Five of a Kind

This article is about the film. For other uses, see Five of a kind (disambiguation).

Five of a Kind is a 1938 American comedy film directed by Herbert I. Leeds and written by Lou Breslow and John Patrick. The film stars The Dionne Quintuplets, Jean Hersholt, Claire Trevor and Cesar Romero. The film was released on October 14, 1938, by 20th Century Fox.^[1][2] The film follows the escalating rivalry between radio journalists Duke Lester (Romero) and Christine Nelson (Trevor) that culminates in a competition to cover the exploits of the famous Canadian quintuplets, the Wyatts, played by The Dionne Quintuplets.^[3]

Five of a Kind
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Herbert I. Leeds
Screenplay by	Lou Breslow and John Patrick
Produced by	Sol M. Wurtzel (executive producer)
Starring	The Dionne Quintuplets Jean Hersholt Claire Trevor Cesar Romero Slim Summerville Henry Wilcoxon Inez Courtney John Qualen Jane Darwell Pauline Moore
Cinematography	Daniel B. Clark, A.S.C.
Edited by	Fred Allen
Music by	Samuel Kaylin (musical direction)
Production company	20th Century Fox
Distributed by	20th Century Fox
Release date	October 14, 1938 (1938-10-14)
Running time	85 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Plot

Reporters on rival newspapers, Christine Nelson and Duke Lester, meet on the trail of a run-away heiress and engage in a series of tricks to get the scoop.

After being fired due to deliberate misinformation, Nelson gets a job as a radio interviewer setting her sights on the Dionne quintuplets. Lester gets wind of the interview, arrives first, and reignites the "war". Nelson wins this round.

To counter Nelson's popularity, Lester fabricates a story about sextuplets. Thinking she is breaking the story, Nelson talks on air to Lester's fake doctor. Other newshounds quickly expose the story as false, destroying a planned benefit for a New York orphanage-hospital.

When Lester discovers the impact of his actions, he works to repair the damage and save the benefit.

Cast

In opening credits

• The Dionne Quintuplets
  • Yvonne
  • Cecile
  • Marie
  • Annette
  • Emelie
• with Jean Hersholt
• Claire Trevor
• Cesar Romero
• and Slim Summerville
• Henry Wilcoxon
• Inez Courtney
• John Qualen
• Jane Darwell
• Pauline Moore

In end credits

• Jean Hersholt as Dr. John Luke
• Claire Trevor as Christine Nelson
• Cesar Romero as Duke Lester
• Slim Summerville as Jim Ogden
• Henry Wilcoxon as Dr. Scott Williams
• Inez Courtney as Libby Long
• John Qualen as Asa Wyatt
• Jane Darwell as Mrs. Waldron
• Pauline Moore as Elinor Kingsley
• John Russell as Dickie
• Andrew Tombes as Dr. Bruno
• David Torrence as Sir Basil Crawford
• Marion Byron as Nurse Corday
• Hamilton MacFadden as Andrew Gordon
• Spencer Charters as Rev. Matthew Brand
• Charles D. Brown as Editor Crane

Production

The Wyatt quintuplets in the movie are shown to live an idealized version of the life of the Dionne quintuplets. Shortly after their birth, the Dionne girls were made wards of the state and raised in a theme park type hospital situation which was across the street from the parents they were taken from. For the first nine years of their life, the Dionne quintuplets children were treated like a zoo attraction.^[4] While they were under state care, they made this movie and its predecessor, The Country Doctor, both featuring Jean Hersholt as their kindly caretaker, Dr. John Luke.^[5]