
Writing
Robert Riskin
Born 1897-03-30 · New York City, New York, USA
From Wikipedia Robert Riskin (March 30, 1897–September 20, 1955) was an American screenwriter and playwright, best known for his collaborations with director-producer Frank Capra.
Acting credits
Behind the camera
7.8A runaway heiress makes a deal with the rogue reporter trailing her but the mismatched pair end up stuck with each other when their bus leaves them behind.
It Happened One Night
1934
7.5Alice, the only relatively normal member of the eccentric Sycamore family, falls in love with Tony Kirby, but his wealthy banker father and snobbish mother strongly disapprove of the match. When the Kirbys are invited to dinner to become better acquainted with their future in-laws, things don't turn out the way Alice had hoped.
You Can't Take It with You
1938
7.3As a parting shot, fired reporter Ann Mitchell prints a fake letter from unemployed "John Doe," who threatens suicide in protest of social ills. The paper is forced to rehire Ann and hires John Willoughby to impersonate "Doe." Ann and her bosses cynically milk the story for all it's worth, until the made-up "John Doe" philosophy starts a whole political movement.
Meet John Doe
1941
7.3As a parting shot, fired reporter Ann Mitchell prints a fake letter from unemployed "John Doe," who threatens suicide in protest of social ills. The paper is forced to rehire Ann and hires John Willoughby to impersonate "Doe." Ann and her bosses cynically milk the story for all it's worth, until the made-up "John Doe" philosophy starts a whole political movement.
Meet John Doe
1941
7.5Longfellow Deeds lives in a small town, leading a small town kind of life. When a relative dies and leaves Deeds a fortune, Longfellow moves to the big city where he becomes an instant target for everyone. Deeds outwits them all until Babe Bennett comes along. When small-town boy meets big-city girl anything can, and does, happen.
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town
1936
6.9British diplomat Robert Conway and a small group of civilians crash-land in the Himalayas, where they are rescued by the inhabitants of the hidden, idyllic valley of Shangri-La. Protected by the mountains from the world outside, where the clouds of World War II are gathering, Shangri-La provides a seductive escape for the world-weary Conway.
Lost Horizon
1937
6.7After an unappreciated minister dies, his daughter loses her faith in God, prompting her to open a phony temple with a con man. Can the love of a blind former aviator restore her faith and happiness?
The Miracle Woman
1931
6.6A relationship gradually develops between a savvy New York City street girl and a good-hearted cab driver, but other matters keep getting in their way, including financial problems and a murder.
Virtue
1932
6.7Rip Smith's opinion-poll business is a failure...until he discovers that the small town of Grandview is statistically identical to the entire country. He and his assistants go there to run polls cheaply and easily, in total secrecy (it would be fatal to let the townsfolk get self-conscious). And of course, civic crusader Mary Peterman must be kept from changing things too much. But romantic involvement with Mary complicates life for Rip; then suddenly everything changes.
Magic Town
1947
6.7Rip Smith's opinion-poll business is a failure...until he discovers that the small town of Grandview is statistically identical to the entire country. He and his assistants go there to run polls cheaply and easily, in total secrecy (it would be fatal to let the townsfolk get self-conscious). And of course, civic crusader Mary Peterman must be kept from changing things too much. But romantic involvement with Mary complicates life for Rip; then suddenly everything changes.
Magic Town
1947
7.1Apple Annie is an aging New York City fruit seller whose daughter Louise has been raised in a Spanish convent since she was an infant. As she grows up, Louise is led to believe that her mother is a society matron called Mrs. E. Worthington Manville. Annie worries that her lie is in danger of being uncovered when she learns that Louise is sailing to New York with her new fiancé and his nobleman father.
Lady for a Day
1933
6.9Ordinary man-in-the-street Arthur Ferguson Jones leads a very straightforward life. He's never late for work and nothing interesting ever happens to him. One day everything changes: he oversleeps and is fired as an example, he's then mistaken for evil criminal killer Mannion and is arrested. The resemblance is so striking that the police give him a special pass to avoid a similar mistake. The real Mannion sees the opportunity to steal the pass and move around freely and chaos results.
The Whole Town's Talking
1935
7.2The Skipper is a charming old man loved by all his neighbors. What they don't know is that he is also Mr. 880, an amateurish counterfeiter who has amazingly managed to elude the Secret Service for 20 years.
Mister 880
1950
6.1A horse trainer who has fallen on hard times looks to his horse, Broadway Bill, to finally win the big race.
Riding High
1950
6.2Nurse Nora Gilpin plans are to marry building contractor Tim McCarey and settle down. But one night a sleepwalking Nora slips into a provocative dress and goes to the home of startled lawyer John Raymond, for whom she doesn't care much during the day. She does not reveal her name and he cannot figure out where they have met, but they spend several hours together until she gets away before John notices.
Half Angel
1951
7.0Newlyweds experience marital problems when the wife's highly successful job as an attorney overshadows her husband's stagnant career.
Ann Carver's Profession
1933
7.1Nick and Nora Charles are going home—but trouble is waiting at the front door! Hoping for a peaceful visit with Nick’s parents in the small town of Sycamore Springs, the sophisticated couple soon finds themselves surrounded by old rivalries, family tensions, and a mysterious murder. Nick’s father, a respected retired doctor, would much rather see his son give up detective work, but a suspicious shooting quickly draws Nick back into action. As Nick and Nora investigate, they uncover jealousy, deception, hidden motives, and a dangerous secret involving the town’s prominent citizens. William Powell and Myrna Loy bring their trademark sparkle, wit, and effortless chemistry to the roles of Nick and Nora Charles, while Asta adds more canine comedy. Directed by Richard Thorpe, The Thin Man Goes Home is a charming 1945 mystery-comedy filled with family friction, small-town intrigue, romance, and the playful banter that has made Nick and Nora one of cinema’s most beloved couples.
The Thin Man Goes Home
1944
6.0Tycoon J.L. Higgins controls his whole family, but one of his sons-in-law, Dan Brooks, and his daughter Alice are fed up with that. Brooks quits his job as manager of J.L.'s paper box factory and devotes his life to his racing horse Broadway Bill, but his bankroll is thin and the luck is against him. He is arrested because of $150 he owes somebody for horse food, but suddenly a planned fraud by somebody else seems to offer him a chance...
Broadway Bill
1934
5.1A reporter stumbles on a runaway heiress whose story could salvage his career.
You Can't Run Away from It
1956
6.1A wealthy ex-bootlegger comes to the rescue of a formerly rich society girl after her gold-digging fiancé leaves her stranded when he finds out she's broke. The bootlegger proposes a deal: he will settle her debts if she teaches him how to be "a gentleman".
Men in Her Life
1931
8.0"Chick" Thompson is a puppet-master in a traveling carnival whose wife dies in childbirth and leaves him with an infant son he names "Poochy." His father-in-law and the baby's grandfather sues him for custody of the baby and Chick takes his son and hides out for a couple of years. He joins his former assistants, Daisy and "Fingers", in a circus act only to find that the persistent grandfather is still on his trail.
Carnival
1935
5.7Fed up with her tiny hometown, Cassie Barnes moves to New York City to find a job. She and her two friends, Dot and Gladys, soon have romantic troubles.
Three Wise Girls
1932
7.5Produced by the U.S. Office of War Information, this short dramatizes the uneasy but ultimately hopeful integration of European war refugees into the small town of Cummington, Massachusetts. Narrated over silent images with a score by Aaron Copland, it blends documentary style and propaganda, underscoring both cultural tension and community acceptance.
The Cummington Story
1945
6.8An Australian opera singer hires a husband so she can work in the U.S. Moore sings "Minnie the Moocher" in one scene.
When You're in Love
1937

