By Richard Harland Smith
When's Your Birthday?
Brief Synopsis
An astrologer trusts the stars to make him a championship boxer.
Cast & Crew
Read More
Harry Beaumont
Director
Joe E. Brown
Dustin Willoughby
Marian Marsh
Jerry Grant
Fred Keating
Larry Burke
Edgar Kennedy
Mr. [Henry] Basscombe
Maude Eburne
Mrs. [Fanny] Basscombe
Film Details
Genre
Comedy
Release Date
Feb
19,
1937
Premiere Information
not available
Production Company
David L. Loew Productions, Inc.
Distribution Company
RKO Radio Pictures, Inc.
Country
United States
Screenplay Information
Based on the unpublished play When's Your Birthday ? by Fred Ballard (copyrighted 18 Nov 1935).
Technical Specs
Duration
1h 17m
Sound
Mono
Color
Black and White
Theatrical Aspect Ratio
1.37 : 1
Synopsis
Dustin Willoughby, a bumbling busboy, moonlights as a boxer in order to pay for instructions in his favorite subject--astrology. After a particularly painful bout, Dustin, who believes that his success as a "Taurus" depends on the appearance of the moon, goes to see his fiancée, Diane Basscombe, and is followed by a stray dog, whom he names Zodiac. When Dustin announces to Diane and her nouveaux riches parents that he cannot marry in June because of an unfavorable alignment of the planets, Diane breaks their engagement and throws him out of her house. Later, the busboy warns Judge O'Day, who is celebrating his birthday at Dustin's restaurant, that misfortune will befall him that day. A moment later, a potted plant falls on the judge's head, astounding not only O'Day but also his guest, professional gambler James J. Regan. The superstitious Regan then asks Dustin to predict the outcome of a dog race, and Dustin, after learning the birthdays of the competing dogs, picks the winner. Convinced that Dustin will bring him good luck, Regan orders Lefty, one of his minions, to bring him the retreating busboy. Dustin, however, believes that Regan is angry with him and, to avoid capture, dresses in a chorus girl costume and runs from the restaurant. Now jobless, Dustin tricks carnival barker and magician Larry Burke into hiring him as a fortune-teller. Dustin soon becomes the carnival's star attraction and wins the heart of Larry's secretary, Jerry Grant. Jealous of Dustin's success, the smooth-talking Larry informs the police that Dustin has no operator's license, and Dustin is arrested. By coincidence, Dustin's case is heard by Judge O'Day, who recognizes the former busboy and informs Regan of his whereabouts. Regan installs Dustin in his offices and consults him religiously on his various wagers. One night, while appearing as the "Great Swami" in a stylish dinner club, Dustin is spotted by Diane and her parents. Impressed by Dustin's successes, Diane showers him with affection and kisses him in front of Jerry, who runs from the club in humiliation. Unable to contact Jerry, Dustin grows despondent and leaves town to find her. While he is away, Regan and Lefty, who are worried about an upcoming boxing match in which they have entered foreign slugger "Salvador Slayer," mistake Dustin's positive astrological chart for their boxer's. When Dustin returns without Jerry, he informs Regan that the boxer's planet alignments are unfavorable. To Dustin's dismay, Regan then insists that he take the boxer's place in the bout, which begins shortly before moonrise. After a near defeat in the first rounds, Dustin, inspired by the appearance of the moon, routs his superior opponent and is embraced by a forgiving Jerry.
Director
Harry Beaumont
Director
Cast
Joe E. Brown
Dustin Willoughby
Marian Marsh
Jerry Grant
Fred Keating
Larry Burke
Edgar Kennedy
Mr. [Henry] Basscombe
Maude Eburne
Mrs. [Fanny] Basscombe
Suzanne Kaaren
Diane Basscombe
Margaret Hamilton
Mossy
Minor Watson
[James J.] Regan
Frank Jenks
Lefty
Don Rowan
Steve
Granville Bates
Judge O'Day
Charles Judels
Headwaiter [Acropolis]
Corky
Zodiac
Ward Bond
Detective
Bull Montana
"Salvador Slayer"
Crew
Malcolm Stuart Boylan
Adaptation
Harry Clork
Screenwriter
Harvey Gates
Adaptation
H. W. Hanemann
Contr to Screenplay const
David L. Loew
Executive Producer
David L. Loew
Presented By
Richard Macaulay
Contr to Screenplay const
Jack Ogilve
Film Editor
Samuel M. Pike
Adaptation
Van Nest Polglase
Art Director
George Robinson
Photography
Sandy Roth
Assistant Director
Leon Schlesinger
Cartoon seq
John Ducasse Schulze
Art Director Associate
Ralph Shugart
Recording Director
Samuel Wineland
Music Score
Film Details
Genre
Comedy
Release Date
Feb
19,
1937
Premiere Information
not available
Production Company
David L. Loew Productions, Inc.
Distribution Company
RKO Radio Pictures, Inc.
Country
United States
Screenplay Information
Based on the unpublished play When's Your Birthday ? by Fred Ballard (copyrighted 18 Nov 1935).
Technical Specs
Duration
1h 17m
Sound
Mono
Color
Black and White
Theatrical Aspect Ratio
1.37 : 1
Articles
When's Your Birthday?
Despite starring in a string of successes at Warner Brothers (where he was the studio's top money-earner in 1936), and rising halfway to the summit of Hollywood's box office top ten, comedian Joe E. Brown elected in 1937 to sign with independent producer David L. Loew. The son of motion picture pioneer Marcus Loew, founder of both the Loew's Theaters and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Loew fils had promised Brown $100,000 per picture - with the first film by the new partners being When's Your Birthday? (1937). Based on an unproduced stage play by Broadway scribe Fred Ballard, the film featured Brown as a low nightclub busboy obsessed with astrology, whose Candide-like peregrinations find him picking dog race winners for a well-heeled gambler and hiding out from gangsters while posing as a sideshow mind reader. Distributed by RKO Radio Pictures, the modestly-budgeted When's Your Birthday? benefited from the production value of standing sets and received a gala premiere at Radio City Music Hall. Originally exhibited in Technicolor, the film's cartoon prologue was the work of Looney Tunes producer Leon Schlesinger and animator Bob Clampett. Brown's leading ladies are Marian Marsh, Trilby to John Barrymore's Svengali (1931), and The Devil Bat's (1940) Suzanne Kaaren - with Margaret Hamilton stealing an early scene as a hatched-faced housemaid named Mossy.
By Richard Harland Smith
By Richard Harland Smith
When's Your Birthday?
Despite starring in a string of successes at Warner Brothers (where he was the studio's top money-earner in 1936), and rising halfway to the summit of Hollywood's box office top ten, comedian Joe E. Brown elected in 1937 to sign with independent producer David L. Loew. The son of motion picture pioneer Marcus Loew, founder of both the Loew's Theaters and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Loew fils had promised Brown $100,000 per picture - with the first film by the new partners being When's Your Birthday? (1937). Based on an unproduced stage play by Broadway scribe Fred Ballard, the film featured Brown as a low nightclub busboy obsessed with astrology, whose Candide-like peregrinations find him picking dog race winners for a well-heeled gambler and hiding out from gangsters while posing as a sideshow mind reader. Distributed by RKO Radio Pictures, the modestly-budgeted When's Your Birthday? benefited from the production value of standing sets and received a gala premiere at Radio City Music Hall. Originally exhibited in Technicolor, the film's cartoon prologue was the work of Looney Tunes producer Leon Schlesinger and animator Bob Clampett. Brown's leading ladies are Marian Marsh, Trilby to John Barrymore's Svengali (1931), and The Devil Bat's (1940) Suzanne Kaaren - with Margaret Hamilton stealing an early scene as a hatched-faced housemaid named Mossy.
By Richard Harland Smith
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
Although the film's opening credits include a copyright statement for David L. Loew Productions, the title was not found in the copyright records. When's Your Birthday? was RKO's first collaboration with Loew and Joe E. Brown. The opening animated segment of the film, a dream sequence featuring a mythical battle between various astrological signs, was produced in Technicolor by Leon Schlesinger. Hollywood Reporter news items add Ruth Robin, Manny Harmon and His Orchestra, Eddie Kane, Donald Barry and Jimmy O'Gatty to the cast, but their participation in the final film has not been confirmed.
