The Last Hurrah

 SPOILER ALERT! The plot will be discussed.

 This movie is the third in the trio of political films I have analyzed. In this John Ford directed film (1958), Frank (meaning straightforward, or is the name partially ironic?) Skeffington (Spencer Tracy) is the mayor of Irish descent in a New England city, and even though not stated, all indications are that it is Boston. He has won four terms as mayor and wants a fifth before retiring. He is a complicated figure who fights for important issues but also engages in some “dirty” politics to maintain power. He is a figure that represents old school politicians that bent the rules but were men of substance, and they are on the brink of being replaced by those packaged to appeal to the blossoming electronic media audience.

 

The story, like The Best Man and Advise and Consent, starts out with rousing patriotic marching music, since politicians always tug at sentimental feelings associated with a nation’s fervor for self-adulation. Skeffington is in a parade as a choir of men sing an electoral jingle, another standard tool to implant the message to vote into the minds of the electorate. There is a montage of the Mayor on television, giving a speech at a dinner, and being a guest at a prize fight, reflecting that those running for office try to ingratiate themselves with the public so as to keep them in mind on election day. 

 
Skeffington descends a staircase in his house and stops at a landing which displays a large portrait of his departed wife. He has flowers in a vase underneath the painting of the younger version of the woman. The area is sort of a shrine, probably so she can remain forever young for him. As he meets his staff he seems to delight in upsetting those opposed to him with the announcement in the newspaper of his running again. He jokingly seems disappointed that there is no picture of him, which he expected since the publisher is an old nemesis of his.

 More of his crew arrives, including “Ditto” Boland (Edward Brophy), who provides comic relief. His nickname shows that he is a “yes” man to the extreme, but a likable one. He is wearing his new hat that resembles the Mayor’s. Skeffington jokes that they will now look so much alike (they don’t) that Ditto may get shot by mistake. Ditto’s absurdly loyal remark, is “I hope so.” Skeffington knows how to use the tools of his trade as he corrects a greeting in a letter to show how to properly flatter a constituent. John Gorman (Pat O’Brien), one of the Mayor’s closest friends, questions that Skeffington is spreading himself thin, going to religious celebrations of several faiths. Skeffington reminds Gorman that he vowed to be available to everyone, which shows the man’s accessibility.

 

They talk about the candidates running against him. One major opponent will skip the race if Skeffington supports him for the Senate. The film is showing that quid quo pro arrangements are standard operating procedure in politics (even though there are laws regulating the types of these arrangements). They dismiss others except for Kevin McCluskey (Charles B. Fitzsimons), who is a bit of an unknown. He has a nice, Catholic family and the man was in the military before becoming a lawyer. The Mayor then is ready to greet individuals who present their problems in hope that Skeffington can solve them. He asks first, before meeting them, if they are registered voters, so that the interaction is productive for both parties. In this scene we see political necessity mixed with a desire to truly help the people. 

 John Carradine’s Amos Force (a name obviously suggesting power) is a local newspaper publisher and managing editor who is against Skeffington. He orders editorial attacks, no pictures of the Mayor, a call for release of tax returns, and an endorsement for McCluskey. Force can’t think of reasons to support the man, he just is against the incumbent. His motive is personal vindictiveness, as opposed to any higher purpose to serve the community. He calls in sports reporter Adam Caulfield (Jeffrey Hunter), who happens to be Skeffington’s nephew, which Force says he did not know when he hired him. But now Caulfield’s column is popular and has earned the newspaper money through syndication. Caulfield has a subversive sense of humor as he says he knew he was adding to the newspaper's profits and that is why he forgets to turn out the light in his office, adding to the electric bill. Force says he wants Skeffington defeated because he has siphoned off money into a bank in Mexico, but Caulfield counters by saying that the last undocumented rumor was the Mayor had funds he stole stashed in Canada. Caulfield says if Force had any real proof, he would have produced it by now (the call for factual evidence of wrongdoing instead of just allegations seems to be a continuing issue in politics up to the present). 

 Caulfield meets with Skeffington, who offers his nephew a cigar, the smoke of choice for old-time politicians in those backrooms where deals are made in secret. Interestingly, Caulfield uses a pipe, symbolic, perhaps, of a professor who wishes to educate as opposed to creating a smoky fog obscuring the truth (the Van Ackerman character in Advise and Consent also used a pipe, but he was a fraud). Caulfield admits that he has little interest in politics, except a feeling of partisanship for his uncle. Skeffington tries to sway Caulfield when he says it’s really politics, not the athletic events his nephew writes about, that is the most popular spectator sport. He offers his nephew a chance to document his campaign from the inside. He calls it a chance to provide a historical recording because he sees the current election techniques of appearing before crowds as becoming extinct (not so, considering the rallies of Donald Trump), and future contests will be media-driven (in this sense, at least, the film is prescient). He tells Caulfield that he will be retiring after the upcoming election, and it will be his “last hurrah,” (as he provides the movie’s title) which combines triumph with the sadness of finality. Caulfield agrees to the offer to be Skeffington’s historian, if it doesn’t interfere with his job. The Mayor informs his nephew that Force once was a member of the Ku Klux Klan. He is funny when he says Force quit the Klan because he had to pay for his own sheets and “little things like that drive a man to tolerance.” Caulfield asks why there is animosity between the Mayor and Force. Skeffington says that his mother worked for the wealthy father of Force as a maid. Poor immigrants were paid next to nothing, and because of poverty, it was an accepted custom to take home some leftover food at the end of the day to feed the servant’s family. But Force’s father was outraged when he learned that the woman left with a few pieces of fruit. He fired Skeffington’s mother in front of the whole staff of servants calling her an ingrate. Skeffington says that the fact that the son of the unemployed woman became the leader of the city infuriates the newspaper publisher, and the Mayor has done what he can to make the life of the son of his mother’s tormentor a little worse. Skeffington’s story points to the struggle of the newly arrived poor people in the country and the sometimes cruel condescension of the established wealthy citizens.

 Caulfield’s wife, Maeve (Dianne Foster) and her father, Roger Sugrue (Willis Bouchey), who is not a fan of Skeffington, watch the Mayor on television, and appear condescending toward him as they question who are the man’s supporters. Caulfield is sarcastic by saying they are gangsters, dope addicts, and sex fiends. Sugrue rants about how the Mayor is a hypocrite as he has a priest and a rabbi on either side of him on the stage. The image could represent a desire to unify, or also a way of ingratiating himself to everyone. In any event, Caulfield escapes the “stuffy” (read snobbish) atmosphere, and goes to the rally. 

 

Frank Skeffington, Jr. (Arthur Walsh) arrives home singing and dancing after a night of partying with a couple of young ladies. He plays loud music after admitting that he missed his dad’s speech. The impression is one of a young man who has no intention of transitioning into a responsible adult. Junior may be reaping the social rewards of his father’s success, but the two are not close, as they have nothing in common to talk about. It’s possible that Skeffington’s immersion in his political career has left little time to be a father.

 Skeffington meets with his staff as they review the exhausting schedule of public events he will attend. He shows he is shrewd enough not to draw the winning ticket at a lottery because if an Irishman wins he’ll be accused by the Jewish constituents of rigging the outcome in favor of a person of the same background. It’s like a chess game where he must look several moves down the line to make sure he doesn’t offend anyone. The Mayor talks on the phone with Caulfield just when Force brings his candidate, McCluskey, around at the newspaper office. Skeffington gets in an insult against his old family enemy when he has his nephew tell McCluskey that he wishes him good luck because he’ll need it with Force supporting him.

 

Caulfield has a conversation with Jack Mangan (Frank Albertson) who tells Caulfield he shouldn’t jeopardize his marriage by endorsing his outdated political uncle. During their talk, Caulfield is no longer smoking his pipe but instead lights up a cigarette, which implies he is moving toward the shady world of politics. Managan suggests that his uncle manipulates others to get them on his side. Caulfield has to make a choice about whether or not he accepts his uncle despite the Mayor’s sometimes questionable tactics.

 

Skeffington takes a walk with Caulfield to a poor part of town and says that he, his nephew’s uppity father-in-law, and Cardinal Martin Burke (Donald Crisp) were born right near each other. He says they then went their separate ways, indicating that despite the closeness of geography, each individual may wind up traveling very different paths. As gentle harp music plays, indicating Skeffington’s softer side, he shows his nephew a heart he carved in wood with his name and that of his future wife when he was six years old. The Mayor has a romantic heart alongside his tough mind. 

 

Skeffington then brings Caulfield to the home where a wake is about to take place. The Mayor, having to pay his respects outwardly as a public official, obviously was not an admirer of the deceased. He whacks at the coffin, saying it was strong enough to withstand an atomic blast, suggesting the dead man, Knocko Minihan, spared no expense when it came to himself. Caulfield has a talk with a mourner, Delia Boylan (Jane Darwell) who has known his uncle for quite a while. Delia says the man in the expensive casket was “mean as a panther,” which explains the Mayor’s reaction. According to the Mayor, Delia shows up as much as the corpses do for funerals. He humorously adds, “It’s nice to have a hobby.” He is a witty man, and knows his constituency since he tells his men to get rid of the liquor they brought for the wake since the widow never serves booze in her house. Skeffington talks privately with the widow, Gert Minihan (Anna Lee), who insists that her husband was “a good man,” her loyalty revealing a woman in denial about the quality of her husband. The Mayor points out that he left her impoverished. So it does not look like pity, he says his wife left Gert a thousand dollars on her deathbed to be given to Gert when the woman needed it. Gert says that his wife, Kate, had no such funds. But Skeffington is willing to lie for the greater good here, and Gert is willing to believe his generous falsehood.

 

A number of the policemen show up at the wake, also keeping up appearances, lying when they say the passing of Knocko is a great loss. The place becomes packed, and most of those arriving are there to ingratiate themselves to the Mayor. But, the widow is buoyed by their appearance, and the charade is for a kind purpose. It is noteworthy that cigars are passed around, even forced on one man who doesn't smoke, which symbolizes, again, the membership in Skeffington’s political circle. Ditto holds a box of cigars as he talks with Caulfield, who stands out as he has returned to his pipe, signaling an attempt at objectivity. When Ditto says that Knocko was a fine man, Caulfield punctures the bubble of falsehood by saying he heard the man was not liked. When he tells him that his uncle said so, Ditto immediately changes his tune, saying then that must be the case. Allegiance here is not totally rooted in honesty. 

Caulfield is upset about the hypocrisy of the gathering as it has turned into a political rally more than a wake. He walks out but Gorman follows him and admits that the people came because of allegiance to the Mayor. But, he argues, that Skeffington can go anywhere to generate a crowd and talk about the election. Gorman says that the Mayor brought the crowd in to make the widow feel better, and talking about politics is better than dwelling on death. He convinces Caulfield that the gathering is not just an opportunity to gain votes. 

 The Mayor welcomes Monsignor Killian (Ken Curtis) and asks about the Cardinal, who it turns out has not seen eye to eye (sorry for the reference to Barry Fitzgerald, another cleric, in Going My Way) with Skeffington in the past. The Mayor thanks Killian for showing up, as if it was a favor to him. But Killian says he has already been to the Minihan home to comfort the widow since he says he is Gert’s friend. Killian is deflating Skeffington's over-sized ego here, showing how not everyone’s actions are tied to the Mayor’s will. Skeffington realizes he has been knocked down a bit in his high estimation of himself. 

 The funeral is quite extravagant and apparently the cost has not been discussed with the widow. The funeral director, Johnny Degnan (Bob Sweeney), says he wants his undertakings to be a final “homage” to the departed. Skeffington says that he should charge a mere thirty-five dollars for the proceedings, or else something negative might be mentioned to a licensing board. Here the Mayor is extorting someone for a charitable reason. But, what if he was using his office for dishonorable reasons? There seems to be no legal check as to whether a politician uses his power for beneficial or disreputable reasons, and the film implies that the system of government seems to rely on the decency of the individual in charge. 

 

A loan for a housing development has been held up and the man responsible for the delay is Norman Cass (Basil Rathbone). He is dining at an exclusive club with other bankers. In an act of defiance against the rich elite, Skeffington and his group storm the upper-class establishment, with police guarding the doors so nobody can escape. The Mayor makes fun of the décor which has a strong Puritan theme going. The Mayor barges in on the meal and encounters Cass, Force, and other financiers. Skeffington argues that they are allowing poor kids to get hit by cars because they have no place to play, and people are getting sick in unhealthy slum dwellings. He argues that the only reason they will not finance the housing development is because these rich people no longer have control of the government because the average people, led by the Mayor, have taken control of the city. He says there will be new housing and he will lead the St. Patrick’s Day Parade to celebrate it. So, the theme of class struggle is again at the center of the story, and with it, the animosity of “Yankee bluebloods” toward Irish immigrants. Bishop Gardner (Basil Ruysdael) reminds Skeffington that there has been an intermingling of the old established culture and the new one involving immigrants over time, with intermarriage between the classes and offspring resulting from those unions. The Bishop says he even voted for Skeffington, so the man of the cloth exhibits insight as to the development of a pluralistic American society over time.

 

In an amusing scene, Skeffington meets with Norman Cass, Jr. (O. Z. Whitehead) who uses his father's status and money to be a yachtsman, and is similar to the Mayor’s son, both young men acting like self-indulgent children, resisting maturity. The movie unfortunately makes fun of Norman’s lisp to stress his arrested development. The Mayor humorously uses flattery to win over Norman and offers him the position of Fire Department Commissioner. The job will allow Norman to dress up like it’s Halloween with a helmet and white outfit so he can go to fires where he will be the “center of attention,” which is what most children crave. 

 

The Mayor meets with Cass Sr., and shows a picture of his son looking ridiculous in his children’s version of a fireman’s outfit and threatens to allow Norman to make a fool out of himself if the loan is not granted. Skeffington doesn't want to hear any outrage from Cass, saying the banker hasn’t acted reputably in his job. Cass caves, allowing the loan, in exchange for dropping his son’s appointment. Again, the Mayor is using his office to employ questionable means to reach praiseworthy ends. But as a parting shot, Cass calls Force and says he will financially back McCluskey in the mayoralty race. The implication is that hostile acts beget reciprocal behavior.

 

Caulfield sees numerous signs urging people to vote for McCluskey for an honest government. But, the man is just a puppet of rich and powerful forces. The next scene which shows the use of television to further the man’s candidacy is a satirical take on an unqualified candidate running for office. McCluskey has pictures which show his service in the U. S. Navy along with a large picture of Cardinal Burke which makes it look like he has a high-ranking Catholic official on his side in this very Catholic city. (Burke at first doesn’t like being exploited for political reasons, but he has been one of Skeffington’s foes, he being another man of power not liking the growing strength of someone representing the lower classes). McCluskey also has a dog with him which is meant to draw the animal-lovers to his side, but the canine’s barking upstages the candidate. Mrs. McCluskey (Helen Westcott), in a fancy dress, stressing the staged appearance of the scene, enters with a silver platter, which includes milk, the drink of a wholesome man. She is noted to be the “dutiful wife,” which shows the sexism of the times. She accidentally bends over with her butt to the camera, and someone working for McCluskey says that’s a “posterior for prosperity.” She seems nervous and has trouble answering simple questions, her eyes darting around as if looking for answers. She then squints at cue cards and reads from them haltingly, appearing unnatural in a supposedly natural setting. The children enter dressed up as if they are going to a party, which adds to the staged presentation. 

 Cass and Force attempt to get the Bishop’s endorsement of McCluskey’s candidacy. The cleric declines, and states he’s not sure that Skeffington is worse, saying, “I’d prefer an engaging rogue to a complete fool” for mayor. The Bishop, however, says he will vote for neither, not wishing to “play” the political game that apparently seems sleazy to a man of God. Afterwards, Force blames Cass for not applying pressure on the Bishop, but Cass fires back, alluding to Force’s KKK background, by asking if Force wants to burn a cross on the man’s lawn.

 

Caulfield brings his uncle to his home and surprises his wife, Maeve, who, as we saw, like her father, is not a fan of the Mayor. But Skeffington uses his charm to say how beautiful the woman is, just like her mother and grandmother. He may actually believe his compliments, but his use of flattery to win people over comes naturally to him. At dinner, Maeve says her father argues that the Mayor tries to satisfy everybody with promises. Skeffington gives a little lesson in politics. He says first you find out what the people want, but more importantly, what they will accept. If people want opposite things, there must be compromise (a lost art some might say in today’s politics). He gives an example of placating the Italian and Irish electorate who want a statue erected to commemorate a cultural hero, but there are conflicting suggestions. His choice is different from the names offered, but he has picked a female Catholic saint of Italian heritage, which would be hard for any side to contest. 

 

Election day shows democracy at work, but there is humor in the film here, too. The manipulated funeral director Degnan is in line and has a sour look on his face as the woman behind him praises Skeffington. McCluskey and his family leave their house to go to the polling place as their interrupting dog gets taken away, while Mrs. McCluskey says they are glad to see the animal leave. The stress here is that the supposedly honest McCluskey was just using the pooch for the sake of appearance. Caulfield sends a basket of fruit to Force with the message that it is in memory of his grandmother (the one that Force’s dad fired) and he would know what to do with the gift. Force looks puzzled as he holds a pineapple, but we know that the message implies that he should “shove it.” At the Mayor’s campaign headquarters, Ditto tells Caulfield that the men in white there are The Marching Chowder and Total Abstinence Society (politicians look for support wherever they can get it).

 

Arriving home, Skeffington meets his neglected and spoiled son, heading out with golf clubs to his convertible car. He says he forgot to even register to vote, but laughs it off, saying his father doesn’t need his help to win. There is a sad look on Skeffington’s face which reflects his disappointment that he has been able to win over strangers but not his own son. 

 As the election returns come in, the early positive numbers start to turn negative when one ward disappoints in its total. Skeffington uses humor to paint a happy face on the situation, but, again, the appearance is deceiving. The voter canvassing shows that Skeffington will lose, and one of the Mayor’s men is incredulous, saying they ran a “classic” campaign. But, the story is pointing to how the old ways of doing things don’t work anymore. It is ironic that Skeffington was once the force of change, and now he is an impediment to it. While some of the campaign leaders yell, placing blame on each other, Skeffington is the calm at the center of the storm. He can even make a joke about how they should drink some of the stale coffee because it will cool them down. 

 

There is denial about the election results, which sounds all too familiar to us. One man says, basically, that they were robbed. Skeffington’s playboy son brings his beautiful date to the headquarters and says optimistically that only a third of the vote is in. He notes he voted for his father, forgetting what he told him earlier about not registering. Ditto acts as if there will still be a victory parade until he goes through the stages of grief quickly, moving through anger to stunned acceptance. The crowd, what’s left of it, at the headquarters is solemn now, as many don’t like hanging around on a sinking ship. Skeffington seems to accept the inevitable, and meets TV reporters. He congratulates McCluskey and thanks those who supported and voted for him. When asked about his future, Skeffington has a surprise card to play in his back pocket that he decides to pull out. He says he intends to run for governor of the state, and expects to win. Cass and Force are watching the TV and have their moment of triumph quickly turn into one of exasperation. One feels as if Skeffington had this ace up his sleeve all the time if the contest didn’t go his way. But at this moment is he unwilling to accept that his time is over?

 After dropping off his nephew, Skeffington decides to walk home. Ford gives us a great image as he strolls alone one way as a boisterous crowd celebrating their candidate’s victory marches in the opposite direction. It is a shot of the parade passing by, leaving behind the old warrior hero alone as allegiances change. For the first time in the film, Skeffington is by himself, and there is quiet. At his home, he looks at his wife’s portrait and as he ascends the steps to her he falters, bending over in pain, as if what has allowed him to thrive has been drained from him.

 

The next scene is with Skeffington’s doctor (William Forrest) who reveals to Caulfield (who in a way has become the son Skeffington would have preferred) Gorman and others that Skeffington had a heart attack, and the Mayor hid the fact that it was not the man’s first. Again, we have the discrepancy between the public, rosy surface versus the harsh truth that resides beneath. The doctor says that Skeffington has a strong will to live. He shows his strong independence when he tells the nurse to leave him alone. 

 

Junior has no insight into the seriousness of his father’s health and continues to smile and act inappropriately bouncy, suggesting that Caulfield and his wife join him and his father on a fun cruise to give his dad a break from politics. It’s possible Skeffington, with his wife gone and he absorbed in his career, didn’t take the time to guide his son into adulthood.  

 

Skeffington retains his sense of humor when the doctor says he should take care of the city and the doctor will look after his health. The Mayor says darkly that it will be “short term employment” for the both of them. Despite his doctor's strong objections, he wants to see his friends while he still has the time. Crowds of people show up at his residence bringing flowers which show that despite the election results they will stick by the man in illness. Even Festus Garvey (Frank McHugh) and Charles Hennessey (Wallace Ford), despite being at odds with the Mayor, want to support the ailing Skeffington, which shows respect despite disagreement. They visit Skeffington along with the Mayor’s closest allies, and the man, despite being bedridden, and knowing he has little time left, acts as if they should start planning the run for governor. He most likely wants to act like he will go out fighting and leave his companions with a positive memory of him still ready to wage a political battle. But, Gorman knows the sad truth, and says elegiacally that the Mayor has done “grand things.” But Skeffington adds, “among other things,” acknowledging some of his dubious behavior.  

 

Even though the scene is sentimental, with Caulfield breaking down in tears, Skeffington does not indulge himself in self-pity. When Gorman says it isn’t a final goodbye, Skeffington suggests, “it’s a reasonable facsimile.” When Caulfield says that Junior stepped out, the Mayor comments satirically that his son always had “a great sense of timing.” Killian arrives with Cardinal Burke, who says he felt compelled to tell Skeffington why he opposed him for so long. The Mayor continues to show his wit when he says he asked for the priest to come “to hear my confession, not yours.” The Cardinal gives as good as he gets after saying he came on a matter of conscience. When the Mayor asks, “yours or mine?” his Eminence says he is glad to know Skeffington admits to having one. Because Skeffington requires no explanation for Burke’s opposition, the Cardinal says the Mayor has eased his conscience, and leaves, but not before making the sign of the cross, honoring his political foe with a blessing. 

 

Sugrue arrives with his daughter, and although Maeve offers concern when she sees her husband, her father is still repulsed by her being there. He is horrified to see the Cardinal coming down the stairs and expresses his astonishment to Burke. The Cardinal says that Skeffington “is dying,” in a sort of reminder to Sugrue of his Christian duty to “love your enemies.” Junior returns and Burke offers his sympathies to the young man. Finally, Frank Jr. seems to be waking up to the reality of the sadness in the world. He runs to his father’s bed and loudly cries. Skeffington is generous and tells his boy that it’s okay, in a sense absolving him of his shortcomings. Caulfield, Maeve and Sugrue enter the bedroom, and Sugrue says contemptuously that if he had to do it over again, Skeffington would have done things differently. But, the Mayor hasn’t passed on yet, and says defiantly, “The hell I would!” Despite his admitted shortcomings, the man earlier said he has, “no regrets.”

 

Earlier, Cardinal Burke wondered if McCluskey is the best they can come up with to defeat Skeffington. Monsignor Killian says that quality Catholics are no longer choosing politics to rise out of the slums, as Skeffington did. His pessimistic view of the declining number of worthy candidates reflects the film’s alarmist take on the increasingly sad state of government. Skeffington's “last hurrah” can be seen as the movie’s nostalgic yearning for worthwhile people in office. In that sense, the wake that Skeffington arranged could symbolize the passing of a more admirable political time.

The next film is Elmer Gantry.