The East Hartford Gazette

GARY COOPER STAR
IN LOU GEHRIG FILM

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engineering to sign a contract with the New York Yankees.
This was the start of Gehrig's amazing 14-year record with the Yankee club, during which time he shattered scores of marks and set new ones that may never be equalled.
His romance with Eleanor Twitchell, the Chicago girl who became his wife, his loyal supporter through all his triumphs and through the grim onslaughts of the paralysis that brought his career to an end, motivates the film, and makes it the realistic human document that it is.
Fittingly enough, the picture has its conclusion on the most memorable day of Gehrig's career, "Lou Gehrig Day," when cheering crowds packed the Yankee Stadium, on a July afternoon in 1939 to bid a last farewell to the greatest Yankee of them all.
Very much like Gehrig in his innate simplicity and kindly personality, Cooper has perhaps his most impressive role to date in portraying the famous athlete, a role that some critics believe surpasses his Academy-Award-winning portrayal of another famous American, Sergeant York.
Teresa Wright, Goldwyn discovery who scored so notably as Bette Davis' daughter in "The Little Foxes," has the role of Eleanor Gehrig. Babe Ruth plays himself as the famous Yankee home-run slugger, and Brennan is cast as Gehrig's newspaper-man-sponsor, Sam Blake.
Bill Dickey, Bob Meusel and Mark Koenig of the Yankee club and sports announcer Bill Stern also play themselves in featured roles, along with Dan Duryea as another sports writer. Virginia Gilmore as a co-ed, Elsa Janssen and Ludwig Stossel as Gehrig's parents, Douglas Croft as the youthful Gehrig, and Ernie Adams, Pierre Watkin, Hardie Albright, Bettye Avery and Spencer Charters are in prominent supporting parts.
Directed by Sam Wood, who made "Kitty Foyle" and the recent "King's Row," the film features the famous Veloz and Yolanda duo dancing to the music of Ray Noble and his orchestra.
Paul Gallico wrote the original story from which "The Pride of the Yankees," is drawn. Mrs. Eleanor Gehrig supplied many details and incidents of her famous husband's career. Herman J. Mankiewicz and Jo Swerling wrote the screen-play.