sentences:  Walsh had previously worked with Cagney on "The Roaring Twenties" (in 1939) and "The Strawberry Blonde" (in 1941).However, Cagney was unhappy with the studio's decision to hire Walsh; in part, because he requested Frank McHugh be in the film, but Warner turned his friend down in an attempt to cut costs.Warner bought the rights to the story from Virginia Kellogg for $2,000.