay Information
Based on the short story "Back Pay" by Fannie Hurst in her book The Vertical City (New York, 1922).
Technical Specs
Duration
1h 17m
Sound
Mono
Color
Black and White
Theatrical Aspect Ratio
1.37 : 1
Film Length
5,672ft
(7 reels)
Articles
Back Pay (1930) - Back Pay
This very early sound picture shares hallmarks of other Pre-Code dramas about ambitious women yearning to break out of small circumstances by using sex as a tool: Hester (Corinne Griffith) wants more than her boring department store job, her dull boyfriend, and her suffocating small town life. When a traveling salesman offers a way into the big city, she takes it, becoming a wealthy man's "sweetheart". But learning her small town beau has suffered in the war prompts a change of heart. Griffith was one of the biggest stars of the silent era, the "Orchid Of The Screen" who had total control over director, co-star, and story at her studio First National. But the sound era began just as her contract ran out, and executives there drew up a new one taking away all her artistic control. Rather than sign, Griffith, a shrewd businesswoman, skipped town instead, making one more movie in England before giving up acting to make a fortune in real estate and writing. This, one of her last screen appearances, shows she could meet the demands of spoken dialogue, while still exhibiting the gift for emotive movement that originally made her a star.
By Violet LeVoit
By Violet LeVoit
Back Pay (1930) - Back Pay
This very early sound picture shares hallmarks of other Pre-Code dramas about ambitious women yearning to break out of small circumstances by using sex as a tool: Hester (Corinne Griffith) wants more than her boring department store job, her dull boyfriend, and her suffocating small town life. When a traveling salesman offers a way into the big city, she takes it, becoming a wealthy man's "sweetheart". But learning her small town beau has suffered in the war prompts a change of heart. Griffith was one of the biggest stars of the silent era, the "Orchid Of The Screen" who had total control over director, co-star, and story at her studio First National. But the sound era began just as her contract ran out, and executives there drew up a new one taking away all her artistic control. Rather than sign, Griffith, a shrewd businesswoman, skipped town instead, making one more movie in England before giving up acting to make a fortune in real estate and writing. This, one of her last screen appearances, shows she could meet the demands of spoken dialogue, while still exhibiting the gift for emotive movement that originally made her a star.
By Violet LeVoit
