Mr. Deeds Goes to Town

Name: Mr. Deeds Goes to Town
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Released: 1936-04-09
Duration: 1 h 55 min
Rating: 7.8
Cast: Gary Cooper, Jean Arthur, George Bancroft, Lionel Stander, Douglass Dumbrille

Rocking America with laughter!

Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936)

Timing: 1:55 (115 min)

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7.5/10
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7.8/10
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Everything about the movie

Video 1

Photo 44

Actors and characters

Video for the film Mr. Deeds Goes to Town — Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936) RE RELEASE TRAILER [HD]

1:29

Photo 44

Release date

1936-04-09

Country

United States

Production

Columbia Pictures

Genre

Comedy, Drama, Romance

Budget

$800 000

Box office

Website

Director

Frank Capra

Actors

Gary Cooper, Jean Arthur, George Bancroft, Lionel Stander, Douglass Dumbrille, Raymond Walburn, H.B. Warner, Ruth Donnelly, Walter Catlett, John Wray
All actors and roles (10)

Scenario

Producer

Frank Capra

Camera operator

Joseph Walker

Composer

Howard Jackson

Artist

Audition

Editing

Gene Havlick
Whole Team (16)

Short description

Longfellow Deeds lives in a small town, leading a small town kind of life. When a relative dies and leaves Deeds a fortune, Longfellow moves to the big city where he becomes an instant target for everyone. Deeds outwits them all until Babe Bennett comes along. When small-town boy meets big-city girl anything can, and does, happen.

What's left behind the scenes

Actress Jean Arthur (1900-1991) and director Frank Capra (1897-1991) only saw the film in its entirety in 1972 when they were guests at a film festival.
Jean Arthur was so afraid of filming that she often vomited before shooting, and in between takes she had to run to the makeup room, where she locked herself in and cried. However, in front of the camera, she behaved quite professionally. One of those who helped her feel comfortable on set was Gary Cooper (1901-1961).
Harry Cohn (1891-1958), founder, president, and producer of Columbia Pictures, made it a rule to only allow directors to shoot one take, which saved the studio a considerable amount of money, and strictly adhered to this rule. Frank Capra found a way around it. At the end of each take, he would not shout “Cut!” but “Once more!” and the actors would start the scene again.
One of the ways Frank Capra minimized studio management interference in the filmmaking process was by refusing to work while any of the bosses were present on set. As soon as Harry Cohn or any other executives appeared on set, Capra would announce a half-hour break. These delays cost the film company so much that Cohn rarely appeared on set.
Director Frank Capra was convinced from the very beginning that Gary Cooper would be perfect in the role of Longfellow Deeds. While waiting for Cooper to become available, the start of filming was delayed by six months, costing the film's budget $100,000.
Guided by the ideological postulate that justice is impossible in the United States, officials from the Soviet cultural sphere altered the film's ending for domestic release: the hero was imprisoned (a close-up of him behind bars appeared at the end), and the scene of Deeds's fellow townsmen rejoicing at his return from the city was even redubbed (more accurately, resubtitled): they ostensibly expressed outrage at his arrest.
Actress Jean Arthur (1900–1991) and director Frank Capra (1897–1991) only saw the full film in 1972 while attending a film festival.
Jean Arthur was so terrified of acting that she often vomited before filming, and between takes, she had to run to her dressing room, where she would lock herself in and cry. In front of the camera, however, she behaved quite professionally. One of those who helped her feel at ease on set was Gary Cooper (1901-1961).
Harry Cohn (1891-1958), the founder, president, and producer of Columbia Pictures, made it a rule to allow directors only one take, which saved the studio a considerable amount of money, and he adhered strictly to this rule. Frank Capra found a way to bypass it. At the end of every take, instead of shouting "Cut!", he would yell "Once more!", and the actors would start the scene over again.
One of the ways Frank Capra minimized studio management's interference in the filmmaking process was by refusing to work while any of the executives were present on set. As soon as Harry Cohn or any other executive appeared on set, Capra would announce a half-hour break. Such downtimes cost the film company so much that Cohn appeared on set very rarely.
From the very beginning, director Frank Capra was convinced that Gary Cooper would be perfect in the role of Longfellow Deeds. While waiting for Cooper to become available, the start of filming was delayed by six months, and this delay cost the film's budget $100,000.