Broadway Big Shot
Cast & Crew
William Beaudine
Ralph Byrd
Virginia Vale
William Halligan
Dick Rush
Herbert Rawlinson
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
Determined to get the full story on a sensational embezzlement case, newspaper editor Tom Barnes arranges for reporter and professional football player Jimmy O'Brien to be jailed at the same prison where Joe Davis, the man who was falsely convicted of the crime, is serving time. After assuring Jimmy that he will be pardoned after his story is published, Barnes, with the cooperation of the district attorney, frames Jimmy for a crime and has him sentenced to one to three years in the prison. No sooner does Jimmy arrive at the prison, however, than he learns that Davis will be paroled the following day. Seeing no further need for his imprisonment, Jimmy tries to get himself released by having Warden Collins call Barnes. Barnes stuns Jimmy when he denies any involvement with Barnes's plan and refuses to corroborate his story. Infuriated by Barnes's betrayal, Jimmy explodes in anger and is put in a straightjacket. Later, during a private conversation with Barnes, Jimmy is told that he will have to wait for a pardon because the governor is running for re-election and cannot risk a scandal. In the meantime, Barnes assigns Jimmy to interview the warden about the prison. Jimmy eventually wins the trust of the warden, who takes Jimmy home one day and introduces him to his daughter Betty. Jimmy and Betty spark a romance, but Jimmy's hopes for a return to normalcy are dashed when the governor loses his re-election bid. A year later Jimmy, now on the prison football team, foils a prison break by throwing a football at an escaping inmate who is holding a gun on one of the guards. As a result of Jimmy's heroic act, the warden, who is about to be dismissed, is able to keep his job. When inmate Ben Marlo gives Jimmy the information he sought from Davis, Jimmy is able to write the story he was sent to prison to investigate. Betty then uses the sensational story to negotiate an admission from the district attorney and Barnes that they are responsible for putting Jimmy in prison. Before Jimmy celebrates his freedom, however, he plays one last football game on the prison team, and brings in an easy victory. After winning his back pay from the newspaper, Jimmy looks forward to a new start with Betty at his side.
Director
William Beaudine
Cast
Ralph Byrd
Virginia Vale
William Halligan
Dick Rush
Herbert Rawlinson
Bill Hunter
Cecil Weston
Tom Herbert
Stubby Kruger
Frank Hagney
Jack Buckley
Harry Depp
Jack Roper
Al Goldsmith
Joe Oakie
John E. Ince
Alfred Hall
Jim Aubrey
Richard Cramer
Jack Cheatham
Jack Perrin
Crew
George R. Batcheller
Jed Buell
Billy Byrne
Robert Crandall
Jack Greenhalgh
Art Hamburger
Dick L'estrange
Martin Mooney
Guy Thayer Jr.
Charles Wayne
Ben Winkler
Film Details
Technical Specs
