The Great McGinty 1940
Directed by
Preston Sturges
Made by
Paramount Pictures
The Great McGinty Plot Summary
Read the complete plot summary and ending explained for The Great McGinty (1940). From turning points to emotional moments, uncover what really happened and why it matters.
Dan McGinty, Brian Donlevy, a bartender stranded in a banana republic, tells a sprawling tale of ascent, power, and a fall that hinges on a single, defining moment. He recounts his relationship to the bar’s dancing girl, Steffi Duna, and to a suicidal American customer named Tommy, a once-trusted bank employee who can no longer return to the United States or his family after a fateful act of temptation and theft. McGinty’s fate mirrors his companion’s in that it stems not from one grand fraud but from “one crazy minute” of honesty that proves as consequential as any deceit, a truth he unfolds through a long flashback.
His rise begins when a tramp accepts $2 to vote under a false name in a rigged mayoral election, a gambit he plays out at thirty-seven precincts, a feat that catches the eye of the local political boss, Akim Tamiroff. From that moment, McGinty becomes both enforcer and protege, drawn deeper into a machine where loyalty is transactional and power is currency. During a public push for reform, the boss pushes a audacious plan: McGinty should be elected mayor as a reform candidate. To seal the role, the boss declares that a credible reformer must be married, and his secretary arranges a marriage of convenience which McGinty accepts, ushering him into office as the city’s mayor, Arthur Hoyt presiding in the background in the role the film casts as the political theater of the time.
Once in office, McGinty continues the corruption he once helped enable, arguing that public works and real improvements still bless the people even if the path to them is paved with bribes. Yet as he lives inside this paradox, he and his wife grow closer, and he begins to take her ideals on public service seriously. He falls in love with the very principles she embodies, even as he insists he is not powerful enough to act against the boss who pulled his strings. Five years pass, and the boss elevates McGinty to the governorship, forging a new sense of inevitability about their shared fate. On inauguration day, McGinty tells the boss that their partnership is over; the boss responds with rage, drawing a gun and forcing McGinty into a crisis that ends with his arrest, a brutal reminder of the costs of their tangled bargain.
The story then shifts to their uneasy companionship in adjacent jail cells, where the boss engineers an escape for them both. As McGinty maintains his connection to his wife and the money he has hidden, the flashback resolves with the stark realization that the boss—the very man who helped him rise—still governs his life. The clear through-line remains: reform was a sham, ambition was weaponized, and the old guard persists, shaping McGinty’s fate even in the wake of supposed change. The film closes on the uneasy, enduring frictions between man and mentor, power and conscience, and the shape of a life built on transactions rather than trust.
The Great McGinty Timeline
Follow the complete movie timeline of The Great McGinty (1940) with every major event in chronological order. Great for understanding complex plots and story progression.
Frame narration begins
The story opens with Dan McGinty recounting his life to the bar's dancing girl and a suicidal American, Tommy. This framing device sets up the long flashback that follows, contrasting his past corruption with the present moment. The narrator's perspective hints at the moral weight of his memories.
Tramp recruited for rigged vote
McGinty, a tramp, is paid $2 to vote under a false name in a rigged mayoral election, doing it 37 times at different precincts. The scheme catches the attention of a powerful local political boss who sees his potential as a tool for control. This marks the start of his ascent through the city's corrupt machine.
From enforcer to protégé
Impressed by McGinty's nerve, the boss elevates him from enforcer to political protégé. Their alliance blends intimidation with strategic ambition as the boss consolidates power across parties. McGinty's loyalty becomes the backbone of their growing empire.
Campaign for reform and a reform candidate
During a public push for reform, the boss decides McGinty should run as a reform-minded mayor. The boss controls all parties, while McGinty negotiates the public image of honesty. The arrangement promises change while masking ongoing corruption.
Marriage of convenience
With no suitable spouse, McGinty agrees to a marriage of convenience proposed by his secretary. The union gives him legitimacy and a personal anchor as he steps into office. It also complicates his relationship with the boss, who wants calculated loyalty.
Elected mayor, continued corruption
McGinty is elected mayor and keeps the corrupt system intact, rationalizing that public works still benefit the people. He justifies bribes and manipulations as necessary for progress. His wife's influence remains distant as power solidifies around him.
Love softens his stance
The mayor and his wife actually fall in love, and he begins taking her reform ideas seriously. Her perspective nudges him toward a more conscientious approach to governance. Yet old habits and the boss's reach still pull at him.
Not powerful enough to act yet
Despite growing conscience, McGinty believes he isn't powerful enough to defy the boss. He remains dependent on the corrupt system for political protection and personal advantage. The tension between conscience and loyalty defines his tenure.
Promotion to governor
Five years after becoming mayor, the boss engineers McGinty's rise to governor and he is elected. The new office lends an air of legitimacy to their scheme, but the boss's shadow looms over every decision. McGinty feels briefly empowered, yet apprehensive.
Inauguration day confrontation
On inauguration day, McGinty tells the boss that they're through, attempting to sever ties. The boss responds with fury, firing a gun at him inside the governor's mansion, forcing his arrest. The moment crystallizes the peril of challenging the machine.
Jail and escape plan
McGinty and the boss end up in adjacent jail cells, where the boss orchestrates an escape for both. The scheme preserves their bond and power, showing that their partnership survives confinement as well as politics. The encounter intensifies the mentor-pupil dynamic even behind bars.
Phone call about money hidden
In a defining moment of the flashback, McGinty phones his wife to reveal money he has hidden to provide for her and her children. The confession reveals the lasting consequences of his 'one crazy minute' of honesty mixed with decades of compromise. It ties his past to the present tension.
The boss remains the boss at the bar
We return to the bar where the former political boss still exerts control over McGinty. The old power dynamic continues to fuel their violent disagreements in the present. It becomes clear that the political machine survives breachless both in memory and in workplace reality.
Closing frame and ongoing feud
The tale closes with McGinty continuing to recount his life to the bar's company, acknowledging the gulf between his hopeful past and the troubling present. The cycle of corruption and personal conflict remains unresolved. The audience is left with a haunting sense of how one minute of honesty can ripple through a lifetime.
The Great McGinty Characters
Explore all characters from The Great McGinty (1940). Get detailed profiles with their roles, arcs, and key relationships explained.
Dan McGinty - Brian Donlevy
A crafty bartender-turned-politician whose 'one crazy minute' of honesty sparks a chain of consequences. He climbs from tramp to mayor to governor by leveraging charm, wit, and opportunism. Though he rationalizes graft as a means to deliver public works, he is capable of genuine empathy when confronted with love and conscience. His arc culminates in a murky sense that the system controls him just as much as he controls it.
The Boss - Akim Tamiroff
A ruthless political boss who fixes elections and steers the city’s fortunes. He braids intimidation, bribery, and loyalty to maintain control over every party and policy. He views McGinty as both a tool and a threat, ready to ruin him if he steps out of line. His power obsession drives the machine’s brutal routines.
Catharine McGinty - Muriel Angelus
McGinty’s wife by arrangement who grows from a prop in a reform ruse to a moral counterweight. She champions public service and ethical governance, challenging McGinty’s cynical rationalizations. Her love unsettles the governor’s calculus and forces him to confront the consequences of his choices. She becomes the conscience of the couple and the reform ideal.
Mayor Wilfred H. Tillinghast - Arthur Hoyt
The city’s mayor who is installed by the boss as a reform figure. He embodies the polished rhetoric of reform while serving as a cog in the machine. His tenure demonstrates how political theater can mask entrenched corruption. He remains a supporting pivot in the power system.
Tommy Thompson - Louis Jean Heydt
A trusted bank employee whose temptation and downfall catalyze the central conflict. His misdeeds set off the chain of events that pull McGinty into a life of political theater and danger. He is a cautionary mirror for what temptation and guilt can do in a corrupt system.
George - Allyn Joslyn
A loyal, sometimes abrasive ally within the boss’s circle who helps manage the machine’s operations. He embodies the practical, hard-edged side of power, prioritizing outcomes over ethics. His perspective highlights the fragility and resilience of the political machine.
The Dancing Girl - Steffi Duna
A social confidante whose presence frames the social world around the political theater. She witnesses the ambitions and compromises of the central figures, offering a human counterpoint to the grand schemes. Her role underscores the personal cost of a system built on manipulation.
The Great McGinty Settings
Learn where and when The Great McGinty (1940) takes place. Explore the film’s settings, era, and how they shape the narrative.
Time period
1930s
Set in the Depression-era milieu, the city lives under a political machine's grip and economic precarity. Campaigns are calculated performances, and public service is treated as a commodity. The narrative spans several years, from a rigged mayoral race to a governor's ascent, before a moment of moral reckoning.
Location
Banana Republic
The story unfolds in a bustling, corrupt city within a fictional banana republic. A single political boss dominates elections and public works, corralling power through bribes and spectacle. The setting blends tropical atmosphere with sharp satire of machine politics, showing a society where reform talk masks graft.
The Great McGinty Themes
Discover the main themes in The Great McGinty (1940). Analyze the deeper meanings, emotional layers, and social commentary behind the film.
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Power and Corruption
The film centers on how authority is manufactured and maintained by a ruthless machine. McGinty's rise is inseparable from graft, manipulation, and the boss's iron hold over every level of government. Yet the story also probes the human cost of this system on ordinary citizens. The satire exposes how public interest is traded for private gain.
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Election Manipulation
Elections are treated as tools of control, with votes bought and ballots counted to fit a preordained narrative. McGinty starts as a willing participant in the rigged process and only glimpses a different path through honesty. The plot uses the double life of a reformist mayor to critique how political machines bend law and consent. The central gimmick—marshalling votes—drives both comedy and tragedy.
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Love vs Duty
A marriage of convenience evolves into genuine affection as McGinty and Catharine confront private desire and public responsibility. Catharine's reformist ideals challenge the boss's corrupt system and pull McGinty toward a more humane politics. Her love unsettles the governor’s calculus and forces him to confront the consequences of his choices. The theme tests whether love can soften political ambition or demand true change.
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Satire of Reform
The film uses farce and wit to critique reform rhetoric while exposing the fragility of anti-corruption crusades. Its humor masks a serious indictment of political manipulation and hypocrisy. By portraying a reformist campaign that becomes a vehicle for personal gain, it questions the line between virtue and expediency. The result is a bittersweet meditation on the limits of political redemption.
The Great McGinty Spoiler-Free Summary
Discover the spoiler-free summary of The Great McGinty (1940). Get a concise overview without any spoilers.
In a bustling Depression‑era town where every street corner hums with the clatter of politics and possibility, the city itself feels like a character—its neon signs flickering over back‑room deals, its crowds swayed by promises whispered from smoky office doors. The film rolls out in a brisk, tongue‑in‑cheek flashback, letting the audience hear the story from the man who lived it while the world around him sways between desperation and bravado. The tone is unapologetically two‑fisted: sharp jokes land as hard as a punch, and the absurdity of a corrupt machine is played for both laughs and a lingering sense of unease.
Enter Dan McGinty, a wandering bartender whose knack for quick work catches the eye of the city’s behind‑the‑scenes power brokers. He is a drifter with a talent for “getting things done,” and the political engine, always hunting for fresh hands that can move the pieces, promptly recruits him. As McGinty steps deeper into the machine, his street‑wise instincts translate into a rapid climb, and the audience watches a savvy outsider become an indispensable enforcer, his every move a blend of cunning and raw energy.
The bosses, ever hungry for a public face, engineer a bold experiment: they install McGinty as a nominal “reform” mayor, a tidy veneer meant to reassure a weary populace. The catch—he must appear respectable enough to win the voters’ trust, which means a marriage of convenience to the upright and earnest Catherine. Their union is a calculated partnership, designed to lend credibility while keeping the underlying power structure intact.
What follows is a playful tug‑of‑war between ambition and conscience. McGinty’s growing familiarity with Catherine’s honest ideals begins to shade his outlook, hinting at the inevitable clash between personal gain and the flicker of true reform. The film delights in that tension, leaving the audience to wonder how long a man can dance on the edge of corruption before the music changes.
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