Oil for the Lamps of China (film)
Encyclopedia
Oil for the Lamps of China is a 1935 drama film starring Pat O'Brien
and Josephine Hutchinson
. It is based on the novel of the same name
by Alice Tisdale Hobart
. A man blindly puts his faith in his employer.
to meet and marry her. However, when he gets there, all that is waiting for him is a telegram, in which she explains she is unwilling to live in such a backward country.
He strikes up a conversation with Hester Adams (Josephine Hutchinson). She had come to see China for the first time with her father, a professor of Oriental studies, only to have him die on the voyage. As they become better acquainted, Stephen comes up with an idea (partly to save himself from losing face
). He asks Hester to marry him, explaining that it would be a partnership. She is impressed by his dream of modernizing China and accepts. It does not take long however for them to fall in love.
No matter what happens, nothing shakes Stephen's faith in the company. When his friend, No. 1 Boss, is callously transferred to a lesser position, the old man commits suicide rather than accept the insult. The new boss, J.T. McCarger (Donald Crisp
), orders Stephen to man an even more isolated post near Siberia. Stephen is reluctant to go since Hester is pregnant with their first child, but has no choice. Once there, he makes the agonized decision to go deal with a dangerous oil fire rather than stay and help the doctor deliver the baby. When he returns, he learns that the child is dead. This causes a temporary rift between him and his wife.
Things improve. Stephen is promoted and assigned to a large city in the south. The Chases becomes good friends with another couple, Don and Alice Wellman (John Eldredge
and Jean Muir
). Don works for Stephen, but he is so contemptuous of the Chinese that two important clients refuse to renew their contracts unless he is fired. Stephen is torn, but does let Don go. Don's replacement is McCarger. Despite a prolonged drought and an outbreak of cholera
, Stephen ruthlessly collects payment from his customers, earning the best record of any branch in China.
Then, communists take over the city. An officer (Keye Luke
) shows up at the company's offices and demands the gold stored in the safe. Stephen bargains with him and gets everyone except McCarger and himself evacuated to a ship by promising to give up the gold in a few hours. In the meantime, he sends for Ho (Tetsu Komai
), a very well-connected Chinese customer and good friend, hoping he can use his influence. When Ho bravely shows up however, he is shot down in cold blood by the soldiers. Outraged, Stephen and McCarger take the gold and escape out the back door. McCarger is killed and Stephen wounded, but a passing boat rescues him and the gold.
In the hospital, he is visited by the new man in charge of the Orient for the company. Stephen is delighted to be offered the position of his assistant. However, when his boss outlines his plan to institute modern business practices, Stephen disagrees, explaining that, despite appearances, the "new" China is still run by the old ways. When he recovers, he is humiliated to learn that his job has been given to another man as a result. Further, he is given only menial tasks in an effort to get him to quit (and thus forfeit his pension). Hester gives Stephen's boss a tongue lashing and reveals that her husband holds the patent for a lamp the company uses to popularize the use of its product. However, it is a call from the president of Atlantis, disturbed by the news that Stephen has been passed over for the job, that changes the man's mind. Stephen's shaken faith in the company is restored.
Pat O'Brien (actor)
Pat O’Brien was an American film actor with more than one hundred screen credits.-Early life:O’Brien was born William Joseph Patrick O’Brien to an Irish-American Catholic family in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He served as an altar boy at Gesu Church while growing up near 13th and Clybourn streets...
and Josephine Hutchinson
Josephine Hutchinson
Josephine Hutchinson was an American actress.She was born in Seattle, Washington. Her mother, Leona Roberts, was an actress best-known for her role as "Mrs. Meade" in Gone with the Wind. Through her mother's connections, Hutchinson made her film debut at the age of thirteen in The Little Princess,...
. It is based on the novel of the same name
Oil For the Lamps of China
Oil for the Lamps of China is a novel by Alice Tisdale Hobart. It was originally published by Bobbs Merrill in 1933, and reprinted by EastBridge in 2002 ....
by Alice Tisdale Hobart
Alice Tisdale Hobart
Alice Tisdale Hobart born Alice Nourse in Lockport, New York, was an American novelist. Her most famous book, Oil for the Lamps of China , which was also made into a film, drew heavily on her experiences as the wife of an American oil executive in China amid the turmoil of the overthrow of the...
. A man blindly puts his faith in his employer.
Plot
Ambitious, idealistic Stephen Chase (Pat O'Brien) goes to work for the Atlantis Oil Company and is sent to a remote outpost in rural China run by "No. 1 Boss" (Arthur Byron). After a while, he feels secure enough to send for his fiancée and goes to YokohamaYokohama
is the capital city of Kanagawa Prefecture and the second largest city in Japan by population after Tokyo and most populous municipality of Japan. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of Tokyo, in the Kantō region of the main island of Honshu...
to meet and marry her. However, when he gets there, all that is waiting for him is a telegram, in which she explains she is unwilling to live in such a backward country.
He strikes up a conversation with Hester Adams (Josephine Hutchinson). She had come to see China for the first time with her father, a professor of Oriental studies, only to have him die on the voyage. As they become better acquainted, Stephen comes up with an idea (partly to save himself from losing face
Face (sociological concept)
Face, idiomatically meaning dignity/prestige, is a fundamental concept in the fields of sociology, sociolinguistics, semantics, politeness theory, psychology, political science, communication, and Face Negotiation Theory.-Definitions:...
). He asks Hester to marry him, explaining that it would be a partnership. She is impressed by his dream of modernizing China and accepts. It does not take long however for them to fall in love.
No matter what happens, nothing shakes Stephen's faith in the company. When his friend, No. 1 Boss, is callously transferred to a lesser position, the old man commits suicide rather than accept the insult. The new boss, J.T. McCarger (Donald Crisp
Donald Crisp
Donald Crisp was an English film actor. He was also an early motion picture producer, director and screenwriter...
), orders Stephen to man an even more isolated post near Siberia. Stephen is reluctant to go since Hester is pregnant with their first child, but has no choice. Once there, he makes the agonized decision to go deal with a dangerous oil fire rather than stay and help the doctor deliver the baby. When he returns, he learns that the child is dead. This causes a temporary rift between him and his wife.
Things improve. Stephen is promoted and assigned to a large city in the south. The Chases becomes good friends with another couple, Don and Alice Wellman (John Eldredge
John Eldredge
John Eldredge is an author, counselor, and lecturer of Christianity.-Life and work:While living in Los Angeles Eldredge was looking for a "worldview." After exploring other religions, Eastern mysticism, Lao-Tzu, and New Age spirituality, he discovered the writings of Francis Schaeffer, whom he...
and Jean Muir
Jean Muir (actress)
Jean Muir was an American stage and film actress.-Career:Born in Suffern, New York as Jean Muir Fullarton, she first appeared on Broadway in 1930, and was signed by Warner Brothers Studios three years later. She played opposite several famous actors - Warren William, Paul Muni, Richard...
). Don works for Stephen, but he is so contemptuous of the Chinese that two important clients refuse to renew their contracts unless he is fired. Stephen is torn, but does let Don go. Don's replacement is McCarger. Despite a prolonged drought and an outbreak of cholera
Cholera
Cholera is an infection of the small intestine that is caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. The main symptoms are profuse watery diarrhea and vomiting. Transmission occurs primarily by drinking or eating water or food that has been contaminated by the diarrhea of an infected person or the feces...
, Stephen ruthlessly collects payment from his customers, earning the best record of any branch in China.
Then, communists take over the city. An officer (Keye Luke
Keye Luke
Keye Luke was a Chinese-born American actor. He was the first Chinese-American contract player signed with RKO, Universal and, later, MGM and is generally acknowledged as the leading Asian-American actor of this era of American cinema.-Background:...
) shows up at the company's offices and demands the gold stored in the safe. Stephen bargains with him and gets everyone except McCarger and himself evacuated to a ship by promising to give up the gold in a few hours. In the meantime, he sends for Ho (Tetsu Komai
Tetsu Komai
Tetsu Komai was a minor Hollywood actor born in Kumamoto, Japan who died in Gardena, California of congestive heart failure. Tetsu had small parts in over 50 films from the 1920s until the mid 1960s. In his early films, Tetsu was often described with derogatory terms such as Chinaman, although he...
), a very well-connected Chinese customer and good friend, hoping he can use his influence. When Ho bravely shows up however, he is shot down in cold blood by the soldiers. Outraged, Stephen and McCarger take the gold and escape out the back door. McCarger is killed and Stephen wounded, but a passing boat rescues him and the gold.
In the hospital, he is visited by the new man in charge of the Orient for the company. Stephen is delighted to be offered the position of his assistant. However, when his boss outlines his plan to institute modern business practices, Stephen disagrees, explaining that, despite appearances, the "new" China is still run by the old ways. When he recovers, he is humiliated to learn that his job has been given to another man as a result. Further, he is given only menial tasks in an effort to get him to quit (and thus forfeit his pension). Hester gives Stephen's boss a tongue lashing and reveals that her husband holds the patent for a lamp the company uses to popularize the use of its product. However, it is a call from the president of Atlantis, disturbed by the news that Stephen has been passed over for the job, that changes the man's mind. Stephen's shaken faith in the company is restored.
Cast
- Pat O'Brien as Stephen Chase
- Josephine Hutchinson as Hester Adams Chase
- Jean MuirJean Muir (actress)Jean Muir was an American stage and film actress.-Career:Born in Suffern, New York as Jean Muir Fullarton, she first appeared on Broadway in 1930, and was signed by Warner Brothers Studios three years later. She played opposite several famous actors - Warren William, Paul Muni, Richard...
as Alice Wellman - Lyle TalbotLyle TalbotLyle Talbot , born Lisle Henderson, was an American actor on stage and screen, best known for his long career in movies from 1931 to 1960 and for his frequent appearances on TV in the 1950s and '60s, including his decade-long role as Joe Randolph on television's The Adventures of Ozzie and...
as Jim - Arthur Byron as No. 1 Boss
- John EldredgeJohn Eldredge (actor)John Eldredge was an American actor from San Francisco.Born August 30, 1904, John Eldgredge was the son of a clergyman who made a speciality of dramatics at University...
as Don Wellman - Donald CrispDonald CrispDonald Crisp was an English film actor. He was also an early motion picture producer, director and screenwriter...
as J.T. McCarger - Willie Fung as Kin, the Chases' servant
- Tetsu KomaiTetsu KomaiTetsu Komai was a minor Hollywood actor born in Kumamoto, Japan who died in Gardena, California of congestive heart failure. Tetsu had small parts in over 50 films from the 1920s until the mid 1960s. In his early films, Tetsu was often described with derogatory terms such as Chinaman, although he...
as Ho - Henry O'NeillHenry O'NeillHenry O'Neill was a film actor known for playing gray-haired fathers, lawyers, and similarly dignified roles during the 1930s and 1940s.-Life and career:...
as Edward Hartford - Ronnie Cosby as Bunsy Wellman, the Wellmans' son
- William B. DavidsonWilliam B. DavidsonWilliam B. Davidson was an American film actor. He attended Columbia University where he played football. He became a popular football star. This fame eventually led to his foray into motion pictures after he had spent some time as a lawyer...
as E.H. Swaley (as William Davidson) - George MeekerGeorge MeekerGeorge Meeker was an American character movie and Broadway actor who became more of a legend off-camera than on. Meeker made several movies such as Crime Inc. , and Thief in the Dark and played an uncredited part in All Through the Night .Meeker has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.-External...
as Bill Kendall - Joseph CrehanJoseph CrehanJoseph Crehan was an American film actor. He appeared in over 300 films between 1916 and 1965.He was born in Baltimore, Maryland and died in Hollywood, California from a stroke.-Selected filmography:...
as Clements - Christian RubChristian RubChristian Rub was known as a character actor from the late 1910s to the early 1950s, and was featured in more than 100 movies, often uncredited. He was born in Passau, Bavaria, Germany. His first appearance was in the movie The Belle of New York...
as Dr. Jorgen - Willard RobertsonWillard RobertsonWillard Robertson was an American actor. He appeared in 146 films between 1924 and 1948. He was born in Runnels, Texas and died in Hollywood, California.-Selected filmography:*Graft *Shanghaied Love...
as Speaker - Edward McWadeEdward McWadeEdward McWade was an American film actor and screenwriter. He appeared in 132 films between 1919 and 1944. He also wrote for 15 films between 1897 and 1914.He was born in Washington, D.C...
as Dan - Florence Fair as Miss Cunningham
- Keye LukeKeye LukeKeye Luke was a Chinese-born American actor. He was the first Chinese-American contract player signed with RKO, Universal and, later, MGM and is generally acknowledged as the leading Asian-American actor of this era of American cinema.-Background:...
as Young Chinese Soldier