The Time of Your Life (1948)
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49% of users liked it
(604 ratings)
After turning down several other Hollywood producers, playwright William Saroyan sold the film rights of his whimsical Pulitzer Prize-winning play The Time of Your Life to James and William Cagney. The scene is a rundown San Francisco waterfront bar, populated by a group of lovable eccentrics. Joe… More After turning down several other Hollywood producers, playwright William Saroyan sold the film rights of his whimsical Pulitzer Prize-winning play The Time of Your Life to James and William Cagney. The scene is a rundown San Francisco waterfront bar, populated by a group of lovable eccentrics. Joe (James Cagney), a philosophical souse, encourages all around him to indulge in their wildest dreams. Joe's pal Tom (Wayne Morris), a born patsy, runs errands for Joe, the only person who has ever shown him kindness. Kitty (Jeanne Cagney), a streetwalker, willingly allows Joe to sponge drinks off her in exchange for a few nice words. Harry (Paul Draper), an enthusiastic but hopelessly untalented dancer-comedian, is hired by bartender Nick (William Bendix) at Joe's urging. And Kit Carson (James Barton), an addled old man who lives in a dream world, is prodded by Joe into weaving his unlikely reminiscences of the Wild West. It is Kit Carson (James Barton) who solves everyone's problems by eliminating a particularly scabrous detective named Blick (Tom Powers). Time of Your Life was originally filmed with Saroyan's bizarrely humorous ending intact, but the preview audiences reacted negatively, forcing the Cagney brothers to shoot $300,000 worth of retakes. Though many historians have written off The Time of Your Life as a brave failure, the film was actually a hit, grossing $1.5 million. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Directed By
- H.C. Potter
- Written By
- William Saroyan, Nathaniel Curtis
- Genres
- Drama, Comedy
PG-13,
- In Theaters
- Sep 3, 1948 Wide
- Studio
- Synergy Entertainment
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Cast
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Marlene Ammes
as Nick's Daughter
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James Cagney
as Joe
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William Bendix
as Nick
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James Barton
as Kit Carson
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Reginald Beane
as Wesley
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Wayne Morris
as Tom
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Jeanne Cagney
as Kitty Duval
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Gladys Blake
as Sidekick
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Broderick Crawford
as Policeman
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Ward Bond
as McCarthy
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Claire Carleton
as "Killer"
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Paul Draper
as Harry
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Richard Erdman
as Willie
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Howard Freeman
as Society gentleman
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Jimmy Lydon
as Dudley
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Grazia Marciso
as Nick's Mother
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John Miller
as Drunk
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Gale Page
as Mary L.
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Nanette Parks
as Girl in love
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Tom Powers
as Blick
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Lanny Rees
as Newsboy
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Renie Riano
as Blind date
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Natalie Schafer
as Society woman
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Eddie Borden
as Salvation Army man
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Ann Cameron
as B girl
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Rena Case
as Salvation Army woman
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Pedro de Cordoba
as Arab
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Donald Kerr
as Bookie
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Moy Ming
as Cook
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Floyd Walters
as Sailor
- Joseph Allen Jr.
