By Glenn Erickson
The Man Who Talked Too Much
Brief Synopsis
A defense lawyer sets out to topple a powerful gangster.
Cast & Crew
Read More
Vincent Sherman
Director
George Brent
Stephen Forbes
Virginia Bruce
Joan Reed
Brenda Marshall
Celia Farraday
Richard Barthelmess
J. B. Roscoe
William Lundigan
Johnny Forbes
Film Details
Also Known As
Broadway Lawyer, The Sentence
Genre
Crime
Adaptation
Drama
Release Date
Jul
16,
1940
Premiere Information
not available
Production Company
Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc.
Distribution Company
Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc.
Country
United States
Screenplay Information
Based on the play The Mouthpiece by Frank J. Collins (Brooklyn, NY, 10 Jun 1929).
Technical Specs
Duration
1h 15m
Sound
Mono (RCA Sound System)
Color
Black and White
Theatrical Aspect Ratio
1.37 : 1
Film Length
8 reels
Synopsis
After Stephen Forbes helps send an innocent man to the electric chair, he resigns from the district attorney's office and goes into business for himself. When Steve defends a small businessman against a gangster and wins his case, he catches the attention of gangster J. B. Roscoe, who offers him work defending his men. Because he needs the money to keep his younger brother Johnny in law school, Steve agrees, becoming very wealthy from the work. After his graduation, Johnny joins Steve's firm. Gradually, he becomes aware of his brother's lack of ethics. Joan Reed, Steve's secretary, suggests to Johnny that they make it their business to keep Steve honest. Johnny is sickened when Steve drinks poison in court to prove that his client could not have murdered anyone with the contents of the bottle and then has his stomach pumped after the innocent verdict is read. Determined to save his brother from himself, Johnny gives the government crucial evidence of Roscoe's income tax evasion. Steve realizes that the information could only have come from Johnny, and to protect him, he tells Roscoe that he will no longer work for him. As revenge, Roscoe frames Johnny for a murder. Steve defends Johnny but loses his case. His only hope is to break the alibi of the man who actually committed the crime. With only minutes to spare before Johnny's execution, Steve gets a signed confession. The brothers are reconciled, and Steve is finished with his former life.
Director
Vincent Sherman
Director
Cast
George Brent
Stephen Forbes
Virginia Bruce
Joan Reed
Brenda Marshall
Celia Farraday
Richard Barthelmess
J. B. Roscoe
William Lundigan
Johnny Forbes
George Tobias
Slug McNutt
John Litel
District Attorney Dickson
Henry Armetta
Tony Spirella
Alan Baxter
Joe Garland
David Bruce
Gerald Wilson
Clarence Kolb
E. A. Smith
Louis Jean Heydt
Barton
Marc Lawrence
Lefty Kyler
Edward Stanley
District Attorney Nelson
Kay Sutton
Mrs. Knight
Elliott Sullivan
Bill
Dick Rich
Pete
Phyllis Hamilton
Myrtle
John Ridgely
Brooks
William Forrest
Federal district attorney Green
Maris Wrixon
Roscoe's secretary
Dana Dale
Governor's secretary
Paul Phillips
Trigger
William Gould
Chief Kendall
De Wolfe Hopper
Reporter
George Haywood
Reporter
Creighton Hale
Reporter
Lottie Williams
Wilson's mother
Frank Mayo
Keeper
Emmett Vogan
Chaplain
Tom Wilson
Prisoner
Cliff Saum
Prisoner
Napoleon Simpson
Prisoner
Glen Cavender
Prisoner
Jack Richardson
Prisoner
Sally Sage
Operator
James Flavin
Deputy
Jack Mower
Deputy
Mary Gordon
Old woman
Rosina Galli
Mrs. Spirella
Harry Seymour
Painter
George Reeves
Hotel clerk
Thomas W. Ross
Judge
Howard Mitchell
Juryman
Jack Gardner
Juryman
Alexander Leftwich
Jury foreman
Peter Ashley
Assistant to District Attorney
George Kirby
Roscoe's butler
Herbert Anderson
Hotel night clerk
Paul Ravel
Miller
Eddie Foster
Weinstein
Frank Bruno
Griswold
Alan Davis
Whitey
Douglas Wood
Judge
John Hamilton
Governor
Sam Mcdaniel
Porter
James Blaine
Guard
Ruth Robinson
Housekeeper
Vera Lewis
Suzanne Carnahan
Charles Sherlock
Crew
Earl Baldwin
Screenwriter
Walter Deleon
Screenwriter
Leo F. Forbstein
Music Director
Bryan Foy
Executive Producer
Edmund Grainger
Associate Producer
Ray Heindorf
Orchestra Arrangement
Sid Hickox
Director of Photography
Lee Hugunin
Unit Manager
William Kissell
Assistant Director
Charles Perry
Technical Advisor
Thomas Pratt
Film Editor
Tom Reed
Screenwriter
Hugh Reticker
Art Director
H. Roemheld
Music
Howard Shoup
Gowns
Dolph Thomas
Sound
Jack L. Warner
Company
Perc Westmore
Makeup Artist
Film Details
Also Known As
Broadway Lawyer, The Sentence
Genre
Crime
Adaptation
Drama
Release Date
Jul
16,
1940
Premiere Information
not available
Production Company
Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc.
Distribution Company
Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc.
Country
United States
Screenplay Information
Based on the play The Mouthpiece by Frank J. Collins (Brooklyn, NY, 10 Jun 1929).
Technical Specs
Duration
1h 15m
Sound
Mono (RCA Sound System)
Color
Black and White
Theatrical Aspect Ratio
1.37 : 1
Film Length
8 reels
Articles
The Man Who Talked Too Much
The Man Who Talked Too Much (1940) is the first remake of the 1932 courtroom drama The Mouthpiece, based on the controversial 'attorney to the underworld' William J. Fallon. The Fallon character was played by the iconic Warren William in the original, while a second remake Illegal (1955) became a late-career vehicle for Edward G. Robinson. Normally associated with straight-arrow nice guys, George Brent stars as D.A. Stephen Forbes, who inadvertently sends an innocent man to the chair. Unable to put his idealistic little brother Johnny (William Lundigan) through school, Stephen goes crooked, using courtroom tricks to benefit gangster Roscoe (Richard Barthelmess, in one of his last roles). For one of his courtroom gimmicks, Forbes drops a professional boxer with one punch, but is secretly using brass knuckles. The idealistic younger brother Johnny is a new addition to the story, serving as a moral spokesman and to spur Forbes' guilty conscience. When Roscoe frames Johnny for murder, the desperate Forbes must use his legal talent in a case that really means something to him. Reviewers thought that Richard Barthelmess's mob chieftain was far too soft-spoken, and noted that actresses Virginia Bruce and Brenda Marshall had little to do. But all mentioned the good direction of Vincent Sherman and reserved special praise for George Tobias, whose comic relief henchman Slug McNutt steals every scene he's in.
By Glenn Erickson
By Glenn Erickson
The Man Who Talked Too Much
The Man Who Talked Too Much (1940) is the first remake of the 1932 courtroom drama The Mouthpiece, based on the controversial 'attorney to the underworld' William J. Fallon. The Fallon character was played by the iconic Warren William in the original, while a second remake Illegal (1955) became a late-career vehicle for Edward G. Robinson. Normally associated with straight-arrow nice guys, George Brent stars as D.A. Stephen Forbes, who inadvertently sends an innocent man to the chair. Unable to put his idealistic little brother Johnny (William Lundigan) through school, Stephen goes crooked, using courtroom tricks to benefit gangster Roscoe (Richard Barthelmess, in one of his last roles). For one of his courtroom gimmicks, Forbes drops a professional boxer with one punch, but is secretly using brass knuckles. The idealistic younger brother Johnny is a new addition to the story, serving as a moral spokesman and to spur Forbes' guilty conscience. When Roscoe frames Johnny for murder, the desperate Forbes must use his legal talent in a case that really means something to him. Reviewers thought that Richard Barthelmess's mob chieftain was far too soft-spoken, and noted that actresses Virginia Bruce and Brenda Marshall had little to do. But all mentioned the good direction of Vincent Sherman and reserved special praise for George Tobias, whose comic relief henchman Slug McNutt steals every scene he's in. By Glenn Erickson
Quotes
Trivia
George Reeves' role as the first hotel clerk was filmed but cut.
The script was unfinished at the start of production and was revised throughout.
The original play opened in Brooklyn, N.Y. on 10 June 1929.
Notes
The working titles of this picture were The Sentence and Broadway Lawyer. Although the onscreen credits attribute the screenplay to Walter DeLeon and Earl Baldwin, the Film Daily, Motion Picture Herald and Variety reviews give screenplay credit to DeLeon and Tom Reed. In the copyright records, Reed's name is deleted and replaced with that of Baldwin; Reed is not credited in Screen Achievements Bulletin. The 1932 Warner Bros. film The Mouthpiece was also based on Frank L. Collins' play (see below). For information on other filmed adaptations of the Collins play for The Mouthpiece.
