Summaries

Notorious robber baron financier Jim Fisk, who makes and loses fortunes, tries to corner the gold market as well as the heart of a beautiful actress.

The story starts just before the Civil War, showing Fisk, Boyd, and Luke conning Southern townsfolk into buying bars of soap that, might, have a $10 gold piece inside. Found out, they're chased out of town and escape across the Mason-Dixon Line just as the war starts. Fisk hatches a plan for him and Boyd to return to the South and buy cotton then smuggle it to the North where Luke is to sell it to the Northern textile mills. By the end of the war they have made millions, only to find out that Luke had been re-investing their money into Confederate Bonds. This fact-based movie shows Jim Fisk as one of the greatest con-men and entrepreneurs in history. It concludes with his involvement in "Black Friday", the Financial Panic of 1869, with fellow financier Jay Gould (who's not represented in the movie) and their attempt to corner the U.S. gold market. There's a love triangle between Fisk, Boyd and Mansfield, which is also based on historical accounts.—AzRanger

Details

Keywords
  • new york city
  • american civil war
  • black friday
  • new york gold exchange
  • robber baron
Genres
  • Comedy
  • Drama
  • Romance
  • History
  • War
  • Biography
Release date Jul 29, 1937
Motion Picture Rating (MPA) Approved
Countries of origin United States
Language English
Filming locations RKO Studios - 780 N. Gower Street, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA
Production companies RKO Radio Pictures

Box office

Budget $1072000

Tech specs

Runtime 1h 49m
Color Black and White
Aspect ratio 1.37 : 1

Synopsis

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