The Racket

1928
Passed
1h 24m

IMDb RATING

YOUR RATING

An honest police captain vows to bring down a powerful bootlegger who is protected by corrupt politicians and judges.An honest police captain vows to bring down a powerful bootlegger who is protected by corrupt politicians and judges.An honest police captain vows to bring down a powerful bootlegger who is protected by corrupt politicians and judges.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.6/10

1.7K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Nominated for 1 Oscar
- 3 wins & 1 nomination total

Photos19

+ 13

Top cast28

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Thomas Meighan

Captain James McQuigg

Louis Wolheim

Nick Scarsi

Marie Prevost

Helen Hayes

G. Pat Collins

Patrolman Johnson
(as Pat Collins)

Henry Sedley

Spike

George E. Stone

Joe Scarsi
(as George Stone)

Sam De Grasse

District Attorney Welch
(as Sam DeGrasse)

Richard 'Skeets' Gallagher

Miller
(as Skeets Gallagher)

Lee Moran

Pratt

John Darrow

Dave Ames - Cub Reporter

Lucien Prival

Chick

Dan Wolheim

Sgt. Turck

Frank Austin

Man at Funeral
(uncredited)

Walter Brennan

Man on Street in Front of Barber Shop
(uncredited)

Jimmy Dime

Rival Gang Lookout
(uncredited)

Jim Farley

Detective
(uncredited)

Sherry Hall

Orchestra Leader
(uncredited)

Sydney Jarvis

Bartender
(uncredited)

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
Only one copy of the film is known to have survived. It was long thought lost before being located in Howard Hughes' film collection after his death. The film was restored and preserved by the University of Nevada, Las Vegas film department. The restored copy is frequently shown on Turner Classic Movies in the US.

Goofs
McQuigg's holster is embossed with his name and rank, but it also says CITY OF followed by a blank space.

Quotes
Cub Reporter Ames: I told you not to look after me... Why did you do it?
Helen Hayes: Because - -- because you affect me like a mammy song.

Alternate versions
In 2004, The University of Nevada, Las Vegas and Flicker Alley, LLC copyrighted a new digital version with a new orchestral score composed, arranged and conducted by Robert Israel. It was produced by Jeffery Masino and runs 84 minutes.

Connections
Referenced in Public Enemies: The Golden Age of the Gangster Film (2008)

User reviews30

Review

Featured review

8/10

An Excellent Silent Crime Drama

I found this a very enjoyable early crime drama. Students of the genre will want to compare this to "Little Caesar" and/or "The Front Page". Transitions within scenes and from one scene to another flow better in "The Racket" than in many other silent films.

I agree with earlier comments about the new scoring. There is too much brass and too much forte.

The film itself is about 83 minutes long, much longer than we thought during the 76 years that it was out of circulation. The restoration job on the film is one of the best that I have seen, especially for a film as old as this one is. I hope it is released soon on DVD.