Diamond Jim
Encyclopedia
Diamond Jim is a 1935 biographical film
based on the published biography Diamond Jim Brady by Parker Morell. It follows the life of legendary entrepreneur James Buchanan Brady
, including his romance with entertainer Lillian Russell
, and stars Edward Arnold
, Jean Arthur
, Cesar Romero
and Binnie Barnes
.
The screenplay by Preston Sturges
never lets the lurid facts of Brady's life get in the way of the story, and the events of the film wind up having only a passing resemblance to Brady's actual biography. Edward Arnold went on to play Diamond Jim Brady again five years later, opposite Alice Faye
in Lillian Russell
.
) is born to an Irish saloonkeeper and his wife in 1856, but is soon orphaned. At the age of thirty, working as baggage master at the Spuyten Duyvil train station, he rents a suit and a diamond from a pawn shop, and gets a job as a salesman; soon, he's the champion salesman on the staff.
While on a cross-continental sales trip, Brady rescues Mr. Fox (Eric Blore
) from a crooked salesman, but in the process they are forced to jump from the train. Brady soon discovers that Mr. Fox is trying to sell something called an "undertruck" to be used at railroad stations, so he takes on the product himself. With success, Brady wants to marry his sweetheart, Emma Perry (Jean Arthur
) but finds out that she is engaged already. Heartbroken, all of his energy goes into the Brady-Fox Company.
A grand success, Brady has ostentatious diamond jewelry designed for him, leading to his nickname, "Diamond Jim Brady". Brady spares no expense to indulge his every whim, lavishing money on wine, women, song and, especially, lots and lots of food. Brady sees singer Lillian Russell
(Binnie Barnes
) perform, introduces himself, and soon he is promoting her career and flirting with her. Russell is not available to him, however, since she is in love with business man Jerry Richardson (Cesar Romero
). Brady soon meets Jane Matthews (Jean Arthur again), a lookalike for Emma, and is instantly smitten with her. They become engaged, but on the eve of their wedding, Brady gets drunk because of his suspicions about Jane's relationship with a banker named "Briggs" who is supposedly her "uncle", and the wedding is called off. Jane remains his friend, but refuses to give in to his occasional proposals – for one thing, she has fallen in love with Jerry, but neither want to tell Brady for fear of hurting his feelings.
When the stock market crash
es, Brady loses his fortune, and starts again from scratch, promoting a steel railroad car for its supposed safety. He is injured during a public demonstration of the car, and spends a year recovering in the hospital, while at the same time rebuilding his fortune. When he gets out, he plans a trip to Europe for himself, Jane, Lillian and Jerry, during which he believe he will finally get Jane to marry him. Instead, Jane and Jerry confess their love, the news of which shatters Jim. On the rebound, he proposes to Lillian, but she rejects him as well. Despondent, he returns home and prepares to eat himself to death, but not before burning up all the I.O.U.'s in his possession.
Cast notes:
Symphonic composer Ferde Grofe
wrote a large amount of the score, yet remained uncredited on the movie.
had bought the rights to a short story by Mike Simmons based on Brady's life, and had registered the title with the Hays Office. Paramount subsequently protested Universal's production, but how the matter was resolved is not known.
Brady died in 1917, but Edward Arnold had met him twice early in his acting career: once when Brady come to meet an actress who was performing in the show Arnold was in, and once when he came backstage to meet Ethel Barrymore
, whose acting company Arnold was a part of.
Joseph Breen
, head of the Hays Office, objected to the sexual innuendo in the relationship between "Jane" and "Briggs", who was supposedly her uncle, and wanted it changed as it violated the Code. In addition, Dorothy Russell, the daughter of Lillian Russell
, objected that the screenplay misrepresented the relationship between Brady and Russell, which she characterized as not a life-long friendship, but a short term acquaintanceship that lasted only from 1902 to 1916. She also believed that the film used material from an article about her mother she had written which was published in a magazine. She engaged an attorney to file a lawsuit, but the outcome is unknown.
Diamond Jim was in production from 3 April to 20 May 1935, at a cost of over $750,000. The filming of the train crash took place at a narrow-gauge railway near San Luis Obispo, California
with vintage cars donated by the Pacific Coast Railway
. Jack Foley, head of Universal's sound effects department, recorded the crash.
The film was released on 2 September 1935.
Biographical film
A biographical film, or biopic , is a film that dramatizes the life of an actual person or people. They differ from films “based on a true story” or “historical films” in that they attempt to comprehensively tell a person’s life story or at least the most historically important years of their...
based on the published biography Diamond Jim Brady by Parker Morell. It follows the life of legendary entrepreneur James Buchanan Brady
James Buchanan Brady
James Buchanan Brady , also known as Diamond Jim Brady, was an American businessman, financier, and philanthropist of the Gilded Age.-Life and career:...
, including his romance with entertainer Lillian Russell
Lillian Russell
Lillian Russell was an American actress and singer. She became one of the most famous actresses and singers of the late 19th century and early 20th century, known for her beauty and style, as well as for her voice and stage presence.Russell was born in Iowa but raised in Chicago...
, and stars Edward Arnold
Edward Arnold (actor)
Edward Arnold was an American actor. He was born on the Lower East Side of New York City as Gunther Edward Arnold Schneider, the son of German immigrants Carl Schneider and Elizabeth Ohse.-Acting career:...
, Jean Arthur
Jean Arthur
Jean Arthur was an American actress and a major film star of the 1930s and 1940s. She remains arguably the epitome of the female screwball comedy actress. As James Harvey wrote in his recounting of the era, "No one was more closely identified with the screwball comedy than Jean Arthur...
, Cesar Romero
Cesar Romero
Cesar Julio Romero, Jr. was an American film and television actor who was active in film, radio, and television for almost sixty years...
and Binnie Barnes
Binnie Barnes
Gertrude Maud "Binnie" Barnes was an English-American actress. She was born in Islington to a Jewish father and an Italian mother and was brought up Jewish, although she converted to Catholicism later in life....
.
The screenplay by Preston Sturges
Preston Sturges
Preston Sturges , originally Edmund Preston Biden, was a celebrated playwright, screenwriter and film director born in Chicago, Illinois...
never lets the lurid facts of Brady's life get in the way of the story, and the events of the film wind up having only a passing resemblance to Brady's actual biography. Edward Arnold went on to play Diamond Jim Brady again five years later, opposite Alice Faye
Alice Faye
Alice Faye was an American actress and singer, called by The New York Times "one of the few movie stars to walk away from stardom at the peak of her career." She is remembered first for her stardom at 20th Century Fox and, later, as the radio comedy partner of her husband, bandleader and comedian...
in Lillian Russell
Lillian Russell
Lillian Russell was an American actress and singer. She became one of the most famous actresses and singers of the late 19th century and early 20th century, known for her beauty and style, as well as for her voice and stage presence.Russell was born in Iowa but raised in Chicago...
.
Plot
Diamond Jim Brady (Edward ArnoldEdward Arnold (actor)
Edward Arnold was an American actor. He was born on the Lower East Side of New York City as Gunther Edward Arnold Schneider, the son of German immigrants Carl Schneider and Elizabeth Ohse.-Acting career:...
) is born to an Irish saloonkeeper and his wife in 1856, but is soon orphaned. At the age of thirty, working as baggage master at the Spuyten Duyvil train station, he rents a suit and a diamond from a pawn shop, and gets a job as a salesman; soon, he's the champion salesman on the staff.
While on a cross-continental sales trip, Brady rescues Mr. Fox (Eric Blore
Eric Blore
Eric Blore was an English comic actor. Blore was born in Finchley , England.Aged eighteeen, he worked as an insurance agent for two years. He gained theatre experience while touring Australia. Originally enlisting into the Artists Rifles he was commissioned in the South Wales Borderers in World...
) from a crooked salesman, but in the process they are forced to jump from the train. Brady soon discovers that Mr. Fox is trying to sell something called an "undertruck" to be used at railroad stations, so he takes on the product himself. With success, Brady wants to marry his sweetheart, Emma Perry (Jean Arthur
Jean Arthur
Jean Arthur was an American actress and a major film star of the 1930s and 1940s. She remains arguably the epitome of the female screwball comedy actress. As James Harvey wrote in his recounting of the era, "No one was more closely identified with the screwball comedy than Jean Arthur...
) but finds out that she is engaged already. Heartbroken, all of his energy goes into the Brady-Fox Company.
A grand success, Brady has ostentatious diamond jewelry designed for him, leading to his nickname, "Diamond Jim Brady". Brady spares no expense to indulge his every whim, lavishing money on wine, women, song and, especially, lots and lots of food. Brady sees singer Lillian Russell
Lillian Russell
Lillian Russell was an American actress and singer. She became one of the most famous actresses and singers of the late 19th century and early 20th century, known for her beauty and style, as well as for her voice and stage presence.Russell was born in Iowa but raised in Chicago...
(Binnie Barnes
Binnie Barnes
Gertrude Maud "Binnie" Barnes was an English-American actress. She was born in Islington to a Jewish father and an Italian mother and was brought up Jewish, although she converted to Catholicism later in life....
) perform, introduces himself, and soon he is promoting her career and flirting with her. Russell is not available to him, however, since she is in love with business man Jerry Richardson (Cesar Romero
Cesar Romero
Cesar Julio Romero, Jr. was an American film and television actor who was active in film, radio, and television for almost sixty years...
). Brady soon meets Jane Matthews (Jean Arthur again), a lookalike for Emma, and is instantly smitten with her. They become engaged, but on the eve of their wedding, Brady gets drunk because of his suspicions about Jane's relationship with a banker named "Briggs" who is supposedly her "uncle", and the wedding is called off. Jane remains his friend, but refuses to give in to his occasional proposals – for one thing, she has fallen in love with Jerry, but neither want to tell Brady for fear of hurting his feelings.
When the stock market crash
Stock market crash
A stock market crash is a sudden dramatic decline of stock prices across a significant cross-section of a stock market, resulting in a significant loss of paper wealth. Crashes are driven by panic as much as by underlying economic factors...
es, Brady loses his fortune, and starts again from scratch, promoting a steel railroad car for its supposed safety. He is injured during a public demonstration of the car, and spends a year recovering in the hospital, while at the same time rebuilding his fortune. When he gets out, he plans a trip to Europe for himself, Jane, Lillian and Jerry, during which he believe he will finally get Jane to marry him. Instead, Jane and Jerry confess their love, the news of which shatters Jim. On the rebound, he proposes to Lillian, but she rejects him as well. Despondent, he returns home and prepares to eat himself to death, but not before burning up all the I.O.U.'s in his possession.
Cast
- Edward ArnoldEdward Arnold (actor)Edward Arnold was an American actor. He was born on the Lower East Side of New York City as Gunther Edward Arnold Schneider, the son of German immigrants Carl Schneider and Elizabeth Ohse.-Acting career:...
as Diamond Jim Brady - Jean ArthurJean ArthurJean Arthur was an American actress and a major film star of the 1930s and 1940s. She remains arguably the epitome of the female screwball comedy actress. As James Harvey wrote in his recounting of the era, "No one was more closely identified with the screwball comedy than Jean Arthur...
as Jane Matthews / Emma - Binnie BarnesBinnie BarnesGertrude Maud "Binnie" Barnes was an English-American actress. She was born in Islington to a Jewish father and an Italian mother and was brought up Jewish, although she converted to Catholicism later in life....
as Lillian Russell - Cesar RomeroCesar RomeroCesar Julio Romero, Jr. was an American film and television actor who was active in film, radio, and television for almost sixty years...
as Jerry Richardson - Eric BloreEric BloreEric Blore was an English comic actor. Blore was born in Finchley , England.Aged eighteeen, he worked as an insurance agent for two years. He gained theatre experience while touring Australia. Originally enlisting into the Artists Rifles he was commissioned in the South Wales Borderers in World...
as Sampson Fox - Hugh O'Connell as Charles B. Horsley
- George SidneyGeorge SidneyGeorge Sidney was an American film director and film producer who worked primarily at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.-Career:...
as Pawnbroker - Robert McWadeRobert McWadeRobert McWade , was an American stage and film actor. From 1903-1927, he appeared in at least 38 Broadway productions, his last being The Devil In The Cheese, with Bela Lugosi and Fredric March...
as A.E. Moore - Charles SellonCharles SellonCharles Sellon was an American stage and film actor. He appeared in 108 films and stage acts between 1901 and 1935. He was born in Boston, Massachusetts and died in La Crescenta, California. His grave is located in Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery.-Selected filmography:-External links:...
as Touchey - Henry KolkerHenry KolkerHenry Kolker was an American stage and film actor and director...
as Bank President - William DemarestWilliam DemarestCarl William Demarest was an American character actor. He frequently played crusty but good-hearted roles.-Early life and career:...
as Harry Hill - Albert Conti as Jeweler
- Armand KalizArmand KalizArmand Kaliz was a French born American film actor of the silent film and early sound period of the 1930s.Born in Paris, Kaliz began his career in vaudeville...
as Jewelry Salesman - Tully MarshallTully MarshallWilliam Phillips was an American character actor known as Tully Marshall, with nearly a quarter century of theatrical experience behind before he made his first film appearance in 1914.-Career:...
as Minister - Purnell PrattPurnell PrattPurnell Pratt was an American film actor. He appeared in 114 films between 1914 and 1941.He was born in Bethel, Illinois and died in Hollywood, California.-Selected filmography:* On with the Show...
as Physician - Helen Brown as Brady's Mother
Cast notes:
- This was the first film written by Preston Sturges in which William Demarest appeared, but it was not to be the last. Demarest would go on show up in nine other Sturges films: Easy Living (1937), The Great McGintyThe Great McGintyThe Great McGinty is a 1940 political satire comedy film written and directed by Preston Sturges, starring Brian Donlevy and Akim Tamiroff and featuring William Demarest and Muriel Angelus. It was Sturges's first film as a director; he sold the story to Paramount Pictures for just $10 on condition...
(1940), Christmas in JulyChristmas in July (film)Christmas in July is a 1940 screwball comedy film written and directed by Preston Sturges based on his 1931 play A Cup of Coffee. It was Sturges' second film as writer-director, after The Great McGinty, and stars Dick Powell and Ellen Drew....
(1940), Sullivan's TravelsSullivan's TravelsSullivan's Travels is a 1941 American comedy film written and directed by Preston Sturges. It is a satire about a movie director, played by Joel McCrea, who longs to make a socially relevant drama, but eventually learns that comedies are his more valuable contribution to society. The film features...
(1941), The Lady EveThe Lady EveThe Lady Eve is a 1941 American screwball comedy film written and directed by Preston Sturges, and starring Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda. The film is based on a story by Monckton Hoffe about a mismatched couple who meet on board a luxury liner...
(1941), The Palm Beach StoryThe Palm Beach StoryThe Palm Beach Story is a 1942 romantic screwball comedy film written and directed by Preston Sturges, and starring Claudette Colbert, Joel McCrea, Mary Astor and Rudy Vallée. Victor Young contributed the lively musical score, including a fast-paced variation of William Tell Overture for the...
(1942), The Miracle of Morgan's CreekThe Miracle of Morgan's CreekThe Miracle of Morgan's Creek is a 1944 screwball comedy film written and directed by Preston Sturges, starring Eddie Bracken and Betty Hutton, and featuring Diana Lynn, William Demarest and Porter Hall...
(1944), Hail the Conquering HeroHail the Conquering HeroHail the Conquering Hero is a satirical comedy/drama written and directed by Preston Sturges, starring Eddie Bracken, Ella Raines and William Demarest, and featuring Raymond Walburn, Franklin Pangborn, Elizabeth Patterson and Bill Edwards....
(1944) and The Great MomentThe Great Moment (1944 film)The Great Moment is a 1944 biographical film written and directed by Preston Sturges. Based on the book The Triumph Over Pain by René Fülöp-Miller, it tells the story of Dr. William Thomas Green Morton, a 19th century Boston dentist who discovered the use of ether as an anesthetic...
(1944).
Symphonic composer Ferde Grofe
Ferde Grofé
Ferde Grofé was a prominent American composer, arranger and pianist. During the 1920s and 1930s, he went by the name Ferdie Grofé.-Early life:...
wrote a large amount of the score, yet remained uncredited on the movie.
Production
Diamond Jim, which had a working title of Diamond Jim Brady, was based on the 1933 biography of Brady by Parker Morrell, to which Universal purchased the rights. However, prior to that, Paramount PicturesParamount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
had bought the rights to a short story by Mike Simmons based on Brady's life, and had registered the title with the Hays Office. Paramount subsequently protested Universal's production, but how the matter was resolved is not known.
Brady died in 1917, but Edward Arnold had met him twice early in his acting career: once when Brady come to meet an actress who was performing in the show Arnold was in, and once when he came backstage to meet Ethel Barrymore
Ethel Barrymore
Ethel Barrymore was an American actress and a member of the Barrymore family of actors.-Early life:Ethel Barrymore was born Ethel Mae Blythe in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the second child of the actors Maurice Barrymore and Georgiana Drew...
, whose acting company Arnold was a part of.
Joseph Breen
Joseph Breen
Joseph Breen is an American soap opera actor.He played contract parts on both Guiding Light and Loving before being offered his most front-burner role to date: that of Lisa’s long-lost son, Scott Eldridge, on As the World Turns...
, head of the Hays Office, objected to the sexual innuendo in the relationship between "Jane" and "Briggs", who was supposedly her uncle, and wanted it changed as it violated the Code. In addition, Dorothy Russell, the daughter of Lillian Russell
Lillian Russell
Lillian Russell was an American actress and singer. She became one of the most famous actresses and singers of the late 19th century and early 20th century, known for her beauty and style, as well as for her voice and stage presence.Russell was born in Iowa but raised in Chicago...
, objected that the screenplay misrepresented the relationship between Brady and Russell, which she characterized as not a life-long friendship, but a short term acquaintanceship that lasted only from 1902 to 1916. She also believed that the film used material from an article about her mother she had written which was published in a magazine. She engaged an attorney to file a lawsuit, but the outcome is unknown.
Diamond Jim was in production from 3 April to 20 May 1935, at a cost of over $750,000. The filming of the train crash took place at a narrow-gauge railway near San Luis Obispo, California
San Luis Obispo, California
San Luis Obispo is a city in California, located roughly midway between San Francisco and Los Angeles on the Central Coast. Founded in 1772 by Spanish Fr. Junipero Serra, San Luis Obispo is one of California’s oldest communities...
with vintage cars donated by the Pacific Coast Railway
Pacific Coast Railway
The Pacific Coast Railway is a defunct narrow gauge railway in the Central Coast of California. Not to be confused with the Pacific Coast Railroad Company, a tourist operation in nearby Santa Margarita, California, near Atascadero which has operated since 2000.Originally a 10 mile link from San...
. Jack Foley, head of Universal's sound effects department, recorded the crash.
The film was released on 2 September 1935.
See also
- Lillian RussellLillian Russell (film)Lillian Russell is a 1940 biographical film of the life of the singer and actress. The screenplay was by William Anthony McGuire. The film was directed by Irving Cummings and produced by Darryl F. Zanuck. It starred Alice Faye in the title role, Don Ameche, Henry Fonda and Edward Arnold as Diamond...
, the 1940 film where Arnold played Brady again