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Little Caesar Overview:

Little Caesar (1931) was a Crime - Drama Film directed by Mervyn LeRoy and produced by Hal B. Wallis and Darryl F. Zanuck.

The film was based on the novel of the same name written by W.R. Burnett published in 1924.

SYNOPSIS

This role made Robinson a star and set the standard for the innumerable Warner gangster pics that followed. The familiar story (based loosely on the career of Al Capone) follows the rise of Rico Bandello from street tough to emperor of gangland - and his equally rapid fall from power. Robinson's two-fisted performance and trademark delivery, see, erased memories of his 15-year career on Broadway and made it hard for Hollywood to see him as anything but a ruthless mobster for years.

(Source: available at Amazon AMC Classic Movie Companion).

Little Caesar was inducted into the National Film Registry in 2000.

Academy Awards 1930/31 --- Ceremony Number 4 (source: AMPAS)

AwardRecipientResult
Best WritingFrancis Faragoh, Robert N. LeeNominated
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Little Caesar BlogHub Articles:

Little Caesar (1931)

By 4 Star Film Fan on Jun 2, 2019 From 4 Star Films

When I was a kid we had an old VHS of Bugs Bunny shorts and one of the caricatures in a gangster-themed storyline — although I didn’t know it at the time — was undoubtedly Edward G. Robinson. That voice. That mug. That smug self-assuredness. They’re inimitable. Even then I kn... Read full article

Little Caesar (1931)

By Raquel Stecher on Feb 18, 2013 From Out of the Past - A Classic Film Blog

image source Little Caesar (1931) is one of the original gangster films and influenced the movies in that genre that were to come. It was directed by Mervyn LeRoy and based on a novel by W. R. Burnett. Edward G. Robinson stars as Little Caesar aka Rico, a small time gangster looking to make it bi... Read full article

Little Caesar (1931)

By Raquel Stecher on Nov 30, -0001 From Out of the Past - A Classic Film Blog

image source Little Caesar (1931) is one of the original gangster films and influenced the movies in that genre that were to come. It was directed by Mervyn LeRoy and based on a novel by W. R. Burnett. Edward G. Robinson stars as Little Caesar aka Rico, a small time gangster looking to make it bi... Read full article

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Little Caesar Quotes:

Caesar Enrico Bandello: You can dish it out, but you got so you can't take it no more.
Caesar Enrico Bandello: If you ain't out of town by tomorrow morning... you won't ever leave it except in a pine box.
Caesar Enrico Bandello: I don't need no cannon to take care of guys like you, Mr. Lorch.
Caesar Enrico Bandello: You want me, you're going to have to come and get me!
Caesar Enrico Bandello: I'm going to see Little Arnie tonight. If he's looking for trouble, why, that's what we got the most of.
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Little Caesar Facts
Clark Gable was originally considered for the part of Joe Massara, but Jack L. Warner decided that Gable's ears were too big, and the role went to Douglas Fairbanks Jr. instead. Gable ultimately signed with MGM, where he would become one of the biggest stars in Hollywood history.
The movie's line "Mother of mercy, is this the end of Rico?" was voted as the #73 movie quote by the American Film Institute (out of 100).
In a separately filmed trailer, Vitaphone production reel #4529, Edward G. Robinson and Douglas Fairbanks Jr. discuss the picture.
Ranked #9 on the American Film Institute's list of the 10 greatest films in the genre "Gangster" in June 2008.
The character Diamond Pete Montana was modeled on Jim Colosimo, who was murdered by Al Capone; and "The Big Boy" was based on corrupt politician William 'Big Bill' Thompson, Mayor of Chicago. The underworld banquet sequence was also based on a real event - a notorious party in honor of two gangsters, Charles Dion O'Bannion and Samuel J. "Nails" Morton, which received unfavorable coverage in the Chicago press.
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