Idol of the Crowds
Brief Synopsis
Cast & Crew
Arthur Lubin
John Wayne
Sheila Bromley
Billy Burrud
Russell Hopton
Huntley Gordon
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
Press agent Kelly and team manager Joe Garber of the Panthers, a New York hockey team, recruit chicken farmer Johnny Hanson, based on his amateur hockey renown. Johnny is enticed by the $100 per week salary, with which he will be able to fix his farm, so he moves to New York with his twelve-year-old orphan friend, Bobby. Johnny helps pull the team into the top ranks and makes a name for himself. One night, he and his friend, Squat Bates, go to a roller skating rink where Johnny runs into Helen Dale, who advises him to stay off skates. Later, Helen attends a Panther game with the roller rink owner, Jack Irwin, who arranges with her to date Johnny. Johnny falls in love with Helen, and together they share the dream of owning a chicken farm. The night before a championship game, Irwin reveals to Johnny that he has bet $200,000 on the opposition, and offers Johnny $5,000 to throw the game, knowing that that is the amount he needs for his farm. Johnny rejects the bribe, and when Helen encourages him to accept it, he realizes she has been working with Irwin and rejects her. Irwin orders his thug, Spike Regan, to get rid of Johnny, but instead, Spike injures Bobby by accident. After Spike threatens Johnny, Johnny pretends to be injured during a game and is sent to the hospital. He is unharmed, but stays with Bobby through a serious operation, then rejoins the championship game on the final night, much to Irwin and Spike's surprise. Johnny wins the game for the team, and Irwin and Spike are arrested. Helen and Johnny make up, marry, and return to their chicken farm with Bobby.
Director
Arthur Lubin
Cast
John Wayne
Sheila Bromley
Billy Burrud
Russell Hopton
Huntley Gordon
Charles Brokaw
Hal Neiman
Virginia Brissac
Frank Otto
Jane Johns
Clem Bevans
George Lloyd
Wayne Castle
Lloyd Ford
Lee Ford
Crew
Jesse Bastian
Harold Buckley
Trem Carr
Charles Clague
Glenn Cook
Charles Craft
William Hedgcock
Paul Malvern
Harry Neumann
Charles Previn
George Waggner
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
The pre-release title was Hell on Ice. Hollywood Reporter production charts list Bernadene Hayes in the cast, but her participation in the final film has not been confirmed. A Hollywood Reporter news item noted that Madison Square Garden Corp. filed suit against Universal, "alleging that the Company misrepresented things when it asked exhibitors to exploit the ice hockey scenes...as being authentic scenes shot in the Garden." The outcome of the lawsuit is not known.
Miscellaneous Notes
Released in United States 1937
Released in United States 1937
