Critically derided during its premier as technically flawed. An all-talkie, it was reported to have a inconsistent sound level between close-ups (in which the actors appeared terrified) and long shots. The players spoke their lines haltingly, apparently trying to catch a swinging boom microphone.
Although the film's copyright was renewed in 1956, it does not appear to have been shown on television. 16mm prints of early Warner Bros. films, including sound-on-disc films, were made in the 1950s for distribution to local television package, and some early sound films now survive (particularly Don Juan (1926), The Jazz Singer (1927) and Lights of New York (1928)) only because of those prints. It is unclear why this film is not among them. Because it was one of the studio's greatest successes and was then less than thirty years old, it appears unlikely that it was simply overlooked. It may be that a sufficiently complete set of picture and sound elements could not be located at that time.
Vitaphone production reels #2851-2860; Warner Bros.' fourth 100% all-talking feature length production.
This is a lost film. A silent trailer survives, because film preservationist Heather Linville's aunt found a rusty film can at a flea market, purchased it, and gave it to Linville when she returned to Ohio for her family's Christmas get-together.