Western Railroad Discussion > Great SP movie, "Other Men's Women" on TCM

I got this movie on DVR and what a surprise it was, it looks to have been filmed around LA on the SP in 1930-31, they used SP2423 a 4-6-2 and several other SP steamers,I saw what looked like Ravenna in Soledad Canyon, Saugus, and LA General Shops, just to name a few.
I just liked the feel of the movie, it was a real Railroaders movie and I love the slang of that era too.This film is a real gem, I wish I could transfer it to DVD. Has anyone else seen it?
Tom Helliwell



Other Men's Women (1931)
Directed by
William A. Wellman

Writing credits
Maude Fulton (story)
Maude Fulton (adaptation)
(more)



Add to MyMovies IMDbPro Details


Genre: Drama (more)

Plot Outline: Events take an unhappy turn for two Bill and Jack, two locomotive engineers, after Bill is attracted to his best friend's wife.

User Comments: Approach with modest expectations (more)

User Rating: 6.2/10 (74 votes)

Complete credited cast:
Grant Withers .... Bill White
Mary Astor .... Lily Kulper
Regis Toomey .... Jack Kulper
James Cagney .... Ed 'Eddie' Bailey
Fred Kohler .... Haley
J. Farrell MacDonald .... Peg-Leg
Joan Blondell .... Marie
Lillian Worth .... Waitress
Walter Long .... Mike 'Bix'/'Roundhouse' Bixby
(more)

Also Known As:
The Steel Highway
Runtime: 71 min / USA:70 min (Turner library print)
Country: USA
Language: English
Color: Black and White
Sound Mix: Mono
Certification: USA:Passed (National Board of Review)

Trivia: This film was first released as "The Steel Highway" and even reviewed under that title. However, it opened in New York City, New York as "Other Men's Women" in April 1931.

I saw the movie many years ago and I've been trying to get TCM to play it but without any success. You can't even get it on DVD. I liked the movie and yes, there are lots of shots of the LA area if I remember correctly.

JDE

There was another done along that line in later years staring Glen Ford & Brodrick Crawford. PAs and diesel cab shots. Thought it was the same name but maybe not.


Nudge

Steamjocky Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I saw the movie many years ago and I've been
> trying to get TCM to play it but without any
> success. You can't even get it on DVD. I liked
> the movie and yes, there are lots of shots of the
> LA area if I remember correctly.
>
> JDE

It was shown at 845AM ET yesterday. I checked TCM's website & they say no further showings scheduled, so I posted a suggestion that they show this movie & "Human Desire" back-to-back. Love, lust, & locomotives!

"OMW" is fascinating not only for its railroad setting but also for its pre-Code dialogue & atmosphere. When Joan Blondell's railroad diner waitress gets a suggestive remark from a customer, she quickly lets him know she's "A.P.O.", then informs him that means "Ain't Puttin' Out"! Later, when Regis Toomey's engineer gets into a verbal (then physical altercation) with his fireman (Grant Withers), he very obviously throws in a "goddamn" which isn't heard on the soundtrack.

This movie & "Danger Lights" (1930) may be the best of their kind from the 30's, altho I've never seen 1934's "The Silver Streak". More suggestions?

spnudge Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> There was another done along that line in later
> years staring Glen Ford & Brodrick Crawford. PAs
> and diesel cab shots. Thought it was the same name
> but maybe not.
>
>
> Nudge

That was "Human Desire", released in 1954, starring Glenn Ford, Gloria Grahame, & Broderick Crawford. Check www.imdb.com for more info.

It appears that neither "Other Men's Women" nor "Human Desire" are available on DVD, altho "Human Desire" may have been out on VHS at some point.

Sorry I missed "Other Men's Women", a film I didn't even realize was railroad related...and my old home road SP too! I doubt we'll ever see that one on DVD unless there is an extensive box set on it's director William A. Wellman (one of the all time greats by the way!) TCM will no doubt show it again but who knows when? You can check several months in advance on their website. They have monthly tributes to directors and stars so a tribute to Wellman would almost surely include it. Hey how about a railroad movie tribute from TCM? Everybody start suggesting it!

"Silver Streak" (1934) and "Danger Lights" (1930) are both RKO Radio Pictures and are also in the Turner Classic Movies (Warner) library but I don't believe they have shown either title for several years. American Movie Classics used to show them before they went down the toilet. They were also released on videotape once by Blackhawk Films but are long out of print. I believe "Danger Lights" is in the public domain and may be available on some smaller label DVD in questionable quality. These two would make a cool DVD double feature from Warners!

The diesel era "Human Desire" (the one Nudge was thinking of), a 1954 Columbia film, was once released on VHS by RCA/Columbia, again out of print now. It has also appeared on the Encore Mystery Channel (although not in quite a while) and on TCM too. It's a re-make of a great French film called "La Bete Humaine" (The Human Beast) which itself has some breathtaking shots of French steam. The French original is available on DVD in a beautiful Criterion special edition. "Human Desire" being a bonafide "film noir" could show up on DVD from Columbia at any time although it's not on their current schedule. Look for it on TCM in a film noir series or in a tribute to Glenn Ford and maybe on Encore Mystery too.

Fox has just released the long overdue "Emperor of the North" (1973) with Lee Marvin and Ernest Borgnine. It's a very nice widescreen transfer, now available at Amazon for about $10 (cheap!). Further down the quality ladder but still fun is the new from Alpha Video "Return of Casey Jones" (1933) with Charles Starrett (who later became the B western star The Durango Kid), also available from Amazon I believe. I don't know about the quality on this one...since it's from Alpha it could be anywhere from very good to pathetic!

There was another done along that line in later years staring Glen Ford & Brodrick Crawford. PAs and diesel cab shots. Thought it was the same name but maybe not.


Nudge


That one was called "Human Desires" and I'm still waiting to see that one.
Tom

A few years back a friend of mine got me a copy of "Human Desire" in VHS. It is from GoodTimes Home Video Corp., 401 Fifth Ave., New York, NY 10016. Movie was released 1954. Video Copyright 1990.

I had seen the opening of OTHER MEN"S WOMEN before and it had such great railroad shots in it that when I saw it scheduled on TCM, I hopefully set my DVD recorder to catch it. (Will have to check it and hope I got it.) Recorded it on VHS tape awhile back. Great shots of Cagney and the other railroader as they talk while riding the tops of freight cars. A really amazing shot for the early days of sound movies.

C.C.Chas.

WHISPERING SMITH SPEAKS (1935) has some great footage of a SP cab forward
and the climax of the movie is a light engine chasing a passenger
train through the mountains. The film stars George O'Brien and Irene
Ware. It can be purchased on DVD-R from Anchor Videos
www.train-video.com. Do not buy the VHS from Movies unlimited, it is
an edited version with 15-20 mins. trimmed!