Lionel Barrymore is a widowed father in the RKO 1933 film, "Sweepings." When his wife dies, Daniel Pardway Barrymore) is left with four children to raise. He does so, all the time building his department store empire for his kids to inherit and take over. He is helped all the while by a worker who started with the store when it began, Abe Ullman (Gregory Ratoff).
The problem is, Pardway Senior spoils his kids rotten. The daughter (Titanic's Gloria Stuart) goes from husband to husband; his sons are basically playboy bums he has to bail out, particularly Freddie (Eric Linden) with the exception of the one who works alongside him. That son later asks to be transferred to window trimmings. He's not interested in anything else.
This film, at the time of this writing, is 82 years old. Kids are still letting their parents down and breaking parental hearts. These kids did love their father, but were spoiled and happy enjoying themselves. You could redo this film today - in fact, it was remade as Three Sons in 1939.
Barrymore is the anchor of the film, with a big monologue at the end. The rest of the cast is marvelous. Besides Linden, the sons are played by William Gargam and George Meeker.
The only other significant role is that of Abe (Gregory Ratoff), who feels ownership for the store as well and thinks he's under-appreciated. He is very good.
Gloria Stuart was in her twenties here, very pretty, but she doesn't have much to do. William Gargan, who later lost his larynx to cancer, plays Gene. I remember as a child how much publicity Gargan received from losing his larynx and speaking with the use of a voice box. He devoted himself to the American Cancer Society after that.
Also appearing are Helen Mack and, as an uncredited extra, Jim Thorpe.
The makeup to make Lionel Barrymore appear younger in the beginning is excellent. The first scene is apparently from a silent film - it shows Mrs. O'Leary and the cow starting the Chicago fire.
"Sweepings" gives us a hopeful ending, which during the depression was all a lot of people had anyway.
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