Pat O'Brien, as a New York City newspaperman who is cajoled into marriage (yet doesn't mind) and basically taken for a chump (but shrugs it off), is such a wonderful screen actor that even a simplistic scenario like this one slides right off his back. An exposé on gambling, written by fast-talking newspaper reporter Joan Blondell, sends a tough teenage punk to reform school; she feels guilty and asks a co-worker to marry her in order to adopt the kid and give him a second chance at life. Despite the large cast of screenwriters and story-originators who are credited with work on this project, it's a pleasant-enough picture, nimbly mixing hard-shelled sentiment with gangster prose within an amusingly dry newspaper milieu. O'Brien and Blondell are an easy match and, though the plot isn't convincing for a second, the picture succeeds as a friendly urban fairy tale. "Off the Record" isn't off-the-cuff, but it's definitely on-the-square. *** from ****
9 Reviews
OBrien and Blondell try to keep kid out of trouble
ksf-28 September 2009
Joan Blondell stars as Jane Morgan in this short, 62 minute Warner Brothers story of old time newspaper reporters. Mickey Fallon ( Bobby Jordan ) loses his parents and is now under the dubious care of his older brother Joe ( Alan Baxter ), who is in the rackets. Jane sees Mickey getting involved in this, and tries to convince "Breezy" ( Pat OBrien ) to let her write a story on it... Of course, no-one takes her seriously, so she mentions it in her column, and now everyone in town wants to get involved. Breezy and Jane must keep an eye on Mickey to keep him from getting back in the rackets. There isn't really time to develop any real, in-depth plot, so things move right along. Jordan was one of the original kids in the "Dead End" films. Blondell and OBrien had both been in Hollywood for ten years, so they were experienced actors by this time. (My favorite J Blondell film would have to be Desk Set... you gotta see it if you haven't already...) Directed by James Flood, who had spent his first ten years working on silent films. Good way to kill an hour, but don't expect a lot.
Editor and reporter once again
blanche-220 September 2015
Pat O'Brien and Joan Blondell play editor and reporter again, as they did in "Back in Circulation." This time, the emphasis is different.
Blondell plays Jane Morgan, a columnist, who comes across a hot story -- a local mobster has been using young boys as spotters in his billiard establishment.
She tries to pitch the story to her editor Thomas Elliott (O'Brien) and the publisher of the newspaper, but they pay no attention to her. When the story lands in her column, it causes a huge sensation. Her investigative reporting lands on the front page.
As a result of this, the mobster makes a deal with Joe Fallon (Alan Baxter), one of his minions, to take the rap for him and go to prison. Fallon agrees, meaning that his little brother (Bobby Jordan) will have to go to reform school.
Feeling guilty, Jane, who has been pestered by Tom to marry him, wants to adopt the boy. He's resistant but finally relents, and things go very well until the kid drifts toward being influenced by Joe.
This is a short B movie. O'Brien and Blondell made a great team. She's adorable as usual here. Warners often made their character actors into leading men, and O'Brien was no exception. He did this kind of role very well.
Not much else going on since it's so short, but it's pleasant enough.
Blondell plays Jane Morgan, a columnist, who comes across a hot story -- a local mobster has been using young boys as spotters in his billiard establishment.
She tries to pitch the story to her editor Thomas Elliott (O'Brien) and the publisher of the newspaper, but they pay no attention to her. When the story lands in her column, it causes a huge sensation. Her investigative reporting lands on the front page.
As a result of this, the mobster makes a deal with Joe Fallon (Alan Baxter), one of his minions, to take the rap for him and go to prison. Fallon agrees, meaning that his little brother (Bobby Jordan) will have to go to reform school.
Feeling guilty, Jane, who has been pestered by Tom to marry him, wants to adopt the boy. He's resistant but finally relents, and things go very well until the kid drifts toward being influenced by Joe.
This is a short B movie. O'Brien and Blondell made a great team. She's adorable as usual here. Warners often made their character actors into leading men, and O'Brien was no exception. He did this kind of role very well.
Not much else going on since it's so short, but it's pleasant enough.
Decent B Movie
Michael_Elliott12 September 2009
Off the Record (1939)
** 1/2 (out of 4)
A reporter (Joan Blondell) does a story about mobsters hiring kids to guard various gambling rackets, which sets off a fire storm that gets one kid's (Bobby Jordan) brother thrown into jail. The kid, in return, gets sent to reform school, which causes the reporter to feel bad so she marries her editor (Pat O'Brien) so that they can adopt the kid. This Warner "B" film tries to mix various genres but as you can tell, it's basically THE FRONT PAGE meets any gangster period from that era mixed in with an East Side Kids type drama. Jordan, a veteran of the child group, does a pretty good job in his role, although his more emotional scenes don't come off too well. It's the cast that makes this thing worth viewing as Blondell and O'Brien offer up great performances and really deliver the goods. The two have great chemistry together as their comic timing is perfect. Both also share quite a few good scenes with the young Jordan. The movie runs a fast paced 71-minutes, which flows by for the first hour but then loses a bit of steam as we get a silly and predictable side plot dealing with the kid's brother wanting help to break out of prison. This all leads to a predictable conclusion but fans of the "B" genre will get a kick out of the film due to its cast. Fans of them will want to check this out but others can stay clear.
** 1/2 (out of 4)
A reporter (Joan Blondell) does a story about mobsters hiring kids to guard various gambling rackets, which sets off a fire storm that gets one kid's (Bobby Jordan) brother thrown into jail. The kid, in return, gets sent to reform school, which causes the reporter to feel bad so she marries her editor (Pat O'Brien) so that they can adopt the kid. This Warner "B" film tries to mix various genres but as you can tell, it's basically THE FRONT PAGE meets any gangster period from that era mixed in with an East Side Kids type drama. Jordan, a veteran of the child group, does a pretty good job in his role, although his more emotional scenes don't come off too well. It's the cast that makes this thing worth viewing as Blondell and O'Brien offer up great performances and really deliver the goods. The two have great chemistry together as their comic timing is perfect. Both also share quite a few good scenes with the young Jordan. The movie runs a fast paced 71-minutes, which flows by for the first hour but then loses a bit of steam as we get a silly and predictable side plot dealing with the kid's brother wanting help to break out of prison. This all leads to a predictable conclusion but fans of the "B" genre will get a kick out of the film due to its cast. Fans of them will want to check this out but others can stay clear.
Ridiculous but watchable.
planktonrules1 February 2010
Warning: Spoilers
It's funny, but Warner Brothers did such a great job with its films that even a rather ridiculous story idea like OFF THE RECORD could still be quite entertaining. It stars Pat O'Brien and Joan Blondell as a couple of reporters who have an on again off again relationship. Spunky Joan wants to be a reporter and when she gets her break, she exploits a story about a young hood (Bobby Jordan)--leading to the young man's incarceration. However, she feels guilty about this and wants to bring the young thug into her home and reform him. But, he also needs a positive male role model in his life (his brother's bad news) so she proposes to O'Brien--maybe together they can give the kid a proper set of parents. But, several times the kid appears to be headed right back to his old ways. Can the boy make it or is all this in vain? Because Blondell and O'Brien are at the top of their game, they make this work. You like their characters and can't help but enjoy the film--even if, from the description above, it all sounds a bit contrived and ridiculous.
Reporters adopt an orphan
bkoganbing19 June 2019
Pat O'Brien and Joan Blondell play a pair of reporters in Off The Record who take
in young Bobby Jordan after his guardian and brother Alan Baxter is picked up o
a gambling rap. In fact Baxter is taking a fall for an Arnold Rothstein type of
character Morgan Conway. It leaves Jordan in a state orphan asylum for which
he blames the reporters.
Eventually as they do in all these city tough kid films made back in the day Jordan does soften especially after they find something that interests him.
Some plot elements from Boystown are found here. Bobby Jordan who usually is in the pack in support of Leo Gorcey and Huntz Hall in those East Side Kid/Bowery Boys films for maybe the only time in his career Jordan is the main protagonist in a movie. He does well, just like Mickey Rooney in Boys Town.
O'Brien and Blondell play their typical characters as well. Their fans should be pleased.
Eventually as they do in all these city tough kid films made back in the day Jordan does soften especially after they find something that interests him.
Some plot elements from Boystown are found here. Bobby Jordan who usually is in the pack in support of Leo Gorcey and Huntz Hall in those East Side Kid/Bowery Boys films for maybe the only time in his career Jordan is the main protagonist in a movie. He does well, just like Mickey Rooney in Boys Town.
O'Brien and Blondell play their typical characters as well. Their fans should be pleased.
No Comment
boblipton8 September 2009
Director James Flood brings nothing to this Warner B. Although the two leads are, as you might expect, dynamite, the attempt to merge their fast-talking screwball relationship with one of Warner Brother's socially conscious dramas does not work. Perhaps a little more screen time might have resulted in a movie that lets both sides of the story work, but at sixty-two minutes, there's nothing for anyone to do but talk fast enough to get the story out; plus the triviality of the 'social evil' with the seriousness imputed to it is a serious misstep.
It is a pity because the cast, as usual with Warner's B production, is top notch. and the writing credits are nothing to be sneered at. A rare misfire.
It is a pity because the cast, as usual with Warner's B production, is top notch. and the writing credits are nothing to be sneered at. A rare misfire.
O'Brien and Blondell, back in circulation, but the front page is a dud.
mark.waltz11 September 2018
Warning: Spoilers
In 1937, the team of Pat O'Brien and Joan Blondell starred in a winning newspaper comedy/drama called "Back in Circulation" which is really good for your standard Warner Brothers newspaper story. Two years later, they are back making news, but it is your standard lower B entry, coming just as Blondell was preparing to exit Warner Brothers after 10 years and over 50 films. Had this been a follow-up to "Back in Circulation", it could have dealt with the marital issues of O'Brien and Blondell, taking in teen Bobby Jordan after Blondell exposes his older brother for being a racketeer. The film opens up like a typical "Bowery Boys" film; In fact, it even has the same opening shot of a lower east side tenement district where the overcrowded streets filled with street vendors is in full swing as Jordan's mother is upstairs dying and asks to see her son.
The missing older brother (Alan Baxter) shows up just as Jordan is hauled off to a foundling home, but Blondell soon exposes the racket that Baxter is involved in and Jordan is taken into her and O'Brien's home, initially vowing revenge against Blondell for her part in Baxter's downfall. But cheery Blondell and lovable O'Brien soon make Jordan come to love them, with O'Brien going as far as to buy Jordan a camera and take him out on stories with him to help him find a future. Baxter suddenly contacts his baby brother out of the blue which leads to Jordan getting innocently mixed up with Baxter's criminal pals and being accused of committing a crime himself.
This isn't really a bad film, but it is so typical in the canon of Warner Brothers crime dramas that it just becomes simply ordinary and a bit of a letdown. It's the nadir in Blondell's Warner Brothers career, much like "King of the Underworld" was for Kay Francis the very same year at the end of her contract. The focus really is on Jordan who gives a truly great performance, likeably tough and taking no nonsense from the other local toughs who steal his camera in his first scene in the film. There's a train crash sequence here that O'Brien and Jordan go to that is nearly identical to the one that Blondell went to in "Back in Circulation", making comparisons to that better film all the more obvious. I had hoped to like this film more, but found it disappointing when compared to other similar films put out by the tough Warner Brothers in the 1930's.
The missing older brother (Alan Baxter) shows up just as Jordan is hauled off to a foundling home, but Blondell soon exposes the racket that Baxter is involved in and Jordan is taken into her and O'Brien's home, initially vowing revenge against Blondell for her part in Baxter's downfall. But cheery Blondell and lovable O'Brien soon make Jordan come to love them, with O'Brien going as far as to buy Jordan a camera and take him out on stories with him to help him find a future. Baxter suddenly contacts his baby brother out of the blue which leads to Jordan getting innocently mixed up with Baxter's criminal pals and being accused of committing a crime himself.
This isn't really a bad film, but it is so typical in the canon of Warner Brothers crime dramas that it just becomes simply ordinary and a bit of a letdown. It's the nadir in Blondell's Warner Brothers career, much like "King of the Underworld" was for Kay Francis the very same year at the end of her contract. The focus really is on Jordan who gives a truly great performance, likeably tough and taking no nonsense from the other local toughs who steal his camera in his first scene in the film. There's a train crash sequence here that O'Brien and Jordan go to that is nearly identical to the one that Blondell went to in "Back in Circulation", making comparisons to that better film all the more obvious. I had hoped to like this film more, but found it disappointing when compared to other similar films put out by the tough Warner Brothers in the 1930's.
On and off the record
jarrodmcdonald-128 April 2022
Warning: Spoilers
OFF THE RECORD is a newspaper yarn with elements of social realism, gangster drama and screwball romance. It almost has it all. Warner Brothers contract players Pat O'Brien and Joan Blondell are cast in the lead roles, and they work well together. Mr. O'Brien had previously starred in THE FRONT PAGE so this is familiar territory for him.
The leads do not appear in the film's first ten minutes. Instead the opening sequence is devoted to Bobby Jordan as a streetwise youth on the verge of delinquency. He has no father, his mother is about to take her last breath on a sick bed, and the local priest has been called to give last rites. You get the idea. At 15, the kid has a sad rough life.
After his mother dies, Jordan is about to be hauled off to an orphans' asylum when his prodigal older brother (Alan Baxter) shows up. The brother is an adult, supposedly has a good paying job and agrees to look after the boy.
We learn the brother is part of a gangster's gambling racket. He encourages the kid to forget studying and monitor a lucrative pinball trade. If anyone is caught putting slugs into the machines, Jordan will give them a thrashing and make them pay up. It's much more fun than school!
This is where Blondell comes into the story. She is a reporter who learns that neighborhood kids are involved in a gambling racket. She does some investigating and writes about it in her column. The story becomes a big deal. Even her coworker (O'Brien) is impressed. The newspaper expose leads to the gangster's arrest, the older brother's subsequent incarceration and the kid being sent to reform school.
Meanwhile, O'Brien & Blondell get engaged. But as a condition to her agreeing to marry him, she wants them to foster young Jordan and save him from reform school. This is probably one of Blondell's more kind-hearted roles, and she's wonderful. O'Brien is also very good here, balancing his needs with his bride's demands. Of course things don't go smoothly at first.
Their new domestic arrangement requires some adjusting. Having a teen under the same roof won't be easy for the newlyweds. They soon get Jordan a job as a paper boy and then as a photographer (no mention is made about his returning to school). Jordan experiences several mishaps, some comical, while learning the ropes at the Evening Star.
Jordan's past comes back to haunt him in the last sequence. His older brother escapes prison, while Jordan himself is accused of robbery. As O'Brien and Blondell find evidence to clear Jordan of the robbery, he has a final encounter with his brother and the gangster which turns deadly.
This is a highly engrossing programmer that rarely has a dull moment. It works because of the stars' rapport. And also because we want the teenaged character to overcome his difficult background, so he can live a good and honest life.
The leads do not appear in the film's first ten minutes. Instead the opening sequence is devoted to Bobby Jordan as a streetwise youth on the verge of delinquency. He has no father, his mother is about to take her last breath on a sick bed, and the local priest has been called to give last rites. You get the idea. At 15, the kid has a sad rough life.
After his mother dies, Jordan is about to be hauled off to an orphans' asylum when his prodigal older brother (Alan Baxter) shows up. The brother is an adult, supposedly has a good paying job and agrees to look after the boy.
We learn the brother is part of a gangster's gambling racket. He encourages the kid to forget studying and monitor a lucrative pinball trade. If anyone is caught putting slugs into the machines, Jordan will give them a thrashing and make them pay up. It's much more fun than school!
This is where Blondell comes into the story. She is a reporter who learns that neighborhood kids are involved in a gambling racket. She does some investigating and writes about it in her column. The story becomes a big deal. Even her coworker (O'Brien) is impressed. The newspaper expose leads to the gangster's arrest, the older brother's subsequent incarceration and the kid being sent to reform school.
Meanwhile, O'Brien & Blondell get engaged. But as a condition to her agreeing to marry him, she wants them to foster young Jordan and save him from reform school. This is probably one of Blondell's more kind-hearted roles, and she's wonderful. O'Brien is also very good here, balancing his needs with his bride's demands. Of course things don't go smoothly at first.
Their new domestic arrangement requires some adjusting. Having a teen under the same roof won't be easy for the newlyweds. They soon get Jordan a job as a paper boy and then as a photographer (no mention is made about his returning to school). Jordan experiences several mishaps, some comical, while learning the ropes at the Evening Star.
Jordan's past comes back to haunt him in the last sequence. His older brother escapes prison, while Jordan himself is accused of robbery. As O'Brien and Blondell find evidence to clear Jordan of the robbery, he has a final encounter with his brother and the gangster which turns deadly.
This is a highly engrossing programmer that rarely has a dull moment. It works because of the stars' rapport. And also because we want the teenaged character to overcome his difficult background, so he can live a good and honest life.
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