His Woman

His Woman
His Woman
	Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Edward Sloman
Screenplay by	Melville Baker; Adelaide Heilbron;
Based on	His Woman (novel); by Dale Collins
Starring	Gary Cooper; Claudette Colbert;
Cinematography	William O. Steiner
Edited by	Arthur Ellis
Production; company	Paramount Pictures
Distributed by	Paramount Pictures
Release date	November 21, 1931 (USA);
Running time	76 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

His Woman is a 1931 American pre-Code romance drama film directed by Edward Sloman and starring Gary Cooper and Claudette Colbert.^[1] Based on the novel His Woman by Dale Collins, the story is about a tough sea captain who discovers a baby aboard his freighter and hires a tramp, masquerading as a missionary's daughter, to care for the infant on their passage to New York.^[1]

It is a remake of the 1928 film Sal of Singapore.^[1] The 1931 film was modest commercial success at the time.^[2]

Plot

While docked in a Caribbean port aboard a third-rate freighter, Captain Sam Whalan gets involved in a drunken brawl in a seedy tavern. Returning to the ship, Sam discovers that a baby boy, rescued from a drifting Navy boat, has been left for an unnamed sailor aboard his ship. Deciding to adopt the child himself, Sam advertises for a "mother" and soon hires Sally Clark as the child's nanny in exchange for her passage to New York. Sally tells him she is the daughter of a recently deceased missionary. Unknown to Sam, Sally is actually a dance hall girl dressed to appear virtuous and proper.

During the voyage, Sally takes loving care of the child while Sam protects her from the lusty sailors on board. One night, the first mate, Gatson, recognizes Sally from a dance hall and tries to blackmail her into sleeping with him. Sally struggles to reject his advances, and Sam comes to her rescue. In the ensuing struggle, Gatson falls overboard. Unable to locate him in the dense fog, he is assumed dead. By the time they arrive in New York, Sam and Sally have fallen in love and intend to marry. The Department of Commerce, however, calls Sam to testify in an investigation of the Gatson incident, and he is soon arrested.

Sam and Sally are surprised to learn that Gatson survived, was picked up by a cruise ship, and is now pressing charges against Sam for assault and attempted murder. In the course of the investigation, in order to clear Sam of the charges, Sally is forced to reveal her sordid past as a dance hall girl. Shocked and disappointed by the revelation, Sam tells Sally to leave the ship, and decides to put the baby up for adoption, despite Sally's sincere protests. After sending his assistant Aloysius to deliver Sally's luggage, Sam goes off drinking with Gatson.

Later that night, a vengeful Sam brings Gatson to Sally's apartment to insult her. When she learns from another sailor that the baby was left out in the rain and is now sick, she immediately comes to care for the infant with the help of a doctor. Sam postpones his next sailing mission until the child's fever breaks and he begins to recover. By the time the baby is well and the ship pulls up anchor, Sam and Sally have made amends and renew their plans to marry.

Cast

Gary Cooper as Captain Sam Whalan
Claudette Colbert as Sally Clark
Averell Harris as Mate Gatson
Richard Spiro as Sammy
Douglass Dumbrille as Alisandroe
Raquel Davidovich as Maria Estella
Hamtree Harrington as Aloysius
Sidney Easton as Mark
Joan Blair as Gertrude
Charlotte Wynters as Flo
Herschel Mayall as Mrs. Morrisey
Joseph Calleia as The Agent
Lon Haschal as Captain of Schooner
Harry Davenport as Customs Inspector
John T. Doyle as Doctor^[1]

Production

His Woman was filmed at Paramount-Publix New York Studios in Astoria, Long Island.^[3]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Sandra Brennan. "His Woman (1931)". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 31, 2013. Retrieved September 18, 2012.
^ "Gary Cooper Movies". Ultimate Movie Rankings. April 12, 2015. Retrieved October 11, 2016.
^ "His Woman". AFI Catalog of Feature Films. American Film Institute. Archived from the original on March 28, 2014. Retrieved November 20, 2015.