Commentary
Medical dramas have been popular subject matter for television series for years now. “General Hospital,” “Scrubs,” “Grey’s Anatomy,” and many more have capitalized on the public’s fascination with the drama behind closed hospital doors. Before these popular series captured people’s morbid imaginations, however, America’s favorite medical drama was “Dr. Kildare.”
The name is doubtless familiar to you. However, the “Dr. Kildare” series to which I’m referring is not the 1960s television series starring Richard Chamberlain. I’m talking about the earlier version of this successful story, the “Dr. Kildare” film series from 1938 to 1942. Starring Lew Ayres as the titular intern with Lionel Barrymore as his curmudgeonly mentor, Dr. Gillespie, this highly popular series included nine films. It was one of MGM’s most successful series in those prewar years, second only to the Andy Hardy films. The story of Dr. Kildare, a young intern at a New York hospital who isn’t afraid to break the rules to help his patients, came from magazine stories by Max Brand, most of which were published in “Cosmopolitan.”
Lew Ayres was introduced as “Young Dr. Kildare” in MGM’s 1938 film of the same name, but this wasn’t the first time the character was onscreen. The year before, Paramount made a film version of Brand’s first Dr. Kildare short story, “Internes Can’t Take Money,” with Joel McCrea as Kildare and Barbara Stanwyck as a former convict with whom he falls in love. However, neither this characterization nor storyline is related to the MGM series. After MGM acquired the rights, Brand shifted the focus to the direction the company had in mind for the stories, adding Dr. Gillespie and toning down the crime themes. From 1943 to 1947, MGM made five “Dr. Gillespie” movies about the older doctor’s adventures while Jimmy Kildare and Lew Ayres were in the war, but that’s a whole different article. The original nine films could be categorized as three separate trilogies, if you will, based on the story writers and scriptwriters.
Lobby card for the 1938 film "Young Dr. Kildare." MovieStillsDB
The Max Brand Solo Era
‘Young Dr. Kildare’ (1938)—Story: Max Brand; Script: Harry Ruskin and Willis Goldbeck
“Young Dr. Kildare” begins after Jimmy Kildare has just graduated from medical school. His father, Stephen (Samuel S. Hinds), mother, Martha (Emma Dunn), and childhood sweetheart, Alice (Lynne Carver), have been eagerly waiting for Jimmy to join his father’s practice as a country doctor in Dartford, Connecticut. However, Jimmy reluctantly informs them that he has the chance to intern at Blair General Hospital in New York under the great Dr. Leonard Gillespie. Dr. Gillespie is wheelchair-bound but unrestrained by any law but his own will. He immediately singles Jimmy out from the rest of the interns as his target of ridicule. However, Jimmy is inspired to become a diagnostician just like him. Does the irascible old physician just enjoy lording all Kildare’s mistakes over him, or could he be tormenting him because he sees potential greatness? Meanwhile, Jimmy’s insistence that a young socialite who attempted suicide (Jo Ann Sayers) is not insane threatens his job at the hospital.‘Calling Dr. Kildare’ (1939)—Story: Max Brand; Script: Harry Ruskin and Willis Goldbeck
In the second film, somehow Dr. Kildare has survived the previous escapades and has become Dr. Gillespie’s assistant. (Spoiler alert: He was just testing Jimmy in the last film.) Wanting to curb his protégé of his headstrong nature and stubborn streak, Gillespie sends Kildare to the hospital’s clinic in the low rent district, so he can gain practical experience. He gains that, plus a lot of trouble, when he leaves the clinic to tend to a young man with a gunshot wound (Reed Hadley), who begs him not to report it. Jimmy soon realizes he’s doctoring and concealing a man wanted for murder, but he’s convinced of his innocence. This is the most romantic film of the series, giving Jimmy three prospective love interests. Mary Lamont (Laraine Day), a pretty and perky young nurse, is introduced in this film when Dr. Gillespie assigns her to assist Jimmy at the clinic so she can keep an eye on him and report back to Gillespie. Mary feels jealous when she sees Jimmy’s becoming enamored with a glamorous, designing redhead (Lana Turner), who happens to be the wanted man’s sister. Meanwhile, Alice still hopes Jimmy will come back to Dartford and marry her.
Poster for the 1939 film "The Secret of Dr. Kildare." Public Domain
‘The Secret of Dr. Kildare’ (1939)—Story: Max Brand; Script: Harry Ruskin and Willis Goldbeck
As usual, Dr. Kildare is Dr. Gillespie’s assistant again at the beginning of the film. They are embarking on intense testing on pneumonia treatments. By now, the other two girls have disappeared, and Jimmy is going steady with Mary. The title doesn’t give much of a hint about this entry’s plot, since Kildare has a secret in basically every film. The difference is that this time, the secret isn’t from the hospital’s administrator, Dr. Carew (Walter Huston) but from Gillespie! Head nurse Molly Byrd (Alma Kruger), one of Gillespie’s oldest friends, is afraid that his sensitive health will be strained to the breaking point by his planned experiments. To protect his mentor’s well-being, Jimmy accepts a high paying job assessing the mysterious headaches of fragile debutante Nancy (Helen Gilbert), making Gillespie think he’s doing it for her father’s bankroll. Mary also misconstrues his relationship with Nancy, but he may be able to save her vision and her sanity before it’s too late.The Brand and Golbeck Stories
‘Dr. Kildare’s Strange Case’ (1940)—Story: Max Brand and Willis Goldbeck Script: Harry Ruskin and Willis Goldbeck
In this film, Dr. Kildare is helping in surgery while continuing to work as Dr. Gillespie’s assistant. He is working alongside brain surgeon Gregory Lane (Shepherd Strudwick), whose reputation and self-esteem are crumbling because he’s had several patients die recently. Based on Gillespie’s assessment and his own instincts, Jimmy believes in Lane’s ability, so he tries to encourage him. Meanwhile, Mary is growing discouraged with a sweetheart who only makes $20 a month and can’t possibly marry her for years. Dr. Lane is rich and very interested in her, so Jimmy generously takes a backseat in her life so she can consider his lavish wooing. However, both Bryant and Kildare end up in trouble when a mysterious patient (John Eldredge) wakes up from brain surgery insane. Dr. Kildare must prove that he was insane when he was brought to the hospital and find out why to save their careers—and hopefully give the patient a chance at a normal life through a dangerous experimental treatment.
A cropped lobby card for the film "Dr. Kildare Goes Home" from 1940. Public Domain
‘Dr. Kildare Goes Home’ (1940)—Story: Max Brand and Willis Goldbeck Script: Harry Ruskin and Willis Goldbeck
At last, Dr. Kildare has finished his internship. However, no sooner has he taken his official position on the hospital staff than he has to head to Dartford. Mrs. Kildare is very concerned about Jimmy’s father, since he’s been working double duty and neglecting himself to care for his patients. He’s currently the only doctor in their own town and the neighboring somewhat impoverished community of Parkersville. With Jimmy’s help, however, Dr. Stephen Kildare can take some time to look after himself. Hoping that he won’t have to stay in Dartford forever, Jimmy sees an opportunity to provide Parkersville with effective yet affordable health care. He and a few other young doctors who need jobs set up a clinic, but the community is skeptical about the idea and suspicious of outsiders. Jimmy works night and day to get just one influential citizen on their side, since he knows the clinic is the only way to secure the future for his father, the other doctors, and the people in Parkersville; he doesn’t even dare think about his own medical dreams. Meanwhile, he and Mary begin talking about getting married right away.‘Dr. Kildare’s Crisis’ (1940)—Story: Max Brand and Willis Goldbeck Script: Harry Ruskin and Willis Goldbeck
Despite the foreboding title, everything seems to be going well for Dr. Kildare when this film starts. He and Mary are engaged and happily planning their wedding. Dr. Kildare is on friendly terms with Dr. Gillespie, and he isn’t in trouble with Dr. Carew. Both his parents and Gillespie are in good health. We know all this tranquility won’t last long, though. Soon, Mary’s brother, Douglas (Robert Young), comes to town for a business deal. Jimmy is delighted to meet his future brother-in-law, but he can’t help noticing that Doug has some strange behavioral traits. When Mary realizes that Jimmy is growing increasingly certain that Doug’s dramatic mood swings and hearing strange noises are symptoms of a serious disease, she realizes that he is only motivated by concern for her brother’s health and even her own.
Lobby card for the 1940 film "Dr. Kildare's Crisis." Public Domain
Without Max Brand
‘The People vs. Dr. Kildare’ (1941)—Story: Max Brand and Lawrence P. Bachmann; Script: Harry Ruskin and Willis Goldbeck
The seventh movie marked the beginning of a new chapter for the Dr. Kildare series, but the change was not for the better. With Lawrence P. Bachmann’s replacing Willis Goldbeck as Max Brand’s co-writer of the story, it started a shift in the writing of Jimmy’s character. When the film begins, Dr. Kildare and Mary Lamont are still just engaged. Unlike its predecessors, this movie doesn’t start with Jimmy or someone else connected to him but with the film’s primary patient, ice-skating star Frances Marlowe (Bonita Granville). Jimmy and Mary are driving back from a picnic when they come upon a car accident involving a truck and a car with Miss Marlowe and her manager (Chick Chandler). Realizing she’s suffering from potentially fatal internal bleeding, Dr. Kildare performs roadside surgery on Frances before the ambulance arrives. She then receives further treatment at Blair General Hospital. She is very grateful to Jimmy until she discovers she can’t move her leg. Facing a malpractice suit, Jimmy must prove that Miss Marlowe was paralyzed before his surgery, not because of it. New story writer Bachmann must have been guiding the plot development more than Brand, since Jimmy Kildare’s character begins to change in this film. He slaps a hysterical Frances before operating on her, showing that he’s starting to take on Dr. Gillespie’s rough manner, while Gillespie grows gentler. The brusque treatment of patients works for Dr. Gillespie, but it isn’t fitting for Dr. Kildare.‘Dr. Kildare’s Wedding Day’ (1941)—Story: Lawrence P. Bachmann and Ormond Ruthven; Script: Harry Ruskin and Willis Goldbeck
The eighth film was the first in the series with which Max Brand was not involved. Instead, Ormond Ruthvenn, a sound engineer who only was a writer on this film, joined Lawrence P. Bachmann in writing this story. Brand’s absence is very obvious. After planning and delaying their marriage for three movies, Jimmy Kildare and Mary Lamont have finally set the date for their wedding. The whole hospital is in a flurry of preparations for the happy day. The nurses give Mary a bridal shower, during which they dismally predict that she will never see her future husband (as if she, a nurse, doesn’t know about doctors’ schedules). Meanwhile, Dr. Kildare and Dr. Gillespie are trying to discern what’s wrong with famous conductor Constanzo Labardi (Nils Asther), whose hearing is threatened by tinnitus. The nurses’ warning seems to be coming true already, as Jimmy is so busy with this case that he misses important pre-marriage celebrations.
Lobby card for the film "Dr. Kildare's Wedding Day" from 1941. Public Domain
I haven’t described the conclusions so far, but this one changed the series too much to be avoided. When crossing a street on her way to take Jimmy’s place at a surprise party, Mary gets hit by a truck. Within two minutes of screentime, she has died at the hospital, since she is beyond medical help. After her death, the remainder of the film is dismal. After some ill-timed comedic moments from an orderly played by Red Skelton, Dr. Kildare is rescued from despair when Dr. Gillespie tells him about his sweetheart, a composer, who died. They cure Labardi after discovering he has a Vitamin B deficiency, the most undramatic illness in any of the films, making Mary’s death seem even more unnecessary. The finale in which Labardi conducts a piece composed by Gillespie’s late sweetheart, which was actually written by Lionel Barrymore, is potentially touching but couldn’t remedy the damage which had been done.
‘Dr. Kildare’s Victory’ (1942)—Story: Joseph Harrington; Script: Harry Ruskin and Willis Goldbeck
The final film is an obvious attempt on MGM’s part to repair something it had destroyed. After eight films with Harold S. Bucquet as the director, the much more famous W. S. Van Dyke took over as director, but even “One-Take Woody” couldn’t save the broken series. The film’s story was written by just one new writer, Joseph Harrington, and by new I mean this was his first and only time writing a film. This movie has lots of new characters, including a young doctor (Robert Sterling) and nurse (Jean Rogers) whose budding romance was supposed to fill the void which the dismal, heartbroken Jimmy can no longer fill alone. His patient is Cookie Charles (Ann Ayars), a debutante who gets a shard of glass in her heart when a sign falls on her. Dr. Kildare performs open-heart surgery on her while Dr. Gillespie describes every gory detail to a gallery full of medical students. As the wisecracking glamour girl recovers, she begins making a play for Jimmy. Inevitably, Kildare gets himself in trouble with the hospital administration, and he faces suspension. Life would imitate art soon after this, as Lew Ayres was blackballed by MGM in early 1942 when he registered as a conscientious objector. On patriotic principle, many theater owners refused to play this film. However, once Lew Ayres, a patriotic pacifist, joined the medical corps, he was exonerated, just as Dr. Kildare is in so many of his films. This was the first movie in the series to include a new romantic interest for Jimmy since the second film because he was devoted to Mary. Unfortunately, the romance feels very forced, as Jimmy is still just as upset by Mary’s death as the audience.
Lobby card for the film "Dr. Kildare's Victory" from 1942. Public Domain
In Conclusion
The “Dr. Kildare” films are a beautiful tribute to noble doctors who truly understand their calling, a tragically rare creature today. Personally, I prefer the first six movies, but you may explore all nine. They all contain excellent actors from the main characters, although the plot choices are hard to comprehend.I can’t get over the irony of a series which is centered around miraculous medical cures yet allows the leading lady to die in a freak accident, in a hospital bed yet untreatable. Mary’s accident could have been used as a chance for Dr. Kildare to test some daring experiment or challenge his love for her as she has become an invalid. It could even have been a poignant lesson about the human frailty of doctors. In the end, it seems like a very effective way of ruining a great series, which MGM did to write Laraine Day out of the story so she would be free to be in other films. Surely they could have found a less violent way to do so, such as her breaking the engagement because she’s afraid their marriage will hinder Jimmy’s career. After Mary’s death, the series got so lost that the writers seemed to forget that Jimmy was a diagnostician, not a heart surgeon!
Nevertheless, this is a fascinating look into Hollywood’s view of the medical industry in the years shortly before World War II. You can enjoy the whole set in a DVD collection from Warner Archives, which you can buy from Amazon or Barnes and Noble.
