Fugitive Lovers
Brief Synopsis
A cross-country bus trip brings together a chorus girl and an escaped convict.
Cast & Crew
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Richard Boleslavsky
Director
Robert Montgomery
[Paul] Porter, [also known as Stephen Blaine]
Madge Evans
Letty [Morris]
Ted Healy
[Hector] Withington, [Jr.]
Nat Pendleton
"Legs" [Caffee]
C. Henry Gordon
Daly
Film Details
Also Known As
Free, White and Desperate, Overland Bus, Transcontinental Bus
Genre
Romance
Comedy
Drama
Release Date
Jan
5,
1934
Premiere Information
not available
Production Company
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Corp.
Distribution Company
Loew's Inc.
Country
United States
Technical Specs
Duration
1h 22m
Sound
Mono (Western Electric Sound System)
Color
Black and White
Theatrical Aspect Ratio
1.37 : 1
Film Length
9 reels
Synopsis
To escape the amorous attentions of gangster "Legs" Caffee, who wants to take her to Atlantic City, New York chorus girl Letty Morris borrows cash from her fellow chorines and makes for a Los Angeles-bound bus. Before she boards, however, she is intercepted by the determined Legs, who buys a ticket and sits next to her on the bus. That night, the bus becomes caught in the crossfire of a prison escape, and the driver is shot in the arm. In the confusion of the escape, convict Paul Porter, who is serving time on a controversial manslaughter charge, flees from the prison compound, uses a stolen car to stop the bus on the highway and jumps onto the bus's luggage rack. As police bulletins are sent across the country, Paul then sneaks a suit from the suitcase of Hector Withington, Jr. and, posing as a bus passenger named Stephen Blaine, "borrows" Letty's luggage to board the bus in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. When Legs sees Paul talking to Letty at the station, he decides to continue his pursuit and jealously watches her attentions to Paul. The next day, the bus is stopped by a group of policemen, who arrest two passengers wanted for forgery. Seeing Paul's nervousness around the police, Legs becomes suspicious and soon deduces his identity and his theft of Withington's suit. When Withington then leaves the bus outside of Pittsburgh, Legs advises Paul to take off before Withington finds his convict uniform in his suitcase. After a sudden farewell to Letty, Paul flees the bus and, moments before the police arrive, jumps a passing freight train. At the St. Louis station, Letty is surprised by the re-appearance of Paul, who confesses his love. When Legs is then momentarily distracted, Letty sneaks away and checks into a hotel with Paul. Legs follows her there, however, and after threatening to reveal Paul's whereabouts to the police, coerces her to agree to leave with him. Through a bellboy, Letty sneaks a warning note to Paul, who escapes just ahead of the police. When questioned by the police, Legs, moved by Letty's tears, buys time for Paul by claiming that he is the fugitive. Later Letty is forced to return to the bus by police detective Daly, who assumes that she has made rendezvous plans with Paul. Unknown to Daly, Paul is following the bus in a stolen car, and when the trip is delayed by a blizzard, he and Letty escape in the abandoned bus. While fleeing, however, Letty and Paul come upon a half-frozen child, who tells them that his school bus has been stranded. Sacrificing his own chance at freedom, Paul helps Letty rescue a busload of terrified children and sets out in the blizzard to find Tony, a last stray. The next morning, the children and Letty are dug out by a group of relieved parents, and Paul is found by police huddled next to Tony. Although Paul is re-arrested by Daly, he soon receives a full pardon for his unselfish bravery and faces a happy future with Letty.
Director
Richard Boleslavsky
Director
Cast
Robert Montgomery
[Paul] Porter, [also known as Stephen Blaine]
Madge Evans
Letty [Morris]
Ted Healy
[Hector] Withington, [Jr.]
Nat Pendleton
"Legs" [Caffee]
C. Henry Gordon
Daly
Ruth Selwyn
Babe [Callahan]
Larry Fine
Moe Howard
Jerry Howard
Three Julians [Bill, Jabez and PeeWee]
James Burke
Joe Cobb
Akim Tamiroff
Deaf mute
Fred Toones
Man driving car
Sam Mcdaniel
Station attendant
Walter Brennan
Bus company employee
Delmar Watson
Tommy
Crew
Arnold Gillespie
Art Director
Frances Goodrich
Screenwriter
William S. Gray
Film Editor
Albert Hackett
Screenwriter
Lucien Hubbard
Associate Producer
Ferdinand Reyher
Original Screenplay story
George B. Seitz
Screenwriter
Harry Sharrock
Assistant Director
Douglas Shearer
Recording Director
William N. Sparks
Mixer
Ted Tetzlaff
Photography
Frank Wead
Original Screenplay story
Edwin B. Willis
Interior Decorator
Film Details
Also Known As
Free, White and Desperate, Overland Bus, Transcontinental Bus
Genre
Romance
Comedy
Drama
Release Date
Jan
5,
1934
Premiere Information
not available
Production Company
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Corp.
Distribution Company
Loew's Inc.
Country
United States
Technical Specs
Duration
1h 22m
Sound
Mono (Western Electric Sound System)
Color
Black and White
Theatrical Aspect Ratio
1.37 : 1
Film Length
9 reels
Articles
Fugitive Lovers
A cross-country bus trip brings together a chorus girl and an escaped convict.
Fugitive Lovers
A cross-country bus trip brings together a chorus girl and an escaped convict.
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
The working titles of this film were Overland Bus, Transcontinental Bus and Free, White and Desperate. A Film Daily news item adds Gladys Hulette to the cast, but her participation in the final film has not been determined. Although a Hollywood Reporter production news item lists Stepin Fetchit as a cast member, he was not spotted in the viewed print. According to an October 1933 Hollywood Reporter news item, M-G-M shot a "large portion of the film" on "the road," using two buses as mobile sets.
