Mr. Deeds Goes to Town [80th Anniversary Edition] [Blu-ray]

Director: Frank Capra

Overview

When a car crash ends the life of a fabulously wealthy patron of the arts, the decedent's $20,000,000 fortune is inherited by one Longfellow Deeds. When Deeds is convinced to move to New York, hard-boiled newspaper reporter Babe Bennett is dispatched to get the inside scoop on "The Cinderella Man."

Product Details

Release Date:	04/04/2017
UPC:	0043396487833
Original Release:	1936
Rating:	NR
Region Code:	A
Presentation:	[B&W]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Mono]
Language:	English
Time:	1:56:00
Sales rank:	1,979

Special Features

Commentary by Frank Capra Jr.; Frank Capra Jr. remembers...Mr. Deeds Goes to Town; Vintage advertising gallery; Original theatrical teaser

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Gary Cooper	Longfellow Deeds,Bob
Jean Arthur	Babe Bennett
George Bancroft	Mac Wade
Ruth Donnelly	Actor
Lionel Stander	Cornelius Cobb
Douglas Dumbrille	John Cedar,John Cedar
Raymond Walburn	Walter
Margaret Matzenauer	Madame Pomponi
H.B. Warner	Judge Walker
Warren Hymer	Bodyguard
Muriel Evans	Theresa
Spencer Charters	Mal
Emma Dunn	Mrs. Meredith
Wryley Birch	Psychiatrist,Psychiatrist
Arthur Hoyt	Budington
Stanley Andrews	James Cedar
Pierre Watkin	Arthur Cedar
John Wray	Farmer
Christian Rub	Swenson
Jameson Thomas	Mr. Semple
Mayo Methot	Mrs. Semple
Margaret Seddon	Jane Faulkner
Margaret McWade	Amy Faulkner
Russell Hicks	Dr. Malcolm
Gustav von Seyffertitz	Dr. Frazier
Edward Le Saint	Dr. Fosdick
Charles Lane	Hallor
Irving Bacon	Frank
Gene Morgan	Waiter
Walter Catlett	Morrow
Edward Gargan	2nd Bodyguard
Paul Hurst	1st Deputy
Jay Eaton	Writer
Paul Porcasi	Italian
Franklin Pangborn	Tailor
George "Gabby" Hayes	Farmers' Spokesman
Mary Lou Dix	Shop Girl
George Meeker	Brookfield
Harry Holden	Guard
Barnett Parker	Butler
Eddie Kane	Henneberry
Patricia Monroe	Hat Check Girl
Edward Keane	Board member
Lillian Ross	Hat Check Girl
Peggy Page	Cigarette Girl
Janet Eastman	Shop Girl
Dennis O'Keefe	Reporter
Dale Van Sickel	Lawyer
Harry C. Bradley	Anderson
James Millican	Interne
Edwin Maxwell	Douglas
Billy Bevan	Cabby
Jack Mower	Reporter
Ann Doran	Girl on Bus
Cecil Cunningham	Actor
Bess Flowers	Actor
John Picorri	Board member
Beatrice Curtis	Actor
Beatrice Blinn	Actor
Pauline Wagner	Actor
Frank Hammond	Actor
Lee Shumway	Bailiff
Charles Sullivan	Actor
Florence Wix	Actor
Hal Budlong	Actor
Ethel Palmer	Actor
Vesey O'Davoren	Actor
Charles Wilson	Court Clerk
John Binns	l'avocat ?g?
John Austin	Actor,George Rankin
Bobbie Beal	Actor
William Boardway	Actor
Georgie Billings	le petit gar?on
Katherine Block	l'infirmi?re
Sammy Blum	le journaliste
Louise Bates	Actor
Hank Bell	Actor
Joe Bordeaux	Actor
Barbara Boudwin	Actor
Howard Jackson	Composer

Technical Credits

Robert Riskin

Clarence Budington Kelland

Frank Capra	Producer
Robert Riskin	Screenwriter
Roy Davidson	Special Effects
Clarence Budington Kelland	Screenwriter
Edward Bernds	Sound Effects
John P. Livadary	Sound Effects

Editorial Reviews

Frank Capra built his career around the themes that he explores in Mr. Deeds Goes to Town. For the populist Capra, the battle lines are clearly drawn; he makes his points (sometimes heavy-handedly) by pitting small-town simplicity, selflessness, and idealism against big-city sophistication, greed, and cynicism. Capra raised the "little guy" to iconic status, stereotyping him as effortlessly as he stigmatized the corrupt city slicker. Gary Cooper's Longfellow Deeds often looks as if he is visiting from a different era, an errant knight guided by an anachronistic code of chivalry. He is not afraid to resort to violence if words don't get the job done, although his impassioned speeches tend to get him in more trouble than they get him out of. He is looking for a "damsel in distress," and he is guided by an archaic and romantic notion of "noblesse oblige." Jean Arthur makes her first of three Capra appearances as this damsel, the hard-nosed reporter who exposes Mr. Deeds to ridicule. Her nasally, pointed line delivery is sharp and precise, and Cooper's trademark laconic delivery is also perfect for the role. Playing the part as if born to it, Cooper is at the top of his game, imbuing Deeds with just the right blend of empathy and intelligence. Nominated for five Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Actor, Mr. Deeds Goes to Town won Capra his second of three Best Director trophies.