Doctors Don't Tell
Brief Synopsis
Cast & Crew
Jacques Tourneur
John Beal
Florence Rice
Edward Norris
Ward Bond
Douglas Fowley
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
On the night before he is to graduate and become a full-fledged doctor, intern Ralph Sawyer operates on car accident victim Diana Wayne, when no doctor is available. Ralph is prevented from graduating until Diana, a nightclub singer, makes a full recovery, but soon after he opens a practice with his friends, Frank Blake and Peter Piper. As they struggle to build their practice, Ralph and Frank also compete for the affections of Diana, who choses the more ambitious Frank. Frank unwittingly becomes entangled with gangster Joe Grant and his cohort, Barney Millen, when he accepts some free medicine samples from them. Later, Grant and Millen attempt to intimidate druggist Philip Cooper into joining a druggist protective association, and in retaliation, Cooper shoots Millen in the arm. Frank reluctantly patches up Millen and agrees not to report the bullet wound, even though he is required to do so by law. After Ralph gets a job with the medical examiner's office, Millen is identified by Cooper and brought to trial. When Frank testifies that he treated Millen for acid burns rather than a gunshot wound, Millen is released. A suspicious Ralph questions Frank, who admits that their increased clientele is due to Grant's patronage, and that Millen did not really have acid burns. When Frank refuses to tell the truth to the district attorney, Ralph quits their practice. Frank and Peter's business improves thanks to Grant and they soon move to a high-priced office. On the six-month anniversary of Ralph's saving her life, Diana invites him and Frank to celebrate at the club where she works with her brother Tom. Meanwhile, Millen shoots Cooper as he and Grant are driving by his drugstore, and just before he dies, the druggist identifies Grant by the scar on his face. Determined to escape detection, Grant forces Frank to surgically remove the scar by threatening to reveal his aid to Millen. Frank completes the operation, but takes X-rays that detail the surgery. Diana walks into the outer office as Frank is finishing up and quickly realizes what he has done. She refuses to speak with Frank when he later comes to her apartment, and soon after, Grant is brought to trial. Because his scar is now gone, it appears as if he will be released until Frank sends Ralph the incriminating X-rays. The judge will not accept them as evidence, however, when Ralph refuses to identify the doctor who performed the surgery. Upon hearing the news, Frank goes to the court and testifies about the operation, thereby helping to convict Grant, but at the expense of his own career. Proud of Frank, Diana and Ralph congratulate him, but just after his testimony, Millen shoots and kills him. Millen is himself shot by the police, and later, Diana, Ralph and Peter toast the memory of their friend.
Director
Jacques Tourneur
Cast
John Beal
Florence Rice
Edward Norris
Ward Bond
Douglas Fowley
Grady Sutton
Bill Shirley
Joseph Crehan
Paul Porcasi
Russell Hicks
Howard Hickman
Crew
Eddie Cherkose
Albert J. Cohen
Isabel Dawn
Cy Feuer
Phil Ford
John Victor Mackay
Edward Mann
Edward Mann
Sol Meyer
Ernest Miller
Adele Palmer
Theodore Reeves
Theodore Reeves
Murray Seldeen
Jule Styne
Al Wilson
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
The film's onscreen credits note that the title was taken from a Liberty magazine story. According to the SAB and other contemporary sources, the screenplay was an original and only the title of the magazine story was used. According to Hollywood Reporter news items, the picture had been on Republic's production schedule for two years, and at one time the studio negotiated with Broadway actress Helen Craig, wife of actor John Beal, to appear opposite her husband in the picture. Hollywood Reporter also noted that film editor Edward Mann was being "groomed for directorial work" by being allowed to direct added scenes for the film in early August 1941.
