LONG LONG FATHER (RKO Radio, 1934), directed by Ernest B. Schoendsack, best known for adventure/ jungle settings as THE MOST DANGEROUS GAME (1932), KING KONG (1933) and THE SON OF KONG (1933), attempts something entirely different from his usual directorial style. Taken from a novel by G.P. Stern, the story deals mostly about a bitterness between father and daughter who meet again after many years. Hardly sentimental in the silent melodrama perspective, this slight comedy-drama that relies more on the surprise presence of John Barrymore assuming the leading role.
Plot Summary: Set in England, Lindsey Lane (Helen Chandler), is an English entertainer engaged to Bill Strong (Donald Cook), an American physician who wants to take his future bride back with him to America. Lindsey, abandoned by her father when she was a child and raised by her now deceased mother, happens to be the daughter of Carl Bellair (John Barrymore), soldier of fortune, adventurer and correspondent with a passion for liquor. He has joined partnership with Sir Anthony Gelding (Alan Mowbray), manager of a cafe called The Happy Hour, where Carl mostly mingles with the guests. Though Lindsey Lane (her stage name) and Carl both know of each other's existence, they want nothing to do with one another. Eventually their paths meet again in a lawyer's (Ferdinand Gottschalk) office after receiving a letter to attend the reading of the will to the sole survivors of Aunt Arabella, leaving them with very little. Against his wishes, Carl finds himself, upon request by Gelding, to hire Lindsey to entertain at the Happy Hour floor show. She takes the job knowing her father doesn't want her there. Following her performance, Bill leaves to attend a maternity case. In his absence, Lindsey joins the company of Gelding and company. As Bill returns for Lindsey, Carl tells him she left with Gelding and his high society friends to attend a function elsewhere. Because of her association with Gelding and ignoring her performing duties at the Happy Hour, Carl steps in to get Lindsey away from bad company and back to Bill. During a "Treasure Hunt" game with Bill, Lindsey is later accused of theft of gambling winnings by Gelding, which complicates matters with her career. Others in the cast are E.E. Clive ("Spot" Hawkins); Reginald Sharland (Lord Vinya); Natalie Moorehead (Phyllis Mersey-Royas); Charles Irwin (Mr. Chisholm); with Claude King, Doris Lloyd, Phyllis Barry and Tempe Piggot.
For a John Barrymore movie, LONG LOST FATHER is a surprisingly short 63 minutes, with a routine plot that plays more like a second feature/ "B" movie than any of his previous major productions. Helen Chandler, best known today for her role as Mina in DRACULA (Universal, 1931) opposite Bela Lugosi, is the focal point here, having more scenes than Barrymore. Chandler even gets to sing and dance to a little ditty, "It Isn't so Much" during the floor show sequence. Donald Cook, whose image rests mostly playing James Cagney's older brother in THE PUBLIC ENEMY (Warner Brothers, 1931), is reunited with Barrymore, having co-starred with him in THE MAD GENIUS (Warners, 1931). He's acceptable in his role, but no great challenge advancement to his movie career.
Virtually unknown and forgotten among the John Barrymore film library, LONG LOST FATHER was rarely shown on commercial television during the 1960s or 70s late show haven. It did, however, get some TV exposure in 1973-74 on WNJU, Channel 47 (Newark, New Jersey) , a Spanish station where all of its American movie broadcasts, usually from RKO film library, were dubbed in Spanish. In later years, LONG LOST FATHER played on cable channels as American Movie Classics (prior to 1992) and Turner Classic Movies. Fortunately, Barrymore's next film, a comedy titled TWENTIETH CENTURY (Columbia, 1934), opposite Carole Lombard, became a comedy classic ranking one of Barrymore's top film eccentric performances before his slow decline in motion pictures industry due to alcoholism. (**1/2)
