Starting over with almost nothing after the great Chicago Fire, Daniel Pardway builds the biggest department store in town. He wants to pass on the business to his daughter and three sons, b... Read allStarting over with almost nothing after the great Chicago Fire, Daniel Pardway builds the biggest department store in town. He wants to pass on the business to his daughter and three sons, but he is forced to deal with their lack of interest or aptitude.Starting over with almost nothing after the great Chicago Fire, Daniel Pardway builds the biggest department store in town. He wants to pass on the business to his daughter and three sons, but he is forced to deal with their lack of interest or aptitude.
- Thane Pardway
- (as Allan Dinehart)
- Gene's Friend
- (uncredited)
- Customer
- (uncredited)
- Mrs. Patrick O'Leary
- (uncredited)
- Violet's Madame
- (uncredited)
- Prince Niko Gilitziv
- (uncredited)
- Minister of peace at wedding
- (uncredited)
- Photographer
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- Lester Cohen
- Howard Estabrook(uncredited)
- H.W. Hanemann(uncredited)
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaIn the opening scene introducing the characters at the train station, the tall Indian who walks through is Jim Thorpe in an uncredited role. He was famous for winning two Olympic gold medals (in decathlon and classic pentathlon) as well as a versatile team athlete (collegiate and professional American football, professional baseball and basketball).
In 1913, the Olympic Committee had stripped Thorpe of his medals for having earned some meager pay as a professional athlete, against their rules.
(From Wikipedia) By the time he appeared in Sweepings, he had fallen on hard times, taking a number of menial jobs, including as a movie extra, to support his family. Burt Lancaster played the athlete in Jim Thorpe - All-American (1951), the year after Thorpe sought treatment for cancer as a charity case. Thorpe's medals were restored to him in 1982, nearly 30 years after his death at the age of 64.
- Quotes
Freddie Pardway: Well, Abby, you're a sight for sore eyes.
Abigail Pardway: If you didn't drink so much, your eyes wouldn't be sore.
Freddie Pardway: Smart, ain't she?
- SoundtracksSilent Night
(uncredited)
Words by Joseph Mohr
Music by Franz Xaver Gruber
Sung and played as background music at Christmas
Lionel Barrymore dominates this fine, neglected character study which serves as a showcase for his talents. Less flamboyant than his celebrated younger brother John, Lionel was a marvelous actor, as well as a true eccentric (not long before this film was made he began living in a loft above one of MGM's sound stages and, according to the rumor which circulated around the studio, had completely stopped bathing). With his fascinating voice & stage-engendered mannerisms, Lionel was always worth watching. And so he proves here, playing a man who could be warmly loving & completely ruthless by turns.
Kudos should also extend to Ninetta Sunderland as Barrymore's faithful, tragic wife; George Meeker as his cheery brother; and Gregory Ratoff as Barrymore's shrewd store manager. They each flesh out a small role and make it notable. Young Gloria Stuart, who would have a resurgence of fame more than 60 years later in TITANIC, plays Barrymore's daughter.
Movie mavens will recognize Mary Gordon as Mrs. O'Leary (with cow) and Franklin Pangborn as a nervous photographer, both uncredited Look fast in the early train station scene for champion athlete Jim Thorpe, unbilled, playing a passing Indian; he was reduced to making appearances like this to pay the bills.
RKO gave the film excellent production values; Slavko Vorkapich, a true master of what was termed `transitional effects,' supplied montages which are especially noteworthy.
Max Steiner composed the full-bodied score.
- Ron Oliver
- Nov 12, 2000
Details
- Runtime1 hour 20 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
Contribute to this page
![Lionel Barrymore and Helen Mack in Sweepings (1933)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTc3ODgxMzA0OF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwOTI0NzY5MTE@._V1_QL75_UY133_CR2,0,90,133_.jpg)