THE DEVIL AND MISS JONES (1941)

Long before there was Undercover Boss, Charles Coburn starred as a wealthy department store owner who creates a new identity to get a job in his own store to learn what all this union business is about. With Jean Arthur as the clerk who befriends him, Robert Cummings as her labor organizer boyfriend and Spring Byington as the worker with whom he falls in love, the picture couldn’t help but be a hit. Sam Wood directed expertly, with the impressive visuals supervised by frequent collaborator William Cameron Menzies. The film was produced by Arthur’s company, headed by her husband, producer Frank Ross, and the screenplay’s author, Norman Krasna. It earned Oscar nominations for Coburn and Krasna, and Arthur’s reunion with Coburn for The More the Merrier (1943), with Ross co-writing, was an even bigger hit, bringing Coburn the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor.

d. Sam Wood, 92m, DCP

DCP courtesy of Paramount Pictures.