Back in Circulation

A great deal from the classic newspaper story The Front Page goes into this film Back In Circulation. Before Rosalind Russell played Hildy Johnson in His Girl Friday there was Joan Blondell in this film blazing an underappreciated trail for Russell with her portrayal of a tabloid reporter covering a murder trial.

Blondell who is second billed to Pat O'Brien playing her editor is the heart of this film. She gets an assignment to cover a case involving the death by poison of a wealthy man who married a young wife. Margaret Lindsay is the widow and at first Blondell rips her apart in the press and the stories and pressure from her paper are responsible for her arrest.

But as the trial goes on Blondell gets a change of heart and starts questioning Lindsay's guilt. She is very silent and obviously at least to the movie audience covering something up.

Curiously enough Pat O'Brien who was Hildy Johnson in the first film adaption of The Front Page played editor Walter Burns on stage. In this film I think we are seeing a bit of what O'Brien was like on stage in The Front Page.

Still it's Joan Blondell who drives this film and it is a must for her fans.

Although reporters are barred from the scene, a deadly train wreck doesn't stop enterprising Joan Blondell (as Timothea "Timmy" Blake) from covering the story. Pretending to be a doctor, Ms. Blondell gets the scoop. Her editor and love interest Pat O'Brien (as William "Bill" Morgan) gets an anonymous tip stating that an automobile manufacturer did not die of heart failure, but was poisoned. He assigns Blondell the story and she suspects beautiful widow Margaret Lindsay (as Arline Vivian). We wonder why Blondell is interested in Mr. O'Brien and, even more, why he seems so uninterested in Blondell. The plot unravels between two dubious letters. The main reason to watch is Blondell. She is strong and sexy in this film. And, although second-billed, Blondell is the star.

**** Back in Circulation (9/25/37) Ray Enright ~ Joan Blondell, Pat O'Brien, Margaret Lindsay, John Litel

Ace reporter Joan Blondell drives through the night and breaks some rules to get the story on the big train wreck. Back at the paper, she expects kudos--but boss Pat O'Brien does nothing but complain. Blondell is insulted, O'Brien insists that he appreciates her work, and they get all lovey-dovey for about two seconds...and then O'Brien tells her that she looks tired and she stomps out of his office, slamming the door and breaking the glass.

Both stars are energetic and talk fast but the characterizations are not subtle in this noisy newspaper drama. O'Brien is exceedingly bossy and unpleasant as the demanding editor; Blondell is just not believable as the hardboiled reporter who for some reason has a soft spot for her crabby boss.

The plot involves a murder investigation by Blondell and the paper. Having received an anonymous tip, Blondell stops a funeral and convinces the coroner to do an autopsy. Sure enough, the guy was poisoned. Could the murderer have been Margaret Lindsay, the beautiful widow? John Litel, the doctor who attributed the death to a heart attack? The paper pushes hard for Lindsay's indictment for the murder but just when it's almost too late, Blondell starts feeling guilty and wonders if Lindsay is innocent after all....

An interesting cast includes Regis Toomey, Eddie Acuff, and George E. Stone as various newspaper employees. Ben Welden plays a casino owner who, in one of the picture's many ridiculous sequences, visits O'Brien's office to help identify a suspect and then is held at gunpoint by O'Brien to prevent him leaving and talking to other papers' reporters.

A fast paced newspaper drama with these stars sounds like great fun. Unfortunately, the obnoxious characters and poor plot pretty much sink it.

If you are a fan of 1930's Warners, you can't miss this one. Joan Blondell is Timothea "Timmy" Blake, ace reporter for editor Pat O'Brian's headline screaming tabloid. The plot races around a "show girl with a past", the improbably cast, sweet-faced Margaret Lindsey accused of poisoning her no-good older husband whom nobody misses. Timmy doesn't buy it, but she helped build the case for indictment. Lindsey is in love with the good doctor John Litel for some reason even though he seems a bit thick. Go figure. It's all wrapped in a furious flurry of patented Warner's can't -wait -to -get -home speed with what must be 14 lbs. of dialogue crammed into an hour- fifteen or so. It's Blondell's movie and she is feisty, sexy, always surprising and has a mean right hook. Pat O'Brian was some kind of master at machine gunning lines out of an immobile face. For a big man who moves slowly, he can sure cut with the greased patter. The WB character roster, always a reason to watch these films, is well-represented by Regis Toomey, Eddie Acuff, and the always amusing Granville Bates. You won't have a chance to breathe.

This film is packed full of unique characters, complex arch's, and is a treasure for anyone who likes 1930s comedies. Lead actress Joan Blondell displays a flair for comedic touch while also providing excellent dramatic expressions and reactions. Her character is tomboyish, yet, very attractive and feminine. One characteristic I thought made her most interesting is she didn't care about how her hair looked. At that time in history most female movie stars had their hair strictly cared for by a makeup department or they themselves would maintain it like most people do. This made every scene look unauthentic to real life. But I was surprised to see it wasn't perfectly in place all the the time, but often falling in her face in an unflattering way. Hard to tell if that was on purpose or due to quick shooting. Whatever the case, it is unique and memorable. The world that we see on screen seems to have enormous depth. I would recommend this film to anyone who enjoys a balance of comedy and drama, while also being open to "black and white". This movie single handedly turned me into a Joan Blondell fan.