THE DEVIL AND DANIEL WEBSTER was first previewed as HERE IS A MAN on July 12, 1941. Although its overall content is similar, some stylistic flourishes and edits differ between that earlier print and the subsequent cut, titled ALL THAT MONEY CAN BUY. Those differences are presented here, with each “final” excerpt followed by the preview version.
Professor Jeff Smith walks us through the basics of continuity editing and shows how William Dieterle’s faustian fever dream adheres to that code while testing the limits of its expressive potential.