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The Rich Are Always with Us

Director: Alfred Green (Dir) Release Date: 21 May 1932 Production Date: began late Oct 1931 Duration (in mins): 71, 73 or 75 Duration (in reels): 8			Print this page Display Movie Summary

Cast:	Ruth Chatterton	(Caroline Grannard)
	George Brent	(Julian Tierney)
	Bette Davis	(Malbro)
	John Miljan	(Greg Grannard)
	Adrienne Dore	(Alison Adair)
	John Wray	(Davis)
	Robert Warwick	(The doctor)
	Walter Walker	(Dante)
	Virginia Hammond	(Flo)
	Burton Churchill	(The judge)
	Eula Guy	(Mrs. Drake)
	Sam McDaniel	(Julian's butler)
	Cecil Cunningham	(Woman at party)
	Edith Allen
	Ethel Kenyon
	Mae Madison
	Ruth Lee

Summary:

Caroline Grannard, one of the richest women in New York, is married to Greg, a successful stockbroker. Novelist Julian Tierney is in love with Caroline and begs her to divorce her husband and marry him. She is in love with her husband, however, and is sure that he is equally faithful to her. Greg and Caroline hold a weekend house party, which is attended by Julian, Malbro, a friend of Caroline's who is in love with Julian, and Alison Adair, with whom Greg is having an affair. When Caroline sees her husband kissing Alison, she asks Greg if he wants to marry Alison and, when he says yes, agrees to a divorce. Julian meets Caroline in Paris after her divorce is final. He is on his way to Romania on a writing assignment and asks her to marry him. She begs for more time, and although she insists that she no longer loves Greg, Julian assumes her concern for her former husband is love and leaves Paris without her. When Caroline returns to the United States, she learns that Greg and Alison are having a baby. Malbro has done her best to win Julian's love, but when he announces that he is leaving for China and India, hoping to get over his love for Caroline, Malbro telephones Caroline and tells her. After Caroline searches out Julian, they profess their love for each other and spend the night together. Alison tries to create a scandal but is stopped by Malbro and Greg, who hurries her to the car. On the way home, they quarrel and the car crashes, killing Alison and seriously injuring Greg. The doctor tells Caroline that she is the only one who can save Greg, and when Greg begs her to stay, she sends Julian to China on his own. Before he leaves, however, she insists that a hospitalized judge marry them in his room, explaining that she will join Julian as soon as Greg has recovered.

Production Company:	First National Pictures, Inc.	(Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc.)
Distribution Company:	First National Pictures, Inc.
Director:	Alfred Green	(Dir)
Producer:	Sam Bischoff	(Prod)
Writer:	Austin Parker	(Adpt)
Photography:	Ernest Hall	(Photog)
	William Schurr	(2d cam)
	Ellsworth Fredericks	(Asst cam)
Art Direction:	Jack Okey	(Art dir)
Film Editor:	George Marks	(Ed)
Music:	Leo F. Forbstein	(Vitaphone Orch cond)
Sound:	E. A. Brown	(Sd)
Production Misc:	John Ellis	(Still photog)
Country:	United States

Songs:	"What a Life" and "Trying to Live Without You," composers unknown.
Source Text:	Based on the novel The Rich Are Always with Us by Ethel Pettit (New York, 1931).
Authors:	Ethel Pettit

Copyright Claimant	Copyright Date	Copyright Number
First National Pictures, Inc.	15/6/1932 dd/mm/yyyy	LP3167

Physical Properties:	Sd:
	b&w:


Genre:	Romance

Subjects (Major):	Infidelity
	Marriage
	Romance

Subjects (Minor):	Automobile accidents
	Divorce
	Gambling
	Gossip
	Hospitals
	Judges
	New York City
	Novelists
	Paris (France)
	Self-sacrifice
	Stockbrokers
	Unrequited love
	Wealth

Note:	According to Var , this picture was Ruth Chatterton's first for Warner Bros. She and George Brent married during the course of filming, but divorced two years later. News items in FD indicate that Kay Francis was considered for the lead and Adrienne Dore replaced Ann Dvorak.

Bibliographic Sources:	Date	Page
Film Daily	5 May 31	p. 6.
Film Daily	4 Oct 31	p. 4.
Film Daily	5 Oct 31	p. 8.
Film Daily	1 Feb 32	p. 4.
Film Daily	11 Feb 32	p. 6.
Film Daily	15 May 32	p. 10.
International Photographer	1 Jun 32	p. 33.
Motion Picture Herald	21 May 32	p. 103.
New York Times	16 May 32	p. 19.
Variety	17 May 32	p. 14.

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The American Film Institute is grateful to Sir Paul Getty KBE and the Sir Paul Getty KBE Estate for their dedication to the art of the moving image and their support for the AFI Catalog of Feature Films and without whose support AFI would not have been able to achieve this historical landmark in this epic scholarly endeavor.



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