This was a surprise hit for Paramount. A quickie, it was shot in a mere 15 days and its success immeasurably helped director John Cromwell's career.
Loosely based on the career of New York attorney William Fallon.
One of over 700 Paramount productions, filmed between 1929 and 1949, which were sold to MCA/Universal in 1958 for television distribution, and have been owned and controlled by Universal ever since. Because of its age and obscurity, outings were few and far between. One of the earliest took place in Grand Rapids Tuesday 2 November 1960 on WOOD (Channel 8). It was released on DVD 27 May 2014 as part of the Universal Vault Series and has since enjoyed occasional airings on Turner Classic Movies.
Bill gives the speakeasy bartender the real phone number at the time for the New York Police Department headquarters - SPring 3100.
When Bill is talking to Irene in the speakeasy, he mentions men who built themselves up to look like the Woolworth Building - which was the tallest building in the world when this film was made. It was soon to be surpassed, in quick succession, by 40 Wall Street, the Chrysler Building, and the Empire State Building in 1930 to 1931.
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