161020

1927-10-24 (Release)

United Kingdom

Story of the life of a young man who is expelled from school when he refuses to divulge the real culprit. (Synopsis) DRAMA. The story of a boy who takes the blame for his best friend's misdeed and is expelled from school and his subsequent progress downhill until he returns home, broken in health and fortune, to find his name has been cleared. Rl. 1a. A school, Tim Wakeley and Roddy Berwick are friends. Their parents are at the school match in which Roddy saves the game for the school. Mabel, a school maid, passes Tim a note making an appointment for that night (609). Rl. 1b. Tim takes Roddy to the appointment with Mabel at the Bunne Shoppe. There, she plays gramophone records and wants to dance. Roddy dances well, but Tim is clumsy. While Tim and Mabel are dancing Roddy serves a small boy in the shop. When he returns, Mabel and Tim are exchanging a passionate kiss. The boys leave (1393). Rl. 2a. Roddy is made captain of the school. Later, he and Tim are sent for by the head. Mabel is in the study and the head says she has brought a serious charge. He asks her which boy it is (1810). Rl. 2b. She accuses Roddy as his father is rich. Tim does not speak as it would ruin his chances of a scholarship, Roddy realises this and keeps silent. Roddy is expelled (2564). Rl. 3a. Roddy arrives home, he explains to his father, but his father refuses to believe in his innocence. Roddy leaves home, without any luggage and goes to the Underground station (3148). Rl. 3b. He obtains a job as an extra in the theatre. He finds Julia, the star's, cigarette case and returns it to her dressing room. Archie, the male star, comes to the dressing room, and Roddy has to leave (3762). Rl. 4. When Roddy gets home he finds a letter waiting for him which tells him that he has inherited £30,0000 from his grandmother. Next day, he tells Julia his news, when Archie hears he presents Roddy with Julia's bills which previously he had paid. Julia marries Roddy (4660). Rl. 5. Julia soon fritters away all Roddy's money. Then one day, he finds Archie in her bedroom and fights with him. He then tells Julia and Archie to get out, but she says that he made the flat over to her, so he must get out. He does and goes to Paris, where he gets a job at a dance hall, dancing with customers for fifty francs a dance (5537). Rl. 6. One of his cutomers seems a very sympathetic woman and her tells her his story, but in the light of dawn he sees she is middle-aged and dissipated and she makes a proposition to him. He leaves the dance hall in disgust. He drifts to Marseilles. There he becomes ill and his landlady suggests to two sailors that they take him on their boat to London. One of the sailors finds a letter on Roddy addressed to Tim Wakeley. It says he will be dead when Tim gets it, but that he has kept his promise to Tim (7479). Rl. 7a. The sailors take him to their boat. Lying in the bunk he becomes delirious and sees the people in his life who have contributed to his ruin (7842). Rl. 7b. At last the boat arrives in England, Roddy sees this from the porthole and leaves the boat. In a daze he goes home. His parents are out, but the butler settles him before the fire and brings him a drink, his parents return and his father tells him that he has been searchig for him to beg his pardon as he now knows the truth. He is re-united with his family. Later he returns to school and plays in an old boys match (8635ft). (Shotlist)

Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Production Company: Gainsborough Pictures
Presented by: C.M. Woolf
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Ivor Novello (Roddy Berwick)
Ben Webster (Dr Dowson, the headmaster)
Norman Mckinnel (Sir Thomas Berwick)
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