| Five Star Final | |
|---|---|
 1931 Theatrical Poster | |
| Directed by | Mervyn LeRoy |
| Written by | Byron Morgan Robert Lord |
| Based on | Five Star Final 1930 play by Louis Weitzenkorn |
| Produced by | Hal B. Wallis (uncredited) |
| Starring | Edward G. Robinson Marian Marsh Boris Karloff |
| Cinematography | Sol Polito |
| Edited by | Frank Ware |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 89 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $310,000[1] |
| Box office | $822,000[1] |
Five Star Final is a 1931 American pre-Code drama film about the excesses of tabloid journalism directed by Mervyn LeRoy and starring Edward G. Robinson, Aline MacMahon (in her screen debut) and Boris Karloff. The screenplay was by Robert Lord and Byron Morgan based on the 1930 play of the same name by Louis Weitzenkorn. The title refers to the practice of newspapers publishing a series of editions throughout the day, with their final-edition front page having five stars printed and the word "Final." "Five Star Final" is also a font introduced during World War I and then favored by newspapers for its narrow type.
Warner Bros. remade the film in 1936 as Two Against the World, also known as One Fatal Hour, starring Humphrey Bogart in Robinson's part and set in a radio station instead of at a newspaper.[2]
The film was nominated at the 5th Academy Awards (1931/1932) for Best Picture, but lost to Grand Hotel.
Newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst was greatly offended by the film, which he interpreted as a thinly veiled attack on him and his operation. He retaliated by publishing negative reviews in his papers and pressuring theaters not to show the film.[3]