IMDb RATING
6.7/10
2.6K
YOUR RATING
The O'Leary brothers--honest Jack and roguish Dion--become powerful figures, and eventually rivals, in Chicago on the eve of its Great Fire.The O'Leary brothers--honest Jack and roguish Dion--become powerful figures, and eventually rivals, in Chicago on the eve of its Great Fire.The O'Leary brothers--honest Jack and roguish Dion--become powerful figures, and eventually rivals, in Chicago on the eve of its Great Fire.
- Won 2 Oscars
- 2 wins & 4 nominations total
Madame Sul-Te-Wan
- Hattie
- (as Madame Sultewan)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe 20-minute climactic fire sequence cost $150,000 to stage and burned for three days on the Fox back lot. It helped make this one of the most expensive films made at the time.
- GoofsCarrie Donohue's testimony is stricken because "the law says a wife cannot testify against her husband" and Dion O'Leary marries Belle Fawcett for the same reason. However, the law only says that a wife cannot be compelled to testify against her husband; she can still testify of her own free will.
- Quotes
[repeated line]
Dion O'Leary: We O'Learys are a strange tribe.
- Alternate versionsThe original roadshow version of "In Old Chicago" ran 111 minutes, and was cut to 95 minutes for a 1943 re-release. For many years, the longer version was thought to be lost, and only the shorter re-release print was shown on television, and released on video in 1994. In 2002 the missing elements to the original version were found, and the 2005 DVD release included both the original and the shorter versions.
- ConnectionsEdited into The Opium War (1943)
- SoundtracksI've Taken a Fancy to You
(1937) (uncredited)
Music by Lew Pollack
Lyrics by Sidney D. Mitchell
Sung and danced by chorus girls at The Hub
Featured review
Classy '30s picture
"In Old Chicago" is an entertaining 1930s movie that focuses on the adventures of two brothers who live in the Windy City during the latter portion of the 19th century. One of them runs for mayor of Chicago; the other finds love with a showgirl. The brothers' mother is Mrs. O'Leary, a headstrong woman who makes a living in the laundry business. And it is Mrs. O'Leary's cow that kicked over a lantern in the barn that started the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. That scene is recreated here in brilliant fashion. The special effects are excellent (by 1930s standards), and the sets are marvelous. 19th century Chicago has never looked as good as it does here. The late Don Ameche (Oscar winner for the 1985 fantasy "Cocoon") stars in one of his early film roles as the brother who becomes a candidate for mayor of Chicago. "In Old Chicago" is an old movie that's classy and realistic.
***1/2 (out of four)
***1/2 (out of four)
helpful•74
- jhaggardjr
- Jan 22, 2001
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Details
Box office
- Budget
- $1,800,000 (estimated)
- Runtime1 hour 35 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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