Letter of Introduction (1938)

40% of users liked it
(24 ratings)

A master blend of high comedy and tense emotional drama, A Letter of Introduction reteams Adolphe Menjou, Andrea Leeds, and Edgar Bergen & Charlie McCarthy, who'd previously costarred in the negligible Goldwyn Follies. Menjou plays John Mannering, a Barrymoresque actor who years earlier had divorced… More A master blend of high comedy and tense emotional drama, A Letter of Introduction reteams Adolphe Menjou, Andrea Leeds, and Edgar Bergen & Charlie McCarthy, who'd previously costarred in the negligible Goldwyn Follies. Menjou plays John Mannering, a Barrymoresque actor who years earlier had divorced his wife and severed his relationship with his daughter Kay (Andrea Leeds). Now a grown woman, Kay aspires to an acting career, fully determined to make it on her own without her father's help. She goes so far as to change her last name to Martin, and to keep her actual relationship to Mannering a secret from the public. This set-up leads to a dizzying series of complications, including the breakup of Mannering's romance with a tootsie named Lydia Hoyt (Anne Sheridan), who falsely assumes that Kay is Mannering's mistress, and Kay's own romantic travails with vaudeville hoofer Barry Paige (George Murphy). Meanwhile, Kay's ventriloquist friend Bergen and his dummy McCarthy rise to superstardom on radio. It is, in fact, Bergen and Charlie who are instrumental in reuniting the estranged Mannering and Kay, paving the way for the film's tear-stained conclusion. Unavailable for many years, A Letter of Introduction re-emerged on the Public Domain circuit in 1975. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 44 min.
Directed By: John M. Stahl
Written By: Sheridan Gibney, Leonard Spigelgass
Genres: Drama, Classics, Comedy

In Theaters: Aug 5, 1938 Wide
On DVD: Feb 22, 2005

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Featured Audience Ratings

jay n

Andrea Leeds and Adolphe Menjou have a nice chemistry as the daughter finding her long lost father in this lovely little drama. Eve Arden is inimitable as ever as the wisecracking best friend, and the always welcome Rita Johnson and Ann Sheridan show up in small parts. Depending on… More
Andrea Leeds and Adolphe Menjou have a nice chemistry as the daughter finding her long lost father in this lovely little drama. Eve Arden is inimitable as ever as the wisecracking best friend, and the always welcome Rita Johnson and Ann Sheridan show up in small parts. Depending on your tolerance or liking for Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy be aware that the movie stops dead at one point for about 10 minutes for his routine.

Cast

            Adolphe Menjou as John Mannering

            Andrea Leeds as Kay Martin

            Edgar Bergen as Edgar Bergen

            George Murphy as Barry Paige

            Rita Johnson as Honey

            Ann Sheridan as Lydia Hoyt

            Eve Arden as Cora Phelps

            John Archer
            
            Irving Bacon
            
            Don 'Red' Barry
            
            May Boley as Mrs. Meggs

            Wade Boteler as Policeman

            Don Brodie as Reporter

            Douglas Carter Beane as Photographer

            Chester Clute as Doctor

            Ernest Cossart as Andrews Mannering's Butler

            Inez Courtney
            
            Edith Craig
            
            Mark Daniels as Kibitzer

            William B. Davidson as Mr. Raleigh

            William "Wild Bill" Elliott as Backgammon Man

            Dorothy Granger as Women at Party

            Jonathan Hale as Lou Woodstock

            Eleanor Hansen as Stagestruck Girl

            Sam Hayes as Announcer

            Robert E. Homans
            
            Kathleen Howard as Aunt Jonnie

            George Humbert as Musician on Stage

            Frank Jenks as Joe

            Armand Kaliz as Jules the Barber

            Crauford Kent as Mr. Sinclair

            Doris Lloyd as Charlotte

            Alphonse Martell as Maitre d'Hotel

            Dummy: Charlie McCarthy as Himself

            Constance Moore as Autograph Seeker

            Natalie Moorhead as Mrs. Maud  Raleigh

            Leonard Mudie as Critic

            Raymond Parker as Call Boy

            Walter Perry as Backstage Doorman

            Esther Ralston as Mrs. Sinclair

            Frank Reicher
            
            Kane Richmond as Man

            Frances Robinson as Hatcheck Girl

            Rolfe Sedan as Fitter

            Charles Sherlock
            
            Philip Trent as Men at Party

            Richard Tucker as Gossip

            Theodore von Eltz
            
            Ray Walker as Reporter

            Morgan Wallace as Editor

            Claire Whitney as Nurse

            Dick Winslow as Elevator Boy

            Russell Hopton as Process Server

            Kitty McHugh as Girl Singers

            Sharon Lewis as Bridge Player

            Mortimer Snerd
            
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