Stanley and Livingstone (1939)
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63% of users liked it
(107 ratings)
Twentieth Century-Fox borrowed Spencer Tracy, from MGM for the sprawling (yet economically produced) historical drama Stanley and Livingstone. Tracy plays 19th-century American journalist Henry M. Stanley, an adventure-prone sort who is assigned by his editor (Henry Hull) to locate lost Scottish… More Twentieth Century-Fox borrowed Spencer Tracy, from MGM for the sprawling (yet economically produced) historical drama Stanley and Livingstone. Tracy plays 19th-century American journalist Henry M. Stanley, an adventure-prone sort who is assigned by his editor (Henry Hull) to locate lost Scottish missionary David Livingstone (Sir Cedric Hardwicke) in darkest Africa. There are perils aplenty before the inevitable meeting in the clearing, capped by the immortal courtesy "Dr. Livingstone, I presume?" Though seriously ill, Livingstone is content ministering to the natives, declining Stanley's invitation to return home. Upon arriving back to civilization, Stanley tells his story of Dr. Livingstone, but without tangible proof, he is accused of perpetrating a fraud. Only at the very last moment is Stanley vindicated; at this point, he decides to go back to Africa to continue the late Dr. Livingstone's work. This didn't happen in real life, nor is the studio-dictated romance between Spencer Tracy and Nancy Kelly completely copacetic with the facts; outside of this, Stanley and Livingstone comes pretty close to living up to Fox's ad-campaign slogan "The Most Heroic Exploit the World Has Known." ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Written By
- Philip Dunne, Julien Josephson
- Genres
- Drama, Action & Adventure
Unrated,
- In Theaters
- Aug 4, 1939 Wide
- On DVD
- Aug 2, 1990
Critic Reviews
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Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
It's dramatically sound, but factually unsound.
See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)
No Featured Audience Ratings Found…
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Cast
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Spencer Tracy
as Henry M. Stanley
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Nancy Kelly
as Eve Kingsley
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Cedric Hardwicke
as Dr. David Livingstone
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Richard Greene
as Gareth Tyce
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Walter Brennan
as Jeff Slocum
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Charles Coburn
as Lord Tyce
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Henry Hull
as James G. Bennett Jr.
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Henry Travers
as John Kingsley
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Miles Mander
as Sir John Gresham
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David Torrence
as Mr. Cranston
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Paul Stanton
as Capt. Webb
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Holmes Herbert
as Frederick Holcomb
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Brandon Hurst
as Sir Henry Forrester
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Hassan Said
as Hassan
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Paul Harvey
as Col. Grimes
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Russell Hicks
as Commissioner
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Frank Dae
as Commissioner
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Joseph Crehan
as Morehead
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Robert Middlemass
as Carmichael
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Frank Jaquet
as Senator
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Clarence Derwent
as Sir Francis Vane
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Jack Clisby
as Mombay
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Vernon Dent
as Newspaperman
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Harry Harvey
as Man
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James M. McNamara
as Committeeman
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Frank Orth
as Man with Pills
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C. Montague Shaw
as Sir Oliver French
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Emmett E. Smith
as Susi
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Emmett Vogan
as Bennett's Secretary
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Billy Watson
as Copy Boy
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Everett Brown
as Bongo
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Dick Stanley
as Lieutenant
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William Williams
as Mace
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Tom Coleman
as Corporal
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William Dunn
as Chuma
