Angels with Broken Wings
Cast & Crew
Bernard Vorhaus
Binnie Barnes
Gilbert Roland
Mary Lee
Billy Gilbert
Jane Frazee
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
New York City couturier Charlotte Lord, a widow, prepares to marry businessman Guy Barton with the help of her daughters, Jane, Leni and Marilyn, and their two friends, Mary and Lois Wilson. Their plans are disrupted, however, when the U.S. Supreme Court invalidates Mexican "quick" divorces, and consequently Guy is still married to his ex-wife Sybil. Scheming Sybil then pressures Guy for more money, telling him that she will not divorce him unless he pays her $150,000. Determined to help Charlotte, the girls try to have Sybil adjudged insane by sending a psychiatrist, Dr. Hilary Fortesque, after her, but she thwarts the doctor and gets police protection to prevent more interference. Leni, Marilyn, Mary and Lois then enlist their friend Punchy, who plants a microphone in Sybil's hotel room in an effort to frighten her. They are discovered, however, and when Sybil learns that Charlotte is Leni and Marilyn's mother, she tells Guy that she will press charges against them unless she receives the money within a week. Punchy then tells the girls that they need to find Sybil a man who is richer than Guy, and they press Jane's boyfriend Steve, who is Mary and Lois' brother, into service. Taking the name "Don Pablo Vincente" from a cigar band, the girls transform Steve into a rich Argentinian cattle baron. The romance progresses rapidly as Sybil falls for Steve's blandishments, and when Guy learns of the relationship, he sues "Don Pablo" for alienation of affection. News of the suit reaches South America, where a real cattle baron named Don Pablo Vincente reads of his alleged adventures with great amusement. Attracted by the newspaper picture of Sybil, Don Pablo travels to New York City, where he hears the real story from Steve and the girls. Don Pablo wants to handle Sybil himself and meets her in the guise of a waiter. Sybil has him arrested for his persistant amorous attentions, but after Steve tells her that he is an impostor and she accidentally finds Don Pablo's passport, she bails Don Pablo out of jail and plays up to him. Thinking that Sybil really believes that he is a waiter, Don Pablo agrees to marry her after she finds out that it was only mail order Mexican divorces that were declared invalid, not ones such as hers and Guy's in which the parties were present. Steve tells Don Pablo that Sybil is aware of his identity, however, and Don Pablo decides to teach her a lesson. Just as the wedding ceremony is beginning, two men rush in and, stating that they are asylum attendants and that Don Pablo is an insane bigamist, carry Don Pablo away. The distraught Sybil is left alone while the "attendants" escort Don Pablo and the girls to the harbor, where Don Pablo boards a ship to return home. Also aboard are Guy and Charlotte, and Steve and Jane, who are embarking on their honeymoons. The girls wave goodbye and then begin hatching a scheme to help their pal Gus win back the affections of his girl friend.
Director
Bernard Vorhaus
Cast
Binnie Barnes
Gilbert Roland
Mary Lee
Billy Gilbert
Jane Frazee
Edward North
Katharine Alexander
Leo Gorcey
Lois Ranson
Leni Lynn
Marilyn Hare
Sidney Blackmer
Tom Kennedy
Clarence Wilson
Crew
George Carleton Brown
George Carleton Brown
Eddie Cherkose
Albert J. Cohen
Cy Feuer
Phil Ford
John Victor Mackay
Edward Mann
Ernest Miller
Adele Palmer
Bradford Ropes
Gioacchino Antonio Rossini
Murray Seldeen
Cesare Sterbini
Jule Styne
Al Wilson
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
The working titles of this film were Babes on Broadway and Angels Without Wings. According to Hollywood Reporter news items, Carol Adams and June Johnson were to appear in the picture, and Harold Yates was to work on the script. Adams and Johnson are not included in the cast, and Yates's contribution to the completed picture has not been confirmed. According to the MPAA/PCA Collection at the AMPAS Library, the PCA advised Republic that the character of "Don Pablo Vincente" would "undoubtedly give great offense to Latin Americans" and that the "release of this film in Latin America would be a disservice to the cause of hemispheric solidarity." A Hollywood Reporter news item noted that Repubic's decision not to release the film in Latin America was "purely voluntary," and that the studio felt "it would rather take a loss in revenue than invite antagonism from our South American neighbors." The picture marked Marilyn Hare's film debut and also marked the final screen appearance of long-time character actor Clarence Wilson (also known as Clarence Hummel and Clarence Hummel Wilson and Wilson Hummel), who died on October 5, 1941.
