Overview of the events of 1932 in film
Overview of the events of 1932 in film
The following is an overview of 1932 in film , including significant events, a list of films released and notable births and deaths.
Top-grossing films (U.S.)
The top ten 1932 released films by box office gross in North America are as follows:
Highest-grossing films of 1932
Rank
Title
Distributor
Domestic rentals
1
The Sign of the Cross
Paramount
$2,738,993[1]
2
The Kid from Spain
United Artists
$2,621,000[2]
3
Emma
MGM
$1,409,000[3]
4
Hell Divers
$1,244,000[3]
5
Grand Hotel
$1,235,000[3]
6
Prosperity
$1,166,000[3]
7
Tarzan the Ape Man
$1,112,000[3]
8
Smilin' Through
$1,004,000[3]
9
Strange Interlude
$957,000[3]
10
Horse Feathers
Paramount
$945,000[4]
Events
The Film Daily Yearbook listed the following as the ten leading headline events of the year.[5]
Sidney Kent leaves Paramount Pictures and joins Fox Film .
Merlin H Aylesworth succeeds Hiram S Brown as president of RKO .
Jesse L. Lasky leaves Paramount and becomes an independent producer for Fox.
Sam Katz leaves Paramount.
James R Grainger leaves Fox and is succeeded by John D Clark, formerly of Paramount.
Publix and Fox decentralization of cinemas.
New industry program, including standard exhibition contract along lines of 5-5-5, proposed by Motion Picture Theater Owners of America and Allied.
Joe Brandt retires from Columbia Pictures joins World-Wide and later resigns again.
Two Radio City theaters open, under direction of "Roxy" , with coincident acquisition of the Rockefeller interests of 100,000 shares of RKO stock and 100,000 shares of RCA stock.
Experimentation with exclusive runs. Other notable events include:
Top Ten Money Making Stars
Exhibitors selected the following as the Top Ten Money Making Stars for 1931–1932 in Quigley Publishing Company 's first annual poll.[6]
Academy Awards
The 5th Academy Awards were conducted by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on November 18, 1932,[7] at a ceremony held at The Ambassador Hotel [7] in Los Angeles, California. The ceremony was hosted by Conrad Nagel .[7] Films screened in Los Angeles between August 1, 1931, and July 31, 1932, were eligible to receive awards.[7]
Major awards:
Note: Prior to 1933 awards were not based on calendar years, which is how there are no Best Actor , Best Actress or Best Director awards for 1932 films. The 1931–32 awards went to 1931 films.
1932 film releases
United States unless stated
January–March
January 1932
January 2
January 14
January 15
January 16
January 19
January 22
January 23
February 1932
February 6
February 12
February 13
February 18
February 20
February 21
March 1932
March 1
March 6
March 22
March 24
March 30
Santa (Mexico )
No Man Of Her Own (1932 film not to be confused with the 1950 film of the same title)
April–June
April 1932
April 2
April 9
April 17
April 18
April 29
May 1932
May 6
May 7
May 12
May 14
May 17
May 20
May 21
May 28
June 1932
June 2
June 3
June 8
June 17
June 25
July–September
July 1932
August 1932
August 4
August 6
August 10
August 12
August 13
August 17
August 18
August 19
August 20
September 1932
September 10
September 13
September 16
September 17
September 18
September 22
September 23
September 24
September 30
October–December
October 1932
October 8
October 12
October 14
October 15
October 20
October 21
October 22
October 25
October 28
October 29
October 30
November 1932
November 2
November 3
November 4
November 7
November 8
November 10
November 11
November 12
November 22
November 24
December 1932
December 1
December 2
December 3
December 8
December 16
December 22
December 23
December 24
December 25
December 28
December 30
Notable films released in 1932
United States unless stated
#
A
The Age of Consent , directed by Gregory La Cava
Air Mail , directed by John Ford , starring Ralph Bellamy , Gloria Stuart and Pat O'Brien
American Madness , directed by Frank Capra , starring Walter Huston and Pat O'Brien
The Animal Kingdom , directed by Edward H. Griffith , starring Ann Harding , Leslie Howard and Myrna Loy
Anton Spelec, Sharp-Shooter (Anton Špelec, ostrostřelec) , directed by Martin Frič – (Czechoslovakia )
As You Desire Me , directed by George Fitzmaurice , starring Greta Garbo , Melvyn Douglas and Erich von Stroheim
L'Atlantide , directed by G. W. Pabst , starring Brigitte Helm – (Germany /France )
Attorney for the Defense , directed by Irving Cummings , starring Edmund Lowe and Evelyn Brent
B
Back Street , directed by John M. Stahl , starring Irene Dunne and John Boles
The Bartered Bride (Die verkaufte Braut) , directed by Max Ophüls – (Germany )
The Beast of the City , directed by Charles Brabin , starring Walter Huston , Jean Harlow and Wallace Ford
The Big Broadcast , directed by Frank Tuttle , starring Bing Crosby and Leila Hyams
Big City Blues , directed by Mervyn LeRoy , starring Joan Blondell and Eric Linden
The Big Stampede , directed by Tenny Wright , starring John Wayne and Noah Beery
A Bill of Divorcement , directed by George Cukor , starring John Barrymore , Katharine Hepburn and Billie Burke
Bird of Paradise , directed by King Vidor , starring Dolores del Río and Joel McCrea
Das blaue Licht (The Blue Light) , starring and directed by Leni Riefenstahl – (Germany )
A Blonde Dream (Ein blonder Traum) , directed by Paul Martin , starring Lilian Harvey , Willy Fritsch and Willi Forst – (Germany )
Blonde Venus , directed by Josef von Sternberg , starring Marlene Dietrich , Herbert Marshall and Cary Grant
Blondie of the Follies , directed by Edmund Goulding , starring Marion Davies , Robert Montgomery , Billie Dove , and Jimmy Durante
Boudu Saved from Drowning (Boudu sauvé des eaux) , directed by Jean Renoir , starring Michel Simon – (France )
Broken Lullaby , directed by Ernst Lubitsch , starring Lionel Barrymore
Business and Pleasure , directed by David Butler , starring Will Rogers
C
D
Dance Pretty Lady , directed by Anthony Asquith – (GB )
Dancers in the Dark , directed by David Burton , starring Miriam Hopkins and Jack Oakie
The Dark Horse , directed by Alfred E. Green , starring Warren William and Bette Davis
The Dentist , directed by Leslie Pearce , starring W. C. Fields
Destry Rides Again , directed by Benjamin Stoloff , starring Tom Mix
Devil and the Deep , directed by Marion Gering , starring Tallulah Bankhead , Gary Cooper , Charles Laughton and Cary Grant
Downstairs , directed by Monta Bell , starring John Gilbert
E–F
Emma , directed by Clarence Brown , starring Marie Dressler and Myrna Loy
F.P.1 (F.P.1 antwortet nicht) , directed by Karl Hartl – (Germany )
Faithless , directed by Harry Beaumont , starring Tallulah Bankhead and Robert Montgomery
Fanny , directed by Marc Allégret , starring Raimu – (France )
A Farewell to Arms , directed by Frank Borzage , starring Helen Hayes , Gary Cooper and Adolphe Menjou
Fast Life , directed by Harry A. Pollard , starring William Haines , Madge Evans and Conrad Nagel
Flesh , directed by John Ford , starring Wallace Beery , Ricardo Cortez and Karen Morley
Flowers and Trees , a Walt Disney animated short
Forbidden , directed by Frank Capra , starring Barbara Stanwyck , Adolphe Menjou and Ralph Bellamy
Freaks , directed by Tod Browning , starring Wallace Ford and Leila Hyams
G–H
Goodnight, Vienna , directed by Herbert Wilcox , starring Jack Buchanan and Anna Neagle – (GB )
Grand Hotel , directed by Edmund Goulding , starring Greta Garbo , John Barrymore , Joan Crawford , Wallace Beery , Lionel Barrymore and Lewis Stone
Horse Feathers , directed by Norman Z. McLeod , starring the Marx Brothers and Thelma Todd
Hotel Splendide , directed by Michael Powell – (GB )
I
I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang , directed by Mervyn LeRoy , starring Paul Muni and Glenda Farrell
I Was Born, But... (Otona no miru ehon – Umarete wa mita keredo) , directed by Yasujirō Ozu – (Japan )
If I Had a Million , starring Gary Cooper , George Raft , Charles Laughton , Jack Oakie and W. C. Fields
The Impatient Maiden , directed by James Whale , starring Lew Ayres and Mae Clarke
Island of Lost Souls , directed by Erle C. Kenton , starring Charles Laughton , Bela Lugosi , Richard Arlen and Leila Hyams , based on the 1896 novel The Island of Dr. Moreau by H. G. Wells
Ivan – directed by Alexander Dovzhenko – (U.S.S.R. )
J–K
L
The Last Mile , directed by Samuel Bischoff , starring Preston Foster
The Last of the Mohicans , 12-part serial directed by Ford Beebe and B. Reeves Eason , starring Harry Carey
Law and Order , directed by Edward L. Cahn , starring Walter Huston and Harry Carey
Lord Camber's Ladies , directed by Benn Levy , starring Gerald du Maurier and Gertrude Lawrence – (GB )
The Local Bad Man , directed by Otto Brower , starring Hoot Gibson
Love Me Tonight , directed by Rouben Mamoulian , starring Maurice Chevalier , Jeanette MacDonald and Myrna Loy
The Lucky Number , directed by Anthony Asquith , starring Gordon Harker – (GB )
M
The Man Who Played God , directed by John G. Adolfi , starring George Arliss and Bette Davis
Me and My Gal , directed by Raoul Walsh , starring Spencer Tracy and Joan Bennett
Merrily We Go to Hell , directed by Dorothy Arzner , starring Sylvia Sidney and Fredric March
The Midshipmaid , directed by Albert de Courville , starring Jessie Matthews – (GB )
Million Dollar Legs , directed by Edward F. Cline , starring Jack Oakie and W. C. Fields
The Missing Rembrandt (lost), directed by Leslie S. Hiscott , starring Arthur Wontner and Ian Fleming – (GB )
The Most Dangerous Game , directed by Ernest B. Schoedsack and Irving Pichel , starring Joel McCrea , Fay Wray , Leslie Banks and Robert Armstrong
The Mouthpiece , directed by James Flood and Elliott Nugent , starring Warren William
Movie Crazy , directed by Clyde Bruckman , starring Harold Lloyd
Mr. Robinson Crusoe , directed by A. Edward Sutherland , starring Douglas Fairbanks
The Mummy , directed by Karl Freund , starring Boris Karloff
Murders in the Rue Morgue , directed by Robert Florey , starring Bela Lugosi and Sidney Fox
N–O
Night After Night , directed by Archie Mayo , starring George Raft and Mae West
Night at the Crossroads (La Nuit du carrefour) , directed by Jean Renoir – (France )
No Man of Her Own , directed by Wesley Ruggles , starring Clark Gable and Carole Lombard
Odds 777 , directed by George Schnéevoigt – (Denmark )
The Old Dark House , directed by James Whale , starring Boris Karloff , Melvyn Douglas , Gloria Stuart , Charles Laughton and Raymond Massey
One Hour with You , directed by Ernst Lubitsch , starring Maurice Chevalier and Jeanette MacDonald
One Way Passage , directed by Tay Garnett , starring William Powell and Kay Francis
P
Pack Up Your Troubles , directed by George Marshall and Ray McCarey , starring Laurel and Hardy
The Passionate Plumber , directed by Edward Sedgwick , starring Buster Keaton and Jimmy Durante
Payment Deferred , directed by Lothar Mendes , starring Charles Laughton and Maureen O'Sullivan
The Phantom President , directed by Norman Taurog , starring George M. Cohan , Claudette Colbert and Jimmy Durante
Polly of the Circus , directed by Alfred Santell , starring Marion Davies and Clark Gable
Prosperity , directed by Sam Wood , starring Marie Dressler , Polly Moran and Anita Page
R
Rain , directed by Lewis Milestone , starring Joan Crawford and Walter Huston
Rasputin and the Empress , directed by Richard Boleslawski , starring John Barrymore , Ethel Barrymore and Lionel Barrymore
Rasputin, Demon with Women (Rasputin, Dämon der Frauen) , directed by Adolf Trotz , starring Conrad Veidt – (Germany )
Raid in St. Pauli (Razzia in St. Pauli) , directed by Werner Hochbaum – (Germany )
Red Dust , directed by Victor Fleming , starring Clark Gable , Jean Harlow , Mary Astor and Gene Raymond
Red-Haired Alibi , directed by Christy Cabanne
Red-Headed Woman , directed by Jack Conway , starring Jean Harlow , Chester Morris , Lewis Stone , Leila Hyams and Una Merkel
Rome Express , directed by Walter Forde , starring Esther Ralston and Conrad Veidt – (GB )
S
Santa , directed by Antonio Moreno , starring Lupita Tovar – (Mexico )
Scarface , directed by Howard Hawks , starring Paul Muni , Ann Dvorak , George Raft and Boris Karloff
Scarlet Dawn , directed by William Dieterle , starring Douglas Fairbanks Jr. and Nancy Carroll
Shanghai Express , directed by Josef von Sternberg , starring Marlene Dietrich , Clive Brook , Anna May Wong and Warner Oland
Sherlock Holmes , directed by William K. Howard , starring Clive Brook and Ernest Torrence
The Sign of Four , directed by Graham Cutts , starring Arthur Wontner and Ian Hunter – (GB )
The Sign of the Cross , directed by Cecil B. DeMille , starring Fredric March , Claudette Colbert and Charles Laughton
Silver Dollar , directed by Alfred E. Green , starring Edward G. Robinson and Bebe Daniels
A Simple Case (Prostoy sloochay ), directed by Vsevolod Pudovkin and Mikhail Doller – (USSR )
Smilin' Through , directed by Sidney Franklin , starring Norma Shearer , Fredric March and Leslie Howard
Speak Easily , directed by Edward Sedgwick , starring Buster Keaton , Jimmy Durante and Thelma Todd
Spring Shower (Tavaszi zápor) , directed by Pál Fejős – (France /Hungary )
Strange Interlude , directed by Robert Z. Leonard , starring Norma Shearer and Clark Gable
T
Tarzan the Ape Man , directed by W. S. Van Dyke , starring Johnny Weissmuller , Maureen O'Sullivan and Neil Hamilton
Taxi! , directed by Roy Del Ruth , starring James Cagney and Loretta Young
They Just Had to Get Married , directed by Edward Ludwig , starring Slim Summerville and ZaSu Pitts
Thirteen Women , directed by George Archainbaud , starring Irene Dunne , Ricardo Cortez and Myrna Loy
Three Modern Women (Sāngè Módēng Nǚxìng) (lost), directed by Bu Wancang , starring Ruan Lingyu and Jin Yan – (China )
Three on a Match , directed by Mervyn LeRoy , starring Joan Blondell , Warren William , Ann Dvorak and Bette Davis
Tiger Shark , directed by Howard Hawks , starring Edward G. Robinson and Richard Arlen
Trouble in Paradise , directed by Ernst Lubitsch , starring Miriam Hopkins , Kay Francis and Herbert Marshall
Two Seconds , directed by Mervyn LeRoy , starring Edward G. Robinson
U–V
W–Y
Washington Merry-Go-Round , directed by James Cruze , starring Lee Tracy
What Price Hollywood? , directed by George Cukor , starring Constance Bennett , Lowell Sherman and Neil Hamilton
What Scoundrels Men Are! (Gli uomini, che mascalzoni!) , directed by Mario Camerini , starring Vittorio De Sica – (Italy )
White Zombie , directed by Victor Halperin , starring Bela Lugosi
Wooden Crosses (Les Croix de Bois) , directed by Raymond Bernard – (France )
Young America , directed by Frank Borzage , starring Spencer Tracy and Ralph Bellamy
Animated short film series
Ordered by release date of the film series. This list only includes shorts released in 1932: